A study by St.. Louis University has found that a lovable dog named Sparky and a robotic dog, AIBO, were about equally effective at reducing the loneliness of nursing home residents. The study confirmed previous findings that dogs have a good effect on nursing home residents.
Dr. Andrew Smith led the Stanford University team that built a home-assistance robot. “If humans can feel an emotional tie with robots, some day they could be not just our assistants, but also our companions,” he said.
To test whether residents responded better to Sparky, a trained dog, or the Sony-made robotic dog, researchers divided 38 nursing home residents into three groups at three long-term care centers in St. Louis.
One group had weekly 30-minute one-on-one visits with Sparky; another group had similar visits with AIBO; a control group had no contact with either dog. The groups’ respective levels of loneliness were tested by having them answer a number of questions at the beginning and near the end of the visits.
After two months, both groups that had contact with the dogs were less lonely and more attached. Most of the elderly regarded Sparky, a 9-year-old dog, as an audience for their life stories, said investigator Marian Banks.
“He listened attentively, wagged his tail, and allowed them to pet him,” said Banks, who adopted and trained Sparky after finding him in a street behind her home seven years ago.
Those who were together with AIBO took a little longer to warm to the robotic creature. Over time, however, they grew comfortable with him, and petted and talked to him. He would respond by wagging his tail, vocalizing, and blinking his lights..
“AIBO is charming once you start to interact with him,” said the study’s author, Dr. William Banks, “He’s an attractive sort of guy. He gives a feeling of being personal, not just a robot.”
小题1:Before the new study, it was known that ____.
A．robots were effective at reducing people’s loneliness
B．robots could build close connection with humans
C．dogs could help get rid of old people’s loneliness
D．dogs and robots were equally effective at reducing loneliness小题2:Those who had contact with the robotic dog found that ___.
A．they didn’t feel comfortable with it
B．it was hard for them to interact with it
C．they weren’t comfortable with it at first
D．the robot’s vocalizing and blinking confused them小题3:The findings of the researchers tell us that___.
A．robots are better at caring for old people than nurses
B．robots can to some degree replace dogs as companions for old people
C．it’s easy for people to become close with robots
D．every home will have a robot assistant one day小题4:What would be the best title for the passage?
A．Robots Serve People Better Than Thought
B．No More Lonely Old Age with Emotional Robots
C．Advanced Technology Used to cheer up the Elderly
D．Robots and Dogs Can Equally Cheer up the Elderly
小题1:C
小题2:C
小题3:B
小题4:D
题目分析： 本文主要讲解了研究人员对机器狗和真实的狗是否一样能够排遣孤独进行了实验，表明机器狗和真实的狗都能够给老人带来欢乐，排遣孤独感。
小题1:细节题。从文章The study confirmed previous findings that dogs have a good effect on nursing home residents.可知先前的报道发现狗对于疗养院里的人排遣孤独有益处，故选C
小题2:细节题。从Those who were together with AIBO took a little longer to warm to the robotic creature.可知他们要花费更长的时间来和这些机器狗进行沟通，产生共鸣，故选C
小题3:推断题。从A study by St.. Louis University has found that a lovable dog named Sparky and a robotic dog, AIBO, were about equally effective at reducing the loneliness of nursing home residents.及He’s an attractive sort of guy. He gives a feeling of being personal, not just a robot.可知机器狗在某种程度上可以取代狗而成为老人的伴侣，故选B
小题4:主旨题。从文章第一段及最后一段可知，机器狗和真实的狗都能够给老人带来欢乐，排遣孤独感，故选D
点评：日常生活类说明文比较好理解，本文的文脉清晰，结构也很好把握。对于本文把握好作者所叙述的有关机器狗和真实的狗一样对老人有帮助，同时，此类文章推断题居多，在对文章看懂了的基础上深刻理解作者的写作目的和情感是做好本文的关键。