Robot plants Putting down roots

　　植物機器人 落地生根

　　A robotic model of what plants get up to under thesurface

　　模仿植物根部工作的機器人模型

　　PEOPLE often forget, when looking at a garden,meadow or forest, that half of almost every plantin it is underground.

　　在人們望著花園，草原或者森林時，常常會忽略一點幾乎所有生長于斯的植物的身體中有一半都長于地下。

　　Stems, leaves and flowers are pretty.

　　莖干，葉片和花朵都很美麗，

　　But plants roots, though ugly andinvisible, are probably their smartest parts.

　　但是既不露面又不好看的根部卻很可能是植物身上最有智慧的部分。

　　They collect information on the physical properties and chemical composition of the soilthey are growing through

　　它們在土壤中成長，并搜集土壤的物理性質及化學組分的信息，

　　and use that to decide in which direction to continue growing.

　　然后決定新的生長方向。

　　They can pierce the ground employing only a fraction of the energy that worms, moles orman-made drills consume.

　　它們只耗用一點能量便能在土地中鉆行，僅相當于蠕蟲，鼴鼠或人造鉆機所耗能量的一小部分。

　　Plant roots are thus the most efficient systems known for underground exploration.

　　因此植物的根可說是地下勘探中最有效率的系統。

　　But not, perhaps, for much longer.

　　但或許這個名頭保持不了多久了。

　　Researchers working on the Plantoid project, led by Barbara Mazzolai of the Italian Instituteof Technology, in Pontedera,

　　參與植物機器人計劃的研究人員想要開發出至少與真正的根不相上下的機器根，

　　hope to develop robot plant roots that will be as good as the real things, if not better.

　　該計劃的負責人是意大利理工學院的芭芭拉瑪佐萊。

　　In doing so, they seek to understand how real roots work and also to devise machines thatmight monitor soil pollution, prospect for minerals and look for water.

　　在開發過程中，研究人員不僅要設法了解真正的根是如何工作的，還力圖設計處可以監測土壤污染，勘探礦物及尋找水源的設備。

　　The plantoid, of which Dr Mazzolai plans to demonstrate a partial prototype on July 29that a conference at the Natural History Museum in London, will have a central stemcontaining a reservoir of liquid plastic of a sort that can be frozen by ultraviolet light.

　　瑪佐萊博士計劃在7月29日于倫敦自然歷史博物館召開的會議上演示植物機器人非完全體原型，該機器人有一條主干，里面有一個裝有液態塑料的儲液囊，這種液態塑料受到紫外線照射時將會凝固。

　　Half a dozen cylindrical roots will branch off this stem, and the plastic will flow throughthese from the reservoir to the tip.

　　主干上分出六條柱狀根，液態塑料從儲液囊中流過這些柱狀根，直至其頂端。

　　As in a real root, the tip will be a specialised structure.

　　和真的根一樣，柱狀根的頂端是一種特別的結構。

　　Instead of being a cone containing a meristem it will be a cone containing a motor, alight-emitting diode and a battery.

　　兩者都是圓錐結構，不過前者里面有一個分生組織，而后者里面是電機，發光二極管和電池各一個。

　　The motor will suck liquid plastic through the root and push it to the periphery of the cone.

　　電機將液態塑料吸入根部再將之推至圓錐體表層。

　　Once there, the liquid will be solidified by ultraviolet rays from the diode, extending thecylinder and forcing the cone farther into the soil.

　　液態塑料到達該位置后馬上會因二極管發出的紫外線照射凝固，使圓柱體增長，促使錐體在土壤中更進一步。

　　As in real life, the gentle but relentless pressure of the root s growth should be enough tomake it advance through the soil, fractions of a millimetre at a time.

　　對真正的根來說，由根部生長帶來的和緩但從不間斷的壓力足以使之在土壤中前進，一次能前進幾絲米。

　　The researchers expect their prototypical robotic roots to be able to penetrate up to a metreof real soil.

　　研究人員希望自己的機器根原型最多可穿透1米深的真正土壤。

　　The direction of growth is controlled by a material known as an electro-rheological fluid,which is also stored in the cone.

　　生長方向是由一種叫做電力流變液的物質控制的，該物質也儲存在圓錐中。

　　Such fluids become more viscous when an electric current is applied to them, and changingthe viscosity on one side of a root but not the other,

　　當有電流通過時，該液體會變得更加粘稠，通過電池提供的電流改變根部一側的粘稠度，而另一側不變，

　　using current from the battery, causes the direction of growth to vary.

　　從而改變生長的方向。

　　One thing missing from the prototypes is a control system that responds to the root senvironment.

　　該原型中缺少一套可以對根的外部環境產生響應的控制系統。

　　The plan is to fit the next generation of cones with sensors that look for whatever the root isdesigned to find, and control its growth accordingly.

　　計劃是在下一代的圓錐體中裝上傳感器，用以根據機器根的設計目的進行勘探，并相應地控制其生長方向。

　　Writing the software for these sensors may illuminate how real roots work.

　　要為這些傳感器編寫軟件，先得弄明白真正的根的工作原理。

　　According to Dr Mazzolai, the first person to ask about that was Charles Darwin.

　　據瑪佐萊博士稱，第一個論及此事的人是查爾斯達爾文。

　　He could not come up with an answer, and 130 years later no one else has either.

　　達爾文沒有找到答案，130年以后也還沒人能找到這個答案。

　　Robot plants Putting down roots

　　植物機器人 落地生根

　　A robotic model of what plants get up to under thesurface

　　模仿植物根部工作的機器人模型

　　PEOPLE often forget, when looking at a garden,meadow or forest, that half of almost every plantin it is underground.

　　在人們望著花園，草原或者森林時，常常會忽略一點幾乎所有生長于斯的植物的身體中有一半都長于地下。

　　Stems, leaves and flowers are pretty.

　　莖干，葉片和花朵都很美麗，

　　But plants roots, though ugly andinvisible, are probably their smartest parts.

　　但是既不露面又不好看的根部卻很可能是植物身上最有智慧的部分。

　　They collect information on the physical properties and chemical composition of the soilthey are growing through

　　它們在土壤中成長，并搜集土壤的物理性質及化學組分的信息，

　　and use that to decide in which direction to continue growing.

　　然后決定新的生長方向。

　　They can pierce the ground employing only a fraction of the energy that worms, moles orman-made drills consume.

　　它們只耗用一點能量便能在土地中鉆行，僅相當于蠕蟲，鼴鼠或人造鉆機所耗能量的一小部分。

　　Plant roots are thus the most efficient systems known for underground exploration.

　　因此植物的根可說是地下勘探中最有效率的系統。

　　But not, perhaps, for much longer.

　　但或許這個名頭保持不了多久了。

　　Researchers working on the Plantoid project, led by Barbara Mazzolai of the Italian Instituteof Technology, in Pontedera,

　　參與植物機器人計劃的研究人員想要開發出至少與真正的根不相上下的機器根，

　　hope to develop robot plant roots that will be as good as the real things, if not better.

　　該計劃的負責人是意大利理工學院的芭芭拉瑪佐萊。

　　In doing so, they seek to understand how real roots work and also to devise machines thatmight monitor soil pollution, prospect for minerals and look for water.

　　在開發過程中，研究人員不僅要設法了解真正的根是如何工作的，還力圖設計處可以監測土壤污染，勘探礦物及尋找水源的設備。

　　The plantoid, of which Dr Mazzolai plans to demonstrate a partial prototype on July 29that a conference at the Natural History Museum in London, will have a central stemcontaining a reservoir of liquid plastic of a sort that can be frozen by ultraviolet light.

　　瑪佐萊博士計劃在7月29日于倫敦自然歷史博物館召開的會議上演示植物機器人非完全體原型，該機器人有一條主干，里面有一個裝有液態塑料的儲液囊，這種液態塑料受到紫外線照射時將會凝固。

　　Half a dozen cylindrical roots will branch off this stem, and the plastic will flow throughthese from the reservoir to the tip.

　　主干上分出六條柱狀根，液態塑料從儲液囊中流過這些柱狀根，直至其頂端。

　　As in a real root, the tip will be a specialised structure.

　　和真的根一樣，柱狀根的頂端是一種特別的結構。

　　Instead of being a cone containing a meristem it will be a cone containing a motor, alight-emitting diode and a battery.

　　兩者都是圓錐結構，不過前者里面有一個分生組織，而后者里面是電機，發光二極管和電池各一個。

　　The motor will suck liquid plastic through the root and push it to the periphery of the cone.

　　電機將液態塑料吸入根部再將之推至圓錐體表層。

　　Once there, the liquid will be solidified by ultraviolet rays from the diode, extending thecylinder and forcing the cone farther into the soil.

　　液態塑料到達該位置后馬上會因二極管發出的紫外線照射凝固，使圓柱體增長，促使錐體在土壤中更進一步。

　　As in real life, the gentle but relentless pressure of the root s growth should be enough tomake it advance through the soil, fractions of a millimetre at a time.

　　對真正的根來說，由根部生長帶來的和緩但從不間斷的壓力足以使之在土壤中前進，一次能前進幾絲米。

　　The researchers expect their prototypical robotic roots to be able to penetrate up to a metreof real soil.

　　研究人員希望自己的機器根原型最多可穿透1米深的真正土壤。

　　The direction of growth is controlled by a material known as an electro-rheological fluid,which is also stored in the cone.

　　生長方向是由一種叫做電力流變液的物質控制的，該物質也儲存在圓錐中。

　　Such fluids become more viscous when an electric current is applied to them, and changingthe viscosity on one side of a root but not the other,

　　當有電流通過時，該液體會變得更加粘稠，通過電池提供的電流改變根部一側的粘稠度，而另一側不變，

　　using current from the battery, causes the direction of growth to vary.

　　從而改變生長的方向。

　　One thing missing from the prototypes is a control system that responds to the root senvironment.

　　該原型中缺少一套可以對根的外部環境產生響應的控制系統。

　　The plan is to fit the next generation of cones with sensors that look for whatever the root isdesigned to find, and control its growth accordingly.

　　計劃是在下一代的圓錐體中裝上傳感器，用以根據機器根的設計目的進行勘探，并相應地控制其生長方向。

　　Writing the software for these sensors may illuminate how real roots work.

　　要為這些傳感器編寫軟件，先得弄明白真正的根的工作原理。

　　According to Dr Mazzolai, the first person to ask about that was Charles Darwin.

　　據瑪佐萊博士稱，第一個論及此事的人是查爾斯達爾文。

　　He could not come up with an answer, and 130 years later no one else has either.

　　達爾文沒有找到答案，130年以后也還沒人能找到這個答案。