1.生物科技

Since the early 2000s, the cost of sequencing a human genome — determining the precise order of nucleotides within DNA¹ molecules² that defines who we are — has dropped sharply. A genome that cost $100m to sequence in 2001 can today be sequenced for roughly $1,000.

自本世纪初以来，人类基因测序（确定DNA分子内部核苷酸的确切排序，这一排序决定了我们是谁）的价格已大幅下跌。2001年基因测序的价格高达1亿美元，如今仅为1000美元左右。

This plummeting³ cost, along with the shortened timescales for sequencing DNA, has led to a revolution in biotechnology: gene hacking⁴, or the ability to turn genes⁵ on and off, and to manipulate biology to our advantage.

价格下跌再加上DNA测序所需时间缩短，带来了生物技术领域的革命：基因黑客技术，能够开启和关闭基因、操纵生物学让其为我们所用。

The most radical⁶ branch of this new technology is “gene editing” — a process by which our DNA code can be cut and pasted using molecular⁷ “scissors” for a variety of applications, including curing diseases such as cancers and HIV. Until recently, swapping⁸ the code was an arduous⁹ process. A new DNA cut-and-paste tool known as Crispr has made the process unexpectedly simple.

这种新技术的最激进分支是“基因编辑”：利用分子“剪刀”剪切和粘贴我们的DNA编码的过程，其用途很多，包括治愈癌症和艾滋病等疾病。直到不久前，DNA编码交换曾是一个困难的过程。名为Crispr的新的基因剪切与粘贴工具让这个过程变得意外地简单。

Crispr has been used to create disease-resistant strains of wheat and rice, alter yeast¹⁰ to make biofuels and reverse blindness in animals. Ultimately, it could be used to edit defects out of human embryos¹¹.

Crispr用来创造抗病的小麦和大米品种、改变酵母菌以制造生物燃料并治疗动物失明。最终，它或许可用于消除人类胚胎中的缺陷。

2. Artificial intelligence

2.人工智能

Artificial intelligence is not science fiction: it is already embedded¹² in products we use every day. Apple’s Siri assistant, Amazon’s book recommendations, Facebook’s news feed and Spotify’s music discovery playlist are all examples of services driven by machine learning algorithms.

人工智能并非科幻小说：它已经嵌入到我们每天使用的产品中。苹果(Apple)的Siri助理、亚马逊(Amazon)的图书推荐、Facebook的新闻推送以及Spotify的音乐发现列表都是由机器学习算法驱动的服务的例子。

This decades-old science is enjoying a renaissance¹³ today because of the deluge¹⁴ of data created by smartphones and sensors¹⁵, and the supercomputing power that is available to crunch¹⁶ that data. According to technology research firm Tractica, the AI market will grow from $643.7m in 2016 to $36.8bn by 2025.

这门拥有几十年历史的科学如今正经历复兴，因为智能手机和传感器创造了大量数据，并且如今我们有了能够处理这些数据的超级运算能力。根据科技研究机构Tractica的数据，人工智能市场的规模将从2016年的6.437亿美元扩大到2025年的368亿美元。

Techniques such as deep learning and neural¹⁷ networks supposedly mimic¹⁸ the human brain: they spot broad patterns in enormous data sets in order to label images, recognise voices and make decisions.

据说，深度学习和神经网络等技术会模仿人脑：它们会识别大量数据集中各种大的模式，以实现对图片的归类、识别声音和做出决定。

The next step is artificial general intelligence: an algorithm that will not have to be taught a specific skill such as a game of chess or a new language, but will acquire it through trial and error, just as a child does. Companies such as London-based DeepMind, owned by Google, and others are working to make this a reality.

下一步是通用型人工智能：这种算法不需要被教授具体技能（例如下棋或一门新的语言），而是会通过试错法来习得技能，就像儿童所做的那样。总部位于伦敦的DeepMind（由谷歌(Google)所有）等公司以及其他公司正致力于让这变为现实。

3. Renewable energy

3.可再生能源

World leaders last year ratified¹⁹ the Paris Agreement on climate change.

世界各国领导人去年批准了《巴黎气候协议》(Paris Agreement)。

This aims to keep the global average temperature from rising more than 2C above pre-industrial levels and to attempt to keep the increase under 1.5C. Keeping this promise will require more renewable energy research over the next decade.

该协议旨在阻止全球平均气温较工业时代以前的水平升高2摄氏度以上，并试图将升温幅度控制在1.5摄氏度以下。兑现这一承诺将需要在未来10年加大可再生能源研究。

In energy, researchers are trying to build a nuclear fusion²⁰ reactor²¹ that would tap the same process that causes the sun to give off light and heat to create a source of clean energy. An intergovernmental partnership²² is building a $19bn fusion reactor, ITER, in France. Other innovations include artificial photosynthesis²³ to make hydrocarbons²⁴ in laboratories to power cars, and high-altitude wind power that involves kites and hot-air balloons acting²⁵ as aerial wind turbines.

在能源领域，研究人员正试图建造一个核聚变反应堆，利用与太阳发光发热原理相同的过程，创造出一个清洁能源来源。一项政府间合作计划正在法国建造一个190亿美元的核聚变反应堆ITER。其他创新计划包括：人工光合作用，在实验室中制造碳氢化合物为汽车提供动力；高海拔风电厂，把风筝和热气球作为空中风力涡轮。

Iceland is investing in geothermal technology, drilling for heat energy underground. Thirty years ago it started by using geothermal resources to heat towns and cities. Now, the entire country’s electricity and heating systems are powered almost fully by renewable energy, including geothermal and hydropower.

冰岛正在投资发展地热技术，通过钻探开采地下热能。30年前，该国开始利用地热资源为城镇供暖。如今，整个国家的电力和供暖系统几乎全部依靠可再生能源，包括地热和水电。

4. Connectivity

4.网络接入技术

WiFi — a household staple²⁶ that modern children take for granted — turned 25 last September. As more objects connect to the “internet of things” — an estimated 50bn of them by 2020, according to estimates from technology company Cisco — the future of WiFi lies in reducing the power it drains from internet-enabled devices.

WiFi是现代儿童眼中理所当然的家庭标配，去年9月，这项技术度过了25岁生日。随着更多设备与“物联网”相连（根据科技公司思科(Cisco)的估计，到2020年，联入物联网的设备将达到500亿台），WiFi的未来取决于降低其在联网设备上消耗的电量。

One innovation, invented by students at the University of Washington in Seattle, is known as “passive WiFi” which its inventors say consumes 10,000 times less power. It is currently slower than regular home broadband, but would work well for applications such as smart thermostats²⁷ or lightbulbs. The WiFi community is also looking to develop higher-frequency bands that would be used over a limited range, such as in a house or car.

位于西雅图的华盛顿大学(University of Washington)的学生发明了一种创新技术，名为“被动WiFi”。发明人称，耗电量仅为以前的万分之一。目前速率低于一般的家庭宽带，但应用于恒温器或灯泡等设备效果很好。WiFi界还计划开发更高的频段，用于覆盖有限的范围，例如家中或车里。

Ultimately, WiFi itself could be replaced by a new superfast alternative called Li-Fi, which uses light to beam information through the air, instead of radio waves. Lightbulbs would act as routers for this technology. A pilot study earlier this year found that a Li-Fi prototype could send data 100 times faster than WiFi, allowing dozens of movies to be downloaded in minutes.

最终，WiFi可能会被另一种新的超高速连接技术Li-Fi取代，这种技术利用光通过空气（而非无线电波）传输信息。灯泡将作为这项技术的路由器。今年早些时候的一项试验研究发现，Li-Fi样机的数据传输速度是WiFi的100倍，几十部电影可以在几分钟之内下载完毕。

5. Smart appliances

5.智能家电

Almost two-thirds of the human population is connected to the internet via smartphones, but these devices are not the only portal to the web. In 2016 there were 6.4bn connected things — excluding PCs, phones and tablets — in use worldwide, up 30 per cent from the previous year, according to technology analyst²⁸ Gartner. The internet of things, as it is known, is this universe of objects — everything from cars to printers, lightbulbs to thermostats — that are no longer “dumb”, static things: they can learn your habits and be controlled remotely using an app.

全球近三分之二的人口通过智能手机连接互联网，但智能手机并非唯一的互联网接入门户。技术分析机构高德纳(Gartner)的数据显示，2016年，全球有64亿个使用中的联网设备（不包括个人电脑、手机和笔记本电脑），较上一年高出30%。物联网正是这些联网设备的集合，从汽车到打印机、灯泡到恒温器，它们不再是“愚笨”、静止的物体：它们可以学习你的习惯并通过应用远程控制。

The stereotypical²⁹ smart appliance is the self-stocking refrigerator that replenishes³⁰ your milk automatically. This innovation will replace a lot more than the sniff³¹ test. Cars are now computers, running more lines of code than the Apollo 11 spaceship on its way to the moon. As these computers become more intelligent, cars will drive themselves, potentially reducing traffic-related fatalities³². Smart sensors can also transform industry, for instance by monitoring goods during transport, helping³³ utility companies to measure energy usage and logistics companies to track vehicles over long distances.

典型的智能家电是可以自动备货的冰箱，能够自动补充牛奶。这种创新带来的方便远不止是不再需要靠嗅觉来判定食品是否变质。汽车现在变成了电脑，运行的代码行数比阿波罗11号(Apollo 11)宇宙飞船飞往月球时还要多。随着这些电脑变得更为智能，汽车将实现自动驾驶，可能会减少交通事故导致的死亡。智能传感器还能彻底改造业态，例如，通过监测运输过程中的商品，帮助公用事业企业衡量能耗以及帮助物流公司远程追踪车辆。