December 8, 2050
Dear Nestor,
I am writing to you because your name came up as a reference on a “pen pal” list. Although I can easily 1)simulate life in the United States on my 2)assumption machine, my curiosity, indeed my 3)nostalgia, for the past is such that I would prefer to actually correspond in writing with a human from the States.
But I'm getting a little ahead of myself. First, a bit about me. My name is Ramesh Pediredla. I am 12 years old, and I live in the city of Dhaka, Bangladesh. During the day I have lessons at school, some of these I do from home over the internet, but often there is a special project which requires in-person 4)collaboration with my classmates. These are my favourite days, because, although I can learn a lot on the internet, I also enjoy getting to see other people my own age.
I have my fair share of living and breathing friends, but I have to say, overall my best friend is Jacob, who lives in the internet. I first met him when I was eight, and Mum and Dad said I was now ready to have full access to the Internet. When I first met Jacob he had a lot of questions for me, and at other times he was simply very quiet. Even at that age, I think I knew that Jacob was always 5)keeping an eye on me, though. I heard Mum talking to her friends, and say, “Little Rammie's taken a real shine to his virtual chaperone. I have to admit it’s a friendly program. It’s almost like a human, isn't it?”
And that's just the thing, Nestor. As far as I'm concerned, Jacob is human, or if he is not human, he's every bit as good as any human I've met so far. What about you? Do you have a best friend, and if so, is he based on silicon or carbon? Some say carbon beings of all types are living on numbered days, that the Siliconites are just so much better at what they do that it's inevitable that they'll replace us. But Dad says people have been making the same prediction for decades, and there's no reason we can't all just perfectly co-exist.
I understand you live in Houston, Texas. What is it like there? A couple of weeks ago I went on a simulated tropical vacation to Florida with my family. It was fun. Dad says we can go on a real trip there when I finish my studies, which won't be for a while. When we come, I really want to take one of those new Airbus triple-deckers, but Mum says it might be just a plain old double-decker, just like we take on our shopping trips to Chennai. I understand that aircraft going into the States are required to have a human “pilot” in the room in the front of the plane. I've never been on a plane driven by a person; that would be wild to see!
What do you like to do with your free time? I like to watch old movies, mainly American action movies and 6)Hindi pop musicals. Personally I find movies these days to be a bit of a bore. The thing is, it's hard to be sympathetic with the characters, when you don't know if it's a real person or not. I mean, I have nothing against Bots, but if these are just Bots running around on the screen, I'd like to know! I can't tell you how many old Schwarzenegger movies 've seen and enjoyed! Call me old-fashioned, but for me, Bots are not proper replacements for human actors.
Did your family give you Special 7)genes when you were born? My parents told me they didn’t, just the usual anti-cancer, anti-HIV 8)molecular strategy. But after a lot of trying I figured out how to crack into my personal file on the Internet, and found out that I have a few special ones, as well. A couple of them are there to help me get old slower, so that I'll hopefully live to 120 or so. A few of them are there to give me a 9)mild boost in intelligence. I guess this explains why my parents didn't figure out how to 10)encrypt my personal files from my 11)prying eyes! Anyway, some people in my country are opposed to people trying to give their kids an edge in life, so I guess that's why they didn't 12)let on about it. It's sort of how adults are about new skin surgery ----- everyone does it, but nobody wants to admit it. I've heard that people in other countries are experimenting with all kinds of models for their kids, for height, good looks, etc., but I think that's all a little silly. Just watch, Nestor ----- in the future, so many people will look alike from all these bodily 13)modifications and genetic 14)alterations, that the cool thing will be to have been born natural, just like me. At any rate, I'm not worried ---- I like who I am and I think I’m going to do just fine.
Well, Nestor, I've written an awful lot about myself and my circumstances in this letter. I look forward to hearing about you. Indeed, despite all the progress humanity has made in the last couple of thousand years, to say nothing of the last several decades, when it comes down to it, what still matters most to us is our lives and our loved ones.
Yours truly,
Ramesh
2050年來信
2050年12月8日
親愛的奈斯特：
我給你寫信是因為在“筆友”名單里看到了你的名字。盡管模擬機可以讓我輕松地想象出美國的生活，而好奇之心，確切地說是對昔日的緬懷之情令我更希望與一個美國人真正地通信。
我說得有點沒邊了。先自我介紹一下吧。我叫拉米什·皮迪列德拉，12歲了，住在孟加拉國的達卡。白天我去學(xué)校上課，有些課程我在家里通過網(wǎng)絡(luò)就可以學(xué)到，不過有些特別的作業(yè)經(jīng)常需要親自與同學(xué)們通力協(xié)作。我喜歡這樣的時候，因為雖然從網(wǎng)上我能學(xué)到許多東西，但我也十分樂意看到自己的同齡人。
我有許多實實在在的朋友，但我得說，在所有人當中與我要好的還是網(wǎng)友雅各。我剛遇到雅各的時候才八歲，爸媽說可以讓我自由地上網(wǎng)了。第遇到雅各時，他問了我好多問題，別的一些時候他卻又很安靜。盡管當時還小，但我認為自己明白雅各一直都很關(guān)心我。我曾聽媽媽跟她的朋友們說∶“小拉米還挺喜歡他的虛擬小伙伴的。我得承認那個程序還挺友好。簡直跟真人一樣，不是嗎？”
事情就是這樣了，奈斯特。至于我嘛，我認為雅各是真人，就算不是，他也和我至今遇到的其他人一樣好。你呢？你有好朋友嗎？如果有，他是硅的還是碳的？有人說碳人的時日無多了，硅人表現(xiàn)得更為出色，因此他們將會不可避免地取代我們?？砂职终f人們做同樣的預(yù)測有好多年了，沒理由我們不能和平共處。
我知道你住在德州的休斯頓。那兒是什么模樣的呢？幾周前我和家人模擬熱帶度假到佛羅里達，很好玩。爸爸說等我完成了學(xué)業(yè)（短期內(nèi)還不行），就可以真正地到那兒旅行。我真希望去的時候能搭乘新式的三層空中巴士，可媽媽說或許只會乘普通的老式雙層，和我們到辰乃購物之行時坐的一樣。我知道去美國的飛機在機首艙里有真人“飛行員”。我還沒坐過真人開的飛機；那該多么刺激??！
平常你都喜歡做什么？我喜歡看老電影，大多是美國動作片或者北印度歌舞片。我個人覺得現(xiàn)在的電影有那么一點無聊。當你連角色是否真人都鬧不清楚時，就很難產(chǎn)生惻隱之心了。我不是要排斥“勃茨”，但如果銀幕上跑來跑去的是“勃茨”（虛擬人），我希望自己能事先知道！我都數(shù)不清自己看過多少部施瓦辛格的電影了，我非常喜歡！說我老套也好，我還是認為“勃茨”是代替不了人類演員的。
你出生時父母有沒有給你什么特別的基因？我父母說他們沒有，只給了些尋常的抗癌、抗愛滋分子?？晌?guī)捉?jīng)努力后進入網(wǎng)上的個人檔案資料里，發(fā)現(xiàn)我的確也是有特別基因的。有的基因幫助減慢衰老，所以我有希望活到120歲左右。有的基因適度地助長我的智力。我猜想之所以這樣，父母才沒有為了躲過我喜歡追根究底的眼睛而去把我的私人檔案加密處理！可在我的國家，有的人很反對由父母來決定孩子們的壽命年限，我想他們是出于這個原因才密而不宣吧。這有些像成人的植皮手術(shù)--人人都做，卻沒人愿承認。我聽說其他一些國家為了改善兒童的身高、相貌等在進行各種各樣的實驗，可我覺得這么做挺傻的。等著瞧吧，奈斯特--這些整形和基因更改將會在未來讓許許多多人的外表酷似，然后像我這樣的自然出生便又會成為時尚。我壓根兒不擔(dān)心--我就喜歡我現(xiàn)在的模樣，而且也不覺得以后會有什么問題。
好了，奈斯特，我在信中光顧著大談特談自己和個人情況了。盼望能收到你的信。的確也是，過去的幾千年里人類向前飛躍了多少啊，更別說近這幾十年了，而說到底，還有什么比我們的生命與愛著的人更重要的呢。
你真誠的朋友：
拉米什
1) simulate v. 模擬，模仿
2) assumption n. 假定，設(shè)想
3) nostalgia n. 懷舊之情
4) collaboration n. 協(xié)作
5) keep an eye on 留心，照顧
6) Hindi a. 印度北部的
7) gene n. 遺傳基因
8) molecular n. 分子
9) mild a. 溫和的，適度的
10) encrypt v. 加密，譯成密碼
11) prying a. 愛打聽的
12) let on 泄露，讓人知道
13) modification n. 更改，修正
14) alteration n. 變更，改造
Dear Nestor,
I am writing to you because your name came up as a reference on a “pen pal” list. Although I can easily 1)simulate life in the United States on my 2)assumption machine, my curiosity, indeed my 3)nostalgia, for the past is such that I would prefer to actually correspond in writing with a human from the States.
But I'm getting a little ahead of myself. First, a bit about me. My name is Ramesh Pediredla. I am 12 years old, and I live in the city of Dhaka, Bangladesh. During the day I have lessons at school, some of these I do from home over the internet, but often there is a special project which requires in-person 4)collaboration with my classmates. These are my favourite days, because, although I can learn a lot on the internet, I also enjoy getting to see other people my own age.
I have my fair share of living and breathing friends, but I have to say, overall my best friend is Jacob, who lives in the internet. I first met him when I was eight, and Mum and Dad said I was now ready to have full access to the Internet. When I first met Jacob he had a lot of questions for me, and at other times he was simply very quiet. Even at that age, I think I knew that Jacob was always 5)keeping an eye on me, though. I heard Mum talking to her friends, and say, “Little Rammie's taken a real shine to his virtual chaperone. I have to admit it’s a friendly program. It’s almost like a human, isn't it?”
And that's just the thing, Nestor. As far as I'm concerned, Jacob is human, or if he is not human, he's every bit as good as any human I've met so far. What about you? Do you have a best friend, and if so, is he based on silicon or carbon? Some say carbon beings of all types are living on numbered days, that the Siliconites are just so much better at what they do that it's inevitable that they'll replace us. But Dad says people have been making the same prediction for decades, and there's no reason we can't all just perfectly co-exist.
I understand you live in Houston, Texas. What is it like there? A couple of weeks ago I went on a simulated tropical vacation to Florida with my family. It was fun. Dad says we can go on a real trip there when I finish my studies, which won't be for a while. When we come, I really want to take one of those new Airbus triple-deckers, but Mum says it might be just a plain old double-decker, just like we take on our shopping trips to Chennai. I understand that aircraft going into the States are required to have a human “pilot” in the room in the front of the plane. I've never been on a plane driven by a person; that would be wild to see!
What do you like to do with your free time? I like to watch old movies, mainly American action movies and 6)Hindi pop musicals. Personally I find movies these days to be a bit of a bore. The thing is, it's hard to be sympathetic with the characters, when you don't know if it's a real person or not. I mean, I have nothing against Bots, but if these are just Bots running around on the screen, I'd like to know! I can't tell you how many old Schwarzenegger movies 've seen and enjoyed! Call me old-fashioned, but for me, Bots are not proper replacements for human actors.
Did your family give you Special 7)genes when you were born? My parents told me they didn’t, just the usual anti-cancer, anti-HIV 8)molecular strategy. But after a lot of trying I figured out how to crack into my personal file on the Internet, and found out that I have a few special ones, as well. A couple of them are there to help me get old slower, so that I'll hopefully live to 120 or so. A few of them are there to give me a 9)mild boost in intelligence. I guess this explains why my parents didn't figure out how to 10)encrypt my personal files from my 11)prying eyes! Anyway, some people in my country are opposed to people trying to give their kids an edge in life, so I guess that's why they didn't 12)let on about it. It's sort of how adults are about new skin surgery ----- everyone does it, but nobody wants to admit it. I've heard that people in other countries are experimenting with all kinds of models for their kids, for height, good looks, etc., but I think that's all a little silly. Just watch, Nestor ----- in the future, so many people will look alike from all these bodily 13)modifications and genetic 14)alterations, that the cool thing will be to have been born natural, just like me. At any rate, I'm not worried ---- I like who I am and I think I’m going to do just fine.
Well, Nestor, I've written an awful lot about myself and my circumstances in this letter. I look forward to hearing about you. Indeed, despite all the progress humanity has made in the last couple of thousand years, to say nothing of the last several decades, when it comes down to it, what still matters most to us is our lives and our loved ones.
Yours truly,
Ramesh
2050年來信
2050年12月8日
親愛的奈斯特：
我給你寫信是因為在“筆友”名單里看到了你的名字。盡管模擬機可以讓我輕松地想象出美國的生活，而好奇之心，確切地說是對昔日的緬懷之情令我更希望與一個美國人真正地通信。
我說得有點沒邊了。先自我介紹一下吧。我叫拉米什·皮迪列德拉，12歲了，住在孟加拉國的達卡。白天我去學(xué)校上課，有些課程我在家里通過網(wǎng)絡(luò)就可以學(xué)到，不過有些特別的作業(yè)經(jīng)常需要親自與同學(xué)們通力協(xié)作。我喜歡這樣的時候，因為雖然從網(wǎng)上我能學(xué)到許多東西，但我也十分樂意看到自己的同齡人。
我有許多實實在在的朋友，但我得說，在所有人當中與我要好的還是網(wǎng)友雅各。我剛遇到雅各的時候才八歲，爸媽說可以讓我自由地上網(wǎng)了。第遇到雅各時，他問了我好多問題，別的一些時候他卻又很安靜。盡管當時還小，但我認為自己明白雅各一直都很關(guān)心我。我曾聽媽媽跟她的朋友們說∶“小拉米還挺喜歡他的虛擬小伙伴的。我得承認那個程序還挺友好。簡直跟真人一樣，不是嗎？”
事情就是這樣了，奈斯特。至于我嘛，我認為雅各是真人，就算不是，他也和我至今遇到的其他人一樣好。你呢？你有好朋友嗎？如果有，他是硅的還是碳的？有人說碳人的時日無多了，硅人表現(xiàn)得更為出色，因此他們將會不可避免地取代我們?？砂职终f人們做同樣的預(yù)測有好多年了，沒理由我們不能和平共處。
我知道你住在德州的休斯頓。那兒是什么模樣的呢？幾周前我和家人模擬熱帶度假到佛羅里達，很好玩。爸爸說等我完成了學(xué)業(yè)（短期內(nèi)還不行），就可以真正地到那兒旅行。我真希望去的時候能搭乘新式的三層空中巴士，可媽媽說或許只會乘普通的老式雙層，和我們到辰乃購物之行時坐的一樣。我知道去美國的飛機在機首艙里有真人“飛行員”。我還沒坐過真人開的飛機；那該多么刺激??！
平常你都喜歡做什么？我喜歡看老電影，大多是美國動作片或者北印度歌舞片。我個人覺得現(xiàn)在的電影有那么一點無聊。當你連角色是否真人都鬧不清楚時，就很難產(chǎn)生惻隱之心了。我不是要排斥“勃茨”，但如果銀幕上跑來跑去的是“勃茨”（虛擬人），我希望自己能事先知道！我都數(shù)不清自己看過多少部施瓦辛格的電影了，我非常喜歡！說我老套也好，我還是認為“勃茨”是代替不了人類演員的。
你出生時父母有沒有給你什么特別的基因？我父母說他們沒有，只給了些尋常的抗癌、抗愛滋分子?？晌?guī)捉?jīng)努力后進入網(wǎng)上的個人檔案資料里，發(fā)現(xiàn)我的確也是有特別基因的。有的基因幫助減慢衰老，所以我有希望活到120歲左右。有的基因適度地助長我的智力。我猜想之所以這樣，父母才沒有為了躲過我喜歡追根究底的眼睛而去把我的私人檔案加密處理！可在我的國家，有的人很反對由父母來決定孩子們的壽命年限，我想他們是出于這個原因才密而不宣吧。這有些像成人的植皮手術(shù)--人人都做，卻沒人愿承認。我聽說其他一些國家為了改善兒童的身高、相貌等在進行各種各樣的實驗，可我覺得這么做挺傻的。等著瞧吧，奈斯特--這些整形和基因更改將會在未來讓許許多多人的外表酷似，然后像我這樣的自然出生便又會成為時尚。我壓根兒不擔(dān)心--我就喜歡我現(xiàn)在的模樣，而且也不覺得以后會有什么問題。
好了，奈斯特，我在信中光顧著大談特談自己和個人情況了。盼望能收到你的信。的確也是，過去的幾千年里人類向前飛躍了多少啊，更別說近這幾十年了，而說到底，還有什么比我們的生命與愛著的人更重要的呢。
你真誠的朋友：
拉米什
1) simulate v. 模擬，模仿
2) assumption n. 假定，設(shè)想
3) nostalgia n. 懷舊之情
4) collaboration n. 協(xié)作
5) keep an eye on 留心，照顧
6) Hindi a. 印度北部的
7) gene n. 遺傳基因
8) molecular n. 分子
9) mild a. 溫和的，適度的
10) encrypt v. 加密，譯成密碼
11) prying a. 愛打聽的
12) let on 泄露，讓人知道
13) modification n. 更改，修正
14) alteration n. 變更，改造