新编六级听力练习 第227期

Passage One
[26]The American patent system, provided for in the Constitution, was designed to encourage the creation and use of new technology. An inventor would describe an invention, both in writing and with drawings, and submit the description with a model to a government official. This was a big improvement from the past when patents were submitted directly to the Secretary of State! Now, if the invention was judged to be new and useful, the official would give the inventor a patent. The patent meant that for 14 years, later changed to 17 years, the inventor owned the new invention. Inventors could license their ideas to manufacturers or just use them themselves. [27]The government would not issue any other patent for the same idea, and the inventor could sue anyone who used the patented idea without paying the owner of the patent for permission to use it! A useful patent meant that the inventor could make a lot of money. In exchange for this governmental protection, the government published the patent specifications, which provide enough information so that other people could understand the invention-thus adding to the general available technological knowledge. [28]And at the end of the 14 years, anyone could use the invention for free. [29]The idea behind the patent system was twofold: it would increase the amount of technology, by providing a way for people to make money out of new ideas, and it would make new technology widely available, by publicizing ideas that might otherwise be kept as trade secrets.

答案解析：
26. What is the speaker mainly talking about?
[A]解析：短文谈的内容是美国的专利体系的产生和运作，故选A。A项统领其他各项，主旨题的答案通常就是这类具有总包孕作用的选项。
27. What could the inventor do if the idea was used by someone without paying money?
[B]解析：短文谈到，任何人不付钱就使用某种专利，该专利的发明者可以起诉他，故选B。
28. What could the owner of the patent do to protect his patent after 14 years?
[D]解析：短文谈到，专利权有效期为14年，有效期过后任何人都可以免费使用这项专利，故选D。
29. How did the patent system increase the amount of technology?
[D]解析：题目问“专利体系是怎样增加科技量的？”短文直接用by...引述说明情况。D项符合“听到什么选什么”原则。