Eight hundred years ago,a man in southern Turkey invented an amazing clock.It was more than 7 meters high.At is base(基座)was a life﹣size model elephant.Every half hour,something amazing happened.The whole clock came alive Model birds,dragons,and people started to move.
The clock's inventor was an engineer named al﹣Jazari He lived in Turkey.Al﹣Jazari was probably one of the greatest engineers in history.Some historians call him "the father of modern﹣day engineering. "
We know about al﹣Jazari mostly from a book that he wrote.____They include clocks and hand﹣washing machines.The book also has drawings that show how each machine works.
Many everyday things today﹣from toys to car engines(发动机)一still use al﹣Jazari's ideas.Without his machines with moving parts,we might no have modern﹣day robots.
Today,it is still possible to see what al﹣Jazari's elephant cock looked like.A full﹣size working mode is in Dubai's Ibn Battuta Mal.There,every half hour,al﹣Jazari's most amazing invention comes to life once again.
How Does the Elephant Clock Work?
A bowl with a small hole floats(浮)in a water tank(水箱)inside the elephant's body.As the bowl slowly sinks(下沉),it pulls a rope that moves a human figure.His moving pen shows the number of minutes past he hour.
Every half hour,the water bowl becomes full and sinks completely. This causes a ball to fall from the top of the clock.The movement of the ball causes a phoenix to move and make a sound.
The ball then drops out of a falcon's mouth into the mouth of a Chinese dragon.The weight of the ball causes the dragon's head to move down and the dragon's tail pulls the water bowl back up.
Finally,the ball drops out of the dragon's mouth and into a vase.As the ball lands in the vase,the elephant driver moves and makes a sound.The cycle begins again until there are no more ball in the top of the clock.
a.The ball drops into the vase.
b.The ball drops into the dragon's mouth.
C.The elephant driver moves and makes a sound.
d.After 30 minutes,a ball starts to fall from the top.
e.The bowl moves down in the water and pulls on ropes.