Looking to the Future—2040 Do you forget to turn off the
lights and heaters when you go out of a room In 2040 it will not matter. They
will turn themselves off—and on again when you return. You will choose the
temperature for each room, the lighting and the humidity. A sensor will detect
the presence of a human (and, with luck, ignore the dog!) and turn the systems
on, and when the humans leave it will turn them off again. The
sensors will work through the central home computer, and they will do much more
than just turn the fires and lights on and off for you. They will detect faulty
electrical appliances, plugs or switches, isolate them so that they cannot harm
anyone, and then warn you that they need repair. They will detect fire and if
you are out of the house, the computer will call the fire brigade. It will also
call the police should the sensors detect an intruder. This will not be
difficult because the locks on the outside doors will be electronic. You will
open them using your personal card—the one you use for shopping—maybe using a
number known only to you. It will be impossible to lose the key,
and a housebreaker will have to tamper (拨弄) with the lock or with a window. It
is not very difficult to make such tampering send a signal to the
computer. The computer will be more than a
fireman—policeman—servant. It will be an entertainer, and most of your
entertainment will come right into your home. It does now, of course, but by
2040 “entertainment” will mean much more. For one thing, you will be able to
take part actively, rather than just watching
The author intends to tell us that
A．in 2040 we will live without the lights and heaters B．In 2040 we will use much more lights and heaters C．In 2040 there will be no switches of lights and heaters D．In 2040 lights and heaters will he on and off automatically
