A group of students in Japan have created a realistic robot baby to motivate you

A groupof students in Japan have created a realistic robot baby to motivate youngpeople to start planning a family so as to increase the country’s birth rate. Theautomated (自动化的)doll developed at the University of Tsukuba, called Yotara, laughsand “wakes up” when a rattle is shaken.

He can become angry and sleep like a realbaby and he smiles when his stomach is pressed. The robot can also sneeze andhave a runny nose, thanks to a heated water pump system. The students of theGraduate school of Comprehensive Human Science at the university created therobot last year with touch sensors. A projector sends the facial features ontoa warm silicon balloon which makes up Yotara’s face. The robot’s facialexpression and body movements change according to pressure applied to differentparts of its body.

The information collected through touchsensors（传感器）underthe silicon skin is processed by a special programme. It then changes the baby’sexpression projected onto the balloon-face from behind. There is a hat on therobot’s head and a colorful blanket covering the robot’s limbs which simulatewiggling(摆动) with the help of a geared motor. “Wewanted to create a new type of robot that is soft, cuddly and cute,” saidproject leader Hiroki Kunimura.

 “We’d like people to experience the innocent,joyful expressions typical of small babies. Through this experience, it wouldbe great if some people started feeling that they wanted to have their own baby,if they started feeling that work is not everything.”

Japan’s birth rate is among the lowest inthe developed world at 1.37%, compared to 2.12% in the United States andl.84%in Britain. Japan is facing serious economic consequences with over aquarter of its citizens expected to be aged over 65 by 20l5.The population is expected to reduce by a third within 50 years if the birth rate does not increase．

1.. What is the students’purpose of creating such a baby?

   A. To help old people who livealone． B. Togive small children some pleasure

   C. To comfort lonely youngpeople．  D. To increase the population of Japan．

2. What’s the new type ofrobot like in Hiroki Kunimura’s mind?

A. It can do everything for humans．   B. It isclever, humorous and loyal．

C. It is gentle, lovely and smart．     D. It makes humans unhappy．

3.. What can we learn from thepassage?

A. Many young people in Japan don’t want toget married．

B. There may be a lack of workers in Japanin the future．

C. The lifespan(寿命)of Japanese people willdecrease in the future．

D. The birth rate in Japan will start toincrease slowly soon．

试题答案

【答案】

1..D

2..C

3..A

【解析】 略