This is the VOA Special English Technology Report.
这里是美国之音慢速英语科技报道。
Global Positioning Systems are now a part of everyday driving in many countries. These satellite-based systems provide turn-by-turn directions to help people get to where they want to go. But, they can also cause a lot of problems, send you to the wrong place or leave you completely lost. Many times, the driver is to blame. Sometimes a GPS error is responsible. Most often, says Barry Brown, it is a combination of the two.
全球定位系统（简称GPS）是目前许多国家日常驾驶的一部分。这些基于卫星的系统提供转弯指向帮助人们到达目的地。但它们也会导致许多问题，把你送到错误的地点或让你完全迷路。很多时候司机是难辞其咎的，有时则是GPS错误的责任。巴里·布朗（Barry Brown）表示，更多时候则是这两者的结合。
Barry Brown is with the Mobile Life Centre in Stockholm, Sweden. The center studies human-computer interaction, or HCI, especially communications involving wireless devices.
布朗就职于瑞典斯德哥尔摩市的移动生活中心。该中心研究人机交互（简称HCI），尤其是涉及无线设备的通信。
We spoke to Mr. Brown by Skype. He told us about an incident involving a friend who had flown to an airport in the eastern United States. There he borrowed a GPS-equipped car to use during his stay.
我们通过Skype采访了布朗先生。他告诉我们一次涉及了一位飞到了美国东部机场的朋友的事故。在那里，他借了一辆安装了GPS的汽车供他在逗留期间使用。
BARRY BROWN: "And they just plugged in an address and then set off to their destination. And, then it wasn't until they were driving for thirty minutes until they realized they actually put in a destination back on the West Coast where they lived. They actually put their home address in. So again, the GPS is kind of 'garbage in garbage out'."
布朗：“他们输入一个地址然后开往目的地。直到开了三十分钟他们才意识到，他们实际上输入了一个回到他们居住的西海岸的目的地，他们实际上输入了自己的家庭地址。所以说，GPS有点‘胡乱输入胡乱输出’。”
Mister Brown says this is a common human error. But, he says, what makes the problem worse has to do with some of the shortcomings, or failures, of GPS equipment.
布朗先生说，这是一次常见的人为失误。但他表示，GPS设备的一些缺点使得问题更为糟糕。
BARRY BROWN: "One problem with a lot of the GPS units is they have a very small screen and they just tell you the next turn. Because they just give you the next turn, sometimes that means that it is not really giving you the overview that you would need to know that it's going to the wrong place."
布朗：“很多GPS设备的问题之一是屏幕非常小，它们只告诉你下一个转弯方向。因为它们只告诉你下一个转弯方向，有时这意味着它不会给你一个你需要知道它是否走错方向的全景地图。”
Barry Brown formerly served as a professor with the University of California, San Diego. While there, he worked on a project with Eric Laurier from the University of Edinburgh. The two men studied the effects of GPS devices on driving by placing cameras in people's cars. They wrote a paper based on their research. It is called "The Normal, Natural Troubles of Driving with GPS."
布朗曾担任加州大学圣地亚哥分校的教授。在那里他和爱丁堡大学的埃里克·劳里埃（Eric Laurier）一起合作了一个项目。他们在人们车上安放了摄像机研究GPS设备的影响。根据研究他们撰写了一篇论文，论文名字为《GPS驾驶的日常问题》。
BARRY BROWN: "One of the things that struck us, perhaps the most important thing was that you have to know what you're doing when you use a GPS. There are these new skills that people have developed. There are these new competencies that you need to have to be able to use a GPS because they sometimes go wrong."
布朗：“对我们冲击最大的一件事可能是，当你使用GPS时，最重要的是你必须知道你在做什么。现在人们开发出了这些新技术，你必须拥有这些新技能才能使用GPS，因为它们有时会出问题。”
Barry Brown says this goes against a common belief that GPS systems are for passive drivers who lack navigational skills.
布朗表示，这颠覆了GPS系统是为缺乏方向感（导航技能）的被动式司机准备的这种普遍观点。
"The Normal, Natural Troubles of Driving With GPS" lists several areas where GPS systems can cause confusion for drivers. These include maps that are outdated, incorrect or difficult to understand. They also include timing issues related to when GPS commands are given.
《GPS驾驶的日常问题》一书列出了GPS可能会导致驾驶混乱的几个方面。其中包括地图过时、错误或难以理解。还包括给出GPS命令时的时序问题。
Barry Brown says to make GPS systems better we need a better understanding of how drivers, passengers and GPS systems work together.
布朗表示，为了让GPS系统更好用，我们需要更好地了解司机、乘客和GPS系统是如何协同工作的。
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