阅读理解（每小题2分，满分10分）
Instead of hitting the beach, fourteen high school students traded swimming suits for lab coats last summer and turned their attention to scientific experiments.
The High School Research Program offers high school students guidance with researchers in Texas A＆M’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences．Jennifer Funkhouser, academic adviser for the Department of Rangeland Ecology and Management, directs this four-week summer program designed to increase understanding of research and its career potential (潜能).
Several considerations go into selecting students, including grades, school involvement and interest in science and agriculture．And many students come from poorer school districts, Funkhouser says．“This is their chance to learn techniques and do experiments they never would have a chance to do in high school.”
Warner Ervin of Houston is interested in animal science and learned how to tell male from female mosquitoes (蚊子)．His adviser, Craig Coates, studies the genes（基因） of mosquitoes that allow them to fight against malaria and yellow fever．Coates thought this experience would be fun and helpful to the high school students.
The agricultural research at A＆M differs from stereotypes（模式化，老一套）．It’s “molecular (分子) science on the cutting edge,” Funkhouser says．The program broadened students’ knowledge．Victor Garcia of Rio Grande City hopes to become a biology teacher and says he learned a lot about chemistry from the program.
At the end of the program, the students presented papers on their research．They’re also paid ＄ 600 for their work—another way this program differs from others, which often charge a fee.
Fourteen students got paid to learn that science is fun, that agriculture is a lot more than milking and plowing and that research can open many doors.
【小题1】．The research program is mainly designed for ______.

A．high school advisers from Houston

B．college students majoring in agriculture

C．high school students from different places

D．researchers at the College of Agriculture and Life Science

Steinbeck, John, 1902-68, American writer, born in Salinas, Calif., studied at Stanford. He is probably best remembered for his strong sociological novel The Grapes of Wrath, considered one of the great American novels of the 20th century. Steinbeck's early novels-Cup of Gold (1929), The Pastures of Heaven (1932), and To a God Unknown (1933)-attracted little critical attention, but Tortilla Flat (1935), an affectionate（亲切的）yet realistic novel about the lovely, Spanish-speaking poor of Monterey, was enthusiastically received.

A merciful understanding of the world's poor was to be Steinbeck's mark. The novel In Dubious Battle (1936) defends striking immigrant agricultural workers in the California fields. In the novel Of Mice and Men (1937; later made into a play), Steinbeck again presents immigrant workers, but this time in terms of human worth and integrity（完好）－a theme he also used in The Moon Is Down (1942; later made into a play), about Norwegian resistance to the Nazis. The Grapes of Wrath (1939; Pulitzer Prize), while treating the hard situation of dispossessed Dust Bowl farmers during the 1930s, presents a universal picture of victims of disaster. Steinbeck's description of the westward migration of the Joad family, and their following struggles in the agricultural industry of California, is realistic and moving, and he presents his inferior characters with nobility.

Steinbeck's other works are diverse, ranging from the literal account of a voyage, The Sea of Cortez (1941; written with the marine biologist E. F. Ricketts),to a moral story, The Pearl (1948); to a French folk piece, The Short Reign of Pippin IV (1957). Love of his native land shines through the delicately nostalgic story "The Red Pony" in The Long Valley (1938). The somewhat emotional attitude of Tortilla Flat appears again in Cannery Row (1945), The Wayward Bus (1947), and Sweet Thursday (1954). 

1. How many novels adapted into a play are mentioned in the passage ?_________.

A. Nine             B. Seven                C. Four             D. Two

2.Accoding to the passage , which of the following is true?

A. The Grapes of Wrath, is considered one of the great novels of this century.

B. Only in the novel In Dubious Battle Steinbeck referred to immigrant workers.

C. In The Grapes of Wrath, farmers living in Dust Bowl possess almost nothing.

D. All Steinbeck’s late works are related to his love of his native land.

3.We can learn from the passage that Steinbeck         .

A. did not draw much attention until Tortilla Flat was published

B. wrote all his novels in terms of human worth and integrity

C. presented poor but noble characters in all his novels

D. showed his love for his native land in The Short Reign of Pippin IV

4.The passage is mainly about Steinbeck’s          .

A. works                B. life             C. fame             D. prize

Instead of hitting the beach, fourteen high school students traded swimming suits for lab coats last summer and turned their attention to scientific experiments.

     The High School Research Program offers high school students guidance with researchers in Texas A&M’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Jennifer Funkhouser, academic adviser for the Department of Rangeland Ecology and Management, directs this four-week summer program designed to increase understanding of research and its career potential.

Several considerations go into selecting students, including grades, school involvement and interest in science and agriculture. And many students come from poorer school districts, Funkhouser says, “This is their chance to learn techniques and do experiments they never would have a chance to do in high school.”

    Warner Ervin of Houston is interested in animal science and learned how to tell male from female mosquitoes(蚊子）.His adviser, Craig Coates, studies the genes of mosquitoes that allow them to fight against malaria and yellow fever. Coates thought this experience would be fun and helpful to the high school students.

       The agricultural research at A&M differs from stereotypes. It’s “molecular(分子）science on the cutting edge,” Funkhouser says. The program broadened students’ knowledge. Victor Garcia of Rio Grande City hopes to become a biology teacher and says he learned a lot about chemistry from the program.

     At the end of the program, the students presented papers on their research. They’re also paid $600 for their work-another way this program differs from others, which often charge a fee.

     Fourteen students got paid to learn that science is fun, that agriculture is a lot more than milking and plowing and that research can open many doors.

1.The research program is chiefly designed for  _______.

A. high school advisers from Houston

B. college students majoring in agriculture

C. high school students from different places

D. researchers at the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

2.It can be inferred from the text that the students in poorer areas  ___________ .

A. had little chance to go to college

B. could often take part in the program

C. found the program useful to their future

D. showed much interest in their high school experiments

3.When the program was over, the students  ________.

A. entered that college            B. wrote research reports

C. paid for their research           D. found way to make money

4.The underlined expression “on the cutting edge” in paragraph 5 means “on the most  ___ position”.

A. important                     B. favorable

C. astonishing                   D. advanced

Chicken feathers are useful, and not just to a chicken. Some go into pillows, coats and other products. But countless chicken feathers go to waste.

In the United States, billions of chickens are produced yearly. Most of their feathers are thrown away.

But instead of being buried in land, some feathers could find a future in plastics（塑料）.

One of the products they have developed is a flowerpot（花盆）. It may look like other flowerpots. But the container breaks down in the earth within one to five years. And as it breaks down, it naturally becomes nutrient（营养物） in the soil.

The environmentally friendly flowerpot is the work of two researchers. Walter Schmidt is with the Agricultural Research Service, part of the United States Agriculture Department. Masud Huda is with the Horticultural Research Institute, a private（私人） organization（组织）.

Walter Schmidt has been working to find uses for chicken feathers since the 1990s. Progress in 2002 showed that plastic made from feathers could be formed like other plastics.

He says feathers are much stronger and last（持续） longer than another plant material. "Feathers are stronger. By design, feathers are also more durable（耐用的）. And the other part about it is if feathers were twice as heavy, or half as strong, then birds couldn't fly."

He points out that traditional flowerpots made from other plastics can last much longer. But he wonders if there is really a need. He says most flowerpots are never re-used.

"Why would you want a plastic that you use for a year to last for two hundred years? It makes no sense. You want to match the product with the use." said Walter Schmidt.

Walter Schmidt and Masud Huda are now adding another chicken product to their flowerpots -- chicken waste. The waste will add more nutrients to the soil as the pot breaks down. The scientists say they hope their flowerpot will be on the market in a year or two.

1.What do people mainly deal with feathers?

A．Feathers are used to make pillows, coats and other products.

B．Most feathers are paid no attention to.

C．Most feathers are used as nutrient

D．Most feathers are used to make flowerpots

2.What’s the advantage of the flowerpots?

A．They won’t last long.                    B．They can’t break

C．They are environmentally friendly           D．They can be reused

3.What does Walter Schmidt think of traditional flowerpots?

A．Too heavy                             B．Too old

C．Never re-used                          D．lasting longer but unnecessary

4.What do you think is the main idea of the passage?

A．Chicken and its feathers                  B．How to deal with feathers

C．feathers made into flowerpot              D．New flowerpots

Europe’s deadly outbreak of a rare form of E. coli bacteria (大肠杆菌) has brought new attention to food safety issues. One of the problems when people get sick from food is that the simplest question is often difficult or even impossible to answer. Just what did the people eat that made them sick?
Of course, one way to avoid these medical mysteries is to keep dangerous organisms out of the food supply. This is easier said than done, but scientists keep looking for new ways.
Scientists in the United States have developed an experimental system that uses a high-tech optical scanner. The system is designed to identify the presence of contaminants(致污物) like soil or animal waste on fresh produce. These can be sources of E. coli. E. coli bacteria naturally live in the intestines(肠) of humans and many animals. Most kinds of E. coli are harmless but some can make people sick.
The new scanner can also show damage and imperfections that might make the produce unappealing to shoppers.
Scientists designed the system at a Department of Agriculture research center in Beltsville, Maryland. Moon Kim of the Agricultural Research Service led the team.
MOON KIM: “We were requested, we were asked, to develop a method to detect contamination in produce. So we started with the apple as the model sample.”
The scanner uses a high-speed camera placed over the conveyer belt that moves the produce along. As the apples move along the belt, the scanner captures images of each piece of fruit.
Moon Kim says the team hopes the system will be available before long.
MOON KIM: “We are targeting for development in commercial plants for the next several years.”
The scanner can direct a sorting machine to separate the bad apples from the good ones. The system is currently able to show the surface of only half the apple as it speeds by. The inventers hope to improve the process so it can show the whole surface.
【小题1】What is the main topic of the text?