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Thirteen vehicles lined up last March to race across the Mojave Desert, seeking a million in prize money. To win, they had to finish the 142mile race in less than 10 hours. Teams and watchers knew there might be no winner at all, because these vehicles were missing a key part — drivers.
DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, organized the race as part of a push to develop robotic vehicles for future battlefields. But the Grand Challenge, as it was called, just proved how difficult it is to get a car to speed across an unfamiliar desert without human guidance. One had its brake lock up in the starting area. Another began by throwing itself onto a wall. Another got tied up by bushes near the road after 1.9 miles.
One turned upside down. One took off in entirely the wrong direction and had to be disabled by remote  control. One went a little more than a mile and rushed into a fence; another managed to go for six miles but stuck on a rock. The “winner”, if there was any, reached 7.8 miles before it ran into a long narrow hole, and the front wheels caught on fire.
“You get a lot of respect for natural abilities of the living things,” says Reinhold Behringe, who helped design two of the carsize vehicles for a company called SciAutonics.“Even ants can do all these tasks effortlessly. It's very hard for us to put these abilities into our machines.”
The robotic vehicles, though with necessary modern equipment such as advanced computers and GPS guidance, had trouble figuring out fast enough the blocks ahead that a twoyearold human recognizes immediately. Sure, that very young child, who has just only learned to walk, may not think to wipe apple juice off her face, but she already knows that when there's a cookie in the kitchen she has to climb up the table, and that when she gets to the cookie it will taste good. She is more advanced, even months old, than any machine humans have designed.

Watchers doubted if any of the vehicles could finish the race because ________.

A.they did not have any human guidance
B.the road was not familiar to the drivers
C.the distance was too long for the vehicles
D.the prize money was unattractive to the drivers

From the passage we know “robotic vehicles” are a kind of machines that________.

A.can do effortlessly whatever tasks living things can
B.can take part in a race across 142miles with a time limit
C.can show off their ability to turn themselves upside down
D.can move from place to place without being driven by human beings

In the last paragraph, the author implies that there is a long way to go ________.

A.for a robotic vehicle to finish a 142mile race without any difficulties
B.for a little child who has just learned to walk to reach the cookie on the table
C.for a robotic vehicle to deal with a simple problem that a little child can solve
D.for a little child to understand the importance of wiping apple juice off his/her face
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While small may be beautiful, tall is just plain uncomfortable it seems, particularly when it comes to staying in hotels and eating in restaurants.
The Tall Persons Club Great Britain (TPCGB), which was formed six months ago to campaign for the needs of the tall, has turned its attention to hotels and restaurants. Beds that are too small, shower heads that are too low, and restaurant tables with hardly any leg-room all make life difficult for those of above average height, it says.
But it is not just the extra-tall whose needs are not being met. The average height of the population has been increasing yet the standard size of beds, doorways, and chairs has remained unchanged.
“The bedding industry says a bed should be six inches larger than the person using it, so even a king-size bed at 6′6″ (6 feet and 6 inches) is falling short for 25% of men, while the standard 6′3″ bed caters for less than half of the male population.” Said TPCGB president Phil Heinricy, “seven-foot beds would work fine.”
Similarly, restaurant tables can cause no end of problems. Small tables, which mean the long-legged have to sit a foot or so away from them, are enough to make tall customers go elsewhere.
Some have already taken note, however. At Queens Moat Houses′ Caledoman Hotel in Edinburgh, 6′6″beds are now put in as standard after requests for longer beds from taller visitors, particularly Americans.
What is the purpose of the TPCGB campaign?

A.To provide better services.
B.To rebuild hotels and restaurants.
C.To draw public attention to the needs of the tall.
D.To attract more people to become its members.

Which of the following might be a bed of proper length according to Phil Heinricy?

A.7′2″. B.7′ C.6′6″ D.6′3″

What may happen to restaurants with small tables?

A.They may lose some customers.
B.They may start businesses elsewhere.
C.They have to find easy chairs to match the tables.
D.They have to provide enough space for the long-legged.

What change has already been made in a hotel in Edinburgh?

A.Tall people pay more for larger beds.
B.6′6″beds have taken the place of 6′3″beds.
C.Special rooms are kept for Americans.
D.Guest rooms are standardized.

Dear Reader,
Today I'm going to ask you to support Wikipedia with a donation. Sounds unusual: Why does one of the world's five most popular websites ask for financial support from its users?
Wikipedia is built differently from almost every other top 50.We have a small number of paid staff, just twentythree. Wikipedia content is free to use by anyone for any purpose. Wikipedia is run by the nonprofit Wikipedia Foundation, which I founded in 2003.
Wikipedia's driven by a global community (群体) of more than 150,000 volunteers, all devoted to sharing knowledge freely. More than 275 million people come to our website every month to access information, free of charge and free of advertising.
Your donation helps us in several ways. Most importantly, you will help us cover the increasing cost of managing global traffic to one of the most popular websites on the Internet. Funds also help us improve the software that runs Wikipedia, making it easier to search, easier to read, and easier to write for. We're bent on growing the free knowledge movement worldwide, by employing new volunteers, and building strategic (战略的) partnerships with institutes of culture and learning.
Wikipedia is different. It's the largest encyclopedia (百科全书) in history, all written by volunteers.
Like a national park or a school, we don't believe advertising should have a place in Wikipedia. We want to keep it free and strong, but we need the support of thousands of people like you, for your donation will help keep Wikipedia free for the whole world.
Thank you!
Jimmy Wales
In the letter, Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikimedia Foundation tries to ________.

A.compare some top websites
B.explain how Wikipedia works
C.introduce a new website to the readers
D.appeal to Wikipedia users to make donations

Which of the following is TRUE about Wikipedia?

A.Due to its less popularity, Wikipedia is no longer attractive to advertising at all.
B.Over 275 million people come to Wikipedia to access information for free weekly.
C.Wikipedia, the world's most popular website, is run by the Wikipedia Foundation.
D.Unlike others, Wikipedia, the largest encyclopedia in history, is written by volunteers.

From the letter we can know donations will help do the following for Wikipedia EXCEPT ________.

A.take on some new volunteers
B.develop an effective new software
C.access free knowledge more easily
D.cover the increasing cost of management

It can be inferred from the letter that ________.

A.Wikipedia aims to give free access to the sum of all human knowledge
B.those donating to Wikipedia will be eventually employed as its volunteers
C.most websites including Wikipedia rely on financial supports from its users
D.supported by Wikipedia Foundation, Wikipedia wants to be free from advertisements

●Health, Wellness and the Politics of Food
9:00-9:45a.m. Blue Tent
Panelists(成员): Jami Bernard, David Kamp, Marion Nestle and Peter Singer.
Hosted by Denise Gray, science writer for The New York Times.
How does what we eat not only affect our bodies, but also the world? The food and nutrition experts debate the role that the diet plays in both personal and global health, and present a look at food politics.
● Sports writing: For the Love of the Game
9:50-10:35a.m. Blue Tent
Panelists: Christine Brennan, Ira Rosen, Joe Wallace and Joe Drape.
Hosted by William C. Rhoden, sports writer for The New York Times.
Whether catching that key moment of victory or defeat, or covering breaking news, sports writers are anything but audience. Listen as some professionals discuss the special experience in reporting of sports news.
● The Art of the Review
11:15-12:00a.m. Green Tent
Panelists: John Freeman, Barry Gewen, David Orr, Celia McGee and Jennifer Schuessler.
Hosted by Sam Tanenhaus, editor for The New York Times Book Review.
How much of an effect does the book review have on book sales? Join this group of critics as they discuss the reality of the book review and bestseller lists, and how they choose books for review.
● New York Writers, New York Stories
3:00-3:45p.m. Green Tent
Panelists: Cindy Adams, Richard Cohen, Ric Klass and Lauren Redniss.
If you like sports writing, you will most probably_______.

A.go to Blue Tent at 11:15a.m.
B.enjoy Jami Bernard’s talk
C.listen to Christine Brennan
D.attend the Art of the Review

Sam Tanenhaus is in charge of ______.

A.The Art of the Review
B.Health, Wellness and the Politics of Food
C.New York Writers, New York Stories
D.Sports Writing: For the Love of the Game

We can learn from the text that_______________.

A.sports writers are a type of audience
B.New York Times is a gold mine company
C.Denise Grady will discuss political policy
D.book reviews may affect book sales

Just outside the northern Italian town of Bra, there rises a church tower with a clock that is a half hour slow. Though not far from the industrial city of Turin, Bra smells of roses, and leisure(悠闲) is the law. It is both the home of an international movement that promotes slow food and one of Italian cities that have joined the slow cities. In Bra, population 27,866, the town fathers have declared that all small food shops be closed every Thursday and Sunday. They forbid cars in the town square. All fruits and vegetables served in local schools must be organic(有机的). And as the movement goes well, the slow concept gradually spreads across Europe.
The argument for a Slow Europe is not only that it is good, but also that it can work. The Slow City Movement, which started in 1999, has improved local economies(经济) by promoting local goods and tourism. Young Italians are moving from larger cities to Bra, where unemployment is only 5 percent, about half the nationwide rate. Slow food and wine festivals draw thousands of tourists every year. Shops are doing well, many with sales rising at a rate of 15% per year. “This is our answer to the world.” says Paolo Samrnini, the founder of Slow Cities.
France is in favor of slow economics. Most outsiders have long been doubtful of the French model: short hours and long vacations. Yet the French are more productive than those in the United States and Britain, and have been for years.
The mystery of French productivity has risen an Europewide debate about the advantages of working more slowly.
The church clock that is a half hour slow severs as a symbol of ________.

A.industrial development B.slow movement
C.global economy D.city growth

The low unemployment in Bra proves that ________.

A.the population is not large
B.tourism brings great job chance
C.the Slow City Movement is successful
D.the slow concept works well only in its birth place

It can be inferred from the passage that ________.

A.British workers work longer hours than the French
B.French workers work longer hours than the Italians
C.Italian workers are less productive than the Americans
D.American workers are more productive than the British

The increased French productivity tends to ________.

A.favor a fast life style
B.throw doubt on slow economics
C.encourage a slow economic growth
D.confirm advantages of slow economics

My wife passed away a few years ago,and I went through the worst time in my life.I even wanted to kill myself.Just for kids,I had to continue to live and work as small-town doctor at my medical clinic in Hawaii.My kids had gone to live on the mainland,and I was alone.Then they asked me to have a family trip.On our trip, we turned on the TV at the motel and saw the second plane crash into the World Trade Center. Seeing it falling down, I said to my kids: “I’m going to Afghanistan”. And a few weeks later, international Medical Corps sent me to set up 20 clinics in provinces where people had no health care. In these field clinics surrounded by frightening shoots or deadly bombs, we were eventually serving 27,000 patients a month in a very busy schedule. Tired and nervous, I gradually had a sense of achievement, a sense of purpose, and my depression went away.
In the years to follow, I went to Indonesia after the tsunami, Pakistan after the earthquakes, Sudan after the civil war and Iraq after more and more bombs. Each time after disasters one after another, hundreds of people were killed, wounded and many more had to flee. We once set up movable clinics in an area with 19,000 refugees, and it was supposed to hold 13,000 originally. Flu broke out, one of the biggest killers of kids in refugee camps, and it spread like wildfire. Water and food were also serious problems. “Adventures or not?” I often asked myself.
When my wife passed away, I thought my life was done. But in reality, it was just getting started. At the end of her life, she went unconscious. I held her head in my hands and told her of all the places we would visit and the exciting adventures we would have.
I think about the moment many times during my “adventures”. I didn’t know how predictive those words would be. But I know that she is still with me.
Where has the doctor been in the past few years?

A.Some countries where he could set up clinics.
B.Some African countries where flu broke out.
C.The places where the earthquakes happened.
D.The places that the horrible disasters struck.

How would the doctor describe his life after he had worked in Afghanistan?

A.Tired and troublesome. B.Busy and risky.
C.Meaningful and helpful D.Frightening and depressing.

The underlined word “refugees” means people_______________.

A.who are robbed, killed, or wounded
B.who suffer from flu in movable clinics
C.who like to take adventures
D.who have lost homes because of disasters.

Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A.the doctor’s wife encouraged him to work in foreign countries.
B.What the doctor said to his wife before her death became reality.
C.The doctor’s adventures made him understand the love of his wife.
D.With the true love of his wife, the doctor started to change his life.

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