What is the color of the universe? Astronomers did not answer this question until two months ago. This was when two American astronomers reported on their study of all the light in the universe. They said that the universe would appear to the human eye to be a light greenish color, called turquoise(青绿色). Karl Glazebrook and Ivan Baldry of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, reported their findings in January. They presented research at a meeting of the American Astronomical Society. They said that finding the color of the universe was not part of their more serious scientific research. They did it for fun.
However, earlier this month, the scientists admitted to ma
king a mistake. They said their finding was much more colorful than it should have been. They now say the light from our universe is closer to white. It is more like a milky or creamy white color.
The scientists gave a nu
mber to each of the colors of the different star systems. Then they added the numbers together and found the average measurement. The scientists used this average to identify the color of the universe. They said it was a very pretty light green or turquoise color. They called it “cosmic (宇宙的) spectrum (光谱) green.” Many newspapers and television stations reported their finding.
Other scient
ists and color engineers attempted to reproduce the result. Mark Fairchild of the Rochester Institute of Technology in New York was the first person to identify a mistake. He discovered a mistake in the computer software program used by the Johns Hopkins scientists.
When the mistake was corrected, the results changed. The new color of the universe is much less colorful. It is very close to white. The scientists apologized for the mistake. They are now working with the Rochester Institute of Technology to produce more images regarding the color of the universe.
48. Why did the scientists do the research?
A. They wanted to win a Nobel Prize. B. It’s required by the government.
C. They did it just for fun. D. It’s part of their research.
49. We can infer that the passage was probably written in _______.
A. January B. February C. May D. March
50. According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?
A. None of the researches done by scientists is right.
B. Scientists sometimes may make mistakes in their work.
C. The color of the universe is light greenish.
D. Mark Fairchild apologized for his mistake about the color of universe.
Harry’s father bought a magazine which gave its readers information about all kinds of products and helped them make the best choice while buying.
Harry borrowed his father’s magazine when he needed a new computer. “I’ll read it and choose the best one.” He said.
The magazine described these computers.
| The DGT PC450 |
The BNK 975XF: AT $3,200 |
The CGP 8PT |
 This computer comes with lots of good software. However it does not have much memory and is rather slow. At $2,850 it’s not very good value for money. |
 This is the most expensive computer we tested. However it is also the most reliable (可靠的). It is very fast and has lots of memory. It is worth the extra money if you can afford it. |
 At only $1,900. It has lots of memory and is quite fast. However it broke down twice while we were testing it and we cannot recommend (建议) it for reliability. |
Harry chose the BNK 975XF. “I know it’s expensive,” he said, “but it will be with me for a long time and do everything I want it to do.” Harry wants to buy a computer, so he borrowed ___________ from his father.
| A．a magazine about all kinds of products | B．a computer magazine |
| C．a shopping book | D．a book about all kinds of computers |
____________ doesn’t have much memory and is rather slow.
| A．The BNK 975XF | B．The DGT PC450 |
| C．The CGP 8PT | D．Harry’s computer |
The CGP 8PT is _____________ among the three kinds of computers.
| A．the fastest | B．the most expensive | C．the cheapest | D．the slowest |
Harry chose the BNK 975XF because _________.
| A．it is the most expensive | B．it has lots of good software |
| C．it has much memory | D．it would work for him for a long time |
Islamabad, Pakistan, June 22nd---Two mountain climbers surprisingly survived (幸免于) a fall of over 500 feet on the 25,530-foot mountain in Pakistan, Saturday. The two climbers were climbing an ice-covered wall of the mountain when they suddenly lost their footing and fell about 560 feet to a narrow snow-covered ledge(悬崖突出部分) below. “We were lucky that ledge was there,” said the climbers, “Otherwise, we would have fallen over 2,000 feet.” If the ledge had not been there, the two climbers almost certainly have met their death. “It’s a wonder,” the climbers said, “that we landed on the ledge, and the snow was loose enough to cushion(缓冲) our fall. We’re thankful that we survived.”
When a reporter asked them if they planned to give up mountain climbing after their narrow escape(九死一生), the two climbers replied, “Not at all. We’ll be goin
g back up there just as soon as we get out of the hospital.” The mountain climbers survived because _____.
| A．they had fallen only 500 feet down | B．of the ledge and the loose snow on it |
| C．of their strong bodies | D．they were very good climbers |
If there had not been
the snow-covered ledge, _____.
| A．they wouldn’t have fallen down | B．they would have them wounded |
| C．they would have lost their lives | D．they would fall into the deep snow |
How high was the ledge from the foot of the mountain?
| A．2,560 feet high | B．2,000 feet high |
| C．25,530 feet high | D．More than 1,400 feet high |
Choose the right order which shows what happened to the two climbers.
a. talked with a reporter b. lost their footing
c. was sent to a hospital d. fell to a ledge
e. started to climb an ice-covered wall
| A．b-d-c-e-a | B．e-d-b-c-a | C．e-b-d-c-a | D．a-c-b-d-e |
Bats are the only mammals(哺乳动物) which can fly properly. Other flying mammals have wings of thin skin which cover their sides between their front and back legs. They can only fly from tree to tree, but they cannot change direction when they want to.
All bats fly at night and most of them hunt for flying insects(昆虫), such as bees. The common bat finds its food by
making a constant noise that the human ear cannot 
hear. The bat listens for echoes(回声) of the noise as it bounces(反射) off the insects showing the bat their position.
The Fruit bat feeds on many different kinds of fruit. It does not use echoes but instead has very large, special eyes to see even in low light. The largest Fruit bat has a wing length of 0.75 meters. The Vampire bat drinks the blood of large mammals, and a few bats catch fish, birds and even other bats. Some flying mammals are not real flyers because _____.
| A．they do not have wings | B．their wings are too thin |
| C．they have skin between their legs | D．they cannot turn around in the air |
When common bats hunt for food they _____.
| A．use echoes to kill the insects | B．make a noise to draw insects to them |
| C．produce a sound and listen to the echoes | D．listen noise made by the insects |
Unlike other bats, the Fruit bat _____.
| A．can see very well | B．eats fruit and fish |
C．has very long wi ngs |
D．has excellent hearings |
The word "it" in the second paragraph refers to ____
_.
| A．the bat | B．the echo | C．the noise | D．the insect |
You may know the English letters A, B and C. But do you know there are people called ABC? You may like eating bananas. But did you know there is a “banana person”? How strange! Are these people from “another Earth”? No. They are just Chinese people like you and me.
ABC mea
ns American-Born Chinese. An ABC is a Chinese, but was born in the United States. S
ometimes, people call an ABC a “banana person”. A banana is yellow outside and white inside. So, when a person is a banana, he or she is white inside—thinking like a Westerner and yellow outside—looking like a Chinese.
Do you know why? Usually, ABCs know little about China or the Chinese language. Some of them don’t speak Chinese.
But if ABCs cannot speak Chinese, can we still call them Chinese people? Yes, of course. They are Chinese. They are overseas Chinese. These people may be citizens(公民) of another country like the US, Canada or Singapore. But they have Chinese blood. Their parents, grandparents or even great-grandparents were from China. They all have black eyes and black hair.
But they are not Chinese citizens. They are not the people of the People’s Republic of China. For example, we all know the famous scientist C.N. Yang(杨振宁). He got the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1957. The Chinese love him, but he is an American citizen.What’s the author’s purpose in writing this passage?
| A．He wants to tell us something about “ABC”. |
| B．He wants to show that Chinese are well respected in America. |
| C．He wants to tell us some knowledge about the English language. |
| D．He wants to introduce the American culture to us. |
Chinese in Western countries are called “banana persons” because ____.
| A．their bodies are white inside but yellow outside |
| B．they think like Westerners but look like Chinese |
| C．they were born in China but go to study in America |
| D．they like to eat bananas |
C.N. Yang is mentioned here to show that ____.
A. American Chinese are g
reat. B. we love American Chinese
C. The Chinese can win Nobel Prizes D. American Chinese are not Chinese citizens
“Who needs a shopping mall if you have Taobao?” says Wang Lin,28,a writer in Beijing.
Taobao,China’s largest online shopping site,has become an important part of Wang Lin’s life.She spends lots of money on Taobao.
A growing number of Chinese Internet users like Wang have found the joys of online shopping .Most online sho
ppers are students or young workers .More women shop on line than men.Clothes and home-use products are the most popular on line.
It was reported that more than 250 billion yuan was spent on online shopping last year, 80% through Taobao.
Taobao means “looking for treasure”in Chinese.People can find almost everything they need on Taobao,from clothes to books ,from candies to DVD players .
You may question the security of online shopping ,Wang Lin said, “”It’s very safe and convenient .Unless you receive the products from the sellers and are satisfied with them,the shop owner will not get the money .You can also get your money back if you want to return the products.”What are the most popular on line?
A．Cand les and DVD players |
B．Clothes and books. |
| C．Clothing and home-use products. | D．Toys for children |
Taobao is ____________.
| A．a shopping mall | B．an online shopper |
| C．an online shopping site | D．a clothes store |
What does the underlined word “security”mean?
A．质量 B安全 C 信誉 D. 数量.Which is the best title of the passage?
| A．Wang Lin’s life. | B．Online shopping in China. |
C．Sho pping on line is not safe. |
D．Shopping on line is easy |