让你的数据像钻石一样恒久远.doc

让你的数据像钻石一样恒久远If you wear a diamond on your finger, it likely has flaws, even if you cant see them.如果你手上戴了一颗钻石，那它很可能存在瑕疵，即便你用肉眼看不到。Dont blame your partners for your flawed engagement rings, thank them.别因为订婚戒指有瑕疵而指责你的伴侣，而是要表示感谢。You could be flaunting the future of data storage on your digits.因为你或许可以向人炫耀，数据存储的未来就在你的手指上。A paper published Wednesday in Science Advances shows how diamonds can be harnessed to store data for the long term.周三发表在科学前沿(Science Advances)上的一篇论文，展示了利用钻石长期存储数据的方法。Right now, a tiny diamond about half as long as a grain of rice and thinner than a sheet of paper can hold a hundred times more information than a DVD.现在，一丁点儿钻石长度与半粒米相仿，厚度还赶不上一张纸可以存储的信息量要比一张DVD多出百倍。Thats not much within the context of the worlds growing data hoard.相较于世界上日益增大的数据存储量，这不算什么。But in the future physicists could access a diamond with storage capacity a million times greater than that of a DVD, maybe more.但在未来，物理学家可能会让一颗钻石具有比一张DVD大100万倍的信息存储容量，也许还会更多。Groups all over the world are scrambling to find a place to cram all the data were generating taking selfies,当我们自拍、刷信用卡，乃至在今时今日处理一切事情的时候，都会生成数据。swiping credit cards and doing just about everything we do today.全世界的许多组织都在争先恐后寻找一个可以把所有这些数据塞进去的地方。Theyve proposed DNA, holograms, old-fashioned magnetic tape and other ideas.它们曾提议使用DNA、全息图、老式磁带以及其他一些载体。Diamonds arent new to the memory game, either.在数据存储领域，钻石也不是新鲜事物。Theyve been proposed for quantum data storage, which is kind of like teleportation.一直有人提议用它们进行量子数据存储有点像隐形传输。But this isnt that.但这里说的跟那种不是一回事。Its basic storage 101 010101 (and so on).它是基本存储101010101（以此类推）。It starts with a tiny, atomic-sized imperfection known as a nitrogen vacancy center in your otherwise perfect diamond.它首先需要你那看似完美无缺的钻石内存在原子大小的瑕疵，名为氮原子空缺中心。These flaws occur when a stray nitrogen atom or a few of them sneak in among its carbon structure.当一个或者几个游离的氮原子在钻石的碳结构中潜行的时候，这些瑕疵就会产生。Deleting a carbon atom near the nitrogen leaves an empty space perfect for stashing data.剔除氮原子附近的一个碳原子，便会留下一个适合存储数据的完美空间。The researchers, a team of physicists from City University of New York,研究人员是来自纽约市立大学(City University of New York)的一组物理学家。used lasers to encode and read data on these tiny spaces, which they treated like magnets that could repel or absorb an electron.他们用激光在这些微小的空间中对数据进行编码和读取，并把这些空间当成是可以排斥或者吸收电子的磁铁。To encode simple grayscale images like a smiley face, Albert Einstein and Erwin Schrdinger they added an electron by shining a green laser and took one away with a red laser.为了对简单的灰度图像比如笑脸，以及阿尔伯特爱因斯坦(Albert Einstein)和埃尔温薛定谔(Erwin Schrdinger)的形象进行编码，他们通过发射绿色激光增加一个电子，并通过发射红色激光减少一个。They read their data like a computer reads 0s and 1s, but instead of digits there was light, which indicated the presence or absence of electrons.读取数据时就像电脑读取0和1时一样，不过这里涉及的不是数字，而是光，它会显示电子存在或者不存在。While both use light to read data, the concept is a little different from DVD storage, said Jacob Henshaw, a graduate student who worked on the study.一名参与了这项研究的研究生雅各布亨肖(Jacob Henshaw)说，虽然都是用光来读取数据，但这一概念与DVD存储有所不同。A DVD is like a 2-D puzzle, and this diamond technique is like a 3-D model, he said.DVD就像2D拼图，这种钻石技术则像3D模型，他说。Unlike the DVD, which has only one surface, a diamond can store data in multiple layers, like a whole stack of DVDs.与只有一个表面的DVD不同，钻石可以对数据进行多层存储，相当于一大摞DVD。This storage would also work differently than a magnetic hard drive, because diamonds, as they say, are forever.这种存储方式与磁性硬盘驱动器的运行也不一样，因为正如人们所说，钻石恒久远。Every time you access or rewrite your hard drive, the material its made of degrades, and after five or 10 years, its dead.每当你访问或者重写硬盘的时候，构成硬盘的材料都会发生降解，五年或者十年之后它就报废了。But the defects in the diamonds dont change, and if you do nothing, your data could last as long as your diamond.但钻石内的瑕疵不会发生改变，如果你什么都不做，你的数据会像钻石一样恒久远。There is a no way you can change it.没有任何办法能改变它。It will sit there forever, said Siddharth Dhomkar, the lead author on the study.它会永远待在那里，论文的第一作者悉达多多姆卡(Siddharth Dhomkar)说。Veterans in the data storage industry, like Jon Toigo, are skeptical.数据存储行业的一些资深人士，比如乔恩托伊戈(Jon Toigo)，对此抱有疑虑。He worries that the only people fluent in this data exchange might be men in lab coats, that there will be flaws in the data, and that cost will be high, even with imperfect diamonds.他担心能熟练进行这种数据交换的或许只有实验室里的研究人员，以及数据会出现瑕疵，还担心成本过于高昂，尽管所用的钻石是有瑕疵的那种。Its usually a 10-year interval before the tech is released for commercial use, he said.通常而言，这项技术再过十年才能实现商用，他说。The researchers say their industrial fabricated diamond, which cost about $150, was the cheapest thing in their experiment.研究人员称，他们在实验中用到的最便宜的东西是以大约150美元（约合人民币1000元）购买的工业用合成钻石。Their concept works on any material with the same flaw and any flawed diamond not just lab ones.他们的概念适用于任何具有同样瑕疵的材料以及任何一颗有瑕疵的钻石不只是实验室里的那些。The bigger the diamond, the more defects, the more places to put information, said Mr Henshaw.钻石越大，瑕疵越多，存放信息的空间就越多，亨肖说。Whether or not your diamond engagement ring could one day also hold your wedding photos is something lab members have joked about.实验室成员会拿有朝一日是否也能用你的钻石订婚戒指储存婚礼的照片来开玩笑。A ring on your finger has the same defects as a ring in the lab.你手上的钻石和实验室的钻石有着同样的瑕疵。But light exposure will scramble the diamonds data: You can put something on top of the diamond, but if you were to walk around in sunlight, you would erase your wedding photos, most likely, he said.不过，光暴露会让钻石内的数据遭到破坏：你可以在钻石上放点儿什么，但你如果走在阳光下，婚礼的照片极有可能被抹掉，他说。未知死 焉知生 韩国人活着躺进棺材未知死 焉知生 韩国人活着躺进棺材 未知死，焉知生？韩国人活着躺进棺材SEOUL, South Korea Did you ever wonder what it would be like to be at your own funeral? Some South Koreans arent waiting to die to find out.韩国首尔你有没有想过参加自己的葬礼会是什么感觉？一些韩国人不想等到死后才知道。Its become a trend in recent years to act out a mock funeral service as a way of better appreciating life.为了更珍惜现在的生活，模拟殡仪服务近年流行起来。The Hyowon Healing Center in Seoul runs one such program, with financial backing from a funeral service company.首尔孝圆康复中心(Hyowon Healing Center)就开设了这样一个项目，并得到一家殡仪服务公司的资金支持。After an instructional lecture and video, participants are led into a dimly lit hall decorated with chrysanthemums, where they sit, often tearfully, beside caskets and write their last testaments.参与者在参加了教学讲座、观看了视频之后，被带到一个装点着菊花的昏暗大厅，他们坐在棺材旁边，常常眼泪汪汪地写下他们的最后遗嘱。Then they put on burial shrouds and lie down in the coffins.然后穿上寿衣，躺进棺材。A grim-looking man dressed in a black robe, the Envoy from the Other World, hammers the lids closed.一个表情严峻的男人穿着黑色长袍，扮演来自另外一个世界的使者，他把棺材盖上。The participants are left encased in utter darkness for 10 minutes which can feel like an eternity.参与者在完全的黑暗中度过10分钟有时候感觉很久很久。There was not a single ray of light coming in, and how I cried in the dark, suffocating coffin! a recent participant wrote in a blog post.里面没有一丝光线，我在黑暗中哭泣，棺材令人窒息！一个参与者最近在一篇博客帖子中写道。Jeong Yong-mun, the director of the Hyowon program, said 15,000 people had gone through mock funerals at the center since 2012.孝圆项目主任郑永门（音）说，自2012年以来，有1.5万人参与了该中心的模拟葬礼。The program is free.该体验是免费的。Some participants had terminal illnesses and wanted help preparing for the end; others had suicidal impulses that they wanted to dispel.一些人患有绝症，希望参加这个项目有助于为死亡做准备；还有些人有自杀冲动，想要打消这种念头。Businesses send employees as part of a motivational program.一些企业也把这个项目作为员工激励计划的一部分。At the end of the two-and-a-half-hour session, Mr Jeong tells the participants: Now, you have shed your old self.在两个半小时的体验即将结束时，郑永门会告诉参与者：现在，你已经不再是以前的你了。You are reborn to have a fresh start! It takes a few minutes for them to readjust, but soon they are chatting, laughing and taking selfies with their coffins.你获得了重生，有了一个新的开始！参加者通常会花几分钟的时间调整情绪，但很快，他们就会开始交谈、欢笑，并与他们的棺材自拍。Mr Jeong said he keeps an eye out for the few morbid souls who seem to feel a little too comfortable in the coffin.郑永门说，他会留意极少数的病态者，他们似乎觉得在棺材里很舒服。But most participants say they feel strangely refreshed afterward, gaining a new perspective on the things that matter in life, like family.但是大多数参与者都表示在体验结束后，有一种奇怪的焕然一新的感觉，对生活中的重要组成部分有了新的视角，比如对家庭。I feel my heart pumping, one participant wrote in a blog post, where she confessed to having thought about suicide before the mock funeral service.我感觉到自己的心在跳，一个参与者在一篇博客帖子中写道，她承认在体验模拟殡仪服务之前曾考虑自杀。I am alive!我还活着！跟随无人机 深入中国沙漠化重灾区The scenery is breathtaking, but I feel helpless: Were a half-hour drive from where we need to be, and the sunset means that my assignment along with the limited time left on my visa is slipping away from me.景色令人惊叹，我却感到无助：我们离要去的地方还有半个小时的车程，日落意味着我的任务以及我签证上剩下的有限时间正在从我身边溜走。The truth is, the drivers here arent accustomed to journalists.事实是，这里的司机对记者不熟悉。Their usual customers are tourists looking for a roller-coaster ride through the dunes 他们的顾客通常是想坐一次沙丘过山车的游客。which explains the death metal blasting from the radio and what seems to be a broken axle.这也解释了收音机里传出的死亡金属以及现在遇到的问题：似乎是一根轮轴断了。The music should have been my first clue.那音乐应该是给我的第一个提示。But now, halfway to Moon Lake, were watching the sun go down,但现在，在离月亮湖还有一半路的地方，我们只能看着太阳渐渐落下。and Im missing the opportunity to make the picture.我正在错失拍摄机会。Getting here wasnt easy: a 14-hour red-eye flight to Beijing, a two-hour plane ride to Yinchuan (after a series of cancellations and delays because of summer thunderstorms along with a four-hour nap in an airport hotel), a two-hour drive to the edge of the Tengger, and a rapid price negotiation to get a dune-capable vehicle.一路来到这里不容易：先是坐14个小时的红眼航班到北京，然后坐两个小时的飞机到银川（在这之前因为夏季雷雨，航班多次被取消和延迟起飞，我还在机场的一家宾馆小睡了四个小时），之后再坐两个小时的汽车到腾格里沙漠边缘，最后再经过一场匆忙的讨价还价，找到一辆能在沙丘地带行驶的车。Making the pictures hasnt proved easy, either.事实证明，拍摄也并非易事。For traveling purposes, I had brought along a relatively small drone, and I knew it would be a trade-off: Smaller and lighter means it is more susceptible to being swept up in a windstorm, which would make the footage unusable.因为是出差，我带了一台相对较小的无人机，我知道这是一种妥协：更小、更轻意味着更容易被卷进风暴中，导致画面素材不能用。We also have to get very creative when launching and landing the drone to ensure minimal sand exposure.我们还必须在无人机的起飞和着陆上想些办法，尽可能少碰到沙子。Id already ruined one in an assignment months before by getting sand in the motor.几个月前，我就已经在执行一次任务时报废了一台无人机，因为马达里进了沙子。I couldnt risk having that happen so early in this trip to China.我可不能在此次中国之行一开始就重蹈覆辙。How did I end up here? Wed chosen this exact spot, from back in New York, months earlier.我怎么来了这里呢？几个月前，我们就在纽约选定了这个地方。A group of editors on the graphics desk and I had sat down with a map of the Tengger, after hearing suggestions from Edward Wong, the Beijing bureau chief.听到北京分社社长黄安伟(Edward Wong)的建议后，图片编辑部的一群编辑和我坐在一起，研究一幅腾格里地图。We were looking for communities along the edge that might be affected by the deserts changing footprint.我们想在沙漠边缘寻找可能受到沙漠足迹不断变化影响的社区。书呆子奥巴马的下一份工作 硅谷在招手WASHINGTON Staring intently at the dual screens inside a flight simulator this month at the University of Pittsburgh, President Obama tapped the controls in front of him, firing faux thrusters as he pretended to maneuver his space shuttle toward the International Space Station. Pulse up. Pulse to the right. Left. Down. Down. Left. Left.华盛顿本月，在匹茨堡大学(University of Pittsburgh)的一个飞行模拟器里，奥巴马总统专注地盯着两块屏幕，操作着他面前的控制装置，启动模拟推进器。他是在假装操作自己驾驶的航天飞机飞向国际空间站。逐渐向上。向右渐转。左。下。下。左。左。“Uber shuttle,” the beaming president told reporters after a brief but successful docking mission, joking that the next market for Uber would be outer space. “In case anyone calls, well be there in five minutes.”“优步飞机，”满脸笑容的总统在结束了短暂但成功的对接任务后对记者说，并开玩笑称优步(Uber)的下一个市场是外太空。“要是有人叫飞机，我们五分钟后就到。”For nearly eight years, the presidency has been Mr. Obamas science and technology playground, a place where he sought to become the advocate in chief for industries pushing advanced batteries, powerful medical devices and cutting-edge research.在近八年时间里，总统职位一直是奥巴马的科技游乐场。在这个职位上，他试图成为推行先进的电池、强大的医疗设备和前沿研究的行业的首席倡导者。“Im a nerd, and I dont make any apologies for it,” Mr. Obama said after his faux shuttle flight. He added: “Its cool stuff. And it is that thing that sets us apart, that ability to imagine and hypothesize, and then test and figure stuff out, and tinker and make things and make them better, and then break them down and rework them.”“我是个书呆子，对此我没有丝毫的歉意，”奥巴马在模拟飞行结束后说，并接着表示：“这是一件很酷的事情。正是这个东西让我们与众不同，这种想象和假设，然后试验并弄明白，不断修改和发明创造并逐步改善，然后把它们拆散重做。”With less than three months left in his presidency, Mr. Obama is preparing for a life after the White House that will most likely include a close relationship with Silicon Valley. Officials running Mr. Obamas presidential foundation have made about 10 trips to tech strongholds in California in the past year as they help him plot his next steps.在总统任期只剩下不到三个月的情况下，奥巴马正在为离开白宫后的生活做准备。卸任后的生活极有可能涉及到他与硅谷的亲密关系。过去一年里，奥巴马的总统基金会的负责人前往加利福尼亚州的科技要塞大约十次，帮他部署接下来的步骤。“I wouldnt be surprised if that was one of the key focus areas for him post-presidency,” said Steve Case, a co-founder of AOL.“如果那是他卸任后的重点关注领域之一，我不会惊讶，”美国在线(AOL)联合创始人史蒂夫凯斯(Steve Case)说。The path from the Obama White House to the tech giants many of them major political donors to Mr. Obama is already well worn.从奥巴马领导的白宫到科技巨头其中很多都是奥巴马重要的政治捐助者已经是一条老路了。塔塔被炒董事长发起反击Cyrus Mistry, the ousted Tata Group chairman, has launched a blistering attack on his predecessor, Ratan Tata, claiming that five of the conglomerates largest businesses face asset writedowns of $18bn.被罢免的塔塔集团(Tata Group)董事长塞勒斯.密斯特里(Cyrus Mistry)向他的前任拉丹.塔塔(Ratan Tata)发起猛烈攻击，声称该集团五大块业务面临180亿美元资产减记。Mr Mistry was abruptly sacked as chairman of holding company Tata Sons on Monday, stunning an Indian business community used to stable management at the countrys largest group by sales.密斯特里在周一突然被免除控股公司Tata Sons董事长身份，令习惯了该国销售额最高集团稳定管理的印度商界感到震惊。In a lengthy email to Tata directors, seen by the Financial Times, Mr Mistry accused them of sacking him without explanation, an action he condemned for its “illegality”. He did not elaborate.在英国金融时报看到的一封写给塔塔董事会成员的长邮件中，密斯特里指责他们没有解释就解雇了他，谴责此举为“非法行为”，但没有详述。Mr Mistry said Tata Steel Europe and four other group businesses Tata Motors, Tata Power, Indian Hotels and Tata Teleservices faced potential asset writedowns of Rs1.2tn ($18bn).密斯特里表示，塔塔钢铁(Tata Steel)欧洲业务以及塔塔汽车(Tata Motors)、塔塔电力(Tata Power)、印度酒店(Indian Hotels)和塔塔电信(Tata Teleservices)等业务可能面临1.2万亿卢比（合180亿美元）的资产减记。Tata Sons declined to comment on Mr Mistrys claims, which hit the share prices of group businesses yesterday. Tata Steels stock dropped 5.4 per cent, Tata Motors declined 4.8 per cent, Tata Power, 2.3 per cent and Indian Hotels 5.7 per cent.Tata Sons对密斯特里的指称不予置评，昨日这一言论打击了集团旗下企业的股价，塔塔钢铁股价下跌5.4%，塔塔汽车下跌4.8%，塔塔电力下跌2.3%，印度酒店下跌5.7%。In his email, Mr Mistry blasted the Tata Nano, one of Mr Tatas pet projects, which was billed as the worlds cheapest car at its launch in 2009. The car had no path to profitability, and “emotional reasons alone” had prevented the group from abandoning it, he said.密斯特里在电子邮件中对拉丹.塔塔钟爱的塔塔Nano项目发起炮轰，Nano在2009年问世时被称为全球最便宜的汽车。密斯特里说，这款车找不到实现盈利的路径，而“纯粹感情上的原因”阻止了集团放弃它。Mr Mistry said Tatas automotive business had engaged in “aggressive accounting” under Mr Tata by capitalising product development costs, as well as extending customer credit with “lax risk assessment”, leading to a damaging build-up of loan defaults.密斯特里表示，塔塔的汽车业务在拉丹.塔塔领导下使用“激进会计方法”，包括资本化产品开发成本，并且以“宽松风险评估”向客户提供信贷，导致破坏性的贷款违约累积。Mr Mistry went on to criticise Mr Tatas aggressive foreign expansion, which he said had left “a large debt overhang”, notably at the conglomerates European steel business, generated through the $13bn acquisition of Corus in 2007.密斯特里还批评拉丹.塔塔激进的海外扩张，称此举留下了“大量债务”，尤其是该集团的欧洲钢铁业务。2007年塔塔集团斥资130亿美元收购哥鲁氏(Corus)，由此形成塔塔的欧洲钢铁业务。Mr Tatas office declined to comment on Mr Mistrys claims. In a statement yesterday, Mr Tata urged group businesses not to be distracted by the change in leadership and stressed his return would be for “a short time” only.拉丹.塔塔的办公室对密斯特里的言论不予置评。拉丹.塔塔昨日在一份声明中敦促集团旗下企业不要因领导层的变化而分心，并强调他的回归只是“短时间的”。关于我们最心爱的糖类的10大真相Sugar certainly has gotten a bad rap lately. Its blamed for everything from obesity and diabetes to heart disease, kidney disease and stroke.显而易见，现在糖有一个坏名声。从肥胖和糖尿病到心脏病、肾病和抽风，糖无一不被指责。But is it really all that bad? Is there nothing redeeming about those tiny, sweet granules? Or is a lot of what we hear misinformation?但是真的有那么坏吗？难道这些小小的甜甜的颗粒就没有任何可取之处吗？还是我们听到的都是一些错误的信息？We know one thing for sure. Sugar consumption in America has skyrocketed. In 1990, Americans ate an average of 4 teaspoons (16 grams) of added sugar per day. By 2014, that number had shot up to 20 teaspoons (80 grams) daily.的确，在美国，糖的消耗量猛增。1990年，美国人平均每天摄入4茶匙（16克）添加糖。到2014年，这个数字已经激涨至每天20茶匙（80克）。In addition, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says Americans obtain 16 percent of their total calories from added sugars, namely soda, energy and sports drinks, grain-based desserts, sugar-sweetened fruit drinks, dairy-based desserts and candy.除此之外，美国食品药品监督管理局(FDA)称，美国人16%的能量是从添加糖中获取的，也就是苏打水，运动能量饮料，谷物类甜品，含糖果汁饮料，乳类甜点和糖果中。The World Health Organizations (WHO) recommendation? We should only be getting less than 10 percent of our daily calories from added sugar. In 2014, the WHO even proposed slashing that recommended rate to less than 5 percent.世界卫生组织(WHO)建议我们每日添加糖摄取量应低于总摄入能量的10%。在2014年，WHO甚至提议该目标应为5%。Clearly, we need to pay attention to sugar and our consumption rate. But first, we need to learn the truth about our favorite sweetener.很明显，我们需要高度重视糖的摄入比例。但是首先，我们需要了解我们最喜欢的糖的真相。10.People Can Easily Limit Sugar Intake10.人们可以轻而易举地控制糖的摄入OK, we need to eat less sugar. No problem. Well just stop eating dessert, eschew the doughnuts brought in by our colleague and pass on the Halloween candy.对，我们需要少吃点糖。没问题。我们只要停止吃甜点，避开同事