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如何防止机器人抢走你的饭碗
添加时间:2014-12-14 16:40:05 浏览次数: 作者:未知
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  • The robots are coming and they want your job. Savioke recently developed a three-foot tall SaviOne robot that replaces the human delivery of snacks and amenities1 to your hotel room. The robotic butler can navigate2 your room, make deliveries and even ride the elevator — all without sleeping or going to the bathroom. In addition, robots don’t quit their jobs, whereas the hotel industry, according to the American Hotel & Lodging3 Association, experiences staff turnover4 of around 50% in non-management staff.

    机器人来了,而且想抢走你的工作。Savioke公司最近开发了一款三英尺高的机器人SaviOne,它可以代替服务员,向酒店房间送零食或洗漱用品。除了可以自动找到你的房间、送东西之外,它甚至还可以自行坐电梯,而且既不用睡觉也不用去洗手间。此外,机器人也不会辞职——据美国酒店业协会(American Hotel & Lodging Association)估算,在美国酒店业中,非管理岗位的员工流动率高达50%左右。

    Moving beyond the hotel industry, Momentum5 Machines invented a burger-flipping robot that can produce a burger every 10 seconds. This robot replaces three full-time6 kitchen staff and takes up far less space, potentially able to reduce costs. Momentum Machines Co-Founder Alexandros Vardakostas recently said in an interview at Lemnos Labs that his robot “isn’t meant to make employees more efficient. It’s meant to completely obviate7 them.”

    除了酒店业,Momentum Machines公司也发明了一款会烤汉堡的机器人,每10秒钟就可以做一个汉堡包。该机器人可以代替三名全职厨房员工,占据的空间也更少,有望降低成本。Momentum Machines公司的联合创始人亚里山德罗斯o瓦尔达克斯塔斯最近在利姆诺实验室(Lemnos Labs)接受采访时称,他的机器人“并不是为了让员工更有效率,而是要完全取代他们。”

    Both Savioke and Momentum Machines are early signs of the upcoming Technology Revolution. Spawned8 by advances in robotics, big data, cloud computing9 and mobile, the revolution could replace millions of jobs. If you recall, the Industrial Revolution was no different than what we will likely see in the future. In 1820, the UK employed approximately 240,000 cotton hand weavers10. Within 40 years, 99% of those jobs vanished as a result of the mechanical loom11.

    Savioke和Momentum Machines的机器人,都是即将到来的科技革命的早期信号。拜机器人学、大数据、云计算和移动技术的长足进步所赐,这次科技革命可能会取代千百万人的工作。在这次革命中,我们看到的图景可能与工业革命时期没什么不同。在1920年,英国企业雇佣的手工绵纺织工约为24万人。而随着机械织布机的兴起,不到40年,其中99%的工作岗位都消失了。

    About half, 47%, of today’s jobs could be automated12 away over the next 20 years, according to a recent study by Oxford13 University. Following the Industrial Revolution during the early 1800s, new inventions created more than enough new work to replace the jobs that were dislocated. But given the ability of today’s technology startups to reach massive scale with minimal14 headcount, things very well might be different this time around. In 2012, Instagram reached 30 million users and was acquired by Facebook FB -3.35% for $1 billion — all with just 13 employees. By contrast, Kodak filed for bankruptcy15 in 2012 and employed 145,000 people during its peak.

    牛津大学(Oxford University)最近的一项研究显示,在未来20年中,现有工作的47%都有可能被自动化所取代。自19世纪早期的工业革命以来,各种新发明创造的新工作岗位,足以抵补那些失去的职业。但鉴于如今的科技创新企业能够以最少的人数创造极大的成就,这次的情况可能会非常不一样。比如在2012年,Instagram的注册用户达到3000万人,并被Facebook出价10亿美元收购——Instagram当时只有13名员工。相比之下,柯达公司(Kodak)于2012年申请破产,它在最高峰时曾拥有14.5万名员工。

    Indeed, disruption is coming. So what should we do about it?

    大颠覆的确就要到来了,那么我们应该做些什么呢?

    If history is any indication, some will push for protectionism, shielding certain jobs in order to preserve employment levels in the short-term. Over the next decade, 233,000 taxi drivers and 1.7 million truck drivers in the U.S. could be at risk of having their jobs automated away by driverless vehicles. Given that many cities have already attempted to block the expansion of Uber, we could experience similar tensions when driverless cars arrive. However, in the long-term, attempting to block innovation is short-sighted and makes countries less competitive relative to others who are willing to accept new, more efficient technologies.

    如果以史为鉴,有些人可能会推动保护主义,使某些工作不被自动化取代,以保持短期内的就业水平。在下一个10年里,随着无人驾驶汽车的发展,美国有23.3万名出租车司机和170万名卡车司机都要面临失业的风险。现在美国的许多城市已经试图封堵打车应用Uber,所以在无人驾驶汽车问题上,我们可能也会遇到同样的反对声浪。但在长期看,封锁创新是一种短视行为,而且会使国家失去竞争力,落于于那些乐于接受更高效的新技术的国家。

    Over the next two decades, the most pain will be felt by lesser-skilled workers most likely to lose their jobs to automation. As a result, the gap between the “haves and the have-nots” will widen. This could potentially create tension and fuel lobbying to increase the minimum wage. But like protectionism, raising the minimum wage could ultimately be counter-productive. Increasing minimum wage for hotel or fast-food employees, for example, could actually make companies more interested in automating16 away those positions if it actually saves companies more money.

    在未来20年里,那些非熟练技术工更有可能感受到被机器人夺走工作的痛苦。贫富差距会进一步加大。这有可能进一步加剧紧张局面,刺激更多人游说提高最低工资。但是就像保护主义一样,提高最低工资最终也可能起到反效果。比如提高酒店业和快餐业员工的最低工资,可能会进一步提高企业对自动化的兴趣,因为他们觉得这样做无疑会给公司省更多的钱。

    Instead of protecting jobs or increasing the minimum wage, we should seriously consider improving America’s antiquated17 education system. Education is what saved the nation during the 19th century and it could be critical this time as well.

    因此,与其推行就业保护主义、提升最低工资,我们还不如认真考虑应该如何改进美国过时的教育体系。在19世纪,正是教育拯救了这个国家。这一次,教育也同样是决定性因素。

    According to MIT Economist18 David Autor, “By the late 19th century … many Americans recognized that farm employment was declining, industry was rising and their children would need additional education to earn a living.” The World Bank notes that between 1900 and 1940, the percentage of 14- to 17-year-olds enrolled19 in high school in the U.S. increased from 10% to 75%. As a result, millions of workers left farms and were able to obtain higher-paying jobs as the economy matured.

    麻省理工学院(MIT)经济学家大卫o奥特指出:“到19世纪末……很多美国人意识到,农业的就业率正在下降,工业就业率正在上升。而他们的孩子需要接受额外的教育才能够养家糊口。”世界银行也指出,在1900到1940年之间,美国14至17岁青少年的高中入学率从10%上升到75%。因此,随着经济的成熟,数百万劳动者离开农场后,能够获得薪水更高的工作。

    But this time, we don’t need more schools, we need different schools. Schools will need to place a greater focus on skills that will enable the next generation to benefit from the upcoming technological20 wave instead of merely getting swept aside. In particular, robots are still horrible communicators and problem solvers. So schools should evolve to emphasize critical thinking and social skills. It is also highly unlikely that during the next couple decades robots will learn how to design and manage themselves, so schools should stress creativity and management skills.

    但这一次,我们需要的不是更多的学校,而是不同的学校。学校需要投入更大精力,向下一代人传授新的技能,使他们能在新的科技革命中受益,而不是“靠边站”。特别需要指出的是,机器人的沟通和解决问题的能力依然很糟糕。所以,学校应该重点加强学生的批判式思维和社交能力。另外,在未来的一二十年,机器人大概也很难掌握设计和自我管理能力,因此,学校应该着重培养学生的创造力和管理技能。

    In addition to focusing on different skill sets, schools will need to teach students how to work with machines and other emerging technologies. Today, those who have conquered computers have given themselves a much greater chance of succeeding. Tomorrow, the same will be true as it pertains21 to robots and big data. In a recent paper, Autor observed that people often “overstate the extent of machine substitution for human labor22 and ignore the strong complementarities.” In 20 years, our success will not necessarily be driven by our quantitative23 skills or our work effort, but by how well we collaborate24 with robots.

    除了重点传授不同的技能,学校还应教会学生如何与机器和其它新兴技术共同工作。如今,那些征服了电脑的人有更大的成功机会。而在未来,那些掌握了机器人和大数据的人也将是如此。奥特在最近发表的一篇论文中指出:人们“经常夸大了机器对人力的取代作用,忽视了它极强的补充作用。”在未来20年中,我们的成功不一定取决于我们的量化技能或努力程度,而是取决于能否很好地与机器人协同工作。

    Two years ago, a relative of mine was diagnosed with prostate cancer. Ironically, he is a talented urologist who has performed over 3,000 prostate cancer surgeries, but couldn’t operate on himself. When it came to choosing a doctor, he selected a surgeon who was arguably the best in the world at operating with the da Vinci Surgical25 System, a robotic surgical system. His physician’s skills were still as important as ever but the robot enabled his doctor to translate his hand movements into smaller, more precise incisions26. Although the Technology Revolution will come with its share of challenges, like the Industrial Revolution, it will ultimately enable us to do our jobs better than before and solve problems that we can’t even fathom27 solving today.

    两年前,我的一个亲戚被诊断出患有前列腺癌。讽刺的是,他自己就是一名杰出的泌尿科医生,曾经做过3000多例前列腺癌手术,但是他没法给自己手术。他在选择医生时,选择了一名据说是最善于操作达芬奇外科手术系统(Da Vinci Surgical System,一种机器人手术系统)的外科医生。他的医术当然依然很重要,但是机器人能让医生的双手进行更微小、更精确的切割操作。虽然像工业革命一样,科技革命将给人类带来挑战,但机器人最终会帮助我们更好地完成工作,解决那些我们今天甚至无法解决的问题。(财富中文网)

    Ryan Feit is CEO and co-founder of SeedInvest, a New York City-based equity28 crowdfunding platform that connects investors29 with startups.

    本文作者莱恩o费特是SeedInvest公司的CEO和联合创始人,SeedInvest是纽约的一家连接投资人和创业公司的私募众筹平台。

     11级    英文科普 


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    1 amenities [əˈmenɪti:z] Bz5zCt   第10级
    n.令人愉快的事物;礼仪;礼节;便利设施;礼仪( amenity的名词复数 );便利设施;(环境等的)舒适;(性情等的)愉快
    参考例句:
    • The campsite is close to all local amenities. 营地紧靠当地所有的便利设施。
    • Parks and a theatre are just some of the town's local amenities. 公园和戏院只是市镇娱乐设施的一部分。 来自《简明英汉词典》
    2 navigate [ˈnævɪgeɪt] 4Gyxu   第9级
    vi.航行,飞行;导航,领航;vt.驾驶,操纵;使通过;航行于
    参考例句:
    • He was the first man to navigate the Atlantic by air. 他是第一个飞越大西洋的人。
    • Such boats can navigate on the Nile. 这种船可以在尼罗河上航行。
    3 lodging [ˈlɒdʒɪŋ] wRgz9   第9级
    n.寄宿,住所;(大学生的)校外宿舍
    参考例句:
    • The bill is inclusive of the food and lodging. 账单包括吃、住费用。
    • Where can you find lodging for the night? 你今晚在哪里借宿?
    4 turnover [ˈtɜ:nəʊvə(r)] nfkzmg   第7级
    n.人员流动率,人事变动率;营业额,成交量
    参考例句:
    • The store greatly reduced the prices to make a quick turnover. 这家商店实行大减价以迅速周转资金。
    • Our turnover actually increased last year. 去年我们的营业额竟然增加了。
    5 momentum [məˈmentəm] DjZy8   第7级
    n.动力,冲力,势头;动量
    参考例句:
    • We exploit the energy and momentum conservation laws in this way. 我们就是这样利用能量和动量守恒定律的。
    • The law of momentum conservation could supplant Newton's third law. 动量守恒定律可以取代牛顿第三定律。
    6 full-time [ˈfʊlˈtaɪm] SsBz42   第8级
    adj.满工作日的或工作周的,全时间的
    参考例句:
    • A full-time job may be too much for her. 全天工作她恐怕吃不消。
    • I don't know how she copes with looking after her family and doing a full-time job. 既要照顾家庭又要全天工作,我不知道她是如何对付的。
    7 obviate [ˈɒbvieɪt] 10Oy4   第10级
    vt.除去,排除,避免,预防
    参考例句:
    • Improved public transportation would obviate the need tor everyone to have their own car. 公共交通的改善消除了每人都要有车的必要性。
    • This deferral would obviate pressure on the rouble exchange rate. 这一延期将消除卢布汇率面临的压力。
    8 spawned [s'pɔ:nd] f3659a6561090f869f5f32f7da4b950e   第9级
    (鱼、蛙等)大量产(卵)( spawn的过去式和过去分词 ); 大量生产
    参考例句:
    • The band's album spawned a string of hit singles. 这支乐队的专辑繁衍出一连串走红的单曲唱片。
    • The computer industry has spawned a lot of new companies. 由于电脑工业的发展,许多新公司纷纷成立。
    9 computing [kəm'pju:tiŋ] tvBzxs   第7级
    n.计算
    参考例句:
    • to work in computing 从事信息处理
    • Back in the dark ages of computing, in about 1980, they started a software company. 早在计算机尚未普及的时代(约1980年),他们就创办了软件公司。
    10 weavers [ˈwi:vəz] 55d09101fa7c612133657b412e704736   第9级
    织工,编织者( weaver的名词复数 )
    参考例句:
    • The Navajo are noted as stockbreeders and skilled weavers, potters, and silversmiths. 纳瓦霍人以豢养家禽,技术熟练的纺织者,制陶者和银匠而著名。
    • They made out they were weavers. 他们假装是织布工人。
    11 loom [lu:m] T8pzd   第7级
    n.织布机,织机;vi.隐现,(危险、忧虑等)迫近;vt.在织布机上织
    参考例句:
    • The old woman was weaving on her loom. 那位老太太正在织布机上织布。
    • The shuttle flies back and forth on the loom. 织布机上梭子来回飞动。
    12 automated ['ɔ:təmeitid] fybzf9   第8级
    a.自动化的
    参考例句:
    • The entire manufacturing process has been automated. 整个生产过程已自动化。
    • Automated Highway System (AHS) is recently regarded as one subsystem of Intelligent Transport System (ITS). 近年来自动公路系统(Automated Highway System,AHS),作为智能运输系统的子系统之一越来越受到重视。
    13 Oxford ['ɒksfəd] Wmmz0a   第8级
    n.牛津(英国城市)
    参考例句:
    • At present he has become a Professor of Chemistry at Oxford. 他现在已是牛津大学的化学教授了。
    • This is where the road to Oxford joins the road to London. 这是去牛津的路与去伦敦的路的汇合处。
    14 minimal [ˈmɪnɪməl] ODjx6   第7级
    adj.尽可能少的,最小的
    参考例句:
    • They referred to this kind of art as minimal art. 他们把这种艺术叫微型艺术。
    • I stayed with friends, so my expenses were minimal. 我住在朋友家,所以我的花费很小。
    15 bankruptcy [ˈbæŋkrʌptsi] fPoyJ   第9级
    n.破产;无偿付能力
    参考例句:
    • You will have to pull in if you want to escape bankruptcy. 如果你想避免破产,就必须节省开支。
    • His firm is just on thin ice of bankruptcy. 他的商号正面临破产的危险。
    16 automating ['ɔ:təˌmeɪtɪŋ] 2b259dca6072e7443e207b0e02234c2e   第8级
    (使)自动化( automate的现在分词 )
    参考例句:
    • Have you ever thought about automating any part of your business? 你有没有想过把你公司的某个部门自动化?
    • We are in process of automating the production department. 我们正在对生产部门实行自动化。
    17 antiquated [ˈæntɪkweɪtɪd] bzLzTH   第11级
    adj.陈旧的,过时的
    参考例句:
    • Many factories are so antiquated that they are not worth saving. 很多工厂过于陈旧落后,已不值得挽救。
    • A train of antiquated coaches was waiting for us at the siding. 一列陈旧的火车在侧线上等着我们。
    18 economist [ɪˈkɒnəmɪst] AuhzVs   第8级
    n.经济学家,经济专家,节俭的人
    参考例句:
    • He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem. 他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
    • He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers. 他是个经济学家,自以为什么都懂。
    19 enrolled [en'rəʊld] ff7af27948b380bff5d583359796d3c8   第8级
    adj.入学登记了的v.[亦作enrol]( enroll的过去式和过去分词 );登记,招收,使入伍(或入会、入学等),参加,成为成员;记入名册;卷起,包起
    参考例句:
    • They have been studying hard from the moment they enrolled. 从入学时起,他们就一直努力学习。 来自《简明英汉词典》
    • He enrolled with an employment agency for a teaching position. 他在职业介绍所登了记以谋求一个教师的职位。 来自《简明英汉词典》
    20 technological [ˌteknə'lɒdʒɪkl] gqiwY   第7级
    adj.技术的;工艺的
    参考例句:
    • A successful company must keep up with the pace of technological change. 一家成功的公司必须得跟上技术变革的步伐。
    • Today, the pace of life is increasing with technological advancements. 当今,随着科技进步,生活节奏不断增快。
    21 pertains [pəˈteinz] 9d46f6a676147b5a066ced3cf626e0cc   第9级
    关于( pertain的第三人称单数 ); 有关; 存在; 适用
    参考例句:
    • When one manages upward, none of these clear and unambiguous symbols pertains. 当一个人由下而上地管理时,这些明确无误的信号就全都不复存在了。
    • Her conduct hardly pertains to a lady. 她的行为与女士身份不太相符。
    22 labor ['leɪbə(r)] P9Tzs   第7级
    n.劳动,努力,工作,劳工;分娩;vi.劳动,努力,苦干;vt.详细分析;麻烦
    参考例句:
    • We are never late in satisfying him for his labor. 我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
    • He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor. 艰苦劳动两周后,他已经疲惫不堪了。
    23 quantitative [ˈkwɒntɪtətɪv] TCpyg   第7级
    adj.数量的,定量的
    参考例句:
    • He said it was only a quantitative difference. 他说这仅仅是数量上的差别。
    • We need to do some quantitative analysis of the drugs. 我们对药物要进行定量分析。
    24 collaborate [kəˈlæbəreɪt] SWgyC   第7级
    vi.协作,合作;协调
    参考例句:
    • The work gets done more quickly when we collaborate. 我们一旦合作,工作做起来就更快了。
    • I would ask you to collaborate with us in this work. 我们愿意请你们在这项工作中和我们合作。
    25 surgical [ˈsɜ:dʒɪkl] 0hXzV3   第9级
    adj.外科的,外科医生的,手术上的
    参考例句:
    • He performs the surgical operations at the Red Cross Hospital. 他在红十字会医院做外科手术。
    • All surgical instruments must be sterilised before use. 所有的外科手术器械在使用之前,必须消毒。
    26 incisions [ɪnˈsɪʒənz] b336a12b0fa6ecaa31090240eee2cfaa   第11级
    n.切开,切口( incision的名词复数 )
    参考例句:
    • Cruciate incisions heal poorly and are not required. 不需要愈合差的十字形切口。 来自辞典例句
    • After two days red incisions appear on their bodies. 一两天内身体会出现粉红色的损伤。 来自电影对白
    27 fathom [ˈfæðəm] w7wy3   第10级
    vt.领悟,彻底了解
    参考例句:
    • I really couldn't fathom what he was talking about. 我真搞不懂他在说些什么。
    • What these people hoped to achieve is hard to fathom. 这些人希望实现些什么目标难以揣测。
    28 equity [ˈekwəti] ji8zp   第8级
    n.公正,公平,(无固定利息的)股票
    参考例句:
    • They shared the work of the house with equity. 他们公平地分担家务。
    • To capture his equity, Murphy must either sell or refinance. 要获得资产净值,墨菲必须出售或者重新融资。
    29 investors [ɪn'vestəz] dffc64354445b947454450e472276b99   第8级
    n.投资者,出资者( investor的名词复数 )
    参考例句:
    • a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
    • a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

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