A very lucky person has won the largest single lottery payout in United States history - $758.7 million.
一位幸运彩民中了美国史上最大的单注彩票大奖，奖金高达7.587亿美元。
A 53-year-old hospital worker from Massachusetts, Mavis Wanczyk, came forward Thursday to claim her prize in the Powerball drawing.
周四，马萨诸塞州53岁的医院工作人员马维斯·万齐克（Mavis Wanczyk）来到美国强力球彩票中心兑奖。
She said she had quit her job and wanted to take some time to relax.
她说自己已经辞职，好好放松一下。
Lottery officials say she chose to take a single payment of $480 million, or $336 million after taxes.
彩票官员表示，她选择一次性领走4.8亿美元奖金（税后约3.36亿美元）。
Winners can also choose to receive the jackpot in 30 payments over 29 years.
获奖者也可以选择在29年内分30次领取这注头奖。
The winning numbers were drawn Wednesday night in the Powerball, which is played in most U.S. states.
周三晚上，强力球彩票中心公布了中奖号码，该类彩票在美国多数地区销售。
The matching numbers were 6, 7, 16, 23 and 26, with the Powerball number 4.
这次中奖号码为6、7、16、23、26，而强力球号码为4。
Wanczyk bought her ticket Wednesday at a store in a small Massachusetts town.
周三晚，万齐克在马萨诸塞州一座小镇的商店内购买了这张彩票。
She said for some of the winning numbers, she chose birthdays of people she knows.
她说，自己是根据一些认识的人的生日选择的号码。
The jackpot was the second-largest overall lottery prize in U.S. history.
这注头奖是美国史上开出的第二大彩票奖金。
The biggest jackpot ever was a $1.6 billion Powerball payout in 2016.
第一大注头奖是2016年强力球彩票开出的16亿美元巨额奖金。
But that prize was shared among three winners.
不过，那次奖金由3名中奖彩民平分。
Lottery officials reported the odds of winning Wednesday's Powerball were one in 292.2 million.
彩票中心官员表示，周三这期强力球彩票的中奖几率只有2.922亿分之一。
The Powerball lottery is held twice a week, with numbers drawn from two containers.
强力球彩票每周开奖两次，中奖号码从两个容器中抽取。
One container holds 69 numbered balls, from which five are drawn.
其中一个容器内有69个数字球，从中抽取5组中奖号码。
Another ball – known as the Powerball - is selected from the other container.
而强力球的中奖号码从另一个容器中抽取。
To win the full jackpot, a person must match all six numbers.
想要中得头彩，必须与6组号码丝毫不差。
The jackpot continues to grow each time there is no top prize winner.
如果没人中得头奖，那么头奖的奖金会持续累积。
The last time someone matched all six Powerball numbers was June 10, when a California man won $447.8 million.
上次有人买中6组强力球号码是在6月10日，当时一名加州男子领走了4.478亿美元。
The jackpots have been growing larger because there are fewer big winners.
由于中头奖的几率小，头奖的奖金越积越高。
This is because lottery officials have made changes to the game that make the odds of winning more difficult, The Washington Post reports.
《华盛顿邮报》报道称，因为彩票中心的官员修改了中奖规则，所以很难中得头奖。
Two years ago, the chances of winning were about 1 in 175 million.
两年前的中奖几率约为1.75亿分之一。
This compares to the latest drawing's odds of one in 292.2 million.
而最近这次开奖的中奖几率为2.922亿分之一。
This resulted from a change to the game in October 2015, when Powerball increased the number of balls from 59 to 69, according to the newspaper.
据《华盛顿邮报》报道，2015年10月，中奖规则发生调整，当时强力球彩票中心将59个奖球增至69个。
Experts say the bigger the jackpot gets, the amount of media coverage also increases, driving ticket sales higher and higher.
专家指出，头奖越高，媒体报道的次数会越多，那么彩票的销量也就越高。
Several studies have shown that lower-income Americans buy most of the lottery tickets.
一些研究发现，大多数购买彩票的彩民为美国的低收入群体。
But the huge lottery payoffs do not only benefit the winners. U.S. states participating in lotteries also get a percentage of revenue, amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars.
不过，巨额的彩票奖金不仅使中奖者获益，参与彩票的美国各州也会按比例纷获数亿美元的奖金。
Some states put the lottery earnings in a general state fund, which can be used for many things.
一些州将彩票收益纳入普通的州基金，可用于任何支出。
But many others set the money aside for specific purposes - such as education, environmental programs or anti-crime efforts.
但是其它很多州将这笔资金用于特定用途，例如教育、环保或是预防犯罪等项目。
Some states even earn more money from the lottery than from income taxes on companies, according to Reuters news agency.
据路透社报道，一些州因彩票获得的资金甚至超过了对企业所征收的所得税。
I'm Bryan Lynn.
布莱恩·林恩为您播报。
【词汇解析】
1.come forward 涌现
No witnesses have come forward.
没有目击证人站出来。
2.income taxes 所得税
They have brought down income taxes.
他们降低了所得税。
3.compares to 与...比较
This compares to the actual real GDP growth rate over the last ten years of 1.7%.
相比之下，过去10年中实际GDP增长率为1.7%。
4.participating in 参加；参与
The doctors take turns at participating in the mobile medical team.
医生们轮流参加巡回医疗队。
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