英语听力精选进阶版 13206

Inventor of show business machine dies

Report

Almost anyone who's given a speech, led a meeting or acted on stage will recognise that sick feeling you get when you can't remember what you were about to say next. 

More than half a century ago, a team of engineers at one of America's biggest film studios was asked to help solve the problem for Hollywood's stars of the moment. Hubert J Schlafly Junior was a key member of the group, which arranged for the actors' lines to be printed on a scroll¹ of paper - which was put on a moving motor inside a suitcase next to a camera. The actors could glance at the paper if they forgot what was coming up.

The device² was tested on the set of a US soap opera and adopted by the former US President Herbert Hoover - two years later. Updated electrical versions³ are still popular with politicians and actors around the world. In fact, the machine is used so widely that some have been criticised for relying on it. 

According to a close friend, Hubert Schlafly didn't use a teleprompter himself until three years ago, when he was rehearsing a speech for his induction⁴ into the Cable⁵ Television Hall of Fame.

Charles Dolan, who chairs one of America's leading cable companies, has described him as the industry's 'most innovative⁶ engineer'.

Maddy Savage, BBC News

1 scroll   

n.卷轴，纸卷；(石刻上的)漩涡

参考例句：

• As I opened the scroll,a panorama of the Yellow River unfolded.我打开卷轴时，黄河的景象展现在眼前。
• He was presented with a scroll commemorating his achievements.他被授予一幅卷轴，以表彰其所做出的成就。

2 device   

n.器械，装置；计划，策略，诡计

参考例句：

• The device will be in production by the end of the year.该装置将于年底投入生产。
• The device will save much time and effort for us.这种装置会使我们节省大量时间和气力。

3 versions   

n.译本( version的名词复数 )；版本；（个人对事件的）描述；（原物的）变体

参考例句：

• There are two versions of the game, a long one and a short one. 这游戏有两个版本，一长一短。
• When both versions of the story were collated,major discrepancies were found. 在将这个故事的两个版本对照后，找出了主要的不符之处。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 induction   

n.感应，感应现象

参考例句：

• His induction as a teacher was a turning point in his life.他就任教师工作是他一生的转折点。
• The magnetic signals are sensed by induction coils.磁信号由感应线圈所检测。

5 cable   

n.缆绳，索；电缆；电报；vt.电汇，打电报

参考例句：

• Don't forget to cable us as soon as you arrive.别忘了一到就给我发个电报。
• The worker attached a cable.工人连接电缆。

6 innovative   

adj.革新的，新颖的，富有革新精神的

参考例句：

• Discover an innovative way of marketing.发现一个创新的营销方式。
• He was one of the most creative and innovative engineers of his generation.他是他那代人当中最富创造性与革新精神的工程师之一。