As temperatures go up, bison（北美野牛）get smaller. Joseph Craine, research assistant professor in the Division of Biology at Kansas State University, examined how climate change during the next 50 years will affect grazing（放牧）animals such as bison and cattle in the Great Plains.
“Bison are one of our most important conservation animals and hold a unique role in grasslands in North America,” Craine said. “In addition to their cultural and ecological significance, they’re economically important. There are about half a million bison in the world.” Craine analyzed a data set of 290,000 weights, ages and sexes collected from 22 bison herds（兽群）throughout the U. S. The organizations kept annual records of each animal in the herd and matched the data with the climates of the sites.
Based on differences in sizes of bison across herds, Craine found that during the next 50 years, future generations of bison will be smaller in size and weigh less. Climate is likely to reduce the nutritional quality of grasses, causing the animals to grow more slowly.
“We know that temperatures are going to go up,” Craine said. “We also know that warmer grasslands have grasses with less protein（蛋白质）, and we now know that warmer grasslands have smaller grazers. It all lines up to suggest that climate change will cause grasses to have less protein and cause grazers to gain less weight in the future.”
Craine said the results of climate change in coming decades can already be seen by comparing bison in cooler, wetter places with those in warmer, drier places. For example, the average 7-year-old male bison in South Dakota weighed 1, 900 pounds, while an average 7- year-old male bison in Oklahoma — a warmer place — weighed 1, 300 pounds.
“The difference in temperature between those two states is around 20 degrees Fahrenheit, which is about three times the projected increase in temperatures over the next 75 years,” Craine said. “It is a clear indicator that long-term warming will affect bison and is something that will happen across the U.S. over the next 50-75 years.”In the next fifty years, researchers Say, bison will ________.
| A．become smaller and lighter |
| B．disappear in the Great Plains |
| C．play a less important part |
| D．adapt to different climate changes |
The underlined word “grazers” probably refers to ________.
| A．the researchers | B．the grasses |
| C．the bison | D．the protein |
What is the main reason for the bison to become smaller?
| A．The deceasing amount of grass. |
| B．The rising temperature. |
| C．The rising number of bison. |
| D．The loss of weight. |
Paragraph 5 is written as an example to show ________.
| A．Craine’s prediction will come true in 50 years |
| B．bison are smaller than in the past |
| C．the nature balance is being destroyed |
| D．bison’s size is linked with different climate |
A Robot Fish has been developed by National University of Singapore’s researchers from the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering．This robot fish has movements which have been inspired by the movements of the carp（鲤鱼）．
There are various purposes that it can be used for．It can help in underwater archaeology （ 考古学 ）．For example, it can enter a sunken city where human divers cannot enter．Just like a fish , it can also look at all the comers of particular wreckage．This robot can also be used for general purposes such as detection of leakages in a pipeline or for laying down communication cables across oceans．It also has possible military uses．
In order to copy carp movements, Mr．Fan studied the movements of the fish for around 3 months．He studied all the different movements of carp using different cameras and then converted these movements mathematically to transfer this data to the robot using many actuators（驱动器）．
Professor Xu commented on the robot that the current models that copy fish movements are capable only of 2D movements which limits their capability as they are not able to dive into water．He said that his model is the first model with 3D movements which allows it to dive as well as float with the help of its fins, just as a normal fish would do．Hence, this fish model robot has much greater movement capability．It would be much harder for enemies to detect as compared to traditional ones when used for military purposes．
The researches want to make their robot fish even smaller, more realistic while adding more sensors such as GPS and video camera to it．This will improve its autonomous 3D movement．They are also planning to test the fish by giving it more difficult tasks such as detecting various objects．The author gave an example in paragraph 2 _____．
| A．to introduce the Robot Fish can help in underwater archaeology |
| B．to show the Robot Fish can be used for general purposes |
| C．to show the Robot Fish can lay down communication cables across oceans |
| D．to tell us the Robot Fish has possible military uses |
Which is NOT true about the 3D Robot Fish?
| A．It is capable of diving into water． |
| B．It cannot dive into water． |
| C．It can float using its fins． |
| D．It is difficult to detect． |
What' s the main idea of the last paragraph?
| A．The researchers will give the robot more difficult tasks． |
| B．The researches want to make their robot smaller． |
| C．The researchers are going to test the robot． |
| D．The researches plan to improve the robot． |
Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
| A．First Robot Fish with Autonomous 3D Movement used widely |
| B．First Robot Fish with Autonomous 3D Movement treading the ocean |
| C．First Robot Fish with Autonomous 3D Movement created in Singapore |
| D．First Robot Fish with Autonomous 3D Movement's general purposes |
When I was growing up, I had an old neighbor named Doctor Gibbs. He didn't look like any doctor I'd ever known. He never yelled at us for playing in his yard, but was always very kind.
When Doctor Gibbs wasn't saving lives, he was planting trees. He had some interesting theories about planting trees. He believed in the principle: "No pain, no gain". He hardly watered his new trees, an attitude which flew in the face of conventional wisdom.
Once I asked why and he told me that watering plants spoiled them because it made them grow weaker. He said you had to make things tough for the trees so that only the strongest could survive. He talked about how watering trees made them develop shallow roots and how, if they were not watered, trees would grow deep roots in search of water.
So, instead of watering his trees every morning, he'd beat them with a rolled-up newspaper. I asked him why he did that, and he said it was to get the tree's attention.
Doctor Gibbs died a couple of years after I left home. Every now and then, I walked by his house and looked at the trees that I'd watched him plant some 25 years ago. They were tall and strong.
I planted a couple of trees myself a few years ago. Two years of attending these trees meant they grew up weak. Whenever a cold wind blew, their branches trembled. Adversity seemed to benefit Doctor Gibb's trees in ways comfort and ease never could.
Every night before I go to bed, I check on my two sons. I often pray that their lives will be easy. But lately I've been thinking that it's time to change my prayer. I know my children are going to encounter hardship. There's always a cold wind blowing somewhere. What we need to do is to pray for deep roots, so when the rains fall and the winds blow, we won't be torn apart.With the trees planted, Doctor Gibbs often______.
| A．kept watering them every morning |
| B．talked to them to get their attention |
| C．paid little attention to them |
| D．beat them to make them grow deep roots |
What does the underlined word "Adversity" mean in the sixth paragraph?
| A．Difficult living conditions. | B．Lack of moisture. |
| C．Enough care or attention. | D．Bad weather. |
Which prayer does the author wish for his sons?
| A．Have an easy life, without too much to worry about. |
| B．Be able to stand the rain and wind in their lives. |
| C．Have good luck, encountering less hardship in their life. |
| D．Meet people like Dr Gibbs in the future. |
Last week, while visiting my dad with my daughter, we went to a restaurant for dinner. When we were seated, my dad asked the waitress if there were any soldiers eating at the restaurant. Then waitress said there was a soldier having dinner with his friend. My dad told the waitress to tell the soldier and his friend that their dinner was paid for! He also said that he did not want to be known as the benefactor(施主).
Then waitress later commented on my dad’s thoughtful behavior saying that she had never seen anything like this before. At a local college, she had studied opera and so she used this to thank my dad by performing a piece from The Pearl Fisherman. Her voice brought me to tears because it sounded perfect!
After a while, the soldier appeared at our table (I don’t know how he knew my dad paid the bill for him.) and said that he would be sent to the front the next morning and that he could not leave this country without saying “thanks” to my dad. My dad replied that it was he who wanted to say “thanks”. They shook hands as the soldier left.
Before we left, the waitress came by again. She did a magic show as another way to show her “thanks” to my dad. Her show was really great. My dad left her a note with email address asking for her next performance time in addition to a $ 50 tip.
Everyone witnessed something exemplary(可作榜样的) in the human spirit that night. I can only hope to see more of this in the future.What did the soldier do in response to the author’s father’s kindness?
| A．He gave something to author’s dad. |
| B．He gave a big tip to the waitress. |
| C．He said thanks to the author’s dad in person. |
| D．He did a magic show for the author and her father. |
The author considered her father’s action to be ____.
| A．funny | B．understandable |
| C．worthless | D．honorable |
Their passage mainly tells us that we should ____.
| A．learn to be grateful to others |
| B．find ways to thank others |
| C．try to learn from each other |
| D．respect soldiers and waitresses |
Thirteen, for me, was a challenging year. My parents divorced and I moved to a new town with my father, far from my old family and friends. I was terribly lonely and would cry myself to sleep each night. To ease my sadness, my father purchased an old horse for me at a local auction. I named him Cowboy.
Cowboy was without a doubt the ugliest horse in the world. But I didn’t care. I loved him beyond all reason. I joined a riding club and suffered rude comments and mean snickers about Cowboy’s looks. I never let on about how I felt, but deep inside, my heart was breaking. The other members rode beautiful, registered horses.
When Cowboy and I entered the events where the horse is judged on appearance, we were quickly shown the gate. No amount of preparation and love would turn Cowboy into a beauty. My only chance to compete would be in the speed events. I chose the jumping race.
One girl named Becky rode a big brown horse in the race events. She always won the blue ribbons. Needless to say, she didn’t feel threatened when I competed against her at the next show. She didn’t need to. I came in next to last.
The stinging memory of Becky’s smirks made me determined to beat her. For the whole next month I woke up early every day and rode Cowboy five miles to the arena (赛马场). We practiced running and jumping for hours in the hot sun and then I would walk Cowboy home totally exhausted. All of our hard work didn’t make me feel confident by the time the show came. I sat at the gate and sweated it out while I watched Becky and her horse charge through the course and finish in first place.
My turn finally came. I put on my hat, rubbed Cowboy’s neck and entered the arena. At the signal, we dashed toward the first fence, jumped it without trouble and raced on to the next one. Cowboy then flew over the second, third and fourth fences like a bird and I turned him toward the finish line. As we crossed the line the crowd was shocked into silence. Cowboy and I had beaten Becky and her fancy horse by two seconds!
I gained much more than a blue ribbon that day. At thirteen, I realized that no matter what the odds, I’d always come out a winner if I wanted something badly enough to work for it.The underlined expression "shown the gate" (paragraph 3) most probably means ______.
| A．told how to enter the arena |
| B．shown how to make the horse beautiful |
| C．removed from the competition early |
| D．told to enter the timed-speed events |
When the final race finished, nobody cheered because .
| A．the audience didn’t like Cowboy |
| B．people envied the writer |
| C．the win was unexpected |
| D．the writer bad run out of time |
Why was the writer not confident of victory?
| A．He was an inexperienced rider. |
| B．He had not practiced enough. |
| C．He believed he was unpopular with the crowd. |
| D．He thought his horse wasn’t as good as the others. |
What did the writer learn from his experience?
| A．Life can sometimes be unfair. |
| B．Anything is possible if one tries hard enough. |
| C．A positive attitude will bring success. |
| D．One should not make judgments based on appearance. |
Many people find themselves caught up in others’ problems, and then confused about how and when to help. In fact, all relationships need limits no matter whether they are friendships, sibling relations, mates/ lovers or business relations. On some level, all limit setting means saying no. However, it is usually a qualified “no” that says what, where, when, and under what conditions you will give or not give to another person. There are three points we should keep in mind about limit setting:
1.Decide where to set the limits. Think about the entire situation. Consider your time, emotions, and means. Then consider whether you are helping the other person. Aim to do something to help the other person without taking on the whole problem.
2.Express the limits clearly. For example, you say to your friend, “ I will lend you $20,000 no more than once every three months. And I expect you will pay me back within three months and certainly before you can borrow more.” You say to another friend, “you can stay here for three weeks but you must help me with expenses and cooking and make sure that you will find your own place before the three weeks is up”.
3.Stick to your limits. You are not responsible for making the other person obey the limits. You are only responsible for following the limits yourself. Your friend has repaid $12,500 of his/her $20,000 and asks for $20,000 more. You say no. He/She gets emotional and then says, “I need this money to cover a bad check. If you cared for our friendship, you would do it”.
Limit setting is often stressful and painful because people mistakes it for rejection. And limit setting certainly brings guilt. Bear in mind, it doesn’t mean you have given up or quit loving your friend, lovers, or sibling. It does mean you are expressing that love in a different and more helpful (to both of you) manner.According to the passage, setting limits means___________________.
| A．refusing always to say yes to your friend |
| B．saying no to your friend who turns to you |
| C．making different kinds of friends |
| D．breaking away from your friend |
Once you decide to set limits, you should________________________.
| A．announce it publicly to others |
| B．tell your friend about it clearly |
| C．be responsible for your friend |
| D．begin to help your friend |
We can learn from the last paragraph that limit setting______________.
| A．is often misunderstood |
| B．is actually a kind of rejection |
| C．does harm to your friendship |
| D．contains both love and hate |
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．About friendship |
| B．How to make friends |
| C．Set limits with friends |
| D．Show your love in a new way |