Nuclear power's danger to health, safety, and even life itself can be summed up in one word: radiation.
Nuclear radiation has a certain mystery about it, partly because it cannot be detected by human senses. It can't be seen or heard, or touched or tasted, even though it may be all around us. There are other things like that. For example, radio waves are all around us but we can't detect them, sense them, without a radio receiver. Similarly, we can't sense radioactivity without a radiation detector. But unlike common radio waves, nuclear radiation is not harmless to human beings and other living things.
At very high levels, radiation can kill an animal or human being immediately by killing masses of cells in vital organs. But even the lowest levels can do serious damage. There is no levels of radiation that is completely safe. If the radiation does not hit anything important, the damage may not be serious. This is the case when only a few cells are hit, and if they are killed immediately. Your body will replace the dead cells with healthy ones. But if the few cells are only damaged, and if they reproduce themselves, you may be in trouble. They can grow into cancer. Sometimes this does not show up for many years.
This is another reason for some of the mystery about nuclear radiation. Serious damage can be done without the victim being aware at the time that damage has occurred. A person can be irradiated(辐射)and feel fine, then die for cancer five, ten, or twenty years later as a result. Or a child can be born weak as a result of radiation absorbed by its grandparents.
Radiation can hurt us. We must know the truth.Which of the following statements is true?
| A．Nuclear radiation is just like common radio waves. |
| B．Nuclear radiation can cause cancer to human beings. |
| C．Nuclear radiation can be detected by human senses. |
| D．Nuclear radiation can be safe to human beings if its level is low. |
How can nuclear radiation kill an animal?
| A．By damaging its heart. |
| B．By killing a few cells. |
| C．By hitting any place in its body. |
| D．By killing many cells in important organs. |
If a human being is hit by nuclear radiation, he may __________.
| A．die of cancer after many years |
| B．die immediately |
| C．have a child who may be born weak |
| D．all of the above |
The young boy saw me, or rather, he saw the car and quickly ran up to me, eager to sell his bunches of bananas and bags of peanuts. Though he appeared to be about twelve, he seemed to have already known the bitterness of life. “Banana 300 naira. Peanuts 200 naira.”
He said in a low voice. I bargained him down to 200 total for the fruit and nuts. When he agreed, I handed him a 500 naira bill. He didn’t have change, so I told him not to worry.
He said thanks and smiled a row of perfect teeth.
When, two weeks later, I saw the boy again, I was more aware of my position in a society where it’s not that uncommon to see a little boy who should be in school standing on the corner selling fruit in the burning sun. My parents had raised me to be aware of the advantage we had been afforded and the responsibility it brought to us.
I pulled over and rolled down my window. He had a bunch of bananas and a bag of peanuts ready. I waved them away. “What’s up?” I asked him. “I…I don’t have money to buy books for school.” I reached into my pocket and handed him two fresh 500 naira bills.
“Will this help?” I asked. He looked around nervously before taking the money. One thousand naira was a lot of money to someone whose family probably made about 5,000 naira or less each year. “Thank you, sir,” he said. “Thank you very much.”
When driving home, I wondered if my little friend actually used the money for school-books. What if he’s a cheat? And then I wondered why I did it. Did I do it to make myself feel better? Was I using him? Later, I realized that I didn’t know his name or the least bit about him, nor did I think to ask.
Over the next six months, I was busy working in a news agency in Northern Nigeria. Sometime after I returned, I went out for a drive. When I was about to pull over, the boy suddenly appeared by my window with a big smile ready on his face.
“Oh, gosh! Long time.”
“Are you in school now?” I asked.
He nodded.
“That’s good,” I said. A silence fell as we looked at each other, and then I realized what he wanted. “Here,” I held out a 500 naira bill. “Take this.” He shook his head and stepped back as if hurt. “What’s wrong?” I asked. “It’s a gift.”
He shook his head again and brought his hand from behind his back. His face shone with sweat. He dropped a bunch of bananas and a bag of peanuts in the front seat before he said, “I’ve been waiting to give these to you.”What was the author’s first impression of the boy?
| A．He seemed to be poor and greedy. |
| B．He seemed to have suffered a lot. |
| C．He seemed younger than his age. |
| D．He seemed good at bargaining. |
The third time the author met him, the boy ______.
| A．told him his purpose of selling fruit and nuts |
| B．wanted to express his thanks |
| C．asked him for money for his schoolbooks |
| D．tried to take advantage of him |
Why did the author give his money to the boy?
| A．Because he had enough money to do that. |
| B．Because he had learnt to help others since childhood. |
| C．Because he held a higher position in the society. |
| D．Because he had been asked by the news agency to do so. |
Which of the following best describes the boy?
| A．Brave and polite. | B．Kind and smart. |
| C．Honest and thankful. | D．Shy and nervous. |
In 1943, during the Second World War the body of an English man, William Martin, was discovered off the Spanish coast. The papers he had been carrying were returned to England, where they were carefully examined. They had clearly been changed and that was exactly what the British had hoped would happen, for Martin was a trick designed to fool the Germans.
Martin did not exist. The body was that of a sailor who looked as though he had died when his boat sank, but in fact he had been ill and died. Leaving the boat to go down, his parents allowed the dead body to be put into the sea near Spain. It was hoped that the Germans would find it and read the fake(假的)papers he carried.
The papers said that the British would attack the island of Sardinia, when in fact they planned to attack the island of Sicily. The trick was successful. When the British landed on Sicily, most of the heavy German guns had been moved to defend(保卫) Sardinia.______ put the papers on the dead man.
| A．The British | B．German spies | C．Spanish soldiers | D．William Martin |
When the Germans found William Martin they probably thought he _________.
| A．was a British spy with important information about the war |
| B．was killed by the British soldiers |
| C．died of an illness |
| D．had the fake papers of the British Army |
When the British found out the papers were changed they concluded _________.
| A．Martin did exist | B．Martin was a German spy |
| C．the Germans had read the papers | D．they should attack Sardinia |
Which of the order is right according to this passage? __________.
a. The Germans found the dead at sea.
b. The British decided to use the dead body to fool the Germans.
c. The British planned to attack Sicily.
d. The papers on Martin were brought to London to be examined.
e. The Germans found the fake papers on the dead body.
f. The Germans decided to defend Sardinia.
g. The Germans believed the papers.
| A．c.b.a.e.g.f.d. | B．c.a.b.d.g.f.e. | C．a.c.b.g.f.e.d. | D．b.c.a.g.e.f.d. |
I was puzzled! Why was this old woman making such a fuss about an old copse（矮林） which was of no use to anybody? She had written letters to the local paper, even to a national, protesting about a projected by-pass to her village, and, looking at a map, the route was nowhere near where she lived and it wasn’t as if the area was attractive. I was more than puzzled, I was curious.
The enquiry into the route of the new by-pass to the village was due to take place shortly, and I wanted to know what it was that motivated her. So it was that I found myself knocking on a cottage door, being received by Mary Smith and then being taken for a walk to the woods. “I’ve always loved this place,” she said, “it has a lot of memories for me, and for others. We all used it. They called it ‘Lovers lane’. It’s not much of a lane, and it doesn’t go anywhere important, but that’s why we all came here. To be away from people, to be by ourselves. ” she added.
It was indeed pleasant that day and the songs of many birds could be heard. Squirrels watched from the branches, quite bold in their movements, obviously few people passed this way and they had nothing to fear. I could imagine the noise of vehicles passing through these peaceful woods when the by-pass was built, so I felt that she probably had something there but as I hold strong opinions about the needs of the community over-riding the opinions of private individuals, I said nothing. The village was quite a dangerous place because of the traffic especially for old people and children, their safety was more important to me than an old woman’s strange ideas.
“Take this tree,” she said pausing after a short while. “To you it is just that, a tree. Not unlike many others here.” She gently touched the bark, “Look here, under this branch, what can you see?”
“It looks as if someone has done a bit of carving with a knife.” I said after a cursory inspection.
“Yes, that’s what it is!” she said softly.
She went on, “He had a penknife with a spike for getting stones from a horse's hoof, and I helped him to carve them. We were very much in love, but he was going away, and could not tell me what he was involved in the army. I had guessed of course. It was the last evening we ever spent together, because he went away the next day, back to his Unit.”
Mary Smith was quiet for a while, then she sobbed. “His mother showed me the telegram. ‘Sergeant R Holmes …Killed in action in the invasion of France.’…”
“I had hoped that you and Robin would one day get married.” she said, “He was my only child, and I would have loved to be a Granny, they would have been such lovely babies’- she was like that! ”
“Two years later she too was dead. ‘Pneumonia (肺炎), following a chill on the chest’ was what the doctor said, but I think it was an old fashioned broken heart. A child would have helped both of us.”
There was a further pause. Mary Smith gently caressed the wounded tree, just as she would have caressed him. “And now they want to take our tree away from me.” Another quiet sob, then she turned to me. “I was young and pretty then, I could have had anybody, I wasn’t always the old woman you see here now. I had everything I wanted in life, a lovely man, health and a future to look forward to.”
She paused again and looked around. The breeze gently moved through the leaves with a sighing sound. “There were others, of course, but no one can match my Robin!” she said strongly. “And now I have nothing - except the memories this tree holds. If only I could get my hands on that awful man who writes in the paper about the value of the road they are going to build where we are standing now, I would tell him. Has he never loved, has he never lived, does he not know anything about memories? We were not the only ones, you know, I still meet some who came here as Robin and I did. Yes, I would tell him!”
I turned away, sick at heart.The main purpose of this passage is to ________.
| A．draw attention to the damage that wars cause |
| B．persuade people to give up private interest |
| C．arouse the awareness of being environmentally friendly |
| D．introduce a touching but sad love story |
Which of the following words can best describe Mary Smith?
| A．Selfish. | B．Faithful. | C．Changeable. | D．Stubborn. |
The underlined sentence “I felt that she probably had something there” means ________.
| A．I thought there might be something hidden in the woods by Mary Smith |
| B．I guessed there might be a story related with Mary Smith |
| C．I thought there might be some reason for Mary Smith’s protest |
| D．I guessed there might be a secret purpose of Mary Smith. |
What was probably the carving on the wounded tree?
| A．The date when Robin Holmes would leave for army. |
| B．Their wish that this place and tree would last long. |
| C．Their names and a heart with a sign of arrow through it. |
| D．Their protest against the war which tore them apart. |
In Mary’s opinion, which of the following might have caused Robin’s mother’s death?
| A．Pneumonia | B．A chill on the chest | C．A heart attack | D．Severe sorrow |
The “tree” probably stands for ________.
| A．her romance . | B．her determination | C．her sadness | D．her dream |
It was reported last week that developers could take photos from Apple mobile and Google Android devices without the phone owners knowing that the images were being taken. In Apple’s case, developers can also obtain the location information for each photo.
Senator(参议员) Charles Schumer said in a telephone interview that his office had spoken with officials at both Apple and Google on Monday.
“We asked them if they could find a way on their own to prevent Apple from having access to private information,” Mr. Schumer said. “They were friendly and open to the idea that this ought to be changed.”
On Sunday, Mr. Schumersaidthat he planned to send a letter to the Federal Trade Commission asking the agency to investigate Apple and Google after the privacy concerns came to light.Claudia Bourne Farrell, an F.T.C. spokeswoman, said the agency had received the letter but she could not comment further.
“It worries people to think that one’s personal photos, address book, and who knows what else can be obtained and even posted online without permission,” Mr. Schumer wrote in his letter to the F.T.C. “If the technology exists to open the door to this kind of privacy invasion, then surely technology exists to close it, and that’s exactly what must happen.”
Mr. Schumer said if Apple and Google could not come to an agreement to fix the problem, then he would be forced to take the issue further.
He said other companies had been willing to work with his office to fix issues. “I’m optimistic that we can get this changed without any regulation,” he said. “If it’s not changed, then we’ll turn to the F.T.C., and if that doesn’t work then we’ll consider legal approach.”
The F.T.C. has warned companies to try to be morevigilant(警醒的)in their efforts to protect consumers when it comes to privacy.The senators spoke with officials at both Apple and Google___________.
| A．to urge them not to invade consumers’ privacy |
| B．to discuss whether it is illegal to have access to private information |
| C．to stop them from developing the technology of taking photos |
| D．to keep them from obtaining the location information for each photo |
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．Privacy invasion from Apple has existed for a long time. |
| B．Mr. Schumer takes the privacy concerns caused by Apple and Google seriously. |
| C．Privacy invasion from Google has existed for a long time. |
| D．Apple and Google have decided to make a change. |
Mr. Schumer’s letter to the F.T.C. mainly shows that the technology to open the door to privacy invasion___________.
A. causes privacy invasion to happen frequently
B. can be used if permitted
C. causes people to worry about the safety of their personal information
D. causes personal information to be posted online without permissionIf the privacy concerns can’t be solved with the help of the F.T.C., ___________.
A. The senators will force the companies not to invade privacy
B. The companies will be closed
C. The companies will be fined
D. The senators will turn to lawWhere can we read about the passage?
| A．In a newspaper. | B．In a travel brochure. |
| C．In a science report. | D．In a textbook. |
Does Fame Drive You Crazy?
Although being famous might sound like a dream come true, today’s star, feeling like zoo animals, face pressures that few of us can imagine. They are at the center of much of the world’s attention. Paparazzi (狗仔队) camp outside their homes, cameras ready. Tabloids (小报) publish thrilling stories about their personal lives. Just imagine not being able to do anything without being photographed or interrupted for a signature.
According to psychologist Christina Villareal, celebrities — famous people — worry constantly about their public appearance. Eventually, they start to lose track of who they really are, seeing themselves the way their fans imagine them, not as the people they were before everyone knew their names. “Over time,” Villareal says, “they feel separated and alone.”
The phenomenon of tracking celebrities has been around for ages. In the 4th century B.C., painters followed Alexander the Great into battle, hoping to picture his victories for his admirers. When Charles Dickens visited America in the 19th century, his sold-out readings attracted thousands of fans, leading him to complain about his lack of privacy. Tabloids of the 1920s and 1930s ran articles about film-stars in much the same way that modern tabloids and websites do.
Being a public figure today, however, is a lot more difficult than it used to be. Superstars cannot move about without worrying about photographers with modern cameras. When they say something silly or do something ridiculous, there is always the Internet to spread the news in minutes and keep their “story” alive forever.
If fame is so troublesome, why aren’t all celebrities running away from it? The answer is there are still ways to deal with it. Some stars stay calm by surrounding themselves with trusted friends and family or by escaping to remote places away from big cities. They focus not on how famous they are but on what they love to do or whatever made them famous in the first place.
Sometimes a few celebrities can get a little justice. Still, even stars who enjoy full justice often complain about how hard their lives are. They are tired of being famous already.It can be learned from the passage that stars today .
| A．are often misunderstood by the public |
| B．can no longer have their privacy protected |
| C．spend too much on their public appearance |
| D．care little about how they have come into fame |
What is the main idea of Paragraph 3?
| A．Great heroes of the past were generally admired. |
| B．The problem faced by celebrities has a long history. |
| C．Well-known actors are usually targets of tabloids. |
| D．Works of popular writers often have a lot of readers. |
What makes it much harder to be a celebrity today?
| A．Availability of modern media. |
| B．Inadequate social recognition. |
| C．Lack of favorable chances. |
| D．Huge population of fans. |
What is the author’s attitude toward modern celebrity?
| A．Sincere. | B．Skeptical. | C．Disapproving. | D．Sympathetic. |