Global Positioning Systems are now a part of everyday driving in many countries. These satellite-based systems provide turn-by-turn directions to help people get to where they want to go. But, they can also cause a lot of problems, send you to the wrong place or leave you completely lost. Many times, the driver is to blame. Sometimes a GPS error is responsible. Most often, says Barry Brown, it is a combination of the two.
We spoke to Mr. Brown by Skype. He told us about an incident involving a friend who had flown to an airport in the eastern United States. There he borrowed a GPS-equipped car to use during his stay. Barry Brown: “And they just plugged in an address and then set off to their destination. And, then it wasn’t until they were driving for thirty minutes that they realized they actually put in a destination back on the West Coast where they lived. They actually put their home address in. So again, the GPS is kind of 'garbage in garbage out'.”
Mister Brown says this is a common human error. But, he says, what makes the problem worse has to do with some of the shortcomings, or failures, of GPS equipment. Barry Brown: “One problem with a lot of the GPS units is they have a very small screen and they just tell you the next turn. Because they just give you the next turn, sometimes that means that it is not really giving you the overview that you would need to know that it’s going to the wrong place.”
Barry Brown formerly served as a professor with the University of California, San Diego. While there, he worked on a project with Eric Laurier from the University of Edinburgh. The two men studied the effects of GPS devices on driving by placing cameras in people’s cars. They wrote a paper based on their research. It is called “The Normal, Natural Troubles of Driving with GPS.” It lists several areas where GPS systems can cause confusion for drivers. These include maps that are outdated, incorrect or difficult to understand. They also include timing issues related to when GPS commands are given.
Barry Brown says to make GPS systems better we need a better understanding of how drivers, passengers and GPS systems work together.
【小题1】In Paragraph 2, Mr. Brown mentioned his friend in the conversation to _____________.

"Colour" and "color"，"favourite" and "favorite"... Have you ever wondered why Americans spell those words without a "u"? Is it because they are lazy?

Of course not. In fact，the difference in spelling was created by Noah Webster (1758-1843). He is a teacher who reformed English to make American identity stronger. Linguists (语言学家) celebrated his 250th birthday on October 16. After the Revolutionary War (1775~ 1783)，Webster believed that Americans should have their own dictionary，rather than rely on British versions (版本). He dropped the British "u" in some words. And he changed "centre" into "center" for children to learn English by spelling words more like they sounded.

Webster wasn't shy about expressing his opinions. In defining (定义) preposterous (unreasonable)，he wrote: "A republican government in the hands of females is preposterous."

Webster spent 28 years on the project before completing the 70,000-word dictionary in 1828 with his American-style spellings. He also added local words. His dictionary was widely used in schools. Linguists believed it helped a new nation achieve unity and cultural independence at a time when most were focused on political freedom.

"He was the shaper of our language and the shaper of American identity，"said Joshua Kendall，who is working on a biography (传记) about Webster. "He at last bonded (联合)us through our language."

1.Which of the following would probably be the best title for the passage?

2.According to the passage，when he worked on his dictionary, Noah Webster did all of the following EXCEPT        .

3.Which of the following word can best describe Noah Webster’s work?

4.Why did Noah Webster create these differences in his dictionary?

5.When did Noah Webster probably begin his project of the dictionary?

“Colour” and “color”, “favourite” and “favorite”···Have you ever wondered why Americans spell those words without a “u”? Is it because they are lazy?
Of course not. In fact, the difference in spelling was created by Noah Webster (1758—1843). He is a teacher who reformed English to make American identity stronger. Linguists（语言学家） celebrated his 250^th birthday on October 16. After the Revolutionary War(1775—1783), Webster believed that Americans should have their own dictionary, rather than rely on British versions（版本）. He dropped the British “u” in some words. And he changed “centre” into “center” for children to learn English by spelling words more like they sounded.
Webster wasn’t shy about expressing his opinions. In defining（定义） preposterous, he wrote: “A republican government in the hands of females is preposterous.”
Webster spent 28 years on the project before completing the 70,000-word dictionary in 1828 with his American-style spellings. He also added local words. His dictionary was widely used in schools. Linguists believed it helped a new nation achieve unity and cultural independence at a time when most were focused on political freedom.
“He was the shaper of our language and the shaper of American identity,” said Joshua Kendall, who is working on a biography（传记） about Webster. “He at last bonded（联合） us through our language.”
【小题1】          According to the passage, when he worked on his dictionary, Noah Webster did all of the following EXCEPT______.

Chuck，unlike other frogs，didn't like catching flies himself. But he did love eating them.

Some frogs thought Chuck was lazy. Some believed he must think he was too good for them. Some thought Chuck was the strangest frog ever.

That didn't matter to Chuck. Each morning，Chuck jumped over and sat under the spider's web. Then when Lady Eightlegs went off to dip (浸) her feet in the pond，Chuck ate flies from her web.

One morning while Chuck was enjoying his fly breakfast，Lady Eightlegs returned and caught him.

“You're the one who keeps eating my flies！”she cried.

Chuck jumped away and into the pond. Now there was an idea！Why not spin (结) his own web?

He collected some vines (葡萄藤) from a nearby farm. Then he began to spin his web. He worked on his web for hours，until very late at night. And then he fell asleep.

When he woke up the next morning，he found that he got caught by the vines.

“Help！”he shouted.

Lady Eightlegs looked up from the edge of the pond. She hurried up to help Chuck out of the vine web.

“No matter how hard I try，I can't spin a spider's web，”Chuck said.

“Of course not，”Lady Eightlegs said. “You're a frog. Frogs can't spin spider's webs any better than spiders can swim，I guess.”

“But I always see you in the water，”Chuck said.

“I only wade in (蹚水) up to my knees，”Lady Eightlegs sighed. “How wonderful it would be to swim in the middle of the pond and float (漂浮) peacefully under the sun.”

Chuck smiled，“I have an idea.”

From that day forward，Chuck carried Lady Eightlegs out to the middle of the pond，where they floated and played together. When they returned to land，they shared a breakfast of flies from her spider's web.

It wasn't exactly an ordinary friendship. But Chuck was not an ordinary frog.

1.The second paragraph is written to show that Chuck ______.

A．was different from other frogs        B．didn't get along well with other frogs

C．led a lonely life                    D．was a proud frog

2.What do we know about Chuck's web?

A．Lady Eightlegs helped Chuck spin it.    B．It was successfully spun by Chuck.

C．It was spun far from the pond.          D．Chuck failed to spin it himself.

3.It can be inferred from the text that ______.

A．Chuck had tried to catch Lady Eightlegs    B．Chuck had difficulty collecting vines

C．Lady Eightlegs was very wise             D．Lady Eightlegs swam well

4.What was Lady Eightlegs' attitude towards Chuck in the end?

A．Worried.            B．Friendly.                         C．Doubtful.              D．Cold.

Global Positioning Systems are now a part of everyday driving in many countries. These satellite-based systems provide turn-by-turn directions to help people get to where they want to go. But they can also cause a lot of problems, sending you to the wrong place or leave you completely lost. Many times, the driver is to blame. Sometimes a GPS error is responsible. Most often, says Barry Brown, it is a combination of the two.

         Barry Brown is with the Mobile Life Centre in Stockholm, Sweden. The center studies human-computer interaction, or HCI, especially communications involving wireless devices. We spoke to Mr. Brown by Skype. He told us about an incident involving a friend who had flown to an airport in the eastern United States. There he borrowed a GPS-equipped car to use during his stay.

         Barry Brown: “And they just plugged in an address and then set off to their destination. And, then it wasn’t until they were driving for thirty minutes that they realized they had put in a destination back on the West Coast where they lived. They actually put their home address in. So again, the GPS is kind of “garbage in garbage out”. Mr. Brown says this is a common human error. But, he says, what makes the problem worse has to do with some of the shortcomings, or failures, of GPS equipment.

         Barry Brown: “One problem with many GPS units is they have a very small screen and they just tell you the next turn. Because they just give you the next turn, sometimes that means that it is not really giving you the overview that you would need to know that it’s going to the wrong place.”

         Barry Brown formerly served as a professor with the University of California, San Diego. While there, he worked on a project with Eric Laurier from the University of Edinburgh. The two men studied the effects of GPS devices on driving by placing cameras in people’s cars. They wrote a paper based on their research. It is called “The Normal, Natural Troubles of Driving with GPS.”

         Barry Brown: “One of the things that struck us, perhaps the most important thing was that you have to know what you’re doing when you use a GPS. There are these new skills that people have developed. There are these new competencies that you need to have to be able to use a GPS because they sometimes go wrong.” Barry Brown says this goes against a common belief that GPS systems are for passive drivers who lack navigational (导航) skills.

         “The Normal, Natural Troubles of Driving with GPS” lists several areas where GPS systems can cause confusion for drivers. These include maps that are outdated, incorrect or difficult to understand. They also include timing issues related to when GPS commands are given.

         Barry Brown says to make GPS systems better we need a better understanding of how drivers, passengers and GPS systems work together.

1.What is the best title for this passage?

A. Is GPS system reliable to use?                         B. What is the use of GPS?

C. How to make the most of GPS?                 D. Blame! GPS or Passengers?

2.What is the implication of the underlined part?

A. GPS is just a garbage device.

B. GPS will not correct human errors.

C. GPS adjusts your wrong destination.

D. GPS is just as smart as human beings.

3.Which is NOT mentioned as a GPS shortcoming in the passage?

A. Small screen.         B. Timing of commands.    

C. Outdated maps.     D. Dear cameras GPS uses.

4.According to the passage, people commonly believe that ___________.

A. you have to know where to go when using GPS

B. you need to have new competencies to use GPS well

C. GPS is proper for drivers with little sense of direction

D. GPS is fit for people having good understanding of maps