Smartcarsthatcansee,hear,feel,smell,andtalk?Anddriveontheirown?Thismaysoundlikeadream,butthecomputerrevolutionissettoturnitintoareality.能看、能听、有知觉、具嗅觉、会说话的智能汽车？还能自动驾驶？这听起来或许像是在做梦，但计算机革命正致力于把这一切变为现实。SmartCarsMichioKaku1Eventheautomobileindustry,whichhasremainedlargelyunchangedforthelastseventyyears,isabouttofeeltheeffectsofthecomputerrevolution.智能汽车米其奥·卡库即便是过去70年间基本上没有多少变化的汽车工业，也将感受到计算机革命的影响。2Theautomobileindustryranksasamongthemostlucrativeandpowerfulindustriesofthetwentiethcentury.Therearepresently500millioncarsonearth,oronecarforeverytenpeople.Salesoftheautomobileindustrystandataboutatrilliondollars,makingittheworld'sbiggestmanufacturingindustry.汽车工业是20世纪最赚钱、最有影响力的产业之一。目前世界上有5亿辆车，或者说每10人就有1辆车。汽车工业的销售额达一万亿美元左右，从而成为世界上最大的制造业。3Thecar,andtheroadsittravelson,willberevolutionizedinthetwenty-firstcentury.Thekeytotomorrow's"smartcars"willbesensors."We'llseevehiclesandroadsthatseeandhearandfeelandsmellandtalkandact,"predictsBillSpreitzer,technicaldirectorofGeneralMotorsCorporation'sITSprogram,whichisdesigningthesmartcarandroadofthefuture.汽车及其行驶的道路，将在21世纪发生重大变革。未来“智能汽车”的关键在于传感器。“我们会见到能看、能听、有知觉、具嗅觉、会说话并能采取行动的车辆与道路，”正在设计未来智能汽车和智能道路的通用汽车公司ITS项目的技术主任比尔·斯普雷扎预言道。4Approximately40,000peoplearekilledeachyearintheUnitedStatesintrafficaccidents.Thenumberofpeoplethatarekilledorbadlyinjuredincaraccidentsissovastthatwedon'tevenbothertomentiontheminthenewspapersanymore.Fullyhalfofthesefatalitiescomefromdrunkdrivers,andmanyothersfromcarelessness.Asmartcarcouldeliminatemostofthesecaraccidents.Itcansenseifadriverisdrunkviaelectronicsensorsthatcanpickupalcoholvaporintheair,andrefusetostartuptheengine.Thecarcouldalsoalertthepoliceandprovideitspreciselocationifitisstolen.美国每年有大约4万人死于交通事故。在汽车事故中死亡或严重受伤的人数太多，我们已经不屑在报纸上提及。这些死亡的人中至少有半数是酒后开车者造成的，另有许多死亡事故是驾驶员不小心所导致。智能汽车能消除绝大多数这类汽车事故。它能通过会感测空气中的酒精雾气的电子传感器检测开车者是否喝醉酒，并拒绝启动引擎。这种车还能在遇窃后通报警方，告知车辆的确切地点。5Smartcarshavealreadybeenbuiltwhichcanmonitorone'sdrivingandthedrivingconditionsnearby.Smallradarshiddeninthebumperscanscanfornearbycars.Shouldyoumakeaseriousdrivingmistake(e.g.,changelaneswhenthereisacarinyour"blindspot")thecomputerwouldsoundanimmediatewarning.能监控行车过程以及周围行车状况的智能汽车已经建造出来。藏在保险杠里的微型雷达能对周围的汽车作扫描。如果你发生重大行车失误（如变道时有车辆在你“盲点”内），计算机立即会发出警报。6AttheMITMediaLab,aprototypeisalreadybeingbuiltwhichwilldeterminehowsleepyyouareasyoudrive,whichisespeciallyimportantforlong-distancetruckdrivers.Themonotonous,almosthypnoticprocessofstaringatthecenterdividerforlonghoursisagrosslyunderestimated,life-threateninghazard.Toeliminatethis,atinycamerahiddeninthedashboardcanbetrainedonadriver'sfaceandeyes.Ifthedriver'seyelidscloseforacertainlengthoftimeandhisorherdrivingbecomeserratic,acomputerinthedashboardcouldalertthedriver.在麻省理工学院媒介实验室，业已制造出能测知你行车时有多少睡意的样车，这对长途卡车司机意义尤其重要。一连数小时注...
