The a380: The Future of Flying

Combining the very latest technologies for materials, systems and industrial processes, the A380 meets the most stringent inter­national certification requirements. It can carry 35% more pas­sengers than its closest rival and enables airlines to deliver un­paralleled comfort in every class and more open space for passengers to stretch their legs. The A380 will provide passengers on major long routes like London - Singapore and Los-Angeles - Sydney with a new way of flying.

The A380's efficiency and advanced technology result in 15-20 per cent lower seat mile costs, while its range is 10 per cent greater than that of other large aircraft (up to 15,000 km/8,000 nm with a capacity of 555 passengers). The freighter version, the A380F, will carry a payload of 150 tonnes (330,000 lbs) over 10,400 km/5,600 nm.

With air travel expected to continue growing, the A380's ability to carry more passengers will help to avoid the danger of collision by transporting people without additional flights. Its significantly reduced noise and emission levels will minimize its effects on the environment. Its new generation engines and advanced wings and undercarriage (шасси) design mean the A380 will be significantly quieter than its competitors (конкурент), producing half as much noise on take off.

The A380's high level of weight-saving composite materials makes it a highly fuel-efficient aircraft, it burns 12 per cent less fuel than its competitor, reducing exhaust emissions. Indeed, the A380 will be the first aircraft to consume less than three litres of fuel per passenger over 100 km, a rate comparable to an economical family car. While offering all the advantages of a completely new design, the A380 will have much in common with other Airbus aircraft. Therefore, pilots will be able to make the transition to the A380 from other Airbus family aircraft with minimal additional training.

Упражнение 9. Переведите текст без словаря.

Automation in the Research Process

Our goal should be automating the routine and thereby leave more time for the creative process.

With that word of caution, let's proceed by arbitrarily di­viding research into three stages and examining each stage to find what functions of the research process might be automated without endangering creativity. Stage one includes the dreams, the ideas, the exploratory work, selecting the problem, setting the objective, testing technical feasibility, and searching the literature. Stage two involves planning the experiment, conduct­ing the experiment, checking the alternates, data taking, and data evaluation. Stage three is the solution of the problem — drawing conclusions and making recommendations.

Although there is a great deal of creativity involved in stage one, there are also opportunities for automation. The burden of keeping up with the literature even in one's own restricted field is becoming heavier with each passing year. The mass of reading necessary to make a literature search has increased immensely. Advances in computer technology have made possible storing and quick retrieving essentially all the scientific literature.

Упражнение 10. Переведите текст без словаря.