C
Invented in Turkey and patented by Nanopool, a German company, the spray-on liquid glass might become one of the most useful inventions in the field of nanotechnology. The product was tested at the Saarbrücken Institute for New Materials.
It is worth mentioning that the invention is transparent and non-poisonous. The liquid glass can protect any type of surface from damages caused by water, UV radiation, dirt, heat, and bacterial infections. Besides, it is flexible and breathable, which means that the liquid glass can be applied on plants and seeds as well. Researchers found that the spray greatly increases the resistance of plants to bacteria-caused diseases. The trials also showed that the sprayed seeds grew faster.
Depending on the type of surface that is to be covered, researchers can add water or ethanol to the spray. Scientists say that their latest invention has a long-lasting anti-bacterial effect. The spray produces a coating that is just 100nm thick. Trials by food processing plants in Germany have concluded that foods covered with the glass can store longer than those stored in normal condition.
According to Neil McClelland, UK project manager with Nanopool, due to its capabilities, the spray-on liquid glass can become one of the most useful inventions around the world, ending up being used by a lot of industries that will cover their products. At present, the invention is being used by a train company and a hotel chain in the UK, as well as a hamburger chain in Germany that are carrying out tests of the liquid glass for various uses.
The spray-on liquid glass was also tested in a Lancashire hospital, where it showed “very promising” results, being used to cover medical equipment and bandages. The invention could be also used on clothing, because it cannot be seen by the naked eye, thus clothes could become stain resistant. Due to its unique characteristics, the liquid glass can be used to cover bathrooms, sinks and many other surfaces in the home. According to the researchers, the spay-on glass can last for a year. It is expected to hit the DIY stores across Britain at a price of 5 pounds.
51. Which of the following about the liquid glass is NOT true?
A. We can still see an object clearly covered with the liquid.
B. It will cause plants to have some kind of disease.
C. Plants still have access to oxygen when covered by it.
D. It can speed up the growth of seeds.
52. What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 3 imply?
A. Water or ethanol must be added to the spray to produce the effect.
B. The coating of the spray-on liquid is thick.
C. The liquid glass can protect foods from bacteria.
D. The long-lasting anti-bacterial effect protects the liquid glass.
53. According to Neil McClelland, the spray-on liquid glass_________.
A. are being tested by some industries
B. are being used by various companies
C. can be eaten together with hamburgers
D. are widely used by train companies
54. The writer’s attitude towards the application of the new liquid glass is _________.
A. pessimistic B. doubtful C. cautious D. optimistic
55. What can be inferred from the passage?
A. We don’t have to wash our clothes with the new invention.
B. The liquid glass can be used to wash yourself in the bathroom..
C. The liquid glass will be widely used in many fields.
D. The DIY stores will not welcome the liquid glass.
Have you ever intended to be fully absorbed in your work but found yourself distracted (走神) by e-mail, the Internet and other things throughout the day? According to the survey made by a famous university in the USA, most people have the experience.
“People often lose their concentration when they are bored, of course, but also when they are engaged in challenging tasks,” says Peter Bregman, the head of the survey. “They sometimes have a feeling to escape from what’s difficult or boring, so they jump out,” he says. The part of the brain devoted to attention is connected to the brain’s emotional center. Any strong emotion —quarrels with colleagues, problems at home —can interrupt our attention. Studies over the last decade have shown that too much work to do at a time can easily lead to distraction.
Refocusing is hard for many people. Robert Epstein suggests the following, “Stop and listen to some soft music for a few minutes. Find a good friend or a teacher and say out your matter on your mind. Go for a short walk or take a deep breath, where you breathe in deeply, count to five slowly, hold it and breathe out very slowly. This can blow out all the tension and the unwanted in your mind to restore your focus.”
Take more control by structuring your time and becoming more aware of your behaviors.“Setting the phone alarm to go off every hour is my way of creating awareness,”Mr. Bregman says.“You have to inform yourself that you’ve lost focus in order to do something about it.” Starting the day with a to-do list is also important, such as when to eat, when to go to the gym or take a walk. But if it’s overly ambitious, you will put yourself in a state of anxiety, which makes it hard for the brain to concentrate. “Choosing three or four things as your priority (优先) for the day allows your brain to settle down and focus,” he says.According to the passage, which is NOT the reason why some people can be distracted from their work?
| A．They don’t want to be devoted to their work. |
| B．They are disturbed by the Internet and other things. |
| C．They can’t find interest in their work. |
| D．They feel their work is too hard for them. |
Which incident might not interrupt your attention?
| A．You were scolded by your teacher. |
| B．You had words with your good friend. |
| C．You went to school at six as usual. |
| D．Your mother and father had a quarrel. |
According to Robert Epstein, how can we refocus on what we should do?
| A．Listen to rock music for some time. |
| B．Turn to your good friends or teachers for help. |
| C．Run around the playground for some time. |
| D．Take a breath from time to time. |
What’s the meaning of the underlined word “restore”in the passage?
| A．recover | B．reform |
| C．release | D．react |
The sound of the rain hitting the windows wakes me up and it sounds just exactly as it did 15 years ago, which reminded me of my girlhood.
It was my second day of school and it was raining heavily. I could not resist the habit I had at home, so I fell asleep right at my desk. I woke up to find myself not in the classroom but carried on Dad’s back. We were halfway home. It was the last time I felt close to him.
After that, he never carried me or hugged me as other fathers did to their children. I was not bothered much by this thought. I was proud of it, for I felt independent and “grown up.” However, there were times when I felt depressed by not having sought comfort from him.
One day, I was writing Chinese characters as homework. I hated doing this more than anything. Dad came and stood behind me for a moment, watching me scratching the paper. Then he said, “This kind of writing needs patience. Your writing is not strong enough. Press harder.”
I follow his advice for the next two words, but as I could see little improvement, I followed my own method----the fast way. His advice did not improve my writing but our relationship. As I grew older, I found out that he had finished his schooling in Grade 6, which was the highest grade in the town then, so he was considered to be a scholar. People used to ask him to write something to put on the walls, but he never felt very useful.
He often said to me, “As you can see, this family is going to count on you. We are useless to improve you anything for your future.You have to get an education to change the life for yourself.” As a result of his expectation, I have made it through high school and through college.How did the author first react to father’s suggestion?
| A．She found it hard to accept. |
| B．She was confused about it. |
| C．She accepted it. |
| D．She doubted it. |
Why did the author feel depressed sometimes?
| A．She found her father never carried her. |
| B．Her father never hugged her as other fathers did to their children. |
| C．She was bothered much by the thought that her father never cared her. |
| D．She never sought comfort from her father. |
We can infer from the passage that the author’s father______.
| A．is helpful to improving the author for her future. |
| B．attaches great importance to education. |
| C．pushes the author tightly. |
| D．received little education. |
What was the author’s purpose in writing this passage?
| A．to introduce her father. |
| B．to demonstrate people her attitude toward life. |
| C．to encourage people to follow their fathers’ suggestions. |
| D．to show what matters to her personal development. |
Losing a baby tooth can be fun for a kid. You can put it under your pillow and look forward to finding some money there in the morning. And then you can watch your new permanent(永恒的) tooth grow in its place.
But if a permanent tooth falls out, that’s a problem. There isn’t another one under the gum(齿龈)that can replace it. Unfortunately, this happens to some older people. And if permanent teeth fall out or need to be pulled, an older person might need dentures.
Dentures, known as false teeth, are a set of replacement teeth for any teeth that are missing. There are partial dentures, which take the place of only a few teeth and prevent the others from changing position. If all the teeth are gone, the person would need complete dentures, which replace every tooth in the mouth.
Dentures can cause pains at first and take little time to get adjusted to. They also need special care. They should be brushed daily with a special denture brush and cleanser and soaked（浸泡） in denture solution when not in the mouth.
Dentures are important for the old because, without teeth, it’s hard to smile, talk, and eat properly. But it can be a little weird if you see someone take out his or her dentures. It can also be strange to see someone, like a grandparent, without dentures in because he or she won’t have any teeth. Try not to make fun of the person because this could cause hurt feelings.
People usually lose their permanent teeth due to periodontal disease（牙周炎）, or gum disease, which is caused by bacteria that attacks the gums. Diseased gums aren’t strong and healthy, so teeth can get loose and fall out. Older people often have many cavities(洞)that have been filled over the years, and these fillings can weaken over time, leading to more tooth problems.If one of your baby teeth falls out, you ________.
| A．should have a false tooth fixed in its place |
| B．have to put it under your pillow at once |
| C．will gain a permanent tooth in future |
| D．can exchange it for some money |
A person wearing dentures ________.
| A．should brush them with a special denture brush every few days |
| B．will take a very long time to adjust himself or herself to them |
| C．will experience unpleasant feelings at the beginning of fixing them |
| D．should use denture solution to soak them in his or her mouth |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．Partial dentures can prevent the remaining teeth from changing position. |
| B．Old people will find it hard to smile, talk, and eat properly without teeth. |
| C．A person’s teeth will possibly get loose if diseases strike his gums. |
| D．It is hard for a person to wear dentures if all his teeth have fallen out. |
What does the underlined word “weird” mean in the fifth paragraph?
| A．inconvenient | B．excited |
| C．uncomfortable | D．impolite |
Why did the chicken cross the road? To get to the other side.
Most people know this joke. But recently, some people have been much more worried about how the grizzly bear and mountain lion can cross the road.
“Millions of animals die each year on U.S. roads,” the Federal Highway Administration reports. In fact, only about 80 ocelots, an endangered wild cat, exist in the U.S. today. The main reason? Roadkill.
“Eco-passages” may help animals cross the road without being hit by cars. They are paths both over and under roads. “These eco-passages can be extremely useful, so that wildlife can avoid road accidents,” said Jodi Hilty of the Wildlife Protection Society.
But do animals actually use the eco-passages? The answer is yes. Paul Beier of Northern Arizona University found foot marks left by mountain lions on an eco-passage that went under a highway. This showed that the lions used the passage.
Builders of eco-passages try to make them look like a natural part of an area by planting trees on and around them. Animals seem to be catching on. Animals like salamanders(火蜥蜴) and grizzly bears are using the bridges and underpasses.
The next time you visit a park or drive through an area with a lot of wildlife, look around. You might see an animal overpass!The writer uses the example of “ocelots” to show that _______.
| A．wild animals have become more dangerous |
| B．the driving condition has improved greatly |
| C．the measure for protecting wildlife fails to work |
| D．an increasing number of animals are killed in road accidents |
From the story, we know an eco-passage is ________.
| A．an underground path for cars |
| B．a path for animals to cross the road |
| C．a bridge for animals to get over a river |
| D．a fence built for the safety of the area |
When the writer says that “animals seem to be catching on”(Para. 6), he means ________.
| A．animals begin to learn to use eco-passages |
| B．animals begin to realize the dangers on the road |
| C．animals are crossing the road in groups |
| D．animals are increasing in number |
The writer asks visitors and drivers to look around when traveling because ________.
| A．they may see wild animals in the park |
| B．wild animals may jam the road |
| C．they may see wild animals on eco-passages |
| D．wild animals may attack cars |
Book 1: Iggy peck, Architect
——By Andrea Beaty
32 pages, US $ 15.95
This book is the classic oddball (古怪的人) story about a kid whose head teacher does not recognize his great talent ( he makes buildings out of anything at hand, including table cloths, fruit and chalk) until it saves her life.
Book 2: The Chicken-Chasing Queen of Lamar County
——By Janice N. Harrington
40 pages, US $ 16.00
Our character here loves to run after chickens, particularly Miss Hen, who’s very fat. But, as all farming folk know, this is not a good way to produce happy, productive chickens. What will make her change her ways? The author is a professional storyteller and this book is full of fun, and has great illustrations (插图) .
Book 3: Diary of a Fly
——By Doreen Cronin
40 pages, US $ 15.99
This is the diary of a fly. A fly who, when she’s not landing on your head or swimming in your soup, is trying to escape her 327 brothers and sisters who are driving her crazy. Even though she’s little—just like her best friends, Worm and Spider—she wants to be a superhero. This is the story of a little fly who’s not afraid to dream really big.
Book 4：Cherry and Olive
——By Benjamin Lacombe
32 pages, US $ 16.95
Children’s books can quickly take little readers into new worlds, such as the big city, 1930s Georgia, or outer space. This book takes us on a little trip to some European capitals. Cherry is fat and likes books, and she has few friends until she meets a stray SharPei puppy (迷途的沙皮犬) . She names it Olive. Through it she finds confidence and friendship. But what will happen when its owner returns?In book 2, the character________.
| A．can make buildings out of anything | B．is a kid who likes to play tricks on teachers |
| C．keeps lots of chickens | D．likes to run after chickens |
Which of the following can best describe the fly in Book 3?
| A．Lazy and proud. | B．Stupid and funny. |
| C．Brave and courageous. | D．Loyal and honest. |
Which of the following is TRUE, according to the text?
| A．Strange students are mentioned in Book 1 and Book 3. |
| B．Book 4 introduces lots of farm animals. |
| C．A fly is a superhero on outer space in Book 2. |
| D．Book 1 is the cheapest of the four books. |
If you are interested in European cities, you may want to read the book by________.
| A．Benjamin Lacombe | B．Janice N. Harrington |
| C．Andrea Beaty | D．Doreen Cronin |