Technology Report - Scientists Develop Smartphone App for Eye Exams
This is the VOA Special English Technology Report.
这里是美国之音慢速英语科技报道。
More than two hundred eighty million people around the world have vision problems or are blind. The World Health Organization says nine out of ten of them live in developing countries. And eighty percent of the problems can be prevented or cured.
世界各地超过2.8亿人存在视力问题或失明。世卫组织称，这其中90%的人生活在发展中国家，同时80%的视力问题可被预防或治愈。
Uncorrected cases of near-sightedness, far-sightedness and astigmatism are the leading cause of vision problems. These are called refractive errors. They often go untreated in countries with limited health care systems.
未矫正近视、远视和散光是视力问题的主要原因。这被称为屈光不正，在医疗条件有限的国家里这种情况经常得不到治疗。
But researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a new way to identify eye disorders with a smartphone. They call it Netra, which means eye in Sanskrit but stands for Near Eye Tool for Refractive Assessment.
但美国麻省理工学院的研究人员已经研究出一种使用智能手机诊断眼部疾病的新方法。这种方法被称为Netra，这个词在梵文中的意思是眼睛。但它代表的意思是近眼屈光评估工具（Near Eye Tool for Refractive Assessment，简写为NeTra）。
A person downloads software to a phone and attaches a plastic eyepiece over the screen. The user looks into the eyepiece and uses the buttons on the phone to move two lines until they appear as one.
人们可以下载一个软件到手机上，并在手机屏幕上附加一个塑料目镜。使用者通过目镜观察，并使用手机上的按键移动屏幕上的两条直线，直到它们重叠到一起。
The person's vision problem is identified by the number of clicks required to line up the images. The results can be sent to an eye doctor to make glasses.
使用者的视力问题可以通过排列图像所点击的按键次数来诊断。评估结果可以发给眼科医用来配制眼镜。
The cost is two dollars and the researchers say the results are as good as a traditional eye exam. The phone app is still being tested and is not yet available.
每次评估费用是2美元。研究人员称，评估结果可以媲美传统眼科检查。这款手机应用程序仍在测试中，尚未正式发布。
But last month the researchers from the MIT Media Lab won first prize in the Vodafone Americas Foundation Wireless Innovation Project. They will receive three hundred thousand dollars over three years to continue their research.
但上个月，麻省理工学院媒体实验室的研究人员获得了沃达丰美洲基金无线创新项目的一等奖。他们将在未来3年里获得30万美元用于继续他们的研究。
June Sugiyama is director of the Vodaphone Americas Foundation. She says the competition involved nearly one hundred projects that could help solve important problems.
June Sugiyama是沃达丰美洲基金的主管。她表示，这次竞赛包含了将近100个有助于解决重要问题的项目。
JUNE SUGIYAMA: "These creative methods that people have come up with by using wireless technology will be able to be accessed by millions of people, whereas other technology using electricity and landlines would not have been that accessible."
June Sugiyama：“人们提供的这些基于无线技术的创造性办法将能够让数百万人访问到。而其它基于电力和地面传输线路的技术则无法实现。”
Second place went to Smart Diaphragm, a wireless system for women with high-risk pregnancies. It warns if there are signs that the baby could be born early unless doctors intervene.
亚军授予了Smart Diaphragm，这是一个针对高危孕妇的无线系统。该系统会在婴儿出现早产迹象时发出警告，除非医生介入干预。
And third place went to a solar-powered wireless system designed for tuberculosis treatment programs in developing countries. CoolComply measures the temperature of medicine and records the amount used. June Sugiyama says the information is sent to local health care workers supervising patient treatment.
季军授予了一个用于发展中国家结核病治疗项目的太阳能无线系统。这个被称为CoolComply的系统能测量药品温度并记录药品用量。June Sugiyama称，相关信息会被发送给监督病人治疗的当地医护人员。
JUNE SUGIYAMA: "Especially TB medication needs to be kept in a certain temperature. And as you know in developing countries refrigerators aren't that accessible. So this kind of technology is perfect for that kind of arena."
June Sugiyama：“尤其是结核病药物需要在特定的温度下保存。而如你所知，在发展中国家冰箱并不是那么普及。所以，这类技术在这类场合中非常完美。” |