VOA慢速英语--新型机器人加入劳动大军

AS IT IS 2016-06-13 Meet the Newest Robots Joining the Work Force 新型机器人加入劳动大军

Robots are not new to the industrial world. But as technology keeps getting better, more robots are helping¹ humans in the workplace.

Some of the world’s top robot innovators recently gathered at an expo in New York to show off their best machine workers.

One person attending the RoboUniverse expo said robots are important because they can take over tasks humans do not want. The founder³ and CEO of a new company called Blue Workforce⁴, Preben Hj?rnet, said robots will always assist humans, not replace them.

“Robots have no conscience, no self-awareness, so they’ll never be social. But they don’t need to, to make a service for us,” he said.

Tom Moolayil, a technical manager at Universal Robots, agrees.

“Doing a repetitive, mundane⁵ task over and over again, I don’t think that’s a job any person should be doing even for a day,” he said.

He added that a lot of companies with these kinds of jobs find it hard to keep workers. But luckily, robots do not mind being bored. They are also experts at repeating a task over and over again.

Advances in technology have made robots very safe.

Universal Robots demonstrated how one of its machines stopped moving after a human fell on it.

Safety is especially important in workplaces such as car factories, where humans and robots work side-by-side.

Designers at Transcend⁶ Robotics created a robot for very dangerous jobs, including mining and law enforcement. It has controllable cameras, climbs stairs and travels over rough terrain⁷.

Chief Marketing⁸ Officer Alvin Wong said the machine aims to save lives.

“You can actually survey a hazardous⁹ environment before bringing a human into that area,” he said.

While some people fear robots will replace them, Wong said machines can actually help humans perform better. For example, police officers and soldiers consider the field of robotics to be their partner.

Another use for modern robots is to help people who cannot walk.

5D Robotics showed how its navigation technology can guide people in wheelchairs along pre-programmed paths. 5D’s Chief Marketing Officer, Phil Mann, said cars and airplanes can also use the same navigation technology.

Mann and his colleagues believe Americans will soon have robot co-workers. But in most cases, he said workers won’t even notice – except maybe to realize that their day goes by much faster.

Words in This Story

innovator² – n. person who introduces new ideas and products

task – n. job for someone to do

conscience – n. feeling inside that you did something wrong

mundane – adj. lacking interest or excitement in, dull

bored – adj. complete lack of interest in something

advances – n. progress made in improving something

terrain – n. a stretch of land

hazardous – adj. harmful, risky¹⁰, dangerous

colleague – n. person who works with you

1 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

2 innovator   

n.改革者；创新者

参考例句：

• The young technical innovator didn't lose heart though the new system was not yet brought into a workable condition. 尽管这种新方法尚未达到切实可行的状况，这位青年技术革新者也没有泄气。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Caesar planned vast projects and emerged as a great innovator. 恺撒制定了庞大的革新计划。 来自英汉非文学 - 文明史

3 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

4 workforce   

n.劳动大军，劳动力

参考例句：

• A large part of the workforce is employed in agriculture.劳动人口中一大部分受雇于农业。
• A quarter of the local workforce is unemployed.本地劳动力中有四分之一失业。

5 mundane   

adj.平凡的；尘世的；宇宙的

参考例句：

• I hope I can get an interesting job and not something mundane.我希望我可以得到的是一份有趣的工作，而不是一份平凡无奇的。
• I find it humorous sometimes that even the most mundane occurrences can have an impact on our awareness.我发现生活有时挺诙谐的，即使是最平凡的事情也能影响我们的感知。

6 transcend   

vt.超出，超越(理性等)的范围

参考例句：

• We can't transcend the limitations of the ego.我们无法超越自我的局限性。
• Everyone knows that the speed of airplanes transcend that of ships.人人都知道飞机的速度快于轮船的速度。

7 terrain   

n.地面，地形，地图

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• He knows the terrain of this locality like the back of his hand.他对这一带的地形了如指掌。

8 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。

9 hazardous   

adj.(有)危险的，冒险的；碰运气的

参考例句：

• These conditions are very hazardous for shipping.这些情况对航海非常不利。
• Everybody said that it was a hazardous investment.大家都说那是一次危险的投资。

10 risky   

adj.有风险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• It may be risky but we will chance it anyhow.这可能有危险，但我们无论如何要冒一冒险。
• He is well aware how risky this investment is.他心里对这项投资的风险十分清楚。