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We know the famous ones-the Thomas Edisons and the Alexander Graham Bells-but what about the
less famous inventors? What about the people who invented the traffic light and the windshield wiper(雨
刮器)?Shouldn't we know who they are?
Joan McLean thinks so. In fact, McLean, a professor of physics at Mountain University in Range,
feels so strongly about this matter that she's developed a course on the topic. In addition to learning
"who" invented "what", however, McLean also likes her students to learn the answers to the "why"and
"how"questions. According to McLean, "When students learn the answers to these questions, they are
better prepared to recognize opportunities for inventing and more motivated to give inventing a try."
Her students agree. One young man with a patent for an unbreakable umbrella is walking proof of
McLean's statement."If I had not heard the story of the windshield wiper's invention, "said Tommy Lee,
a senior physics major, "I never would have dreamed of turning my bad experience during a rainstorm
into something so constructive." Lee is currently negotiating to sell his patent to an umbrella producer.
So, just what is the story behind the windshield wiper? Well, Mary Anderson came up with the idea
in 1902 after a visit to New York City. The day was cold and stormy, but Anderson still wanted to see
the sights, so she jumped aboard a streetcar. Noticing that the driver was struggling to see through the
snow covering the windshield, she found herself wondering why there couldn't be a builtin device for
cleaning the window. Still wondering about this when she returned home to Birmingham, Alabama.
Anderson started drafting out solutions. One of her ideas, a lever(操作杆) on the inside of a vehicle
that would control an arm on the outside, became the first windshield wiper.
Today we benefit from countless inventions and innovations. It's hard to imagine driving without
Garrett A. Morgan's traffic light. It's equally impossible to picture a world without Katherine J. Blodgett's
innovation that makes glass invisible. Can you picture life without clear windows and eyeglasses?
1. By mentioning "traffic light" and "windshield wiper", the author indicates that countless
inventions are________.
A. beneficial, because their inventors are famous
B. beneficial, though their inventors are less famous
C. not useful, because their inventors are less famous
D. not useful, though their inventors are famous
2. Professor Joan McLean's course aims to________.
A. add colour and variety to students' campus life
B. inform students of the windshield wiper's invention
C. carry out the requirements by Mountain University
D. prepare students to try their own inventions
3. Tommy Lee's invention of the unbreakable umbrella was________.
A. not eventually accepted by the umbrella producer
B. inspired by the story behind the windshield wiper
C. due to his dream of being caught in a rainstorm
D. not related to Professor Joan McLean's lectures
4. Which of the following can best serve as the title of this passage?
A. How to Help Students to Sell Their Inventions to Producers?
B. How to Design a Builtin Device for Cleaning the Window?
C. Shouldn't We Know Who Invented the Windshield Wiper?
D. Shouldn't We Develop Invention Courses in Universities?