Photo by © The Associated Press via
CBC
Pre-reading questions:
- Do you like using smartphones?
- What kind of smartphone applications do you usually use?
Vocabulary:
- app /ap/
[noun] abbreviation for application: software designed for a particular purpose that you can download onto a mobile device.
Ordering food online is made easier by using apps in smartphones.
- funnel /fuhn-l/
[noun] an object that has a wide round opening at the top, sloping sides, and a narrow tube at the bottom
We need to use a funnel in transferring the liquid into the bottle.
- wave /weyv/
[noun] the pattern in which some types of energy, such as sound, light, and heat, are spread or carried
The radio waves coming from the speakers are surrounding the room.
- pus /puhs/
[noun] thick, yellow liquid that forms in and comes out from infected body tissue
If you see pus, don’t remove it with your hands only.
- equipment /ih-kwip-muhnt/
[noun] the set of necessary tools, clothing, etc. for a particular purpose
Doctors are asking for the equipment used for the hearing tests.
Engineers and doctors from the University of Washington created the first app that can sound out ear infection in children with the use of a piece of paper folded into a funnel and put on a smartphone. The app works by playing birdlike chirps and the phone’s microphone will then record the sound waves bouncing off the eardrum. It analyzes the reflected sound from a healthy eardrum. If the sound received is changed, it means pus or uninfected fluid is present. Doctors who tried the app found out that the smartphone approach is as good as or can also be better than the hearing testing equipment. The university is still hoping for approval from the Food and Drugs Administration to sell the app.
True or False:
- Engineers and doctors from the University of Washington made the first app that detects ear infection.
- The app will play birdlike chirps and the phone’s microphone will then record the sound waves bouncing off the eardrum.
- If the reflected sound from the ear changed, it means there are no pus.
- Doctors said that the smartphone approach is not as good as the hearing testing devices.
- Food and Drugs Administration already approved the university to sell the app.
Vocabulary Check:
[noun] abbreviation for application: software designed for a particular purpose that you can download onto a mobile device.
Ordering food online is made easier by using apps in smartphones.
[noun] an object that has a wide round opening at the top, sloping sides, and a narrow tube at the bottom
We need to use a funnel in transferring the liquid into the bottle.
[noun] the pattern in which some types of energy, such as sound, light, and heat, are spread or carried
The radio waves coming from the speakers are surrounding the room.
[noun] thick, yellow liquid that forms in and comes out from infected body tissue
If you see pus, don’t remove it with your hands only.
[noun] the set of necessary tools, clothing, etc. for a particular purpose
Doctors are asking for the equipment used for the hearing tests.
Complete the sentences by using the words in the box.
| app | funnel | waves | pus | equipment |
- We need to clean our ears daily to avoid having _______.
- When making a paper hat, the first step is to fold the paper into a ______ .
- Science says that light ______ travel faster.
- Having an educational ______ in our smartphones makes learning easier and more convenient.
- Doctors use medical ______ to observe their patients’ health.