VOA慢速英语2019--2018年顶尖科技故事

Top Technology Stories of 2018

During 2018, we reported on many inventions and new technologies aimed at making machines smarter. We also covered stories on how some technologies threaten user privacy.

Artificial intelligence

There was a lot of news related to artificial intelligence, or AI, and machine learning. Among the stories were two dealing¹ with direct competitions between humans and machines.

In one competition, machines that used AI performed better than human beings in a high-level reading test. Two natural language processing tools beat human results in the experiment. One of the tools was built by the American technology company Microsoft. The other was created by Chinese online seller Alibaba Group.

In another competition, a computer took on humans in live, public debates. The event demonstrated how AI-powered computers are increasingly being developed to think and sound like humans.

The organizer of the debates, U.S. technology company IBM, announced split results. It said a majority of those watching said they felt the machine had done more to improve their knowledge of the subject. But, the human got more praise for communicating her ideas.

This year, we also explored the many ways AI and machine learning are now being used. For example, some U.S. judges use machine learning systems to help them decide when, and for how long, criminals should be jailed. The system uses computers to examine data from thousands of court cases. The computer then predicts whether a defendant² will commit a new crime or fail to return to court.

One fast-growing area of AI is facial recognition, which is increasingly being used for security purposes.

Recently, Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson airport became the first in the U.S. to permit passengers to use facial recognition technology to get on flights. A Chinese company showed off an AI system it developed to recognize individuals by body shape and walking movements. The system is already being used by Chinese police in Beijing and Shanghai.

In addition, machine learning was used during 2018 to predict results of the World Cup soccer competition. The technology also created artwork that sold for a large amount of money. And it is being used to help farmer save time and money, while reducing environment-harming chemicals. Other technology systems are being used to follow farm animals and wildlife to collect information on their activities.

Privacy issues

Facebook received intense criticism this year. The company’s chief Mark Zuckerberg was asked to testify before the U.S. Congress about a major leak of private user information. Zuckerberg admitted the company made mistakes that led to private data being shared with a British research company. Lawmakers demanded that the social media service take steps to protect user privacy and proposed legislation to prevent other incidents.

Google also faced questions about its privacy policies after an investigation³ by the Associated Press (AP). AP found that Google was continuing to collect location information on users, even when users had changed their privacy settings.

Google said users can stop the collection of all location markers at any time by turning off a specific privacy setting. But independent researchers told the AP that setting was not clearly identified by Google as being connected to location information.

Transportation tech

After several accidents involving self-driving test vehicles, we examined ethical⁴ questions about the technology. An expert on the subject, Nicholas Evans, told VOA that he is studying ways to get driverless vehicles to make ethical decisions. In many driving situations, vehicles will be expected to quickly consider levels of risk before deciding how to act.

A new study found that some driver assistance systems fail to perform some actions in tests. The study was carried out by the American Automobile⁵ Association of America. Part of the study found that about 40 percent of people questioned believed the driver assist systems could drive a car by themselves. The organization warned of the dangers of such misinformation.

In Sweden, a new technology was developed to create the world’s first operating electrified⁶ road. The system is designed to charge an electric vehicle’s battery as it travels.

And in Germany, officials celebrated⁷ the launch of the world’s first operating hydrogen-powered trains. The new train model is part of efforts in Europe and other places to move away from polluting diesel⁸ trains.

I’m Bryan Lynn.

Words in This Story

artificial intelligence – n. ability of a machine to use and analyze⁹ data in an attempt to reproduce human behavior

leak – n. incident in which sensitive or private data is stolen or released

location – n. a place or position

ethical – adj. relating to what is right or wrong

1 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

2 defendant   

n.被告；adj.处于被告地位的

参考例句：

• The judge rejected a bribe from the defendant's family.法官拒收被告家属的贿赂。
• The defendant was borne down by the weight of evidence.有力的证据使被告认输了。

3 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

4 ethical   

adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的

参考例句：

• It is necessary to get the youth to have a high ethical concept.必须使青年具有高度的道德观念。
• It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。

5 automobile   

n.汽车，机动车

参考例句：

• He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
• The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。

6 electrified   

v.使电气化( electrify的过去式和过去分词 )；使兴奋

参考例句：

• The railway line was electrified in the 1950s. 这条铁路线在20世纪50年代就实现了电气化。
• The national railway system has nearly all been electrified. 全国的铁路系统几乎全部实现了电气化。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 celebrated   

adj.有名的，声誉卓著的

参考例句：

• He was soon one of the most celebrated young painters in England.不久他就成了英格兰最负盛名的年轻画家之一。
• The celebrated violinist was mobbed by the audience.观众团团围住了这位著名的小提琴演奏家。

8 diesel   

n.柴油发动机，内燃机

参考例句：

• We experimented with diesel engines to drive the pumps.我们试着用柴油机来带动水泵。
• My tractor operates on diesel oil.我的那台拖拉机用柴油开动。

9 analyze   

vt.分析，解析 (=analyse)

参考例句：

• We should analyze the cause and effect of this event.我们应该分析这场事变的因果。
• The teacher tried to analyze the cause of our failure.老师设法分析我们失败的原因。