Picture the scene: the battery on your mobile phone has run out． You can't make any calls for help and no one can contact you． You are all alone - well, not quite． Just reach into your pocket and take out a piece of sugar．Put it into the battery, wait a minute, and you're back on the phone．
Thanks to a couple of American scientists, this situation could become real．Swadesh Chaudhuri and Derek Lovely have invented the"bacteria battery" - powered by bacteria that eats sugar and turns it into electricity．
"This is a special organism," Lovely said．"You can harvest enough electricity to power a cell phone battery for about four days from a spoonful of sugar．"
In the past, bacteria batteries have been expensive and not long-lasting． But this battery uses more efficient bacteria that can turn 80 percent of sugar into electrical energy． This is 30 percent more than similar batteries can manage．
The bacteria battery could become as small as a household battery． It's also cheap and stable, as sugar can be taken from waste and crops．
But the sugar to electricity process is slow: it could take weeks for the bacteria to digest a cup of sugar．And it produces "greenhouse" gases which pollute the environment．
The scientists understand there is a lot more work to be done． "It is still young," said Lovely．"Where we are now is where solar power was 200r 30 years ago．"
But he believes the battery could be used in scientific equipment at the bottom of the ocean．Other ideas include using sugar in the blood to run medical devices in the human body, and taking sugar from animal waste to provide energy to power homes in rural areas．This passage is mainly about_ ．
| A．how to change sugar into electricity |
| B．a scientific invention of a new kind of bacteria battery |
| C．a new way to reduce pollution caused by mobile phones |
| D．a new kind of mobile phones and its future |
Which of the following is not the strong point of the newly-developed battery?
| A．Convenient． | B．Stable． | C．Inexpensive． | D．Quick． |
The underlined sentence in the 7th paragraph actually means ．
| A．the bacteria battery shares some similarities with solar energy |
| B．scientists will continue their work until they find solar power |
| C．there is much room for the improvement of the bacteria battery |
| D．the bacteria battery will get popular in 20 0r 30 years |
According to the passage, who will find the bacteria battery less useful?
| A．Farmers． | B．Divers． | C．Doctors． | D．Electricians． |
Friends and Buddies
This program is planned for teenagers who have special needs with the goal of meeting within a community with other peers(同龄人). The purpose of the program is that it will lead to a better understanding of friendships. Gym, Swim, Surprise Guest, and Pizza are included. Ages 12-18, numbers of members are limited. Contact: Gloria Bass. This program is held 2 Fridays per month. Fees: $65/$85
Club Saturday Swim
This program is available to anyone aged 5-14 who is challenged by mental, physical, or emotional trouble. The program will be held each Saturday afternoon, 12:00-12:30 pm or 12: 30-1:00 pm. Fees: $136/$260
Sibshops (Ages 10-13)
Sibshops is a program for siblings(兄弟姊妹) of children with challenges. It includes group activities and talk treatment ways with the focus on improving sibling relationships and whole family happiness. Location: Hope Church, Wilton CT. Wednesday: 4:00-5:00 pm. Fees: $50/$65
Banana Splits
Banana Splits is an educational support group for children in family trouble. Children aged 9-13 will have the opportunity to meet other children whose parents have separated or divorced, learn to recognize feelings, think of healthy coping skills and have a place to share their struggles through verbal(语言的), physical, and artistic experiences. Location: Hope Church, Wilton CT. Tuesday:4:30-5:30 pm. Fees: $50/$65
66. If you have free time only on Saturday, you can go to ______.
A. Friends and Buddies B. Club Saturday Swim
C. Sibshops (Ages 10-13) D. Banana Splits
67. Activities on how to lead to a better understanding of friendships are held ______.
A. 2 Fridays per month B.12:00-12:30 or 12:30-1:00, Saturday afternoon
C.4:00-5:00 pm, Wednesday D.4:30-5:30 pm, Tuesday
68. If you go to Sibshops (Ages 10-13) , you can ______.
A. meet with other peers B. solve your mental problem
C. improve sibling relationships D. think of healthy coping skills
69. Which of the following is TRUE according to the four passages?
A. They are all in the same place. B. They are all free of charge.
C. They all hold activities each week. D. They are all intended for children.
70. The purpose of this passage is to ______.
A. help children deal with their trouble B. encourage children to be happy and brave
C. list some problems children meet with D. advertise some programs for children
One day, four lawyers were riding their horses along a country road. There had been a rain. Water was dripping(滴) from the trees, and the grass was wet. They rode slowly, talking and laughing. Suddenly they heard some noises from the tree above them. “What is the matter?” asked the first lawyer. “Oh, it’s only some old birds!” said the second lawyer. “The storm made one of the babies fall out of the nest. It is too young to fly, and the mother bird is very worried.” “What a pity! It’ll die down there in the grass,” said the third lawyer. “It doesn’t matter. It’s only a bird,” said the second lawyer. Then they rode on, talking and laughing as before. But the fourth lawyer, whose name was Abraham Lincoln, stopped. He got down from his horse and took the little one in his big warm hands.
“Never mind, my little fellow,” said Mr. Lincoln. “I will put you back in your little nest.” He climbed up the tree and put the bird softly into their warm little home. A few minutes later, Mr. Lincoln joined them again. His shoes were covered with mud and he was wet. Then the other three laughed at him. They thought it was foolish for a strong man to do so much just for a young bird. “Gentlemen,” said Mr. Lincoln, “I could not sleep tonight if I had left the helpless bird in the grass.” Later Abraham Lincoln became very famous as a lawyer. He also became the president of America. He was one of the greatest American presidents.
61. The reason why the mother bird was worried was that ______.
A. there was a rain B. the lawyers were under its tree
C. one of its babies fell out of the nest D. it could not fly
62. We can learn about the other three lawyers from the passage that ______.
A. the second lawyer was kind B. they were all cold-hearted
C. they did something to save the baby bird D. the third lawyer put the bird into its nest
63. The underlined phrase “little fellow” in paragraph 2 means ______.
A. the mother bird B. Lincoln’s little friends
C. the other three lawyers D. the baby bird
64. The other three lawyers laughed at Lincoln because ______.
A. he climbed the tree B. he was wet
C. his shoes were covered with mud D. they thought it foolish for him to do so
65. From the passage we know Lincoln ______.
A. liked riding horses B. was very kind and loved birds and animals
C. liked being laughed at D. wanted to be the president of America then
A driver stopped his car on a street side to have a rest. As he lay down in the seat and closed his eyes, a person came up and knocked at the window to ask the time. The driver opened his eyes and looked at his watch: “It’s 8: 05,” he said. Then he went to sleep again. But soon he was waken up again because a second person was knocking at the window. “Sir, do you know the time?” he asked. The driver looked at his watch again, and told him it was half past eight.
In this way, the driver thought he could not have a good rest, so he wrote a short note and stuck it on the window for all to see. It said, “I don’t know the time.”
Again, he lay down in the seat for his sleep. A few minutes later, a third person came and began to knock at the window, “Hey, sir,” he said. “It’s a quarter to nine.”
56. Where did the driver sleep?
A. At the window. B. In the street road. C. In his car. D. In his room.
57. How long had the driver been there when the third person called him?
A. 40 minutes. B. 25 minutes. C. 50 minutes. D. 70 minutes.
58. Why did the driver write a note and stick it on the window?
A. Because he didn’t know the time.
B. Because he didn’t want anybody to trouble him.
C. Because he needed somebody to wake him up.
D. Because he wanted somebody to tell him the time.
59. The third person knocked at the window to ______.
A. ask him the time B. ask him not to sleep
C. see if the driver was sleeping D. tell him what time it was
60. The driver ______ in his car.
A. had a good sleep B. had no seat
C. didn’t have a good rest D. always closed his eyes
Opening week specials at Munchies Food Hall.
At the corner of Green and Brown Streets in the city
Monday 7th of January until Sunday.13rd of January 2008
|
Feast until you’re full! Come down to Monetizes time week to enjoy the special dishes on offer it all of our food outlets. Order from the following:
●Succulent chicken rice ●spicy stays beef In the future your automobile will run on water instead of gas! You will be able to buy a supercomputer that fits in your pocket! You might even drive a flying car!
For each prediction that has come true today, several others have missed by a mile. Many of these predictions didn’t consider how people would want to use the technology, or if people really needed it in their lives or not. Let’s look at some predictions from the not-too-distant past.
Robot Helpers
Where’s the robot in my kitchen? Nowhere, of course. And he’s probably not coming anytime soon. Robots do exist today, but mostly in factories and other manufacturing environments.
Back in the 1950s, however, people said that by now personal robots would be in most people’s homes.
So why hasn’t it happened? Probably because robots are still too expensive and clumsy. And maybe the idea of robots cooking our dinners and washing our clothes is just too weird. At home we seem to be doing fine without them.
Telephones of Tomorrow
In 1964 an American company introduced the video telephone. They said by the year 2000 most people would have a video phone in their homes. But of course the idea hasn’t caught on yet.
Why? The technology worked fine, but it over—looked something obvious: people’s desire for privacy. Would you want to have a video phone conversation with someone after you just step out of the shower? Probably not---it could be embarrassing! Just because a technology available doesn’t always mean people will want to use it.
And finally, how about that crazy prediction of the flying car? It’s not so crazy anymore! But a flying car remains one of the most fascinating technology ideas to capture our imagination. Keep watching the news, or perhaps the sky outside your window, to see what the future will bring.
64. The whole passage is mainly about ________________.
A. predictions that have come true.
B. predictions that haven’t come true.
C. why predictions don’t come true easily.
D. what technology will bring about.
65. The author of this passage won’t believe that _________________.
A. predictions needn’t consider people’s practical use of technology.
B. the future isn’t always easy to guess.
C. not all past predictions have come true.
D. many of the high—tech things our parents thought we’d be using by now simply never appeared.
66. The underlined word “weird” probably means __________.
A. wonderful B. stupid C. practical D. strange
67. What does the author think of the flying car?
A. It is too difficult to imagine.
B. It is too crazy an idea.
C. It is likely to be made.
D. It is often reported in the news.