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San Francisco Pulls Back Decision to Permit Armed Police Robots

时间:2022-12-15 02:28:20

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The city of San Francisco has put a policy on hold that would permit police to deploy1 armed robots to deal with emergency situations.

The city's Board of Supervisors3 voted eight to three last week to approve the measure. On Tuesday, however, the board voted to temporarily ban the use of such robots. Board members sent the issue back to a committee for more discussion. They could vote on a new measure in the future permitting use of armed robots.

The policy, considered by the San Francisco Police Department, planned to arm robots with explosives, not guns. Supporters of the policy said it would permit armed robots to be used only in life-threatening situations in which other police methods had failed.

The measure was strongly opposed by several rights groups and police oversight4 organizations. Opponents warned that the policy would open the door to future militarization of the police force. They also said it would likely lead to more conflict between police and citizens in poor and minority communities.

A spokesperson for the San Francisco Police Department, Allison Maxie, explained the policy in a statement. She said it would permit officers to deploy robots equipped with explosives "to contact, incapacitate or disorient violent, armed or dangerous suspects."

Maxie added that the use of such robots would only be used in "extreme" situations in an effort "to save or prevent further loss of innocent lives."

The policy under consideration stated that officers could use robots only after officers had tried using other forms of force and de-escalation5 methods against suspects. Only a limited number of leading officers would be able to approve robots to be used as deadly force.

The San Francisco policy came about because of a California state law. The law requires police departments to examine all military-grade equipment and seek approval from the public for its use.

So far, two California cities – San Francisco and Oakland – have publicly discussed the use of robots as part of the state's legal requirement.

Across the United States, police have used robots over the past 10 years to communicate with blockaded suspects, enter possibly dangerous spaces and, in rare cases, to carry out deadly force. Experts say, however, that the use of such robots remains6 rare even as the technology progresses.

Dallas police became the first police force to kill a suspect with a robot in 2016. In that case, police used a robot to blow up explosives during a standoff with a shooter who had killed five police officers and injured nine others.

The new San Francisco policy has reopened debates in the U.S. over the ethics7 of using robots to kill a suspect.

Michael White is a professor in the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice at Arizona State University. He told The Associated Press that even if robotics companies present deadlier methods to police officials, it does not mean departments will buy them.

"It's hard to say what will happen in the future, but I think weaponized robots very well could be the next thing that departments don't want because communities are saying they don't want them," White said.

Protesters marched outside City Hall on Monday to express their opposition8 to San Francisco's policy. City Supervisor2 Dean9 Preston joined the demonstrators. He told other supervisors he felt the public had not been given enough time to voice their opinions on the issue.

"The people of San Francisco have spoken loud and clear: There is no place for killer10 police robots in our city," he said in a statement after the vote. "We should be working on ways to decrease the use of force by local law enforcement, not giving them new tools to kill people."

The new measure still permits police to use robots to be sent into dangerous situations to keep officers at a safe distance. San Francisco police currently11 have a limited number of ground robots designed to investigate bombs or provide an extra set of eyes.

Supervisor Aaron Peskin brought forward last week's motion on the city's use of robots. He said, "Having robots that have eyes and ears and can remove bombs – which happens from time to time – is something that we want the police department to do while we continue to have this very controversial discussion."

Speaking about the possible use of armed robots, San Francisco Police Chief Bill Scott said in a statement, "We live in a time when unthinkable mass violence is becoming more commonplace12. We need the option to be able to save lives in the event we have that type of tragedy in our city."

Words in This Story

incapacitate – v. to weaken a person in a way that prevents him from operating normally

disorient – v. to make someone not know where to go or what to do

escalation – n. to make a situation more serious or worse

standoff – n. a situation in which an argument or fight stops for a period of time because no one can get ahead or win

ethics – v. ideas and beliefs about what kind of behavior is morally right and wrong

controversial – adj. causing a lot of disagreement or argument

option – n. a choice

tragedy – n. an event or situation that is very sad, often involving death


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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 deploy Yw8x7     
v.(军)散开成战斗队形,布置,展开
参考例句:
  • The infantry began to deploy at dawn.步兵黎明时开始进入战斗位置。
  • The president said he had no intention of deploying ground troops.总统称并不打算部署地面部队。
2 supervisor RrZwv     
n.监督人,管理人,检查员,督学,主管,导师
参考例句:
  • Between you and me I think that new supervisor is a twit.我们私下说,我认为新来的主管人是一个傻瓜。
  • He said I was too flighty to be a good supervisor.他说我太轻浮不能成为一名好的管理员。
3 supervisors 80530f394132f10fbf245e5fb15e2667     
n.监督者,管理者( supervisor的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • I think the best technical people make the best supervisors. 我认为最好的技术人员可以成为最好的管理人员。 来自辞典例句
  • Even the foremen or first-level supervisors have a staffing responsibility. 甚至领班或第一线的监督人员也有任用的责任。 来自辞典例句
4 oversight WvgyJ     
n.勘漏,失察,疏忽
参考例句:
  • I consider this a gross oversight on your part.我把这件事看作是你的一大疏忽。
  • Your essay was not marked through an oversight on my part.由于我的疏忽你的文章没有打分。
5 escalation doZxW     
n.扩大,增加
参考例句:
  • The threat of nuclear escalation remains. 核升级的威胁仍旧存在。 来自辞典例句
  • Escalation is thus an aspect of deterrence and of crisis management. 因此逐步升级是威慑和危机处理的一个方面。 来自辞典例句
6 remains 1kMzTy     
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。
7 ethics Dt3zbI     
n.伦理学;伦理观,道德标准
参考例句:
  • The ethics of his profession don't permit him to do that.他的职业道德不允许他那样做。
  • Personal ethics and professional ethics sometimes conflict.个人道德和职业道德有时会相互抵触。
8 opposition eIUxU     
n.反对,敌对
参考例句:
  • The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
  • The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。
9 Dean lmUyu     
n.(大学)院长,系主任,教务长
参考例句:
  • The students much like the new dean.学生们很喜欢这位新系主任。
  • Who is the dean of the Foreign Languages Department?外语系主任是谁?
10 killer rpLziK     
n.杀人者,杀人犯,杀手,屠杀者
参考例句:
  • Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
  • The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。
11 currently SvMzI2     
adv.通常地,普遍地,当前
参考例句:
  • Currently it is not possible to reconcile this conflicting evidence.当前还未有可能去解释这一矛盾的例证。
  • Our contracts are currently under review.我们的合同正在复查。
12 commonplace RXfyq     
adj.平凡的,普通的;n.寻常的事物,常见的事
参考例句:
  • Soon it will be commonplace for men to travel to the moon.人们去月球旅行很快就会成为常事。
  • What he has said is a mere commonplace view.他所说的不过是尘俗之见而已。

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