Microsoft is testing a new mosquito trap to fight Zika 微軟正在測試新的捕蚊器對抗茲卡病毒






On the Gulf Coast of Texas, a new player is working to fight mosquitoes carrying Zika and other diseases. It's not a usual suspect from the world of health care, but Microsoft, a company best known for computer software and video games.
在德州墨西哥灣沿岸，有一個新的工具被拿來對抗帶原茲卡病毒或其他疾病的蚊子。參與醫療衛生並不是常態的涉略範圍，但微軟這一家有名的電腦軟體及電玩遊戲公司卻參與了。

Harris County, Texas, is testing the new trap, which health officials believe will improve their ability to fight infectious diseases. The traps, which will be operational by early July, are expected to speed the process of identifying mosquito-borne illnesses and provide more data about when the diseases arrived.
德州哈里斯郡正在測試新捕蚊器，衛生官方組織相信這些捕蚊器可以改善他們對於對抗傳染性疾病的能力，這些機器將會在七月初上路，並預期可以加快鑑定蚊子傳播疾病的過程，並且針對疾病是疫情開始時間提供更多的資料。

"It's going to advance the field of mosquito control in a way that has not been done in this country," said Umair Shah, the executive director of Harris County public health. "If this does what we think it should be able to do, it's going to be a real game-changer."
「這個捕蚊器將在這個沒有執行過蚊蟲疾病控制的城市，做進階蚊蟲相關疾病的控制」哈里斯郡公共衛生負責人Umair Shah表示，「如果這個捕蚊器能如我們所想像，這將會真正改變遊戲規則。」

Harris County will test the 10 new traps alongside the several hundred conventional traps that are already active in the area. Until now, health officials haven't known exactly when an infected mosquito arrived in a trap.
哈里斯郡將會測試原本數百種已經在該區域使用的傳統捕蚊器之外的十種新捕蚊器，直到目前，衛生官方組織還無法得知被感染的蚊蟲進入捕蚊器的確切時間。

The trap, developed at Microsoft Research, will identify specific breeds of mosquitoes and record when each mosquito entered it. When a breed of mosquito known to carry Zika or another disease enters the trap, a notice will automatically be sent to Harris County's public health office.
這個微軟在研究調查的捕蚊器將辨認蚊子的種類並在蚊子出現的時候記錄，當發現一個種類的蚊子會攜帶茲卡病毒病源或是其他疾病，有一個通知將會自動發送至哈里斯郡的公共衛生辦公室。

"That's the key," Shah said. "It's speeding up our decision-making processes."
「那就是關鍵」Shah說「這可以加速我們的決策速度」

Microsoft researchers began developing the new trap during the Ebola outbreak in 2015. They wanted to use the latest technologies to see if they could reduce the likelihood of an emerging infectious disease arriving by surprise, according to Microsoft's Ethan Jackson, who leads the project.
根據微軟領導這個專案的Ethan Jackson表示微軟研究者在2015粘伊波拉病毒爆發的時就開始發展這個新捕蚊器，他們希望可以用最先進的科技來看他們可不可以減少新興傳染疾病的可能性，而意外地研究出來。

The trap itself is a foot-tall canister that sits on a tripod and includes 64 compartments to capture mosquitoes. The trap emits carbon dioxide, which is known to attract mosquitoes.
這個捕蚊器本身是一個一尺高的罐子，放在三腳架上，包含64個間隔來捕蚊，這個陷阱釋放二氧化碳，可以引來蚊子。

When a mosquito enters the trap, infrared light shines on the insect. Given how the light bounces, Microsoft researchers expect to eventually be able to identify different types of mosquitoes. If a certain type of mosquito flies into the trap, a spring-loaded door will automatically slam shut. If the infrared light doesn't determine it's a mosquito of interest, the door will remain open so the mosquito flies back out.
當一隻蚊子進入這個陷阱，紅外線會照在昆蟲身上，透過光的折射，微軟的研究員預期最後可以辨認不同種類的蚊子，如果是一種特定種類的蚊子飛入捕蚊器，將會有一扇彈簧門自動關上，如果紅外線光並沒有確認這是目標種類的蚊子，這扇門就會繼續開著，所以蚊子可以從裡面再飛出來。

The trap door will then stay open until a more interesting mosquito arrives. There are 3,600 species of mosquitoes and only a handful carry Zika, dengue fever or West Nile virus.
這個陷阱門會一直開著，直到一個更符合目標種類的蚊子飛進來，蚊子品種有3600種，而只有少數會帶原茲卡病毒、登革熱或是西尼羅病毒。



Initially, the traps will not be smart enough to identify a given mosquito, and Microsoft will rely on Johns Hopkins University to determine the individual breeds. For the trap to learn to pick out specific mosquitoes on its own, it will be taught which visual attributes match certain breeds.
初步階段，這種捕蚊器並無法聰明到可以分辨隨便一隻蚊子，而微軟將會根據約翰·霍普金斯大學的協助來判斷單一品種，這捕蚊器要靠自己學習分辨特定品種的蚊子，他將會藉由外觀性質來比對特定品種。

Other related data is captured, such as the time, temperature, humidity and light levels when the mosquito arrived. This information will help Microsoft and Harris County learn more about the behaviors of mosquitoes in their environment.
也會搜集其他相關資料，像是蚊子飛入時的時間、溫度、溼度和亮度，這些資訊會協助微軟和哈里斯郡更瞭解蚊子在他們生活環境裡的習性。

Jackson said lab tests have shown the trap's ability to identify given mosquitoes, and Harris County is a chance to validate that it works in the field.
Jackson表示實驗測試顯示了捕蚊器辨認蚊子的能力，而哈里斯郡正是可以驗證他在這個領域作用的機會。

Down the road, the researchers hope to use drones to help determine the best locations to place traps.
接下來，研究者希望用無人飛行器來協助辨認設置捕蚊器的最佳地點。



Jackson said drones would be used to gather aerial photos, which computers would analyze for standing water, vegetation, and structures to determine areas that correlate with higher densities of mosquitoes.
Jackson說無人飛行器可以用來蒐集空中照片，讓電腦可以分析靜水、植物和建築物，進而確定蚊子密度相對較高的區域。

Drones could regularly survey areas and detect changes to the landscape that may lead to more mosquitoes. Health officials could then respond with more traps in problem locations.
無人飛行器可以規律的調查地區，並偵測可能帶來更多蚊子的原因-地貌改變，衛生官方組織到時候可以因應放置更多捕蚊器在有麻煩的地點。

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