Question

    There’s a good chance something you've bought online has been in the hands of a “ picker” first. These are the workers in warehouses(仓库)who pick, pack and ship all those things we’re ordering.

At Amazon and other companies, they’re working side by side with robots. Experts say while the robots are replacing some human workers, the machines aren't quite ready to take over completely.

When a robot finds its storage unit, it slides underneath, lifts it up and then delivers it to a worker 一 they’re called pickers. On a recent day, the computer told a picker to grab what looked like a fantasy board (棋盘)game. The picker found it, canned it and placed it on the conveyor belt.

^“In a traditional fulfillment center where the associate would walk to the different items , it can take hours to fulfill a customer order. “ Robinson says.

Now, with the help of robots, that task takes minutes 一 and fewer humans.

So is this a sign we're entering a new industrial revolution?

“It’s definitely going to take over a lot of jobs. " says Karen Myers, a scientist at SRI, one of Silicon Valley's oldest research centers.

At the same time, she says, we're running against the limits of technology. Take “the picker” at the Amazon fulfillment center. Myers says those skills are proving to be uniquely human.

“Our fingers are incredibly flexible and the current generation of robotic operators, they’re getting much_, much better,” she says. “But they're just not quite there yet. ”

There’s also the robot’s brain.

Remember that board game the Amazon worker was looking for? She could barely see the box filled into the storage bin — but she could tell it was a board game. Robots can’t do that.

Technologists say that, increasingly, humans will work side by side with robots — instead of robots working alone.

Amazon says robots and humans enabled the Tracy warehouse to fulfill customer orders faster. That means more customers and more human workers.

1.A picker does some tasks except  .

A. picking goods B. producing goods C. spotting goods D. packing goods

2.With the help of robots, some tasks are   .

A. more efficient B. less straight C. more difficult D. less profitable

3.Compared with robots, humans are more   .

A. powerful B. artificial C. flexible D. energetic

4.What is the best title for the text?

A. Robots replacing humans completely.

B. The advantages of shopping online.

C. The future of robots.

D. Robots and humans working side by side.

Answer

1.B

2.A

3.C

4.D

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。文章介绍了机器人与人共同充当“捡货人”，人类将越来越多地与机器人并肩工作。

1.细节理解题。 根据第一段These are the workers in warehouses(仓库)who pick, pack and ship all those things we’re ordering.（这些是仓库里的工人，他们负责挑选、包装和运输我们订购的所有东西）和第三段The picker found it, canned it and placed it on the conveyor belt.（“捡货人”找到它，把它装进罐头，然后把它放在传送带上。）由此可知“捡货人”做一些工作，除了生产商品，故选B。

2.推理判断题。 根据第五段Now, with the help of robots, that task takes minutes—— and fewer humans.（现在，在机器人的帮助下，这项任务只需要几分钟，而且需要更少的人力。）由此推断出在机器人的帮助下，一些任务更有效率，故选A。

3.细节理解题。 根据倒数第五段“Our fingers are incredibly flexible and the current generation of robotic operators, they’re getting much, much better,” she says.（她说:“我们的手指非常灵活，而目前这一代的机器人操作员，他们正在变得越来越好。”）可知与机器人相比，人类更加灵活，故选C。

4.主旨大意题。 根据第二段第一句At Amazon and other companies, they’re working side by side with robots.（在亚马逊和其他公司，他们与机器人并肩工作。）和倒数第二段Technologists say that, increasingly, humans will work side by side with robots — instead of robots working alone.（技术人员表示，人类将越来越多地与机器人并肩工作，而不是让机器人独自工作。）可知这篇文章主要讲了机器人与人共同充当“捡货人”，人类将越来越多地与机器人并肩工作。这篇文章最好的题目是“机器人和人类并肩工作”，故选D。