When a driver slams on the brakes to avoid hitting a pedestrian crossing the road illegally, she is making a moral decision that shifts risk from the pedestrian to the people in the car. Self-driving cars might soon have to make such ethical (道德的)judgments on their own — but settling on a universal moral code for the vehicles could be a tough task, suggests a survey.
The largest ever survey of machine ethics, called the Moral Machine, laid out 13 possible situations in which someone’s death was unavoidable. Respondents were asked to choose who to spare in situations that involved a mix of variables: young or old, rich or poor, more people or fewer. Within 18 months, the online quiz had recorded 40 million decisions made by people from 233 countries and territories.
When the researchers analysed these answers, they found that the nations could be divided into three groups. One contains North America and several European nations where Christianity has been the dominant (占支配地位的)religion; another includes countries such as Japan, Indonesia and Pakistan, with strong Confucian or Islamic traditions. A third group consists of countries in Central and South America, such as Colombia and Brazil. The first group showed a stronger preference for sacrificing older lives to save younger ones than did the second group, for example.
The researchers also identified relationships between social and economic factors in a country. They found that people from relatively wealthy countries with strong institutions, such as Finland and Japan, more often chose to hit people who stepped into traffic illegally than did respondents in nations with weaker institutions, such as Nigeria or Pakistan.
People rarely face such moral dilemmas, and some cities question whether the possible situations posed in the online quiz are relevant to the ethical and practical questions surrounding driverless cars. But the researchers argue that the findings reveal cultural differences that governments and makers of self-driving cars must take into account if they want the vehicles to gain public acceptance.
At least Barbara Wege, who heads a group working on autonomous-vehicle ethics at Audi in Ingolstadt, Germany, says such studies are valuable. Wege argues that self-driving cars would cause fewer accidents, proportionally, than human drivers do each year—but that people might focus more on events involving robots.
Surveys such as the Moral Machine can help to begin public discussions about these unavoidable accidents that might develop trust. “We need to come up with a social consensus,” she says, “about which risks we are willing to take.”
1.Why is it difficult to set universal moral rules for programming self-driving cars?
A. Social values always change with the times.
B. Moral choices vary between different cultures.
C. Drivers have a preference for sacrificing the weak.
D. Car makers are faced with decisions of life or death.
2.The researchers conducted the study by_____.
A. using a massive online quiz worldwide
B. comparing different cultures and customs
C. dividing the respondents into three groups
D. performing a series of controlled experiments
3.According to the study, in which country are drivers more likely to hit a pedestrian crossing the road illegally?
A. Nigeria B. Colombia
C. Finland D. Indonesia
4.Barbara Wege would probably agree that _____.
A. Self-driving cars will greatly improve the traffic environment
B. Accidents caused by self-driving cars might receive more attention
C. Problems involving self-driving cars might shake the public trust in society
D. Car makers needn’t take the risk of solving self-driving car ethical dilemmas
高三英语阅读理解困难题
When a driver slams on the brakes to avoid hitting a pedestrian crossing the road illegally, she is making a moral decision that shifts risk from the pedestrian to the people in the car. Self-driving cars might soon have to make such ethical (道德的)judgments on their own — but settling on a universal moral code for the vehicles could be a tough task, suggests a survey.
The largest ever survey of machine ethics, called the Moral Machine, laid out 13 possible situations in which someone’s death was unavoidable. Respondents were asked to choose who to spare in situations that involved a mix of variables: young or old, rich or poor, more people or fewer. Within 18 months, the online quiz had recorded 40 million decisions made by people from 233 countries and territories.
When the researchers analysed these answers, they found that the nations could be divided into three groups. One contains North America and several European nations where Christianity has been the dominant (占支配地位的)religion; another includes countries such as Japan, Indonesia and Pakistan, with strong Confucian or Islamic traditions. A third group consists of countries in Central and South America, such as Colombia and Brazil. The first group showed a stronger preference for sacrificing older lives to save younger ones than did the second group, for example.
The researchers also identified relationships between social and economic factors in a country. They found that people from relatively wealthy countries with strong institutions, such as Finland and Japan, more often chose to hit people who stepped into traffic illegally than did respondents in nations with weaker institutions, such as Nigeria or Pakistan.
People rarely face such moral dilemmas, and some cities question whether the possible situations posed in the online quiz are relevant to the ethical and practical questions surrounding driverless cars. But the researchers argue that the findings reveal cultural differences that governments and makers of self-driving cars must take into account if they want the vehicles to gain public acceptance.
At least Barbara Wege, who heads a group working on autonomous-vehicle ethics at Audi in Ingolstadt, Germany, says such studies are valuable. Wege argues that self-driving cars would cause fewer accidents, proportionally, than human drivers do each year—but that people might focus more on events involving robots.
Surveys such as the Moral Machine can help to begin public discussions about these unavoidable accidents that might develop trust. “We need to come up with a social consensus,” she says, “about which risks we are willing to take.”
1.Why is it difficult to set universal moral rules for programming self-driving cars?
A. Social values always change with the times.
B. Moral choices vary between different cultures.
C. Drivers have a preference for sacrificing the weak.
D. Car makers are faced with decisions of life or death.
2.The researchers conducted the study by_____.
A. using a massive online quiz worldwide
B. comparing different cultures and customs
C. dividing the respondents into three groups
D. performing a series of controlled experiments
3.According to the study, in which country are drivers more likely to hit a pedestrian crossing the road illegally?
A. Nigeria B. Colombia
C. Finland D. Indonesia
4.Barbara Wege would probably agree that _____.
A. Self-driving cars will greatly improve the traffic environment
B. Accidents caused by self-driving cars might receive more attention
C. Problems involving self-driving cars might shake the public trust in society
D. Car makers needn’t take the risk of solving self-driving car ethical dilemmas
高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析
To avoid the car ______ the child, the driver had to make a sharp turn.
A.to hit B.hit C.hitting D.being hit
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
Long marks on the street ________ that the driver had attempted to brake.
A.applied B.attained
C.indicated D.distinguished
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
It was due to luck __ judgment ___ the driver succeeded in avoiding an accident.
A.better than; when B.rather than; that
C.other than; when D.more than; which
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
If the motorbike driver had slowed down when he turned, the accident could have been _____.
A.avoided B.prevented C.escaped D.annoyed
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
The driver suggested that we set out before seven in the morning in order to avoid traffic jams.
A.should B.might C.could D.would
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
Chokwe Selassie, aged 13, is working hard to help drivers avoid potholes(坑洼). The eighth-grader was inspired to kick off his creation on a recent morning, when his mother was driving him to school. Their car was damaged as it went over a huge pothole in the middle of the street in their hometown of Jackson, Mississippi. He decided to do something about the pothole problem in his city. His solution: an app that warns drivers when there is a pothole ahead.
Chokwe developed the app with his friends Rodriguez Ratliff and Emmanuel Brooks. When the app detects a pothole, it is highlighted in red. And if you get close to the pothole, your phone will warn you. Drivers can also use the app to report any potholes they meet, and to look for other routes they can take to avoid roads that have them.
The app relies on current available information about the streets of Jackson. It works by using the city’s 311 call system, and uses information already stored in a database. Through the call system, citizens dial 311 to report non-emergency problems, which include potholes. Chokwe and his friends determined that focusing on the 10 busiest streets in Jackson would give them a large enough sample size to test the prototype(原型).
Although the app isn't yet available for sale, Chokwe is already looking for ways to improve it. The prototype remains limited to 10 streets in Jackson, but he hopes to add more, so that it includes every street in the city. And then he wants to go even farther until it's nationwide.
1.The passage is mainly about .
A. a Solution to Traffic Jams B. an App to Detect Potholes
C. pothole Problems in Big Cities D. Poor Road Conditions
2.What’s the closest meaning of the underlined phrase “kick off” in Paragraph 1?
A. leave B. invent
C. begin D. change
3.How does the app work through the 311 call system?
A. By settling non-emergency problems.
B. By broadcasting traffic accidents.
C. By replying to citizens’ calls.
D. By using its information about potholes.
4.Which can be Chokwe’s future target?
A. Encouraging more kids to create apps.
B. Taking part in more learning programs.
C. Making the app available for sale online.
D. Making the app include streets nationwide.
高三英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析
Chokwe Selassie, aged 13, is working hard to help drivers avoid potholes(坑洼). The eighth-grader was inspired to kick off his creation on a recent morning, when his mother was driving him to school. Their car was damaged as it went over a huge pothole in the middle of the street in their hometown of Jackson, Mississippi. He decided to do something about the pothole problem in his city.
Chokwe developed the app with his friends Rodriguez Ratliff and Emmanuel Brooks. When the app detects a pothole, it is highlighted in red. And if you get close to the pothole, your phone will warn you with a beep. Drivers can also use the app to report any potholes and look for other routes they can take to avoid roads that have them.
The app relies on current available information about the streets of Jackson, already stored in a database of the city’s 311 call system. Through the call system, citizens dial 3-1-1 to report non-emergency problems which include potholes. Chokwe and his friends determined that focusing on the 10 busiest streets in Jackson would give them a large enough sample size to test the prototype.
While developing the app, the boys took part in a Minority Male Makers Program sponsored by Verizon and held at Jackson State University. They learned 3D printing and design, and how to create apps. Through the program Chokwe and his friends received encouragement and guidance.
Although the app isn’t yet available for sale, Chokwe is already looking for ways to improve the app. He hopes to add more to it until it spreads all over the country.
1.Why is the car damage mentioned in the first paragraph?
A. To scold the road builders.
B. To introduce their bad luck.
C. To tell the inspiration for the app.
D. To warn the danger of careless driving.
2.What is the app used to do?
A. Warn drivers about potholes.
B. Help drivers obey traffic rules.
C. Stop drivers using mobile phones.
D. Tell drivers to avoid red lights.
3.How does the app work through the 311 call system?
A. By replying to citizens’ calls.
B. By broadcasting traffic accidents.
C. By settling non- emergency problems.
D. By using its information about potholes.
4.Which can be Chokwe’s future target?
A. Encouraging more kids to create apps.
B. Taking part in more learning programs.
C. Making the app available for sale online.
D. Making the app include streets nationwide.
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
______ the blind wandering through the traffic, motorists would have to step on their brakes at once.
A. Seeing B. Having seen C. Seen D. To have seen
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
---- When did the couple die?
---- It was on May 12 _______ the earthquake hit Wenchuan County.
A. that B. which C. when D. what
高三英语单项填空困难题查看答案及解析