2019年经济学人 太空人工智能技术(1)

 

Speeding up the processing of space images

加快空间图像处理

Much of the information that is beamed back from space is useless.

从太空传回来的许多信息是没用的。

Pictures taken by satellites orbiting the Earth might take days to download,

由绕地球运行的卫星拍摄的照片可能需要好几天才能下载下来，

only to show lots of cloud obscuring the area of interest.

下载下来的图片只能显示大量遮盖住兴趣区的云层。

The subject matter may also be surrounded by irrelevant¹ information. All this uses up a lot of valuable bandwidth.

主体可能也被不相关信息所围绕。所有这些都消耗了大量宝贵的带宽。

Processing data in space, before transmission, would reduce clutter², but this can be tricky³.

在传输之前，在太空中处理数据可以减少杂波，但这可能会很棘手。

Cosmic rays randomly⁴ flip⁵ the ones and zeroes that computers operate on, introducing unpredictable errors.

宇宙线随机翻转电脑操作的1和0，带来不可预测的错误。

High levels of radiation can also damage electronic circuits. KP Labs, based in Gliwice, Poland,

高能级辐射也可能会破坏电子电路。位于波兰格利维策的KP实验室

is building a satellite to overcome some of these problems. Their device, called Intuition-1, is controlled by a neural⁶ network,

正在建造一个克服其中一些问题的卫星。他们的设备被称为Intuition-1，由一个神经网络进行控制，

a form of artificial intelligence modelled on the human brain.

这是一种以人脑为模型的人工智能。

The satellite is what is known in the trade as a 6U CubeSat,

这颗卫星在业内被称为6U CubeSat，

which means it is composed of six standard-sized 10x10x11.5cm modules⁷.

这意味着它由6个标准尺寸的10x10x11.5厘米模块组成。

Intuition-1 will be equipped with a hyperspectral imager, which takes 150 pictures of every scene it looks at.

Intuition-1将装配一个超光谱成像仪，它会为每个看到的场景拍摄150张照片。

Each picture is at a different spectral⁸ frequency, so contains different information.

每张图片的光谱频率不同，所以包含信息也不同。

The neural network stitches these together using powerful graphics⁹ chips hardened against radiation.

神经网络利用强大的抗辐射图形芯片将这些数据拼接在一起。

The developers have also built error correction into their software.

开发人员还在他们的软件中内置了纠错功能。

1 irrelevant   

adj.不恰当的，无关系的，不相干的

参考例句：

• That is completely irrelevant to the subject under discussion.这跟讨论的主题完全不相关。
• A question about arithmetic is irrelevant in a music lesson.在音乐课上，一个数学的问题是风马牛不相及的。

2 clutter   

n.零乱，杂乱；vt.弄乱，把…弄得杂乱

参考例句：

• The garage is in such a clutter that we can't find anything.车库如此凌乱，我们什么也找不到。
• We'll have to clear up all this clutter.我们得把这一切凌乱的东西整理清楚。

3 tricky   

adj.狡猾的，奸诈的；(工作等)棘手的，微妙的

参考例句：

• I'm in a rather tricky position.Can you help me out?我的处境很棘手，你能帮我吗？
• He avoided this tricky question and talked in generalities.他回避了这个非常微妙的问题，只做了个笼统的表述。

4 randomly   

adv.随便地，未加计划地

参考例句：

• Within the hot gas chamber, molecules are moving randomly in all directions. 在灼热的气体燃烧室内，分子在各个方向上作无规运动。 来自辞典例句
• Transformed cells are loosely attached, rounded and randomly oriented. 转化细胞则不大贴壁、圆缩并呈杂乱分布。 来自辞典例句

5 flip   

vt.快速翻动；轻抛；轻拍；n.轻抛；adj.轻浮的

参考例句：

• I had a quick flip through the book and it looked very interesting.我很快翻阅了一下那本书，看来似乎很有趣。
• Let's flip a coin to see who pays the bill.咱们来抛硬币决定谁付钱。

6 neural   

adj.神经的，神经系统的

参考例句：

• The neural network can preferably solve the non- linear problem.利用神经网络建模可以较好地解决非线性问题。
• The information transmission in neural system depends on neurotransmitters.信息传递的神经途径有赖于神经递质。

7 modules   

n.模块( module的名词复数 )；单元；（宇宙飞船上各个独立的）舱；组件

参考例句：

• The course consists of ten core modules and five optional modules. 这门课程包括十个必修单元和五个选修单元。
• Our English course is divided into modules on poetry, drama, and novels. 我们的英语课分为诗歌、戏剧和小说等单元。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 spectral   

adj.幽灵的，鬼魂的

参考例句：

• At times he seems rather ordinary.At other times ethereal,perhaps even spectral.有时他好像很正常，有时又难以捉摸，甚至像个幽灵。
• She is compelling,spectral fascinating,an unforgettably unique performer.她极具吸引力，清幽如鬼魅，令人着迷，令人难忘，是个独具特色的演员。

9 graphics   

n.制图法，制图学；图形显示

参考例句：

• You've leveraged your graphics experience into the video area.你们把图形设计业务的经验运用到录像业务中去。
• Improved graphics took computer games into a new era.经改进的制图技术将电脑游戏带进了一个新时代。