Wind from Trains Produces Electricity

April 26, 2011

Unlocking
Word Meanings Read
the following words/expressions found in today’s article.

1. whooshing(adj.) [hwoosh-ing]– having a rushing sound produced when
strong wind or water passes

Example: The plane
made a whooshing sound as it took
off.

2. convert(v.) [kuhn-vurt] – to change something into a different form
or feature

Example: The
banker converted my dollar bills to
yen.

3. install (v.) [in-stawl] – to put or attach in a certain position to
be ready for usage

Example: A cable
needs to be installed before the
computer can be used.

4. remote(adj.) [ri-moht] – extremely far away; separated from the
main area

Example: Remote
villages in some countries do not have electricity.

Article
Read the text below.

Whooshing wind
from passing trains can now be used to produce electricity.

Two
designers from China have developed a device called T-Box which captures wind from
trains and converts it to electricity. Partly buried in
between the rails, the device has a turbine that spins as the wind passes. A
turbineis a machine that produces energy by
spinning.

According
to its designers, 150 T-Boxes can be installed in almost 1 km
of railway. A high-speed train which normally runs at 125 mph can produce at
least 3,500 watts, the same power produced by a small electric generator.

A train
with a speed of 187 mph running on less than 1 km of rail can produce 2,600
watts. This amount of energy is enough to supply 40% to 100% of electricity in
one house.

The T-box
won a silver medal in innovation and was put on display in a learning institute
in Taiwan.

The
energy produced by T-boxes can be used to provide much needed electricity
to remote places in China and perhaps other parts of the
world.

Viewpoint
Discussion Enjoy
a discussion with your tutor.

Discussion A

·Do you think the world is running
out of energy? Please explain your answer.

·Do you agree that using other
sources of energy is practical? Why or why not?

Discussion B

·Why do you think some places do not
have electricity even in our modern times?

·What do you think are other possible
solutions to the lack of energy or electricity in some parts of the world?