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 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 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. ”
【语篇概述】本文介绍了“Robotic Fly”, 它能像真的苍蝇一样自然飞行, 小小的翅膀能让它停在空中, 表演各种飞行任务。
1. According to the first paragraph, the robotic fly is __________.
A. larger than a fat housefly
B. as large as a fat housefly
C. smaller than a fat housefly
D. as large as a butterfly
【解析】选B。细节理解题。根据第一段的the tiny machine is the size of a fat housefly. 可知B正确。
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
【解析】选B。推理判断题。题干要求从第三段和第四段推测, 所以根据文章内容“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. 故选项A. consists of a flight device and a control system是片面的, 排除; 根据第四段so that it might someday perform data-gathering work at rescue sites, in farmers’ fields or on the battlefield. 可知选项C中的from many sources应为from many sites/places, 故排除; 选项D. has been put into wide application的定位在第五段Yet, the power, sensing and computation technologies on board could have much broader applications. 可知已经大量应用是错误的, 故排除。纵观三、四两段, 尤其是第四段尾句“Basically it should be able to take off, land and fly around, ” he said. 可推断出只有B. can just fly in limited areas at the present time正确。
3. Which of the following can be learned from the passage?
A. The robotic fly 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.
【解析】选D。推理判断题。文章末段的to study biology in ways that would be difficult with animals, but using these robots instead告诉我们这些机器人可以替代动物, 故D正确。考生需注意的是, 说明文末段尤其带有转折关系的词往往是题眼所在。根据第四段so that it might someday perform data-gathering work at rescue sites, in farmers’ fields or on the battlefield. 可知A错误, 故排除。文章最后一段中指出“You can start thinking about using them to answer open scientific questions, you know, to study biology in ways that would be difficult with animals, but using these robots instead, ” he said. 并没有说: 不允许拿动物进行生物实验, 故排除B选项。根据文章最后一段Wood says the design offers a new way to study flight mechanics and control at insect-scale. 及“So there are a lot of technologies and open interesting scientific questions that are really what drives us on a day-to-day basis. ”可知以后会有更多的问题等待我们去探索, 但并不是说过去在研究昆虫飞行方面常常方法很少, 故排除C项。
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’s Breakthrough in Insect Study
【解析】选C。主旨大意题。本题考查考生理解全文、提炼信息、概括总结的能力。选择最佳标题, 一般来说, 考生只有通篇理解文章传递的信息, 才可能概括出文章的最佳标题。对比四个选项, A选项意为“机器人苍蝇之父”, 文章的主题主要说明“机器人苍蝇”, 故排除。B选项“来自工程学中的灵感”与文章的主题“机器人苍蝇”关系不大, 故排除。D选项“哈佛大学在昆虫研究领域的突破”, 并没有点明主题“机器人苍蝇”, 故排除。C选项既交待了“Robotic Fly”又讲了与真实生活中昆虫的关系, 所以正确答案为C。
