(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
This is Scientific American — 60-Second Science. I'm Erika Beras.
Got a minute?
Advocates for self-driving cars love to tout the benefits the cars would bring, such as fewer accidents and less congestion. Another alleged value of being a passenger rather than a driver is more productivity—you could work rather than concentrate on driving. But most people might not spend their newfound free time in self-driving cars whittling down their to-do lists.
That's according to a study by Michael Sivak and Brandon Schoettle at The University of Michigan's Sustainable Worldwide Transportation program.
The researchers surveyed people in the U.S., Australia, China, India, Japan and the U.K. And about 62 percent of respondents said self-driving cars would not make them more productive. For one thing, 23 percent of the group said they won't ride in a self-driving car in the first place. And then there are the people who get motion sickness—they obviously can't work. Plus, another 36 percent said they'd be too concerned to do anything but watch the road.
The researchers also noted that most trips average 19 minutes—not really long enough to get anything truly substantial done. Or to catch some quality zzzzz's.
Of course, the level of apprehension people experience in self-driving cars, or about getting into them, may change in the long-run. But this study is another reminder that there's still a lot to be figured out before automatic autos rule the roadways.
Thanks for the minute for Scientific American — 60-Second Science Science. I'm Erika Beras.
参考译文
这里是科学美国人——60秒科学。我是艾丽卡·贝拉斯。
有一分钟时间吗？
自动驾驶的拥护者喜欢吹捧自动驾驶汽车带来的好处，比如减少交通事故和拥堵。另一个说法是，相较于司机来说，这种汽车其实提高了乘客的生产力，因为你可以集中精力工作，而不用驾驶。但是，大多数人可能不会将新获得的自由时间花费在用自动驾驶汽车削减待办事项上。
这是一项研究所得出的结论，该研究由密歇根大学全球可持续运输项目的迈克尔·西瓦克和布兰顿·舒特勒所做。
研究人员对来自美国、澳大利亚、中国、印度、日本和英国的民众进行了调查。大约62%的受访者认为，自动驾驶汽车不会使他们更有效率。有23%的受访者表示他们不会乘坐无人驾驶汽车。还有一些人会晕车，显然在这种情况下他们无法工作。另外36%的受访者表示，他们的注意力全在看路上，以致于无法做其他事。
研究人员还指出，无人驾驶汽车的平均出行时间为19分钟，这么短的时间不足以完成任何实质性的事情。也不足于进行高质量的睡眠。
当然，从长期来看，人们对于体验或乘坐无人驾驶汽车的恐惧程度可能会改变。但是，这项研究还提醒我们，在无人驾驶车辆统治道路之前，还有很多事情有待解决。
谢谢大家收听科学美国人——60秒科学。我是艾丽卡·贝拉斯。
译文为可可英语翻译，未经授权请勿转载！
重点讲解
重点讲解：
1. rather than 而非；胜于；而不是；
例句：One should take these precepts in the spirit rather than in the letter.
人们应该去理解这些格言的精神实质而不是死抠字面。
2. concentrate on 全神贯注；集中（心思）；
例句：I can't concentrate on my work when I'm tired.
我累了就无法集中精力工作。
3. whittle down 逐渐减少；逐渐压缩…的人数；
例句：He had whittled eight interviewees down to two.
他已经逐渐将参加面试的人数由8人减少到2人。
4. in the first place 起初；一开始；
例句：In the first place, we should solve this problem.
首先，我们应该解决这个问题。
5. figure out 想出；理解；弄清；
例句：They might have figured out this riddle by now.
他们现在也许已经解开这个谜了。
