墨水一般用来写字，但是有一款墨水，并不用于书写，而且看上去很不起眼，却在多个国家的选举中发挥了重要作用。
The ink that's key to a huge election
by Amrit Dhillon
It is the classic picture flashed across the world during every Indian general election – smiling voters coming out of a polling booth, holding up a finger daubed with blue ink, flaunting it as a badge of honour for having voted in the world's largest democratic exercise.
classic /ˈklæsɪk/ adj. 典型的、有代表性的
flash /flæʃ/ v. 飞速移动
Indian /ˈɪndiən/ adj. 印度的
general election 大选
voter /ˈvəʊtə(r)/ n. 选民、投票者（由vote加上表示人的后缀-er）
polling /ˈpəʊlɪŋ/ booth /buːð/ 投票亭
hold up 举起
daub /dɔːb/ v. 涂抹
flaunt /flɔːnt/ v. 夸耀
badge /bædʒ/ n. 徽章
democratic /ˌdeməˈkrætɪk/ adj. 民主的
exercise /ˈeksəsaɪz/ n. 运用、使用
Voting in this year's general election kicks off on 11 April and, because of the size of the country, will last for six weeks to ensure that some 900 million Indians get the chance to cast their votes. The Election Commission has been girding its loins for some weeks now in preparation for the mammoth logistical exercise.
kick off 开始
ensure /ɪnˈʃʊə(r)/ v. 确保
some /sʌm/ adv. 大约（用于数字之前）
Indian /ˈɪndiən/ n. 印度人
cast one's vote 投票
commission /kəˈmɪʃ(ə)n/ n. 委员会
gird /ɡɜːd/ one's loins /lɔɪnz/ 准备好做某事
mammoth /ˈmæməθ/ adj. 庞大的
logistical /ləˈdʒɪstɪk(ə)l/ adj. 后勤保障的
But its first order of business – as it has been for decades – was to get in touch with a small company in Mysore, in the country's south, and order vast amounts of a special kind of ink.
first order of business 第一步做的事
decade /ˈdekeɪd/ n. 十年
get in touch with someone 和某人联系
vast /vɑːst/ adj. 巨大的
The ink is essential to the nation's democratic process. It is indelible, thus preventing electoral fraud and double voting. Drawn with a brush or stick on the nail and cuticle of the forefinger of the left hand, it is designed to last for weeks, until a new nail grows.
essential /ɪˈsenʃ(ə)l/ adj. 必不可少的
process /ˈprəʊses/ n. 过程
indelible /ɪnˈdeləb(ə)l/ adj. 洗不掉的
thus /ðʌs/ adv. 因此、因而
electoral /ɪˈlekt(ə)r(ə)l/ adj. 跟选举有关的
fraud /frɔːd/ n. 欺诈、诈骗
nail /neɪl/ n. 指甲
cuticle /ˈkjuːtɪk(ə)l/ n. 指甲根部的皮肤
forefinger /ˈfɔːfɪŋɡə(r)/ n. 食指
The government-owned company Mysore Paints & Varnish has been making the ink, based on a secret chemical formula, since 1962, when, in the run-up to the third general election after independence, the Election Commission asked the company to make an ink that could not be rubbed or washed off.
based on 基于
chemical /ˈkemɪk(ə)l/ adj. 化学的
formula /ˈfɔːmjulə/ n. 配方
run-up 助跑（引申为重要事件前的准备阶段）
independence /ˌɪndɪˈpendəns/ n. 独立
rub /rʌb/ v. 搓、擦
wash off 洗掉、洗去
This year, about 100 employees are working on the batch, which is made up of more than 2.6 million 10ml plastic vials. The vials used to be made of glass but breakage was an issue. What hasn't changed, however, is the secret formula.
employee /ɪmˈplɔɪiː/ n. 雇员、员工
batch /bætʃ/ n. 一批（货物）
be made up of 由…组成
vial /vaɪl/ n. 小瓶子
breakage /ˈbreɪkɪdʒ/ n. 破碎
"I don't know what the secret formula is myself!" said Mysore Paints & Varnish managing director Dr Chandrashekhar Doddamani. "I am not allowed to know. Only two of our chemists at any given time know the secret and pass it on when they retire."
chemist /ˈkemɪst/ n. 化学家
pass on 传递、传授
Security at the plant is strict. Frisking, CCTV cameras, passwords to enter certain areas and a ban on bringing lunch boxes are among the measures used to protect the formula.
security /sɪˈkjʊərəti/ n. 安全保卫
plant /plɑːnt/ n. 工厂
strict /strɪkt/ adj. 严格的
frisk /frɪsk/ v. 搜身
CCTV 闭路电视（CCTV camera指监控摄像头）
password /ˈpɑːswɜːd/ n. 口令、密码（由pass和word组成）
ban /bæn/ n. 禁令
measure /ˈmeʒə(r)/ n. 措施
When ready, the ink will be dispatched to one million polling booths across India. But that is not the only place it goes. The company exports the ink to 30 countries from Thailand and Malaysia to Afghanistan and Nigeria.
dispatch /dɪˈspætʃ/ v. 分发
export /ɪkˈspɔːt/ v. 出口
Thailand /ˈtaɪlænd/ n. 泰国
Malaysia /məˈleɪziə/ n. 马来西亚
Afghanistan /æfˈɡænɪstæn/ n. 阿富汗
Nigeria /naɪˈdʒɪəriə/ n. 尼日利亚（非洲国家）
As a civil servant, Doddamani has served in many posts and headed many corporations but being at the helm of Mysore Paints & Varnish is more than a run-of-the-mill job for him. "It's an honour to play a role in the functioning of Indian democracy. And it's a real achievement for everyone in the company to have kept the formula a secret for all this time," he said.
civil /ˈsɪv(ə)l/ servant /ˈsɜːv(ə)nt/ 公务员、公职人员
serve /sɜːv/ v. 工作、效力
post /pəʊst/ n. 职位
head /hed/ v. 领导、主管
corporation /ˌkɔːpəˈreɪʃ(ə)n/ n. 企业、公司
helm /helm/ n. 舵（at the helm意思是掌舵）
run-of-the-mill 普通的、平淡的
function /ˈfʌŋkʃ(ə)n/ v. 运作
democracy /dɪˈmɒkrəsi/ n. 民主
achievement /əˈtʃiːvmənt/ n. 成就（由achieve加后缀-ment变成名词）
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