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Tiny Robots with a Big Future 奈米机器人，科技大未来

課文朗讀

課文中英文講解

繁體中文譯本

Imagine billions of tiny robots roaming through our bodies repairing damaged cells or drifting through the air destroying pollution. It may sound like science fiction, but some of the applications of nanotechnology are just around the corner.

想象一下，数十亿个微小的机器人在你的身体里头漫游，修复受损的细胞，或者是空气中飘浮着，摧毁环境污染源。这听起来可能很像科幻小说，但是有一些奈米科技的应用已经近在咫尺了。

Nanotechnology is all about building machines at the molecular level – less than one-billionth of a meter in size. These tiny machines will be incredibly precise and require only a miniscule amount of material to produce.

奈米科技就是有关建造分子大小般的机械，尺寸比十亿万分之一公尺还要小。这些微小的机械可以在微小的工程中一次一个分子地组装出来。然而，有些俗称为「奈米机器人」的奈米机械将可以自体复制，而一个奈米机器人能够制造出上百万个自己。这些机械将会不可思议地精准，而且只需要非常少的原料就可以生产。

The applications for this technology are almost limitless. Scientists believe nanobots will clean the air we breathe and the water we drink by destroying harmful bacteria. Some even propose that millions of nanobots will be able to work together to build anything – including computers, cars, and even food – atom by atom.

这项科技的应用几乎无远弗届。科学家认为奈米机器人将可以借着消灭有害的细菌来清净我们呼吸的空气及饮用水。有些人甚至提出，上百万个奈米机器人将能够通力合作，一个原子一个原子地建造任何东西，包括计算机、车辆、甚至食物。

Perhaps the most exciting nanotechnology applications are in medicine. In the future, nanobots inside the human body will roam the circulatory system cleaning blocked arteries and healing wounds from inside the body. They’ll also be capable of rebuilding nerves and bones, offering cures for paralysis and diseases. Researchers have already created prototype nanobots that can seek out and destroy cancer cells. In the near future, billions of invisible robots may be everywhere around us and in us, working at a molecular level to make our lives better.

也许最令人兴奋的应用是在医学方面。未来奈米机器人将可以进入人体，漫游在循环系统哩，清理阻塞的动脉，还可以从人体内部使伤口愈合。奈米机器人还有办法重建神经及骨骼，治疗瘫痪以及疾病。研究人员已经研发出原型奈米机器人，它们能找出并摧毁癌细胞。不久的将来，也许会有数十亿个隐形机器人遍布自我们身体内外，以分子般的大小运作，让我们生活变得更好。

Vocabulary

roam [rom] v. 漫步；漫游

around the corner 即将来临 going to happen very soon

molecular [məˋlɛkjəlɚ] adj. 分子的

bacteria [bæk`tɪrɪə] [plural] singular- bacterium , 细菌

atom [ˋætəm] n. 原子

artery [ˋɑrtərɪ] n. 动脉

paralysis [pəˋræləsɪs] n. 麻痹，瘫痪

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miniscule [ˋmɪnə͵skjul] adj.极小的; extremely small

circulatory [ˋsɝkjələ͵torɪ] system 循环系统

invisible [ɪnˋvɪzəb!] adj. 看不见的；无形的

Reading Questions

1. In this article, what does the author mainly want to tell us?

A. There is no doubt that the use of nanotechnology will be limited to certain fields.

B. Nanotechnology is just science fiction, and it will never become a reality.

C. In the future, we’ll see nanotechnology being used in many fields, especially medicine.

D. Pollution is a serious problem, the cause of which has something to do with nanotechnology.

2. By reading the article, we learn that ___

A. it normally takes plenty of material to produce a nanobot

B. people with paralysis often don’t fully recover from it

C. nanobots are visible to the naked eye

D. the quality of the water we drink will be improved by using nanobots

3. What attitude does the author hold towards nanotechnology?

A. Calling it a complete failure, he feels discouraged and disappointed.

B. He is optimistic about nanotechnology and believes it will make life better.

C. Although he thinks nanotechnology is possible, it won’t solve all of our problems.

D. He proposes that research in nanotechnology should be limited.

課文中英文講解

Nanotechnology is the wave of the future, and it will affect almost every aspect of our lives. Nano-manufactured materials will be strong, light, and ___1___, so nano-manufactured goods, like computers, will be available to everyone, not just those who can afford them. Nanobots will also clean up the environment, and the medical uses of nanotechnology are astounding. ___2___, not everyone is optimistic about these super-small machines, and there is a dark side to nanotechnology.

奈米科技是未来的趋势，将影响我们生活中几乎每一个层面。奈米制的原料将会坚固、轻巧，而且便宜，因此像是计算机等奈米制的产品，将会人人买的起，而不只是有钱人的专利。奈米机器人也会清净环境，而奈米科技在医学上的用途更是惊人。然而，并不是每个人都对这些超小的机器人抱持乐观的态度，奈米科技也有其不好的一面。

Nanotechnology can produce powerful weapons and tools for spying. Imagine invisible tiny robots ___3___ through the air recording your conversations. Furthermore, if self-replicating nanobots ever___4___ out of control, billions and billions of nanobots would be created. These would be so many microscopic robots that they’d appear as a large mass of grey goo. Critics claim this unstoppable grey goo would then ___5___ and destroy the world.

奈米科技可以生产威力强大的武器及监视工具。想象一下，隐形的微小机器人飘浮在空气中，监录你谈话的内容。更有甚者，如果自体复制的奈米机器人哪天失控了，就会制造出无数的奈米机器人。到时候微型机器人数量会多到像是一大片的灰色黏稠物。批评者指称，这种无法抑制的灰色黏稠物继而接管并摧毁整个世界。

Proponents of nanotechnology say that this “grey goo scenario” is impossible. They claim that nanobots will be designed with safety controls and programming that will limit their replication in order to ___6___ this nightmare from ever happening.

奈米科技的拥护者表示，这种「灰色黏稠物剧情」不可能上演。他们宣称，奈米机器人的设计会受到安全控管，还能设计限制它们复制的程序，以避免这种梦魇成真。

There are strong opinions ___7___ both sides of the nanotechnology debate. With the hope of eliminating disease and helping humans live longer and more comfortably, nanotechnology is seen by some people as the savior of the human race. But many fear nanotechnology because of its destructive potential. ___8___ way, nanotechnology will be here soon.

对于奈米科技的争辩，正反两方都强烈的意见。有些人视奈米科技为人类的救星，希望能就此消除疾病，帮助人类活得更久也更舒适。但是许多人因为奈米科技有破坏性的潜在危机，而对奈米科技心存恐惧。无论如何，奈米科技的时代就快来临了。

－By Darshan Tyler

Vocabulary

optimistic [͵ɑptəˋmɪstɪk] adj. 乐观的

spy [spaɪ] v. 当间谍；暗中监视

proponent [prəˋponənt] n. 提议人；拥护者

nightmare [ˋnaɪt͵mɛr] n. 梦魇；恶梦

potential [pəˋtɛnʃəl] n. 可能性；潜力

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astounding [əˋstaʊndɪŋ] adj. 令人惊奇的

microscopic [ˋmaɪkrəˋskɑpɪk] adj. 极小的﹐微小的

goo [gu] n. 黏糊糊的东西

scenario [sɪˋnɛrɪ͵o] n. 可能发生的事﹐可能出现的情况

savior [ˋsevjɚ] n. 救助者，救星

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