Since the 1970s, scientists have been searching for ways to connect the brain with computers. Braincomputer interface(BCI) technology could help people with disabilities send commands to machines.
Recently, two scientists, Jose Millan and Michele Tavella from the Federal Polytehnic School in Lausanne, Switzerland, show a small robotic wheelchair directed by a person’s thoughts.
In the laboratory, Tavella operated the wheelchair just by thinking about moving his left or right hand. He could even talk as he watched the vehicle and guided it with his thoughts.
“Our brain has billions of body cells(细胞). These send signals through the spinal cord(脊髓) to the body part to give us the ability to move. But spinal cord injuries(脊柱受伤) or other conditions can prevent these weak electrical signals from reaching the body part.” Tavella says. “Our system allows disabled people to communicate with outer world and also to control machines.”
The scientists designed a special cap for the user. This head cover picks up the signals from the scalp(头皮) and sends them to a computer. The computer finds meanings of the signals and commands the wheelchair with an engine. The wheelchair also has two cameras that tell objects in its path. They help the computer react to commands from the brain.
Prof. Millan , the team leader, says scientists keep improving the computer software that finds meanings of brain signals and turns them into simple commands.” The practical possibilities that BCI technology offers to disabled people can be grouped in two kinds: communication, and controlling objects. One example is this wheelchair.”
He says his team has set two goals. One is testing with real patients, so as to prove that this is a technology they can get advantages from. And the other is sure that they can use the technology for long.BCI is a technology that can________.
| A．help to make computer systems more modern |
| B．connect the human brain with computers |
| C．help the disabled to be healthier |
| D．control a person’s thoughts |
Which of the following shows the path of the signals described in Paragraph 5?
| A．scalp→computer→cap→wheelchair |
| B．computer→cap→scalp→wheelchair |
| C．scalp→cap→computer→wheelchair |
| D．cap→computer→scalp→wheelchair |
The team will test with real patients to_________.
| A．make money from them |
| B．prove the technology useful to them |
| C．make them live longer |
| D．learn about their physical condition |
Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
| A．Switzerland, the BCI research Center |
| B．New Findings About How the Human Brain Works |
| C．BCI Could Mean More Freedom for the Disabled |
| D．Robotic Vehicles Could Help to Cure Brain Sickness |
We often reach a point in our life when we should be ready for change that will help us unlock our self﹣improvement power． However， there's always something staring at us right under our nose but we don't see it． The only time we think of unlocking our self﹣improvement power is when everything gets worst．
When do we realize that we need to change diets？ When none of our shirts and jeans would fit us． When do we stop eating candies and chocolates？ When all of our teeth have fallen off． When do we realize that we need to stop smoking？ When our lungs have gone bad． We see the warning signs and signals when things get rough and difficult．
The only time most of us ever learn about unlocking our self﹣improvement power is when the whole world is falling apart． We think and feel this way because it is not easy to change， but change becomes more painful when we ignore（忽视） it．
Change will happen， like it or hate it． At one point or another． we are all going to finally unlock our self﹣improvement power not because the world says so，but because we realize it's for our own good．
Happy people don't just accept change； they embrace （拥抱）it． Unlocking our self﹣improvement power means unlocking ourselves out of the box of thought that is just the way we are． It is such a poor excuse for people who fear change．
Jane always tells everyone that she doesn't have the courage to be around groups of people． She heard her family tell the same things about her to other people． Over the years， that is what Jane has believed． Every time a great crowd come， she steps back and locks herself up in a room． Jane not only believes in her story， but lives it!
Self﹣improvement may not be everybody's favorite word， but if we look at things in a different way， we might have greater chances of enjoying the whole process instead of counting the days until we are fully improved． Three sessions in a week at the gym would result in a healthier life． Reading books every day would build up knowledge． And only when we are enjoying the whole process of unlocking our self﹣improvement power will we realize that we're beginning to take things light and become happy．
（1）The writer mentions the three questions in Paragraph 2 to show that ．
A． we learn our lessons when we experience pain．
B． we are responsible for the problems we meet．
C． life fails us when we get into the wrong way．
D． life is a long journey full of ups and downs．
（2）What is the key to solving Jane's problem？
A． She needs to remember why she started．
B． She has to know how to get on with people．
C． She has to realize she is not what she is in her story．
D． She needs to understand the importance of confidence．
（3）The writer probably agrees that ．
A． the world tells us how to improve ourselves．
B． people change when they find it easy to do that．
C． welcoming change in life is a drive to become better．
D． enjoying the process of self﹣improvement makes life simpler．
（4）Which of the following would be the best title for the passage？
A． Is it important to take things light？
B． Is it necessary to embrace challenges？
C． To hold on to the last moment or to give up？
D． To free ourselves out of the box or to stay in it？
Some primary schoolchildren have been raised in homes with more green space around． They are likely to come with larger volumes of white and grey matter in certain areas of the brain． These differences are associated（关联） with beneficial effects on cognitive function （认知功能）． This is the main conclusion of a study led by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health．
The study was performed among 253 schoolchildren in Spain．Lifelong exposure（接触） to green space in the living places was recorded﹣using the information on the children's addresses from birth up through to the time of the study． Brain structure was studied using 3D magnetic resonance imaging （MRI）． Working memory and inattentiveness（注意力不集中）were graded with computers．
"This is the first study that shows the association between long﹣term exposure to green space and brain structure．" Says Dr． Payam Dadvand， the leading researcher of the study． "Our findings suggest that exposure to green space early in life could result in beneficial structural changes in the brain．"
The findings show that long﹣term exposure to greenness is positively associated with white and grey matter volumes in several parts of the brain． Some of them are related to higher scores on cognitive tests． Moreover， larger volumes of white and grey matter in those parts might lead to better working memory and less inattentiveness．
Exposure to nature has been thought to be necessary for brain development in children． Another study of 2，593 children shows that children in school with more green space have a greater increase in working memory and a greater decrease in inattentiveness．
Humans are believed to be tied to nature． Playing in greener areas offers children opportunities to search and learn． Accordingly， green space is thought to promptimportant exercises in discovery， creativity and risk taking． These exercises in turn positively influence brain development．
Dr． Dadvand's study suggests how such structural changes could bring about the beneficial effects of green spaces on cognitive development． It also adds to the proof that suggests the lasting effects of early life exposure to greenness on our health and the benefits of increasing greenness in cities．
Further studies are needed to prove the findings in other populations， settings and climates． And researchers need to examine differences according to the nature and quality of green space．
（1）The second paragraph is mainly about ．
A． how the study was performed
B． what was recorded in the study
C． how long the study lasted
D． who took part in the study
（2）The word "prompt" in paragraph 6 probably means " "．
A． control
B． encourage
C． balance
D． change
（3）What can we learn from the passage？
A． Working memory influences white and grey matter in the brain．
B． Dr． Dadvand stressed the importance of changing the environment．
C． Studies proved the influence of greenness on populations outs of Spain．
D． Living in greener neighborhoods benefits children in brain development．
A Beautiful Moment
When I was in high school．I worked part﹣time helping Dad sell fruits and vegetables at a market． One day，as I was preparing the fruits，a little boy came by with his mom and sister． He was about eight years old，and the girl，five or six． They were looking the fruits in front of me． I heard the kids say to their mom in French，"They're good!" I knew it was French，because I can speak and understand it．
Then I noticed how the mom was picking the fruits．At first I thought she was really looking at the fruits because she was facing them． But then I noticed how much she had to feel and smell each one as she picked them out． And she often asked her son if it looked okay， but looked way above where his face was． Putting what I saw together，I was sure she was blind．
Both of the kids continued to help their mom pick out the fruits．The son made sure the fruits were not obviously bad， and the daughter handed them to her mom． The woman then felt each one and smiled， and the daughter would put them into their basket．The kids were smiling while helping their mom pick the fruits out．
Their smile and gentle manner moved me in a way that never happened before．It was so beautiful to see such young kids so willingly help． Most kids that age would be picking out candies or toys in a store for themselves， instead of helping their mom pick out fruits as the two kids did．
It was great to witness the moment， but not so great because I didn't tell the mom how beautiful her children were in their language．this is what I regret to this day．
（1）The woman and her kids came to the market to buy ．
A． fruits
B． vegetables
C． candies
D． toys
（2）According to what he saw， the writer was sure the mother couldn't ．
A． speak
B． see
C． smell
D． hear
（3）The writer was moved because ．
A． the mother was brave to face her problems
B． the kids were polite and kind to each other
C． the mother was careful in picking out things
D． the kids were so willing to help their mother
Roger：Hi，there！It was my 15th birthday last Saturday．Some of my friends and Alan．my cousin，came to celebrate it． Everyone brought me a gift，we played games，sang songs and had a big birthday cake． It was really a wonderful day! Did you do anything special last week？
Jessica：Yes，My class were on a school field trip last week．First，We went to the University of North Carolina to learn about the history of its basketball team． Many basketball stars were students there． Then we visited a museum． We learned about how the plane was invented and took many pictures there．
Sara：Well， I was lucky enough to go to a conference（会议） on charity（慈善） last Wednesday． I was so excited to meet a lot of kind people there． One of them was a boy named Richard． He spoke at the conference about the charity work that he had done in the past few years．
Martin：It was a different week than usual，Last Thursday， my school band（乐队） went to Atlanta to perform in a competition．I played the violin and we won a prize! On Friday we went to the Georgia Aquarium and got to see different kinds of sea life from over the world． It was really cool!
（1）When did Roger have his birthday party？
A．Last Wednesday．
B． Last thursday．
C．Last Friday．
D．Last Saturday．
（2）Who went on a school field trip last week？
A．Alan．
B．Jessica．
C．Sara．
D．Richard．
（3）Martin went to Atlanta to ．
A．speak at a conference
B．organize a party
C．perform in a competition
D．visit a university
What's in a Name？
Many American names come from England．But where did most English names come from？
Centuries ago，most people in England had only one name﹣﹣their first name．In the 11th century，five
or six of the 50 people in a village might be named William，and it was easy to get confused．But in the Middle Ages，people found a way to describe each person exactly．If there were four Williams in one village，one might be referred to as William the son of John．A second might be called William from the hill．A third，William the blacksmith（铁匠）．And a fourth，William the brown haired．In conversation，people might refer to the four Williams as William John's son，William hill，William smith，and William brown．
It was 300 or 400 years before the extra （ 附加的） names gradually developed into last names，or
surnames．They were passed on from generation to generation．By the 1300s，Robert，the son of William
smith，had the name Robert smith，even if he was not a blacksmith like his father．As the last name became widely accepted，the first letter was capitalized，as in Robert Smith．By the 15th century，most people of the upper and middle classes had surnames．
Many surnames were based on father﹣son relations．The"son of"part was added to the father's first
name，like Johnson，meaning John's son．Sometimes it was shortened to just"s"，as in Jones or Evans．
Surnames like Hill described the place where a person lived．They are the most common type of surname．A third kind of surname was based on a person's job．Forester was someone who looked after the forest．
In the Middle Ages，occupation names such as Baker，Carpenter，and Miller became common．The fourth kind of surname was nickname（绰号）．A man whose surname was Bear might be as fierce as a bear．
Have you ever wondered why some surnames are so common？The most common surname in the
English language is Smith．Being able to make metals（金属）into tools was an important skill in the Middle Ages，and many people were trained as blacksmiths．The most common American surnames are Smith，Johnson，William and Brown．
61．Where do many American names come from？
62．When did people find a way to describe each person exactly？
63．How long did it take for extra names to develop into last names？
64．What is the fourth paragraph mainly about？
65．Why were many people trained blacksmith in the Middle Ages？
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