What Will Future Be like?

我们的未来会怎么样?

    提到人类未来的生活将会怎样，我想一千个人对此会有一千种不同的看法，但不外乎就是两种态度——乐观的或是悲观的。地球的未来究竟会怎样?科学家们的猜测也许是这样的……

  　Some experts are pessimistic when they think about the future. They say that，by then the population of the world will have doubled. We will have run out of many essential resources like oil and coal．We may have even run out of water to drink．Some experts believe that there will be no land left，because of the overcrowding．

    Others are far more optimistic．They say that life will be better than it is today．We may be living in better buildings and leading better lives than we are today．Life will certainly have become more mechanized．Machines will be doing many jobs that people do today．People will no longer be able to learn only one job in their life time．They will have to learn several．Perhaps a station will be built on the moon．People will be able to visit the moon as travelers. They may even spend their holidays in space，traveling by spaceship．

    Many people never think about the future．“I don't care．I'll be dead．”they say．But it is our duty to care because the world of that time will be the one of our children's children and their children after them.

    Notes

    pessimistic  adj．悲观的　　　　　　    double v．翻一番；增倍

essential adj．必要的；不可缺的　　　　 overcrowding n．拥挤

optimistic adj．乐观的；有信心的　　　　　　    mechanize v．机械化

    Comprehension questions

1．Some people are pessimistic about the future；others have a different idea about it．That is to say，”she said．

    Comprehension question：

    In what way has Dr．Gao Yaojie helped the orphans with AIDS?

2．Oil，coal，water and forest are essential _________．

3．The _________of the world will be so large that we will have to use all the land for housing．

阅读理解

What Will Future Be like?

我们的未来会怎么样?

    提到人类未来的生活将会怎样，我想一千个人对此会有一千种不同的看法，但不外乎就是两种态度——乐观的或是悲观的。地球的未来究竟会怎样?科学家们的猜测也许是这样的……

  　Some experts are pessimistic when they think about the future. They say that，by then the population of the world will have doubled. We will have run out of many essential resources like oil and coal．We may have even run out of water to drink．Some experts believe that there will be no land left，because of the overcrowding．

    Others are far more optimistic．They say that life will be better than it is today．We may be living in better buildings and leading better lives than we are today．Life will certainly have become more mechanized．Machines will be doing many jobs that people do today．People will no longer be able to learn only one job in their life time．They will have to learn several．Perhaps a station will be built on the moon．People will be able to visit the moon as travelers. They may even spend their holidays in space，traveling by spaceship．

    Many people never think about the future．“I don't care．I'll be dead．”they say．But it is our duty to care because the world of that time will be the one of our children's children and their children after them.

    Notes

    pessimistic  adj．悲观的　　　　　　    double v．翻一番；增倍

essential adj．必要的；不可缺的　　　　 overcrowding n．拥挤

optimistic adj．乐观的；有信心的　　　　　　    mechanize v．机械化

    Comprehension questions

1．Some people are pessimistic about the future；others have a different idea about it．That is to say，they are _________．

2．Oil，coal，water and forest are essential _________．

3．The _________of the world will be so large that we will have to use all the land for housing．

Throughout this long, tense election, everyone has focused on the presidential candidates and how they’ll change America. Rightly so, but selfishly, I’m more fascinated by Michelle Obama and what she might be able to do, not just for this country, but for me as an African-American woman. As the potential First Lady, she would have the world’s attention. And that means that for the first time people will have a chance to get up close and personal with the type of African-American woman they so rarely see.

　　Usually, the lives of black women go largely unexamined. The prevailing theory seems to be that we’re all hot-tempered single mothers who can’t keep a man. Even in the world of make-believe, black women still can’t escape the stereotype of being eye-rolling, oversexed females raised by our never-married, alcoholic (酗酒的) mothers.

　　These images have helped define the way all women are viewed, including Michelle Obama. Before she ever gets the chance to commit to a cause, charity or foundation as First Lady, her most urgent and perhaps most complicated duty may be simple to be herself.

　　It won’t be easy. Because few mainstream publications have done in-depth features on regular African-American women, little is known about who we are, what we think and what we face on a regular basis. For better or worse, Michelle will represent us all.

　　Just as she will have her critics, she will also have millions of fans who usually have little interest in the First Lady. Many African-American blogs have written about what they’d like to see Michelle bring to the White House—mainly showing the world that a black woman can support her man and raise a strong black family. Michelle will have to work to please everyone—an impossible task. But for many African-American women like me, just a little of her poise (沉着), confidence and intelligence will go a long way in changing an image that’s been around for far too long.

1.Why does Michelle Obama hold a strong fascination for the author?

A.She serves as a role model for African women.

B.She possesses many admirable qualities becoming a First Lady.

C.She will present to the world a new image of African-American women.

D.She will pay closer attention to the interests of African-American women.

2.What is the common stereotype of African-American women according to the author?

A.They are victims of violence.

B.They are of an inferior violence.

C.They use quite a lot of body language.

D.They live on charity and social welfare.

3.What do many African-Americans write about in their blogs?

A.Whether Michelle can live up to the high expectations of her fans.

B.How Michelle should behave as a public figure.

C.How proud they are to have a black woman in the White House.

D.What Michelle should do as wife and mother in the White House.

4.What does the author say about Michelle Obama as a First Lady?

A.However many fans she has, she should remain modest,

B.She shouldn’t disappoint the African-American community.

C.However hard she tries, she can’t expect to please everybody.

D.She will give priority to African-American women’s concerns.

5.What do many African-American women hope Michelle Obama will do?

A.Help change the prevailing view about black women.

B.Help her husband in the task of changing America.

C.Outshine previous First Lady.

D.Fully display her fine qualities.

The first people who gave names to hurricanes were those who knew them best — the people of Puerto Rico. The small island of Puerto Rico is in the West Indies, off the coast of Florida. This is where all the hurricanes begin that strike the east coast of the United States. Often they pass near Puerto Rico or cross it on their way north. The people of Puerto Rico expect some of these unwelcome visitors every year. Each one is named after the Saint’s Day on which it arrives. Two of the most destructive storms were the Santo Ana in 1840 and the San Ciriaco in 1899.

Giving girls’ names to hurricanes is a fairly new idea. It all began with a story called “Storm”, written by George Stewart in 1941. In it a weatherman amused himself by naming storms after girls he knew. He named one Maria. The story describes how she Maria grew and developed, and how she changed the lives of people when she struck the United States.

Weathermen of the U.S. Army and Navy used the same system during World WarⅡ. They were studying weather conditions over the Pacific Ocean. One of their duties was to warn American ships and planes when a storm was coming. Whenever they spotted one, they gave it a girl’s name. The first one of the year was given a name beginning with [A]. The second one got a name beginning with [B]. They used all the letters from A to W, and still the storms kept coming. They had to use three lists from A to W to have enough names to go around. This was the first list of hurricane names that followed the alphabet. It served as a model for the system the Weather Bureau (局) introduced in 1942.

　　Before 1950 the Weather Bureau had no special system for naming hurricanes. When a hurricane was born down in the West Indies, the Weather Bureau simply collected information about it. It reported how fast the storm was moving and where it would go next. Weather reports warned people in the path of the hurricane, so that they could do whatever was necessary to protect themselves.

　　This system worked out fine as long as weather reports talked about only one hurricane at a time. But one week in September 1950 there were three hurricanes at the same time. The things began to get confused. Some people got the hurricanes mixed up and didn’t know which was which. This convinced the Weather Bureau that it needed a code for naming the storms in order to avoid confusion in the future.

Hurricanes were first named after the _________.

       A. date on which they occurred　 B. place where they began

　    C. amount of destruction they did　     D. particular feature they have

The practice of giving girls’ names to hurricanes was started by _________.

　    A. a radio operator       B. an author                 C. a sailor              D. local people

The purpose for which weathermen of the army and navy began using girls’ names for hurricanes was ________.

　    A. to keep information from the enemy      B. to follow the standard method of the United States

　    C. not given in the article　  D. to remember a certain girl

The Weather Bureau began naming hurricanes because it would help them _________.

　    A. collect information more rapidly　  B. warn people more efficiently

　    C. make use of military (军事的) records　 D. remember them