Everybody hates rats. But in the earthquake capitals of the world—Japan, Los Angeles, Turkey—rats will soon be man’s new best friends.
What happens after an earthquake? We sent in rescue dogs. Why? Because they can smell people. Dogs save lives. They help rescuers to find living people. But dogs are big and they can’t get into small spaces. So now a new research project is using a smaller animal to save lives: the rat.
How does it work? First, the rat is trained to smell people. When this happens, the rat’s brain gives a signal (信号). This is sent to a small radio on its back, and then the rescuers follow the radio signals. When the rat’s brain activity jumps, the rescuers know that someone is alive. The rat has smelled that person.
Although there are already robots which can do this job, rats are better. Christian Linster at Cornell University, New York, says, “‘Robots ’noses don’t work well when there are other smells around. Rats are good at that.” Rats can also see in the dark. They are cheaper and quicker to train than dogs, and unlike robots, they don’t need electricity(电)!
The “rat project” is not finished, but Julie Ryan of International Rescue Corps in Scotland says, “It would be fantastic. A rat could get into spaces we couldn’t get to and a rat would get out of it if it wasn’t safe.” Perhaps for the first time in history, people will be happy to see a rat in a building (but only after an earthquake, of course).In the world earthquake capitals, rats will become man’s best friends because they can .
| A．take the place of man’s rescue jobs |
| B．find the position of people alive who are trapped in buildings |
| C．serve as food for people alive who are trapped in buildings. |
| D．get into small spaces |
In doing rescue jobs, .
| A．rats smell better than dogs |
| B．dogs don’t need to be trained to smell people |
| C．robots’ sense of smell can be affected by other smells around |
| D．rats can see in the dark and smaller than robots |
Rats have all the following advantages EXCEPT that .
| A．they are more fantastic than other animals |
| B．they are less expensive to train than dogs |
| C．they don’t need electricity |
| D．they are small and can get into small places |
After reading the passage we can know .
| A．at present rats have taken the place of dogs in searching for people |
| B．the “rat project” has been completed |
| C．people are now happy to see a rat in a building |
| D．now people still use dogs and robots in performing rescues |
Computers are very important to modern life. Many people think that in the future computers will be used in lots of everyday life. It is thought that we won’t have to go shopping because we will be able to get most things which are sold in shops on the Internet. There will be no more books because we will be able to get all texts from computers. The Internet will be used to play games, see films and buy food. Most telephone calls will be made by computers, too.
Some people are glad about these new ways of shopping and communicating. Others do not think that computers will replace our old ways.
Let’s look at books, for example. Some people think that one day we will not read books made of paper. Instead, we will buy and read books using computers. We will read texts on small pocket computers. The computers will keep many different books in them at the same time. We won’t need to turn lots of pages and paper will be saved. Computerized(计算机化) books will be used more and more.
Is Internet shopping such a pleasure as going to the shop? Many people say it is not. It is a pleasure to go into shops and look at things you want to buy. It is also unlikely that many people will want to read large texts on our computers. Because paper books will perhaps be more friendly. Maybe computers won’t change these two habits.In paragraph 1 it is thought people will use computers for ___.
| A．playing games, shopping and making telephone calls |
| B．making telephone calls, having meals and seeing films |
| C．seeing films, buying food, and going for holidays |
| D．playing games, making telephone calls and seeing the doctor |
Which reason for using computerizes books is NOT said in the passage?
| A．Computerized books won’t be very expensive. |
| B．Computers can keep many different books in them. |
| C．We won’t have lots of pages. |
| D．We won’t need any paper. |
Paragraph 4 tells ___.
| A．about the old and new ways of shopping and communicating |
| B．if the Internet will change our habits |
| C．about computerized books |
| D．about future uses of computers |
The title for this passage is ___ .
| A．Computers will replace shops and books |
| B．Computers are the future |
| C．Computers will do everything for man |
| D．How computers change our habits |
Strange stones of Costa Rica
One of the strangest mysteries in archacology was discovered in the Diquis River Delta, in southern Costa Rica. Since the 1930s, hundreds of stone balls have been found. They range in size from a few centimeters to over two metres in diameter.
Who made these perfect spheres(球体) and how they made them remains a mystery. Some researchers believe the stones were made by extreme heating followed by cooling. People could have polished the spheres with sand or leather. The ancient Costa Ricans had no written language so there is no written record of just how they made the spheres.
Almost all are made of granite (花岗岩), a hard stone created by volcanoes. The granite quarries(采石场) were 25 to 30 miles away from the largest stones, which weigh more than 10 tons each. Nobody knows how people moved them..
Many of the stones have been found near the remains of houses or graves. Some believed that the stones contained hidden treasures and a few have been smashed but nothing has been found inside. Despite these losses, the National Museum of Costa Rica has recorded 130 spheres. However, many stones are not included because they have been removed from their original sites and used as ornaments(装饰) in homes, gardens and churches. Clearly, there are also many stones that lie undiscovered.The stones were discovered ___ .
| A．near the volcanoes |
| B．in southern Costa Rica |
| C．in a grave |
| D．in churches |
The writer ___ in the passage.
| A．admires the spheres very much |
| B．doesn’ t believe the spheres were once made by humans |
| C．tells us a discovery |
| D．thinks highly of the spheres |
The underlined word ”polished” refers to “___”.
| A．buried |
| B．wrapped |
| C．made shining |
| D．made big |
According to the passage, which of the following is true?
| A．The stone balls found in the Diquis River Delta are all very huge. |
| B．The stone balls were unearthed from the graves. |
| C．The local people show great interest in the stone balls. |
| D．There are a lot of treasures in the stone balls. |
The passage mainly tells us ___ .
| A．the stones are of great value. |
| B．the stones proved to be made by non-humans. |
| C．the stones are mystery. |
| D．the stone are ornaments. |
Many animal and plant species have become extinct and many more are in critical danger. Finding ways to protect the earth’s wildlife and protect the natural world they inhabit is now more important than ever.
Now many animals remain threatened with extinction as a result of human activity.
The dodo is a classic example of how humans caused damage to the earth’s wildlife. The flightless dodo was native to the Island of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean. It lived off fallen fruit from the island’s trees and lived safely until humans arrived in 1505. The easily controlled bird became a source of food for sailors and was attacked by animals introduced to the island by humans such as pigs and monkeys. The population of dodos rapidly decreased and the last one was killed in 1681.
The rhino(犀牛) horn is a highly prized item for Asian medicine. This has led to the animal being hunted in its natural habitat. Once widespread in Africa, Europe and Asia, most rhinos now live in protected natural parks and reserves. Their numbers have rapidly decreased in the last 50 years, and the animal remains constantly threatened by hunters.
The last 100years has seen a 95% reduction in the numbers of remaining tigers to between 5,000 and 7,000 and the Bali, Javan, and Daspian tigers are already extinct. The South China tiger is close to disappearing, with only 20 to 30 still alive. Like the rhino horn, tigers’ bones and organs are sought after for traditional Chinese medicine. These items are traded illegally along with tiger skins.
The World Wildlife Fund is actively involved in many areas of the world fighting to protect the natural habitats of endangered animals from further damage and curb the activities of hunters. Our own efforts at home and in the workplace can also make a difference. By reducing waste and pollution, saving water, wood, and energy, and reusing and recycling whenever possible, we can reduce the possibility of even more animals being lost, never to return.The purpose of this passage is to ___.
| A．call on us to protect the earth’s wildlife |
| B．let us know about the animal world |
| C．tell us many animals are in great danger |
| D．tell us why many animals are becoming extinct |
The common reason why many animals are facing extinction is that ___ .
| A．they are too easily controlled by humans |
| B．they can be made into highly prized medicine |
| C．they can provide people with delicious meal |
| D．humans kill them for their own interests |
Which of the following statements about the dodo is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．It was native to the Island of Mauritius and could fly very well. |
| B．It struggled to survive until human arrived in 1505. |
| C．Its population decreased only because pigs and monkeys were introduced. |
| D．It was possible for humans to find a dodo before 1681. |
The underlined word “curb” in the last paragraph is closest in meaning to “___”.
| A．improve |
| B．limit |
| C．cancel |
| D．criticize |
The Internet has come a long way in the last couple of decades, and we’re seeing some noticeable generational trends. For instance, one of my friend’s aunts ”friended me” on Facebook, and I noticed that she had three times the number of Facebook friends as her nephew, despite the fact that she has only recently started to spend more time on the Internet. She spends more time on Facebook than he does. Yet he is part of the younger generation that grew up using the Internet.
The beauty of Facebook is in the packaging of the service. Almost every facet of Facebook is technology that existed from years before: e-mail, instant messaging, photo galleries, personal Web pages, RSS, etc. Facebook has taken these functions, which young people have been able to do for the past decade, and made them more user-friendly, more accessible—for young and older generation alike.
Facebook is the second act in the people’s Internet Revolution; the first being America Online, which spurred the adoption of the Internet in the homes of ordinary Americans. In a similar fashion, Facebook is spurring the adoption of Internet use in demographics that have been dismissed as the non-Internet users. It gives people a reason to be online in a way that simply checking e-mail, the 1996 equivalent, did not. Facebook is active in a way that the general population may find more rewarding.
The ability to communicate (or not communicate) with your friends in different ways also heightens the ‘stickiness’ of the service. For example, it tells you who else is using Facebook right now. You can then exchange instant messages with any of them. There’s always one more thing to check, see, or do on Facebook. It’s like a never-ending dinner party and all your friends and family are invited.Compared with the aunt, the nephew ___ .
| A．had 3 times the number of friends |
| B．has spent more time on the Internet all the time |
| C．spends less time on Facebook |
| D．had the access to the Internet only when he grew up |
What does the underlined word in the second paragraph refer to?
| A．Young people |
| B．Old people |
| C．These functions |
| D．Young and old people |
Which is true according to the third paragraph?
| A．Facebook accelerated the adoption of the Internet in the ordinary families. |
| B．America Online was the first act in the Internet Revolution. |
| C．Facebook has spurred the application of the Internet use in demographics. |
| D．America Online spurred the ordinary use in all od the world families. |
Using Facebook, you can ___.
| A．communicate with whoever is using the Facebook right now |
| B．do one thing every time |
| C．have dinner together with your friends and families |
| D．tell you anyone who is not using the Facebook |
What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．The drawbacks and the strengths of the Facebook. |
| B．Facebook makes the communication more convenient for the old and the young. |
| C．People’s Internet Revolution: Facebook. |
| D．Facebook and America Online |
Tang Dynasty poets sang for about three centuries in different tones. There were many famous poets living in the Tang period, such as Li Bai, Du Fu, Bai Juyi and Li Shangyin. Poems of the Tang Dynasty edited in the Qing Dynasty is a collection of more than 48,900 poems that were written by over 2,200 poets. But it didn’t cover all the poems of the Tang Dynasty.
During the Tang Dynasty, poems were recited when lovers walked under the moonlight. Poems were also recited when soldiers fought on the battlefield. People recited them in the open air or at temple fairs.
Tang Dynasty poets wrote poems to win fame and also to develop their temperament(性情). They poured our deep feelings for their friends and criticized injustice in the world through poems.
In the Tang Dynasty scholars had to be poets. Their readers were not only people of high social position but also common people. Poets recited poems, women singers sang poems and other ranks of people, including old women and children, read Tang poems. This atmosphere affected foreigners who visited the country at that time. As a result, Tang poetry was introduced to some adjacent countries, like Japan and Vietnam.
Tang poetry is a most brilliant page in the history of ancient Chinese literature. It’s a miracle(奇迹) in the cultural history of mankind. The Tang Dynasty was a powerful empire with a vast territory. It inherited(继承) Chinese civilization that went back to ancient times, was combined with the best of other cultures and adopted the benefits of other nations in the world. Tang poetry wasn’t the only spiritual wealth created by the Tang Dynasty people. Philosophy and religion, handwriting and painting, and music and dance all gained new peaks of development. Tang poetry, however, was the jewel in the crown and its greatest achievement.We can conclude form the passage that ___ .
| A．only people in the Tang Dynasty created poems |
| B．in total there was four famous poets in the Tang Dynasty |
| C．the Tang Dynasty probably existed for about three centuries |
| D．in the Tang Dynasty most common people were poets |
Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?
| A．Why the poets created poems? |
| B．Some other kinds of spiritual wealth in the Tang Dynasty. |
| C．The significance and influence if the Tang Dynasty. |
| D．The editors of Poems of the Tang Dynasty. |
The underlined word “adjacent”probably means ___ .
| A．strong |
| B．neighboring |
| C．poor |
| D．rich |
What does the author really want to tell us in Paragraph 4?
| A．Tang Dynasty poems were quite popular. |
| B．In the Tang Dynasty all scholars were poets. |
| C．Many foreigners came to our country during the Tang Dynasty. |
| D．in the Tang Dynasty many poems were sung by women singers. |