VOA慢速英语2014 依靠意念控制假肢

 

依靠意念控制假肢 

From VOA Learning English, this is the Technology Report.

这里是美国之音慢速英语科技报道。

Monkeys have learned to move the arms of a monkey on a computer screen just by thinking about moving them. The work moves forward efforts to develop brain control devices for people who are paralyzed or unable to move certain parts of their body.

猴子已经学会仅用意念来移动电脑屏幕上的猴子的手臂。这项工作推动了为瘫痪或无法移动自己身体某些部位的人开发大脑控制装置的努力。

Researchers have developed software that runs between the monkey's brains and a machine. They hope it could someday be used to let someone with the spinal¹ cord injury control an artificial arm or leg just by thinking about it.

研究人员已经开发出了在猴子大脑和机器之间运行的软件。他们希望有一天该软件能用于让脊髓损伤者仅仅通过意念来控制他们的假肢。

The software was developed by researchers at the Center for Neuroengineering at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. Early vesions of the software could control only one artificial limb. But the new software let rhesus monkeys move two arms at the same time, as they watch a likeness² of themselves on a computer screen.

该软件是由位于北卡罗来纳州达勒姆市的杜克大学神经工程中心的研究人员开发的。该软件的早期版本只能控制一个假肢，但这一新软件可以让猕猴在观看计算机屏幕上自己的形象时，同时移动他们的两臂。

Miguel Nicolelis is a Neurobiology professor at Duke. He says the monkeys first learned to control the limbs on the computer screens using joysticks, then they were trained not to move.

米格尔·尼可莱里斯（Miguel Nicolelis）是杜克大学的一位神经生物学教授。他说，猴子首先学会使用操纵杆控制屏幕上的肢体，然后他们被训练成不动操纵杆。

"They are trained just to imagine the movements. And we get the signals from both parts of their brains - both hemispheres - to be routed to a computer that's running a computer algorithm that translates their voluntary will to move into movements of a virtual body," Nicolelis said.

尼可莱里斯表示，“它们被训练成只想像这些动作。我们把来自它们大脑两个半球的信号发送给计算机，这台计算机运行的电脑算法将它们的自主意愿转化成虚拟身体的动作。”

Professor Nicolelis says scientists are now developing a clothing that can be controlled by the brain. It would permit the person wearing the clothing to control artificial limbs. The device changes electrical signals from the brain  into commands, and then into digital signals that machine in the clothing can understand.

尼可莱里斯教授表示，科学家目前正在开发一种能够由大脑控制的衣服，它能让穿着该衣服的人控制假肢。该设备将大脑的电流信号转换成指令，然后转换成该衣服上的机器能够理解的数字信号。

Professor Nicolelis says the vest will be showed at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil later this year.

尼可莱里斯教授，这种马甲将在今年晚些时候的2014年巴西世界杯上展示。

"And we hope to make a demonstration³ during the opening ceremony by having a young paraplegic, a Brazilian adult, to walk into the field using this vest, controlled by brain activity and being in charge of the opening kick-off of the World Cup," he said.

他说，“我们希望在开幕式上做一次演示，让一位年轻的巴西成年截瘫病人使用这种马甲通过大脑活动的控制走进现场，并且负责这次世界杯的开球仪式。”

You can find an article on the research in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

关于这项研究的一篇论文发表在《科学转化医学》杂志上。

In a separate but related story, a Danish man has become the first amputee to experience feeling in his artificial hand. Dennis Aabo lost his hand to fireworks nine years ago. Since then, he has used a prosthetic hand.

在另一则独立但又相关的新闻中，一位丹麦男子成为首位体验人工手指的截肢者。丹尼斯·阿博（Dennis Aabo）在9年前因为烟花失去了他的手。自那时起他一直使用假手。

Last year, researchers in Italy and Switzerland attached sensors⁴ to the fingers of the artificial hand. They then wired the sensors to the nerves in Aabo's upper arm. Researchers say the experiments proved promising⁵, but they say many years of work remains⁶.

去年，意大利和瑞士的研究人员将传感器固定到假手的手指，然后他们将传感器用导线连接到阿博上臂的神经上。研究人员表示，实验令人鼓舞，但他们说还有很多年的工作要做。

An article on that research also appears in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

关于这项研究的一篇论文也发表在《科学转化医学》杂志上。

And that is the Technology Report from VOA Learning English. I'm June Simms.

以上就是美国之音慢速英语科技报道的全部内容，我是琼·西蒙斯。

1 spinal   

adj.针的，尖刺的，尖刺状突起的；adj.脊骨的，脊髓的

参考例句：

• After three days in Japan,the spinal column becomes extraordinarily flexible.在日本三天，就已经使脊椎骨变得富有弹性了。
• Your spinal column is made up of 24 movable vertebrae.你的脊柱由24个活动的脊椎骨构成。

2 likeness   

n.相像，相似（之处）

参考例句：

• I think the painter has produced a very true likeness.我认为这位画家画得非常逼真。
• She treasured the painted likeness of her son.她珍藏她儿子的画像。

3 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

4 sensors   

n.传感器，灵敏元件( sensor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There were more than 2000 sensors here. 这里装有两千多个灵敏元件。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Significant changes have been noted where sensors were exposed to trichloride. 当传感器暴露在三氯化物中时，有很大变化。 来自辞典例句

5 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

6 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。