Host: You’ve likely seen one, probably lots of them by now, those funny-looking little 1)pixelated squares that have been popping up on 2)billboards and in magazine and newspaper ads. They’re called QR codes, or Quick Response Codes, and you’re supposed to scan them with your cell phone camera. Marketing departments all over the country are coming up with clever ways to use them.
　　Back in 1994 when 3)barcodes ruled the digital scanning universe, the automotive 4)components company Denso Wave Incorporated came up with a better way to track car parts for Toyota: QR codes. Now they’re more than just 5)axle trackers.
　　At the salad restaurant Sweetgreen in Washington, D.C., there’s a huge square on the wall hanging over the napkin 6)dispenser.
　　Customer: It’s like one of those scanner things, where you just scan it and it tells you whatever information is behind it.
　　A smartphone app will interpret the picture and link the phone to a website. Sweetgreen was an early adopter of QR.
　　McKee Floyd (Sweetgreen): We would use them in stores and you 7)snap a picture of the code. And then the link directs you to some sort of website. It could be a ticket to something. It could be a 8)coupon.
　　McKee Floyd is director of brand development for Sweetgreen. But Floyd is a QR 9)skeptic. She says it takes too long to unlock your phone, fire up the app, take the picture, and wait for the page to load.
　　Floyd: The issue that I have with QR codes is that, you know, marketing is a little bit like telling a joke. And the longer the joke, the better the 10)punch line has to be. And QR code is a really long joke.
　　Oliver Williams (Oliver Digital): That’s partly why there hasn’t been a massive 11)uptake, although that’s changing as the smartphone market starts to expand.
　　Oliver Williams, founder of the online marketing agency Oliver Digital, says they’re used for digital treasure hunts, for grocery shopping. They’re on cupcakes, 12)coasters and in 13)catalogs. In Japan, where smartphones are more widely used...
　　Williams: There are people that are actually having QR codes put on their tombstones.
　　主持人：你可能见过它——现在你大概已经见过不少了，这些怪异的像素方块图在广告牌、杂志和报纸广告上随处可见。它们就是（二维码中的）QR码，也就是“快速反应码”。你可以用手机上的相机将其扫描下来。全美国的营销部门在二维码的应用上可谓各出奇招呢。
　　早在1994年，当条形码还是数码扫描界的主流时，一家汽车零部件制造商——（日本）电装Wave公司想出了一个更好的方法来追踪丰田汽车零件：QR码。如今，二维码的作用可不仅仅是车轴追踪装置了。
　　在华盛顿特区的甜绿沙拉餐厅里，餐巾分发机上方的墙上挂着一个巨大的方块图案。
　　顾客：它大概是那些可以扫描的玩意儿，只要扫一下，它就会告诉你里面隐藏了什么信息。
　　（只需使用）智能手机应用就能破译这张图片，并将手机自动连上一个网站。甜绿餐厅很早以前就开始采用二维码技术了。
　　麦基·佛洛依德(甜绿餐厅)：我们会在店内使用二维码，你可以将图片拍下来。这个链接可以自动联网。它可能是某些产品的消费券，或是一张优惠券。
　　麦基·佛洛依德是甜绿餐厅的品牌发展部经理，但她本人并不确定二维码有多大效用。把手机解锁，启动该应用，拍照，等待网页载入——她认为这个过程太浪费时间了。
　　佛洛依德：对我来说，二维码的问题是……你知道，做营销有点像讲笑话。笑话越长，点睛之笔就得越有趣。而二维码确实是一个很长的笑话。
　　奥利弗·威廉姆斯(奥利弗数码公司)：这也是二维码没有得到大规模应用的原因之一。不过，随着智能手机市场逐步扩大，情况正在发生改变。
　　奥利弗·威廉姆斯是一家在线营销代理商——奥利弗数码公司的创始人。他说，人们常用二维码进行电子“寻宝”，或者用来买东西。它们还出现在纸杯蛋糕、杯垫和产品目录上。而在智能手机普及率更高的日本……
　　威廉姆斯：还真有人将二维码印在他们的墓碑上呢。