In some science fiction movies, evil robots refuse to die, no matter how hard people fight back.
Now science fiction has become science fact. For the first time, scientists have made a robot that can take a beating and keep on going. Scientists from Cornell University made the robot, which looks like a spider with four legs.
Until now, even the most advanced (先进的) robot was almost certain to break down when it was damaged (毁坏). That is because its computer inside simply doesn’t know how to make the machine work after its shape has changed.
To deal with this problem, the scientists put eight motors (发动机) and two sensors (传感器) that read how the machine is working. They all give signals to the machine’s software. Using this information, the computer can then figure out the machine’s shape at any moment.
The new technology is a big advance in robot-making, scientists say, and it’s far from scary. It may someday help scientists create better artificial (假的) arms and legs and give new freedom to people who lose them. It might also help scientists understand how people and animals figure out their own sense of place in space.
“It has been difficult to design robots that can work well when the environment changes or when it’s damaged,” says Olaf Sporns of Indiana University in US. “With this work, we are nearer to solving this problem.”Why do robots easily break down when they are damaged?
| A．They cannot repair themselves. |
| B．The computer has changed a lot. |
| C．They have no computers inside. |
| D．The computer cannot work if the robot changes. |
The new technology(技术) allows the robot to .
| A．keep working after being damaged |
| B．tell people where it is |
| C．do house work for humans |
| D．remember a lot of information |
The underlined word “them” in Paragraph 5 refers to .
| A．sensors | B．robots | C．scientists | D．arms and legs |
How do the sensors in the robot work?
| A．They can replace the computer when it’s broken. |
| B．They help the computer learn the robot’s condition. |
| C．They can find out where the damage comes from. |
| D．They can send signals to the person who uses the robot. |
Reading Oliver James'Affluenza, I thought about what often happens at home. My 12-year-old daughter is in tears."I have so take a test tomorrow. I don't understand any of it," she cries out. After shouting and shutting her door, she calms down enough to go through her notes. The following dry I ask her how the test went and the just says "OK,I got a nine".
"Wow. well done!" I say, before she finishes with "But I never get a ten!"
According to James, this obsession with getting top marks has been a bad development, which encourages people to think of education in terms of work and money. To test this, I asked my daughter why she was so worried about her tests. She looked at me as if I was thick. "Well, if I don't get good grades, I won't be able to afford nice things like a car and stuff."
I was quite surprised, because I don't consider myself a pushy parent. But James suggests and it leaves students feeling failures even if they are very bright. He points to the Danish system（体制）of education as a better model. Creating happy citizens who have good social skills is seen as more important than high achievements at school or the needs of business.
For me, I cannot remember the last time I had to work out the area of a circle, recite a Shakespeare poem or grammar rules, yet I have lived a happy life. What I really needed to learn at school was how to make polite conversations, or how to avoid getting into debt or how to develop good personality.
This is in fact similar to what Oliver James really has in mind. And he is looking for schools where students are encouraged to find and follow their own interests, something more like Tongjon. Tongjon has been developed in some Korean private schools. It is quite different from the more rigid system of learning things by heart that is used in Korea, and indeed in many other school systems around the world.
As the Russian poet Pushkin said," Inspiration(灵感）is needed in geometry(几何学）just as much as in poetry ",and inspiration does not come from endlessly revising for tests or getting worried about them .What does the writer probably think of his/her daughter?
| A．She sets herself a goal too high to reach. |
| B．She should be more polite to her parents. |
| C．She is hard-working but not very bright. |
| D．She takes her grades much too seriously. |
What does the word "obsession"in paragraph 3 mean?
| A．A plain and unavoidable fact. |
| B．A satisfied and very proud state. |
| C．A practical and widely-used way. |
| D．A fixed and often unreasonable idea. |
What can we infer from the passage?
| A．Social skills are as important as high grades. |
| B．Interest in grades can shake self-confidence. |
| C．The writer regrets not having studied hard at school. |
| D．Danish educational system is for very smart students. |
The writer wants to tell us that____.
| A．learning happily is the key to self-development. |
| B．top marks may be helpful to increase one's interest. |
| C．tests should be improved to give children inspiration. |
| D．education should meet one's needs for word and money. |
The right name is important in the business world. All you have to do is think of the names for some of the products you buy every day and you’ll agree that the name and the product are connected in the everyone’s mind.
In many countries, successful trade or brand names are protected by law. This is so that other companies cannot make a product and, in fact, be buying something different. Businesses register a company or a product name with the government. In fact, more than 1,000 product and company names are registered every hour. Many companies spend a lot of money to find the right name for their products. A good example of this is. In the car industry. Some successful names for cars have powerful associations （联系）.The Ford Mustang and the Jaguar are only two examples of choosing the names of animals that are fast and strong.
When a U. S company decides to sell its product in another country, it has to make sure that the product name translates properly. When Coca-Cola introduced its soft drink to China, it looked for the right name. It wanted a name that would do two things. One was to present its image（形象）in Chinese and the second was to be close to its first brand name—Coke. It took some efforts before finding the right word —which sounds similar and translates as “happiness in the mouth”. Asian company names are not new to the United States. The brand names of Samsung and Sony have been successful. Finding the right brand name is a big business. Asian companies that sell to foreign markets pay to find a name that will connect with its customers. There are even naming companies that specialize in inventing product names. These companies can charge （要价）up to $100,000 a word for their creations. But it’s worth it. Successful companies know how important the right brand names are for their development.Why are trade names protected by law in many countries?
| A．To make companies pay for naming service. |
| B．To help people choose the best products |
| C．To present good images of the products. |
| D．To prevent good images from being copied |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．Many companies care about the cost of finding the right names |
| B．Creative trade names can help companies to have a larger sale |
| C．The government often does business with naming companies |
| D．It is considered necessary for cars to be names after animals |
What’s the best title for the passage?
| A．The Business of Names |
| B．The Development of Names |
| C．The Rules of Naming Business |
| D．The Methods of Choosing Names |
Street Ping Pong— Ping!
Do you like table tennis? If you had travelled to cities in the UK like London or Birmingham last summer, you might have seen one of the dozens of free tables that were there as part of a project （项目） called Ping!.
What is Ping!?
Ping！is a three-year table tennis project. It has been running since 2010 and this year, 2012, is the final year. The idea is to put free table tennis tables in eight different towns in the UK for four weeks during the summer. Each table comes with its own bats and balls and is free to play. You can find the tables outdoors.
What does Ping! hope to achieve?
It would be great if Ping！helped find a new Olympic table tennis star but what Ping! really hopes. to achieve is just to get people playing and having fun together."Putting a ping pong table on the street gives people a chance to connect with other people," said Meera Sodha, Ping! Project Manager.
One of the towns that took part in the project was Hull, a city in England. Forty-five tables were put into the city. Jakob Adamski, an ESOL student learning. English, said, "I really enjoyed playing table tennis in the park. It was also a good way for me to practise my English and meet people."When did the Ping! project start?
| A．Last summer. | B．Last winter. |
| C．In 2010. | D．In 2012. |
What's the Ping!project?
| A．Choosing table tennis stars. |
| B．Holding table tennis matches. |
| C．Teaching people how to .play table tennis. |
| D．Putting free table tennis tables in some towns. |
The purpose of the Ping!project is
| A．to help people practise English |
| B．to invite people to visit the UK cities |
| C．to get people to play and have fun together. |
| D．to encourage people to take part in the 2012 0lympics |
| Join Us for a Day at Sun Valley Amusement Park Children aged 10 to 14 are invited to take part in the “Event of the Summer” at Sun Valley Amusement Park, the most popular amusement park on the East Coast. Sun Valley has more than 80 amusement rides. For sports lovers, there are basketball courts, an indoor baseball field, and climbing walls. No amusement park would be complete without a gift shop. Sun Valley has two. You won’t want to miss out on this day of fun. Join us at Sun Valley Amusement Park on July 14 Register（登记）early.  The cost of the trip is $25. This includes tickets and all rides. We suggest that all children bring lunch. Buses leave at 9:00 AM and return at 5:00 PM. Rain Date: Wednesday, July 16. Register at the Children’s RecreationCenter at the Town Hall by July 3. A one-day registration will also be held on July 1 at the Brown School. For more information, call Jane Parks at 555-7267 |
Who can take part in the “Event of the Summer”?
| A．Children under 5 | B．Children over 16 |
| C．Children aged 10-14 | D．Children aged 5-9 |
The children had better bring ____
| A．a basketball | B．lunch | C．a gift | D．gloves |
When can children register at the Brown School?
| A．On July 1 | B．On July 3 | C．On July 14 | D．On July 16 |
Several weeks ago, our headmaster, Mr. Gaudi, told us that our school had been chosen to compete on Smart Aleck—a game show which my best friend Carla and I both love. Carla has a good imagination, and I know a lot of history, so we thought we’d be good __35__ for the team.
A few days later, Mr. Gaudi held a meeting with everyone interested in the__36__ . He told us that Smart Aleck uses a five member team. He also said that three more people would be needed as backup（替补）. Unluckily four times that many students were at the meeting. So Mr. Gaudi said we would have a __37__ and the top eight scorers would become the team and the backup. Everybody agreed that this was a __38__ way to decide.
Yesterday, all of the hopefuls went to the dining hall after school. We would have to decide the starting line-up（阵容）.Mr. Gaudi acted as the host. After a couple of hours, all the __39__ on the team were set except one. Carla and I __40__ for that last position. We had to hold a one-on-one competition between the two of us. The winner would be on the team and the loser would be the backup.
Midway through our two-person competition, I was starting to pull ahead.__41__ I saw the look on Carla's face. I waited for a second and knew what I had to do. As much as I wanted to be on Smart Aleck, Carla wanted __42__ even more. So, starting with my next question, I held back and let Carla __43__, just by a little bit. Her expression as she __44__ she would be on the show made up for my not being on the team. And since I will go as backup, I'll still have the fun of seeing the show up close.
Was I __45__ by not trying as hard as I could? I don't think so. No one noticed, and Carla and I didn't __46__ it. It won't hurt the team because Carla will be a very good competitor on the real show. I think that making my best friend happy was the right thing to do.
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