机器蛇
Recently, a vehicle had to go a long way to avoid another sandy area. These incidents led some scientists to develop ways to keep the costly robots from being trapped in the sand. These scientists looked to nature for their ideas.
The researchers flew deadly snakes to Zoo Atlanta in Atlanta, Georgia. The snakes, called sidewinder rattlers, are native to the southwestern United States.
The creatures were put in a specially designed sandbox with inclines that could be raised up or lowered. The scientists used high-speed video cameras to record the position of the snakes as they moved sideways up different inclines. Their movement is called sidewinding.
Daniel Goldman teaches physics at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta. He says the snakes moved easily in the sand —even when the sand began moving.
“We noticed that the animals were in fact sidewinding, using the same kind of pattern of sidewinding they use on hard ground.”
Researchers then performed experiments with a robot developed at Carnegie Mellon University in Pennsylvania. The robot is called MOD-Snake. It is one meter long, and has 16 parts or modules. Each module is 6 centimeters wide.
Daniel Goldman says the robot has a long history of getting in and out of tight places. Researchers wanted to get the MOD-Snake to climb in the same way as the sidewinder rattlers.
The researchers performed the same experiment with other snakes closely related to the rattlers. But all of those creatures failed to slide up the inclines.
“Robots are expensive. And a robot gets stuck in the sand, that’s a problem. We realize that sidewinders never ever, ever get stuck in the sand!” The researchers hope the new sidewinder robot will travel up and down sand dunes just as well.
本时文内容由奇速英语国际教育研究院原创编写，禁止复制和任何商业用途，版权所有，侵权必究！
1.Where did the research happen?
A In New York.
B In Atlanta.
C In Washington DC.
D In Pennsylvania.
解析：选B。细节理解题。根据第2段第1句The researchers flew deadly snakes to Zoo Atlanta in Atlanta, Georgia可知。故选B。
2.What subject did Daniel teach?
A Science.
B Physics.
C Maths.
D History.
解析：选B。细节理解题。根据第4段第1句Daniel Goldman teaches physics at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta可知，他教的是物理。故选B。
3.What kind of animal did the scientists research?
A Dogs.
B Snakes.
C Cats.
D Monkeys.
解析：选B。细节理解题。根据第2段第2句The snakes, called sidewinder rattlers, are native to the southwestern United States可知，研究对象为蛇。故选B。
4.What does the underlined word “sidewinding” mean in Chinese?
A 侧向运动.
B 侧面绕组.
C 侧向强风.
D 蛇行.
解析：选D。词义猜测题。根据第3段The scientists used high-speed video cameras to record the position of the snakes as they moved sideways up different inclines可知，科学家用高速照相机录制蛇的移动情况，这种运动叫蛇行。故选D。
5.What is the key message of the last paragraph?
A Scientists spent a lot of money on the robots.
B A robot got stuck in the sand.
C The sidewinders never got stuck in the sand.
D The sidewinder robot still has a lot to improve.
解析：选D。段落大意题。从最后1句The researchers hope the new sidewinder robot will travel up and down sand dunes just as well可知，机器蛇并没达到完美程度。故选D。