People in several American states may be surprised to see cars on city streets without a driver. Experimental driverless vehicles now are legal in Florida, Nevada and California. They are pointing the way to a future that is not far down the road. The high-tech company Google has a number of self-driving cars, which had covered 480,000 kilometers by August. Volvo is among the companies doing road tests and says it plans to sell driverless cars by 2020.
In September, California Governor Jerry Brown signed an act to allow autonomous vehicles on the roads of his state. " Today we're looking at science fiction becoming tomorrow's reality-the driverless car. " The technology for these cars includes cameras, radar and motion sensors. The systems have been improved through competitions sponsored by the U. S. government agency DARPA. Engineer Richard Mason of the Rand Corporation helped design driverless vehicles for DARPA challenge races.
Cars have become much more fuel-efficient, and new electronic features are' making Hondas safer, said Angie Nucci of Honda America. " A camera on the passenger-side mirror actually engaged on your guiding screen so you can safely change lanes. " Other safety features include warning systems on the front and the sides of the cars. These systems help drivers , but don't replace them. Curator Leslie Kendall of the Petersen Automotive Museum said autonomous cars will make the high ways safer．
"By taking out drivers, you also remove most risks of an accident," Kendall said. He said consumers, however, may be unwilling to lose control. "It may take them time to come to realize that the technology is indeed reliable, but it will have to prove itself first. "
Mason said the technology already works and the biggest challenge now is getting down the cost for driverless vehicles from hundreds of thousands of dollars to something more affordable. He said this will happen as the technology is improved.What can we learn from Paragraph l?
A. Driverless vehicles are now legal in the whole USA.
B. Volvo will be the first to sell driverless cars.
C. Driverless cars are pointing us' a faraway future.
D. Google's self-driving cars have covered a long distance.We learn that Governor of California Jerry Brown_________.
| A． helped design self-driving cars. |
| B．supports self-driving cars on roads. |
| C．considers self-driving cars science fiction. |
| D．improved the self-driving car systems. |
What is the role of the systems mentioned in Paragraph 3?
| A．They can help people drive more safely. |
| B．They can take the place of drivers now. |
| C．They can make cars run without fuel. |
| D．They can help cars run much faster. |
According to Richard Mason, what is the biggest challenge for driverless cars?
| A．They are not allowed to run on the road. |
| B．Their technical problems remain to be solved. |
| C．They are now too expensive for consumers. |
| D．They are more dangerous for people on the street. |
There is growing concern about food insecurity in the developing world. Rising food prices, weather emergencies and political problems are deepening the struggle for families in many countries.
Three UN agencies have published a report recently, saying high prices are likely to continue. Gregory Barrow, who is with the World Food Program in Rome, says, “If you look at the places where the World Food Program works, particularly in developing countries, you see people who might be spending more than 60 percent of their salary in purchasing food for their families.”
East Africa is suffering its worst drought in years. In Kenya, at least three and a half million people are going hungry, mostly in the north. Yet food is going to waste in central Kenya. Now, farmers there want the government to buy their food and give it to those in need. Farmers say bad roads and lack of transportation make it difficult for them to get their produce to the market.
Mr. Barrow says, “It needs the government to make some arrangements such as providing transport. They can buy it at a good price, then give it to those people instead of asking for food from overseas, which is very bad. When we are throwing away food, they are asking for food from overseas.”
Economists say that imports reduce local food prices, decrease productivity(生产效率) and increase the dependency on other countries. Farmers in Kenya hope the government can pay higher prices for their crops so that they can feed more Kenyans.What is the best title for this passage?
| A．Kenya Imports Food from Abroad |
| B．A World Food Program in Rome. |
| C．The Poor Suffer from High Food Prices. |
| D．A Report Published by Three UN Agencies. |
What do we know about Kenya from the passage?
| A．The people in central Kenya are suffering from hunger. |
| B．At least three and a half million Kenyans lack food. |
| C．The Kenyan government wants to improve road conditions. |
| D．People in northern Kenya refuse to ask for food from overseas. |
What does “they” in the fourth paragraph refer to?
| A．The people of northern Kenya. |
| B．Government officials. |
| C．The farmers of central Kenya. |
| D．Kenyan economists. |
Which of the following statements is TRUE, according to this passage?
| A．Gregory Barrow suggests that Kenya make good use of overseas food. |
| B．People in northern Kenya are suffering the drought less than the central. |
| C．Economists believe importing food from abroad may cause problems. |
| D．Kenyan government hopes to buy the native crops at higher prices. |
Modern Foreign Language Teacher
A successful, popular school in central South London has a new vacancy(空职) for an MFL Teacher of Spanish to start immediately after the Christmas holidays.
We required a specialist Spanish teacher; therefore Spanish should be your major language. Besides this, you need to make the lessons interesting and you should also have teaching experience.
Please contact Robert Eagle at 88143425.
General Manager
We are seeking a General Manager for our new workshop facility in Doha, Qatar. The successful individual should possess a Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, along with 19 to 15 years' work experience in the Oil & Gas, Petrochemicals, Fertilizer or Marine industry and CNC machinery tools and equipment. A minimum of five years’; experience in a senior managerial capacity is essential. Candidates (候选人) that have work experience in Gulf countries or in the Middle East are encouraged to apply.
Please contact Brian Gambles at 88146725.
Finance Manager
The successful individual will be able to demonstrate substantial commercial experience working within a corporate, blue-chip environment. You will be able to interact with and present confidently to senior management. The business offers an excellent working culture and genuine opportunities for significant career advancement and development.
Please contact Mr. McMahon at 88147959.
HR Manager
We are looking for an HR Manager to join our project team who will be responsible for a new HR and Payroll project.
A minimum of three years' HR management experience is required for this position.
The successful individual will need to have managed HR teams and supported Payroll.
If you have the relevant experience and are available for a new assignment, contact Matt Ridley at 88146550.Who should you get in touch with if you want to be a Spanish teacher?
| A．Robert Eagle | B．Brian Gambles |
| C．Mr. McMahon | D．Matt Ridley |
We know from the ads that the position of General Manager requires a person who _______.
| A．has five years of work experience in the Marine industry |
| B．can support the senior management teams |
| C．has a Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering |
| D．has teaching experience |
If you want to work in an excellent working culture, you should call _______ for an interview.
| A．88143425 | B．88146725 | C．88147959 | D．88146550 |
What is the minimum amount of experience required for the position of HR Manager?
| A．Five years | B．Six years |
| C．Ten years | D．Three years |
In 1826, a French man named Niepce needed pictures for his business. But he was not a good artist. He invented a very simple camera. He put it in a window of his house and took a picture of his garden. That was the first photo.
The next important date in the history of photography was in 1837. That year, Daguerre, another Frenchman, took a picture of his reading room. He used a new kind of camera in a different way. In his picture you could see everything very clearly, even the smallest thing. This kind of photo was called a Daguerreotype.
Soon, other people began to use Daguerre's way. Travelers brought back wonderful photos from all around the world. People took pictures of famous buildings, cities and mountains.
In about 1840, photography was developed. Then photographers could take pictures of people and moving things. That was not simple. The photographers had to carry a lot of films and other machines. But this did not stop them, for example, some in the United States worked so hard.
Mathew Brady was a famous American photographer. He took many pictures of great people. The pictures were unusual because they were very lifelike.
Photography also became one kind of art by the end of the 19th century. Some photos were not just copies of the real world. They showed our feelings, like other kinds of art.The first photo was a picture of Niepce's _______.
| A．business | B．house |
| C．garden | D．window |
The Daguerreotype was _______.
| A．a Frenchman | B．a kind of picture |
| C．a kind of camera | D．a photographer |
This passage tells us_______.
| A．how photography was developed |
| B．how to show you ideas and feelings in pictures |
| C．how to take pictures in the world |
| D．how to use different cameras |
What is an Oyster card?
Oyster is the easiest way to pay for journeys on the bus ，Tube ，tram，Docklands light Railway (DLR)，London Overground and National Rail journeys in London You can store your travel cards, Bus & Tram Pass，season tickets and credit to pay for journeys as you go.
Where to get an Oyster card?
There are a number of ways for you to get an Oyster card ：
• At over 3,900 Oyster Ticket stops
• At Tube and London Overground station ticket offices
• At some National Rail stations
• At London Travel information Centres
• Online at tfl. gov. uk/oyster
How to use an Oyster card?
To pay the correct fare on the Tube ，DLR，London Overground and National Rail services，you must always touch in on the yellow Oyster card reader at the start of your journey，and touch out at the end. if you don’t, a maximum cash Oyster fare will be changed When using the bus or tram, you must only touch in at the start, but not at the end of your journey.
What happens if I don’t visit London very often?
Don’t worry. Any pay as you go credit on your card will not expire (过期)，so you can keep it for your next visit or lend it to a friend.
Fares
Traveling by Tube from Central London (Zone l)to Heathrow (Zone 6)
Adult Oyster single fare
£ 4. 20 Monday to Friday 06:30 - 09:30 and 16:00一19:00
£ 2. 70 at all other times including public holidays
Adult single cash fare £ 5.00
For further information，visit tfL.gov. uk /fares.You can get an Oyster card at the following places EXCEPT_____
| A．at a post office | B．at an Oyster Ticket stop |
| C．on the website | D．at a Tube station |
If a person with an Oyster card takes the 7 o’clock Tube from Central London to Heathrow for a week (no public holiday in between)，he should pay_____.
| A．£ 18.90 | B．£ 29.40 | C．£ 26.40 | D．£ 21.90 |
The passage is probably taken from a_______
| A．journal | B．travel brochure | C．textbook | D．novel |
Alibaba started taking the lead in China by connecting big Chinese manufacturers(制造商) with big buyers across the world. Its business-to-business site, Alibaba.com allowed business to buy almost everything. Alibaba’s advantage wasn’t hard to judge: size. Alibaba is just big, even by Chinese standards. Its market attracts 231 million active buyers, 8 million sellers, 11.3 billion orders a year — and Alibaba is just the middleman. It encourages people to use its markets — not charging small sellers a percentage of the sale.
If you want a quick look into the influence of Alibaba on daily Chinese life, take my experience. I moved to Beijing a year ago and quickly got tired of visiting small stores across the crowded, polluted city of 20 million people in search of new electronics, bathroom furnishings, and anything else my wife wanted. “You’re looking for what exactly? Why not try it? ” my Chinese teacher asked me one day. With that, my wonderful new relationship with Alibaba began.
Alibaba’s original business-to-business model now is second to consumer buying. Chinese retail(零售) buying makes up 80% of Alibaba’s profit, and leading that group is Taobao, with 800 million items for sale and the most unbelievable selection of things you’ll ever find. TMall.com is Alibaba’s other big site, where you can find brand name goods from Nike and Unilever near the lowest prices.
What I have a hard time explaining to friends and family back in the U.S. is how China has gone beyond traditional shopping — big-box retailers especially —in favor of online purchases on Taobao and a few other sites. In smaller towns than Beijing, where big retailers have not yet traveled, shopping online is shopping, and shopping is Taobao.
I have a list of some of my recent purchases on Taobao for a sense of how wide the marketplace is. Almost everything arrived a day or two after ordering with free shipping. I’m not even a big buyer, because I need friends to help me search the Chinese-language site. When I was searching my purchase history on my Chinese teacher’s iPad, which helps me buy goods, I looked through with great difficulty about 10 of her purchases for every one of mine.Alibaba’s advantage mainly lies in .
| A．its low price |
| B．its big size |
| C．its not charging small sellers |
| D．its business-to-business service |
We know from the passage that Alibaba .
| A．will continue to develop. |
| B．charges all the sellers on its site a percentage of the sale. |
| C．acts as a bridge between the buyers and sellers. |
| D．is of middle size among all the online sites. |
What can be inferred from the passage?
| A．Alibaba’s business-to-business service earns more money than retail. |
| B．TMall.com provides more profit than Taobao. |
| C．Taobao has no obvious advantage over other similar online sites. |
| D．The author’s Chinese teacher is also an online purchase lover. |
What is the passage mainly about?
| A．Shopping online in China is TaoBao. |
| B．How the author purchases online in China. |
| C．Shopping online goes beyond traditional shopping. |
| D．Alibaba influences people’s daily purchase in China. |