The Internet, mobile phones and iPads are part of our lives now. Technology is greatly affecting all ways of our lives, from the ways we work to the ways we play. And it even causes a number of social problems such as cloning humans.
We have had lots of technology and it has changed our lives a lot. There is no doubt that humans will continue to use more and more technology. Here are some examples of modern technology that will change our ideas and will affect our lives greatly.
Global Positioning System (GPS) (全球定位系统)![]()
It’s a system that uses radio signals from satellites to show exact (精确的) information. It tells you where the user is on the earth in all weather conditions. It’s made up of three parts: satellites, control equipments (设备) on land and receivers.
Space Technology![]()
Russian and American scientists have worked together for the International Space Station (ISS) for a long time. They hope the ISS will provide a long-lasting lab. Such a lab will bring humans limitless (无限的) advantages. It’s even hoped that one day space technology will take humans to their new houses in space.![]()
Underwater Robot
Hercules is a kind of underwater robot with some high technology equipments. It will be used to search for ancient ships which were destroyed into the deep sea during their journey long ago.
The world is changing so quickly that it’s hard for us to catch up with all the new inventions because they seem to come out every month. It’s important for us to learn about new technology and the role that it plays in our lives. So we should be willing to accept modern technology, or we will fall behind the times.
【小题1】 can tell you where the user is on the earth exactly.
| A.Satellites | B.Receivers |
| C.Global Positioning System | D.Underwater Robot |
| A.It has carried people to other planets. |
| B.It will provide a long-lasting lab for us. |
| C.Russia and America are working for it. |
| D.Humans will get a lot of advantages from it. |
| A.save lives in the sea |
| B.take pictures in the sea |
| C.repair the broken ships |
| D.look for the ancient ships in the sea |
| A.the use of GPS is affected by the weather conditions |
| B.it’s very important for us to learn about new technology |
| C.it’s easy for us to catch up with all the new inventions |
| D.technology brings us many advantages such as cloning humans |
| A.To help us study some new technology. |
| B.To tell us technology is changing the world. |
| C.To help solve the problems that technology causes. |
| D.To remind us the advantages of technology are limitless. |
Nearly all our food comes from the soil(土地). Some of us eat meat, of course, but animals live on plants. If there were no plants, we would have no animals and no meat. So the soil is very necessary for life. The top of the ground is usually covered with grass or other plants. There may be dead leaves and dead plants on the grass. The waste matter(粪)from animals also falls on it.
All soil needs food. If we do not give it any, the plants will be weak. Farmers found that animals’ waste is the best food for the soil, but chemical fertilizers(化肥)are also very useful. The same crop(庄稼)should not be grown in the same place every year, it’s better to have a different crop. A change of crop and the use of a good fertilizer will keep the land good.
【小题1】Which of the following is true?
| A.All our food comes from the soil. |
| B.Most of our food comes from soil. |
| C.None of our food comes from the soil. |
| D.All our food comes from animals. |
| A.Leaves, plants, grass and waste live on each other. |
| B.There would be no animals without meat. |
| C.There would be no plants without animals. |
| D.People, animals, plants and soil live on each other |
| A.Chemical fertilizers. | B.Plants and grass. |
| C.Animals’ waste. | D.Different crops. |
| A.Because we can keep the soil rich this way. |
| B.Because we don’t have enough land. |
| C.Because we want to have a different food. |
| D.Because we do this as a habit(习惯). |
What will the house look like in the future? Could it have gardens on its walls, or a pool with fish for dinner? Architects(建筑师) believe that they are all possible. The only thing for sure is that the houses will be as green as possible.
The tree house
Many architects in the world would like to build a “tree house.” Like a leaf, the surface of the house collects sunlight during the day. The energy can be used to heat water, produce electricity, and even create fresh air for the home. The “root” (根) of the house is deep under the ground. It uses the soil (土壤) to keep the home’s temperature.
The Lizard house
Like a lizard (蜥蜴), changing color with the weather is the most important design of a lizard house. When it’s in the bright sun, the cover of the house will turn dark to protect it from strong heat. During dark days, it turns white and takes in as much light and heat as possible to produce energy.
Meals at home
This design is perhaps as much about the future of food production as architecture (建筑风格). It has gardens on the outside wall of the house. People can plant tomatoes, carrots and green tea on them. So every day in the morning, you just need to walk outside and collect your meals.
Learning from the past
Looking to the future isn’t the only way to be green. Sometimes, ancient techniques (古老的技术) can also help cut down energy use. For example, a chimney (烟囱) can be a useful air conditioner because it is easier to flow out hot air from the chimney.
【小题1】What is the best title (标题) of the passage?
| A.Green house of the future | B.The greener, the better |
| C.How to build green houses | D.Changes of the houses |
| A.with the root of a leaf | B.with the energy from sunlight |
| C.with the soil under the ground | D.with gardens on its walls |
| A.It will take in light. | B.It will produce energy. |
| C.It will turn dark. | D.It will turn white. |
| A.will be more delicious | B.need more cooks |
| C.cost as much as possible | D.will be greener |
| A.pollution | B.accident | C.noise | D.techniques |
When do you think of a forest, what do you see? Just trees? Or do you see many other things, such as singing birds, colorful plants and wild flowers?
The forest is a whole world of its own. It is full of many different living things(生物). But even though they are all different, they have one thing in common: they all need each other in order to live on.
The trees feed the forest “people” by making food in their leaves; by using sunlight to join water and minerals(矿物) from the soil and air. Their deep network of roots joins the soil together and stops it from dying out, making it possible for living things to live in it.
Human beings(人类) are like the living things in the forest. We need one another in order to live. We need the farmers to grow our food, railroad and truck drivers to bring it to our shops and clerks(售货员) to sell it to us. We need people to prepare our food and cook it and others to take our waste things away. Then, of course, we need doctors, nurses, government leaders, mailmen, telephone operators, and many others.
We also need other human beings in another way. We need people for friendship, to talk over our problems, exchange ideas. Think how lonely and unhappy you would be if you lived all alone.
Life is a matter of giving and taking. We need to help other people as much as we need other people to help us. Think what a good feeling you have when you have done something for someone else!
【小题1】According to the text, colorful plants and flowers live on _____.
| A.the leaves of the trees | B.water and minerals |
| C.the soil and air | D.all of the above |
| A.trees | B.birds | C.plants | D.farmers |
| A.different from | B.like | C.dislike | D.unhappy with |
| A.we need people for friendship |
| B.we need one another in order to live |
| C.the forest is a whole world of its own |
| D.the forest is full of different living things |
| A.We can see trees in the forests. |
| B.We like the living things in the forest. |
| C.We need farmers to grow our food in the forest. |
| D.We are the same as the forest; We need each other to live on. |
Are some people born clever, and others born stupid? Or is intelligence (智力) developed by our environment and our experience? Strangely enough, the answer to these questions is yes. In some degree, our intelligence is given to us at birth, and no education can make a genius (天才) out of a child born with low intelligence. On the other hand, a child who lives in a boring environment will develop his intelligence less than one who lives in rich environment. Therefore, the limits of person’s intelligence are fixed at birth, whether or not he reaches those limits will depend on his environment. This point of view, now is held by most experts.
It is easy to show that intelligence is something that we are born with. The closer the blood relationship between two people, the closer they are likely to be intelligence. If we take two strangers by chance from the population, it seems that their degree of intelligence will be completely different. If, on the other hand, we compare two twins, they will very likely be as intelligent as each other. Relations like brothers and sisters, parents and children, usually have similar intelligence, and this clearly suggests that intelligence depends on birth.
Imagine now that we take two twins and put them in different environments. We might send one, for example, to a university and the other to a factory separately where the work is boring. We would soon find differences in intelligence developing, and this shows that environment as well as birth plays an important role. This conclusion is also suggested by the fact that people who live in close contact (接触) with each other, but who are not related at all are likely to have similar degree of intelligence.
【小题1】How is man’s intelligence given?
| A.At birth | B.Through education |
| C.Both at birth and through education | D.Neither at birth nor through education |
| A.稳固 | B.确定 | C.修理 | D.安排 |
| A.Become a genius. |
| B.Still become a genius if he should be given special education. |
| C.Reach his intelligence limits in rich environment. |
| D.Never reach his intelligence in his life. |
| A.The importance of their intelligence. |
| B.The role of environment on intelligence. |
| C.The importance of their jobs |
| D.The part that birth plays |
| A.No education can help make a genius. |
| B.Personality is important as intelligence which was given to people at birth. |
| C.People who have similar degree of intelligence must be relatives. |
| D.Environment influences people in intelligence developing. |
What does blood do for us? It brings food to all parts of our bodies and takes waste away from them. All parts of our bodies are made of cells. These cells are very small. They all need all the time. No one could make pictures of cells because no one could see them.
What makes the blood move round the body? The heart is a pump. It pumps the blood and sends it round the body. The heart has rooms with doors between them. It pumps blood in and out through these doors by changing the size of the rooms so that the doors are opened and shut. The heart keeps a stream of blood going all around the body and back again to itself. The heart is a very important part of one's body. When it stops beating, one will die.
【小题1】Blood is important to our body because it can
| A.provide pictures of cells | B.bring food and waste |
| C.from a stream | D.move around the heart |
| A.显微镜 | B.探测仪 | C.放大镜 | D.摄像机 |
| A.open or shut doors | B.send something up |
| C.change the size of rooms | D.make something in or out |
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The world itself is becoming much smaller by using modern traffic and modern communication. Life today is much easier than it was hundreds of years ago, but it has brought new problems. One of the biggest problems is pollution.
To pollute means to make things unfit or unclean to use. Pollution comes in many ways. We see it, smell it, drink it and even eat it. Pollution is beginning to threaten (威胁) our health, our happiness and our life.
Man has been polluting the earth from the time he first made fire, washed his clothes in the river and threw his waste on the ground. When land was used up or water became dirty, men moved on to another place. At first, the problem was not so serious because there was plenty of clean air, land and water. There weren’t so many people then and their wants fewer. All the dirty things could be absorbed(吸收) by nature and soon covered over. But this is no longer true. The increase of pollution and the development of industry(工业) have changed that. Man is slowly poisoning(毒害)not only his environment but also himself.
Through the use of poison, man has polluted the land, killing the animals. By putting dirty water and chemicals into rivers and lakes we have polluted our drinking water, killing the fish.
Our increasing population is part of the problem. More people, more waste.
Where is this all to end? Are we turning the world into a big rubbish dump(堆存处),or is there any hope that we can get rid of (摆脱,除去) the pollution? Luckily, millions of people have been warned of the danger of pollution. Large numbers of people are now working hard to bring pollution under control.
The earth is our home. We must take care of it. This means keeping the land, air and water clean. And we must take care of the rise in pollution at the same time.
【小题1】Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
| A.We live on the earth, so we should look after it. |
| B.Man is fighting against different kinds of pollution. |
| C.To pollute means to make air, water and land unfit for use. |
| D.All the waste produced by modern industry can be absorbed. |
| A.化学物质 | B.医疗器械 | C.污染源 | D.塑料制品 |
| A.made the drinking water dirty | B.polluted the land |
| C.killed the animals | D.all of the above |
| A.we need more people, not more waste |
| B.the increase of population caused more waste. |
| C.there isn’t any hope that we can get rid of the pollution |
| D.More people have been warned of the danger of more waste. |
| A.Man begins to understand the pollution. |
| B.Man doesn’t know how to control pollution. |
| C.Man is doing something to control pollution. |
| D.Man still doesn’t realize how serious pollution is. |
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In the early 1990s the word “Internet” was strange to most people. But today, Internet has become a useful tool for people all over the world. Maybe Internet has been the greatest invention in the field of communication in the history of mankind. Communicating with others on the Internet is much faster. We can chat with a person who is sitting in the other part of the world. We can e-mail our friends and they can read the e-mails within a minute.
Giving all kinds of information is probably the biggest advantage of the Internet. We can use search engines to find the information we need. Just type in a keyword or keywords and the search engine will give us a list of suitable websites to look at.![]()
We can enjoy a lot on the Internet by downloading games, visiting chat rooms or surfing(浏览)websites. There are some games for free. We can meet new and interesting people in the chat now. We can also listen to music and see films.
Now, there is a lot of service on the Internet such as online banking, job finding and ticket buying. We can also do shopping and find nearly all kinds of goods. Sometimes we can find something that is quite good but very cheap.
【小题1】How many main advantages of the Internet are talked about in the last passage?
| A.Three. | B.Four. | C.Five. | D.Six. |
| A.We can find almost anything we want to know on the Internet. |
| B.Some games on the Internet are free. |
| C.We can buy most things we need on the Internet. |
| D.Goods on the Internet are more expensive than those in real shops. |
| A.Online Shopping |
| B.Exchanging Information on the Internet |
| C.The Advantages of the Internet |
| D.Surfing the Websites on the Internet |