When you are little, it's not hard to believe you can changed the world．I remember my enthusiasm when, at the age of 12, I addressed the people at the Rio Earth Summit．“I am only a child,” I told them．"Yet I know that if all the money spent on war was spent on ending poverty and finding environmental answers, what a wonderful place this would be．In school you teach us not to fight with others, to work things out, to respect others, to clean up our mess, not to hurt other creatures, to share, not be greedy．Then why do you go out and do the things you tell us not to do?You grownups say you love us, but I challenge you, please, to make your actions reflect your words．"
I spoke for six minutes and received a standing ovation．Some of the delegates even cried．I thought that maybe I had reached some of them, that my speech might actually spur(刺激)action．Now, a decade from Rio, after I've sat through many more conferences, I'm not sure what has been accomplished．My confidence in the people in power and in the power of an individual's voice to reach them has been deeply shaken．
When I was little, the world was simple．But as a young adult, I'm learning that as we have to make choices－education, career, lifestyle－life gets more and more complicated．We are beginning to feel pressure to produce and be successful．We are learning a shortsighted way of looking at the future, focusing on four-year government terms and quarterly business reports．We are taught that economic growth is progress, but we aren't taught how to pursue a happy, healthy or sustainable way of living．And we are learning that what we wanted for our future when we were 12 was idealistic and na?ve(天真)．
Today I'm no longer a child, but I'm worried about what kind of environment my children will grow up in．I know change is possible, because I am changing, still figuring out what I think．I am still deciding how to live my life．The challenges are great, but if we accept individual responsibility and make choices, we will rise to the challenges, and we will become part of the positive tide of the change．I hope this goal will be met through our common efforts．Thank you all．
(1)
The purpose of what the speaker said at the age of 12 was to ________．
[ ]
A．
end poverty and make school beautiful
B．
find environmental answers and show off
C．
focus people's attention on some social problems
D．
find a wonderful place and clean it up
(2)
What does the underlined word “ovation” in the second paragraph refer to?
[ ]
A．
A long period of laughing．
B．
A cold and unfriendly welcome．
C．
An expression used for greeting．
D．
Great applause or cheering．
(3)
The information in the text is presented mainly through ________．
[ ]
A．
question and answer
B．
a personal lecture
C．
cause and effect
D．
listing steps in a process
(4)
Which of the following best describes the speaker?
She took up skating at age 85, made her first movie appearance at age 114, and held a concert in the neighborhood on her 121st birthday．
Whe n it comes to long life, Jeanne Calment is the world’s recordholder．She lived to the ripe old age of 122．So is 122 the upper limit to the human life span(寿命)?If scientists come up with some sort of pill or diet that would slow aging, could we possibly make it to 150－or beyond?
Researchers don’t entirely agree on the answers．“Calment lived to 122, so it wouldn’t surprise me if someone alive today reaches 130 or 135,”says Jerry Shay at the University of Texas．
Steve Austad at the University of Texas agrees．“People can live much longer than we think,”he says．“Experts used to say that humans couldn’t live past 110．When Calment blew past that age, they raised the number to 120．So why can’t we go higher?”
The trouble with guessing how old people can live to be is that it’s all just guessing．“Anyone can make up a number,”says Rich Miller at the University of Michigan．“Usually the scientist who picks the highest number gets his name in Time magazine．”
Won’t new anti-aging techniques keep us alive for centuries?Any cure, says Miller, for aging would probably keep most of us kicking until about 120．Researchers are working on treatments that lengthen the life span of mice by 50 percent at most．So, if the average human life span is about 80 years, says Miller,“adding another 50 percent would get you to 120．”
So what can we conclude from this little disagreement among the researchers?That life span is flexible(有弹性的)，but there is a limit, says George Martin of the University of Washington．“We can get flies to live 50 percent longer,”he says．“But a fly’s never going to live 150 years．”
“Of course, if you became a new species(物种)，one that ages at a slower speed, that would be a different story,”he adds．
Does Martin really believe that humans could evolve(进化)their way to longer life?“It’s pretty cool to think about it,”he says with a smile．
(1)
What does the story of Jeanne Calment prove to us?
[ ]
A．
People can live to 122．
B．
Old people are creative．
C．
Women are sporty at 85．
D．
Women live longer than men．
(2)
According to Steve Austad at the University of Texas, ________．
[ ]
A．
the average human life span could be 110
B．
scientists cannot find ways to slow aging
C．
few people can expect to live to over 150
D．
researchers are not sure how long people can live
(3)
Who would agree that a scientist will become famous if he makes the wildest guess at longevity?
[ ]
A．
Jerry Shay．
B．
Steve Austad
C．
Rich Miller
D．
George Martin
(4)
What can we infer from the last three paragraphs?
[ ]
A．
Most of us could be good at sports even at 120．
B．
The average human life span cannot be doubled．
C．
Scientists believe mice are aging at a slower speed than before．
D．
New techniques could be used to change flies into a new species．
