The new social robots, including Jibo, Cozmo, Kuri and Meccano M.A.X., bear some resemblance to assistants like Apple’s Siri, but these robots come with something more. They are designed to win us over not with their smarts but with their personality. They are sold as companions that do more than talk to us. Time magazine hailed (称赞) the robots that “could fundamentally reshape how we interact with machines.” But is reshaping how we interact with machines a good thing, especially for children?
Some researchers in favor of the robots don’t see a problem with this. People have relationships with many kinds of things. Some say robots are just another thing with which we can have relationships. To support their argument, roboticists sometimes point to how children deal with toy dolls. Children animate (赋予…生命) dolls and turn them into imaginary friends. Jibo, in a sense, will be one more imaginary friend, and arguably a more intelligent and fun one.
Getting attached to dolls and sociable machines is different, though. Today’s robots tell children that they have emotions, friendships, even dreams to share. In reality, the whole goal of the robots is emotional trickery. For instance, Cozmo the robot needs to be fed, repaired and played with. Boris Sofman, the chief executive of Anki, the company behind Cozmo, says that the idea is to create “a deeper and deeper emotional connection ... And if you neglect him, you feel the pain of that.” What is the point of this, exactly? What does it mean to feel the pain of neglecting something that feels no pain at being neglected, or to feel anger at being neglected by something that doesn’t even know it is neglecting you?
This should not be our only concern. It is troubling that these robots try to empathize with children. Empathy allows us to put ourselves in the place of others, to know what they are feeling. Robots, however, have no emotions to share, and they cannot put themselves in our place. No matter what robotic creatures “say” or squeak, they don’t understand our emotional lives. They present themselves as empathy machines, but they are missing the essential equipment. They have not been born, they don’t know pain, or death, or fear. Robot thinking may be thinking, but robot feeling is never feeling, and robot love is never love.
What is also troubling is that children take robots’ behavior to indicate feelings. When the robots interact with them, children take this as evidence that the robots like them, and when robots don’t work when needed, children also take it personally. Their relationships with the robots affect their self-esteem (自尊). In one study, an 8-year-old boy concluded that the robot stopped talking to him because the robot liked his brothers better.
For so long, we dreamed of artificial intelligence offering us not only simple help but conversation and care. Now that our dream is becoming real, it is time to deal with the emotional downside of living with robots that “feel.”
1.How are the new social robots different from Siri?
A.They are intended to teach children how to talk.
B.They are designed to attract people with their smarts.
C.Their main function is to evaluate children’s personality.
D.They have a new way to communicate with human beings.
2.In Paragraph 3 Cozmo is used as an example to show that the social robots ______.
A.are deeply connected with human beings
B.are unable to build a real relationship with children
C.are so advanced that they can feel the pain of human beings
D.are not good enough to carry out the instructions of children
3.The underlined phrase “essential equipment” in Paragraph 4 refers to ______.
A.emotion B.pain
C.fear D.thinking
4.Which of the following shows the development of ideas in the passage?
I: Introduction P: Point Sp: Sub-point (次要点) C: Conclusion
A.
B.
C.
D.
Running on Empty
For almost a century, scientists have assumed, tiredness—or exhaustion—in athletes originates(起源于) in the muscles. Precise explanations have varied, but all have been based on the “Limitations Theory”. In other words, muscles tire because they hit a physical limit: they either run out of fuel or oxygen or they drown in harmful by-products(副产品).
In the past few years, however, Timothy Noakes from the University of Cape Town, South Africa, has examined this standard theory. Tiredness, he argues, is caused not by signals springing from overtaxed muscles, but is an emotional response which begins in the brain. The fundamental nature of his new theory is that the brain paces the muscles to keep them well back from the edge of exhaustion. When the brain decides it’s time to quit, it creates unbearable muscle tiredness. This “Central Governor” theory remains controversial, but it does explain many puzzling aspects of athletic performance.
A recent discovery that Noakes calls the “lactic acid paradox” made him start researching this area seriously. Lactic acid is a by-product of exercise, and the increase of it is often mentioned as a cause of tiredness. But when research subjects exercise in certain conditions created artificially, they become tired even though lactic acid levels remain low. Nor has the oxygen content of their blood fallen too low for them to keep going. Obviously, something else was making them tire before they hit either of these physiological limits.
Noakes conducted an experiment with seven cyclists. It has long been known that during exercise, the body never uses 100% of the available muscle fibres(纤维). The amount used varies, but in some tasks such as this cycling test the body calls on about 30%. His team found that as tiredness set in, the electrical activity in cyclist’s legs declined—even when they were making a great effort to cycle as fast as they could.
To Noakes, this was strong evidence that the old theory was wrong. “The cyclists may have felt completely exhausted,” he says, “but their bodies actually had considerable reserves that they could theoretically tap by using a greater amount of the resting fibres.” This, he believes, is the proof that the brain is regulating the pace of the workout to hold the cyclists well back from the point of extreme tiredness.
1.Which of the following is supported by “the Limitations Theory”?
A.Tiredness is caused by signals from brain.
B.Athletes feel tired when they use up all their energy.
C.The body uses 100% of the muscle fibres in exercise.
D.Athletes become tired though lactic acid levels remain low.
2.Noakes has found out that ___________.
A.muscle fibres control athletes’ movements
B.Lactic acid levels remain high in cycling test
C.mental processes control the symptoms of tiredness
D.different exercises use different amount of muscle fibres
3.It is likely that both theories accept that ___________.
A.lactic acid is produced in muscles during exercise
B.the oxygen content in blood may rise after sports
C.tiredness is a harmful by-product of exercise
D.the energy in human bodies can be balanced
4.What is Paragraph 3 mainly about?
A.The description of a new test.
B.The explanation of the theory.
C.The puzzling evidence of a study.
D.The whole process of the research.
From the very beginning of school we make books and reading a constant source of possible failure and public humiliation(侮辱). When children are little we make them read aloud before the teacher and other children, so that we can be sure they “know” all the words they are reading. This means that when they don’t know a word, they are going to make a mistake, right in front of everyone. After having taught fifth-grade classes for four years, I decided to try at all costs to rid them of their fear and dislike of books, and to get them to read oftener and more adventurously.
One day soon after school had started, I said to them, “Now I’m going to say something about reading that you have probably never heard a teacher say before. I would like you to read a lot of books this year, but I want you to read them only for pleasure. I am not going to ask you questions to find out whether you understand the books or not. If you understand enough of a book to enjoy it and want to go on reading it, that’s enough for me. Also I’m not going to ask you what words mean.”
The children sat stunned and silent. Was this teacher talking seriously? One girl, who had just come to us from a school where she had had a very hard time, looked at me steadily for a long time after I had finished. Then, still looking at me, she said slowly and seriously, Mr Holt, do you really mean that “I said just as seriously?” I mean every word of it.
During the spring she really astonished me. One day, she was reading at her desk. From a glimpse of the illustrations(插图) I thought I knew what the book was. I said to myself, “It can’t be,” and went to take a closer look. Sure enough, she was reading Moby Dick. I said, “Don’t you find parts of it rather heavy going” She answered, “Oh, sure, but I just skip over those parts and go on to the next good part.”
This is exactly what reading, I think, should be: find something, dive into it, take the good parts, skip the bad parts, get what you can out of it, and then go on to something else.
1.According to the passage, children’s fear and dislike of books may result from ___________.
A.reading little and thinking little
B.reading often and adventurously
C.being made to read too much
D.being made to read aloud before others
2.The teacher told his students to read ___________.
A.for higher scores in exams B.for knowledge
C.for enjoyment D.for a larger vocabulary
3.Upon hearing the teacher’s talk, the children probably felt that ___________.
A.it sounded stupid
B.it was not surprising at all
C.it sounded too good to be true
D.it was no different from other teachers’ talk
4.Which statement about the girl is TRUE according to the passage?
A.She skipped over those easy parts while reading.
B.She had a hard time finishing the required reading tasks.
C.She learned to appreciate some parts of the difficult books.
D.She turned out to be a top student after coming to this school.
Let’s Go and Fly a Kite
—at Piedmont Middle School’s celebration of kites!
Come and learn how to build all sorts of kites, from the simplest diamond-shaped kites to the most complex box kites. Stay as long as you like and build as many kites as you want. Once you have finished a kite, get advice on flying techniques from kite expert Lorena Hallsberg. The celebration will be at Piedmont Middle School,151 Piedmont School Drive.
The Piedmont Middle School Parent Teacher Organization (PTO)has organized a refreshment(茶点)tent. All profits will benefit future PTO activities. Take a break from kite flying and drink some lemonade! While you are doing so, why not join the PTO? Membership is free; you just donate your time. Show your support for Piedmont Middle School by joining the PTO this Saturday!
When: Saturday,April 11,from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Where: Piedmont Middle School
Why: For fun!
Cost: Free, thanks to a generous gift from Bizarco Kite Company!
Schedule
9:00 a.m.—Kite-building booths open. All materials are supplied for kites.
10:00 a.m.—Kite-building shows by Lorena Hallsberg in the courtyard. Come by and learn how to build box kites and kites that look and fly like butterflies.
11:00 a.m.—Kite-flying shows on the school track. Learn all the most important skills.
12:00 p.m.—Kite-flying competitions on the school track.
1:00 p.m.—Presentation by Dr.Brian Lehrman in the show tent:“The History of Kites”.
2:00 p.m.—Best Kite competitions and judging in the show tent. Come and see the most artistic kites and the most interesting theme kites.
3:00 p.m.—Presentation by Dr.Lehrman in the show tent:“Kites and Science”.
3:30 p.m.—Awards ceremony conducted by Headmaster Seward on the football field. The results of the day’s judging will be announced, with awards such as Best of Show, Most Artistic, Highest Flyer, and others. Winners will receive gifts from the Bizarco Kite Company!
4:00—5:00 p.m.—Let’s all go and fly a kite! Everyone flies kites at the same time, creating a wonderful sight for all to enjoy.
Come to the kite celebration. Enjoy yourself and learn more.
1.Which times are most important for people who want to join in kite competitions?
A.10:00 am and 11:00 a.m.. B.12:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m..
C.1:00 pm and 3:00 p.m.. D.2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m..
2.From the passage, we know that the kite celebration .
A.is enjoyable and educational
B.is strict about the shapes of kites
C.gets money from PTO of Piedmont Middle School
D.gives people a chance to see kites from around the world
3.The passage is intended for .
A.school staff B.kite experts
C.students and parents D.kite companies
阅读下列短文，根据短文内容填空。在未给提示词的空白处仅填写1个适当的单词，在给出提示词的空白处用括号内所给词的正确形式填空。
Last Thursday, we had a class meeting 1. (discuss) where to go for our spring outing. We 2. (come) up with several choices such as going boating, climbing a mountain, and going to an amusement park. 3. (final), we decided to go mountain climbing.
阅读下列短文，根据短文内容填空。在未给提示词的空白处仅填写1个适当的单词，在给出提示词的空白处用括号内所给词的正确形式填空。
We celebrate Teachers’ Day every September 10th. 1. that day, we will send best wishes and express our thanks to our dear teachers for their hard work. Some students write thank-you 2. (card) to our teachers; others would like to send 3. (they) beautiful flowers. Sometimes we prepare performances or give them hand-made gifts. In our school, we also have a tradition of serving tea to each teacher in the morning.
