New Inventions

TEXT 10 : NEW INVENTIONS

By the end of this unit, you should be able to: i. identify inventors and their inventions ii. read and answer questions based on a given text iii. use conditional if to construct sentences iv. write a debate speech v. use the Internet to find out more about new inventions

GETTING STARTED A. Look at the pictures. Can you name the inventors?

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LETS READ Read the article below.

SMART TRUCKS

Ever noticed how road-sweeping trucks just seem to rearrange dirt and garbage rather than removing it? Make the trucks smarter and they will do a much better job: just arm the vehicles with a laser, a digital camera and an image-processing computer. The problem with standard road sweepers, says Graham Parker at the University of Surrey, is that they are dumb. The settings for the brushes the speed and the force with which they are pushed onto the road, for example are usually set at the beginning of a run and then left alone. But some rubbish needs only light sweeping while other types of debris, like patches of split builders gravel or wet sand, call for more vigorous scraping, so having just one setting makes the sweeping process inefficient. These vehicles are often not that effective, hence sweeping becomes a two-man operation with one in the truck and another behind on the foot sweeping up what the truck misses, Parker says. Identifying the types of trash to be dealt with should help the truck to pick up more rubbish at the first attempt. This will remove the need for a second pass, speeding up the operation and cutting fuel consumption and diesel emissions.

So with his colleague Gareth Peel, Parker set about making the trucks smarter. A laser mounted near the front projects a line onto the road ahead. A digital camera in the truck sends the images to an on-board computer. Parker says that an imageprocessing programme monitoring the shape of the laser line can pick out and identify lumps of rubbish lying in the road. This information could then be used to move the trucks brushes to the litter, or to raise the alarm if the debris is in danger of clogging up the vacuum unit. For some types of litter, the system is smarter. It detects patches of gravel, sand or leaves on the road because they tend to have irregular outlines. These are then distinguished by measuring variations in their colours and brightness. If you have a few dry leaves, you dont need as much power as with wet sand, explains Parker. Its great to see people working on practical problems, says Mark Atherton of the mechatronics group at South Bank University in London. But he adds that the system would need a manual override in some situations. If it came across a patch of concrete stuck to the floor, you could be there for a while.
Adapted from Clean Machines by Ian Sample in New Scientist, July 2001

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Comprehension Check A. State whether the following statements are true (T) or false (F). 1. Mark Atherton is the inventor of the smart truck. 2. The laser is placed in front of the truck. 3. The image-processing programme will identify the rubbish on the road. 4. During a conference in London, Parker and Peel gave information on the making of a smart truck. 5. At the end of the day, the smart truck will still need the human touch. B. Choose the best answer from options A, B, C and D. 1. What is the problem of standard road-sweepers? A. They are slow. B. They work at one speed. C. They have one set of settings. D. They are unable to adjust to the different types of litter. 2. What does the digital camera on the smart truck do? A. Raises the alarm. B. Cleans the debris. C. Sends an image to an onboard computer. D. Measures the variations of color and smell. 3. According to the text, a garbage truck should be able to do all of the following EXCEPT A. speed up the operation B. cut diesel emission C. cut the use of fuel D. cut cost on maintenance. 4. What is the first stage in a smart trucks operation? A. Identifying the types of trash. B. Analyzing the types of trash. C. Monitoring the types of trash. D. Checking the types of trash. C. Answer the questions based on the text. 1. According to the text, what is needed to make a garbage truck smarter? What type of rubbish needs vigorous scraping?

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New Inventions

2. Why does Parker say the earlier garbage truck is not effective? 3. Explain the operation of the proposed smart truck. 4. Would you recommend smart trucks to be introduced in Malaysia? Give reasons. WORD POWER A. Read the definitions below and match them with the words given in the box. debris vigorous scraping inefficient consumption Explanation 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. B. Pieces of material that are not wanted and rubbish/garbage that are left somewhere To take priority over something To fix something into position so that you can use it To remove something from a surface with full of energy Visible impressions obtained by a camera Not doing a job well The act of using energy, food or materials Gas that is sent out into the air There are words in the passage that have a similar meaning with one another. Give the words concerned. 1. rubbish: (3 words) 2. debris: (2 words) 3. identify: (1 word) . . . emissions mounted images override Word

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C.

There are words in the passage that have the opposite meaning with each other. Give the words concerned.

1. a dumb truck 2. to arm (the equipment) 3. light sweeping D.

versus versus versus

.. .. ..

Complete the expressions below with the correct words, namely, prepositions.

1. All that rubbish will most certainly clog the machine. 2. the alarm. The truck is out of control. 3. The problem .. th ese old trucks is that they break down so very often. 4. If you come a good model, please let me know. 5. The trucks can be distinguished their different colours.

Language Focus

The conditional if is used to describe an imaginary or hypothetical situation or event. Look at these examples found in the text: i. ii. iii. This information could then be used to move the trucks brushes to the litter, or to raise the alarm if the debris is in danger of clogging up the vacuum unit. If you have a few dry leaves, you dont need as much power as with wet sand. If it came across a patch of concrete stuck to the floor, you could be there for a while.

The conditional if can occur at the beginning or at the middle of a sentence.

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New Inventions

Complete these sentences below: 1. If telephone was not invented, 2. I will not be able to travel far if 3. We would not be able to have cold drinks if 4. If the smart truck was introduced in Malaysia 5. If Michael Faraday had not discovered the electricity 6. We would not be able to watch a movie if LETS WRITE You are taking part in a debate. The topic of the debate is Smart trucks should replace conventional garbage trucks. Agree or disagree with the topic and write your speech. You may include some of these points: Cost Fuel consumption Manpower (number of people working) Effectiveness

LETS LISTEN TO OTHER INFORMATION

Listen to the 4 texts on different types of telecommunications. Identify the inventors and their inventions. (Tapescript is found at the back of the text). TEXT 1 2 3 4 INVENTION INVENTOR

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Lets Explore Do you know of the invention of these machines?

The Bicycle The first bicycles were pushed along the feet and not pedalled. They were novelties rather than a serious means of transport, and were known as hobbyhorses. Kirkpatrick Macmillan, a blacksmith invented the pedal-operated bicycle in Britain in 1839. Raising the feet from the ground to turn the pedals required the rider to make use of precession to balance.

Television Considering that television is the most powerful tool of mass communication known to man, it was conceived in remarkably humble circumstances. John Logie Baird was a British amateur scientist who sold shoe polish and razor blades to finance his spare-time research. In 1925 after years of work he successfully transmitted the first television picture in his attic workshop.

The Refrigerator The first machine capable of reducing temperatures was not built until 1851. James Harrison, an Australian printer, noticed when cleaning type with ether that the type became very cold as the ether evaporated. Using the idea, he built an ether refrigerator. However, it was not very successful. Nonetheless, James Dewer, a British scientist developed the idea by using liquid oxygen.

A. What would you do if some of the inventions like the ones mentioned above were not invented? Discuss. B. Use the Internet to find for new inventions. Present to your classmates what you have discovered. You may refer to these following websites: www.newscientist.com www.popularscience.com www.inventors.com www.funwithtech.com www.howstuffworks.com
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TEXT SCRIPT For Listening TEXT 1 The first telecommunications system using electrical signals to carry messages started in the 1840s with machine telegraphy. Samuel Morse first developed the telegraph in 1832 but it was not until the mid-1840s that the system was put into practical use; sending coded electrical messages, or called Morse Code along the wires. TEXT 2 The next major step forward came in 1878 with the invention of the telephone by Alexander Graham Bell. This enabled speech to be transported as electrical signals along wires and revolutionized personal communications. TEXT 3 In 1886, Heinrich Hertz verified experimentally that electrical energy could be radiated and thus proved the existence of electromagnetic waves. This opened the way for the free-space transmission of information without wires. This provided the basis for all radio and TV broadcasting. TEXT 4 In 1901, Guglielmo Marconi established long-distance telegraph communication by transmitting between England and Canada. This overcame the problem of transmitting round the earth from one side of the Atlantic to the other.

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ANSWERS Getting Started A. i. ii. iii. iv. v. vi. Computer Dr. John V. Andarof Car Henry Ford Airplane The Wright Brothers Telephone Alexander Graham Bell Thermometer - Galileo Galilei Light Bulb Thomas Edison

Comprehension Check A. 1. False B. 1. D C. 2. C 2. True 3. D 3. True 4. A. 4. False 5. True

1. Arm the truck with a laser, a digital camera and an image-processing computer. 2. Patches of split builders gravel or wet sand. 3. Because sweeping becomes a two-man operation with one in the truck and another behind on foot sweeping up what the truck misses. 4. pupils should refer to the text. 5. Any acceptable answer.

Word Power A. 1. debris 7. consumption 2. override 8. emission 3. mounted 6. inefficient

4. vigorous scraping 5. images

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B. C. D.

1. garbage, litter, trash. 1. a smart truck 1. up 2. Raise

2. gravel, sand

3. detect

2. to remove 3. with

3. vigorous sweeping 4. across 5. by

Language Focus 1-6 Any acceptable answers. Listening Comprehension TEXT INVENTION 1 Telegraph 2 3 4 Telephone Electromagnetic field Long distance telegraph communication INVENTOR Samuel Morse Alexander Graham Bell Heinrich Herzt Guglielmo Marconi

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