The Electrification of the Pioneer Underground Railway in London

(1) In the 1890's the pioneer steam-operated Metropol­itan Line in London began to lose its importance due to the competition of the newly built electric tube railways. So it was a vital need for the Metropolitan to introduce electric haulage.

(2) To show the valuable benefits of the electric rolling stock for this line it was decided to test a m-u train. In the course of the experimental runs the train demonstrat­ed its ability to eliminate air pollution. Besides, it could accelerate rapidly and thus proved more advantageous as regards speeds. The next step to be taken was to choose a power supply system. Most engineers spoke in favour of the low voltage d.c. to be fed to the trains through the conductor rail.

(3) The electrification of the Metropolitan Line complet­ed, multiple-unit trains composed of well-lit saloon cars (вагон-салон) were brought into use. In spite of the costly reconstruction work, electric haulage made it possible for the Metropolitan Line to win back its passengers.

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Internal Combustion Engines

(1) Not many people know the early internal combustion engines to have run on coal gas (каменноугольный газ). As these engines burnt gas, they had to be located near a gas-making plant and we may suppose all of them to have been stationary engines.

(2) When oil had been found in many parts of the world, an engine was designed that was capable of burning liquid fuel obtained from this new substance. Very soon the internal combustion engines became portable power plants, efficient and compact.

(3) There are different kinds of internal combustion en­gines. Not long ago the gasoline engine was the most com­mon type used in spite of its serious drawbacks. The engineers consider the high cost of gasoline to be its chief disadvantage. However, it is probably the high cost of gasoline that has encouraged the construction of diesel engines.

(4) We know the diesel engine to be largely used for heavy duties including railway traction. R. Diesel himself expected his engine to find application on railways as one of the principal kinds of motive power.

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The Underground in Rome

The project for the underground line in Rome was first proposed in 1881, but it was only in 1938 that the con­struction of this railway was initiated. This line was to become an important artery of the capital running, from _f the Termini, Rome's main railway station, to the "site of" a great exhibition which was to be held in 1942. But the exhibition was not held because of the war, and the con­struction of the line was stopped until 1946.

While building the railway the workers encountered many difficulties including different structure of the subsoil. So at some places the line had to be laid as much as 54 ft deep.

It is not a well-known fact that the builders found ancient ruins and statues when they were constructing the underground tunnels. The statues and mosaics discovered were removed, and nowadays they are to be seen at the Termini station.

When completed in 1955, the line was called the Metropolitana. It had ten stations. Electric trains usually composed of two cars were used. But as one of the problems was to handle traffic at peak hours, it was decided to operate seven-coach trains in busy periods.

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(1) One may say that the electronic computer is one of the most remarkable achievements of the twentieth century. It is a machine which can make long mathemat­ical calculations and can store (хранить) and select infor­mation put into it. And it can do this work quickly and efficiently.

(2) But the electronic computers which are now in use are too (слишком) big and too slow. So scientists are work­ing hard to improve the existing machines and develop the new ones faster and more efficient than those we use today.

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