大學英語六級考試模擬試卷九十四（帶答案）

大學英語六級考試模擬試卷九十四

（總分：710.00,做題時間：130分鐘）

PartIWriting（總題數：1,分數：0.00）

1.Directions:Forthispart,youareallowed30minutestowriteashortessay

entitledTheImportanceofSocialPractice.Youshouldwriteatleast150wordsbut

nomorethan200words.WriteyouressayonAnswerSheet1.

1.對于是否應該參加社會實踐，大家看法不一

2.參加社會實踐的重要性

（分數：106.50）

正確答案：（［范文］

Whenitcomestostudents'socialpractice,somepeopleregarditasawaste

oftime,whereasothersarguethatparticipatinginvarioussocialactivitiesbenefitsa

lot.Personally,Iaminfavorofthelatterview.

Tobeginwith,bybeingmoresociallyinvolved,wecanapplytheknowledge

wehaveacquiredfromtextbookstothesolutionofpracticalproblems.Onlyindoing

socanwegetextraexperienceoutsidetheIvoryTower.Whatismore,getting

involvedinsocialpracticecanhelpusgainabetterinsightintowhatishappeningin

theworldaroundus,whichdoesgoodtoourfurtherstudy.Lastbutnotleast,social

practicewillprovideuswithmoreopportunitiestodevelopinterpersonalskills,

whichmayputusinafavorablepositioninthefuturejobmarkets.

Toconclude,properamountofsocialpracticedoesnotoccupytoomuchtime

andshouldbecomeanindispensablepartofschooleducation,fortheknowledgewe

obtainfromtextbooksinclassisfarfromenough.）

Part11ListeningComprehension（總題數：0,分數：0.00）

SectionA（總題數：8,分數：0.00）

.Questions1to4arebasedontheconversationyouhavejustheard.

1.（分數:28.40）

A.TravelinginSouthAfricatoseekmedicalhelp.

B.PromotingawarenessandpreventionofAIDS.J

C.Visitingclientsandsigningcontracts.

0.Collectingfundforthenewbusiness.

解析：［聽力原文］

W:OurPresident,sinceleavingofficefiveyearsago,hasspentahugeamount

oftimepromotingAIDSawarenessandprevention.

M:ThatisthethingIhavebeendoing.

W:IknowyoujustcamebackfromJohannesburg,SouthAfrica,partofyour

six-nationtourofAfrica.

M:Right.Youknow,AfricahasbeenmoreaffectedbyAIDSthananyother

placeintheworld.

W:Why?

M:Ithinkthat'spartlybecausetherewerenotsystemsinplacebothto

preventpeoplefromcontractingitandspreadingit.

W:Howisyourworkgettingon?

M:IthinkwearebeginningtomakesomeheadwaynotonlyinAfrica,butin

otherplaceswhereit'saproblem.

W:canyounamesome?

M:Itisspreadingworldwide,growingevenfasternowintermsoftherateof

increaseintheformerSovietUnionandtheCaribbean,India,China.

W:Iknowyourfoundationismakingagreatdealofprogress.Isitreasonable

toexpectthatitcanbebroughtundercontrol?

M：Well,yes,butyouhavetotakecareofeducationandpreventionandcare

andtreatmentatthesametime,andthetwothingsspeedupeachother.

W:Howshouldweunderstandtheyspeedupeachother?

M:Whenyou'vegottotreatpeople,you'vegottoovercomeanykindof

culturaldislike,talkaboutitandgetyoungpeopletobehaveresponsiblyandyou've

gottodowhateveryoucantogetasmanypeopletestedasquicklyaspossiblebut

keepinmindthatthisisadiseasethat'sonehundredpercentpreventable.

Whathasthepresidentbeendoingsinceleavingoffice?

①選項均為現在分詞，猜測本題可能是問某人在做什么。②對話開頭就點明，

President離職后一直在致力于提高人們的艾滋病防御意識，即B。

男士去南非是為艾滋病的防控提供幫助，而非去尋求醫(yī)療救助，排除

Ao

C“拜訪客戶、簽合同”以及D“為新業(yè)務籌集資金”在對話中均未涉及。

.Questions5to8arebasedontheconversationyouhavejustheard.

5.（分數：28.40）

A.Toorganizeactivitiesforchildren.

B.Toselllocalfarmproducts.

C.Tobringtouriststothetown.

D.Toraisefundforthehospital.V

解析：［聽力原文］

W:AreyougoingtothefairnextSaturday?

M:Whatfair?

W:TheannualfairthatRiverbellputsonthefirstSaturdayinJunetoraise

moneyfortheRiverdalehospital.Thefairisbeingheldontheuniversityathleticfield

justlikeinpreviousyears.Haven'tyounoticedthetentsthathadalreadybeenset

up?

M:Yes,Ihave,whataretheyfor?

W:Theyareforthemanyspecialeventsanddisplays.Andthisyearthere'llbe

quiteafewnewevents.

M:Howaboutyou?Willyougo?

W:Yes,actuallyIamgoingtohelpservefoodattherefreshmenttentfora

fewhoursSaturdayafternoon.

M:Domanypeoplevolunteertohelpout?

W:Oh,yes.Ilikehelping,becauseIreallyenjoyseeingalotofmyfriendsat

thefoodtent.Everybodylovestoeat.

M:Sothat'sit.Iheardsomeotherpeopletalkingaboutgoingtohearlocal

bands.Everyonesaysthatthisyear'sshowissupposedtobemoreexcitingthanall

theothersputtogether.That'stheentertainmenttent,right?

W:Right,butthateventwillbetheeveningbeforethefaironFriday.An

auctionwilltakeplaceonSaturdayafternoon,andtherewillbesomerealtreasures

forsalethen.Peopledonateallkindsofthings.Therewillalsobeanartshowon

Saturdayandaspecialgamestentjustforchildren.

M:Andalltheprofitsfromthefairalwaysgotosupportthehospital.Whata

goodidea!Well,Ineedacoupleofbookcases;maybeIcanfindsomeattheauction.

I'mgladyoumentionedit.

Whatisthemainpurposetoholdthefair?

①根據選項內容都是不定式，可以判斷題目詢問做某事的目的是什么。②對

話中男士不解女士提及的集會，女士解釋說這是為醫(yī)院籌集資金的集會。D為原

文toraisemoneyfortheRiverdalehospital的同義表達,故為答案。

A“為孩子組織活動”、B”銷售當地農場產品”和C“把游客帶到這個鎮(zhèn)

上”對話中都未提及。

SectionB（總題數：7,分數：0.00）

.Questions9to11arebasedonthepassageyouhavejustheard.

1.（分數：21.30）

A.Communicationactuallytakesplacewhenthemessageisreceived.

B.Therearemoremeansofreceivingthanofsendingcommunications.

C.Receptionofcommunicationinvolvesuseofthesenses.

D.ltishardtoorganizebytypingthemeansofsendingcommunication.V

解析：［聽力原文］

Undernormalconditionstheactofcommunicationrequiresthepresenceof

atleasttwopersons:onewhosendsandonewhoreceivesthecommunication.In

ordertocommunicatethoughtsandfeelings,theremustbeaconventionalsystemof

signsorsymbolswhichmeanthesametothesenderandthereceiver.Themeansof

sendingcommunicationsaretoonumerousandvariedforsystematicclassification;

therefore,theanalysismustbeginwiththemeansofreceivingcommunications.

Receptionofcommunicationisachievedbyoursenses.Sight,hearingand

touchplaythemostimportantroles.Smellandtasteplayverylimitedroles.

Examplesofvisualcommunicationaregestureandimitation.Althoughboth

frequentlyaccompanyspeech,therearesystemsthatrelysolelyonsight,suchas

thoseusedbydeafanddumbpersons.Anothermeansofcommunicatingvisuallyis

bysignalsoffire,smoke,flagsorflashinglights.Feelingsmaybesimply

communicatedbytouchsuchasbyhandshaking,althoughahighly-developed

systemofhandshakingdisablesblind,deaf,anddumbpersonstocommunicate

intelligently.Whistlingtosomeone,clappinghandsinatheater,andotherformsof

communicationbysoundrelyupontheearasareceiver.Themostfully-developed

formofauditorycommunicationis,ofcourse,thespokenlanguage.

Themeansofcommunicationmentionedsofarhavetwofeaturesincommon:

theylastonlyashorttime,andthepersonsinvolvedmustberelativelyclosetoeach

other.Therefore,allarerestrictedintimeandspace.

Whydoesthespeakeranalyzereceptionofcommunicationfirst?

therevolution.Todayit'sreallyagreatpleasuretohavethismoviestarand

filmmakerheretosharesomethingwithus.Goodevening,Robert

M:Thankyouforyourintroduction.Youhavementionedmobiletechnology.

Actually,whatinterestsmeishownewtechnologycaninteractwithentertainment,

whichisart,andsothat'swheremyinterestcomesin,whatnewplatformscanbe

createdtoincreaseopportunitiesforartiststotelltheirstories.Andwhatsitsatthe

bottomofitis,nomatterwhat'sgoingon,nomatterwhatthesizeofthescreenis,

orhowshortthefilmis,Ijustdon'tbelievethatyoucaneverkeepgoingforward

withoutstory.So,aslongasyou'reabletotellastoryonthisnewplatform,thenI

thinkit'sgoingtobesuccessful.Youhavetohaveagoodstory.Youhavetotella

storywithabeginning,middleandanend,andithastohaveanemotionalgrabbing

point,ithastosatisfyyou,andithastoentertainyou.Andthatwasjustfourpanels.

Soifyoucandoitwithacomic,youcandoitwithfilm.Tome,it'sadisciplinethat

canbeputonthefilmmakerthatIthinkisprettyhealthy.Ilovetheidea.So,whatI

reallylikearenewfilmmakers.Imeanatthisfilmfestivalthisyear,whichwejust

finished,therewerealotofexcitingthingsaboutit.Oneofthemwasthefilmmade

bythemeansofcrossingoverdisciplines,whichhasalottodowiththisnew

technology.Thenewtechnologyissponsoringnewwaysofseeingthingsandnew

waysofdoingthings.Andsosuddenlyinourfestivalthisyearwehadmorenew

filmmakersthanwe'veeverhadsincewestarted.Secondlywehadfilmmakers

crossingoverdisciplines.WehadBonoandU2comingwiththeir3Dexperimental

filmforIMAX.Youhadpoets,youhadmusicians,youhadartistsfromdifferent,other

disciplinescrossingoverintofilm,andtheworktobeseenwasreallyexciting.

WhatdowelearnaboutRobertRedford?

錄音開頭介紹RobertRedford是一位著名的好萊塢影星和導演，故C所述正

確。

錄音開頭介紹RobertRedford是一位著名的好萊塢影星，但是沒說他是一

位喜劇影星，故A錯誤。錄音并未提及他是一位著名的移動技術人員，也沒說他

是知名的電影投資人，故B、D也可排除。

.Questions19to22arebasedontherecordingyouhavejustheard.

4.（分數：56.80）

A.Createimagesmakingpeoplestopthinking.

B.Runaftermanyfunthingsinlife.

C.Trythingsthatdoctorsthinkimpossible.J

D.Freezeabiganimalinablockofice.

解析：［聽力原文］

Asamagician,Itrytocreateimagesthatmakepeoplestopandthink.Ialso

trytochallengemyselftodothingsthatdoctorssayarenotpossible.Iwasburied

aliveinNewYorkCityinacoffin,buriedaliveinacoffininApril,1999,foraweek.I

livedtherewithnothingbutwater.AnditendedupbeingsomuchfunthatIdecided

Icouldpursuedoingmoreofthesethings.ThenextoneisIfrozemyselfinablockof

iceforthreedaysandthreenightsinNewYorkCity.ThatwasrroredifficultthanI'd

expected.Theoneafterthat,Istoodontopofahundred-footpillarfor36hours.I

begantohaveillusionsthatthebuildingsthatwerebehindmestartedtolooklikebig

animalheads.

So,nextIwenttoLondon.InLondonIlivedinaglassboxfor44dayswith

nothingbutwater.Itwas,forme,oneofthemostdifficultthingsI'deverdone,butit

wasalsothemostbeautiful.Thereweresomanyskeptics,especiallythepressin

London,thattheystartedflyingcheeseburgersonhelicoptersaroundmyboxto

temptme.So,IfeltallwasworthwhentheNewEnglandJournalofMedicine

actuallyusedtheresearchforscience.

MynextpursuitwasIwantedtoseehowlongIcouldgowithoutbreathing,

likehowlongIcouldsurvivewithnothing,notevenair.Ididn'trealizethatitwould

becomethemostamazingjourneyofmylife.

AsayoungmagicianIwasobsessedwithHoudiniandhisunderwater

challenges.So,Ibegan,earlyon,competingagainsttheotherkids,seeinghowlongI

couldstayunderwaterwhiletheywentupanddowntobreathe,youknow,fivetimes,

whileIstayedunderononebreath.BythetimeIwasateenagerIwasabletohold

mybreathforthreeminutesand30seconds.Iwouldlaterfindoutthatwas

Houdini'spersonalrecord.

In1987Iheardofastowaboutaboythatfellthroughiceandwastrapped

underariver.Hewasunderneath,notbreathingfor45minutes.Whentherescue

workerscametheybroughthimbacktolifeandtherewasnobraindamage.Hiscore

temperaturehaddroppedto77degrees.Asamagician,Ithinkeverythingispossible.

AndIthinkifsomethingisdonebyonepersonitcanbedonebyothers.Istartedto

think,iftheboycouldsurvivewithoutbreathingforthatlong,theremustbeaway

thatIcoulddoit.

Whatdoesthespeakersayhetriestodoasamagician?

錄音開頭演講者提到作為一名魔術師，他試圖挑戰(zhàn)醫(yī)生認為不可能的事，C

為該處錄音的同義表達，為木題答案。

錄音開頭，演講者提到他試圖做到自己創(chuàng)造的形象能讓人們停下來思考，

并不是讓人停止思考，故A錯誤。演講者提到自己1999年在紐約的魔術表演結

束后，覺得很有趣，因而決定以后可以嘗試做這類表演，并不是說他想追求生活

中有趣的事情，故B錯誤。演講者提到他曾將自己凍在一塊冰里，而非將一頭大

型動物凍在一塊冰里，故D借誤。

.Questions23to25arebasedontherecordingyouhavejustheard.

8.（分數:42.60）

A.WhenthePresidentandtheFirstLadydancedintheWhiteHouse.

B.WhenanoldslavewasinterviewedaboutAmericanBlackHistory.

C.WhenanoldladydancedwiththePresidentandtheFirstlady.V

D.whensomeAfricanAmericanchildrenvisitedtheWhiteHouse.

解析：［聽力原文］

Formethemostmagicalmomentinthisweek'snewswasthesightofa

106-year-oldwoman,VirginiaMcLaurindancingwiththePresidentandtheFirstLady

intheWhiteHouse.Thereshewas,glowingwithexcitementlikeachild;thrilledto

beintheWhiteHouse,thrilledinAmericanBlackHistoryMonthtobeholdinghands

withablackPresidentandFirstLadyafterallthathistoryofslaveryandsuffering.It

wasglorious.Andotherpeoplethoughtsoaswellbecause60millionhavewatched

thevideo.Howdoyougettobethatoldandstaythatyoung?

ThebestanswerIknowisattheendofthebookofDeuteronomy.TheBible

saysaboutMosesthatattheageof120,“hiseyewasundimmedandhisnatural

energynotweak."Iusedtothinkthatthesewerejusttwodescriptions,untilI

realizedthatthefirstwastheexplanationofthesecond.Whydidn'thisenergy

decline?Becausehiseyewasundimmed.Becauseheneverlosttheidealsofhis

youth,andhisbeliefthathispeoplecouldemergefromslaveryand,inspiredbyGod,

writeitsownchapterinthehistoryofthehumanspirit.

Anddespiteallthesetbacks,despitethefactthatajourneythatshouldhave

takendaystookdecades,heneverlosthope,neverstoppedjourneyingtowardthe

PromisedLand.

Afewmonthsago,LordWeidenfelddiedattheageof96.Hetoostayed

activealmosttotheveryendwithplanstobringpeacetotroubledpartsoftheworld.

Onhis92ridbirthdayhewasinterviewedbyajournalistwhosaid,"Intheirnineties,

mostpeoplethinkaboutslowingdown.Youseemtobespeedingup.Whyisthat?"

Hereplied,"Whenyougettobe92youseethedoorbeginningtoclose,andIhave

somuchtodobeforeitclosesthattheolderIget,theharderIhavetowork."That's

howhestayedyoung.

Itisn'talwayspossible;wegetweak,thebodyages,themindfades.Butwhile

wecan,let'slivethelifeofthespirittothefull.Weareasyoungasourideals.Never

lOsefaith;neverlosehope;nevercloseyourmindtowonder.Andwhenthe

PresidentaskedVirginiaMcLaurinforthesecretofbeingabletodanceat106,she

didn'treply;shedanced."Justkeepmoving,"saidtheFirstLadywithasmile.

Whatwasthemostmagicalmomentinthisweek'snewsaccordingtothe

speaker?

錄音開頭說話人提到對于她來說本周最不可思議的時刻是看到新聞上播放

一位106歲的老太太在白宮和總統及第一夫人跳舞的事。故C為正確答案。

A頗具干擾性，錄音開頭雖然提到本周新聞中最讓人覺得不可思議的是一

位老太太和總統及第一夫人跳舞，但主角是老太太，而非總統和第一夫人，故A

錯誤。B“一位老年黑奴接受采訪”和D“一些非裔美國小孩參觀白宮”錄音中

均未提及。

PartHIReadingComprehension（總題數：0,分數：0.00）

SectionA（總題數：10,分數：0.00）

.Throughouthistorymanhasobservedsuchnaturalcyclesastherisingand

settingofthesun,theebbandflowoftheoceantides,andthechangesofthe

seasons.The1natureoftheseeventsprovidedpeoplewithameasure

of2aboutthingstocomeandgivethemreasontoreflectontheirpastand

planfortheirfuture.Theregularityofsuchsocialactivitiesasworkhours,mealtimes,

andholidayschedules3theextenttowhichhumanactivityitselfisorganized

incycles.

Recently,4efforthasbeenspentinvestigatingtheeffectofvarious

biologicalrhythmsinthehumanbody.5,interestintheserhythmsatleastin

partresultsfromman'sbasicdesiretopredictfuturebehavior.

Thehumanbody6anumberofrepeatablerhythms:heartbeats,

breathingrates,brainwavesandotherphysiologicalprocesseswithinthehuman

machine.

Scientistsstudyingrhythmsinhumanshavemeasuredsleeppatternsand

attention7overperiodsofseveraldays,andhave8thefactthatthe

cyclesexistandexerteffectsonphysiologicalandsociologicalbehavior.Acommon

exampleisjetlag.Aperson'stravelingintheeast-westdirectionacrosstime

zones9hissleepcycles一itmaytakeseveraldaystoreturnto

the10cycleortoreadjusttoanewone.

A.indicatesE.considerable1.CertainlyM.security

B.demonstratedF.upsetsJ.ThankfullyN.exhibits

C.verifyingG.disappointsK.spans0.limits

0.normalH.periodicL.gorgeous

（分數：35.50）

1.（分數:3.55）

A.A

B.B

C.C

D.D

解析：此處填入修飾nature的詞，可能是名詞、形容詞或分詞?？崭窈蟮?/p>

theseevents指的就是第一句提到的naturalcycles”自然周期”所表現的現象。

因此，空格處應填入含有“循環(huán)；周期”意思的詞語，故用形容詞periodic”周

期（性）的”。

［參考譯文］

縱觀歷史，人類觀察著自然周期規(guī)律，例如日出日落、潮起潮落、四季更

替。這些現象的周期性讓人們對即將到來的事物有了不少的安全感，也給予了人

們反思過去和計劃未來的理由。這些社會活動一一如工作時間、吃飯時間和假日

安排一一的規(guī)律性表明了某種程度上人類活動本身的組織安排也是有周期性的。

近年來，人們花費了大量精力來研究人體各種生物節(jié)律的作用。當然，對

這些節(jié)律的興趣至少有一部分是來自人們想要預測未來行為的基本欲望。

人體有著許多重復的節(jié)奏：心跳、呼吸率、腦波和其他人體機能的生理過

程。

研究人體節(jié)奏的科學家對睡眠模式和注意力集中時間進行了數天的周期

測量，并證明了一個事實：周期存在而且在生理和社會行為上發(fā)揮著作用。一個

常見的例子就是時差。自東向西跨時區(qū)的旅行就會擾亂游客的睡眠周期一一這可

能要花上好幾天的時間才能恢復到正常周期或再調整一個新周期。

2.（分數：3.55）

A.A

B.B

C.C

D.D

解析：根據空格前的介詞of，可知空格應填入名詞或動名詞作賓語。a

measureof在此用作數量詞，相當于anamountof,下文談到了這些自然現象周

期變化的規(guī)律性對人們安排行為活動的影響。換句話說，這些現象的周期性讓人

們能夠撐控即將到來的事物。詞庫中只有security“安全感”放入句中后句意通

順

3.（分數：3.55）

A.AV

B.B

C.C

D.D

解析：空格所在句缺少謂語動詞。該句表明的是一般情況，根據主語

regularity“規(guī)律性”可知，謂語用第三人稱單數。空格后的賓語的意思是“人類

活動本身的組織安排在某種程度上也是有周期性的”，詞庫中只有indicates”表

明”在語義和時態(tài)上銜接得當。

4.（分數：3.55）

A.A

B.B

C.C

D.D

解析：此處填入修飾effort的詞，可能是名詞、形容詞或分詞。這里講的

是人們研究人體生理節(jié)律所做的努力。considerable“大量的”帶入句中意思最

通順,故為答案。normal指“正常的"，語義上不如considerable準確。

5.（分數：3.55）

A.A

B.B

C.C

D.D

解析：空格處于句首，而且該句主謂賓結構齊全，可以判斷這里填入的是

副詞，且首字母應大寫，詞庫中只有Certainly和Thankfully符合。根據意思判斷，

選

Certainlyo

6.（分數：3.55）

A.A

B.B

C.C

D.D

解析：空格所在句缺少渭語動詞。該句表達的是“人體”與“許多重復的

節(jié)奏”的邏輯關系。根據冒號后的內容判斷，這些重復的節(jié)奏都是人體所“表現”

出來的，因此用exhibitSodemonstrated有“演示”的意思，但時態(tài)用在此處不

對，該句表明的是一般情況，故用一般現在時。

7.（分數：3.55）

A.A

B.B

C.C

D.D

解析：空格處應填的是名詞，與attention搭配，而且還跟sleeppatterns

一起作havemeasured的賓語。attentionspans是常用的固定搭配，意思是“注

意力集中時間”。

8.（分數：3.55）

A.A

B.BV

C.C

D.D

解析：這里缺少謂語動詞，根據空格前的have可判斷時態(tài)是現在完成時工

詞庫中只有demonstrated是過去分詞形式,帶入后表示“……證明了一個事實二

9.（分數：3.55）

A.A

B.B

C.C

D.D

解析：這里同樣缺少謂語動詞。根據常識可知，跨時區(qū)飛行會擾亂人的生

物鐘，upsets“攪亂，打亂”完全符合句意。limits“限制”在語義上不準確。

10.（分數：3.55）

A.A

B.B

C.C

D.DV

解析：此處填入修飾cycle的詞，可能是名詞、形容詞或分詞。根據句子后

半句的意思“再調整一個新周期”，推測空格處填入的詞應含有“原來的；正常

的”的意思,故用normal。

SectionB（總題數:10,分數：0.00）

TrustMezI'maRobot

A.Withrobotsnowemergingfromtheirindustrialcagesandmovinginto

homesandworkplaces,roboticistsareconcernedaboutthesafetyimplications

beyondthefactoryfloor.Toaddresstheseconcerns,leadingrobotexpertshave

cometogethertotrytofindwaystopreventrobotsfromharmingpeople.Inspired

bythePugwashConferences-aninternationalgroupofscientists,academicsand

activistsfoundedin1957tocampaignforthenon-proliferationofnuclearweapons

——thenewgroupofrobo-ethicistsmetearlierthisyearinGenoa,Italy,and

announcedtheirinitialfindingsinMarchattheEuropeanRoboticsSymposiumin

Palermo,Sicily.

B."Securityandsafetyarethebigconcerns,"saysHenrikChristensen,

chairmanoftheEuropeanRoboticsNetworkattheSwedishRoyalInstituteof

TechnologyinStockholm.Shouldrobotsthatarestrongenoughorheavyenoughto

crushpeoplebeallowedintohomes?Is"systemmalfunction"ajustifiabledefence

foraroboticfighterplanethatcontravenes（違反）theGenevaConventionand

mistakenlyfiresoninnocentcivilians?

C."Thesequestionsmayseemhardtounderstandbutinthenextfewyears

theywillbecomeincreasinglyrelevant,"saysDr.Christensen.AccordingtotheUnited

NationsEconomicCommissionforEurope'sWorldRoboticsSurvey,in2002the

numberofdomesticandservicerobotsmorethantripled,nearlysurpassingtheir

industrialcounterparts.Bytheendof2003thereweremorethan600,000robot

vacuumcleanersandlawnmowers——afigurepredictedtorisetomorethan4mby

theendofnextyear.Japaneseindustrialfirmsareracingtobuildhumanoidrobotsto

actasdomestichelpersfortheelderly,andSouthKoreahassetagoalthat100%of

householdsshouldhavedomesticrobotsby2020.Inlightofallthis,itiscrucialthat

westarttothinkaboutsafetyguidelinesnow,saysDr.Christensen.

Stoprightthere

D.Sowhatexactlyisbeingdonetoprotectusfromthesemechanical

menaces?"Notenough,"saysBlayWhitby.Thisishardlysurprisinggiventhatthe

fieldof"safety-criticalcomputing"isbarelyadecadeold,hesays.Butthingsare

changing,andresearchersareincreasinglytakinganinterestintryingtomakerobots

safer.Oneapproach,whichsoundssimpleenough,istrytoprogramthemtoavoid

contactwithpeoplealtogether.Butthisismuchharderthanitsounds.Gettinga

robottonavigateacrossaclutteredroomisdifficultenoughwithouthavingtotake

intoaccountwhatitsvariouslimbsorappendagesmightbumpintoalongtheway.

E."Regulatingthebehaviourofrobotsisgoingtobecomemoredifficultin

thefuture,sincetheywillincreasinglyhaveself-learningmechanismsbuiltinto

them,"saysGianmarcoVeruggio."Asaresult,theirbehaviourwillbecome

impossibletopredictfully,"hesays,"sincetheywillnotbebehavinginpredefined

waysbutwilllearnnewbehaviourastheygo."

F.Thenthereisthequestionofunpredictablefailures.Whathappensifa

robot'smotorsstopworking,oritsuffersasystemfailurejustasitisperforming

heartsurgeryorhandingyouacupofhotcoffee?Youcan,ofcourse,buildin

redundancybyaddingbackupsystems,saysHirochikaInoue.Butthisguarantees

nothing,hesays."Onehundredpercentsafetyisimpossiblethroughtechnology/'

saysDr.Inoue.Thisisbecauseultimatelynomatterhowthoroughyouare,you

cannotanticipatetheunpredictablenatureofhumanbehaviour;hesays.Ortoputit

anotherway,nomatterhowsophisticatedyourrobotisatavoidingpeople,people

mightnotalwaysmanagetoavoidit,andcouldenduptrippingoveritandfalling

downthestairs.

Legalproblems

G.Inanycase,saysDr.Inoue,thelawsreallyjustsummarizecommonsense

principlesthatarealreadyappliedtothedesignofmostmodernappliances,both

domesticandindustrial.Everytoaster,lawnmowerandmobilephoneisdesignedto

minimizetheriskofcausinginjury——yetpeoplestillmanagetoelectrocute（電死）

themselves,losefingersorfalloutofwindowsinanefforttogetabettersignal.At

theveryleast,robotsmustmeettherigoroussafetystandardsthatcoverexisting

products.Thequestioniswhethernew,robot-specificrulesareneeded—and,ifso,

whattheyshouldsay.

H."Makingsurerobotsaresafewillbecritical,"saysColinAngleofiRobot,

whichhassoldover2m"Roomba"household-vacuumingrobots.Buthearguesthat

hisfirm'srobotsare,infact,muchsaferthansomepopulartoys."Aradio-controlled

carcontrolledbyasix-yearoldisfarmoredangerousthanaRoomba,"hesays.Ifyou

treadonaRoomba,itwillnotcauseyoutoslipover;instead,arubberpadonits

basegripsthefloorandpreventsitfrommoving."Existingregulationswilladdress

muchofthechallenge,"saysMr.Angle.'Tmnotyetconvincedthatrobotsare

sufficientlydifferentthattheydeservespecialtreatment."

I.Robotsafetyislikelytosurfaceinthecivilcourtsasamatterofproduct

liability."Whenthefirstrobotcarpet-sweepersucksupababy,whowillbeto

blame?"asksJohnHallam,aprofessorattheUniversityofSouthernDenmarkin

Odense.Ifarobotisautonomousandcapableoflearning,canitsdesignerbeheld

responsibleforallitsactions?Todaytheanswertothesequestionsisgenerally"yes".

Butasrobotsgrowincomplexityitwillbecomealotlessclearcut,hesays.

J."Rightnow,noinsurancecompanyispreparedtoinsurerobots/'saysDr.

Inoue.Butthatwillhavetochange,hesays.Lastmonth,Japan'sMinistryofTrade

andIndustryannouncedasetofsafetyguidelinesforhomeandofficerobots.They

willberequiredtohavesensorstohelpthemavoidcollisionswithhumans;tobe

madefromsoftandlightmaterialstominimizeharmifacollisiondoesoccur;andto

haveanemergencyshut-offbutton.Thiswaslargelypromptedbyabigrobot

exhibitionheldlastsummer;whichmadetheauthoritiesrealizethattherearesafety

implicationswhenthousandsofpeoplearenotjustlookingatrobots,butmingling

withthem,saysDr.Inoue.

K.However,theideathatgeneral-purposerobots,capableoflearning,will

becomewidespreadiswrong,suggestsMr.Angle.Itismorelikely,hebelieves,that

robotswillberelativelydumbmachinesdesignedforparticulartasks.Ratherthana

humanoidrobotmaid,"it'sgoing