首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
Gadgets with a Sporting Chance Consumer electronics: New sports equipment, from tennis rackets to running shoes, uses proces
Gadgets with a Sporting Chance Consumer electronics: New sports equipment, from tennis rackets to running shoes, uses proces
admin
2013-04-25
48
问题
Gadgets with a Sporting Chance
Consumer electronics: New sports equipment, from tennis rackets to running shoes, uses processing power to enhance performance. Is that fair? Why should aspiring athletes stand on the sidelines when a spot of electronic assistance can put them in the middle of the game? That is the question many sports-equipment makers are asking as they sense an opportunity to boost their sales with high-tech products. You could call it the revenge of the nerds: a new wave of microchip-equipped sporting goods promises to enhance the performance of novices and non-sporting types alike--and could even make difficult sports easier.
Take cross-country skiing. Victor Petrenko, an engineer at Dartmouth College’s Ice Research Lab in New Hampshire, has invented some smart ski-brakes that, he believes, will increase the popularity of cross-country skiing by making the sport less challenging for beginners. The brakes, currently being tested by a ski manufacturer in the Alps, offer the necessary friction for a bigger "kick-off force" and make the skis less likely to slide backwards in their trucks. To make this happen, an electric current from the bottom of the skis pulses through the ice, melting a thin layer of snow that instantly refreezes and acts as a sort of glue.
This is not the only form of smart ski to hit the slopes. Atomic, a leading ski-maker based in Austria, plans to introduce a system later this year that runs a diagnostic safety check to ensure that the ski binding is properly closed, with the result being shown on a tiny built-in liquid-crystal display. Meanwhile, tennis equipment manufacturers are hoping that innovation will bring new zip to their business as well. They certainly need to do something: according to Sport ScanInfo, a market-research firm based in Florida, sales of tennis rackets in America fell 12.5% during the first half of 2004 compared with the first half of 2003.
With the ball clearly in their court, researchers at Head, a maker of sporting equipment, have devised a product that should appeal to players suffering from tennis elbow. A chip inside the racket controls piezo-electric fibres, which convert mechanical energy from the ball’s impact into electrical potential energy. This energy is then used to generate a counter-force in the piezo-electric fibres that causes a dampening effect. All of this, the firm says, translates into less stress on the elbow. Head claims that residual vibrations in the racket are dampened twice as fast as in conventional rackets, reducing the shock experienced by the player’s arm by more than 50%.
No doubt purists will object that this is simply not cricket. Rule-makers in many sports are now being forced to consider the implications of equipment that promises to augment athletes’ performance with electronic muscle. The International Tennis Federation, that body is responsible for setting the rules of the game, has specified in its most recent guidelines that "no energy source that in any way changes or affects the playing characteristics of a racket may be built into or attached to a racket".
Yet despite such wording, the guideline does not actually eliminate the use of Head’s smart rackets, because there is no external energy source---the damping effect relies solely on energy from the ball’s impact. Though high-tech equipment may cause controversy on the court, tennis clubs have to adhere to the guidelines set for the sport, explains Stuart Miller, the ITF’s technical manager. And if the rules allow self-generated forces to modify a racket’s response, so be it.
A Different sports have encountered different technologies, though the future will undoubtedly bring more overlap. B In golf, gadgets that pinpoint the location of the green using the Global Positioning System (GPS), C The rule-making body of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews, which oversees the game in all countries except America and its dependencies, currently prohibits the use of distance-measuring devices. D As a result, golfers cannot rely on GPS aids in a tournament. While technological innovation in golf equipment should continue, the player’s skill should remain the predominant factor, says David Rickman, who is in charge of the club’s rules and equipment standards.
The trend towards high-tech assistance is not limited to sports with a reputation for expensive gear, however. Even runing, that most basic of sports, provides scope for electronic enhancement. The Adidas running shoe, which is due to be launched in December, incorporates a batterypowered sensor that takes about 1,000 readings a second. A microprocessor then directs a tiny embedded electric motor to adjust the characteristics of the sneaker, enableing it to change the degree of cushioning depending on the surface conditions and the wearer’s running style and foot position. The race for the smartest use of microchips in sporting equipment, it seems, has begun.
Why is the product of Head likely to appeal to players who suffer from tennis elbow?
选项
A、Because it can reduce the shock experienced by the player’s arm by more than 50%.
B、Because it can achieve a gradual damping effect.
C、Because it promises to improve athletes’ performances with electronic muscle.
D、Because residual vibrations in the racket are stronger than in conventional rackets.
答案
A
解析
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/1eyO777K
0
托福(TOEFL)
相关试题推荐
SECTION3Questions21-30Questions21-23Choosethecorrectanswer,A,B,CorD.
Studentsoncourseslastingoverayearareusuallygivenuntil______toleavethecountry.
WhichTWOmaterialscanbeusedasasubstratum?A.oxygen-richsolutionB.coconutfibreC.mineralwoolD.rock
A、recycled.B、inexpensive.C、availableinthelab.B
Farmershaveastrongsenseofsolidaritybecause______
Completethenotesbelow.WriteONEWORDONLYforeachanswer.BusinessCulturesPowercultureCharacteristi
Completethesentencesbelow.WriteONEWORDONLYforeachanswer.Theprogramismadefortravelerstomake______.
UnitedStates/USA本题有关虎皮鹦鹉的新栖息地。录音原文中的residentialareas“居民区”是题目中urbanareas“城镇地区”的同义替换。
A、Hishousematedoesn’twantthewindowsdosedB、HishousemateisresponsibleforpayingtheelectricbillC、Thewindowsarehar
Wearegoingonthe______thattheworkwillbefinishedtomorrow.
随机试题
论述建设社会主义文化强国。
在各种文学观念中,强调“作品是作家情感的自然流露’’的是()
简述数据/功能格栅图的作用。
A.国家食品药品监督管理局B.国家食品药品监督管理局注册司C.国家食品药品监督管理局药品审评中心D.国家药典委员会E.中国药品生物制品检定所具体负责药品注册管理的业务部门是()
与投资项目前评比相比,后评价的最大特点是()。
A银行的外汇敞口头寸如下:美元多头180,英镑多头430,法国法郎空头390,瑞士法郎空头130,若此银行对待外汇风险的态度较为激进,计量总敞口头寸时主要考虑不同货币汇率被动的相关性,则该银行使用的净总敞口头寸应为()。
如图所示,在直角坐标系χOy中,A是χ2+y2=4与χ轴的正半轴、y轴的正半轴共同围成的区域,阴影部分是(χ-2)2+(y-2)2≤4与χ2+y2≤4重叠的区域.若在区域A中取一点,该点恰好落在阴影部分的概率为().
以下叙述中错误的是
计算机病毒是指“能够侵入计算机系统并在计算机系统中潜伏、传播,破坏系统正常工作的一种具有繁殖能力的_______。”
BeigraviaBoys’GrammarSchoolAngelusBoulevardBelgravia5009Currentlyseeking:AssistantTeacher-LibrarianFull-timeforTer
最新回复
(
0
)