(06·山东E篇)

PITTSBURGH – For most people, snakes seem unpleasant or even threatening. But Howie Choset sees in their delicate movements a way to save lives.

The 37-year-old Carnegie Mellon University professor has spent years developing snake-like robots he hopes will eventually slide through fallen buildings in search of victims trapped after natural disasters or other emergencies.

Dan Kara is president of Robotics Trends, a Northboro, Mass.-based company that publishes an online industry magazine and runs robotics trade shows. He said there are other snake-like robots being developed, mainly at universities, but didn’t know of one that could climb pipes.

The Carnegie Mellon machines are designed to carry cameras and electronic sensors and can be controlled with a joystick(操纵杆). They move smoothly with the help of small electric motors, or servos, commonly used by hobbyists in model airplanes.

Built from lightweight materials, the robots are about the size of a human arm or smaller.They can sense which way is up, but are only as good as their human operators, Choset added.

Sam Stover, a search term manager with the Federal Emergency Management Agency based in Indiana, said snake-type robots would offer greater mobility than equipment currently available, such as cameras attached to extendable roles.

“It just allows us to do something we’ve ot been able to do before,”Stover said, “We needed them yesterday.”

He said sniffer dogs are still the best search tool for rescue workers, but that they can only be used effectively when workers have access to damaged building.

Stover, among the rescue workers who handled the aftermath (后果) of Hurricane Katrina, said snake robots would have helped rescuers search flooded houses in that disaster.

Choset said the robots may not be ready for use for another five to ten years, depending on funding.

72. Which institution is responsible for the development of Choset’s robots?

A. Robotics Trends.                            B. Pittsburgh City Council.

C. Carnegie Mellon University.                  D. Federal Emergency Management Agency.

73. Choset believes that his invention ______.

A. can be attached to an electronic arm

B. can be used by hobbyists in model airplanes

C. can find victims more quickly than a sniffer dog

D. can sense its way no better than its operators

74. By saying “We needed them yesterday” (paragraph 7), Stover means that snake-like robots _____.

A. could help handle the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina

B. would have been put to use in past rescue work

C. helped rescuers search flooded houses yesterday

D. were in greater need yesterday than today

75. What is the text mainly about?

A. Snake-like robots used in industries.

B. Snake-like robots made to aid in rescues.

C. The development of snake-like robots.

D. The working principles of snake-like robots.

 (06·山东)

One summer day my father sent me to buy wire for our farm. At 16, I liked 36 better than driving our truck, 37 this time I was not happy. My father had told me I’d have to ask for credit(赊账) at the store.

Sixteen is a 38 age, when a young man wants respect, not charity. It was 1976, and the ugly 39 of racial discrimination was 40 a fact of life. I’d seen my friends ask for credit and then stand, head down, while the store owner 41 whether they were “good for it.” I knew black youths just like me who were 42 like thieves by the store clerk each time they went into a grocery.

My family was 43 . We paid our debts. But before harvest, cash was short. Would the store owner 44 us ?

At Davis’s store, Buck Davis stood behind the cash desk, talking to a farmer. I nodded 45 I passed him on my way to the hardware shelves. When I brought my 46 to the caskh desk, I said 47 , “I need to put this on credit.”

The farmer gave me and amused, distrustful 48 . But Buck’s face didn’t change. “Sure,” he said 49 . “Your daddy is 50 good for it.” He  51 to the other man. “This here is one of James Williams’s sons.”

The farmer nodded in a neighborly 52 . I was filled with pride. James William’s son. Those three words had opened a door to an adult’s respect and trust.

That day I discovered that the good name my parents had  53  brought our whole family the respect of our neighbors. Everyone knew what to 54 from a Williams: a decent person who kept his word and respected himself 55 much to do wrong.

36. A. something         B. nothing                 C. anything          D. everything

37. A. and              B. so                      C. but              D. for

38. A. prideful           B. wonderful               C. respectful         D. colorful

39. A. intention          B. shadow                 C. habit             D. faith

40. A. thus              B. just                    C. still              D. ever

41. A. guessed           B. suspected               C. questioned         D. figured

42. A. watched           B. caught                  C. dismissed          D. accused

43. A. generous          B. honest                   C. friendly           D. modest

44. A. blame            B. excuse                  C. charge            D. trust

45. A. until             B. as                      C. once              D. since

46. A. purchases         B. sales                    C. orders            D. favorites

47. A. casually          B. confidently               C. cheerfully         D. carefully

48. A. look             B. stare                    C. response          D. comment

49. A. patiently          B. eagerly                   C. easily            D. proudly

50. A generally          B. never                     C. sometimes        D. always

51. A. pointed          B. replied                    C. turned           D. introduced

52. A. sense            B. way                      C. degree           D. mood

53. A. earned             B. deserved              C. given              D. used

54. A. receive            B. expect                 C. collect             D. require

55. A. very              B. so                     C. how              D. too

 (06·山东B篇)

November not only marks the publication of Toni Morrison’s eagerly anticipated(期待) eighth novel, Love, but it is also the tenth anniversary of her Nobel Prize for Literature. Morrison is the first black woman to receive a Nobel, and so honored before her in literature are only two black men:Wole Soyinka, the Nigerian playwright, poet and novelist, in 1986; and Derek Walcott, the Caribbean-born poet, in 1992. But Morrison is also the first and only American-born Nobel prizewinner for literature since 1962, the year novelist John steinbeck received the award.

Like Song of Solomon, Love is a multigenerational story, revealing the personal and communal legacy() of an outstanding black family. As Morrison scholars will tell you, Love is the third volume of a literary master’s trilogy(三部曲)investigating the many complexities of love. This trilogy began with Beloved(1988), which deals with a black mother’s love under slavery and in freedom. Jazzy(1993), the second volume, tells a story of romantic love in 1920s Harlem. This latest novel looks back from the 1970s to the 1940s and 50s.

The emotional center of Love is Bill Cosey, the former owner and host of the shabby Cosey’s Hotel and Resort in Silk, North Carolina, described in the novel as “the best and best-known vacation sport for colored folk on the East Coast.” We get to know Cosey through the memories of five women who survive and love him: his granddaughter, his widow, two former employees, and a homeless young girl.

The latest novel, Love, had been described in the promotional material from her publisher as “Morrison’s most accessible work since Song of Solomon.” This comparison to her third novel, published in 1977, was an effective selling point.

61. What would be the best title for the text?

A. Toni Morrison’s latest novels

B. Toni Morrison and her trilogy

C. Toni Morrison and her novel Love

D. Toni Morrison, the Nobel prizewinner

62. What can we learn about John Steinbeck?

A. He was a black writer.

B. He was born in America.

C. He received the Nobel Prize after Morrison

D. He was the first American novelist to win a Nobel

63. The similarity between Love and Song of Solomon is that they both _____.

A. belong to the same trilogy together with Beloved

B. concern families of more than one generation

C. deal with life of blacks under slavery

D. investigate life in 1920s Harlem

64. The novel Love mainly describes ______.

A. the best-known vacation spot for blacks

B. the life of an outstanding black family under slavery

C. the miserable experience of the five women in Harlem

D. the memories of five women about Bill Cosey

 (06·山东C篇)

FILM DESCRIPTIONS

Back to the Future

With the help of a local inventor’s time machine, Marty travels back to the 1950s. There his 80s hipness stands out, and he inadvertently interferes with the fledgling romance of his parents-to-be. Can Marty keep them together? He’d better, or his own future will fade away. Featuring: Christopher Lloyd, Michael J.Fox. A universal Pictures release, 1 hr. 55 min.

Beethoven’s 2nd

In this sequel to the popular Beethoven, our canine hero falls for Missy, who soon has puppies. Missy’s greedy owner, Regina, who sees only money in the little purebreds, separates mom and pups from Beethoven. His owners rescue the puppies, but Regina still has Missy. Featuring: Charles Grodin, Bonnie Hunt. A Universal Pictures release, 1 hr. 26 min.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Despite the popularity of his treats, candy maker Willy Wonka shuts himself inside his factory. But then Willy holds a contest, offering five lucky children the chance to see his company. Poor but pleasant Charlie Bucket finds a ticket, as do four less-deserving children. Featuring:

Johnny Depp, Freddie Highmore. A Warner Bros. Release, 1 hr. 56 min.

Cinderella Man

Based on actual events, this film follows the life of Jim Braddock, a boxer in New York City during the Great Depression. After a series of losses, Braddock is forced into retirement. But he never gives up his boxing dream, and neither does his manager. Featuring: Russell Crowe, Renee Zellweger. A Universal Pictures release, 2 hr. 14 min.

Liar Liar

Lawyer Fletcher Reede has never told the truth in his life. Then his son makes a birthday wish that his dad would stop lying for 24 hours. Suddenly, Fletcher’s mouth spouts everything he thinks. His compulsion brings disaster to courtroom, where he must defend a client whose case was built on lies. Featuring: Jim Carrey, Justin Cooper. A Universal Pictures release, 1 hr. 25 min.

65. Which of the following is probably the name of a dog?

A. Marty.             B. Missy.             C. Fletcher.          D. Charlie

66. Willy Wonka is _______.

A. a boxer who suffers a series of losses

B. a lawyer who has never told the truth

C. a man who runs a chocolate factory

D. a man who invents a time machine

67. Which film is about the life of a real person?

A. Beethoven’s 2nd                         B. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

C. Cinderella Man                          D. Liar Liar

 (06·山东A篇)

Short and shy, Ben Saunders was the last kid in his class picked for any sports team. “Football, tennis Cricket—anything with a round ball, I was useless, “he says now with a laugh. But back then he was the object of jokes in school gym classes in England’s rural Devonshire.

It was a mountain bike he received for his 15th birthday that changed him. At first the teen went biking alone in a nearby forest. Then he began to cycle along with a runner friend. Gradually, Saunders set his mind building up his body, increasing his speed, strength and endurance. At age 18, he ran his first marathon.

The following year, he met John Ridgway, who became famous in the 1960s for rowing an open boat across the Atlantic Ocean. Saunders was hired as an instructor at Ridgway’s school of Adventure in Scotland, where he learned about the older man’s cold-water exploits(成就).Intrigued, Saunders read all he could about Arctic explorers and North Pole expeditions, then decided that this would be his future.

Journeys to the Pole aren’t the usual holidays for British country boys, and many peiole dismissed his dream as fantasy. “John Ridgway was one of the few who didn’t say, ‘You are completely crazy,’”Saunders says.

In 2001, after becoming a skilled skier, Saunders started his first long-distance expedition toward the North Pole. He suffered frostbite, had a closer encounter(遭遇) with a polar bear and pushed his body to the limit.

Saunders has since become the youngest person to ski alone to the North Pole, and he’s skied more of the Arctic by himself than any other Briton. His old playmates would not believe the transformation.

This October, Saunders, 27, heads south to explore from the coast of Antarctica to the South Pole and back, an 1800-mile journey that has never been completed on skis.

56. The turning point in Saunders’life came when _____

A. he started to play ball games

B. he got a mountain bike at age 15

C. he ran his first marathon at age 18

D. he started to receive Ridgway’s training

57. We can learn from the text that Ridgway _______.

A. dismissed Saunders’ dream as fantasy

B. built up his body together with Saunders

C. hired Saunders for his cold-water experience

D. won his fame for his voyage across the Atlantic

58. What do we know about Saunders?

A. He once worked at a school in Scotland.

B. He followed Ridgway to explore the North Pole.

C. He was chosen for the school sports team as a kid.

D.He was the first Briton to ski alone to the North Pole.

59. The underlined word “Intrigued” in the third paragraph probably means_____.

A. Excited    B. Convinced   C. Delighted    D. Fascinated

60. It can be inferred that Saunders’ journey to the North Pole ______.

A. was accompanied by his old playmates

B. set a record in the North Pole expedition

C. was supported by other Arctic explorers

D. made him well-known in the 1960s