Since long ago,greeting cards have been considered a time-saver.More than 150 years ago,a busy Englishman,Sir Henry,asked a friend to design a card so that he didn't have to labour to write holiday letters to his friends at the end of the year.Those paper cards are now the tradition.

But time,like sunlight,is still in short supply for December.That's why the Internet is ready to make a change in holiday greeting customs.Already,those,who are always busy,like sending video greetings by e-mail.So,don't be surprised to find a lively card in your electronic mail box at the end of the year or at any time you should have one.

A recent survey by the Shared Greetings Company found 50 percent of all the Internet users will send online cards especially during the holiday seasons.“That is a lot easier,and it is lively,”said Carol,a New Yorker,who had stopped at the Shared Greetings Company demonstration() online.With her children's help,she sent her first e-card before Thanksgiving Day.“It was the first time I had done something like this;it's quite enjoyable,”she said.

“I will send online Christmas cards to my friends,”said Marcos,a 22-year-old student.“It costs so little and you can even send numbers of greetings at a time.”But he added “the e-card also has its limits,and I don't think it is ready to replace the paper card for the more formal or traditional occasions.For some people,I would rather buy paper cards and mail them traditionally.I believe it is more personal and respectful in that way,”he said.

Well,for those who are very busy but still prefer to do a lot of greetings to different receivers in the holiday season,the Internet may have another way.“Now you can use the Net to decide and send as many as 50 beautiful cards,which allows the buyer to choose the inside saying,as well as the ink colour and typeface,only costing about 30 minutes,”said Julie,vice-president of marketing for an electronic card company-Hallmark Company.“And if you are in less of a hurry,you can spend another 30 minutes sitting in your home or office to create a photo card,showing off your kids,your pets or even your new house-anything as your favorite design for your relatives and friends.”

How can we understand “But time,like sunlight,is still in short supply for December”in Paragraph 2?

A.December cannot supply enough time for people because the sunlight in this month is short.

B.People are always busy at the end of the year,so time is precious like the sunlight in winter.

C.Time is short at the end of the year,like the sunlight in December.

D.Time passes quickly like the sunlight in winter as December comes.

According to the 22-year-old student,he would probably mail e-cards to everyone except_________.

A.the members of his family

B.his girlfriend

C.the teachers who have taught him

D.his schoolmates

If you are quite busy,but having many greetings to send,which of the following is your best choice?

A.Ordering a lot of cards you like online and sending them from the post office.

B.Getting as many cards from your electronic mail box and mailing them on the Net.

C.Sitting and writing lots of beautiful cards at home and sending them just in a traditional way.

D.Choosing personalized cards in numbers and mailing them directly on the Net.

A week ago, I read When Money Talks, Listen! by Rich Ezzo. It took only about an hour to read, and that included one trip to the coffee maker and about 10 distractions (分心)from Alex, our cat, who thinks he is the center of the universe.

When I first received a copy, I thought it was a get-rich-quick type of publication. There is nothing wrong with that kind of book, but my mind just doesn’t chase after dreams of wealth. I figure that if God ever wants me to be rich, he knows where to find my purse.

When I began reading When Money Talks, Listen!, I was overjoyed to find that Rich Ezzo isn’t money hungry either. He, too, is hungry for things far more important than money.

I absolutely love this e-book. Why did I wait a week to write the review ? simple. I wanted to see if the impact it had on me could keep up. After reading the last word of the e-book, I totally agreed with the subtitle(副标题)which promised to forever change the way we thought about money. I had so many thoughts running around my mind that I had to install a stop light to stop some while others made their way into the picture. I had a mental traffic jam, which only goes to show how slow the traffic usually is.

It has been a week and the impact is the same. I guarantee this is an e-book you’ll want to read. I urge you to visit the author’s website, MysterMoney. Com, and to download the e-book. You won’t

regret it.

What’s the purpose of the passage?

     A.to strongly recommend an e-book          

         B.to show the author’s attitude to money

     C.to introduce the general idea of an e-book

     D.to tell us Rich Ezzo isn’t money hungry

The author didn’t write the review right after reading because _____.

     A.he was too excited to write anything 

         B.he was not sure whether he liked the book

     C.he had to wait for Rich Ezzo’s permission

     D.he wondered if this book had a long influence on him

Which of the following is true according to the passage?

         A.The author had known Rich Ezzo before

         B.The author hasn’t dreamed of getting rich instantly

         C.The author always prefers e-books to paper books

         D.The author likes the get-rich type of publication

Plants can’t communicate by moving or making sounds, as most animals do. Instead, plants Produce volatile compounds, chemicals that easily change from a liquid to a gas. A flower’s sweet smell, for example, comes from volatile compounds that the plant produces to attract insects such as Bugs and bees.
Plants can also detect volatile compounds produced by other plants. A tree under attack by Hungry insets, for instance, may give off volatile compounds that let other trees know about the Attack. In response, the other trees may send off chemicals to keep the bugs away ——or even  Chemicals that attract the bugs’ natural enemies.
Now scientists have created a quick way to understand what plants are saying: a chemical Sensor(传感器)called an electronic nose. The “e-nose” can tell compounds that crop plants make When they’re attacked Scientists say the e-nose could help quickly detect whether plants are being Eaten by insects. But today the only way to detect such insects is to visually inspect individual Plants. This is a challenging task for managers of greenhouses, enclosed gardens than can house Thousands of plants.
The research team worked with an e-nose than recognizes volatile compounds. Inside the device, 13 sensors chemically react with volatile compounds Based on these interactions, the e-nose gives off electronic signals that the scientists analyze using computer software.
To test the nose, the team presented it with healthy leaves from cucumber, pepper and tomato plants, all common greenhouse crops. Then scientists collected samples of air around damaged leaves from each type of crop, These plants had been damaged by insects, or by scientists who made holes in the leaves with a hole punch(打孔器). The e-nose, it turns out, could identify healthy cucumber, pepper and tomato plants based on The volatile compounds they produce, It could also identify tomato leaves that had been damaged. But even more impressive, the device could tell which type of damage ---- by insects or with a hole Punch ---- had been done to the tomato leaves.
With some fine-tuning, a device like the e-nose could one day be used in greenhouses to quickly spot harmful bugs, the researchers say. A device like this could also be used to identify fruits that are perfectly ripe and ready to pick and eat, says Natalia Dudareva, a biochemist at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind. who studies smells of flowers and plants. Hopefully, scientists believe, the device could bring large benefits to greenhouse managers in the near future.
【小题1】We learn from the text that plants communicate with each other by____.

A.making some soundsB.waving their leaves
C.producing some chemicalsD.sending out electronic signals
【小题2】What did the scientists do to find out if the e-nose worked?
A.They presented it with all common crops.
B.They fixed 13 sensors inside the device.
C.They collected different damaged leaves.
D.They made tests on damaged and healthy leaves.
【小题3】According to the writer, the most amazing thing about the e-nose is that it can___.
A.pick out ripe fruits
B.spot the insects quickly
C.distinguish different damages to the leaves
D.recognize unhealthy tomato leaves
【小题4】We can infer from the last paragraph that the e-nose_____.
A.is unable to tell the smell of flowers
B.is not yet used in greenhouses
C.is designed by scientists at Purdue
D.is helpful in killing harmful insects

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