Question

    Before the end of the year, employees at Ubiquitous Energy, a company in Redwood City, Calif, will gather in a window-lined conference room to stare toward the future. That’s because their new glass windows will offer more than an amazing view of the North California landscape. They will also be able to power the company’s lights, computers and air conditioners.

Several years in the making, Ubiquitous’ energy-producing glass is a remarkable technological achievement. Its power lies in the layers of organic polymers (聚合物) between sheets of glass. As light enters the window,the flow of electrons between the polymer layers creates an electric current, which is then collected by tiny wires in the glass.

“It’s sort of like a transparent computer display run in reverse (反过来),” says Veeral Hardev, director of business development at Ubiquitous Energy. “Instead of electricity being shuttled to different points in a display to light them up, light is producing electricity to be shuttled out of different points in the window.”

Right now the windows produce about a third as much electricity from a given amount of sunlight as the typical solar cells used in roof panels (板).These windows, about half as transparent as ordinary glass, don’t work as well as transparent ones. Hardev says the company is likely to improve the transparency significantly. As for the lower output of electricity, he notes that windows can cover a much greater surface area than a roof, so numerous windows will produce a surprisingly larger amount of electricity than the production from a rooftop full of higher-efficiency solar panels. “You could do both.” says Hardev. “But you’ll get more from the windows. The biggest challenge, he adds, is increasing the windows from less than two square feet currently to about 50 square feet.”

1.What makes the new glass windows special?

A.They can offer an amazing view.

B.They are controlled by computers.

C.They can power the conference room.

D.They can help stare toward the future.

2.What is Hardev trying to explain in Paragraph 3?

A.The source of light.

B.The significance of different points.

C.The similarity of computer and glass.

D.The working principle of energy-producing glass.

3.What can affect power production according to the passage?

A.The transparency of the glass.

B.The quality of the rooftop.

C.The height of the solar panels.

D.The thickness of the glass.

4.Which of the following is the best title for the passage?

A.Windows: A New Challenge of Technology

B.Windows: No Longer Just for Letting in the Light

C.Power: A Pressing Problem in the Near Future

D.Power: Not Enough from Rooftop Solar Panels

Answer

1.C

2.D

3.A

4.B

【解析】

本文是说明文。文章讲述了Ubiquitous Energy公司研发出的新玻璃窗不仅可以让光线进入屋内，它们还可以为公司的灯，计算机和空调供电。

1.细节理解题。根据第一段中的They will also be able to power the company’s lights, computers and air conditioners.可知，它们还能够为公司的灯，计算机和空调供电。由此可知，新的玻璃窗与众不同的是它们可以为会议室供电。故选C。

2.细节理解题。根据第三段中的“It’s sort of like a transparent computer display run in reverse (反过来),” says Veeral Hardev, director of business development at Ubiquitous Energy. “Instead of electricity being shuttled to different points in a display to light them up, light is producing electricity to be shuttled out of different points in the window. ”可知，“这有点像一台反向运行的透明电脑显示器，”Ubiquitous Energy的业务开发主管维洛拉•哈德夫表示。他说：“不是把电传送到显示器的不同点来点亮它们，而是把产生的电从窗口的不同点传送出去。”由此可知，哈德夫在第三段中想要解释的是产生电能的新玻璃窗的工作原理。故选D。

3.推理判断题。根据第四段中的These windows, about half as transparent as ordinary glass, don’t work as well as transparent ones. Hardev says the company is likely to improve the transparency significantly.可知，这些窗户的透明度只有普通玻璃的一半，但却不如透明玻璃那么好用。哈德夫说，公司可能会大幅提高透明度。由此可知，玻璃的透明度会影响发电量。故选A。

4.主旨大意题。通读全文尤其是第一段可知，Ubiquitous Energy公司研发出的新玻璃窗不仅可以让光线进入屋内，它们还可以为公司的灯，计算机和空调供电。因此B项Windows: No Longer Just for Letting in the Light(窗户：不再只是为了让光线进来)符合文章内容，可以作为最佳标题。故选B。