What if those new jeans you've just bought start tweeting(吱吱地叫)about your location as you cross London Bridge?
It sounds far-fetched, but it's possible－if one of your coats is equipped with a tiny radio-frequency identification device(RFID), your location could be revealed without you knowing about it．
RFIDs are chips that use radio waves to send data to a reader－which in turn can be connected to the web．
This technology is just one of the current ways of allowing physical objects to go online－a concept called the “Internet of things”, which industry insiders have shortened to IoT．
This is when not only your PC, tablet and smartphone can connect to the web, but also your car, your home, your baseball cap and even the sheep and cows on a farm．
Smart buildings and intelligent cars with assigned IP addresses are already making cities smarter－and soon enough, the entire planet may follow．
“A typical city of the future in a full IoT situation could be a place with smart cameras everywhere, neurosensors(神经监测系统)scanning your brain for over-activity in every street,” says Rob van Kranenburg, a member of the European Commission's IoT expert group．
This vision might still be years off, but one by one, “smarter” cities are beginning to crop up around our landscape．
IoT advocates claim that overall interconnectivity would allow us to locate and monitor everything, everywhere and at any time．
“Imagine a smart building where a manager can know how many people are inside just by which rooms are reflecting motion－for instance, via motion-sensitive lights,” says Constantine Valhouli from the Hammersmith Group, a strategy consulting firm．
“This could help save lives in an emergency．”
But as more objects go into the digital world, the fine line that separates the benefits of increasingly smart technology and possible privacy concerns becomes really blurred．
“The IoT challenge is likely to grow both in scale and complexity as seven billion humans are expected to coexist with 70 billion machines and perhaps 70,000 billion ‘smart things', with numbers invading the last fences of personal life,” says Gerald Santucci, head of the networked enterprise and RFID unit at the European Commission．
“In such a new context, the worries increase：to what extent can monitoring of people be accepted? Which principles should govern the deployment of the IoT?”
(1)
The first paragraph is used to ________．
[ ]
A．
introduce a new kind of jeans to readers
B．
arouse readers' interest in the RFID
C．
draw readers' attention to the new jeans
D．
set an example of using the RFID
(2)
The underlined phrase “crop up” in Para．8 can be replaced by “________”．
[ ]
A．
appear
B．
cooperate
C．
develop
D．
change
(3)
What can we know about IoT?
[ ]
A．
A typical city in a full IoT situation has come into reality．
B．
The application of IoT may invade people's privacy．
C．
The technology of IoT has saved lives in an emergency．
D．
IoT has been largely used in many cities．
(4)
If this text continues, what would be discussed next?
[ ]
A．
Solutions of defending people's privacy．
B．
The development of the IoT．
C．
The control on monitoring．
D．
Smart technology's disadvantages．
阅读理解
Before Nicolas Sarkozy became French president, he was asked if he thought about presidency when he looked in the mirror while shaving．“Not just when I' m shaving,” he answered．
When Francois Hollande, now president-elect(总统当选人)of France, was asked the same question, he replied：“Do I see myself as president? No, I am a presidential candidate．A candidate must not think himself president; he must give hope that he becomes president．”
Hollande has promised to be a “normal president” – something Sarkozy certainly was not．Sarkozy celebrated his election in 2007 at a world-class Parisian restaurant．He took holidays on the yachts(游艇)of wealthy businesspeople．Hollande, by contrast, was still going around Paris on his three-wheeled motorbike at the start of this year．One member of his party said he looked “more like a pizza delivery man” than the next president．
“That is the key to Hollande's success because the election is turning into a sort of referendum(公民投票)for or against Nicolas Sarkozy,” Eric Dupin, a journalist and political observer told Global Post．“Francois Hollande is the one who appears not only as his main opponent politically, but also as his complete opposite psychologically．”
When he was the Socialist party leader, Hollande was nicknamed “the marshmallow(软糖)” because he hated fights．Sarkozy, by contrast, is known to be loud and aggressive．
When faced with Sarkozy's verbal attacks during the election, Hollande stayed calm．This sometimes annoyed even his own supporters．“I wish he would just let go and savage(用暴力对付)Sarko,” one Hollande voter said to the Guardian．
But Hollande still knows how to fight．Stéphane Le Foll, a Socialist MEP who has been one of Hollande's closest advisors for 17 years and is co-directing his campaign, said Hollande had quietly planned his presidential bid for 10 years．“I think we all underestimated this guy,” Alain Minc, one of Sarkozy's closest friends and advisers, told Reuters．
Hollande was born in 1954 into a middle-class family．He lived through the 1968 protests that nearly overthrew the French government．“They shocked him, but also politicized him, he said in a recent interview, making him understand that change was possible,” reported the New York Times．When Hollande was 15, he told friends he expected to become president．
“I didn't come to the first rank either by chance or by obsession(执迷),” Hollande said in an interview with Reuters．“I got there because I put myself in this situation, and because I deserved it．”
(1)
By citing Hollande and Sarkozy's replies to the same question, the author intends to show ________．
[ ]
A．
Sarkozy is more confident than Hollande
B．
Hollande is more modest than Sarkozy
C．
Hollande is less ambitious than Sarkozy
D．
Sarkozy is more humorous than Hollande
(2)
What is the key to Hollande's success in the presidential election according to Eric Dupin?
[ ]
A．
His dislike of fights．
B．
His careful plan for the presidential bid．
C．
How different he is from Sarkozy．
D．
The gentle way in which he ran his campaign．
(3)
What did Hollande think he owed his success to, according to the article?
[ ]
A．
His good luck．
B．
His devotion and efforts．
C．
His obsession with politics．
D．
His personality and experience．
(4)
What is the purpose of the article?
[ ]
A．
To show what kind of a person Hollande is．
B．
To compare the differences between Hollande and Sarkozy．
C．
To show what French people think of Hollande．
D．
To explain why Sarkozy lost the election．
阅读理解
Is it true that cats have nine lives? One 4-year-old American cat named Sugar definitely seems to have more than one．Sugar fell from the 19th floor of her owner's home in Boston last month and was only hurt a little on her chest．
“This story isn't much of a surprise,” said Jake Socha, a scientist at Virginia Tech University, US, in an interview with the BBC．“There have been lots of records of these cats surviving．”
Back in 1987, scientists studied 132 cats．All of them had been brought to a vet's clinic in New York after falling from tall buildings．Around 90 percent of these cats were alive after their fall and only 37 percent had been seriously injured．
“Being able to survive falls is a critical thing for animals that live in trees, and cats are one of them,” said Socha．
Cats have developed special body structures to survive accidental falls．Their legs are muscular．This can protect their bones from breaking, Professor Andrew Biewener from Harvard University told the BBC．Cats can also spread out their legs like a parachute to reduce their falling speed, he said．
The strange part, according to scientists, is that cats have a better chance of survival if they fall from higher than seven stories．This is because cats have a good sense of which way is down．They can twist their bodies as they fall to make sure they land on their feet．A higher fall means more time for the cat to change its body position．
However, you should not throw your cat out of the window to see how this works．Most pet cats are overweight nowadays．They are not fit enough to change their position in midair, warned Steve Dale, an American cat behavior scientist．
“This cat(Sugar)was lucky,” Dale said．In fact, most cats would suffer serious lung damage, a broken leg or a broken jaw or teeth damage, he said．
(1)
What can we learn from Paragraph 3?
[ ]
A．
Cats really do have nine lives．
B．
Many cats can survive falls．
C．
Cats are the softest animals in the world．
D．
More than half of the cats that fall from high places end up badly injured．
(2)
What does the underlined word “critical” mean in the context?
[ ]
A．
Important．
B．
Easy．
C．
Challenging．
D．
Serious．
(3)
Why can cats survive falls according to the article?
a．They have a hidden parachute in their bodies．
b．Their legs have developed in a way that protects their bones from breaking．
c．They can land on their feet．
d．They can twist their bodies to reduce the speed at which they are falling．
[ ]
A．
a, b
B．
b, c
C．
c, d
D．
b, d
(4)
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
[ ]
A．
A pet cat that falls out of a tall building is not really at risk．
B．
Sugar was lucky that she was only injured in the leg．
C．
Cats are confused as to which way is down when they are in midair．
D．
A cat that falls from the fourth story of a building is more likely to die than one that falls from the 10th story．
阅读理解
I have this old clock that belonged to my mom．My dad gave it to me years ago after mom passed away．
I have mixed feelings about having the clock．I love it because it was my mom's, but it also holds some bad memories．
You see, it chimes．It counts out the hour and rings once on the half hour．Or at least it used to．Now you never know what number it will ring．
When my mother was at home dying from cancer, she asked for the clock to be unplugged．Hearing the hours count down really angered and frightened her．
Mom passed away．I decided I wanted to get the clock fixed so I could remember the good hours we had with her．
I took it to a local clock shop the other day．
“I know this has no particular value as a clock, but it was my mom's and I need to get it fixed,” I said to the shop owner．
I went on to describe the problem．
“We get a lot of these in,” he told me．“Here's what I do．We remove the clock works(机件)and replace it with a battery-operated movement(机芯)that chimes electronically,” he told me．
“You can't fix this?”
“No, we don't have the time nor the parts．”
I thanked him and went home．I called a few other places and was told the same thing．
“How incredibly sad,” I told the last one disappointedly．
How incredibly sad that we have become a society that replaces craftsmanship with convenience and easy fixes．We copy the original instead of creating something new．We duplicate(复制); we don't originate(发明)．
Sadly, the same goes for our attitude to life itself．
Each of us is an original, one of a kind．But we find it so much easier to copy another style than to develop our own．
We are wannabes(崇拜别人的人)rather than hey-world-look-at-mes．
We fail to see the real value in who we are, so we spend our lives trying to be someone else．
(1)
Why did the author decide to get the clock fixed?
[ ]
A．
Because it was a really old and valuable clock．
B．
Because it was the only thing that her mother had left her．
C．
Because it brought her memories of being with her mother．
D．
Because it left the author with mixed feelings．
(2)
What did the clock shop owners tell the author?
[ ]
A．
The parts that the clock needed were electronic．
B．
It would cost a lot to repair the clock．
C．
They had never repaired a clock like this before．
D．
They could only make the clock electronic．
(3)
The author intends to ________．
[ ]
A．
criticize the irresponsible clock shop owners
B．
criticize people who do not value things with a history
C．
criticize people who do not have a creative attitude toward life
D．
criticize people's ignorance of traditional craftsmanship
请认真阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。
When you go to St．Petersburg, the number of attractions can seem overwhelming．If you’re short of time, or just want to make sure to hit the highlights, these are the top must-see sights in St．Petersburg．
The Hermitage Museum
The Hermitage Museum is one of the most important sights to see for any visitor to St．Petersburg．There you can see lots of different paintings of old masters inside the Hermitage．Prepare to come face-to-face with classic Western artists．
The Russian Museum
The Russian Museum holds one of the largest collections of Russian art in the world．View Russian art creations through the ages, from Byzantine(拜占庭)-style icons to the Socialist Realism of Stalin's times．
Kizhi Island
Kizhi Island is an open-air museum of wooden buildings from the Karelia Region of Russia．These impressive structures are made without any nails(钉子)-the wood fits together with joints and grooves(沟槽)．
Peterhof
Peterhof is as beautiful as it is fun．You'll be charged for admission(门票), but go to Peterhof when the fountains(喷泉)are working-during the day in the summer．They are shut off in winter as well as in the evenings．
The Church of Our Savior on Spilled Blood
Love it or hate it, the Church of Our Savior on Spilled Blood is an attractive must-see sight．The beautiful look may make your eyes brighten, and the paintings inside the church will make you say “Wow! ”
The Bronze Horseman Statue
The Bronze Horseman is a part of Russian Culture and a symbol of St．Petersburg．Made famous by Alexander Pushkin(普希金), this statue of Peter the Great sitting on his horse can truly show Peter the Great's influence on the Russian idea of greatness．
(1)
If you’re interested in paintings, you'd better go to ________．
[ ]
A．
the Hermitage Museum and Peterhof
B．
the Hermitage Museum and the Church of Our Savior on Spilled Blood
C．
Kizhi Island and the Church of Our Savior on Spilled Blood
D．
the Russian Museum and Kizhi Island
(2)
What can we know from the passage?
[ ]
A．
The fountains in Peterhof can be seen all year round．
B．
The largest collection of Russian art is in the Hermitage Museum．
C．
The buildings on Kizhi Island are made of wood．
D．
You can visit Peterhof free of charge．
(3)
The main purpose of this passage is to ________．
[ ]
A．
show the wonderful history of Russia
B．
introduce the famous buildings in Russia
C．
persuade artists to study St．Petersburg
D．
attract tourists to visit St．Petersburg
请认真阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。
Usually, when your teacher asks a question, there is only one correct answer．But there is one question that has millions of correct answers．That question is “What's your name? ” Everyone gives a different answer, but everyone is correct．
Have you ever wondered about people's names? Where do they come from? What do they mean?
People's first names, or given names, are chosen by their parents．Sometimes the name of a grandparent or other member of the family is used．Some parents choose the name of a well-known person．A boy could be named George Washington Smith; a girl could be named Helen Keller Jones．
Some people give their children names that mean good things．Clara means “bright”; Beatrice means “one who gives happiness”; Donald means “world ruler”; Leonard means “as brave as a lion”．
The earliest last names, or surnames, were taken from place names．A family with the name BrookorBrooks probably lived near a brook(小溪); someone who was called Longstreet probably lived on a long, paved road．The Greenwood family lived in or near a leafy forest．
Other early surnames came from people's occupations．The most common occupational name is Smith, which means a person who makes things with iron or other metals．In the past, smiths were very important workers in every town and village．Some other occupational names are：Carter-a person who owned or drove a cart; Potter-a person who made pots and pans．The ancestors of the Baker family probably baked bread for their neighbors in their native village．The Carpenter's great-great-great-grandfather probably built houses and furniture．
Sometimes people were known for the color of their hair or skin, or their size, or their special abilities．When there were two men who were named John in the same village, the John with the gray hair probably became John Gray．Or the John who was very tall could call himself John Tallman．John Fish was probably an excellent swimmer and John Lightfoot was probably a fast runner or a good dancer．
Some family names were made by adding something to the father's name．English-speaking people added -s or-son．The Johnsons are descendants of John; the Roberts family's ancestor was Robert．Irish and Scottish people added Mac or Mc or O．Perhaps all of the MacDonnells and the McDonnells and the O'Donnells are descendants of the same Donnell．
(1)
Which of the following aspects do the surnames in the passage NOT cover?
[ ]
A．
Places where people lived．
B．
People's characters．
C．
Talents that people possessed．
D．
People's occupations．
(2)
According to the passage, the ancestors of the Potter family most probably ________．
[ ]
A．
owned or drove a cart
B．
made things with metals
C．
made kitchen tools or containers
D．
built houses and furniture
(3)
Suppose an English couple whose ancestors lived near a leafy forest wanted their new-born son to become a world leader, the baby might be named ________．
[ ]
A．
Beatrice Smith
B．
Leonard Carter
C．
George Longstreet
D．
Donald Greenwood
(4)
The underlined word “descendants” in the last paragraph means a person's ________
[ ]
A．
later generations
B．
friends and relatives
C．
colleagues and partners
D．
later sponsors
请认真阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。
He is a real turtle．
Someone who always moves very slowly．
She is such a sheep．
A follower; someone who can't think for him or herself．
He's being an ostrich．
Someone who hides his/her head in the sand and refuses to face problems or reality．
He's a lamb．
A gentle, patient, understanding person．Nice and considerate．
What a crab he is!
A grouchy person; someone who is often angry and in a bad mood．
(1)
In which of the following situations are the people acting like sheep?
[ ]
A．
A teenager tells a small child to stop bothering an animal
B．
A young man is driving fast because all his friends do
C．
Someone runs for monitor of the senior class in the school．
D．
People are walking and singing together along the road．
(2)
If a person is like a turtle, which of these is most likely to be a problem to him or her?
[ ]
A．
Keeping the house clean
B．
Learning a new language．
C．
Getting to school on time
D．
Saving money for future use
(3)
Buddy hates to wake up on Monday morning．He doesn't speak to his wife or children, and he often shouts at the other drivers on his way to work．Everybody stays out of his way at least until noon time．After that, he's all right, Buddy's boss says．“Buddy is a good guy, but on Monday morning, he's an absolute ________ ”
[ ]
A．
crab
B．
lamb
C．
turtle
D．
ostrich
(4)
Jerry has not been well for weeks．He knows he has a problem but he is afraid to see a doctor．If he is sick, he doesn't want to know about it, His wife says, “Jerry, don't be a(an) ________ Go to the doctor．She can help you get rid of your illness．”
[ ]
A．
turtle
B．
lamb
C．
sheep
D．
ostrich
请认真阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。
Where Is God?
A couple had two little boys, aged 8 and 10, who were excessively mischievous．They were always getting into trouble．And their parents knew that．If any mischief(恶作剧)occurred in their town, their sons were probably involved．
The boys’ mother heard that a clergyman(牧师)in town had been successful in disciplining(管教)children, so she asked if he would speak with her boys．The clergyman agreed, but asked to see them individually．So the mother sent her 8-year-old first in the morning, with the older boy to see the clergyman in the afternoon．
The clergyman, a huge man with a booming voice, sat the younger boy down and asked him sternly(严厉地), “Where is God? ” The boy's mouth dropped open, but he made no response, sitting there with his mouth hanging open, wide-eyed．So the clergyman repeated the question in an even sterner tone, "Where is God! ! ? " Again the boy made no attempt to answer．So the clergyman raised his voice even more and shook his finger in the boy's face and cried, "WHERE IS GOD! ? "
The boy screamed and ran away from the room, ran directly home and rushed into his closet, slamming the door behind him．When his older brother found him in the closet, he asked, "What happened? "
The younger brother, gasping for breath, replied, "We are in BIG trouble this time, brother．God is missing-and they think WE did it! "
(1)
The underlined sentence means ________．
[ ]
A．
Their sons probably played a part in it
B．
Their sons were probably hurt．
C．
Their sons were probably beaten．
D．
Their sons were happy．
(2)
The clergyman promised to ________．
[ ]
A．
frighten the children．
B．
talk to the two children one by one．
C．
talk to the two children at the same time．
D．
beat the children．
(3)
By asking “where is God”, the clergyman wanted to tell the child ________．
[ ]
A．
that God is missing．
B．
he was angry, for they have had stolen God．
C．
they should behave themselves
D．
to find God．
(4)
At last, when the younger child rushed home, he was ________．
[ ]
A．
happy
B．
frightened
C．
ill
D．
angry
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。
NEW YORK CITY? A hurricane warning has been given for New York City．Forecasters say Hurricane Irene could cause widespread flooding, power failure and billions of dollars in damage．About 65 million Americans live in Hurricane Irene's projected path-many of whom have been evacuated．
In New York City, Mayor Michael Bloomberg has ordered the city's first-ever evacuation．Roughly 250, 000 people have been told to leave their homes in low-lying areas, including the Wall Street financial district．
WASHINGTON D．C．-On Aug．24, 2011, Apple announced that Mr．Steve Jobs, who has battled cancer for several years, was stepping down as the CEO but would serve as chairman．
In January, he had announced that he was taking a medical leave of absence from Apple．In announcing his leave, he turned daily oversight of the company over to the chief operating officer, Timothy D．Cook, and it was Mr．Cook whom Apple named to succeed him as the next CEO of the company．
TRIPOLI-Opposition forces in Libya say they control more than 90 percent of the country．It is still not clear where Moammar Gadhafi is．The opposition has offered more than 1, 600, 000 dollars for his capture(逮捕)．The head of the opposition forces said his group supports a decision by local businessmen to provide the money in an effort to speed up the capture．Earlier Wednesday, government forces fired onto the former headquarters(总部)of Mr．Gadhafi, which is now controlled by opposition forces．Heavy fighting also continued near Tripoli's airport and in a town of Zuara．
(1)
The underlined word "evacuated" probably means ________．
[ ]
A．
sent away to safer places
B．
gathered around to higher positions
C．
flooded off to lower reaches
D．
left behind to dangerous situations
(2)
Who has been appointed as the new CEO of Apple?
[ ]
A．
Steve Jobs．
B．
Michael Bloomberg．
C．
Moammar Gadhafi．
D．
Timothy D．Cook．
(3)
From the news above, we know that in Libya ________．
[ ]
A．
the local businessmen have offered money to catch hold of Gadhafi
B．
the opposition forces suffered a thorough defeat near Tripoli's airport
C．
the government forces are defending the headquarters of Mr．Gadhafi
D．
the town ofZuara is the place where Moammar Gadhafi probably hides
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。
Most recently, it's very common in students who need a parent present for job interviews．Naturally, it's easy to blame the students in these situations, but the bigger problem is us．We-as parents-are so eager to shelter our kids that we fail to realize that this in itself is harming them．As the mother of two young sons, I have to remind myself constantly that the biggest responsibility I have as a parent is to help them develop the skills needed to live in, to live without me．So, I'll let them fail．
I'll let them fail because as long as they are safe and warm inside their comfort zones, they will never grow．And failure long with loss, heartbreak, disappointment, etc．-will be part of growth for them．Call me the anti-tiger mom, but leaving them alone is, my way of helping them become equipped to fit in this world as we know it today．From terrorism and seemingly endless natural disasters, to our national debt and beyond, if we expect the next generation to stand up to the very real problems of our time, we need to stop feeding them and start teaching them how to fish．
My children now are becoming little masters of compromise, but they try to negotiate everything now．It's a small price to help them learn a skill they'll use for the rest of their lives, including when I don't accompany them on job interviews．
(1)
Why do parents accompany their kids on job interviews?
[ ]
A．
Because they want to protect their kids from difficulties．
B．
Because they think they can help them on the questions．
C．
Because their kids are too shy to attend interviews．
D．
Because their kids strongly request them to do so．
(2)
According to the author, what is beneficial to kids' development?
[ ]
A．
Sheltering them．
B．
Keeping them safe．
C．
Leaving them alone．
D．
Blaming them．
(3)
Why does the author stress failure in kids' life?
[ ]
A．
To make them stronger than other kids．
B．
To help them grow in this tough world．
C．
To help them develop all social skills．
D．
To make them learn to compromise．
(4)
Which of the following might be the best title for the text?
