Why do human beings still risk their lives under ground and doing one of the dirtiest and most dangerous jobs in the world? It's an increasingly urgent question, given the recent mining accidents in Sago. W. Va. and Huntington, Utah. A small group of engineers and robotics experts look forward to a day in the not-too-distant future when robots and other technology do most of the dangerous mining work. Robotic technology, in particular, holds much promise, McAteer says, especially when it comes to mapping mines and rescuing trapped miners--the special operations of the mining industry. One of the first mining robots was developed five years ago at Canegie-Mellon University's Robotics Institute. It was called Groundhog. It used lasers to "see" in dark tunnels and map abandoned mines - some of the most dangerous work in the business The latest design is called Cave Crawler. It's a bit smaller than Grondhog, and even more advanced. It can take photos and video and has more sensors that can discover the presence of dangerous gases. The robot has a real sense of logic, which is hard to believe. If it comes across a thing in the way it gets confused. It has to think through the process and where to go next, and sometimes it _ just like a real person. The greatest problem, though, is cost. The money of the earliest research project was provided by the government, but that money has dried up, and it's not clear where future money will come from. Partly for that reason, and partly because of advances in safely, mining is not nearly as dangerous as it was in the past. Since 1990,fatalities have declined by 67 percent and injuries by 51 percent, according to the National Mining Association. Some experts predict that robots in the mines will serve much of the same function that they do in the automotive industry. The robot do the most boring and dangerous jobs, but don't eliminate the need for human workers. We can learn from the text that _ . A) a mining robots can help miners have an operation B) Groundhog can discover the presence of dangerous gases C) experts are trying to make robots help miners with dangerous work D) robots have helped improve the safety of mining
C
When you have a question about something, where do you go? For many people the answer is simple. They go online to a search engine like Google or Yahoo. But what about people in rural or underdeveloped areas who may have no way to get on the Internet? Luckily, Rose Shuman, a business and international development consultant in California, has found a way for them. Her amazing solution is "Question Box". Question Box is a service that provides answers--free of charge--for people who cannot search the Internet directly. They might not be able to read, or they simply have no access. Question Box began two years ago in India.People use a metal call box with a pushtotalk button to connect to a live operator, as Rose Shuman explains, "You just push a button, a big green button, and that will connect you directly to our operators who are sitting in front of computers, and speak your language. And you can ask them any sort of question you want, and they'll look it up in English or in Hindi, or whatever the main language is, and translate the answer right back for you." The service is currently offered in two villages. The latest version of the box uses mobile phone technology and solar panels in case the electrical power fails. Rose Shuman says the aim was to make the box as easy as possible for users. "Rather than try to bring a lot of infrastructure to them and expect them to learn how to use the Internet, the idea was to make a technology that even Grandma could use, figuring that Grandma could probably walk up to a box and push a button," added Shuman. In April, Question Box expanded to Uganda.Forty community workers with mobile phones connect villagers to call center operators in Kampala.The community workers go around telling people about the service. They wear Tshirts that say "Ask Me." But Internet service in Uganda proved slow and undependable. So Question Box teamed up with a local technology company to store information on a local server. That way, the researchers in Kampala can quickly search the... According to the passage, "Question Box" is a service intended to _ . A) help improve the living standard of the people in poor areas B) promote the computer technology C) provide answers raised by the people who have no access to the Internet D) enrich the local people's life
C
Q: The Nobel Prizes in physiology or medicine, physics and chemistry are the most respected prizes in science. But talk to scientists in private, and many will complain why (besides jealousy, perhaps) are some scientists unhappy with the Nobels? One reason is that the committees can often be slow to recognize achievement. Alfred Nobel specified in his will that the prizes should reward work done in the previous year. But experience soon showed that this was risky, as medals were given out for discoveries that later proved questionable. So a degree of caution is probably advisable. Sometimes, though, it can lead to strange results. Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar, for instance, had to wait until 1983 to win a prize for work he had done in the 1930s on the structure of stars. However, Albert Einstein never won a prize for his theory of relativity. Even though some pretty suggestive evidence had been produced by Arthur Eddington in 1919, relativity, which has later passed every experimental test ever thrown at it, was still considered somewhat risky and obscure. Another criticism concerns the tradition that no more than three people can share a prize. Science is rarely this clear-cut. Take this year's physics prize, which recognised Peter Higgs for predicting the existence of the mass-bestowing particle that now bears his name. Dr Higgs was only one of several people with a claim. Two other teams---- Rober Brout and Francois Englert, as well as Gerald Guralnik, Carl Hageh and Tom Kibble----- submitted papers on the same idea to the same journal that published Dr Higgs's work, all within a few months of each other. Science often works like this, with different people coming up with similar ideas at similar times. In the event, the committee decided to honour Dr Engler (Brout is dead, therefore unqualified), whose paper was earlier than Dr Higgs's but did not explicitly predict a particle, over Dr Guralnik and his collaborators, who were more comprehensive but published a few weeks later. Which of the following words has the closest meaning to "submitted"? A) surrendered B) suggested C) presented D) provided
A: C
Some people think that they will get ill if they use their brains too much. It is not true. Through many researches, scientists show us that the more you use your brains, the better they will be, and the wiser you will become. Of course, if you want to keep your mind clear and be energetic , you must take a proper rest and study properly. To the teenagers, using their brains in the morning is good for their health. There are many ways to rest. One is a peaceful rest. Sleep is a peaceful rest. Another is an active rest. For example, take a walk outdoors, do morning exercises every day. To change the way of the brains'activities is also a good way to rest. In everyday life, to eat some eggs, meat, fresh vegetable and fruit is also good for the brains. Wish you a wise man and a happy life. Which of the following statements is false? A) Sleep is a kind of good rest. B) Doing morning exercises is a peaceful rest. C) Going out for a rest is an active rest. D) Different activities are a good rest.
B