今天前程百利小编为大家分享的是托福听力的背景学习。备考托福听力就要把听力文本吃透分析彻底。这样不仅能积累背景材料，还能把听力的专业词汇积累起来一块背诵，为托福听力打下坚实的基础。下面跟小编一起看一下拐杖有何神奇之处?
High-tech sticks could help visually impaired people spot obstacles and even identify acquaintances as they approach.
Foldable white canes help the visually impaired navigate their surroundings. But the guide stick’s tactile nature offers only so much information. The cane’s user must manually find and avoid obstructions. But new high-tech canes are on the horizon.
Last year researchers in India tried to fill in some of the missing info with their experimental SmartCane. The device uses an attached ultrasonic transmitter and a sensor that vibrates the cane to warn its users when an obstacle is within three meters.
Students at the U.K.’s Birmingham City University are developing a cane that can even identify acquaintances as they approach. Called the ‘XploR’ mobility cane, it includes an embedded digital camera that analyzes the faces of people walking by and compares their images against a database stored on a memory card in the cane’s handle.
If there’s a facial recognition match, the cane alerts the user’s smartphone via Bluetooth. The phone then identifies the approaching person to the user via its speaker or earbuds. The students are building a prototype they’ll test later this year.
The hurdles are significant: facial recognition is a tough problem, especially outdoors. But if the XploR works, it could actually give the visually impaired a leg up on everyone else—especially those of us who never remember people’s names.
疑难词汇：
Visually adv. 形象化地;外表上;看得见地
Canes n. 手杖;藤条(cane的复数);魔杖v. 用藤条编制;以杖击
Manually adv. 手动地;用手
Experimental adj. 实验的;根据实验的;试验性的
Ultrasonic adj. [声] 超声的;超音速的n. 超声波
Vibrate vi. 振动;颤动;摇摆;踌躇vt. 使振动;使颤动
Smartphone n. 智能手机
Earbud n. 耳塞
Prototype n. 原型;标准，模范
Hurdle n. 障碍;栏;跳栏vt. 克服vi. 克服;跳过
长难句解析：
1. If there’s a facial recognition match, the cane alerts the user’s smartphone via Bluetooth.
难句类型：
If引导的条件状语从句
句子主干：
the cane alerts the user’s smartphone
难句拆分：
If there’s a facial recognition match, If引导的条件状语从句。
2. Students at the U.K.’s Birmingham City University are developing a cane that can even identify acquaintances as they approach.
难句类型：
That引导的定语从句
句子主干：
Students are developing a cane
难句拆分：
a cane that can even identify acquaintances as they approach，that引导的定语从句作修饰a cane。
文本结构特点：
本篇文章主要讲的是高科技的拐杖可以识别熟人和发现障碍。智能手杖由通信技术专业的几名学生制作，它不仅能探路，还能识别人脸。它和盲人经常使用的拐杖并无区别，就是一根长长的棍子，却有导盲犬一样的敏锐“嗅觉”。
好了，以上就是前程百利小编为大家整理的备考托福听力背景材料以及专业词汇的学习。大家学会了吗?希望能在备考托福的路上助大家一臂之力。预祝大家取得好成绩。
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