2021年科技會(huì)帶來哪些改變

2021年無人車能成為現(xiàn)實(shí)嗎?還有什么技術(shù)奇跡或科技突破在這一年等著我們呢?

Ride-hailing startup Lyft announced recently that it's making its own self-driving car technology—a move that could help it meet an audacious goal of having autonomous vehicles chauffeur most of its passengers around by 2021.

叫車服務(wù)初創(chuàng)公司“來福車”日前宣布開發(fā)自動(dòng)駕駛技術(shù)，該公司計(jì)劃到2021年左右實(shí)現(xiàn)由無人車搭載大部分乘客，而開發(fā)自動(dòng)駕駛技術(shù)有助于實(shí)現(xiàn)這一雄心壯志。

It sounds a bit far-fetched, considering that autonomous cars are still largely in the testing stages, but Lyft is just one of many companies saying that 2021 will be the year that these vehicles finally get out on the roads en masse.

由于無人車現(xiàn)在很大程度上仍處于測(cè)試階段，所以聽起來有點(diǎn)不太靠譜。但已有多家企業(yè)表示2021年無人車將大規(guī)模駛上道路，而來福車只是其中一家。

So, sure, it could happen. And going along with that positive line of thinking—assuming that we will, in fact, have self-driving cars in 2021—we wondered what other technological marvels and milestones await us in that magical year.

因此，這一切當(dāng)然有可能發(fā)生。如果順著這種樂觀的思路繼續(xù)下去，假設(shè)2021年無人車成為現(xiàn)實(shí)，那么還有什么技術(shù)奇跡或科技突破在這神奇的一年等著我們呢?

The answer was surprising. According to an array of predictions from tech companies and market researchers, plenty of changes are coming.

答案讓人大吃一驚。根據(jù)科技公司和市場(chǎng)研究人員進(jìn)行的一系列預(yù)測(cè)，眾多變革即將到來。

Electric cars

電動(dòng)汽車

When it comes to driving, 2021 won't just be about fancy robot cars; it's expected to be a year in which we'll have more electric vehicles, too. A report from Bloomberg New Energy Finance forecasts that electric vehicles will make up a little less than 4% of all car sales in the US and 5% of all car sales in Europe that year, up from 1% and 2%, respectively, this year.

談到駕駛，2021年不僅只是高級(jí)無人車的一年，到時(shí)電動(dòng)車也有望更加普及。彭博新能源財(cái)經(jīng)的一份報(bào)告預(yù)測(cè)，2021年電動(dòng)汽車的銷量將占美國(guó)汽車總銷量的近4%，在歐洲的占比將達(dá)到5%，和今年相比分別上升1%和2%。

Virtual reality

虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)

Though virtual reality's first year with some powerful consumer headsets on the market, 2016, wasn't exactly a blockbuster, the technology is expected to be on a lot more faces come 2021. IDC forecasts that shipments of virtual and augmented reality headsets will rise to about 92 million in 2021, which would be close to 10 times as many as shipped out last year.

功能強(qiáng)大的虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)頭盔在2016年首次面世后并沒有風(fēng)靡。不過，預(yù)計(jì)2021年使用這項(xiàng)技術(shù)的用戶將大幅增加。據(jù)國(guó)際數(shù)據(jù)公司預(yù)測(cè)，2021年虛擬現(xiàn)實(shí)和增強(qiáng)現(xiàn)實(shí)頭盔的出貨量將上升到9200萬左右，這將是去年出貨量的10倍。

Male birth control

男性節(jié)育

We raise an eyebrow for this one more than most, but we'll just have to wait and see: a company called Contraline is reportedly working to bring to market a form of reversible male birth control that doesn't require surgery.

男性節(jié)育比大多數(shù)事情更讓人們感到意外，但是我們只需要等待觀望：據(jù)報(bào)道，一家名為Contraline的公司正在努力將一種無需手術(shù)即可進(jìn)行的可逆式男性節(jié)育方式推向市場(chǎng)。

Contraline claims it has come up with a “polymer hydrogel” that is implanted in the vas deferens—in just a few minutes with the help of an ultrasound—and is meant to block the passage of sperm for years. In April Contraline announced that it had raised $2.2 million toward its goal and that it aimed to have a product on the market in 2021.

Contraline稱，他們研發(fā)出一種植入到輸精管的“高分子水凝膠”，它可以將精子運(yùn)輸?shù)耐ǖ蓝氯麛?shù)年，只需要利用超聲波花幾分鐘即可完成。今年4月，Contraline宣布打算在2021年銷售這款產(chǎn)品，并為實(shí)現(xiàn)目標(biāo)籌資220萬美元。

Getting online

上網(wǎng)

In 2021, many more of us will be able to weigh in on these amazing new technologies (whether or not they actually came to fruition).

2021年，更多人將可以對(duì)以上神奇的新技術(shù)發(fā)表評(píng)論了(不管它們是否真的實(shí)現(xiàn)了)。

Networking-equipment maker Cisco forecasts in its Visual Networking Index that the number of people using the Internet will climb from 3.3 billion today to 4.6 billion within four years. That would be more than half the world's population, using the United Nations' estimate of 7.8 billion by 2021.

網(wǎng)絡(luò)設(shè)備制造商思科公司的視覺網(wǎng)絡(luò)指數(shù)預(yù)測(cè)，4年內(nèi)互聯(lián)網(wǎng)用戶將從現(xiàn)在的33億人攀升至46億人。聯(lián)合國(guó)預(yù)估2021年全球人口為78億，基于這一數(shù)字，屆時(shí)互聯(lián)網(wǎng)用戶將占世界人口的一半以上。

Cheap solar power

廉價(jià)太陽(yáng)能

Clean energy has been getting cheaper for a while now, and in the not-so-distant future of 2021, it is expected to finally become cheaper to use renewable power sources like solar and wind rather than coal in a number of key countries.

現(xiàn)在，清潔能源的價(jià)格已經(jīng)越來越便宜，而在不久之后的2021年，在一些主要國(guó)家，太陽(yáng)能和風(fēng)能等可再生能源的價(jià)格有望低于煤炭。

While solar power—which is pricier than the other big renewable source, wind—is already comparable price-wise to coal in countries such as the US, Italy, and Germany, a recent report from Bloomberg New Energy Finance predicts that by 2021, solar power will be cheaper than coal in China, India, Mexico, Brazil, and the UK.

太陽(yáng)能比風(fēng)能等其他大型可再生能源要昂貴，雖然在美國(guó)、意大利、德國(guó)等國(guó)家，太陽(yáng)能的價(jià)格已經(jīng)比煤礦更合理，但彭博新能源財(cái)經(jīng)近日的一份報(bào)告預(yù)測(cè)，到2021年，中國(guó)、印度、墨西哥、巴西和英國(guó)的太陽(yáng)能將比煤礦更便宜。

Lab-grown chicken

實(shí)驗(yàn)室培養(yǎng)雞肉

Chicken grown in a laboratory, rather than on a farm, sounds far out, but it may be here in a few years.

雞肉在實(shí)驗(yàn)室培育出來，這聽起來遙遠(yuǎn)，但是幾年后可能就成為現(xiàn)實(shí)了。

And since it doesn't involve killing any fowl, it may lead to chicken nuggets that even the staunchest animal lover will nibble on.

這樣的養(yǎng)殖方式不會(huì)殺死任何家禽，生產(chǎn)出的雞塊連最堅(jiān)定的動(dòng)物愛好者可能也會(huì)食用。

That's the hope of a company called Memphis Meats, which is planning to sell its lab-raised, animal-free chicken by 2021 - an achievement it's already on the way to meeting since it says it has grown pieces of chicken and duck sans animals in its lab.

這一想法來自孟菲斯肉品公司，該公司正在計(jì)劃于2021年前銷售實(shí)驗(yàn)室培養(yǎng)的“無雞雞肉”，孟菲斯肉品公司已經(jīng)快要實(shí)現(xiàn)這一目標(biāo)，他們稱已經(jīng)在實(shí)驗(yàn)室里培育出沒有長(zhǎng)成家禽的雞肉塊和鴨肉塊。