How far would you be willing to go to satisfy your need to know？Far enough to find out your possibility of dying from a terrible disease？These days that’s more than an academic question，as Tracy Smith reports in our Cover Story.
There are now more than a thousand genetic(基因的) tests，for everything from baldness to breast cancer，and the list is growing.Question is，do you really want to know what might eventually kill you？For instance，Nobel Prizewinning scientist James Watson，one of the first people to map their entire genetic makeup，is said to have asked not to be told if he were at a higher risk for Alzheimer’s(老年痴呆症)．
“If I tell you that you have an increased risk of getting a terrible disease，that could weigh on your mind and make you anxious，through which you see the rest of your life as you wait for that disease to hit you.It could really mess you up.” said Dr.Robert Green，a Harvard geneticist.
“Every ache and pain，” Smith suggested，could be understood as “the beginning of the end.”“That’s right.If you ever worried you were at risk for Alzheimer’s disease，then every time you can’t find your car in the parking lot，you think the disease has started.”
Dr.Green has been thinking about this issue for years.He led a study of people who wanted to know if they were at a higher genetic risk for Alzheimer’s.It was thought that people who got bad news would，for lack of a better medical term，freak_out.But Green and his team found that there was “no significant difference” between how people handled good news and possibly the worst news of their lives.In fact，most people think they can handle it.People who ask for the information usually can handle the information，good or bad，said Green.The first paragraph is meant to________.
| A．ask some questions |
| B．introduce the topic |
| C．satisfy readers’ curiosity |
| D．describe an academic fact |
Which of the following is TRUE of James Watson?
| A．He is strongly in favor of the present genetic tests. |
| B．He is more likely to suffer from Alzheimer’s disease. |
| C．He believes genetic mapping can help cure any disease. |
| D．He doesn’t want to know his chance of getting a disease. |
According to Paragraphs 3 and 4，if a person is at a higher genetic risk，it is________.
| A．advisable not to let him know |
| B．impossible to hide his disease |
| C．better to inform him immediately |
| D．necessary to remove his anxiety |
The underlined part “freak out” in Paragraph 5 is closest in meaning to “________”．
| A．break down | B．drop out |
| C．leave off | D．turn away |
Research advances over the past decade have told us that, with a little work, we humans can clone just about anything we want, from frogs to monkeys and probably even ourselves!
So, we can clone things, but why would we want to?
Of all the reasons, cloning for medical purposes has the most potential to benefit large numbers of people. How might cloning be used in medicine?
1. Cloning animal models of disease
Much of what researchers learn about human disease comes from studying animal models such as mice. Often, animal models are genetically engineered to carry disease-causing mutations(变异) in their genes. Creating these transgenic（转基因的） animals is a time-intensive process that requires trial-and-error and several generations of breeding（培育）. Cloning technologies might reduce the time needed to make a transgenic animal model, and the result would be a population of genetically identical animals for study.
2．Cloning stem cells(干细胞) for the treatment of diseases
Stem cells are the body's building blocks, responsible for developing and repairing the body throughout life. As a result, they might be used to repair damaged or diseased organs and tissues. Researchers are currently looking up cloning as a way to create certain human stem cells for the research of diseases.
3. Cloning farm animals for drug production
Farm animals such as cows, sheep and goats are currently being genetically engineered to produce drugs or p
roteins that are useful in medicine. Just like creating animal models of disease, cloning might be a faster way to produce large herds of genetically engineered animals. From Purpose One, we can infer that .
| A．most transgenic animals are clone |
| B．most animals carry engineered genes |
| C．most transgenic animal models are not cloned |
| D．most animals carry disease-causing mutations in their genes |
It can be learned from Purpose Two that cloning technologies can be mainly use do .
| A．create damaged or diseased organs and tissues |
| B．clone genetically defined human stem cells |
| C．develop and maintain the body |
| D．repair the body throughout life |
According to Purpose Three, cloning technologies can be mainly used to .
| A．speed up the producing of genetically engineered animals |
| B．produce drugs or proteins that are useful in medicine |
| C．raise genetically engineered cows, sheep and goats |
| D．produce large herds of animals for human beings |
English families face being limited to 80 bags of rubbish a year. Households throwing away more waste will have to take it to the tip (垃圾站) or buy a limited number of extra bags. 
Doretta Cocks, protester of the Campaign for Weekly Waste Collections, said, “They must think we are fools. How can they claim to be concerned for the environment when they tell people to drive to the local tip? And what do you do if you don’t have a car? Walk?”
The plan ignores the voice from ministers to end such heavy – handedness (笨拙).
It is to be carried out by the Tory – led council (市政厅) in Wokingham, Berkshire, and is already in operation in Brozbourne in Hertfordshire.
Many of the 180 councils that still offer unlimited weekly rubbish collections are watching the trial.
Wokingham officials have told residents that 75 – litre bags will be given to each household and anything not left in them will not be collected.
“Every household will receive 80 bags every year,” it said. “You can buy extra bags in rolls of ten but this will not be encouraged.”
Families of five will get 100 rubbish bags a year and households o
f six or more will get 120.
Residents will have a weekly recycling collection limited to cans, paper and cards, plastic bottles and so on.
Plastic packaging and glass including bottles must either go with the general waste or be taken to recycling points. Green waste pick – ups cost an extra ￡60 a year.
The council has told residents it will save ￡922,000 a year under the new system. There will be no local consultation (商讨) before it is introduced next April.What’s Doretta Cock’s attitude towards the new plan?
| A．Satisfied. | B．Curious. | C．Angry. | D．Interested. |
What does the underlined word “this” refer to in the seventh paragraph?
| A．Receiving 80 rubbish bags every year. | B．Buying extra bags every year. |
| C．Driving to city tips. | D．Getting 100 rubbish bags a year. |
It can be learned from the passage that .
| A．the new plan is agreed by most ministers |
| B．the new plan will waste a lot of money |
| C．the government has asked for much advice of the new plan |
| D．the new plan does not necessarily do good to the environment |
Which of the following is the best title of the passage?
A．English families are limited to 80 bags of rubbish  a year |
| B．English families can’t clear away their rubbish |
| C．English families are angry with their government |
| D．English government pays no attention to residents’ interest |
If you've ever seen a James Bond movie，you'll know that the hero gets around in a smart Aston Martin car. Even if you know full well that you could never afford such an expensive vehicle, you don't forget the name, or the car.
Why? You have been affected by product placement.
Companies pay a film to place their products in the movie. Product placement took off in the West in the 1980s and is now catching on in China. Two Hunan Satellite TV dramas are recent examples：Ugly Wudi and Let's Go Watch the Meteor Shower (《一起去看流星雨》).
Shampoo, mobile phones, cars and fitness centers–anything can be product-placed. Advertisers value the mass appeal of the movies, knowing that a successful film can showcase their goods to hundreds of thousands of viewers. But when product placement takes over, artistic considerations can take a back seat.
Cai Zhiyong has been product-placing for years. The Beijing-based advertiser admits there is a conflict between art and business. He explains the way one ad works. In If You are the One (《非诚勿扰》), the actress Shu Qi plays a flight attendant. The movie contains product placement for airline companies.
Cash-strapped filmmakers often have to give less consideration to the quality of their work because they need money from advertisers. In the original story for Meteor Shower, the heroine's mother owned an ice cream shop. But no ice cream company wanted to sponsor (赞助) the film. For this reason, the story was changed. In the film the man drinks 20 cups of milk tea instead of eating ice cream.
So you may see the power of business over the movies, since the script (剧本) was perhaps written so that a product could be placed-whether it was ice cream or milk tea.James Bond movies are mentioned in the first paragraph to show_________.
| A．how popular James Bond is | B．how great the Aston Martin car is |
| C．how to make a movie more artistic | D．how effectively product placement works |
Product placement can have a bad effect on the_________ of a movie.
| A．atmosphere | B．mass appeal | C．box-office success | D．artistic value |
What does the underlined word "cash-strapped" in Paragraph 6 probably mean?
| A．Short of money. | B．Wasting a lot of money. |
| C．having enough money. | D．Trying to save money. |
We can learn from the example of Meteor Shower that__________.
| A．business has a big say in the movie |
| B．the original story was not suitable for a movie |
| C．filmmakers are only concerned about making money |
| D．milk tea is more popular than ice cream |
Traffic TV
Avoid the jams — see where tailbacks are before you set off and while on the move. Traffic TV is free to use on your personal computer and only £4 per month (se
e below for other network charges) on your mobile.
How does it work?
Over 7,500 Trafficmaster cameras monitor traffic flow on over 8,000 miles of motorways and roads across the UK, keeping you up to date 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Traffic TV on your mobile
This downloadable application lets you see where jams are building up, the speed of vehicles at hotspots, and live pictures from thousands of roadside cameras.
Traffic TV is £4 a month for Orange mobile customers, after a 30 day free try-out. On other networks Traffic TV is £5 a month, after a 7 day free try-out.
Listen to live traffic news
Don’t want the download? Then simply dial the numbers below from your mobile to hear the latest traffic updates.
＊Orange mobile users call 177 (calls cost up to 55p a minute)
＊Other mobile users call 1740 (calls cost up to 59p a minute)
Help friends avoid jams
Simply enter your friend’s email address to send them a link to this service.
How can users get live traffic information?
| A．By mobile phone or through Internet. | B．By watching a TV programme. |
| C．By listening to the radio report. | D．By using Trafficmaster cameras. |
How long may a customer use the service if his/her network is Orange and he/she pays £20?
| A．About 120 days. | B．About 127 days. | C．Five months. | D．Six months. |
What is the purpose of this advertisement?
| A．To provide readers with live traffic information. |
| B．To help Orange customers to avoid traffic jam. |
| C．To attract mobile users to buy Traffic TV service. |
| D．To explain how Traffic TV and live traffic news work. |
You may read this advertisement most probably ___________.
| A．in a travel guide | B．on a web page | C．on a road sign | D．in a newspaper |
We were on tour a few summers ago, driving through Chicago, when right outside of the city, we got pulled over. A middle-aged policeman came up to the car and was really being troublesome at first. Lecturing us, he said, “You were speeding. Where are you going in such a hurry?” Our guitarist, Tim, told him that we were on our way to Wisconsin to play a show. His way towards us totally changed. He asked, “Oh, so you boys are in a band（乐队）？” We told him that we were. He then asked all the usual band questions about the type of music we played, and how long we had been at it. Suddenly, he stopped and said, “Tim, you want to get out of this ticket, don’t you?” Tim said, “Yes.” So the officer asked him to step out of the car. The rest of us, inside the car, didn’t know what to think as we watched the policeman talk to Tim. Next thing we knew, the policeman was putting Tim in the back of the police car he had parked in front of us. With that, he threw the car into reverse（倒车），stopping a few feet in back of our car. Now we suddenly felt frightened. We didn’t know if we were all going to prison, or if the policeman was going to sell Tim on the black market or something. All of a sudden, the policeman’s voice came over his loudspeaker. He said, “Ladies and gentlemen, for the first time ever, we have Tim here singing on Route 90.” Turns out, the policeman had told Tim that the only way he was getting out of the ticket was if he sang part of one of our songs over the loudspeaker in the police car. Seconds later, Tim started screaming into the receiver. The policeman enjoyed the performance, and sent us on our way without a ticket. The policeman stopped the boys to .
| A．put them into prison | B． give them a ticket |
| C．enjoy their performance | D．ask some band questions |
The policeman became friendly to the boys when he knew they .
| A．had long been at the band | B．played the music he loved |
| C．were driving for a show | D．promised him a performance |
The boys probably felt when they drove off.
| A．joyful | B．calm | C．nervous | D．frightened |
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