2014-2015学年高中英语 Unit 3 Inventors and inventions 听力原文练习 新人教版选修8.docVIP

Using Language GOOD DESIGN IS PRACTICAL Zhou Rui (ZR) made a phone call to Dr Smith (S), an engineer who works for James Dyson, a famous British inventor. Now Dr Smith is ringing him back. Listen again and fill in the blanks. S: Hello, can I speak to Zhou Rui please? This is Dr Smith. ZR: Good morning, Dr Smith. How kind of you to ring me back! Would you mind if I asked you a few questions about James Dyson’s inventions. S: Not at all. I’d be happy to talk about our company and our founder, James Dyson. He’s an inventor who takes everyday products, like washing machines, and makes them work better. ZR: I see. Why did he improve the washing machine? S: He found that clothes were not as clean from a washing machine as those washed by hand. ZR: Really? Is that true? S: Yes, because most machines have one large drum and the clothes go round and round in it. ZR: So what did he do to improve that? S: This is the clever part. James Dyson invented a system with two drums in the same machine. Together they are the same size as the old drum, but they work differently. One drum goes in one direction and the other goes in the other. So it’s more like hand-washing and the clothes come out cleaner. ZR: Was it easy to design? S: No. It took many working models before Mr Dyson was satisfied. ZR: How long did it take him? S: I’m not sure. But I do know that inventing a new carpet cleaner took five years before he was happy with it. ZR: Wow! I didn’t realize that it took that long! S: And of course he had to apply for patents for all of the new parts he’d designed. You must do that to protect your ideas. ZR: Has that been a problem? S: Well, in the early years, James Dyson found that a large company making carpet cleaners in America was copying his ideas. He had to go to court to protect his invention. ZR: Did he win? S: Yes, in the end the company had to pay us a lot of money. ZR: What new ideas does James Dyson have? S: I’m sorry but you’ll just have to wait and see! ZR: Thank