美国国家公共电台 NPR The Robots Are Coming To Las Vegas

 

LULU GARCIA-NAVARRO, HOST:

We were in Las Vegas a couple of weeks ago, where the hospitality and gaming industries drive most of the economy, employing some 300,000 people, which is why a 2017 study predicting a massive disruption - the loss of up to two-thirds of all jobs in Las Vegas - has garnered¹, as you can imagine, a lot of attention. Now, what could cause that disruption? Meet Jett.

(SOUNDBITE OF ROBOT BEEPING)

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Jett is a delivery robot, the outside designed to resemble a dog - kind of. And along with its robot sibling² Fetch, they're a new addition to the workforce³ at the Vdara Hotel in Las Vegas.

So the robot is going through the lobby of the hotel with its delivery. It's about 3 feet high. And we have the Dalmatian one running for us. And it's causing quite a stir.

Guests stop, turn and look as Jett navigates⁴ all by itself, making a small delivery from the lobby cafe to a room on the fifth floor. But first, Jett remotely calls for an elevator for a quick trip up.

(SOUNDBITE OF ELEVATOR BEEPING)

RECORDED VOICE: Fifth floor.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Kerryn Abel, director of hotel operations for the Vdara, joins me.

(SOUNDBITE OF ROBOT BEEPING)

RECORDED VOICE: Going down.

KERRYN ABEL: So right now it's telling - it's getting out to let the guests know it's ready to leave the elevator.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: And it's very polite. It says, excuse me, please.

Those words scroll⁵ by on its front screen. We reach the room, and it alerts the guest by an automated⁶ phone call. And then it makes its delivery. And there it is. And it says, hello. Please remove your items.

(SOUNDBITE OF ROBOT BEEPING)

GARCIA-NAVARRO: And it says, yay. And it's shaking back and forth⁷. Thanks. And then it says, bye. I'm heading home. And off it goes.

Jett the delivery robot is just one example of how automation is gaining traction⁸ in Las Vegas. But Kerryn Abel says, don't worry. Little Jett doesn't portend⁹ the employment apocalypse just yet.

Do you envision this as more than sort of a gimmick¹⁰? It's something that people like. But do you see it becoming something other than that?

ABEL: It's been really fun for the guests and fun for the employees. But it really isn't anything more than that. It's a convenience, but it still needs to be handled by employees. It still needs an employee interaction. So it isn't going to be anything that's going to replace something. But it is a fun interaction for our guests.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Cliff Atkinson is senior vice¹¹ president for hospitality at MGM Resorts. And the Vdara is part of its family of hotels. While we were in Las Vegas, he was in Japan for work. So we got him on the phone.

CLIFF ATKINSON: For us, we like to be innovative¹². And we like to try new, fun things.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Beyond the fun, Atkinson says automation is helping¹³ transform the industry as guests demand more of a customized experience. They're looking for options. Take, for instance, checking in. The front desk is already changing.

ATKINSON: I see it as we eliminate front desks altogether and that you're able to check in over your phone. But the people that were at those front desk are still there. They're there to customize your journey, there to greet you at the car. And they're there to escort you to your room, to make sure you have everything you need. You can't replace that and that engagement.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: For Atkinson, technology is an opportunity to retrain employees. Goodbye, front desk agent. Hello, lobby ambassador. But automation will apparently¹⁴ hit Las Vegas most in the spaces that we don't see. That's according to the 2017 study by the aptly named Institute for Spatial¹⁵ Economic Analysis. Administrative¹⁶ back offices, restaurant kitchens, jobs often done by people with low education levels, jobs done mostly by women and people of color will be affected¹⁷ first.

GEOCONDA ARGUELLO KLINE: We know we can't (ph) always stop technology. Technology's here.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Geoconda Arguello Kline is secretary-treasurer for the Culinary Union, which represents about 57,000 hospitality workers in Las Vegas, the majority of them women and Hispanic. This year, she helped negotiate a new contract between the union and many of the big casinos in Las Vegas. It included what they called ground-breaking language. For workers whose jobs are going to be affected by new technology, they'll get a chance to retrain.

ARGUELLO KLINE: Now the workers - they have the opportunity to get the training, to learn something new. And at the same time, the workers - they will say, you know, I don't want this. This is not for me. But I have a choice.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: What she's saying is that for those who move on and decide not to accept the training, they'll get severance¹⁸ pay and benefits for six months. A key provision within this five-year contract - the union gets a heads-up of 180 days before a new technology is implemented¹⁹. This is already happening in some hotels. Workers who chop salad are being replaced by machines in some places.

ARGUELLO KLINE: Right now we feel like we protect this five years. But in these five years, we have to prepare for the next five years - what's going to happen.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: The struggle between man and machine is as old as the dawn of the mechanized age. Remember men used to race on horses against the steam train? Chess players would match their wits against computers? Automation has already changed the way we work for generations now. But I still contend that a real bartender makes a better margarita. And so to test that theory, I head to my final stop in Las Vegas, The Tipsy Robot bar.

AYANNA MARTIN: What is this? - 'cause this actually seems kind of cool.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Twenty-three-year-old Ayanna Martin (ph) of Maryland is selecting a drink off a computer tablet.

MARTIN: Oh, there's cherry syrup²⁰ in it. I'm going to go with this, I think.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: Drink ordered, a big robotic arm, a cocktail²¹ shaker for a hand, gets to work. Liquor bottles hanging from the ceiling dispense²² exact amounts of booze. Then a quick shake. And finally, the robot arm pours the concoction²³ into a plastic cup.

(SOUNDBITE OF POURING LIQUID)

MARTIN: My God, this is so good. (Laughter) This is actually really good.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: So do you think can imagine drinking from a robot all the time instead of a human?

MARTIN: Yes. It's probably going to be a lot more cost-effective, but it's not going to be as fun for the people who go to bars 'cause the fun part of going to a bar is making friends with the bartender and having them pour just a little bit extra, more than they're supposed to, in your drink. Robots can't do that (laughter).

GARCIA-NAVARRO: So true, so true. But Victor Reza Valanejad, the general manager of The Tipsy Robot, says his bartending robots will mean more jobs, not fewer.

VICTOR REZA VALANEJAD: Our business is growing. And we are not buying more robots. But we are hiring more humans. So just imagine if there was Tipsy Robots popping up everywhere and hiring 10 people, 10 people, 10 people, even more. That would be just great.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: So you think that, actually, the nature of work is going to change. But it doesn't mean that humans are going to be replaced by robots. That's kind of optimistic.

REZA VALANEJAD: No.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: I like it.

REZA VALANEJAD: Yeah. And, you know...

GARCIA-NAVARRO: We talk some more about robots and the future of bartending. And then it's time for my taste test. I order their signature drink, a Pineapple Planet. Wow.

That is not my thing (laughter).

As I suspected, nothing tops a margarita made by a human bartender - for now.

(SOUNDBITE OF KRAFTWERK SONG, "THE ROBOTS")

1 garnered   

v.收集并（通常）贮藏（某物），取得，获得( garner的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Mr. Smith gradually garnered a national reputation as a financial expert. 史密斯先生逐渐赢得全国金融专家的声誉。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He has garnered extensive support for his proposals. 他的提议得到了广泛的支持。 来自辞典例句

2 sibling   

n.同胞手足(指兄、弟、姐或妹)

参考例句：

• Many of us hate living in the shadows of a more successful sibling.我们很多人都讨厌活在更为成功的手足的阴影下。
• Sibling ravalry has been common in this family.这个家里，兄弟姊妹之间的矛盾很平常。

3 workforce   

n.劳动大军，劳动力

参考例句：

• A large part of the workforce is employed in agriculture.劳动人口中一大部分受雇于农业。
• A quarter of the local workforce is unemployed.本地劳动力中有四分之一失业。

4 navigates   

v.给（船舶、飞机等）引航，导航( navigate的第三人称单数 )；（从海上、空中等）横越；横渡；飞跃

参考例句：

• Dolpins also navigates by some kind of echo system. 原来海豚也是借助某种回声系统寻向的。 来自辞典例句
• Navigates in menus, lists, choice screens and into edited texts. 可以操纵菜单、列表、屏幕选项和进入编辑文本。 来自互联网

5 scroll   

n.卷轴，纸卷；(石刻上的)漩涡

参考例句：

• As I opened the scroll,a panorama of the Yellow River unfolded.我打开卷轴时，黄河的景象展现在眼前。
• He was presented with a scroll commemorating his achievements.他被授予一幅卷轴，以表彰其所做出的成就。

6 automated   

a.自动化的

参考例句：

• The entire manufacturing process has been automated. 整个生产过程已自动化。
• Automated Highway System (AHS) is recently regarded as one subsystem of Intelligent Transport System (ITS). 近年来自动公路系统(Automated Highway System,AHS)，作为智能运输系统的子系统之一越来越受到重视。

7 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

8 traction   

n.牵引；附着摩擦力

参考例句：

• I'll show you how the traction is applied.我会让你看如何做这种牵引。
• She's injured her back and is in traction for a month.她背部受伤，正在作一个月的牵引治疗。

9 portend   

v.预兆，预示；给…以警告

参考例句：

• Black clouds portend a storm.乌云为暴风雨的前兆。
• What do these strange events portend?这些奇怪的事件预示着什么？

10 gimmick   

n.(为引人注意而搞的)小革新，小发明

参考例句：

• He dismissed the event as just a publicity gimmick.他不理会这件事，只当它是一种宣传手法。
• It is just a public relations gimmick.这只不过是一种公关伎俩。

11 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

12 innovative   

adj.革新的，新颖的，富有革新精神的

参考例句：

• Discover an innovative way of marketing.发现一个创新的营销方式。
• He was one of the most creative and innovative engineers of his generation.他是他那代人当中最富创造性与革新精神的工程师之一。

13 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

14 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

15 spatial   

adj.空间的，占据空间的

参考例句：

• This part of brain judges the spatial relationship between objects.大脑的这部分判断物体间的空间关系。
• They said that time is the feeling of spatial displacement.他们说时间是空间位移的感觉。

16 administrative   

adj.行政的，管理的

参考例句：

• The administrative burden must be lifted from local government.必须解除地方政府的行政负担。
• He regarded all these administrative details as beneath his notice.他认为行政管理上的这些琐事都不值一顾。

17 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

18 severance   

n.离职金；切断

参考例句：

• Those laid off received their regular checks,plus vacation and severance pay.那些被裁的人都收到他们应得的薪金，再加上假期和解职的酬金。Kirchofer was terminated,effective immediately--without severance or warning.科奇弗被解雇了，立刻生效--而且没有辞退费或者警告。

19 implemented   

v.实现( implement的过去式和过去分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• This agreement, if not implemented, is a mere scrap of paper. 这个协定如不执行只不过是一纸空文。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The economy is in danger of collapse unless far-reaching reforms are implemented. 如果不实施影响深远的改革，经济就面临崩溃的危险。 来自辞典例句

20 syrup   

n.糖浆，糖水

参考例句：

• I skimmed the foam from the boiling syrup.我撇去了煮沸糖浆上的泡沫。
• Tinned fruit usually has a lot of syrup with it.罐头水果通常都有许多糖浆。

21 cocktail   

n.鸡尾酒；餐前开胃小吃；混合物

参考例句：

• We invited some foreign friends for a cocktail party.我们邀请了一些外国朋友参加鸡尾酒会。
• At a cocktail party in Hollywood,I was introduced to Charlie Chaplin.在好莱坞的一次鸡尾酒会上，人家把我介绍给查理·卓别林。

22 dispense   

vt.分配，分发；配(药)，发(药)；实施

参考例句：

• Let us dispense the food.咱们来分发这食物。
• The charity has been given a large sum of money to dispense as it sees fit.这个慈善机构获得一大笔钱，可自行适当分配。

23 concoction   

n.调配(物)；谎言

参考例句：

• She enjoyed the concoction of foreign dishes.她喜欢调制外国菜。
• His story was a sheer concoction.他的故事实在是一纯属捏造之事。