2020-02-21
1、题目
| 题目 | 答案 |
|---|---|
| 1.What is the lecture mainly about? A. Misconceptions about muon detectors B. An investigation of an Egyptian pyramid using a muon detector C. The collaboration between physicists and archaeologists in the development of the muon detector D. Benefits that muon detectors can provide to archaeologists |
D |
| 2.What aspect of muons is most useful to archaeologists? A. Their ability to carry information from outer space B. Their ability to break down cosmic rays into smaller particles C. Their ability to pass through solid matter D. Their ability to change the color of some surfaces |
C |
| 3.According to the professor, what information can a muon detector provide about an ancient structure? A. The internal temperature of the structure B. The location of rooms within the structure C. The age of the structure D. The materials used to build the structure |
B |
| 4.Why does the professor discuss damage to archaeological sites? A. To indicate a benefit of using muon detectors in archaeological research B. To describe an accident with a muon detector during a pyramid excavation C. To explain how muon detectors are useful in reconstructing damaged sites D. To explain why muon detectors were not often used in the past |
A |
| 5.In what ways are modern muon detectors different from muon detectors used in 1967? Click on 3 answers A. Modern detectors are less expensive. B. Modern detectors use less energy. C. Modern detectors are not as large. D. Modern detectors take less time to produce an image. E. Modern detectors can scan in more than one direction. |
CDE |
| 6.What is the professor’s opinion about the newer muon detectors? A. She appreciates the help they provide despite the time they take to produce images. B. She fears that many archaeologists will be unwilling to learn to use them. C. She feels that they have greater potential in areas of science other than archaeology. D. They provide more accurate information about the age of objects than older detectors did. |
A |
2、单词积累
| 单词 | 音标 | 释义 |
|---|---|---|
| field | /fiːld/ | 牧场；操场；场地 |
| shovel | /ˈʃʌvl/ | 铲子；铲 |
| digging | /ˈdɪɡɪŋ/ | 挖 |
| archaeology | /ˌɑːrkiˈɑːlədʒi/ | 考古学 |
| Architecture | /ˈɑːrkɪtektʃər/ | 建筑学 |
| Anthropology | /ˌænθrəˈpɑːlədʒi/ | 人类学 |
| Astronomy | /əˈstrɑːnəmi/ | 天文学 |
| Geography | /dʒiˈɑːɡrəfi/ | 地理学 |
| Biology | /baɪˈɑːlədʒi/ | 生物学 |
| array | /əˈreɪ/ | 一大推；矩阵 |
| cosmic | /ˈkɑːzmɪk/ | 宇宙的 |
| subatomic | ˌsʌbəˈtɑːmɪk/ | 亚原子的 |
| proton | /ˈproʊtɑːn/ | 质子 |
| collide | /kəˈlaɪd/ | 碰撞 |
| muon | μ子 | |
| burial | /ˈberiəl/ | 埋葬的 |
| chamber | /ˈtʃeɪmbər/ | 室 |
| pyramid | /ˈpɪrəmɪd/ | 金字塔 |
3、原文解析
Professor: A popular misconception about archaeology, some people imagine we just go out into the field with a shovel and start digging, hoping to find something significant.
Well, while there is an element of luck involved, we have an array of high-tech tools to help us figure out where to concentrate our efforts.
One of the newer tools actually relies on particle physics, talk about inter-disciplinary.
Here is a machine that brings together two very different sciences. This machine is called a muon detector.
Muons are subatomic particles that result from cosmic rays.
OK, let me start over. Cosmic rays aren’t actually rays. They are basically protons zipping through outer space at close to light speed. And, when they collide with the atoms in earth’s atmosphere, they break up into smaller particles – muons.
Now these muons are still highly energized, so they can easily pass on down to the earth’s surface. In fact, they can pass through solid matter, so they can also penetrate deep into the surface. And it’s this property of muons that archaeologists are taking advantage of.
Let me explain, with the right kind of equipment, scientists can use muons to create a kind of picture of the structures they are studying.
Let’s say we are studying a Mayan pyramid in central America. And we are interested in finding out if there are burial chambers or other rooms inside. Well, a muon detector will show a greater number of muons passing through the less dense areas inside the pyramid.
Yes, Andrew?
Andrew: Um…I’m not sure I get how this muon detector works exactly.
Professor: Well, muons lose energy as they pass through dense material, like the stone walls of the Mayan pyramid. So more muons and more energetic muons will be passing through empty spaces. The muon detector can differentiate the areas where more muons are passing through – the empty spaces, as well as where there are fewer muons, the walls and dense areas.
These empty spaces will show up as darker, so we wind up with a kind of picture of the pyramid, and its internal structure.
Andrew: A picture?
Professor: Sort of like an X-ray image.
Andrew: Ok, so if we see darker areas inside the pyramid, we assume it’s an empty space with more muons.
Professor: Exactly, with this technology, we can see what’s inside the structure before we dig, so we know exactly where to explore and we can minimize the damage excavation can cause.
Even a little damage could result in us losing vital information forever.
Now, muon detectors have been around for some time, but they have been improved upon since archaeologists started using them.
In 1967 a physicist placed a muon detector beneath the base of one of the Egyptian pyramids of Giza. And he was looking for burial chambers. Now it happened that the muon detector found none. But he did demonstrate that the technique worked.
Unfortunately the machine he used was so big that many archaeologists doubted muon detection could be practical. How could they get a massive piece of equipment into, say, the jungle of Belize?
Then there was the issue of range.
The machine used in 1967 could only scan for muons directly above it, not from the sides. So it actually had to be put underneath the pyramid, so it could look up. That meant if you wanted to find out what was inside an ancient structure, you first had to bury the detector beneath it.
There’s been a lot of work on these machines since then. And these problems have been solved by and large. That’s not to say the technology is perfect, it would be nice for example, to have a system that didn’t take 6 months to produce an image. I suppose that’s better than the year it took for the 1967 study to get results.
But still…well, there is good reason to believe that with better equipment, we’re going to see muon detectors used much more frequently. They are already being used in other areas of science, for example Japanese scientists studying the interiors of volcanoes, and there are plenty of archaeologists who would love to use this technology.