Level 2 · Reading series
Lesson 24 · Can a Robot Understand Sorry?
Audio track 24
Listen first
Listen once before opening the English passage.
Open the English passage and hover for word help
Aya: If a robot bumps into you and says "sorry," is it really sorry?
Ren: Maybe it knows the word.
Aya: But does it feel bad?
Ren: I don't know. It can learn when to say sorry, but feelings are different.
Aya: Then why does the word help?
Ren: Because people hear it. If the robot stops and says sorry, people may feel safer.
Aya: So the word is useful, even if the robot's heart is not like ours.
Sentence practice
Play any sentence in Dicvo’s Jenny English voice. Before playing all, choose how many times each sentence plays. A practice pause about as long as the sentence follows each play, including before the next sentence. The complete reading remains above.
Choose a sentence to begin.
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Aya: If a robot bumps into you and says "sorry," is it really sorry?
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Ren: Maybe it knows the word.
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Aya: But does it feel bad?
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Ren: I don't know.
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It can learn when to say sorry, but feelings are different.
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Aya: Then why does the word help?
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Ren: Because people hear it.
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If the robot stops and says sorry, people may feel safer.
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Aya: So the word is useful, even if the robot's heart is not like ours.
Check your understanding
After reading, state the main idea in one sentence and find a line that supports it.
Chinese translation
绫：如果机器人撞到你后说‘对不起’，它真的觉得抱歉吗？
莲：也许它只是知道这个词。
绫：可它会难过吗？
莲：我不知道。它可以学会什么时候说‘对不起’，但感受是另一回事。
绫：那这个词为什么有用呢？
莲：因为人会听到。如果机器人停下并道歉，人可能会觉得更安心。
绫：所以，即使机器人的内心和我们不一样，这句话仍有用。
Key words and expressions
Key terms have Chinese explanations. Hover over dotted words in the English passage for word help and pronunciation when available.
- robot
- 机器人；对话讨论它说‘对不起’的情形。
- bump into
- 撞到；bump into you 是‘撞到你’。
- really
- 真的；询问道歉是否出于内心。
- feel bad
- 感到难过；这里指对碰撞感到抱歉。
- learn when to do
- 学会何时做……；可根据情境选择说法。
- feeling
- 感受；与会说一个词不同。
- different
- 不同的；人与机器人可能有差别。
- useful
- 有用的；道歉可能让人更安心。
- even if
- 即使；引出仍不影响结果的情况。
- like ours
- 像我们的；ours 指‘我们的内心’。
Background notes (Chinese)
对话没有断言机器人是否真的有感受，而是提出两个不同问题：它会不会在合适的时候说出道歉的话，以及听到道歉的人会有什么感受。