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1. SPEAKING Work in groups. Look a the photo above and the title. Guess the answers to the questions.
1. What is the large machine in the photo for?
2. When was the machine developed?
2. Read the text. Find out the answers to the questions in exercise 1.
VIRTUAL MUSEUMS
☊3.21 Virtual museums went back to the 1950s, when early experiments of virtual reality were carried out, one typical example being the "Sensorama" machines developed by an American inventor. In 1992, the Apple Computer Inc. released The Virtual Computer, a CD-ROM which displays some 3D-modelled scientific exhibits in an environment similar to a museum. The Virtual Computer has been considered the first digital virtual museum covering themes such as medicine, plant growth and space. Another well-known example was the "Guggenheim Virtual Museum" by Asymptote Architecture in I 999. When the Internet gained popularity and became more widespread in the 1990s. online virtual museums came into existence, including the Museum of Computer Art (USA) founded in 1993 and the WebMuseum, initially named WebLouvre, which was launched in 1994.
Most physical museums now offer virtual tours. These virtual museums provided endless education and entertainment opportunities to people around the world during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.
3. Put the events in the order they happened, according to the text.
a. The internet grew in popularity.
b. Early experiments of virtual reality were conducted.
c. WebLouvre was launched. (ebLouvre được mở.)
d. WebLouvre was renamed WebMuseum.
e. The Virtual Computer by the Apple Computer Inc. came out.
f. Online virtual museums emerged.
4. SPEAKING Work in pairs. Discuss the advantages of virtual musems.
5. ☊3.22 Listen to a talk about the benefits of virtual museums. Make a list of the main points. Compare it with your answers in exercise 4.
6. ☊3.22 Listen again. Are the sentences true or false? Write T or F.
1. The Museum of Flight presents the predictions about future aviation.
2. Virtual museums help preserve world heritages.
3. The Terracotta Warrriors and Horses Museum in China allows visitors to actually walk among the soldiers.
4. A visit to a virtual museum is only a form of entertainment.
5. Visitors can get to any virtual museums easily whenever they want to.
7. INTERNET RESEARCH Find out some facts about one of the virtual museums mentioned in exercise 5. Share your information with the class.
