Humans have been keeping animals as pets for tens of thousands of years, but Dr Jean-Loup Rault, an animal scientist at the University of Melbourne in Australia, believes new companions are coming: robot pets.
“Technology is moving very fast,” Rault told ABC News, “The Tamagotchi in the early 1990s was really the first robotic pet, and now Sony and other big companies have improved them a lot.”
This may not sit well with pet lovers. After all, who would choose a plastic toy over a lovely puppy? But Rault argues that the robotic kind has a lot going for it: “You don’t have to feed it, you don’t have to walk it, it won’t make a mess in your house, and you can go on a holiday without feeling guilty.” The technology also benefits those who are allergic to pets, short on space, or fearful of real animals.
It’s not clear whether robot pets can replace real ones. But studies do suggest that we can bond with these smart machines. People give their cars names and kids give their toy animals life stories. It’s the same with robots. When Sony stopped its repair service for its robot dog Aibo in March 2014, owners in Japan held funerals.
As an animal welfare researcher, Rault is concerned about how robotic pets could affect our attitudes towards live animals. “If we become used to a robotic companion that doesn’t need food, water or exercises, perhaps it will change how humans care about other living beings,” he said.
So are dogs and cats a thing of the past, as Rault predicts? For those who grew up with living and breathing pets, the mechanical kind might not do. But for our next generation who are in constant touch with smart technology, a future in which lovely pets needn’t have a heartbeat might not be a far-fetched dream.What does the underlined phrase “sit well with” means?
| A.be refused by | B.be beneficial to |
| C.make a difference to | D.receive support from |
What are the advantages of robot pets?
a. They are plastic and feel smooth.
b. Owners needn’t worry about them when going out.
c. They can help cure allergies(过敏).
d. They save space and costs.
| A.ab | B.bc | C.bd | D.cd |
We can learn from the passage that___________.
| A.Sony is the first company to produce robot pets Aibo. |
| B.People can develop strong bond(联系、关系) with their robot pets. |
| C.Rault thinks robot pets still have a long way to go. |
| D.Robot toys may help people care more about living beings. |
The passage mainly tells us___________.
| A.the advantages of robot toys |
| B.the popularity of robot pets |
| C.living pets are dying out |
| D.robot pets are coming |
For many years, scientists couldn't figure out how atoms and molecules on the Earth combined to make living things. Plants, fish, dinosaurs, and people are made of atoms and molecules, but they are put together in a more complicated way than the molecules in the primitive ocean. What's more, living things have energy and can reproduce, while the chemicals on the Earth 4 billion years ago were lifeless.
After years of study, scientists figured out that living things, including human bodies, are basically made of amino acids and nucleotide bases. These are molecules with millions of hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen atoms. How could such complicated molecules have been formed in the primitive soup? Scientists were stumped.
Then, in 1953, two scientists named Harold Urey and Stanley L. Miller did a very simple experiment to find out what had happened on the Primitive Earth. They set up some tubes and bottles in a closed loop, and put in some of the same gases that were present in the atmosphere 4 billion years ago: water vapor, ammonia, carbon dioxide, methane, and hydrogen.
Then they shot an electric spark through the gases to simulate bolts of lightning on the ancient Earth, circulated the gases through some water, sent them back for more sparks, and so on. After seven days, the water that the gases had been bubbling through had turned brown. Some new chemicals were dissolved in it. When Miller and Urey analyzed the liquid, they found that it contained amino acids-the very kind of molecules found in all living things.
61. When did scientists come to realize how the atoms and molecules on the Earth combined to make living thing?
A. 4 billion years ago. B.1953. C. After seven days.D. Many years later.
62. Scientists figured out that human bodies are basically made of .
A.amino acids
B.molecules
C. hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen and oxygen atoms
D. water vapor, ammonia, carbon dioxide, methane and hydrogen
63. Harold Urey and Stanley L.Miller did their experiment in order to .
A. find out what had happened on the Earth 4 billion years ago
B.simulate bolts of lightning on the ancient Earth
C. dissolve some new chemicals
D.analyze a liquid
64. At the end of the last paragraph, the underlined word "it" refers to .
A. a closed loop B. an electric spark C.water D. the liquid
65. According to the writer, living things on the Earth include .
A. atoms and molecules B.chemicals
C. plants, fish, dinosaurs and human beings D.the primitive soup
三、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)
阅读下列短文, 从每题所给的A、B、C和D选项中, 选出最佳选项, 并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
When John Milton , writer of “Paradise Lost” ,entered Cambridge University, in 1625, he was already skilled in Latin after seven years of studying it as his second language at St. Paul’s School, London. Like all English boys who prepared for college in grammar schools ,he had learned not only to read Latin but also to speak and write it smoothly and correctly .His pronunciation of Latin was English ,however ,and seemed to have sounded strange to his friends when he later visited Italy.
Schoolboys gained their skill in Latin in a bitter way. They kept in mind the rules to make learning by heart easier. They first made a word-for-word translation and then an idiomatic translation into English .As they increased their skill ,they translated their English back into Latin without referring to the book and then compared their translation with the original .The schoolmaster was always at hand to encourage them. All schoolmasters believed Latin should be beaten in.
After several years of study ,the boys began to write compositions in imitation of the Latin writers they read. And as they began to read Latin poems ,they began to write poems in Latin .Because Milton was already a poet at ten ,his poems were much better than those painfully put together by the other boys. During the seven years Milton spent at university ,he made regular use of his command of Latin. He wrote some excellent Latin poems ,which he published among his works in 1645.
56.What does the passage mainly tell about?
A.How John Milton wrote “Paradise Lost”.B.How John Milton studied Latin.
C.How John Milton became famous. D.How John Milton became a poet.
57.Which of the following is true of John Milton’s pronunciation of Latin?
A. It has a strong Italian accent. B. It has an uncommon accent.
C. It was natural and easy to understand. D. It was bad and difficult to understand.
58.It can be inferred from the passage that .
A.Milton’s training in Latin was similar to that of the other boys
B.Milton hadn’t learned any foreign language except Latin before going to college
C.Milton’s Italian friends helped him with Latin when talking
D.Milton’s classmates learned Latin harder but worse than Milton.
59.Which of the following is suggested in the passage?
A.The schoolmaster mainly helped those who were bad at Latin.
B.The schoolmaster usually stood beside the schoolboys with a stick in his hand.
C.The schoolboys could repeat Latin grammar rules from memory.
D.Some of the schoolboys were quick at writing compositions in Latin.
60.What is the meaning of the underlined part “Latin should be beaten in” (Para.2)?
A.Schoolboys should be punished if they were lazy to learn Latin.
B.Schoolboys should be encouraged if they had difficulty in learning Latin.
C.Schoolboys were expected to master Latin in a short time.
D.Schoolboys had to study Latin in a hard way.
SATURDAY, June 16, 2009 (Health Day News) -- Following simple safety rules can help protect children from injury while they're having fun this summer, say experts from Safe Kids East Central and the Medical College of Georgia's Children's Medical Center
Here are some safety guidelines:
● When riding in a vehicle, children aged 12 and under should be secured in the back seat in a child safety seat, or safety belt that's suitable for their age and size. Children aged 4 to 8, or those weighing more than 40 pounds, should be in a car booster. Children taller than 4 feet 9 inches may use an adult seat belt
● Teach children never to play in or around parked cars. Never leave a child alone inside a car
● Never let a child under age l0 cross a street alone. Make sure all children know when and where to cross a street. Never let children walk alone at night
● Always supervise children at the playground or in the backyard. Make sure they play on a safe surface, such as rubber or free sand. Check that playground equipment is in good shape and safe.
● Children should attend swimming lessons with a qualified instructor, but don't assume that swimming lessons make children "drown-proof". They still need to be supervised when doing water-related activities
● Children should always wear proper protective equipment when using bicycles, scooters, inline skates and skateboards. Teach children the rules of the road
72. The best title for the passage is ___________
A. Some Safety Guidelines B. Rules of the road
C. A Safe Summer Means More Fun for KidsD. Safety Is Everything
73. According to the passage, which of the following is NOT mentioned?
A. Car riding. B. Swimming. C. Climbing. D. Skating
74. The underlined word "supervise" means_______
A. watch B. advise C. direct D. command
75. To have a safe summer we should do the following EXCEPT _________
A. never leave a child alone inside a car
B. teach children the rules of the road
C. allow children aged 12 and under sit in the back seat without safety belt
D. make sure children play on a safe surface
Feel tired lately? Has a doctor said he can't find anything wrong with you? Perhaps he has sent you to a hospital, but all the advanced equipment there shows that there is nothing wrong with you
Then, consider this: you might be in a state of sub-health. Sub-health, also called the third state or gray state, is explained as a borderline state between health and disease
According to the investigation by the National Health Organization, over 45 percent of sub-healthy people are middle-aged or elderly. The percentage is even higher among people who work in management positions as well as students around exam-week
Symptoms(症状) include a lack of energy, depression, slow reactions, insomnia, anger, and poor memory. Other symptoms include shortness of breath, sweating and aching in the waist and legs
The key to preventing and recovering from sub-health, according to some medical experts, is to form good living habits, alternate work and rest, exercise regularly, and take part in open air activities
As for meals, people are advised to eat less salt and sugar. They should also eat more fresh vegetables, fruits, fish because they are rich in nutritional elements -- vitamins and other elements that are important to the body. Nutrition experts point out that it is not good to eat too much at one meal because it may cause unhealthy changes in the digestive tract. They also say that a balanced diet is very helpful in avoiding sub-health
68. When you are in a state of sub-health, you should_______.
A. stay at home and have a good rest.
B. go to see a doctor and buy some medicine
C. have yourself examined with advanced equipment
D. find out the reasons and relax yourself
69. It may be easy for middle-aged people to get sub-healthy because _______
A. they have used up their energy
B. they have lost their living hopes
C. they have more pressure in life and work
D. they begin to get older
70. We can know form the passage if you____, you can avoid falling into a state of
sub-health.
A. eat more fresh vegetables and fruits B. develop good living habits
C. sleep moreD. take more medicine
71. The underlined word "alternate" in this passage is closest in meaning to ____
A. keep oneself busy with B. cause to take place
C. arrange by turns D. get rid of
If you walk slowly through downtown Helsinki(芬兰首都)during the day, taking in the splendid 19th century buildings, white boats and noise of passing trams, you will start to understand why it is called a city of two colors: white and blue
The sea is always present in Helsinki. When you take a walk over the great open space of the central square, you will hear seabirds screaming. When you take the train, suddenly and unexpectedly, you are faced with a calm, shining blue sea. You may notice that people in Helsinki do not rush as in other cities. Instead, they walk along the roads, politely letting other people by
A usual way to see Helsinki for the first time is to start out by the boats. You will walk by the elderly women selling fish and vegetables in the market square and find yourself in front of a beautiful park. You may enjoy a pleasant walk in the park for a few hours and then take the tram. Trams are the perfect way to get around in Helsinki. Watching the old houses, parks, theatres, churches, shops, restaurants and people in the streets, you may have a slightly sad film feeling to it
The pale summer nights are another wonder in the city. Following the waterfront of the city after sunset, you couldn’t help stopping and listening to the sweet silence, interrupted only by the screaming seabirds and leaving fishing boats
However, in some way, Helsinki is also the most modern city in northern Europe. You will surely want to visit the white Glass Palace, the modern art museum, and all those extremely popular cafes and design stores
64. Helsinki is called a city of two colors mainly because of the colors of its_____
A.19th century buildings, boats and parks
B. 19th century buildings, boats and seabirds
C. old houses, parks and trams
D. old buildings, boats and the sea
65. The best way to see most of Helsinki is to go ________
A. by boat B. by bus C. by tram D. on foot
66. The 19th century buildings, the white Glass Palace, popular cafes and design
shops in Helsinki all show that Helsinki is ______
A. both splendid and traditionalB. both quiet and noisy
C. both historical and modern D. both old and new
67.This passage is most likely to be found in _________
A. a story-book B. a geography textbook
C. a research reportD. a travel magazine