时代杂志评出2014年25项最佳发明

For the most part, electric cars have been slow, sexless and stolid to drive—or stunningly expensive. But the I3 from BMW is different. In addition to getting 70 to 110 miles (113 to 177 km) on a single three-hour charge, its novel design allows drivers to use a single ­pedal to both accelerate and brake (press down to go, ease up to stop), which results in more energy-efficient driving.
电动汽车通常给我们的印象就是速度慢、长得丑、反应迟钝，价钱还贵。但是宝马的I3车型改写了这一切。单次充电三小时可供行驶70-110英里（113-177千米），除此之外，I3加入了单踏板同时控制油门和刹车的设计（踩踏板加油，松踏板制动），这将更加节能高效。

The Chip that Stops Your Slouching
10.“抬头挺胸”提示器Lumo Lift

You can probably guess why so many people have posture that causes back pain: “We simply forget” to stop slouching, says Monisha Perkash, whose company, Lumo BodyTech, created the ultimate reminder. Once users clip the Lumo Lift, a chiplike gadget about the size of a thumb, onto their shirt, it analyzes neck and spinal positions and vibrates when they’re less than ideal. Although the system isn’t perfect—it can buzz when you lean for necessary reasons, like taking a phone call—it has exceeded internal sales goals.
为什么有些不良姿势会导致背痛可是人们还是会那么做呢？很可能是因为我们“忘了抬头挺胸”，不知不觉就驼背了。Lumo BodyTech 技术工作室对此给出了解决方案，其坐姿矫正产品Lumo Lift是一款提示器，夹子形状、拇指大小，用的时候夹子衣服上，它能在脊柱、脖子做出不良姿势时发出提示。虽然这款产品也有瑕疵，比如在你必须要做某些不良姿势时也会发出提示音，但它的销量已经超出了内部销售目标。

The Tablet that Replaces Laptops
11.微软Microsoft Surface Pro 3

Microsoft’s latest “hybrid” bundles the power of a laptop into a svelte 12-in. tablet and can run desktop apps like Word, Excel and PowerPoint. That, as well as a slim, detachable keyboard cover and a built-in stand that makes the Surface usable on a desk, makes it more suitable than other tablets for professionals like doctors and businesspeople. No wonder organizations such as Coca-Cola and Seattle’s Children’s Hospital have adopted it in droves.
微软最新的“混血产品”Surface Pro 3是一款拥有12英寸屏幕的平板电脑，但却拥有笔记本电脑的强大功能，可以运行word、excel等办公软件。除了纤薄小巧，还拥有可拆分的键盘防尘罩、内置可立于桌面的支架，这都使得这款平板比其他平板更适合医生、商人等专业人士。所以可口可乐公司以及西雅图儿童医院等纷纷成为Surface Pro 3的用户也就不足为奇了。

The Ring that Alerts You in Style
12. Ringly智能戒指

Like many professional women, Christina Mercando keeps her smartphone in her purse, which meant she was constantly digging it out to check for important notifications. But what if she could get that info from something she was already wearing, much as pants-wearing men can feel a phone buzz in their pocket? That’s the thinking behind Ringly, a line of rings that can be programmed to glow when wearers get an email from their boss, a text from their Uber driver or any number of other can’t-miss communications.
和其他职业女性一样，克里斯蒂娜也把智能手机放在包里，这意味着她为了不漏掉重要信息得不停地将手机从包里掏出掏进。但是如果她能从自己身上戴着的某种东西上查看信息会怎么样？就像男士们把手机放在口袋里，有信息时能感到震动一样。这就是Ringly这款戒指的设计初衷，它能够通知用户有短信、有通知和有来电等其他不能错过的重要信息。

The Pillbox that Gets Personal
13.私人化药盒

“I grew up in a family that owned and operated a pharmacy,” says T.J. Parker, who knows firsthand how confusing it can be for people to track which meds to take when, especially if they fill multiple prescriptions. That’s why the e-pharmacy he runs now, PillPack, doesn’t traffic in bottles. Instead, every two weeks, patients are sent a dispenser, which has their medication—all of it—sorted into a ticker tape of tearable packets, organized by date and time.
“我家开有一间药店，我在那里长大。”帕克说他非常了解人们在买药、吃药时的那种困惑，尤其是当人们手里有好几种药方的时候。所以帕克开了一家电子药店—电子药盒。与传统的瓶装药不同，每隔两周病人们会从电子药店收到一个包含所需药物的分配器，里面装着按日期分类的塑料药包。

Bananas that Prevent Blindness
14.富含维A的超级香蕉

In sub-Saharan Africa, up to 30% of kids under age 5 are at risk of going blind—among other conditions—for one simple reason: they don’t get enough eye-nurturing vitamin A. But what if the bananas that make up a lot of their diet could be re-engineered to deliver it? That’s the idea that struck Australian biogeneticist James Dale when he visited Uganda in the early 2000s. With backing from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Dale and his team began developing a vitamin-A-enriched “superbanana”; human trials start soon in the U.S. “These bananas could potentially solve” a major health problem, Dale says.
在撒哈拉以南的非洲地区，5岁以下的儿童中有超过30%的儿童处在可能失明的危险中，原因非常简单，他们缺乏对视力起重要作用的维生素A。那么能不能让在他们日常饮食占很大比例的香蕉里富含维生素A呢？这是澳大利亚生物遗传学家詹姆斯在二十世纪初访问过乌干达后就一直在思考的问题。在比尔和梅琳达·盖茨基金会的帮助下，詹姆斯和他的团队开始研究富含维A的超级香蕉，人类临床试验不久会在美国进行。詹姆斯说，这些香蕉有望解决非洲地区的健康问题。

The Wheel that Gives Bikers a Boost
15.智能电动单车轮

We know that biking is good for us and good for the environment. But getting around on a bicycle can seem daunting, especially in a large city with a hilly terrain. To lessen that burden, Cambridge, Mass.–based Superpedestrian has developed the Copenhagen Wheel, a standard-size wheel—it can be attached to the back of most bicycles—that boasts a rechargeable, battery-powered motor. Depending on rider preferences, entered through a smartphone app, the motor can kick in power throughout the ride or just on hills.
众所周知，骑自行车既能锻炼身体，又能保护环境。但是骑着自行车四处走有时候也需要勇气，尤其是在山多的城市里。为了减轻这方面的负担，剑桥大学研究人员研发出了Copenhagen Wheel，它是一款尺寸标准、可反复充电、可独立安装于任何一辆自行车后轮并使其成为“电动自行车”的轮子。根据骑车人的不同喜好，通过智能手机的应用，轮子还能够自动调节动力。

The Seamless Sign-Language Translator
16.手语翻译平板

For the millions of deaf people who cannot speak, everyday communication often requires costly human translators and tedious note writing. Enter the Uni, a tablet and attachment that leverages motion-sensing cameras and voice recognition to translate American Sign Language into spoken words—and spoken words into text—in real time. “The need for this is so great,” writes Ryan Hait-Campbell, CEO of San Francisco–based MotionSavvy, who is deaf.
对上百万的聋哑人来说，日常交流需要大量懂手语的人的帮助或者是繁琐的书面交流。而这款UNI手语翻译平板，配备有感应器、麦克风等装置，可将美式手语翻译成语音，还能把语言翻译成文字。“这个太棒了。”研发出此款平板的MotionSavy公司的CEO莱恩说道。莱恩自己就是一位聋人。