Do you want to live forever? By the year 2050, you might actually get your wish — if you are willing to leave your biological body and live in silicon circuits （半导体电路）．But long before then, perhaps as early as 2020, some measures will begin offering a semblance of immortality （虚拟的永生）.
Researchers are confident that technology will soon be able to track every waking moment of your life. Whatever you see and hear, all that you say and write, can be recorded, analyzed and added to your personal chronicles （履历）. By the year 2030, it may be possible to catch your nervous systems through electrical activities, which would also keep your thoughts and emotions.
Researchers at the laboratories of British Telecommunications have given the name of this idea as Soul Catcher. Small electronic equipment will make preparation for Soul Catcher. It would use a wearable supercomputer, perhaps in a wristwatch, with wireless links to micro sensors under your scalp（头皮） and in the nerves that carry all five sensory signals. So wearing a video camera would no longer be required.
At first, the Soul Catcher's companion system — the Soul Reader — might have trouble copying your thoughts in complete details. Even in 2030, we may still be struggling to understand how the brain is working inside, so reading your thoughts and understanding your emotions might not be possible. But these signals could be kept for the day when they can be transferred to silicon circuits to revitalize minds everlasting entities （永生实体）. Researchers can only wonder what it will be like to wake up one day and find yourself alive inside a machine．
For people who choose not to live in silicon, semblance of immortality would not be as useless as they thought. People would know their lives would not be forgotten, but would be kept a record of the human race forever. And future generations would have a much fuller understanding of the past. History would not be controlled by just the rich and powerful, Hollywood stars, and a few thinkers in the upper society.
1.The main idea of this passage is that _______．
A．human beings long for living forever
B．there are many difficulties in making the Soul Catcher
C．people might live forever as technology develops
D．the invention of Soul Catcher has great importance
2.According to this passage, a Soul Catcher will be ______．
A．a new machine on which research measures have already been made
B．a new invention in order to catch and keep human's thoughts and emotions
C．made by British scientists to offer something that looks like living forever
D．made of silicon circuits which can catch people's nervous activity
3.According to the writer, semblance of immortality is ______．
A．to be a reality sooner or later B．far from certain
C．just an idea that couldn't t be realized at all D．a fading hope
4.The meaning of the underlined word "revitalize" in the fourth paragraph is close to .
A．make dead B．make famous C．make known D．make active
Puerto Rico may be part of the USA but its music and dance is a mixture of both Spanish and African rhythms. The country, as a result, is a mixture of very new and very old. It exhibits the open American way of yet retains the more formal Spanish influences. This is reflected in the architecture, not just the contrast between the colonial and the modern in urban areas but also in the countryside, where older buildings sit side by side with concrete schools and buildings.
However, if you do not wander beyond the tourist areas on the coast, you will not experience the real Puerto Rico. Old volcanic mountains, long inactive, occupy a large part of the interior（内陆）, with the highest peak, Cerro de Punta, at 1,338m in the Cordillera Central. North of the Cordillera is the karst （岩溶）country where the limestone（石灰石）has been acted upon by water to produce a series of small steep hills and deep holes. The mountains are surrounded by a coastal plain with the Atlantic shore beaches cooled all the year round by trade winds.
The population is 3.8 million, of which about 1.5 million live in San Juan, although about another two million Puerto Ricans live in the USA Average life expectancy is 73.8 years and GDP per capita is US $12,212, the highest in Latin America, although not up to the level of mainland USA. Most Puerto Ricans do not speak English and less than 30% speak it fluently. Second generation Puerto Ricans who were born in New York but who have returned to the island, are called Nuyoricans. The people are very friendly and hospitable but there is crime, liked to drugs and unemployment.
1.What are the disadvantages of Puerto Rico?
A．Too many Puerto Ricans live in the USA
B．Few people in Puerto Rico can speak English
C．Puerto Rico’s GDP is lower than that of the USA
D．Social problem connected with drugs and lack of jobs.
2.We can learn from the passage that Puerto Rico _________.
A．is a state of the United States B．used to be ruled by Spain
C．is an agricultural country D．is gently affected by Africa
3.Nuyorican is a person who _______.
A．has been living in New York
B．is living in New York
C．was born in New York but has returned to Puerto Rico
D．has got the citizenship of America
4.What does the underlined word “retains” mean?
A．loses B．keeps C．enjoys D．returns
One girl decided to study judo(柔道) although she had lost her left arm in a car accident.
The girl began lessons with an old Japanese judo instructor. The girl was doing well. So she couldn’t understand why, after three months of training, the instructor had taught her only one move.
“Instructor,” the girl finally said, “Shouldn’t I be learning more moves?”
“This is the only move you know, but this is the only move you’ll ever need to know,” the instructor replied.
Not quite understanding, but believing in her teacher, the girl kept training.
Several months later, the instructor took the girl to her first tournament. Surprising herself, the girl easily won her first two matches. The third match proved to be more difficult, but after some time, her opponent became impatient and charged. The girl skillfully used her one move to win the match. Still amazed by her success, the girl was now in the finals.
This time, her opponent was bigger, stronger and more experienced. For a while, the girl appeared to be overmatched. Concerned that the girl might get hurt, the referee called a time-out. She was about to stop the match when the instructor intervened(干预).
“No,” the instructor insisted, “Let her continue.”
Soon after the match restarted, her opponent made a serious mistake: she dropped her guard. Instantly, the girl used her move to pin her opponent. The girl had won the match and the tournament. She was the champion.
On the way home, the girl and her teacher reviewed every move in each and every match. Then the girl gathered the courage to ask what was really on her mind.
“Instructor, how did I win the tournament with only one move?”
“You won for two reasons,” the teacher answered. “First, you’ve almost mastered one of the most difficult throws in all of judo. Second, the only known defense for that move is for your opponent to grab your left arm.”
The girl’s biggest weakness had become her biggest strength.
1.What can we learn about the girl?
A．She was disabled in an accident. B．She disliked judo training.
C．She learnt several moves. D．She won the first two matches hard.
2.The underlined word “overmatched” probably means .
A．impatient B．depressed C．defeated D．trapped
3.The girl won the championship because of .
A．her bravery B．her skills C．her tricks D．her strength
4.Which of the following is probably the best title of the story?
A．The Story of a Girl. B．A Disabled Girl.
C．Defense Matters. D．Weakness Becomes Strength.
Americans are thinking about national education standards recently developed by teachers and other education experts. The National Governors Association (NGA) and the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) led the effort.
The United States, unlike other nations, has never had the same school standards across the country. What is the reason? Education is not discussed in the Constitution. That document limits the responsibilities of the federal government. Other responsibilities, like education, fall to each state.
Local control of education probably was a good idea two hundred years ago. People stayed in the same place and schools knew what students needed to learn. But today, people move to different cities. And some people work at jobs that did not exist even twenty years ago.
Many American educators say that getting a good education should not depend on where you live. They say that some states have lowered their standards in order to increase student scores on tests required by the No Child Left behind Act.
Kara Schlosser is communications director for the CCSSO. She says the new standards clearly state what a student should be able to do to be successful in college and work.
Forty--eight states have already shown approval for the standards. Two states refuse to accept the idea. Critics say that working toward the same standards in every state will not guarantee excellence for all. Some educators in Massachusetts say adopting the national standards will hurt their students because the state standards are even higher. Others say the change will be too costly, requiring new textbooks and different kinds of training for teachers. Still others fear federal control.
Supporters say the standards are goals and do not tell states or teachers how to teach. They also say the federal government is not forcing acceptance. However, approving the standards will help states qualify (取得资格) for some federal grant money.
1.What would be the best title for the passage?
A．Local Control of Education Standards out of Date
B．American National Education Standards under Consideration
C．Education Standards in Each State--Good or Bad.
D．Acceptance of the New Standards in the United States
2.Why is local control of education no 1onger a good idea today?
A．Because local standards are limited.
B．Because it is required by the federal government.
C．Because people today moves among states more often than before.
D．Because America has never had the same school standards throughout the country.
3.Some people are against the nationa1 education standards because__________
A．the standards are higher than those of each state
B．they are not yet prepared for the new standards
C．the standards may prevent some students gaining excellence
D．they don't want the federal government to train their teachers
4.If a state agrees to accept the national standards, it will probably get ________.
A．more students B．advice on how to improve teaching
C．better textbooks D．money from the federal government
Mr. Glen is a millionaire. Years ago, after returning from abroad to his motherland, he 1 his company. Speaking of success, Glen often tells us a story about his extra expensive “school” fee. He always 2 his success to it.
At that time, Glen, who already got a Ph.D. degree, 3 to return home, starting a company. Before leaving, he bought a Rolex watch with the 4 made through years. At the airport he had to accept the 5 customs check. The watch on his wrist was also demanded to be taken down for 6 . Glen knew that carrying such goods out had to pay the tax, and he worried about paying 7 for his watch. So while checked, he told a lie that his watch was a 8 fake（假货）. When he was 9 of his “smarts”, immediately, in the presence of Glen, the officers hit the watch, 10 cost nearly 100,000, into pieces 11 hearing Glen’s words. Glen was 12 . Before he understood why, he was taken to the office to be examined 13 . For many times of entry-exit 14 he knew that only those people in the “blacklist” would “enjoy” this special treatment. The officers looked over everything carefully, and 15 him no matter what time of entry and exit he must accept the check and if 16 reusing and carrying fake goods, he would be 17 by law! Suddenly, his face turned red, and he had nothing in mind after boarding the plane for long.
After that, he often told the story to his family and his employees. He said that this made a deep 18 on him, because the additional high “school” fee that he had ever paid made him realize the value of 19 , which he would remember as the 20 of his success forever.
1. A．went up B．set up C． took up D．picked up
2. A．owes B．mentions C．brings D．honors
3. A．objected B．refused C．decided D．asked
4. A．books B．things C．pounds D．savings
5. A．ordinary B．regular C．routine D．common
6. A．inspection B．look C．test D．experiment
7. A．it B．one C．them D．these
8. A．careless B．priceless C．hopeless D．worthless
9. A．afraid B．ashamed C．proud D．hard
10. A．whose B．what C．which D．as
11. A．at B．on C．in D．by
12. A．amazed B．delighted C．disappointed D．satisfied
13. A．strictly B．quietly C．quickly D．curiously
14. A．conditions B．chances C．experiments D．experiences
15. A．stopped B．warned C．urged D．hoped
16. A．found out B．came out C．sent out D．set out
17. A．hit B．charged C．praised D．blamed
18. A．expression B．idea C．thought D．impression
19. A．lies B．honesty C．goods D．bravery
20. A．choice B．lesson C．secret D．belief
Steps must be taken _____ this kind of disaster will never happen again.
A．because B．even if C．so that D．as
