離開
進入《中英對照讀新聞》’27 Club’ of dead rockers is a myth, says study 研究顯示，已故搖滾明星的「27俱樂部」純屬迷思
◎俞智敏
Fame boosts the risk of early death for rock stars but the claim that the peril is greatest at the age of 27 is false, according to a study published by the British Medical Journal (BMJ) .
根據一項由英國醫學期刊（BMJ）所出版的研究顯示，名氣會增加搖滾明星早夭的風險，但所謂27歲死亡風險最高的說法，則純屬子虛烏有。
The theory of the "27 Club" spread earlier last year when Amy Winehouse joined Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain and Brian Jones and other musicians who succumbed to the rock’n’roll lifestyle while in their 27th year.
在去年英國歌手艾美懷絲加入吉姆莫里森、寇特柯本、布萊恩瓊斯及其他在27歲那年就死於搖滾樂生活方式的音樂人行列之後，「27俱樂部」的理論更加廣為流傳。
Health statisticians of the Queensland University of Technology in Australia put the "27 Club" hypothesis to the test. They compiled a data base of 1,046 musicians -- solo artists and band members -- who had a No.1 album in the British charts between 1956 and 2007.
澳洲昆士蘭科技大學的衛生統計人員，就拿「27俱樂部」的假說進行試驗。他們建立了共1046位音樂人、包括個人與樂團成員在內的資料庫，這些音樂人都曾在1956年至2007年間得過英國專輯排行榜冠軍。
During the period under study, 71 of the musicians died, equivalent to seven percent of the sample. But there was no peak at all in deaths at the age of 27. On the other hand, musicians in their 20s and 30s were two to three times likelier to die prematurely than the general British population.
在研究的這段期間，只有71位樂手死亡，相當於樣本中的7％，但卻未顯示出27歲是死亡高峰期。但在另一方面，20、30歲的樂手早死機率，確實較英國一般人口高出2到3倍。
The "27 Club" gained currency with Winehouse’s death in July, prompting the explanation that musicians often become famous in their early twenties, and their risk-taking peaks four to five years later.
隨著懷絲在7月間去世，「27俱樂部」的說法越來越盛行。最常見的一種解釋指稱，音樂人通常在20出頭時成名，而他們的危險行為則常在4到5年後達到高峰。
A more insidious argument was that musicians craving immortality subconsciously became bigger risk-takers, or even committed suicide, in order to join rock’s dead elite. (AFP)
另一種較陰謀論的主張則認為，潛意識裡渴求獲得不朽地位的音樂人更容易從事危險行為，或甚至自殺，以便加入搖滾樂的已故菁英行列。（法新社）
新聞辭典
succumb：動詞，指因疾病或受傷等而死亡，如Thousands of cows have succumbed to the disease in the past few months.（過去數月，已有數千頭乳牛因為罹患這種病而死亡。）
currency：名詞，指流行、傳播、通用、被廣泛接受，如His ideas enjoyed wide currency during the last century.（他的想法在上個世紀曾獲得廣泛認同。）
insidious：形容詞，指陰險的，暗中危害的，或（如疾病等）不知不覺中加劇的、潛伏的，如High-blood pressure is an insidious condition which has few symptoms.（高血壓是一種少有症狀的潛伏性疾病。）
