2015职称英语理工A阅读理解文章及译文-精课程讲述.doc

2015职称英语理工A阅读理解文章及译文 第34篇Batteries Built by Viruses What do chicken pox, the common cold, the flu, and AIDS have in common? Theyrealldiseasecausedbyviruses,tiny microorganisms that can pass from persontoperson.Itsnowonderthatwhenmostpeoplethinkaboutviruses, finding ways to steer clear of viruses is whats on peoples minds. Noteveryonerunsfromthetinydiseasecarriers,though.InCambridge, Massachusetts,scientistshavediscoveredthatsomeviruses can be helpful in an unusual way. They are putting viruses to work, teaching them to build some of the worlds smallest rechargeable batteries. Viruses and batteries may seem like an unusual pair, but theyre not so strange for engineer Angela Belcher, who first came up with the idea. At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, she and her collaboratorsbringtogetherdifferentareasofscienceinnewways.Inthecase ofthevirus-builtbatteries,thescientistscombinewhattheyknowabout biology, technology and production techniques. Belchersteamincludes Paula Hammond, who helps put together the tiny batteries,andYet-MingChiang,anexpertonhowtostoreenergyintheformof abattery.Wereworkingonthingswetraditionallydontassociatewith nature, says Hammond. Manybatteriesarealreadyprettysmall.YoucanholdA,CandDbatteries in your hand. The coin-like batteries that power watches are often smaller than a penfiy.However,everyyear,newelectronicdeviceslikepersonalmusicplayers orcellphonesgetsmallerthantheyearbefore.Asthesedevicesshrink, ordinary batteries wont be small enough to fit inside. The ideal battery will store a lot of energy in a small package. Right now, Belchersmodelbattery,ametallicdiskcompletelybuiltbyviruses,lookslike a regular watch battery. But inside, its components are very small --so tiny you can only see them with a powerful microscope. Howsmallarethesebatteryparts?To get some idea of the size, pluck one hair from your head. Place your hair on a piece of white paper and try to see how wideyourhairis--prettythin,right?Alth