How we use astrophysics to study earthbound problems | Federica Bianco

翻译人员: Theo Chiang 校对人员: Yolanda Zhang

I am an astrophysicist.

我是一名天体物理学家，

I research stellar explosions across the universe.

研究宇宙中的恒星爆炸。

But I have a flaw:

但是我有个缺点：

I'm restless, and I get bored easily.

我呆不住，而且很容易厌烦。

And although as an astrophysicist, I have the incredible opportunity

虽然作为一个天体物理学家，

to study the entire universe,

我有很好的机会去研究整个宇宙。

the thought of doing only that, always that,

但是一想到只能且一直做这一件事，

makes me feel caged and limited.

我就感觉被禁锢，被制约。

What if my issues with keeping attention and getting bored

但是，如果我注意力不集中、 容易厌烦的毛病

were not a flaw, though?

不是一个缺点，又会怎样呢？

What if I could turn them into an asset?

如果我可以把它们变成 优点，会怎样呢？

An astrophysicist cannot touch or interact with

天体物理学家不能和研究对象

the things that she studies.

进行接触或者交流，

No way to explode a star in a lab to figure out why or how it blew up.

没办法在实验室引爆一颗恒星 来探明其爆炸的原因或方式，

Just pictures and movies of the sky.

而只能依靠天空 的图片和影像进行推理。

Everything we know about the universe,

我们对宇宙所知道的一切，

from the big bang that originated space and time,

从创造了时间和空间的大爆炸

to the formation and evolution of stars and galaxies,

到恒星和星系的形成与演变，

to the structure of our own solar system,

到我们自己太阳系的结构，

we figured out studying images of the sky.

都是我们通过研究天空 的图像得出的结论。

And to study a system as complex as the entire universe,

为了研究整个宇宙这样复杂的系统，

astrophysicists are experts at extracting simple models and solutions

天体物理学家十分善于 从庞大复杂的数据集中

from large and complex data sets.

找出简单的模型和方案。

So what else can I do with this expertise?

那我还能靠这个专长做什么？

What if we turned the camera around towards us?

如果我们把镜头转到自己身上， 又会发生什么呢？

At the Urban Observatory, that is exactly what we are doing.

这正是我们在城市观测台做的事。

Greg Dobler, also an astrophysicist

我的丈夫，格雷格•多布勒，

and my husband,

也是一名天体物理学家,

created the first urban observatory in New York University in 2013,

2013年在纽约市建立了 第一个城市观测台，

and I joined in 2015.

而我在2015年加入。

Here are some of the things that we do.

下面是一些我们做的工作。

We take pictures of the city at night

我们为夜间的城市拍照，

and study city lights like stars.

像研究恒星一样研究城市的灯光。

By studying how light changes over time

通过研究光线随时间的变化，

and the color of astronomical lights,

以及天体光线的颜色，

I gain insight about the nature of exploding stars.

我窥见恒星爆炸的深层原理。

By studying city lights the same way,

同样地，通过研究城市灯光，

we can measure and predict how much energy the city needs and consumes

我们可以估算城市 需要和消耗的电力，

and help build a resilient grid

可以帮助构建弹性输电网，

that will support the needs of growing urban environments.

以此支持电力需求 和城市发展环境的需要。

In daytime images, we capture plumes of pollution.

在日间图片中， 我们捕捉污染的痕迹。

Seventy-five percent of greenhouse gases in New York City

纽约市百分之七十五的温室气体

come from a building like this one, burning oil for heat.

来自于像这样 燃烧石油供暖的建筑。

You can measure pollution with air quality sensors.

我们可以用空气质量感应器 测量污染程度，

But imagine putting a sensor on each New York City building,

但是假设在纽约市 每一栋建筑上都放一个感应器，

reading in data from a million monitors.

从无数个检测器上读取数据会怎样？

Imagine the cost.

想象一下这样做的成本。

With a team of NYU students, we built a mathematical model,

我们和纽约大学一个学生团队 一起建立了一个数学模型，

a neural network that can detect and track these plumes

一个覆盖纽约城市轮廓线， 能够侦测并追踪

over the New York City skyline.

污染痕迹的神经网络。

We can classify them --

我们可以把这些痕迹分类：

harmless steam plumes, white and evanescent;

无害的水蒸汽痕迹是白色的， 很快就会消失；

polluting smokestacks, dark and persistent --

有污染性的烟尘是黑色的， 会长期存在——

and provide policy makers with a map of neighborhood pollution.

所以我们给政策制定者绘制了 一张周边地区的污染分布地图。

This cross-disciplinary project created transformational solutions.

这个跨学科的项目催生了 可转换的解决方案，

But the data analysis methodologies we use in astrophysics

但是我们在天体物理学中 使用的数据分析方法，

can be applied to all sorts of data,

可以被应用于各种数据，

not just images.

不仅仅是图像。

We were asked to help a California district attorney

有人请我们去帮助加利福尼亚 的一位地方检察官，

understand prosecutorial delays in their jurisdiction.

来研究他们管辖范围内 的拖延起诉问题。

There are people on probation or sitting in jail,

被判缓刑或坐牢的人，

awaiting for trial sometimes for years.

有时要等上几年才会受到审判。

They wanted to know what kind of cases dragged on,

他们想知道哪种案件会拖延，

and they had a massive data set to explore to understand it,

他们有一个巨大的数据集 需要探索和研究，

but didn't have the expertise

但是他们没有专业技能，

or the instruments in their office to do so.

办公室里也没有相应的仪器。

And that's where we came in.

而这就是我们来的原因。

I worked with my colleague, public policy professor Angela Hawken,

我和我的同事，公共政策专家 安吉拉•霍肯一起工作，

and our team first created a visual dashboard

我们的团队首先打造了 一个可视化的操作界面，

for DAs to see and better understand the prosecution process.

让地方检察官看到 并更好地理解诉讼流程。

But also, we ourselves analyzed their data,

但是我们自己也分析了他们的数据，

looking to see if the duration of the process

希望能查明在他们管辖范围中 诉讼流程的耗时

suffered from social inequalities in their jurisdiction.

是否受社会不公影响。

We did so using methods

我们采取的方法，

that I would use to classify thousands of stellar explosions,

是我给数以千计 恒星爆炸分类时用的，

applied to thousands of court cases.

而这个方法又被应用到 数以千计的案件中。

And in doing so,

通过这种方法，

we built a model that can be applied to other jurisdictions

我们创建了一个可以 被应用到其他地区的模型，

who are willing to explore their biases.

只要他们愿意探究其趋势。

These collaborations between domain experts and astrophysicists

区域专家和天体物理学家的合作，

created transformational solutions

产生了具有转变意义的解决方案，

to help improve people's quality of life.

以此帮助改善人们的生活质量。

But it is a two-way road.

但这是一条双向道。

I bring my astrophysics background to urban science,

我把我的天体物理学背景知识 应用到城市科学中，

and I bring what I learn in urban science back to astrophysics.

同时把学到的知识 用回到天体物理学中。

Light echoes:

光有回声：

the reflections of stellar explosions onto interstellar dust.

是恒星爆炸在星际尘埃上 留下的反射痕迹。

In our images, these reflections appear as white, evanescent, moving features,

在我们的图像中，这些反射呈现出白色， 带有逐渐消失，正在移动的特征，

just like plumes.

就像污染痕迹。

I am adapting the same models that detect plumes in city images

我正在把利用城市图像 检测污染痕迹的模型，

to detect light echoes in images of the sky.

改造成利用星空图 检测光回声的相似模型。

By exploring the things that interest and excite me,

通过探索使我感兴趣又激动的事物，

reaching outside of my domain,

走出我的专业领域，

I did turn my restlessness into an asset.

我确实把我呆不住 的性格变成了一个优点。

We, you, all have a unique perspective that can generate new insight

我们都有一种独特的视角， 可以带来新的深刻见解，

and lead to new, unexpected, transformational solutions.

从而找到新的，难以预料的， 具有转换意义的解决方案。

Thank you.

谢谢。

(Applause)

（掌声）