(AFA - 2023)
Directions: Read Text VI and answer questions 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16 accordingly.
TEXT VI
| Elon Musk, the CEO of SpaceX and Tesla, caused | |
| something of a stir at the annual Air Force Association’s | |
| Air Warfare Symposium in Orlando, Florida. During an | |
| informal ‘fireside chat’ with Lt. Gen. John Thompson of | |
| 5 | Space Command on Friday, Musk told a room packed |
| with fighter pilots that “the fighter jet era has passed”. | |
| Now, Musk is renowned for finding soundbites for the | |
| media to hook onto, and also of causing calculated | |
| disruption in his target audience, but even by his | |
| 10 | standards this is a well-baited line. What makes this such |
| a bold and controversial statement? | |
| The contemporary battlefield is far more networked, | |
| complex, congested and lethal – it’s those that adapt that | |
| will survive. Simply being ‘a good stick’ will rapidly no | |
| 15 | longer cut it in the hostile skies of the future. |
| Musk’s main thrust is, however, that the human in | |
| the cockpit is the limiting factor in air combat now, not the | |
| advantage. | |
| Firstly, humans are awkward for aircraft designers to | |
| 20 | accommodate. In a modern fighter the pilot sits on an |
| ejection seat for emergency escape, needs an oxygen | |
| supply and air-conditioning to function at extremes of | |
| temperature and altitude, and requires flight controls and | |
| instruments to fly and fight the machine. All of these add | |
| 25 | a significant amount of weight and cost into the aircraft. |
| Moreover, having a transparent canopy to permit the crew | |
| to see out does little to improve signature management1 | |
| as radar cross section and the chances of reflected sun | |
| glint all increase. The human also adds more weight, | |
| 30 | especially when encumbered with flight kit such as |
| helmet, NVGs, g-suit and flight planning and survival | |
| equipment. Traditionally, pilots sit toward the front of the | |
| aircraft to afford them the best view for take-off and | |
| landing, as well as air combat. This has implications on | |
| 35 | aerodynamics, stealth1 design and weight distribution |
| factors. In short, it can make the designers life a lot | |
| simpler if the pilot/crew are not in the aircraft. |
(Extracted from https://www.forbes.com/. Accessed on March 03, 2022.)
Vocabulary:
1. Signature management and stealth: both terms refer to technology that reduces the likelihood of personnel, aircrafts, missiles, etc. being detected.
According to the text, it’s eminent that Elon Musk
improvises his speeches to entertain his listeners.
presents pieces of information to make the news.
plans what to say to keep the public heedful.
disapproves of being in the spotlight.
Gabarito:
presents pieces of information to make the news.
a) Alternativa incorreta. É possível ler, no texto, que "Musk is renowned for [...] causing calculated disruption in his target audience [...]".
b) Alternativa correta. É possível ler, no texto, que "Now, Musk is renowned for finding soundbites for the media to hook onto [...]".
c) Alternativa incorreta. Segundo o texto, Elon Musk provoca sua audiência, logo, ele a trata de maneira cautelosa.
d) Alternativa incorreta. Segundo os comportamentos citados no texto, pode-se inferir que ele gosta, sim, de estar sob os holofotes, e por isso causa discordância.