Dan Goods: How NASA invented a ventilator for COVID-19 ... in 37 days | TED

Transcriber:

譯者: Jo Ngan 審譯者: Amanda Zhu

From NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab in Pasadena, California,

我們身處美國太空總署在加州 巴沙迪納的噴射推進實驗室。

right behind me is mission control.

在我身後的是任務指揮中心。

I'm going to let you take a look, because on February 18th,

我讓大家看一下， 因爲在二月十八日，

we're going to attempt to land NASA's next rover to Mars.

我們將會嘗試把太空總署最新 一部探測器登陸於火星。

It's going to be the most sophisticated rover ever sent to the Red Planet.

這將會是歷來最先進的一輛火星車；

It's even going to have a helicopter on it.

它甚至備有一架直升機。

So JPL is an amazing place,

噴射推進實驗室是一個奇妙的地方。

where people are creating robotic missions to explore the universe.

我們在這裏計劃 無人的機器人任務來探索宇宙，

They also create satellites that orbit the Earth

也創建環繞地球的人造衛星，

and help us understand this planet that we live on.

幫助我們了解我們身處的星球。

But today, I'm going to talk about something a little bit closer to home.

不過，今天的主題將會比較切身。

It’s going to be about a team of space engineers

我將會談談一群僅用 37 天便研發了

that invented a COVID-19 ventilator in just 37 days.

一款新冠肺炎呼吸器的太空工程師。

And it all started when these two people

一切源於在噴射推進實驗室 食堂相遇的這二人。

bumped into each other at the JPL cafeteria.

［大衛•瓦•比尤文 ］［[羅伯•曼寧 ］

It was right before the very first shutdown

當時疫情剛爆發，

when the pandemic started.

第一次封城的前夕。

They started to talk about work,

他們一開始談的是工作，

but then they started to talk about what COVID might do in the United States,

後來卻開始猜測新冠肺炎 會對美國帶來的影響，

以及呼吸器不足的可能性。

and that there might be a shortage of ventilators.

And they started to ask the question, a really powerful, important question:

然後，他們提出一個問題，

一個很震撼又重要的問題：

Is what I'm doing right this moment

我是否正在做當前最要緊的事情呢？

the most important thing that I could be doing?

Well, they went home, everything got shut down,

就這樣，他們回家， 然後全城進入了封鎖狀態，

but Dave couldn't get that question out of his head.

但大衛無法把這問題置諸腦後。

In fact, that weekend, he assembled a team,

事實上，就在那個周末， 他組成了一支團隊，籌到了一些資金，

he found some funding,

and on Monday afternoon,

然後在星期一下午， 他們請了一位醫生到噴射推進實驗室。

they ended up having a doctor come to JPL

who had been working on ventilators for decades,

這位有數十年呼吸器設計經驗的醫生

told them all about ventilators -- what worked, what didn't work,

向他們解釋了所有有關呼吸器的知識： 什麽管用、什麽不管用，

and what was really specific to COVID-19.

以及新冠肺炎的特點。

Now, you can imagine that this group of engineers are asking themselves,

此時，你可以想像 這群工程師都在問自己，

"Are we the right people to be making ventilators?"

「我們是製造呼吸器的最佳人選嗎？」

Well, after talking with the doctor more, they started to realize that yes,

結果，在繼續跟醫生討論過後，

他們發現：的確，

ventilators are things that are sensing and responding to bodies, human bodies.

呼吸器探測人體並作出反應，

In our case, we create instruments that sense and respond to other bodies,

跟我們創造儀器 來探測物體並作出反應一樣，

like Mars or Jupiter.

只是我們探測的物體是火星和木星。

Ventilators need to be able to work in really harsh environments.

呼吸器需要能夠 在非常惡劣的環境下運作。

Well, we create things that go to outer space.

剛好，我們創造的儀器 可以在外太空運作。

Ventilators also -- they just have to work,

呼吸器一定要有效地運作，

because if they don't work, someone might die.

因爲如果它們失靈， 有人可能會因此喪命。

In our case, we send things to other planets,

以我們來說， 我們把物體送至其他星球，

and when they get there, we can't go there and fix them,

物體抵達後， 我們無法在現場修理，

so we have a culture of testing and testing to prove to ourselves

所以在發射物體之前，

我們一貫都會反覆測試 來確保一切運作正常。

that everything can work before we send them.

Now, ventilators -- they're really complicated,

接下來，有關呼吸器： 它們相當複雜，亦非常昂貴。

and they are really expensive.

There's lots of different parts,

它們有很多組件，亦有廣泛的用途。

and they can do a lot of different types of things.

So the team decided that instead of doing a complicated ventilator,

所以團隊決定， 與其製造一台複雜的呼吸器，

they were going to do something that was specific just to COVID-19

他們要製造一部 新冠肺炎專屬的儀器，

and that would make it less expensive, use less parts.

減低零件數量和成本。

And if a bunch of these were in the hospital,

而如果醫院配有一堆這樣的呼吸器

the people that have COVID could be using them,

供感染了新冠肺炎的人使用，

and we could save the really expensive, sophisticated ventilators

那我們就可以將那些 非常昂貴且精密的呼吸器

for those people who really, really needed them.

留給重症患者使用。

And so what they ended up doing is that they made subcriteria.

所以他們最後擬定了一些次級準則，

And the criteria was: do no harm --

而那些準則是：

第一，不加重負擔：

don't use any ventilator pieces

不使用供應鏈中 任何現有呼吸器使用的零件；

that are in the supply chain of current ventilators;

make sure that we use as few parts as really necessary;

第二，確保我們盡可能使用最少零件；

make sure that we can get those parts anywhere in the world,

第三，為確保不同國家 都可以製作這些呼吸器，

because we want people in lots of different countries

我們必須使用一些在世界各地 都十分普遍的零件；

to be able to make these same things;

第四，把呼吸器設計得使用簡易，

and then make it easy to use,

because if it's not easy to use, people just aren't going to use it.

因爲如果呼吸器用法複雜， 就沒有人要用。

那時的我在家裏遠距工作，

Well, I was sitting at home because I wasn't part of this project,

and I'm just kind of working from home,

未參與這個計畫，

但有天大衛寄來了一封 極不尋常的電郵，

and then I got this really unusual email by way of Dave Van Buren,

asking me if I'd like to be a team culturalist.

問我有沒有興趣 當他們團隊的文化大使。

I had never heard of a team culturalist before.

我從來都沒有聽過「團隊文化大使」。

I actually lead a team of artists and designers,

我的工作向來是 帶領一班藝術家和設計師

and we help people think through their thinking.

來幫其他人消化他們的想法。

But I thought, "You know what? I'm going to do anything to help.

不過我想：「就這麼決定了， 我會盡我所能去幫助他們；

Let me go in and be of help."

讓我來幫點忙吧。」

And so this is JPL, it's a really big place,

在這兒您看到噴射推進實驗室， 很大的一個地方，

but they only let around 200 people on lab,

但只有大約 200 人可以進入實驗室，

and only a few of those were people working on the ventilator.

而研發呼吸器的只是當中的少數。

But this -- this is what I came to when I first got there.

但這個——

這是我剛到實驗室時看到的情況。

There's flashing lights, handwritten signs all over the place,

那兒有警示燈、貼滿四周的手寫告示、

a line on the ground and a sign-up sheet ...

一條橫綫在地上，還有一張登記表等等 ［先洗手再前進、最多三人……］

It was really strange.

畫面真的很怪異。

And I realized the people on the project were in different rooms,

然後我發現，計畫的成員 各在不同的房間裏，

and they couldn't see each other.

看不到大家。

於是，我從所有在家工作的成員中

So I scavenged cameras and computers and cables

from all the computers of people that are working at home

搜羅了一些攝像機、電腦和電纜線，

to be able to set up a system so everyone could see each other.

建立了一個系統 來讓大家可以看到彼此。

And in the process, I realized that this is a really important moment.

而在這過程當中， 我發現這其實是相當重要的一刻。

This is really a historically important moment,

這是一個極具歷史性的一刻，

and so I need to be taking pictures of all these different moments.

所以我需要做的， 是拍下這些不同的時刻。

我為所有這些特別的時光 成功拍下了照片——

And so I was able to get pictures of all these special moments

when things first started to work, but also when things didn't work,

工作開始有所進展的時候、 事情未能奏效的時候……

and I was able to send them to the rest of the team,

而我能夠把這些相片傳給團隊成員，

因爲當時團隊裏其實 只有兩成的人在實驗室工作，

because, really, only about 20 percent of the team was at JPL.

The rest were at home working

其餘都在家工作，

and not really feeling connected to what was going on.

不太了解正發生的事情。

So this was a really great way for them to feel like they were part of the team.

所以這確實是一個很好的方法 來讓他們對團隊有歸屬感。

Now, everything was going super fast.

要知道，一切都進展得十分緊凑。

And, just an example, the chief engineer said, "Hey,

舉個例子，

總工程師說：

we need an interface for this ventilator

「嘿，這個呼吸器需要 一個方便醫生使用的介面。

that's going to be super easy for doctors to use.

And could you get it done by 6am tomorrow?" (Laughs)

這可以在明天上午六點前完工嗎？」

（笑）

And so our team called up a whole bunch of doctors all over the country at 8pm.

於是，我們團隊當天晚上八點 電召了一班來自全國各地的醫生，

We got together with them, got done at 10pm,

在十點與他們開會，

asking them a bunch of questions.

問了他們一大堆問題。

And literally, a designer ended up spending all night working on this,

接著，一名設計師 實實在在地通宵熬了一整晚，

and by 6am, he had an interface done.

然後在早上六點前把介面趕出來。

Now, this was just par for the course

工程師這樣艱難地工作其實是常態，

for what the engineers were going through,

because they were trying to create something they'd never thought of before.

因爲他們在嘗試製造一樣 他們從未想過的東西。

They were trying to get all the parts to work,

他們需要讓所有零件都能運作，

然後讓軟體配合零件一起運作……

get the software to work with parts ...

But the entire time, we were working with various doctors.

但整個過程中， 我們都一直在跟不同醫生合作。

The person in the middle is Dr. Gurevitch.

站在中間的是古爾維奇醫生。

He's the person who first told the team about what a ventilator was.

他是一開始向團隊 介紹何謂呼吸器的人。

The person in the computer next to him, his name is Dr. Levin.

在他身旁，在電腦裏的，是萊文醫生。

He's at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York,

他人在紐約的西奈山醫院，

and that was the epicenter of COVID at the very beginning.

而那正是新冠肺炎一開始的爆發中心。

And he would literally come out of the ICU in his [scrubs]

他會一離開加護病房， 身上還穿著手術服的時候，

and get on the webcam and start to critique what we're creating.

就直接連上視訊， 開始評論我們的設計。

So, 37 days after they first learned what a ventilator was,

就這樣，在他們第一次了解 什麽是呼吸器後的第 37 天，

they stayed up the entire night,

他們徹夜趕工，

and in the morning, they had finally finished

然後在隔天早上，

終於完成了他們第一台 能夠運作的呼吸器原型。

their first working prototype of a ventilator.

They had to hurry up and package it up,

他們得趕快把它包裝起來，

because then they were going to send it to New York,

送到紐約給在西奈山醫院的萊文醫生。

to Dr. Levin at Mount Sinai Hospital,

where they tested it on this human testing case

那兒，他們在這個假人身上 進行了一次人體試驗

where they were able to see whether or not the ventilator worked,

來測試呼吸器的效果，

而它的確管用！

and it worked.

這令所有人都十分興奮，

Everyone was super excited,

but they're even more excited today,

但今天他們的情緒卻更爲高漲，

because there are 27 organizations all around the world

因爲世界各地共有 27 個組織

that are creating these things.

正在生產這款呼吸器。

They're in Nigeria, in Brazil, in India, in dozens of other countries.

它們位在奈及利亞、巴西、印度， 還有其他數十個國家。

And it all started with that simple, powerful question:

而這通通都源於那個 簡單、有力的問題：

Is what I'm doing right now

我是否正在做當前最要緊的事情呢？

the most important thing I should be doing?