As a senior, my future is always on my mind. To be exact, thoughts of the future have kept me up countless nights and made me worry enough to do poorly on more than one test. Because of this, words of wisdom are a source of comfort. Steve Jobs gave a speech to Stanford’s graduating class in 2005 and his words resound repeatedly in my mind whenever I think about my future.
It wasn’t always like that, though. It started when I became a junior, when college came into view. It’s the first big step to making your life your own. So when Jobs discussed his life as a student, some fears were eased. He, too, felt the need to attend college to make something of himself. He faced what many are extremely afraid of: uncertainty. His lack of understanding caused him to stop attending college and focus on what he felt was important. His story had a happy ending, of course, since he certainly turned out well.
This doesn’t mean that students shouldn’t attend college, but rather that they shouldn’t worry so much. You’ll get where you need to go, even if your path is a bit more winding（蜿蜒的）than you’d like.
Jobs talked about the hardships in his work. His love of his work helped him carry on and he got where he was meant to be, which restates the point: don’t panic.
One particular part of his speech stayed with me. Steve Jobs quoted（引用）the saying “Stay hungry, stay foolish” and it has become my motto. Staying foolish is realizing that you are still a fool, no matter how much you’ve learned or experienced. There is always more to explore. Staying hungry is wanting to find those things about which you are still uneducated.
Steve Jobs’s level of success is attainable, and I aim to prove that. With the will power to go into the world living every day like it’s my last and allowing the future to take care of itself, I will do great things. In the last moments of my life, I’ll be proud of what I have done and hope to have all the wisdom a person could wish for.The author felt worried when _________.
| A．he had to take tests at school |
| B．he thought about his future |
| C．he had lots of sleepless nights |
| D．he searched for words of wisdom |
It is suggested in Paragraphs 1 and 2 that _________.
| A．Steve Jobs didn’t attend college |
| B．Steve Jobs failed because of his decision |
| C．the author is a college student |
| D．the author cares much about his future |
What did the author gain from Jobs’s speech?
| A．Courage to drop out of school. |
| B．Confidence in defeating Jobs. |
| C．Interest in computer industry. |
| D．Bravery to face uncertainties. |
What did NOT Steve Jobs encourage students to do in his speech?
| A．Have the desire to learn more. |
| B．Be content with what they know. |
| C．Stay calm in the face of hardships. |
| D．Be modest so as to learn more. |
The passage is mainly about _________.
| A．the wisdom drawn from a speech |
| B．the most impressive quote in life |
| C．a memorable meeting with Jobs |
| D．an experience of a speech |
B
Whether in the home or the workplace, social robots are going to become a lot more common in the next few years. Social robots are about to bring technology to the everyday world in a more humanized way, said Cynthia Breazeal, chief scientist at the robot company Jibo.
While household robots today do the normal housework, social robots will be much more like companions than mere tools. For example, these robots will be able to distinguish when someone is happy or sad. This allows them to respond more appropriately to the user.
The Jibo robot, arranged to ship later this year, is designed to be a personalized assistant. You can talk to the robot, ask it questions, and make requests for it to perform different tasks. The robot doesn’t just deliver general answers to questions; it responds based on what it learns about each individual in the household. It can do things such as reminding an elderly family member to take medicine or taking family photos.
Social robots are not just finding their way into the home. They have potential applications in everything from education to health care and are already finding their way into some of these spaces.
Fellow Robots is one company bringing social robots to the market. The company’s “Oshbot” robot is built to assist customers in a store, which can help the customers find items and help guide them to the product’s location in the store. It can also speak different languages and make recommendations for different items based on what the customer is shopping for.
The more interaction the robot has with humans, the more it learns. But Oshbot, like other social robots, is not intended to replace workers, but to work alongside other employees. “We have technologies to train social robots to do things not for us, but with us,” said Breazeal.How are social robots different from household robots?
| A．They can control their emotions. |
| B．They are more like humans. |
| C．They do the normal housework. |
| D．They respond to users more slowly. |
What can a Jibo robot do according to Paragraph 3?
| A．Communicate with you and perform operations. |
| B．Answer your questions and make requests. |
| C．Take your family pictures and deliver milk. |
| D．Obey your orders and remind you to take pills. |
What can Oshbot work as?
| A．A language teacher. | B．A tour guide. |
| C．A shop assistant. | D．A private nurse. |
We can learn from the last paragraph that social robots will ______.
| A．train employees |
| B．be our workmates |
| C．improve technologies |
| D．take the place of workers |
What does the passage mainly present?
| A．A new design idea of household robots. |
| B．Marketing strategies for social robots. |
| C．Information on household robots. |
| D．An introduction to social robots. |
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。
A
University Room Regulations
Approved and Prohibited Items
The following items are approved for use in residential (住宿的) rooms: electric blankets, hair dryers, personal computers, radios, televisions and DVD players. Items that are not allowed in student rooms include: candles, ceiling fans, fireworks, waterbeds, sun lamps and wireless routers. Please note that any prohibited items will be taken away by the Office of Residence Life.
Access to Residential Rooms
Students are provided with a combination (组合密码) for their room door locks upon check-in. Do not share your room door lock combination with anyone. The Office of Residence Life may change the door lock combination at any time at the expense of the resident if it is found that the student has shared the combination with others. The fee is $25 to change a room combination.
Cooking Policy
Students living in buildings that have kitchens are only permitted to cook in the kitchen. Students must clean up after cooking. This is not the responsibility of housekeeping staff. Kitchens that are not kept clean may be closed for use. With the exception of using a small microwave oven (微波炉) to heat food, students are not permitted to cook in their rooms.
Pet Policy
No pets except fish are permitted in student rooms. Students who are found with pets, whether visiting or owned by the student, are subject to an initial fine of $100 and a continuing fine of $50 a day per pet. Students receive written notice when the fine goes into effect. If, one week from the date of written notice, the pet is not removed, the student is referred to the Student Court.
Quiet Hours
Residential buildings must maintain an atmosphere that supports the academic mission of the University. Minimum quiet hours in all campus residences are 11:00 pm to 8:00 am Sunday through Thursday. Quiet hours on Friday and Saturday nights are 1:00 am to 8:00 am. Students who violate quiet hours are subject to a fine of $25.Which of the following items are allowed in student rooms?
| A．Ceiling fans and waterbeds. |
| B．Wireless routers and radios. |
| C．Hair dryers and candles. |
| D．TVs and electric blankets. |
What if a student is found to have told his combination to others?
| A．The combination should be changed. |
| B．The Office should be charged. |
| C．He should replace the door lock. |
| D．He should check out of the room. |
What do we know about the cooking policy?
| A．A microwave oven can be used. |
| B．Cooking in student rooms is permitted. |
| C．A housekeeper is to clean up the kitchen. |
| D．Students are to close kitchen doors after cooking. |
If a student has kept a cat in his room for a week since the warning, he will face _____.
| A．parent visits | B．a fine of $100 |
| C．the Student Court | D．a written notice |
When can students enjoy a party in residences?
| A．7:00 am, Sunday. | B．7:30 am, Thursday. |
| C．11:30 pm, Monday. | D．00:30 am, Saturday. |
E
No one is sure how the ancient Egyptians built the pyramids near Cairo. But a new study suggests they used a little rock‘n’roll. Long-ago builders could have attached wooden pole s to the stones and rolled then across the sand, the scientists say.
“Technically, I think what they’re proposing is possible,” physicist Daniel Bonn said.
People have long puzzled over how the Egyptians moved such huge rocks. And there’s no obvious answer. On average, each of the two million big stones weighed about as much as a large pickup truck. The Egyptians somehow moved the stone blocks to the pyramid site from about one kilometer away.
The most popular view is that Egyptian workers slid the blocks along smooth paths. Many scientists suspect workers first would have put the blocks on sleds(滑板). Then they would have dragged them along paths. To make the work easier, workers may have lubricated the paths either with wet clay or with the fat from cattle. Bonn has now tested this idea by building small sleds and dragging heavy objects over sand.
Evidence from the sand supports this idea. Researchers found small amounts of fat, as well as a large amount of stone and the remains of paths.
However, physicist Joseph West thinks there might have been a simpler way , who led the new study . West said , “I was inspired while watching a television program showing how sleds might have helped with pyramid construction . I thought , ‘Why don’t they just try rolling the things?’“A square could be turned into a rough sort of wheel by attaching wooden poles to its sides , he realized . That , he notes , should make a block of stone” a lot easier to roll than a square”.
So he tried it.
He and his students tied some poles to each of four sides of a 30-kilogram stone block. That action turned the block into somewhat a wheel. Then they placed the block on the ground.
They wrapped one end of a rope around the block and pulled. The researchers found they could easily roll the block along different kinds of paths. They calculated that rolling the block required about as much force as moving it along a slippery(滑的)path.
West hasn’t tested his idea on larger blocks, but he thinks rolling has clear advantages over sliding. At least, workers wouldn’t have needed to carry cattle fat or water to smooth the paths.It’s widely believed that the stone blocks were moved to the pyramid site by ______.
| A．rolling them on roads |
| B．pushing them over the sand |
| C．sliding them on smooth paths |
| D．dragging them on some poles |
The underlined part “lubricated the paths” in Paragraph 4 means____.
| A．made the path wet |
| B．made the path hard |
| C．made the path wide |
| D．made the path slippery |
What does the underlined word “it”in Paragraph 7 refer to?
| A．Rolling the blocks with poles attached. |
| B．Rolling the blocks on wooden wheels. |
| C．Rolling poles to move the blocks. |
| D．Rolling the blocks with fat. |
Why is rolling better than sliding according to West ?
| A．Because more force is needed for sliding. |
| B．Because rolling work can be done by fewer cattle. |
| C．Because sliding on smooth road is more dangerous. |
| D．Because less preparation on path is needed for rolling. |
What is the text mainly about ?
| A．An experiment on ways of moving blocks to the pyramid site. |
| B．An application of the method of moving blocks to the pyramid site. |
| C．An argument about different methods of moving blocks to the pyramid site. |
| D．An introduction to a possible new way of moving blocks to the pyramid site. |
D
Their cheery song brightens many a winter's day. But robins are in danger of wearing themselves out by singing too much. Robins are singing all night一as well as during the day, British-based researchers say.
David Dominoni, of Glasgow University, said that light from street lamps, takeaway signs and homes is affecting the birds' biological clocks, leading to them being wide awake when they should be asleep.
Dr Dominoni, who is putting cameras inside nesting boxes to track sleeping patterns, said lack of sleep could put the birds’ health at risk. His study shows that when robins are exposed to light at night in the lab, it leads to some genes being active at the wrong time of day. And the more birds are exposed to light, the more active they are at night.
He told people at a conference, "There have been a couple of studies suggesting they are increasing their song output at night and during the day they are still singing. Singing is a costly behaviour and it takes energy. So by increasing their song output, there might be some costs of energy."
And it is not just robins that are being kept awake by artificial light. Blackbirds and seagulls are also being more nocturnal. Dr Dominoni said, "In Glasgow where I live, gulls are a serious problem. I have people coming to me saying `You are the bird expert. Can you help us kill these gulls?'.During the breeding(繁殖)season, between April and June, they are very active at night and very noisy and people can't sleep."
Although Dr Dominoni has only studied light pollution, other research concluded that robins living in noisy cities have started to sing at night to make themselves heard over loud noise.
However, some birds thrive(兴旺)in noisy environments. A study from California Polytechnic University found more hummingbirds in areas with heavy industrial machinery. It is thought that they are capitalising on their predators(天敌)fleeing to quieter areas.According to Dr Dominoni's study, what cause robins to sing so much?
| A．The breeding season. |
| B．The light in modern life |
| C．The dangerous environment. |
| D．The noise from heavy machinery. |
What is the researchers' concern over the increase of birds' song output?
| A．The environment might be polluted. |
| B．The birds' health might be damaged. |
| C．The industry cost might be increased. |
| D．The people's hearing might be affected. |
What does the underlined word "nocturnal" in Paragraph 5 mean?
| A．Active at night. | B．Inactive at night. |
| C．Active during the day. | D．Inactive during the day. |
Why do some birds thrive in noisy environments?
| A．Because there are fewer dangers. |
| B．Because there is more food to eat. |
| C．Because there is less light pollution |
| D．Because there are more places to take shelter. |
C
Across Britain, burnt toast will be served to mothers in bed this morning as older sons and daughters rush to deliver their supermarket bunches of flowers, But, according to a new study, we should be placing a higher value on motherhood all year.
Mothers have long known that their home workload was just as heavy as paid work. Now, the new study has shown that if they were paid for their parental labours, they would earn as much as＄172,000 a year.
The study looked at the range of jobs mothers do, as well as the hours they are working, to determine the figure. This would make their yearly income ￡30,000 more than the Prime Minister earns.
By analysing the numbers, it found the average mother works 119 hours a week,40 of which would usually be paid at a standard rate and 79 hours as overtime. After questioning 1,000 mothers with children under 18,it found that ,on most days, mums started their routine work at 7am and finished at around 11pm.
To calculate just how much mothers would earn from that labour, it suggested some of the roles that mums could take on, including housekeeper, part-time lawyer, personal trainer and entertainer. Being a part-time lawyer, at ￡48.98 an hour, would prove to be the most profitable of the “mum jobs”,with psychologist（心理学家）a close second.
It also asked mothers about the challenges they face, with 80 percent making emotional（情感的） demand as the hardest thing about motherhood.
Over a third of mums felt they needed more training and around half said they missed going out with friends.
The study shows mothers matter all year long and not just on Mother’s Day. The emotional ,physical and mental energy mothers devote to their children can be never-ending, but children are also sources of great joy and happiness. Investing（投入）in time for parenting and raising relationships is money well spent.How much would a mother earn a year if working as the Prime Minister?
| A．￡30,000. | B．￡142,000. |
| C．￡172,000. | D．￡202,000. |
The biggest challenge for most mothers is from.
| A．emotional demand | B．low pay for work |
| C．heavy workload | D．lack of training |
What is stressed in the last paragraph?
| A．Mothers’importance shows in family all year long. |
| B．The sacrifices mothers make are huge but worthwhile. |
| C．Mothers’devotion to children can hardly be calculated. |
| D．Investing time in parenting would bring a financial return. |
What can we conclude from the study?
| A．Mothers’working hours should be largely reduced. |
| B．Mothers should balance their time for work and rest. |
| C．Mothers’labour is of a higher value than it is realised. |
| D．Mothers should be freed from housework for social life. |
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