2020-2021学年度第16期总第815期
Diving into the scents of history (P6)
山东省烟台第二中学 赵霞

Lead in
Question:
What would you do if you wanted to get a glimpse into the past?

You would probably read some history books to get a better understanding of the past.

Maybe you would go to history museums to see some things that could help you better understand the past.

Maybe you would watch some history movies to get to know the past.

Have you ever tried other ways to learn about history? Read the title of the passage and guess the main idea.

Read for main idea
What is the main idea of the article?
It tells us that a new project called Odeuropa will use artificial intelligence (AI) to recreate the aromas that were common in people’s daily life in Europe between the 16th and early 20th centuries and how the project will be carried out.

Read for detailed information
Read the passage again and answer the following questions.

1. How many years will it take to complete the project?
  The project will start in January 2021 and take three years to complete.

2. How do they carry out the project by developing AI?
   The first step of the project is to develop AI to screen and identify historical texts in seven languages for descriptions of odors – not only straight-forward narratives, but also emotions and places associated with certain scents. The AI technique will also be adopted to scan paintings for objects that would have had a smell.

3. What is a key part of the project?
   A key part of the project is to highlight how the meanings and uses of different smells have changed over time.

4. What does the research team hope the project will accomplish?
   The research team hopes in the future, visitors will be able to experience the smells from the past in museums or other heritage sites.
Read for language and grammar
1. Useful sentences
   The first step of the project is to develop AI to screen and identify historical texts in seven languages for descriptions of odors.
  动词不定式作表语
  该项目的第一步是开发人工智能来筛选和识别七种语言中描述气味的历史文本。

   A key part of the project is to highlight how the meanings and uses of different smells have changed over time.
  动词不定式作表语
  该项目的一个关键部分是强调不同气味的意义和用途是如何随着时间而改变的。

2. Useful words and expressions
短暂的感受，一瞥                glimpse
让你闻到历史                    allow you to smell history
与……有关                        be associated with
一心投入                        dive into
随时间而变化                    change over time
对……有真正的影响            have a real impact on
Read for thinking
   According to what we have talked about, how do you think we can best learn about history?