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TPO54托福听力lecture2听力文本
Title: Benefits of Muon Detectors
Listen to part of a lecture in an archaeology class.
Professor: A popular misconception about archaeology, some people imagine we just go out into the field with a shovel and start digging, hoping to find something significant.
Well, while there is an element of luck involved, we have an array of high-tech tools to help us figure out where to concentrate our efforts.
One of the newer tools actually relies on particle physics, talk about inter-disciplinary.
Here is a machine that brings together two very different sciences. This machine is called a muon detector. Muons are subatomic particles that result from cosmic rays.
OK, let me start over. Cosmic rays aren’t actually rays. They are basically protons zipping through outer space at close to light speed. And, when they collide with the atoms in earth’s atmosphere, they break up into smaller particles -- muons.
Now these muons are still highly energized, so they can easily pass on down to the earth’s surface. In fact, they can pass through solid matter, so they can also penetrate deep into the surface. And it’s this property of muons that archaeologists are taking advantage of.[1] [2]
Let me explain, with the right kind of equipment, scientists can use muons to create a kind of picture of the structures they are studying.
Let’s say we are studying a Mayan pyramid in central America. And we are interested in finding out if there are burial chambers or other rooms inside. Well, a muon detector will show a greater number of muons passing through the less dense areas inside the pyramid.
Yes Andrew?
Andrew: Um…I’m not sure I get how this muon detector works exactly.
Professor: Well, muons lose energy as they pass through dense material, like the stone walls of the Mayan pyramid. So more muons and more energetic muons will be passing through empty spaces. The muon detector can differentiate the areas where more muons are passing through -- the empty spaces, as well as where there are fewer muons, the walls and dense areas.
These empty spaces will show up as darker, so we wind up with a kind of picture of the pyramid, and its internal structure.[3]
Andrew: A picture?
Professor: Sort of like an X-ray image.
Andrew: Ok, so if we see darker areas inside the pyramid, we assume it’s an empty space with more muons.
Professor: Exactly, with this technology, we can see what’s inside the structure before we dig, so we know exactly where to explore and we can minimize the damage excavation can cause.
Even a little damage could result in us losing vital information forever.[4]
Now, muon detectors have been around for some time, but they have been improved upon since archaeologists started using them.
In 1967 a physicist placed a muon detector beneath the base of one of the Egyptian pyramids of Giza. And he was looking for burial chambers. Now it happened that the muon detector found none. But he did demonstrate that the technique worked.
Unfortunately the machine he used was so big that many archaeologists doubted muon detection could be practical. How could they get a massive piece of equipment into, say, the jungle of Belize?
Then there was the issue of range.
The machine used in 1967 could only scan for muons directly above it, not from the sides. So it actually had to be put underneath the pyramid, so it could look up. That meant if you wanted to find out what was inside an ancient structure, you first had to bury the detector beneath it.
There’s been a lot of work on these machines since then. And these problems have been solved by and large. That’s not to say the technology is perfect, it would be nice for example, to have a system that didn’t take 6 months to produce an image. I suppose that’s better than the year it took for the 1967 study to get results.[5]
But still...well, there is good reason to believe that with better equipment, we’re going to see muon detectors used much more frequently. They are already being used in other areas of science, for example Japanese scientists studying the interior of volcanoes, and there are plenty of archaeologists who would love to use this technology.[6]
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TPO54托福听力lecture2题目解析
12、What is the lecture mainly about?
A. Misconceptions about muon detectors
B. An investigation of an Egyptian pyramid using a muon detector
C. The collaboration between physicists and archaeologists in the development of the muon detector
D. Benefits that muon detectors can provide to archaeologists
答案：D
解析：本题为内容主旨题，题干问这个演讲主要是关于什么的?由出题点可知，文章刚开始教授就提到了介子探测器，并且说现在考古学家正在利用介子的特性，所以说这个演讲主要就是想要告诉我们介子探测器给考古学带来的好处。则D选项正确。
A选项的意思为:介子探测器的错误理解，A项，虽然文章中有提到误解，但是这个误解是针对于考古学家工作性质的误解，用来引出介子探测器的，故排除;
B选项的意思为:使用介子探测器对埃及金字塔的研究，金字塔只是原文的一个例子，其实介子探测器不仅可以用于对金字塔的研究，也能用于对热带雨林的研究，因此，B项是不全面的，排除。
C选项的意思为:在介子探测器的发展上，物理学家与考古学家的合作，虽然文章中提到了物理学家和考古学家，但是，并没有说他们在发展介子探测器上的合作问题。
13、What aspect of muons is most useful to archaeologists?
A. Their ability to carry information from outer space
B. Their ability to break down cosmic rays into smaller particles
C. Their ability to pass through solid matter
D. Their ability to change the color of some surfaces
答案：C
解析：本题为细节题，题干问对于考古学家来说，介子最有用的一面是什么?由出题点可知，介子能够很轻易的穿过地球的表面，穿过固体物质，现在考古学家正在利用介子的这个特性，所以C项正确。
A选项的意思为:携带外太空信息的能力，原文提到介子是在外太空以接近于光速的速度快速运行的质子，但未提到它携带外太空信息，故排除;
B选项的意思为:把外太空射线粉碎成更小的粒子的能力，无中生有，介子并不具备这个能力;
D选项的意思为:改变表面颜色的能力，无中生有，介子并不具备这个能力。
14、According to the professor, what information can a muon detector provide about an ancient structure?
A. The internal temperature of the structure
B. The location of rooms within the structure
C. The age of the structure
D. The materials used to build the structure
答案：B
解析：本题为细节题，题干问，由教授可知，介子探测器对于古老结构能提供什么信息?由出题点可知，介子探测器能分辨出空的地方和墙壁及密度大的地方，所以能够找到房间位置，除此之外还能得出内部结构。可知B项正确。
A选项的意思为:建筑内部的温度;
C选项的意思为:建筑的存在时间的长短;
D选项的意思为:建筑所使用的材料。
则A、B、D三项在原文中均未提及，全部排除。
15、Why does the professor discuss damage to archaeological sites?
A. To indicate a benefit of using muon detectors in archaeological research
B. To describe an accident with a muon detector during a pyramid excavation
C. To explain how muon detectors are useful in reconstructing damaged sites
D. To explain why muon detectors were not often used in the past
答案：A.
解析：本题为组织结构题，题干问教授为什么要讨论对考古发掘点的损害?出题点说，事实上随着科学技术的发展，在挖掘之前就可以知道地下的结构，这样就可以减小因考古挖掘所带来的损失，而这个能力则是由于介子探测器才能实现的，即教授讨论考古点带来的危害是为了暗示介子探测器给考古带来的好处。则A项正确。
B选项的意思为:为了描述一个在金字塔挖掘的过程中因介子探测器带来的事故，无中生有，错误;
C选项的意思为:为了解释介子探测器在重建受损地点时是如何起作用的，不是重建，而是避免受损，故排除;
D选项的意思为:为了解释为什么在过去介子探测器不常用，错误，出题点并未提及，只是在后文提到介子探测器因为体积太大所以不实用，但这个问题后来已经得到解决。
16、In what ways are modern muon detectors different from muon detectors used in 1967?
Click on 3 answers
A. Modern detectors are less expensive.
B. Modem detectors use less energy.
C. Modern detectors are not as large.
D. Modern detectors take less time to produce an image.
E. Modern detectors can scan in more than one direction.
答案：C、D、E
出题点：
解析：本题为细节题，题干问当代的介子探测器与1967年的介子探测器在哪些方面是不一样的?由出题点可知有3点不同，一是不像原来那么大了，对应C;二是生成图像的时间不需要6个月那么长了，对应D;三是可以从各个角度扫描了，对应E。
A选项的意思为:当代的介子探测器更加便宜;
B选项的意思为:当代的介子探测器需要更少的能量;
其中A、B两项教授没有提及到，属于无中生有，均排除。
17、What is the professor's opinion about the newer muon detectors?
A. She appreciates the help they provide despite the time they take to produce images.
B. She fears that many archaeologists will be unwilling to learn to use them.
C. She feels that they have greater potential in areas of science other than archaeology.
D. They provide more accurate information about the age of objects than older detectors did.
答案：A.
出题点：“I suppose that’s better than the year it took for the 1967 study to get results.But still...well, there is good reason to believe that with better equipment, we’re going to see muon detectors used much more frequently.They are already being used in other areas of science, for example Japanese scientists studying the interior of volcanoes, and there are plenty of archaeologists who would love to use this technology.”[a1]
解析：本题为态度题，题干问教授对于新的介子探测器有什么看法?出题点中，教授提到新的介子探测器比1967年的研究得到的结果更好，生成图像的时间更短，但是，仍然有理由相信如果有更好的设备，我们将更频繁的使用介子探测器。这说明生成图像的时间还可以再提升，答案为A。
B选项的意思为:她害怕很多科学考古学家会不愿意去学怎么使用它们，但原文提到，已经有大量的考古学家爱上了使用这项技术，则B不正确;
C选项的意思为:她觉得，它们在科学界比在考古界有更大的使用潜力，教授分别说了这项技术在考古学界以及在科学界都有应用，但是具体的在哪个领域应用更广，作者并没有进行比较;
D选项的意思为:它们比老一代的介子探测器能够提供更加精确的关于物件年代的信息，教授并没有提到这个问题，故排除。
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