The garden city was largely the invention of Ebenezer Howard (1850 – 1928). After immigrating from England to the USA, and an unsuccessful attempt to make a living as a farmer, he moved to Chicago, where he saw the reconstruction of the city after the disastrous fire of 1871. In those days, it was nicknamed "the Garden City", almost certainly the source of Howard's name for his later building plan of towns．Returning to London, Howard developed his design in the 1880s and 1890s, drawing on ideas that were popular at the time, but creating a unique combination of designs．
The nineteenth-century poor city was in many ways a terrible place, dirty and crowded; but it offered economic and social opportunities．At the same time, the British countryside was in fact equally unattractive: though it promised fresh air and nature, it suffered from agricultural depression（萧条）and it offered neither enough work and wages, nor much social life．Howard's idea was to combine the best of town and country in a new kind of settlement, the garden city．Howard's idea was that a group of people should set up a company, borrowing money to establish a garden city in the depressed countryside; far enough from existing cities to make sure that the land was bought at the bottom price．
Garden cities would provide a central public open space, radial avenues and connecting industries．They would be surrounded by a much larger area of green belt, also owned by the company, containing not merely farms but also some industrial institutions．As more and more people moved in, the garden city would reach its planned limit-Howard suggested 32,000 people; then, another would be started a short distance away．Thus, over time, there would develop a vast planned house collection, extending almost without limit; within it, each garden city would offer a wide rang of jobs and services, but each would also be connected to the others by a rapid transportation system, thus giving all the economic and social opportunities of a big city．How did Howard get the name for his building plan of garden cities?
| A．By using the nickname of the reconstructed Chicago． |
| B．Through his observation of the country life． |
| C．Through the combination of different ideas． |
| D．By taking other people's advice． |
The underlined phrase "drawing on "in Paragraph 1 probably means______．
| A．making comments on | B．giving an explanation of |
| C．giving a description of | D．making use of |
What can we learn about garden cities from the last paragraph?
| A．Each one would continue to become larger |
| B．People would live and work in the same place |
| C．Their number would continue to rise |
| D．Each one would contain a certain type of business |
What could be the best title for the passage?
| A．City and Countryside |
| B．The Invention of the Garden City |
| C．A New City in Chicago |
| D．A Famous Garden City in England |
Many of us already know about several American superstitions(迷信). Having a black cat cross your path, walking under a ladder, and breaking a mirror are all bad luck. In addition to these, there are many other superstitions that are worth knowing. Understanding them will keep you safe from evil spirits—if you believe in such things—and impress your American friends when you mention them.
Like the superstitions in other cultures, American superstitions often involve the things important in daily life, such as health, numbers, and marriage. For example, have you ever had a cough that would not go away? According to one American superstition, you should take a piece of your hair and put it between two slices of buttered bread. Next, feed this hair sandwich to a dog and say, “Eat well, you hound, may you be sick and I be sound.”This will trick the evil spirits and help your cough. It will also raise some eyebrows if you try it.
In American superstitions, the number three is very important. Often, Americans will say, “All things come in threes.” Three is lucky because it represents the traditional family: mother, father, and child. Therefore, gifts, letters, and guests will often arrive at your home in groups of three. However, it is also possible for bad events, like accidents and funerals, to come in threes as well.
Another time people pay attention to superstitions is when they get married. During a wedding, brides must wear or carry“something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue.”The old and borrowed things will bring luck to the person who gives them to the bride. The new and blue things will bring good fortune to the bride herself. The next time someone you know is getting married, be sure to recite this phrase.
As it would be unlucky to discuss one more superstition, we will wind things up here. Keep your fingers crossed, and stay lucky!The passage is most probably entitled(命名)“ ”.
| A．American’s Bad Luck | B．Cross-culture and Superstitions |
| C．American Superstitions | D．Daily Life in Superstitions |
The underlined sentence in the second paragraph“It will also raise some eyebrows if you try it”means: .
| A．When you try it, the dog will raise its eyebrows |
| B．You will make some people surprised when you try this trick |
| C．Only if you raise your eyebrows can the trick work |
| D．You will believe in the trick after you try it |
In American’s view, the number three is a(n) number.
| A．lucky | B．unlucky | C．special | D．ordinary |
On the wedding, the bride often uses old and borrowed things so as to .
| A．save some money for the wedding |
| B．bring good luck to the people who give them to the bride |
| C．give the good luck to the bride herself |
| D．pass the bad luck to others |
Imagine you’re at a party full of strangers. You’re nervous. Who are these people? How do you start a conversation? Fortunately, you’ve get a thing that sends out energy at tiny chips in everyone’s name tag (标签). The chips send back name, job, hobbies, and the time available for meeting – whatever. Making new friends becomes simple.
This hasn’t quite happened in real life. But the world is already experiencing a revolution using RFID technology.
An RFID tag with a tiny chip can be fixed in a product, under your pet’s skin, even under your own skin. Passive RFID tags have no energy source – batteries because they do not need it. The energy comes from the reader, a scanning device (装置), that sends out energy (for example, radio waves) that starts up the tag immediately.
Such a tag carries information specific to that object, and the data can be updated. Already, RFID technology is used for recognizing each car or truck on the road and it might appear in your passport. Doctors can put a tiny chip under the skin that will help locate and obtain a patient’s medical records. At a nightclub in Paris or in New York the same chip gets you into the VIP (very important person ) section and pays for the bill with the wave of an arm.
Take a step back: 10 or 12 years ago, you would have heard about the coming age of computing. One example always seemed to surface: Your refrigerator would know when you needed to buy more milk. The concept was that computer chips could he put everywhere and send information in smart network that would make ordinary life simpler.
RFID tags are a small part of this phenomenon. “The world is going to be a loosely coupled set of individual small devices, connected wirelessly.” Predicts Dr. J. Reich. Human right supporters are nervous about the possibilities of such technology. It goes too far tracking school kids through RFID tags, they say. We imagine a world in which a beer company could find out not only when you bought a beer but also when you drank it. And how many beers, accompanied by how many biscuits.
When Marconi invented radio, he thought it would be used for ship – to – shore communication, not for pop music. Who knows how RFID and related technologies will be used in the future. Here’s a wild guess: Not for buying milk.The article is intended to .
| A．warn people of the possible risks in adopting RFID technology |
| B．explain the benefits brought about by RFID technology |
| C．convince people of the uses of RFID technology |
| D．predict the applications of RFID technology |
We know from the passage that with the help of RFID tags, people .
| A．will have no trouble getting information about others |
| B．will have more energy for conversation |
| C．will have more time to make friends |
| D．won’t feel shy at parties any longer |
Passive RFID tags chiefly consist of .
| A．scanning devices | B．radio waves | C．batteries | D．chips |
The last paragraph implies that RFID technology .
| A．will not be used for such matters as buying milk |
| B．will be widely used, including for buying milk |
| C．will be limited to communication uses |
| D．will probably be used for pop music |
Leeds, England--A Leeds University psychology(心理学) professor is teaching a course to help dozens of Britons forgive their enemies.
“The hatred(痛恨) we hold within us is a cancer,” Professor Ken Hart said, adding that holding in anger can lead to problems such as high blood pressure and heart disease.
More than 70 people have become members in Hart’s first 20-week workshop in London ---a course he says is the first of its kind in the world.
These are people who are sick and tired of living with the memory. “They realize their bitterness(痛楚) is a poison they think they can pour out, but they end up drinking it themselves, ” said Canadian-born Hart.
The students meet in groups of eight to ten for a two-hour workshop with a visit to an adviser every fortnight.
The course, ending in July, is expected to get rid of the cancer of hate in these people. “People have lots of negative(否定) attitudes(态度) towards forgiveness,” he said. “People confuse(使混乱) forgiveness with forgetting. Forgiveness means changing from a negative attitude to a positive one.”
Hart and his team have created instructions to provide the training needed.
“The main idea is to give you guidelines on how to look at various angers and how they affect you, and how to change your attitude toward the person you are angry with,” said Norman Claring-bull, a senior expert on the forgiveness project.
Hart said he believes forgiveness is a skill that can be taught, as these people “want to get free from the past”.The author wrote this passage in order to ______.
| A．persuade us to go to Hart’s workshop |
| B．tell us the news about Hart’s workshop |
| C．tell us how to run a workshop like Hart’s |
| D．help us to look at different angers |
From the passage we can find that ________.
A. high blood pressure and heart disease are caused by hatred
B. high blood pressure can only be cured by psychology professors
C. without hatred, people have less trouble connected with blood and heart
D people who suffer from blood pressure and heart disease must have many enemiesIn Hart’s first 20-week workshop, people there can ________.
| A．meet their enemies | B．change their minds |
| C．enjoy the professor’s speech | D．learn how to quarrel with others |
If you are a member in Hart’s workshop, you’ll have to _________.
| A．pay much money to Hart | B．go to the workshop every night |
| C．attend a gathering twice a month | D．pour out everything stored in your mind |
American farmers are raising five percent more goats for meat these days．
Goat meat is high in protein(蛋白质)and lower in unhealthy fat than many other meats．Even so，the industry is small compared to chicken，beef and pork. But immigration has brought more of a taste for goat to America from all over the world.
Experts from the University of Illinois offer some questions for people to consider if they are thinking about raising goats．
First of all，do you understand that there always has to be someone to care for the goats?
◆How much land do you have available? And how good is it? Poor ground may support two to four goats on half a hectare．Better grassland can support six to eight. If goats and cattle share the land，two goats can be added for each cow. The goats will eat weeds and other plants that cattle do not like．
◆Do you have buildings for the number of female goats you plan to keep during winter? An open，cold，dry barn is better than a closed，warm barn where the air is wet．
◆Do you have the equipment to clean barns（畜棚） and to harvest hay（草料） to feed your goats? Or will you get someone else to do it，or buy the hay?
The experts say a profitable business in goat meat may take three to five years to establish．And, of course, there are no guarantees .On which section of a newspaper will this passage appear?
| A．International Affairs | B．Entertainment |
| C．Agriculture | D．Culture |
Which of the following is NOT a factor in making goat meat more popular?
| A．Goat meat is healthy food. |
| B．Immigrants bring different tastes. |
| C．The industry still leaves room for profit. |
| D．Raising goats is challenging. |
If someone has two hectares of good grass land, what is the maximum number of cows and goats he can raise?
| A．32 cows and 64 goats． | B．32 cows and 32 goats． |
| C．16 cows and 32 goats． | D．8 cows and 16 goats． |
What is the experts’ opinion about the goat-raising business?
| A．You can make sure money． |
| B．You had better be cautious and patient． |
| C．Goats are hardly possible to raise． |
| D．Goat meat still needs to be recognized． |
When we can see well, we do not think about our eyes often. It is only when we can not see perfectly that we come to see how important our eyes are. People who are nearsighted can only see things that are very close to their eyes. Many people who do a lot of close work, such as writing and reading, become nearsighted. Then they have to wear glasses in order to see distant things clearly. People who are farsighted face just the opposite problem. They can see things that are far away, but they have difficulty reading a book unless they hold it at arm’s length. If they want to do much reading, they must get glasses too. Other people do not see clearly because their eyes are not exactly the right shape. This, too, can be corrected by glasses. Some people’s eyes become cloudy because of cataracts（白内障）. Long ago these people often became blind. Now, however, it is possible to operate on the cataracts and remove them. When night falls, colors become fainter（不清楚） to the eyes and finally disappear. After your eyes have grown used to the dark, you can see better if you use the side of your eyes rather than the centers. Sometimes, after dark, you see a small thing to one side of you, which seems to disappear if you turn your head in its direction. This is because when you turn your head, you are looking at the thing too directly. Men on guard duty sometimes think they see something moving to one side of them. When they turn to look straight at it, they can not see it any more, and they believe they were mistaken. However, this mistake happens because the center of the eye, which is very sensitive in daylight, is not as sensitive as the sides of the eye after dark. We don’t know that our eyes are of great importance until ________.
| A．we think about our eyes | B．we cannot see clearly |
| C．we wear glasses | D．we have to do much reading |
According to the passage, a ________ is more likely to be nearsighted.
| A．student | B．runner | C．guard | D．worker |
People who are farsighted ________ .
| A．cannot do a lot of close work without glasses |
| B．can only see things that are very close to their eyes |
| C．have difficulty reading a book if they hold it at arm’s length |
| D．have the same problem as the nearsighted people |
To see a small thing at night, it is better to look ________ .
| A．with wide open eyes | B．with half shut or narrowed eyes |
| C．straight at it | D．in a slightly different direction |
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