Some problems are difficult to solve. But there are a lot of number expressions that can help. For example, if we put two and two together, we might come up with the right answer. We know that two heads are better than one. It is always better to work with another person to solve a problem. Some problems have only one solution. You cannot be of two minds over this. But with any luck,we can solve the problem in two shakes of a lamb’s tail. In other words,we could have our answers quickly and easily.

Sometimes we can kill two birds with one stone. That is, we can complete two goals with only one effort or action. But we must remember that two wrongs don’t make a right. If someone does something bad to you, you should not do the same to him.

If you are going out with your girlfriend,or boyfriend,but you don’t want another friend to go along on your date,you can just say to your friend: two’s company, three’s a crowd.

When I was a young child in school, I had to learn the three R’ s. These important skills are reading, writing and arithmetic. These three words do not all start with the letter “R”. But they have the sound of “R”. My teacher used to give three cheers when I did well in maths. They gave praise and approval for a job well done.

Some of my friends were confused and did not understand their school work. They were at sixes and sevens. In fact, they did not care if they finished high school. But they were happy when they completed their studies and graduated from high school. They were in seventh heaven. They were on cloud nine. Nine times out of ten students who do well in school find good jobs. Some work in an office doing the same things every day at nine-to-five jobs. You do not have to dress to the nines, or wear your best clothes, for this kind of work.

1.If you solve a problem without any difficulty, you can also say that you can do it .

A. in seventh heaven B. on cloud nine

C. at sixes and sevens D. in two shakes of a lamb’s tail

2.When Tom wins first place in the game,we can congratulate him by using “ ” according to the passage.

A. dress up to the nines

B. give three cheers

C. kill two birds with one stone

D. put two and two together

3.Which of the following has the similar meaning to “in all probability” ?

A. Two wrongs don’t make a right.

B. Two’s company, three’s a crowd.

C. Nine times out of ten.

D. Two heads are better than one.

4.What is the best title of the passage?

A. Interesting Number Expressions

B. The Importance of Numbers

C. Number Stories

D. Use Numbers

For the business traveler who is all about efficiency: Check out these hotels that will get you in and out with a minimum of trouble. When you are pressed for time on a business trip, nothing can infuriate you more than a slow hotel check-in process. On your next trip, try these hotels that offer a speedier check-in process.

1. Yotel New York

The self-service kiosks at this high-tech New York hotel work just like the ones you’d see at an airport. There are just five-steps to register and obtain your card key. There is even a robotic luggage bellboy. You tap in the number of bags you are carrying and sizes, then wait for a robot arm to swing down and store your luggage in a locker (say, for a day trip). This also speeds up the check-in process if the first thing you need to do, like me, is head to a series of meetings.

2. Marriott Detroit Airport

Another option for business travelers in a hurry: Marriott is rolling out its mobile check-in app to 325 hotels this year, including the Marriott Detroit Airport hotel. (I’ve tested the app itself but not for a real visit quite yet.) Here is the basic idea: you download the iphone or Android app. The night before, you can “check-in” virtually. When you arrive, you get an alert that the room is ready and your key, which is already tied to your reservation, is waiting for you at the desk.

3. Hyatt Regency Minneapolis

I happened to stay at this hotel recently and liked how fast the kiosk check-in works. Like the Yotel, the kiosk asks you to insert your credit card, similar to an airport terminal. The whole process took about three minutes, when I left, I was equally impressed with the fast check-out. An agent meets you in the lobby with an ipad and asks for an email to use for a receipt. The big advantage: you never have to wait in line.

4. Radisson: LaCrosse

The Radisson is trying to make the kiosk process even faster, at a few select hotels like the Radisson Lacrosse in Wisconsin, you use a mobile app to register and then receive a barcode by email or text. When you get the kiosk, you scan the barcode to get your key without any other steps required. It’s super fast. You can find this new check-in system at the Radisson hotels in Salt Lake City, Seattle, and Phoenix as well.

1.What does the word “infuriate” in paragraph 2 most mean?

A. annoy B. remind C. amuse D. impress

2.Which two hotels offer a mobile app for customers to check in?

A. Yotel New York and Marriott Detroit Airport.

B. Marriott Detroit Airport and Radisson: LaCrosse.

C. Marriott Detroit Airport. and Hyatt Regency Minneapolis.

D. Hyatt Regency Minneapolis and Radisson: LaCrosse.

3.Which hotel will send you a receipt by email?

A. Yotel New York.

B. Marriott Detroit Airport.

C. Radisson: LaCrosse.

D. Hyatt Regency Minneapolis.

4.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A. At Yotel New York, a robot will help you with all the check-in process.

B. With its check-in app, you may enter your room in Marriott without a key.

C. The barcode you receive from Radisson contributes to the fast check-in.

D. Hyatt Regency Minneapolis is close to an airport terminal.

Since the 1970s, scientists have been searching for ways to link the brain with computers. Brain-computer interface (界面) (BCI) technology could help people with disabilities send commands to machines.

Recently, two researchers, Jose Milan and Michele Tavella from the Federal Polytechnic School in Lausanne, Switzerland, demonstrated(展示)a small robotic wheelchair directed by a person's thoughts.

In the laboratory, Tavella operated the wheelchair just by thinking about moving his left or right hand. He could even talk as he watched the vehicle and guided it with his thoughts.

“Our brain has billions of nerve cells. These send signals through the spinal cord (脊髓) to the muscles to give us the ability to move. But spinal cord injuries or other conditions can prevent these weak electrical signals from reaching the muscles,” Tavella says. “Our system allows disabled people to communicate with external world and also to control devices.”

The researchers designed a special cap for the user. This head cover picks up the signals from the scalp(头皮) and sends them to a computer. The computer interprets the signals and commands the motorized wheelchair. The wheelchair also has two cameras that identify objects in its path. They help the computer react to commands from the brain.

Prof. Milan, the team leader, says scientists keep improving the computer software that interprets brain signals and turns them into simple commands. “The practical possibilities that BCI technology offers to disabled people can be grouped in two categories: communication, and controlling devices. One example is this wheelchair.”

He says his team has set two goals. One is testing with real patients, so as to prove that this is a technology they can benefit from. And the other is to guarantee that they can use the technology over long periods of time.

1. BCI is a technology that can _________________.

A. help to update computer systems

B. link the human brain with computers

C. help the disabled to recover

D. control a person's thoughts

2.How did Tavella operate the wheelchair in the laboratory?

A. By controlling his muscles.

B. By talking to the machine.

C. By moving his hand.

D. By using his mind.

3.Which of the following shows the path of the signals described in Paragraph 5?

A. scalp→computer→cap→wheelchair

B. computer→cap→scalp→wheelchair

C. scalp→cap→computer→wheelchair

D. cap→computer→scalp→wheelchair

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

A. BCI Could Mean More Freedom for the Disabled

B. New Findings about How the Human Brain Works

C. Switzerland, the BCI Research Center

D. Robotic Vehicles Could Help to Cure Brain Injuries

For many years, machines have been doing work that people once did, including some difficult jobs. Search and rescue operations in dangerous environments are often seen as the first areas that will employ high technology robots. But there is another area where they may soon take jobs traditionally held by human beings: the restaurant industry.

Teams from around the world competed in early June at the DARPA Robotic Challenge Finals in California. A team from South Korea and its robot called DRC-Hubo,won the first place in the competition. The second and third place winners were from the United States. The robots were required to drive a vehicle, climb up steps and do mechanical work. Such ac­tivities are easy for humans to perform,but more difficult for machines. Not all of the com­petitors were successful. The failures showed how difficuit it is to design effective walking machines.

Akihiro Suzuki works at Yaskawa Electric,a company that develops robots. He says ro­bots cannot do everything a human can,but they are able to work without becoming tired. He says robots cannot taste food,change heating levels or seasonings to get the best flavor (风 味).But he says if a food can be easily prepared,a robot can repeat the same movement to re­produce the same meal.

One Japanese woman who saw the robots working wanted to bring them home. Masayo Mori says she would like to have a husband who could work like a robot. Suzumo Machinery showed its sushi (寿司)maker robot. It performs the often difficult work of wrapping the popular Japanese food. Hiroshi Monden is an official with the company. He says people all o­ver the world now eat sushi,but there are not enough skilled workers to prepare it. He says his machine can help anyone make sushi.

1.In Paragraph 1,the author tells us .

A.robots just do difficult jobs

B.robots are sometimes dangerous

C.robots are widely used in our life

D.robots are gradually replacing humans

2.Why did some teams fail at the DARPA Robotic Challenge Finals?

A.Their robots cannot be applied at home.

B.Preparing food is really difficult for robots.

C.Their robots can just repeat the same movement.

D.They failed to design effective walking robots.

3.We can infer from the last paragraph that .

A.Japanese men are lazy

B.robots are popular in Japan

C.Japan has advanced high technology

D.robots usually take the job of making sushi in Japan

4.In which column can we probably see the text?

A.Education. B. Culture. C. Health. D. Science.

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