3.
阅读理解
Humans have learnt many things from nature.
These things have helped us in our daily life. The latest thing is
self-repairing clothing.
Scientists have developed a special way for
clothing to repair rips and tears by itself, without the need for sewing. It
works with materials such as cotton, linen and wool. The scientists are from
the Naval Research Office and Pennsylvania State University in the USA. Scientists
Dr Walter Dressick and Dr Melik Demirel looked at how a squid can cling on to
things so well. The research team found a protein in the rings of teeth that cover
the suckers on a squid. The protein is similar to the one found in the
silk that spiders use to make spider webs. It is very strong and elastic.
The new protein has been developed as part
of a coating, which is put on clothes. When the coating is dipped in water, the
area around the rip or tear joins together in less than a minute. This could
help clothes last longer and save money for us. It could also be useful for
military and survival clothes. People like soldiers and mountaineers would be
safer if they had clothes that could be repaired quickly and easily. Professor
Demirel spoke about the invention. He said," The coatings are thin, less
than a micron, so they wouldn't be noticed in everyday wear." Then he
added, "Even thin, they increase the overall strength of the material. For
the first time, we are making self-healing textiles."