第2009期:Is technology making life better or worse?

John: Technology. Patricia, is it changing people for the better or for the worse? 

约翰：技术。帕特里夏，它会让人们变得更好还是更坏？ 

Patricia: I think it's doing both. It depends on the person. I think technology is an amazing tool and resource, but I also think that people can become easily addicted to things. 

帕特里夏：我认为两者兼而有之。取决于个人。我认为技术是一种了不起的工具和资源，但我也认为人们很容易对事物上瘾。 

John: I agree. 

约翰：我同意。

Patricia: Yeah, like their phones or social media. So, I mean, it's like anything in life, it has its advantages and disadvantages. 

帕特里夏：是的，就像他们的手机或社交媒体。所以，我的意思是，就像生活中的任何事情一样，它有其优点和缺点。 

John: What do you think is one of the biggest advantages it has for us right now? 

约翰：您认为它目前对我们来说最大的优势之一是什么？ 

Patricia: I think information. You know, we can access information so easily now. We can look up, you know, anything we can dream of doing; we can Google it and find either a tutorial or a book. There's just endless information about every topic. And then, if you can't find what you're looking for, you can write about what you're looking for yourself online and help other people. So, you know, that is huge right now. 

帕特里夏：我认为信息。您知道，我们现在可以轻松获取信息。你知道，我们可以查找任何我们梦想做的事情；我们可以通过谷歌搜索并找到教程或书籍。每个主题都有无穷无尽的信息。然后，如果您找不到所需的内容，您可以在网上写下自己正在寻找的内容并帮助其他人。所以，你知道，现在这是巨大的。 

John: Okay. What about a negative for technology? Something you think it's doing to, you know, impact us negatively? 

约翰：好的。对技术的负面影响又如何呢？你认为它所做的事情会对我们产生负面影响吗？ 

Patricia: I mean, it definitely impacts our relationships, especially if they are more inclined to be introverted; they're not forced to go outside their comfort zone so much. They can stay home and send messages or just stay home and play video games and not really... 

帕特里夏：我的意思是，这肯定会影响我们的人际关系，特别是如果他们更倾向于内向的话；他们不会被迫太多地走出自己的舒适区。他们可以呆在家里发消息，或者只是呆在家里玩电子游戏，而不是真的…… 

John: Engage? 

约翰：参与？ 

Patricia: ... engage in socializing with an actual human being. And I think while it is nice to be able to exchange messages easily, I also think that that is not, that doesn't take the place of actually talking to a human face to face. I think our society still needs that in-person connection. And I think, you know, some people aren't getting that anymore because they're so involved with their online presence or, yeah. 

帕特里夏：……与真实的人进行社交。我认为虽然能够轻松地交换消息很好，但我也认为这并不能取代与人面对面的实际交谈。我认为我们的社会仍然需要这种面对面的联系。我认为，你知道，有些人不再明白这一点，因为他们过于关注自己的在线形象，或者，是的。 

John: Okay. Now, I think a big part of that is the technological advances surrounding, things like social media. How do you feel about children being exposed to social media or things like that? 

约翰：好的。现在，我认为其中很大一部分是围绕社交媒体等事物的技术进步。您对孩子接触社交媒体或类似事物有何看法？ 

Patricia: I definitely think it should be limited for them. Parents really need to be a role model for their children and put boundaries in place for themselves as well. I think that's the best way to be a good role model for children, by limiting their own screen time and what they're doing on social media so that children can learn what is healthy. I think it's all about balance. There needs to be a healthy balance. And if, you know, parents find that their children are spending too much time in front of a screen or on social media, or, you know, they're being bullied, I think they need to be involved and they need to set boundaries for their kids where those things are concerned. 

帕特里夏：我绝对认为对他们来说应该受到限制。父母确实需要成为孩子的榜样，并为自己设定界限。我认为这是成为孩子们的好榜样的最佳方式，通过限制他们自己的屏幕时间和他们在社交媒体上所做的事情，以便孩子们能够学习什么是健康的。我认为这一切都与平衡有关。需要有一个健康的平衡。如果，你知道，父母发现他们的孩子在屏幕前或社交媒体上花费了太多时间，或者，你知道，他们被欺负，我认为他们需要参与其中，他们需要设定界限 对于他们的孩子来说，这些事情都值得关注。 

John: Okay. Last question for you. What do you think is the most important and beneficial technological advance, sorry, beneficial technological advancement that we've seen? Doesn't have to be today, you can go all the way back to whenever. 

约翰：好的。最后一个问题给你。您认为我们所见过的最重要、最有益的技术进步是什么？抱歉，最有益的技术进步是什么？不一定是今天，你可以一直回到任何时候。 

Patricia: Probably, I mean, technological advancement in medicine is probably the thing that has seriously affected our society and our world the most, you know, being able to mass produce vaccines comes to mind or, you know, robots who can perform surgery. Things like that I think have actually really made a big difference in people's everyday lives around the globe. 

帕特里夏：我的意思是，医学技术进步可能是对我们的社会和世界影响最大的事情，你知道，我想到的是能够大规模生产疫苗，或者你知道，可以进行手术的机器人。我认为类似的事情实际上对全球人们的日常生活产生了很大的影响。 

John: Nice. All right. Well, that's all the questions I have for you. Thanks again for coming. 

约翰：很好。好的。嗯，这就是我要问你的所有问题。再次感谢您的光临。