You know how much your telephone has changed over the past 10 years? Your car will change even more than that in the next 10 years.
One of the biggest changes is that cars will drive themselves. Some day you may not need to drive a car. You will just tell the car where you want to go and it will drive itself.
The American company Google has been working on a self-driving automobile for years. These cars are already on the roads in the United States, mainly in California.
Google cars are truly self-driving. These cars have no steering wheels(方向盘) or pedals(刹车踏板).
Last week, police ordered one of Google’s cars to stop for driving too slowly on a public road. The car was not against any law, so no one was punished. But police did speak to the operators of the vehicle(车辆).
According to Google, its self-driving cars have been driven nearly 2 million kilometers. That is equal to the distance the average person drives in 90 years.
So far, no Google self-driving car has gotten a traffic ticket. Some of them have been in accidents when other cars hit them.
Tesla
Another American company, Tesla, added an “Autopilot(自动驾驶仪)” feature to its cars last month. Tesla put the feature, a computer software program, in cars that were built after September 2014.
With the Autopilot turned on, the vehicle drives itself. The car will speed up, slow down, brake and steer by itself.
You can take over driving any time by turning the steering wheel or touching a pedal. Your car will slow down if the vehicle in front of you gets closer. It will turn at bends and change lanes if you use the turn signal.
Tesla Autopilot takes over driving at speeds over 29 kilometers per hour when you press a button twice. Autopilot is made for cross-country driving. It keeps you in the lane and helps you avoid hitting other cars.
Other Self-Driving Cars and Buses
Other companies such as Mercedes-Benz, Audi, BMW, Volvo and Toyota are working on self-driving cars. Another company called BestMile is also working on self-driving buses in Switzerland. The buses can hold up to nine people and will be tested for two years.
1.What is the meaning of “traffic ticket” in Chinese?
A. 车票。 B. 油票。 C. 交通罚单。 D. 彩票。
2. How far does an average person drive in a year according to the passage?
A. About 2 million kilometres.
B. About 22,000 kilometres.
C. About 90 million kilometres.
D. About 180 kilometres.
3.How many companies are working on self-driving vehicles in all according the passage?
A. Two. B. Five. C. Eight. D. Seven.
4. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A. Google cars have pedals.
B. Google cars hit some other cars.
C. All car companies in the world are working on self-driving cars.
D. There is an “Autopilot” in Tesla self-driving cars after September 2014.
5.Which of the following can be the best tittle of the passage?
A. What’s your favourite car?
B. Will your next car drive itself?
C. What’s the best car?
D. Do you need a self-driving car?
This was the first real task I received in my new school. It seemed simple: go on the Internet and find information about a man named George Washington. As I searched the name, I found that there were two famous people having the same name who looked completely different! One invented hundreds of uses for peanuts（花生）, while the other led some sort of army across America. I stared at the screen, wondering which one my teacher meant. I called my grandfather for a golden piece of advice: let the coin decide. I flipped(掷) a coin and Ah! Tails (背面)! My report would be about the great man who invented peanut butter, George Washington Carver.
Weeks later, I stood in front of the classroom and proudly read my homework. But things started to get strange. I looked around the room, only to find my classmates with big smiles on their faces and tears in their eyes and my stone-faced teacher. I was completely lost. “What could be causing everyone to act this way?”
Oh well, I dropped the paper and sat down at my desk, burning to find out what I had done wrong. As a classmate began his report, it all became clear, “My report is on George Washington, the man who started the American War of Independence.” The whole world became quiet! How could I know that my teacher meant that George Washington?
Of course, my subject result was awful. Sad but fearless, I decided to turn this around. I talked to the headmaster Miss Lancelot, but she said firmly(坚决地): No re-dos; no new score. I felt that it was not fair, and I believed I should have a second chance. So I threw myself heartily into my work for the rest of the school year. Ten months later, I sat in the headmaster’s office again, but this time a completely different conversation. I smiled and flashed back to the terrible moment at the beginning of the year when the headmaster told me I was good enough to skip(跳过) the 6th grade and started the 7th grade next term.
1.________ helped me decide what my report would be about.
A. My classmates B. A coin
C. My grandpa D. The Internet
2.I read my homework proudly because ________.
A. I believed my homework was excellent
B. I was good at my lessons
C. my classmates wore big smiles on their faces
D. my grandfather was always right
3.I ________ after I failed the subject.
A. worked harder to prove my ability
B. did my homework a second time
C. was so frightened at the awful result
D. decided to give it up
4.We can infer(推断) from the passage that ________.
A. the headmaster wasn’t a good person at all
B. the writer’s classmates were cleverer than him
C. the writer knew little about American history
D. the writer’s grandpa was a very wise man
5.Which of the following can best describe the writer?
A. Silly and lazy. B. Clever but unlucky.
C. Proud and confident. D. Brave and hard-working.
A new report says African governments are ill prepared to handle the growing number of people over age 65. The population in Africa as in other parts of the world, is getting older. Currently, there are 36 million people on the continent 65 years and above. which is 3.6 percent of the population. up from 3.3 percent 10 years ago. That could rise to 4.5 percent by 2030 and 10 percent by 2050. The African development Bank is raising concerns over the shortage of health insurance and pensions (养老金).
The African Development Bank says. "Aging is highly linked with long-term physical and mental disability and a number of long-term chronic (慢性的) conditions."
"Africa is not well prepared to care for its aging population right now. And it needs to prepare for this fact." said Professor Mthuli Ncube. the African Development Bank's chief economist. African nations spend far less on healthcare than developed nations do___ about $26per person per year. Not so many countries have well developed medical aid plans for the elderly, whether they are privately provided plans or indeed government plans. If you look at the pension plans, you will find the pension industries are not well developed in some of the countries.
Professor Mthuli Ncube said African governments failed to take action on health insurance
and pensions because they were busy with economic reforms.
Another challenge for Africa is the worsening of informal systems of social protection. That is cash and support from both the extended family and community sources.
. The African Development Bank recommends governments help carry out health insurance and pension plans. Ncube said African governments didn't have to handle the health insurance burden alone. "It is not only a must but also an opportunity for private companies to add their bit in this regard", he said. The report also recommends that African governments consider providing ways of free health services. medications and long-term health care facilities for the elderly.
1. From the first paragraph we know the facts except that ____
A．the speed of people aging is becoming quicker
B．Africa has the largest aging population
C．African governments are not well prepared to deal with the aging population
D．the shortage of health insurance and pensions adds to African governments' difficulty in dealing With the aging population
2.Which is not highly linked with the aging according to the passage?
A．Long-term physical disability.
B．Long-term mental disability.
C．Long-term chronic illnesses.
D．Long-term shortage of care and love.
3. What got in the way of developing health insurance and pensions in Africa?
A．The economic reforms.
B．Too many old people.
C．The shortage of land.
D．The development of the economy.
4.How can the aging problem be solved in Africa according to Ncube?
A．African governments should spend as much money on healthcare as developed countries
B．African people should save enough money to insure their health.
C．African governments should combine with private companies to finish health insurance and pension pains.
D．Private sources should take the main responsibility to help the elderly.
5.The article is most likely to be seen____
A．in a story book B．in a newspaper
C．on a TV program D．in a textbook
完形填空 阅读短文, 从每题所给选项中选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。
Once upon a time, a little fish lived in a pond. But she wanted to go to the forest. The pond was deep, and high banks keep it from the view of the forest. Wanting to see the forest, the fish would jump out of water now and then, reaching ______ over the pond with the strength of her tail. It seemed to her that, with a little more effort, she could fly, but unfortunately each time she would fall right back into the ______ .
The fish’s mother—a big fish with kind eyes would ______, “What would you want the forest for? We fish must live in water, and that is the way it is.”
The fish would answer, “I want to go to the forest and that is my ______ . And it must come true.”
So she went to the little fairy(仙子) who had been friends with her for her whole life and pleaded(恳求), “Oh little fairy! I have been living in the water all the time. Now I am ______ my small world. I want to see those big trees covered with beautiful flowers, leaves and fruits. I want to meet______ and animals.”
To make her friend happy, the little fairy swung her little wand(魔杖). The rain started falling on the earth, and a few days later, the forest around the pond was covered with water,
______ the small pond into a lake. The fish swam to the forest. How ______ it was! The fish was very excited because her dream would come true soon.
“Hello,” the fish said to the flowers and the trees. She ______ on and saw animals sitting on fallen trees which were sticking out of the water. But as soon as she swam closer to the trees, she saw that all the animals were very sad. “ We are without ______ . The water has flooded the whole forest,” the animals told the fish ______ . All this made the fish very unhappy.
“I am ______ with this rain but my friends—trees and animals are quite unhappy. Oh little fairy! Please ______ the rain. I will go back to my pond. I will be more pleased when trees, animals and birds are happy,” pleaded the fish. The water began to ______ , and the animals were very glad and ran off, and the fish ______ to the pond and she was happier than ever before.
The art of happiness is to serve all. To be really happy, we must think not only of how we can help ourselves, but how we can help others.
1.A. lower B. farther C. higher D. faster
2.A. land B. pond C. lake D. forest
3.A. say B. speak C. shout D. laugh
4.A. way B. dream C. reply D. future
5.A. pleased with B. angry with C. tired of D. worried about
6.A. friends B. insects C. fish D. birds
7.A. rushing B. taking C. going D. turning
8.A. beautiful B. terrible C. quiet D. noisy
9.A. insisted B. jumped C. walked D. swam
10.A. food B. water C. sunshine D. idea
11.A. excitedly B. happily C. hopefully D. sadly
12.A. unhappy B. happy C. sorry D. busy
13.A. continue B. stop C. restart D. keep
14.A. rise B. appear C. fall D. lose
15.A. went B. came C. returned D. rushed
—Do you know________?
—All of them ________ the museum.
A. where are the students; have gone to
B. where are the students; have been to
C. where the students are; have been to
D. where the students are; have gone to
He made up his mind to devote his life________ pollution ________happily.
A. to prevent; from living B. to prevent; to live
C. to preventing; from living D. to preventing; to live
