It looks like a mobile phone, but the service is much cheaper. It acts like a mobile phone, but only in your own city. Beyond the city walls, it’s useless.

“Little Smart”, also called “xiaolingtong”, has always been compared to mobile phones. But actually, it is more like one of those cordless phones(无绳电话) used around the home. The only difference is that this one reaches much further than from the bathroom to the living room. It can travel across an entire city.

Cheap costs are the main reason for the success of Little Smart. It costs 25 yuan a month for the line and about 0.1 yuan per minute to use. A mobile phone, on the other hand, can cost four or five times as much. What’s more, unlike mobile phones, there’s no fee(费) for incoming calls. So these low charges have attracted many users.

But, Little Smart is not really that smart. Users often complain about its bad voice quality. And there are not as many stations to pick up its signals as there are for mobiles. “I couldn’t receive a phone call if I was on a bus,” said Li Ping, a user in Hangzhou. “It worked fine when I stood still, but there were breaks in signal when I was moving.”

Scientists are trying to make Little Smart more user-friendly. Messaging and Internet access(接入) have been added to the service. And the latest Little Smart handset even has color screen.

1.Why is Little Smart popular in China?

2. How is the charge of Little Smart?

3. Why are users not satisfied with Little Smart?

4. The underlined word “handset” in the last paragraph means “______”.

5. What can we infer from the passage?

An Experiment
Materials: Newspaper, ‘ACE’ hardware ruler (1/8 “think”), a flat table.
Purposes: We’ll show that there is air pressure pushing on us, from every direction while we’re on this Earth.

Imagine that you are sitting in a park and suddenly remember that you need to send an urgent email. You have your laptop computer with you and you connect it to a wireless access point and access the Internet. Then you send your email. This wouldn’t have been possible if there were no wireless Internet for laptops. Wireless Internet has come into our life in so many ways that we don’t even realize what a necessary part it has become of our day-to-day lives.

How do we connect to a wireless Internet service for laptop computers? There are two ways to do this. They are Wi-Fi connection and Bluetooth connection. Wireless networking is very easy. You just switch on the Wi-Fi button that has been provided in the laptop for Wi-Fi scanning. Once that is done, the computer will connect to the Internet.

An interesting fact about Wi-Fi networking is that you can create a network between similar wireless equipment. Consider a situation where you and your friend both have Wi-Fi laptops, and there is some data you want to exchange. Traditional networking architecture demands that you have a wireless router (路由器). But the beauty of Wi-Fi networking technology is that you can set up a network between you and your friend’s laptop, and share all the data you want.

Broadband (宽带) Internet connection is typically preferred by any user as it provides better speed for Internet surfing. Up until the invention of 3G mobile phones, Internet speed on mobile phones was very slow. 3G has the promise of changing the entire face of broadband technology. Just imagine browsing at speeds of more that 2MB per second. To give you a measure of the speed, 3G enables you to watch high quality live videos on the Internet.

It is amazing to see how technology changes and the rate at which it changes. There may come a time when you may be able to browse using mobile wireless Internet for laptops anywhere in the world.

1.What can we learn from Paragraph 1?

A．Wireless Internet will become a reality soon.

B．We can send emails outdoors through wireless Internet.

C．Laptops enable us to do business everywhere.

D．People can easily find a laptop to surf the Internet.

2.People can enjoy a wireless Internet service for laptop computers by      .

A．connecting to another computer           B．switching off the Wi-Fi button

C．using bluetooth connection                D．connecting bluetooth to Wi-Fi

3.What should we do to share some data with a friend through Wi-Fi networking?

A．Use the same computer.                  B．Surf online.

C．Have a wireless router.                   D．Set up a network.

4.One main advantage of 3G mobile phones mentioned in the passage is      .

A．their low price                         B．their different functions

C．their high Internet speed                 D．their bright future

The Adventure Guides Program

New Member Information for the Adventure Guides Program ( for children aged 4—12)

What Is the Adventure Guides Program All about?

The objectives of the program are:

● Fostering companionship and setting foundation for positive, lifelong relationships between parent and child

● Increased understanding of one another

● Expanded awareness of spirit, mind and body

● Great memories

● Fun!!!

Parent and Child Will Be Joining…

The nationwide affilicated(隶属的) program sponsored by local YMCA’s and part of the National Council of YMCA’s

A smaller group of families called a “circle”

What Is the Time Commitment?

● Program runs from October to May (ending with the Memorial Day Parade)

● One “circle” activity per month ( one circle decides on fees and dates)

Additional all participant activities (scheduled by Wilton Family Y) —additional fees and registration required.

Outing Dates: To Be Announced

What Do I Do Now?

● Registration is on-going. Registration forms are available online under “Registration”.

● You will be notified by the Wilton Family Y of which “circle” you and your child are in and who your “circle” leader is.

● You will be notified by your “circle” leader as to when your first parent/child “circle” meeting will take place.

Fees:

Participant: Full Child or Family member $110.00 / Program member $200.00

Sibling: Full child or Family member $75.00 / Program member $150.00

Adult: Family member FREE / Program member $125.00

Wilton Family Y Contact Information:

Geoff Malyszka Teen Director 762-8384 ext.224

E-mail: gmalyszka@wiltonymca. org

Kim Murphy Early Childhood Ed. Director762-8384 ext.214

E-mail: kmurphy@wiltonymca. org

1. Which of the following is true about “circle”?

2.What information can you get from the passage？

3.The passage is mainly written for _____.

Finally, a cell phone
That's ... a phone
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Affordable plans that I can understand一and no contract to sign (签订）！ Unlike other cell phones，Jitterbug has plans that make sense. Why should I pay for minutes I'm never going to use? And if I do talk more than I plan, I won't find myself with no minutes like my friend who has a prepaid phone. Best of all, there is no contract to sign—so I'm not locked in for years at a time. The US-based customer service is second to none. And the phone gets service anywhere in the country.