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 US 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. Volvo will be the first to sell driverless cars.
B. Driverless cars are pointing us a faraway future.
C. Driverless vehicles are now legal in the whole USA.
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 |
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. |
Which is the best title for the passage?
| A．The Benefits of the Self-driving Cars |
| B．The Biggest Challenge of the Self-driving Cars |
| C．Safer or More Dangerous Self-driving Cars |
| D．Self-driving Cars—Science Fiction Future Is Near |
Four common bad habits combined—smoking, drinking too much, inactivity and poor diet—can age you by 12 years, sobering new research suggests.
The findings are from a study that tracked nearly 5,000 British adults for 20 years, and they highlight yet another reason to adopt a healthier lifestyle.
Overall, 300 people studied had all four unhealthy behaviors. Among them, 90 died during the study, or 30 percent. Among the 400 healthiest people with none of the four habits, 8 percent of them died.
The risky behaviors were: smoking tobacco; downing more than three alcoholic drinks per day for
men and more than two daily for women; getting less than two hours of physical activity per week; and eating fruits and vegetables fewer than three times daily.
These habits combined substantially increased the risk of death and made people who engaged in them seem 12 years older than people in the healthiest group, said lead researcher Elisabeth Kvaavik of the University of Oslo.
The healthiest group included never-smokers and those who had quit; teetotalers, women who had fewer than two drinks daily and men who had fewer than three; those who got at least two hours of physical activity weekly; and those who ate fruits and vegetables at least three times daily.
"You don't need to be extreme" to be in the healthy category, Kvaavik said. "These behaviors add up, so together it's quite good. It should be possible for most people to manage to do it."
The US government generally recommends at least 4 cups of fruits or vegetables daily for a
dults, depending on age and activity level, and about 2 hours of exercise weekly．What problem may you have, if you smoke often and eat few fruits and vegetables?
| A．You would have difficulty in walking． | B．You would feel tired, lack of energy． |
| C．You may look older than you really are． | D．You may face the risk of death of cancer． |
How many of the 400 healthiest people with none of the four habits died?
| A．32. | B．24． | C．56． | D．120． |
What does this text mainly talk about?
| A．Suggestions to smokers． | B．The results of four bad life habits． |
| C．The findings of a new research． | D．The recommends from the US government. |
A middle-aged stranger visited us late on a dark rainy night when my father was working the night shift (a job for a period during the night). The stranger asked if he could wait under the eaves of our roof for the rain to stop. Then he disappeared, and we started hearing footsteps and creaking boards in the attic(the space or room at the top of a building, under the roof, often used for storing things). Was the stranger inside our house? My whole body couldn’t help but stiffen. In my mind’s eye, I could imagine the stranger pu
shing through the attic door and approaching us.
We immediately called Jerry, our neighbor, for help. He searched everywhere, but the visitor was nowhere to be found. As Jerry looked in the garage, he found the stranger lying underneath the car. Jerry exclaimed with fright, “You are not allowed to enter the house. Get off the property right now.”
We were determined to leave the house immediately. As we drove away, we saw the man blocking our way on the road and staring at us. We had to swerve to miss him. After that, I never saw the stranger again.The text is mainly about.
| A．the neighbor Jerry | B．a strange dream |
| C．a strange visitor | D．footsteps in the attic |
Based on the text, which of the following statements is true?
| A．The family h it the stranger with their car. |
| B．The stranger pushed through the family’s door. |
| C．Jerry was hurrying back from the night shift. |
| D．The author’s father wasn’t at home that night. |
Why did the family leave their house on a late, dark night?
| A．It was raining hard and the eaves of their roof were broken. |
| B．There was a ghost wandering around the house. |
| C．They did not feel safe in their house. |
| D．The stranger was still somewhere inside the house. |
The text was written in order of.
| A．time | B．space | C．importance | D．age of the family |
Edmund Halley was an English scientist who lived over 200 years ago. He studied the observations of comets(彗星)which other scientists had made. The orbit（轨道） of one particular comet was a very difficult mathematical problem. He could not figure it out. Neither could other scientists who dealt with such problems.
However, Halley had a friend named Isaac Newton, who was a brilliant mathematician. Newton thought he had already worked out that problem, but he could not find the papers on which he had done it. He told Halley that the orbit of a comet had the shape of an ellipse(椭圆形).
Now Halley set to work. He figured out(解决，计算出)the orbits of some of the comets that had been observed by scientists. He made a surprising discovery. The comets that had appeared in the years 1531, 1607, and 1682 all had the same orbit. Yet their appearance had been 75 to 76 years apart.
This seemed very strange to Halley. Three different comets followed the same orbit. The more Halley thought about it, the more he thought that there had not been three different comets as people thought. He decided that they had simply seen the same comet three times. The comet had gone away and had come back again.
It was an astonishing idea! Halley felt certain to make a prediction(预言)of what would happen in the future. He decided that this would appear in the year 1758. There were 53 years to go before Halley’s prediction could be tested. In 1758 the comet appeared in the sky. Halley did not see it, for he had died some years before. Ever since then that comet had been called Halley’s comet, in his honor.Edmund Halley figured out the orbit of ____.
| A．some different comets appearing several times |
| B．the same comet appearing at different times |
| C．three different comets appearing at the same time |
| D．several comets appearing at the same time |
Halley made his discovery ____.
| A．by doing experiments |
| B．by means of his own careful observation |
| C．by using the working of other scientists |
| D．by chance |
Halley made a surprising, but correct prediction in the year____.
| A．1704 | B．1705 | C．1706 | D．1707 |
This passage in general is about ____.
| A．Halley and other scientists |
| B．the orbit of a comet |
| C．Newton and Halley |
| D．Halley and his discovery |
Which of the following is TRUE?
A．Edmund Halley was an American  scientist. |
| B．Halley made his discovery by doing experiments. |
| C．Isaac Newton was a famous mathematician. |
| D．The orbit of a comet had the shape of an around. |
It was a quiet village in which there was a military camp. It was far from the towns and cities and there were some high mountains around. Of course it was a good place for training the new soldiers. But it was difficult for the young men to go outside. Mr. White, an officer of forty, was strict with them and he hardly let them leave the camp.
Once Mr. White was ill in bed. He couldn’t work and a young officer, Mr. Hunt, began to train the new soldiers instead of him. He knew the young men well and let nine soldiers go to the nearest town to have a holiday. But night fell and none came back to the camp. He was worried about it and stood at the gate. It was five to twelve when Mr. Hunt decided to go to the town and see what was happening with the young men. He started the car quickly and set off. At that moment the nine soldiers came back. It seemed they were all drunk. Of course they found the officer was angry.
“I’m sorry, sir,” said the first soldier. “I left the town on time. But something was wrong with my bus on my way here. I had to buy a horse and made it run fast. Bad luck! It died and I had to run back.”
And the other seven soldiers said they were late for the same reasons. It was the last soldier’s turn. He said, “I’m sorry, sir. I got on a bus on time, but…”
Having heard this, the officer became even angrier and stopped him at once. He called out, “If you say something was wrong with your bus, I’ll punish you at once!”
“No, no, sir,” said the young man. “My bus was all right, but the dead horses were in its way!” The military camp was built in the village to _______.
| A．stop the soldiers going to towns |
| B．stop the soldiers meeting their friends |
| C．train the new soldiers |
| D．make the young men live quietly |
Mr. Hunt let the nine soldiers have a holiday because _______.
| A．he was kind and understanding |
| B．they felt lonely |
| C．they had something important to do |
| D．they were the best of all the soldiers |
The young officer was worried because _______.
| A．a traffic accident had happened |
| B．he was afraid something happened to the nine soldiers |
| C．the nine soldiers didn’t come back on time |
| D．the nine soldiers drank too much in the town |
The nine soldiers returned to the camp late because _______.
| A．something was wrong with their buses |
| B．their horses died on the return way |
| C．it took them much time to run back |
| D．they all had drunk much in the town |
Which statement do you think is right?
A．The officer believed only th e last soldier. |
| B．The officer believed the nine soldiers. |
| C．The officer believed none of the nine soldiers. |
D．The of ficer wouldn’t punish his soldiers. |
Music is an international language. The songs that are sung or played by instruments are beautiful to all people everywhere.
Popular music in America is what every student likes. Students carry small radios with earphones and listen to music before class, after class and at lunch. Students with cars buy large speakers (扬声器) and play the music loudly as they drive on the street.
Adult drivers listen to music on the car radio as they drive to work. They also listen to the news about sports, the weather, politics, and activities of the American people. But most of the radio broadcast is music.
Pop or popular music singers make much money. They make a CD or tape which radio stations use in every state. Once the popular singer is heard throughout the country, young people buy his or her tapes. Some of the money from these tapes comes to the singer. Wherever the singer goes, all the young people want to me
et him or her. Now the singer has become a national star.
Besides pop music, there are two other kinds of music that is important to Americans. One is called folk music. It tells stories about the common life of Americans. The other is called western or country music. This was started by cowboys who would sing at night to the cows they were watching. Today, any music about country life and the love between a country boy and his girl is called western or country music. In America, every student likes ______.
| A．folk music | B．country music | C．pop music | D．western music |
According to the passage, most of the car radio broadcast is ______.
| A．sports | B．the weather | C．politics | D．music |
What do the cowboys do according to the passage?
| A．They sell cows. | B．They watch cows. |
| C．They sing and dance. | D．They travel around. |
How many kinds of music are mentioned in the passage?
| A．Three. | B．Four. | C．Five. | D．Six. |
What’s the best title of the passage?
| A．Music in America | B．Music Listeners |
| C．Cowboys in America | D．International Language |