A ground-based system that uses much stronger signals than GPS can find your location in cities and indoors. It is a new positioning system that could compete with GPS to make sure you never lose your directions again.
Instead of satellites, Locata uses ground-based equipment to launch a radio signal over a localized area that is a million times stronger on arrival than GPS. It can work indoors as well as outdoors, and the makers claim the receivers can be shrunk to fit inside a regular cell phone. Even the US military, which invented GPS technology, signed a contract last month agreeing to a large-scale test of Locata at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.
“This is one of the most important technology developments for the future of the positioning industry,” says Nunzio Gambale, CEO and co-founder of the firm Locata, based in Griffith, Australia.
As for the Locata’s accuracy, Christopher Morin of the US Air Force tested it recently at White Sands, and it worked to within 18 centimeters along any axis(轴). Morin says it should be possible to get the resolution down to 5 centimeters.
Admittedly, the tests were performed in an open desert where GPS also works beautifully, but its signals are weak— like a car headlight from 20,000 kilometers away— and easily blocked by solid objects. “Locata’s signal is far stronger, though not guaranteed to work in a complex urban environment,” says David Last, consultant to the UK’s General Lighthouse Authorities.
“Locata’s technology will face competition in the race to transform indoor navigation. But it could shine in specific areas,” Gambale says. “Robots with Locata could easily navigate inside buildings without the complex optical systems they need at the moment. And process that handle precise location data could not only guide you around a mall, railway station or airport, but also take you to the exact shelf in a shop for the product you want. The units small and cheap enough for smart phones should be available within five years— a similar path to the one GPS took on its way towards world domination.”The passage is written mainly to .
A.encourage people to buy the Locata |
B.tell us the disadvantage of the GPS |
C.introduce a new positioning system Locata |
D.tell us that Locata will replace GPS one day |
Which of the following is not true about Locata according to Paragraph 2?
A.Without the help of the satellites, Locata can tell you where you are. |
B.The US military has to test it before using it. |
C.Locata has a better signal than GPS. |
D.Locata can be fixed into smart phones only. |
Which of the following words can be used to replace the underlined word in Paragraph 4?
A.accuracy | B.speed |
C.determination | D.length |
According to the passage, what can we know about Gambale?
A.He did the experiment at White Sands. |
B.He is confident in Locata and think highly of it. |
C.He said that Locata could not work in a complex urban environment. |
D.He is worried about the competition that Locata faces. |
III阅读(共两节,满分40分)
第一节 阅读理解(共15小题;每小题2分,满分30分)
阅读下面短文,掌握其大意,然后从41~55各题所给的四个选项(A、B、C、D)中,选出最佳选项,并在答题卷上将该项涂黑。
“Family” is of course an elastic word. But when British people say that theirsociety is based on family life, they are thinking of “family” in its narrow, peculiarly European sense of mother, father and children living together alone in their own house as an economic and social unit. Thus, every British marriage indicates the beginning of a new and independent family—hence the tremendous importance of marriage in British life. For both the man and the woman, marriage means leaving one´s parents and starting one´s own life. The man´s first duty will then beto his wife, and the wife´s to her husband. He will be entirely responsible for her financial support, and she for the running of the new home. Their children willbe their common responsibility and theirs alone. Neither the wife´s parents northe husband´s, nor their brothers or sisters, aunts or uncles, have any right to interfere with them—they are their own masters.
Readers of novels like Jane Austen´s Pride and Prejudice will know that in former times marriage among wealthy families were arranged by the girl´s parents, that is, it was the parents´ duty to find a suitable husband for their daughter, preferably a rich one, and by skillful encouragement to lead him eventually to asktheir permission to marry her. Until that time, the girl was protected and maintained in the parents´ home, and the financial relief of getting rid of her could be seen in their giving the newly married pair a sum of money called a dowry. It is very different today. Most girls of today get a job when they leave school andbecome financially independent before their marriage. This has had two results. Agirl chooses her own husband, and she gets no dowry.
41. What does the author mean by “Family is of course an elastic word”?
A.Different families have different ways of life.
B. Different definitions could be given to the word.
C. Different nations have different families.
D.Different times produce different families.
42. For an English family, the husband´s duty is ____.
A. supporting the family while the wife is financial
B. defending the family while the wife is running the home
C. financial while the wife is running the home
D. independent while the wife is dependent
43. Everything is decided in a family ____.
A.by the coupleB. with the help of their parents
C. by brothers and sistersD. with the help of aunts and uncles
44. What is true concerning the book Pride and Prejudice?
A. It is the best book on marriage.
B. It is a handbook of marriage.
C. It gives quite some idea of English social life in the past.
D. It provides a lot of information of formertime wealthy families.
45.With regard to marriage in Britain, present-day girls differ from former time girls in ____.
A. the right marry B. more parental support
C. choosing husbands D. social position
A new study by a Penn State College of Medicine research team found that honey is a better and safer treatment for children than cough medicines.
Ian Paul, the study’s lead researcher, was motivated to test honey because treating coughs in children has recently become a sticky subject. Coughing is the body’s way of clearing irritated (受刺激的) airways to help you breathe. But too much coughing can irritate your lungs and throat even more. It can also make it tough to get the sleep your body needs to heal. Hoping to ease the suffering of their children, parents often give them cough medicines.
But there have never been any good studies showing that they work. Cough and cold medicines may also cause serious side effects. Hundreds of kids die in the hospital each year after receiving too much cough medicine by mistake. Last October, the US Food and Drug Administration suggested that parents should not give cough medicines to children under 6.
In order to search for a different solution, Paul designed a study that involved 105 kids who were sick with coughs and other cold conditions. At bedtime, the kids took buckwheat (荞麦) honey, honey-flavored (蜂蜜味的) DM (one of the most common ingredients in cough medicines), or no treatment. Parents and kids in the no-
-treatment group knew they weren’t getting anything, but the other two groups weren’t told which treatment they were getting.
The surveys showed that kids who swallowed about 2 teaspoons of buckwheat honey before bedtime coughed less and slept better than kids in the other groups. “When parents want something for their kids to take,” Paul says, “honey seems like the best option”.
But what gives honey its healing power? Substances called antioxidants (抗氧化剂) may be part of the answer. All honey contains antioxidants that protect our cells from damage. Studies show that antioxidant levels in the body rise after someone swallows honey.
68. Which of the following can be the best title for this passage?
A. No cough medicines to children
B. Sweet solution to kids’ coughing
C. Best treatment for your cold
D. Cough medicines don’t work
69. We can learn from Paragraph 2 that coughing ______.
A. sometimes does good to people
B. can cure lung and throat diseases
C. is more harmful to children
D. helps improve children’s diet
70. During Paul’s experiment, the kids who received treatment ______.
A. seemed much worse than before
B. knew they weren’t getting anything
C. coughed less and slept better
D. had no idea what they swallowed
I once heard someone say, “We don’t remember days; we remember moments.” However, in today’s busy life we often forget to enjoy small pleasures while we make big plans.
In the race to be better or best, we sometimes lose sight of “just being”. And just being and enjoying a beautiful moment can provide some of life’s greatest pleasures. A fire on a cold winter night, a good book, an impressive sunset, a great meal, or a timeless moment with your child or a friend ... these moments, if we stop long enough to enjoy, are the essence (本质) of life.
I love to fish, especially for large-mouth bass (鲈鱼). About three years ago I was watching television late at night and got this crazy idea to go fishing in the lake behind my house. Of course, my wife thought I was nuts. It was almost midnight! I told her I was fine and took off.
I walked out to a warm summer breeze and looked up at the starry sky and breathtaking full moon. I allowed my senses to soak (浸泡) in every second — the sweet smell of flowers, the sound of every cricket (蟋蟀), the moon’s reflection dancing off the water — it was a perfect night.
After walking across a small field, I took out a flashlight, and selected a lure (饵). On my first cast I got a bass weighing over five pounds, one of the largest I had ever caught. I gently put it back into the water and continued my midnight adventure. During the next two hours I caught seventeen bass, all between two and five pounds. Although I’ve fished for almost fifty years, no fishing memory can top that night.
But that night provided far more than a fishing memory. It was a life memory. It provided me a picture of what life could be like if I just slowed down enough to enjoy the moments. On my way back to the house, as I walked through the tall grass, I took one last look at the sky and stopped to say, “Thank you, God, for giving me this night.”
64. The purpose of the passage is to ______.
A. suggest people should make big plans
B. tell people to do what they like
C. advise people to enjoy beautiful moments
D. encourage people to follow their dreams
65. What does the underlined word “nuts” in Paragraph 3 mean?
A. Determined. B. Ill. C. Tired. D. Crazy.
66. The fourth paragraph is mainly about ______.
A. the description of the night
B. the author’s fishing experience
C. the author’s attitude towards life
D. what the author did that night
67. We can learn from the passage that night the author ______.
A. caught fewer fish than before
B. enjoyed real small pleasures
C. went to bed around 1:00 am
D. went fishing with his wife
What’s On?
Macau Neighborhood Festival 2008
Various celebratory activities will be hosted by the General Union of Neighbors Association of Macau from July 9 to 31 in celebration of the “Macau Neighborhood Festival”. A live performance and picture exhibition will be mounted (组织开展) on July 9. Visitors and local residents are welcome.
Time: 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm Free admission
Venue: Courtyard of Lok Yeung Garden, Fai Chi Kei
Telephone enquiries: (853) 333 614
Lao Man Chau Photography Exhibition 2 to 9 Jul.
Throughout his travels to various natural beauty cities, Lao Man Chau had plenty of opportunities to indulge(满足) his passion for painting, music, calligraphy (书法) and philosophy. He is to share the delights of photography in his seminar on July 2 at 3:30 pm. All are welcome to come and share the experience.
Opening hours: 11:00 am to 7:00 pm Free admission
Venue: Millennium Gallery, Av. da Praia Grande, No. 599
Telephone enquires: (853) 557 672 www.mdpa.org.mo
Permanent Activity — San Kio Fair
San Kio Fair is specially designed to offer entertainment, culture and shopping to visitors. Different stalls (摊位) will be set up outside the Lin Kai Temple to provide visitors with toys, garments and food. Cantonese Operas are held on Saturday and Sunday nights.
Time: 5:00 pm to 11:00 pm Free admission
Venue: In front of Lin Kai Temple
Telephone enquires: (853) 324 622
4th Macau Pop Music Festival
Major local music event Macau Pop Music Festival acts as a platform for bands and singers from Hong Kong and Macau to exchange musical genres (类型). This year, performers will stage two concerts in Sai Van Lake Square on July 16 at 7:30 pm and Macau Forum on July 23 at 8:30 pm.
Admission: MOP $80
Telephone enquires: (853) 9884 130, 9884 000
60. If you plan to leave Macau at 8:00 pm on July 9, how many activities can you take part in at most?
A. Four. B. Three. C. Two. D. One.
61. The 4th Macau Pop Music Festival is different from the other three in that ______.
A. it requires admission charges
B. it lasts for more than one week
C. you can enjoy a performance there
D. you can go there in the evening
62. From the passage we can know that ______.
A. singers from different countries can take part in Macau Pop Music Festival
B. if you want to know more about the culture of Macau, you should go to Sai Van Lake Square
C. Lao Man Chau is a photographer of many talents
D. you can enjoy a live performance at Courtyard of Lok Yeung Garden from July 9 to 31
63. The main purpose of announcing the above is to give information about ______.
A. some bands and singers B. some activities for July
C. a famous photographer D. celebratory activities
第三部分:阅读理解(共20小题; 每小题2分, 满分40分)
Everyone likes to feel that he or she is special.
Unfortunately, many of us grow up believing that we’re not special at all. We wish that we could be better at sports or more attractive. We wish we had nicer clothes or more money. Like the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, or the Cowardly Lion from The Wizard of Oz (《绿野仙踪》), we believe we’re not good enough just as we are. In the movie, the Scarecrow wishes that he had a brain. The Tin Man wishes he had a heart, and the Lion wants courage. In the end, each of them realizes that he already has what he needs.
Most parents want us to be the best we can be. They sometimes try to encourage us to do better by comparing us to others. They mean well, but the message we often get is that we’re not good enough. We begin to believe that the only way we can be special is by being better than someone else, but we are often disappointed. There will always be someone out there who is better than we are at something. There are plenty of people around who may not be as smart as we are but who are better at sports. Or they may not be as good-looking, but they have more money. It is impossible for us to be better than everyone else all the time.
Like the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Cowardly Lion, we all want what we believe will make us better people. What we don’t realize is that often we already have inside us the very things that we seek. Parents sometimes forget to tell us that we are special, that we are good enough just as we are. Maybe no one told them that when they were growing up, or maybe they just forgot. Either way, it’s up to us to remind them from time to time that each of us, in our own way, is special. What we are ... is enough.
56. This passage is most likely written by a ______.
A. teenager B. parent C. teacher D. coach
57. According to the author, it seems improper for parents to ______.
A. compare their children with others now and then
B. give no pressure to their children
C. remind their children frequently they are special
D. praise their children too much
58. By discussing the characters in The Wizard of Oz, the author mainly wants to show ______.
A. we are not good enough just as we are
B. we already have inside us what we want
C. it is impossible for us to be better than others
D. there is always someone who is better than us
59. What does the author of this passage believe?
A. Not everyone can be special.
B. Smart people are more special than others.
C. The richer you are, the better you are.
D. We are all good enough just the way we are.