Motorists who used to listen to the radio or their favorite tunes on CDs may have a new way to entertain themselves, after engineers in Japan developed a musical road surface.
A team from the Hokkaido Industrial Research Institute has built a number of“melody roads,”which use cars as tuning forks to play music as they travel.
The concept works by using grooves(凹槽).They are cut at very specific intervals in the road surface. The melody road uses the spaces between to create different notes.
Depending on how far apart the grooves are, a car moving over them will produce a series of high or low notes, and designers are able to create a distinct tune.
Paten documents for the design describe it as notches “formed in a road surface so as to play a melody without producing simple sound or rhythm and reproduce melody-like tones”.
There are three musical strips in central and northern Japan—one of which plays the tune of a Japanese pop song. Reports say the system was invented by Shizuo Shinoda. He scraped some markings into a road with a bulldozer before driving over them and found that they helped to produce all kinds of tones.
The optimal speed for melody road is 44kph,but people say it is not always easy to get the intended sound.
“You need to keep the car windows closed to hear well,”wrote one Japanese blogger.“Driving too fast will sound like playing fast forward, while driving around 12mph［20km/h］has a slow-motion effect, making you almost car-sick.”
【小题1】According to the passage, melody roads use        to create different notes.

Do your children always sit still and watch TV? If so, you should be very alert!
Nowadays, children watch television for long hours. They often spend evenings watching their favorite programs on TV. Sometimes they might stay up late to watch TV. Their addiction to television results in their not having time to play or do exercise. They should go outside with friends or spend time reading books. Moreover, watching television too much is harmful to their eyesight.
Researchers claim that attention deficit disorders in children are a result of watching too much television. They say that watching television leads to a developmental disorder in the part of the brain which is responsible for language skills. Children who watch television more and read less have greater difficulty paying attention and concentrating. Children that spend long hours watching television are more likely to be affected by attention deficit disorders.
Television is one form of media which is used to show all kinds of products. Watching too much television can lead to early exposure to a wide variety of things. Television advertisements may cause children to behave incorrectly or damage themselves. Advertisements about fast food, cold drinks or other such products that are not good for children’s health can have a bad effect on them. Some TV shows and films also affect how children think and behave.
Studies in psychology have shown that certain programs can have a long-lasting effect on children’s minds. Horror scenes and other frightening shows can have a negative effect on the minds of children watching them.
Television is a means of recreation but watching it too often is harmful to children’s physical and mental health. You need to help you children deep a balance of everything in life.
【小题1】The underlined word “deficit ” in the third paragraph most probably means _____.

Exited about landing your first job after graduation? Good, work hard and get learning. Don’t forget to listen to young professional’s advice about the “real world” you’re stepping into.
1. Keep up with current events.
In school, it’s easy to live in a cocoon, where you focus on studies and social life. But in the working world, not knowing who Alan Greenspan is or why North Korea is in the news so often can lead to potentially embarrassing conversations.
2. Consider living with parents, even if you have a job.
Think it over before you rule it out. Not only can you save a lot of money by living at home, but your parents may provide emotional support that you may need. They can help pave the way for you to move once you are settled into your new life.
3. Don’t compare yourself to other people your age.
Young adults are good at putting up impressive appearance, but you don’t really know what their lives are like. Those who seem to have the perfect job may spend part of the day making coffee and picking up boss’s dry-cleaning.
4. Pay attention to small jobs as well as big ones.
Don’t stress if, in your first job or internship(实习期), you get a lot more face time with the copy machine than with clients. You may wonder why you spent so much time studying in school only to do such tasks. But you may also be learning more about your new professional than you realize.
5. Know when it’s time to move on.
Give a new job a chance, perhaps a year, before you make up your mind to leave, especially if it’s your first job out of school. When you’re sure that the job isn’t for you, figure out what you want to do and how to do it. Zhang Yue, 26, spent three years working as an accountant in Shanghai before becoming a financial planner. He loves his new job and spent 10 months searching for it: “To find something you really want to do takes time.”
【小题1】 By mentioning Alan Greenspan, the author wants to show ____.

Plastics are considered one of the most serious pollutants causing environmental problems. The garbage containing plastics end up in the waterways that eventually flow into the oceans. Accumulation (聚集)of plastic in the ocean endangers marine life and pollutes the water.
Does a plastic continent exist? Yes, a plastic continent does exist and was discovered by Captain Charles Moore a decade ago. The plastic continent is twice the size of Britain and it is the region between the Hawaii Islands and California in the central Pacific Ocean.
One of the causes of the lack of marine life in this region is due to pollution and pollutants are none other than plastics. Captain Charles Moore believes plastic waste started accumulating in the 1950s.
The plastic continent is the man-made continent of floating plastic waste. The fisher men and the sailors have avoided this region for years. The reasons are:
1. There are no fish here because of the lack of nutrients.
2. The zone also lacks the wind that is essential for sailing.
To do research on the ocean pollution, Captain Moore founded Algalita Marine Research Foundation. Other organizations such as Greenpeace supported his cause. The reports of The United Nations Environment Program show that millions of seabirds and marine animals are dying due to the invasion(入侵)of plastics. The waste plastics can be recycled, but in fact they are being thrown into the oceans. The marine animals mistake these for food and eat them. This leads to their death that affects the marine food chain.
To save the oceans from the plastic continent you need to reduce the use of plastics, reuse plastic bags and recycle plastics.
【小题1】 What can we learn from the first paragraph?

When it comes to your skin, there is an extremely important fact that you must keep in mind: Your skin is the largest organ of your body. As an obvious result, skin health and maintenance(保养) is vital. Your skin does everything from protecting you from the elements to assisting you with breathing. Your skin keeps your body hydrated(含水的) and regulates your body's temperature. In the end, this really is only the beginning of all of the various vital functions that your skin provides to you.
Despite the extreme importance of a person's skin, the reality is that many people simply do not pay much attention to issues relating to the health of their skin. With that in mind, there are some prime tips and pointers that you must always keep in mind when it comes to the health and protection of your skin.
Protection against harmful rays from the sun is one of the most important steps that you need to take. With this in mind it is vitally important that you make certain you use solid protection when you go out into the sun.
Your diet also has a direct effect on the health of your skin. The most important aspect of your diet in relation to the health of your skin is to make certain that you eat a proper amount of food items that contain the proteins and nutrients necessary for cellular maintenance, repair and regeneration(再生). With this in mind, your skin cells actually rely on a sufficient amount of carbohydrates.
Water is also important to the Health of your skin. While you certainly have heard it before, it actually is true that you should drink at least eight 8-ounce glasses of fresh and pure water every day. There are many health benefits you can get from drinking water daily, including maintaining healthy skin.
Finally, when it comes to the health of your skin today and into the future you should avoid smoking all together. In addition, you should drink alcohol only in moderation. Both smoking and too much alcohol consumption can negatively affect the health of your skin in significant ways.
55．The underlined word elements in the first paragraph probably refers to _______.
A. bad weather                                          B. a favorable environment
C. all the chemicals                                          D. the cells making up the skin
56．The writer lists some of the functions of skin in the beginning part to _______.
A. make an analysis of the main topic of the passage
B. draw readers’ attention to the main topic of the passage  
C. give a brief introduction to the main topic of the passage
D. give the readers a summary of the main topic of the passage
57．Which of the following does not help maintain the health of skin?
A. Drinking alcohol in moderation.
B. Including adequate carbohydrates in diet.
C. Using solid protection when exposed to the sun.
D. Drinking enough fresh and pure water every day.
58．The most suitable title of the passage may be _______.
A. An essential organ of our body               B. Tips for soft and smooth skin
C. Habits and skin health                            D. How to keep our skin healthy