FUTURE LIVING   6

THINK AND DISCUSS

Answers will vary. Possible answers:

1. I think all cars will be driverless in 50 years. In 100 years, driverless cars will probably be able to fly.

2. Living on other planets will probably be too difficult. We will be able to visit these planets, but I don’t think we’ll ever stay there. / I’m sure that we’ll discover a planet similar to Earth one day and that we’ll find a way to get there and live there, too.

EXPLORE THE THEME

A Answers will vary. Possible answers:

1. I think driverless cars will improve our lives the most. There will be fewer traffic jams and road accidents once all the cars on the road are able to communicate with each other. Traveling will also be much less stressful!

2. Many companies are already selling wearable technology such as smart watches. / Driverless cars and buses are also being tested in many

places. / Solar panels are being used much more frequently in cities and small towns. /Underground trains and pedestrian paths can already be found in many cities.

B adapt; technology; predict

Reading 1

PREPARING TO READ

A 1. link

2. sociable (Note: Sociable is normally used to describe people or animals, not robots.)

3. preference

4. suggest

5. intelligent

6. network

7. store

B Answers will vary. Possible answers:

I use my smartphone every day to surf the Internet and watch videos online. I also use it to share photos and messages with my friends. / I

recently bought an intelligent vacuum cleaner. I can control it from anywhere through the Internet. It’s programmed to clean my house

every day at 3 p.m., and it sends me an update as soon as it’s done.

C Answers will vary. Possible answers:

Easier: computers, cell phones, robotic machinery, electric bicycles

More fun: virtual reality video games, remote control drone aircraft, smart TVs

D 2, 3, 4

UNDERSTANDING THE READING

A 1. E (Explanation: This intelligent technology works like a computer “brain” that controls your entire house.)

2. C (Explanation: While Paragraph B explains that appliances will communicate with us, Paragraph

C explains that RFID technology makes this possible.)

3. D (Explanation: OLED screens will function as windows or walls and allow us to change the appearance and colors of houses instantly.)

4. H (Explanation: There’s a good chance it will be a part of your life in the next 10 years…)

5. G (Explanation: Sociable robots with the ability to express feelings will do housework and take care of children and the elderly.)

B 1. T (See Paragraphs B and C)

2. F (See Paragraph C)

3. NG (Explanation: This topic is not covered in the reading passage.)

4. T (See Paragraph E)

5. T (See Paragraph G)

6. T (See Paragraphs F and G)

C Answers will vary. Possible answer:

Positive: In Paragraph A, the author uses very positive phrases such as soft light, favorite breakfast, and perfect temperature. In addition,

the writer only stresses the advantages of new technology and does not mention possible disadvantages.

D Answers will vary. Possible answers:

1. I would like to have OLED walls. I once painted my room, and it took me a few days to finish. I would like to change my wall color more frequently, but painting is too much work. OLED walls would solve my problem.

2. Technology that notices when you’re running low on supplies, such as toilet paper or toothpaste, and orders them for you online. / A robot that

walks and feeds the dog. / Electric outlets that turn off automatically once devices have been charged.

DEVEOPING READING SKILLS

A For instance, Wakamaru can recognize faces, use gestures, and understand 10,000 Japanese words.. . .such as the weather and the news.

For example, at night, it moves quietly around the house, but it can wake family members up if there is any trouble.

B 1. e; 2. a; 3. d; 4. b; 5. c

C Answers will vary. Possible answers:

1. I think living in a smart home would make life more convenient. For instance, I wouldn’t have to go to the supermarket to buy groceries anymore. The house would automatically order what I need online and have the items delivered.

2. I would like to live with a robot. I would ask it to do many things, such as chores and shopping.

Video

BEFORE VIEWING

A Answers will vary. Possible answers: lack of oxygen, food, and water / the distance between Earth and Mars / the difference in gravity on Mars / the cold temperature

B Answers will vary. Possible answers:

1. The length of a day on Mars is also about 24 hours.

2. Mars gets enough light from the sun for people to use solar panels.

3. In our solar system, Mars’s temperature is closest to Earth’s.

C 1. atmosphere

2. colonize (Note: In the paragraph, colonize means to start a sustainable living community on Mars. Teachers may also wish to explain the other sense of the word: when one country claims political control over another.)

3. mission

4. ambitious (Note: An ambitious plan is a difficult one. An ambitious person is someone who is determined to succeed.)

WHIlE VIEWING

A 1. Dr. Zubrin (Explanation: We should have been on Mars a quarter century ago.)

2. Dr. Zubrin (Explanation: Zubrin is also doing research to prepare for a manned mission to Mars.)

3. Dr. McKay (Explanation: He wants to create an atmosphere on Mars so humans can live there.)

B 2, 4, 5 (Explanation: McKay claims that we can warm Mars by introducing greenhouse gases and can create oxygen by using cyanobacteria.)

AFTER VIEWING

A Answers will vary. Possible answers: Yes, I do. There are probably resources on Mars that will benefit humans. Also, we need a second home in case anything happens to Earth. / Definitely not. I think

it’s too expensive, and we should focus on solving our problems here on Earth. Besides, traveling to Mars could be dangerous.

B Answers will vary. Possible answers: OLED walls could create virtual windows that show us scenes from Earth so that we don’t feel so homesick. / Having to wear a spacesuit every time we need to go outside would be quite inconvenient. Sociable robots that can handle simple outdoor tasks would therefore be very useful.

Reading 2

PREPARING TO READ

A 1. release

2. average

3. trap

4. liquid

5. level

B 1. Plants

2. environment

3. lack

C Answers will vary. Possible answers:

1. I live near a desert, so we have lots of cactus plants here. / I live in the city, but there are many plants such as flowers, bushes, and tall,

leafy trees growing on the sides of the road.

2. I think environments with a lot of rainfall and sunshine are the best for growing plants. However, some plants, such as strawberry bushes

and apple trees, grow better in cool places.

D Answers will vary. The correct answer is c.

UNDERSTANDING THE READING

A 2, 4, 5 (Note: Although 1 and 3 are mentioned in the passage, neither is a main idea that should be included in a summary.)

B c, a, e, f, b, d

C 1. Nuclear power and wind turbines are two possible sources of power on Mars.

2. Even after 1,000 years, there will still not be enough oxygen on Mars for humans to breathe. (Note: The solution to this is mentioned in Paragraph J.)

D Answers will vary. Possible answer: I’m not sure. Life on Mars sounds hard. I don’t think I’d be interested in living there for a long time.

However, I’d like to travel there and stay there for a short time. That would be a fun adventure, I think.

Writing

EXPLORING WRITTEN ENGLISH

A 1. a

2. b

3. b

B 1. so

2. and

3. and

4. but

5. so

6. but

7. but

8. so

C 1. PR2—a robot—can take care of elderly people and deliver mail.

2. PR2 cooks but doesn’t communicate.

3. Wakamaru knows 10,000 Japanese words and is able to communicate with people.

4. There is not enough oxygen on Mars, so humans cannot breathe there.

D Answers will vary. Possible answers: Cars in the future will be able to fly, but they will also be driverless, so we won’t need pilot licenses to use them! (Note: Use this to show students that more than two ideas can be combined by using more than one conjunction.)

WRITING SKIll

E 1. RFID chips will keep track of the food in your cabinets, and they will tell you when it’s time to go to the store.

2. People on survey missions to Mars will build domes and live in them.

3. People will terraform Mars and make it more like Earth.

4. Even after a thousand years, people won’t be able to breathe on Mars, so they will have to use breathing equipment.

5. Mars doesn’t have any oxygen, but plants will slowly add it to the atmosphere over many years.

F 1. they = the robots; them = people

2. them = the domes

3. it = the color

4. they = people

WRITING TASK

A Answers will vary. Possible answers:

Work: Most people will work from home.

Travel: electric cars, high-speed trains

Home: automated robotic appliances to clean the house

B Answers will vary. Possible answer:

Supporting Idea 1: Travel will be cleaner and faster.

Detail: Electric cars will be cleaner and much

quieter; driverless cars will communicate with each other and reduce traffic congestion.

Supporting Idea 2: Life at home after work will be much easier.

Detail: Robotic cleaners that vacuum and mop will save us a lot of time; We will be able to program our appliances to prepare us meals every day.

REVISING PRACTICE

c, b, a, d

EDITING PRACTICE

1. People will live on Mars someday, but it is too expensive to travel there now.

2. Mars is too cold for human visitors, so scientists will need to warm it up.

3. Robots will take care of children and do housework.

4. A trip to Mars sounds amazing, but I would not like to live there!

5. Smart appliances will buy food and cook dinner.

6. We might have flying cars in 2050, so there might be fewer cars on our roads.

7. In the future, you might have a language chip in your brain, so you won’t have to study foreign languages.