【改编】Robots industry is developing so rapidly that there is no denying that we may one day find ourselves surrounded by robots.
The humanoid (human like) robots with two legs such as Honda Motor Co. Ltd’s ASIMO would likely have an easier time climbing up stairs inside homes than a robot that moves on wheels, developers say.
But it will be some time before such devices make their way into people’s homes.
“They may look smart, but they are still quite stupid,” Shimoyama said. “I don’t think they will ever be as smart as humans.”
While safety is an obvious concern, robots also need to be sensitive to people’s needs.
Researchers at Fujitsu Frontech Ltd and Fujitsu Laboratories responsible for developing “Enon”, a guide and patrol (巡逻) robot designed for use in shopping malls and corporate facilities (公共场所), are working on this.
Enon, which has a humanoid upper body but no legs, is equipped with a touch screen on its chest and space in its stomach to carry loads weighting up to 10 kg.
In guide mode, it will check a newcomer and approach the person with a nod and a greeting: “Are you a visitor? Hello.”
Visitors requiring directions can point to icons (图标) displayed on Enon’s chest screen. If the restroom icon is pressed, the screen will display a map that shows the way.
The robot will then face and point in the direction of the restroom, although it won’t actually walk the visitor there.
Enon is now in use at four locations in Japan, including a shopping mall near Tokyo. The main goal is to make it more helpful for the elderly.
“People who work in the transportation sector often ask whether we can build a robot that will find elderly people who look lost in train stations, and ask them if they are all right,” said Toshihido Marita, director of Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd’s autonomous system laboratory. “Actually that is hard to do, very hard,” he said.From the passage we can know____.
| A．robots will replace human one day |
| B．robots are difficult to control |
| C．robots can do whatever humans do |
| D．robots will be widely used in our life. |
According to Shimoyama, robots are ____?
| A．safe. | B．friendly. |
| C．stupid. | D．kind-hearted. |
What can “Enon” do?
| A．Show you to the toilet. |
| B．Show you around the market. |
| C．Tell newcomers or tourists direction. |
| D．Help shop assistants. |
What is the people’s concern about robots?
| A．Safety. | B．Appearance. |
| C．Weight. | D．Disadvantages |
What can be the best title of the passage?
| A．The disadvantages of robots. |
| B．The development and use of robots. |
| C．The benefits that robots brings. |
| D．The history of robots. |
A teenager realized her dream of becoming a professional model three years after a serious car accident.
Marita Davies was on her way home from a party when the crash happened. The car that Marita took as a passenger was going the wrong way and crashed into another car driven by a drunken driver named David Hudson, which left her with a broken leg and back. It took the firefighters more than two hours to free the teenager from the damaged car before she was taken to hospital. Marita was in a wheelchair for a year after being bed-ridden for nine months.
Marita feared her dream of a modeling career was over. She said, “I was extremely upset and shocked when I knew about my terrible injuries. I thought my dream of becoming a model was over. My leg and back were broken. The crash had broken my confidence and I became quiet and spent less time with other people. I was 16, and at that age all I wanted to do was to go out with my friends.”
But as her health took a turn for the better, Marita finally came out of the wheelchair and learned to walk. She decided she would still try to follow her dreams, and sent some photos off to some modeling agencies. She did a few unpaid jobs while studying at college. Soon, paid commercial modeling jobs started coming in. Marita was a bit doubtful at first, because the crash had left her with huge scars on her leg and back. She was worried that people wouldn’t want her to model for them, but this didn’t stop her.
Marita had done amazingly well to overcome everything that had been thrown at her in the three years. Finally, Marita became a professional model in 2013. She was signed up for advertising campaigns and appeared in TV ads. When did the accident happen?
| A．In 2008. | B．In 2009. |
| C．In 2010. | D．In 2011. |
Who should be to blame for the accident?
| A．Marita Davies. |
| B．David Hudson. |
| C．The driver of the car that Marita took. |
| D．Both of the drivers involved in the accident. |
How did Marita feel when modeling jobs became available to her?
| A．Lucky. | B．Satisfied. |
| C．Surprised. | D．Unconfident. |
The passage is intended to ______.
| A．prove modeling is a promising career. |
| B．warn people not to drive after drinking |
| C．suggest having a dream is a good thing |
| D．praise Marita’s spirits to overcome difficulties |
You cannot find a better way to enjoy Scottish traditions than going fishing and tasting a little bit of whisky(威士忌)at a quiet place like the Inverlochy Castle. When Queen Victoria visited the castle in 1873, she wrote in her diary, “I never saw a lovelier spot ,” And she didn’t even go fishing.
Scotland is not easily defined. In certain moments, this quiet land of lakes and grasses and mountains changes before your very eyes. When evening gently sweeps the hillside into orange light ,the rivers, teeming with fish, can turn into streams of gold . As you settle down with just a fishing pole and a basket on the bank of River Orchy, near the Inverlochy castle , any frustration will float away as gently as the circling water. It’s just you and purple , pink ,white flowers, seeking a perfect harmony . If you are a new comer to fishing, learning the basics from a fishing guide may leave you with a lifetime’s fun. For many, fishing is more than a sport, it is an art.
Scotland offers interesting place where you can rest after a long day’s fishing. Set against a wild mountain and hidden behind woodland , the beautiful Inverlochy Castle Hotel below the Nevis is a perfect place to see the beauty of Scotland’s mountains . Ben Nevis is the highest of all British mountains , and reaching its 1342-metre top is a challenge . But it’s not just what goes up that matters; what comes down is unique . More than 900 metres high, on the mountain’s north face, lies an all-important source of pure water. Its name comes form the Gaelic (盖尔特) language “usqueb” or “water of life”, and it is the single most important ingredient(原料) in Scotland’s best-known drink: whisky.Queen Victoria’s story wants to tell us that _____.
| A．the Queen is rich in tour experience |
| B．tasting whisky is better than going fishing |
| C．the Castle is a good place to go in Scotland |
| D．1873 is a special year for the Queen |
How is Paragraph 2 mainly written?
| A．By making comparisons. |
| B．By following time order. |
| C．By analyzing causes. |
| D．By giving descriptions. |
What makes Ben Nevis special ?
| A．The water from the mountain. |
| B．The beauty of its surroundings. |
| C．The Inverlochy Castle Hotel. |
| D．The challenge up to its top. |
What is the main purpose of the passage?
| A．To introduce Scottish traditions to tourists. |
| B．To show the attractions of Scotland to readers. |
| C．To explore geographical characteristics of Scotland. |
| D．To describe the pleasures of life in Scotland. |
Are some people born clever, and others born stupid? Or is intelligence developed by our environment and our experience? Strangely enough, the answer to these questions is yes. To some extent our intelligence is given to us at birth, and no amount of special education can make a genius out of a child born with low intelligence. On the other hand, a child who lives in a boring environment will develop his intelligence less than one who lives in rich and varied surroundings. Thus the limits of person’s intelligence are fixed at birth, but whether or not he reaches those limits will depend on his environment. This view, now held by most experts, can be supported in a number of ways.
It is easy to show that intelligence is to some extent something we are born with. The closer the blood relationship between two people, the closer they are likely to be intelligence. Thus if we take two unrelated people at random from population, it is likely that their degree of intelligence will be completely different. If on the other hand we take two identical twins, they will very probably be as intelligent as each other. Relations like brothers and sisters, parents and children, usually have similar intelligence, and this clearly suggests that intelligence depends on birth.
Imagine now that we take two identical twins and put them in different environments. We might send one, for example, to a university and the other to a factory where the work is boring. We would soon find differences in intelligence developing, and this indicates that environment as well as birth plays a part. This conclusion is also suggested by the fact that people who live in close contact with each other, but who are not related at all are likely to have similar degrees of intelligence.Which of these sentences best describes the writer’s point in Paragraph 1?
| A．To some extent, intelligence is given at birth. |
| B．Intelligence is developed by the environment. |
| C．Some people are born clever and others born stupid. |
| D．Intelligence is fixed at birth, but is developed by the environment. |
It is suggested in this passage that ________ .
| A．close relation usually have similar intelligence |
| B．unrelated people are not likely to have different intelligence |
| C．the closer the blood relationship between people, the more different they are likely to be in intelligence |
| D．people who live in close contact with each other are not likely to have similar degrees of intelligence |
The phrase “ at random” (Line 3, Para.2) means ________ .
| A．purposely | B．rationally |
| C．aimlessly | D．independently |
The best title for this article would be ________ .
| A．What Does Intelligence Mean? |
| B．On Intelligence |
| C．We are Born with Intelligence |
| D．Environment Plays a Part in Developing Intelligence |
A lady named Mary from California flew to Japan, in her favourite jeans and a casual jacket, to give her first speech. Fourteen hours later, four perfectly dressed Japanese gentlemen greeted her at the airport. Smiling and bowing low, they handed her their business cards. With her bag in one hand, Mary took their cards with the other. She thanked them, glanced briefly at the cards, and put them into her jeans pocket quickly.
When the five of them arrived at the hotel, they invited Mary to tea in the lobby (大厅). While sipping tea, the gentlemen presented her with a small gift which she eagerly opened. She was thrilled with the gift and shouted excitedly, “Oh, it's beautiful！”
At this point, the four Japanese gentlemen stood up and, bowing only very slightly, said “Sayonara” and left immediately. Poor Mary was left astonished. What did she do wrong?
Everything! Her jeans were the first gaffe. Even if you're coming off a bicycle in Japan, you do not meet clients (客人) casually dressed. The second mistake was Mary's handling of their business cards rudely. In Japan, the business card is one of the most important communicative tools. It is always presented and accepted respectfully with both hands. However, Mary put their cards away much too quickly. In Japan, people use business cards as a conversation starter. You chat about each other's cards and work and do not put theirs away until they gently and respectfully place yours in safe keeping. Putting it carelessly into her jeans pocket was the ultimate disrespect.
Then, the fourth horror of horrors was that Mary should not have opened the gift in front of her clients. In a land where saving face is critical, it would be embarrassing to discover the gift they gave was not as nice as the one they received. What is worse, Mary hadn't even given them a gift!Why did the four Japanese gentlemen leave Mary suddenly?
| A．Because they had finished the task. |
| B．Because Mary had something more important to do. |
| C．Because they couldn't bear Mary 's behavior any longer. |
| D．Because Mary felt embarrassed. |
What does the underlined word “gaffe” in Paragraph 4 probably mean?
| A．ignorance | B．carelessness |
| C．sadness | D．mistake |
The third mistake Mary made was that she ________.
| A．kept her clients' cards in a wrong place |
| B．took her clients' cards with one hand |
| C．met her clients in jeans |
| D．used her own card as a conversation starter |
What lesson can we draw from this story?
| A．Think twice before you take any action. |
| B．When in Rome, do as the Romans do. |
| C．To save time is to lengthen life. |
| D．One false move may lose the game. |
If you are interested to find a part-time job or learn something different during your spare time, you can have a look at the following jobs offered by the DC Public Library.
Teens of Distinction Program
The DC Public Library offers part-time jobs for teens through the Teens of Distinction Program. Teens work 10-12 hours per week all year long, helping the library with important tasks and projects. The Teens of Distinction Program is now hiring! To apply, you have to：
● be a DC resident
● have and maintain at least a 2.5 grade point average
● be 16 to 18 years old
● be able to work 10-12 hours per week
● be able to work for DCPL for at least 9 months
Oh, and of course you have to impress us with your wonderful personality!
Teen Volunteer Opportunities
If you want to earn community service hours for school, Youth202 is a good choice.
Youth202 is a radio program created by youth and for youth. You can learn radio production skills, interview people around you, and help keep other teens to learn news, events, and anything else you think is important.
Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP)
Every summer, teens can work here to help library customers organize books and learn lots of new skills, such as program planning, writing and media production.
On Friday, January 25 at 12:15 pm, the application for the 2014 SYEP will be open to teens between the ages of 14 and 21.
Applications will be processed on a firstcome, firstserved basis. Space is limited this year, so teens are encouraged to apply early, and remember not to miss the deadline, Saturday, February 16.Working for the Teens of Distinction Program, teenagers will ________．
①become a DC resident
②work 10-12 hours per week
③work for DCPL for at least 9 months
④have a wonderful personality
| A．③④ | B．②③ | C．①②③ | D．①③④ |
Who has the biggest chance to work for the 2014 SYEP?
| A．A teenager who applies early. |
| B．A teenager who is popular. |
| C．A teenager who is smart. |
| D．A teenager who gets high grades in exams. |
The aim of text is to ________．
| A．introduce the DC Public Library |
| B．describe the job of library workers |
| C．offer teenager part-time jobs in the DC Public Library |
| D．teach how to apply for part-time jobs |
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