Self-driving boats can move people and goods

山西 李文慧

难词探意

1. autonomous /ɔː΄tɒnəməs/ adj. 自主的

2. propeller /prə΄pelə(r)/ n. 螺旋桨；推进器

3. laser /΄leɪzə(r)/ n. 激光器

The development of self-driving car has seen major progress in recent years. Now engineers are working on developingautonomouswater vehicles they call Roboats.

The developers used machine-learning methods similar to those used to train self-driving cars. The robotic boats are designed to not only create a group of boats to transport goods and people along the waterways of Amsterdam and improve people's quality of life, but also connect with other Roboats to form a range of autonomous platforms.

The electric-powered Roboat has fourpropellersthat permit it to move in any direction.It is equipped with a series of cameras and sensors to guide its movements. It also uses LiDAR, a technology that uses lightlasersto map the environment and measure distances.The boat is designed to use the sensor-collected data to create and pilot a path between a series of goal points. The Roboat measuring two meters by one meter and weighing about 80 kilograms can carry two passengers. Researchers are currently developing the latest autonomous water vehicle. That boat is expected to be four meters long and is designed to carry up to six passengers.

The researchers said Roboat was successful in autonomously navigating the canals of Amsterdam for three hours while collecting data. The boat completed its chosen course and returned to the starting point with an error of just 0.17 meter.

The research team plans to use what it has learned from the first two Roboats to create a model of its biggest autonomous boat yet and they will test it in Amsterdam as well. After that,the team plans to start testing the vehicles in environments with more noisy waters, such as conditions found in the ocean.

There have already been some experiments with autonomous shipping vehicles.In September, it was announced that an ocean research vehicle called the Mayflower Autonomous Ship would attempt to set sail across the Atlanticwithout a captain or crew on board.The builders of the new Mayflower say they hope such ships can be used in the future to explore parts of oceans that are too difficult or dangerous for people to reach.

Reading

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1. What's the main purpose of developing Roboats?

A. To improve the waterways of Amsterdam.

B. To reduce the pressure of driving cars.

C. To make people live more conveniently.

D. To make Amsterdam an autonomous city.

2. What plays a key role in measuring distances?

A. Light lasers.

B. Four propellers.

C. Cameras and sensors.

D. Sensor-collected data.

3. What can we know about the present Roboat from the text?

A. It can work for three hours.

B. It has been tested in the ocean.

C. It has few errors when functioning.

D. It can carry six passengers at most.

4. What does the underlined word “it” in paragraph 5 refer to?

A. The Roboat. B. The model.

C. The ocean. D. The research team.

Language

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Sentence for writing

In September, it was announced that an ocean research vehicle called the Mayflower Autonomous Ship would attempt to set sail across the Atlantic without a captain or crew on board.

【信息提取】it is announced that...为固定句式，意为“据宣布……”。

【句式仿写】据宣布下周将要在我们城市举办一次重要的会议。