What if we could replace oil with a fuel which produced no pollution and which everybody had equal access to?The good news is that we can, In fact, we are swimming in it—literally.
Hydrogen is one of the building blocks of the universe ,Our own sun is basically ,a big ,dense cloud of the stuff ,And hydrogen can be used to create electricity for power ,heat and light.
The problem is that hydrogen is everywhere and nowhere at the same time , It does not exist as a material on its own ,but is always part of something else, So it has to be separated before it can be used.
Most commercial hydrogen in use now is created from natural gas , As oil will start to run out in around the year 2030.,it makes sense to produce as much hydrogen as possible as soon as we can ,But natural gas supplies will also begin to run out soon after, Another source is needed.
Researchers are now using electricity to make water into hydrogen ,Companies are working on the problem in their own areas ,The first commercial hydrogen ,”fuel cells”for computers and mobile phones have already come on to the market ,Auto companies have also invested over US ＄2billion in the production of hydrogen fuelled cars
Thd nations of a hydrogen fuelled planet would not fight over evergy recourses, There would be a great reduction in pollution ,The only by-product of creating hydrogen is pure drinking water—something that is very scarce in many parts of the world ,But that is not where the good news ends, Once the costs of producing hydrogen have been brought down ,it will possibly provide power for a third of the Earth ‘s population that has no electricity.
And electricity creates wealth, In South A frica over the last decade there has been a large programme of electrification, Thanks to the programme , people do not have to spend their days looking firewood to burn for heat, And with electric light , they can work long into the night.
Some scientists see radical changes in the way the human race co-operates, Hydrogen creates clectricity, and is also created by it. With dual use fuel cells, everyone who consumes energy could also produce it ,Late at night, a man drives home in London and connects his car into the “world-wide hydrogen web”, which it supplies with electricity ,A few hours later, a man in Beijing uses that electricity to power the hydrogen cell in his car, Hydrogen could be the first democratic energy source.
Like all dreams of the future, it seems very far away, But the threat of war and terrorism in the Middle East has made governments and businesses more aware of the need to edn oil dependency and spend more time and money on hydrogen resource, So maybe the threat of war is not a completely bad thing for the future of the human race.What does the underlined word “it”in the last but one paragraph refer to?
| A．wealth | B．hydrogen | C．electricity | D．fuel |
What is the problem with using hydrogen as energy?
| A．It has by-products |
| B．It has to be separated from other materials |
| C．It will make energy too cheap |
| D．It is too far away from us |
Why does the author give the example in the last but one paragraph?
| A．To tell us that we produce energy while using hydrogen power |
| B．To tell us that hydrogen power does not produce pollution |
| C．To show hydrogen power can stop war |
| D．To show hydrogen power is cheap |
What is the author’s attitude about the future?
| A．skeptical | B．negative | C．indifferent | D．positive |
What is the passage mainly about?
| A．war and energy |
| B．the future of hydrogen as an energy resource |
| C．the disadvantages of oil |
| D．How to end war |
One of the best-loved American writers was William Sydney Porter, or O.Henry. From 1893 he lived with his family in a house in Austin, Texas, which is now a museum. Visitors to Austin can see the house. It was saved from destruction (破坏) and turned into a museum in1934. The museum is a good way to learn about the interesting life of the American writer.
William Porter rented this house in Austin and lived there with his wife Athol and daughter Margaret for about two years. Many objects in the museum belonged to the Porters. Others did not. An important piece in the room is the original photograph over here. It was taken there in the house about 1895. The piano there goes back to the 1860s. His wife took lessons on it when she first moved to Austin.
Porter did not start his career as a successful writer. He worked at a farm, land office and bank. He also loved words and writing. The museum has a special proof of Porter’s love of language --- his dictionary. It is said that he had read every word in that dictionary.
Later William Porter was forced to leave Austin because he was charged with financial wrongdoing at the bank and lost his job. Because he was afraid of a trail (审判), he left the country secretly. But he returned because his wife was dying. After her death, he faced the trial and became a criminal. He served three and a half years in a prison in Ohio.
William Porter would keep his time in prison a secret. But there was one good thing about it. It provided him with time to write. By the time he was freed, he had published 14 stories and became well known as O.Henry.
Porter later moved to New York City and found great success there. He published over 180 stories in the last eight years of his life.O.Henry’s house in Austin has been well kept up till now so that ____.
A. Americans can explore their history
B more visitors will be attracted to Austin
C. visitors can learn about O.Henry’s life
D. it can show the way of life in the 1860sWhat do we know about the piano in the house?
| A．It was hated by Porter’s daughter. |
| B．It has a long history of about 150 years. |
| C．Porter’s wife gave music lessons on it. |
| D．Porter usually created music on it. |
How does the museum prove (证明) Porter was fond of language?
| A．With a dictionary he used. | B．With the records they keep. |
| C．Using the books they wrote. | D．Using the photograph they keep. |
Why did Porter escape from Austin?
| A．He didn’t want to lose his job. | B．He didn’t want to make trouble. |
| C．He meant to save his wife’s life. | D．He was charged with a crime. |
From the last two paragraphs we know that _______.
| A．Porter became famous suddenly |
| B．Porter spent his time in prison writing |
| C．Porter suffered a lot from his time in prison |
| D．life in prison provided what he could write for Porter |
To do for you
Baby and me
St. Benedicts Family Medical Center’s “Baby and me” classes, 11 a.m. to noon Tuesdays, at Jerome Public Library, 101 First Ave. E.
This week’s topic: story telling. The class is educational support for parents and babies. A baby scale is available each week.
Free; 324-6133
Infant (婴儿)care
Infant care class of St. Benedicts’ prepared childbirth series (系列), 7-9 p.m. Wednesday, at Jerome Public Library, 101 First Ave. E.
Topics: baby care and early parenting. The class is offered separately, or as part of the childbirth series. Mothers may register (登记) even if their babies will be born at a different hospital.
Cost is $5. Register: 732-3148.
Self defense （自我保护）
College of Southern Idaho’s Community Education Center is offering a course “Self defense,” 7-8:30 p.m. Thursdays, beginning this week to Dec. 16, in room 304 in the College of Southern Idaho gym. Bryan Matsuoka and Gary Phelps will instruct.
Learn defensive skills and the coordination (协调) of mind and body.
Cost is $105. Register: 732-6442 or communityed.csi.edu.
Fitness for seniors
South Central Public Health District is observing Fall Prevention AWARENESS Week Sept.19-25 to raise awareness (意识)of falls and reduce fall risk in south central Idaho.
The health district will provide a Fit and Fall proof class leader training from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Friday at 1020 Washington St. N. in Twin Fall. Training is for individuals interested in volunteering. Volunteers aren’t required to have a physical education degree but should have exercise experience. Register for the training by Wednesday: 737-5988.
“To do for you” is a listing of health-related activities, events and education in the following Monday.“Baby and me” classes are held mainly for ______.
| A．teachers and parents | B．children and teachers |
| C．parents and children | D．parents and babysitters (保姆) |
Which activity can help the women who will soon have babies?
| A．Baby and me | B．Infant care | C．Self defense | D．Fitness for seniors |
Which of the following phone number can help you reduce fall risk?
| A．737-5988 | B．324-6133 | C．732-6442 | D．732-3148 |
I had about 10 minutes to exercise before I had to pick up my two older daughters from school yesterday. It was a busier day than usual for me with a couple of meetings besides my regular work.
Years ago, I would have put off my workout and would have left things for the next day. But since it was a busy day as well, I knew that I may not have all that much time either. So, I picked up my kettle-bell (哑铃) and went to town for 4 minutes.
See, 4 minutes, if that’s all you’ve got, is enough to give your body a great fat-burning exercise. How did I get a killer workout in 4 minutes? I used a training workout discovered 10 years ago by a Japanese Sports Scientist called a TABATA.
It includes 20-second periods of warm-up, followed by 10-second periods of rest and 4-minute straight exercise. How is a 4-minute exercise able to burn fat? It all depends on the quality of work you do. Not on the quantity. Here’s how I did it yesterday.
You should never forget your warm-up. A TABATA workout is 20 seconds of 2-arm Kettle-bell swings, 10 seconds rest, 20 seconds push-ups, and 10 seconds rest. You should do those 4 rounds. That’s it. I was done in a total time of 8 minutes by the time and when I got to school my heart was still pumping pretty hard.
A healthy body is needed for studying and working, and efficiency (效率) is the key to building a great body in the least amount (数量) of time possible and you can’t get more efficient than a 4-minute workout.We can learn from the passage that the author ______.
| A．is busy with his work | B．has a weak body now |
| C．has two children in all | D．is a manager in a film |
The underlined phrase “went to town” in Paragraph 2 means “_______”.
| A．put off doing something | B．went to a very small city |
| C．did something with interest | D．hated to do something |
What is the most important thing in taking exercise according to the author?
| A．The goal | B．the quality | C．The quantity | D．The method |
Scientist Florence Wambugu works with farmers in Kenya, a country in East Africa. She helps them grow bigger and better crops. Wambugu is especially interested in finding simple ways to produce more food.
In the past ten years, Wambugu has spent much of her time studying sweet potatoes, which are an important food in her part of Kenya. A virus (病毒) kept attacking the plants. It stopped the sweet potatoes from growing well. Because of the virus, some farmers lost three quarters of their crops.
Wambugu went to war against the virus. Her research for a way to save the sweet potatoes led to a lab in St. Louis, Missouri.
The lab mainly works on genes (基因), the chemical “computer programs” found in the cells of living things. Genes tell a plant to produce pink flowers or an animal to grow black hair. Now scientists have found ways to move genes from one living thing to another. That process is called genetic engineering.
Wambugu spent three years in the lab. As a result, she created a sweet potato plant that could fight off the virus. Wambugu tested her research in Kenya, and her plants produced wonderful sweet potatoes.
That’s just the beginning, Wambugu believes. Genetically modified (转基因的) foods, she thinks, could help farmers in poor countries grow badly needed crops, thus, fewer people will go hungry.The text is written mainly to _______.
| A．tell us sweet potatoes are in danger of being attacked by a virus |
| B．introduce Wambugu’s contribution to genetic engineering |
| C．introduce a new way of killing plant viruses |
| D．tell how hard Wambugu worked in her lab for three years |
What caused Wambugu to set up a lab in St. Louis, Missouri?
| A．Her wish to save sweet potatoes in Kenya. |
| B．Her great interest in genetic engineering. |
| C．Her love for sweet potatoes. |
| D．Her interest in plant life. |
The fourth paragraph mainly explains what ________ is.
| A．a crop virus | B．chemical technology |
| C．a computer program | D．genetic engineering |
What is Wambugu’s attitude toward “genetic engineering”?
| A．It will help more hungry people. |
| B．It should be carefully used. |
| C．It has more disadvantages than disadvantages. |
| D．It is a too expensive technology at present. |
“It hurts me more than you,” and “This is for your own good.” There are the statements my mother used to make years ago when I had to learn Latin, clean my room, stay home and do homework.
That was before we entered the permissive(自由的) period in education in which we decided it was all right not to push our children to achieve their best in school．The schools and the educators made it easy on us．They taught that it was all right to be parents who take a let-alone policy．We stopped making our children do homework．We gave them calculators, turned on the television, left the teaching to the teachers and went on vacation．
Now teachers, faced with children who have been developing at their own pace for the past 15 years, are realizing we’ve made a terrible mistake．One such teacher is Sharon Clomps who says of her students—“so passive”—and wonders what has happened．Nothing is demanded of them, she believes．Television, says Clomps, contributes to children’s passivity．“We’re talking about a generation of kids who’ vet never been hurt or hungry．They have learned somebody will always do it for them, instead of saying ‘go and look it up’, you tell them the answer．It takes greater energy to say no to a kid．
Yes, it does．It takes energy and it takes work．It’s time for parents to end their vacation and come back to work．It’ s time to take the car away, to turn the TV off, to tell them it hurts you more than them but it’ s for their own good．It’s time to start telling them no again．We learn from the passage that the author’s mother used to lay emphasis on（强调：重视）_______．
| A．natural development | B．education at school |
| C．discipline | D．learning Latin |
Children are becoming more inactive in study because _______．
| A．they watch TV too much | B．they have to fulfill too many duties |
| C．they have done too much homework | D．teachers are too strict with them |
By “permissive period in education” the author means a time _______．
| A．when everything can be taught at school |
| B．when children are permitted to receive education |
| C．when children are allowed to do what they wish to |
| D．when every child can be educated |
The main idea of the passage is that _______．
| A．It’s time to be more strict with our kids |
| B．parents should always set a good example to their kids |
| C．parents should leave their children alone |
| D．kids should have more activities at school |