When a handheld video game runs out of power, all you have to do is plug it in and charge it up. Within a few years, some of you might do the same thing with mom’s car.

Automobile companies are developing vehicles that will plug into electric sockets （插座）, just like many laptops, digital cameras, cell phones and small video game players do. Called “plug-in hybrids （混合动力汽车）,” these cars will get most of their power from electricity. Their drivers will rarely have to stop at gas stations.

The technology is more than just cool. In our automobile-filled world, plug-in vehicles could reduce the amount of gasoline we use. That gas is made from crude oil, which has been kept rising in cost. Plus, driving around in these hybrids may even help the environment. Gas-burning cars produce a lot of carbon dioxide, a type of greenhouse gas. These gases stay in the atmosphere, where they trap heat and cause global warming.

The first company-produced plug-in hybrids could hit the roads by 20l0. But engineers still have a lot of work to do to make the technology practical and inexpensive.

Batteries are the biggest challenge. In the plug-in-hybrid world, Li-ion batteries are getting the most attention. These batteries can store a large amount of energy in a small package, and they last a relatively long time between charges. Li-ion batteries are standard in laptops, cell phones, heart devices and similar portable devices.

But because cars are so big and heavy, it would still require a suitcase-sized Li-ion battery to power about l2km of driving. What’s more, the batteries are extremely expensive.

“A car filled with batteries could go a long distance,” says Ted Bohn, an electrical engineer in Chicago. “But it couldn’t haul （拖拉） any people, and it would cost $l00,000.”

So researchers need to figure out how to make batteries smaller and cheaper, among other questions.

“The answers don’t exist yet,” Bohn says. “As a kid I thought someone someplace knows the answer to everything. All of these questions haven’t been decided. That’s what engineering is about ― making a guess, running tests and fine-tuning results.”

59. The writer wrote this passage with the purpose of __________________.

A. how to charge the handheld video game up

B. explaining a newly-developed battery

C. introducing a new car

D. telling us how to make the new battery cheaper

60. Which is true according to the passage?

A. Plug-in hybrids will do no harm to the environment.

B. Li-lion batteries in laptops can be used on plug-in hybrids.

C. Some companies can produce plug-in hybrids now.

D. Drivers of plug-in hybrids will spend less money on gasoline.

61. From the passage, we can learn _________________.

A. we can buy one of “plug-in hybrids” now

B. all people will buy one after 20l0

C. this kind of car can carry two persons

D. some problems about “plug-in hybrids” remain to be done

Scientists have developed a water treatment system that they say is a powerful but simple way to save lives. Four grams of chemicals can treat ten liters of dirty water for a low cost, about ten cents.
Experts say infections from dirty water kill several thousand children in developing countries every day. The Procter and Gamble company has been developing the "PUR Purifier of Water" system since 1995. The company has been working with the United States Centers for Disease control and Prevention(C.D.C.).
C.D.C. researchers tested it in Guatemala, Pakistan and Kenya. Procter and Gamble researcher Greg Allgood says cases of diarrhea(腹泻) in those studies fell by about 50 percent. Researchers from Johns Hopkins University in Maryland tested the system at a refugee camp in Liberia. Mr. Allgood says that study found a reduction of more than 90 percent. Use of the system is being expanded worldwide.
The treatment contains bleach(漂白剂) to kill disease-causing organisms. It also contains something that dirt and other particles stick to. Mr. Allgood says the chemicals can remove lead and other dangerous metals and even agricultural poisons like D.D.T.
Mr. Allgood heads the Children's Safe Drinking Water program at Procter and Gamble. He says about forty million packets of the treatment have been given to countries for free. They have been used in emergencies and in areas with limited supplies of clean water.
Clean water is a limited resource in many parts of the world. Delegates from about 130 nations attended the Fourth World Water Forum last month in Mexico City. Scientists, policy experts and others discussed ways to provide clean water to the world’s poor. Organizers say more than twenty percent of the world population lacks clean drinking water. The final declaration did not go so far as to declare water a human right. But it did say that governments, not private companies, must take the lead in improving the public’s ability to have clean water.
46. What is mainly talked about in this passage?
A. Water pollution around the world.
B. The causes of diarrhea in African countries.
C. A newly developed water treatment system.
D. The Fourth World Water Forum in Mexico City.
47. Which of the following developed the water treatment system?
A. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
B. The Procter and Gamble Company and C.D.C.
C. The Children’s Safe Drinking Water Program.
D. Johns Hopkins University.
48. Which of the following about the new water treatment system is NOT true?
A. It is effective but very expensive.
B. It was tested in Guatemala, Pakistan and Kenya.
C. It is being expanded worldwide.
D. It can remove dangerous metals in the water.
49. Which of the following shows that the shortage of clean water is a serious problem?
A. Forty million packets of the treatment have been given to countries for free.
B. Delegates from about 130 nations attended the Fourth World Water Forum.
C. Four grams of chemicals can treat liters of dirty water for a low cost.
D. Infections from dirty water kill several thousand children every day.
50. The best title for this article is ______.
A. A Small Packet of Chemicals, a Big Effect on Dirty Water
B. The Procter and Gamble Company and C.D.C.
C. The Shortage of Clean Water                           
D. How to Cure Diarrhea

Scientists have developed a water treatment system that they say is a powerful but simple way to save lives. Four grams of chemicals can treat ten liters of dirty water for a low cost, about ten cents.

Experts say infections from dirty water kill several thousand children in developing countries every day. The Procter and Gamble company has been developing the "PUR Purifier of Water" system since 1995. The company has been working with the United States Centers for Disease control and Prevention(C.D.C.).

C.D.C. researchers tested it in Guatemala, Pakistan and Kenya. Procter and Gamble researcher Greg Allgood says cases of diarrhea(腹泻) in those studies fell by about 50 percent. Researchers from Johns Hopkins University in Maryland tested the system at a refugee camp in Liberia. Mr. Allgood says that study found a reduction of more than 90 percent. Use of the system is being expanded worldwide.

The treatment contains bleach(漂白剂) to kill disease-causing organisms. It also contains something that dirt and other particles stick to. Mr. Allgood says the chemicals can remove lead and other dangerous metals and even agricultural poisons like D.D.T.

Mr. Allgood heads the Children's Safe Drinking Water program at Procter and Gamble. He says about forty million packets of the treatment have been given to countries for free. They have been used in emergencies and in areas with limited supplies of clean water.

Clean water is a limited resource in many parts of the world. Delegates from about 130 nations attended the Fourth World Water Forum last month in Mexico City. Scientists, policy experts and others discussed ways to provide clean water to the world’s poor. Organizers say more than twenty percent of the world population lacks clean drinking water. The final declaration did not go so far as to declare water a human right. But it did say that governments, not private companies, must take the lead in improving the public’s ability to have clean water.

46. What is mainly talked about in this passage?

  A. Water pollution around the world.

  B. The causes of diarrhea in African countries.

  C. A newly developed water treatment system.

  D. The Fourth World Water Forum in Mexico City.

47. Which of the following developed the water treatment system?

  A. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

  B. The Procter and Gamble Company and C.D.C.

  C. The Children’s Safe Drinking Water Program.

  D. Johns Hopkins University.

48. Which of the following about the new water treatment system is NOT true?

  A. It is effective but very expensive.

  B. It was tested in Guatemala, Pakistan and Kenya.

  C. It is being expanded worldwide.

  D. It can remove dangerous metals in the water.

49. Which of the following shows that the shortage of clean water is a serious problem?

  A. Forty million packets of the treatment have been given to countries for free.

  B. Delegates from about 130 nations attended the Fourth World Water Forum.

  C. Four grams of chemicals can treat liters of dirty water for a low cost.

  D. Infections from dirty water kill several thousand children every day.

50. The best title for this article is ______.

  A. A Small Packet of Chemicals, a Big Effect on Dirty Water

  B. The Procter and Gamble Company and C.D.C.

C. The Shortage of Clean Water                        

D. How to Cure Diarrhea

These days a green building means more than just the color of the paint. Green buildings can also refer to environmentally friendly houses, factories and offices.

　 Green buildings mean “reducing the impact（影响） of the building on the land”, Taryn Holowka of the US Green Building Council in Washington , D, C. said. According to Holowka, building account for （占了）65 percent of total US electricity use.

　　 But Green buildings can reduce energy and water use. Also the buildings are often located near public transportation such as buses and subways, so that people can drive their cars less.That could be good for the environment ,because cars use a lot of gas and give off waste air. Green buildings are often built on the developed land ,so that the buildings don’t destroy forests.

　 Marty Dettling is the project manager for a building that put these ideas into action .The Soliare has been called the country’s first green high-rise building. According to Dettling ,”We’ve reduced our energy use by one-third and our water by 50 percent.”

　 The Soliare reduces the use of energy by using solar power.” On the face of the building we have solar panels which change the sun’s energy into electricity,” Dettling explained.

　 The Solaire also has lights that automatically turn off when people leave the room. In addition, the building has lots of windows, allowing people to use the sun for light during the day.

　 Not everyone is eager to move into a green building, however. Some people think that things like solar panels cost more money than traditional energy sources. Anyhow, Holoka said,’’It’s going to be big.”

1. What does The Solaire refer to?

A. the first green-high building

B. the first green-high building in imagination

C. the project of building a green-high building

D. environmentally friendly houses

2. A green building is often built ______.

A. in developing cities　 　　　　　　 B. in small cities

C. in developed areas 　　　　　　　 D. near the high building

3. When Holowka says in the last paragraph, “It’s going to be big”, she means that green buildings________.

A. will be more comfortable 　　　　 B. will become popular in future

C. will be more convenient　 　　 　　D. will take the place of traditional buildings

4. What is the main subject discussed in the text?

A. Green buildings help save the environment

B. The Solaire serves as a model of high buildings

C. Energy shortage calls for buildings of new design

D. Dettling designed the first green building in the US.