After spending years searching for a planet with life, scientists may have found one. In September 2010, a team of US scientists discovered a planet called Gliese 581g. It has a surface temperature neither too hot nor too cold for liquid（液态）water. Scientists think there is a chance that the planet could have life.
The planet Gliese 581g goes around a star called Gliese 581, which is about 20 light-years from Earth. That is about 194 trillion（万亿）kilometres －500 million times farther away from us than the moon.
A spacecraft traveling at a one-tenth of the speed of light would reach Gliese 581g within about 220 years. A human can’t live that long, but robotic explorers could make the job easier. However, our fastest spacec raft don’t come anywhere near that one-tenth light-speed mark.
At present, scientists don’t know what the surface might be like on Gliese 581g. What they know is that the planet is at the right distance from its star to have liquid water. It’s also at the right distance to have an atmosphere that could protect the water if it is on the surface.
Although spacecraft won’t be getting there anytime soon, one way to look for life on Gliese 581g is to turn our radio telescopes（望远镜）towards the planet and search for radiation（放射）. By studying the radiation, scientists would find out about the chemicals（化学物质）around the planet and discover if Gliese 581g has an atmosphere. If it has one, studying the atmosphere would give us a good idea whether the planet has life or not. But it’ll probably be many years before we can do this properly.
People have been arguing about whether there is alien life on Gliese 581g. Any discussion about alien life is just guessing at this point, according to its discoverers.
1.What did scientists find in September 2010?
A．A planet with water. B．A planet similar to the earth.
C．A planet without life. D．A planet near the earth.
2.According to the article, Gliese 581g ________.
A．is at the right distance from its star B．moves around the earth
C．is as far away from us as the moon D．can be reached in about 220 years
3.Paragraph 5 is mainly about ______.
A．the possibility of living on Gliese 581g
B．the kinds of chemicals around Gliese 581g
C．the way of looking for life on Gliese 581g
D．the aim of studying the radiation on Gliese 581g
4.Which of the following is the best title for the passage above?
A．Gliese 581g, a Likely Living Planet B．Gliese 581, a Likely Living Planet
C．Gliese 581g and Its Star D．Gliese 581g and Radiation
In 1826, a Frenchman named Niepce needed pictures for his business .But he was not a good artist .So he invented a very simple camera. He put it in a window of his house and took a picture of his garden .That was the first photo.
The next important date in the history of photography was in 1837. That year, Daguerre, another Frenchman, took a picture of his reading room .He used a new kind of camera in a different way. In his picture you could see everything very clearly, even the smallest thing. This kind of photo was called a Daguerreotype.
Soon, other people began to use Daguerre’s way. Travelers brought back wonderful photos from all around the world .people took picture of famous buildings, cities and mountains.
In about 1840, photography was improved .Then photographers could take pictures of people and moving things .That was not simple .The photographers had to carry a lot of films and other machines. But this did not stop them, for example, some in the United States worked so hard. Mathew Brady was a famous American photographer. He took many pictures of great people .The pictures were unusual because they were very lifelike.
Photographers also became one kind of art by the end of the 19th century. Some photos were not just copies of the real world .They showed feelings like other kinds of art.
1.The first photo taken by Niepce was a picture of ________
A．his business B．his house C．his garden D．his window
2.The Daguerreotype was_______.
A．a Frenchman B．a kind of picture
C．a kind of camera D．a photographer
3.If a photographer wanted to take pictures of moving things in the year of 1840, he
had to_____.
A．watch lots of films B．buy an expensive camera
C．stop in most cities D．take many films and something else.
4.This passage tells us_____________.
A．how photography was developed B．how to show feelings in pictures
C．how to take pictures in the world D．how to use different cameras
What is your zodiac（生肖） animal? According to the Chinese lunar calendar（农历）, 12 animals mark 12 different years. It is the basis of the Chinese zodiac. Nowadays, Chinese zodiac animals have worldwide fame and are increasingly popular among western people.
The zodiac is an important part of Chinese culture. People believe that the characteristics of a zodiac animal influence the personality of every person born in that year. For example, people born in the Year of the Tiger are considered powerful and brave.
Zodiac animals also have some social functions. When people think it is not proper to ask: “How old are you”, they may change their question to “What is your zodiac animal?” With this question, you can figure out roughly which year someone was born and the person’s age.
Zodiac animals are not special to China. Many countries share a similar zodiac culture with China. For example, in the Japanese Zodiac, a wild boar（野猪）takes the place of a pig and the Vietnamese（越南的）zodiac has a cat instead of a rabbit.
But have you ever wondered how these 12 animals were chosen to represent each year? According to legend, the Jade Emperor（玉皇大帝）invited all the animals to join him for Chinese New Year. Only 12 animals went to see him. As a reward he named a year after each one in the order they arrived. The ox would have been the first to arrive, but the rat sat on his back and jumped off just before they arrived to come in first place.
1.The characteristics of a zodiac animal may influence the _____ of every person
born in that year.
A．appearance B．personality C．hobby D．education
2.“What is your zodiac animal?” is a question used to find out a person’s______.
A．age B．name C．job D．weight
3.In the Japanese zodiac, we don’t see the zodiac animal：_______
A．wild boar B．rabbit C．dragon D．pig
4.According to the last paragraph, we know that ____ was the first animal to arrive.
A．ox B．rat C．pig D．cat
ASK THE BLOG!
Post your problems on the blog and get other bloggers’ advice!
★★★★★★
My problem is my parents. They never stop going on about how I should keep my room tidy, keep my hair tidy and wear smart clothes. They even make me do the washing-up after dinner every night! None of my friends have got such tenable parents. What should I do?
Helen, USA
★★★★★★
Hi, Helen. I think you should do what your parents ask. They’re much older than you and you should respect them. It’s their house you live in and their money you spend.
Emily, Australia
★★★★★★
Helen, why should your parents do all the housework? You should help around the house. –it’s only fair. I don’t think you should change your appearance though. Teenagers should look like teenagers.
Simon, England
1.What is Helen’s problem?
A．Her parents treat her badly.
B．She always worries about her parents.
C．Her parents don’t care about her feelings.
D．She doesn’t want to do what her parents ask.
2.In Emily’s opinion, Helen should .
A．respect her parents B．give her parents money
C．leave her parents D．change her appearance
3.Simon suggests that Helen should .
A．wear smart clothes B．help with housework
C．do all the washing-up D．change her appearance
It was Friday. Andy Barton was in a bad mood . At six o’clock his __1__ programme, “Travel with us”, was on TV. Andy liked to get home in ___2___ for that. But then, just as he was leaving his office a little earlier , a customer (顾客) rang up with a few complaints for the next fifteen minutes. “I can ___3__ get home in time if I hurry,” Andy told himself as he___4___out of the office. As he drove off in his car, he ___5___ that he was almost out of petrol(汽油). “I’ll have to stop at Fenton’s”, Andy thought. He ___6___Fenton’s because it was a self-service petrol station. “You do all the work yourself, but you pay___7____for the petrol,” he used to complain. At Fenton’s, the pump (泵) was not working properly and it ___8__ much time to get petrol. So when Andy got home, it was already two minutes past six. Just then the phone rang. “Shall I answer it?” Andy thought. He tried to___9__ his attention on the programme and forget the phone. But it kept ringing and finally he picked it up.
“Mr Barton?”__10__said. “Fenton’s Garage here.”“Fenton’s?” Andy said. “Why, I was at your place only a few minutes ago, getting some petrol. Did I _11_ something behind or what?” “No, you didn’t, Mr Barton.” And the voice went on. “That’s just the __12__ ! You went off without paying for your petrol, you __13___！ Now normally, when that happens, we ring up the police. But Luckily I knew you and I know it was a _14__.” “I’m really very sorry,” Andy said. “Oh, that’s all right, Mr Barton. But could you __15__round now and pay for your petrol? And please hurry! We close at half past six!”
1. A．favourite B．funny C．popular D．lovely
2. A．chance B．time C．seat D．spirit
3. A．surely B．obviously C．normally D．still
4. A．stepped B．climbed C．looked D．rushed
5. A．observed B．noticed C．thought D．suggested
6. A．hated B．liked C．meant D．promised
7. A．a little B．the same C．a lot D．the bill
8. A．cost B．spent C．took D．spared
9. A．draw B．pay C．fix D．force
10. A．a woman B．a man C．a recorder D．a voice
11. A．lose B．leave C．forget D．destroy
12. A．trouble B．worry C．excuse D．reason
13. A．remember B．see C．do D．drive
14. A．mistake B．joke C．trick D．truth
15. A．look B．come C．show D．turn
-- Excuse me. Could you tell me ____?
- By underground.
A．how did you come here B．how you came here
C．when did you come here D．when you came here
