Language is always changing. In a society where life continues year after year with few changes, the language does not change either. The earliest known languages had difficult grammar but a small, limited vocabulary. Over the century, the grammar changed, and the vocabulary grew. For example, the English and Spanish people who came to America during the sixteenth century gave names to all the new plants and animals they found. In this way, hundreds of new words were introduced into English and Spanish vocabularies. Today life is changing very fast, and language is changing fast too.
There are several major language families in the world. Some scientists say there are nine main families, but other scientists divide them differently. The languages in each family are connected, and scientists think that they came from the same parent language. About 3 percent of the people in the world speak languages that are not in these major families.The early language had ________.
| A．a lot of problems | B．words and easy grammar |
| C．words but no grammar | D．grammar but not many words |
In the next few hundred years we can expect language to _____.
| A．stay exactly the same | B．change a great deal |
| C．change only a little | D．ask more words and drop some grammar |
What this article shows is that _____.
| A．languages change fast | B．languages really don't want to change |
| C．language really with changes in society | D．Spanish and English change |
Ronald Hoffman born in 1937 is Polish-born American organic chemist and Nobel laureate(桂冠). As a theoretical chemist, Hoffmann studied energy levels in chemical bonds during chemical reactions. He put computers to use to solve his problems and, despite the complexity of his research, was able to explain his theories and discoveries to the non-specialist. For his work he was awarded the 1981 Nobel Prize in chemistry, which he shared with Fukui Kenichi.
Born in Poland, Hoffmann settled in New York City as a child and became a United States citizen. He received his undergraduate degree in premedical studies from Columbia College in 1958. He attended Harvard University, where he received his PhD. degree in chemical physics in 1962. He joined the faculty of Cornell University in the mid-1960s and remained there throughout his career.
Hoffmann and Nobel laureate chemist Robert Burns Woodward developed rules, based on quantum mechanics, to determine how energy levels in atomic electron orbits influence how a chemical reaction takes place. These simple rules, known as the Woodward-Hoffmann rules, allowed chemists to predict reaction results and was quickly accepted and put to use in a wide variety of situations.
Hoffmann later turned his research to a variety of problems related to discovering the molecular structure of inorganic and organometallic compounds. Hoffmann is also known for what is called the Isolobal Analogy, which is yet another discovery linking all areas of chemistry. It is useful in predicting the behavior of new molecules based on the orbit structure of the components used to form them.
Aided by computers, Hoffmann was able to generate a vast amount of data to support his ideas. Unlike the scientific papers of many chemists, Hoffmann's publications contain little raw data but instead are filled with diagrams and pictures to explain his results. His drawings of shaded balloons to indicate eigenvectors, a unit used in mathematics, are now the accepted scientific notation for illustrating this value.What can be inferred from the above passage about Hoffman?
| A．He left his homeland when he got the Nobel Prize. |
| B．He went to the United States to gain his Nobel Prize. |
| C．He might find the Unites States a better place to learn chemistry. |
| D．His family may have settled in the United States. |
How did Hoffman make his research popular?
| A．He applied some computer skills to help explain his ideas. |
| B．He established a special computer system to help. |
| C．He drew some forms explaining his ideas. |
| D．He did series of experiments to prove his ideas. |
The underlined word “generate” in this passage might most probably mean “______”.
A. bring in B. break down
B. move away D. keep secretWhy was Ronald Hoffman awarded the 1981 Nobel Prize for chemistry?
| A．He established rules to predict chemical reactions . |
| B．He succeeded applying computer science to chemistry research. |
| C．He shared what he had achieved with another scientist named Fukui Kenichi. |
| D．He succeeded in both chemistry and computer researches. |
There is nowadays in schools a great movement that places major emphasis on higher order skills, these being those skills that encourage the ability to reason. This group of skills involves recalling information, basic concept formation, critical thinking, and creative idea formation. Formerly viewed as the tools of mathematics, these skills are now recognized as necessary to abilities across the curriculum.
Higher order thinking skills are now recognized as important for those who will enter the twenty-first century work force. Preparing young learners for their future requires that teachers employ a great deal of inventiveness and creativity in designing lessons that meet the dual challenge of providing the basics as in reading, language arts, and mathematics, and developing the ability to reason.
This unit uses detective fiction to address both of these challenges, and the activities that lie here are designed to draw the learner along a path that moves him from the simple skills, such as recalling information, to the more difficult area of creative thinking. Activities may be modified, simplified, lengthened, or deleted to meet the needs of the intellectual diversity found in most classrooms.
For this unit I have chosen three separate series of children’s detective fiction. The easiest to read are the Private Eyes club mysteries, written and illustrated by Crosby Bonsall. This series centers on the activities of four neighborhood boys who along with their cat Mildred keep the area they live in free of crime. Each title is centered on one issue and the list of titles is expanding. The reading levels range from about 1.6 to 2.0 and the print is large and well organized on the page. Snitch, Wizard, Skinny, and Tubby are funny and engaging, and are represented in lively color illustrations. The only issue that could be a problem is that the private eyes are all boys. However, girls are well represented among the peripheral (次要的) peer group.What can we know from the above passage?
| A．Children have different abilities. |
| B．Reading for information needs more skills. |
| C．Reasoning is higher than reading and writing in school. |
| D．Mathematics is the most difficult in school. |
Which of the following is NOT mentioned in this passage?
| A．Basic reading skills. |
| B．Ways of thinking. |
| C．Who wrote the detective fiction. |
| D．How much to pay for the course. |
What is the chosen series of fiction mainly about?
| A．How some brave boys find their cats. |
| B．How some brave children help find the lost cat. |
| C．How people help the boys solve the crime. |
| D．How some brave boys fight against crime. |
What will mostly likely be presented after this passage?
| A．The Private Eyes club mysteries. |
| B．Other ways to interest the readers. |
| C．How girls can keep on reading the stories. |
| D．Where to buy these interesting stories. |
Winner of the Noble Prize for Literature and one of the America’s leading novelists, Sinclair Lewis was born in Sauk Centre, Minnesota, in 1885. The author graduated from Yale University, and worked as reporter, editor, and free-lane writer before devoting his full time to writing. His literary reputation was made with the publication of Main Street in 1920. Later successes include Babbitt (1922), Arrow smith (1924), Elmer Gantry (1927) and Dog worth (1929). Both Babbitt and Arrow smith are available in Signet edition. Mr. Lewis died in Rome, Italy in 1951.
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To our readers: We welcome your request for our free catalog of Signet and Mentor books. If you dealer does not have the books you want, you may order them by mail, enclosing the list price plus 50 cent a copy to cover mailing in North America while in other districts $1.5 a copy. The New American Library of World Literature, Inc, P.O. Box 2310, Grand Central Station, New York 17, New York. You can check more information on our website here http//www.loa.org.Which of the following statements is true about the author of Main Street?
| A．He was awarded the Nobel Prize when he was 35. |
| B．He did several different jobs before becoming a full time writer. |
| C．His later works were more successful than his early ones. |
| D．He wrote a novel every other year in his literary life. |
What can we know about the novel Main Street from the above passage?
| A．It has been one of the most widely accepted historical novels. |
| B．It is somewhat the real life presentation of its author Sinclair Lewis. |
| C．It presents a realistic look of the life scene of America at that time. |
| D．It has a great impact in the process of the twenty-first century literature. |
How much more should a Chinese reader pay if he orders five copies of the same Signet books than a Canadian reader?
| A．$7.5. | B．$5. | C．$2.5. | D．$10. |
Animals are not always animals. Some of them will try to cheat or cow some others in the way the human beings often do. Here is a fairy tale from Aesop for you to enjoy.
An eagle（鹰）made her nest at the top of a high tree while a cat, having found a convenient hole, moved into the middle of the trunk, and at the same time a wild pig, with her young took shelter in a hollow at its foot. The cat then decided to make all serve her in her wise way.
To carry out her design, she climbed to the nest of the eagle, saying, "Destruction is preparing for you and for me too, unfortunately. The wild pig, whom you see daily digging up the earth, wishes to uproot the tree, so she may on its fall seize our families as food for her young."
Having thus frightened the eagle out of her senses, she crept down to the cave of the pig, saying, "Your children are in great danger, for as soon as you go out to find food, the eagle is prepared to jump upon one of your little pigs."
Having filled these fears into the pig, she went and pretended to hide herself in the hollow of the tree. When night came she went out silently and obtained food for herself and her children, but pretending to be afraid, she kept a lookout all through the day. Meanwhile, the eagle, full of fear of the pig, sat still on the branches, and the pig, terrified by the eagle, did not dare to go out from her cave. Thus they both, along with their families, starved from hunger, and afforded good food for the cat and her children.What was the eagle afraid of?
| A．Her home would be destroyed. |
| B．Her children would get lost. |
| C．She would be taken as the cat’s food. |
| D．Her family would be eaten by the wild pig. |
What was the pig frightened of?
| A．The eagle would kill her young child. |
| B．The eagle would cheat her away. |
| C．The cat was telling the true story. |
| D．She could not find enough food. |
How did the cat get what she wanted?
| A．By running here and there. |
| B．By cheating both the eagle and the pig. |
| C．By waiting and catching the chance. |
| D．By fighting against the eagle and the pig. |
Which of the following might be the best title of the above passage?
| A．Believe it or not. | B．Animal stories. |
| C．How one can be successful. | D．Don’t be afraid. |
“In only six days I lost seven pounds of weight.”
“Two full inches in the first three days!”
These are the kinds of statements used in magazine, newspaper radio and television ads, promising good shapes and new looks to those who buy the medicine or the device. The promoters of products say they can shape the legs, slim the face, smooth wrinkles, or in some other way add to beauty or desirability.
Often such products are nothing more than money-making things for their promoters. The results they produce are questionable, and some are dangerous to health.
To understand how these products can be legally promoted to the public, it is necessary to understand something of the laws covering their regulation. If the product is a drug, FDA (Food Drug Administration) can require proof under the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act that it is safe and effective before it is put on the market. But if the product is a device, FDA has no authority to require premarketing proof of safety or effectiveness. If a product already on the market is a danger to health, FDA can request the producer or distributor to remove it from the market voluntarily, or it can take legal action, including seizure (查封) of the product.
One notable case a few years ago involved an electrical device called the Relaxacisor, which had been sold for reducing the waistline. The Relaxacisor produced electrical shocks to the body through contact pads. FDA took legal action against the distributor to stop the sale of the device on the grounds that was dangerous to health and life.
Obviously, most of the devices on the market have never been the subject of court proceedings (法律诉讼), and new devices appear continually, Before buying, it is up to the consumer to judge the safety or effectiveness of such items.It can be inferred that ads mentioned in the text are_____.
| A．objective | B．costly |
| C．unbelievable | D．illegal |
The Relaxacisor is mentioned as______.
| A．a product which was designed to produce electricity |
| B．a successful advertisement of a beauty product |
| C．an example of a quality beauty product |
| D．a product whose distributor was involved in a legal case |
The author intends to______.
| A．make consumers aware of the promoters’ false promise |
| B．show the weakness of the law on product safety |
| C．give advice on how to keep young and beautiful |
| D．introduce the organization of FDA |
Which of the following is true according to the text?
A. The court is in charge of removing dangerous products.
B. The promoters usually just care about profits.
C. New products are more likely to be questionable.
D. The production of a device must be approved by FDA.