VOA慢速英语--联系人追踪应用在美国使用不多

Six months ago, Apple and Google released a new tool for smartphone users. The program, or app, informs users of their possible exposure to someone infected with COVID-19.

However, an Associated Press examination shows that few people in the United States are using the app. The smartphone program is not widely available in most U.S. states and territories.

Information from 16 states, Guam and the District of Columbia shows that 8.1 million people had used the technology as of late November. Around 110 million people live in those areas.

Apps and the pandemic

Computer apps could help public health workers with contact tracing, a difficult job in pandemic control. Contact tracers search for individuals who may have come in contact with an infected person.

The contact tracing tool is free and can be found in Apple's app store and the Google Play store for Android devices. Some state health-department websites also offer the program for downloading.

Experts and users say there are several reasons behind the low level of use in the U.S.

"There's a lot of things working against it," said Jessica Vitak, a professor at the University of Maryland's College of Information Studies.

"Unfortunately, in the U.S., COVID has been politicized far more than in any other country. I think that's affecting people's willingness to use tools to track it," she said.

Politicize is a term that means to make something a political issue.

Apple and Google created the main technology behind such contact tracing apps. These apps use Bluetooth wireless¹ signals to anonymously² detect when two phones have spent time in a close area. If an app user tests positive for the virus, that person's phone can alert³ other people that they have spent time near. The apps do not give names, locations, or any other identifying information.

In states such as Colorado, Connecticut, Maryland and Washington, iPhone users do not have to download an app. Apple asks users to start the system by changing their phone settings. In these states, app usage⁴ levels are higher. But even in the most successful state, Connecticut, only about a fifth of people have agreed to this tracking.

International views on tracing apps

Tracing apps are more commonly used in some other countries.

Irish app developer NearForm says more than 25 percent of Ireland's population uses its COVID-19 app.

In Ireland, "all sides of the political divide came together with a consistent⁵ message on this is what we need to do," said Larry Breen, NearForm's chief commercial officer.

In other places in Europe, app use has been mixed. Germany and Britain have usage levels close to Ireland's. In Finland, the number is about 45 percent, according to data from the MIT Technology Review.

In France, however, less than four percent of the population is using the official COVID app. That program runs a data collection system that is less sensitive to privacy⁶ concerns than the Apple-Google system.

Words in This Story

exposure – n. the fact or condition of being subject to some effect or influence

consistent – adj. always acting or behaving in the same way

1 wireless   

adj.无线的；n.无线电

参考例句：

• There are a lot of wireless links in a radio.收音机里有许多无线电线路。
• Wireless messages tell us that the ship was sinking.无线电报告知我们那艘船正在下沉。

2 anonymously   

ad.用匿名的方式

参考例句：

• The manuscripts were submitted anonymously. 原稿是匿名送交的。
• Methods A self-administered questionnaire was used to survey 536 teachers anonymously. 方法采用自编“中小学教师职业压力问卷”对536名中小学教师进行无记名调查。

3 alert   

adj.机警的，活泼的，机灵的；vt.使...警觉

参考例句：

• Drivers must be on the alert for traffic signals.驾驶员必须密切注意交通信号。
• The rabbIt'seems to be very alert all its life.兔子似乎一生都小心翼翼，十分警觉。

4 usage   

n.惯用法，使用，用法

参考例句：

• I am clear about the usage of this word at last.这个词的用法我算是弄明白了。
• The usage is now firmly established.这种用法现已得到确认。

5 consistent   

adj.坚持的，一贯的，一致的，符合的

参考例句：

• He has been a consistent friend to the Chinese people.他是中国人民始终如一的朋友。
• His action is always consistent with his words.他始终言行一致。

6 privacy   

n.私人权利，个人自由，隐私权

参考例句：

• In such matters,privacy is impossible.在这类事情中，保密是不可能的。
• She wept in the privacy of her own room.她在自己房内暗暗落泪。