年底是购物的旺季，这时候买东西往往要排很长的队来结账。可是大家都不喜欢排长队，所以就有人发明了智能购物车。有了它，不用去收银台，购物车自己就把钱款收了。
The smart shopping cart
by Matt McFarland
Tired of standing in line? Wait a bit longer, and you may never have to again. Currently, everyone from Amazon to Silicon Valley startups are trying to eliminate lines in retail stores.
line /laɪn/ n. （排队时的）队
currently /ˈkʌr(ə)ntli/ adv. 现在（由current加后缀-ly变成副词）
Silicon /ˈsɪlɪkən/ Valley 硅谷
startup /ˈstɑːtʌp/ n. 初创公司（由start和up组成）
eliminate /ɪˈlɪmɪneɪt/ v. 消除、根除
retail /ˈriːteɪl/ n. 零售
Amazon has opened 24 Amazon Go stores, which use cameras and artificial intelligence (AI) to see what you've taken off shelves and charge you as you walk out.
artificial /ˌɑːtɪˈfɪʃ(ə)l/ adj. 人工的、人造的
intelligence /ɪnˈtelɪdʒ(ə)ns/ n. 智力、智能
But others are trying an entirely different route to skipping the checkout: smart shopping carts. These companies have added cameras and sensors to the carts, and are using AI to tell what you've placed in them. A built-in scale weighs items, in case you have to pay by the pound for an item. Customers pay by entering a credit card, or by using Apple Pay or Google Pay.
entirely /ɪnˈtaɪəli/ adv. 完全地（由entire加后缀-ly变成副词）
skip /skɪp/ v. 跳过、略过
checkout /ˈtʃekaʊt/ n. 收银台
shopping cart 购物车
sensor /ˈsensə(r)/ n. 传感器
place /pleɪs/ v. 放置
built-in 内置的
scale /skeɪl/ n. 秤
in case 如果、假如
credit card 信用卡
When a customer exits the store, a green light on the shopping cart indicates that their order is complete, and they're charged. If something goes wrong, the light turns red, and a store employee is summoned.
exit /ˈeksɪt/ v. 从…出来、离开
indicate /ˈɪndɪkeɪt/ v. 指出、指明
turn /tɜːn/ v. 变成
employee /ɪmˈplɔɪiː/ n. 员工
summon /ˈsʌmən/ v. 召唤、叫过来
The startups behind the smart carts, including Caper and Veeve, say it's much easier to add technology to the shopping cart than to an entire store. Amazon's Go stores rely on hundreds of cameras in the ceiling. The shelves also include sensors to tell when an item is removed.
entire /ɪnˈtaɪə(r)/ adj. 整个的
rely /rɪˈlaɪ/ on 依靠
ceiling /ˈsiːlɪŋ/ n. 天花板
Shariq Siddiqui, CEO of Veeve, said he's finding increased interest from retailers given Amazon's steady expansion of Go since opening the first store in Seattle in 2018. "We're always happy when Amazon is doing something," Siddiqui said. "They force retailers to get out of their old-school thinking."
retailer /ˈriːteɪlə(r)/ n. 零售商（由retail加上表示人的后缀-er）
given /ˈɡɪv(ə)n/ prep. 考虑到
steady /ˈstedi/ adj. 平稳的、稳步的
expansion /ɪkˈspænʃ(ə)n/ n. 扩大、扩张
Seattle /sɪˈætəl/ n. 西雅图（美国西北部城市）
force /fɔːs/ v. 迫使
old-school 老式的
Veeve is testing several of its shopping carts in an unnamed Seattle retailer. It's announcing a larger deployment（部署） in early 2019, and Siddiqui says the company is in talks with two of the country's 10 largest retailers.
unnamed /ʌnˈneɪmd/ adj. 未透露名字的
talks /tɔːks/ n. 谈判
But there are still kinks（小问题） to work out in the technology. Caper, which has small pilots in Canada and New York City, is currently having customers scan items on a barcode scanner built into the cart, before placing them in it. The process helps to teach the AI system to identify the store's items.
work out 解决
pilot /ˈpaɪlət/ n. 试点
scan /skæn/ v. 扫描
barcode /ˈbɑːkəʊd/ n. 条形码
scanner /ˈskænə(r)/ n. 扫描器、扫码器（由scan加上表示人或物的后缀-er）
process /ˈprəʊses/ n. 过程
identify /aɪˈdentɪfaɪ/ v. 识别、辨认出
Anytime a business uses artificial intelligence and cameras, it raises questions about customer privacy and the impact on jobs. Ahmed Beshry, co-founder of Caper, notes that the cameras in his shopping cart point down into the cart, so only a customer's hand and part of their arm will be captured on camera.
anytime /ˈenitaɪm/ adv. 在任何时候
raise /reɪz/ v. 引起、带来
privacy /ˈprɪvəsi/ n. 隐私
impact /ˈɪmpækt/ n. 影响
co- 前缀，意思是共同
founder /ˈfaʊndə(r)/ n. 创办人（由found加上表示人的后缀-er）
capture /ˈkæptʃə(r)/ v. 拍照
Siddiqui said the shopping carts will eventually offer customers real-time coupons（优惠券）. When a customer puts, say, peanut butter in their cart, they may be offered a 10% discount on jelly. He also envisioned grocery store cashiers（收银员） shifting to roles where they freely float around stores and answer customers' questions, a format similar to the Apple Store.
eventually /ɪˈventʃuəli/ adv. 最终
real-time 实时的
say /seɪ/ v. 比方说
peanut butter 花生酱
jelly /ˈdʒeli/ n. 果酱
envision /ɪnˈvɪzən/ v. 设想
grocery /ˈɡrəʊs(ə)ri/ store 食品杂货店
shift /ʃɪft/ v. 转移、改变
role /rəʊl/ n. 角色、作用
freely /ˈfriːli/ adv. 不受限制地
float /fləʊt/ v. 悠闲地走动
format /ˈfɔːmæt/ n. 方案、安排
（如果您发现某些行的最后一个单词被分成两半了，请把您使用的浏览器升级到最新版本就能正常显示了。）
网友评论