VOA标准英语2012--Remembering Remote Control Inventor Gene Polley

 

Remembering Remote Control Inventor Gene¹ Polley

Whenever someone leaves the earth having changed it, we like to make note of it.

Not just the famous or notorious, but also obscure people who dreamed up something memorable² or useful in our everyday lives.

So we’ve told you about those who brought us the TV dinner, the hula hoop³, and that shocking-orange color called “Day-Glo.”

Recently we lost Eugene Polley of Downers Grove⁴, Illinois, at age 96. He invented the Flash-Matic. That may not ring a bell until we tell you that this device, which looked like a combination hair dryer⁵ and ray gun, was the first really useful TV remote control.

Although they didn’t know his name, Eugene Polley became a hero to sedentary souls we call “couch potatoes,” and a villain⁶ to those who are fighting America’s obesity⁷ epidemic⁸.

Polley started as a stock boy at the Zenith Electric Company in Chicago during the Great Depression of the 1930s. But he had a way with gadgets⁹. He studied engineering and eventually helped Zenith develop bomb fuses, push-button radios, and video disks.

But the Flash-Matic was his crowning achievement, which Zenith introduced in 1955. For it, the company gave him a $1,000 bonus - and kept the patent and profits for itself.

The Flash-Matic was not the first hand-held control that could change TV channels and volume. But earlier models were tethered to the set by a cord, over which owners often tripped and on which family dogs sometimes chewed.

The Associated Press reported that the Flash-Matic performed “TV miracles” while being “absolutely harmless to humans.” This was noted¹⁰ because kids playing spacemen were running around America at the time, zapping each other with toy ray guns. 

The man known as “the father of the remote control” told the Baltimore Sun newspaper in 2000, “It makes me think maybe my life wasn’t wasted. Maybe I did something for humanity, like the guy who invented the flush toilet.”

At Eugene Polley’s passing, Sean O’Neal, a writer on the A.V. Club Web site, suggested a moment of silence in gratitude¹¹. To do that, he thought television viewers should punch “mute” on their remotes.

1 gene   

n.遗传因子，基因

参考例句：

• A single gene may have many effects.单一基因可能具有很多种效应。
• The targeting of gene therapy has been paid close attention.其中基因治疗的靶向性是值得密切关注的问题之一。

2 memorable   

adj.值得回忆的，难忘的，特别的，显著的

参考例句：

• This was indeed the most memorable day of my life.这的确是我一生中最值得怀念的日子。
• The veteran soldier has fought many memorable battles.这个老兵参加过许多难忘的战斗。

3 hoop   

n.（篮球）篮圈，篮

参考例句：

• The child was rolling a hoop.那个孩子在滚铁环。
• The wooden tub is fitted with the iron hoop.木盆都用铁箍箍紧。

4 grove   

n.林子，小树林，园林

参考例句：

• On top of the hill was a grove of tall trees.山顶上一片高大的树林。
• The scent of lemons filled the grove.柠檬香味充满了小树林。

5 dryer   

n.干衣机，干燥剂

参考例句：

• He bought a dryer yesterday.他昨天买了一台干燥机。
• There is a washer and a dryer in the basement.地下室里有洗衣机和烘干机。

6 villain   

n.反派演员，反面人物；恶棍；问题的起因

参考例句：

• He was cast as the villain in the play.他在戏里扮演反面角色。
• The man who played the villain acted very well.扮演恶棍的那个男演员演得很好。

7 obesity   

n.肥胖，肥大

参考例句：

• One effect of overeating may be obesity.吃得过多能导致肥胖。
• Sugar and fat can more easily lead to obesity than some other foods.糖和脂肪比其他食物更容易导致肥胖。

8 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

9 gadgets   

n.小机械，小器具（ gadget的名词复数 ）

参考例句：

• Certainly. The idea is not to have a house full of gadgets. 当然。设想是房屋不再充满小配件。 来自超越目标英语 第4册
• This meant more gadgets and more experiments. 这意味着要设计出更多的装置，做更多的实验。 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史

10 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

11 gratitude   

adj.感激，感谢

参考例句：

• I have expressed the depth of my gratitude to him.我向他表示了深切的谢意。
• She could not help her tears of gratitude rolling down her face.她感激的泪珠禁不住沿着面颊流了下来。