VOA常速英语2015--搭载基本感官感觉功能手机或将成为时代新宠

搭载基本感官感觉功能手机或将成为时代新宠

Many people around the world enjoy one of the greatest marvels¹ of modern technology every day-instant audio-visual communication.

世界上有许多人每天都在享受即时视听交流这一现代科技最伟大的一项奇迹发明。

But professor Adrian David Cheok, from City University in London, said he wants to transcend² what he calls the glass barrier.

但伦敦城市大学的艾德里安·大卫·珂克教授称他希望越过那道自己所称的玻璃屏障难关。

“In the real world, we can open up the glass, open the window. We can touch, we can taste, we can smell in the real world.”

“在现实世界中,我们可以打开玻璃,打开窗户。我们可以触摸,我们可以品味,我们可以体验现实世界的感觉。”

Let's start with the sense of taste.

让我们先从味觉谈起。

Cheok said different tastes are triggered by molecules³ that cause chemical ionization on the surface of the tongue,sending the brain electrical signals of a specific amplitude⁴ and frequency that are possible to reproduce with two electrodes.

珂克表示由分子触发的各式各样味觉导致舌头表面的化学离子化,发送通过两个电极复制后特定振幅和频率的脑电信号。

“You put these two silver electrodes in your mouth, you put your tongue in between and then it stimulates⁵ electrically your tongue and you get a virtual taste perception in your brain.”

“你在嘴里，舌间放上两个银电极,然后它的电流就会刺激你的舌头，进而你的大脑就会有一种虚拟味觉。”

So far, scientists have reproduced sour, salty, sweet and bitter tastes.

到目前为止,科学家们已经成功复制出酸,咸,甜及苦的味道。

Another device, called Scentee,plugs into a smartphone, and can spray tiny clouds of selected fragrances,such as lavender or jasmine, smells of fruits or even coffee, when prompted by the other side of the conversation.

另一种设备被称为Scentee,将它安装在一款智能手机上后，当对方讲话时就可以选择闻到如薰衣草、茉莉花、水果味甚至咖啡的味道。

“Basically what happens, we have an app, it connects to the Internet and then this will release scent⁶ from your mobile phone.”

“基本上我们开发了这样一款应用程序,连接到互联网后就会从你的手机发出气味。”

Scentee holds a cartridge⁷ with about 100 different smells, but has to be replaced once it's been used up.

Scentee约有100种不同的气味,但一经用光后才能够进行替换。

The sense of touch comes through a ring-like device.Connected wirelessly⁸ to the smartphone,it transmits a gentle squeeze when the other person does the same during a conversation.

触觉则是通过一个像指环一样的设备。通过与智能手机进行无线连接后它就会发出一种温和的挤压感，而电话另一端的人也会有同样的感觉。

“I can be in London and my friend can be in Tokyo, and I can squeeze my finger and then they'll get a squeeze on their finger through the Internet. It's a way of touch communication with small mobile devices.”

“如果我身处伦敦而我的朋友则位于东京,当我按压手指时,通过互联网对方的手指也会有相同的感觉。这是一种小型移动设备接触交流的方式。”

 

Cheok said he hopes devices such as these will someday be added to smartphones and even smart houses, transcending⁹ the current limitations of long-distance communication.

珂克表示他希望这种设备有朝一日会加入到智能手机,甚至智能房屋的功能当中,跨越现阶段长途通信的局限性。

1 marvels   

n.奇迹( marvel的名词复数 )；令人惊奇的事物（或事例）；不平凡的成果；成就v.惊奇，对…感到惊奇( marvel的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The doctor's treatment has worked marvels : the patient has recovered completely. 该医生妙手回春，病人已完全康复。 来自辞典例句
• Nevertheless he revels in a catalogue of marvels. 可他还是兴致勃勃地罗列了一堆怪诞不经的事物。 来自辞典例句

2 transcend   

vt.超出，超越(理性等)的范围

参考例句：

• We can't transcend the limitations of the ego.我们无法超越自我的局限性。
• Everyone knows that the speed of airplanes transcend that of ships.人人都知道飞机的速度快于轮船的速度。

3 molecules   

分子( molecule的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The structure of molecules can be seen under an electron microscope. 分子的结构可在电子显微镜下观察到。
• Inside the reactor the large molecules are cracked into smaller molecules. 在反应堆里，大分子裂变为小分子。

4 amplitude   

n.广大；充足；振幅

参考例句：

• The amplitude of the vibration determines the loudness of the sound.振动幅度的大小决定声音的大小。
• The amplitude at the driven end is fixed by the driving mechanism.由于驱动机构的作用,使驱动端的振幅保持不变。

5 stimulates   

v.刺激( stimulate的第三人称单数 )；激励；使兴奋；起兴奋作用，起刺激作用，起促进作用

参考例句：

• Exercise stimulates the body. 运动促进身体健康。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Alcohol stimulates the action of the heart. 酒刺激心脏的活动。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

6 scent   

n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉

参考例句：

• The air was filled with the scent of lilac.空气中弥漫着丁香花的芬芳。
• The flowers give off a heady scent at night.这些花晚上散发出醉人的芳香。

7 cartridge   

n.弹壳，弹药筒；(装磁带等的)盒子

参考例句：

• Unfortunately the 2G cartridge design is very difficult to set accurately.不幸地2G弹药筒设计非常难正确地设定。
• This rifle only holds one cartridge.这支来复枪只能装一发子弹。

8 wirelessly   

不用电线的，用无线电波传送的

参考例句：

• I heard it on the wireless. 我是从无线电收音机里听到的。
• There are a lot of wireless links in a radio. 收音机里有许多无线电线路。

9 transcending   

超出或超越（经验、信念、描写能力等）的范围( transcend的现在分词 )； 优于或胜过…

参考例句：

• She felt herself transcending time and space. 她感到自己正在穿越时空。
• It'serves as a skeptical critic of the self-transcending element. 它对于超越自身因素起着一个怀疑论批评家的作用。