The surprising experiment I am about to describe proves that air is all around you and that it presses down upon you. Air pressure is a powerful force. When you swim underwater, you can feel water pushing down on your body. The air all around you does the same. However, your body is so used to it that you do not notice this. The pressure is caused by a layer of air called the atmosphere. This layer surrounds the Earth, extending to about five kilometers above the Earth’s surface.
The following experiment is an easy one that you can do at home. But make sure that you are supervised, because you will need to use matches. Now for the experiment！
What you need
•A hard-boiled egg without the shell
•A bottle with a neck slightly smaller than the egg
•A piece of paper
•A match
Method
1） Check that the egg will sit firmly on the neck of the bottle.
2） Tear the paper into strips and put the strips into the bottle.
3） Light the paper by dropping a burning match into the bottle.
4） Quickly sit the egg on the neck of the bottle.
Result
Astonishingly, the egg will be sucked into the bottle. Your friends will be amazed when you show them the experiment. But be careful when you handle matches.
Why it happened
As the paper burns, it needs oxygen and uses up the oxygen （air） in the bottle. The egg acts as a seal in the neck of the bottle, so no more air can get inside. This reduces the air pressure inside the bottle. The air pressure must equalize, so more air from outside must enter the bottle. The outside air pressure against the egg and then the egg is pushed into the bottle! This proves that air is all around and that it is pressing down on it. Why is there the need to take care when you are doing the experiment?
| A．The bottle could break. |
| B．You need to light the paper with a match. |
| C．The egg needs to be shelled. |
| D．The egg has to be perfectly placed on the neck of the bottle. |
In the experiment, the burning inside the bottle can___.
| A．equalize the air pressure inside and outside |
| B．make a seal in the neck of the bottle |
| C．finish up the oxygen inside the bottle |
| D．produce more oxygen inside the bottle |
How did the egg put into the bottle？
| A．The oxygen inside the bottle sucked the egg in. |
| B．It became saft without the shell. |
| C．The neck of the bottle was wide enough. |
| D．The outside air pressure forced it into the bottle. |
The experiment is carried cut to prove ______.
| A．water pushes on your body when you swim underwater. |
| B．the earth is surrounded by a layer of air called the atmosphere. |
| C．the pressure of air around us has a powerful force. |
| D．the air pressure is not equalized around us. |
The Pacific island nation of Nauru used to be a beautiful place. Now it is an ecological disaster area. Nauru's heartbreaking story could have one good consequence—other countries might learn from its mistakes.
For thousands of years, Polynesian people lived on the remote island of Nauru, far from western civilization. The first European to arrive was John Fearn in 1798. He was the British captain of the Hunter, a whaling ship. He called the island Pleasant Island.
However, because it was very remote, Nauru had little communication with Europeans at first. Then whaling ships and other traders began to visit, bringing guns and alcohol. These elements destroyed the social balance of the twelve family groups on the island. A tenyear civil war started, which reduced the population from 1,400 to 900.
Nauru's real troubles began in 1899 when a British mining company discovered phosphate(磷酸盐) on the island. In fact, it found that the island of Nauru was nearly all phosphate, which is a very important fertilizer for farming. The company began mining the phosphate.
A phosphate mine is not a hole in the ground; it is a stripmine. When a company stripmines, it removes the top layer of soil. Then it takes away the material it wants. Stripmining totally destroys the land. Gradually, the lovely island of Nauru started to look like the moon.
In 1968, Nauru became one of the richest countries in the world. Every year the government received millions and millions of dollars for its phosphate.
Unfortunately, the leaders invested the money unwisely and lost millions of dollars. In addition, they used millions more dollars for personal expenses. Soon people realized that they had a terrible problem—their phosphate was running out. Ninety percent of their island was destroyed and they had nothing. By 2000, Nauru was almost financially ruined. Experts say that it would take approximately $433,600,000 and more than 20 years to repair the island. This will probably never happen.What might be the author's purpose in writing the text?
| A．To seek help for Nauru's problems. |
| B．To give a warning to other countries. |
| C．To show the importance of money. |
| D．To tell a heartbreaking story of a war. |
What was Nauru like before the Europeans came?
| A．Rich and powerful. |
| B．Modern and open. |
| C．Peaceful and attractive. |
| D．Greedy and aggressive. |
The ecological disaster in Nauru resulted from ________.
| A．soil pollution |
| B．phosphate overmining |
| C．farming activity |
| D．whale hunting |
Which of the following was a cause of Nauru's financial problem?
| A．Its leaders misused the money. |
| B．It spent too much repairing the island. |
| C．Its phosphate mining cost much money. |
| D．It lost millions of dollars in the civil war. |
What can we learn about Nauru from the last paragraph?
| A．The ecological damage is difficult to repair. |
| B．The leaders will take the experts' words seriously. |
| C．The island was abandoned by the Nauruans. |
| D．The phosphate mines were destroyed. |
Something in chocolate could be used to stop coughs and lead to more effective medicines, say UK researchers.
Their study found that theobromine, found in cocoa, was nearly a third more effective in stopping coughs than codeine, which was considered the best cough medicine at present.
The Imperial College London researchers who published their results online said the discovery could lead to more effective cough treatment. “While coughing is not necessarily harmful(有害的) it can have a major effect on the quality of life, and this discovery could be a huge step forward in treating this problem,” said Professor Peter Barnes.
Ten healthy volunteers(志愿者) were given theobromine, codeine or placebo, a pill that contains no medicine, during the experiment. Neither the volunteers nor the researchers knew who received which pill. The researchers then measured levels of capsaicin, which is used in research to cause coughing and as a sign of how well the medicine are stopping coughs.
The team found that, when the volunteers were given theobromine, the capsaicin need to produce a cough was around a third higher than in the placebo group. When they were given codeine they need only slightly higher levers of capsaicin to cause a cough compared with the placebo.
The researchers said that theobromine worked by keeping down a verve activity(神经活动), which cause coughing. They also found that unlike some standard cough treatments, theobromine caused no side effects such as sleepiness.According to Professor Barnes, theobromine ______.
| A．cannot be as effective as codeine |
| B．can be harmful to people’s health |
| C．cannot be separated from chocolate |
| D．can be a more effective cure for coughs |
What was used in the experiment to cause coughing?
| A．Theobromine. | B．Codeine. | C．Capsaicin. | D．Placebo. |
We learn from the text that volunteers in the experiment _____.
| A．were patients with bad coughs |
| B．were divided into the three groups |
| C．received standard treatments |
| D．suffered little side effects |
Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
| A．Codeine: A New Medicine | B．Chocolate May Cure Coughs |
| C．Cough Treatment: A Hard Case | D．Theobromine Can Cause Coughs |
Make Up Your Mind to Succeed
Kindhearted parents have unknowingly left their children defenseless against failure. The generation born between 1980 and 2001 grew up playing sports where scores and performance were played down because “everyone's a winner.” And their report cards sounded more positive (正面的) than ever before. As a result, Stanford University professor Carol Dweck, PhD, calls them “the overpraised generation.”
Dweck has been studying how people deal with failure for 40 years. Her research has led her to find out two clearly different mindsets that have a great effect on how we react to it. Here's how they work：
A fixed mindset is grounded in the belief that talent (才能) is genetic—you're a born artist, point guard, or numbers person. The fixed mindset believes it's sure to succeed without much effort and regards failure as personal shame. When things get difficult, it's quick to blame, lie, and even stay away from future difficulties.
On the other hand, a growth mindset believes that no talent is entirely heavensent and that effort and learning make everything possible. Because the ego(自尊) isn't on the line as much, the growth mindset sees failure as a chance rather than shame. When faced with a difficulty, it's quick to rethink, change and try again. In fact, it enjoys this experience.
We are all born with growth mindsets. (Otherwise, we wouldn't be able to live in the world.) But parents, teachers, and instructors often push us into fixed mindsets by encouraging certain actions and misdirecting praise. Dweck's book, Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, and online instructional program explain this in depth. But she says there are many little things you can start doing today to make sure that your children, grandchildren and even you are never defeated by failure.What does the author think about the present generation?
| A．They don't do well at school. |
| B．They are often misunderstood. |
| C．They are eager to win in sports. |
| D．They are given too much praise. |
A fixed mindset person is probably one who ________.
| A．doesn't want to work hard |
| B．cares a lot about personal safety |
| C．cannot share his ideas with others |
| D．can succeed with the help of teachers |
What does the growth mindset believe?
| A．Admitting failure is shameful. |
| B．Talent comes with one's birth. |
| C．Scores should be highly valued. |
| D．Getting over difficulties is enjoyable. |
What should parents do for their children based on Dweck's study?
| A．Encourage them to learn from failures. |
| B．Prevent them from making mistakes. |
| C．Guide them in doing little things. |
| D．Help them grow with praise. |
Moscow, Russia (Space news)... "The,computer is a better chess player, " insisted Viktor Prozorov, the loser. "It seemed as if it were laughing after every good move, I know I should have beaten it for the sake of mankind(为人类着想), but I just couldn't win," he announced and shook his head sadly.
Prozorov's disappointment was shared by sereral grand masters who were present, some of whom were so upet that they shouted at the machine. Many chess players said that this meant the end of chess championships(锦标赛) around the world, since the fun had been taken out of the game.
The computer walked or rather, rolled-away with 5,000 dollars in prize money and limited its remarks to a set of noises and lights.Which of the following best gives the main idea of this newspaper article?
| A．5,000 dollars goes to a computer! | B．New invention:a laughing computer! |
| C．World's best chess player beaten! | D．Computer defeats man in chess! |
How did some of the grand masters feel about chess game between Prozorov and the computer?
A. They thought that the game was no fun.
B. They thought that the game was no fun.
C. They agreed that Prozorov didn't play well
D They were unhappy that the computer had won.What was it that Prozorov felt most bitter(懊恼) about?
| A．That he didn't win the $5,000. | B．That he hadn't tried his best. |
| C．That he had lost to a machine. | D．That this was the end of the chess game. |
After winning the game, the computer______.
| A．laughed | B．walked away |
| C．made some remarks | D．gave out some lights and sounds |
Many chess players felt that playing with a computer would______.
| A．make the game tougher | B．make the game less interesting |
| C．make man appear foolish | D．make man lose lots of money |
Phil White has just returned from an 18,000mile, aroundtheworld bicycle trip. White had two reasons for making this epic journey. First of all, he wanted to use the trip to raise money for charity, which he did. He raised￡70,000 for the British charity, Oxfam. White's second reason for making the trip was to break the world record and become the fastest person to cycle around the world. He is still waiting to find out if he has broken the record or not.
White set off from Trafalgar Square, in London, on 19th June 2004 and was back 299 days later. He spent more than 1,300 hours in the saddle (车座) and destroyed four sets of tyres and three bike chains. He had the adventure of his life crossing Europe, the Middle East, India, Asia, Australia, New Zealand and the Americas. Amazingly, he did all of this with absolutely no support team. No jeep carrying food, water and medicine. No doctor. Nothing! Just a bike and a very, very long road.
The journey was lonely and desperate at times. He also had to fight his way across deserts, through jungles and over mountains. He cycled through heavy rains and temperatures of up to 45 degrees, all to help people in need. There were other dangers along the road. In Iran, he was chased by armed robbers and was lucky to escape with his life and the little money he had. The worst thing that happened to him was having to cycle into a headwind on a road that crosses the south of Australia. For 1,000 kilometres he battled against the wind that was constantly pushing him. This part of the trip was slow, hard work and depressing, but he made it in the end. Now Mr. White is back and intends to write a book about his adventures.When Phil White returned from his trip, he ________.
| A．broke the world record |
| B．collected money for Oxfam |
| C．destroyed several bikes |
| D．travelled about 1,300 hours |
What does the word “epic” in Paragraph 1 most probably mean?
| A．Very slow but exciting. |
| B．Very long and difficult. |
| C．Very smooth but tiring. |
| D．Very lonely and depressing. |
During his journey around the world, Phil White ________.
| A．fought heroically against robbers in Iran |
| B．experienced the extremes of heat and cold |
| C．managed to ride against the wind in Australia |
| D．had a team of people who travelled with him |
Which of the following words can best describe Phil White?
| A．Imaginative. | B．Patriotic. | C．Modest. | D．Determined. |