雅思阅读 008 · Self-Driving Cars: Hype vs Reality

科技主题。题型：T/F/NG + 填空。难度：中等偏上（P2-3）。

正文 Passage

In 2014, a leading technology company predicted that fully self-driving cars would be on the roads by 2018. In 2016, another major manufacturer promised autonomous vehicles by 2021. By 2020, several companies were offering limited self-driving taxi services in selected cities. A decade on from the first wave of optimistic forecasts, where do we actually stand?

The honest answer is: closer than we were, but much farther than promised. Fully autonomous vehicles — cars that can drive anywhere, in any weather, without any human input — remain an engineering challenge that no company has fully solved. What does exist are "Level 2" and "Level 3" systems: cars that can steer, accelerate and brake on highways, but still require a human driver to pay attention and take over when needed.

The core problem is not building a car that can drive in good conditions — that has been done. The problem is the long tail. The vast majority of driving situations are routine. But the rare, unexpected events — a child chasing a ball into the road, a truck spilling its load, a cyclist swerving to avoid a pothole — are where humans excel and machines struggle. A human driver can reason about a situation they have never encountered before. A self-driving car, trained on millions of miles of data, may never have seen anything like it.

This is why the industry has shifted from "fully autonomous" to "driver assistance" in its messaging. Car manufacturers now sell lane-keeping systems, automatic emergency braking and parking assistance — features that make driving safer but do not replace the driver. It is a more modest vision, but one that is actually achievable.

The regulatory environment has also slowed progress. Cities differ dramatically in their rules for testing autonomous vehicles. Insurance companies are unsure who is liable when an autonomous car crashes. Labour unions worry about the impact on taxi and delivery drivers. These are not technical problems — they are social, legal and political ones.

Still, the long-term direction is clear. Autonomous vehicles will arrive, and they will transform cities, employment and the way we think about transport. The question is not whether, but when — and how many people will be hurt in the meantime.

题目 Questions

Questions 1-5: T/F/NG

1. Fully self-driving cars are now widely available everywhere.

2. Level 2 systems still require human attention.

3. Humans are better than machines at handling unexpected situations.

4. All countries have the same rules for testing autonomous vehicles.

5. Autonomous vehicles will have no impact on employment.

Questions 6-10: Complete the notes. NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS.

• The rare, unexpected driving events are called the (6) ____________.
• Modern self-driving features include lane-keeping and automatic (7) ____________.
• (8) ____________ companies are unsure who is liable in a crash.
• The question is not whether, but (9) ____________.
• Autonomous vehicles will transform cities, employment and (10) ____________.

答案 Answers

核心词汇

autonomous / self-driving / Level 2 / long tail / steering / brake / lane-keeping / liability / regulatory / union / transform / engineering challenge