See a cellphone cover that you like on Taobao? Forget about placing an order, paying the bill online and waiting for days for it to be delivered to you. In the near future, you'll be able to get it in minutes just by hitting “print” on your computer.
You might find it hard to believe that you could actually “print” an object like you would a picture. But it is not that hard to understand how it would work. Just as a traditional printer sprays ink onto paper line by line, modern 3D printers spread material onto a surface layer by layer, from the bottom to the top, gradually building up a shape.
Instead of ink, the materials the 3D printer uses are mainly plastic, resin(树脂) and certain metals. The thinner each layer is—from a millimetre to less than the width of a hair—the smoother and finer the object will be.
This may sound like a completely new technology, but the truth is that 3D printing has been around since the late 1980s. Back then, it was barely affordable for most people, so few knew about it.
Last year, though, saw a big change in the 3D printing industry—printers became much cheaper. For example, 10 years ago a desktop 3D printer might have cost ￡20，000, while now they cost only about ￡1，000, according to the BBC.
Taken out of the factory and introduced to more diverse and common uses, 3D printing can create just about anything you can think of—flutes , bikinis, jewelry, aircraft parts and even human organs. In fact, scientists from Cornell University in New York have just made an artificial ear using a 3D printer, according to Science Daily. The fake ear looks and acts exactly like a natural one.
However, as 3D printing becomes more common, it may bring about certain problems—such as piracy. “Once you can download a coffee maker, or print out a new set of kitchen utensils (餐具) on your personal 3D printer, who will visit a retail store again？” an expert in 3D printing told Forbes News. Even more frightening, what if anyone in the world could use a 3D printer to print out a fully functioning gun?
According to the article, in the future, the 3D printing technology will _______.
| A．enable people to make better purchases online |
| B．change the way we make many products |
| C．be applied as widely in our daily life as computers |
| D．shorten the time it takes for people to get what they buy online |
What happened in the 3D printing industry last year?
| A．The 3D printing technology was taken out of the factory. |
| B．The 3D printing technology began to be used in various fields. |
| C．The 3D printer was used for medical treatment for the first time. |
| D．The 3D printer became more affordable for consumers. |
What is the best title of the passage?
| A．Great Demand for 3D Printers | B．Technology in the Future |
| C．Online Shopping Disappearing | D．Printing out Everything |
How is the last paragraph developed?
| A．By giving examples. |
| B．By making comparisons. |
| C．By analyzing the cause and effect. |
| D．By presenting research findings. |
I had the meanest mother in the whole world. While other kids ate candy for breakfast, I had to have cereal, eggs or toast. While others had Cokes and candy for lunch, I had to eat a sandwich. As you can guess, my supper was different from the other kids’ too. But at least, I wasn’t alone in my sufferings. My sister and two brothers had the same mean mother as I did.
My mother insisted upon knowing where we were at all times. She had to know who our friends were and where we were going. She insisted if we said we’d be gone an hour, then we should be gone one hour or less -- not one hour and one minute. And she always insisted upon us telling the truth. Now you can see how mean she was.
The worst is yet to come. We had to be in bed by nine each night and up at eight the next morning. We couldn’t sleep till noon like our friends. So while they slept - my mother actually had the courage to break the Child Labor Law. She made us work. We had to wash dishes, make beds, and learn to cook. We had to wear clean clothes and take a bath every day. The other kids always wore their clothes for days. We reached the height of disgrace because she made our clothes herself, just to save money. I believe she laid awake at night thinking up mean things to do to us.
Through the years, things didn’t improve a bit. We could not lie in bed “sick” like our friends did, and miss school. Our marks in school had to live up to expectations. Our friends’ report cards had beautiful colors on them, black for passing, red for failing. My mother, being as different as she was, would be satisfied with nothing less than ugly black marks.
As the years rolled by, first one and then the other of us was put to shame. We graduated from high school. With our mother behind us, talking, hitting and demanding respect, none of us was allowed the pleasure of being a drop-out.
My mother was a complete failure as a mother. Out of four children, a couple of us attained some higher education. None of us have ever been arrested or divorced. Each of my brothers served his time in the service of this country. She forced us to grow up into God-fearing, educated, honest adults. I am now trying to raise my three children. I am filled with pride when my children call me mean. Why? Because now I thank God every day for giving me the meanest mother in the whole world.The author’s mother wanted her children to _________.
| A．do their best at school and be educated and respected citizens |
| B．be top students in school and graduate with honors |
| C．stop seeing her friends who pretended to be sick to skip classes |
| D．bring home colored report cards like her friends did |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the text?
| A．The author has a deep hatred for her mother. |
| B．The author’s mother set timetables for her children whenever they went out. |
| C．Some of the children weren’t able to go to college because of their mean mother. |
| D．As a parent, the author is following her mother’s example. |
It can be inferred from the passage that________.
| A．All the other kids at school studied better than the author. |
| B．The author worked hard and usually got good grades in studies. |
| C．Mother was punished for breaking the Labor Law. |
| D．The author’s family lived a miserable life. |
Our risk of cancer rises rapidly as we age. So it makes sense that the elderly should be routinely screened for new tumors (肿瘤) or doesn’t it?
While such tracking of cancer is a good thing in general, researchers are increasingly questioning whether all of this testing is necessary for the elderly. With the percentage of people over age 65 expected to nearly double by 2050, it s important to weigh the health benefits of screening against the risks and costs of routine testing.
In many cases, screening can lead to additional examinations and operations to remove cancer, which can cause side effects, while the cancers themselves may be slow-growing and may not cause serious health problems in patients’ remaining years. But the message that everyone must screen for cancer has become so ingrained (根深蒂固的) that when health care experts recommended that women under 50 and over 74 stop screening for breast cancer, it caused a noisy reaction among doctors, patients and social groups.
It’s hard to uproot deeply-held beliefs about cancer screening with scientific data. Certainly, there are people over age 75 who have had cancers detected by routine screening, and gained several extra years of life because of treatment. And clearly, people over age 75 who have other risk factors for cancer, such as a family history or previous personal experience with the disease, should continue to get screened regularly. But for the rest, the risk of cancer, while increased at the end of life, must be balanced with other factors like remaining life expectancy.
A recent study suggests that doctors start to make more objective decisions about who will truly benefit from screening—especially considering the explosion of the elderly.
It’s not an easy calculation to make, but one that makes sense for patients. Dr. Otis Brawley said, “Many doctors are ordering these tests purely to cover themselves from medical disputes. We need to think about the wise use of health care, which means making some difficult decisions with elderly patients, and going against the misguided belief that when it comes to health care, more is always better.”Routine cancer screening for the elderly people makes sense because ______.
| A．it is believed to contribute to a long life |
| B．it is part of their health care package |
| C．they are more sensitive about the health |
| D．they are in greater danger of tumor growth |
How do some researchers now look at routine cancer screening for the elderly?
| A．It adds too much to their medical bills. |
| B．They are doubtful about necessity. |
| C．It helps increase their life expectancy. |
| D．They think it does more harm than good. |
What is the traditional view about women screening for breast cancer?
| A．It is a must for adult women. |
| B．It applies to women over 50. |
| C．It is intended for young women. |
| D．It doesn’t apply to women over |
Why do many doctors advise routine screening for cancer?
| A．They want to take advantage of the medical care system. |
| B．They want to protect themselves against medical disputes. |
| C．They want data for medical research. |
| D．They want their patients to suffer less. |
What does the writer say is the general view about health care?
| A．Better care, longer life. |
| B．Prevention is better than cure. |
| C．Better early than late. |
| D．The more, the better. |
In the face of tragedy，you must of course let yourself feel: Cry without holding back, shake with fear, yell out in anger, accept and follow your feelings. This is part of the wise approach to tragedy: The Upward Path —the feeling of emotions, the acceptance of them, and the coupling of the emotional mind with wisdom. Along this path, you'll take the experience —no matter how sad or upsetting —as a learning event, just as a11 other points on your journey will prove to be. While tragic, you must recognize this is still a chance for all involved to grow. You should let both sadness and joy, fear and courage, dark and light fill your world, and learn to find your steady, calm center in the midst of the opposing forces. This is the Upward Path. Use the event as a chance to gain balance and discover wisdom —the wisdom of love and of letting go, of non-attachment and non-resistance, and using this experience to eventually help others in need of guidance.
Being able to relate to others who have also experienced tragedy and inspire in them hope — of recovery, and of moving forward —is perhaps the greatest gift you can receive from tragedy. Turn the negative into positive, the pain into connection. After you've taken appropriate time to be sad, to feel your own pain, you should make it your work，your goal, your purpose to connect with others who need help. Show them how you've experienced feelings, achieved
balance，and gained wisdom that you would never have otherwise had the chance to learn.
FEEL, but do not FEED on tragedy. Rather, let it inspire you to go beyond the person who you were before. With demise comes renewal, so let this loss be also your rebirth. No matter how hopeless it seems, no matter how difficult this becomes, you have the power to transform yourself into someone greater than you ever knew you could be.When following the Upward Path, the person facing tragedy should _______.
| A．free his emotions |
| B．hold back his feelings |
| C．fill his world with positive ideas |
| D．give in to tragedy and all opposing forces |
According to the author，the greatest gift one gets from tragedy is being able to _______.
| A．seek solutions from others |
| B．forgive others and move on |
| C．stay calm and resist change |
| D．understand and help others |
The purpose of the passage is to _______.
| A．analyze the causes of tragedy |
| B．suggest a way of dealing with tragedy |
| C．tell people how to prevent tragedy |
| D．encourage people to build friendship after tragedy |
Dear Mr. Watson,
CLAIM AL54323432–-STORM DAMAGE TO ROOF
I received a cheque for $623 dated 26 January in payment of my recent claim(索赔). However, I wish to tell you how upset I have been by the way your Claims Assessor, Mr. Michael Tan, handled this claim.
When Mr. Tan first called me, he specifically told me that he believed I had been overcharged, and he would expect to pay that price for work on a double garage, rather than a single garage like mine. Mr. Tan suggested that I neither use nor recommend this contractor again. He continued to tell me it was unlikely for me to receive full payment. Never during this conversation did he mention that the reason for not receiving full payment was because of the nature of my insurance policy.
Consequently, I wrote to Mr. Lance Ashe to complain about his pricing, stating that I was very upset thinking that he could have taken advantage by overcharging a 73-year-old woman. Mr. Ashe telephoned me immediately and explained his charges in detail. He later reported back to me that Mr. Tan explained that I would not receive full payment because of the type of policy I hold, which does not cover wear and tear. This was the first time this issue had been brought to my attention, so you can imagine my surprise.
When I received Mr. Tan’s letter of 2 February, this situation was explained. If this had been explained in the first place I would have accepted it and would not have questioned Mr. Ashe’s charges. Instead, by telling me initially that I had been overcharged for this work, he caused a great deal of upset, not only for me but also for Mr. Ashe.
I believed this claim was handled badly by Mr. Tan from the beginning. Therefore, a great deal of embarrassment has been caused over this issue.
I felt you should know how disappointed and upset I am. I trust you will look into this and ensure that such claims are handled more appropriately in the future.
Yours sincerely,
Mrs. RichardThe author writes this letter to ______.
| A．inform the manager of a payment |
| B．complain about a mishandled case |
| C．demand an apology from Mr. Watson |
| D．require the manager to fire Mr. Tan |
The underlined words “the contractor” in Para.2 refer to ______.
| A．Mr. Tan | B．Mrs. Richard | C．Mr. Ashe | D．Mr. Watson |
The author could not receive full payment because _______.
| A．her policy doesn’t cover some of the items |
| B．the contractor overcharged her for the work |
| C．Mr. Watson doesn’t take the matter seriously |
| D．she spent too much money fixing her garage |
We can learn from the passage that Mr. Tan works in a/an _______.
| A．welfare organization | B．nursing house |
| C．local affairs office | D．insurance company |
The clock struck eleven at night. The whole house was quiet. Everyone was in bed except me. Under the strong light, I looked sadly before a huge pile of troublesome stuff they call “books”.
I was going to have my examination the next day. "When can I go to bed?" I asked myself. I didn’t answer, in fact I dared not.
The clock struck 12."Oh, dear!" I cried, "ten more books to read before I can go to bed!” We pupils are the most wretched creatures in the world. Dad does not agree with me on this. He did not have to work so hard when he was a boy.”
The clock struck one. I was quite hopeless now. I forgot all I had learnt. I was too tired to go on. I did the only thing I could. I prayed, “Oh, God, Please help me pass the exam tomorrow. I do promise to work hard afterwards, Amen.” My eyes were heavy, so heavy that I could hardly open them. A few minutes later, with my head on the desk, I fell asleep.When the author was going over his lessons, all the others in the house were_____ .
| A．asleep | B．working in bed | C．outside | D．quietly laughing at him |
Reviewing his lessons didn’t help him because ________. .
| A．it was too late at night |
| B．he was very tired |
| C．his eyes l ids were so heavy that he couldn’t keep them open |
| D．he hadn’t studied hard before the examination |
The best title for the passage would be __________ .
| A．The Night Before the Examination | B．Working Far into the Night |
| C．A Slow Student | D．Going Over My Lessons |