物聯網預示舒適未來 Internet of things turns menial tasks into high tech jobs
The Reality Editor, a tool developed by the Fluid Interfaces Group at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, points to a future in which everything from chairs and beds to televisions and cars can be connected, manipulated and controlled in new ways.
麻省理工學院(MIT)“流體界面小組”(Fluid Interfaces Group)開發的工具“現實編輯器”(Reality Editor)給我們展示了這樣的未來：從椅子、牀到電視、汽車的一切物品都能夠以新的方式連接、操縱和控制。
Household objects equipped with processors and communications capabilities can, for example, be programmed so that your bed can turn on the heating system in your car as soon as you get up in the morning.
比如，可以對配備處理器和通信功能的家用物品進行編程，這樣你早上一起來，你的牀就會啓動你的汽車的供暖系統。
But if such technologies might make home living more convenient, they will also usher in profound changes for businesses and society.
但是，如果說這些技術可能會讓家居生活更爲便利，那麼它們也會給企業和社會帶來種種深刻變化。
Critically, internet of things technologies — which include processors, software and web-enabled sensors — also allow objects to capture and transmit data instantly and constantly.
重要的是，包含處理器、軟件和可聯網傳感器在內的物聯網技術，讓物品能夠連續不斷地瞬間捕捉到數據並進行傳輸。
On the plus side, this can pave the way for the delivery of more efficient services. In New York, for example, rubbish bins and recycling units developed by Bigbelly, a US-based technology and waste management company, can automatically notify collection agencies when they are full.
好的一面是，這爲提供更高效率的服務鋪平了道路。比如，在紐約，美國科技和廢品處理公司Bigbell研發的垃圾箱和回收站能夠在滿了以後自動通知收集機構。
With everything from lampposts and traffic lights to weather satellites generating information all the time, cities can now analyse data to improve the world around us. Harriet Green, general manager of internet of things and education for US technology company IBM, says: “Knowing from these predictive models where the pollution is coming from allows city planners to make important decisions on how to improve air quality.”
鑑於從燈柱、交通燈到氣象衛星的一切每時每刻都在產生信息，如今的城市可以對數據進行分析以改善我們的生活環境。美國科技公司IBM物聯網和教育總經理哈麗雅特•格林(Harriet Green)表示：“通過預測模型得知哪裏在產生污染，能夠讓城市規劃者就如何改善空氣質量做出重要決策。”
Such technologies offer companies the chance to cut costs, says Gabe Batstone, chief executive of Contextere, a software start-up that develops services for industrial workforces based on machine learning — the technique behind much artificial intelligence — and internet of things technologies. With sensors generating data on the status of equipment, the work of maintaining machinery and preventing breakdowns will be transformed, saving companies large amounts of money, Mr Batstone says.
軟件初創企業Contextere首席執行官蓋布•巴特斯通(Gabe Batstone)表示，這些技術給企業提供了削減成本的機會。該公司基於機器學習（很多人工智能背後的技術）和物聯網技術開發面向工人的服務。巴特斯通說，傳感器產生有關設備狀態的數據，使機器維護和故障防止工作徹底改觀，爲企業節省大量資金。
“There’s information on the device, the device knows what maintenance is needed and the employee has access to a supercomputer — otherwise known as a cell phone — right there,” he says. “That’s going to have a monumental impact on business operations.”
“設備上有信息，設備知道需要何種維護，僱員可以通過一臺超級計算機——或者叫作手機——得知信息，”他說，“這將給商業運營帶來深遠影響。”
In the water industry, for example, sensors can supply continuous data on the physical integrity of pipes, helping to detect weaknesses and prevent leaks.
比如，在水務行業，傳感器可以連續不斷地提供有關管道完好性的數據，幫助探測薄弱之處，防止泄漏。
The same principle can also be put to work in the human body. Wearable and implantable sensors that can track everything from blood sugar levels to heart rates will allow irregular or life-threatening symptoms to be detected early. They will also enable people to take steps — through changes to diet or exercise regimes — to manage conditions such as diabetes or to lower their risk of illness.
同樣的原則也可應用於人體。可穿戴和可植入傳感器能夠追蹤從血糖水平到心率的一切體徵，從而及早檢測出不規律或者威脅生命的症狀。這些傳感器還能讓人採取改變飲食或鍛鍊方式等舉措，來應對糖尿病等病症或者降低罹患疾病的風險。
This could turn healthcare from a system designed to cure diseases and repair injuries to one that works to prevent illness and maintain good health.
這可能使醫療從一個旨在治療疾病，修復傷痛的體系，轉化爲旨在預防疾病，保持健康的體系。
Of course, such changes also have implications for human resources. When equipment can be fixed remotely and patients remain at home, engineers and nurses may need to take on different roles. For some companies, it will mean hiring people with new skills.
當然，這樣的變化也會對人力資源造成影響。當設備可以安裝在相距遙遠的地方，病人可以待在家中時，工程師和護士或許需要承擔不同的職責。對一些企業而言，這將意味着僱傭具備新技能的人。
The advent of smart thermostats such as Nest, for example, means plumbing and heating companies now need IT skills since a system breakdown may have as much to do with a broadband connection as with the pipes or the boiler. “It’s turned that industry on its head,” says Tim Devine, a digital business expert at PA Consulting Group.
比如，Nest等智能恆溫器的問世，意味着管道和供暖公司現在需要IT技能，因爲系統的故障有可能和管道或者鍋爐有關，也有可能和寬帶連接有關。“這讓這個行業發生了翻天覆地的變化，”博安諮詢(PA Consulting)數字業務專家蒂姆•迪瓦恩(Tim Devine)說。
“The guy running a boiler company, where the key still is engineering, pipes, gas and big chunks of metal, is now running an IT company.”
“儘管一家鍋爐公司的關鍵依然是工程、管道、天然氣和大型金屬件，但運營鍋爐公司的人現在運營着IT公司。”
Internet of things technologies will also create a need for new services and business models. “It’s great that I can get a warning on my smartphone telling me someone is walking around my house,” says Mr Devine. “But I need to be able to ring a local security service, otherwise I’m just worried.”
物聯網技術還會催生對新服務和商業模式的需求。“我能從智能手機上收到警告，告訴我有人在我家周圍晃悠，這很棒，”迪瓦恩說，“但我也需要能夠致電當地的安保服務，否則我只能乾着急。”
Moreover, because these new models depend on a complex system of organisations — from software companies to broadband service providers and device manufacturers — questions of liability will arise.
此外，由於這些新模式取決於從軟件公司、寬帶服務提供商到設備製造商等多個組織組成的複雜系統，將產生責任歸屬的問題。
Mr Devine cites the example of a home heating system: “What happens with the boiler if the thermostat turns itself up while you’re away and you come back to a ￡1,000 heating bill. Whose liability is that?”
迪瓦恩舉了一個家庭供暖系統的例子：“如果恆溫器在你不在的時候把鍋爐打開，你回來以後收到了1000英鎊的供暖費賬單。誰來承擔這個責任？”
While such questions have yet to be addressed, Mr Batstone argues that consumer technology has already paved the way for adoption of the internet of things by a broad range of businesses.
儘管這樣的問題尚未得到解答，但巴特斯通認爲，消費者技術已經爲物聯網被各類企業採用鋪平了道路。
“In our personal life, we’re used to our calendar telling us what time to leave to go to a meeting, giving us a map and checking the traffic,” he says.
“在我們的個人生活中，我們已經習慣由我們的日曆告訴我們什麼時候該去參加會議、提供我們地圖，並查看交通狀況，”他說。
“So what the consumer side has already done is to allow us to accept that artificial intelligence and machine learning can be useful.”
“因此，消費端已經讓我們接受這樣一點，那就是人工智能和機器學習可能是有用的。”
