機(jī)器貓--科學(xué)狂人制造的驚天慘劇
Cat Fancy 機(jī)器貓
By Louis Strack
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偶爾會(huì)見媒體有報(bào)，說某某國(guó)家的某個(gè)科學(xué)狂人正在克隆人，所幸每次似乎都是虛驚一場(chǎng)。科學(xué)帶給人類的有進(jìn)步，也有災(zāi)難，這已是不爭(zhēng)的事實(shí)。希望類似下文這樣的慘劇在現(xiàn)實(shí)中永遠(yuǎn)不會(huì)發(fā)生。
I'm telling you, Johnson, this is going to be the biggest development in animal-imitative cybernetics since Hayes pioneered the field way back in 2014.1 Everybody's going to want a piece of my discovery! The military, all the megacorps, the private sector.2 Everyone! Even United States of Earth Defense!3 I'm going to be the richest man alive!
I can see you don't share my enthusiasm yet. Just wait, old friend. Accompany me to my lab, and we will see who has the last laugh. You'll be begging me to take you on as a lab assistant after I ?Oh, here we are. You first, my good man. Just get the lights there on your left and go on in.
You see, I had already come up with the perfect cybernetic engine, capable of mimicking any life form.4 The question was, which creature would be the best showcase of my discovery? Humans and apes are overdone;5 you might remember Liebovitz's android6 last year that got everyone all excited? Yeah, I agree. Damn snake-oil salesman7 is all he turned out to be! His "miracle man" couldn't remember its own name after a week. But this is different, because I've utilized a life form nobody's considered for cybernetics. It is powerful, graceful, intelligent, and best of all people love it. I chose the tiger!
Go ahead and pull away that dust-cloth there. Go on, have a peek! Ha! Don't look so startled, Johnson. I leave it powered down when I'm not testing it. It is rather imposing8, though, if I may say so. Yes, all the latest technology, including claws I had made from vanadium alloy.9 Cuts through steel like it's wet cardboard. Omni-directional piston ligaments, the finest photometric ocular devices I could find, and a cybernetic neural interface, which exactly mirrors a Bengal tiger. The one in New Planetary zoo, actually.10 The process that I used to get its mind in the computer will be enough to ensure me fame and fortune, but when they see the magnificent machine I've built to house this mind ?
Huh? It did move, didn't it? I guess I left it on yesterday. No, don't look so nervous. I can shut off its main power circuitry with this remote right here.11 Nothing to worry about. No, it won't do anything like that. No, I really don't think it's sizing you up for a meal.12 Be reasonable, old ?Oh, God! Johnson! The remote, where is it? Where?! Gotta find it quick, before it turns on me ?
Ah, there we go! Too late to save Johnson, though. What a pity. Let's just take the power cells out of the thing. Better safe than sorry. There! God, what a mess. Even worse, I can't call the police now, the bad publicity would overshadow my breakthrough, and definitely frighten the investors. I've got to get rid of the body secretly, somehow. I could bury it, but I might be seen. I could burn it, but the smoke would be awfully suspicious. What to do? What to ?
I wonder... How fast can this cat eat?13
1. 我告訴你，Johnson，這將是自Hayes于2014年開創(chuàng)了動(dòng)物模擬控制學(xué)以來這個(gè)領(lǐng)域的一項(xiàng)進(jìn)展。cybernetics: 控制論。
2. 軍隊(duì)、所有公司巨頭、還有私企。megacorps: = mega-corporations, 即“超大型公司”，mega-是前綴，表示“巨大的”。
3. 甚至地球防御聯(lián)合國(guó)。這是一個(gè)杜撰的機(jī)構(gòu)。
4. 你知道，我已發(fā)明了完美的控制引擎，它可以模擬任何形式的生命。mimick: 模仿，學(xué)……的樣子。
5. 人和類人猿早已被用濫了。
6. android: 機(jī)器人，人形自動(dòng)機(jī)。
7. snake-oil:(江湖郎中聲稱可治療風(fēng)濕、感冒、禿發(fā)等疾而實(shí)無療效的)蛇油，萬靈油。snake-oil salesman即招搖撞騙的江湖販子。
8. imposing: 壯觀的，不凡的。
9. 是啊，用的全都是最新的技術(shù)，連爪子我都是用釩合金做成的。vanadium: 釩；alloy: 合金。
10. 全向活塞紐帶、我能找到的的光視覺裝置、還有可控制的中性界面，這些都完全模擬了孟加拉虎，就是新星系動(dòng)物園里的那只。omni-directional: 全向的；piston: 活塞； ligament: 紐帶，聯(lián)結(jié)物； photometric: 光度學(xué)的，光測(cè)量的；ocular: 視覺的，像眼睛的；interface: 界面。
11. 我可以用這個(gè)遙控器關(guān)閉它的主電路系統(tǒng)。circuitry: 電路系統(tǒng)。
12. 不，我真的覺得它沒有把你當(dāng)美餐打量的意思。size up: 估價(jià)，品評(píng)。
13. 不知道……這老虎(吃人)吃得有多快？cat: 因虎屬貓科，故有此說。這里意思是文中的獨(dú)白者想干脆讓機(jī)器虎把Johnson的尸體吃掉，借以掩飾自己的發(fā)明失敗的真相。
Cat Fancy 機(jī)器貓
By Louis Strack
筱可 選注
偶爾會(huì)見媒體有報(bào)，說某某國(guó)家的某個(gè)科學(xué)狂人正在克隆人，所幸每次似乎都是虛驚一場(chǎng)。科學(xué)帶給人類的有進(jìn)步，也有災(zāi)難，這已是不爭(zhēng)的事實(shí)。希望類似下文這樣的慘劇在現(xiàn)實(shí)中永遠(yuǎn)不會(huì)發(fā)生。
I'm telling you, Johnson, this is going to be the biggest development in animal-imitative cybernetics since Hayes pioneered the field way back in 2014.1 Everybody's going to want a piece of my discovery! The military, all the megacorps, the private sector.2 Everyone! Even United States of Earth Defense!3 I'm going to be the richest man alive!
I can see you don't share my enthusiasm yet. Just wait, old friend. Accompany me to my lab, and we will see who has the last laugh. You'll be begging me to take you on as a lab assistant after I ?Oh, here we are. You first, my good man. Just get the lights there on your left and go on in.
You see, I had already come up with the perfect cybernetic engine, capable of mimicking any life form.4 The question was, which creature would be the best showcase of my discovery? Humans and apes are overdone;5 you might remember Liebovitz's android6 last year that got everyone all excited? Yeah, I agree. Damn snake-oil salesman7 is all he turned out to be! His "miracle man" couldn't remember its own name after a week. But this is different, because I've utilized a life form nobody's considered for cybernetics. It is powerful, graceful, intelligent, and best of all people love it. I chose the tiger!
Go ahead and pull away that dust-cloth there. Go on, have a peek! Ha! Don't look so startled, Johnson. I leave it powered down when I'm not testing it. It is rather imposing8, though, if I may say so. Yes, all the latest technology, including claws I had made from vanadium alloy.9 Cuts through steel like it's wet cardboard. Omni-directional piston ligaments, the finest photometric ocular devices I could find, and a cybernetic neural interface, which exactly mirrors a Bengal tiger. The one in New Planetary zoo, actually.10 The process that I used to get its mind in the computer will be enough to ensure me fame and fortune, but when they see the magnificent machine I've built to house this mind ?
Huh? It did move, didn't it? I guess I left it on yesterday. No, don't look so nervous. I can shut off its main power circuitry with this remote right here.11 Nothing to worry about. No, it won't do anything like that. No, I really don't think it's sizing you up for a meal.12 Be reasonable, old ?Oh, God! Johnson! The remote, where is it? Where?! Gotta find it quick, before it turns on me ?
Ah, there we go! Too late to save Johnson, though. What a pity. Let's just take the power cells out of the thing. Better safe than sorry. There! God, what a mess. Even worse, I can't call the police now, the bad publicity would overshadow my breakthrough, and definitely frighten the investors. I've got to get rid of the body secretly, somehow. I could bury it, but I might be seen. I could burn it, but the smoke would be awfully suspicious. What to do? What to ?
I wonder... How fast can this cat eat?13
1. 我告訴你，Johnson，這將是自Hayes于2014年開創(chuàng)了動(dòng)物模擬控制學(xué)以來這個(gè)領(lǐng)域的一項(xiàng)進(jìn)展。cybernetics: 控制論。
2. 軍隊(duì)、所有公司巨頭、還有私企。megacorps: = mega-corporations, 即“超大型公司”，mega-是前綴，表示“巨大的”。
3. 甚至地球防御聯(lián)合國(guó)。這是一個(gè)杜撰的機(jī)構(gòu)。
4. 你知道，我已發(fā)明了完美的控制引擎，它可以模擬任何形式的生命。mimick: 模仿，學(xué)……的樣子。
5. 人和類人猿早已被用濫了。
6. android: 機(jī)器人，人形自動(dòng)機(jī)。
7. snake-oil:(江湖郎中聲稱可治療風(fēng)濕、感冒、禿發(fā)等疾而實(shí)無療效的)蛇油，萬靈油。snake-oil salesman即招搖撞騙的江湖販子。
8. imposing: 壯觀的，不凡的。
9. 是啊，用的全都是最新的技術(shù)，連爪子我都是用釩合金做成的。vanadium: 釩；alloy: 合金。
10. 全向活塞紐帶、我能找到的的光視覺裝置、還有可控制的中性界面，這些都完全模擬了孟加拉虎，就是新星系動(dòng)物園里的那只。omni-directional: 全向的；piston: 活塞； ligament: 紐帶，聯(lián)結(jié)物； photometric: 光度學(xué)的，光測(cè)量的；ocular: 視覺的，像眼睛的；interface: 界面。
11. 我可以用這個(gè)遙控器關(guān)閉它的主電路系統(tǒng)。circuitry: 電路系統(tǒng)。
12. 不，我真的覺得它沒有把你當(dāng)美餐打量的意思。size up: 估價(jià)，品評(píng)。
13. 不知道……這老虎(吃人)吃得有多快？cat: 因虎屬貓科，故有此說。這里意思是文中的獨(dú)白者想干脆讓機(jī)器虎把Johnson的尸體吃掉，借以掩飾自己的發(fā)明失敗的真相。