One of the world's richest men has taken a close
interest in one of man's most basic functions: visiting the toilet.Bill Gates's charitable organization, the Bill and
Melinda Gates Foundation, is looking for inventors to design the loo of the
future, which, they hope, would improve sanitation for millions of people
around the world.
So, what's wrong with the traditional flush toilet?
Firstly, it wastes a huge amount, of potential drinking water.Secondly, they are more likely to cause pollution.This is a real problem in many areas of the developing
world, where, according to United Nations estimates, unsafe sanitation causes
half of all hospitalizations.Younger people are
particularly at risk.Illnesses which cause diarrhea are
responsible for the deaths of about 1.5 million
children a year.Finally, standard lavatories simply aren't
practical in remote areas.
The challenge set by Bill Gates was to come up with a latrine
which works without running water, electricity or aseptic tank.It also needed to operate for less than 5 cents.28 designs were displayed at the recent Reinvent the
Toilet Fair.in Seattle, USA.Among them was one which turned human waste into
electricity using microwaves, another which converted human waste into
charcoal, and yet another which used urine for flushing.
But the winner was a solar-powered design which
generated hydrogen gas and electricity.The team from
the California Institute of Technology(CIT)picked up a prize of $ 100,000.
But clearly Bill Gates doesn't feel he's flushing
money down the toilet.After the Seattle event he said, "We,
couldn't be happier with the response we've gotten," Gates has even
pledged $370 million more to the future toilet project.They hope to field test more, prototypes over the next
three years.
1.Why is Bill Gates paying people to invent new
toilets?
A.Because he wants to test
people's sense of creativity.
B.Because he thinks the
traditional ones are out of fashion
C.Because he wants to
improve sanitation for many people.
D.Because he can't design
this kind of things himself.
2.Which of the following is NOT a problem with the
traditional flush toilet?
A.They are too complicated
to use. B.They waste too much water
C.They might cause diseases. D.They are not always practical.
3.The underlined word "latrine" in the third
paragraph might have similar meanings to the word "__
" in the text.
A.sanitation
B.loo C.diarrhea D.prototype
4.The team from CIT won the prize because their design
.
A.can change human waste
into electricity
B.can turn human waste into
charcoal
C.can use urine for
flushing
D.can produce power with
solar energy
5.If someone "flush money down the toilet",
they are .
A.wasting money for nothing
B.being angry with their
work conditions
C.showing—off their wealth
D.expressing their great
determination