考研英语经济学人双语精读TE-2023-07-03期考研英文外刊精读|人工智能:不可战胜的英伟达?(PDF版+Word版+MP3)
Artificial intelligence:Nvincible?
The AI boom hasturbochargedNvidia’sfortunes. Can it hold its position?
【1】Waves ofinnovationoften create giants. Microsoftrodetheupsurgeindesktopcomputers, as Apple did with the smartphone. Artificial intelligence (AI) may well be the next big technological shift,transformingthe way businesses are run and society functions. If so, plenty of firms selling the software andhardwarethatunderpinAI stand to gain. But none is betterpositionedthan Nvidia, an American firm that makesspecialistAI chips. Its market valuebrieflypassed $1trn this week. Will AI sweep Nvidia to big tech-dom?
【2】Thehypearound AI makes the question hard to answer.excitementabout Nvidia began tomountin November, after thereleaseof ChatGPT, an AI-powered chatbot. Since then all manner of firms havelaunchedAI-infusedproducts, adding to thefervour. Jensen Huang, Nvidia’s boss, is unsurprisinglybullish, talking of a “new computing era”. Investors seem just asjubilant. Nvidia’s share price has more than doubled since the start of the year.
【3】Much of theexcitementisjustified. Nvidia is in anenviableposition. Its core business is designing high-performance chips. At first it sold these to video-gameenthusiasts. The chips were also highlyefficientat training AI models, and a new,boomingmarket emerged. But the firm has not just been lucky. With eachgenerationof new chips, it hasimprovedperformance many times over. Today it holds over80% of the market inspecialistAI chips.
【4】Nvidia also had theforethoughttoinvestin two areas that helpedcementitssupremacy. One isadvancednetworking. Because training AI models requires vast amounts of processing power, many chips—sometimes thousands—are usedsimultaneously. These chips exchange data along a high-performance, AI-tailorednetwork. Today Nvidia controls78% of that market, thanks to itspurchaseof Mellanox, aspecialist, in2019.
【5】Nvidia’s other strength is its software. CUDA, its AI platform, is popular withprogrammersand runs only on the company’s chips. By, for instance, giving free access to its chips and software to some AI researchers, the firm focused onencouragingdevelopers to use its software long before itscompetitorsset out towoothem.
【6】Despite all these advantages, however, Nvidia’s lastingdominanceis notassured. For a start, some of thefrenzyaround AI may die down. The juicier the firm’sprospects, the morecompetitorsit will attract. Startups and big chipmakers, such as AMD and Intel, want a share of Nvidia’s network and chip businesses. Others are working on open-source andproprietarysoftware that may weaken CUDA’s hold. The biggest challenge, though, may come from Nvidia’s own customers. The cloud-computing arms of both Amazon and Alphabet are designing their own AI-tailoredchips. Both have the scale and the deep pockets to becomefearsomerivals.
【7】Governments also pose a risk. Regulators worried about the dangers AI poses to society and national security aresearchingfor ways to control the technology. Last year Americarestrictedthe sale of high-performance chips and chipmaking tools to some Chinese firms, which dented Nvidia’s sales in the third quarter. If Nvidia isdominant, politicians will find it easier to act.
【8】Still, for now the future looks bright. Even if AI mania cools, the technology isboundto be more useful thancrypto, anothercrazethat Nvidiacashedin on. Regulation maycrimpgrowth, but is unlikely to kill it. And none of Nvidia’s rivals is yet offering AI products thatbundletogether software, chips andnetworking. Nvidia’s chief advantage lies in its ability to package these up and create anattractiveecosystem. That sounds a lot like Microsoft and Apple.
1、短语
1)原文:Since then all manner of firms have launched AI-infused products,adding tothe fervour.
词典:add to增加
例句:I have nothing to add to my earlier statement.
我对我早先说的话没有什么补充的。
2)原文:For a start, some of the frenzy around AI may die down.
词典:die down逐渐消失
例句:Their strategy for the moment is to hunker down and let the fuss die down.
他们目前的策略是保持低调,让事态慢慢平息。
3)原文:Even if AI mania cools, the technology is bound tobe more useful than crypto, another craze that Nvidia cashed in on. .
词典:be bound to 一定要
例句:He"ll be bound to find out what the skipping-rope is.
他一定会弄清楚跳绳是什么。
词典:cash in on 谋取利益
例句:But others can and do attempt to cash in on the loot.
但是其他人可以也尝试利用这些战利品来趁机捞一把。
2、长难句
1、
1)原文:
By,for instance,giving free access to its chips and software to some AI researchers, the firm focused on encouraging developers to use its softwarelong before its competitors set out to woo them.
2)分析:
l红色部分是主句,是主谓宾结构。
l紫色部分是插入语用来表示举例;橙色部分是by引导的介词短语做方式状语。蓝色部分是before引导的时间状语从句。
3)译文:例如,通过为一些AI研究人员免费提供芯片和软件, 英伟达就能早在其竞争对手开始招揽这些研究人员之前就着重鼓励开发者使用其软件。
2、
1)原文:Regulators worried about the dangersAI poses to society and national securityare searching for waysto control the technology.
2)分析:
l红色部分是主句,是主系表结构。橙色部分是形容词短语做后置定语,修饰regulators。
l蓝色部分是定语从句,修饰先行词dangers,省略了关系词。紫色部分是不定式做目的状语。
3)译文:监管机构担心AI会对社会和国家安全带来危险,正在寻找控制该技术的方法。
3、写作技巧
1)原文:
The juicier the firm’s prospects, the more competitors it will attract.
公司前景越好,吸引的竞争对手也就越多。
2)技巧分析:
这里使用的是比较级的特殊用法:
lmore and more...(越来越……)
Lucy becomes more and more beautiful.Lucy变得越来越漂亮了。
lthe ..., the...(越……就越……)
The harder we work, the more progress we will make.工作越努力,进步就越多。
l比较级前可加much,a lot, far, even, still, a little, no, any等表示程度的词来修饰。
The job is far more difficult than before.这份工作比之前难多了。
lmore和less用作代词,与某些可等级名词搭配:
He is more/ less of a sportsman than his best friend.
=He is more/ less sportsmanlike than his best friend.
他比他最好的朋友更不像/像个运动员。
l表示倍数的比较级用法:
倍数+ the + size / length / depth /height +of
=倍数+ as +形容词原级+ as
=倍数+比较级+than
The new building is three times the height of the old one.
=The new building is three times as high as the old one.
=The new building is twice higher than the old one.
这座新楼是旧楼的三倍高。
4、背景分析
英伟达(NVIDIA)是一家总部位于美国加利福尼亚州圣克拉拉市的半导体公司,成立于1993年。英伟达的主要业务是设计和制造图形处理器(GPU),用于游戏、专业可视化、数据中心和自动驾驶等领域。
英伟达在过去的几十年里经历了多次高光时刻,其发展战略也在不断调整和优化。英伟达的第一次高光时刻是在2000年代初期,1999年,世界上第一颗GPU(图形处理器)GeForce 256 GPU诞生,这是世界上第一款真正意义上的GPU。2006年,英伟达迎来第二次高光时刻,英伟达革命性地推出了CUDA(Compute Unified Device Architecture)技术,这是一种基于GPU的并行计算架构,可以让GPU不仅仅用于图形处理,还可以用于科学计算、数据分析等领域。2016年,英伟达再迎第三次高光时刻。这一年,英伟达推出了Pascal架构的GPU,这是一种基于16纳米工艺的GPU,可以提供更高的性能和更低的功耗。英伟达前两年因为矿潮赚得盆满钵满,今年又赶上 AI 大爆发,市值一路飙升。
现在大火的ChatGPT就是使用的英伟达的HGX 主板和 A100 芯片,当前唯一可以实际处理ChatGPT的GPU是英伟达HGX A100。随着 OpenAI 对大模型 AI 的成功验证,各家巨头对大模型 AI 的纷纷入局,英伟达的产品成了抢手货。探索、创新、拥抱新事物,英伟达不断尝试的每一步,都值得我们借鉴。
段落大意:
【1】创新的浪潮往往会造就巨头,那AI是否会将英伟达变为科技巨头呢?
【2】AI热度高,引来众多公司竞争。
【3】英伟达的确有着众多优势。
【4】英伟达有先见之明,对两个重要领域进行投资。一个是投资先进的网络。
【5】另一个是开发软件。
【6】尽管有这些优势,英伟达的主导地位能否持续仍有待确认。
【7】政府和监管机构可能会限制英伟达的发展。
【8】不过,现在看来,未来依旧光明,因为AI技术很有用,并且英伟达的优势是将软件、芯片和网络相结合,打造一个有机的生态系统。
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