Last month, students from one hundred and three universities in eighty-eight countries took part in an international computer programming contest. The Battle of the Brains took place in Harbin, China. Three-person teams from each school had five hours to solve eleven real world problems.
Jerry Cain coached the team from Stanford University in Palo Alto, California. He says the problems involved, among other things, paperweights，robots，castles and lakes.
The students first listed the problems in order of difficulty. Then they figured out the requirements of each. They designed ways to test their solutions. And they wrote the needed software systems. Even the winning team from Shanghai Jiaotong University in China was not able to solve all the problems within the given time limit. Stanford's team solved five problems and finished in fourteenth place. Stanford was one of twenty-one American universities that took part in the contest this year.
The official name of the Battle of the Brains is the ACM International Collegiate Programming Contest. It began in nineteen seventy at Texas A and M University. The contest quickly became popular in the United States and Canada. It developed and grew as more and more schools took part in local and area contests.
The first final competition was held in nineteen seventy-seven at the Association for Computer Machinery Computer Science Conference.
Today, a network of universities holds area competitions that send the winners to the world finals, which are now organized by IBM.
Contest spokesman Doug Heintzman says the world champions receive prizes and scholarships. They are also guaranteed an offer of employment or internship with IBM. This competition is an opportunity to be recognized and to be recruited (雇用，聘用) by some of the top technology and research firms around the world. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．The winners will be sent to the world finals, which are now organized by IBM. |
| B．Five-person teams had three hours to solve eleven real world problems. |
| C．Shanghai Jiaotong University in China solved all the problems within the given time limit. |
| D．Stanford's solved five problems and finished in fortieth place in the contest. |
What is not the possible result of the world champions?
| A．Receiving prizes and scholarships. |
| B．Being offered employment or internship with IBM. |
| C．Being recognized and employed by top technology and research firms. |
| D．Being given an opportunity to go travelling around the world for free. |
This . passage would most likely be found in ______ section of the newspaper.
| A．politics | B．economy |
| C．education | D．entertainment |
Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
| A．The Battle of the Brains |
| B．Listing the Problems in Order of Difficulty |
| C．Champions Receiving Prizes and Scholarships |
| D．An International Computer Programming Contest |
Electronic waste, or e-waste, refers to electronic products that are no longer usable. This can include TVs, cell phones and computers and other office electronics, electronic toys and videos machines. Today, the average turnover（更换）rate for a computer in the United States is every two years, according to the environmental group, Greenpeace.
The group's Dai Yun says e-waste is a global problem. "The electronic industry is one of the fastest growing industries in the world. The high speed of growth in this industry means more and more electronic products are being wasted and thrown away. If no one decides to retrieve the old products and process them properly, the electronic waste will sweep over the earth like the huge wave behind me and pollute the Earth seriously."
Greenpeace works out that 20 to 50 million tons of e-waste are produced globally each year. The components（部件）in many electronic products contain harmful chemicals that pollute ground water and the environment.
At present , the U.S. has no federal law for the disposal (处理) of e-waste although a few states have e-waste recycling programs in place, but there is no law. The U.S. exports much of its e-waste to third world countries, such as India and China, where workers took apart computers for valuable parts, hoping to sell them for money. But harmful wastes expert, Dr. Bakul Rao, says that's a dangerous practice. "From now on, the recyclers are not very educated. All they know is they can retrieve copper or gold out of it. So, the easiest way to do that is leach (过滤) it out in an acid or burn it off to retrieve it. So, that's where they don't know how to deal with it, neither do they have any health systems in place. So, their exposure is more." Which of the following is most likely not to be a form of e-waste?
| A．A mobile phone | B．A radio | C．An e-bike | D．A table |
What does the underlined word "retrieve" (paragraph 2) probably mean?
| A．look into | B．take apart | C．get back | D．throw away |
What of the following statements is true according to the passage？
| A．The U.S. has strict national laws for dealing with e-waste. |
| B．Third world countries import e-waste to get valuable parts, which is a safe and easy way to make money. |
| C．The way uneducated workers deal with old computers does great harm to the environment as well as to their own health. |
| D．More and more electronic waste is being wasted and thrown away mainly because of |
people's bad habits.What is the purpose of writing the passage?
| A．To attract more people's attention to e-waste. |
| B．To call on people not to throw away e-waste anywhere. |
| C．To tell people what e-waste is and how to deal with it well. |
| D．To warn people to break away from the electronic industry. |
The next paragraph probably concerns_______.
| A．how to deal with e-waste properly |
| B．how to protect ourselves from harm by e-waste |
| C．How to slow down the development in the electronic industry |
| D．how to make full use of e-waste |
Moses Mendelssohn, the grandfather of the well-known German composer(作曲家), was far from being handsome. Along with a rather short stature(身材), he had a hunchback(驼背) .
One day he visited a merchant in Hamburg who had a lovely daughter named Frumtje. Moses fell hopelessly in love with her. But Moses was refused by his ugly appearance
When it was time for him to leave, Moses picked up his courage and climbed the stairs to
her room to take one last chance to speak with her. She was a heavenly beauty, but caused him deep sadness by her refusal to look at him. After several attempts at conversation, Moses shyly asked, “Do you believe marriages are made in heaven？”
“Yes, ”She answered, still looking at the floor. “And do you？”
“Yes I do, ”He replied. “You see, in heaven at the birth of each boy, the God announces which
girl he will marry. When I was born, my future bride(新娘) was pointed out to me. Then the God added, ‘But your wife will be humpbacked. ’”“Right then and there I called out, ‘Oh God, a humpbacked woman would be a tragedy(不幸). Please, God, give me the hump and let her be beautiful. ’”
Then Frumtje looked up into his eyes and was stirred by some deep memory. She reached out and gave Mendelssohn her hand and later became his devoted wife.At first Moses was refused by Frumtje because_______.
| A．he had a bad intention |
| B．he was not handsome and humpbacked |
| C．he had no courage to express himself |
| D．he was a hopeless man |
Frumtje accepted Moses’ request in the end because of_______.
| A．Moses’ good heart and honesty |
| B．Moses’ sweet words and devotion |
| C．Moses’ tricks and lies |
| D．Moses’ wealth and humor. |
Which of the following word can replace the underlined word “stirred” in the last paragraph ?
| A．mixed | B．moved | C．caused | D．surprised |
The writer of the passage intends to try to tell us _______.
| A．how to run after e a girl | B．a marriage in heaven |
| C．a moving love story | D．What true love is. |
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The passage is aimed to ____________.
| A．telling people some information about Wu-Long tea. |
| B．proving to people that Okuma's Wu-Long Is the World's #1 Weight-Loss Solution. |
| C．persuading fat people to buy Wu-Long tea. |
| D．informing people that Wu-Long tea is on sale. |
The underlined sentence “we're putting our money where our mouth is” probably means______.
| A．We put our money inside the pocket. |
| B．We’ll give your money back if you are not satisfied |
| C．You can order anytime. |
| D．If you send us small money, we’ll give you another |
Which of the following is not the function of Okuma's Wu-Long?
| A．curing skin illnesses |
| B．increasing energy and intellidence |
| C．melting away needless bodyfat. |
| D．making your waistline slender and attractive. |
The passage is probably taken from________.
| A．a newspaper | B．a magazine | C．a journal | D．a biology book |
If you want to get 4 boxes of Wu-Long tea, you should pay______.
| A．185$ | B．222$ | C．148$ | D．111$ |
Are you a big fan of pirate（海盗） stories? Do you know how to talk like a pirate? You can have fun on September 19th. This special holiday is called International Talk Like A Pirate Day. It was invented in 1995 by two young Americans, John Baur and Mark Summers.
These two good friends came up with this idea when they were playing racquetball, and began to talk like pirates. At that moment, they thought, “Young people are interested in pirate. But there is no such a chance for people to get together to share it. Why not have a day when everybody talks like a pirate?” They decided to make September 19th the date. Since then, Baur and Summers have tried hard to promote Talk Like A Pirate Day. As Baur said, “We've talked like pirates, and encouraged several of our friends to do so every September 19th.”
At first, this day was only known by a few people. In 2002, Baur and Summers sent a letter about their invented holiday to Dave Barry. This columnist（专栏作家）really liked their idea. He promoted the holiday and made it known to more and more people. Now, it has really become an international holiday. On Talk Like A Pirate Day, you need to dress like a pirate. You should wear a big hat or maybe cover one of your eyes. You can pretend to be any kind of pirate that you can find in any story or movie.
Having fun and being relaxed are not the only best things about the holiday. Young people share the same interest and childhood dreams that day. That's why it is welcomed by so many people, especially young people.
Unlike traditional holidays, International Talk Like A Pirate Day is a brand new holiday which is invented by the youth themselves and celebrated by themselves too. Because of Baur and Summers' imagination and creativity, thousands of young people's pirate dream come true. Next time, when you have a good idea, why not share it with your fiends and insist on your belief? Maybe you can create another wonderful holiday for the youth in the future.How did John Baur and Mark Summers invent the special holiday?
| A．Many young people asked them to do it |
| B．They did it just for pleasure |
| C．They thought out the idea by chance and imagination |
| D．They did it in order to honor pirates |
Why are the holiday become more and more popular？.
| A．You can have fun and relax yourself freely. |
| B．young people can exchange ideas and dreams on the day |
| C．young people can have fun and be relaxed. |
| D．you can play the role of the pirate in the movie on the day |
Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．It was Dave Barry who made more people know the holiday. |
| B．Talk Like A Pirate Day is a young, active and lively holiday |
| C．Thanks to John Baur and Mark Summers’ imagination and creativity, a lot of people realize their pirate dream. |
| D．The holiday has been popular since the birth of it. |
According to the passage, which of the following can show that the holiday is special?
| A．It has a long history. |
| B．It is a wonderful and instructive holiday. |
| C．It is a brand new holiday invented and celebrated by the youth themselves. |
| D．People can make their dream come true on this day. |
Which of the following can serve as the best title of the passage？
| A．Can you talk like a pirate? |
| B．Young people’s pirate dream |
| C．John Baur and Mark Summers |
| D．September 19th ,—a day in honor of pirates |
When I was growing up, I was embarrassed to be seen with my father. He was badly crippled (跛脚), and when we would walk together, his hand on my arm for balance, people would stare, I would be ashamed of the unwanted attention. If ever noticed or bothered, he never let on.
It was difficult to walk together—and because of that, we didn’t say much as we went along. But as we started out, he always said, “You set the pace. I will try to follow you.”
Our usual walk was to or from the subway, which was how he got to work. He went to work sick, and even in bad weather. He almost never missed a day, and would make it to the office even if others could not. It was a matter of pride for him.
When snow or ice was on the ground, it was impossible for him to walk, even with help... Such times my sister or I would pull him through the streets of Brooklyn, N.Y., on a child’s sleigh to the subway entrance. Once there, he would try to grasp handrail until he reached the lower steps that the warmer tunnel air kept ice free. In Manhattan the subway station was the basement of his office building, and he would not have to go outside again until we met him in Brooklyn on his way home.
When I think of it now, I am surprised at how much courage it must have taken for a grown man to suffer from shame and disability. And I am also surprised at how he did it—without bitterness or complaint.
He never talked about himself as an object of pity, not did he show any envy of the more fortunate or able. What he looked for in others was a “good heart”, and if he found one, the owner was good enough for him.
Now that I am older, I believe that is a proper standard by which to judge people, even though I still don’t know exactly what a “good heart” is. But I know the times I don’t have one myself.
He has been away for many years now, but I think of him often. I wonder if he sensed my reluctance to be seen with him during our walks. If he did, I am sorry I never told him how sorry I was, how unworthy I was, how I regretted it. I think of him when I complain about my troubles, when I am envious of another’s good fortune, when I don’t have a “good heart”.How did the man treat his father when he was young?
| A．He helped his father happily. |
| B．He never helped his father. |
| C．He helped his father, but not very happily. |
| D．He only helped his father take a walk after supper. |
As a disabled man, his father____.
| A．didn’t work very hard |
| B．didn’t go to work from time to time |
| C．hated those who had good fortune |
| D．was happy and satisfied, and never lost hope |
What does the underlined word “reluctance” mean in the article? It means ____.
| A．anger | B．sadness | C．happiness | D．unwillingness |
How did the father get to work usually?
| A．By subway. | B．By bus. | C．By wheelchair. | D．By bike. |