Zipped into a bag, it looks like a large umbrella. Unfolded, it goes along the street like any other bicycle.
It's the "A-bike", the brainchild (脑力劳动的产物) of British inventor Sir Clive Sinclair, who made history in the 1970s by developing the world's first pocket calculator. He described his new invention as "the world's smallest, lightest foldable bicycle".
"My original thought was that if you could have a bicycle that was dramatically lighter and more firm than the ones that exist today, it would change the way in which bicycles are used,"said Sinclair.
The mini-bike, showed in Singapore last week and set to go on sale worldwide in 2005 at a price of nearly US$300, is built for riders as heavy as 112 kilograms and is height-adjustable(可调整高度的). It takes about 20 seconds to fold or unfold.
Its wheels are a quarter the size of those on a regular bicycle, but Sinclair promises a smooth ride for most cyclists. "You require no extra energy to ride the A-bike and it can go up to 15 miles per hour (24 kilometers per hour)," he said. Constructed mainly of plastic, the 5.5-kilogram bicycle folds into a package of less than 0.03 cubic meters (立方米).
Sinclair also invented the first pocket TV in 1984 and the futuristic C5 electric tricycle in 1985. He said he hoped the bicycle would attract common citizens, officials, campers or anyone needing transport for a short trip and he said the next step for the A-bike was to add an electric motor in a few years.
【小题1】The most important character of this kind of bike is its ________ .

A.big size
B.light weight
C.beautiful appearance
D.foldable structure
【小题2】The wheels of a regular bicycle is ________ the size of this kind of bike.
A.four times
B.three times
C.one-fourth
D.one-third
【小题3】This kind of new bike is mainly made of ________ .
A.plasticB.packagesC.bagsD.metal
【小题4】The best title of the text is ________ .
A.World's smallest foldable bicycle arriving
B.A new bike, a large umbrella
C.A foldable bike, a large bag
D.A great inventor of a new bike
【小题5】This kind of new bike hasn't been fixed with ________ .
A.a wheel
B.an electric motor
C.pedal
D.a hand

任务型阅读(共10小题,每小题1分, 满分10分)
根据所读内容在文章后图表中的空格里填入最恰当的单词。注意:每空1个单词。
Unique Tradition from UK
Boxing Day
This holiday, which is observed on December 26, is a unique part of the Christmas season in Great Britain, as well as other Commonwealth nations. Boxing Day comes from a tradition that began in the Middle Ages more than 800 years ago. On this day, English churches would open their ‘alms box’ and distribute its contents to needy members of the community. It was also a day for servants to celebrate the holidays with their families, having usually worked the day before. Today, Boxing Day is one of the twenty-two paid holidays received by most working Brits. Most people now spend Christmas Day with their family and reserve Boxing Day for exchanging gifts with friends. Although the government shuts down for the day, cinemas and theatres are open.
Queen’s Telegram
In the United States, if you make it to the ripe old age of 101 or 102, Willard Scott will wish you happy birthday on national television. In England, the queen herself will send her congratulations. This fairly new custom is known as "the Queen’s Telegram" and assures centenarians (people at least 100 years old) that they will receive a birthday telegram from the queen on their one-hundredth birthday. The telegram is so longed for by some Brits that one 98-year-old woman was recently proven to have faked her age by two years just to receive the telegram.
High Tea
High tea was first enjoyed by the English working class during the 1700s. This ritual (仪式) began as a practical attempt to hold off hunger pains between breakfast and supper, as eating just two daily meals was common at the time. It was called “high” tea because it was usually taken sitting on top stools in a tea shop or standing at a counter or buffet table. Today, high tea has become a more elegant and popular tradition that is practiced in fine hotels and restaurants around the world.
Public Houses
Visiting a pub is one of Britain’s oldest forms of entertainment. The idea for the first public houses was brought to Britain thousands of years ago by conquering Roman army. The first pubs served only wine, but after the discovery of hops(啤酒花) in the fourteenth century, pubs began to serve mainly beer and ale(麦芽酒), as they do today.
British pubs operate between 11 a.m. and 11 p.m. every day except Sunday, when they must close at 10:30 p.m. The drinking age in Britain is eighteen, but fourteen-year-olds may enter a pub unaccompanied if they order a meal.
Unique Tradition from UK

Traditions
Time
Main Activities
Boxing Day
Observed on Dc.26 during the (71)______ season.
In the past, churches would open their “alms box”, with its contents (72)_______ to needy people.
Today it is reserved to (73)_____gifts with friends.
Queen’s Telegram
(74)______by the Queen when one has his or her 100th birthday.
People over 100 years will receive a birthday telegram from the queen herself on her birthday, enjoying the Queen’s (75)_____ to them.
High Tea
Enjoyed and practiced between breakfast and supper.
It (76)______to be taken sitting in a tea shop, or standing at a corner. Today it’s becoming a tradition (77)_____ in the hotels and restaurants worldwide.
Public Houses
Visited between 11 a.m. and 11 p.m. every day
(78)______Sunday.
At the (79)______, only wine was served, but today they mainly serve beer and ale, but people (80)_____than eighteen are not allowed to drink.

Astronomers have captured(捕获) the first direct image of a planet being born.

Adam Kraus, of the University of Hawaii’s Institute for Astronomy, said the planet is being formed out of dust and gas circling a 2-million-yea-old star about 450 light years from Earth.

The planet itself, based on scientific models of how planets form, is believed to have started taking shape about 50,000 to 100,000 years ago.

Called LkCa 15b, it’s the youngest planet ever observed. The previous record holder was about five times older.

Kraus and his colleague, Michael Ireland from Macquarie University and the Australian Astronomical Observatory, used Keck telescopes on Mauna Kea(a volcano on the island of Hawaii, US) to find the planet. Kraus presented the discovery Wednesday at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland.

Observing planets while they’re forming can help scientists answer questions like weather planets form early in the life of a star or later, and whether they form relatively close to stars or father away.

Planets can change orbits(轨道) after forming, so it’s difficult to answer such questions by studying older planets.

“These very basic questions of when and where are best answered when you can actually see the planet forming, as the process is happening right now,” Kraus said.

Scientists hadn’t been able to see such young planets before because the stars they’re circling around outshine(光亮强过) them. Kraus and Ireland used two techniques to overcome this problem.

One method, which is also used by other astronomers, was to change the shape of the telescope mirrors to remove light distortion(扭曲) created by the Earth’s atmosphere. The other method they used, which was unique, was to put masks with several holes over most of the telescope mirrors. The combination of these techniques allowed the astronomers to obtain high-quality images that let them see the planet next to the bright star.

The star LkCa 15—the planet is named after its star—was the team’s second target. They immediately knew they were seeing something new, so they plan to gather more data on the star.

1.The research on younger planets helps scientists _____________.

A. study why planets change orbits after forming

B. understand how planets move around their stars

C. answer questions about the age of stars and planets

D. know the relationship between planets and their stars

2.Why are young planets like LkCa 15b hard to discover?

A. Their stars are brighter than them..      B. They are very far from the earth.

C. They are generally too small.           D. They rarely form.

3.According to the text, Kraus and Ireland _____________.

A. have been working in the same university

B. observed the planet on a volcano in Hawaii

C. used two new methods in the observation

D. cut holes in the mirrors when observing

4.Which of the following would be the best title for the text?

A. Youngest planet seen as it’s forming.

B. Planet 450 light years away discovered.

C. World’s first direct image of a planet taken.

D. New technique helps discover young planets.

 

Zipped into a bag, it looks like a large umbrella. Unfolded, it goes along the street like any other bicycle.
It's the "A-bike", the brainchild (脑力劳动的产物) of British inventor Sir Clive Sinclair, who made history in the 1970s by developing the world's first pocket calculator. He described his new invention as "the world's smallest, lightest foldable bicycle".
"My original thought was that if you could have a bicycle that was dramatically lighter and more firm than the ones that exist today, it would change the way in which bicycles are used,"said Sinclair.
The mini-bike, showed in Singapore last week and set to go on sale worldwide in 2005 at a price of nearly US$300, is built for riders as heavy as 112 kilograms and is height-adjustable(可调整高度的). It takes about 20 seconds to fold or unfold.
Its wheels are a quarter the size of those on a regular bicycle, but Sinclair promises a smooth ride for most cyclists. "You require no extra energy to ride the A-bike and it can go up to 15 miles per hour (24 kilometers per hour)," he said. Constructed mainly of plastic, the 5.5-kilogram bicycle folds into a package of less than 0.03 cubic meters (立方米).
Sinclair also invented the first pocket TV in 1984 and the futuristic C5 electric tricycle in 1985. He said he hoped the bicycle would attract common citizens, officials, campers or anyone needing transport for a short trip and he said the next step for the A-bike was to add an electric motor in a few years.

  1. 1.

    The most important character of this kind of bike is its ________ .

    1. A.
      big size
    2. B.
      light weight
    3. C.
      beautiful appearance
    4. D.
      foldable structure
  2. 2.

    The wheels of a regular bicycle is ________ the size of this kind of bike.

    1. A.
      four times
    2. B.
      three times
    3. C.
      one-fourth
    4. D.
      one-third
  3. 3.

    This kind of new bike is mainly made of ________ .

    1. A.
      plastic
    2. B.
      packages
    3. C.
      bags
    4. D.
      metal
  4. 4.

    The best title of the text is ________ .

    1. A.
      World's smallest foldable bicycle arriving
    2. B.
      A new bike, a large umbrella
    3. C.
      A foldable bike, a large bag
    4. D.
      A great inventor of a new bike
  5. 5.

    This kind of new bike hasn't been fixed with ________ .

    1. A.
      a wheel
    2. B.
      an electric motor
    3. C.
      pedal
    4. D.
      a hand
阅读理解。
     Zipped into a bag, it looks like a large umbrella. Unfolded, it goes along the street like any other bicycle.
     It's the "A-bike", the brainchild (脑力劳动的产物) of British inventor Sir Cive Sinclair, who made history
in the 1970s hy devel oping the world's first pocket calculator. He described his new invention as "the world's
smallest, lightest foldable bicycle".
     "My original thought was that if you could have a bicycle that was dramatically lighter and more firm than
the ones that exist today, it would change the way in which bicycles are used," said Sinclair.
     The mini-bike showed in Singapore last week and set to go on sale worldwide in 2005 at a price of nearly
US $300, is built for riders as heavy as 112 kilograms and is height-adjustable (可调整高度的). It takes about
20 seconds to fold or unfold.
     Its wheels are a quarter the size of those on a regular bicycle, but Sinclair promises a smooth ride for most
cyclists. "You require no extra energy to ride the A-bike and it can go up to 15 miles per hour (24 kilometers
per hour)," he said. Constructed mainly of plastic, the 5.5-kilogram bicycle folds into a package of less than
0.03 cubic meters (立方米).
     Sinclair also invented the first pocket TV in 1984 and the futuristic C5 electric tricycle in 1985. He said he
hoped the bicycle would attract common citizens, officials, campers or anyone needing transport for a short
trip and he said the next step for the A-bike was to add an electric motor in a few years.
1. The most important character of this kind of bike is its _____.
A. hig size
B. light weight
C. beautiful appearance
D. foldable structure
2. The wheels of a regular bicycle is _____ the size of this kind of bike.
A. four times
B. three times
C. one-fourth
D. one-third
3. This kind of new bike is mainly made of _____.
A. plastic
B. packages
C. bags
D. metal
4. The best title of the text is _____.
A. World's smallest foldable bicycle arriving
B. A new bike a large umbrella
C. A foldable bike, a large bag
D. A great inventor of a new bike
5. This kind of new bike hasn't been fixed with _____.
A. a wheel
B. an electric motor
C. pedal
D. a hand

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