很多人都有這樣的經驗：用桌面電腦時回形針掉進鍵盤，當你把鍵盤翻轉時，跌出來的不只是回形針，還有餅干碎、灰塵和其他垃圾。
      但清潔鍵盤裏面需要罐裝壓縮氣、吸塵機。要清潔得徹底就要有耐性的把幾十個字鍵拔出來。這樣多工序，相信很多人一年也不會清理一次，或甚至用壞電腦都不會清理。
      其實最需要清潔的不是鍵盤裏面：
      There's good news and bad news about what lies on the surfaces of your computer keyboard, mouse, smartphone or tablet.
      The bad news: in all likelihood they're absolutely covered in tiny bugs, which could potentially include bacteria and viruses such as parainfluenza, E. coli, C. difficile and drug-resistant MRSA. If you share the device, or commonly let others use it, the danger of it harbouring some scary germs is even higher.
      Bugs是小蟲；病菌、病毒也俗稱bugs，與germs的意思一樣。最危險的是字鍵表面，因為它們都充滿細菌，一大堆細菌名稱，看起來都令人心寒。而最令人擔心的不只是電腦鍵盤有這個問題，連滑鼠、智能手機和平板電腦也一樣。多人用的設備就更多細菌。

      勤洗手百毒不侵
      說完壞消息就要告訴你好消息：不用太擔心。有傳染病專家說，其實若你有良好洗手習慣，從觸摸電腦等設備染病的機會微乎其微：
      The good news: there's no real reason for concern, especially if you've developed good handwashing habits. The odds(機會) of getting sick from the bacteria(細菌) and viruses(病毒) that linger on computers and gadgets - even those stationed in the public and used by many grubby-handed people - are about as minuscule as the tiny organisms themselves, says Dr. Alison McGeer, an infectious disease specialist at Toronto's Mount Sinai Hospital.
      Grubby的意思是生蛆的或骯髒的，grubby-handed people是那些雙手骯髒的人。Minuscule用作形容詞解微小的或小寫字的，用作名詞則解(中古抄本的)小寫字體，與miniscule的解釋一樣。上述一段中的minuscule是形容詞，解微小的。
      雖然這樣說，但實際研究數字卻也很驚人︰
      According to a 2008 study co-authored by Charles Gerba at the University of Arizona, viruses and bacteria on computer equipment typically thrive(茂盛生長) in high numbers, even though people have been conditioned to regularly use sanitizing wipes(消毒紙巾) and sprays.

      九成手機有細菌
      原來家中的電腦比辦公室的電腦更骯髒，尤其是用得最多的E、S和T三個字鍵；當然還有return和spacebar。另外，根據London School of Hygiene去年的報告，接受檢測的手機百分之九十二有細菌，百分之十八還帶有fecal bacteria(與糞便有關的細菌)。底是這樣：
      Bacteria and viruses are omnipresent(無處不在), always within reach, so avoiding them entirely is impossible. Getting germs on your hands isn't necessarily a problem, as long as they don't find their way in your body.
      細菌病毒無處不在，要保障健康最重要的防都是勤洗手。有時候真會懷疑，既然避無可避，倒不如不要告訴我，免得做什麼都有心理障礙。Jessica Snyder Sachs的Good Germs, Bad Germs: Health and Survival in a Bacterial World，談的是在充滿病菌世界中的生存之道。

      文︰子慧