Plastic is one of the most important technological discoveries of the 20th century. However, it may soon be replaced. The new development- liquid wood- can replace plastics in all branches of modern-day industries.
Plastic as a material enjoys the biggest demand in the modern world, but it does have a number of drawbacks. First and foremost, plastic isn’t recyclable. Secondly, it contains toxins (毒物) helping develop cancerous diseases. Finally, it’s made of oil and oil reserves aren’t endless.
The liquid wood technology is likely to replace plastic and providing mankind with new materials for many years ahead. Norbert Eisenfreich, a senior researcher at the Faunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology in Germany (ICT), said that arboform, the new material, is made of lignin(木素质）, which can be obtained from soft tissues of wood. Once mixed with several other matenals, it turns into solid and non-toxic alternative for plastics.
ICT team leader Emilia Regina Inone-Kauffmann said the wood-working industry separates wood into three basic components, including lignin. Lignin isn’t used for the production of paper. Specialists of ICT mixed lignin with several natural materials and thus invented the material which could be melted and molded (铸型）.
When solid, arboform looks like plastic and possesses tho qualitie of polished wood. It can be used for the production of any items. Arboform is already used for the production of car parts which require extra strength. In addition, liquid wood can be recycled repeatedly. The material preserved all of its qualities even if it’s reprocessed ten times.
However, the new invention doesn’t enjoy an extensive use due to the high content of sulfur(硫) in it. German researchers are sure to reduce the amount of sulfur by 90% very soon to make arboform usable for home needs.According to the passage, plastic .
| A．helps us to reduce the use of petrol |
| B．helps to protect our environment in some way |
| C．does harm to our society in some way |
| D．has been replaced by the newly discovered material |
What’s the advantage of arboform over plastic?
| A．It is easier made from natural oil. |
| B．It is more widely used in household |
| C．It is recyclable and friendly to environment. |
| D．It contains no poisonous materials. |
The underlined word “altemative” in Paragraph 3 means .
| A．lignin or arboform | B．soft tissues of wood |
| C．plastics or wood | D．mixture of several materials |
It can be concluded that German researchers will focus their future work firstly on .
| A．the material’s extensive use | B．the content of sulfur in arboform |
| C．the production cost of arboform | D．the qualities of liquid wood |
The main purpose of the text is to .
| A．introduce liquid wood which will replace plastic |
| B．show readers how to produce arboform |
| C．advertise the new material-arboform |
| D．advertise new products made of arboform |
Elizabeth Blackwell was born in England in 1821, and moved to New York City when she was ten years old. One day she decided that she wanted to become a doctor. That was nearly impossible for a woman in the middle of the nineteenth century. After writing many letters asking for admission(录取) to medical schools, she was finally accepted by a doctor in Philadelphia. She was so determined that she taught school and gave music lessons to get money for the cost of schooling.
In 1849, after graduation from medical school. She decided to further her education in Paris. She wanted to be a surgeon(外科医师) , but a serious eye problem forced her to give up the idea.
Upon returning to the United States, she found it difficult to start her own practice because she was a woman. By 1857 Elizabeth and her sister, also a doctor, along with another woman doctor, managed to open a new hospital, the first for women and children. Besides being the first woman physician and founding her own hospital , she also set up the first medical school for women.
Why couldn’t Elizabeth Blackwell realize her dream of becoming a surgeon?
| A．She couldn’t get admitted to medical school |
| B．She decided to further her education in Paris |
| C．A serious eye problem stopped her |
| D．It was difficult for her to start a practice in the United States |
How many years passed between her graduation from medical school and the opening of her hospital?
| A．Eight years | B．Ten years |
| C．Nineteen years | D．Thirty-six years |
According to the passage, all of the following are “firsts” in the life of Elizabeth Blackwell, except that she ______.
| A．became the first woman physician |
| B．was the first woman doctor |
| C．and several other women founded the first hospital for women and children |
| D．set up the first medical school for women |
The man sitting opposite Robert was the Financial Controller. Everybody called him “the FC” for short. He made all the decisions about money. Robert needed some more. That was why he had to see him. The two men did not get on very well. In fact, they had always disliked each other.
“Your request is out of the question,” the FC said. Robert had difficulty in controlling himself, but he managed somehow. He explained that he wanted the money in order to make more programmes.
“And why do you want to do that?” the FC asked sharply. Again, Robert almost lost his temper. “Because more and more people are listening to my department’s programmes. There’s great demand for them,” he answered.
The FC did not seem to believe him. But Robert had a report on the numbers of listeners to all EBC programmes. The FC became less confident. Robert threw the report down on the table and told him to read it.
The FC looked at it in silence. The figures proved that he had been wrong, but he did not want to admit it. “Well,”he finally said, “I may have made a small mistake.”Robert noticed the word “may.” He got up to leave. But he had the feeling that he would get the money after all.
“Your request is out of the question.”Here “out of the question”means______.
| A．without any question | B．with some question. |
| C．impossible. | D．possible. |
Robert decided to make more programmes because________.
| A．he wanted to meet the needs of the listeners. |
| B．“the FC”disliked him |
| C．the members of his department wanted him to do so. |
| D．he wanted to show himself off. |
Why were more and more people listening to Robert’s programmes?
A. Because he always lost his temper.
B. Because he disliked “the FC.”
C. Because the programmes were rich and to the taste of the listeners.
D. It isn’t mentioned directly in the text..
Who do you think won the argument in the end?
| A．The Financial Controller. | B．Robert. |
| C．Nobody. | D．The listeners. |
Baths and bathing have long been considered of medical importance to man. In Greece there are the ruins of a water system for baths built over 3,000 years ago. The Romans had warm public baths. In some baths, as many 3,000 persons could bathe at the same time.
Treating disease by taking bathing has been popular for centuries. Modern medical bathing first became popular in Europe and by the late 1700’s has also become popular in the United States.
For many years frequent bathing was believed to be bad for one’s health. Ordinary bathing just to keep clean was avoided , and perfume was often used to cover up body smells!
By the 1700’s doctors began to say that soap and water were good for health. They believed that it was good for people to be clean. Slowly, people began to bathe more frequently. During the Victorian Age of the late 19th century, taking a bath on Saturday night became common.
In the United States ordinary bathing was slow to become popular. During the 18th and early 19th centuries, many Americans were known as “The Great Unwashed!” In one American city , for example, a person was only allowed to take a bath every thirty days! That was a law!
Frequency of bathing today is partly a matter of habit. People know that bathing for cleanliness is important to health, Doctors know that dirty bodies increase the chance of diseases. As a result, in the United States, people generally bathe often. Some people bathe once a day at least. They consider a daily bath essential to good health.
A water system for baths was built by _______ over 3,000 years ago.
| A．the Romans | B．the Greeks |
| C．the Americans | D．the Europeans |
Dirty bodies can_______.
| A．ruin one’s business | B．cause disease |
| C．drive customers away | D．cause good health |
In the 18th century doctors believed that being clean was_______.
| A．unimportant | B．good for health |
| C．harmful | D．important |
The underlined word perfume probably means________.
| A．a sweet smelling substance | B．good health |
| C．a strange smelling substance | D．large wealth |
The Antarctica is actually a desert. It is the only continent on the earth without a river or a lake.
The Antarctica is all ice all year round. The warmest temperature ever recorded there is zero, at the South Pole. Explorers used to think that a place so cold would have a heavy snowfall. But less than ten inches of snow falls each year. That is less than half an inch of water. Ten times that much moisture (水份) falls in parts of the Sahara.
The little snow that falls in Antarctica never melts. It continues to pile up deeper and deeper year after year and century after century. When the snow gets to be about eighty feet deep it is turned to ice by the weight of snow above it .
Antarctica is called a desert because it_______.
| A．is sandy. |
| B．has the same temperature as a desert. |
| C．has little moisture and no lakes or rivers. |
| D．there are no people there. |
Antarctica has_______.
| A．ten times as much moisture as the Sahara. |
| B．the same amount of moisture as the Sahara. |
| C．about one—tenth of the moisture of the Sahara. |
| D．none of the above. |
The snow in Antarctica is very deep because it_______.
A. never stops falling. B. piles up year after year.
C. never melts. D. both B and C.
The snow turns to ice when______.
| A．it gets wet. |
| B．the next snowfall comes. |
| C．the temperature gets colder. |
| D．the snow above it is heavy enough. |
With the development of society, the choice of food and drinks for children is more diversified(多样化) than ever before. However, every coin has two sides. Many facts suggest that children are overweight and the situation is getting worse, according to the statistics(数据统计). I feel there are a number of reasons for this.
Some people blame（责怪）the fact that we are surrounded by shops selling unhealthy, fatty foods, such as fried chicken and ice cream, at low prices. This has turned out a whole generation of grown-ups who seldom cook a meal for themselves. If there were fewer of these restaurants then probably children would buy less take-away food.
There is another argument that blames parents for allowing their children to become overweight. I agree to this, because good eating habits begin early in life, long before children start to visit fast food shops. If children are given fried chicken and chocolate rather than healthy food, or are always allowed to choose what they eat, they will go for sweet and salty foods every time, and this will carry on throughout their lives.
There is a third reason for this situation. Children these days take very little exercise. They do not walk to school. When they get home, they sit in front of the television or their computers. Not only is this an unhealthy pastime（消遣）, it also gives them time to eat more unhealthy food. What they need is to go outside and play active games or sports.
The above are the main reasons for this problem, and therefore we have to encourage young people to be more active, as well as guiding them away from fast food shops and bad eating habits.What is suggested by the author to deal with “overweight”?
| A．Blaming the shops selling unhealthy and fatty foods. |
| B．Asking young children to walk to school every day. |
| C．Living an active life and giving up bad eating habits. |
| D．Not watching TV or playing computer games after school. |
Which of the following shows the structure of the whole text?
The author writes the passage to __________
| A．show people a social problem |
| B．provide facts for government |
| C．advise solutions to a problem |
| D．compare opinions with people |
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