Today's word, pan, takes us back to the days of the gold rush in California.

   On January 24th, 1848, a man named James Wilson Marshall discovered gold in California. The news spread quickly. Thousands rushed west. They traveled on foot, on horseback and by boat to reach the gold fields. By 1849, the great gold rush was on. Towns and cities grew overnight. Throughout California --- in the mountains, along the streams and rivers --- thousands of people searched for gold.

   Some found areas of mountain rock thick with gold. These men got rich. But such areas were few and quickly claimed by the first men to find them. Others searched for gold in the rivers coming down the mountains. They were after pieces of gold that the rains had washed down from above .

   The only way to find this gold was by panning. First a gold miner put dirt in a metal pan and added water. Then he shook the pan so that the water would wash the dirt. Slowly, he poured the water out of the pan. If he was a lucky miner, pieces of gold would remain.

Across the nation, newspapers carried stories of the gold being found. Each one hoped that the place he claimed panned out well --- had some gold.

   For many, gold mining did not pan out. For a few, it panned out well. But in time, huge machines were built that could wash many tons of dirt at a time. Panning died out.

   The word, however, remained in the language. Today, Americans still say, “ It panned out well ,” when something they have done pleases them. A business, a discovery, a simple event pans out well if it is successful. Unhappily, sometimes things do not pan out.

   In recent years, the word pan has taken on another meaning. Today, it also means to criticize. How it got this meaning is hard to discover. But the job of a critic is to sometimes pan the work of a writer, artist or singer.

1.Why did so many people flood to California in 1848?

A. Because towns and cities there developed quickly.

B. Because the mountains in California were a great place for travel.

C. Because they wanted to get rich by looking for gold.

D. Because the land of California was fertile at that time.

2.The underlined part “It panned out well" in Paragraph 7 has the same meaning as “______”

A. Everything turned out well     B. Nothing could be worse

C. It's not the case              D. It's a pity

3.What is the purpose of this passage?

A. To tell us some stories about the gold rush.

B. To introduce the word "pan" in American English.

C. To teach us how to look for gold in rivers.

D. To introduce the history of the gold rush in California

　　We are not about to enter the Information Age, but instead are rather well into it．Present predictions are that by 1990, about thirty million jobs in the United States, or about thirty percent of the job market, will be computer-related．In 1980, only twenty-one percent of all American high schools owned one or two computers for student use．In the fall of 1985, a new study showed that half of United States secondary schools have fifteen or more computers for student use．And now educational experts, administrators, and even the general public are demanding that all students become computer literate．By the year 2000 knowledge of computers will be necessary in over eighty percent of all occupations．Soon those people not educated in computer use will be compared to those who are print illiterate today．

　　What is computer literacy? The term itself seems to imply some degree of knowing about computers, but knowing what? The present opinion seems to be that this should include a general knowledge of what computers are, plus a little of their history and something of how they operate．

　　Therefore, it is important that educators everywhere take a careful look not only at what is being done, but also at what should be done in the field of computer education．Today most adults are able to use a motor car without the slightest knowledge of how the internal combustion engine (内燃机) works．We effectively use all types of electrical equipment without being able to tell their histories or to explain how they work．

　　Business people for years have made good use of typewriters and adding machines, yet few have ever known how to repair them．Why, then, attempt to teach computers by teaching how or why they work?

　　Rather, we first must fix our mind on teaching the effective use of the computer as the tool is．

　　Knowing how to use a computer is what's going to be important．We don't talk about “automobile literacy”．We just get in our cars and drive them．

1．In 1990, the number of jobs having nothing to do with computers in the United States will be reduced to________．

[　　]

2．The underlined part print illiterate in the text refers to ________．

[　　]

A．one who has never learnt printing

B．one who has never learnt to read

C．one who is not computer literate

D．one who is not able to use a typewriter

3．What is the first paragraph mainly about?

[　　]

A．Recent predictions of computer-related jobs．

B．The wide use of computers in schools．

C．The urgency of computers education．

D．Public interest in computers．

4．According to the author, the effective way to spread the use of computers is to teach ________．

[　　]

A．how to use computers

B．what computers use

C．where computers can be used

D．how computers work

5．From the text, we can infer that________．

[　　]

A．computers will be easier to operate

B．automobile will be more comfortable

C．illiteracy rate will be down

D．computers will be set in automobiles

There are robots all around us. Some do very complicated jobs like flying airplanes and driving subway trains. and some do one simple job. When an automatic washing machine is switched on, water pours in. The machine waits until the water is warm enough for washing clothes. It does this by “feedback”(反馈). Information about what is happening is feedback into the robot to tell what to do next. Our eyes, ears and other senses are our feedback. They tell us what is going on around us. So robots are like human beings in two ways.

They work and they have feedback.

In some ways robots are better than human beings. They work quickly and do not make mistakes. They do not get bored doing the same job over and over again. And they never get tired. So robots are very useful in factories. They can be taught to do many different jobs. First their electronic brain must be shown how the job is done. A person moves the robot’s “arms” and “hands” through each part of the job.

The most intelligent robots can move and see. Their eyes are cameras. Their fingers can feel shapes and sizes of the objects. These robots have computer brains linked to their eyes and fingers, which control their actions. The expensive robots are used in scientific research. They do such job as handling radioactive materials.

In this passage the author tells us that ________.

A. robots are very popular

B. there are various kinds of robots

C. we see robots only at certain times

D. robots can be easily controlled

What does the author seem to inform you about robots?

A. They should be greatly improved.

B. They will probably take over in the future.

C. They are very helpful and useful to humans.

D. They are machines that break down a lot.

The author says that in industry ________.

A. robots break down a lot    

B. robots can do many jobs

C. robots only get in the way

D. robots sometimes cause troubles

The fact that a robot never gets bored doing the same job means that _______.

A. it is very much like human beings

B. it can do boring jobs for people

C. it will never bore people

D. it will work much better than human beings

The robots used for scientific research _______.

A. are not very clever     

B. are very cheap

C. are very big

D. are very costly

There are robots all around us. Some do very complicated jobs like flying airplanes and driving subway trains. and some do one simple job. When an automatic washing machine is switched on, water pours in. The machine waits until the water is warm enough for washing clothes. It does this by “feedback”(反馈). Information about what is happening is feedback into the robot to tell what to do next. Our eyes, ears and other senses are our feedback. They tell us what is going on around us. So robots are like human beings in two ways.

They work and they have feedback.

In some ways robots are better than human beings. They work quickly and do not make mistakes. They do not get bored doing the same job over and over again. And they never get tired. So robots are very useful in factories. They can be taught to do many different jobs. First their electronic brain must be shown how the job is done. A person moves the robot’s “arms” and “hands” through each part of the job.

The most intelligent robots can move and see. Their eyes are cameras. Their fingers can feel shapes and sizes of the objects. These robots have computer brains linked to their eyes and fingers, which control their actions. The expensive robots are used in scientific research. They do such job as handling radioactive materials.

In this passage the author tells us that ________.

A. robots are very popular

B. there are various kinds of robots

C. we see robots only at certain times

D. robots can be easily controlled

What does the author seem to inform you about robots?

A. They should be greatly improved.

B. They will probably take over in the future.

C. They are very helpful and useful to humans.

D. They are machines that break down a lot.

The author says that in industry ________.

A. robots break down a lot    

B. robots can do many jobs

C. robots only get in the way

D. robots sometimes cause troubles

The fact that a robot never gets bored doing the same job means that _______.

A. it is very much like human beings

B. it can do boring jobs for people

C. it will never bore people

D. it will work much better than human beings

The robots used for scientific research _______.

A. are not very clever     

B. are very cheap

C. are very big

D. are very costly

There are robots all around us. Some do very complicated jobs like flying airplanes and driving subway trains. And some do one simple job. When an automatic washing machine is switched on , water pours in. The machine waits until the water is warm enough for washing clothes. It does this by “feedback(反馈)” . Information about what is happening is feedback into the robot to tell what to do next. Our eyes, ears and other senses are our feedback. They tell us what is going on around us . So robots are like human beings in two ways.
They work and they have feedback.
In some ways robots are better than human beings. They work quickly and do not make mistakes. They do not get bored doing the same job over and over again. And they never get tired. So robots are very useful in factories. They can be taught to do many different jobs. First their electronic brain must be shown how the job is done, A person moves the robot’s “arms” and “hands” through each part of the job.
The most intelligent robots can move and see. Their eyes are cameras. Their fingers can feel shapes and sizes of the objects. These robots have computer brains linked to their eyes and fingers, which control their actions. The expensive robots are used in scientific research. They do such jobs as handling radioactive materials.
59. In this passage the author tells us that      .
A. robots are very popular               B. there are various kinds of robots
C. we see robots only at certain times      D. robots can be easily controlled
60. What does the author seem to inform you about robots?
A. They should be greatly improved  
B. They will probably take over in the future
C. They are very hopeful and useful to humans
D. They are machines that break down a lot
61. The author says that in industry      .
A. robots break down a lot     B. robots can do many jobs
C. robots only get in the way  D. robots sometimes cause troubles
62. The fact that a robot never gets bored doing the same job means that        .
A. it is very much like human beings  B. it can do boring jobs for people
C. it will never bore people          D. it will work much better than human beings