An underwater robot that can hear the calls of whales, and to help ships to avoid them, has just been successfully tested in the Bahamas.
The scheme relies on a fish-shaped glider that moves freely through the ocean. It can dive down as far as 200 meters below the surface and direct itself by shifting a weight from fore to aft. A microphone attached to the bottom of the glider can pick up calls from all whales, including the high frequency call of the beaked whale, which until now has been difficult to detect. The glider returns periodically to the surface to radio its data back to base, or if that's too far away, it can call a satellite phone and send its information anywhere in the world.
"We are entering a new era of underwater sensing' says Jim Theriault of Defence Research and Development Canada, in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia who ran the trial. "We can put a glider in the Bahamas and monitor it in Nova Scotia. ”
The hope is that naval or other ocean-going operations that use sonar (声呐）will be able to more easily track where whales are, and so avoid using their noisy equipment when they are close by. There is circumstantial evidence that sonar can upset whales and a number of strandings (搁浅）have been seen shortly after naval sonar operations. “We're trying to lower the potential risk by knowing the animals are there，” says Theriault. The shape of the underwater robot is like __________
| A．a man |
| B．a fish |
| C．a snake |
| D．a turtle |
The underwater robot is built to __________.
| A．help whales move to the Bahamas |
| B．help whales give birth to their young |
| C．help ships avoid whales |
| D．help humans kill more whales |
To radio its data back to base, the robot has to __________
| A．dive down as far as 200 meters below the surface |
| B．stay deep in the water |
| C．call a satellite phone |
| D．come to the surface periodically |
The best title for this passage is “ __________ ”.
| A．Whales are in danger |
| B．Whales are difficult to find |
| C．Robot built to kill whales |
| D．Robot built to spy on whales |
Which of the following statements is FALSE?
| A．Whales can be disturbed by naval sonar operations. |
| B．Whales can be disturbed by noisy equipment. |
| C．Whales can be disturbed by noisy ocean-going operations. |
| D．Whales' strandings have nothing to do with naval sonar operations. |
The medical world is gradually realizing that the quality of the environment in hospitals may play a significant role in the process of recovery from illness.
As part of a nationwide effort in Britain to bring art out of the galleries and into public places, some of the country's most talented artists have been called in to transform older hospitals and to soften the hard edges of modern buildings. Of the 2,500 National Health Service hospitals in Britain, almost 100 now have significant contemporary art in corridors, waiting areas and treatment rooms.
These recent initiatives(首创) owe a great deal to one artist, Peter Senior who set up his studio at a Manchester hospital in northeastern England during the early 1970s. He felt the artist had lost his place in modern society and that art should be enjoyed by a wider audience.
A typical hospital waiting room might have as many as 5,000 visitors each week. What a better place to hold regular exhibitions of art! Senior held the first exhibition of his own paintings in the outpatients waiting area of the Manchester Hospital in 1975. Believed to be Britain's first hospital artist, Senior was so much in demand that he was soon joined by a team of six young art school graduates.
The effect is striking. Now in the corridors and waiting rooms the visitor experiences a full view of fresh colors, playful images and restful courtyards.
The quality of the environment may reduce the need for expensive drugs when a patient is recovering from an illness. A study has shown that patients who had a view onto a garden needed half the number of strong pain killers compared with patients who had no view at all or only a brick wall to look at. The underlined part "to soften the hard edges of modern buildings" in Paragraph 2 means"________".
| A．to decorate hospitals with art collections |
| B．to make the corners of hospital buildings round |
| C．to change people's attitude toward hospitals |
| D．to replace the old buildings with modern buildings |
Peter Senior is a(n) ________.
| A．doctor interested in arts |
| B．artist who refuses to hold art exhibitions in hospitals |
| C．pioneer in introducing art into hospitals |
| D．artist who owns a great deal of property |
The improvement of the hospital environment seems to be effective in ______.
| A．making it unnecessary to give drugs to patients |
| B．helping the modern artists regain their status in society |
| C．calling in more talented artists to hospitals |
| D．helping patients recovering from illness |
The writer’s attitude towards the effect of art exhibitions in hospitals is ______.
| A．suspicious | B．positive | C．neutral(中立的) | D．unfavorable |
When you travel in South America, you’d better pay attention to the following three kinds of dangerous South American animals.
Piranhas（水虎鱼）
Although only a small number of piranhas are considered to be dangerous to humans, the red-bellied piranha is definitely one of those. Evidence has shown that a large group of piranhas can absolutely eat a herd of large animals crossing the river, leaving only bones. This fish lives in the freshwater streams of South America, and they can smell the blood from far away and launch attacks swiftly. It is said that they are only dangerous to humans if the water volumes are less and lower.
Anacondas（水蟒）
This South American monster of a creature often appears in the films or your nightmares！They have weighed over 230 kilograms. It is often considered to be the biggest snake in the world. You certainly don’t want to get caught alone with this snake due to its method of attacking and killing its victim. It is indeed a remarkably different brand of snake type as it regularly coils（缠绕）around all over its target, increasing the pressure until eventually its victim dies. Its jaws are powered by large muscles that produce enough power for its over 100 sharp teeth to pass through the thick skin of an crocodile. They don’t have poison. Sometimes they prefer to camouflage themselves so they look like their surroundings and swiftly draw back when humans are near.
Golden Poisonous Frogs
The golden poison frog might be the most-deadly of the South American animal, which is protected by means of poison. This very small frog, less than 55 mm in length, packs enough punch（效力）to take down a pair of African bull elephants. This apparently harmless frog has always been known to have killed people who have touched it directly. It’s also been noted that chicken and dogs have died by contacting things on which a golden poison frog had wandered! In intense colors, they normally look attractive to their targets.What can we learn about piranhas from the passage?
| A．Piranhas are the most dangerous animals. |
| B．Piranhas like to live in the deep seabed. |
| C．Piranhas may attack human beings when the water level is low. |
| D．Piranhas only attack human beings when they cross the river in groups. |
How does an anaconda kill its victim according to the passage?
| A．It often uses its poison to kill its victim. |
| B．It often uses its strength to kill its victim. |
| C．It kills its victim mainly using its powerful teeth. |
| D．It kills its victim with the help of other snakes. |
The underlined word “camouflage” in Paragraph 3 means “________”.
| A．hide itself by appearing like the surroundings |
| B．terrify and capture the enemy by making much noise |
| C．move around to search for delicious food |
| D．give off harmful gas to kill the targets |
Chicken and dogs are mentioned in Paragraph 4 to show that ________.
| A．no animals can survive the poison of the golden poison frog |
| B．they like to wander along the path of the golden poison frog |
| C．the golden poison frog likes eating them most |
| D．the poison of the golden poison frog is deadly |
“All I could see was two sets of red eyes below me,” said Dave Gatty, an Australian farmer who spent seven days up a tree in remote bush land to escape crocodiles. Gatty, 52, said he was forced to take such drastic action after he accidentally went into a crocodile-infested area of Queensland. He only had two meat sandwiches to keep him going, as crocodiles moved beneath his tree each night until his rescue. Gatty said he decided it was safer to hold out for a rescue team than try to make a run for it. His problems began after he fell off his horse while out in the northern Australia outback. Dazed and bleeding, he climbed back on his horse and hoped it would lead him home. It was only when he regained his senses he realized that he had been taken into crocodile-infested area. “I had to get off the horse and I fell straight into a crocodile nest,” he told reporters.
“That frightened me. I couldn’t go back, it was too far and too dangerous, so I headed to the nearest high ground and stayed there, hoping someone would come and find me before the crocs did.”
Gatty explained how each night two crocodiles would sit at the bottom of the tree staring at him. Although Gatty’s two sandwiches ran out after three days, he was able to get running water during the day and knew rescuers were looking for him as he could see helicopters in the air above his tree.
“If I hadn’t seen the crocs circling me, and if I hadn’t fallen into the croc nest, I would have made a push for it. But I knew the safest thing was for me to sit and wait,” he said. A chocolate bar, given to him by rescuers after being moved to safety by using a winch(卷扬机), “was like a gourmet (delicious)meal,” he said.Gaddy felt _______ when he found himself trapped in the crocodile- infested area.
| A．panicked but optimistic | B．nervous and hopeless |
| C．upset and regretful | D．frightened but calm |
Which of the following did not help Gatty survive the accident?
| A．Sandwiches | B．Running water |
| C．Chocolates | D．Staying up in a tree |
What’s the right order of the events related to the accident?
a. Gaddy climbed up onto his horse unconscious.
b. Gaddy climbed up a tree and stayed there.
c. Gaddy was moved by a winch to safety.
d. Gaddy fell off his horse accidentally.
e. Gaddy found himself in a crocodile-infested area.
| A．a d e c b | B． d a e b c | C．a d e b c | D．d e a b c |
The article can be classified as _________.
| A．a news story | B．a scientific fiction |
| C．a personal essay | D．a literary report |
Something that has always interested me about Abraham Lincoln is，not surprisingly，his sense of humor. As far as I can tell，he's the first American President to have one．
That's because the term“sense of humor” really wasn't in common usage until the eighteen-sixties and seventies．In the eighteen-forties and fifties，it was called“the sense of the ridiculous," and didn't have the positive connotations（隐含意义）that“sense of humor" has today. Back then，what was ridiculous was what invited ridicule（讥笑）．Funniness and cruelty went hand in hand．Of course，they still do a lot of arm-in-arm walking in our day as well．
Lincoln’s humor was very different because，for one thing，it was actually "humor＂as what the word meant in his time. We don't make the distinction between "wit（风趣）”and "humor”anymore; but in the nineteenth century people did．Wit was unpleasant and offensive while humor was pleasant and sympathetic．It’s the difference we note now when we distinguish between "laughing with”and“laughing at．”Lincoln was much more about "laughing with”than "laughing at．”And when“laughing at，”it was often himself he was teasing.
In the famous Lincoln-Douglas debates，when Douglas accused Lincoln of being two-faced，Lincoln replied，referencing his plain looking，“Honestly，if I were two-faced，would I be showing you this one？”And，in a way，Lincoln's face itself tells us much about his sense of humor．
You can comb through thousands of photographs of politicians，soldiers，and the like from Lincoln's time and not find a single smile．
True, the long exposures（曝光）required for photographs of that time made smiling difficult．Yet Lincoln alone，as far as I can tell，overcame that difficulty.
Interestingly, while having a sense of humor，or at least the appearance of one provided by comedy writers has become a necessary characteristic for an American President in our time，in the nineteenth century，too much humor was considered problem. And that was the case for Lincoln．A journalist covering the Lincoln-Douglas debates commented that“I could not take a real personal liking to the man，owing to an inborn weakness. . .that he was extremely, fond of jokes，anecdotes，and stories．”We can infer from Paragraph 2 that＿＿
| A．the American President could influence the use of English |
| B．the term "sense of humor”wasn't invented until the 1860s |
| C．what is funny to someone might be offensive to someone else |
| D．the concept of humor remains the same despite the passing of time |
The underlined words“this one”in Paragraph 4 refer to＿＿．
| A．Lincoln's unattractive face |
| B．Lincoln's sense of humor |
| C．the debate they were having |
| D．cruelty that went with funniness |
We rarely see people from Lincoln's time wear smile in their photos because＿．
| A．being humorous was considered inappropriate |
| B．they found it quite funny to smile before camera |
| C．not smiling for photographs was the fashion |
| D．photography technology then was not advanced |
What might the writer think of the journalist covering the Lincoln-Douglas debates？
| A．His comment accurately reflected his time |
| B．He created a false picture of Lincoln |
| C．He was prejudiced and self-centered |
| D．He was brave to point out Lincoln's weakness |
The Green Microgym in Portland，Oregon has all the usual stuff you'd expect-sweaty people，loud music，smooth exercise equipment-but it has some extras as well. Everywhere you look，there are power wires. And these aren't the typical kind that let you surf the Web while you ride a spin cycle-although. you can do that too．The gym uses special exercise equipment that captures（捕获）the energy you create while riding, converts（转换）it into electricity and channels it into the power outlets（插座）．
The idea of using exercise equipment to produce electricity is not new. A gym in Hong Kong has been doing this since 2007. But clean (and healthy）energy is just now starting to catch on in U. S. gyms·"We have seen a significant increase in interest in the past six months，which is a good sign that fitness centers are ready to spend money on green technologies，” says Mike Curnyn，co-founder of the Green Revolution，a Connecticut-based firm that wires bikes into a central battery that can store energy.
The Green Microgym，first opened in 2008，has more than 200 members and is doing so well that owner Adam Boesel opened another one five miles from the original．Although membership costs about the same as ordinary gyms，customers can earn gift certificates from local businesses for watts produced while exercising．An average workout creates 37. 5 watt hours，which is enough to power a phone for a week．
Boesel uses spin bikes made by Resource Fitness，a Seattle company he co-owns，that captures energy produced from the flywheel. Wires send the converted AC current（交流电流）into any standard wall outlet-for this reason，the product line's name is Plug Out-and the energy created is used before the building draws power from the grid（电网）．Unlike the Green Revolution equipment，Plug Out machines cannot store extra energy. A third company，the Florida-based ReRev，is adding converters to a specific brand of spin bikes. But since the converters add＄1，000 to the price of the equipment，the ReRev and Green Revolution machines are at a disadvantage．
Resource Fitness，by contrast，sells its equipment for the same＄1，200 price as non- electricity-producing machines，removing the question of how long it will be until the energy savings pay for the cost of the unit．The company can afford to do this because its designs don’t call for the extra wiring needed for battery packs and large converters．It is also trying to price competitively with standard equipment so more gyms-and gym goers-will make the switch．Members of the Green Microgym earn gift certificates for_______．
| A．using the man-powered exercise equipment |
| B．saving electricity for local businesses |
| C．producing green electricity to power their phones |
| D．paying higher membership fees |
The spin bikes made by Resource Fitness are different from those by Green Revolution in that_______.
| A．they are easier to ride |
| B．they are more expensive |
| C．they don't have wires connected |
| D．they can not store extra electricity |
What might prevent the green exercise equipment from getting more popular？
| A．People's unwillingness to go green． |
| B．The high cost of making it. |
| C．Safety problems concerning electricity. |
| D．Lack of certificates． |
The underlined words“make the switch”in the last paragraph most probably mean_____.
| A．change to a different gym |
| B．use green exercise equipment |
| C．switch on the spin bikes |
| D．add a battery to the machine |