奇速英语

阅读下面的短文，根据短文内容，从下面方框内所给11个词中选择10个意义相符的词，必要时进行词形变化，填入空白处，每空一词。

because,  slow,  skill,  it,  up,  fast,  through,  how,  without,  what,  easy

Scientists have created a soft-bodied robot that’s powered by air. The robot doesn’t have a computer or a “brain”, and yet it can “walk” by ____1____. And if it is dropped into water, it swims.

____2____ is this possible? The secret is in the science of how air moves.

Have you ever noticed a “tube dancer” which is used to attract customers? If you have seen a tube dancer flopping around, you will understand it ____3____.

Tube dancers are tall, thin tubes of cloth through which air is pumped (用泵抽送). High pressure from the pumped air fills the tube, making it stand ____4____, and then the air flows through faster, making the pressure drop. When this drop in pressure forms a bend in the tube, it causes the tube to fall partway (中途) over. The bend makes the pumped air move more ____5____, raising the pressure again. The pumped air pushes the bend up until the dancer is pushed up once more.

Air pressure moving a bend along a tube is exactly what drives the robot. The magic happens ____6____ there are several tubes hooked (固定) up to the same pump. When the air starts to flow, the tubes move in different ways. But very quickly, all of these “legs” start to move in exactly the same way, making the robot walk. The robot’s speed is controlled by the air pressure.

The researchers built two robots. The first robot had four legs and the air was pumped to it ____7____ a hose (软管). Later, the team developed a lighter, two-legged robot that could carry its own battery-powered pump.

There are several remarkable things about the robot. The first is its speed. The robot can cover a distance as long as thirty of its body in a second. That would be like the world’s ____8____ man, Usain Bolt, running the 100-meter race in 1.71 seconds. The robot can also go over uneven (坑洼的) ground. If it bumps into a wall, it turns ____9____ help or control.

Because there is no brain, the new invention is really just a machine. So far, the robot has done all the things on its own. Now, scientists are exploring new ways to control the robot and perhaps will give it more ____10____ in the near future.

As time goes by, we believe such technology will play a positive role in achieving a more energy-efficient and eco-friendly future.