Reading Comprehension Test

Submitted by Natlada Sermsintham (Earn) 1001

Line 1 As a headless robot crawls over a pile of pebbles, its jointless, rubbery legs carefully but
confidently sample the terrain in steady, yet unrushed movements that resemble a turtle's. The robot's
ability to reliably walk across different types of surfaces is unique, and so is the fact that its elaborately
shaped legs were created with a 3D printer, according to the engineers who developed the bio-inspired
creature.
Line 6 "With soft robots, you can do a lot of things that are difficult for a hard robot," said Mike
Tolley, a mechanical engineering professor at the University of California, San Diego, who led the
research. The combination of soft and stiff materials enables living creatures to adjust to the
irregularities in terrain that frequently stop current rigid robots in their tracks. But the new robot, which
will be presented at the IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Automation in Singapore next
week, is a big step forward in robotic agility, according to Tolley.
Line 12 In a video made by the researchers, the robot can be seen nimbly creeping into a
narrowing corridor, just like a real animal would. Its four legs, positioned in an "X" shape, can alternate
between walking, climbing and crawling or even swimming. The robot can move forward and
backward, and can rotate and move sideways without needing any sensors to "see" the environment, the
scientists said. Its speed, however, is rather modest — about 0.8 inches (20 millimeters) per second.
Line 17 The researchers said this nimble bot could have a variety of future applications. "We see
it could be useful in search and rescue, being able to crawl through rubble, but we would also like to use
it in the study of nature," Tolley told Live Science. "Biologists could, for example, send it into tunnels
that turtles dig to see what is in there without being too disruptive."

(source: https://www.livescience.com/59237-agile-soft-3d-printed-robot.html)

Summary
The passage explains about a new robot that has a jointless and rubbery leg made by 3D printer.
It is easier to walk or move around and it is better than hard robot, as well as it can be used in future
variety applications.

1. What is the main idea of the passage?

a. The new robot has a modest speed of 0.8 inches per second
b. The new robot will be presented at the IEEE in Singapore next week
c. The soft robot is better than the hard robot
d. The new robot with 3D printed leg is better at moving around than the hard robot
2. Who led the research?
a. A biologist
b. A mechanical engineering professor
c. An engineer
d. A researcher
3. What is the characteristic of this robot?
a. It has no head
b. It has two arms
c. It can fly
d. It has hands to pick things up
4. What is the speed of this new robot?
a. 0.8 mm./sec
b. 0.08 cm./sec
c. 0.2 cm./sec
d. 0.02 m./sec
5. The word “stiff” in line 8 is closest in meaning to
a. Solid
b. Soft
c. Huge
d. Long
6. The word “creeping” in line 12 is closest in meaning to
a. Running
b. Jumping
c. Flying
d. Crawling
7. The word “its” in line 13 refers to
a. Animal
b. Robot
c. Researcher
d. Corridor
8. Which of the following statement is true?
a. The robot uses its sensors to see which way it should go
b. The arm of the robot is made out of 3D printer
c. The robot shouldn’t be used in the study of nature
d. This new robot can swim
9. What can be inferred about the new robot?
a. It walks very fast
b. It has wheels
c. It’s a mix between two opposite types of robots
d. All of the robots pieces were made out of 3D printer
10. Which of the following is NOT true?
a. The robot uses a lot of space to move around
b. University of California is in San Diego
c. In the future, this robot could be used in the rainforest
d. The robot walks slowly
Answer key

1. D
2. B
3. A
4. C
5. A
6. D
7. B
8. D
9. C
10. A