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What is history? It is something written by the winners.
什么是历史？是胜利者写的东西。
There is a stereotype that history should be focused on the rulers, like Lenin or Trotsky.
有一种刻板印象，历史应该专注于统治者，像列宁或托洛茨基。
As a result, people in many countries, like mine, Russia,
因此，许多国家的人，像是我的祖国俄罗斯，
look at history as something that was predetermined or determined by the leaders,
视历史为预先确定或由领导人所决定，
and common people could not influence it in any way.
普通人无法以任何方式影响历史。
Many Russians today do not believe that Russia could ever have been or ever will be a truly democratic nation,
许多俄罗斯人至今都不相信俄罗斯曾经是，或未来可以是个真正民主的国家，
and this is due to the way history has been framed to the citizens of Russia. And this is not true.
这正是历史呈现给俄罗斯公民的形象，并不是真的。
To prove it, I spent two years of my life trying to go 100 years back, to the year 1917, the year of the Russian Revolution.
为了证明这一点，我花两年时间试图回到一百年前，到1917年，即俄国大革命那年。
I asked myself, what if the internet and Facebook existed 100 years ago?
我问自己，如果一百年前有互联网和脸书会怎样？
So last year, we built a social network for dead people, named Project1917.com.
所以我们在去年创建了给逝者用的社交网络，名为Project1917.com。
My team and I created our software,
我和我的团队开发了软件，
digitized and uploaded all possible real diaries and letters written by more than 3,000 people 100 years ago.
把找得到的真实日记和信件全都数字化和上传，那些是由三千多人于一百年前撰写的。
So any user of our website or application can follow a news feed for each day of 1917
因此，任何我们网站或应用程序的用户，都能关注1917年里每一天的新闻，
and read what people like Stravinsky or Trotsky, Lenin or Pavlova and others thought and felt.
阅读斯特拉文斯基或托洛茨基、列宁或巴甫洛娃等人的想法和感受。
We watch all those personalities being ordinary people like you and me, not demigods,
这些人全都是像你我这样的普通人，而不是半神的人，
and we see that history consists of their mistakes, fears, weaknesses, not only their "genius ideas."
我们看到的历史中有他们的错误、恐惧和弱点，而不仅仅是他们的“天才想法”。
Our project was a shock for many Russians,
我们的项目震惊许多俄罗斯人，
who used to think that our country has always been an autocratic empire
过去他们认为我的祖国一直是个专制的帝国，
and the ideas of freedom and democracy could never have prevailed, just because democracy was not our destiny.
自由和民主的思想永远不会占上风，只因为我们注定不民主。
But if we take a broader look, it's not that black and white.
但如果我们把目光放宽放远，它并不那么泾渭分明。
Yes, 1917 led to 70 years of communist dictatorship.
的确，1917年是70年共产主义独裁统治的开始。
But with this project, we see that Russia could have had a different history and a democratic future,
但是通过这个项目，我们看到俄罗斯能有不同的历史和民主的未来，
as any other country could or still can. Reading the posts from 1917,
就像任何其他的国家能够有，仍然可以有那样。阅读1917年的贴文，
you learn that Russia was the first country in the world to abolish the death penalty,
你会了解到俄罗斯是世界上第一个废除死刑的国家，
or one of the first ones to grant women voting rights.
也是最早授予女性投票权的国家之一。
Knowing history and understanding how ordinary people influenced history can help us create a better future,
了解历史并了解普通人如何影响历史，可以帮助我们创造更美好的未来，
because history is just a rehearsal of what's happening right now.
因为历史只是对现在正在发生的事情的预演。
We do need new ways of telling history, and this year, for example,
我们确实需要新的方式来讲述历史，例如，
we started a new online project that is called 1968Digital.com,
今年我们开始新的在线项目，名为1968Digital.com，
and that is an online documentary series that gives you an impression of that year, 1968,
它是个在线纪录片系列，提供您1968那一年的印象，
a year marked by global social change that, in many ways, created the world as we know it now.
那是全球社会变革的一年，在许多方面塑造了我们现今的世界。
But we are making that history alive by imagining what if all the main characters could use mobile phones ... just like that?
我们让那段历史活跃起来，通过如果所有的主角都能使用手机的想象，就像那样？
And we see that a lot of individuals were facing the same challenges and were fighting for the same values,
我们看到很多人面临同样的挑战，为同样的价值观在奋斗，
no matter if they lived in the US or in USSR or in France or in China or in Czechoslovakia.
无论他们是住在美国、苏联、法国、中国还是捷克斯洛伐克。
By exposing history in such a democratic way, through social media,
以这种民主的方式揭露历史，通过社交媒体，
we show that people in power are not the only ones making choices.
我们展现当权者不是唯一掌握选择权的人。
That gives any user a possibility of reclaiming history.
这使任何用户都能纠正历史。
Ordinary people matter. They have an impact. Ideas matter. Journalists, scientists, philosophers matter.
普通人很重要。他们有影响力。想法很重要。记者、科学家、哲学家很重要。
We shape society. We all make history. Thank you.
我们塑造了社会。我们都创造了历史。谢谢。
