核心词汇 (Target Vocabulary)

学习 4B 高科技织物核心生词，点击语音按钮可听纯正美音发音，掌握核心释义与真题语境。

appliance [əˈplaɪəns] n.
A machine, usually electrical, designed for a particular domestic task in the home.
家用器具；电气设备
"Future garments might behave like intelligent personal appliances that regulate body heat and measure health metrics."
fantasy [ˈfæntəsi] n.
A pleasant situation or concept that is imagined but unlikely to become reality.
幻想；想象
"Invisibility cloaks, once the province of fantasy, are edging closer to reality through metamaterial textiles."
foresee [fɔːˈsiː] v.
To know about something before it happens; to predict.
预见；预知
"Innovators foresee a future where our clothing charges electronic gadgets as we walk down the street."
forthcoming [ˌfɔːθˈkʌmɪŋ] adj.
Happening or produced soon; willing to give information.
即将到来的；现成的
"Designers discussed forthcoming collections of illuminated fiber-optic dresses at Paris Fashion Week."
fraction [ˈfrækʃn] n.
A small part or amount of something.
小部分；一点儿
"Synthetic spider silk weighs only a fraction of steel, yet possesses several times greater tensile strength."
manufacturing [ˌmænjuˈfæktʃərɪŋ] n.
The business or industry of producing goods in large quantities, especially in factories.
制造业；工业生产
"Advances in polymer extrusion have revolutionized modern textile manufacturing worldwide."
portable [ˈpɔːtəbl] adj.
Light and small enough to be easily carried or moved from place to place.
便携的；轻便的
"Soldiers in field operations require lightweight, portable solar-recharging camouflage uniforms."
rigid [ˈrɪdʒɪd] adj.
Stiff or fixed; not flexible; unable to be easily bent or moved.
坚硬的；不易弯曲的
"Unlike rigid steel beams, high-pressure inflatable fabric tubes can support massive structural loads."
suspend [səˈspend] v.
To hang something from a high place, or to temporarily halt an activity.
悬挂；吊起；暂停
"In Christo's public art installations, large expanses of nylon fabric were suspended across high wire cables."
thereby [ˌðeəˈbaɪ] adv.
As a result of this action or event.
由此；从而
"The fabric expands in warm ambient temperatures, creating pores and thereby cooling the wearer."
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Weaving the Future

编织未来：人造蜘蛛丝、智能可穿戴纤维与隐身面料革命

Paragraph A
Reading, four-be, weaving the future. Alex Soza is a young Danish fashion designer. He says his ideas come to him in dreams. I'd daydream, that's how I get ideas. One of his inventions, a jacket that stays suspended in the air like a balloon after it is taken off, arose from such a daydream. I was on the subway, he explained, and this picture of a floating jacket popped into my mind. Soza is one of many dreamers and pioneers who are turning textile fantasies into realities. High-tech textiles. Not long ago, all fibers that were used to make textiles came from natural sources, wool from the hair of sheep, cotton from the cotton plant, silk from silkworms. The first truly synthetic fiber didn't appear until 1935 when scientists at the DuPont Company invented nylon. nylon is just one of various industrially produced substances called polymers.
Paragraph B
Polymers can be pulled into a thread, which makes them well-suited for use in textile manufacturing. Synthetic textiles have come a long way since nylon. Kevlar, a textile that is stronger than steel, is used in bulletproof vests, and in ropes used by astronauts. Coiled fibers are used in clothing that contracts and cold weather to keep someone warm and expands in hot weather, creating small holes to keep someone cool. Other high-tech fibers can resist very high temperatures, perfect for firefighters, and race car drivers. Not all companies are forthcoming about their products for fear of having their ideas stolen. However, you gave on Sean a manager at DuPont Warnaton, a manufacturer of high-tech textiles and France, is happy to display some of his companies amazing synthetic fibers. There is an oil-eating textile that absorbs five times its weight in oil and is perfect for cleaning up oil spills. Another absorbs vibrations. Can you imagine a motorboat you can't hear? He says, There is also an ordinary looking cloth bag that is completely water-soluble, according to Vanshorn.
Paragraph C
It's strong enough to carry heavy objects, but if I dip it in boiling water, it disappears. Some high-tech textiles draw their inspiration from nature. Spider silk is a natural fiber that is five times as strong as steel. Unfortunately, spiders cannot be farmed as they will eat each other. The biotechnology firm Nexia has come up with a possible alternative to spider farming. They have inserted a spider gene into goats, thereby causing the goats to produce a milk that contains a protein required for spider silk. Nexia's head, Jeff Turner, is already dreaming of applications for the new fiber, named bio-steal. Why use rockets to lift objects into orbit? Why not have a big satellite and dangle a rope down to earth and pull them up? There's not a rope that will hold its weight at that length, but spider silk with its high strength to weight ratio could. Wearable electronics.
Paragraph D
Textiles have always been used in clothing. Modern high-tech textiles may redefine what clothes are all about. In the past, clothing protected us from the elements, says Ian Scott, head of technology for women's wear at department store Marx and Spencer. Then clothing became about fashion. The future is about clothing that can do something for you. It's no longer passive. It's active. One example of this active clothing that he hopes to sell in the next few years is an intelligent bra. A sports bra that can sense stress and adjust its dimensions to give perfect support. Another sports product is Komodo Technologies smarts leave for athletes. It has built-in sensors that measure your fitness and stress levels.
Paragraph E
The data can then be viewed on a smartphone app. The company is also researching ways the sleeve can help detect heart disease. Other wearable electronics are being pioneered at a design laboratory in London run by the European manufacturer Phillips Electronics. They are in the planning stages for various high-tech products, including an intelligent electronic apron. This smart apron acts as a kind of remote control device. It has a built-in microphone that allows the wearer to operate kitchen appliances using voice commands. While there are many interesting clothing innovations in the pipeline, few have hit the market. One that did was marketed a few years ago as the first wearable electronics jacket. The jacket called the ICD Plus sold for about $1,000. It had an MP3 player and cell phone.
Paragraph F
Headphones were built into the hood, and it had a microphone in the collar. Clive and hereton, director of the intelligent fibers group of Phillips design, pointed out that it was an early first step and a conservative one. We want to make the jacket that makes the coffee and picks up the kids and keeps track of the shopping list. But it's not going to happen overnight. Future Warriors, one of the most important areas of clothing innovation is for the military. High-tech textiles are everywhere at the U.S. Army Soldier Systems Center in Nadek, Massachusetts. As part of their future warrior program, researchers are developing uniforms that will make a soldier difficult or impossible to see. Fibers in the uniform would take on the same color, brightness, and patterns of the wearer's surroundings. A soldier dressed in such a uniform would become nearly invisible to the enemy. In addition to clothing innovations, the researchers at Nadek are also working on portable buildings made of what are essentially large, high-strength textile balloons.
Paragraph G
This air beam technology would allow a team to build a hanger in a fraction of the time it would take to build one out of metal. The largest air-filled beams about 0.75 meters in diameter and 24 meters long are so rigid that you can hang a heavy truck from one. Whereas a conventional metal hanger takes 10 people five days to set up. One made of air beams can be set up by just six people in two days. Today's textile innovations are astonishing. From Alex Sosis artistic jacket to smart aprons to invisible military uniforms, high-tech textiles will soon be appearing in more and more places. Who can foresee what these textile innovators will dream up next? It's about imagination, says Sosa, with a bright look in his eye. It's a beautiful dream. It's turning science fiction into scientific fact.

课文配套练习 (Reading Exercises)

严格对应教材 Page 70–75 官方练习：Before You Read、Reading Comprehension 及 Recognizing Lexical Cohesion 词汇衔接技能。

1.
Definitions (p.70) types of woven cloth
2.
Definitions (p.70) a thin thread of a natural or artificial substance
3.
Definitions (p.70) products made from chemicals or artificial substances
4.
Purpose (p.74) What is the main purpose of the passage?
5.
Inference (Para D, p.74) Why does Hugues Vinchon mention a motorboat you can't hear?
6.
Inference (p.74) Which person do you think would be most likely to design a coat made of paper with six sleeves that three people can wear together?
7.
Paraphrase (Para H, p.74) What does Clive van Heerden mean, when talking about the jacket, that 'it's not going to happen overnight' (paragraph H)?
8.
Cohesion (Para A, p.74) The following sentence would best be placed at the end of which paragraph? 'Thanks to them, the world of high-tech textiles is an exciting place to be these days.'
9.
Scanning (Para E, p.74) Where does a REASON why there are no spider farms appear in the passage?
10.
Scanning (Para B, p.74) Where do THREE EXAMPLES of fibers from natural sources appear?
11.
Scanning (Para K, p.74) Where does a QUOTE from someone who discusses science fiction appear?
12.
Scanning (Para F, p.74) Where does the PURPOSE of everyday clothing in the past appear?
13.
Scanning (Para A, p.74) Where does an EXPLANATION of how a fashion designer gets his ideas appear?
14.
Lexical Cohesion (p.75) '...all fibers that were used to make textiles came from natural sources … The first truly synthetic fiber didn't appear until 1935.' — natural vs synthetic are:
15.
Lexical Cohesion (p.75) 'Nylon is just one of various industrially produced substances called polymers.' — Nylon to polymers is an example of:
16.
Lexical Cohesion (p.75) 'Polymers can be pulled into a thread, which makes them well suited for use in textile manufacturing.' — them refers back to polymers, which is:
17.
Lexical Cohesion (p.75) '...clothing that contracts in cold weather to keep someone warm, and expands in hot weather... to keep someone cool.' — warm vs cool are:
18.
Lexical Cohesion (p.75) 'Textiles have always been used in clothing. Modern, high-tech textiles may redefine what clothes are all about.' — textiles to textiles is:
19.
Lexical Cohesion (Para F, p.75) Find an ANTONYM of 'passive' in paragraph F:
20.
Lexical Cohesion (Para G, p.75) Find a SYNONYM of 'intelligent' in paragraph G:
21.
Lexical Cohesion (Para G, p.75) What does 'It' refer to in paragraph G, line 7?
22.
Lexical Cohesion (Para I, p.75) Find a SYNONYM of 'impossible to see' in paragraph I:
23.
Lexical Cohesion (Para K, p.75) Find a different form of the word 'innovations' in paragraph K:

Critical Thinking · Applying Ideas
Can you think of possible future applications of wearable electronics? (e.g. to monitor blood sugar if you have diabetes, to measure burned calories in real-time, or to check heart rate during intense workouts)
Discuss and note your ideas below.