The U.S. is more than just the US (according to the ISO)

美国不仅仅是“美国”（根据 ISO 标准）

This has happened to me more than once in my career in the video streaming business. The business folks sign a deal that lets people watch video, but only in the U.S. This is what we call geofencing. We use software like MaxMind and others to ensure people are where they say they are. Pretty straightforward. You tell the software the locations you want people to be able to watch from, and there you go. 在我的视频流媒体职业生涯中，这种情况不止一次发生。商务部门签署了一项协议，允许用户观看视频，但仅限美国境内。这就是我们所说的地理围栏（geofencing）。我们使用 MaxMind 等软件来确保用户确实位于他们所声称的地点。这很简单：你告诉软件你希望用户从哪些地点观看，然后就可以了。

Great. You launch your video streaming service in the U.S., and a few days later, you get a call from Puerto Rico. It turns out THEY are a part of the U.S., too. You, being a savvy and well-read person, of course, know this, so what is the problem? 很好。你在美国推出了视频流媒体服务，几天后，你接到了来自波多黎各的电话。原来他们也是美国的一部分。作为一个精明且博学的人，你当然知道这一点，那么问题出在哪里呢？

The problem, it turns out, is that geofencing software determines location using a country code. More specifically, an International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 3166 country code. And it ALSO turns out that for some silly reason, Puerto Rico has its OWN country code: PR! That is because ISO3166 isn’t a list of country codes. It is: “The International Standard for country codes and codes for their subdivisions”. 事实证明，问题在于地理围栏软件使用国家代码来确定位置。更具体地说，是国际标准化组织（ISO）3166 国家代码。而且由于某种愚蠢的原因，波多黎各拥有自己的国家代码：PR！这是因为 ISO 3166 并不是一份单纯的国家代码列表，它是：“国家代码及其细分区域代码的国际标准”。

Subdivisions! What is this an HOA? But no, indeed, the ISO 3166 list is a list of country codes… and parts of countries. And it turns out that Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory (nee part of a country, nee a subdivision). 细分区域！这是业主协会（HOA）吗？但事实确实如此，ISO 3166 列表不仅包含国家代码，还包含国家的部分地区。而波多黎各恰好是美国的领地（即国家的一部分，即一个细分区域）。

OK, so your team, now privy to the new information, updates their country code list to include the territory of Puerto Rico: USPR. Oh, my friend, I can already hear you screaming: but the U.S. has more than one territory! And right you are, but the complaint only came from Puerto Rico, so the business folk consider this one done. But YOU are a nerd. So you want to fix it right. There are a few that you probably know off the top of your head: 好吧，你的团队现在获悉了这一新信息，更新了国家代码列表以包含波多黎各领地：USPR。噢，朋友，我已经听到你在尖叫了：但美国不止一个领地啊！你说得对，但投诉只来自波多黎各，所以商务人员认为这事儿解决了。但你是个极客，所以你想彻底解决它。你可能随口就能说出几个：

• U.S. Virgin Islands (VI) - a great vacation spot for those in the eastern half of the country. 美属维尔京群岛 (VI) - 对于美国东部的人来说，这是一个很棒的度假胜地。
• Guam (GU) - you might remember this one from high school history about the Second World War. 关岛 (GU) - 你可能在高中关于二战的历史课上记得这个名字。
• American Samoa (AS) - come on, they even put American in the NAME. Dead giveaway! 美属萨摩亚 (AS) - 得了吧，名字里甚至都带“美国”了，这简直是明摆着的！

That’s a pretty solid list, but there ARE two more that a lot of folks haven’t heard of: 这份名单已经很扎实了，但还有两个很多人没听说过的地方：

• The Northern Mariana Islands (MP) - a string of islands north of Guam with 47,000 people, all American! 北马里亚纳群岛 (MP) - 关岛以北的一串岛屿，有 4.7 万人口，全是美国人！
• The U.S. Minor Outlying Islands (UM) - What the hell is this?!? 美国本土外小岛屿 (UM) - 这到底是什么鬼！？

Turns out the U.S. owns 9 islands and atolls (an atoll is like an island, but, you know, barely there. Think cartoon island with a palm tree on it). One island in the Caribbean that is so hard to land on they put it in a class of its own, and 8 islands or atolls in the Pacific Ocean. Almost all of which are uninhabited nature preserves, with the exceptions of Wake Island and Midway Atoll, which have military bases on them (they were ALSO important in WWII - thank you to my high school history teacher and golf coach, Mr. Tyson. Go Wolves!). 原来美国拥有 9 个岛屿和环礁（环礁就像岛屿，但几乎没入水中，想象一下卡通里那种只有一棵棕榈树的小岛）。其中一个位于加勒比海的岛屿因为太难登陆而被单独归类，另外 8 个岛屿或环礁位于太平洋。它们几乎都是无人居住的自然保护区，只有威克岛和中途岛环礁除外，上面设有军事基地（它们在二战中也很重要——感谢我的高中历史老师兼高尔夫教练 Tyson 先生。加油，狼队！）。

One of the nature preserves, Palmyra Atoll, allows people (mostly scientists) to visit for research on wildlife conservation. Two at a time, four a year. 其中一个自然保护区，帕尔米拉环礁，允许人们（主要是科学家）前往进行野生动物保护研究。每次两人，每年四次。

So. Next time you are geofencing your application to the U.S only, remember that REALLY means the U.S. and its subdivisions. In ISO 3611 parlance, what your geofencing software will understand the whole U.S. is: US, AS, GU, MP, PR, VI, UM. 所以，下次当你为应用程序设置仅限美国境内的地理围栏时，请记住，这实际上意味着美国及其所有细分区域。用 ISO 3166 的术语来说，你的地理围栏软件所理解的“整个美国”应该是：US, AS, GU, MP, PR, VI, UM。

Because, hey, you don’t want those two scientists on Palmyra Atoll missing out on streaming free TV, movies, and live sports, right? Well, as of Friday, they won’t. :) 毕竟，你肯定不想让帕尔米拉环礁上的那两位科学家错过免费的电视、电影和体育直播，对吧？好吧，从周五开始，他们就不会错过了。:)