9-1 Robots To The Rescue

A bomb disposal robot c a r r i e s
a suspicious package in
S t o c k h o l m . Sweden.
Robots
to the R e s c u e
Robots to t h e R e s c u e 1 8 7
READING 1 ROBOTS O
T T
H
E RESCUE
W h e n you pictu re a robot, you m a y

think of the ones in movies or
cartoons. However, most real
robots don't serve coffee or blow up spaceships.
keep people out of harm's way. They do skilled
work in dangerous situations, which, in the past,
had to be done by humans. In the future, these
responsibilities will increasingly rest on the
Instead, many of today's robots are helping to shoulders of robots.
A railroad car carrying poisono us chemica ls 2 (90 meters) of the fire and then send in a robot.
goes off the tracks in a remote location in the The robot rolls in close to the fire, oblivious to the
woods. A few minutes later, ti explodes into a fire extreme heat and toxic gas, and shoots water from
so hot that firefighters cannot get near .ti Acloud two hoses. The firefighters watch from a vantage
of toxic gas rises above the fire, making ti difficult point behind the trees. Within 40 minutes, the
to breathe. The firefighters come within 300 feet fire is out. Everyone is safe, but ti was a close call.
020
188 UNIT NINE Roboti cs

A woman calls the police about a suspicious 3
package in the hallway near her office. The police
are concerned it could be dangerous, perhaps
even a bomb. They tell everyone to leave the
building and then send in a robot the size of a
small vacuum cleaner.' The robot approaches the
package and checks for the presence of any chem-
icals that might cause an explosion. It detects
nothing, but ti is better to be on the safe side. The
robot sticks out its mechanical arms
and picks up the package, carries ti
outside to an empty parking lot, and
destroys it. The police inspect what
remains of the package. Fortunately, it
turns out to be a false alarm. It was just
somebody's lunch!
1 vacuum cleaner: a machine used for cleaning up

the dirt on floors and carpets
Soldiers are moving through enemy territory. 4

Suddenly, half a mile away, their commanding
officer hears gunfire. He is worried. Are his
soldiers safe? Are any of them wounded? The
commander wants to rescue them, but he doesn't
want to risk the life of another soldier. So, he
sends in his rescue robot. tI moves quickly across
the rough terrain. As it detects the shape of a
human body, it moves closer. When it is within
200 feet (60 meters) of the body on the ground, it
turns its camera toward the face. It scans the face
and checks the image against all of the photos of
soldiers that are stored in its internal computer.
Yes, it is one of the soldiers! The robot lifts the
w o u n d e d soldier in its " a r m s " a n d carries him
back ot safety. The soldier si alive but badly hurt.
The robot has saved his life.
Robots to the Rescue 189

It has been three days since the terrib le 5 They also carry tiny cameras that send back
earthqua ke that caused buildings all over the images to the team. Forty minutes later, a signal
city to collapse. The search-and-rescue teams comes back from one of the cockroach robots—
are trying desperately to find survivors, but most someone is alive! Slowly, emergency workers
buildings are so unstable that it is not safe to remove bricks and stones until they find the sur-
go inside them. Rescuers call out and knock on vivor-a n-eleve n-year- old boy who was trapped
walls, but they cannot hear any voices. If there under a collapsed wall.
are survivors inside, they will be thirsty, hungry,
and perhaps badly injured, but the rescuers are
helpless. Will anyone come to the rescue? Here
come the robot cockroaches!' Scientists have
attached tiny computer chips to live cock-
roach es and turne d them into tiny robots .
The search-and-rescue team have sent the
cockroaches into a collapsed building to
search for signs of life. The cockroaches
can detect heat from a living body and
the carbo n dioxid e that h u m a n s exhale.
1 cockroach: a large, flat, black or brown insect

that often lives in the s a m e e n v i r o n m e n t s
as h u m a n s
Is this science fiction or are these stories true? 6 rough terrain. They can pick up objects, send
The first two stories describe situations that are information to remote locations, and even recog-
already a reality. Robots are being used in situa- nize faces. Developers hope to test them in real
tions that involve hazardous materials, and they situations soon. The story of the wounded soldier
are programmed to check for bombs. Robots were describes a military use for robots, but there are
used in the Fukushi ma Daiichi nuclear reactor'
many non-military search-and-rescue situations
after it was damaged in an earthquake and tsunami where these robots would be helpful.
in Japan in 2011. The release of radioactive mate-
The final story illustrates a new type of robot. 8
rial made condit ions in the reactor too dange rous
Scientists are developing biobots that combine
for workers. Robots took pictures and measured the advanced technology of robotics with the
radiation and temperature levels. This information
advantages of real animals. The developers of the
helped officials make important safety decisions.
cockroach biobots say that they are superior to
The military regularly uses robots to defuse bombs, fully robotic devices. The cockroaches' natural
a job that used to fall to explosives experts. In the abilities allow them to move a r o u n d and survive
past, some explosives experts died doing their jobs, almost anywhere. In search -and-r escue opera-
but today they no longer have to take such risks. tions, engineers use the computer chip to control
The second two stories may take place in 7
them wirelessly, directing where and when they
the future, but new technology is bringing that move. Develop ers of these biobots hope their
future closer every day. Engineers are developing work will soon be ready to help people who are
robots that can travel quickly for miles across in life-threatening situations.
Robots have many uses—in factories, in med- 9
1 nuclear reactor: a very large device that produces icine, in homes. But perhaps their most important
nuclear energy job is to help people in dangerous situations.
190 UNIT NINE Robotics

I G COMPREHENSION
READN
Big Picture
A Read the functions of paragraphs ni the first column. Check (V) the paragraphs that
have each function. Some paragraphs may have more than one function.
Paragraph Number
Funcoitns o ft h e Paragraph
2 3 4 5 6 7 8
1. Describes and explains the abilities of today's robots
2. Describes and explains the potential abilities of robots of

the future
3. Gives examples) of dangerous situations in which robots

could be useful
4. Gives examples) of situations in which robots provide
information from a remote location
5. Describes situations) in which robots could help rescue
people who are injured
B Compare answers ot Exercise A with a partner. How is the function of the paragraphs
in boxes different from the function of the paragraphs in the second half of
the reading?
Close-Up
A Complete the following sentences about Reading 1ni your own words.
1. Robots can help protect the safety of the public by
2. The robot in the second story picked up the package and
3. The robot ni the third story knew ti had located a soldier because
4. The biobot in the fourth story knew the boy was alive because
5. The and _ stories were based on facts.

6. The robot ni the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant
B Compare your answers ot Exercise A with a partner. Discuss any differences.
Robots to the Rescue 191

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A bomb disposal robot c a r r i e s

W h e n you pictu re a robot, you m a y

188 UNIT NINE Roboti cs

1 vacuum cleaner: a machine used for cleaning up

Soldiers are moving through enemy territory. 4

Robots to the Rescue 189

1 cockroach: a large, flat, black or brown insect

190 UNIT NINE Robotics

1. Describes and explains the abilities of today's robots

2. Describes and explains the potential abilities of robots of

3. Gives examples) of dangerous situations in which robots

5. The and _ stories were based on facts.

B Compare your answers ot Exercise A with a partner. Discuss any differences.

Robots to the Rescue 191

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