A robot is a computer-controlled machine that is programmed to move and handle objects. Robots are able to perform repetitive tasks more quickly, cheaply, and accurately (精确的) than humans. In 1995, about 700,000 robots were used－including over 500,000 in Japan, about 120,000 in Western Europe, and about 60,000 in the United States－all in the industrialized world. Many robots applications are designed for tasks that are either dangerous or unpleasant for human beings. Now, robotic technology can be used in more and more fields. Experts say in the future robots will be able to make new highways, construct steel frameworks of buildings, clean sewage (污水系统), and such physical work. Besides, another possibility is the development of robotic technology in medical surgery operations.
Perhaps the greatest changes in future robots will improve from their increasing ability to reason. The field of artificial intelligence is moving rapidly from university labs to practical application in industry, and machines of a new kind of robots are being developed, which can perform something involved in the process of understanding and planning, such as the management of a battlefield. Even the control of a large factory will be performed by intelligent computers. And there might be a possibility that these computers can design and make robots of their own.
Is there anything dangerous involved in this artificial intelligence progress then? Robot technology has been making people nervous ever since it was invented. Is it unreasonable to worry that robots will someday become too clever? Is it impossible that these human-like robots will start to think and plan for themselves? Will robots take over the world and force humans to give them energy to survive?
1. In 1995, about 700,000 robots were working in _____________.
A. Japan B. the United States C. Western Europe D. the industrialized world
2.Which of the following do experts say robots won’t be able to do in the future?
A. Take care of roads. B. Be used as medicine.
C. Used as underground pipeline cleaner. D. Take up jobs of building construction.
3.What does the underlined word “which” in Paragraph 2 refer to?
A. Greatest changes in future robots. B. The field of artificial intelligence.
C. Machines of a new kind of robots. D. Practical application in industry.
4.What can we know from the 2nd paragraph？
A. It is possible that robots will be able to think like human beings.
B. It is sure that robots might be able to manage battlefields.
C. There is no doubt that computers can design and make robots of their own.
D. It is proved that computers can’t reason like human beings.
5.Which of the following makes people worried most?
A. Future robotic technology might cause dangers.
B. Future robotic technology might make people too clever.
C. Future robotic technology might help to do all dangerous jobs.
D. Future robotic technology might not survive because of its shortage of energy.
高二英语阅读理解简单题
A robot is a computer-controlled machine that is programmed to move and handle objects. Robots are able to perform repetitive tasks more quickly, cheaply, and accurately (精确的) than humans. In 1995, about 700,000 robots were used－including over 500,000 in Japan, about 120,000 in Western Europe, and about 60,000 in the United States－all in the industrialized world. Many robots applications are designed for tasks that are either dangerous or unpleasant for human beings. Now, robotic technology can be used in more and more fields. Experts say in the future robots will be able to make new highways, construct steel frameworks of buildings, clean sewage (污水系统), and such physical work. Besides, another possibility is the development of robotic technology in medical surgery operations.
Perhaps the greatest changes in future robots will improve from their increasing ability to reason. The field of artificial intelligence is moving rapidly from university labs to practical application in industry, and machines of a new kind of robots are being developed, which can perform something involved in the process of understanding and planning, such as the management of a battlefield. Even the control of a large factory will be performed by intelligent computers. And there might be a possibility that these computers can design and make robots of their own.
Is there anything dangerous involved in this artificial intelligence progress then? Robot technology has been making people nervous ever since it was invented. Is it unreasonable to worry that robots will someday become too clever? Is it impossible that these human-like robots will start to think and plan for themselves? Will robots take over the world and force humans to give them energy to survive?
1. In 1995, about 700,000 robots were working in _____________.
A. Japan B. the United States C. Western Europe D. the industrialized world
2.Which of the following do experts say robots won’t be able to do in the future?
A. Take care of roads. B. Be used as medicine.
C. Used as underground pipeline cleaner. D. Take up jobs of building construction.
3.What does the underlined word “which” in Paragraph 2 refer to?
A. Greatest changes in future robots. B. The field of artificial intelligence.
C. Machines of a new kind of robots. D. Practical application in industry.
4.What can we know from the 2nd paragraph？
A. It is possible that robots will be able to think like human beings.
B. It is sure that robots might be able to manage battlefields.
C. There is no doubt that computers can design and make robots of their own.
D. It is proved that computers can’t reason like human beings.
5.Which of the following makes people worried most?
A. Future robotic technology might cause dangers.
B. Future robotic technology might make people too clever.
C. Future robotic technology might help to do all dangerous jobs.
D. Future robotic technology might not survive because of its shortage of energy.
高二英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析
Hollywood’s theory that machines with evil(邪恶) minds will drive armies of killer robots is just silly. The real problem relates to the possibility that artificial intelligence(AI) may become extremely good at achieving something other than what we really want. In 1960 a well-known mathematician Norbert Wiener, who founded the field of cybernetics（控制论）, put it this way: “If we use, to achieve our purposes, a mechanical agency with whose operation we cannot effectively interfere(干预), we had better be quite sure that the purpose put into the machine is the purpose which we really desire.”
A machine with a specific purpose has another quality, one that we usually associate with living things: a wish to preserve its own existence. For the machine, this quality is not in-born, nor is it something introduced by humans; it is a logical consequence of the simple fact that the machine cannot achieve its original purpose if it is dead. So if we send out a robot with the single instruction of fetching coffee, it will have a strong desire to secure success by disabling its own off switch or even killing anyone who might interfere with its task. If we are not careful, then, we could face a kind of global chess match against very determined, super intelligent machines whose objectives conflict with our own, with the real world as the chessboard.
The possibility of entering into and losing such a match should concentrate the minds of computer scientists. Some researchers argue that we can seal the machines inside a kind of firewall, using them to answer difficult questions but never allowing them to affect the real world. Unfortunately, that plan seems unlikely to work: we have yet to invent a firewall that is secure against ordinary humans, let alone super intelligent machines.
Solving the safety problem well enough to move forward in AI seems to be possible but not easy. There are probably decades in which to plan for the arrival of super intelligent machines. But the problem should not be dismissed out of hand, as it has been by some AI researchers. Some argue that humans and machines can coexist as long as they work in teams—yet that is not possible unless machines share the goals of humans. Others say we can just “switch them off” as if super intelligent machines are too stupid to think of that possibility. Still others think that super intelligent AI will never happen. On September 11, 1933, famous physicist Ernest Rutherford stated, with confidence, “Anyone who expects a source of power in the transformation of these atoms is talking moonshine.” However, on September 12, 1933, physicist Leo Szilard invented the neutron-induced(中子诱导) nuclear chain reaction.
1.Paragraph 1 mainly tells us that artificial intelligence may .
A. run out of human control
B. satisfy human’s real desires
C. command armies of killer robots
D. work faster than a mathematician
2.Machines with specific purposes are associated with living things partly because they might be able to .
A. prevent themselves from being destroyed
B. achieve their original goals independently
C. do anything successfully with given orders
D. beat humans in international chess matches
3.According to some researchers, we can use firewalls to .
A. help super intelligent machines work better
B. be secure against evil human beings
C. keep machines from being harmed
D. avoid robots’ affecting the world
4.What does the author think of the safety problem of super intelligent machines?
A. It will disappear with the development of AI.
B. It will get worse with human interference.
C. It will be solved but with difficulty.
D. It will stay for a decade.
高二英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析
Cortana. Alexa. Siri. These are names of robotic voices that are often programmed on electronic tablets. They also become default(默认) identities for people with speech disorders who rely on technology to communicate. Now some speech scientists are developing personalized voices to reflect the broader diversity of the people who use them. To do it，they are tapping into a vast network of volunteers who are donating their voices to share with people who cannot speak.
The effort to build an international “Human Voicebank” has attracted more than 17，000 volunteers from 110 countries，including Priyanka Pandya，a 16－year－old from Columbia，Md. ，who plans to spend her winter vacation recording a string of sentences into her computer. “To be able to give somebody the gift of voice，I think that’s really，really powerful，” she said.
“Everyone has a voice，” said Rupal Patel，founder of VocaliD，the company that started the voicebank. “Even people who are unable to speak have sounds that are unique to them. ” Her company designs personalized voices by recording the unique sounds of the user，and then mixing them with 6 to 10 hours of recordings from a voice donor，matched by age，gender and region. The company is developing voices now for its first 100 customers.
Also，people’s voices change. The company is looking for donors who are willing to record their voices，and then record them again a few years later，as they get older. But some of the first customers say they are happy with the results.
John A. Gregoire was one of the first customers to receive a personalized voice from VocaliD last December. The voice came eight years after he developed ALS (肌萎缩侧索硬化症)and more than six years since his voice became unintelligible to everyone except his wife and youngest son. “Having a distinctive voice is like getting something back that was stolen，” John said.
1.What does the author say about the voicebank?
A.It collects all kinds of voices.
B.It gains strong public support.
C.It helps to recognize special voices.
D.It offers people personalized voices free.
2.The example of John A Gregoire is given in the text to stress ________.
A.customers’ desire for personalized voices
B.VocaliD’s efforts to develop personalized voices
C.customers’ satisfaction with personalized voices
D.VocaliD’s success in designing personalized voices
3.What does the underlined word “unintelligible” mean?
A.Unclear. B.Soft.
C.Incomplete. D.Rough.
4.What is the main idea of the text?
A.VocaliD is devoted to building a voicebank.
B.Volunteers donate their voices to VocaliD.
C.The Human Voicebank helps people with speech problems.
D.The Human Voicebank wins fame among speechless people.
高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
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.
1.The advantage of Honda Motor Co. Ltd’s ASIMO is that _________.
A. it can do any housework for us
B. it can talk with patients or old people
C. it can climb up stairs as humans
D. it can walk smoothly with its wheels
2. According to Shimoyama, robots _________.
A. can be made to do everything humans do
B. will be made as smart as humans in the future
C. will remain as stupid as before
D. can never compete with humans in intelligence
3.Most important of all, a robot should be made _________ at present.
A. safe and elegant B. safe and functional
C. elegant and cheap D. sensitive and cheap
4.Which of the following statements about “Enon” is NOT true?
A. It can be used as a guide in hospitals.
B. It can help shoppers carry goods selected.
C. It can be used to welcome guests in restaurants.
D. It can be used to stop thieves in malls.
5.Enon is mainly designed to help _________.
A. old people B. mall owners C. tourists or newcomers D. shoppers
高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
For most city people, the elevator is an unremarkable machine that inspires none of the enthusiasm or interest that Americans afford trains, jets, and even bicycles. Dr. Christopher Wilk is a member of a small group of elevator experts who consider this a misunderstanding. Without the elevator, they point out, there could be no downtown skyscrapers or tall buildings, and city life as we know it would be impossible. In that sense, they argue, the elevator’s role in American history has been no less significant than that of cars. In fact, according to Wilk, the car and the elevator have been locked in a “secret war” for over a century, with cars making it possible for people to spread horizontally(水平地), and elevators pushing them toward life in close groups of towering vertical (垂直的) columns.
If we tend to ignore the significance of elevators, it might be because riding in them tends to be such a brief, boring, and even awkward experience one that can involve unexpectedly meeting people with whom we have nothing in common, and an unpleasant awareness of the fact that we’re hanging from a cable in a long passage.
In a new book, Lifted, German journalist and cultural studies professor Andreas Bernard directed all his attention to this experience, studying the origins of elevator and its relationship to humankind and finding that riding in an elevator has never been a totally comfortable experience. “After 150 years, we are still not used to it, ”Bernard said. “We still have not exactly learned to cope with the mixture of closeness and displeasure.” That mixture, according to Bernard, sets the elevator ride apart from just about every other situation we find ourselves in as we go about our lives.
Today, as the world’s urban population explodes, and cities become more crowded, taller, and more crowded, America’s total number of elevators—900,000 at last count, according to Elevator World magazine’s “2012 Vertical Transportation Industry”—are a force that’s becoming more important than ever. And for the people who really, really love them, it seems like high time that we looked seriously at just what kind of force they are.
1.What does the underlined word “this” in Paragraph 1refer to?
A. The particular interests of experts.
B. The general view of elevators.
C. The desire for a remarkable machine.
D. The enthusiasm for transport vehicles.
2.The author’s purpose in mentioning cars is .
A. to emphasize the importance of elevators
B. to contrast their functions with elevators
C. to reveal their secret war against elevators
D. to explain people’s preference for elevators
3.According to Prof. Bernard, what has made the elevator ride different from other life experiences?
A. Vertical direction.
B. Little physical space.
C. Lack of excitement.
D. Uncomfortable conditions.
4.The author urges readers to consider
A. the exact number of elevator lovers
B. the serious future situation of elevators
C. the relationship between cars and elevators
D. the role of elevators in city development
高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
阅读理解
Picking up objects plays an important role in people’s life. El-E is a robot that is designed to get everyday objects for people with disabilities.
About 1.5 meters tall, with a single robotic arm that can pick up objects at different heights, El-E is equipped to discover what its owner wants and then go and fetch it. The user can point a location to the robot using a “point-and-click” way of interaction, which provides a direct way to tell the robot which object to handle or where to go. The robot can adapt the position of its arm in order to grasp the object.
After successful early trials, some scientists expanded El-E’s functions and tried to combine voice commands with the laser (激光) in order to do more complicated tasks, like opening doors. The robot recognizes words such as “pull” or “push” and performs the action on an object illuminated by the laser. In order to add more functions, project director Prof. Charlie and his colleagues are focusing on programming El-E to locate and fetch common household items such as a hairbrush, a bottle of pills or a cell phone.
The robot is also designed to learn from its mistakes. “If it fails to fetch an object, it will recognize it and try again,” Charlie said. Formal studies have shown El-E to be a good worker. In 127 out of 134 trials, the robot successfully picked up the requested object.
1.What is the purpose of the text?
A. To describe different types of El-E.
B. To predict the development of El-E.
C. To introduce the functions of El-E.
D. To stress the importance of El-E.
2.The underlined part “point-and-click” in Paragraph 2 refers to .
A. a method through which people give commands
B. a machine that can be used to replace the robot
C. a signal used to show the robot where the object is
D. a button that controls the actions of the robot
3.How do Charlie and his colleagues develop El-E?
A. By having it communicate with more people.
B. By making it able to fetch more items.
C. By letting it pick up objects more accurately.
D. By getting it changeable at different occasions.
4.From the text, we can learn that_______.
A. robots are getting more and more popular
B. robots are quicker than human beings
C. more and more people begin to develop robots for the disabled
D. correcting mistakes can help the robot work more successfully
高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
A machine that takes sweat-laden clothes and turns the moisture（分子） into drinking water is in use in Sweden. The device spins and heats the material to remove the sweat, and then passes the vapor through a special membrane(膜) designed to only let water molecules get through.
Since its Monday launch, its creators say more than 1,000 people have “drunk others’ sweat（h汗液）" in Gothenburg. They add the liquid is cleaner than local tap water.
The device was built for the United Nation's child-focused charity UNICEF to promote a campaign highlighting the fact that 780 million people in the world lack access to clean water.
The machine was designed and built by engineer Andreas Hammar, known locally for his appearances on TV tech show Mekatronik. He said the critical part of the sweat machine was a new water purification component developed by a company named HVR in collaboration with Sweden's Royal Institute of Technology.
"It uses a technique called membrane distillation(膜蒸馏)," he told the BBC."We use a substance that's a bit like Gortex that only lets steam through but keeps bacteria, salts, clothing fibers and other substances out."They have something similar on the International Space Station to treat astronaut's urine(尿液) - but our machine was cheaper to build. Volunteers have been sampling the treated sweat since the start of the week in Gothenburg .“The amount of water it produces depends on how sweaty the person is - but one person's T-shirt typically produces 10ml , roughly a mouthful."
The equipment has been put on show at the Gothia Cup - the world's largest international youth football tournament. MattiasRonge, chief executive of Stockholm-based advertising agency Deportivo - which organized the stunt(惊人的表演) - said the machine had helped raise awareness for UNICEF, but in reality had its limitations.
"People haven't produced as much sweat as we hoped - right now the weather in Gothenburg is lousy," he said."So we've installed exercise bikes alongside the machine and volunteers are cycling like crazy."Even so, the demand for sweat is greater than the supply. And the machine will never be mass produced - there are better solutions out there such as water purifying pills."
1.What can we infer from the passage ?_______.
A. The water processed by the machine is cleaner than local tap water .
B. The machine can help raise awareness of lacking water in the world .
C. The machine is cheaper than the similar one on the International Space Station
D. The amount of water the machine produces is roughly a mouthful.
2.What is the main idea of the fifth paragraph ?
A. How the machine works.
B. Who developed the machine.
C. How the machine was invented.
D. Why the machine was invented..
3.What does Mattias Ronge think of the machine?____
A. The machine can solve the severe water shortage in the world.
B. People do not like the water the machine processes
C. The machine should be used in rather hot areas in summer.
D. The machine is not worth popularizing.
高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
Some people hold the view that the new machine is advanced, while others are still skeptical _____ whether it is of practical use.
A．with B．about C．for D．on
高二英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
----There is no more than one washing machine of that kind left in the shop. What about going and buying ____?
----No, I prefer to find _____ in other supermarkets.
A. it; it B. one; it C. it; one D. one; one
高二英语单项填空简单题查看答案及解析
The machine is so advanced that it will start ______ you press the button.
A. constantly B. cautiously
C. instantly D. severely
高二英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析