五种你也可以拥有的超能力

Everybody wants superpowers, from the simple innocence of a child yearning for flight to the sad perversion of the Amish man praying for x-ray vision powerful enough to peep a lady’s calves. We all want to be superhuman, and you can start right now! This is but a sample of some of the currently existing (or soon to be developed) devices that can lend the average man abilities previously relegated to world of comic books.

人人都向往超能力。无论是纯真的儿童心怀朴素理想愿在蓝天飞翔，还是堕落的门诺教徒暗自祈祷通过X射线窥见女人的玉腿，我们都渴望成为超人。现在你可以梦想成真了！以下只不过是一些现存（或即将面世）的强大装置设备的实例，它们能助芸芸众生一臂之力，拥有那些以前只在漫画书上出现的神奇超能。

Super Speed

飞毛腿

Leg amputees, if not wheelchair-bound, are often left struggling with awkward prosthetics, canes, and crutches. But now, with the aid of newly developed super-legs, even double amputees can run every bit as well as some of the world’s fastest sprinters. This all began in the 2000 paralympics (which I promise is a real thing and not just me being a bastard about wordplay) with a South African man named Oscar Pistorius who became the first amputee to complete the 200-meter dash in under 22 seconds, beating the previous world record, held by one Brian Frasure.

腿部截肢者，如果不坐轮椅，就必须与令人难堪的假肢，手杖，撑拐等绑在一起作绝望挣扎。但是现在，有了这种最新研制的飞毛腿，即使是双腿被截者也能与世界上最快的短跑运动员一样健步如飞。这个装置的出现可以追溯至2000年残奥会（我发誓它千真万确，而并非我所瞎编出来的双关语），当时一个名叫Oscar Pistorius 的南非运动员成为了世界上首位以不到22秒的成绩完成200米短跑的截肢运动员，打破了之前由单肢运动员Brian Frasure保持的世界记录。

But there is some controversy over the legs’ use. While they only put out a 95% return of force as compared to the normal human legs’ 200% return, the running prosthetics also give the user a springing gait and increased stride distance, which could lend them an unfair advantage as well as a jaunty disposition. Considering that this story took place in the ancient days of the year of our lord, 2000, and the fact that the legs have since gone through countless permutations by a myriad of companies, many designs endow abilities well beyond typical human capacity. But there is a great tragedy being overlooked in this story: Brian Frasure, the previous world record holder, actually helped design these prosthetic carbon-fiber feet, and he was the one who gave them to Pistorius…who promptly proceeded to wipe Frasure from the record books with them.

但是这种飞毛腿的使用却出现了一些争议。与正常人的腿受到200%冲击力相比，它们仅受95%的力（译者注：力学盲，求put out与return此处正解）；而且它们还帮助使用者拥有了弹性的步伐，大幅的跨度，从而使他们占尽先机，潇洒自如。考虑到这件事发生在古老的2000年，这种飞毛腿义肢已被无数的公司进行过无数次的修改，因而毋庸置疑，这种设计当下已赋予了人们超人的能力。但这个故事中有一个常被人们忽略的悲剧情节： Brian Frasure作为之前的世界纪录保持者，事实上参与了这种碳纤维假肢的设计，而且正是他本人把它们交给了Pistorius......结果这个哥们儿以迅雷不及掩耳之势把他从世界纪录名册上抹去了。

The poor bastard. He’s probably working on a time machine right now, to prevent himself from ever building these legs. If so, knowing his track record, he will most likely be thwarted when somebody inevitably uses that time machine to steal his plans and then invent it before him. He will die as he lived, crippled (by irony.)

可怜的家伙。他现在可能正在时间机器上努力，想回到那段他不曾打造过飞毛腿的时光。当然，如果是这样，最可能发生的事情是有人在知道他的田径纪录时就通过时光机器偷了他的发明并在他之前发明出来。讽刺的是，他将一瘸一拐地在生前逝去。（不解其味，译文可谬，求高手指点）

Bullet Proff

防弹术

D3O (d-3-o) is an exciting new development in bulletproofing material and not, as it sounds, a generic brand version of a Star Wars robot. Or rather, it’s an impact proof material which, in conjunction with already existing bulletproof materials, could provide true invulnerability to most gunshot wounds. As it stands now, you can survive many gunshot wounds with traditional Kevlar, but are likely to feel pretty poor afterwords, as the distributed force causes fleshwounds, broken bones and large concentric bruises – like getting your ass beat by the atmosphere. Oftentimes the impact from surviving a gunshot will temporarily knock the victim unconscious as well, leaving them vulnerable with a guy that has already made his feelings clear through the administration of bullets.

D3O (d-3-o)是一种振奋人心的新型防弹材料，且并不像它听起来那样是一种星球大战机器人的无商标品牌。事实上，它是一种抗冲力材料，如果与当下的防弹材料一起使用，则会对绝大多数的枪击起到“枪枪不入”的防御功效。现在，传统的Kevlar纤维材料虽然能够使你在很多枪击中幸存下来，但那滋味却并不好受，因为那些分散的力量会造成皮外伤，骨折以及大面积的瘀伤，正如你被空气海扁了一顿。有时防弹过程中受到的冲击力会将受害者置于暂时昏迷的状态，从而使他们面对手持枪支的暴徒却动弹不得。

But D3O is set to stop that: It works kind of like cornstarch -iIt starts off as gel, but gets proportionally harder when more force is exerted on it (the dick joke here is just too easy, I have my standards.) When soft, the substance allows for greater flexure, but when rigid can reduce the strength of a bullet impact by more than half. And that’s what she said (I hate myself.)

但是D3O的发明则将改变这一切：其工作原理类似于玉米淀粉——它一开始呈凝胶状，但在外力作用下则相应变得坚硬（某笑话在此显而易见，但我有自己的底限。）柔软的时候这种物质弹性十足，而坚硬的时候则可以减轻一半以上的子弹冲击力。她是这么说的。（我悔恨自己的无耻。）

The UK Ministry of Defense has already commissioned body and head armor using the new substance, obviously seeing the potential for better protection… or just because it looks really, really fun to grab. We’re talking bubble-wrap levels of tactile stimulation here, people.

英国国防部已经订制了用此材料制作的身体与头部盔甲，显然是慧眼发现了其更加优越的保护功能......或者，只是因为这种材料捏起来真的真的很有趣。伙计们，我说的可是气泡衬垫包装的那种触感呢。

Invisibility

隐身术

Scientists are getting damn close to inventing a true invisibility cloak. Previous efforts, like the one pictured before – while still scarily advanced – are nonetheless always slightly inaccurate, because they rely on a camera/projector technique. Recently, a paper published in the March 2009 issue of SIAM Review collected all that we currently know about the method of invisibility, and it turns out it’s a lot.

科学家们已无限接近于制成一件真正隐身衣的事实了。以往的努力，正如以前这张照片上所显示的，尽管先进得令人瞠目结舌，但还不够有说服力，因为它依赖于摄影/投影技术。最近，一篇发表于09年3月工业和应用数学学会评论杂志的论文罗列了我们当今所有关于隐身术的方法，其数量惊人。

We can not only render things invisible in theory by bending light waves around an object, but have even progressed so far as to be developing the metamaterials needed to bring the theory to life.

我们不仅能通过弯曲物体周围的光波而使其达到理论隐形的标准，而且已经发明出能够使这一理论在日常生活中得以应用的材料。

So, while it’s incredibly close but currently theoretical in the private sector, who’s to say that better-funded government scientists don’t already have a secret working prototype? How would you know, after all? They could be there right now…they could be….right…BEHIND YOU! Nah, I’m just kidding. Why would they be behind you? They’re invisible, after all. They’re probably right in front of you. Or in your bathroom, depending on their inherent creepiness and the severity of their pervert-mustache.

所以，尽管在私人领域它还停留在无限接近事实的理论层面上，但谁敢断言财大气粗的政府科学家们就没有一件现成的产品原形了呢。你怎么可能知道呢？它们可能就在这儿......他们可能......就在.......你身后！不要惊慌，只是个玩笑而已。他们为什么要在你身后呢？他们毕竟是隐形的呀，所以可能正在你的面前。或者在你的浴室里。这取决于他们固有恐怖以及变态程度。

Spiderman Webs

蜘蛛侠之网

Some of us, as children, saw Spider-man’s amazing agility and web-swinging prowess and were immediately struck with jealous awe. The desperation even had some of us – who shall remain unnamed and are in no way me – microwaving spiders in an attempt to harness their radioactive bite (all right, so some of us were a little more retarded than others.) Not like Liming Dai, and Zhong Lin Wing, two professors at the universities of Dayton and Georgia Tech, respectively, who invented a material with ten times better proportional sticktion (I swear to god that’s also a word) than a Gecko’s foot.

我们中的一些人如同孩子一样，一见蜘蛛侠的灵敏身手及飞檐走壁的绝技就无法自拔地妒意顿生，敬畏有加。有些人（绝对应该被匿名，反正不是本人）甚至不顾一切地对蜘蛛进行了了微波处理，以试图掌握其放射性叮咬的秘诀（必须得承认，我们中的一些总比别人要迟钝一些。）他们并不像Dayton大学与Georgia 科技大学的Liming Dai和Zhong Lin Wing教授那样聪明，能发明一种强于壁虎脚的均衡粘性（我发誓这是个词儿）十倍强度的材料。

The true awesomeness of the material, however, is that the nanotube spatulae (basically microscopic hairs) design also allows the material to pull free with a well-placed tug, letting you adhere to virtually any surface as well as quickly remove from that surface for redeployment. Or, as your childhood selves would understand it: Holy Shit! We get to swing on webs now!

然而这种材料的真正厉害之处在于，其纳米管似的设计可以允许此材料在控制良好的拖拽下自由伸展，让你可以附着上任何事物的表面，并从在其间移动如飞。或者，以你儿童本我的理解就是：神哪，我也可以大展蜘蛛网神功了。

So on the upside: Childhood dreams realized! Let’s get to work on making Transformer Best Friends a reality and we’re all set. On the downside? Prepare for a massive Darwinian strike aimed solely at the ADD infested nerd-children of America. Their awkward, flailing flips and mid-air somersaults shall bring a reaping as terrible to endure as it is hilarious to see.

所以乐观的一面就是：童年的梦想实现了！我们可以如愿以偿地与变形金刚成为挚友了。但是悲观的一面呢？请为一场大型针对美国呆头呆脑的多动症儿童的达尔文式空袭做好准备吧。他们笨手拙脚的扑闪翻腾及腾空跟头所带来的喜剧效果同样也会使人倍受煎熬。

Super Sight

超级视觉

Rob Spence, a filmmaker from Canada, had his eye wounded in a shooting accident as a child. Presumably furious at its weak character and lazy work ethic, Spence asked doctors to just completely remove it a few years ago, and now he’s getting it replaced with a small camera (of the type normally used for colonoscopies,) a battery, and a wireless transmitter – effectively turning him into a human documentarian capable of recording, broadcasting, and relaying literally everything he sees, as he sees it.

加拿大的电影制片人Rob Spence的一只眼睛在童年时的一次射击事确故中受伤了，大概是对其糟糕的性能以及怠惰的职业表现感到出离愤怒，Spence在几年前干脆要求医生直接把它完全摘除。现在他已拥有了不可思议的替代品：一架微型相机（在做结肠镜检查中使用的那种类型，）一颗电池，以及一个无线传输器。这些设备让他真正成了一名真正意义上的“所见即所得”的制片人，拥有瞬间的记录、播放及重放的功能。

Clearly this is an advantage over other, larger, more expensive filmmaking crews, as it not only gives Scott a completely secret way to record, but makes him basically the world’s smallest, cheapest studio. But god, consider what he’s sacrificed to get here! Not only has he been shot in the eye, but he’s demanded that said eye be removed, years later, and then replaced with something that normally goes up your butt. The man’s got a butt-eye for christ’s sake! Van Gogh may have cut off his ear, but until he replaces it with a dick, Rob Spence wins for craziest gesture in the name of art, hands down.

显而易见，这种电子眼的优势超越了大型昂贵的电影拍摄团队，它不仅使Scott拥有了秘密的录制武器，而且把他本人变成了世界上最微型最节约的摄影工作室。但是，想想他为此所牺牲的一切吧。童年被射中了眼睛，接着眼球被完全移除，多年后又换上了个让人匪夷所思的玩艺儿。Rob Spence 无疑是以艺术之名采取最疯狂行动的大赢家，这可是实至名归。

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