Life in the twenty-first century
The World Future Society is a group of people from more than 80 countries who are interested in how modern technology is making our world better, and who write reports about how it will change our lives.
The things that we will be able to do in the twenty-first century (since the year 2000) should help us live better lives in many ways, at home and at work, in our own country and around the world. Here are just some of them, put into five groups.
People
People may live for up to 120 years and use new technology to help when people go blind, deaf and have other problems. The number of people over a hundred years old could go from 135,000 today to 2.2 million people by 2050. By 2015 people think that 100 million workers will be able to work from home for a company in a different country by using the Internet.
Money
Worldwide e-business will become even more successful with online shops that sell special products for each person, which will be brought to their house the next day.
Environment
The technology for making energy from wind and the Sun is growing very quickly. In the future wind and Sun energy could become much cheaper and many more countries could use it. This would be very useful in poor countries. The air in big cities would also become much cleaner and healthier as a result.
Society and culture
The Internet will help to create more worldwide friendships. Families may spend more time together as people will be able to do 24-hour online banking and shopping.
Technology
The new science of “nanotechnology” (very small robots or machines) will make all sorts of products smaller and lighter. Very, very small machines could take away rubbish, make things in factories, and help inside the human body by taking away fat. By 2012 people will be able to wear these small machines that look like watches, which will give them lots of information about their body and keep them healthy.
| A．Look at how technology will make people happy. |
| B．Look at how technology will change the world. |
| C．Make technology work better for themselves. |
| D．Make small machines to make us healthier. |
| A．Help all people live for over 120 years. |
| B．Help disabled people to get jobs. |
| C．Make people healthier and live longer. |
| D．Help workers to use the Internet. |
| A．In special shops. |
| B．Using the Internet at certain times. |
| C．Using the Internet any time of the day. |
| D．Using nanotechnology. |
| A．Poor countries will have enough energy. |
| B．Wind energy will be cheaper than Sun energy. |
| C．We will not need wind and Sun energy. |
| D．Wind and Sun energy will be cheaper. |
| A．drive small machines to work for people |
| B．make good-quality watches |
| C．allow people to eat more |
| D．make very small products |
A science fiction flying car looks like a normal car，but it is an aircraft （飞行器） that anybody can fly directly from any place to another without using roads or runways．Science fiction writers have written about flying cars for a long time．But now flying cars will soon fly out of the world of science fiction into our real world．And the dream of the science fiction writers will soon come true．
The first﹣known sky car is the FSC﹣1．The FSC﹣1looks like an expensive sports car．You can drive the FSC﹣1on the road like a normal car．If you touch a button，its wings and propeller （螺旋桨） fold out and then it can take off，fly and land as an airplane．The owners of the FSC﹣1can choose if they want to drive or fly．
Another flying car or sky car is the Moller Skycar M400．Although you can't drive it on the roads，it is small and easy to fly and can take off and land like a helicopter （直升飞机）．Urban Aeronautics'X﹣Hawk is another type of sky car．It is expected to be available for about ＄3million．
Just like any new technology，flying cars have taken a long time to be developed．But some experts think the technology is far from what people imagine when they are sitting in traffic．It still needs to be improved．
26． kinds of flying cars are mentioned in the passage．
A．Two
B．Three
C．Four
D．Five
27．The writer thinks that flying cars will be no longer a dream because ．
A．science fiction writers'ideas are stupid
B．they are too expensive to make
C．they will soon be available
D．they are only in science fiction
28．The FSC﹣1can ．
A．change itself into a robot
B．move on water like a ship
C．be flown only like an airplane
D．be driven like a car and flown like an airplane
29．The Moller Skycar is different from the FSC﹣1because ．
A．it can't fly
B．it can't be driven like a car
C．it is difficult to land
D．it is much more expensive
30．Some experts think the technology of flying cars is ．
A．normal
B．traditional
C．not good enough
D．strange．
"I will think of it．"It is easy to say this，but do you know what great things have come from thinking？
Sir Isaac Newton was sitting in his garden when he saw an apple fall from a tree．He began to think and tried to find out why the apple fell．Then he discovered how the sun，moon，and stars are kept in their places．
A boy named James Watt sat quietly by the fire，watching the lid of the kettle move up and down．He wanted to find out why the steam in the kettle moved the lid．From that time he went on thinking and thinking．And when he became a man，he improved the steam engine （蒸汽机） so much that it could easily do the work of many horses．
James Ferguson was a poor boy．Once，seeing the inside of a watch，he wondered．"Why should I not make a watch？"But how could he get the materials to make the mainspring （钟表的主发条）？He soon found he could make it with whalebone （鲸骨）．He then made a wooden clock which kept good time．His motto （座右铭） was"I will think of it．"And he made his thoughts useful to himself and the world．
Boys and girls，when you have a difficult lesson to learn，don't lose heart，and don't ask someone for help before helping yourselves．Think，and by thinking you will learn how to think to some purpose．
（1）From the passage，we know that some great things come from ．
A．listening
B．reading
C．speaking
D．thinking
（2）The idea of Isaac Newton's discovery was from ．
A．the falling of an apple
B．the cleaning of a garden
C．the falling of a tree
D．the moving of a lid
（3）The achievement of James Watt was that he ．
A．kept thinking
B．found the steam in the kettle
C．improved the steam engine much
D．watched the lid move up and down
（4）The right order of the following sentences is ．
①James Ferguson made a wooden clock．
②James Ferguson saw the inside of a watch．
③James Ferguson made the mainspring with whalebone．
A．③②①
B．②③①
C．②①③
D．③①②
（5）What is the main idea of the passage？
A．Learn to ask for help．
B．A difficult lesson to learn．
C．It is easy to say"I will think of it．"
D．Think，and by thinking you will learn how to think to some purpose．
On the fourth Sunday of every November，most Americans get together around the dinner table to celebrate Thanksgiving．Special traditions in the US have been around for many years．（1） These are four popular Thanksgiving traditions and how they started．
（2） The first Thanksgiving meal was in the autumn of 1621 when the first travelers from England celebrated their first harvest （收获）．But it wasn't made into an official （官方的）holiday until 1863．The first large meal had turkey，fruits and vegetables，which are still common today．
（3） Historians say the first travelers invited Native Americans （美洲印第安人）to the meal to thank them for teaching them how to grow food．Today at the large meal，friends and family will also say what they are most thankful for．
（4） The parade （游行）includes very large balloons that look like cartoon characters and beautiful floats （花车）that carry famous people．There are also many musical performances to watch．This parade started in 1924，and today over 44 million people watch it on TV or in New York City．
（5） People started to watch football on Thanksgiving a few years after the day
became an official holiday．Today，the National Football League takes advantage of this popularity and hosts three NFL games every Thanksgiving．
根据短文内容，从方框中选出五个句子填入文中空缺处，使短文内容完整正确．
A．Giving thanks is what the holiday is all about．
B．American football is something people both watch and play with their family on Turkey Day．
C．However，some people don't always stop to think about where the traditions came from．
D．Here is one way to make turkey for a Thanksgiving dinner．
E．A large meal is the important event every Thanksgiving．
F．Every year，there is a Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City．
When we exercise hard，we burn fat （脂肪）．But have you ever wondered where exactly the fat goes？
Some doctors think that fat is changed into heat and given off in the air．Others think the body burns it．Some even joke that someone comes and takes it．That's why you always weigh less in the morning．
Now a new study from Australia solves the mystery．
"The correct answer is that most of the fat is breathed out as CO2．It goes into thin air，"says the study．
Scientists followed the atoms （原子）in 10 kilograms of fat as they are lost．They found that 8.4 of those kilograms are breathed out as CO2 through the lungs （肺）．The other weight，1.6 kilograms，becomes water and leaves the body．
"None of this is easy to understand because we can't see the CO2 we breathe out，said the study's lead expert．
Does that mean you can lose more weight by breathing more？It is not as easy as you think．Breathing more than the body's metabolic rate （新陈代谢速度）can make you uncomfortable．You may feel dizzy （眩晕的）and become unable to see，move or feel，according to the study．
So how can people lose weight healthily？The key is to eat less and move more．You may have heard this many times．During a day．a 70kg person breathes out about 200g of CO2．So if the same person wants to lose weight，he or she can do some light exercise，for example，walking fast．This can help lose 24Og of CO2．
根据短文内容．选择圾佳答案．
（1）Where is the new study from？
A．Japan．
B．Australia．
C．Canada．
D．America．
（2）According to the new study，where does our fat go when we exercise a lot？
A．The body burns it．
B．Someone comes and takes it．
C．It is changed into heat and given off in the air．
D．Most of it is breathed out as CO2．
（3）What will happen to people if they breathe more than the body's metabolic rate？
A．They will lose weight healthily．
B．They will feel comfortable．
C．They may become unable to move．
D．They may becomc healthier．
（4）Which of the following is the best way to lose weight？
A．Sitting still and breathing more．
B．Sleeping a lot and breathing more．
C．Eating less and exercising more．
D．Eating more and doing some light exercise．
（5）The passage mainly tells us ．
A．where fat goes when we exercise
B．why we can lose weight healthily
C．how we should do some exercise
D．what we should do to burn fat．
New Year's Resolutions
Xu Hui 13，from Shanghai
In 2016，I really wish that I could make friends with some boys in my class．I have many friends，but they are all girls．It will be quite cool and interesting to talk with boys and play games with them．Also，my math and physics scores are not very good．I want to improve them．
Zhao Yujie，14，from Jiangsu
My biggest resolution is to volunteer more．I want to help homeless children and old people．I think it's important for us to spread laughter and warmth to others．So I'm willing to do this and hope everyone around me will be happy．
Li Langjing，14，from Fujian
In the new year，I want to take more trips with my friends．Especially，I hope I can go to Xinjiang and Taiwan．I really want to climb the beautiful Tianshan Mountains in Xinjiang and taste delicious snacks in Taiwan．
Ma Yue，15，from Beijing
My new year's wish is to get a ticket to a Scorpions （蝎子乐队）concert．They are a German rock band．I love their metal music．They will have a concert in February．I don't want to miss it．
Li Yunxiao，15，from Zhejiang
I hope that my family and I will have good health．That's the most important thing I think．As it's my last year in junior high school，I'd like to cherish （珍借）every moment with my classmates．We may be under great pressure．But I want to make sweet memories．What's more，I want to grow taller!
根据短文内容，判断下列句子正误．正确的用"A"表示，不正确的用"B"表示．
31．Xu Hui has few friends and she wishes to make friends with some boys in her class．
32．Zhao Yujie thinks it's important for them to spread laughter and warmth to others．
33．Li Langjing wants to climb mountains in Xinjiang and Taiwan．
34．A rock band will have a concert in February，and Ma Yue wants to get a ticket to it．
35．Li Yunxiao hopes that his family will have good health and he wants to grow taller．
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