请认真阅读下列短文，从短文后各题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项-优题课

The Segway Human Transporter was invented by Dean Kamen．It is a two-wheeled vehicle designed for a single rider standing upright over its single axle（轴） and navigate using a set of handlebars resembling those on a bicycle．Electrically powered, it could travel over 15 miles on a single charge and reach speeds up to twelve miles per hour．Its speed and direction can be controlled by riders' changing their weights．
A college dropout and self-taught engineer, Kamen already held over 100 patents for his inventions when he developed the one he hoped would revolutionize short-distance travel．While still in college, Kamen started developing the medical devices （设备） that made his name．Later, he changed focus to the challenges faced by wheelchair users．His robotic wheelchair known as IBOT could climb stairs．This robot ended up paving the way for the Segway．
Before showing his most recent invention, Kamen had kept it a top secret for months．When it turned out to be little more than a motor scooter, many publicly expressed their disappointment．On closer examination, however, even his critics（批评家） had to admit that the vehicle was an engineering achievement．It answered the prayers of anyone who is worn out when walking downtown．Not everyone welcomed the Segway's arrival, though．Some complained it was too expensive, while others said it would further weaken the average American ' s fitness．A Japanese inventor even accused Kamen of stealing the idea for the Segway from him．
Despite the controversy, the U．S．postal service began using Kamen's invention a month after its appearance, and a factory was built with plans to produce about 40,000 Segways every month．The argument is still on whether the Segway will be remembered as the greatest invention since the light bulb, or just another forgettable electronic device．Anyway, trips to the local supermarket will never be the same again．
Which statement best describes the critics' reaction to the Segway?

A．Nothing but an electrical device．

B．A disappointing engineering mistake．

C．An expensive and disappointing invention．

D．Disappointing, but still a successful device．

Which is not a feature of the Segway?

A．One person at a time can ride on it．

B．It has two wheels with a single axle．

C．It is powered by electricity and can go up to 12mph．

D．Riders increase the speed by moving the handlebars

Some people expressed dissatisfaction with the Segway because of its______.

A．high cost	B．danger to traffic
C．being difficult to use	D．contribution to laziness

Shortly after the Segway appeared, there were _________.

A．hopes for a larger model of it

B．no plans to do anything more with it

C．some discussions on the unforgettable device

D．plans to make tens of thousands of them a month

Speaking two languages rather than just one has obvious practical benefits in an increasingly globalized world．But in recent years, scientists have begun to show that the advantages of bilingualism （双语能力） are even more important than being able to converse with a wider range of people．Being bilingual, it turns out, makes you smarter．It can have a deep effect on your brain, improving skills not related to language and even protecting against a serious mental disorder in old age．
This view of bilingualism is different from the understanding of bilingualism through much of the 20th century．Researchers, educators and policy makers long considered a second language to be an interruption that prevented a child's school work and ability to think and understand things．They were not wrong about the interruption: there is ample evidence that in a bilingual \s brain both language systems are active even when he is using only one language, thus creating situations in which one system disturbs the other．But this interruption, researchers are finding out, isn't so much a disturbance．It forces the brain to solve inside conflict, giving the mind a workout that strengthens its thinking muscles．
The key difference between bilinguals and monolinguals may be more basic: a heightened ability to monitor the environment．"Bilinguals have to switch languages quite often—you may talk to your father in one language and to your mother in another language," says Albert Costa, a researcher at the University of Pompea Fabra in Spain．
"It requires keeping track of changes around you in the same way that we monitor our surroundings when driving．" In a study comparing German-Italian bilinguals with Italian monolinguals on monitoring tasks, Mr．Costa and his colleagues found that the bilingual subjects not only performed better, but they also did so with less activity in parts of the brain involved in monitoring, showing that they did better in it．
From the passage we can learn that experts used to believe that ______．

A．interruption forced a bilingual's brain to strengthen its thinking ability

B．a second language stopped children's studying as well as mental development

C．using two languages annoyed the children who have trouble in learning skills

D．language systems were busy in a bilingual's brain when he was using languages

The underlined word "switch" in Paragraph 3 probably means "______"．

A．change

B．use

C．speak

D．study

What is the author's attitude towards bilingualism?

A．Cautious．

B．Doubtful．

C．Concerned．

D．Favourable．

Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?

A．How Bilinguals Use Languages

B．What Bilingualism Is Really about

C．Why Bilinguals Are More Intelligent

D．When People Learn a Second Language

The artist Grandma Moses became famous for her simple, bright, cheerful paintings of American farm life．Her full name was Anna Mary Robertson Moses．But she was known to everyone as Grandma Moses because she did not begin to paint seriously until in her seventies．
Born on a farm in New York, Anna had little schooling．Her days were filled with farm chores．But she often found time to make pictures．Soon, however, she became too busy to draw or paint．At the age of 12, she went to work as a servant for a family nearby．She worked for other people for many years．Then, when she was 27, she married Thomas Moses, a farmer．And they began raising a family of their own．
Anna Moses could no longer do heavy farm work with age．Then, in her seventies, she began to paint in oils．Her pictures showed things she recalled from childhood-farm scenes, ice-skating, bringing home the Christmas tree．Later, she began to display her art at county fairs．Her pictures recorded a way of life that was quickly passing away．People everywhere loved these happy scenes, and soon her paintings were shown in art galleries．Grandma Moses became famous partially on account of her age, but mainly because her approach to art was modest and simple compared to many other painters of her time．Without formal training or even knowledge of Modernism, she relied on her own simple techniques to create her landscapes and scenes．She continued to paint almost until her death, on December 13, 1961 , at the age of 101．
The themes in her paintings provided the comfort of a rural life that many busy Americans treasured from their past．The threat of nuclear arms that appeared on television screens and in magazines had Americans starving for something more．Grandma Moses' art appealed to those who had lost hope for the future．Her classic paintings still appear on TV commercials, greeting cards, and magazine and book covers．
What can be inferred from the fact that Grandma Moses picked up a paintbrush?

A．She had no other ways to kill time．

B．Her friend and family suggested it．

C．She had had a love for painting since her childhood．

D．She needed to make a living by selling her paintings．

The key reason for her success is ___.

A．her old age	B．her plain style
C．her lack of training	D．her modern knowledge

We can know from the passage that ______．

A．her paintings raised people's hope for the future

B．her paintings expressed the reality of her old age

C．many Americans were interested in purchasing art works

D．people wanted to get comfort by remembering grandmas

Studying Abroad
Nowadays, studying abroad gains popularity in China. Many rich parents would rather send their children abroad to receive education than let them be educated in China.
As every coin has two sides, studying abroad is not an exception. There are advantages for people to attend school abroad. In the first place, he can use the foreign language in his daily life so that his ability in the second language may be greatly improved, as it is obvious that there is no better chance to improve second-language than living in the country where it is spoken. While studying in a foreign country, he will most likely meet many others from overseas and it is possible to make friends from all over the world. This is not only exciting on the social level, but could lead to important overseas contacts in his career as well. He can get familiar with the latest knowledge in science and make use of the first-rate facilities (设备) available. In this way, there is every chance that he is able to widen his horizon (眼界) and broaden his mind.
Of course, attending schools abroad may bring about a series of problems. The most serious problem is language barrier (障碍). Most of the students who go abroad don’t have enough skills in the language spoken there. As a result, on arriving there, they will find it difficult to understand what the teachers say. Besides, for lack of knowledge of the customs of the local people, they may constantly run into trouble in dealing with various situations.
Therefore, given an opportunity to attend a school abroad, one must consider both sides of the factors carefully before making up his mind.

Title: Studying Abroad
Phenomenon	Sending children abroad to receive education is __________ with many rich parents.
Advantages	● Children have the ________ chance to improve the second language because they can use it___________. ● They can make friends with other students from ____________. ● They can __________ of the latest knowledge in science and have access to the best facilities.
___________	● Language barrier is the number one problem. Because students are not ___________ at the language spoken there, they will have difficulty in ___________ what the teachers say. ● It is not easy for them to deal with cross-culture communication ________ to lack of knowledge of the customs of the locals.
Conclusion	Both sides of the factors should be _____________ carefully before one makes a decision.

Theodor Seuss Geisel was born in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1904. He was famous because of the books he wrote for children. They combine funny words, pictures, and social opinion.
Dr Seuss wrote his first book for children in 1937. It is called And to Think I Saw It on Mulberry Street. A number of publishers refused to publish it. They said it was too different , and it’s not worth publishing. A friend finally published it. Soon other successful books followed. Over the years, he wrote more than forty children’s books. They were fun to read. Yet his books sometimes dealt with serious subjects.
By the middle 1940s, Dr Seuss had become one of the best-loved and most successful writers of children’s books. He had a strong desire to help children. In 1954, Life magazine published a report about school children who could not read. The report said many children’s books weren’t interesting. Dr Seuss decided to write books that were interesting and easy to read.
In 1957, Dr Seuss wrote The Cat in the Hat. He used less than 225 words to write the book. This was about the number of words a six-year-old should be able to read.
The story is about a cat who tries to entertain two children on a rainy day while their mother is away from home. The cat is not like normal cats. It talks. The book was an immediate success. It was an interesting story and was easy to read. Children loved it. Their parents loved it, too. Today many adults say it is still one of the stories they like best.
What’s the best title for this passage?

A．Some of Dr Seuss’ books for children.

B．What are Dr Seuss’s books mainly about?

C．Dr Seuss — a famous writer of children’s books.

D．Why are Dr Seuss’ books different?

What do we know about Dr Seuss’s first book for children?

A．It was Dr Seuss’ worst book.

B．It dealt with a very serious subject.

C．Neither children nor adults like it.

D．Many publishers didn’t take it seriously at first.

How old was Dr Seuss when he wrote his first book ?

A．30

B．31

C．32

D．33

How did Dr Seuss help children according to Paragraph 3?

A．By asking others to help them in magazines.

B．By writing interesting and simple books.

C．By changing his old books into simpler ones.

D．By giving them books for free.

Adults most probably think that Dr Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat is _________

A．interesting

B．serious

C．difficult

D．boring

	12 Years a Slave
Release Date: Oct18, 2013 Runtime: 2 hr. 14min. Director: Steve McQueen Cast: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Paul Giamatti, Alfre Woodard.
Chiwetel Ejiofor stars in the true story of Solomon Northup, a free man in 1800s New York State, who was kidnapped and forced into slavery on a plantation near New Orleans, and his subsequent fight for freedom with the help of a Canadian abolitionist(Brad Pitt).
	Lost for Words
Release Date: Oct18, 2013 Runtime: 1 hr. 47min. Genres: Drama, Romance Cast: Hugh Grant, Zhang Ziyi, Sean Fairs, Grace Huang
Amidst the sweeping cityscape of Hong Kong, “Fate”brings two lost souls together in this multilingual cross-cultural romance. Arriving on the same day, Michael, an American ex-Marine(退役海军), and Anna, a ballerina(芭蕾舞女演员) from Beijing, are both dealing with the aftermath(余波) of failed relationships. As their two worlds mix, romance blossoms.
	The Fifth Estate
Release Date: Oct11, 2013 Runtime: 2 hr. 8min. Director: Bill Condon Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Daniel Bruhl, Laura Linney
The story is about the creation of WikiLeaks(维基解密) by the ambitious Julian Assange, played by Benedict Cumberbatch. The movie opens with Assange hiring Daniel Domscheit-Berg(Daniel Bruhl), a fellow tech talent, to help him keep his new website operational. Soon the pair find themselves in possession of information that will bring down a corrupt bank. But it’s just the tip of the iceburg.
	Wedding Palace
Release Date: Sept 27, 2013 Runtime: 1 hr. 29 min. Director: Christine Yoo Cast: Brain Tee, Kang Hye-jung, Bobby Lee
Abandoned at the wedding, Jason’s(Brian Tee)family quickly introduces him to other eager brides in waiting, he rejects them all. On a business trip to Korea, Jason meets the girl of his dreams, Na Young(Kang Hye-jung). There will be a dramatically romantic love story waiting for them.

A．12 Years a Slave	B．Lost for Words
C．The Fifth Estate	D．Wedding Palace