Nâng cấp từ vựng – IELTS Vocab Booster 2.CAM8 – Test3- READING PASSAGE 1

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Seldom is the weather more dramatic than when thunderstorms strike. Their electrical fury inflicts death or serious injury on around 500 people each year in the United States alone. As the clouds roll in, a leisurely round of golf can become a terrifying dice with death – out in the open, a lone golfer may be a lightning bolt’s most inviting target. And there is damage to property too. Lightning damage costs American power companies more than $100 million a year.

But researchers in the United States and Japan are planning to hit back. Already in laboratory trials they have tested strategies for neutralising the power of thunderstorms, and this winter they will brave real storms, equipped with an armoury of lasers that they will be pointing towards the heavens to discharge thunderclouds before lightning can strike.

The idea of forcing storm clouds to discharge their lightning on command is not new. In the early 1960s, researchers tried firing rockets trailing wires into thunderclouds to set up an easy discharge path for the huge electric charges that these clouds generate. The technique survives to this day at a test site in Florida run by the University of Florida, with support from the Electrical Power Research Institute (EPRI), based in California. EPRI, which is funded by power companies, is looking at ways to protect the United States’ power grid from lightning strikes. ‘We can cause the lightning to strike where we want it to using rockets,’ says Ralph Bernstein, manager of lightning projects at EPRI. The rocket site is providing precise measurements of lightning voltages and allowing engineers to check how electrical equipment bears up.

Bad behaviour

But while rockets are fine for research, they cannot provide the protection from lightning strikes that everyone is looking for. The rockets cost around $1,200 each, can only be fired at a limited frequency and their failure rate is about 40 per cent. And even when they do trigger lightning, things still do not always go according to plan. ‘Lightning is not perfectly well behaved,’ says Bernstein. ‘Occasionally, it will take a branch and go someplace it wasn’t supposed to go.’

And anyway, who would want to fire streams of rockets in a populated area? ‘What goes up must come down,’ points out Jean-Claude Diels of the University of New Mexico. Diels is leading a project, which is backed by EPRI, to try to use lasers to discharge lightning safely and safety is a basic requirement since no one wants to put themselves or their expensive equipment at risk. With around $500,000 invested so far, a promising system is just emerging from the laboratory.

The idea began some 20 years ago, when high-powered lasers were revealing their ability to extract electrons out of atoms and create ions. If a laser could generate a line of ionisation in the air all the way up to a storm cloud, this conducting path could be used to guide lightning to Earth, before the electric field becomes strong enough to break down the air in an uncontrollable surge. To stop the laser itself being struck, it would not be pointed straight at the clouds. Instead it would be directed at a mirror, and from there into the sky. The mirror would be protected by placing lightning conductors close by. Ideally, the cloud-zapper (gun) would be cheap enough to be installed around all key power installations, and portable enough to be taken to international sporting events to beam up at brewing storm clouds.

A stumbling block

However, there is still a big stumbling block. The laser is no nifty portable: it’s a monster that takes up a whole room. Diels is trying to cut down the size and says that a laser around the size of a small table is in the offing. He plans to test this more manageable system on live thunderclouds next summer.

Bernstein says that Diels’s system is attracting lots of interest from the power companies. But they have not yet come up with the $5 million that EPRI says will be needed to develop a commercial system, by making the lasers yet smaller and cheaper. T cannot say I have money yet, but I’m working on it,’ says Bernstein. He reckons that the forthcoming field tests will be the turning point – and he’s hoping for good news. Bernstein predicts ‘an avalanche of interest and support’ if all goes well. He expects to see cloud-zappers eventually costing $50,000 to $100,000 each.

Other scientists could also benefit. With a lightning ‘switch’ at their fingertips, materials scientists could find out what happens when mighty currents meet matter. Diels also hopes to see the birth of ‘interactive meteorology’ – not just forecasting the weather but controlling it. ‘If we could discharge clouds, we might affect the weather,’ he says.

And perhaps, says Diels, we’ll be able to confront some other meteorological menaces. ‘We think we could prevent hail by inducing lightning,’ he says. Thunder, the shock wave that comes from a lightning flash, is thought to be the trigger for the torrential rain that is typical of storms. A laser thunder factory could shake the moisture out of clouds, perhaps preventing the formation of the giant hailstones that threaten crops. With luck, as the storm clouds gather this winter, laser-toting researchers could, for the first time, strike back.

1. Giải thích từ vựng

• Strike back (phrasal verb) phản kháng, đánh lại, chống trả

Eg: When you bully people long enough they are going to strike back.

• Thunderstorm (n) /ˈθʌn.də.stɔːm/ bão tố có sấm sét

Eg: That evening, the first thing that the people of Greensburg saw was a thunderstorm coming closer.

• Fury (n) /ˈfjʊə.ri/ sự giận dữ, cơn thịnh nộ

Eg: He could hardly contain his fury.

She flew into a fury at the suggestion.

Một số từ đồng nghĩa: 

• Anger He vented his anger by kicking the door.
• Annoyance Smoke can cause annoyance by making clothes and hair smell unpleasant.
• Irritation She expressed irritation with her son’s attitude.
• Frustration A lot of children’s behaviour problems are caused by sheer frustration.

• Inflict (v)  /ɪnˈflɪkt/ gây ra

Eg: These new bullets are capable of inflicting massive injuries.

The suffering inflicted on these children was unimaginable.

Collocation 

• inflict something on/upon somebody/something

• Roll in (phrasal verb) Đến với số lượng lớn, kéo đến

Eg: Once our business gets started, the money will be rolling in.

• Hit back (phrasal verb) tấn công hoặc chỉ trích

Eg: In tonight’s speech, the minister is expected to hit back at critics who have attacked her handling of the crisis.

• Neutralise (v)  /ˈnjuː.trə.laɪz/ trung hòa/ làm vô hiệu hóa

Eg: The aerial bombardments have neutralized the threat of artillery attacks on allied ground forces.

Lime was used to neutralize the acidity of the soil.

• Equip (v)  /ɪˈkwɪp/ trang bị (cho ai… cái gì)

Eg: It’s going to cost $4 million to equip the hospital.

All the police officers were equipped with shields to defend themselves against the rioters.

• Generate (v) /ˈdʒen.ə.reɪt/ phát, phát ra

Eg: The proposed tidal barrage would generate enough electricity to supply between 60,000 and 80,000 homes.

The ecological effects of the factory need to be balanced against the employment it generates.

• Fund (v) /fʌnd/ tài trợ (tiền)

Eg: The company has agreed to fund my trip to Australia.

The new college is being privately funded.

The Channel Tunnel was jointly funded by the French and British.

• Bear up (phrasal verb) /beə(r) ʌp/ chịu đựng/ tải

Eg: bearing up under our own burdens can help us develop a reservoir of empathy for the problems others face.

• According to (prep.) theo như, đúng với

Eg: The work was done according to her instructions.

Did it all go according to plan?

• Back (v) /bæk/ ủng hộ (một kế hoạch…), hỗ trợ

Eg: The management has refused to back our proposals.

This theory needs to be backed up with solid empirical evidence.

It is hoped that all sides will back the peace plan.

• Emerge (v) nổi lên, xuất hiện từ

Eg: She emerged from the sea, blue with cold.

She emerged triumphant from the court after all the charges against her were dropped because of a lack of evidence.

• Break down (phrasal verb) phá vỡ (hàng rào, trở ngại…)

Eg: He had to break down their opposition to his ideas.

• Surge (n) /sɜːdʒ/ sự dấy lên, sự dâng lên, sự trào lên

Eg: An unexpected surge in electrical power caused the computer to crash.

• Stumble (v) /ˈstʌm·bəl/ ngáng đường, làm cho vấp, cản trở

Eg: There were good reasons for the team’s first-round stumble against Los Angeles.

• Portable (a) /ˈpɔː.tə.bəl/ có thể mang theo, xách tay

Eg: The laptop’s ultra compact design makes it extremely portable and practical.

• In the offing (idiom): sắp diễn ra

Eg: With an election in the offing, the prime minister is keen to maintain his popularity. 

I hear there are more staff changes in the offing.

• Come up with (phrasal verb) Tìm ra câu trả lời, giải pháp, …

Eg: He’s come up with a new way to use up cold chicken.

Collocation 

• come up with a plan/idea/solution They came up with a plan to make us more efficient.
• come up with a name/title/advert Next you need to come up with a name for your product.

• Work on (phrasal verb) khắc phục, sửa chữa điều gì

Eg: His dancing technique is good, but he needs to work on his stamina. 

I need to work on my pronunciation if I’m to pass the exam.

Một số từ đồng nghĩa: 

• improve His health has improved dramatically since he started exercising.
• get better The first part of the book isn’t very good but it gets better.
• Rally The team played badly in the first half but rallied in the second.
• Recover We are still waiting for the economy to recover.
• look up Our financial situation is looking up.
• pick up Business is really beginning to pick up.

• Forthcoming (a) /ˈfɔːθˌkʌm.ɪŋ/ sắp đến, sắp tới

Eg: At the forthcoming elections, the government will be seeking a fresh mandate from the people.

Her forthcoming novel is expected to become an instant bestseller.

• Turning point (n) /ˈtɜː.nɪŋ ˌpɔɪnt/ bước ngoặt, bước quyết định

Eg: The organization called the new regulations a turning point in the campaign against smoking.

Collocation 

• • be at/mark/reach a turning point Figures published last month suggest the housing market is at a turning point.
  • The turning point came when the company’s products were featured in the national press.

• a crucial/real/significant turning point

• Birth (n) /bɜːθ/ sự ra đời, sự thành lập

Eg: These asteroids were formed at the birth of the solar system.

• Forecast (v) /ˈfɔː.kɑːst/ dự đoán, dự báo

Eg: Snow has been forecast for tonight.

• Confront (v) /kənˈfrʌnt/ đối diện với, đứng trước; chạm trán, đương đầu với

Eg: As she left the court, she was confronted by angry crowds who tried to block her way.

It’s an issue we’ll have to confront at some point, no matter how unpleasant it is.

• Menace (n) /ˈmen.ɪs/ mối đe doạ 

Eg: Drunk drivers are a menace to everyone.

Dogs running loose are a public menace.

Collocation 

• the menace of sth The world is still facing the menace of terrorism.
• a menace to society/the environment Plastic bags are a menace to marine environments because they don’t break down quickly.

• Hail (n) /heɪl/ mưa đá

Eg: There will be widespread showers of rain, hail and sleet.

Hail and snow are causing treacherous driving conditions, and motorists are warned to drive slowly.

• Torrential (a) /təˈren.ʃəl/ như thác, cuồn cuộn

Eg: Ecologists describe strong ecosystems as resistant to catastrophic events, such as torrential rains, and resilient-able to bounce back quickly when such events occur.

• In opposition to: đối lập với

Eg: We found ourselves in opposition to several colleagues on this issue.

In the former, the person committing the violation thinks of it as deviant and maintains it in opposition to the norm.

1. Luyện tập

Bài 1: Chọn từ trong khung để hoàn thành các câu bên dưới

1. He slept well, unaware of the ……………………………… which filled the night.
2. The latest figures should ………………………. the fears of inflation.
3. After…………………….. me with the necessary tools, he sent me up the ladder to repair the roof.
4. Chissano said Western governments should stump up the cash to …………… land redistribution.
5. The salary will be fixed ………………………….. to qualifications and experience.
6. Although Paris …………………. the U.N. demands, it has made it clear it will not take part in any new military action.
7. The young American’s victory touched off a …………………… of interest in golf across the country.
8. A vacation is in the ………………………. for me, and I couldn’t be more ready for it
9. Gavin …………………. up with the idea of dividing the rooms in half.
10. He is expected to win by a large majority in the ………………………. elections.

Bài 2: Chọn đáp án đúng để điền vào chỗ trống

1. The service is still not satisfactory, but the company say they’re ………………. it.      A. working on        B. coming up
2. Having the baby was a turning …………………….. in their lives.                                A. birth                   B. point
3. Oil prices are ……………………… to increase by less than two percent this year.      A. forecast            B. confront
4. That boy is a …………………….. to himself and his friends.                                       A. hail                     B. menace
5. In ……………………… to this form of spectacle, theatre in the last decade focused on personal theatrical presentations.                              A. surge              B. opposition
6. He ………………………… around in the dark.                                                                A. stumbled           B. emerged
7. The talks were meant to …………………………. barriers between the two groups.          A. bear up          B. break down
8. The publicity ……………………… by the court case has given a welcome boost to our sales.     A. generated           B. equiped
9. The dismissed sales manager has …………………………… at his former employers, accusing them of acting on the basis of unproven allegations.                      A. hit back                    B. roll in
10. The ……………………….. of the crowd was directed towards the police.                         A. thunderstorm                 B. fury
11. We instruct our staff never to ……………………….., however angry they feel.                 A. strike back                     B. hit back
12. Heavy casualties were ……………………………… on the enemy.                                     A. neutralised                    B. inflicte
13. How is Carmine ………………………… since his wife died?                                             A. working on                     B. bearing up
14. He was a medical student years before the ………………. of psychoanalysis.                 A. birth                               B. menace
15. We drove through ……………………. and snow.                                                               A. hail                                 B. menace
16. We were ………………….. with a lot of problems when we tried to buy a house in Germany.       A. confronted         B. stumbled
17. The equipment is lightweight, ………………………….. and easy to store.                                      A. forthcoming       B. portable
18. The farmers were encouraged to share their problems, and most of them mentioned loss of seeds and seedlings owing to ………………… rain.                       A. portable                  B. torrential
19.  She …………………….. from the bedroom, a vision in cream silk.         A. funded                 B. emerged
20. The firm has a healthy backlog of orders ……………………..                 A. rolling in                B. striking back

1. LUYỆN TẬP

Bài 1: 

1.thunderstorms 2. neutralize 3. equipping 4. fund 5. according 

6. backs 7. surge 8. offing 9. came 10. forthcoming 

Bài 2: 

1.A 2. B 3. A 4. B 5. B

6. A 7. B 8. A 9. A 10. B
7. A 12. B 13. B 14. A 15.A
8. A 17. B 18. B 19. B 20. A

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