时间:2018-12-24 作者:英语课 分类:Scientific American(一)月


英语课

 


  Archaeology’s taking to the air. Researchers spent a month this summer testing a semi-autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle—basically a semi-autonomous drone—high in the Andes in Peru. The goal: to scan a colonial town from the 1500s that had been built over an Incan settlement, and then abandoned.


  It’s a collaboration 1 between Vanderbilt University archaeologist Steven Wernke and engineering professor Julie Adams. Adams tricked out a vehicle from Aurora 2 Flight Sciences to include cameras and algorithms that allow the drone to achieve optimal 3 flight patterns. The resulting detailed 4 3-D map will be much more precise than high-resolution satellite images.


  Here’s Steven Wernke: “By our calculations this vehicle will be able to take imagery of an area in about 10-15 minutes that would take two or three entire field seasons using traditional methods.”


  The system can fit into a backpack. Once the researchers incorporate what they learned, they hope the technology can assist in the rapid cataloguing of a variety of archaeological sites, some of which are already being lost to the ravages 5 of new developments and time.


 



1 collaboration
n.合作,协作;勾结
  • The two companies are working in close collaboration each other.这两家公司密切合作。
  • He was shot for collaboration with the enemy.他因通敌而被枪毙了。
2 aurora
n.极光
  • The aurora is one of nature's most awesome spectacles.极光是自然界最可畏的奇观之一。
  • Over the polar regions we should see aurora.在极地高空,我们会看到极光。
3 optimal
adj.最适宜的;最理想的;最令人满意的
  • What is the optimal mix of private and public property rights in natural resources?私人和国家的自然资源产权的最适宜的组合是什么?
  • Optimal path planning is a key link for the sailing contest.帆船最优行驶路径规划是帆船比赛取胜的关键环节。
4 detailed
adj.详细的,详尽的,极注意细节的,完全的
  • He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
  • A detailed list of our publications is available on request.我们的出版物有一份详细的目录备索。
5 ravages
劫掠后的残迹,破坏的结果,毁坏后的残迹
  • the ravages of war 战争造成的灾难
  • It is hard for anyone to escape from the ravages of time. 任何人都很难逃避时间的摧残。