Question

Have you ever had dreams about building a robot? Or putting together a spaceship? Or even seeing your face made out of chocolate? Done. All you need is a 3-D printer!

The possibilities of 3-D printing seem endless. All the user has to do is to design(设计) an object on the computer and choose a material(材料) to print in. The printers print in hundreds of different materials including glass, sugar and even skin! When the user presses “print”, the 3-D printer spreads the material layer(层) by layer and like magic the object is produced.

The first 3-D printer was invented in 1986 by an American, Charles Hull. But 3-D printing has only become cheap enough recently for most people to use. Designers now use 3-D printing to create unusual things. The Dutch artist Dirk Vander Kooj prints furniture made from old fridges. And doctors have used 3-D printing to print human body parts! The Telegraph reported in February that scientists from Cornell Medical College even printed a man-made ear.

But like a lot of new technologies, if 3-D printing gets into the wrong hands, it can be dangerous. In 2011 a group of four men in the US used 3-D printing to produce ATM skimmers (提款机盗刷器). These were placed on an ATM and stole over $400,000 from users of the ATM. It is terrible to think that criminals like them might one day use a 3-D printer to print a gun.

But for better or for worse, 3-D printing has been put into use. In a few years, you’ll probably be wondering how you could ever live without your 3-D printer!

1. _______ invented the first 3-D printer.

A. Charles Hull B. Dirk Vander Kooj

C. A doctor called Cornell D. Four men in the U.S

2.What is the correct order for people to use a 3-D printer?

a. Choose a proper material.

b. Press the print button.

c. The 3-D printer spreads the material.

d. Use a computer to design an object.

A. a-b-c-d B. d-a-b-c

C. a-c-d-b D. d-c-b-a

3.The underlined word “criminals” in the fourth paragraph might mean ______________ in Chinese.

A. 技术员 B. 军人 C. 罪犯 D. 用户

4.According to the passage, people have NOT yet produced _________ with a 3-D printer.

A. some furniture B. a man-made ear

C. ATM skimmers D. a gun

5.What does the writer think of the 3-D printer?

A. It is necessary only for our work.

B. It is helpful but dangerous.

C. It is too expensive for most people.

D. It is useless in our daily life.

Answer 1