GuChangweiwasthefirstChineseci-优题课

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The massive 8.8 quake, the seventh strongest in recorded history, hit Chile and should have shortened the length of an Earth day by 1.26 milliseconds, More impressive is how much the quake shifted the Earth’s axis（地轴）.
The computer mode! Used to determine the effects of the Chile earthquake effect also found that it should have moved the Earth’s figure axis by about 8 cm. The Earth’s figure figure axis is not the same as its north-south axis, which Earth turns around once every day at a speed of about 1,604 kph. The figure axis is the axis around which the Earth’s mass is balanced. It is offset（偏离） from the Earth’s north-south axis by about 10 meters.
Strong earthquakes can change Earth’s days and its axis. The 9.1 Sumatran earthquake in 2004, which set off a deadly tsunami（海啸），should have shortened Earth’s days by 0.0068 milliseconds and shifted its axis by about 7cm.
One Earth day is about 24 hours long. Over the course of a year, the length of a day normally changes gradually by one millisecond, It increases in the winter when Earth more slowly, and decreases in the summer.
The Chile earthquake was much smaller than the Sumatran quake, but its effects on the Earth are larger because of its location. The fault（断层） responsible for the 2010 Chile quake also cuts through Earth at a larger angle that the Sumatran quake’s fault. This makes the Chile fault ore effective in moving the Earth’s mass vertically and hence more effective in shifting the Earth’s figure axis.
The findings are based on early date available on the Chile earthquake. The Chile earthquake has killed more than 700 people and cause widespread damage in the South American country.
64．What’s the biggest problem caused by the Chile quake?
A．It is the seventh strongest in recorded history. B．It should have shortened the length of an Earth day.
C．It shifted the Earth’s axis. D．It made the day longer on Earth.
65．Comparing the Sumatram earthquake with the Chile earthquake, we know that .
A．the Sumatram earthquake had more effect on Earth
B．the location of the Chile earthquake is responsible for its larger effects on Earth.
C．the Sumatram earthquake was less destructive
D．the Chile earthquake fault changed the Earth’s mass
66．What does the word “it” in the 4th paragraph refer to?
A．The length of a day. B．The axis. C．One millisecond. D．The change of the day.

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We typically associate the word “science” with a person in a white coat doing experiments in a laboratory. Ideally, experiments should play as big a role in the human sciences as they do in the natural sciences; but in practice this is not usually the case. The are at least three reasons for this.
1．Human scientists are often trying to make sense of complex real world situations in which it is simply impossible to run controlled experiment.
2．The artificiality of some of the experiments that can be conducted may make the behavior of the participants abnormal.
3．There are moral reasons for not conducting experiments that have a negative effect on the people who participate in them.
Faced with the above difficulties, what are human scientists to do? One solution is to wait for nature to provide the appropriate experimental conditions. We can, for example, learn something about how a normal brain functions by looking at people who have suffered brain damage; and we can gain some understanding into the roles played by genes and the environment by studying twins, who have been separated at birth and brought up in different families. In the case of economics, economic history can provide us with a bank of-admittedly not very well-controlled-experimental data.
However, human scientists do not just sit around waiting for natural experiments to arise. They also think of some experiments of their own. Suppose you want to know how a baby sees the world. We cannot, of course, ask the baby since it has not yet learnt to speak. So it might seem that all we can do is guess. People usually won’t change their mind until it was found out that babies tend to stare at surprising things longer than at unsurprising ones. This key understanding was like opening a window on to the developing mind. There was now a way of testing babies’ expectations and getting some idea of how they are six months old, babies can already do the following things: figuring out that objects consist of parts that move together being aware of the difference between living and non-living things and even doing simple arithmetic work.
60．What is true about the natural sciences and the human sciences according to this passage?
A．Both human scientists and natural scientists can run controlled experiments.
B．Experiments done by human scientists and natural scientists are artificial.
C．Both human and natural science experiments should be of the same importance.
D．It’s not moral to conduct human science experiments.
61．What do we know about human scientists from this passage?
A．They are white coat scientists.
B．They have more experimental sources than natural scientists.
C．They conduct experiments passively.
D．They face more difficulties in carrying out their research.
62．Which of the following experiments belongs to human science experiment?
A． Vinegar Volcano Vinegar and baking soda make for a fun and easy science experiment. Try creating a vinegar volcano.
B． Taste Without Smell Put your senses to the test with this simple experiment that
shows the importance of your sense of smell.
C． Lung Function Observe your breath and confirm your lung volume by completing this experiment.
D． Make a Rainbow Use sunlight and water to make your own rainbow with this cool experiment that will teach kids how rainbows work while they enjoy a fun activity
63．What does the author tell us in this passage?
A．ABCs about the science experiment.
B．Some knowledge of science.
C．Some differences between the human sciences and the natural sciences.
D．The similarity of the natural sciences and the human sciences.

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第三部分：阅读理解（共15小题，每题2分，满分30分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Most book reviews start with a heading that includes all the basic information about the book, like:
Title.
Author.
Place of publication; publisher, date of publication.
Number of pages.
Like most pieces of writing, the review usually begins with an introduction that lets your readers know what the review will say. The first paragraph usually includes the author and title again, so your readers don’t have to look up to find this information. You should also include a very brief description of the contents of the book, the purpose or audience for the book, and your reaction and evaluation.
Then you move into a section of background information that helps place the book in context and discusses criteria for judging the book. Next, the review gives a summary of the main points of the book, quoting(引用) and explaining key phrases from the author. Finally, you get to the heart of your review – your evaluation of the book. In this section, you might discuss some of the following issues:
·how well the book has achieved its goal
·what possibilities are suggested by the book
·what the book has left out
·how the book compares with others on the subject
·what specific points are not convincing
·what personal experiences you’ve had related to the subject.
It is important to use labels to carefully distinguish your views from the author’s, so that you don’t confuse your reader.
Then, like other essays, you can end with a direct comment on the book, and tie together issues raised in the review in a conclusion.
There is, of course, no set form, but a general rule is that the first one – half to two – thirds of the review should summarize the author’s main ideas and at least one – third should evaluate the book.
56．What is the most important part of a book review?
A．The heading. B．The evaluation. C．The conclusion. D．The introduction.
57．It can be confusing to readers if .
A．there is no heading in a book review
B．the book has achieved its goal
C．the viewer’s point of view is not distinguished from the author’s
D．the book is compared with others on the same subject
58．What is NOT suggested for a book review in this passage?
A．Quoting from the author of the book. B．Providing some book information.
C．Analyzing only the author of the book. D．Comparing the book with others of a similar subject.
59．The best title for this passage is “ ”.
A．Steps to follow B．Tips for writing a book review
C．The way to develop your idea D．Things not to be avoided in a book review

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Language learning begins with listening. Children are greatly different in the amount of listening they do before they start speaking, and late starters are often long listeners. Most children will "obey" spoken instructions some time before they can speak, though the word obey is hardly accurate as a description of the eager and delighted cooperation usually shown by the child. Before they can speak, many children will also ask questions by gesture and by making questioning noises.
Any attempt to trace the development from the noises babies make to their first spoken words leads to considerable difficulties. It is agreed that they enjoy making noises, and that during the first few months one or two noises sort themselves as particularly indicative of delight, pain, friendliness, and so on. But since these cannot be said to show the baby's intention to communicate, they can hardly be regarded as early forms of language. It is agreed, too, that from about three months they play with sounds for enjoyment, and that by six months they are able to add new words to their store. This self-imitation(模仿) leads on to deliberate（有意的）imitation of sounds made or words spoken to them by other people. The problem then arises as to the point at which one can say that these imitations can be considered as speech.
It is a problem we need to get out teeth into. The meaning of a word depends on what a particular person means by it in a particular situation and it is clear that what a child means by a word will change as he gains more experience of the world. Thus the use at seven months of “mama” as a greeting for his mother cannot be dismissed as a meaningless sound simply because he also uses it at other times for his father, his dog, or anything else he likes. Playful and meaningless imitation of what other people say continues after the child has begun to speak for himself, I doubt, however whether anything is gained when parents take advantage of this ability in an attempt to teach new sounds.
57．Before children start speaking .
A．they need equal amount of listening
B．they need different amounts of listening
C．they are all eager to cooperate with the adults by obeying spoken instructions
D．they can’t understand and obey the adult’s oral instructions
58．Children who start speaking late .
A．may have problems with their listening
B．probably do not hear enough language spoken around them
C．usually pay close attention to what they hear
D．often taken a long time in learning to listen properly
59．A baby’s first noises are .
A．an expression of his moods and feelings
B．an early form of language
C．a sign that he means to tell you something
D．an imitation of the speech of adults
60．The problem of deciding at what point a baby’s imitations can be considered as speech .
A．is important because words have different meanings for different people
B．is not especially important because the changeover takes place gradually
C．is one that should be properly understood because the meaning of words changes with age
D．is one that should be completely ignored(忽略) because children’s use of words is often meaningless

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NOT all memories are sweet. Some people spend all their lives trying to forget bad experiences. Violence and traffic accidents can leave people with terrible physical and emotional scars. Often they relive these experiences in nightmares.
Now American researchers think they are close to developing a pill, which will help people forget bad memories. The pill is designed to be taken immediately after a frightening experience. They hope it might reduce, or possibly erase(抹去) the effect of painful memories.
In November, experts tested a drug on people in the US and France. The drug stops the body releasing chemicals that fix memories in the brain. So far the research has suggested that only the emotional effects of memories may be reduced, not that the memories are erased.
The research has caused a great deal of argument. Some think it is a bad idea, while others support it.
Supporters say it could lead to pills that prevent or treat soldiers’ troubling memories after war. They say that there are many people who suffer from terrible memories.
“Some memories can ruin people’s lives. They come back to you when you don’t want to have them in a daydream or nightmare. They usually come with very painful emotions,” said Roger Pitman, a professor of psychiatryat Harvard Medical School. : “This could relieve a lot of that suffering.”
But those who are against the research say that changing memories is very dangerous because memories give us our identity（特质）. They also help us all avoid the mistakes of the past.
“All of us can think of bad events in our lives that were horrible at the time but make us who we are. I’m not sure we want to wipe those memories out,” said Rebecca Dresser, a medical ethicist
53．The passage is mainly about .
A．a new medical invention
B．a new research on the pill
C．a way of erasing painful memories
D．an argument about the research on the pill
54．The drug tested on people can .
A．cause the brain to fix memories
B．stop people remembering bad experiences
C．prevent body producing certain chemicals
D．wipe out t he emotional effects of memories
55．We can infer from the passage that .
A．people doubt t he effects of the pills
B．the pill will stop people’s bad experiences
C．taking the pill will do harm to people’s health
D．the pill has probably been produced in America
56．Which of the following does Rebecca Dresser agree with?
A．Some memories can ruin people’s lives.
B．People want to get rid of bad memories.
C．Experiencing bad events makes us different from others.
D．The pill will reduce people’s sufferings from bad memories.