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It's the ultimate repair tool. |
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A silicone material that can be shaped like Play-Doh, can bond to almost any surface and after a few hours of exposure to air becomes a super tough, durable rubber. |
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這是終極修理工具，一種能夠像培樂多黏土一樣塑形的矽膠材料，幾乎可以黏附於任何表面，在空氣中暴露幾個小時之後，即可成為一種超級堅韌而且耐久的橡膠。 |
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Sugru, named for the Irish word for "play," is now being used to fix leaky pipes, create custom-made handles and even help a disabled, fingerless canoeist modify one of her paddles. |
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「塑格魯」這個名稱取自愛爾蘭語中的「玩耍」一詞，現在這種材料已用於修理破漏管線、製造訂做手把，甚至可協助手指殘缺的獨木舟運動員修改她的一支划槳。 |
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Unlike existing moldable putty, Sugru doesn't go rock hard when dry, but stays flexible, waterproof and heat resistant up to 180 degrees Celsius. |
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不同於既有的可塑性油灰，塑格魯乾掉之後不會硬得像石頭一樣，而是會保持彈性，還能防水，並可耐熱高達攝氏一百八十度。 |
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"We think that Sugru can be something as big as or bigger than duct tape, superglue or anything else that you use to repair," says its Irish-born inventor Jane Ni Dhulchaointigh. |
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「我們認為塑格魯可以和封箱膠帶、三秒膠或其他各種你用來修理的工具一樣風行，或甚至更加風行，」出生於愛爾蘭的發明家簡恩．妮．杜爾奧伊蒂說。 |
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However, like many inventions before, it only came into existence by chance. |
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When she was a design student at the Royal College of Art in London, Ni Dhulchaointigh had been trying out new combinations of materials when she started mixing silicone adhesive and wood-waste into small balls. |
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不過，如同以前的許多發明，這種物質也是意外帶來的結果。妮．杜爾奧伊蒂在倫敦的皇家藝術學院唸設計時，嘗試了各種材料的新組合，而將矽黏著劑與木材廢料混合成一團團小球。 |
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They looked like wood when finished, but when you threw them on the floor they would bounce. |
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It was only as she began using bits of the material around her home to repair things that she had what she calls her "eureka moment" and came to realize its real usefulness and application. |
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這種物質完成之後看起來像木材，但丟到地板上會彈跳。直到她開始在家中用這種物質修理物品，才突然獲得她所謂的「頓悟」，而理解到這種物質真正的用處與應用方式。 |
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"Every time I'd make up a batch of it for my experiments, I'd have bits left over," Ni Dhulchaointigh said. |
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"I modified a kitchen knife that was really uncomfortable. |
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My sink plug was just slightly too small, so I just made a little ring to make that work." |
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「我每次為了實驗而製造一批這種物質，總是會有少數剩餘，」妮．杜爾奧伊蒂說：「我修補了一支很不好握的廚用刀。我的水槽排水孔塞有點太小，所以我用這種物質做了一個小環，讓排水孔塞能夠發揮作用。」 |
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Perhaps, the most unique thing about Sugru is that its practical uses are being demonstrated not by its inventor, but by the general public. |
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Thousands of people have posted comments and pictures on Twitter, YouTube and other Web sites showing how they have put the material to good use. |
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塑格魯最獨特的一點，也許就是其實際用途並非由其發明者示範，而是一般大眾。數以千計的人士在推特、YouTube 及其他網站上發表了評論與照片，展現他們如何為這種材料找出好用法。 |
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"We get emails every day with pictures and stories of what people have done. |
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They do things with it that we couldn't have dreamed of. |
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It feels like magic sometimes," Ni Dhulchaointigh said. |
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「我們每天都收到許多電子郵件，內容是對方運用這種材料的照片與故事。他們以這種材料做出許多我們想都想不到的事情。有時候，感覺就像魔法一樣，」妮．杜爾奧伊蒂說。 |
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