When computer servers operate a complex program, they can get very hot. Cooling the servers can be costly. So researchers asked what would happen if the heat created by the servers could be captured and used?
Data centers of large Internet companies such as Google and Microsoft have thousands of computer servers. As these servers process information, they create large amounts of heat, so they need huge cooling systems, which send the heat into the air.
The Dutch company Nerdalize thinks paying for electricity to operate the servers and then paying again to cool them is a waste of energy. So it developed a device called the e-Radiator, a computer server that also works as a heating source.
Boaz Leupe, the chief executive officer of Nerdalize, says the e-Radiator saves money because companies don’t have to pay to cool their servers. “…The kilowatt hour you are using is used twice — once to heat the home and once to compute the client’s task without the cooling expenses.”
At present five homeowners in the Netherlands are testing the heating device in their homes.
“We compensate the electricity the server uses, and that we can do because of the computer clients on the other side, and, in that way, homeowners actually get heating for free, and computer users don’t have to pay for the expenses of the data center.”
Jan Visser is one of the participants in the year-long experiment. He notices that the amount of heat produced by the e-Radiator depends on the work being done by the computer server. He reveals it cannot be used as the primary source of heat. But he is ready to try it. “If it provides enough warmth, I will be able to use my home’s heating system less, which will save me money.” he added.
Nerdalize says e-Radiators create heat temperatures of up to 55 degrees Celsius. It’s also said that the devices could save users up to $440 in heating costs a year.
1.What can we learn from this passage?
A. E-Radiator can save homeowners a big sum of money in cooling the computers.
B. Google and Nerdalize developed the heating device, e-Radiator.
C. E-Radiator has been put into use in the Netherlands.
D. The heating device will benefit computer users as well as homeowners.
2.According to the passage, what’s Jan Visser’s attitude towards e-Radiator?
A. Cautious. B. Positive. C. Satisfied. D. Doubtful.
3.Where can we most probably read the passage?
A. In an economic report.
B. In a science magazine.
C. In an education newspaper.
D. In a computer guide book.
4.Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?
A. Money-saving heating device.
B. E-Radiator, the primary source of heat.
C. Hot computers could be used to heat home.
D. Nerdalize developed e-Radiator, a heating system.
The government in China plans to end its one-child per family policy and instead let families have two children.
The plan was announced Thursday after high-level political meetings in Beijing. The official Xinhua news agency says the country’s top legislature must approve the proposal before it becomes law.
A Chinese Communist Party statement gave a number of reasons for the change in policy. The statement said the change is meant to balance population development. It said the move also attempts to stop a declining birth rate and strengthen the country’s work force.
China, the world's most populous country, launched the one-child policy in 1980. But the government permitted only a small number of couples to have two children. For example, some rural families were given approval to have two children. A total of 19 rural provinces have a partial two-child policy. That policy states if the first-born is a girl, a second child is permitted.
In 2013, the Chinese government gave other couples a chance to have two children. Families could have two if one parent was an only child.
A teacher and population expert, Jiang Quanbao, explained how Chinese families will react to the policy. “Too many young people in the cities are probably no longer interested in having a second child,”he said. “People in rural farming villages may be more interested. But again, some of them are already allowed to have two children.”
At the end of 2014, China had a population of 1.37 billion people. A total of 800 million of them are employed. But that job market population is expected to drop by 2050. With the two-child policy, an increase in births will ease the labor shortage, starting in 20 years.
1.Which of the following is NOT the reason for the two-child policy?
A. To ease the present labor shortage.
B. To balance population development.
C. To strengthen the country’s work force.
D. To stop a declining birth rate.
2.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A. In the 1980s rural families could have two children if the first-born was a girl.
B. Due to the boom in population, by 2050 more young people will become unemployed.
C. Chinese government changes its population policy to greet the new situation in social development.
D. Few young people in the cities show much interest in the new policy because of financial pressure.
3.The writer writes this passage ________.
A. To educate. B. To inform.
C. To advertise. D. To analyze.
Wanted, Someone for FM 90.8
We’re looking for a radio announcer to join us on Anhui Transportation Broadcasting FM 90.8. Broadcasting and hosting major is necessary, along with some experience in radio and music. Please apply in writing to Anhui Radio and TV Station.
Father Christmas
We’re looking for a very special person, preferably over 40, to fill our Father Christmas suit.
Working days: Every Saturday and Sunday from December 11 to December 20 and every day from December 21 to December 25, 14∶30－20∶00.
Excellent pay.
Please contact Yurun Central Square, Changjiang Road.
Accountants Assistant
When you join the team in our Social Security Administration Office, you will be providing assistance within all parts of the Office, dealing with post and other general duties. If you are educated in a 211 University we would like to talk to you. This position is equally suitable for a school leaver or for somebody who has office experience.
Social Security Administration Office
Software Trainer
If you are aged 22-48 and have experience in teaching and training, you could be the person we are looking for. You should be good at the computer and have some experience in programme writing. You will be allowed to make your own decisions, and to design courses as well as present them. Pay upwards of ￥8,000 for the right person. Please apply by sending your CV to Mrs. Huang, Huanghe Computer Training Center.
1.Who should you get in touch with if you hope to work in a radio station?
A. Yurun Central Square.
B. Mrs. Huang, Huanghe Computer Training Center.
C. Anhui Radio and TV Station.
D. Social Security Administration Office.
2.We learn from the ads that Yurun Central Square needs a person who________.
A. is aged between 22 and 48
B. needs to do some training work
C. should deal with general duties
D. can work for about a fortnight
3.Which position is open to recent school graduates?
A. Accountants Assistant. B. Father Christmas.
C. Radio announcer. D. Software Trainer.
4.What kind of person would probably apply to Huanghe Computer Training Center?
A. One graduating from a 211 university.
B. One with some office experience.
C. One having good computer knowledge.
D. One with experience in radio and music.
书面表达
假定你是星光中学的高中毕业生李华，母校将为高一新生举办主题为“What to learn in senior high school?”的英语沙龙活动，特邀请你结合自身经历谈谈自己的体会。请根据以下提示准备一份英语发言稿。
1.学会学习：方法，习惯等；
2.学会做人：真诚，友善；
3.学会其他：考生自拟。
注意：
1.词数100左右；
2.发言稿开头和结尾已给出，不须抄在答题卡上，不计入总次数。
Good morning, everyone! It is my honor to be here to share with you my opinions on what to learn in senior high school.
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
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短文改错
Family is a most important part in my father’s life. He usually helps my mother do housework if he has any free time. Although he is a busy businessman, but he spends a lot of his free time hang out with my brother and me. He always supports my education. He sent me to the best schools and allow me to study abroad when I was 18. And he always listens to my idea even though they are stupid sometime. My father has a warm heart, whom is famous in our community. Most of my neighbors know my father because his kindness. Every time he sees the homeless in the street, he stops to give him some money. At weekends, he provides free rides for old people of our community.
单词拼写
1.He had not ___________ (预见，预知) this, so he made further investigations.
2.John Snow ____________ (怀疑) that the second theory was correct but he needed evidence.
3.England is the largest of the four countries, and for convenience it is divided _____________ (粗略地) into three zones.
4.This is similar to the “jet lag” you get from flying, but it seems you keep getting flashback from your _________ (早先的，在前的) time period.
5.At first my new surroundings were difficult to _______________ (容忍，忍受).
6.That’s __________ (值得赞扬的，令人钦佩的), but I’m afraid it would be unusual!
7.Meanwhile you have to prepare the next question, __________ (依赖，依靠) on what the person says.
8.Have you ever had a case where someone ____________ (控告，指责，谴责) your journalists of getting the wrong end of the stick.
9.You have three layers of skin which act as a _________ (屏障，障碍) against disease, poisons and the sun’s harmful rays.
10.For second degree burns, keep cloths by putting them back in a basin of cold water, ____________ (榨，挤，压榨) them out and placing them on the burned area over and over again for about an hour until the pain in not so bad.
