A team of British scientists is developing "intelligent" clothes that will give disabled
children the power of speech". Children wearing waistcoats made of a unique electro-textile,
linked to a speech synthesiser, will be able to make themselves understood simply by tapping
on the touch-sensitive material. The material is made up of normal cloth and an ingenious
mesh of carbon impregnated fibres that can conduct electricity. When pressure is applied to
the fabric, the pattern of signals that passes through the conducting fibres is altered and a
computer chip can work out where the cloth has been touched. It then can trigger whatever
electronic device is attached to it, which could be no bigger than two boxes of matches. "The
smart bit is in how we weave the fabric and how we send signals through it - and we can
weave it into existing fabric designs so you cannot see it's in there," says one of the scientists.
Without being damaged, the material can be washed, wrapped around objects or scrunched
up. The scientist also claims it can be mass-produced cheaply.
1. Can these claims made in the article be tested through scientific investigation in the
laboratory?
State either "Yes" or "No" for each.
The material can be:
Can the claim be tested through scientific
investigation in the laboratory?
i. Washed without being damaged.
Yes/No
ii. Wrapped around objects without being damaged.
Yes No
iii.
Scrunched up without being damaged.
Yes/No
iv. Mass-produced cheaply.
Yes/No
2. What is the main material used in making these clothes?
A. Carbon
B. Nitrogen
C. Phosphorous
D. Oxygen
Answers
Answer:
A team of British scientists is developing "intelligent" clothes that will give disabled
children the power of speech". Children wearing waistcoats made of a unique electro-textile,
linked to a speech synthesiser, will be able to make themselves understood simply by tapping
on the touch-sensitive material. The material is made up of normal cloth and an ingenious
mesh of carbon impregnated fibres that can conduct electricity. When pressure is applied to
the fabric, the pattern of signals that passes through the conducting fibres is altered and a
computer chip can work out where the cloth has been touched. It then can trigger whatever
electronic device is attached to it, which could be no bigger than two boxes of matches. "The
smart bit is in how we weave the fabric and how we send signals through it - and we can
weave it into existing fabric designs so you cannot see it's in there," says one of the scientists.
Without being damaged, the material can be washed, wrapped around objects or scrunched
up. The scientist also claims it can be mass-produced cheaply.
1. Can these claims made in the article be tested through scientific investigation in the
laboratory?
State either "Yes" or "No" for each.
The material can be:
Can the claim be tested through scientific
investigation in the laboratory?
i. Washed without being damaged.
Yes/No
ii. Wrapped around objects without being damaged.
Yes No
iii.
Scrunched up without being damaged.
Yes/No
iv. Mass-produced cheaply.
Yes/No
2. What is the main material used in making these clothes?
A. Carbon
B. Nitrogen
C. Phosphorous
D. Oxygen