Designing and folding an effective paper airplane is a rite of passage for many school-aged children. If constructed properly, a good paper airplane can __1__ across an entire classroom. But can you imagine building one that could travel nearly the entire length of a football field? That is what three friends were able to __2__ when they broke the Guinness World Record for the longest-distance flight by a paper airplane.
Crafting a paper airplane does not necessarily require __3__ skills. Virtually anyone can build one with several folds of a crisp sheet of paper. However, it certainly doesn’t hurt to have an aerospace engineering background. In 2022, Boeing engineers Dillon Ruble and Garrett Jensen __4__ the challenge of breaking the then-record distance of slightly over 77 meters by rethinking how paper airplanes fly.
In pursuit of this goal, the two engineers and their friend Nathaniel Erickson __5__ hundreds of hours to the project. After many trials and prototypes, they came up with a design that they believed would do the trick. Using their __6__ in aerodynamics, they settled on a design that was quite different from anything you would likely use when you were in elementary school. In fact, far from requiring a few __7__ folds, their design takes more than 20 minutes to construct accurately. Rather than sailing in the way most paper airplanes do, their creative __8__ shoots through the air like a dart. Because of this, it requires brute force and a specific launch angle of 40 degrees to achieve the best results.
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On the day of their record-breaking attempt, it was Ruble who did the throwing. His technique __9__ that of an outfielder in baseball trying to throw out a runner at home plate. While his first two tries __10__ the record, he shattered it by more than 11 meters on the third try with an astonishing distance of just over 88 meters. Their achievement proves that even a humble childhood pastime can be taken to extraordinary heights with the right approach.
(A) simple (B) took up (C) glide (D) model (E) advanced
(F) accomplish (G) dedicated (H) expertise (I) fell short of (J) resembled
對許多學齡兒童來說，設計及摺一架效能好的紙飛機是必經之路。一架好的紙飛機如果打造得恰當，可以滑行過整間教室。但你能想像建造一架能夠飛行近一整個足球場長度的紙飛機嗎？那正是三位朋友在打破了紙飛機飛行最長距離的金氏世界紀錄時所實現的。
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製作紙飛機並不一定需要先進的技術。幾乎任何人都可以將一張平展的紙摺個幾摺來製作一架紙飛機。然而，具有航空太空工程背景當然也不是什麼壞事。在2022年，波音的工程師迪倫‧魯波和蓋瑞特‧簡森透過重新思考了紙飛機的飛行方式，接下了突破當時紀錄的挑戰，當時的紙飛機飛行距離略超過七十七公尺。
為了追求這個目標，這兩位工程師和他們的朋友納撒尼爾‧艾力克森奉獻了數百個小時在這個計畫上。經過多次試驗和原型，他們想出了一個設計，他們相信這個設計可以達到目的。他們利用在空氣動力學上的知識，選出的設計與你在小學時可能使用的截然不同。事實上，他們的設計需要的並不是簡單的幾摺而已，而是要花費二十多分鐘的時間來精準打造。他們創意十足的模型滑行方式和大多數的紙飛機不一樣，這個設計是像飛鏢一樣劃破空氣。因此，它需要極大的力量和四十度特定的發射角度才能達到最佳效果。
在打破紀錄的那天，是魯波負責投擲。他的技巧類似於棒球的外野手試圖讓跑者在本壘板前出局。雖然他前兩次嘗試未能達到紀錄，但在第三次嘗試中，他以超過八十八公尺一點點的驚人距離打破了紀錄，比原紀錄還多了十一公尺。他們的成就證明，即使是一個不起眼的童年娛樂活動，在正確方法下也能達到非凡的高度。
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答案：
1. C 2. F 3. E 4. B 5. G
6. H 7. A 8. D 9. J 10. I
Words in use
1. a rite of passage 成年禮（文中指「必經門檻」）
High school proms have been rites of passage for young Americans for nearly a century.
將近一世紀以來，高中舞會已經是年輕美國人的必經門檻了。
2. construct vt. 建造，構築
This bell tower was constructed in 1173.
這座鐘塔建於1173年。
3. craft vt. 用手工製作
Stephanie crafted these beautiful dolls with her own hands.
史黛芬妮用手工精心縫製出這些美麗的娃娃。
4. virtually adv. 幾乎，差不多
Virtually all of the students in our class have passed the test.
我們班上的學生幾乎都通過考試。
5. pursuit n. 追求，追尋
in pursuit of... 追求∕追尋……
Kathy is in pursuit of her dream of becoming the first female president.
凱西正在追尋她成為第一位女總統的夢想。
Practical Phrases
1. it doesn’t hurt to V 做……不會有壞處
It doesn’t hurt to take a break and recharge when you’re feeling overwhelmed.
在你感到疲憊不堪時，休息一下並重新充電不會有壞處的。
2. come up with... 想出……（方法、點子等）
I’ve come up with a plan that will save you hundreds of dollars a day.
我想出一個計畫，可以讓你一天省好幾百塊。
3. do the trick 管用，奏效
I’m sure the new marketing strategy will do the trick.
我相信這個新的行銷策略將會奏效。
4. settle on... 就……做出決定∕同意
After a long discussion, the couple finally settled on a location for their honeymoon.
在冗長的討論後，這對夫妻終於在度蜜月的地點上達成共識。
5. far from... 一點兒也不……
Don’t trust Albert. What he said is far from the truth.
不要相信艾伯特。他說的一點都不是事實。
聽文章朗讀及講解: https://ivy.pse.is/455bfu
本文出自常春藤解析英語雜誌: www.ivy.com.tw
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