CANBERRA (Reuters Life!) - Think twice before eating those dropped crumbs off your computer keyboard -- you might as well be eating off a toilet seat, according to a new study on the amount of germs on keyboards.
A study by British "Which? Computing" asked a microbiologist to examine for bugs on 33 keyboards in a typical London office, a toilet seat and a toilet door handle.
Four keyboards were judged potential health hazards and the microbiologist recommended the removal of one keyboard as it had 150 times the pass limit of bacteria -- five times filthier than the swabbed toilet seat.
"Most people don't give much thought to the grime that builds up on their PC, but if you don't clean your computer, you might as well eat your lunch off the toilet," said Sarah Kidner, the consumer magazine editor of "Which? Computing" in a statement.
The study found that eating lunch at desks is the main cause of a bug-infested keyboard. Dropped crumbs and food encourages the growth of millions of bacteria.
Poor personal hygiene, such as not washing hands after going to the toilet, may also add to the dirtiness of keyboards.
But despite the health hazard of a dirty keyboard, a survey of 4,000 people by the magazine found one in 10 people ever cleaned their keyboard while another two in 10 never cleaned their mouse.
Almost half -- or 46 per cent -- cleaned their keyboard less than once a month.
To clear out bugs, the magazine recommends users unplug keyboards, turn them upside down and shake them. The purpose of the passage is .
| A．tell us something about the keyboards. |
| B．warn people to clean the keyboards often. |
| C．tell us how to clean the keyboard |
| D．tell us the germs on keyboards |
What do you think the expression “Think twice before eating those dropped crumbs off your computer keyboard” stands for?
| A．Think several times before eating beside your computer |
| B．Don’t drop foods onto the computer keyboard. |
| C．Don’t eat foods dropped onto the computer keyboard. |
| D．Be careful when you are eating by the computer. |
What are the main causes of a bug-infested keyboard?
| A．Dropped crumbs and food encourages the growth of millions of bacteria. |
| B．Poor personal hygiene |
| C．Much dirt on the computer keyboard. |
| D．Dropped crumbs and food and Poor personal hygiene |
"Which? Computing" is probably a name of .
| A．An organization | B．a newspaper |
| C．a report | D．a magazine |
The whole world is helping tsunami (海啸) victims. Students in the U.S. are also taking part. A friend of mine suggested that we organize a relief effort for the victims. We are officers of the American Red Cross at Yale (I’m the chairperson). After sending a letter to the other members of the Red Cross, I received a large number of responses from students interested in helping.
We decided to organize a charity concert to raise money for tsunami-ravaged areas. All ticket earnings will go directly to our parent organization, the American Red Cross. Currently, we’re in the process of inviting Yale’s numerous song, dance, and chamber music groups to perform at the concert.
So far, we’ve had a great response from these groups and volunteers have continued to pour in with their ideas and feedback. When I checked my inbox this morning, I had 56 tsunami fundraiser-related emails waiting for me. Although, everyone is still on winter vacation and away from school, we have the Internet to link up Yalies from around the globe. We share ideas not on the latest video games, but on how best to provide help.
The Red Cross at Yale is not alone in its aid effort. Student organizations across campus are working hard to raise funds and provide help to those who need it.
Yale’s South Asian Society (SAS) and the Asian American Students Alliance (AASA), which is an umbrella organization for many other groups including the Sri Lankan Students Association, are organizing charity dinners.
The food will be donated（捐赠）by restaurants from around campus. Every last penny of the earnings will be donated to a non-profit organization providing aid to South Asia.
After some discussion with the SAS and AASA, our groups have decided to plan our two events together. Students can attend the benefit dinner then go to the charity concert. There is no doubt in my mind that both events will have a fantastic turnout.What does the writer mainly talk about in this passage?
| A．A charity concert to help tsunami victims. |
| B．The efforts of the American Red Cross at Yale to help tsunami victims. |
| C．The worldwide efforts to help tsunami victims. |
| D．What the Americans do to help tsunami victims. |
The author keeps in touch with Yalies to ______.
| A．ask them to offer help | B．inform them the latest news |
| C．ask them to join in the concert | D．ask them to work for the Red Cross |
What does “both events” refer to in the last paragraph?
A. SAS and AASA.
B. The Red Cross at Yale and the American Red Cross.
C. The benefit dinner and the charity concert.
D. Raising funds and providing help. Which of the following is NOT right?
| A．Students were taking an active part in the activity |
| B．The American Red Cross at Yale raised money for tsunami-ravaged areas by organizing a charity concert |
| C．Other organizations are working hard to raise funds and provide help to those who need it. |
| D．The tsunami happened in South America. |
In many ways, our society doesn’t simply prepare for the kinds of lives that the elderly must lead. We have made medical advances that allow people to live longer than ever before, but we do not seem to know what to do with them after we have saved their lives. Too little allowance is made for the person who is no longer earning a living, who can not walk long distances or drive a car, or who may have physical or mental disabilities that keep him from communicating with others. The institutional (慈善机构的) care we give our older people is a good reflection of the overall attitude of our society toward the aged.
In the past few years, nursing homes have received wide attention as boring, meaningless places where old people often have little else to do but wait for the end of their lives. Elderly wards in mental hospitals are even worse. One of the most shocking things abort nursing homes has been the unwillingness of people on the outside to show real concern for what happens in these institutions. Even people who are entrusting (委托) a parent to the care of a home rarely ask about the nurse-parent ratio (比率), about the kinds of creative facilities or physical treatment equipment available, or about the frequency of doctors’ visits.
And the government has provided federal money without enforcing high standards of care. In fact federal standards were lowered in 1974. Therefore, in some sense our concern for the aged seems to be moving backwards, not forwards. This picture is in striking contrast to the treatment of respectable patriarchs (男长者) and matriarchs (女长者) in many societies.What would be the most suitable title for this passage?
| A．Failure of Care for the Elderly | B．The Elderly |
| C．Institutional Care | D．A National Shame |
We can conclude from this passage that the writer feels ____.
| A．nursing homes should be got rid of |
| B．a country that can help people live longer should also be able to care for them better |
| C．people have no thanks toward their parents |
| D．our society’s institutions need to be reformed |
The writer believes that people who place a parent in a nursing home should ____.
| A．demand higher federal standards |
| B．consider the example set in other countries |
| C．be ashamed of not keeping the parents in their own homes |
| D．investigate it first |
The writer complains ____.
| A．about the indifference of some people towards nursing homes |
| B．about the shortage of equipment in nursing home |
| C．that nursing homes keep the aged from communicating with others |
| D．both A and B |
Isn’t it cool to surf in summer? You catch a wave and enjoy the ride with skill and gift. Surfing is not only our favorite pastime, though. A group of penguins(企鹅) enjoy the sport as much as we do. And they display their excitement and skills in the new animated(动画) film Surf's Up , which came out on June 6, in the US.
Teenage penguin Cody Maverick lives in Antarctica and loves the sport. He desires to learn from Cody's idol is Big Z, a great penguin surfing king.
He is different from other penguins, who work in processing factories. His brother and mother are not supportive of him. He really wants to get away. Cody believes that winning will bring him the admiration and respect he desires. He's given the chance to escape when Mikey Abromowitz, a talent scout (星探), comes to Antarctica to look for gifted penguins for a surfing competition on an island named Pen Gu.
Cody's really excited, but, during his show, there are no waves and he chokes. But he knows he can't give up. He runs after Mikey's whale. And he begs until Mikey agrees to take him to Pen Gu.
There Cody meets Lani, the island's beautiful lifeguard, as well as his main rival (对手), the surfing champion Evans. The cocky Evans shows no respect for Big Z, which makes Cody angry. In order to defend his forever idol, he challenges Evans to a surfing match, only to suffer a terrible defeat.
Lani takes Cody to the island doctor. As they spend time together, Cody realizes that this doctor is really Big Z himself and begged Big Z to teach him.After Big Z learns the cause of his injury, he begins to train Cody and help him make a good surfer. He improves his skills and begins a close surfing match with Evans…. The best title for the passage would be________.
A. Big Z, a legendary penguin surfing king.
B. Penguins Cody's Trip to Antarctica
C. How To Be a Good Surfer
D A New Animated Film— Surf's UpWhich of the following is WRONG about Teenage penguin Cody Maverick?
| A．He is fond of surfing and lives in Antarctica |
| B．He gets along well with his brother and brother. |
| C．He is defeated by Evans in a surfing match. |
| D．He thinks winning will win the respect of others. |
Who does penguin Cody Maverick respect most?
| A．Mikey Abromowitz | B．Evans | C．Lani | D．Big Z |
The underlined word “chokes” in the fifth paragraph means_______.
| A．fails | B．stops breathing | C．feels out of breath | D．holds his breath |
It can be inferred from the passage it is probably _______that makes Big Z accept him and help him improve his skills.
| A．his honesty and stubbornness | B．his determination and cleverness |
| C．his determination and devotion | D．his self-importance and courage |
◆200 dead as Brazilian plane crashes in Sao Paulo
Up to 200 people were dead after a passenger plane with 176 people aboard slid off the runway on landing and hit a fuel storage tank at Sao Paulo's Congonhas airport on Tuesday.
Brazilian airline TAM said that 170 passengers and 6 crew were aboard the Airbus A320 flying from Porto Alegre in southern Brazil to Sao Paulo when it lost control on landing and slid off the wet runway.
Brazilian news agency Folha reported up to 200 people were dead, including some victims on the ground.
◆_______________________________________
Two people were killed Saturday in two separate plane crashes in the United States, media reports said.
In Dayton, Ohio, a plane crashed on a runway of the Dayton International Airport while performing during the Vectren Dayton Air Show. The pilot, Jim LeRoy, was taken to Miami Valley Hospital and was announced dead. The air show was canceled .
Also on the same day, two single-engine war planes at an experimental air show collided(相撞) in Wisconsin while landing, killing one of the pilots and injuring the other.
◆All 114 aboard Kenya plane killed
A Kenya Airways plane that crashed after takeoff in Cameroon with 114 people on board is largely submerged (淹没) in a swamp(沼泽地) and there is no chance of survivors, Cameroon 's civil protection service said on Monday
The Boeing 737-800 had taken off from Douala and its wreckag (残骸)was found just 12 miles from the town. The plane fell head first. But the cause of the crash remained unclear.
Among the passengers were Associated Press reporter Anthony Mitchella and an executive from the South African cell phone giant MTN. Five Chinese passengers were also killed in the crash . The Brazilian plane crash caused extra deaths mainly because______
| A．it skidded off the wet runway. | B．the runway. was very short |
| C．it hit a fuel storage tank | D．its pilot was inexperienced |
The proper title for News 2 would be _________.
| A．Two pilots killed in plane crashes in US | B．The tragedies of the air show |
| C．Who is to blame for the plane crashes? | D．Big losses can result from small things |
Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE as for the Kenya plane crash?
| A．The plane crashed after the plane took off. |
| B．The cause of the crash was under examination |
| C．114 passengers on board were killed including an African |
| D．The place where the plane crashed led to many more deaths |
The Brazilian plane crash killed about _____people in all on the ground.
| A．170 | B．30 | C．24 | D．6 |
It can be inferred from the three news that_________
| A．when the Airbus A320 landed, it was likely to be raining heavily |
| B．during the Vectren Dayton Air Show , the pilot, Jim LeRoy died on the scene |
| C．The place where the Boeing 737-800 crashed was just 12 miles from the town |
| D．Five Chinese passengers were victims of the Kenya plane crash |
My dream ended when I was born. Although I never knew it then, I just held on to something that would never come to pass. Dreams really do exist. But in the morning when you wake up, they are remembered just as a dream. That is what happened to me.
I always had the dream to dance like a beautiful ballerina（芭蕾舞女演员）turning around and around and hearing people applaud for me. When I was young, I would turn around and around in the fields of wildflowers that grew in my backyard.
Reality woke me up when I heard someone saying, "I don't know why you bother trying to dance. Ballerinas are pretty and slender(苗条) girls. Besides, you don't have the talent to even be a ballerina." I remember how those words hurt every feeling in my body. I fell to the ground and wept for hours.
I enjoyed hanging out by the water. I would sit there for hours and stare at my reflection(倒影). There I was, looking nothing like a pretty ballerina dancer. Reflections don't lie. Once the waves would come, my reflection was washed away just like my dream to dance.
As I grew older, I began to realize that the reason my dream was even born was because it was something that was inside of me. The dream I had was never nurtured(培育) and cared for, so it slowly died. It's not that I wanted it to die, but I allowed it to die the day I started listening to the words, "You can't do it." When I finally woke up from many years of dreaming, I realized that you can't only settle for dancing in the wildflowers, you have to move on to the platform. Which of the following can serve as the best title for the passage？
| A．Care for your dream |
| B．Dream and reality |
| C．Nothing is impossible |
| D．Efforts to be a ballerina will pay |
The author didn’t realize her dream of being a ballerina mainly because_______.
| A．she was bored of dancing and performing |
| B．she had lack of self-respect |
| C．her health conditions allowed her dream to die |
| D．she was deeply affected by others easily |
From the passage, it can be inferred that _________.
| A．the author was once a pretty and slender girl with wonderful dream. |
| B．we should dare to give up our dream facing much pressure and difficulty |
| C．if you stick to your dream and never say die, you will enjoy a bright life |
| D．You should necer give up. |
What is the main purpose of writing the passage?
| A．to complain | B．to praise | C．to warn | D．to criticize |
The underlined expression “settle for” in the last paragraph means_________.
| A．turn down | B．take up | C．give up | D．settle down |