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Planet Mechanics
A dynamic duo travel around and come up with
some bright ideas.
It's good to keep in mind
that people are working hard on exciting
possibilities for solutions to the problems of global
warming and environmental
destruction.
This month on the National Geographic Channel, the
series Planet Mechanics follows two
eco-engineers, Dick Strawbridge and Jem
Stansfield, as they travel around Europe and the UK.
They meet up with various people along
the way and help them come up with
ways to make their technology
environmentally friendly.
In the town of Bath in England, Dick and Jem
hang out with a sandwich
shop owner who is looking for a good way to deliver
sandwiches around town. The hills and
cobblestone roads of Bath present
a bit
of a challenge, so Dick and Jem need to create
something small and agile. Motorcycles
are convenient, but most of them cause pollution. Their
solution: an air-propelled motorbike.
Sounds like a great idea, but for it to work, they must
manage to fit 5,000 litres
of air into a tank that
will fit on a bike. At normal pressure, this amount of
air would take up the space
of an elephant, so the task is
tricky — and
dangerous. That much compressed air
could cause an explosion in a collision.
Be sure to watch "Air-Propelled Sandwich" to see if it
works out, and watch Jem testing the idea by
catapulting himself and his
bike from an air-powered
cannon !
Another episode in the Planet
Mechanics series is "Surf Power." In this episode, Jem
and Dick travel to the coast of Ireland. Here they
attempt to harness
the tremendous power of the ocean waves. Their goal is
to use the energy of the waves to power a "surf
shack" for two surfers who
travel around in their portable home.
These episodes and others will
lift your
spirits and remind
you that change is not just possible; it is necessary.
And it can be fun. |
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1. |
Which of the following best describes the
Planet Mechanics series ? |
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(A) |
It is about finding ways to get things done without causing pollution.
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(B) |
It is about changing pollution into things we can use. |
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(C) |
It is about fighting against factories and products that cause
pollution. |
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(D) |
It is about using only air and waves to power the world. |
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2. |
The episode "Air-Propelled Sandwich" shows Jem and Dick _____. |
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(A) |
using air to produce cannons that power bikes |
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(B) |
trying to find a way to use air to power a bike factory |
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(C) |
working on a bike
powered by highly pressurized air
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(D) |
producing a bike that would only work in
Bath |
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3. |
What difficulty do Jem and Dick face with
their goal for the bike ? |
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(A) |
No bike could ever be used on the cobblestones of Bath. |
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(B) |
They have to make a bike that will never crash. |
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(C) |
It is hard to find so much air for a
container. |
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(D) |
A container filled with air at a high pressure is
quite dangerous.
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4. |
In the episode "Surf Power," Jem and Dick
_____. |
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(A) |
learn from two surfers how waves create energy |
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(B) |
teach two surfers to attach a small surf house to the ocean''s waves |
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(C) |
try to provide
electricity for the
mobile home
belonging to two surfers
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(D) |
try to give a mobile surf home enough power to deliver sandwiches |
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cobblestone |
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a rounded stone used on the surface of an old-fashioned road |
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agile |
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ability to move quickly |
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Sponsored Links
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Answers : 1) A 2) C
3) D 4) C |
