Robots have come a long way since 15th century. We’ve got robots to build cars, carry heavy things, work in dangerous places and explore planets. But things haven’t stopped there.
In 1986, Honda made a robot called ASIMO. And now, it has been developed greatly. Standing at 130cm and weighing 54kg. ASIMO is very much like a small astronaut wearing a bag on the back. And he can walk, flight, climb and run fast. Isn’t it wonderful?
The world’s first robot teacher is Saya. With her human-like face, she can show expressions like happiness, surprise, sadness, dislike, fear and she can even smile or show anger at students, which look much like a real teacher’s. To do this, her rubber skin is pulled from the back with motors inside. And her eyes and mouth have wires(電線) too. She can also say some simple words like “hello” or “thank you”.
In the UK, the development of robots is exciting. The mini-robots will send food, clean floors, collect and throw away waste. These robots can open doors by themselves and stop if anything or anyone is in the way.
These mini-robots are very useful for controlling infection(傳染). Usually clean and dirty work is done by the same person, but here, you’ll have robots that do”dirty work”, like collecting dirty sheets, or taking away hospital waste; and you’ll have robots that do”clean work”, like bringing meals or clean sheets to patients. The robots have separate work so there’s no way for infection, which is great. But of course, robots would not take the piece of humans, but would free up more time for nurses to be with patients.
But if this is what it’s like in 2011, what’s it going to be like to 2021?
【小題1】In the following, which is ASIMO’s behavior?

Robots have come a long way since 15^th century. We’ve got robots to build cars, carry heavy things, work in dangerous places and explore planets. But things haven’t stopped there.
In 1986, Honda made a robot called ASIMO. And now, it has been developed greatly. Standing at 130cm and weighing 54kg. ASIMO is very much like a small astronaut wearing a bag on the back. And he can walk, flight, climb and run fast. Isn’t it wonderful?
The world’s first robot teacher is Saya. With her human-like face, she can show expressions like happiness, surprise, sadness, dislike, fear and she can even smile or show anger at students, which look much like a real teacher’s. To do this, her rubber skin is pulled from the back with motors inside. And her eyes and mouth have wires(電線) too. She can also say some simple words like “hello” or “thank you”.
In the UK, the development of robots is exciting. The mini-robots will send food, clean floors, collect and throw away waste. These robots can open doors by themselves and stop if anything or anyone is in the way.
These mini-robots are very useful for controlling infection(傳染). Usually clean and dirty work is done by the same person, but here, you’ll have robots that do”dirty work”, like collecting dirty sheets, or taking away hospital waste; and you’ll have robots that do”clean work”, like bringing meals or clean sheets to patients. The robots have separate work so there’s no way for infection, which is great. But of course, robots would not take the piece of humans, but would free up more time for nurses to be with patients.
But if this is what it’s like in 2011, what’s it going to be like to 2021?

1. 1.

   In the following, which is ASIMO’s behavior?

   1. A.
      Smiling at people, saying “hello”.
   2. B.
      Sending food or opening doors by himself
   3. C.
      Fighting, climbing or running fast
   4. D.
      Collecting waste for patients
2. 2.

   What makes Saya look real?

   1. A.
      Her face and rich expressions
   2. B.
      Her clothes and shoes
   3. C.
      Her walking and running speed
   4. D.
      Her rich knowledge
3. 3.

   Which of the following is true according to the passage?

   1. A.
      Robots have come a long way since 1986.
   2. B.
      The first robot teacher was made by Honda.
   3. C.
      Saya looks like a small astronaut.
   4. D.
      If anyone or anything is in the way, mini-robots will stop.
4. 4.

   The main idea of Paragraph 5 is that _______.

   1. A.
      nurses would have more free time with patients
   2. B.
      robots would not take the place of humans
   3. C.
      dirty and clean work is always done by the same person
   4. D.
      mini-robots are useful for controlling infection

Each spring brings a new blossom of wildflowers in the ditches along the highway I travel daily to work.
There are some particular blue flowers that have always caught my eye. I’ve noticed that they bloom only in the morning hours and the afternoon sun is too warm for them. Every day for about two weeks, I see those beautiful flowers.
This spring, I started a wildflower garden in our yard. I can look out of the kitchen window while doing the dishes and see the flowers. I’ve often thought that those lovely blue flowers from the ditch would look great in that bed alongside other wildflowers. Every day I drove past the flowers thinking, “I’ll stop on my way home and dig them.” “Gee, I don’t want to get my good clothes dirty…” Whatever the reason, I never stopped to dig them. My husband even gave me a folding shovel（鏟子）one year in my car to be used for that expressed purpose.
One day on my way home from work, I was shocked to see that the highway department had destroyed the ditches and the pretty blue flowers were gone. I thought to myself, “Way to go, you waited too long. You should have done it when you first saw them blooming this spring.” A week ago we were shocked and saddened to learn that my oldest sister has a terminal brain tumor（腫瘤）. She is 20 years older than me and unfortunately, because of age and distance, we haven’t been as close as we all would have liked. I couldn’t help but see the connection between the pretty blue flowers and the relationship between my sister and us. I do believe that God has given us some time left to plant some wonderful memories that will bloom every year for us. 
And yes, if I see the blue flowers again, you can bet I’ll stop and transplant them to my wildflower garden.
【小題1】Why did those flowers the writer saw only bloom in the morning?