Stop all the clocks
Two hundred years ago, a device began to dominate the world of work. No, not the steam engine — the gadget was the clock. With the arrival of the factory, people were paid on the basis of how many hours they worked, rather than their material output.
The tyranny (专制的) of time was marked by a number of innovations. As few workers owned watches or clocks in the 19th century, people known as "knocker-uppers" would wander the streets knocking on doors and windows to wake workers at the right time.
The clock's authoritarian rule may at last be weakening.
On reflection, it is also not too shocking that home-workers feel they are more productive. After all, few people have the ability to concentrate solidly for eight hours at a stretch. There are points in the day where people are tempted to stare out of the window or go for a walk; these may be moments when they find inspiration or recharge themselves for the next task. When they do this in an office, they risk the boss's disapproval.
Of course, the new schedule carries dangers: people may lose all separation between work and home life, and succumb to stress. To inject some human contact, companies may embrace a hybrid model in which workers go into the office for part of the week. But overall office-workers' freedom from time's yoke is to be welcomed. The clock was a cruel master and many people will be happy to escape its dominion.
| A．It is hardly surprising that workers prefer flexibility. |
| B．But for many office workers, remote working is perfectly sensible. |
| C．Flexible working existed well before the pandemic. |
| D．Instead, at home, they can work when they are most motivated. |
| E．Later, factories would use hooters and whistles to signal the start and end of shifts. |
| F．Often, they paid a penalty (罚金) in terms of time wasted in traffic jams. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】Video calls are a common occurrence, but have you imagined being able to touch the person on the other end of the line. Scientists are making this a reality.
Researchers at the University of New South Wales, Australia, have invented a soft skin stretch device (SSD), a haptic (愈觉的) device that can recreate the sense of touch. Haptic technology mimics (模仿) the experience of touch by stimulating: localized areas of the skin in ways that are similar to what is felt in the real world, through force, vibration (振动) or motion.
Vibration is the most common haptic technology today and has been built into many electronic devices, such as one attached to the back of a touch pad in laptops, which simulates a button clicking. However, haptic feedback with vibration becomes less sensitive when used continuously. The existing technology also has great difficulty recreating the sense of touch with objects in virtual environments or located remotely, according to Mai Thanh Thai, leed author of the study.
The new technology overcomes issues with existing haptic devices. The research team introduced a novel method to recreate the sense of touch through soft, artificial “muscles”.
“Our three-way directional skin stretch device, built into the fingertips of the wearable haptic glove we also created, is like wearing a second skin-it’s soft, stretchable and mimics the sense of touch-and will enable new forms of haptic communication to improve everyday activities.”said Thanh Nho Do, senior author of the study.
It works like this: Imagine you are at home and you call your friend who is in Australia. You wear a haptic glove with the SSDs and your friend also wears a glove with integrated 3D force sensors. If your friend picks up an object, it will physically press against your friend’s fingers. And their glove with 3D force sensors will measure these interactions. The force signals can be sent to your glove so your device will produce the same 3D forces, making you experience the same sense of touch as your friend.
The haptic devices could be applied in various situations, allowing users to feel objects inside a virtual world or at a distance. This could be especially beneficial during such times like the COVID-19 pandemic when people rely on video calls to stay connected with loved ones. Or it could be used in medical practices. Doctors can feel a patient’s organ tissues with surgical (手术的) tools without touching them.
1. What can we learn about the SSD?| A．It takes the shape of a glove. |
| B．It mainly uses vibration technology. |
| C．It makes virtual haptic communication possible. |
| D．It is a soft electronic glove made of animal skins. |
| A．It could be used for recreating organ tissues. |
| B．Users could feel remote objects in a realistic way. |
| C．Doctors could perform surgeries from a distance. |
| D．It could replace video calls as a way to communicate. |
| A．To inform readers of a new invention. |
| B．To encourage the use of a new product. |
| C．To compare different kinds of existing haptic devices. |
| D．To introduce the development of haptic technology. |
| A．Science | B．Education |
| C．Entertainment | D．Health |
【推荐2】For years, the U.S. has experienced a shortage of registered nurses. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that while the number of nurses will increase by 19 percent by 2022, demand will grow faster than supply, and that there will be over one million unfilled nursing jobs by then.
So what's the solution? Robots.
Japan is ahead of the curve when it comes to this trend. Toyohashi University of Technology has developed Terapio, a robotic medical cart that can make hospital rounds, deliver medications and other items. It follows a specific individual, such as a doctor or nurse, who can use it to record and access patient data. This type of robot will likely to be one of the first to be implemented in hospitals because it has fairly minimal patient contact.
A robot's appearance affects its ability to successfully interact with humans, which is why the RIKEN-TRI Collaboration Center for Human-Interactive Robot Research decided to develop a robotic nurse called Acntroid F. It is so human-like that some patients may not know the difference. This conversational robot companion has cameras in its eyes, which allow it to track patients and use appropriate facial expressions and body language in its interactions. During a month-long hospital trial, researchers asked 70 patients how they felt being around the robot and “only three or four said they didn't like having it around”.
It's important to note that robotic nurses don't decide courses of treatment or make diagnoses. Instead, they perform routine and laborious tasks, freeing nurses up to attend to patients with immediate needs. This is one industry where it seems the interaction of robots will lead to collaboration, not replacement.
1. What does the author say about Japan?| A．It ranks top in future robotics technology. |
| B．It takes the lead in offering robotic nursing. |
| C．It is in desperate need of registered nurses. |
| D．It provides the best medication for the elderly. |
| A．cancelled. | B．constructed. | C．improved. | D．applied. |
| A．It has no difference from a human nurse. |
| B．It gets favorable remarks from all the patients. |
| C．It interacts with patients like a human companion. |
| D．It uses body language even more effectively than words. |
| A．Skeptical | B．Positive | C．Critical | D．Indifferent |
【推荐3】Note: Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este 埃斯特别墅经典车优雅竞赛
Sometimes, very rarely, a car event manages to fuse multiple elements into seamless whole, one in which different eras and disciplines are celebrated equally. A location such as Villa d’Este on Lake Como doesn’t hurt, either.
Flying the flag for Italy was a magnificent display of Ferraris, ranging from early coachbuilt examples and early prototypes all the way up to a competition spec F40 on the modern side of the classic car spectrum.
From an event where prewar cars were once the de facto (事实上的) feature, the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este is slowly but surely moving on with the times, and this year the writing was on the wall, in bold black letters that spelled “Bulldog.” The mythical Aston Martin concept car of the 1980s seduced the crowds with its bold and boxy bodywork, winning the Coppa d’Oro, the public choice award.
Regardless of one’s specific taste, beauty was to be found everywhere this past Saturday, in shape, in thought, in sound, in the taste of the food and the perfume of the air.
| A．It is the youngest car that has ever managed that achievement thus far. |
| B．Some of us drank a lot of water, while others stuck to the tried and tested method of champagne — a popular option judging by near constant flow of waiters ferrying trays. |
| C．The Concorso is an event where the definition of “classic” is stretched into a wide net, and the ultra modern and futureforward cars also have a place here. |
| D．The delicacy of these early models makes them feel so light that they are almost floating in our perception. |
| E．The people, as always, made it extra special. |
| F．This year’s Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este went way above all my expectations. |
