Although it symbolises a bright idea, the traditional incandescent light bulb is a dud . It wastes huge amounts of electricity, radiating 95% of the energy it consumes as heat rather than light. Its life is also relatively short, culminating in a dull pop as its filament fractures. Now a team of researchers has devised a light bulb that is not only much more energy-efficient—it is also expected to last longer than the devices into which it is inserted. Moreover, the lamp could be used for rear-projection televisions as well as general illumination.

The trick to a longer life, for light bulbs at least, is to ensure that the lamp has no electrodes . Although electrodes are undeniably convenient for plugging bulbs directly into the lighting system, they are also the main reason why lamps fail. The electrodes wear out. They can react chemically with the gas inside the light bulb, making it grow dimmer. They are also difficult to seal into the structure of the bulb, making the rupture of these seals another potential source of failure.

Scientists working for Ceravision, a company based in Milton Keynes, in Britain, have designed a new form of lamp that eliminates the need for electrodes. Their device uses microwaves to transform electricity into light. It consists of a relatively small lump of aluminium oxide into which a hole has been bored. When the aluminium oxide is bombarded with microwaves generated from the same sort of device that powers a microwave oven, a concentrated electric field is created inside the void.

If a cylindrical capsule containing a suitable gas is inserted into the hole, the atoms of the gas become ionised . As electrons accelerate in the electric field, they gain energy that they pass on to the atoms and molecules of the gas as they collide with them, creating a glowing plasma . The resulting light is bright, and the process is energy-efficient. Indeed, whereas traditional light bulbs emit just 5% of their energy as light, and fluorescent tubes about 15%, the Ceravision lamp has an efficiency greater than 50%.

Because the lamp has no filament, the scientists who developed it think it will last for thousands of hours of use—in other words, for decades. Moreover, the light it generates comes from what is almost a single point, which means that the bulbs can be used in projectors and televisions. Because of this, the light is much more directional and the lamp could thus prove more efficient than bulbs that scatter light in all directions. Its long life would make the new light ideal for buildings in which the architecture makes changing light bulbs complicated and expensive. The lamps’ small size makes them comparable to light-emitting diodes but the new lamp generates much brighter light than those semiconductor devices do. A single microwave generator can be used to power several lamps.

Another environmental advantage of the new design is that it does not need mercury, a highly toxic metal found in most of the bulbs used today, including energy-saving fluorescent bulbs, fluorescent tubes and the high-pressure bulbs used in projectors. And Ceravision also reckons it should be cheap to make. With lighting accounting for some 20% of electricity use worldwide, switching to a more efficient system could both save energy and reduce emissions of climate-changing greenhouse gases.

1.The function of electrodes in the traditional lamp is to _____

[A] transform electricity into light through chemical reaction with the gas inside the bulb.

[B] seal the rupture of the structure of the bulb so as to prevent potential failure.

[C] connect the glass housing with the lighting device.

[D] seal the bulbs into the lighting system to ensure that the bulb’s normal function.

2. Which one of the following statements is TURE of the design principle of the new lamp?

[A] No electricity is conducted into the lamp from outside.

[B] The energy is created by the collision of the electrons and atoms and molecules of the gas.

[C] The light is created by the ionized atoms of the gas.

[D] The electricity is created as the atoms of the gas are ionized.

3.The new type of lamp can be energy-efficient because of the following reason except_____

[A] the light it generates focuses on one direction indeed of scatter light.

[B] the light it generates is more concentrated.

[C] only microwave acts as the power supplier for the lamp.

[D] the light it generates is more bright.

4. The new light is ideal for some special buildings mentioned in the passage because_____

[A] the new light bulbs are not so complicated nor expensive.

[B] the new light bulbs are more advantageous than the semiconductor devices.

[C] the new light bulbs can last for a much longer time.

[D] the new light bulbs makes light changing easier and cheaper.

5. Which one of the following is NOT the advantage of this new lamp?

[A] It is environment friendly.

[B] It can be made at a lower cost.

[C] It is safer for people.

[D] It is multi-purpose.

篇章剖析：

这篇文章讲述了一种新发明的灯泡。第一段讲述白炽灯的缺点和新灯泡的优点;第二段讲述白炽灯泡不耐用的原因;第三段讲述一家英国公司发明的新灯泡;第四段讲述这种新灯泡的原理;第五、六段讲述新灯泡的优点。

词汇注释：

incandescent adj. 白炽的 dud n. (口语)不中用的东西

filament n. 灯丝 electrode n. 电极

ionise v. 电离 plasma n. 等离子体

diode n. 二极管 toxic adj.中毒的，有毒的

难句突破：

(1) When the aluminium oxide is bombarded with microwaves generated from the same sort of device that powers a microwave oven, a concentrated electric field is created inside the void.

[主体句式]When the aluminium oxide is bombarded with…, a concentrated electric field is …

[结构分析] 这是一个复合句，when引导的是时间状语从句，该从句中，that 引导的是定语从句用来修饰device。

[句子译文] 当氧化铝在真空中被微波撞击时(产生该微波的装置和微波炉是一样的)，就形成了一个密集电场。

(1) As electrons accelerate in the electric field, they gain energy that they pass on to the atoms and molecules of the gas as they collide with them, creating a glowing plasma.

[主体句式] As electrons accelerate …, they gain energy… as they collide…

[结构分析] 这是一个复合句，as引导的是时间状语从句;主句中that引导的是定语从句用来修饰energy, as引导的时间状语从句，creating…现在分词结构做状语。

[句子译文] 随着电场中电子运动的加速，电子与气体的原子和分子结合之后，把传递到原子和分子上的能量聚集起来，制造出一片光亮的等离子体。

题目分析：

[答案]B

[难度系数] ☆☆

[分析] 细节题。根据第二段“Although electrodes are undeniably convenient for plugging bulbs directly into the lighting system, they are also the main reason why lamps fail”，电极的作用是将灯泡和发光系统联系起来。因此答案为B选项。

[答案]A

[难度系数] ☆☆☆

[分析] 细节题。根据第四段“As electrons accelerate in the electric field, they gain energy that they pass on to the atoms and molecules of the gas as they collide with them, creating a glowing plasma”，新灯泡没有电流从外面引入，而是电子和气体原子、分子结合产生的。因此，选项A符合题意。

[答案] A

[难度系数] ☆☆☆☆

[分析]细节题。根据第五段，之所以节能是因为灯光更定向，产生的光很聚合，也很明亮，但一个微波发生器就可以提供能量了。而A选项的表述只是意味着可以用于放映机和电视。因此，只有A选项是不正确的理由。

[答案]D

[难度系数] ☆☆

[分析] 细节题。根据第六段“Its long life would make the new light ideal for buildings in which the architecture makes changing light bulbs complicated and expensive”，因为一些建筑物设计很特别，所以更换灯泡复杂且昂贵，这种灯泡寿命长，不用经常更换，因此适用于这种建筑。选项中D符合题意。

[答案]D

[难度系数] ☆☆

[分析] 根据最后一段“Another environmental advantage of the new design is that it does not need mercury, a highly toxic metal found in most of the bulbs used today, including energy-saving fluorescent bulbs, fluorescent tubes and the high-pressure bulbs used in projectors”，可见因为不需要水银，所以环保而且安全;其造价很低。而D选项没有说明，因此答案为D。

参考译文：

虽然传统的白炽灯泡一直被认为是个伟大的发明，但它其实是不中用的东西。白炽灯浪费了大部分的电，将95%的能量都转化为热而不是光，其寿命也相对较短，随着灯丝断裂，啪的一声灯泡也走到了终点。目前一群研究人员已经发明出一种灯泡，不仅节能，而且比灯泡装置的寿命更长。而且，该灯泡既可用于背投电视，也可用于全面照明。

长寿的秘诀，至少对于灯泡来说，就是保证灯泡没有电极。虽然不可否认电极可以很方便地将灯泡连接到发光系统，但是这同时也是灯泡为什么坏掉的主要原因：是因为电极用完了。电极会与灯泡里面的气体产生化学反应，这样灯泡就变暗了。将电极与灯泡的组织焊死也非常困难，而这些焊接的裂缝正是灯泡坏掉的另外一个潜在原因。

Ceravision是一家位于英国米林基那斯的公司，其科学家设计出一种新式的电灯，可以不用电极。他们的这个装置使用微波来将电转化为光。该装置包括一块较小的氧化铝，在上面有一个洞。当氧化铝在真空中被微波撞击时(产生该微波的装置和微波炉是一样的)，就形成了一个密集电场。

如果把包着适当气体的圆柱形封壳塞入洞中，气体的原子就会被电离。随着电场中电子运动的加速，电子与气体的原子和分子结合之后，把传递到原子和分子上的能量聚集起来，制造出一片光亮的等离子体。其产生的光是非常明亮的，而过程也很节能。实际上，传统的电灯只将5%的能量转化为光，荧光灯泡的比率为15%，而Ceravision电灯的能耗比率要大于50%。

因为这种电灯没有灯丝，所以研制该电灯的科学家认为其使用寿命可达几万个小时，换句话说，可以用几十年。而且，这种电灯产生的灯光是从一点发出的，这就意味着灯泡可以用在放映机和电视上。同时因为这个原因，这种灯泡的灯光更为定向，比散射的灯泡要更加节能。有些建筑师设计的建筑物比较特别，更换灯泡非常复杂且昂贵，而使用这种这种寿命较长的灯泡就比较理想了。这种灯泡体积较小，可以与二极管相媲美，但其发出的光要比半导体装置的光更为明亮。单一个微波发生器就可以为几个灯泡提供能量。

这种新灯泡另外的一个环保优点就是不需要水银，而水银一种高毒性的液体，今天我们使用的大部分灯泡中都有这种液体，包括节能的荧光灯、荧光管和用在投影机上的高压灯。Ceravision承认新灯泡的造价也很低廉。全世界20%的电力消耗都用于照明，因此使用更为高效的系统不仅可以节约能源，而且可以减少导致温室效应的气体排放。