Ⅰ.阅读理解
What if you arrived home to find a delicious hot meal waiting for you, prepared by your very own kitchen robot? It might sound like science fiction, but professors at the University of Tokyo have taken the first step toward making that a reality.The team recently introduced a humanoid kitchen robot that can pour tea and other drinks into cups and serve them to guests.When teatime is over, the robot can also wash the cups and put them away.
In California, another interesting kitchen robot has been developed, called Readybot.It can pick up objects and either store them in cabinets(橱柜) or put them in the trash.It also carries a separate floorcleaning robot that can operate by itself.Unlike the Japanese robot，Readybot just looks more like a large box with arms and wheels.
Readybot was created by engineers and designers who established a club called the Readybot Challenge.They believe that in the future millions of robots will be needed in homes to perform ordinary household tasks.Readybot is just the first step in their plan to create a robot that can do jobs not only in kitchens but in other rooms of homes and in offices as well.
Clearly there are technological problems to solve before robots can cook a complete meal.There are also many safety concerns (忧虑)．Not everyone (especially parents) would be comfortable with the idea of robots in their house，manipulating hot pans and sharp knives.The European Commission recently funded (资助) a project to study these concerns.According to lead researcher Professor Chris Melhuish, “Enabling robots to work safely with humans is a key need for the future development of robotics.”
本文介绍了一种新发明的厨房机器人。
1．Compared with Readybot, which of the following is TRUE about the Japanese robot?
A．It is more popular. B．It performs more jobs.
C．It moves more quickly. D．It looks more like a person.
答案：D
解析：细节理解题。根据文中第一段第三句和第二段最后一句Unlike the Japanese robot，Readybot just looks more like a large box with arms and wheels.可知，和日本机器人相比，Readybot像一个带有胳膊和轮子的大箱子，所以日本机器人更像人。故选D项。
2．What can Readybot be used to do?
A．Drive you around. B．Clean your kitchen.
C．Prepare food for you. D．Work for office workers.
答案：B
解析：细节理解题。根据文中第二段中的“It can pick up objects and either store them in cabinets(橱柜) or put them in the trash.”可知，Readybot可用于打扫厨房。故选B项。
3．What's the meaning of the underlined word“manipulating” in the last paragraph?
A．Inventing. B．Avoiding.
C．Controlling. D．Making.
答案：C
解析：词义猜测题。根据“Not everyone(especially parents)would be comfortable with the idea of robots in their house，manipulating hot pans and sharp knives.”和上文的safety concerns(忧虑)可知，manipulate是“控制”的意思。故选C项。
