Geography is the study of Earth and its climates. Scientists use it to study global warming and track the weather. Governments use it to learn where people live and work and to plan what to do with the land. It is now easier than ever to use geography because of a science called space technology.
The United States launched its first satellite in 1958. Some space missions that followed were geographical studies. In fact, earth science is a big part of the work of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
Astronauts looked out of the space shuttle. They decided to take photographs of Earth from their vantage point. Over the years, picture quality improved. Shuttle photography now shows land features, such as rivers. It can even show the streets of large cities. Photos of the same places at different times show how the land is changing.
NASA does not use just photographs, though. In 1958 it launched TIROS (the Television Infrared Observation Satellite). This first use of a satellite to study Earth was effective in giving weather forecasts. It led to the creation of new space tools to use in geography.
The Landsat Program began in 1972. This satellite sent detailed views of Earth from space. The pictures were so precise that scientists could count the number and kinds of crops in a field. Landsat showed where Earth’s surface had faults along which earthquakes might happen. This information helped in the planning of new cities and factories. Landsat also made discoveries. In Antarctica it located ranges of unknown mountains. It pinpointed small lakes in Virginia that were no ton maps. Landsat, now more advanced, still flies today.
Another space tool is Earth Observing-1 (EO-1). This spacecraft flies right behind Landsat. It takes pictures of the same sites. The two sets of pictures, viewed together, show how cities grow and how other places, such as rain forests, become smaller over time. This helps scientists learn how people affect geography.
One of the newest space tools is the Geographical Information Systems (GIS). GIS is computer software that helps scientists to study Earth. GIS is different from earlier space tools. Businesses, schools, and even average people — not just the government —can use it to show them how changes in the planet might affect them.Why do governments study geography according to the passage?
| A．To improve the environment. |
| B．To make the land use plan. |
| C．To make new discoveries. |
| D．To count the crops in a field. |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．The U.S. satellite program began in 1972. |
| B．Landsat was able to take pictures of other planets. |
| C．TIROS was successful in giving weather forecasts. |
| D．GIS can only be used by the government. |
EO-1 takes photographs of the same places as Landsat because __________.
| A．the two groups of pictures can show the changes of Earth |
| B．EO-1 is practicing for future photography missions |
| C．Landsat is out of date and new pictures are needed |
| D．Landsat can’t send detailed views of Earth from space |
From the passage, we can infer that ___________.
| A．GIS is the newest computer to study Earth |
| B．NASA only depends on photos to study Earth |
| C．satellite pictures can give more detailed information |
| D．recent U.S. satellites are as advanced as the old ones |
The car was invented (发明) just a century ago. You may know all kinds of cars’ names, but many people don’t know who was the inventor of the first car. The first car was invented not by a German, but by an American. His name was Henry Ford. Henry was born in a poor family. He was the eldest of six children. When he was a boy, he became interested in mending watches and machines. When he was twelve years old, his mother died. Soon he had to work in a machine shop for two dollars and fifty cents a week. In the evenings he repaired watches for another dollar a week. The hard life made him strong and able.
At that time there was another interest in the life of the young ford. He dreamed(梦想) to make a machine. It could run without a horse, so named “horseless carriage.” He over-came(克服) a lot of difficulties and in April 1893, the “horseless carriage” was finally finished. It was the first car.
Later Henry Ford founded the Ford Motor Company(福特汽车公司). He was really the first inventor of the car in the world.Who really invented the car first? _____.
| A．A German | B．An American | C．Frenchman | D．Japanese |
From this story we can know the car was invented_____.
| A．more than 100 years ago |
| B．less than 100 years ago |
| C．just 100 years ago |
| D．50 years ago |
Henry Ford must have_____.
| A．five brothers and sisters |
| B．six brothers and sisters |
| C．five younger brothers |
| D．three brothers |
How many dollars did young Ford earn(挣) every week? _____.
| A．2.5 dollars | B．3.5 dollars | C．3 dollars | D．4 dollars |
Which is not true? _____.
| A．He repaired watches in the evenings for fun |
| B．He enjoyed repairing watches and machines when he was very young. |
| C．He met with a lot of difficulties in the invention. |
| D．The first car was invented in 1893. |
阅读理解
Mr. Gao lives in a town. When he was twenty-five, his son was born. He calls him Gao Ling. The little boy is clever. He and his wife love him very much. It’s September 1st today. A new school year begins. Gao Ling is happy and wears his most beautiful clothes. He’s going to school with his new bag. “Let me take you to school, dear.” said Mrs. Gao. “Thank you, Mummy,” said the boy. “The school is not far from here. I can go there myself.”
At school a teacher met the little boy and asked, “What’s your name, my little friend?” “Gao Ling, sir.” answered the boy. “How old are you?” “Six, sir.” “What’s your father’s name?” “Gao Daling, sir.” “How old is he?” “He is six, too, sir.” “Oh,” the teacher said in surprise. “Is he as old as you?”
“Yes, sir,” said the boy. “He became a father only on the day when I was born.”Mr. Gao is _____now.
| A．six | B．twenty-five | C．thirty- one | D．thirty-five |
Mr. and Mrs. Gao love their son because_____.
| A．the boy is clever |
| B．he likes to go to school |
| C．he can go to school himself |
| D．he can answer their question |
Gao Ling didn’t let his mother take him to school because_____.
| A．she was too busy |
| B．his friends could took him |
| C．the policeman could help him |
| D．the school is near and he could take care of himself |
Gao Ling went to school_____.
| A．by car | B．on foot | C．by train | D．by bike |
Gao Ling thought_____.
| A．his father and he were born on the same day |
| B．his father was younger than him |
| C．his father forgot to tell him about his age |
| D．Gao Daling became a father only for six years |
| TV PROGRAMMES |
|
| Channel 1 |
Channel 2 |
| 18:00 Around China 18:30 Children’s programme 19:00 News 19:30 Weather report 19:40 Around the world 20:10 TV play: Sisters 21:00 English for today 21:15 Popular music 21:55 Talk show |
17:45 Computers today 18:10 Foreign arts 18:30 “Modern English” 19:00 Animal world 19:25 In Asia 20:20 Sports 21:00 Sports player: Yao Ming 21:45 English news 22:05 On TV next week |
If you want to watch a football game, the best programme for you would be ______.
| A．TV play | B．Sports | C．TV play: Yao Ming | D．Talk show |
The programme of ___ will let you know much about western countries.
| A．Sisters | B．Around China |
| C．Around the world | D．In Asia |
If you want to know something about tigers, elephants and monkeys, the best programme for you is
| A．at 19:40 on Channel 1 | B．at 19:00 on Channel 2 |
| C．at 18:30 on Channel 2 | D．at 21:15 on Channel 1 |
“Modern English”is a programme that ____.
| A．lets you know something about classroom |
| B．tells you something about students |
| C．lets you know something about school life |
| D．teacher you English |
The programme at the end of Channel 2 means ____ on TV next week.
| A．news | B．programmes | C．people | D．places |
阅读理解
Ask three people to look out the same window at a busy street corner and tell you what they see. Chances are you will receive three different answers. Each person sees the same scene（场景）, but each perceives（察觉）something different about it.
Perceiving goes on in our minds. Of the three people who look out the window, one may say that he sees a policeman giving a motorist a ticket（罚单）. Another may say that he sees a rush-hour traffic jam at the intersection. The third may tell you that he sees a woman trying to cross the street with four children in tow（拉着）. For perception（感知） is the mind’s interpretation of what the senses—in this case our eyes—tell us.
Many psychologists（心理学家） today are working to try to determine just how a person experiences or perceives the world around him. Using a scientific approach, these psychologists set up experiments in which they can control all of the factors. By measuring and charting the results of many experiments, they are trying to find out what makes different people perceive totally different things about the same scene.Perceiving is an action that takes place _____.
| A．in our eyes |
| B．only when we think very hard about something |
| C．only under the direction of a psychologist |
| D．in every person’s mind |
People perceive different things about the same scene because ____.
| A．they see different things. |
| B．they can not agree about things |
| C．some have better eyesight |
| D．none of these |
Psychologists study perception by _____.
| A．setting up many experiments. |
| B．asking each other what they see. |
| C．looking out of windows. |
| D．Studying people’s eyes. |
The best title for this article is _____.
| A．How We See |
| B．Learning About Our Minds Through Science |
| C．What Psychologists Perceive |
| D．How To Become An Experimental Psychologist |
The world itself is becoming much smaller by using modern traffic and TV, telephone and so on. Life today is much easier than it was hundreds of years ago, but it has also brought new problems. One of the biggest is pollution (污染). Pollution comes in many ways. We see it, smell it, drink it and even hear it.
The more people, the more pollution. Many years ago, the problem was not so serious because there were not so many people. Man is now slowly polluting the whole world.
Air pollution is still the most serious. It’s bad to all living things in the world. Water pollution kills our fish and pollutes our drinking water. Noise pollution makes us become angry more easily.
Many countries are making rules to fight pollution. They stop people from burning coal (煤) in houses and factories in the city.
The pollution of SO2 is now the most dangerous problem of air pollution. It is caused by heavy traffic. It is sure that if there are fewer people driving, there will be less air pollution.Our world is becoming much smaller _______.
| A．because the earth is being polluted day and night |
| B．thanks to science development |
| C．because of the rise in population |
| D．because the earth is blown away by the wind every year |
Thousands of years ago, life was _________it is today.
| A．much easier than | B．as easy as |
| C．as hard as | D．much harder than |
Pollution comes in many ways. We can even hear it. Here “it” means______.
| A．Water pollution | B．air pollution |
| C．noise pollution | D．rubbish |
Air pollution is the most serious kind of pollution because _______.
| A．it’s bad to all living things in the world |
| B．it makes much noise |
| C．it has made our rivers and lakes dirty |
| D．it makes us become angry more easily |
Which of the following is NOT TRUE?
| A．Many countries are making rules to fight pollution. |
| B．The pollution of the earth grows as fast as the world’s population does. |
| C．From now on, maybe people should try to go to work by bus or bike instead of car ormotorbike. It is helpful to fight against the problem of SO2. |
| D．The problem of pollution is not so serious because there are so many people |