Question

    John B. Goodenough, an engineering professor from the University of Texas at Austin, has been awarded the 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry-jointly with M. Stanley Whittingham, a chemistry professor from the State University of New York and Japan’s Akira Yoshino, a professor of Meijo University-for the development of lithium-ion batteries (锂电池). According to the Nobel Committee, the three scientists “have created the right conditions for a wireless and fossil fuel-free society, and so brought the greatest benefit to humankind”.

Goodenough, born in 1922, identified and developed the key materials that can power portable electronics, leading to the wireless revolution. Today, batteries containing Goodenough’s innovations are used worldwide for mobile phones, power tools, laptops, tablets and other wireless devices, as well as electric vehicles.

Goodenough received a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Yale University and a doctorate in physics from the university of Chicago. He beat the odds against him, first overcoming dyslexia (阅读困难症) as a child, and then the claim of a teacher who told the doctoral student in his 20s that he had started too late to be successful in physics.

He began his career in 1952 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Lincoln Laboratory, where he laid the groundwork for the development of random-access memory (RAM) for the digital computer. After MIT, Goodenough became a professor and head of the Inorganic Chemistry Laboratory at the University of Oxford where in 1979 he discovered it would be possible to store energy in rechargeable batteries through lithium cobalt oxide (锂钴氧化物).That discovery helped develop the lithium-ion battery. Goodenough joined the University of Texas at Austin in 1986, where his groundbreaking work continued.

At 97 years old, he still continues to push the boundaries of materials science. Despite the lithium-ion battery being well developed and available as a commercial product, it has its limitations. It can’t be charged too fast or overcharged. Goodenough still wants to see some new developments.

“I hope Ut-Austin still keeps me employed,” Goodenough once joked.

1.The underlined phrase “beat the odds” in Paragraph 3 means “   “.

A.become very famous B.face the challenges

C.win the competition D.overcome the difficulties

2.What can we infer from the passage?

A.In MIT, Goodenough made the important discovery leading to the development of the Lithium-ion battery.

B.When he studied for his doctorate in university, not all his teachers encouraged him to be successful.

C.According to the Nobel Committee, Goodenough made the greatest contributions in the discovery.

D.Because of his old age, Goodenough found it difficult to improve the limitations of the lithium-ion battery.

3.What is the best title for the text?

A.The Father of the Lithium-ion Batteries. B.Three Scientists are Awarded the Nobel Prize.

C.Make the World “Good enough”. D.It’s Never too Old to Learn.

Answer

1.D

2.B

3.C

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。文章主要介绍了“为人类带来了最大利益”的三位科学家：工程教授John B. Goodenough、化学教授M.Stanley Whittingham和日本明治大学教授Akira Yoshino共同获得了2019年诺贝尔化学奖。文章详细说明了John B. Goodenough的发明，以及其职业生涯。

1.词义猜测题。根据后文first overcoming dyslexia as a child可知先是在孩童时期克服了诵读困难，由此可知，本句在说明他克服了重重困难。故划线短语意思为“克服困难”。故选D。

2.推理判断题。根据第三段中then the claim of a teacher who told the doctoral student in his 20s that he had started too late to be successful in physics. 可知后来，一名教师告诉这位20多岁的博士生，他起步太晚，在物理学上不可能取得成功。由此可推知，当他在大学攻读博士学位时，并不是所有的老师都鼓励他取得成功。故选B。

3.主旨大意题。根据第一段中According to the Nobel Committee, the three scientists “have created the right conditions for a wireless and fossil fuel-free society, and so brought the greatest benefit to humankind”.可知根据诺贝尔委员会的说法，这三位科学家“为无线和无化石燃料社会创造了合适的条件，从而为人类带来了最大的利益”。结合文章主要介绍了这三位科学家中的John B. Goodenough，介绍了他发现并开发了为便携式电子设备供电的关键材料，从而引发了无线革命。以及其职业生涯。故C选项：让世界“足够好”。符合文章标题。故选C。