Our school sports meeting we had looked ...

阅读下列短文，根据所读内容在文章后的表格中填入恰当的单词（注意：表格中的每个空只填一个单词）

For more than twenty years scientists have been seeking to understand the mystery of the ‘‘sixth sense" of direction．By trying out ideas and solving problems one by one，they are now getting closer to one answer．

One funny idea is that animals might have a built-in compass(指南针)．

Our earth itself is a big magnet(磁体)．So a little magnetic needle that swings freely lines

itself with the big earth magnet to point north When people discovered that idea about a thousand years ago and invented the compass，it allowed sailors to navigate (航海)on ocean voyages, even under cloudy skies.

 Actually the idea of the living compass came just from observing animals in nature．

 Many birds migrate twice a year between their summer homes and winter homes．Some of them fly for thousands of kilometers and mostly at night．Experiments have shown that some birds can recognize star patterns．But they can keep on course even under cloudy skies．How can they do that?

A common bird that does not migrate but is great at finding its way home is the homing pigeon．Not all pigeons can find their way home．Those that can are very good at it，and they have been widely studied．

One interesting experiment was to attach little magnets to the birds’ heads to block their magnetic sense—just as a loud radio can keep you from hearing a call to dinner．On sunny days, that did not fool the pigeons．Evidently they can use the sun to tell which way they are going．But on cloudy days，the pigeons with magnets could not find their way．It was as if the magnets had blocked their magnetic sense．

Similar experiments with the same kind of results were done with honeybees．These insects also seem to have a special sense of direction．

In spite of the experiments，the idea of an animal compass seemed pretty extraordinary．How

would an animal get the magnetic stuff for a compass.

An answer came from an unexpected source．A scientist was studying bacteria that live in the

mud of ponds and marshes．He found accidentally little rod-like bacteria that all swam together inone direction—north．

Further study showed that each little bacterium had a chain of dense particles inside，which

proved magnetic．The bacteria had made themselves into little magnets that could line up with the

earth’s magnet．

The big news was that a living thing，even a simple bacterium，can make magnetite．That led

to a search to see whether animals might have it.. By using a special instrument called magnetometer，scientists were able to find magnetite in bees and birds，and even in fish．In each  animal，except for the bee．the magnetic stuff was always in or closer to the brain．Thus．the idea of a built—in animal compass began to seem reasonable．

根据短文内容，从下框的A～F选项中选出能概括每一段主题的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该选项涂黑。选项中有一项为多余项。

Speaking to a group can be difficult, but listening to a bad speech is truly a tiresome task—especially when the speaker is confusing. Don’t want to confuse your audience? Follow these suggestions:

51.            

When it comes to understanding new information, the human brain needs a little time. First, we hear the words; then, we compare the new information to what we already know. If the two are different, we need to pause and think. But a breathless speaker never stops to let us think about what he or she is saying and risks confusing us. Slow it down. And breathe.

52. .                

Sometimes we all start a sentence one way and then switch directions, which is very difficult to follow. When you confuse your listeners with opposing information, you leave the audience wondering what part of the information is right and what part they should remember. Instead of relying and keeping correcting yourself, work to get the facts clear and straight.

53. .                 

Jumping from point to point as it comes to your mind puts the onus (责任）on your listeners to make up for your lack of organisation. And it’s confusing for them to listen, reorganise, and figure out what you’re saying all at once. But going smoothly from one point to the next helps them understand information more easily. You can arrange things from beginning to end, small to large, top to bottom or by some other order. Just be sure to organise. 

54.  .               

Repeated use of um, ah, like, you know and some other useless noises can drive an audience crazy. It makes the speaker sound uncertain and unprepared, and it can leave listeners so annoyed that they can’t pay attention. Recently I attended a speech that was marked by so many ums that audience members were rolling their eyes. Was anybody grasping the intended message? Um, probably not.

55. .               

Many speakers finish up their speeches with question-and-answer (Q & A) sessions, but some let the Q & A go on without a clear end. The audience is often left confused about whether the meeting is over and when they can get up and leave. Do your listeners a favour by setting a time limit on questions, and close your speech with a specific signal—even if it’s something simple like, “If you have any more questions, you know where to reach me.”Or even more to the point, conclude your speech with “Thanks for your time. ”

Since the 1970s, scientists have been searching for ways to link the brain with computers．Brain-computer interface（BCI） technology could help people with disabilities send commands to machines．

Recently, two researchers, Jose Millan and Michele Tavella from the Federal Polytechnic School in Lausanne, Switzerland, demonstrated（展示）a small robotic wheelchair directed by a person’s thoughts．

In the laboratory, Tavella operated the wheelchair just by thinking about moving his left or right hand．He could even talk as he watched the vehicle and guided it with his thoughts．

“Our brain has billions of nerve cells．These send signals through the spinal cord（脊髓）to the muscles to give us the ability to move．But spinal cord injuries or other conditions can prevent these weak electrical signals from reaching the muscles,” Tavella says．“Our system allows disabled people to communicate with external world and also to control devices．”

The researchers designed a special cap for the user．This head cover picks up the signals from the scalp（头皮）and sends them to a computer．The computer interprets the signals and commands the motorized wheelchair． The wheelchair also has two cameras that identify objects in its path．They help the computer react to commands from the brain．                                               

Prof．Millan, the team leader, says scientists keep improving the computer software that interprets brain signals and turns them into simple commands．“The practical possibilities that BCI technology offers to disabled people can be grouped in two categories: communication, and controlling devices．One example is this wheelchair．”

He says his team has set two goals．One is testing with real patients, so as to prove that this is a technology they can benefit from．And the other is to guarantee that they can use the technology over long periods of time．

1.BCI is a technology that can         .

     A．help to update computer systems        

B．link the human brain with computers

     C．help the disabled to recover           

D．control a person's thoughts  

2.How did Tavella operate the wheelchair in the laboratory?                                                                    

     A．By controlling his muscles．           

B．By talking to the machine．       

     C．By moving his hand．                   

D．By using his mind．

3.The team will test with real patients to         .

     A．make profits from them             

B．prove the technology useful to them

     C．make them live longer              

D．learn about their physical condition

4.Which of the following would be the best title for the text?

     A．Switzerland, the BCI Research Center

     B．New Findings About How the Human Brain Works

     C．BCI Could Mean More Freedom for the Disabled

     D．Robotic Vehicles Could Help to Cure Brain Injuries

Usually, when your teacher asks a question, there is only one correct answer. But there is one question that has millions of current 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 Brook or Brooks probably lived near 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 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 contains         

D. built houses and furniture

3.Suppose and 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

Imagine，one day，getting out of bed in Beijing and being at your office in Shanghai in only a couple of hours，and then，after a full day of work，going back home to Beijing and having dinner there．

Sounds unusual，doesn't it? But it's not that unrealistic，with the development of China’s high—speed railway system．And that’s not a11．China has an even greater high—speed railway plan—to connect the country with Southeast Asia，and eventually Eastern Europe．

China is negotiating to extend its own high·-speed railway network to up to 17 countries in 1 0 to 15 years，eventually reaching London and Singapore．

China has proposed three such projects．The first would possibly connect Kunming with

Singapore via Vietnam and Malaysia．Another could start in Urumqi and go through Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan，and possibly to Germany．The third would start in the northeast and go north through Russia and then into Western Europe．

If China’s plan for the high-speed railway goes forward，people could zip over from London to Beijing in under two days．

The new system would still follow China’s high—speed railway standard．And the trains would be able to go 346 kilometers an hour，almost as fast as some airplanes．

    China’s bullet train(高速客车)，the one connecting Wuhan to Guangzhou，already has the

 World’s fastest average speed．It covers 1,069 kilometers in about three hours．

Of course，there are some technical challenges to overcome．There are so many issues that need to be settled，such as safety，rail gauge(轨距)，maintenance of railway tracks．So，it’s important to pay attention to every detail．

But the key issue is really money．China is already spending hundreds of billions of yuan on

domestic railway expansion．

China prefers that the other countries pay in natural resources rather than with capital

investment．Resources from those countries could stream into China to sustain development．

It’11 be a win-win project. For other countries，the railway network will definitely create more opportunities for business，tourism and so on，not to mention the better communication among those countries．

For China，such a project would not only connect it with the rest of Asia and bring some much-needed resources，but would also help develop China’s far west．We foresee that in the coming decades，millions of people will migrate to the western regions，where the land is empty and resources unused．With high-speed trains，people will set up factories and business centers in the west once and for a11．And they’11 trade with Central Asian and Eastern European countries．

1.China’s new high-speed railway plan will be a win-win project because      ．

  A．China will get much-needed resources and develop its western regions

  B．China and the countries involved will benefit from the project in various ways

  C．China will develop its railway system and communication with other countries

  D．the foreign countries involved will develop their railway transportation，business and tourism

2.According to the passage，the greatest challenge to the new high-speed railway plan is      ．

  A．technical issues                     

B．safety of the system  C．financial problems                   

D．maintenance of railway tracks

3.Which of the following words best describes the author’s attitude towards China’s high-speed

   railway plan?

  A．Critical．        B．Reserved．      C．Doubtful         D. Positive．

4.Which of the following might be the best title for the passage?

  A．New Railway Standards               

B．Big Railway Dreams

  C．High—speed Bullet Trains             

D．International Railway Network