第一段:
At Chilli Kitchen in Beijing, spicy and mouth-numbing Sichuandishes are laid out family style. Using red chopsticks, diners dive intosteaming bowls of pork won tons bathed in fragrant chili oil and sesame seeds,and rummage through platters filled with dried red chili peppers to unearthjuicy bits of roasted fish.
Sharing food is a central feature of how Chinese people, likemany elsewhere in the world, convey affection. Parents pick up choice morselsand place them in their children's bowls as an expression of love; childrenserve their grandparents to show their respect; and bosses do it as a gestureof magnanimity toward their employees.。
Now, concerns are growing that the country's long traditionof sharing food could also accelerate the spread of the coronavirus. Thegovernment has zeroed in on a ubiquitous utensil: chopsticks.
第二段:
State news agencies are calling it a "dining tablerevolution." Dr. Zhong Nanshan and Dr. Zhang Wenhong, outspoken infectiousdisease experts who have become celebrities since the start of the outbreak,have voiced their support. The authorities across the country are runningadvertisements with slogans like: "The distance between you and civilizeddining is just one pair of serving chopsticks."
Some restaurants and diners have heeded the call.They are offering discounts to diners who use serving chopsticks. In theeastern Chinese city of Hangzhou, more than 100 prominent restaurants haveformed a "Serving Chopsticks Alliance."
Still, resistance is strong. Many see sharing food with one'sown chopsticks as among the most authentic expressions of China's communalculture and emphasis on family, no less integral than hugging is to Americansor the cheek kiss is to the French. Serving chopsticks are typically associatedwith formal settings, like banquets and meals with strangers.
第三段:
A small, recent experiment by government experts who foundthat the level of bacteria in dishes for which serving chopsticks were used wasas little as 0.4 percent the level of dishes shared in the regular fashion.
Sharing food with family and friends is just asdeeply ingrained, and serving chopsticks are sometimes seen as undermining thatexpression of closeness. Just asking for the extra utensils can be awkwardbecause it could imply that you think your fellow diners might be unwell.
But unless a specific law is enacted, changing habits will bean uphill battle, particularly outside of the big cities.