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  3. Nanotechnology, according to its fans, will jump-start a new industrial revolution with molecular-sized structures as complex as

Nanotechnology, according to its fans, will jump-start a new industrial revolution with molecular-sized structures as complex as

admin2012-10-23  46
问题     Nanotechnology, according to its fans, will jump-start a new industrial revolution with molecular-sized structures as complex as the human cell and 100 times stronger than steel. The new technology transforms everyday products and the way they are made by manipulating atoms so that materials can be shrunk, strengthened and lightened all at once. To date only modest nanotech-based products—such as stain-resistant fabrics and fresh food packaging—have entered the market, but some scientists predict nanotechnology will eventually be the only game in town. "It will be a ubiquitous technology," said George Stephanopoulos, professor of chemical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He echoes other nanotech supporters who say industrial countries are already sliding toward its use in every aspect of manufacturing.
    Aided by recent advances in microscopes, scientists can now place single atoms where they want for the first time. The potential applications are numerous, with microscopic computers, cancer-killing antennae and nonpolluting car engines on the distant horizon. When it’s all going to happen, though, is another matter. According to most scientific accounts, the nanotech future may be 10 to 20 years off. Major hurdles need to be jumped. First, there is a lack of economic mass production. Some of the more complicated devices would require exact placement of billions of atoms. "It may take the lifetime of the universe to complete the construction of (such a) device," said George Barbastathis, assistant professor at MIT. Another challenge is bridging the nanoscale and macroscopic, he said. In other words, the smallness of a nano device is useless when it must be attached to large wires. It’s unclear how scientists will overcome these problems. And fears derived from science fiction threaten to derail nanotechnology even as it emerges, in much the same way popular anxiety over "super-weeds" and "frankenfoods" have hobbled biotechnology in agriculture and fear of "designer babies" has set back stem-cell research.
    Lured by a market with billions of dollars in potential profits, giants like GE, Intel, Motorola and IBM are already heavily involved in research. Worldwide, the two industries with the potential to win big with nanotechnology are electronics and biotechnology, according to MIT researchers. On the biotech front, scientists are promoting the notion of nanoparticles made from gold that could be triggered remotely to heat and kill individual cancer cells. Nanotechnology holds equal promise for wealth creation, hut there isn’t a consensus among venture capitalists on how to realize it. "Which direction is it going to work out in? That’s the question on everyone’s mind," Gang Chen, an associate professor at the MIT, told scientists at a Boston nano gathering.
Which of the following is NOT the difficulty we face about nanotech research?
选项 A、How to prolong the 10 to 20 years’ time.
B、How to eliminate the public’s prejudice.
C、How to solve the problem of big and small.
D、How to get enough manpower and money.
答案A
解析 原文第2段提到：需要跨过一些困难的局面。文中列举了第一个：无法在经济上大规模的进行生产；第2个：如何跨接纳米领域和肉眼可见领域；第3个：由科学幻想小说引起的恐惧很可能会威胁到纳米技术。选项A“怎样将纳米技术的寿命延长10到20年”是对原文中the nanotech future may be 10 t0 20 years off的误解。
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