有了“不耗電屏幕”：手機每周只充一次電

The hassle of having to charge your smartphone for hours a day could become a thing of the past.
今后你可能不需要每天都給手機充幾小時的電了。

British scientists have created a material that replaces the screen glass for phones, tablets and smartwatches, but uses no power – meaning they could be charged weekly.
英國科學(xué)家發(fā)明了一種物質(zhì)，它可以替代手機、平板電腦和智能手表的玻璃屏幕，因為該物質(zhì)不耗電，所以意味著這種屏幕的手機每周充一次電即可。

The discovery is significant because more than 90 per cent of a device’s battery power illuminates the screen.
這項發(fā)明十分有意義，因為電子設(shè)備90%的電量都是用來為屏幕提供亮度的。

Technology firms have focused on improving battery life. But the British experts say tackling the main drain on a gadget’s power may give better results.
各家技術(shù)公司一直在專注提升電池的續(xù)航能力。但從事這項技術(shù)的英國專家稱，找到耗電的主要部件并著手解決，才能取得更好的結(jié)果。

Oxford University engineer Dr Peiman Hosseini, who invented the material, told the Sunday Telegraph: ‘You have to charge smartwatches every night. But if you had smart glass, you could recharge it just once a week.’
牛津大學(xué)工程師胡賽尼博士發(fā)明了這種物質(zhì)。他在接受《星期日電訊報》采訪時稱：“你不得不每天晚上為智能手表充電。但如果你有了這種智能玻璃屏幕，那你一周充一次電就可以了。”

The innovation uses electrical pulses to create displays that require no power and can be viewed even in direct sunlight. Dr Hosseini’s company, Bodle Technologies, hopes to have a prototype in a year.
這項發(fā)明利用電脈沖讓屏幕能在不需要電的情況下顯示內(nèi)容，在陽光直射下也能看得清。胡賽尼博士在博德爾技術(shù)公司任職，該公司希望一年后能擁有該屏幕的原型。

‘This is the right moment to be an academic at Oxford,’ Dr Hosseini said.
胡賽尼博士說：“作為牛津?qū)W者，此時做這項研究很合適。”

Battery life is seen as a major stumbling block for modern computing and technology.
電池續(xù)航能力被視為現(xiàn)代計算機技術(shù)的一個主要絆腳石。

While the power of technology and lifestyle gadgets has improved exponentially in recent years, batteries have not kept pace.
盡管近幾年科技發(fā)展越來越強大，各種生活工具呈爆發(fā)式增長，但電池領(lǐng)域仍沒有顯著提高。

The success of smart watches, including Apple’s version, is thought to hinge on solving this problem - because few users are willing to charge a watch every day.
人們普遍認為，蘋果手表等智能手表的成功與否取決于能否解決電池這個問題——因為幾乎沒有人愿意每天為手表充電。

Gadget firms are also desperate to solve the problem.
各家科技產(chǎn)品公司也都在努力想要解決這一問題。

Apple, for example, is investigating using fuel cells to power its phones and laptops, and this year was granted a patent for a system it claimed could power its devices for weeks.
例如蘋果公司就在研究為其手機和筆記本電腦配備燃料電池。公司今年還獲得了一項系統(tǒng)專利，該系統(tǒng)據(jù)稱可以連續(xù)幾周為蘋果設(shè)備供電。

In 2012 US energy secretary Steven Chu called for a big push to improve batteries, challenging scientists to produce a battery with five times the capacity within five years.
2012年，美國能源部長朱棣文呼吁大力幫扶電池領(lǐng)域，希望科學(xué)家能在五年內(nèi)研究出五倍電量的電池。

Aside from mobile gadgets, improving battery technology is seen as being key to the success of electric cars, which currently have a limited mileage before they must stop to be recharged.
除了移動設(shè)備，提升電池技術(shù)也是電動汽車發(fā)展的關(guān)鍵。目前的電動汽車均有里程上限，因為要時常停下來充電。

Vocabulary
drain：消耗
electrical pulse：電脈沖
stumbling block：絆腳石；障礙

英文來源：每日郵報
譯者：張卉
審校&編輯：杜娟