中文导读 一位北爱尔兰奶农从前靠眼睛发现生病的牛，如今却常常通过手机照看 300 头牛。据 BBC 10 月 26 日报道，科技正在改变这一传统行业。文章先以麦克马斯特一家为例：挤奶间里的 AI 摄像头每天给每头牛录像并标出变化，帮他们提前发现行走有问题的牛。接着换到另外两位农场主：霍华德的牛自己走进机器人挤奶机，但这种变化离不开农村高速宽带；史密斯则用管理应用取代纸质记录，应对检查更轻松。随后，应用开发者麦克唐纳说明他的看法：技术不会取代人，AI 应像顾问一样提供信息，而不是替农民做决定。最后，阿尔斯特农民联盟前主席马歇尔把 AI 与近百年前的拖拉机发明相比，认为数据能帮助农业兼顾经济、环境和社会目标。阅读时可留意文章如何用“一个人物—多个例子—开发者观点—行业评价”的顺序展开，以及 but、however、instead of 等词如何表达对比和限制。
正文 George McMaster started farming by milking eight cows in a cattle shed . Back then , he used his own eyes to spot sick animals . Today his herd near Islandmagee in Northern Ireland has grown to 300 cows , and he often watches them through his phone . As BBC News reported on 26 October , an AI camera in his milking room now does much of the looking for him .
本段译文 乔治·麦克马斯特刚开始务农时，在一间牛棚里给八头奶牛挤奶。那时，他靠自己的眼睛发现生病的牲畜。如今，他在北爱尔兰艾兰马吉附近的牛群已增至 300 头，他也经常通过手机照看它们。据 BBC 新闻 10 月 26 日报道，他挤奶间里的一台 AI 摄像头如今替他承担了大部分“看”的工作。
The camera gives each cow its own ID and records a short video of it every day . Its software studies the video and flags any changes , often before people can see them . George’s son Jack , who is taking over the farm , says the camera has found cows with walking problems the family would never have noticed . Finding problems early lets them check animals before they get sick . “Happy cows make happy farmers ,” he said , because healthier cows also give more milk .
本段译文 这台摄像头给每头牛分配一个专属编号，每天为它录一段短视频。软件会分析视频并标出任何变化，往往在人眼能看出之前就发现问题。乔治的儿子杰克正在接手农场，他说摄像头发现了一些有行走问题的牛，而这些是家人原本绝不会注意到的。尽早发现问题，让他们能在牛生病之前就进行检查。“牛开心，农民就开心，”他说，因为更健康的牛也会产更多的奶。
Caleb Howard keeps 90 Jersey cows in County Tyrone . They walk into a robotic milking machine whenever they want , instead of being brought in at fixed times . But such changes depend on a good internet connection , which rural areas did not always have . Ten years ago , Howard said , the phone signal there was “ rubbish “. A project called Stratum later brought high - speed broadband to places like his , and he has since opened a farm shop that takes electronic payments .
本段译文 凯莱布·霍华德在蒂龙郡养了 90 头泽西牛。它们想什么时候挤奶，就什么时候走进机器人挤奶机，而不是在固定时间被赶进去。但这类变化依赖良好的网络连接，而农村地区过去并不总有。霍华德说，十年前那里的手机信号“糟透了”。后来，一个名为 Stratum 的项目把高速宽带带到了他所在的这类地方，他也随后开了一家可以电子支付的农场商店。
For Robert Smyth , who runs 100 dairy cows near Randalstown , the biggest change is paperwork . He used to write notes in the cattle house and again in the office . For four years , he has recorded everything at once in an app called FarmDrive . When an inspection is coming , he can quickly produce reports on medicine and feed .
本段译文 罗伯特·史密斯在兰德尔斯敦附近经营 100 头奶牛，对他来说，最大的变化在于文书工作。他过去要在牛舍里记一遍笔记，再到办公室里重写一遍。四年来，他一直用一款名为 FarmDrive 的应用一次性记录所有信息。检查临近时，他可以迅速生成关于用药和饲料的报告。
The app’s developer , Gareth McDonald , comes from a farming family and studied computer science . He calls FarmDrive “Facebook for cows ”, because each animal has a profile with all its records and a photo . However , he does not believe the technology will replace people . In his view , it works like an adviser that shows farmers the right information at the right time . His team does not want “the AI making the decision for the farmer ,” he said .
本段译文 这款应用的开发者加雷思·麦克唐纳出身农家，学的是计算机科学。他把 FarmDrive 称为“奶牛的 Facebook”，因为每头牛都有一个包含全部记录和照片的档案。不过，他不认为这项技术会取代人。在他看来，它像一位顾问，在恰当的时候向农民展示恰当的信息。他说，他的团队不希望“由 AI 替农民做决定”。
Ian Marshall , a former president of the Ulster Farmers ’ Union compares AI to the tractor linkage system that inventor Harry Ferguson developed almost a century ago . Farming has always depended on data , he said , but new tools will change how that data is used . He believes they can help farmers produce good food while meeting economic , environmental and social goals .
本段译文 阿尔斯特农民联盟前主席伊恩·马歇尔把 AI 比作发明家哈里·弗格森近一个世纪前研制的拖拉机悬挂连接系统。他说，农业一直依赖数据，但新工具将改变数据的使用方式。他相信，这些工具能帮助农民生产优质食品，同时实现经济、环境和社会方面的目标。
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