For computer users, there is no bigger excitement than tossing out your old PC and upgrading to a newer, faster and cleaner machine. With hardware designers like Intel, pushing newer, faster products every year, and new software requiring even more powerful machines, companies and consumers have little choice but to go along.
But this rapid turnover is having a serious effect on the planet. Producing a personal computer consumes large quantities of natural resources. A recent study by the United Nations estimates the energy required to produce a single new computer is equivalent to nearly two barrels of oil. And that doesn't include the 22 kg of chemicals or the 1,500 kg of water used in the manufacturing process.
In fact, pound for poun
d（均等地）, the 
process for making a car is about 500% more efficient than that for making a computer. That doesn't matter so much 20 years ago when personal computers were few and far between, but times have changed. These days, computers are found nearly everywhere and sales continue to grow. The number of PCs in use topped one billion in 2002.
Waste in production is only half the problem. Old computers, especially the monitors, are full of dangerous substances, which need to be carefully recycled. The problem is sure to expand over the coming years as users replace their boxy CRT monitors with LCD flat displays.
Europe now requires that 70% of parts from old computers be recycled, but the study’s authors say that’s also part of the problem. The solution, they insist, is for governments and companies to encourage people to use their computers longer, and upgrade rather than replace. But considering that much of the world’s recent economic growth has come from spending on computers and information technology, that advice may sound like wishful thinking. What do computer users have to do every few years according to the passage?
A. Push newer, faster products.
B. Produce more powerful machines.
C
. Consume large quantities of natural resources.
D. Upgrade to a newer, faster computer.What does the underlined word “that” in paragraph 3 refer to?
| A．The pound. | B．The process. |
| C．The car. | D．The computer. |
We can infer from the last paragraph that ____.
| A．governments and companies will surely encourage people to use their computers longer |
| B．governments and companies will probably encourage people to replace their personal computers |
| C．the world's economic has been growing without people's spending on computers and information technology |
| D．all parts from old computers are now recycled in Europe |
The purpose of writing this passage is ____
| A．to encourage companies to push newer, faster personal computers |
| B．to encourage people to design more new software |
| C．to encourage people to save their personal computers |
| D．to encourage people to spend more money on computers and information technology |
David Beckham had a dream: to be the first English player to appear in four World Cups．But now it appears that dream is over after a serious injury to his Achilles tendon （跟腱）
which means he could be out of action for around six months．With this year's World Cup in South Africa only three months away, sadly Beckham looks set to miss out．The injury happened while Beckham was playing for AC Milan against AC Chievo in the Italian league．After attempting to kick the ball he fell to the ground and hobbled off the pitch before being stretchered （被担架抬走）away．
It is not yet known whether he has completely severed （切断）his Achilles tendon or only torn it．The player has now flown to Finland for assessment and treatment by a knee specialist．
England manager Fabio Capello fears the worst for Beckham's World Cup chances．
"We have to wait for the results of the scan but it looks like he is out of the World Cup," he said in a statement．"I spoke with him after the game on Sunday night to offer my support．
"David is a great professional and has worked very hard to be ready for the World Cup, so missing it will be a big blow．"
Beckham's former manager at American club LA Galaxy, Alexei Lalas, echoed （共鸣）Capello's words of support:
"It is a horrible situation for Beckham．I know how much it meant to him to be in the World Cup and how important he was to the England team．
David Beckham is now 34 and some are asking whether this serious injury could mean his whole career is over．
Whatever happens, as one of football's best-known and popular players, Beckham will have no shortage of encouragement from fans around the world．
Some will remember Beckham's miraculous recovery from an Achilles injury in 2006, when he was back on the pitch after only eight weeks．
If he could repeat the same feat in time for the World Cup it really would be the stuff of fairytales．
So, perhaps all is not lost．Optimists will take heart from Alexei Lalas' words:
"You never want to write off （排除） David Beckham as he has shown us his ability to bounce back （恢复原状）．" What is the best title of the passage ?
| A．Beckham had a dream ? |
| B．Beckham--- a great football player ! |
| C．The end for Beckham ? |
| D．World Cup in South Africa ! |
What does the author mean by saying “missing it will be a big blow”?
| A．Missing the world cup will be a big success． |
| B．Missing Beckham means a great failure ． |
| C．Missing Beckham means an important opportunity for the American club LA Galaxy． |
| D．Missing the world cup means a big disappointment for Beckham ． |
We may infer from the passage that ________ ．
| A．Beckham will definitely not be able to play football again |
| B．Beckham was cured by a great knee specialist he found |
| C．Beckham has his ability to bounce back |
| D．Beckham is likely to miss the world Cup |
What does the underlined words “take heart” probably mean ?
| A．get disappointed |
| B．get help |
| C．get encouraged |
| D．get hurt |
PLAYA GRANDE, COSTA RICA? This resort town was long known for Leatherback Sea Turtle （棱皮龟） National Park, nightly turtle beach tours and even a sea turtle museum．However, on a beach where dozens of turtles used to nest on a given night , scientists spied only 32 国leatherbac,ks all of last year．
With leatherbacks threatened with extinction （灭绝）, Playa Grande's turtle museum was abandoned three years ago and now sits among a sea of weeds．And the beachside ticket office for turtle tours was washed away by a high tide in September．"We do not promote that 'as a turtle tourism destination anymore because we realize there are far too few turtles to please,” said Alvaro Fonseca, a park ranger （管理员）．
Even before scientists found temperatures going up over the past decade, sea turtles were threatened by beach development, drift net fishing and Costa Ricans' interest in eating turtle eggs．Btu climate change may cause the most serious harm to an animal that has lived in the Pacific for 150 million years．
Sea turtles are sensitive to numerous effects of warming．They feed on reefs, which are dying in hotter seas．They lay eggs on beaches that are being covered by rising seas and more violent waves．
More uniquely their gender （性别）is determined, not by genes but by the egg's temperature during development．Small rises in beach temperatures can result in ail-female populations, obviously problematic for survival．If the sand around the eggs hits30 degrees Celsius, the gender balance shits to females: at about 32 degrees they are all female．Above 34, you get boiled eggs．
On some nesting beaches, scientists a
re artificially cooling nests with shade o
r irrigation and trying to protect broader areas of coastal property from development to ensure that turtles have a place to nest as the seas rise．Why does the resort: town stop promoting its turtle tourism?
| A．It decides not to disturb the turtles' normal life． |
| B．Tourists have lost interest in watching turtles． |
| C．There are only very few turtles now． |
| D．The turtle museum was destroyed by a high tide． |
Which of the following is the major factor in the turtles endangerment?
| A．The local's eating habit． | B．Drift net fishing |
| C．Beach development | D．Global warming |
We learn from the last paragraph that scientists ____．
| A．are doing research on the sea rise． |
| B．are moving turtles to new homes |
| C．are protecting turtles' nests |
| D．are getting rid of sea weeds． |
The passage intends to ____．
| A．introduce a special kind of sea turtle |
| B．explain the mystery of turtles' eggs |
| C．show the dangers a certain kind of turtle is facing |
| D．attract more visitors to a sea turtle museum |
In the late nineteenth century, ^5,000 pianos were sold in the United States each year and, with over half a million youths learning to play the instrument, there was a huge demand for sheet music （活页乐谱）．Indeed the demand was so huge that publishers rushed to enter the profitable market．During the last fifteen years of the century, many publishers began to set up shops in New York, the center for the production of the musical arts
By the turn of the nineteenth century many important publishers had their offices on 28th Street between Broadway and 5th Avenue, and this Is the area that became known as Tin Pan Alley．It was here that publishers adopted new, aggressive business practices and marketing techniques to achieve great sales．
How it became to be known by that name is unclear, but the general opinion is that it is down to a visiting journalist by the name of Monroe Rosenfeld．He described the area as being drowned in the noise coming from the producers' offices, sounding as though hundreds of people were hitting tin pans（锡锅）．He used it several times in his newspaper articles in the early twentieth century and the term stuck．With time this name was popularly embraced and many years later it came to describe the U．S．music publishing industry in general．
The start of Tin Pan Alley is usually dated to about 1885,．but the end of Tin Pan Alley is less clear-cut ．Some date it to the start of the Great．Depression in the 1930s when the phonograph（留声机） and radio replaced sheet music, as the driving force of American popular music, while others consider Tin Pan Alley to have continued into thel950s when earlier styles of American popular music were upstaged （抢风头） by the rise of rock & roll．
There's a plaque（纪念匾牌）on the sidewalk on 28th Street in honor of the influence of Tin Pan Alley on American popular culture, but the buildings that were home to the legendary Tin Pan Alley publishers and songwriters are up for sale and may be torn down to make room for modern high-rise buildings．What．is the passage mainly about ?
| A．American popular music． |
| B．Tin Pan Alley's future。 |
| C．American music Industry． |
| D．The history of Tin Pan Alley． |
In the early 20th century．Tin Pan Alley was used to refer to ____．
| A．the American popular culture． | B．the American printing media |
| C．the American rock-music center | D．the American music publishing industry． |
In the nineteenth century, the driving force of American popular music was:____．
| A．rock & roll | B．sheet music |
| C．country music | D．phonographs and radios |
When visiting Tin Pan Alley , Rosenfeld probably felt it was ____．
| A．very noisy | B．very quiet | C．wide | D．narrow |
We can learn from the passage that ______．
| A．the term " Tin Pan Alley" was perhaps first used by Rosenfeld． |
| B．the old shops of Tin Pan Alley will be well protected． |
| C．Tin Pan Alley got its name in the early nineteenth century． |
| D．there were once some factories in Tin Pan Alley |
When an emergency situation occurs, observers are more likely to take action if there are few or no other witnesses．This phenomenon is referred to as the bystander effect．
The bystander effect is also called the Genovese effect, which was named after Catherine Kitty Genovese, a．young woman who was murdered on March 13, 1964．Early in the morning, 28-year-old Genovese was returning home from work．As she approached her apartment entrance, she was attacked and stabbed（刺）by a man later identified as Winston Moseley．Despite Genovese]s repeated cries for help , none of the dozen or so people in the nea
rby apartment building who heard her cries called the police for help ．The attach first began at 3:20 , but it was not until 3:50 that someone first contacted the police．
There are two major factors that contribute to the bystander effect．First, the presence of other people creates a diffusion（分散）of responsibility．Because there are other observers, individuals do not feel as much pressure to take action, since the responsibility to take action is thought to be shared among all of those present．
The second reason is the need to behave in correct and socially acceptable ways．When other observers fail to react, individuals often take this as a signal that a response is not needed or not appropriate．Other researchers have found that onlookers are less likely to take action if the situation, is ambiguous^ R^E^?）．In the case of Kitty Genovese, many of the 38 witnessing reported that they believed that they were witnessing a " lovers' quarrel" , and did not realize that the young woman was actually being murdered．The passage seems to suggest that Genovese might not have been murdered if there had been_____．
| A．no observer | B．fewer observers |
| C．more observers ． | D．younger observers |
Genovese was murdered .
| A．while she was going out | B．in her apartment |
| C．halfway home | D．in front of her apartment ? |
The underlined word "this" in the last
paragraph probably refers to ____．
| A．not doing anything to help | B．behaving in correct ways |
| C．taking action | D．murdering |
We can learn from the passage that Genovese's neighbors didn't lend a hand partly because they ____．
| A．were afraid of being attacked by the murderer |
| B．thought someone else might come to her rescue． |
| C．didn't get along well with her |
| D．were sure it was murdering |
At IRA’s annual research conference, held each year immediately prior to the annual convention, researchers and practitioners have an opportunity to share information ab
out research-based best practices in reading education.
The research conference is an important opportunity for educators whose primary responsibility is providing pre-service and in-service education in reading and literacy
Program
Reading research 2007 will feature four distinct lines: beginning reading, comprehension, teacher preparation, and adolescent literacy. Get program details.
The keynote speaker will be Donald J. Leu, holder of the John and Maria Neag Endowed Chair of Literacy and Technology |at the University of Connecticut.
New this year, the 2007 IRA research award winners will be honored at a special Research Awards Luncheon during this conference and dissertation finalists will display their poster presentations
Registration
Prepaid registration is now open. The prepaid registration deadline is April 9,2007.
Please note: Registration for the Saturday Reading Research Conference is limited, and we encourage attendees to take advantage of the savings and convenience of registering in advance. If there is additional space available on the day of the conference, only cash or checks will be accepted on site in Toronto.
Conference registration includes a continental breakfast, lunch, and a closing wine and cheese 
reception. You can register online or by using the Convention Prepaid Registration Form from the December/January and the February/March issues of Reading Today or from the Preliminary Program, There will be no telephone registrations. Questions about registration should be directed to customerservice@ reading, org.
Please note: Separate registrations are required for the Annual Convention, the Sunday Institutes, and the Saturday Research Conference!
Other information
For information on travel and housing, visit the annual convention area.
For further information on this conference,, contact the Research and 'Policy Division, international Reading Association, 800 Barksdale Road, PO Box 8139, Newark, DE 19714-8139, USA. E-mail; gkeating@reading.org. Telephone: 302-731-1600, ext. 226.What is this passage mainly about?
| A．The registration information for IRA's annual research conference. |
| B．Pre-service and in-service education in reading and literacy. |
| C．Reading Research 20C 7. |
| D．Convention Prepaid Registration Form. |
Which of the following is true?
| A．Practitioners have no opportunity to attend the conference. |
B．The 2007 confe rence v/ill be held at the University of Connecticut. |
| C．Attendees can make a phone call to register. |
| D．Attendees can take the separate registrations． |
What is new for 2p07 IRA annual research conference?
| A．The keynote speaker will be Donald J．Leu． |
| B．IRA research award winners will be honored at a special-Research Awards Luncheon． |
| C．Attendees will visit the annual convention area． |
| D．Conference registration includes a continental breakfast, lunch, and a．closing wine and cheese reception． |
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