本文翻譯自MIT校長 L. Rafael Reif 博士在6月1日發表的文章，文中評論最新通過的「無盡前沿法案」，以及他對中美科技競爭的觀點。關於該法案的核心內容和對中國的影響，王煜全也在自己的文章中作出過評論，文末附了連結，供大家對比參照。本文由谷歌機器翻譯，之後略作修飾。
我們的科技特訓營，對國際化和科技化兩個主題都有持續和系統的關注，如果想與一群致力於改變未來的人一起前行，請儘快加入！
下面是英文原文及翻譯：
The COVID-19 pandemic is intensifying U.S. concerns about China’s technological strength. Unfortunately, much of the resulting policy debate has centered on ways to limit China’s capacities, when what we need most is a systematic approach to strengthening our own. Inany race, success comes from training harder and running faster — not from hoping that your challenger will trip. To guarantee our nation’s future economic health and national security, we need a comprehensive, forward-looking national strategyto keep the U.S. at the forefront of science and technology.
COVID-19大流行正在加劇美國對中國技術實力的擔憂。不幸的是，由此引發的許多政策辯論都集中在限制中國能力的方法上，而當我們最需要的是一種系統性方法來增強自身能力時。在任何比賽中，成功都是來自更努力的訓練和更快的奔跑，而不是希望您的挑戰者會絆倒。為了保證我們國家未來的經濟健康和國家安全，我們需要一項全面的、具有前瞻性的國家戰略，以使美國保持在科學技術的最前沿。
Fortunately, a bipartisan bill has emerged that offers the blueprint the moment demands. Introduced by Sens. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Todd Young (R-Ind.) and Reps. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.), the Endless Frontier Act would providea visible, focused and sustained commitment to U.S. research, education and technology transfer, as well as to economic development, precisely the combination of remedies that will secure the nation’s future.
幸運的是，一個由兩黨共同提出的法案，為美國的國家戰略提供了藍圖。這一名為《無限前沿》的法案由參議員Chuck Schumer和Todd Young以眾議員Ro Khanna和Mike Gallagher提出，將提供可見的、對美國的研究、教育和技術轉讓以及對經濟發展的重點和持續承諾，作為一種寶貴的結合，無限前沿法案既是補救措施，也是對國家未來的保障。
The bill recognizes thatsince World War II, federal research funding has been a central contributor to U.S. economic dominance. It’s no accident that sectors like aircraft and information technology that have benefited most from decadesof federal research support have been the leading U.S. exporters and emblems of U.S. leadership. The legislation would authorize $100 billion in new funding over five years for research and related activities.
該法案認識到，自第二次世界大戰以來，聯邦研究經費一直是美國經濟主導地位的主要奠定者。受益於數十年聯邦研究經費支持的飛機和信息技術等行業一直是美國領先的出口商和美國領導地位的標誌，這並非偶然。該立法將授權在五年內為研究和相關活動提供1000億美元的新資金。
But the bill also reflects the fact that to counter China’s very different model for economic growth, we not only need to invest more in science and technology now, we also need to invest differently than in the past. We simply must move more effectively from scientific success to market impact. With that in mind, the bill would establish a new technology directorate at the National Science Foundation that would fund fundamental research with an eye toward advancing 10 pivotal technologies, including artificial intelligence and quantum computing. To complement this research, the bill also calls for supporting more students pursuing undergraduate and advanced studies in relevant fields and for developing new ways to move ideas more effectively from lab to market, including by creating testbeds for new developments.
但是該法案還反映出一個事實：為了應對中國非常不同的經濟增長模式，我們不僅需要在科學和技術上進行更多投資，而且還需要與過去進行不同的投資。我們必須更有效地促進科學意義上的成功，轉變對市場的影響。考慮到這一點，該法案將在美國國家科學基金會設立一個新技術理事會，該理事會將資助基礎研究，以期推進包括人工智慧和量子計算在內的十種關鍵技術的發展。為了補充這項研究，該法案還呼籲支持更多的學生攻讀相關領域的本科和高級研究，並開發新的方式將思想更有效地從實驗室轉移到市場，包括為新的發展創建測試平台。
The aim of the new directorate is to support fundamental scientific research, with specific goals in mind. This is not about solving incremental technical problems. As one example, in artificial intelligence, the focus would not be onfurther refining current algorithms, but rather on developing profoundly new approaches that would enable machines to 「learn」using much smaller data sets, a fundamental advancethat would eliminate the need to access immense data sets, an area where China holds an immense advantage. Success in this work would have a double benefit: seeding economic benefits for the U.S. while reducing the pressure to weaken privacy and civil liberties in pursuit of more 「training」 data.
新理事會的目的是支持基礎科學研究，並牢記具體目標。這與解決增量技術問題無關。例如，在人工智慧中，重點不會放在進一步完善當前算法上，而是在開發深刻的新方法，使機器能夠使用小得多的數據集「學習」，這是一項根本性的進步，將減少對龐大數據集的需求。這是中國擁有巨大優勢的領域。這項工作的成功將帶來雙重好處：在為美國增加經濟利益的同時，減少為了機器學習而削弱公民隱私和自由的壓力。
Supporting fundamental research with an eye to real-world challenges is the kind of thinking thatdrove the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to develop what became the internet. Such use-inspired basic research, funded by NSF, a trusted and experienced civilian agency that understands research and researchers is what’s needed to retain U.S. leadership in both science and technology, to keep usprosperous and secure.
考慮到現實世界的挑戰來支持基礎研究的想法，是驅使國防高級研究計劃局（DARPA）開發成為網際網路的一種思維。由NSF（一家了解研究人員和研究人員的值得信賴和經驗豐富的民間機構）資助的以使用為靈感的基礎研究，是保持美國在科學和技術領域的領導地位，保持我們的繁榮和安全所需要的。
The bill would also encourage universities to experiment with new ways to help accelerate the process of bringing innovative ideas to the market place, either via established companies or start-ups. At MIT we started The Engine, an independent entitythat provides private-sector funding, work space, and technical assistance to start-ups that are developing technologies with enormous potential but that require more-extensive technical development than typical VCs will fund, from fusion energy to a fast, inexpensive test for COVID-19. Other models may suitother institutions, but the nation needs to encourage many more such efforts, across the country, to reap the full benefits of our federal investment in science.
該法案還將鼓勵大學嘗試新方法，以幫助加速通過成熟的公司或初創公司將創新思想帶入市場的過程。在麻省理工學院，我們啟動了The Engine