A team of engineers at Harvard University has been inspired by Nature to create the first robotic fly. The mechanical fly has become a platform for a series of new high-tech integrated systems. Designed to do what a fly does naturally, the tiny machine is the size of a fat housefly. Its mini wings allow it to stay in the air and perform controlled flight tasks.
“It’s extremely important for us to think about this as a whole system and not just the sum of a bunch of individual components (元件),” said Robert Wood, the Harvard engineering professor who has been working on the robotic fly project for over a decade. A few years ago, his team got the go-ahead to start piecing together the components. “The added difficulty with a project like this is that actually none of those components are off the shelf and so we have to develop them all on our own,” he said.
They engineered a series of systems to start and drive the robotic fly. “The seemingly simple system which just moves the wings has a number of interdependencies on the individual components, each of which individually has to perform well, but then has to be matched well to everything it’s connected to,” said Wood. The flight device was built into a set of power, computation, sensing and control systems. Wood says the success of the project proves that the flying robot with these tiny components can be built and manufactured.
While this first robotic flyer is linked to a small, off-board power source, the goal is eventually to equip it with a built-in power source, so that it might someday perform data-gathering work at rescue sites, in farmers’ fields or on the battlefield. “Basically it should be able to take off, land and fly around,” he said.
Wood says the design offers a new way to study flight mechanics and control at insect-scale. Yet, the power, sensing and computation technologies on board could have much broader applications. “You can start thinking about using them to answer open scientific questions, you know, to study biology in ways that would be difficult with the animals, but using these robots instead,” he said. “So there are a lot of technologies and open interesting scientific questions that are really what drives us on a day to day basis.”
1.The difficulty the team of engineers met with while making the robotic fly was that __________.
A.they had no model in their mind
B.they did not have sufficient time
C.they had no ready-made components
D.they could not assemble the components
2.It can be inferred from paragraphs 3 and 4 that the robotic fly __________.
A.consists of a flight device and a control system
B.can just fly in limited areas at the present time
C.can collect information from many sources
D.has been put into wide application
3.Which of the following can be learned from the passage?
A.The robotic flyer is designed to learn about insects.
B.Animals are not allowed in biological experiments.
C.There used to be few ways to study how insects fly.
D.Wood’s design can replace animals in some experiments.
4.Which of the following might be the best title of the passage?
A.Father of Robotic Fly
B.Inspiration from Engineering Science
C.Robotic Fly Imitates Real Life Insect
D.Harvard Breaks Through in Insect Study
Glenda and Raphael Savitz moved to Newton in 2016.They found themselves welcomed into the neighbourhood with truly open arms. Three months later, they gave birth to Samantha. Unluckily, she was born entirely deaf.The neighbourhood was still excited to welcome little Samantha,of course,but they were worried about her parents.
The neighbours wanted to do something to make things easier for the family.All the neighbourhood agreed to take on the responsibility of learning an entirely second language all for their youngest member. Samantha would grow up learning to "speak" American Sign Language, so her friends and neighbours would learn to speak it right along with her. The group of 18 residents employed a sign language teacher and the whole neighbourhood except Glenda and Raphael Savitz began to learn American Sign Language in a neighbour's big living room.They believed people everywhere wished to have a community with something positive around and Samantha was bringing about.a reason for them to get together.
The neighbours went on learning hard and kept things secret for as long as possible.They wanted thirstily to communicate with the little girl. Finally,t he time had come to show Raphael,Glenda,and Samantha what they had done.The family found themselves deeply moved by the welcoming signs of their friends and neighbours. Glenda recalled it as one of the most affecting experiences she'd ever felt.A present for Samantha would have made her grateful,and this was so much more.Now after neighbours say hello to her parents,they bend down to greet three-year-old Samantha with sign language.At every turn, in the street,the grocery store, or by the canal, Samantha feels included.
1.Which of the following can best describe the neighbourhood?
A.Warm. B.Tolerant.
C.Prejudiced. D.Generous.
2.What did the neighbours think of Samantha?
A.She forced her parents to struggle hard.
B.She set up an example for other children.
C.She caused the situation of her family's poverty.
D.She was an affectional bond of the neighbourhood.
3.What can be the best title for the text?
A.Neighborhood Welcomes A Newborn Baby With Sign Language
B.Neighborhood Learns Sign Language To Communicate With New Family
C.Neighborhood Takes The Newborn Deaf Baby As Sign Language Teacher
D.Neighborhood Learns Sign Language To Comfort Unfortunate New Parents.
Dolphin or not a dolphin?That is the question!You see,there are several types of dolphins.Some are saltwater dolphins while others are river dolphins.
＂What are the 32 types of dolphins?"When people are asking the question,they are actually referring to the saltwater dolphins in oceans and seas.The river dolphins living in fresh water,are not included in these species.But what would be the answer in this case if we ask,"Dolphin or not a dolphin?"The answer would obviously be yes.River dolphins still belong to the dolphin family.
Among the 32 types of dolphins,some do not actually wear the word"dolphin”in their names,such as the tucuxi,while others actually have the word"whale"as part of their names even if they are not whales but in fact,belong to the dolphin family,for example, the melon-headed whale and the killer whale.So what would be the answer to the question＂dolphin or not a dolphin?"in these cases?It would be yes.All these species do belong to the dolphin family.
Another question that people ask is,"Are the sea animals that perform at aquariums all dolphins?"So,it always seems to come back to the question,"Dolphin or not a dolphin?"
Well the answer is no in this case.The sea animals that perform there are not all dolphins. The beluga which people tend to think belong to the dolphin family because they show what seems like a smile,like most dolphins,are in fact a species of the whale family.
Now that you read these facts about dolphins,you probably realize that certain sea animals may appear to be part of the dolphin species and that others seem to be part of the whale family,but in either case,it is not obvious and can be surprising when you identify a sea animal as being a dolphin or not a dolphin.That is the question!
1.What do we know about the majority of the dolphins?
A.They look like whales. B.They appear friendly.
C.They perform for audience. D.They live in fresh water.
2.What could be added about dolphins before the last paragraph if you were the author?
A.The living area. B.Dolphin training.
C.The eating habits. D.Further identification.
3.This article can be classified as_____.
A.popular science B.literary fiction
C.a travel diary D.a news report
This wall requires______.
A.to repair B.repaired C.repairing D.being repaired
_______with the research,he had no time to play with his son.
A.Occupied B.Occupying C.To occupy D.Having occupied
Don't interrupt;just hear me_______before you start talking.
A.on B.off C.out D.over
