Kanda really doesn't like to walk alone. The scientist from a research institute of intelligent robots finds the experience so boring that he'd rather drive—even though he lives close to his lab and knows that walking us healthy. "I enjoy walking with someone, like with my wife, with my daughter," Kanda said. "But they are not always available."
So Kanda, who specializes in human-like bots, developed a robotic walking partner that could make small talk based on its surroundings, which, he hopes, might motivate people to get out and exercise more. The bot rests on a person's shoulder like a boxy parrot. It weighs about a pound and a half and sits roughly 8.5 inches high, 3.5inches wide, and 10 inches long. A microphone, speaker, and internal camera allow it to communicate. It's even equipped with a smile.
Kanda and his team collected video form five different locations, including a garden and a shopping mall, and created a dataset of small talk topics related to each location. Then they programmed the robot to associate visual cues with specific topics. A special speech software provided the robot with a voice. Near a group of parked cars, for example, it might say, "In a big parking lot, sometimes I forget where I parked."
They tested the robot on 15 volunteers, 10 males and 5 females, who were paid and averaged about 26 years old. "Have you ever blown a puff of dandelion(蒲公英)seeds into the air?" The robot asked a participant, who smiled and responded, "Yes, I often did that when I was a child." Although several participants noted the robot's weight, Kanda was surprised that no one considered the experience as strange or funny. "I guess people enjoy new technologies," he said.
Just like a human partner, Kanda's bot isn't perfect. It's not able to go for walks in heavy rain and, while the robot can make expressions, it can't really hold a conversation, about which Kanda is most worried. Despite its limits, Kanda was comforted by the bot's presence. "I felt a kind of sense of being with someone, "he said, "particularly when it spoke."
【小题1】Why does Kanda have the idea of developing a robotic walking partner?A.Because he wants someone to accompany him while walking. |
B.Because he has never developed a robot like a parrot. |
C.Because his family are unwilling to walk with him. |
D.Because he is crazy about developing robots. |
A.It can "speak" and "see". |
B.It can walk like a human being. |
C.It can communicate with people freely. |
D.It is much more humorous than a real person. |
A.A small size. |
B.A boxy shape. |
C.A human partner. |
D.A speech software. |
A.To make it more convenient to carry. |
B.To improve its conversational skills. |
C.To enable it to walk in heavy rain. |
D.To better its sound system. |
A Japanese company, Next Technology, has created a robot dog that can tell you how bad your feet smell, by using a powerful sensor fixed in its nose. If you feet don’t have a bad smell. Hana-chan will happily wag its tail, if it's exposed to feet that are mildly smelly, it'll start to bark, and if they give off an extremely bad smell, it'll just fall over like the smell caused it to faint(昏倒).
Foot odor (脚臭) is a big deal in Japan, where it’s a custom for people to take off their shoes whenever they enter someone's home. In fact, exposing others to bodily odors can be considered annoyance in Japan. Some of the most brilliant minds in the country's tech industry have been trying to solve this problem. Last year, Thanko started selling axmpit (腋窝) fans designed to keep people's armpits nice and dry Now, we have Hana-chan.
The robot dog has a special sensor for a nose, and can tell you if your feet smell just by sniffing them for a few seconds. According to some media reports, Hana-chan can help solve the problem of extremely smelly feet by spraying them with air freshener, but it's unclear whether this feature comes built-in, or if you'll have to pay extra for it.
According to researchers at NextTechnology, the idea for Hana-chan was inspired by a person who desperately wanted some way to know if his feet smelled. "He told us his daughter had said his feet were smelly, " NextTechnology's Kimika Tsuji said. “But he didn't want to know how bad the odor was because he would feel hurt. That's why we developed this cute robot. "
You may be able to make Hana-chan faint with your smelly feet, but it can have the same effect on budget-conscious people. NextTechnology plans to start selling the feet-smelling robot dog for ¥100, 000 ($9, 280) next May.
【小题1】Under what condition will Hana-chan bark?A.When its nose is fixed with a sensor. |
B.When it wags its tail. |
C.When it detects mildly smelly feet. |
D.When something is wrong with its nose. |
A.Because Japanese have strong bodily odors. |
B.Because Japanese are usually barefooted at others' home. |
C.Because Japanese are especial considerate of others. |
D.Because its tech industry is highly developed. |
A.It has a built-in air freshener sprayer. |
B.It's already available in the market. |
C.Its idea comes from Kimika Tsuji. |
D.It can recognize foot odor quickly. |
A.Hana-chan is no cheap thing |
B.People should mind their smelly feet. |
C.People should be careful about their budget. |
D.Hana-chan makes people loosen their budget. |
Now more companies are experimenting with the concept of connected clothes. Among the pioneers is London based Cute Circuit, which has been creating fashionable smart clothing since 2004. The company’s latest innovation is the “Sound Shirt”, which allows deaf people to “feel” live music by transforming the tunes into touch sensations (感受) in real time.
The fashionable jacket uses software that changes the music into data and wirelessly sends it to the 16-micro motors fitted inside the clothing’s fabric (布料). The devices shake with the intensity (强度) of the music being played, allowing the wearer to feel each instrument individually. For example, violins can be felt on the arms, while the deeper, heavier bass notes can be felt close to the stomach. The series of touch like sensations across the wearer’s body enable him or her to feel the entire music, resulting in a musical experience.
To ensure the shirt is comfortable, the designers chose to leave out wires and instead wove conductive textiles (导电纺织品) into the garment’s fabric. Francesca Rosella, chief creative officer of Cute Circuit, explains, “There’re no wires inside, so we’re only using smart fabrics — we have a combination of micro-electronics and very thin and flexible and conductive fabrics. All these little electronic motors are connected with these conductive fabrics so that the garment is soft and stretchable.”
Cute Circuit, which has been testing the Sound Shirt for three years, expects to make it available to the general public shortly. Priced at $3,673, the smart jacket won’t be cheap. However, twin sisters Herman and Heredia Breanne, who lost their hearing at a young age, believe the hi-tech garment is a worthwhile investment, especially for deaf people with a passion for dancing. “It’s almost like feeling the depth of the music,” says Herman. “It just feels as though we can move along with it.”
【小题1】Why does the writer mention smart clothing in the first paragraph?A.To show the development of technology. |
B.To introduce the topic of the passage. |
C.To demonstrate the latest trend of music. |
D.To summarize the main idea of the whole passage. |
A.The software used in the shirt. |
B.The musical instruments felt by the wearers. |
C.The way the shirt functions. |
D.The experience the wearer gains with the shirt. |
A.Affordable and fashionable. | B.Cheap and comfortable. |
C.Interesting but useless. | D.Expensive but comfortable. |
A.The shirt will be popular with deaf dancing-enthusiasts. |
B.They will invest in the “Sound Shirt” industry. |
C.The shirt should be marketed as soon as possible. |
D.They love music very much. |
Robots used to be found only in science fiction. In the 1960s, the animated space-age family the Jetsons had a robotic maid who could do household chores. In real life robots function in many manufacturing and household situations. In the filed of medicine, robot patients help train doctors and nurses by pretending they have a variety of health conditions.
The global pandemic and resulting economic crisis have created a lack of restaurant workers. Since restaurants don’t have enough workers, the remaining staff must work harder. Regardless, customers face longer wait times, fewer menu choices and higher prices.
A.Server robots come in several different varieties. |
B.Now robots are finding a home in the food service industry. |
C.Workers are afraid of being replaced by robots in the future. |
D.They are also just the right height for customers to easily reach them. |
E.Robots are playing an important role in almost everywhere nowadays. |
F.Perhaps you’re wondering about issues such as the cost and safety factors. |
G.Some founders are lending a hand — a robotic hand — in the form of server robots. |
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