阅读理解 Hundreds of people die at sea every year due to ship and airplane accidents. Emergency teams have little time to rescue those in the water because the probability of finding a person alive fall dramatically after six hours. Beyond tides and challenging weather conditions, unsteady coastal currents often make search and rescue operations extremely difficult. New insight into coastal flows gained by an international research team led by George Haller, Professor of Nonlinear Dynamics at ETH Zurich, promises to enhance the search and rescue techniques currently in use. Using tools from dynamical systems theory and ocean data, the team has developed an algorithm (算法) to predict where objects and people floating in water will go. "Our work has a clear potential to save lives," says Mattia Serra, the first author of a study recently published in Nature Communications. In today's rescue operations at sea, complicated models of ocean dynamics and weather forecasting are used to predict the path of floating objects. For fast-changing coastal waters, however, such predictions are often inaccurate due to uncertain boundaries and missing data. As a result, a search may be launched in the wrong location, causing a loss of precious time. Haller's research team obtained mathematical results predicting that objects floating on the ocean's surface should gather along a few special curves (曲线) which they call TRansient Attracting Profiles (TRAPs). These curves can't be seen with our eyes but can be tracked from instant ocean surface current data using recent mathematical methods developed by the ETH team. This enables quick and precise planning of search paths that are less sensitive to uncertainties in the time and place of the accident. In cooperation with a team from MIT, the ETH team tested their new, TRAP-based search algorithm in two separate ocean experiments near Martha's Vineyard, which is on the northeastern coast of the United States. Working from the same real-time data available to the Coast Guard, the team successfully identified TRAPs in the region in real time. They found that buoys and manikins (浮标和人体模型) thrown in the water indeed quickly gathered along these emerging curves. "Of several competing approaches tested in this project, this was the only algorithm that consistently found the right location," says Haller. "Our results are rapidly obtained, easy to interpret and cheap to perform," points out Serra. Haller stresses: "Our hope is that this method will become a standard part of the tool kit of coast guards everywhere. "

1. 阅读理解

Hundreds of people die at sea every year due to ship and airplane accidents. Emergency teams have little time to rescue those in the water because the probability of finding a person alive fall dramatically after six hours. Beyond tides and challenging weather conditions, unsteady coastal currents often make search and rescue operations extremely difficult.

New insight into coastal flows gained by an international research team led by George Haller, Professor of Nonlinear Dynamics at ETH Zurich, promises to enhance the search and rescue techniques currently in use. Using tools from dynamical systems theory and ocean data, the team has developed an algorithm (算法) to predict where objects and people floating in water will go. "Our work has a clear potential to save lives," says Mattia Serra, the first author of a study recently published in Nature Communications.

In today's rescue operations at sea, complicated models of ocean dynamics and weather forecasting are used to predict the path of floating objects. For fast-changing coastal waters, however, such predictions are often inaccurate due to uncertain boundaries and missing data. As a result, a search may be launched in the wrong location, causing a loss of precious time.

Haller's research team obtained mathematical results predicting that objects floating on the ocean's surface should gather along a few special curves (曲线) which they call TRansient Attracting Profiles (TRAPs). These curves can't be seen with our eyes but can be tracked from instant ocean surface current data using recent mathematical methods developed by the ETH team. This enables quick and precise planning of search paths that are less sensitive to uncertainties in the time and place of the accident.

In cooperation with a team from MIT, the ETH team tested their new, TRAP-based search algorithm in two separate ocean experiments near Martha's Vineyard, which is on the northeastern coast of the United States. Working from the same real-time data available to the Coast Guard, the team successfully identified TRAPs in the region in real time. They found that buoys and manikins (浮标和人体模型) thrown in the water indeed quickly gathered along these emerging curves. "Of several competing approaches tested in this project, this was the only algorithm that consistently found the right location," says Haller.

"Our results are rapidly obtained, easy to interpret and cheap to perform," points out Serra. Haller stresses: "Our hope is that this method will become a standard part of the tool kit of coast guards everywhere. "

(1) In a search and rescue operation, . A. the survival rate drops to almost zero after six hours B. the use of dynamics leads to the wrong location C. weather conditions are a determining factor D. changing currents present a challenge

(2) What is the distinct feature of the new algorithm? A. It relies on ocean dynamics. B. It tracks the path of the curves. C. It stops the uncertainties of the accident. D. It figures out how tides change over time.

(3) Paragraph 5 mainly talks about . A. the collection of data B. the testing of the algorithm C. the identification of the TRAPs D. the cooperation of two research teams

(4) What is the best title for the passage? A. Why Success Rates of Rescue Operations have Fallen B. Why Algorithms are Popular in Rescue Operations C. How Mathematics Can Save Lives at Sea D. How Coastal Waters Affect Saving Lives

【考点】

细节理解题; 段落大意; 科普环保类; 说明文; 标题选择;

【答案】

您现在未登录，无法查看试题答案与解析。登录

阅读理解普通

1. 阅读理解

The connection between people and plants has long been the subject of scientific research. Recent studies have found positive effects. A study conducted in Youngstown, Ohio, for example, discovered that greener areas of the city experienced less crime. In another, employees were shown to be 15% more productive when their workplaces were decorated with houseplants.

The engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have taken it a step further changing the actual composition of plants in order to get them to perform diverse, even unusual functions. These include plants that have sensors printed onto their leaves to show when they're short of water and a plant that can detect harmful chemicals in groundwater. "We're thinking about how we can engineer plants to replace functions of the things that we use every day," explained Michael Strano, a professor of chemical engineering at MIT.

One of his latest projects has been to make plants grow (发光) in experiments using some common vegetables. Strano's team found that they could create a faint light for three-and-a-half hours. The light, about one-thousandth of the amount needed to read by, is just a start. The technology, Strano said, could one day be used to light the rooms or even to turn tree into self-powered street lamps. in the future, the team hopes to develop a version of the technology that can be sprayed onto plant leaves in a one-off treatment that would last the plant's lifetime. The engineers are also trying to develop an on and off" switch" where the glow would fade when exposed to daylight.

Lighting accounts for about 7% of the total electricity consumed in the US. Since lighting is often far removed from the power source (电源)—such as the distance from a power plant to street lamps on a remote highway-a lot of energy is lost during transmission (传输). Glowing plants could reduce this distance and therefore help save energy.

(1) What is the first paragraph mainly about? A. A new study of different plants. B. A big fall in crime rates. C. Employees from various workplaces. D. Benefits from green plants.

(2) What is the function of the sensors printed on plant leaves by MIT engineer? A. To detect plants' lack of water B. To change compositions of plants C. To make the life of plants longer. D. To test chemicals in plants.

(3) What can we expect of the glowing plants in the future? A. They will speed up energy production. B. They may transmit electricity to the home. C. They might help reduce energy consumption. D. They could take the place of power plants.

(4) Which of the following can be the best title for the text? A. Can we grow more glowing plants? B. How do we live with glowing plants? C. Could glowing plants replace lamps? D. How are glowing plants made pollution-free?

阅读理解普通