1 . In one of the more unusual experiments we’ve seen recently, researchers attached a large pair of cartoonish huge eyes to the front of a small, self-driving vehicle—and it turns out that this kind of adaptation could actually improve pedestrian (行人) safety.
A pair of eyes on the front of driverless vehicles could, according to the researchers, give people standing by the road a better idea of whether they’ve been seen. That’s one useful bit of information to have when it comes to determining the perfect moment to cross in front of oncoming traffic. “If the car is not looking at the pedestrian, this implies that the car does not recognize the pedestrian,” said one of the researchers. “Thus, pedestrians can judge that they should not cross the street, thereby avoiding potential traffic accidents.”
For the purposes of this study, the researchers used a car which seemed as if no one was inside. A pair of large, swiveling (旋转的) eyes on the front were controlled by researchers, but in the future could be controlled by the car’s AI on an actual self-driving vehicle.
To keep the 18 participants safe, experiments were conducted in virtual reality. The volunteers—nine men and nine women—were asked to decide whether or not to cross the road as the car approached. Four scenarios(方案) were tested in total; two when the car was fitted with eyes, and two when it wasn’t. The researchers measured how often people hesitated to cross when it was in fact safe to do so, and how often they chose to cross when it was dangerous. Overall, the presence of the eyes led to safer and smoother crossing experiences for the participants.
However, there was a gender split in the results. For men, the eyes only really helped in dangerous situations, warning them to pause when they might otherwise proceed. For women, the eyes boosted confidence by signaling it was safe to cross.
1. What is the function of cartoonish huge eyes?A.Improving the safety of self-driving vehicles. |
B.Helping people decide when to cross the road. |
C.Keeping pedestrians in a complete safe state. |
D.Promoting the appearance of self-driving vehicles. |
A.There was a robot in the car. |
B.The pair of large eyes were controlled by AI. |
C.The experiments were designed by 18 volunteers. |
D.Experiments weren’t conducted in real surroundings. |
A.Doubtful. | B.Objective. | C.Negative. | D.Positive. |
A.To advertise a new self-driving technology. |
B.To enhance pedestrians’ awareness of safety. |
C.To inform us of a new research on driverless vehicles. |
D.To introduce the influence of a new type of car. |
After nearly four years of construction, China’s longest underwater highway tunnel, the Taihu Tunnel, is now open to vehicle traffic.
Construction workers used over 2 million cubic meters of concrete to build the two-way tunnel,
Connecting Suzhou, Wuxi and Changzhou, it was built to reduce traffic pressure on the cities next to Lake Taihu and promote me economic
So how good is the Taihu Tunnel
Half a million Londoners travel to and from work by bike every day. Since the introduction of the Congestion Charge in 2003, the capital city
The growth in cycling can partly be attributed to the launch in 2010 by Transport for London of the Backlays Cycle Hire scheme throughout the city's center.
Of course, London isn't the only place
4 . Educational programs often use fear-based messaging and films of crash scenes to reduce risky driving behavior among young people. But does this “scary” approach work? A new study suggests that fear-based messaging fails to reduce risky driving behavior, while fear-based Virtual Reality (VR) films showing a violent collision may actually lead young drivers to take more chances behind the wheel.
A team of psychologists in Belgium conducted a study of 146 students who had been legally driving for less than five years. The researchers examined the impact of both content (fear vs. positive) and delivery mode (2D vs. VR) of driver safety intervention programs.
By showing a serious consequence such as death, fear-based driver education films attempt to arouse a sense of fear and persuade young people to drive more carefully. Positively framed films take the opposite approach, using humor and modeling safe driving behaviors that result in positive consequences.
Three tests were used to analyze the risk-taking behavior of the young drivers before and after participating in the intervention program. One was a questionnaire. Another was a test on traffic, which asks participants to watch video clips of driving situations and choose whether they view a situation as too risky, for example, choosing whether to pass another car in icy conditions. A third test was used to measure the level of emotional arousal (such as feeling afraid) after watching a film.
The results showed that participants who viewed the fear-based VR film reported riskier driving behaviors afterward, while those who viewed a positively framed VR film exhibited the greatest reduction in risky driving behavior. This finding supports other research that has shown that exposing participants to an extreme collision tends to activate defensive mechanisms, such as paying attention for a shorter time, disengaging, rejecting a message, and an increase in risky behaviors.
“Fear appeals have been used in many health and environmental campaigns, such as smoking and anti-drug,” says Dr. Cutello of the research team. “Further experimental research is needed to determine whether the use of fear is effective.”
1. What is the new study about?A.VR’s application on driving education. | B.Young drivers’ risky driving behaviors. |
C.The deadly consequence of violent crashes. | D.The effect of drivers’ educational programs. |
A.To assess driving emotions. | B.To judge driving behaviors. |
C.To gain driving competence. | D.To keep safe driving in mind. |
A.Drivers show fewer risky behaviors. | B.Drivers were less able to focus long. |
C.Drivers were unwilling to cooperate. | D.Drivers became more open to advice. |
A.More research should be conducted. | B.Fear-based education shouldn’t be used. |
C.The result of his research is unconvincing. | D.The use of fear education has been cut down. |
5 . Tourism probably started in Roman times. Rich Romans visited friends and family who were working in another part of the Roman empire. But when the empire broke down, this kind of tourism stopped.
In the early 17th century, the idea of the “Grand Tour” was born. Rich young English people sailed across the English Channel(英吉利海峡). They visited the most beautiful and important European cities of the time, including Paris in France, and Rome and Venice(威尼斯)in Italy. Their tours lasted for two to four years, and the tourists stayed a few weeks or months in each city. The “Grand Tour” was an important part of young people’s education—but only for the rich.
In the 18th century, tourism began to change. For example, people in the UK started to visit some towns, such as Bath to “take the waters”. They believed that the water there was good for their health. So large and expensive hotels were built in these towns.
In the 19th century, travel became much more popular and faster. When the first railways were built in the 1820s, it was easier for people to travel between towns, so they started to go for holidays by the sea. And some started to have holidays in the countryside as cities became larger, noisier and dirtier.
Traveling by sea also became faster and safer when the first steamships were built. People began to travel more to far-away countries.
The 20th century saw cars become more and more popular among ordinary people. Planes were made larger, so ticket prices dropped and more people used them.
Thus tourism grew. In 1949, Russian journalist Vladimir Raitz started a company called Horizon Holidays. The company organizes everything—plane tickets, hotel rooms, even food—and tourists pay for it all before they leave home. The package tour and modern tourist industry was born.
The first travel agency in China was set up as early as 1949. But tourism did not take off until 1978. In 2002, the industry was worth 500 billion Yuan and became an important part of China's social development.
1. In the early times, the travelers __________.A.only came from Roman |
B.traveled by boat |
C.were very wealthy |
D.were very young and strong |
A.The young men learned little from Grand Tour. |
B.More people chose planes for its cheap price. |
C.In 2002, tourism became a fundamental part of China's social development. |
D.Tourism became faster and safer when the first railways were built in the 18th century. |
A.Education | B.Money |
C.Transportation | D.People's ideas |
A.in 1949 | B.in 1978 |
C.in the early 17th century | D.in Roman times |
A.a plane rising into the air | B.develop very fast |
C.remove hats and clothes | D.bring down the prices |