sustainability officer. Now she works to make Google a global leader in "reducing or even

可持續發展官。現在，她致力於使谷歌成為全球領先的 "減少或甚至是

by 2017, they got that up to 100 percent. They've also managed to lower their total

到2017年，他們把這個比例提高到了100%。他們還設法降低他們的總

energy use with some help from a branch of artificial intelligence called machine learning.

在人工智能的一個叫做機器學習的分支的幫助下，能源使用。

A computer program takes in lots of data and trains itself to operate the centers as efficiently

一個計算機程序會接收大量數據，並訓練自己高效地操作中心。

as possible. Here's energy use under human supervision, and when the AI is in charge.

儘可能的。這是人類監督下的能源使用情況，而當人工智能負責。

The more data the AI trains on, the better it gets at reducing energy use. But here's

人工智能訓練的數據越多，它在減少能源使用方面就越好。但這裡的

the thing: This same technology can be used to automate lots of other tasks, like fossil

同樣的技術也可以用來自動化很多其他任務，比如化石。

fuel discovery and extraction. And while Google is using AI to increase the efficiency of

燃料的發現和提取。而谷歌在利用人工智能提高效率的同時，也在利用

its operation, it's also using it to try and get as much oil and gas out of the ground

它的操作，它也在使用它，試圖從地下獲取儘可能多的石油和天然氣。

as possible. In 2018, Google hired Darryl Willis, a veteran of British Petroleum, to

儘可能的。2018年，谷歌聘請了英國石油公司的資深人士達里爾-威利斯（Darryl Willis）擔任。

lead its new oil, gas, and energy division. Willis explained "our plan is to be the partner

上司其新的石油、天然氣和能源部門。Willis解釋說："我們的計劃是成為合作伙伴。

of choice for the energy industry." They've already signed a deal with Total, one of the

能源行業的首選。"他們已經與道達爾公司簽訂了協議，道達爾公司是一家。

world's biggest oil companies, to develop AI that will streamline oil and gas exploration

世界上最大的石油公司，將開發人工智能，以簡化石油和天然氣勘探。

and production. And Google's not alone. Microsoft and Amazon are also teaming up with the fossil

和生產。而谷歌並不孤單。微軟和亞馬遜也在與化石合作。

fuel industry. Big Tech has entered the oil business.

燃料行業。大科技已經進入石油行業。

On June 15, 1957, the citizens of Tulsa, Oklahoma

1957年6月15日，俄克拉荷馬州塔爾薩市的市民。

buried a rather odd time capsule, a brand new Plymouth Belvedere. Sealed inside

埋藏了一個相當奇怪的時間膠囊，一個全新的普利茅斯Belvedere。密封在裡面

among commemorative plates, ash trays, t-shirts, and books that captured the spirit of the

紀念盤、灰盤、T恤衫和書籍中，捕捉到的精神。

times, was a 16mm film reel. It showed a martian visiting the United States and learning that

次，是一卷16毫米膠片。它顯示了一個火星人訪問美國，並得知...

oil and competition made the nation prosper. Also included in the capsule were gasoline

石油和競爭使國家繁榮。囊中還包括汽油

and motor oil. In 1957, it seemed like a very real possibility that these products wouldn't

和機油。在1957年，這些產品似乎很有可能不

be around in 50 years when the Belvedere was scheduled to be disinterred. Newspapers around

50年後，當Belvedere計劃被安葬時，它還會存在。周圍的報紙

the country were reporting that America's oil production would soon fall off. And as

國家報告說，美國的石油產量很快就會下降。而作為

that cartoon martian learned, discoveries of new reserves were rare. "Only one well

那位卡通火星人瞭解到，新儲量的發現十分罕見。"只有一個井

in nine finds any oil at all. And only one in almost a thousand makes a major discovery."

九分之一的石油發現。而幾乎每一千人中只有一人有重大發現。"

Oil has always been really hard to find. America's first oil well was drilled in 1859 near a

石油一直都很難找到。美國的第一口油井是1859年在附近的一個油田裡鑽出來的。

particularly greasy creek in Pennsylvania. It was obvious there was oil seeping up from

賓夕法尼亞州的一條特別油膩的小溪。很明顯，有油滲出從

the ground here, but it took Edwin Drake over a year and all his money to find a measly

但埃德溫-德雷克花了一年多的時間和所有的錢才找到了一個微不足道的地方。

little pocket of black gold. Still, his discovery triggered an oil boom and a Pennsylvania paper

黑金的小口袋。不過，他的發現還是引發了石油熱潮和賓夕法尼亞州的紙業。

was soon explaining that the substance could "illuminate, lubricate, make candles, and cure

很快就解釋說，這種物質可以 "照明、潤滑、製作蠟燭和治療"。

most diseases from which humanity suffers." Not all of that proved true, but 100 years

人類所患的大多數疾病"。並非所有這些都被證明是正確的，但100年後，

later, petroleum had given the world "fabrics, toothbrushes, tires, insecticide, cosmetics,

後來，石油給了世界 "布料、牙刷、輪胎、殺蟲劑、化妝品"。

weed killers, a whole galaxy of things to make a better life on Earth." And of course,

除草劑，整個銀河系的東西 讓地球上的生活更美好。"當然了 And of course,

fuel. The energy needs of the world have risen a lot since 1859. And from very early on there

燃料。自1859年以來，世界的能源需求上升了很多。而從很早開始

were fears that fossil fuels couldn't meet this demand. In 1909, some thought oil and

是擔心化石燃料不能滿足這種需求。在1909年，有人認為石油和

gas would run out around 1937. In 1937, US oil supplies were supposed to disappear by

天然氣將在1937年左右耗盡。在1937年，美國的石油供應應該會在1937年消失。

1952. And so on, and so on, as fossil fuels became more and more essential in every day

1952.以此類推，隨著化石燃料在日常生活中變得越來越重要。

life, predictions of a crash kept coming. But somehow, the oil kept flowing. "I couldn't

生活中，崩潰的預測不斷出現。但不知何故，石油一直在流動。"我不能...

imagine how this ever-increasing supply of oil was achieved. Until I found out that there's

想象一下，這種不斷增加的石油供應是如何實現的。直到我發現

not just one but thousands of oil companies all competing with each other to discover

不僅僅是一個，而是成千上萬的石油公司都在相互競爭，以發現。

and develop new sources of oil." From the earliest days, competing companies invested

並開發新的油源。"從最早的時候開始，競爭公司就投資了

in better technology to extract fossil fuels, better drills, better pumps, and they developed

更好的技術來開採化石燃料，更好的鑽頭，更好的泵，他們開發了

better techniques for finding new oil reserves, creating seismic vibrations to see underneath

更好的技術來尋找新的石油儲量，創造地震振動來觀察下面的情況。

the ground, using satellite LIDAR to reveal hidden structures, detecting subtle changes

地面，利用衛星激光雷達揭示隱藏的結構，探測微妙的變化。

in the Earth's gravity and magnetism. Thanks in part to these advances, by 2007, when a

在地球的引力和磁力方面。部分歸功於這些進展，到2007年，當一個。

very rusty Belvedere was exhumed, global oil production was still on the rise. In the US,

非常生疏的貝爾維德雷被挖出，全球石油產量仍在上升。在美國。

it did look like oil was finally petering out, until investment in new technology, fracking

它看起來像石油終於停滯不前，直到新技術的投資，水力壓裂。

and horizontal wells in vast shale formations, brought it roaring back. Today, once again,

和巨大的頁岩層中的水平井，讓它轟然倒塌。今天，再一次。

if we just rely on current reserves and current tech, oil production will start to falter,

如果我們只是依靠現有的儲備和現有的技術，石油生產將開始動搖。

but if new technology lets us squeeze more out of the reserves we already have and find

但如果新技術能讓我們從已有的儲量中榨取更多，並發現

new sources of oil, we'll be able to meet the growing demand. It's just a matter of

新的石油來源，我們將能夠滿足日益增長的需求。這只是一個問題

finding the next technological leap. Of course, there's a problem with using fossil fuels

尋找下一個技術飛躍。當然，使用化石燃料也有一個問題。

to meet the world's energy needs. Climate change. Oil, gas and coal are a time capsule

以滿足世界能源需求。氣候變化。石油、天然氣和煤炭是一個時間膠囊。

of a different sort, sealing ancient carbon deep below the Earth. When humans open that

是另一種類型的，將古老的碳封存在地球深處。當人類打開那扇門時

time capsule and burn those fossil fuels, carbon reenters the atmosphere as the greenhouse

燃燒化石燃料，碳就會以溫室氣體的形式重新進入大氣層

gas CO2. Since 1859, CO2 levels have shot up and so has the planet's temperature. If

氣體二氧化碳。自1859年以來，二氧化碳含量急劇上升，地球的溫度也隨之上升。如果

we keep going like this, if we burn all the fossil fuels we currently have access to,

如果我們繼續這樣下去，如果我們燒 所有的化石燃料，我們目前可以獲得。

models suggest that the Earth could warm somewhere between 6.4 and 9.5 degrees. And so climate

模型顯示，地球可能會升溫6.4到9.5度之間。是以，氣候

activists say there's only one thing to do. "Keep it in the ground. Keep it in the ground.

活動家說，只有一件事要做。"讓它在地面上。讓它在地面上。

Keep it in the ground. Keep it in the ground." That's easier chanted than done. Currently,

把它埋在地裡把它埋在地裡。"這話說起來容易念起來難。目前。

the world relies on fossil fuels for 85 percent of its energy needs. Keeping it in the ground

世界85%的能源需求都依賴於化石燃料。把它留在地下

will require a huge shift to renewables and lower energy use in general. And big tech

將需要向可再生能源和降低能源使用總體上的巨大轉變。而大科技

companies have publicly rushed to be part of this effort. "Sustainability has been a

的公司都公開趕來參與其中。"可持續發展一直是一個

core value since our founding." "There had been pockets of sustainability living within

自我們成立以來的核心價值。""曾有一些可持續發展的口袋活在裡面。

Amazon's business since the very beginning." "One of the problems we can help solve is

亞馬遜的業務自始至終都是如此。""我們能幫助解決的問題之一是

energy consumption." "We can invent our way out of this problem." "Innovation is the key

能源消耗。""我們可以發明我們的方式來解決這個問題。""創新是關鍵

to solving this problem." "We can put artificial intelligence and digital technology to use

來解決這個問題。""我們可以將人工智能和數字技術用於

to help our customers in every part of the economy become more sustainable themselves."

以幫助我們經濟各個環節的客戶自己變得更加可持續發展。"

It turns out that same artificial intelligence technology is just what oil companies need

事實證明，同樣的人工智能技術正是石油公司所需要的。

to stay profitable. See the fossil fuel industry has amassed lots and lots of valuable data

以保持盈利。看到化石燃料行業已經積累了很多很多有價值的數據。

as they've mapped Earth's crust in search of reserves. Take this patch of ocean floor

因為他們已經繪製了地殼圖來尋找儲量就拿這塊洋底來說

in the North Sea. In 1989, Dutch geologists painstakingly mapped the different rock layers

在北海。1989年，荷蘭地質學家精心繪製了不同岩層的地圖。

using seismic scans. Researchers at IBM recently fed all that seismic data into a machine learning

使用地震掃描。IBM的研究人員最近將所有的地震數據輸入到一個機器學習中。

algorithm and after about 10 minutes of training, the AI was able to label the rock layers nearly

算法，經過大約10分鐘的訓練，人工智能幾乎可以對岩層進行標註。

as accurately as human experts. Another group at Georgia Tech used machine learning to quickly

和人類專家一樣準確。佐治亞理工學院的另一個小組使用機器學習來迅速

identify structures important to oil discovery. You could imagine how an AI could train itself

識別對石油發現重要的結構。你可以想象一個人工智能如何訓練自己

with all kinds of data to pinpoint the best places to drill. And once drilling begins,

用各種數據來確定最佳鑽井地點。而一旦開始鑽探。

AI can streamline extraction to make it cheaper. That kind of efficiency can help the oil and

人工智能可以簡化開採，使其成本更低。這種效率可以幫助石油和

gas industry compete with renewables and so it's no surprise that they spent an estimated

燃氣行業與可再生能源的競爭，是以他們花費了約1.5億歐元的資金，這並不奇怪。

1.75 billion dollars on AI in 2018. Google, Microsoft, and Amazon are competing for a

2018年在人工智能上投入17.5億美元。谷歌、微軟和亞馬遜正在爭奪一個

piece of that pie. Google has signed agreements with several fossil fuel companies. Microsoft

一塊餡餅。谷歌已經與多家化石燃料公司簽署了協議。微軟

has teamed up with Exxon and Chevron, and just hired Daryl Willis away from Google.

已與埃克森和雪佛龍合作，並剛剛從谷歌聘請了達里爾-威利斯。

And Amazon, who already provides cloud services to BP and Shell is marketing its ability to

而已經為英國石油公司和殼牌公司提供雲服務的亞馬遜，則在推銷自己的能力。

accelerate and optimize exploration, drilling, and production of oil and gas. While they

加快和優化石油和天然氣的勘探、鑽探和生產。當他們

talk up their commitment to sustainability, big tech is making sure the world can keep

談到他們對可持續發展的承諾，大科技正在確保世界能夠保持可持續發展。

burning plenty of fossil fuel. "And if you have both of these things, any goal is possible.

燃燒大量的化石燃料。"而如果你擁有這兩樣東西，任何目標都是可能的。

It's destination unlimited."

這是目的地無限。"