导读:美国一名男子创办了一家提供“孙儿出租”服务的公司，让老人可以通过手机APP租个“孙子孙女”来陪伴他们。

Lonely pensioners can now buy ’grandkids-on-demand’ at the press of a button.

孤独的老人现在只需按下按钮就可以租个“孙儿孙女”了。

Using a new app named Papa, the elderly can call on young people to come and visit them and keep them company for $15 per hour.

使用一款名为Papa的手机应用，每小时15美元，老年人可以请年轻人来看望并陪伴他们。

Elderly people, who may have lost touch with their own family, can also ask their rented grandchildren to do chores and drive them around.

那些与家人没有联系的老年人也可以请租来的“孙儿孙女”做家务，带他们出去兜风。

Papa, which is based in Miami, Florida, is available as a mobile app and a customer telephone line for those without access to a smartphone.

Papa总部位于佛罗里达州迈阿密，人们可能通过智能手机APP来使用它，对于那些没有智能手机的人，也可以拨打热线。

To use the service, seniors will first need to contact Papa through either of these methods.

老年人首先得通过这两种方法联系上Papa使用这项服务。

Papa’s representatives will then provide a free consultation with the person to see how it can pair college students with them.

然后，Papa的服务代表会提供免费的咨询，确认学生配对人员。

The app costs the elderly citizens $15 an hour and the Papa Pals receive at least $10 per visit.

这款应用每小时收费15美元，“Papa陪护人员”每次至少可以得到10美元。

The exact sum is calculated by an algorithm and varies based on the type of trip undertaken by the Papa Pal.

确切的数字是通过一种算法计算出来的，并根据“Papa陪护人员”提供的服务类型而变化。

According to Andrew Parker, the founder and chief executive of the companionship service, most Papa Pals make on average between $20 to $30 per visit.

据Papa服务的创始人兼首席执行官安德鲁.帕克(Andrew Parker)介绍，大多数“Papa陪护人员”平均每次能赚20至30美元。

The average visit lasts around three hours.

平均的服务时间在三小时左右。

Although designed originally for helping old people, Mr Parker believes it could also provide services to other infirm groups.

尽管该公司设计初衷是帮助老年人，帕克认为它也能给其它弱势群体提供服务。

The entrepreneur has also targeted babysitting and caring for adults or children with autism as potential future expansion projects within the app.

他还将照看孩子和照顾患有自闭症的成年人或儿童作为该应用未来潜在的扩展项目。

Papa also provides somewhat of a digital education, assisting the elderly set up Netflix or video chat with their grandchildren.

Papa还提供一些数字化培训，如帮助老年人连接网飞（Netflix）看电视或者与他们的孙儿孙女视频聊天。

（来源：爱语吧）