I log onto a computer at the doctor's office to say I have arrived and then wait until a voice calls me into the examination room.
There, a robotic nurse directs me onto a device and then takes my blood pressure. Some time later, in steps the doctor, who is also a robot. He notes down my symptoms and gives me a prescription (处方). I pay for my visit using a credit card machine and return home without having met another human being.
When I call my dentist's office and actually get a human being on the line, I am thrilled. And when I see the introduction of yet more self-service checkout stations at the grocery store, I feel like shouting, "When it comes to cashiers, make mine human, please!"
After all, human cashiers sometimes give you a store coupon (优惠券) for items you are buying. Even more than that, real-life cashiers often take an interest in particularly cute children, which can brighten a young mother's day. A cashier may also show compassion (同情)for an elderly person struggling to get that last penny out of her purse.
What technological device would do any of this? I don't want to go back to the Stone Age, but I'm also worried about a world run by machines. Sometimes when you're chatting with someone, you discover things you need to know. Maybe a receptionist needs prayers said for a sick child. Maybe a salesperson can offer a bit of encouragement to a customer who is feeling tired.
Machines can be efficient and cost-effective and they often get the job done just fine. But they lack an element so important to everyday life.
Call it the spirit, the soul or the heart. It is something no machine will ever have. It is being human that prompts us to smile at others, which may be what they need at that moment.What's the author's purpose in writing the first two paragraphs?
A.To indicate high technology can make our future life very easy. |
B.To describe a possible future scene where robots take control of our life. |
C.To warn readers of the possible dangers of robotic nurses and doctors. |
D.To predict how technology can affect the way we see a doctoring the future. |
Why does the author prefer being served by humans rather than by robots?
A.Robots are indifferent and emotionless. |
B.Robots can't provide efficient services. |
C.Robots don't offer to give store coupons. |
D.Robots are unable to do a job as well as humans. |
What's the author's attitude towards machines?
A.He wishes one day they would come to life. |
B.He is absolutely against their existence in his life. |
C.He doesn't like they get involved in his life too much. |
D.He is afraid they would take the place of human beings. |
第三部分:阅读理解(共两节,满分40分)
第一节(共15小题;每小题2分,满分30分)
I travel a lot, and I find out different “styles” of directions every time I ask “How can I get to the post office?”
Foreign tourists are often confused in Japan because most streets there don’t have names; in Japan, people use landmarks(地标) in their directions instead of street names. For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, “Go straight down to the corner. Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market. The post office is across from the bus stop.”
In the countryside of the American Midwest, there are not usually many landmarks. There are no mountains, so the land is very flat; in many places there are no towns or buildings within miles. Instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distances. In Kansas or Iowa, for example, people will say, “Go north two miles. Turn east, and then go another mile.”
People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map; they measure distance in time, not miles. “How far away is the post office?” you ask. “Oh,” they answer, “it’s about five minutes from here.” You say, “Yes, but how many miles away is it?” They don’t know.
It’s true that a person doesn’t know the answer to your question sometimes. What happens in such a situation? A New Yorker might say, “Sorry, I have no idea.” But in Yucatan, Mexico, no one answers “I don’t know.” People in Yucatan believe that “I don’t know” is impolite. They usually give an answer, often a wrong one. A tourist can get very, very lost in Yucatan!
56. When a tourist asks the Japanese the way to a certain place, they usually ______.
A. describe the place carefully
B. show him a map of the place
C. tell him the names of the streets
D. refer to recognizable buildings and places
57. What is the place where people measure distance in time?
A. New York. B. Los Angeles. C. Kansas. D. Iowa.
58. People in Yucatan may give a tourist a wrong answer ______.
A. in order to save time B. Los Angeles.
C. so as to be polite D. for fun
59. What can we infer from the text?
A. It’s important for travelers to understand cultural differences.
B. It’s useful for travelers to know how to ask the way properly.
C. People have similar understandings of politeness.
D. New Yorkers are generally friendly to visitors.
On an island there are exactly seven towns: T, U, V, W, X, Y and Z. All existing and planned roads on the island are two-way and run perfectly straight between one town and the next. All distances(距离;路程) by road are distances the main square of one town to the main square of another town. U is the same distance by road from T, V and W as Y is from X and Z. The following are of the now existing roads on the islands.
Road 1 goes from T to V via (经由) U.
Road 2 goes directly from U to W.
The triangle (三角形) road goes from X to Y, from Y on to Z, and from Z back to X. Any main square reached by two roads is an interchange (立交桥) between them, and there are no other interchanges between roads.
68. Which of the following sketches is correct?
A. WB.U
T U V W V TC. T U V WD. T W V
U
69. Draw a sketch of the Triangle Road. Which of the following sketches is correct?
A.Z B.Y X Y
Z
X
C.X Z D. Y Z
Y X
70. Which of the following is a town from exactly two other towns can be reached by road?
A. T B. X C. V D. W
When you turn on the radio, you hear an advertisement. When you watch television, you hear and see an advertisement. If you turn the pages of a newspaper or magazine, again you find an advertisement. If you walk down the street, you see one advertising board after another. All day, every day, people who want to sell you something compete to catch your attention. As a result, advertisements are almost everywhere.
In the West, advertisements are the fuel (燃料) that makes mass media work. Many TV stations, newspapers, magazines, radio stations are privately owned. The government does not give them money. So where does the money come from? From advertisements. Without advertisements, there would not be these private businesses.
Have you ever asked yourself what advertising is? Through the years, people have given different answers to the question. For some time it was felt that advertising was a means of “keeping your name before the public”. And some people thought that advertising was “Truth well told. Now more and more people describe it in this way: Advertising is the paid, non-personal, and usually persuasive (有说服力的)description of goods, services and ideas by identified (明确的)sponsors through various media.
First, advertising is usually paid for. Various sponsors pay for the advertisements we see, read, and hear over the various media. Second, advertising is non-personal. It is not face-to-face communication. Although you may feel that a message in a certain advertisement is aimed directly at you, in reality, it is directed at large groups of people. Third, advertising is usually persuasive. Directly or indirectly it tells people to do something. All advertisements try to make people believe that the product, idea or service advertised can do good to them. Fourth, the sponsor of the advertisement must be identified. From the advertisement, we can see if the sponsor is a company, or an organization, or an individual. Fifth, advertising reaches us through traditional and nontraditional mass media. Included in the traditional media are newspapers, magazines, radio, television, and films. Nontraditional media include the mail, matchbox covers, and billboards (广告牌).
64. The existence of the privately owned mass media depends financially on___.
A. the government B. their owners’ families
C. advertisements D. the audience
65. What does the underlined word “sponsors” mean in Chinese?
A.广告商 B.出资者 C.经纪人 D. 经理人
66. According to the passage, which of the following statements about the features of advertisements is NOT true?
A. Advertising must be honest and amusing.
B. Advertising is meant for large groups of people.
C. Advertising tells people to do something directly or indirectly.
D. The sponsors are always mentioned in the advertisements.
67. According to the writer’s attitude, what is advertising?
A. Advertising is a means of “keeping your name before the public”.
B. Advertising is “truth well told”, which tells people all the facts about goods.
C. Advertising is persuasive description of goods, services and ideas.
D. Advertising is a way to sell you something completely to catch your attention.
The first thing to remember about homework is that it needs to be done as soon as you get home from school. Since many parents do not give doses to help you sleep at night, the homework MUST be done first. If you have after-school activities, the homework should be done as soon as you get home. It is fine to allow for a snack break and also to allow for stretching breaks. Every kid of you really needs these little breaks.
Also, you should remember that it is your responsibility to do your homework. Next time you tend to depend on Mom and Dad for a roadmap, please try to struggle with it first, because it is good for you.
When you have questions, especially something about a science or a math problem, don’t always turn to your teacher! It is a good idea to struggle with them first and try to work them out. Sometimes, if this doesn’t work, look at the materials in the back of the book. They may guide you to pages and and understanding everything completely.
At last, while doing homework, don’t be looking away but continue working. Setting time limits often helps with this. Different ages decide different fair amounts of time. 10-15minutes is good for a child that’s age 6-8. A time of 20-30 minutes is about right for a child aged 9-12. Kids can achieve 30-45 minute intervals of study at age 13-15. This, of course, depends on your abilities to concentrate and stay on task.
60. The passage mainly tells children ________.
A. to do their homework quickly and properly
B. to limit their time of doing homework
C. not to turn to teachers when doing homework
D. not to look away while doing homework
61 Which of the following may have the same meaning as “struggle with them”?
A. fight against them B. study them carefully
C. break away from them D. show great interest in them
62. If you are a girl aged 14, the proper length of the homework time should be________.
A. 14 minutes B. 25 minutes C. 35 minutes D. 50 minutes
63. The author seems to think ________.
A. children should finish their homework at school
B. parents had better help children with their homework
C. doing homework all alone is more important
D. homework in science needs more time
第三部分 阅读理解(共20小题,每小题2分,满分40分)
(共15小题;每小题2分,满分30分)
阅读下列短文,从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中选出最佳选项
Do you like sports? If your answer is yes, sometimes you will find it very difficult to have enough time to do it even if it’s on weekends. However, you don’t have to worry now because of a “sunshine sports” program launched (启动) by the Ministry of Education.
It suggests students around the country have an hour of sports every day. The difference is that students will be able to do any sport they please. The idea is to make students happy and keep them healthy at the same time.
Han Jiawen likes the idea. The 13-year-old studies in Shanghai Yangsi Middle School. Her school began the activity at the beginning of the term. Han an her classmates skipped rope together. “We had a good time,” said Han. “It was better playing than having classes.”
Wang Lichao welcomes the idea, too. “It’s good to be able to breathe some fresh air instead of sitting in the classroom.”
But the 14-year-old from Tianjin wonders whether there will be enough space for everyone. “With so many students outside,” he said, “I’m afraid there won’t be enough standing room in the playground.”
Wu Jiatong’s school in Liaoning already has something like a “sunshine sports” program. From the beginning of this term, Wu and other students at her school have been jogging for 40 minutes every morning. “It’s tiring,” said Wu. “But we do feel healthier.” “We hope we can do what we want. The school says later we can have rope skipping or kicking jianzi. I can’t wait!” she said.
What about your school? There must be more sports that interest you and your schoolmates.
56. According to the author, which of the following allows the students to have enough time to do sports?
A. The headmaster. B. A teacher.
C. A TV program. D. A program called “sunshine sports”.
57. What does Han Jiawen think of the “sunshine sports” program?
A. It’s useless. B. It’s wonderful. C. It’s healthy. D. It’s tiring.
58. According to the passage, Wu Jiatong ________.
A. hates her school program--- jogging
B. doesn’t like sitting in the classroom
C. wants to do different kinds of sports
D. complains there isn’t enough room to do sports
59. Which of the following statements is true?
A. All the students think it easy to carry out the program.
B. The program allows students to have an hour of sports on weekends.
C. Wang Lichao thinks sitting in the classroom is better than playing.
D. There may be not enough room for every student to do sports in some schools.