2017年6月
【News Report 1】
One of Google's self-driving cars crashed into a bus in California last month. There were no injuries.
It is not the first time one of Google's famed self-driving cars has been involved in a crash, but it may be the first time it has caused one.
On February 14th the self-driving car, travelling at 2mph (3km/h), pulled out in front of a public bus going 15mph (24km/h).
The man in the Google vehicle reported that he assumed the bus would slow down to let the car out, and so he did not switch to the manual mode.
In a statement, Google said: "We clearly bear some responsibility, because if our car hadn't
moved, there wouldn't have been a crash."
That said, our test driver believed the bus was going to slow or stop to allow us to merge into the traffic, and that there would be sufficient space to do that."
The company's self-driving cars have done well over a million miles across various states in the US, and until now have only reported minor accidents.
Q1: According to Google, what was the cause of the accident?
Q2: How have Google’s self-driving cars performed so far?
【News Report 2】
Thousands of bees left a town after landing on the back of a car when their queen got stuck in its boot. Tom Moses who works at a nearby national park, noticed a “brown patch” on the back of the car after the owner parked it to do some shopping. When he looked closer he realized it was a huge group of bees.
Moses said: “I have never seen that many bees in one spot. It was very unusual. They were very close together and there was a lot of noise and movements, it was interesting to see such a strange sight. But there were a lot of people around and I was a bit worried about the bees and the people stopping to look. I thought that someone might do something stupid.
Moses called two local bees specialists who helped removed the bees by attracting them into a box.
Moses spent three hours looking after the bees and was stung five times, he said my stings are a bit painful but I am pleased that all worked out and I could help, people need to realize that bees are valuable and they should be looked after.
Q3. What do we learn about Tom Moses?
Q4. What do we know about the bees on the back of the car?
【News report 3】
A new species of snake has been discovered on a remote island in the Bahamas.
Scientists identified 20 of the one meter-long snakes during two trips to the Caribbean islands. The second trip was made in October last year.
One of the creatures made a dramatic appearance by moving on to the head of the team leader as he slept.
The snake has been named silver boa because it is metallic colored and the first specimen found was climbing a silver palm tree.
The team was led by Dr. Graham Reynolds, from Harvard University, the scientist confirmed the snake was a previously unknown species after conducting a genetic analysis of tissue samples.
Commenting on the find, snake expert Robert Henderson from the Museum of Natural History, said: “Worldwide new species of frogs are being discovered and described quite regularity. New species of snakes, however, are much rarer.
Q5. What is the news report mainly about?
Q6. What do we learn about the scientific team leader?
Q7. How did the newly discovered creature get its name?
二．对话听力四级 听力
【Conversation 1】
W: Did you enjoy your stay with us, Mr. Brown?
M: Yes, very much. I had a wonderful time here. Now I'm going to the airport. My flight leaves in less than 2 hours. So, could you tell me, what's the quickest way to get there?
W: Well, we can call a taxi for you. We also have a free airport shuttle service.
M: That sounds great, but will the shuttle get me to the airport in time?
W: Yes, it should. The next shuttle leaves in 15 minutes. And it takes some 25 minutes to g
et to the airport.
M: Fantastic! I'll just wait in the lobby. Will you please let me know when it's leaving?
W: Of course, sir.
M: Now I would like to settle my mini-bar bill. How much is that?
W: Let's see. It comes to $37.50. How would you like to pay for it?
M: I'll pay with my credit card. Thanks. But I'll need a receipt, so I can charge it to my company.
W: Absolutely! Here you are, sir. If you like, I can leave your bags with the porter. And he can load them onto the shuttle for you when it arrives.
M: That would be great. Thank you.
W: Would you like to leave a comment on our web page when you have time?
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