What happens to our images on social media or the internet after we die?
我们死后在社交媒体网站或互联网上的图像会发生什么？
Evan Carroll is someone who thinks a lot about this question. Carroll co-wrote a book called, "Your Digital Afterlife."
埃文·卡罗尔（Evan Carroll）对这个问题思考了很多。卡罗尔与人合写了一本名为《你的数字身后事》的书。
He says there are companies that will collect your passwords and online information. These businesses then provide all the important details to your family so they can make sure your accounts are settled after you die.
他说，有些公司会收集你的密码和网上信息，然后把所有重要细节提供给你的家人，这样他们就能确保你的账户在死后被结清。
Carroll said some online businesses will put together the digital story of your life -- to keep your memory alive long after you die. Some companies will even send out messages for you to your friends and family members after your death.
卡罗尔表示，一些网上商家会整理你的人生数字故事，让你的记忆在死后长存。一些公司甚至会在你死后，替你向家人朋友传达信息。
There are some concerns, however. Carroll said one problem is that it is normal to put off dealing with death. Many people hope and believe death is far off into the future.
然而也有人担心。卡罗尔表示，问题之一在于人们通常会避免面对死亡。很多人希望并且相信死亡是在遥远的未来。
Another problem is that companies sometimes go out of business. In other words, they might not be around when you die to send along your messages and passwords.
另一个问题是，这些公司有时会歇业。换句话说，当你死亡发送信息和密码时它们可能不复存在。
Your Post-Death Facebook Page
人死后的Facebook页面
Facebook says it has 1.71 billion monthly users worldwide, making it the largest social media website.
Facebook称该网站在全球范围内有17.1亿月度用户，这使得它成为最大的社交媒体网站。
Carroll said people are not happy getting messages on their Facebook Page about birthdays for friends who died.
卡罗尔表示，人们不喜欢在自己的Facebook页面上看到关于已经过世朋友的生日的信息。
Now, Facebook will let a friend or relative "memorialize" a Facebook friend's page, as long as they can provide proof of the death. That can be a copy of a death notice.
现在，Facebook会允许一位亲戚或朋友“纪念”Facebook好友的页面，只要他们能够提供死亡证明。这将成为另一份死亡通知。
In 2015, Facebook set up another program. It lets a person choose a family member or friend who can supervise the individual's Facebook account after they die.
2015年，Facebook设立了另一个程序。它允许用户选择一位家人或朋友在其死后监管自己的Facebook账户。
That person can write information about a memorial service, or share a special message or memory, Facebook said.
Facebook表示，那位用户可以撰写追悼会信息，或是与他人分享特殊的信息或记忆。
Digital Memories Created at Museum
博物馆创建的数字化记忆
One group working to create digital memories is the Hereafter Institute at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in California.
加州洛杉矶艺术博物馆身后事研究所是一家致力于创建数字记忆的组织。
Started a year ago, the institute offers people the chance to learn how they can plan their digital afterlife.
该研究所从一年前开始向人们提供学习如何规划他们的数字化身后事的机会。
People who visit Hereafter learn how personal information and video images can be placed into a piece of jewelry as a future memorial.
参观身后事研究所的人们可以了解到个人信息和视频图像如何被放入一块珠宝中作为以后的纪念。
The founder of the institute is Gabriel Barcia-Colombo. He used old audio, pictures and videos to create a lasting video about his grandfather.
该机构的创始人是加布里埃尔·巴尔西亚-科伦坡(Gabriel Barcia-Colombo)。他用以前的音频、图片和视频创建了一份关于其祖父的永久视频。
Video lets people think about how friends and family members "moved, or reacted to jokes or how they laughed," he said.
他说，视频让人们想起朋友和家人对笑话的反应或是他们的笑容。
Watching the images of his grandfather was important to him, Barcia-Colombo said. "To be able to see him walking again...was very moving to me."
巴尔西亚-科伦坡表示，看到祖父的画面对他而言非常重要。“能够看到他再次走动着让我非常感动。”
People who visit the institute get a body scan. They can then watch as an image of that body scan walks into the distance.
访问该研究所的人们会进行一次全身扫描。然后，他们可以看着这一全身扫描的图像走向远方。
Carolina Miranda is a staff writer for the Los Angeles Times newspaper. She recently spent time at the Institute.
卡罗来纳·米兰达（Carolina Miranda）是《洛杉矶时报》的一位专职作者。她最近去了一趟该研究所。
She said the image works as a memorial, although it is not exactly a perfect copy.
她说，该图像是作为一种纪念，虽然它不是一种非常完美的复制品。
"I don't think it would ever be in danger of becoming something that you could almost grow attached to because it's a replacement of that person," Miranda said.
米兰达表示，“我认为它不会因为是那个人的替代品，而有风险成为你有所依赖的东西。”
Barcia-Colombo said the goal of his institute is to make people think about what is possible and what they might want to do with their online memories after they die.
巴尔西亚-科伦坡表示，他的研究所的目标就是让人们思考在自己死后，什么是可能的，以及他们想要如何处理自己的网上记忆。(51VOA.COM对本文翻译保留全部权利，未经授权请勿转载，违者必究！)