Have you heard of snake robots? Scientists and doctors are already using tiny snakes that coil through the human body armed with sharp surgical tools to perform operations on hearts, prostate cancer, and other diseased organs. The snake robots that carry tiny cameras, scissors and forceps, and even more advanced sensors are being developed.
The next generation of the robots will be wireless, and will explore inside your body on their own--- not attached to any cables. For now, they are powered by cables that humans control. Experts say the day is coming when some robots will roam around the body on their own. But the experts in robotics say the new creations work best when they are designed for very specific tasks.
Howie Choset has been researching and building robots, particularly snake robots. He believes that his snake robot and others like it can help reduce medical costs by making complex surgery faster and easier. Choset says his new design is smaller and more flexible than earlier models.
The size of surgical robots allows surgeons to operate with far less damage to the body, helping the patient heal faster. Choset has also built larger snake robots designed for search and rescue, or just exploration. They can climb poles and trees and then look around through a camera in the head and slither through places that humans cannot reach.
“ We sent our snake robots into these caves in the Red Sea to look for evidence of ancient Egyptian ships,” he said. “ To me, archeology is like search and rescue, but everyone has been dead for 5,000 years.”
The doctors are very excited about the potential for surgical robots to do things that humans can’t do. The variety of sensors available for surgical robots keeps expanding. As they get smaller, maybe one day they will be able to test chemicals or blood in the body, or even the electrical connections in nerves.
小题1:What can we learn from the first paragraph?
A．The doctors carry out surgery using snake robots mainly for heart disease.
B．The doctors are very satisfied with the new snake robots during surgery.
C．Snake robots are completely free of human control today.
D．Other supplementary appliances will be added to snake robots.小题2:Which of the following is true, according to the passage?
A．Snake robots are only used in the medical field.
B．Snake robots can reduce the patients’ medical costs.
C．Scientists are uncertain about the prospects for snake robots.
D．Scientists are forced to spend a lot of time researching snake robots.小题3:How can snake robots work best, according to the passage?
A．When they carry tiny cameras, scissors and forceps.
B．When they are operated by experienced doctors.
C．When they are given a wireless function.
D．When they are designed for particular tasks.小题4:Why do we know about Howie Choset, according to the passage?
A．He thought snake robots of different sizes can be used for different types of surgery.
B．He thought patients’ pain had been slightly reduced with the help of snake robots.
C．He also made snake robots for search, rescue and exploration.
D．He is very interested in researching ancient Egyptian ships.小题5:The writers attitude towards the new technology is ______.
A．optimistic
B．doubtful
C．objective
D．negative
