80 科技与发展报道|马来西亚旅游巴士里的互联网 Internet in Malaysia

背景知识：

如果你在马来西亚看到奇怪的旅游巴士，千万不要被它的外表所迷惑，它可不是一辆真正的巴士哦！那辆车上会有20台计算机以及其他网络设施，被称做"移动互联网单位"。它穿梭于各个城市与学校之间，为教师和学生们演示如何使用电脑与互联网。这是马来西亚政府为了让贫困地区的人也能了解网络计算机技术而设计的一辆车。其实，这项措施在其他国家也有可行性呢！

正文：

Malaysia has developed a program to help bring technology to schools around the country. It is a traveling bus equipped with twenty computers and other modem technology. Officials call the bus a “Mobile Internet Unit”because students can use it to connect to the Worldwide Web. The goal of the bus is to increase technology knowledge among teachers and students in poor farming areas.

Two technology experts drive the bus to schools throughout Malaysia. The technology experts show teachers and students how to use computers. The experts show them how to search for information on the Internet. The experts also collect information for future technology training programs. The Malaysian government plans to put two Mobile Internet Units in each of its fourteen states by Two-Thousand-Five.

The United Nations Development Program and the Malaysian government support the Mobile Internet Unit program. It was started two years ago. Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi said the project was necessary to reduce the differences between people who know how to use computers and people who do not.

The Asia-Pacific Development Information Program created the idea for Malaysia抯 traveling bus. Gabriel Accascina is the former head of the organization，which is based in Kuala Lumpur. He says he developed the idea from his earlier work in Mali in West Africa. During the Nineteen- Eighties，Mister Accascina and other aid workers drove a vehicle with a television and video recorder to local villages. They used the technology to teach people about nutrition，water and health issues.

Mister Accascina said he developed Malaysia’S traveling bus with just seventy-five-thousand dollars from the United Nations. Two Malaysian companies also support the project. They are the Automotive Corporation Malaysia and Mimos Berhad，a local information technology company.

Malaysia says its traveling bus could easily be copied in other developing countries where it is difficult to train people to use computers and the Internet. Experts say programs similar to the Mobile Internet Unit could prevent developing countries from falling farther behind industrial countries in information technology.

This VOA Special English Development Report was written by Jill Moss.

From VOA September 23，2001

中文译文：

马来西亚已制定了一项计划：让先进技术走进学校。这是一辆旅游巴士，配备有20台计算机和其他现代化技术。官员将这台车称为“移动互联网单位”，因为学生们可以使用它连接到全球网络。装配这台车是为了增加贫困农村地区教师和学生的技术知识。

两名技术专家驾驶这台车穿梭于马来西亚各个学校之间。他们为老师和学生演示如何使用电脑，如何在因特网上查询信息，同时他们收集信息为今后的技术到2005年，将为全国的14个州各投入2辆车作为“移动互联网单位”。“移动互联网单位”项目得到了联合国开发计划署和马来西亚政府的共同支持。项目于两年前启动。副总理阿卜杜拉艾哈迈德巴达维表示，有些人懂得如何使用计算机，有些人却不懂，实施该项目对减少两者之间的差异很有必要。

“亚太发展信息项目”组织首次提出了使用旅游巴士。位于吉隆坡的该组织前任负责人盖布里埃尔?阿卡斯辛纳表示，这个想法来自于他早期在西非国家马里的工作经历。20世纪80年代，阿卡斯辛纳和其他救援人员驾驶一辆装有电视机和录像机的汽车驶进当地村庄，利用这种技术教授人们有关营养、水和卫生等方面的问题。

阿卡斯辛纳称他所开发的马来西亚旅游巴士仅仅使用了联合国投资经费中的7.5万美元。两家马来西亚公司同样扶持这个项目，他们是Automotive Corporation Malaysia 和当地一家信息技术公司 Mimos Berhad。

马来西亚表示，在那些很难培训人们使用电脑和互联网的国家，其旅游巴士模式可以被轻松复制。专家说类似马来西亚的“移动互联网单位”项目可以缩小发展中国家与发达国家在信息技术方面的差距。

这里是VOA慢速英语《发展报道》，撰稿人吉尔莫斯。

选自VOA 2001年9月23日