神奇的隐身衣即将成为现实

AS IT IS 2015-09-22 Magical Invisibility Cloak Soon to Be Real 神奇的隐身衣即将成为现实

All you Harry¹ Potter fans out there have reason to celebrate!

Scientists say they are close to inventing a real invisibility cloth.

Harry Potter is a popular book and movie series about a boy who fights evil and wins. His success is partly because of magic tools like an invisibility cloth. When he hides underneath² of it, you can’t see him. He becomes invisible.  

Researchers at the University of California at Berkeley say they have invented a cloth that hides shapes. We see shapes when light hits an object. The light then scatters⁴ and bounces around to reveal a shape.   

The cloak is made with millions of tiny mirrors of gold. The mirrors are so small they are about the size of a human hair. The mirrors stop the light from scattering⁵ and bouncing.

The military would be very interested in this kind of technology, scientists say, as would cosmetic⁶ and car makers⁷, too.

Xiang Zhang is a materials scientist at the university.

“People can make a sizeable belly⁸ now become a six-pack, you know, scars on the face and things (that) can disappear.”

So far, the scientists have been hiding objects so small they cannot be seen with common sight. But they are sure they can adapt the technology for larger objects in the next five to seven years.

Words in This Story

scatter³ – v. to separate and go in different directions

bounce – v. to move in one direction, hit a surface and then quickly move in a different and usually opposite direction

six-pack – n. a group of strong and well-shaped muscles that can be seen on a person's stomach

1 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

2 underneath   

adj.在...下面，在...底下；adv.在下面

参考例句：

• Working underneath the car is always a messy job.在汽车底下工作是件脏活。
• She wore a coat with a dress underneath.她穿着一件大衣，里面套着一条连衣裙。

3 scatter   

vt.撒，驱散，散开；散布/播；vi.分散，消散

参考例句：

• You pile everything up and scatter things around.你把东西乱堆乱放。
• Small villages scatter at the foot of the mountain.村庄零零落落地散布在山脚下。

4 scatters   

v.（使）散开， （使）分散，驱散( scatter的第三人称单数 )；撒

参考例句：

• He scatters money about as if he were rich. 他四处挥霍，好像很有钱。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Truth raises against itself the storm that scatters its seeds broadcast. 真理引起了反对它自己的狂风骤雨，那场风雨吹散了真理的广播的种子。 来自辞典例句

5 scattering   

n.[物]散射；散乱，分散；在媒介质中的散播adj.散乱的；分散在不同范围的；广泛扩散的；（选票）数量分散的v.散射(scatter的ing形式)；散布；驱散

参考例句：

• The child felle into a rage and began scattering its toys about. 这孩子突发狂怒，把玩具扔得满地都是。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The farmers are scattering seed. 农夫们在播种。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 cosmetic   

n.化妆品；adj.化妆用的；装门面的；装饰性的

参考例句：

• These changes are purely cosmetic.这些改变纯粹是装饰门面。
• Laughter is the best cosmetic,so grin and wear it!微笑是最好的化妆品，所以请尽情微笑吧！

7 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 belly   

n.肚子，腹部；(像肚子一样)鼓起的部分，膛

参考例句：

• The boss has a large belly.老板大腹便便。
• His eyes are bigger than his belly.他眼馋肚饱。