托福閱讀材之如何打擊城市犯罪

Can a tree help prevent crime? It just might. Two new studies, led by US Forest Service researchers, took a closer look at urban green space in Philadelphia, Baltimore and Youngstown, Ohio. In each of these cities, adding green space to crime-ridden areas helped reduce crime rates, the researchers found.

種樹可以預(yù)防犯罪嗎?有可能哦。美國(guó)林務(wù)局研究員做的兩項(xiàng)最新研究仔細(xì)調(diào)查了費(fèi)城、巴爾的摩和俄亥俄州揚(yáng)斯敦的市區(qū)綠化情況。研究人員發(fā)現(xiàn)，在這三個(gè)城市中，在治安糟糕的區(qū)域增加綠化面積可以有效減少犯罪率。

In 2000, Philadelphia launched a program to plant vegetation along roadways to help soak up rainwater. Researchers looked at 52 of these vegetation plots and compared them with control plots that didn't receive the greenery upgrade. After tracking 14 types of crime in nearby areas, researchers found that narcotics possession in those areas decreased by 18 to 27 percent, even as the rate for the rest of the city rose by 65 percent.

2000年，費(fèi)城啟動(dòng)了一個(gè)項(xiàng)目，在道路兩旁種植綠化帶吸收雨水。研究者們觀察了52處綠化點(diǎn)，與沒有進(jìn)行綠化改造的對(duì)照區(qū)進(jìn)行對(duì)比。在追蹤了附近14種犯罪手段之后，研究者發(fā)現(xiàn)，這些區(qū)域的毒品持有量下降到27%，下降了18個(gè)百分點(diǎn)，盡管這一數(shù)字在城市的其它地區(qū)還上漲了65個(gè)百分點(diǎn)。

Michelle Kondo, a social scientist and lead researcher with the forest service, speculated the increased presence of city trucks and vans in the landscaped areas — for planting and maintenance — was enough to deter illicit activity.

林務(wù)局首席研究員、社會(huì)學(xué)家米歇爾•近藤推測(cè)，在這些區(qū)域負(fù)責(zé)綠化和養(yǎng)護(hù)的市政車輛增加，有效阻止了違法活動(dòng)。

A similar effect was noted in Youngstown, Ohio — a depressed Midwestern town known for its high rates of crime and unemployment. From 2010 to 2014, city officials embarked on a project to reclaim some of the city's empty lots and derelict buildings by converting them into green space. In 2011, they added another initiative that gave local communities funding to plant green space in vacant lots in whatever method they chose — lawns, community gardens, playgrounds and more.

在俄亥俄州的揚(yáng)斯敦也發(fā)現(xiàn)了類似的情況。這是一座經(jīng)濟(jì)蕭條的中西部城市，以高犯罪率和失業(yè)率聞名。從2010年到2014年，政府開啟了一項(xiàng)回收城市空地和無(wú)主建筑的計(jì)劃，把這些區(qū)域改造成綠地。2011年，他們又啟動(dòng)了一項(xiàng)綠地基金計(jì)劃，鼓勵(lì)當(dāng)?shù)孛癖娨愿鞣N形式綠化空地——無(wú)論是草坪、社區(qū)花園、運(yùn)動(dòng)場(chǎng)還是其它。

When Kondo and her team compared crime around these vegetation plots with undeveloped plots in nearby areas, they found the areas around new green spaces had lower crime rates than elsewhere in the city. Interestingly, the crime reduction was different depending upon the type of green space that was developed. For example, lots that were planted with grass and maintained by contractors saw a reduction in property crimes such as theft and burglary, whereas community-maintained plots saw a sharp reduction in violent crime. This suggests that different types of green space could be developed to deter certain types of crime.

近藤和她的團(tuán)隊(duì)對(duì)比了這些綠化區(qū)域和附近未綠化區(qū)域的犯罪情況，發(fā)現(xiàn)新綠化區(qū)域的犯罪率比城市其它地區(qū)的犯罪率低。有趣的是，開發(fā)的綠地類型不同，所減少的犯罪類型也不同。比如，種植了草坪并由承包商維護(hù)的綠地，周圍盜竊和入室行竊之類的財(cái)產(chǎn)犯罪就減少了，而由社區(qū)維護(hù)的綠地附近，暴力犯罪大幅下降。這就表明可以通過(guò)開發(fā)不同類型的綠地來(lái)阻止特定類型的犯罪活動(dòng)。

Kondo's study collaborates another forest service study conducted by researcher Morgan Grove on the link between lawn care and crime in downtown Baltimore. Grove's study looked at the level of lawn maintenance in 1,000 residential yards throughout Baltimore County. His team looked at everything from tree cover to litter to the presence of garden hoses. Not surprisingly, Grove found that well-maintained lawns were linked to lower crime rates than lawns that were given less care.

與近藤的研究相合作的林務(wù)局另外一項(xiàng)研究中，研究員摩根•格魯夫研究了巴爾的摩市中心犯罪率與草坪維護(hù)情況之間的關(guān)聯(lián)。他調(diào)查了整個(gè)巴爾的摩郡1000戶人家院子的草坪維護(hù)情況。他的團(tuán)隊(duì)查看了所有細(xì)節(jié)，包括林木植被、垃圾和花園的澆水管。果然，格魯夫發(fā)現(xiàn)，維護(hù)良好的草坪周圍的犯罪率比維護(hù)欠佳的草坪周圍的犯罪率要低。

It's tempting to use income as the connection. After all, if you have the time and money to water your lawn, you probably live in a neighborhood that sees less crime. But Grove argued that the greenery itself helped to deter crime, by announcing to would-be criminals that there are "eyes on the street" that care for their neighborhood and would be more likely to report a crime.

當(dāng)然你很容易把這個(gè)與收入聯(lián)系起來(lái)。畢竟，如果你有時(shí)間和金錢為草坪澆水，那么你很有可能住在較為安全的社區(qū)。但是格魯夫認(rèn)為，是綠化本身減少了犯罪，綠地是一種宣示，警告潛在的罪犯“街上有眼睛”照看著社區(qū)，并且發(fā)生了犯罪會(huì)更有可能上報(bào)。

The takeaway from these two studies is that urban green space may help to deter crime and could be a useful tool in city-wide crime prevention policies. We already know greenery is beautiful to look at and can help improve mood and health while reducing pollution. Now we can add crime-fighting to the list of vegetation's many benefits.

這兩項(xiàng)研究的重要發(fā)現(xiàn)是，城市綠地有助于阻止犯罪，可以作為整個(gè)城市預(yù)防犯罪政策的有力工具。我們已經(jīng)知道，綠色植物既養(yǎng)眼，又有助于改善情緒、提升健康狀況、減少污染?，F(xiàn)在我們又可以給植物的種種好處再加上一條“打擊犯罪”。