(The Guardian)： More UK universities should be profiting from ideas
A repeated criticism of the UK's university sector is its noticeable weakness in translating new knowledge into new products and services.
Recently, the UK National Stem Cell Network warned the UK could lose its place among the world leaders in stem cell research unless adequate funding and legislation could be assured, despite an annual £40m spent by the Department of Health on all kinds of research.
However, we do have to challenge the unthinking complaint that the sector does not do enough in taking ideas to market. The most recent comparative data on the performance of universities and research institutions in Australia, Canada, USA and UK shows that, from a relatively weak starting position, the UK now leads on many indicators of commercialization activity.
When viewed at the national level, the policy interventions (interference) of the past decade have helped transformed the performances of UK universities. Evidence suggests the UK's position is much stronger than in the recent past and is still showing improvement. But national data masks the very large variation in the performance of individual universities. The evidence shows that a large number of universities have fallen off the back of the pack, a few perform strongly and the rest chase the leaders.
This type of uneven distribution is not strange to the UK and is mirrored across other economies. In the UK, research is concentrated: less than 25% of universities are receiving 75% of the research funding. These same universities are also the institutions producing the greatest share of PhD graduates, science citations, patents and license income. The effect of policies generating long-term resource concentration has also created a distinctive set of universities which are research-led and commercially active. It seems clear that the concentration of research and commercialization work creates differences between universities.
The core objective for universities which are research-led must be to maximize the impact of their research efforts. Their purpose is not to generate funds to add to the bottom line of the university or to substitute other income streams. Rather, these universities should be generating the widest range of social, economic and environmental benefits. In return for the scale of investment, they should share their expertise (expert knowledge or skill) in order to build greater confidence in the sector.
Part of the economic recovery of the UK will be driven by the next generation of research commercialization spilling out of our universities. On the evidence presented in my report, there are three dozen universities in the UK which are actively engaged in advanced research training and commercialization work.
If there was a greater coordination（协调）of technology transfer offices within regions and a simultaneous (happening at the same time) investment in the scale and functions of our graduate schools, universities could, and should, play a key role in positioning the UK for the next growth cycle.
What does the author think of UK universities in terms of commercialization?
| A．They have lost their leading position in many ways. |
| B．They still have a place among the world leaders. |
| C．They do not regard it as their responsibility. |
| D．They fail to change knowledge into money. |
What does the author say about the national data on UK universities’ performance in commercialization?
| A．It masks the fatal weaknesses of government policy. |
| B．It indicates their ineffective use of government resources. |
| C．It does not rank UK universities in a scientific way. |
| D．It does not reflect the differences among universities. |
We can infer from Paragraph 5 that “policy interventions (in Paragraph 4)” refers to _____.
| A．concentration of resources in a limited number of universities |
| B．compulsory cooperation between universities and industries |
| C．government aid to non-research-oriented universities |
| D．fair distribution of funding for universities and research institutions |
What dose the author suggest research-led universities do?
| A．Fully use their research to benefit all sectors of society. |
| B．Generously share their facilities with those short of funds. |
| C．Advertise their research to win international recognition. |
| D．Spread their influence among top research institutions. |
If you have a chance to go to Taiwan, there’s one place you should not miss— the Taipei Palace Museum. The museum has around 650,000 pieces of ancient Chinese treasures. These treasures were originally in the Palace Museum in Beijing. But how did they get to Taiwan?
In 1931, the Japanese invaded the northeast part of China. To protect the national treasures from the Japanese, the government of the Republic of China decided to move some important pieces to Nanjing.
However, they did not stay long in Nanjing. In 1949, the people’s Liberation Army won in the Liberation War. The Guomindang government went from Nanjing to Taiwan. Along with them they took the art pieces. The Taipei Palace Museum was set up in 1965 to hold the national treasures.
Taiwan people are very proud of the Taipei Palace Museum. Some of the collections are world famous. One of the most visited art pieces in the museum is the “Jade Cabbage”. It is made from a single piece of jade(绿玉). If you take a close look, you can see two grasshoppers on the leaves, a large one and a small one, which were the symbol of many children in a family.
If you are interested in the treasures, you could take a look at a TV programme called Taipei Palace Museum. It gives a picture of the treasures of the Taipei Palace Museum. There are also interviews with over a hundred experts about the stories behind some of the pieces.The treasures stayed in Nanjing for about _______ years.
| A．10 | B．16 | C．18 | D．34 |
Why did the Guomindang government take these treasures to Taiwan?
| A．Because the Japanese invaded the northeast part of China. |
| B．Because they wanted to protect the treasures from the Japanese. |
| C．Because they wanted to show them to Taiwan people. |
| D．Because they were defeated by the People’s Liberation Army. |
From the last two paragraphs we can learn _______.
| A．Taiwan people are proud of the Taipei Palace Museum because of its world famous collections. |
| B．the most famous art piece in the museum is the “Jade cabbage”. |
| C．two grasshoppers on the leaves stand for two sons in a family. |
| D．you can learn about these treasures by visiting the Taipei Palace Museum. |
What’s the best title for the passage?
| A．The most famous art piece—Jade Cabbage |
| B．The Beijing Palace Museum |
| C．A place of interest—Taiwan |
| D．The Taipei Palace Museum |
I am a Chinese. I’ve always been making drams from time to time. Those dreams made by each average Chinese like me are certainly Chinese dreams. Dreams vary from person to person, an d also from time to time. But in a certain time, people share the similar dreams here I’d like to share my Chinese dreams with you.
When I was a child in 1970s, poverty kept hovering (盘旋) over my family, just as it did with other average families in the countryside. The unfit(不合身的) second-hand clothes, rain leaking roof of old adobe(土坯) house became part of my memory. However, the worse impression is that I was feeling hungry all the time. Sometimes hunger bit me so severely that I regarded dried sweet potato slices as a delicious snack. The sharp cracks of chewing are still echoing (回响) in my dream. At that time, my dram was getting enough to fill my cooing empty belly.
In the early years of 1980s, as the reform and opening-up policy was carried out, the child dream came true. And then another dream became clearer and clearer in my mind. I must try my best to escape out of my poor and backward hometown. I worked harder at my study than most of my classmates, and, after luckily succeeding in the national college entrance examination, my dream became reality again: after graduation, I became a citizen working in a city. As the first college graduate out of a remote (偏远的) village, my success set an example for my folks. They came to realize that schooling is a good way to change one’s fate(命运). In the following years, there were less drop-outs and more college graduates in my village, of which I am proud even today.
Afterwards, I got accustomed to the life of citizens and I began to dream the same things as other peers: a comfortable home, my own car and a big house. Based on my hard-work, more than ten years passed, all of these dreams have been fulfilled. Of course, new dreams will come true sooner or later only if my motherland keeps advancing with current(当前的，现在的)pace.
My Chinese dreams are also ones of other Chinese people. If every individual’s dreams come true, the dream of the great rejuvenation(复兴) of the Chinese nation will be sure to come true. “The Chinese dream, after all, is the dream of the people,” as the Chairman Xi Jingping said.What is it that made the author’s child dream come true?
| A．Selling the dried sweet potato slices. |
| B．The country’s reform and opening-up policy. |
| C．Escaping from his poor hometown. |
| D．Working harder than any other classmates. |
When the author was young, his family ______.
| A．was as poor as many other families |
| B．was richer than other average families |
| C．didn’t like the second-hand clothes |
| D．never get the author’s belly cooing |
Which of the following statements about the author is WRONG?
| A．The author has many dreams in his life. |
| B．The author accepted his college education. |
| C．there are more drop-outs in the author’s village. |
| D．The author realized all of his dreams by hard-working. |
What can be inferred from the passage?
| A．The author’s dreams are different from other Chinese people’s dreams. |
| B．The Chinese dream is based on every Chinese individual’s dreams. |
| C．Only if the Chinese dream comes true, can the author’s dreams come true. |
| D．The author and his family live a happy life in the countryside. |
Chocolate is good for your heart, skin and brain. Usually, people think that chocolate is bad for their health. They describe chocolate as “something to die for” or say “death by chocolate”. Now they should bite their tongues! Evidence is showing that some kinds of chocolate are actually good for you in the following ways:
A happier heart
Scientists at Harvard University recently examined 136 studies on cocoa— the main ingredient in chocolate— and found that it does seem to strengthen the heart. Studies have shown heart benefits from increased blood flow. These benefits are the result of cocoa’s chemicals, which seem to prevent both cell damage and inflammation(炎症)。
Better blood pressure
If yours is high, chocolate may help. Jeffrey Blumberg from Tufts University recently found that people with high blood pressure who ate 3.5ounces of dark chocolate per day for two weeks saw their blood pressure drop quickly.
Muscle magic
Chocolate milk may help you recover after a hard workout(锻炼). In a small study at Indiana University, people who drank chocolate milk between workouts did better on a tiredness test than those who had some sports drinks.
Better for your skin
German researchers gave 24 women a half-cup of special cocoa every day. After three months, the women’s skin was moister(润滑的) and smoother. The research shows that chocolate helps protect and increase blood flow to the skin, improving its appearance.
Brain gains.
It sounds almost too good to be true, but research suggests that chocolate may improve your memory, attention span, reaction time, and problem-solving skills by increasing blood flow to the brain.What’s the meaning of “bite their tongues” in the first paragraph?
| A．Stop talking. | B．Speak up. |
| C．Think of it. | D．Listen to it. |
What’s the meaning of the underlined sentence in the fourth paragraph?
| A．Sports drinks are better than chocolate milk. |
| B．sports drinks can make people easy to be tired. |
| C．Drinking milk can keep you energetic at work. |
| D．we should drink chocolate milk between times when we work hard. |
What’s the best title for this passage?
| A．Chocolate, a Healthy Food |
| B．More Chocolate, Less Health |
| C．Chocolate and Blood Pressure |
| D．Advice on Eating Chocolate |
The earliest historical record of the Diaoyu Islands can date back to China’s Ming Dynasty about 650 years ago in a book titled "Voyage With a Tail Wind," published in 1403. The book records the first usage of "Diaoyu Islet" and "Chiwei Islet". The names refer to the current Diaoyu Islands and Chiwei Islet. Hu Zongxian, the Zhejiang governor of the Ming Dynasty, placed the Diaoyu Islands and surrounding islets within China’s maritime defense system. It demonstrates that the islands have been within China’s maritime defense region since the Ming Dynasty.
Japan claimed sovereignty（主权） during the Sino-Japanese War of 1895, seizing the islands by illegal means.
The Cairo Declaration issued after World War II stipulated(规定) that all territory taken by Japan illegally, including China’s northeast, Taiwan and Penghu islets, must be returned to China.
In August 1945, Japan announced its unconditional surrender under the terms of the Potsdam Declaration. The declaration laid out that Japan must return Taiwan, the Diaoyu Islands and surrounding islets to China.
But the islands came under US control after 1945. In 1951, Japan and the US signed an illegal treaty in San Francisco without inviting China. The islands were then "entrusted" to Japan according to the treaty.
On September 18th, 1951, then Chinese Premier and Foreign Minister Zhou Enlai made a solemn(庄严的) statement on behalf of the Chinese government that the Treaty of Peace with Japan signed in San Francisco was illegal , and would not be recognized without the participation and signing of the People’s Republic of China.
In June 1971, Japan and the United States signed an agreement to hand over Okinawa to Japan. The Diaoyu Islands were mapped into the handover area.
China’s Foreign Ministry announced on December 30th 1971 that such a move was "totally illegal" and reiterated(重申) that the Diaoyu Islands and surrounding islets were "an integral part of the Chinese territory".The underlined word"maritime"in Paragraph 1 probably means _____.
| A．referring to sea | B．referring to many time |
| C．referring to marriage | D．referring to hard life |
In what order is the article written ?
| A．The order of importance |
| B．The order of time |
| C．The order of place or direction |
| D．The order of advantages and disadvantages |
According of the text, what statemetn is NOT TRUE?
| A．China's sovereignty to Diaoyu Island dates back to the Ming Dynasty. |
| B．The Potsdam Declaration issued that Japan must return Diaoyu Island and surrrounding islets to China. |
| C．In August 1945, Japan announced its unconditional surrender under the terms of the Cairo Declaration. |
| D．So far as new China's government is concerned, the treaty between Japan and USA about Diaoyu Island and surrounding islets is considered illegal. |
| H.T.B. ARTS CENTRE |
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| FILM Tickets £2.50 / £ 1.50. Performances at 8 pm unless started otherwise. |
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| WILD AT HEART 127mins. Web 6-Fri8 February Director: David Lynch Starring: Nicholas Cage, Laura Dern, Willem Dafoe |
A first-class film. CAGE and his girlfriend DERN are on teh run through the dangerous Deep South. They are hiding from gunmen who have been hired to kill CAGE by DERN's mother. Victims, yes—but they also have fun. It's wild at heart, strange on top. Funny, frightening and brilliant. |
| DICK TRACY 113mins Mon 11-Sat16 February 6pm Tickets on sale 5-6 pm Director: Warren Beatty Starring: Warren Beatty , Madonna |
The famous detective tries to stop Big Boy and the Blank from taking over the city. A colourful and exciting film. Some parts are frightening, so think twice about taking children. |
| BATMAN 126 mins Mon11-Sat16 February 8.30pm Tickets on sale 7.30-8.30pm PIZZA PLUS offer 6-7pm Director: Tim Burton Starring: Michael Keaton, Jack Nicholson |
A few essential questions must be asked...Is Batman a mad hero? Why does Bruce Wayne spend millions dressing up as a bat? Has Nicholson's Joker stolen the whole movie? Great action and excellent acting, especially by Nicholson. |
| TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES 93mins Mon 18- Fri22 February 6pm Tickets on sale 5-6 pm Director: Steve Barron |
If you've eaten Teenage Mutant Hero Turtle pizzas(marshmallow and chocolate on banana) and then cleaned your teeth with a Teenage Mutant Hero Turtle toothbrush we need say no more... If not, then get in on the craze(热衷) and see for yourself. Then man-sized turtles fight their enemy, Shredder in an action-packed story. |
Which film has the shortest running time?
| A．Batman | B．Dick Tracy |
| C．Wild at Heart | D．Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles |
According to the text, we can learn that _____.
| A．tickets on sale for the four films can be bought at 6 pm |
| B．Dick Tracy and Batman can be seen on the same day |
| C．One can buy tickets in advance for all the films |
| D．Both Batman and Wild at Heart are frightening |
Which of the following is TRUE of Batman?
| A．Cage acted the leading role in it. |
| B．One can enjoy pizza at 6:30 pm. |
| C．The pizzas offered contain fruits. |
| D．Most of its scenes are peaceful. |
Where can we most probably read this text?
| A．In a research paper. | B．In a short story. |
| C．In an ad page. | D．In a student's book. |