Robots that can chat，find misplaced glasses，draw aeroplanes and play with your children are attracting thousands of visitors during an expo in Tokyo as Japan adapts to changes in society．
Robots，such as the sound．sensitive Chapit，answer simple questions and even joke with people to help them fight loneliness and stay alert in old age．
Japan has one of the world’s fastest-aging societies and the government predicts that by 2050，the proportion of people over 65 will reach 40 percent．”Many older people in Japan live alone and have no one to talk to，”said Kazuya Kitamura representative of the expo organizer．“Communication robots accompany people and don’t mind listening to the same stories over and over again．”
Matsumoto’s“Personal Mobility Robot，”equipped with four cameras and a sensor to recognize the user's centre of gravity, is designed to help elderly move around without pressing buttons．using joysticks(操纵杆)or rotating wheels as in traditional wheelchairs．
The robot can also help find misplaced glasses by identifying them with a sensor．
Other robots，such as the award-winning “DiGRO” can support busy parents who have little time to play with their children．The robot can use the Internet to find a simple image and then draw pictures，keeping children company while parents work．
While Chapit，a relatively simple robot，managed to attract a corporate partner many researchers，such as Kiyoshi Matsumoto，a professor at the University of Tokyo，struggle to attract sponsors for more expensive projects．
“We have developed a robot that can assist many people，but we still haven’t found a sponsor,” said Matsumoto，who added that the cost of the machine，if mass-produced，would be comparable to that of a car．”In the current economic environment there are few companies willing to invest in such a costly project，”he said．
It can be inferred from the text that_______．
| A．many children lack love from parents |
| B．robots helpful to the old will be in great demand |
| C．robots are the most useful to children |
| D．robots do better than people in healthcare |
It is difficult to find sponsors for robots because______.
| A．Japan is suffering economy depression |
| B．the robots are of poor design |
| C．the production of robots costs a lot |
| D．the future market is worrying |
【改编】What’s the purpose of the passage?
| A．To attract people to visit the new kind of robot |
| B．To find the investment of the robot. |
| C．To persuade people to buy the robot. |
| D．To introduce a new kind of robot. |
Some plants get so hungry they eat flies, and even small frogs. What's more amazing is that these plants occur naturally (in special environments) in every state. In fact, they're found on every continent except Antarctica.
You've probably seen a Venus' flytrap -- a small plant, which grows 6 to 8 inches tall in a container. At the end of its stalks (茎) are leaves that act like traps (陷阱). Inside each trap is a lining of tiny hairs. When an insect lands on them, the traps suddenly shut. Over the course of a week or so, the plant feeds on its catch.
The Venus' flytrap is just one of more than 500 species of meat-eating plants, says Barry Meyers-Rice, the editor of the International Carnivorous Plant Society's Newsletter. He states although you might have read some science-fiction stories, no meat-eating plant does any danger to humans.
Barry says a plant is meat-eating, only if it does all four of the following: "attract, kill, digest, and absorb" some form of insects. Meat-eating plants look and act like other green plants -- well, most of the time.
All green plants make sugar to produce food. What makes meat-eating plants different is their special leaves, which need insects for one reason: nitrogen (氮). Nitrogen is a nutrient that they can't obtain any other way. Why?
Almost all green plants on our planet get nitrogen from the soil. Meat-eating plants can't. They live in places where nutrients are hard to get from the soil because of its acidity. So they've come to rely on getting nitrogen from insects and small animals. In fact, nutrient-rich soft is poisonous to meat-eating plants. Never fertilize (施肥) them! But don't worry, either, if they never seem to catch any insects. They can survive, but they'll grow very slowly.According to the passage, a Venus' flytrap ______.
| A．is a small plant which grows in a container |
| B．is a kind of plant which gets hungry easily |
| C．can trap and feed on some form of insects |
| D．can only grow 6-8 inches tall |
From the passage, we can infer that ______.
| A．meat-eating plants are found nowhere else except Antarctica |
| B．all green plants get nitrogen from the soil |
| C．meat-eating plants endanger humans in science-fiction stories |
| D．the nutrient-poor soil is beneficial to meat-eating plants |
Meat-eating plants grow very slowly, ______.
| A．so you'd better fertilize them |
| B．probably because the supply of nitrogen is cut off |
| C．simply because they can't absorb nitrogen from the soil |
| D．and then they will die slowly |
Which of the following is true?
| A．Meat-eating plants look and act like other green plants. |
| B．It's hard to get nutrients in the soil when acidity is high. |
| C．The Venus' flytrap eats flies to get nutrient from them. |
| D．Green plants make sugar at night. |
There are many theories about how drama (戏剧) came into being in ancient Greece. The one most widely accepted today is based on the assumption that drama developed gradually from ceremonies. The argument for this view goes as follows.
In the beginning, human beings viewed the natural forces of the world as unpredictable, and they sought through various means to control these unknown powers. Those measures which appeared to bring the desired results were then kept and repeated until they hardened into fixed ceremonies. Eventually stories arose which explained the mysteries of the ceremonies. As time passed, some of them were abandoned, but the stories, later called myths (神话), provided materials for art and drama
Those who believe that drama came out of ceremonies also argue that those ceremonies contained the seed of theater because music, dance, and masks were almost always used. In addition, there were performers, and, since considerable importance was attached to avoiding mistakes in the rules of ceremonies, religious leaders usually assumed that task. Wearing masks, they often impersonated (扮演) other people, animals, or supernatural beings, and performed the desired effect by gestures -- success in hunt or battle, the coming rain, the revival (复活) of the Sun -- as an actor might. Eventually such dramatic representations were separated from religious activities.
Another theory finds out the theater came from the human Interest in storytelling. According to this view, tales (about the hunt, war, or other events) are gradually formed, at first through the use of impersonation, action, and dialogue by a speaker and then through the assumption of each of the roles by a different person A closely related theory about drama traces to those dances that are primarily rhythmical and gymnastic or that are imitations (模仿) of animal movements and sounds.Which of the following is Not true according to the passage?
| A．Three theories about how drama came into being are mentioned. |
| B．The majority of people believe drama came from ceremonies. |
| C．Stories were made up to explain the mysteries of the ceremonies. |
| D．Religious activities developed gradually from ceremonies. |
We can infer from the passage that ______.
| A．all measures couldn't bring the desired results |
| B．religious leaders usually didn't perform in the ceremonies |
| C．mistakes are unavoidable in the religious ceremonies |
| D．performers usually used languages to reach the desired results |
The underlined part "traces to" in the last paragraph is closest in meaning to ______.
| A．dates back to | B．is devoted to | C．gives way to | D．is familiar to |
The best title for the text would be ______.
| A．The Development of Drama | B．The History of Drama |
| C．The Origin of Drama | D．The Popularity of Drama |
Charlton Heston was born in 1923 in Evanston, Illinois. Charlton Heston discovered his interest in acting while performing in plays at his high school. He later spent two years studying theater at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. But he left college to join the Army Air Forces during World War Two.
After the war, he found small roles in the theater as well as in television shows. His performance in a television version of the book Jane Eyre caught the attention of the Hollywood producer Cecil B. DeMille who later asked Heston to play the role of Moses in his movie The Ten Commandments which came out in 1956. This role made Heston famous and defined (明确) his career as a hero and leader. His face and body represented strength and heroism in many different roles. He played cowboys, soldiers and athletes.
The 1959 movie Ben Hur made Charlton Heston an even bigger star. Ben Hur won eleven Academy Awards, including Best Actor for Charlton Heston. Heston starred in many adventure movies during the 1960s. In the 1970s, Heston appeared in popular disaster movies like Earthquake,. Skyjacked and Airport 1975.
Charlton Heston was also very active in the movie industry. He worked to help set up the American Film Institute. In 1977 he was honored for his service in the industry. He received the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. In 1997 he was awarded a Kennedy Center Honor. And, in 2003, President Bush gave Charlton Heston a Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor.
In 2000, Charlton Heston issued a statement announcing that he had an Alzheimer's disease. He died in 2008 at his home in Beverly Hills, California.What kind of role did Charlton Heston often play in films?
| A．Heroes. | B．Cowboys. | C．Soldiers. | D．Athletes. |
Which film won Best Actor for Charlton Heston?
| A．Jane Eyre. |
| B．Earthquake. |
| C．Ben Hur. |
| D．The Ten Commandments. |
What can we learn about Charlton Heston according to the passage?
| A．He began to show his talent in Ben Hut. | B．He used to be a soldier. |
| C．He was once awarded by Kennedy. | D．He won eleven Academy Awards. |
What's the main idea of Paragraph 2?
| A．How Charlton Heston became famous. |
| B．How Charlton Heston began his career. |
| C．Who made Charlton Heston a popular star. |
| D．Who made Charlton Heston win so many awards. |
Can feeling of nostalgia(怀旧) be good for you? Or is it unhealthy to have a strong love for the past?
For years, medical experts have studied nostalgia and the reasons for it. Many experts warn that too much nostalgia is harmful. They say living in the past shows that a person is unhappy with his present life. These feelings keep the person from living his life to its fullest.
However, experts say it is normal to love the past sometimes. In fact, a little nostalgia can enrich a person’s life.
Dr. Louise Kaplan has written several books about nostalgia. She says these feelings often begin when a young person is between 13 and 19 years old.
“This is the time when you must face the loss of your childhood, “Kaplan says. “You see your new life is easily destroyed. But you think romantically about a golden past. You remember your childhood as a time when life is perfect.”
These feelings continue as the person gets older, Kaplan adds. She says many grown persons have a hard time keeping up with changes in the modem world, so they think back to their younger years. At that time the world seemed simple and more harmless.
Kaplan says these feelings do not always actually exist. The good old days did not always exist. The good old days weren’t always good. However, she says nostalgia can be helpful, if used properly.
“Feelings of nostalgia can cause you to remember a time when you had high hopes and dreams, “Kaplan says. “It might give you the strong wish to catch those dreams today in your past life.” She adds that nostalgia can prevent you from “cutting yourself off from your aim”.Feeling of nostalgia ______.
| A．can cause you to think of your past which was full of hopes and dreams |
| B．might cause you to try to realize the golden dream in the present life |
| C．fill one with hopes for the future no matter what happens |
| D．bring about a love for the past and a hope for the future |
The reason for grown persons to think back to their past is that ______.
| A．time is hard, so they cannot keep up |
| B．they can hardly keep up with changes in today’s world with changes |
| C．many grown persons have little time keeping up with changes |
| D．they lived in the past, of which they are always proud |
Which of the following is NOT talked about in the passage?
| A．Too much nostalgia is harmful to our health. |
| B．Nostalgia shows that a person is not satisfied with his present life. |
| C．Only women have feelings of nostalgia. |
| D．A little nostalgia can make a person’s life more colorful. |
Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?
| A．Thoughts on Nostalgia |
| B．The Reasons for Nostalgia |
| C．Why Not Think Back to the Past |
| D．Nostalgia, Good or Bad |
At the beginning of the 20th century there were more than a million lions worldwide. Today there are less than 30,000 in the wild. The remaining lions are increasingly threatened by habitat loss, hunting and activities to protect farms and cattle.
For generations, Masai tribesmen on the large African plains in southeastern Kenya have hunted lions — to protect their farms and cattle. Today they celebrate the lions’ life.
Noah is an elder in the Masai community. “We have decided as a community of the Masai to lay down our spears, and there will be no more killing of lions in our community.” He is part of a group of Masai visiting the United States promoting (推广) the Predator Compensation Program.
Conservation International’s Frank Hawkins explains, “The Masai have been living with wildlife for many generations and it has been a conflicting ( 有冲突的) relationship in many ways. They compete with the animals for food as lions eat their cattle. We’re trying to find ways in which the wildlife will become something useful to them.” They had the Predator Compensation Fund founded in 2003. After much discussion, a group of Masai farmers agreed to protect lions. In turn, if lions or other predators kill their cattle, the Masai owner will be paid market value for the dead animals from the fund.
One man said that in the past, when a lion killed cattle, they killed it immediately. And now, after the start of the program, the Masai see the lion population growing. Since 2003, only four lions have been killed here.What is the aim of the Predator Compensation Program?
| A．To protect people in the wild. | B．To protect Masai’s farms. |
| C．To protect lions only. | D．To protect the wildlife. |
According to the passage, why haven’t Masai tribesmen killed many lions since 2003?
| A．Because lions don’t eat their cattle any more. |
| B．Because they will be fined if they kill lions there. |
| C．Because the fund will pay for dead animals killed by lions |
| D．Because there are less than 30,000 lions in the wild now. |
What do you think of the Masai ?
| A．Wise. | B．Mean. | C．Generous. | D．Stupid. |
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