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Hi-Tech Teachers 教育未式：机器人老师

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For years, people have speculated about what life will be like when robots can become functional members of society. Hit films like I Robot and The Terminator envision a world, in the not-so-distant future, where robots walk among us. Recently, some sensational cyborgs have proved that this day may come sooner than we think.

人们多年来猜想当机器人成为社会上真正的一份子时，将会是怎么样的生活。《机械公敌》跟《魔鬼终结者》等热门电影里都已预想了在不远的将来，机器人与我们并肩而行的世界。最近，有些造成轰动的机器人已证实这些日子将比原本预期的更早来临。

In South Korea, educators tried replacing a few English teachers with highly-functional robots. Aptly named Engkey, this robot can be remotely controlled by people on another continent. The robots offer a creative solution to the shortage of qualified native English-speaking teachers within the nation. So far, the program has been a great success, and the government hopes to add an additional 830 robots into Korean schools by year’s end.

在南韩，教育家试着将一些英文老师替换成高机能性的机器人。名符其名的Engkey机器人可以由位于他州的人远程遥控。此种机器人为缺乏合格的母语外籍教师的国家提供了有效的解决方式。到目前为止，此项计划大大地成功了，政府希望年底前可以在韩国的校园里增加830个英语机器人。

The U.S. is also experimenting with introducing robots into classrooms. In San Diego, a robot named RUBI has been successful in teaching pre-schoolers basic tasks, like setting the table and learning new vocabulary. However, one field test produced some interesting and comical results. At the beginning of the class, students were fascinated by their new electronic instructor. But by the time class was dismissed, researchers discovered some naughty children had yanked poor RUBI’s arms off.

美国也进行将这些机器人引进教室中的实验。在圣地亚哥，一个名为RUBI的机器人就成功地教授学龄前儿童一些基本事物，像是摆设餐具与学习新字汇。然而，一份田野调查显出一些有趣滑稽的结果。在课堂的一开始，学生十分着迷于他们新的电子教师，但当课堂一结束，研究者发现有些调皮的孩童开始猛拔可怜RUBI机器人的手臂。

The biggest hurdle in the way of robot teachers is their inability to deal with unpredictable situations, as kids can behave in some wacky and unusual ways. Although robots may still lack the tools to teach independently, these developments suggest that the days of mechanical professors might be just around the corner.

对于推广机器人老师最大的障碍在于，因为小孩的行为总是古怪且不寻常的，这些机器人无法处理不可预测的情况。虽然目前机器人仍缺乏独自教学的能力，但此项发展显示了我们离机器人老师普及的日子不远矣。

－by Jamie Blacler

Vocabulary

单词发音

envision [ɪnˋvɪʒən] v. 想象，展望

sensational [sɛnˋseʃənəl] adj. 引起轰动的；轰动社会的

cyborg [ˋsaɪbɔrg] n. cybernetic organism 半机械人

aptly [ˋæptlɪ] adv. 适当地，适切地；巧妙地

pre-schooler [͵priˋskulɚ] n. 学龄前儿童

comical [ˋkɑmɪk!] adj. 滑稽的；诙谐的；古怪的

dismiss [dɪsˋmɪs] v. 解散

naughty [ˋnɔtɪ] adj. 顽皮的，淘气的；撒野的

yank [jæŋk] v. 猛拉

wacky [ˋwækɪ] adj. 发疯的；古怪的；乖僻的

around the corner 在附近

Reading Questions

1.    What does the passage suggest about robots and humans?

(A)  Soon robots will take over all human jobs.

(B)  Humans and robots will never work together.

(C)  Movies have warned us about the dangers of robots.

(D)  Robots may be able to assist humans with some tasks.

2.    Which of the following is NOT true about robotic teachers?

(A)  They must be controlled by a teacher in the classroom.

(B)  They are helping to address a shortage in human teachers.

(C)  They have performed very well so far in South Korea.

(D)  They are being used mainly to help young children learn.

3.    Where would you likely find this passage?

(A)  In a magazine that offers tips for new teachers.

(B)  On a website that teaches people to build robots.

(C)  In a newspaper article about advances in education.

(D)  On an application form for elementary school teachers.

I, Robot - Official Trailer [HD]

The Terminator Official Trailer #1

201207 engkey 

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