◎胡立宗

France became the first country to open its files on UFOs last week when the national space agency unveiled a website documenting more than 1,600 sightings spanning five decades.

法國上週成為第一個公開幽浮檔案的國家，法國國家太空研究中心已將50年間、超過1,600筆目擊紀錄公開上網。

The online archives, which will be updated as new cases are reported, catalogues in minute detail cases ranging from the easily dismissed to a handful that continue to perplex even hard-nosed scientists.

此一將繼續更新最新案例的線上資料庫，詳細收錄了一些案例，從不值一哂的案例、到連不信神鬼的科學家都無法回答的難解之謎，一應俱全。

UFOs have always generated intense interest along with countless conspiracy theories about secretive government cover-ups of findings deemed too sensitive or alarming for public consumption.

幽浮（UFO）總是能激起大眾的好奇心，更相關的陰謀論說法不知凡幾，包括政府掩蓋太敏感或可能引起大眾恐慌的內情。

"Cases such as the lady who reported seeing an object that looked like a flying roll of toilet paper" are clearly not worth investigating, said Jacques Patenet, the aeronautical engineer who heads the office for the study of "non-identified aerospatial phenomena."

「像一位女士家看到很像一捲衛生紙的物體飛過這類案例」，當然不值得繼續調查，主管「不明航太現象」研究單位的航太技師帕迪涅說。

But many others involving multiple sightings -- in at least one case involving thousands of people across France -- and evidence such as radar trackings showing flight patterns that defy the laws of physics are taken very seriously.

但其他有多人目擊—包括至少一起由全法數千人目睹的案件，以及雷達紀錄顯示飛行模式違反物理學原理的案例，則會被認真看待。

新聞字彙

document：名詞，公文、文件；動詞，（以文件）證明、為…提供文件。He failed to document enough evidence to defend his client. （他提不出足夠證據為當事人辯護。）

conspiracy theory：一般直譯為「陰謀論」，英文在使用此詞時，多半指對史實有不同的論點，知名案例如「甘迺迪總統是被美國秘密組織暗殺的」。

phenomenon：名詞，現象、天才或（演藝、運動界等）表現特出的人。Jordan has been described as "the Phenomenon" since college days.（喬丹從大學時代就被稱為「神奇小子」。）