Wendy sees Tony fretting over his personal CD player.

　　T:This cursed CD player! The batteries are running out again.

　　W:Don't you have any more?

　　T:Yeah, but that's not the point. It's costing me a fortune to run this thing all day.

　　W:Well, maybe that's the problem: You shouldn't use batteries continuously. We covered this in physics, remember?

　　T:What? But everyone knows that if you use battery-powered devices intermittently they use more energy.

　　W:Everyone thinks that, but, as a matter of fact, with batteries, it's better to give them a break occasionally.

　　T:But how come? It doesn't make sense.

　　W:Inside a battery are two liquid substances. Power is produced when these two react. But they actually move from one side to another while they're reacting.

　　T:Oh, yeah! What you're saying does ring a bell. That chemical reaction is greater when the substances are in their original positions, right?

　　W:You got it! So a rest period gives the ingredients a chance to equalize.

　　T:And if the liquids go back toswheresthey're supposed to be, then the battery can produce more power; is that it?

　　W:Precisely. You're a genius.

　　T:Off and on, I am.

　　W: And more power to you because of it!

　　---by Sean McCormack




多赐你一些能量 正确使用电池
　　温迪看见托尼正在为他的个人CD随身听而烦恼。

　　托尼：这个该死的CD随身听！又没电了！

　　温迪：你没有别的电池了吗？

　　托尼：有啊，但那不是重点。整天听这玩意真花钱。

　　温迪：嗯，或许那就是问题所在：你不应该连续使用电池的。我们在物理课上学过，记得吗？

　　托尼：什么？但是大家都知道，如果我们间歇性地使用电动装置，会消耗更多能量。

　　温迪：每个人都这样想，但事实上，就电池来说，偶尔让它休息一下比较好。

　　托尼：为什么？没有道理啊！

　　温迪：电池内有两种液态物质，两种物质起化学反应时，就会产生电力。但是它们起化学反应时，其实是从一端流到另一端的。

　　托尼：噢，对！你说的倒提醒了我；物质在它们原始位置时的化学反应是最大的，对吗？

　　温迪：没错。所以暂停供电时段就给这些成分一个均衡的机会。

　　托尼：所以如果这些液态物质回流到它们应该处的位置，电池就能够产生更大的电力了，对吗？

　　温迪：完全正确。你真是个天才！

　　托尼：时不时吧。

　　温迪：既然这样，就多赐你一些能量吧！