VOA标准英语2013--Satellite Broadband Aims to Revolutionize African Development

 

Satellite Broadband Aims to Revolutionize African Development

Lift-off for the O3b - or "Other 3 Billion" - satellite system occurred last week in French Guiana. The system goes "live" later this year when eight satellites will enter a lower orbit to provide a faster connection.

Its backers include Google and the Development Bank of Southern Africa, among others.

Founder¹ Greg Wyler said the "Other 3 Billion" are the people on the planet without access to fast Internet.

ﾡﾰThis will enable everybody, and it will be a cascading² effect, but it enables everybody in these societies to become economically relevant to the rest of the world,ﾡﾱ he said.

Fast connection, pervasive³ coverage⁴

The O3b satellites will provide Internet coverage anywhere within 45 degrees of latitude⁵ north and south of the equator.

Rival Inmarsat will launch a satellite Internet system called Global Xpress later this year.

Dele Meiji Fatunla, web editor for Britainﾡﾯs Royal African Society, said, ﾡﾰIn the rural areas I think it would have an impact on the way people can get information related to healthcare, information related to education.ﾡﾱ

In the Atlantic off west Africa, cable-laying ships completed the submarine West Africa Cable System last year. Sub-Saharan Africa alone has nine submarine cables, with a total capacity of 22 terabytes.

Fatunla said broadband boosts economic growth.

ﾡﾰI think a lot of small and medium enterprises would benefit from that," he said. "And it might also have a political impact in the sense that the Internet, if itﾡﾯs fairly open, will allow organizations and people to mobilize much more effectively.ﾡﾱ

Other pressing needs

But broadband by itself wonﾡﾯt revolutionize governance, said Charles Kenny of the Center for Global Development in Washington.

ﾡﾰIf government isnﾡﾯt picking up the phone, if you will, if government isnﾡﾯt answering the emails, just having a broadband connection isnﾡﾯt going to help,ﾡﾱ he said.

And when it comes to healthcare, said Kenny, government money would be better spent on basic needs.

ﾡﾰVaccines, bed nets, itﾡﾯs the very basic health interventions⁶ that are having a huge impact. Africa doesnﾡﾯt have many doctors; it doesnﾡﾯt matter if theyﾡﾯre all connected to broadband. So I think particularly where it comes to health, broadband may not be the ﾡﾮwiz-bangﾡﾯ solution,ﾡﾱ he said.

But Fatunla said broadbandﾡﾯs potential should not be underestimated.

ﾡﾰYou have to remember that thereﾡﾯs going to be a core of people who are active in societies in Africa, particularly civil society, who will benefit from there being better access to information," he said. "And I think those people will, in turn, be able to pressure government structures a lot more.ﾡﾱ

Analysts⁷ warn that even though the satellites and cables are connecting to Africa, the prices charged by Internet service providers on the ground need to be lower before broadbandﾡﾯs full potential is realized. 

1 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

2 cascading   

流注( cascade的现在分词 )； 大量落下； 大量垂悬； 梯流

参考例句：

• First of all, cascading menus are to be avoided at all costs. 首先，无论如何都要避免使用级联菜单。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• Her sounds began cascading gently. 他的声音开始缓缓地低落下来。

3 pervasive   

adj.普遍的；遍布的，(到处)弥漫的；渗透性的

参考例句：

• It is the most pervasive compound on earth.它是地球上最普遍的化合物。
• The adverse health effects of car exhaust are pervasive and difficult to measure.汽车尾气对人类健康所构成的有害影响是普遍的，并且难以估算。

4 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

5 latitude   

n.纬度，行动或言论的自由(范围)，(pl.)地区

参考例句：

• The latitude of the island is 20 degrees south.该岛的纬度是南纬20度。
• The two cities are at approximately the same latitude.这两个城市差不多位于同一纬度上。

6 interventions   

n.介入，干涉，干预( intervention的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Economic analysis of government interventions deserves detailed discussion. 政府对经济的干预应该给予充分的论述。 来自辞典例句
• The judge's frequent interventions made a mockery of justice. 法官的屡屡干预是对正义的践踏。 来自互联网

7 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。