军事研究是如何走进日常生活的?

How Military Research Finds Its Way to Everyday Life 军事研究是如何走进日常生活的?

WASHINGTON—

Sometimes simple scientific advances in one field can have value far beyond their intended use. Many of these advances can change the world and possibly help solve our biggest problems. One example is 75-years-old this year and was made at the onset¹ of the World War II.

Many people around the world use a microwave oven every day, not knowing that a crucial part of it was once a top military secret.

In 1940, the situation in Europe was desperate. German forces were preparing for the invasion of Britain while U-boats were decimating the convoys² bringing supplies from the United States.

In September of that year, a high-level British scientific delegation³ traveled to the U.S. to ask for help in manufacturing several secret inventions, including a revolutionary vacuum tube that could create microwave emissions⁴, essential for building more efficient radars⁶.

According to Larry Schuette of the U.S. Office of Naval⁷ Research, the result was a revolutionary breakthrough.

“The advantage of microwave radar⁵, which allowed the use of parabolic antennas⁸ that we see today, fundamentally changed radar from the lower frequencies and all the advantages that going to the higher frequency provided,” Schuette said.

A new tube called cavity magnetron enabled radar operators to distinguish between individual aircraft as well as submerged submarines, helping⁹ to change the military situation.

But just as it changed the course of the war, the magnetron soon changed the course of cooking around the world, becoming the primary component¹⁰ of today's microwave oven.

A group of British, American and Canadian civil and military scientists recently gathered in Washington to commemorate¹¹ the mission that brought military secrets to the U.S. They reconfirmed their commitment to cooperation in search for new technologies with potential application to everyday life.

Rear Admiral Mathias Winter, Chief of Naval Research, said that scientists are collaborating¹² in many areas, often just to improve efficiency.

“We’re also working in the photonics and high energy, energy density¹³ and directed energy research areas, not only for weapons but for energy storage, energy engagement for our ships, for our shore facilities, to bring ourselves to a more efficient footprint.”

Hopefully, one of those inventions will change the course of global warming, the same way the cavity magnetron impacted the course of World War II.

1 onset   

n.进攻，袭击，开始，突然开始

参考例句：

• The drug must be taken from the onset of the infection.这种药必须在感染的最初期就开始服用。
• Our troops withstood the onset of the enemy.我们的部队抵挡住了敌人的进攻。

2 convoys   

n.（有护航的）船队( convoy的名词复数 )；车队；护航（队）；护送队

参考例句：

• Truck convoys often stop over for lunch here. 车队经常在这里停下来吃午饭。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A UN official said aid programs will be suspended until there's adequate protection for relief convoys. 一名联合国官员说将会暂停援助项目，直到援助车队能够得到充分的保护为止。 来自辞典例句

3 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

4 emissions   

排放物( emission的名词复数 )； 散发物（尤指气体）

参考例句：

• Most scientists accept that climate change is linked to carbon emissions. 大多数科学家都相信气候变化与排放的含碳气体有关。
• Dangerous emissions radiate from plutonium. 危险的辐射物从钚放散出来。

5 radar   

n.雷达，无线电探测器

参考例句：

• They are following the flight of an aircraft by radar.他们正在用雷达追踪一架飞机的飞行。
• Enemy ships were detected on the radar.敌舰的影像已显现在雷达上。

6 radars   

n.雷达( radar的名词复数 )；雷达装置

参考例句：

• Servos for large radars and launchers are either electro-hydraulic or all-electric. 大型雷达和发射装置的伺服系统，不是电动-液压式的，就是全电动式的。 来自辞典例句
• Range-velocity simultaneous pull-off is one of effective measures for countering PD radars. 距离-速度同步拖引干扰是对抗PD雷达的有效方法。 来自互联网

7 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

8 antennas   

[生] 触角，触须（antenna的复数形式）

参考例句：

• Marconi tied several antennas to kites. 马可尼在风筝上系了几根天线。 来自超越目标英语 第3册
• Radio astronomy today is armed with the largest antennas in the world. 射电天文学拥有世界上最大的天线。

9 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

10 component   

n.组成部分，成分，元件；adj.组成的，合成的

参考例句：

• Each component is carefully checked before assembly.每个零件在装配前都经过仔细检查。
• Blade and handle are the component parts of a knife.刀身和刀柄是一把刀的组成部分。

11 commemorate   

vt.纪念，庆祝

参考例句：

• This building was built to commemorate the Fire of London.这栋大楼是为纪念“伦敦大火”而兴建的。
• We commemorate the founding of our nation with a public holiday.我们放假一日以庆祝国庆。

12 collaborating   

合作( collaborate的现在分词 )； 勾结叛国

参考例句：

• Joe is collaborating on the work with a friend. 乔正与一位朋友合作做那件工作。
• He was not only learning from but also collaborating with Joseph Thomson. 他不仅是在跟约瑟福？汤姆逊学习，而且也是在和他合作。

13 density   

n.密集，密度，浓度

参考例句：

• The population density of that country is 685 per square mile.那个国家的人口密度为每平方英里685人。
• The region has a very high population density.该地区的人口密度很高。