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What if you arrived home to find a delicious hot meal waiting for you, prepared by your very own kitchen
robot? It might sound like science fiction, but professors at the university of Tokyo have taken the first steps
toward making that scenario a reality. The team recently introduced a humanoid kitchen robot that can pour
tea and other drinks into cups and serve them to guests. When teatime is over, the robot can also wash the
dishes and put them away.
In California, another interesting kitchen robot has been developed. Called the Readybot, it can pick up
objects and either store them in cabinets or put them in the trash. It also carries a separate floor-cleaning robot
that can operate by itself. Unlike the Japanese robot, Readybot is not humanoid. Instead, it looks more like a
large box with arms and wheels.
Readybot was created by engineers and designers who established a club called the Readybot Challenge.
They believe that in the future millions of robots will be needed in homes to perform ordinary household tasks.
Readybot is just the first step in their plan to create a robot that can tackle jobs not only in kitchens but in other
rooms of homes and in offices as well.
Clearly there are technological hurdles to overcome before robots can cook a complete dinner, and there
are also many safety concerns. Not everyone (especially parents) would be comfortable with the idea of robots
in their house, manipulating hot pans and sharp knives. The European Commission recently funded a project
to study these concerns.
1. What does the writer imply about the Japanese robot?
A. It performs fewer functions than readybot can.
B. It looks more like a person than Readybot does.
C. It speaks more languages than Readybot does.
D. It costs 1ess to manufacture than Readybot does.
2. Where do the engineers and designers hope that Readybot will operate in the future?
A. On spacecraft
B. In automobiles
C. On playgrounds
D. At companies
3. What does the writer imply about parents?
A. They have shown tremendous interest in kitchen robots.
B. They don't have strong opinions about kitchen robots.
C. They might think that kitchen robots could be dangerous.
D. They can't wait to buy kitchen robots for their homes.
4. According to the writer, what has the European Commission done for the project?
A. It has built factories
B. It has printed manuals
C. It has hired workers
D. It has provided money
