英語翻譯
第一篇
Numbers:Everyone's language.How many languages do you know?Everyone knows at least two his or her own language and the international language of numbers.Ancient numbers In ancient times,people wrote numbers in many different ways,as these pictures of the number 6 show.However,they nearly all counted in the same way--in tens.Zero The system of numbers that nearly everyone uses today consists of the numbers from 1 to 9 and 0 (zero).With these ten numbers we can write any number from the biggest to the smallest.The Indians first invented and developed the 1 to 9 system of numbers.They then invented the zero.This was a very important invention because it made it easier to write big numbers and to calculate.Calculating machines One of the first calculating machines was an abacus.Abacuses are so fast and accurate that people still use them today.On the abacus in the picture,the beads on the wires represent ones,tens,hundreds and thousands starting from the bottom wire.The picture on the right shows a modern electronic calculator.It can add,subtract,multiply and divide.It can also calculate percentages and square roots.This picture shows a computer.Computers are very powerful calculating machines.In a flash,a computer can do a calculation that you could not do in your whole lifetime Brain against computer Some people call the brain a living computer.Is a human brain a more powerful calculator than a computer?The following story may give an answer.Shakuntala Devi is a lady from India with an amazing brain.She can calculate like lightning.In America,Shakuntala and a very powerful computer were given this problem to solve.Shakuntala's brain took fifty seconds to find the answer.The computer took a minute.However,before the computer could begin calculating,someone had to program it with instructions,and that took many hours.No one had to program Shakuntala!Use your own living computer to solve the problem above.If it is not powerful enough,you will find the answer on page 59