阅读下面短文，根据所读内容在表格中的空白处填入恰当的单词。注意：每个空格只填一个单词。
Farmers and gardeners have long used greenhouses to extend the growing season in cold weather. Now, hoop houses are gaining popularity. Some hoop houses are rounded; others are shaped more like a traditional house.
A hoop house is basically a metal frame covered with plastic or other all-weather material. A common design looks like a high tunnel. Unlike a greenhouse, which uses a heating system, a hoop house is heated by the warmth of the sun.
Now, the United States Department of Agriculture has announced a program to help farmers who want to build hoop houses. The department has been supporting a project in Michigan. That state has a short growing season. As part of the research project, nine farmers were given materials and trained how to build and use a hoop house. The results showed that well-managed hoop houses can grow high-quality crops.
However, crops are not the only things that grow well. The research found that weeds grow faster in a hoop house. Weeding (除草), seeding and watering requires at least as much work as crops grown in the open air. The researchers also advise growers to add compost（堆肥） material to the soil in hoop houses to build nutrients.
Eliot Coleman is an organic farmer and a writer in Maine who has helped popularize the idea of four-season farming. His ideas about hoop houses sounded good to John Biernbaum in the Horticulture（园艺）Department at Michigan State University.
Professor Biernbaum tried hoop houses on the Student Organic Farm at Michigan State and had success. Project director David Conner says it was a "test drive（试车）" for the research on private farms. The agricultural economist points to the demand for locally grown crops. "People are hungry for good, fresh vegetables," he says.
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Topic |
Hoop houses |
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Design |
56._________ |
·Like a high tunnel ·Some round ; others like a 57. house. |
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Material |
·Metal frame. ·Plastic or other all-weather material. |
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58. |
The warmth of the sun. |
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Research project in Michigan |
The program |
·It is 59._________by the US Department of Agriculture. ·Michigan was chosen due to its short 60._________season. ·Nine farmers were given materials and trained how to build and use a hoop house. ·It is greatly 61._________by the ideas from Eliot Coleman. |
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62. |
·High-quality crops can grow in well-managed hoop houses. ·Weeds also grow faster in hoop houses. |
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63. |
·Weeding, seeding and watering needs as much work as naturally grown crops. ·64. should be added to the soil. |
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Significance |
Demand for locally grown crops 65._________further research on private farms. |
56 57 58 59 60
61 62 63 64 65
根据对话内容，从对话后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。选项中有两项为多余选项。
M: What have you been doing recently, Cathy?
W: I’ve been chatting online with friends. What about you?
M: 51
W: Why not?
M: Well, my computer is really old, so most software doesn’t work well with my computer.
W: 52
M: How long does it take to download mp3 files?
W: Not very long at all.
M: 53
W: Sure, I download at least one program a day.
M: Do you think you could download some for me?
W: 54
M: Let me see…. Oh, a show called Friends.
W: No problem. Did you know that there are many Friends’ forums online?
M: What’s a forum?
W: 55
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A．I’ve never chatted online before. |
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B．Sure, just tell me what you want. |
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C．You may be interested. |
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D．It’s free to download TV programs or movies. |
E. Do you ever download any TV programs or movies?
F. Come over to mine and I can show you how to use it.
G. It’s a place where you can chat to other people who have similar interests as you.
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 .
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A．help to update computer systems |
B．link the human brain with computers |
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C．help the disabled to recover |
D．control a person's thoughts |
2.How did Tavella operate the wheelchair in the laboratory?
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A．By controlling his muscles． |
B．By talking to the machine． |
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C．By moving his hand． |
D．By using his mind． |
3.The team will test with real patients to .
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A．make profits from them |
B．prove the technology useful to them |
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C．make them live longer |
D．learn about their physical condition |
4.Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
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A．Switzerland, the BCI Research Center |
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B．New Findings About How the Human Brain Works |
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C．BCI Could Mean More Freedom for the Disabled |
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D．Robotic Vehicles Could Help to Cure Brain Injuries |
Given Australia’s size and the fact that early settlements were far apart, Australian society is remarkably homogeneous (同种的). Its citizens are fundamentally prosperous and the way of life in the major cities and towns is much the same however many miles divide them. It takes a sharp ear to identify regional accents. However, there is some difference in lifestyle between city dwellers and the country people. Almost 90 per cent of the population lives in the fast-paced cities along the coast and has little more than a passing familiarity with the desert. The major cities preserve pockets of colonial heritage, but the overall impression is modern, with new buildings reflecting the country’s youth. In contrast, the rural communities tend to be slow-moving and conservative. For many years, Australia was said to have “ridden on the sheep’s back”, a reference to wool being the country’s main money earner. However, the wool industry is no longer dominant. Much of Australia’s relatively sound economy is now achieved from natural coal and wheat, and by being the largest diamond producer in the world. Newer industries such as tourism and wine making are also increasingly important. Australians are generally friendly and relaxed, with a self-deprecating sense of humor. On the whole, Australia is a society without hierarchies (等级制度), an attitude generally held to stem from its prisoner beginnings.
Yet, contrary to widespread belief, very few Australians have true prisoner origins. Within only one generation of the arrival of the First Fleet in 1788, Australia had become a nation of immigrants. Originally coming almost entirely from the British Isles, today one in three Australians comes from elsewhere. Australia’s liberal postwar immigration policies led to an influx of survivors from war-torn Europe, most notably Greeks, Italians, Poles and Germans.
The emphasis has shifted in recent years and today the majority of new immigrants are from Southeast Asia. Today Australia is a ‘blend of nations’ and although some racism exists, it has generally been a successful experiment and the country is justifiably proud to have one of the most harmonious multicultural communities in the world.
1.What does the writer mean by saying “It takes a sharp ear to identify regional accents.” in the first paragraph?
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A．Australians speak Standard English with no local accents whatsoever. |
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B．You have to practice a lot to learn to understand the different accents. |
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C．The Australian regional accents are very difficult to understand indeed. |
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D．There is not much difference between the accents in different areas of Australia. |
2.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
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A．Most Australians have ancestors who were prisoners. |
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B．The Australian economy is dependent on sheep exports. |
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C．The majority of people living in Australia come from Europe. |
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D．The pace of life is different in the city and in the country. |
3.The underlined pronoun ‘it’ in the final paragraph refers to “_______”.
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A．Community |
B．racism |
C．blend of Nations |
D．Southeast Asia |
4.We can infer from the passage that _____.
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A．there are no signs of Australia’s colonial past in its modern cities |
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B．Australia’s recent immigration policy encourages immigrants from Southeast Asia |
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C．immigrants from Southeast Asia have brought racial problems |
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D．“riding on sheep’s back” resulted in slow development in rural communities |
Why do people drink too much, eat too much, smoke cigarettes or take drugs? What’s to blame for all the bad behavior? Most people would say that, while these self-destructive acts can have many root causes, they all have one obvious thing in common: they are all examples of failures of self-control, lacking the will power to resist them.
According to a recent study, however, if you really think about it, something about that simple answer doesn’t quite make sense. In fact, it turns out that sometimes it’s having will power that really gets you into trouble.
Think back to the time you took your very first sip (啜饮) of beer. Disgusting, wasn’t it? When my father gave me my first taste of beer as a teenager, I wondered why anyone would voluntarily drink it. And smoking? No one enjoys their first cigarette — it tastes awful. So even though smoking, and drinking alcohol or coffee, can become temptation (诱惑) you need will power to resist, they never, ever start out that way.
Just getting past those first horrible experiences actually requires a lot of self-control. Ironically (讽刺的是), only those who can control themselves well, rather than give in to them, can ever come to someday develop a “taste” for Budweiser beer, Marlboro cigarettes, or dark-roasted Starbucks coffee. We do it for social acceptance. We force ourselves to consume alcohol, cigarettes, coffee and even illegal drugs, in order to seem experienced, grown-up, and cool.
These bad habits aren’t self-control failures — far from it. They are voluntary choices, and they are in fact self-control successes. Self-control is simply a tool to be put to some use, helpful or harmful. To live happy and productive lives, we need to develop not only our self-control, but also the wisdom to make good decisions about when and where to apply it.
1.What do most people think causes bad behavior?
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A．Being forced by others. |
B．Not having enough will power. |
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C．Enjoying their first experiences. |
D．Following the examples of their friends. |
2.The author mentions his experience in the third paragraph to prove ____.
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A．will power helps develop bad habits sometimes |
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B．drinking beer is harmful to the health of teenagers |
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C．self-control should be developed when one is young |
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D．everyone can be challenged by different temptations |
3.In the last paragraph, the author stresses that ____.
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A．without self-control, no one can succeed |
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B．bad habits don’t always lead to bad results |
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C．applying self-control correctly is important |
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D．people can develop wisdom from bad behavior |
4.What would be the best title for the passage?
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A．My First Sip of Beer |
B．Do You Have Will Power ? |
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C．Does Will Power Benefit Us? |
D．Dark Side of Self-control |
Item 78431 The Video Camera Pen
$129.95; Available for Immediate Shipment; Order by Phone: 1-800-321-1484
This is the pen that has a built-in video camera, capturing (拍摄，录制) videos or still images with a click of its button．Ideal for use while secured in a pocket, it can capture up to five hours of video. Its battery provides up to two hours of power before requiring a recharge．
Item 78098 The Wristwatch Camcorder
$149．95; Available for 3-day shipment; Order by Phone: 1-800-321-1484
This is the men’s watch with an unnoticeable camera located at the two-o’clock position, yet the watch’s hands never make it covered．So you’ll be always ready to capture a famous person or a pet’s ridiculous actions. The camera’s rechargeable battery provides up to two hours of use from a four-hour charge．
Item 77918 The only 55 Inch Widescreen Personal Movie Theater
$249．95; Available for Immediate Shipment; Order by Phone: 1-800-321-1484
This is the only personal media viewer that provides a private viewing experience just like watching a widescreen 55 inch television from 10 meters away．It connects to a video iPod, iPhone, portable DVD player with two AA batteries providing up to six hours of continuous operation．
Item 77281 The Digital Phone Album Watch
$99．95 Available for Immediate Shipment; Order by Phone: 1-800-321-1484
This is the watch that vividly displays 120 of your favorite digital photographs．You can download digital photographs to the watch．The watch can be viewed in the Photo Album mode (模式) or digital mode （time and date view）．A six-hour charge provides up to 10 days of use．
1.What’s the purpose of this passage?
|
A．To advertise some goods． |
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B．To compare some goods． |
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C．To teach how to operate the items． |
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D．To show how fashionable the items are． |
2.What do Item 78431 and Item 78098 have in common according to this passage?
|
A．They both sell well． |
B．They both can take photos． |
|
C．They both have unusual appearances． |
D．They are both cheap． |
3.If you’re a movie fan, you probably show strong interest in ________．
|
A．Item78098 |
B．Item78431 |
C．Item77281 |
D．Item77918 |
4.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A．In fact, Item 78098 cannot tell time．
B．Item 77918 works as a DVD player．
C．In a way, Item 77281 is user-friendly．
D All the items include rechargeable batteries．
