Your brain controls everything you do. It makes it possible for you to think, learn, create and feel; to blink(眨眼) and breathe and for your heart to heat –this fantastic control center is your brain. It is so amazing that a famous scientist once called it “the most complex(复杂) thing we have yet discovered in our universe”.

Can this small grey organ(器官), which weighs less than one and a half kilos, really do so much? Amazingly, your brain contains about 100 billion neurons(神经元) -it would take you over 3 ,000 years to count them all. Believe it or not, the activity in your brain never stops. Your neurons create and send more messages than all the phones in the world. And although one neuron creates only a little electricity, all your neurons together can produce enough electricity to power a light bulb (灯泡).

So exactly how fast does your brain work? Well, imagine this: a bee lands on your foot. Neurons in your skin send this information to your brain at a speed of more than 240 kilometers per hour. Your brain then uses other neurons to send the message back to your foot to shake the bee off quickly. These neurons can send this information at more than 320 kilometers per hour. No computer has your brain's unbelievable ability to deal with the amount of information coming from your eyes, ears and other sensory organs.

But how does your brain allow you to learn things that you will use in the future? The structure (结构) of your brain changes every time you have a new thought, remember or learn something. For example, riding a bike seems impossible at first, but soon you are able to do it. How? As you practice, your brain sends "bike riding" messages again and again Soon, the actions are learnt and you are able to ride a bike easily from then on.

1.From the passage we know that neurons___________.

A. receive messages very slowly B. are only found in your skin

C. send messages to your brain D. need electricity to work

2.In Paragraph 3, the writer mentions computers to ___________ .

A. compare them with the human brain

B. show how fast they have become

C. say that computers have no abilities

D. ask people to use computers more

3.When you have a new thought, ___________ .

A. your brain will power a light bulb B. your heart beats faster

C. you remember something D. the structure of your brain changes

4.Which of the statements about the brain is TRUE?

A. The speed of the neurons in the brain can be up to 320 kilometers per minute.

B. The electricity produced by the neurons can hardly power a light bulb.

C. We learn a new skill by sending the messages again and again through the brain.

D. After receiving the information, the brain send the same neurons back to your foot.

5.The article is mainly about ___________.

A. all the steps when your brain learns things

B. what an unbelievable organ the human brain is

C. how the brain makes people smarter than computers

D. the things you can do to make your brain work faster

As we walked down the shore, Ben Gunn told his story.“I was alone here for years,” he said. “One day, I found the skeleton(骷髅). I saw it was pointing to a tree. I dug around that tree and found the treasure. I was living in a cave, so I took the treasure to the cave. This morning, when Long John Silver and his men came to look for the treasure, I showed myself to one of them. He thought I was a ghost.” Ben laughed. “He ran off, and this gave me time to get back to the squire(乡绅) and the doctor. They were waiting at the cave.”

“Now I know,” I said to the doctor, “why you gave the map to Silver.”

“It was useless by then,” the doctor said. “There was no buried treasure. Ben Gunn had it. My plan was to get Long John Silver and his men away from the stockade(木寨). We could then get some stores from it.”

When we got back to the cave, the squire was waiting for us.

“Three of the mutineers(反叛者) got away,” the doctor told him. “But if we hurry, we can get to the boat before them. They ran back to the stockade on the other side of the island. We are nearer to the boat than they are.”

I went into the cave. The captain was lying inside it next to the treasure—a pile of gold coins.

“Hello, Jim,” he said. “I am pleased to see you. But I don’t think you or I will be going to see again.”

That night, the captain died. We carried the treasure down to the boat. We lit a fire on the shore and had a fine meal together. We were not afraid of the three mutineers. We had pistols(手枪). They had none. There were more of us than of them.

The next morning, we went in the boat towards the Hispaniola. We didn’t care about the three men. We left them on the island.

I will not tell you about the journey home. Nothing important happened.But as soon as we got to Bristol, Long John Silver ran away. He took some of the gold with him. None of us cared. We were pleased to see the back of him. We each shared the treasure and used it in a different way.

(Adapted from Treasure Island)

1.Who found the treasure?

A.Jim. B.Ben Gunn. C.Long John Silver. D.Three mutineers.

2.Why did the doctor give the map to Long John Silver?

A.He wanted to help Long John Silver find the treasure.

B.Ben Gunn had taken the treasure away and the map was useless by then.

C.His plan was to get Long John Silver and his men to come to the stockade.

D.He wanted Long John Silver to get some stores for him.

3.Where was the squire waiting?

A.At the cave. B.In the stockade. C.In the boat. D.Behind the tree.

4.According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true?

A.Ben Gunn explained the treasure and the cave.

B.The three mutineers were afraid to fight with the doctor and his men because the doctor had pistols and more men.

C.Jim, the doctor, the squire, Long John Silver and Ben Gunn left the three mutineers on the island and went back to Bristol with the treasure.

D.Long John Silver took all the treasure away as soon as they got to Bristol.

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