Someday a stranger will read your e-mail without your permission or scan the websites yo
u’ve visited. Or perhaps someone will casually glance through your credit card purchases or cell phone bills to find out your shopping preferences or calling habits.
In fact, 
it’s likely some of these things have already happened to you. Who would watch you without your permission? It might be a spouse, a girlfriend（配偶）, a marketing company, a boss, a cop or a criminal, Whoever it is, they will see you in a way you never intended to be seen -- the 21st century equivalent of being caught naked.
Psychologists tell us boundaries are healthy, that it’s important to reveal yourself to friends, family and lovers in stages, at appropriate times. But few boundaries remain. The digital bread crumbs （面包屑）you leave 
everywhere make it easy for strangers to reconstruct who you are, where you are and what you lik
e. In some cases, a simple Google search can reveal（泄露）what you think. Like it or not, increasingly we live in a world where you simply cannot keep a secret.
The key question is: Does that matter?
For many Americans, the answer apparently is "no."
When opinion polls ask Americans about privacy, most say they are concerned about losing it A survey found an overwhelming pessimism（悲观）about privacy, with 60 percent of respondents saying they feel their privacy is "slipping away, and that bothers me."
But people say one thing and do another. Only a tiny fraction of Americans change any behaviors in an effort to preserve their privacy. Few people turn down a discount at tollbooths （收费处）to avoid using the EZ-Pass system that can track automobile movements. And few turn down supermarket loyalty cards. Privacy economist Alessandro Acquisti has run a series of tests that reveal people will surrender personal information like Social Security numbers just to get their hands on a pitiful 50-cents-off coupon (优惠券).
But privacy does matter -- at least sometimes. It’s like health: When you have it, you don’t notice it. Only when it’s gone do you wish you’d done more to protect it.What would psychologists advise on the relationships between friends?
| A．Friends should open their hearts to each other. |
| B．There should be a distance even between friends |
| C．Friends should always be faithful to each other. |
| D．There should be fewer disputes between friends. |
Why does the author say "we live in a world where you simply cannot keep a secret" ?
| A．Modern society has finally evolved into an open society. |
| B．People leave traces around when using modern technology. |
| C．There are always people who are curious about others’ affairs. |
| D．Many search engines profit by revealing people’s identities. |
What do most Americans do with regard to privacy protections?
| A．They change behaviors that might disclose their identity. |
| B．They use various loyalty cards for business transactions. |
| C．They rely more and more on electronic devices. |
| D．They talk a lot but hardly do anything about it. |
According to the passage, privacy is like health in that ______.
| A．people will make every effort to keep it |
| B．its importance is rarely understood |
| C．it is something that can easily be lost |
| D．people don’t cherish it until they lose it |
Steve Fossett did not really look like an adventurer, but he reached some of the most difficult goals in sailing and flying.
Fossett was most proud of being the first person to fly around the world alone in a hot-air balloon. To make a trip around the world alone, it was necessary to have an improved autopilot (自动驾驶仪) device. Fossett had one of his team members develop a more advanced balloon autopilot that would allow him to sleep and do other tasks while flying safely.
Steve Fossett attempted the hot-air balloon trip around the world six times. This was not easy to do. He flew in the balloon’s capsule (密封舱) that was too small to stand upright. During his fourth attempt in 1998, he was almost killed during a storm off the coast of Australia. He fell 9,000 meters into the Coral Sea with his balloon’s capsule on fire. He was later rescued at sea.
Fossett successfully made the trip in 2002. The trip started and ended in Australia. He traveled more than 33,000 kilometers for more than 14 days. On this flight, Fossett set other records including a speed record of 322 kilometers per hour. One main problem with earlier balloon flights was the threat of dangerous storms. A team of weather experts e-mailed and talked to Fossett by a satellite telephone to help him avoid such weather.
Steve Fossett’s hot-air balloon is now at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. It is there as an example for other people to try and succeed in doing something important to them.What did Steve Fossett specially prepare for the trip around the world?
| A．He made the balloon’s capsule bigger. |
| B．He had an autopilot impvoved. |
| C．He formed a team to fly with him. |
| D．He improved the balloon’s engine. |
Steve Fossett solved the problem of bad weather on his trip by ______.
| A．communicating with experts |
| B．using his rich experience |
| C．inventing a satellite phone |
| D．consulting other adventurers |
We can learn from the text that Steve Fossett was ______.
| A．patient and careful | B．modest and easy-going |
| C．brave and determined | D．energetic and kind-hearted |
What can we learn about Steve’s flight in 2002?
| A．He was rescued during the trip. |
| B．He lost his way over the sea. |
| C．It lasted over three weeks. |
| D．He set a speed record of balloon flight. |
We all love our children and we all know how competitive the world is these days. What’s it going to be like when our children leave school? Will they have the skills they need to stay ahead of the competition?
All children need two basic skills to succeed. They must be able to read and they must be able to write. And with so much information available to them these days, they must be able to read quickly and accurately. That’s why your children need to be able to speed-read.
It’s ironic (讽刺的) that at this time of space-age technology, we’ve gone back to one of the earliest forms of mass communication—the written word. The Internet has introduced a revival (重新流行) of writing, and if you can’t keep up, you’ll be left behind. You certainly don’t want your children to be left behind.
You can help to make sure that your children are excellent writers—you can help them to learn how to use their language. Better still, you can learn with them!
You and your children can spend time together in a worthwhile pursuit (事业)—learning how to write. Forget the theme parks, the computer games, the expensive movies and interesting sports. If you want your children to have treasured memories of time spent with you, learn together.
For less than you would pay for tickets to a theme park, you can invest in your children’s future—help them learn to write well with my six-part writing course.
Don’t stand by while your child is left further and further behind. From the last two paragraphs, we can know the main purpose of the passage is_______
| A．To encourage students to be better prepared for the future. |
| B．To list the qualities children must have for their future success. |
| C．To persuade parents to choose a writing course for their kids. |
| D．To explain the difficult situation children have to face at present. |
In the author’s opinion, ______.
| A．speed-reading is the first step in a child’s formal education |
| B．children today waste too much time on games, movies and sports |
| C．children’s success depends much on good skills in reading and writing |
| D．writing helps people communicate more effectively in modern society |
What does the author think of writing as a form of communication now?
| A．Important. | B．Funny. | C．Informal. | D．Old-fashioned. |
What’s the advantage of children’s learning together with their parents?
| A．They will learn more quickly and accurately. |
| B．They will not be affected by games and sports. |
| C．It will encourage them to work for a higher pursuit. |
| D．They will have good memories of time spent with parents. |
Three years ago when I was still in the university, I also worked at a restaurant.
An old man named Mr. Candido Filio was one of our regular customers at the restaurant. He was one of the most intelligent people I’ve ever known.
Every Sunday the Philippine Star Newspaper had a special page for word puzzles and among his peers (同龄人), Mr. Filio held the record for solving all the puzzles in less than five minutes. He encouraged me to solve them too and for months and months, I did my best to beat him but failed.
Then one Sunday, I did it! I was able to complete them before anyone else. Everyone cheered for me. He came up to me with a smile and said, “No one has ever beaten me before. You’re the first. I’ll have a prize for you tomorrow.”
The next day, he gave me a special Scrabble (拼字游戏) set. I would have never been able to afford one like that by myself. Then he said to me, “Kate, what do you think is man’s final goal in life? Happiness, isn’t it? You are happy and that should be considered as a success. Many people spend a lifetime searching for that. Be thankful that you have found it.” I looked at him and knew that my life had changed, probably forever. He must have known that I always felt sad about not having much money.
He encouraged me to learn the game and love words. And true to his words, I was never able to beat him again. We can learn from the text that Mr. Filio ______.
| A．was generous to young people |
| B．was good at word puzzles |
| C．lived quite near the restaurant |
| D．won a prize from the Philippine Star Newspaper |
The author got a gift because ______.
| A．Mr. Filio was thankful for her help |
| B．Mr. Filio was satisfied with her service |
| C．she was the first person to beat Mr. Filio |
| D．she was the new record keeper in the restaurant |
After she heard what Mr. Filio said, the author probably felt ______.
| A．amazed | B．excited | C．touched | D．inspired |
What would be the best title of the text?
| A．Happiness is also a success |
| B．Interest is the best teacher |
| C．Scrabble makes a difference |
| D．His words change my life |
The concept of solar power satellites, or SPS, first put forward in the 1960s, is still not widely known by the general public. For example, at many public exhibitions about energy, SPS is not even mentioned. This is mainly because very little money has been spent on SPS research
There are people who claim that SPS is unrealistic － because launch costs are much too high today; or because it is too far away. So why do we believe that it is important to continue to do researches on SPS? The reason is very simple.
Humans are going to need huge amounts of electric power in coming decades. Within 50 years the world population is expected to double, while economic growth will continue around the world, especially in the poorer countries. But existing energy sources already face serious problems. They are limited; they are polluted; they are dangerous. So 50 or 100 years from now, where is our power going to come from? Nobody knows. And so we believe that new large-scale possibilities should be studied further.
We must remember that humans have some choices concerning our future. To some extent we can choose the direction in which our civilization develops. And choices that are made in the coming decades － such as the energy sources that we will or will not use, will have major, long-term meaning for human life on earth. We believe that if research continues to show that SPS is environmentally and economically attractive, SPS will open the door to a much more attractive future for human civilization than any ground-based energy source, and one that the public will support and that young people will find challenging and exciting. Furthermore energy from SPS can be readily used in developing countries, as the SPS 2000 project will show, thus aiding economic development worldwide. In addition, by creating large commercial fund for space engineering, SPS will open the frontier of space to economic development, thus creating a limitless new field for the growth of the world economy.Which of the following may be the best title for the passage?
| A．The Future Energy－ SPS | B．The Concept of SPS |
| C．Humans and SPS | D．Advantages of SPS |
Which of the following statements about SPS is TRUE?
| A．The research on SPS started in the 1960s is still not appreciated by the public. |
| B．The research is showing SPS can benefit environment and economy at present. |
| C．The energy from SPS is now being used in some developing countries. |
| D．The public don’t know about SPS because little time is devoted to the research. |
Paragraph 3 mainly talks about ______.
| A．the present serious energy problems |
| B．where to get energy sources in the future |
| C．the importance of controlling world population |
| D．the need to explore new energy sources |
The writer’s attitude towards the research can best be summarized by the saying “______”.
| A．In time of peace prepare for war |
| B．Put the cart before the horse |
| C．One man’s meat is another man’s poison |
| D．Easier said than done |
There are plenty of creams etc on the market that help you look younger, but today, Dr Oz is going to show how some people are actually living longer.
“We are going to talk about extreme life extension,” he says. “I am talking in details about allowing us to go into our second century of life with the energy that you have when you are a young person.”
Owing to advances in technology and research on how diet affect the aging process, Dr Oz says it might be possible for some people to live to see their 120th birthdays.
There’s one man in Oprah’s audience who Dr Oz says may become the first man in history to live to be 150 years old. Joe Cordell is one of thousands around the world who believe they’ve found the key to an extreme long life --- calorie restriction leads to a longer, healthier life.
At 59 Joe weighs 130 pounds. He may not look like a person who needs to count calories, but as part of his life extension program, he inspects every mouth of food that passes through his system.
Every day for the past seven years, Joe has limited himself to about 1,950 calories.
He believes that by eating less and restricting his caloric intake, he will trigger a genetic switch that slows the aging process.
Joe doesn’t take away himself of food. Instead, the then 52-year-old father filled up on natural fruits, vegetables and lean proteins(瘦蛋白) that were packed with necessary vitamins and nutrients. “Whenever you are thinking about calorie restriction, you should continually think about getting the most nutritional amount per calorie,” Joe says.
In keeping with this principle, Joe starts every morning with three apples…but he only eats the peels. “Most of the fiber is in the peel, and more importantly, most of the nutrients are in the peel,” he says.
“It is important to eat some nuts with breakfast so that you do take in some fat, some healthy fats,” he says. “I think it helps the absorption of the nutrients, and it is very filling.”
For lunch, Joe usually eats a large salad, loaded with vegetables. At dinnertime, he and his family enjoy lean meat or fish and more vegetables.
When Joe started practicing calorie restriction, he weighed 175 pounds. Since then, he has lost 45 pounds, and he says he hasn’t had a cold in seven years. Though he is in his “golden years”, researchers studying Joe say he has the body of a 20-year-old athlete. According to Joe, the appropriate fat intake may help ______?
| A．people lose weight |
| B．feel always full |
| C．the absorption of the nutrients |
| D．people to live longer |
What can we learn about Joe since he started the calorie restriction program?
| A．Joe counts the amount of every meal |
| B．Joe has never had a cold |
| C．Joe eats three apples every morning |
| D．Joe has a large salad with vegetables for dinner |
The underlined word “trigger” in paragraph 7 can probably be replaced by ______.
| A．turn on | B．break down | C．take up | D．cut off |
According to the passage, the extreme life extension refers to _______.
| A．living very long even sick |
| B．how to make people lead a happy life |
| C．living long and having a healthy body |
| D．how to arrange our foods every day |