scientistsgetsued.pptVIP

Scientists get sued ??? (P6) Lead-in Question: Background Information: What is a Black Hole? A black hole is one of the strangest objects in space. It is an area in space where gravity is so strong that even light cannot escape from it. Since light cannot escape from a black hole, it appears black. Light can travel faster than anything we know of - at a speed of 186,000 miles (300,000 kilometers) per second. If light cannot escape from a black hole, nothing else that we know of can. A black hole is not really a hole and it is not empty. It is filled with a lot of material crammed into an extremely small space. This is what gives a black hole its super strong gravity. The term black hole is used because these objects look like black holes in space - since they put out no light. (2)About the Big Bang: According to most scientists, the universe began with a Big Bang. At that time, subatomic (亚原子) particles (粒子) raced around so quickly that they produced fireballs of powerful energy. This happened when the universe was just a trillionth (万亿分之一) of a second old. 宇宙大爆炸(Big Bang)仅仅是一种学说，是根据天文观测研究后得到的一种设想。 大约在150亿年前，宇宙所有的物质都高度密集在一点，有着极高的温度，因而发生了巨大的爆炸。大爆炸以后，物质开始向外大膨胀，就形成了今天我们看到的宇宙。大爆炸的整个过程是复杂的，现在只能从理论研究的基础上描绘过去远古的宇宙发展史。在这150亿年中先后诞生了星系团、星系、我们的银河系、恒星、太阳系、行星、卫星等。现在我们看见的和看不见的一切天体和宇宙物质，形成了当今的宇宙形态，人类就是在这一宇宙演变中诞生的。 First Reading: What is the science project? Who are against the project? Second Reading: Read the passage once again and decide whether the following statements are TRUE or FALSE. 1. The passage mainly focuses on the unstable political situations in the world. ( ) 2. The science project will eventually produce a black hole or something else that will spell the end of the Earth. ( ) 3. The world’s physicists have spent many years and much money on the project. ( ) 4. Walter L. Wagner and Luis Sancho are optimistic about this project. ( ) 5. How to estimate the risk of new groundbreaking experiments and who gets to decide whether or