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microscopicmess37阅读理解：第十三篇Invisibility RingScientists cant yet make an invisibility cloak1 like the one that Harry Potter2 uses.But，for the first time，theyve constructed a simple cloaking device that makes itself and somethingplaced inside it invisible to microwaves.When a person “sees” an object，his or her eye senses many different waves of visiblelight as they bounce off the object.The eye and brain then work together to organize thesesensations and reconstruct the objects original shape. So，to make an object invisible，scientists have to keep waves from bouncing off it.And they have to make sure the objectcasts no shadow.Otherwise，the absence of reflected light on one side would give the obiectaway.Invisibility isnt possible yet with waves of light that the human eye can see.But it is nowpossible with microwaves.Like visible light，microwaves are a form of radiant energy.Theyare part of the electromagnetic spectrum，which also includes radio waves，infrared light，ultraviolet rays，X rays，and gamma rays.The wavelengths of microwaves are shorter thanthose of radio waves but longer than those of visible light.The scientists new “invisibility device” is the size of a drink coaster and shaped like aring.The ring is made of a special material with unusual ability.When microwaves strike thering，very few bounce off it.Instead，they pass through the ring，which bends the waves allthe way around until they reach the opposite side.The waves then return to their originalpaths.To a detector set up to receive microwaves on the other side of the ring，it looks as if thewaves never changed their paths as if there were no object in the way! So，the ring is effectively invisible.When the researchers put a small cdpper loop inside the ring，it，too，is nearly invisible. However，the cloaking device and anything inside it do cast a pale shadow.And the deviceworks only for microwaves，not for visible light or any kind of electromagnetic radiation.So，Harry Potters invisibility cloak doesnt have any real competition yet.词汇：invisibility/invizE5biliti/n.看不见，无形 spectrum/5spektrEm/n.光谱cloak/klEuk/斗篷，披风 infrared/5infrE5red/adj.红外线的microwave/5maikrEuweiv/n.微波 ultraviolet ray 紫外线reconstruct/5ri:kEn5strQkt/v.重建 gamma ray 伽马射线radiant/5reidjEnt/adj.辐射的 wavelength/5weivleNW/n.波长electromagnetic/IlektrEJ5mAnItIk/adj.电磁的coaster/5kEustE(r)/n.托盘，垫子练习：1.Harry Potter is mentioned in the passage，because scientistsA can now make an invisible cloak of the same kind as he uses.B try to make an invisible cloak of the same kind as he uses.C try to invent a device Similar in idea to the invisible cloak he uses.D know that it is possible to make an invisible cloak of the same kind.2.What is true of microwaves?A Their wavelengths are shorter than those of visible light.B Their wavelengths are longer than those of visible light.C They are different from visible light as they are a kind of radiant energy.D They are visible to the human eye.3.What is NOT true of the invisibility device?A It is made of a special material with unusual ability.B Microwaves bounce off it when they strike it.C Microwaves pass through it when they strike it.D It bends the microwaves all the way around until they reach the opposite side.4.What does the word “coaster” mean in the passage?A A disk or plate placed under a drinking glass to protect a table top.B A vessel engaged in coastal trade.C A roller coaster.D A resident of a coastal area.5.Harry Potters invisibility cloak doesnt have any real competition yet，becauseA scientists have not found out how his cloak works.B the cloaking device is a total failure.C the cloaking device works only for microwaves.D the cloaking device works only for visible light.答案与题解：1.C文章的第一段告诉我们，科学家还没有发明哈里波特使用的那种隐身衣，所以不能选 A;该段还告诉我们，科学家已制造了，一种装置，这种装置能使自身或置于其中的物体不被微波发现，所以C是正确选择，也就是说，科学家发明的隐形装置和哈里波特的隐身衣仅仅在概念上相同，这同时说明B和D是错误的选择。2.B第三段最后一句中告诉我们，A是错误选择，B是正确选择。该段第三句说，微波与可见光一样都是一种辐射能，所以C的说法是错误的，不能选择;根据该段第一句：with wavesof light that the human eye can see和第三句：Like visible light，可以得知D是错误的说法，也不能选择。3.B第四段第三句说，当微波到达装置表面时，very few bounce off。very few是几乎没有的意思，所以选择B。其他选择所述内容都可以很容易在该段中找到。4.A第四段第一句告诉我们，科学家的这个隐形装置和一个杯垫差不多大小，所以A是正确选择。coaster是一个多义词，其他几个选择是该词的其他意思，B：从事沿海贸易的船;C：过山车，摩天轮;D：海岸地区居民。5.C A句在短文中没有提到;按文章的内容B不是正确的说法;文章最后一段说，And thedevice works only for microwaves，not forvisible light，所以C是正确选择。译文：隐形环 到目前为止，科学家还不能造出哈利；波特使用过的隐身斗篷。但是他们率先研制出了一种与其类似的装置，这种装置能使自身和置于其中的物体不受微波的探测。 当一个人“看”某物体时，他的眼睛就会感知到从那个物体反射过来的光波。眼睛和大脑一同工作，编辑这些光感并重建其原貌。所以，如果要让一个物体隐形，科学家们就必须阻止光波反射。并且他们得确保此物体没有阴影。否则，反射光的缺失会使物体显现。 鉴于人眼对光波的感知性，要想隐形某物体很难做到，但对微波就可以做到。如同可见光，微波是一种辐射能。他们是电磁波谱的一部分，其中也包括无线电波、红外线光、紫外线、x射线和伽马射线。微波的波长比无线电波短，但比可见光长。 科学家研制出的这种新型隐身装置和杯垫一般大小，形状像个环。由于它是特殊材料制成，因此具有非同寻常的功能。当微波射向它时，仅有极少的光会反射回去，这些光会从一端穿过这个环，并在此过程中沿着弯曲的路线前进，直到抵达另一端。最后光波回到原来的路线。 对于在环的另一端放置的探测器来说，光波看上去就像从来没有改变过路径一样，即好像没有遇到障碍物。这样一来，这个环就如同没有存在过。研究者又将一个铜线圈放进环里，依然得到同样的结果。不过，这个环和里面的东西还是会留下一点影子。环形隐身器只能作用于微波，而不能作用于可见光及电磁波。因此，哈里，波特的隐形斗篷目前还没有竞争对手。第十五篇Winged Robot Learns to FlyLearning how to fly took nature millions of years of trial and error1 -but a winged robot has cracked2 it in only a few hours, using the same evolutionary principles. Krister Wolff and Peter Nordin of Chalmers University of Technology (CUT) in Gothenburg , Sweden, built a winged robot and set about3 testing whether it could learn to fly by itself, without any pre-programmed data on what flapping is or how to do it.To begin with4, the robot just twitched and jerked erratically. But, gradually, it made movements that gained height. At first, it cheated-simply standing on its wing tips was one early short cut5. After three hours, however, the robot abandoned such methods in favor of6 a more effective flapping technique where it rotated its wings through 90 degrees and raised them before twisting them back to the horizontal and pushing down.“This tells us that this kind of evolution is capable of7 coming up8 with flying motion,” says Peter Bentley, who works on evolutionary computing at University College London. But while9 the robot had worked out how best to produce lift10, it was not about to take off. “Theres only so much that evolution can do,” Bentley says. “This thing is never going to fly because the motors will never have the strength to do it,” he says.The robot had metre-long wings made from balsa wood and covered with a light plastic film. Small motors on the robot let it move its wings forwards or backwards. up or down or twist them in either direction.The team attached the robot to two vertical rods, so it could slide up and down. At the start of a test, the robot was suspended by an elastic band. A movement detector measured how much lift, if any11, the robot produced for any given movement. A computer program fed the robot random instructions12, at the rate of13 20 per second, to test its flapping abilities. Each instruction told the robot either to do nothing or to move the wings slightly in the various directions.Feedback from the movement detector let the program work out which sets of instructions were best at producing lift. The most successful ones were paired up14 and “offspring” sets of instructions15 were generated by swapping instructions randomly between successful pairs. These next-generation instructions were then sent to the robot and evaluated before breeding a new generation, and the process was repeated.注释：1. Learning how to fly took nature millions of years of trial and error:自然界里的飞行学习用了几百万年的时间反复实践和磨炼。2. crack: to break through (an obstacle) in order to win acceptance or acknowledgement: 突破（障碍）3. set about:开始做，着手4. To begin with: 首先5. short cut: 捷径6. in favor of:原意为“赞成；支持”。这里， the robot abandoned such methods in favor of a more effective flapping technique意为:这个机器人放弃了这样的方法，而去使用一种更为有效的扇动翅膀的技术。7. be capable of: 指物有可能，可以8. come up: to manifest itself; arise 出现。9. while:虽然，尽管10. lift:升高11. if any:若有的话。确切意思是 :如果它能升高的话。12. . fed the robot random instructions:给机器人输入随意设定的指令。 fed是feed的过去式。13. at the rate of:以的速度14. pair up:把配成一对15.“offspring”sets of instructions:指的是将成功的指令配对后的结果。“ offspring”本来是后代的意思，在此修饰sets of instructions，所以加了双引号。练习:1. Which of the following is NOT true of what is mentioned about the winged robot in the second paragraph? A The two professors of CUT built the winged robot B The two professors of CUT tested whether the winged robot could learn to fly. C The two professors of CUT programmed the data on how the robot flapped its wings.D The two professors of CUT tried to find out if the robot could fly by itself.2. How did the robot behave at the beginning of the test?A It rotated its wings through 90 degrees.B It twitched but gradually gained height.C It was twitched and broke down.D It landed not long after the test.3. Which of the following is nearest to Peter Bentleys view on the winged robot? A The winged robot could never really fly.B The winged robot did not have a motor. C The winged robot should go through further evolution before it could fly. D The robot could fly if it were lighter.4. What measured how much lift the robot produced? A Two vertical rods. B A movement detector. C An elastic band. D Both B and C.5. What does “the process” appearing in the last paragraph refer to? A Pairing up successful inst ructions. B Sending instructions to the robot.C Generating new sets of instructions for evaluation. D All the above.答案与题解 :1. C A、B、D在第二段中都提到过。 C是错误的，因为文中说，教授们测试机器人是否会自己学会飞行，而且预先没有对翅膀扇动的方式进行数据设定。2. B第三段描述了机器人如何学习飞行的过程。第一句和第二句是问题的答案。3. A第四段主要是 Peter Bentley对飞行机器人的看法。他认为前文描述的进化过程只能使机器人有一些飞行的动作，而要让其起飞则永远不可能，因为不可能有如此大功率的发动机。所以 A是正确选项4. B答案在第六段的第三句中。5. D文章昀后一段具体描述在机器人的进化过程中，指令的进化过程。成功的指令配对后产生新一代的指令，将指令输入机辑人，经筛选再进行成功指令配对，再产生新一代指令，如此反复进行。所以 D是正确选项。译文：自然界中的飞行学习经历了几百万年的反复实践和磨练，而安装机翼的机器人仅在数小时内就成功实现突破，用的是同进化原理。瑞典Gothenburg Chalmers科技大学的Krister Wolff 和PeterNordin 研制出带翼的机器人，着手测试它能否在不预设振翅数据程序的条件下自行学会飞行。首先，机器人只是飘忽不定地振动盘桓，不过它的运动逐渐获得了上升高度，起初，它想走走捷径，试图仅用翅尖保持直立。然而三小时后，它放弃了这种方法， 转用更有效的振翅技术，90度角旋转两翼，并在它们恢复到水平位置将其拉起。“事实告诉我们，飞行装置有可能实现这种进化。”Peter Bentley 说。他现正在伦敦大学研究进化计算技术。虽然机器人可以摸索出上升飞行的最佳方式，却不会起飞。“进化升级所做的只有这么多，”Bentley说，“这东西不可能自行起飞，因为发动机不能产生足够动力。”机器人的两翼由轻木制成，长约一米，覆有一层轻塑胶。它的小马达使机翼可以前后上下运动，并能在这两个方向上任意旋转。研究小组将机器人附着在两根竖直标杆上，它便能上下滑动。实验刚开始的时候，机器人悬挂在一根弹性带上。一旦它升高，运动探测器就能测量它任何运动的高度。每过20秒，计算机程序就给机器人输入任意设定的指令，以检测其振翅能力。每个指令或是让机器人停止运动或是在各种方向上转动机翼。通过来自运动探测器的反馈，程序测算出哪几组指令能最有效地产生高度。最成功的几组进行配对，而其“后代”指令则通过在成功组合间随意交换指令产生。在产生下一代组合之前，这些第二代指令被发往机器人并进行评估，然后这一过程反复进行。第十篇Young Female Chimps Outlearn Their Brothers Young female chimps are faster and better learners than young male chimps, suggests a new study, echoing learning differences seen in human girls and boys. While young male chimps pass their time playing. Young female chimps carefully study their mothers. As a result, they learn how to fish for tasty termite snacks over two years before the boys. Elizabeth Lonsdorf, now at Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago, US, and colleagues at the University of Minnesota, Saint Paul spent four years watching how young chimpanzees in the Gombe National Park in Tanzania learned “cultural behavior”. The sex differences in learning behavior were “consistent and strikingly apparent”, says the team. The researchers point out that similar differences are seen in human children with regard toskills such as writing. “A sex-based learning differences may therefore date back at least to the last common ancestor of chimpanzees and humans.” they write in the journal Nature. Chimps make flexible tools from vegetation and then insert them into termite mounds, extract them and then munch the termites clinging onto the tool. The researchers used video cameras to record this feeding behavior and found that each chimp mother had her own technique, such as how she used tools of different lengths. Analysis of the six infants whose ages were known showed that girl chimps were an average of 31 months old when they succeeded in fishing out their termites, where the boy chimps were aged 58 months on average. Females were also more skillful at getting out more termites with every dip and used techniques similar to their mothers while males did not. Instead of studying their mothers, the boy chimps spent a significantly greater amount of time frolicking around the termite mound. Behaviors such as playing or swinging might help the male infants later in life when typically male activities like hunting or fighting for dominance become important, suggest the researchers. Lonsdorf adds that there just two main sources of animal protein for chimps the termites or colobus monkeys. “Mature males often hunt monkeys up trees, but females are almost always either pregnant or burdened with a clinging infant. This makes hunting difficult,” she says .“Adult females spend more time fishing for termites than males.” So becoming proficient at termite fishing could mean adult females eat better, “They can watch their offspring at the same time. The young of both sexes seen to pursue activities related to their adult sex roles10 at a very young age.”练习:1. Why do young female chimps learn faster than young male chimps at fishing for termites? A Because young female chimps dont play with their brothers. B Because young female chimps begin to study their mothers earlier. C Because young male chimps never learn to fish for termites. D Because young male chimps are not interested in termites.2. What are the tools with which chimps fish for termites? A Tree branches. B Vegetation. C Fruits. D Grass.3. Which of the Following is true about chimps fishing for termites according to paragraph 6? A Males often compete with females in fishing for termites. B Males could get out more termites with every dip. C Females could get out more termites with every dip. D Males are good at mastering technique for fishing for termites.4. How did the researchers explain the fact that boy chimps spent more time on playing? A They like hunting.B They enjoy fighting.C It helps them to stay fit.D It will make them good fighters and hunters in the future.5. According to the last paragrnph, which of the following is NOT true?A Adult chimps hunt monkeys while young chimps fish for termites. B The main source of animal protein for male chimps is colobus monkeys. C The main source of animal protein for female chimps is termites. D Female chimps fish for termites while watching their children.答案与题解 :1. B 根据第二段的内容，雄性小猩猩将时间用来玩要，而雌性小猩猩则研究她们母亲的行为，因此，她们比雄性小猩猩早两年学会捕食白蚁。 A、D文中没有提到， C与问题没有关系。2. B第五段的第一个句子告诉我们，猩猩用植物作成方便的工具，用来捕食白蚁。 A、C和 D均是错误的。3. C 该段告诉我们，对六只小猩猩的分析表明，雌性小猩狠不但较早学会捕食白蚁 .而且能比雄性小猩猩更为熟练地捕食到更多的白蚁。所以， B和 D都不是正确选项。 A项内容文中没有提到。4. D A、B和 C都是错误的，因为文中没有捉到雄性小猩猩喜欢猎食和打斗，也没有提及玩耍能使他们更健康。D是正确答案。第七段昀后一句说，他们喜欢玩耍的行为有助于他们长大后的生活，因为，到那时，他们要猎食和争权夺位。5. A 根据昀后一段的内容，成年雄猩猩主要猎食生活在树上的一种叫做 colobus（疣猴）的猴子，而雌性猩猩捕食白蚁。所以 A是正确选项。 B、C和 D的内容均可在该段中找到。译文：第十篇 年轻雌猩猩学习优于她们的弟兄一项新的研究显示，与年轻雄性相比，年轻雌黑猩猩是更快更好的学习者，这与人类的两性学习差异相仿。在小雄猩猩玩乐嬉闹时候，雌猩猩却在悉心向母亲学习。结果她们比“男孩们”提早两年学会捕获美味小吃白蚁。美国芝加哥林肯公司动物园的Elizabeth Lonsdorf 和她在圣保罗市明尼苏达大学的同事们用了4年时间观察坦桑尼亚Gombe 自然公园的年轻黑猩猩学习它们的“文化行为”。学习行为的性别差异是“一贯和惊人显著的”，观察小组报告说。研究人员指出，类似的差别也存在于人类儿童写作等技巧的学习过程。他们在自然杂志中写道，“基于性别的学习差异因而可以上溯到人类和黑猩猩最近的共同始祖。”黑猩猩用植物制造灵巧的工具，将它们插入蚁丘把白蚁驱赶出来，再津津有味地享用粘在工具上的白蚁。研究人员用摄像机记录下这种捕食行为，发现每位猩猩母亲在诸如怎样使用不同长度的工具等方面都有她们自己的诀窍。分析研究六只已知年龄的幼猩猩显示，雌猩猩在平均31个月大时就能成功捕获白蚁，而雄猩猩则需要到58个月时才能学会。雌性每次都能熟练地收获更多的白蚁，并能采用与母亲相似的技巧，而雄性却做不到。“男孩们”不向母亲学习，却花费大量时间在蚁丘周围嬉戏。研究人员认为玩耍、摇荡等活动或许对公幼兽后来的诸如捕猎、争夺领导权等典型的雄性活动大有裨益。Lonsdorf 补充说，黑猩猩食物中动物蛋白的主要来源有两个白蚁和疣猴。“成熟雄性常在树间抓捕疣猴，而雌性则总是因为怀孕或身上吊着小猩猩而难以捕猎，”她说，“成年雌性比雄性花更多的时间捕食白蚁。”因此娴熟地捕获白蚁意味着雌性比雄性吃得更好，“并且可以同时看护后代。雌雄两性似乎都是在十分年幼的时候就开始了与成年后性别角色有关的活动。”第二篇World Crude Oil Production May Peak a Decade Earlier Than Some Predict In a finding that may speed efforts to conserve oil，scientists in Kuwait predict that world conventional crude oil production will peak in 2014.This prediction is almost a decade earlier than some other predictions. Their study is in ACSEnergy&Fuels1. Ibrahim Nashawi and colleagues point out that rapid growth in global oil consumption has sparked a growing interest in predicting peak oil. Peak oil is the point where oil production reaches a maximum and then declines. Scientists have developed several models to forecast this point，and some put the date at 2020 or later. One of the most famous forecast models is called the Hubbert model2.It assumes that global oil production will follow a bell shaped curve3.A related concept is that4 of Peak Oil. The term Peak Oil indicates the moment in which world wide production will peak，afterwards to start on irreversible decline. The Hubbert model accurately predicted that oil production would peak in the United States in 1970.The model has since gained in popularity and has been used to forecast oil production worldwide. However，recent studies show that the model is insufficient to account for5 more complex oil production cycles of some countries. Those cycles can be heavily influenced by technology changes，politics，and other factors，the scientists say. The new study describes development of a new version of the Hubbert model that provides a more realistic and accurate oil production forecast. Using the new model，the scientists evaluated the oil production trends of 47 major oil-producing countries，which supply most of the worlds conventional crude oil6.They estimated that worldwide conventional crude oil production will peak in 2014，years earlier than anticipated. The scientists also showed that the worlds oil reserves7 are being reduced at a rate of 2.1 percent a year. The new model could help inform energy-related decisions and public policy debate，they suggest.词汇：conserve v.保护，保存 irreversible adj.不可逆的，不可改变的crude oil原油spark v.闪耀;激发;鼓舞 insufficient 不充分的，不足的curve n.曲线注释：1.ACSEnergy&Fuels：ACS是American Chemical Society(美国化学学会)的缩写。该学会成立于1876年，现已成为世界最大的科技协会。多年来，ACS一直致力于为全球化学研究机构、企业及个人提供高品质的文献资讯及服务。ACS出版的期刊有34种，这些期刊在化学领域中是被引用次数最多的化学期刊，Energy&Fuels即是其中一本。2.the Hubbert model：赫伯特模型是美国地质学家M.King Hubbert于1956年创建的，这是一个随时间增长的模型，Hubbert将其引入油气田开发，经推导使其成为一个可以预测油气田累积产量、瞬时产量、年产量和可采储量等多项开发指标的多功能预测模型。3.a bell shaped curve：钟形曲线4.that of peak oil：that指代concept。5.account for：说明，解释6.conventional crude oil：常规原油7.oil reserves：石油储量。通常使用复数形式reserves。练习：1Which of the following is closest in meaning to the word sparked appearing in paragraph 2?AflashedBstimulatedCchangedDended2The term “a bell shaped curve” appearing in paragraph 2 indicates that global oil production willAtake the shape of a flat curveBkeep growingCkeep decliningDstart to decline after global oil production peaks3Which of the following is NOT true of the Hubbert model?AIt successfully predicted that oil production peaked in the U. S. in 1970.BIt has been used to predict oil production in many countries.CIt is insufficient to explain oil production cycles in some countries.DIt provides a very realistic and accurate oil production.4What is the major achievement of the new study mentioned in the last paragraph?AIt predicts global oil production will peak in 2014.BIt predicts oil production will decline in 47 countries.CIt confirms further the effectiveness of the Hubbert model.DIt discovers a new trend of worldwide oil production.5Who develop the new version of the Hubbert model?AAmerican scientists.BKuwaiti scientists.CBritish scientists.DScientists of 47 major oil-producing countries.答案与题解：1.B spark一词做及物动词使用时有“发动”、“激发的意思，在此意为stimulated，即“引发”，这个句子的意思是：全球石油消费的快速增长已引发了对“石油峰值”预测的兴趣。2.D 此句接下来的句子中所提到的a related concept即是与a bell shaped curve相关的概念，也就是说，接下来的这个句子对a bell shaped cur
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