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　　People in several American states may be surprised to see cars on city streets without a driver. Experimental driverless vehicles now are legal in Florida, Nevada and California. They are pointing the way to a future that is not far down the road. The high­tech company Google has a number of self­driving cars, which had covered 480,000 kilometers by August. Volvo is among the companies doing road tests and says it plans to sell driverless cars by 2020.

　　In September, California Governor Jerry Brown signed an act to allow autonomous vehicles on the roads of his state. “ Today we're looking at science fiction becoming tomorrow's reality—the driverless car. ” The technology for these cars includes cameras, radar and motion sensors. The systems have been improved through competitions sponsored by the U. S. government agency DARPA. Engineer Richard Mason of the Rand Corporation helped design driverless vehicles for DARPA challenge races.

　　“Cars have become much more fuel­efficient, and new electronic features are making Hondas safer，” said Angie Nucci of Honda America. “ A camera on the passenger­side mirror actually engaged on your guiding screen so you can safely change lanes. ” Other safety features include warning systems on the front and the sides of the cars. These systems help drivers, but don't replace them. Curator Leslie Kendall of the Petersen Automotive Museum said autonomous cars will make the high ways safer.

　　“By taking out drivers, you also remove most risks of an accident，” Kendall said. He said consumers, however, may be unwilling to lose control. “It may take them time to come to realize that the technology is indeed reliable, but it will have to prove itself first. ”

　　Mason said the technology already works and the biggest challenge now is getting down the cost for driverless vehicles from hundreds of thousands of dollars to something more affordable. He said this will happen as the technology is improved.

　　文章大意：自動(dòng)汽車原來只是科幻作品中出現(xiàn)，現(xiàn)在它即將成為可能。

　　1. What can we learn from Paragraph l?

　　A.Driverless vehicles are now legal in the whole USA.

　　B.Volvo will be the first to sell driverless cars.

　　C.Driverless cars are pointing us a faraway future.

　　D.Google's self­driving cars have covered a long distance.

　　答案：D　細(xì)節(jié)理解題。由第一段第四句話“The high­tech company Google has a number of self­driving cars, which had covered 480,000 kilometers by August.”可知，谷歌公司的自動(dòng)汽車已經(jīng)行駛了很長(zhǎng)的距離。

　　2. We learn that Governor of California Jerry Brown________.

　　A.helped design self­driving cars

　　B.supports self­driving cars on roads

　　C.considers self­driving cars science fiction

　　D.improved the self­driving car systems

　　答案：B　細(xì)節(jié)理解題。由第二段第一句話“In September, California Governor Jerry Brown signed an act to allow autonomous vehicles on the roads of his state.”可知，Governor Jerry Brown支持自動(dòng)汽車。

　　3. What is the role of the systems mentioned in Paragraph 3?

　　A.They can help people drive more safely.

　　B.They can take the place of drivers now.

　　C.They can make cars run without fuel.

　　D.They can help cars run much faster.

　　答案：A　細(xì)節(jié)理解題。由第三段內(nèi)容可知，自動(dòng)汽車系統(tǒng)更節(jié)油、更安全，能幫助駕駛員但是不能代替駕駛員。

　　4. According to Richard Mason, what is the biggest challenge for driverless cars?

　　A.They are not allowed to run on the road.

　　B.Their technical problems remain to be solved.

　　C.They are now too expensive for consumers.

　　D.They are more dangerous for people on the street.

　　答案：C　細(xì)節(jié)理解題。由最后一段第一句話“Mason said ... the biggest challenge now is getting down the cost for driverless vehicles from hundreds of thousands of dollars to something more affordable.”可知，價(jià)格是其最大的挑戰(zhàn)。

　　5.What's the best title of the passage?

　　A.The benefits of the self­driving cars.

　　B.The biggest challenge of the self­driving cars.

　　C.Safer or more dangerous—self­driving cars.

　　D.Self­driving cars—science fiction future is near.

　　答案：D　主旨大意題。由文章大意可知。