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
Real innovation is a dying art. It’s true that creativity—the business of thinking up new ideas—is far from dead, but it’s getti
Real innovation is a dying art. It’s true that creativity—the business of thinking up new ideas—is far from dead, but it’s getti
admin
2017-01-15
30
问题
Real innovation is a dying art. It’s true that creativity—the business of thinking up new ideas—is far from dead, but it’s getting harder and harder to get new concepts applied in design, manufacturing or business. It costs thousands of pounds to get a new idea into the marketplace, and there is very little support for anything from most companies or government. A lot of people don’t want to know.
I’ve always been interested in new ideas. I was trained as an engineer and went to work for an automotive components company, and almost from the first day I was asking why things were done in this way and not that. I thought up my first invention at 19—then I discovered someone else had got there first. I’ve been inventive all my life. I’ve got 14 patents to my name.
Invention is what happens when you come across a problem, and look for a solution. It could be at work or at home in the garden—like a better way of mowing the lawn, say. But these days creativity is being stifled because there are so many hoops to go through. You have a brilliant idea for a left-handed widget but you still have to ask yourself; Is it new? Has it already been protected? Is there a market for it? Is the investment worth it?
Only 4 percent of granted patents reach the market place. Part of the problem is that manufacturing industry and government are obsessed with complex technology like bioengineering. There is no interest in low technology or simple ideas that are equivalent to the invention of the paperclip. Inventors still come up with simple devices, but it’s difficult to get anyone interested.
But it’s also a very British problem. Inventions from Britain are often taken up overseas, because most British companies tend not to look outside their own factory gates. My own personal theory is that it’s a legacy of the Empire, when Britain had a captive audience and little competition, so industries didn’t need to market their products. Nowadays, companies from other leading economies have to make what the consumer wants in order to ensure their profits, so they are always ready to innovate. And many British manufacturers have never caught up.
Plus, British schoolchildren aren’t embracing vocational training subjects such as metalwork, woodwork, or design and technology. As a result university engineering departments are closing. Tomorrow’s World used to be on the TV, but where is that now? The whole lack of interest in creativity and invention is a symptom of the class system, too—there’s a kind of snobbishness in Britain about cleverness and originality. The only inventors you see in the media are people like Sir Clive Sinclair and Trevor Bayliss who come across like mad scientists.
What does the phrase "caught up" in Paragraph 5 mean?
选项
A、Come from behind and reach someone in front of you by going faster.
B、Get involved in something.
C、Do what needs to be done because you have not been able to do it until now.
D、Try to take hold of something.
答案
A
解析
catch up在文中所在句的句意为:许多英国制造商也从未……,结合上下文可知,catch up的意思是“追上,赶上”,所以[A]为正确答案。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/hVJK777K
0
专业英语四级
相关试题推荐
Theconceptofpersonalchoiceinrelationtohealthbehaviorsisanimportantone.Anestimated90percentofallillnessmayb
Theconceptofpersonalchoiceinrelationtohealthbehaviorsisanimportantone.Anestimated90percentofallillnessmayb
Toooftenyoungpeoplegetthemselvesemployedquitebyaccident,notknowing【C1】______liesinthewayofopportunityforpromot
Toooftenyoungpeoplegetthemselvesemployedquitebyaccident,notknowing【C1】______liesinthewayofopportunityforpromot
Itisoftensaidthatpolitenesscostsnothing.Infact,itseemsthatalittlemorecourtesycould【C1】______businesses£5bil
He______tenlecturesonAmericanhistory,butheonlygavetwobecauseofhisillness.
Themajorityofnursesarewomen,butinthehigherranksofthemedicalprofessionwomenareina______.
Ahugestormthat【D1】______partofacliffonIsrael’scentralcoastledtothe【D2】______ofastatuedatingbacktotheRomanpe
Fewpeopleexpectluxurywhileflying,butthesedays,eventhebasicsseemtobeinbadshape.It’snotuncommontofindyourt
随机试题
毛泽东同志在《论十大关系》中提出,社会主义建设的基本方针就是“统筹兼顾,各得其所”。下列关于统筹兼顾的说法,错误的是()。
钻中心孔时不宜选择较高的机床转速。()
在商务谈判中,迂回入题的方法包括()
在商业汇票的保证中,绝对记载事项包括保证和保证人签章。()
非零售信贷管理系统允许评级发起人员进行评级结果试算。()
甲公司为增值税一般纳税人,适用的增值税税率为13%,2019年11月份发生的与职工薪酬有关的事项如下:(1)11月1日,支付本月职工宿舍的租金20万元,该宿舍为免费提供给生产人员的福利。(2)11月3日,公司销售部门发生固定资产修理费用
对法家代表人物及思想表述正确的是()
试述奥苏伯尔和罗杰斯关于学习与教学的观点,并比较其不同之处。
任何一个不能回答病人的问题的医生都不能算是一个合格的医生。这正是我对自己的医生充满信心的原因,因为无论问题多么令人烦恼,她总是细心地回答我的每一个问题。上述论证中的推理错误也类似地出现在以下哪一项中?
Thedoctorsoonmadetheworriedpatientfeel______ease.
最新回复
(
0
)