TOKYO—A child-like robot that combines the roles of nurse, companion and security guard is to go on the market to help the growing ranks of elderly Japanese with no one to look after them.
The “Wakamaru” robot can walk around a house 24 hours a day, warning family, hospitals and security firms if it perceives (notices) a problem. It will, for example, call relatives if the owner fails to get out of the bath.
Cameras implanted in the “eye-brows” of the robot enable it to “see” as it walks around an apartment. The images can be sent to the latest cellphones, which display the pictures.
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, which developed Wakamaru, plans to start selling the metre-high robots by April, 2005, for about ＄15,000 Cdn.
Wakamaru, which speaks with either the voice of a boy or girl, is also designed to provide companionship, greeting its “papa” when he comes home.
It is the first household robot able to hold simple conversations, based on a vocabulary of around 10,000 words. It cannot only speak but can understand answers and react accordingly.
It will ask “Are you all right ?” if its owner does not move for some time. If the answer is no, or there is no answer, it will telephone preset numbers, transmitting images and functioning as a speakerphone.
Wakamaru will inform a security firm if there is a loud bang or if an unknown person enters the house while the owner is out or asleep. It can recognize up to 10 faces.
But like most robots it cannot climb stairs.
It can be set to remind forgetful people when it is time to take medicine, eat and sleep.
Mitsubishi adapted Wakamaru from robots it already makes to go around nuclear power facilities. The idea to use the technology in the home came from a company employee.
The project chief said :“Looking at the ageing of society and the falling birth rate we decide that this could work as a business. We want to offer Wakamaru as a product that helps society.”
The technology has gained nation-wide publicity in Japan among increasing concern over how to look after the ever-growing number of old people. The life expectancy of Japanese women has shot up to almost 85, the highest in the world.
At the same time, extended families are being replaced by nuclear families. This has left many Japanese anxious about their elderly parents, whom they rarely see because of their long hours at the office.
55.which of the following is true about the Robot？
A.it is used in some nuclear power facilities
B. it cannot speak but can understand answers。
C.it can go up and down the stairs easily
D．it can recognize asmany as 10 faces
56.the purpose of this passage is ________
A.to introduce a new product
B. to solve the ageing problems
C.to tell people how to use the robot
D．to show the rapid development of technology
57.what can we infer from the passage？
A. The robot can dial proper numbers for help.
B. The robot is likely to have a promising market.
C. The robot has given the Japanese a chance to live longer.
D. The nuclear families have left many elderly Japanese anxious.
58．What is the best title of this passage ?
A. The Latest Development of Robot Technology
B. Japanese Robot and the Ageing Society
C. Vast Market of the New Robot
D. Japanese-built Robot to Help the Old
C
Foods from Around the World
Foods that are well known to you may not be familiar to people from other countries. Here are four people’s experiences with foreign food.
Shao Wong is a student in France. He comes from China. “I’d never tasted cheese or even milk before I came here. Cattle are rare in my part of China, so there are no dairy products. I tried milk when I first arrived in France. I hated it! I sampled cheese too, but couldn’t manage more than one bite. I love ice cream, though, and that’s made from milk.”
Birgit is from Sweden. She traveled to Australia on vacation. “I was in a restaurant that specialized in fish, and I heard some other customers order flake. So I ordered some too and it was delicious. Later, I found out that flake is an Australian term for shark. After that pleasant experience, whenever I see a new food I try it out on purpose. You know why? I remember how much I enjoyed flake.”
Chandra is a dentist in Texas. She originates from India. “I’m frightened of eating new foods because they might be made from beef. I’m a Hindu, and my religion forbids me to eat meat from the cow. It’s a sacred animal to Hindus, so that’s the reason I can’t eat hamburgers or spaghetti with meatballs.”
Nathan is American. He taught for a year in China. “My friends gave me some 100-year-old eggs to eat. I didn’t like the look of them at all. The insides were green, but my friends said the color was normal. The Chinese put chemicals on fresh eggs. Then they bury them in the earth for three months. So the eggs weren’t really very old. Even so, I absolutely refused to touch them.”
Life in a new country can be scary, but it also can be fun. Would you sample a 100-year-old egg? Would you order shark in a restaurant?
44. Which of the following sentences is true about Shao Wong?
A. He is a French – Chinese.
B. Cattle are seldom raised in his hometown.
C. He doesn’t like any dairy products.
D. He didn’t taste cheese because he hated it.
45. What kind of girl is Birgit?
A. Religious. B. Brave. C. Confident. D. Open- minded.
46. Chandra is frightened of eating food made from beef, because _________.
A. It’s against Hindus’ religion.
B. She is a doctor and she thinks beef is not easy to chew and digest.
C. She is an Indian.
D. Hindus think beef is not tasty.
47. The underlined word “Sacred” in paragraph 4 means _________.
A. frightening B. large C. man – eating D. greatly respected
48. What can you infer from this passage?
A. Foods that are well known to you may not be familiar to people from other countries.
B. Despite (虽然) cultural differences in food, have a try and maybe you’ll get used to it.
C. A vacation is a good way to learn about new foods. Be sure to go on vacation more often.
D. People dislike eating new foods only because their religion forbids it.
When we see well, we do not think about our eyes very often. It is only when we cannot see perfectly that we realize how important our eyes are.
People who are near-sighted can only see things that are very close to their eyes, Everything else seems blurry(="unclear)." Many people who do a lot of work, such as writing, reading and sewing become near—sighted. Then people who are far-sighted suffer from just the opposite problem. They can see things that are far away, but they have difficulty in reading a book unless they hold it at arm’s length. If they want to do much reading, they must get glasses, too.
Other people do not see clearly because their eyes are not exactly the right shape. They have what is called astigmatism (散光). This, too, can be corrected by glasses. Some people’s eyes become cloudy because of cataracts (白内障). Long ago these people often became blind. Now, however, it is possible to operate on the cataracts and remove them.
Having two good eyes is important for judging distances. Each eye sees things from a slightly different angle (角度). To prove this to yourself, look at an object out of one eye; then look at the same object out of your other eye. You will find the object’s relation to the background and other things around it has changed. The difference between these two different eye views helps us to judge how far away an object is. People who have only one eye cannot judge distance as people with two eyes.
39. We should take good care of our eyes ________.
A. only when we can see well
B. only when we cannot see perfectly
C. even if we can see well
D. only when we realize how important our eyes are
40. When things far away seem indistinct(模糊不清) , one is probably _________.
A. near-sighted B. far-sighted
C. astigmatic D. suffering from cataracts
41. The underlined word suffer from in the second paragraph probably means _____.
A. experience B. imagine C. feel pain D. are affected with
42. People who suffer from astigmatism have __________.
A. one eye bigger than the other
B. eyes that are not exactly the right shape
C. a difficulty that can be corrected by an operation
D. an eye difficulty that cannot be corrected by glasses
43. Having two eyes instead of one is particularly useful for _________.
A. seeing at night B. seeing objects far away
C. looking over a wide areaD. judging distances
II. 阅读理解（共20小题:每小题2分，满分40分）
Mr. Hart, a London taxi driver, has a new black taxi. With his taxi, he hurries through the busy streets every day.
One day when he was having a short rest, a young man jumped into his taxi.
"To the station as fast as you can," shouted the man in a very unfriendly way. "My train leaves at three o'clock."
Mr. Hart did his best, but there was a lot of traffic. At every corner there was a red light.
"Hurry up, man! I don't want to miss my train," said the young man.
"And I don't want to have an accident," replied Mr. Hart quickly.
While he was driving, Mr. Hart suddenly recognized the man's face. He was a thief. The police were looking for him. His picture was in the newspapers. Mr. Hart raced through the street and drove through red lights. Soon there was a police car behind him. Mr. Hart raced on until he reached the station. He stopped in front of the station at two minutes to three, and the young man quickly jumped out of the taxi.
"Stop! Stop!" cried Mr. Hart. At that moment the police car stopped, too. "Quick! He is the thief!" shouted Mr Hart. Two policemen rushed into the station. Three minutes later they returned with the young man.
"Well done!" a policeman said to Mr. Hart as they were taking the thief to the police car.
36. The young man wanted to________.
A. go back home by train B. drive through the busy street
C. take the 3:00 train to London D. leave London as soon as possible
37. Mr. Hart raced through the street and drove through red lights so that ________.
A. he could drive faster than the police car
B. he could reach the station on time
C. he could get the attention of the policemen
D. he could go home earlier than usual
38. Where did the policemen catch the young man?
A. In Mr. Hart's taxi. B. In the station.
C. In the street. D. At the corner.
Food sometimes gets poisoned with harmful things. A person who eats such food can get an illness called food poisoning. Food poisoning is usually not serious, but some types are deadly. The symptoms of food poisoning usually begin within hours of eating the poisoned food. Fever is one of the most common symptoms.
Certain microorganisms(微生物)cause most types of food poisoning. Bacteria and other microorganisms can poison eggs, meat, vegetables, and many other foods. After entering the body, these tiny living things release(释放)poisons that make people sick.
Some chemicals can also cause food poisoning. They are often added to food while it is being grown, processed, or prepared. For example, many farmers spray chemicals on crops to kill weeds and insects. Some people may have a bad reaction to those chemicals when they eat the crops.
Some plants and animals contain natural poisons that are harmful to people. These include certain kinds of seafood, grains, nuts, seeds, beans, and mushrooms.
When people handle food properly, the risk of food poisoning is very small. Microorganisms multiply rapidly in dirty places and in warm temperatures. This means that people should never touch food with dirty hands or put food on unwashed surfaces. Food should be kept in a refrigerator to stop microorganisms from growing. Meat needs to be cooked thoroughly to kill any dangerous microorganisms. People should also wash food covered with chemicals before eating it. Finally, people should not eat wild mushrooms or other foods that grow in the wild. Some of these foods may contain natural materials that are poisonous to humans. In addition, some types of fish can be poisonous.
Most people recover from food poisoning after a few days of resting and drinking extra water. If people eat natural poisons, they must go to the hospital right away to have their stomachs emptied.
67. Which of the following statements is NOT true?
A. Food when poisoned can make people sick.
B. Food poisoning means death.
C. Food poisoning comes in varieties.
D. Food poisoning can be serious.
68. Food poisoning can be caused by all the following EXCEPT ________.
A. some chemicals B. low temperatures
C. some tiny living things D. certain natural materials
69. From Paragraph 5,we can learn that ______________.
A. mushrooms should not be eaten
B. vegetables are safer than meat and seafood
C. natural poisons are more dangerous than chemicals
D. different types of food should be handled differently
70. It can be inferred from the passage that____________ .
A. natural materials are safe in food processing
B. chemicals are needed in food processing
C. food poisoning can be kept under control
D. food poisoning is out of control
When something goes wrong，it can be very satisfying to say，“Well, it’s so-and-so’s fault.” or “I know I’m late，but it’s not my fault；the car broke down.” It is probably not your fault，but once you form the habit of blaming somebody or something else for a bad situation，you are a loser. You have no power and could do nothing that helps change the situation. However, you can have great power over what happens to you if you stop focusing on whom to blame and start focusing on how to remedy the situation. This is the winner’s key to success.
Winners are great at overcoming problems. For example, if you were late because your car broke down, maybe you need to have your car examined more regularly. Or, you might start to carry along with you the useful phone numbers, so you could call for help when in need. For another example, if your colleague causes you problems on the job for lack of responsibility or ability, find ways of dealing with his irresponsibility or inability rather than simply blame the person. Ask to work with a different person, or don’t rely on the person. You should accept that the person. Ask to work with a different person, or don’t rely on this person. You should accept that the person is not reliable and find creative ways to work successfully regardless of how your colleague fails to do his job well.
This is what being a winner is all about—creatively using your skills and talents so that you are successful no matter what happens. Winners don’t have fewer problems in their lives; they have just as many difficult situations to face as anybody else. They are just better at seeing those problems as challenges and opportunities to develop their own talents. So, stop focusing on “whose fault it is.” Once you are confident about your power over bad situations, problems are just stepping stop on for success.
63. According to the passage, winners___________________.
A. deal with problems rather that blame others
B. meet with fewer difficulties in their lives
C. have responsible and able colleagues
D. blame themselves rather that others
64. The underlined word remedy in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to _________.
A. avoid B. accept C. improve D. consider
65. When your colleague brings about a problem, you should______________.
A. find a better way to handle the problem B. blame him for his lack of responsibility
C. tell him to find the cause of the problem D. ask a more able colleague for help
66. Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
A. A Winner’s Secret. B. A Winner’s Problem.
C. A Winner’s Opportunity. D. A Winner’s Achievement.