TODAY,Friday,November12JAZZwit-优题课

Washoe, a female chimpanzee (黑猩猩) believed to be the first non-human to acquire human language, has died of natural causes at the research institute where she was kept.
The chimp died on Tuesday night, according to Roger and Deborah Fouts, co-founders of The Chimpanzee and Human Communications Institute in Washington, where she lived.
Washoe was born in 1965 in Africa, where she was captured by the Air Force and taken to the US for research use in the space program. In 1966, she left the program and began living with two scientists, Allen and Beatrix Gardner, who led a project to teach the chimp American Sign Language (ASL) in Washoe, Nevada, for which it was named. Washoe had been living on Central Washington University’s Ellensburg Campus since 1980. She had a vocabulary of about 250 words. Also, Washoe taught sign language to three younger chimps: Tatu, 31, Loulis, 29, and Dar, 31.
Primate (灵长类) researcher Jane Goodall, in Fouts’ book Next of Kin, noted the importance of the work with Washoe. “Roger, through his ongoing conversations with Washoe and her extended family, has opened a window into a chimpanzee’s mind,” Goodall said.
Though previous efforts to teach chimps spoken languages had failed, the researchers believed there was a better chance using signs. But Washoe’s language skills were disputed by scientists who believed that language is unique to humans. Among those who doubted that chimps could use language were linguist (语言学家) Noam Chomsky and Harvard scientist Steven Pinker. They believed primates simply learn to perform certain acts in order to receive rewards, and do not acquire true language.
1. As for its first task, Washoe was involved with _______.
A. some space research B. a study on African animals
C. an ASL project D. the program of training the Air Force
2. In Goodall’s opinion, teaching Washoe ASL ______.
A. was not successful B. led to the book Next of Kin
C. won honor for Fouts D. made a difference
3. In the last paragraph, the underlined word “disputed” probably means “______”.
A. supported B. studied C. questioned D. discussed
4. What can be inferred from the passage?
A. The ASL project was first set up in Africa for the study on Washoe.
B. Washoe may communicate with other chimps by signing.
C. Washoe must have been able to speak 250 words or so.
D. The researchers will prove that most chimps could use language.
5. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A. Washoe was the first animal to be taught human language.
B. Washoe, the chimp, was named in honor of a place.
C. There were four chimps in total at Ellensburg Campus.
D. Chomsky believed primates only perform silent signs.

Lead（铅） deposits, which accumulated（增加） in soil and snow during the 1960's and 70's, were primarily the result of leaded gasoline emissions originating in the United States. In the twenty years that the Clean Air Act has mandated（托管） unleaded gas use in the United States, the lead accumulation world-wide has decreased greatly.
A study published recently in the journal Nature shows that air-borne leaded gas emissions from the United States were the leading contributor to the high concentration of lead in the snow in Greenland. The new study is a result of the continued research led by Dr. Charles Boutron, an expert on the impact of heavy metals on the environment at the National Center for Scientific Research in France. A study by Dr. Boutron published in 1991 showed that lead levels in arctic (北极的) snow were declining（减少）.
In his new study, Dr. Boutron found the ratios of the different forms of lead in the leaded gasoline used in the United States were different from the ratios of European, Asian and Canadian gasoline and thus enabled scientists to differentiate (分区) the lead sources. The dominant lead ratio found in Greenland snow matched that found in gasoline from the United States.
In a study published in the journal Ambio, scientists found that lead levels in soil in the North-eastern United States had decreased markedly since the introduction of unleaded gasoline. Many scientists had believed that the lead would stay in soil and snow for a longer period.
The authors of the Ambio study examined samples of the upper layers of soil taken from the same sites of 30 forest floors in New England, New York and Pennsylvania in 1980 and in 1990. The forest environment processed and redistributed (再分配)the lead faster than the scientists had expected. Scientists say both studies show that certain parts of the ecosystem (生态系统 ) respond rapidly to reductions in atmospheric pollution, but that these findings should not be used as a license to pollute.
1. The study published in the journal Nature indicates that ________.
A. the Clean Air Act has not produced the desired results
B. lead deposits in arctic snow are on the increase
C. lead will stay in soil and snow longer than expected
D. the US is the major source of lead pollution in arctic snow
2. Lead accumulation worldwide decreased significantly after the use of unleaded gas in the US ________.
A. was discouraged B. was carried out by law
C. was forbidden by law D. was introduced
3. How did scientists discover the source of lead pollution in Greenland?
A. By analyzing the data published in journals like Nature and Ambio.
B. By observing the lead accumulations in different parts of the arctic area.
C. By studying the chemical elements of soil and snow in Northeastern America.
D. By comparing the chemical compositions of leaded gasoline used in various countries.
4. The authors of the Ambio study have found that ________.
A forests get rid of lead pollution faster than expected
B. lead accumulations in forests are more difficult to deal with
C. lead deposits are widely distributed in the forests of the US
D. the upper layers of soil in forests are easily polluted by lead emissions
5. It can be inferred from the last paragraph that scientists ________.
A. are puzzled by the mystery of forest pollution
B. feel ease by the use of unleaded gasoline
C. still consider lead pollution a problem
D. lack enough means to combat lead pollution

If you want to teach your children how to say sorry, you must be good at saying it yourself, especially to your own children. But how you say it can be quite tricky. If you say to your children "I'm sorry I got angry with you, but …" what follows that "but" can make the apology ineffective: "I had a bad day" or "your noise was giving me a headache " leaves the person who has been injured feeling that he should be apologizing for his bad behavior in expecting an apology.
Another method by which people appear to apologize without actually doing so is to say "I'm sorry you're upset"; this suggests that you are somehow at fault for allowing yourself to get upset by what the other person has done.
Then there is the general, all covering apology, which avoids the necessity of identifying a specific act that was particularly hurtful or insulting, and which the person who is apologizing should promise never to do again. Saying "I'm useless as a parent" does not commit a person to any specific improvement.
These pseudo(假的)-apologies are used by people who believe saying sorry shows weakness. Parents who wish to teach their children to apologize should see it as a sign of strength, and therefore not resort to these pseudo-apologies.
But even when presented with examples of contrition（悔悟）, children still need help to become aware of the complexities of saying sorry. A three-year-old boy might need help in understanding that other children feel pain just as he does, and that hitting a playmate over the head with a heavy toy requires an apology. A six-year-old boy might need reminding that spoiling other children's expectations can require an apology. A 12-year-old might need to be shown that taking the biscuit tin without asking permission is acceptable, but that borrowing a parent's clothes without permission is not.
1. If a mother adds "but" to an apology, _______.
A. she doesn't feel that she should have apologized
B. she does not realize that the child has been hurt
C. the child may find the apology easier to accept
D. the child may feel that he owes her an apology
2. According to the author, saying "I'm sorry you're upset" most probably means "_______".
A. You have good reason to get upset
B. I'm aware you're upset, but I'm not to blame
C. I apologize for hurting your feelings
D. I'm at fault for making you upset
3. It is not advisable to use the general, all-covering apology because _______.
A. it gets one into the habit of making empty promises
B. it may make the other person feel guilty
C. it is vague and ineffective
D. it is hurtful and insulting
4. We learn from the last paragraph that in teaching children to say sorry _______.
A. the complexities involved should be ignored
B. their ages should be taken into thinking
C. parents need to set them a good example
D. parents should be patient and tolerant
5. It can be inferred from the passage that apologizing properly is _______.
A. a social issue calling for immediate attention B. not necessary among family members
C. a sign of social progress D. not as simple as it seems

Space is a dangerous place, not only because of meteors (流星 ) but also because of rays from the sun and other stars. The atmosphere again acts as our protective blanket on earth. Light gets through, and this is essential for plants to make the food which we eat. Heat, too, makes our environment endurable（可忍受的）. Various kinds of rays come through the air from outer space, but enormous quantities of radiation（辐射） from the sun are screened off. As soon as men leave the atmosphere they are exposed to this radiation but their spacesuits or the walls of their spacecraft, if they are inside, do prevent a lot of radiation damage.
Radiation is the greatest known danger to explorers in space. The unit of radiation is called "rem". Scientists have reason to think that a man can put up with far more radiation than 0.1 rem without being damaged; the figure of 60 rems has been agreed on. The trouble is that it is extremely difficult to be sure about radiation damage - a person may feel perfectly well, but the cells of his or her sex organs may be damaged, and this will no be discovered until the birth of abnormal children or even grandchildren.
Missions of the Apollo flights have had to cross belts of high amount of rems. So far, no dangerous amounts of radiation have been reported, but the Apollo missions have been quite short. We simply do not know yet how men are going to get on when they spend weeks and months outside the protection of the atmosphere, working in a space laboratory. Drugs might help to decrease the damage done by radiation, but no really effective ones have been found so far.
1. According to the first paragraph, the atmosphere is essential to man in that ____.
A. it protects him against the harmful rays from space
B. it provides sufficient light for plant growth
C. it supplies the heat necessary for human survival
D. it screens off the falling meteors
2. We know from the passage that ____.
A. exposure to even tiny amounts of radiation is deadly
B. the effect of exposure to radiation is slow in coming
C. radiation is avoidable in space exploration
D. astronauts in spacesuits needn't worry about radiation damage
3. The harm radiation has done to the Apollo crew members ____
A. is significant B. seems overestimated
C. is enormous D. remains unknown
4. It can be inferred from the passage that ____.
A. the Apollo mission was very successful
B. protection from space radiation is no easy job
C. astronauts will have deformed children or grandchildren
D. radiation is not a threat to well-protected space explorers
45. The best title for this passage would be ____.
A. The Atmosphere and Our EnvironmentB. Research on Radiation
C. Effects of Space RadiationD. Importance of Protection Against Radiation

In the early days of the internet, many people worried that as people in the rich world embraced new computing and communications technologies, people in the poor world would be left stranded on the wrong side of a "digital divide." Yet the debate over the digital divide is founded on a myth that plugging poor countries into the internet will help them to become rich rapidly.
This is highly unlikely, because the digital divide is not a problem in itself, but a symptom of deeper, more important divides: of income, development and literacy（识字）. Fewer people in poor countries than in rich ones own computers and have access to the internet simply because they are too poor, are illiterate, or have other more immediate concerns, such as food, health care and security. So even if it were possible to wave a magic wand（棒） and cause a computer to appear in every household on earth, it would not achieve very much: a computer is not useful if you have no food or electricity and cannot read. Yet such Wand-waving - through the construction of specific local infrastructure（基础设施） projects such as rural tele-centers--is just the sort of thing for which the UN's new fund is intended.
This sort of thing is the wrong way to go about addressing the inequality in access to digital technologies: it is treating the symptoms, rather than the underlying（下面） causes. The benefits of building rural computing centers, for example, are unclear. Rather than trying to close the divide for the sake of it, the more sensible goal is to determine how best to use technology to promote bottom-up development. And the answer to that question turns out to be remarkably clear: by promoting the spread not of PCs and the Internet, but of mobile phones.
1. What is the main idea of this passage?
A. Plugging poor countries into the Internet will help them to become rich rapidly.
B. Poor countries should be given more basic devices other than advanced ones.
C. Rich countries should help poor ones become rich.
D. People in poor countries cannot afford devices such as computer.
2. What did the author mean by referring "digital divide." (Line 3, Para. 1)?
A. Digital technology will make the gap between rich world and poor world wider.
B. Digital technology will divide people into rich and poor world.
C. People can be divided digitally.
D. To divide people in digital world is wrong.
3. We can infer from the 2nd paragraph that_______.
A. people in poor countries cannot use computer because of illiteracy.
B. poor people cannot use computers.
C. there would be no magic to cause a computer to appear in every household on earth.
D. people in poor countries need more basic living conditions than computers.
4. Considering the following sentences, which one would the author most agree?
A. Digital technology is useless.
B. Digital divide will help poor countries become rich.
C. Poor people need more immediate concerns, such as food, health care and security.
D. Mobile phones should be promoted firstly.
5. The following passage will probably be:
A. How to promote using of mobile phones.
B. How to use technology to promote bottom-up development.
C. The benefits of building rural computing centers.
D. How to meet the need of food, health and security in poor countries.