C
A fly with an extremely unusual ability to hear is the model for what may be the future of new and improved hearing aids. The insect behaves like a parasite—an organism that lives on or in another organism called a host. This exceptional fly places larvae—young flies onto a cricket (蟋蟀) host. The larvae dig into the cricket and eat the insect from the inside out.
The tiny yellow fly lives in Central America and the Southern United States. It finds its host by listening out for the cricket’s high chirping voice. The fly can easily find a cricket from as far away as 91 meters.
Neal Hall is a sound engineer who worked on the new hearing aid model. According to him, the fly’s behavior is very strange. Mr. Hall and his team at the University of Texas made a copy of the fly’s hearing structure. “They discovered that the fly has a clever mechanism and instead of using two independent ears like a human does, the fly’s ears are actually coupled,” said Hall.
The fly’s ears are two millimeters apart. That distance is so small that sound reaches one ear just four millionths of a second before arriving at the other. Experts held that it should be impossible for the fly to identify where a sound is coming from. In fact, however, inside this fly’s each ear is a 1.5-millimeter-long structure similar to a see-saw — a piece of children’s playing equipment. Like the see-saw, the fly’s ear structure goes up and down from a central point. Pressure waves against the structure increase the time it takes for sound to travel and permit the fly to find its host.
Mr. Hall and his team used the chemical element silicon to copy the fly’s ear structure. They also used the special electric materials that enabled them to measure its movements at the same time. Hall said that the hearing aid device could be used in two ways. One way would be to help the military on the battlefield, where sensors could find where shots are coming from. The other would be to remove unwanted noise from a person’s surroundings.
“It is a feature that is incredibly useful for hearing aids, for example, here and now, if you turn up the gain of a hearing aid or turn the volume up to hear someone across from you, it also amplifies (放大) everything else in the room,” said Hall.
Hall said that the next test in marketing the hearing aid device was to make it usable. He said the device must be handled carefully because it is so small. He noted that the fly does not have this concern.
Neal Hall is trying to .
| A．model his new hearing aid on a kind of fly |
| B．help crickets to prevent themselves from parasites |
| C．kill the insects in a host with a new machine |
| D．make powerful killers with the help of a kind of fly |
What is the key message of Paragraph 4?
| A．The distance between the fly’s two ears. |
| B．The special structure of the fly’s ears. |
| C．The comparison between the fly’s ears and see-saws. |
| D．Pressure waves against the structure of the fly’s ears. |
With the help of the new hearing aid, people would be able to .
| A．find out where the flies come from |
| B．fall asleep when they want to |
| C．protect the peaceful environment better |
| D．choose to hear what they want to |
What is the author’s attitude towards Neal Hall and his team mentioned in the passage?
| A．Objective. | B．Tolerant. |
| C．Doubtful. | D．Pessimistic. |
I am a psychologist. I first met Timothy, a quiet, overweight elevenyearold boy, when his mother brought him to me to discuss his declining grades. A few minutes with Timothy were enough to confirm that his self-esteem (自尊) and general happiness were falling right along with them.
I asked about Timothy’s typical day. He awoke every morning at six thirty so he could reach his school by eight and arrived home around four thirty each afternoon. He then had a quick snack, followed by either a piano lesson or a lesson with his math tutor. He finished dinner at 7 pm, and then he sat down to do homework for two to three hours. Quickly doing the math in my head, I found that Timothy spent an average of thirteen hours a day at a writing desk.
What if Timothy spent thirteen hours a day at a sewing machine instead of a desk? We would immediately be shocked, because that would be called children being horribly mistreated. Timothy was far from being mistreated, but the mountain of homework he faced daily resulted in a similar consequence — he was being robbed of his childhood. In fact, Timothy had no time to do anything he truly enjoyed, such as playing video games, watching movies, or playing board games with his friends.
Play, however, is a crucial part of healthy child development. It affects children’s creativity, their social skills, and even their brain development. The absence of play, physical exercise, and freefrom social interaction takes a serious toll on many children. It can also cause significant health problems like childhood obesity, sleep problems and depression.
Experts in the field recommend the minutes children spend on their homework should be no more than ten times the number of their grade level. As a fifthgrader, Timothy should have no more than fifty minutes a day of homework (instead of three times that amount). Having an extra two hours an evening to play, relax, or see a friend would soundly benefit any child’s life quality.What did the writer think of Timothy after learning about his typical day__________?
| A．Timothy was very hardworking. |
| B．Timothy was being mistreated. |
| C．Timothy had a heavy burden. |
| D．Timothy was enjoying his childhood. |
Which of the following statements best describes the writer’s opinion________?
| A．Children should be allowed enough time to play. |
| B．Playing board games works better than playing video games. |
| C．The more they play, the more creative children will become. |
| D．The depression caused by homework makes children unwilling to play. |
According to the passage, how long should a thirdgrader spend a day doing homework________?
| A．About ten minutes. | B．No more than twenty minutes. |
| C．No more than thirty minutes. | D．About fifty minutes. |
Do you want to go out of town for a bit of rest and relaxation? Before you start packing, visit these best travel sites for vacationers. In my opinion, they help people deal with common problems that pop up during a trip.
Oyster.com
Based on the advertised photos, the hotel you are considering appears to be clean and modern. Take a second look through the eyes of Oyster.com. Their representatives inspect resort areas and post the real images uncovering marketing lies. You see ACTUAL pictures of the rooms, attractions and beautiful beaches.
Skyscanner.net
Are you planning to travel on a budget? Discover the best deals for flights, hotels and car rentals at Skyscanner.net. They offer reasonable and comprehensive travel comparison. The best part is that their services are free. You don’t have to sign up, provide personal information or go through a social network.
Virtualtourist.com
Chat with someone other than a travel agent about a location. At Virtualtourist.com, fellow travelers and locals talk about their experiences in specific areas. This site is set up like a forum(论坛), so you can ask questions and get answers in the comfort of your own home. Find out where to eat, play and get pleasure in a place without getting food poison or robbed by criminals.
Travel.state.gov
Unfortunately, Americans get into trouble abroad sometimes. Prepare for possible emergencies by visiting Travel.state.gov. There, the Bureau of Consular Affairs offers advice on how to handle the bad things that happen to good people in other countries. You learn what to do in the case of child abduction(绑架), a lost passport and illness. In addition, these officials post travel warnings regarding dangerous regions and why foreigners should avoid them.
Are you ready to do your homework? Prepare for your departure by checking out these best travel sites for vacationers. Learn what you need to know now before walking out of the door.What is the characteristic of Oyster.com?
| A．It offers you a lot of travel information. |
| B．It tells tourists where the cheap hotels are. |
| C．The photos on the site are really reliable. |
| D．The representatives of Oyster.com are enthusiastic. |
What is the biggest benefit of your visiting Skyscanner.net?
| A．You can accept their services for free. |
| B．You can book the most modern hotels. |
| C．You can make many friends through the social network. |
| D．You can find the cheapest tour description and direction. |
We can learn from this passage that _____.
| A．Virtualtourist.com gives you a chance to chat with a travel agent |
| B．you’ll get answers to your travel questions at Virtualtourist.com |
| C．the Bureau of Consular Affairs is in charge of Travel.state.gov |
| D．if you lose your passport you’ll get help from Virtualtourist.com |
Everyone knows that the French are romantic, the Italians are fashionable and the Germans are serious. Or do they? Are these just stereotypes or is there really such a thing as national character? And if there is, can it affect how a nation succeed or fail?
At least one group of people is certain that it can. A recent survey of the top 500 entrepreneurs (实业家) in the UK found that 70 percent felt that their efforts were not appreciated by the British public.
Britain is hostile to success, they said. It has a culture of jealousy (嫉妒) . As a result, the survey said, entrepreneurs were “unloved, unwanted and misunderstood”. Jealousy is sometimes known as the “green-eyed monster” and the UK is its home. Scientists at Warwich University in the UK recently tested this idea. They gathered a group of people together and gave each an imaginary amount of money. Some were given a little, others a great deal. Those given a little money were given the chance to destroy the large amounts of money given to others—but at the cost of losing their own. Two thirds of the people tested agreed to do this.
This seems to prove the entrepreneurs were right to complain. But there is also conflicting evidence. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) recently reported that the UK was now the world’s fourth largest economy. That is not bad for people who are supposed to hate success. People in the UK also work longer hours than anyone else in Europe. So the British people are not lazy, either.
“It’s not really success that the British dislike,” says Carey Cooper, a Professor of management at the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology. “It’s people using their success in a way that seems arrogant (傲慢) or unfair or which separates them from their roots.”
Perhaps it is the entrepreneurs who are the problem. They set out to do things in their way. They work long hours. By their own efforts they become millionaires. But instead of being happy they complain that nobody loves them. It hardly seems worth following their example. If they were friendlier, people would like them more. And more people want to be like them.What does the underlined “it” in the second paragraph refer to__________?
| A．One group of people | B．A great survey | C．A nation | D．National character |
Most entrepreneurs surveyed believe that .
| A．the British public are hardworking |
| B．they are not popular simply because they are successful |
| C．love of success is Britain’s national character |
| D．they are considered as “green-eyed monsters” |
What does the result of the Warwich University test show_________?
| A．Most people would rather fail than see others succeed |
| B．Two thirds of the people tested didn’t love money |
| C．An imaginary amount of money does not attract people |
| D．Most people are willing to enjoy success with others |
The writer of the passage seems to suggest that .
| A．jealousy is Britain’s national character |
| B．British entrepreneurs are not fairly treated |
| C．the British dislike the entrepreneurs because they do not behave properly |
| D．the scientists at Warwich University did a successful test |
Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?
| A．Everyone knows that the French are romantic, the Germans are fashionable and the Italians are serious. |
| B．About 350 entrepreneurs in the UK felt that their efforts were not appreciated by the British public. |
| C．The British people are not lazy and they work longer hours than anyone else in the world. |
| D．Carey Cooper said that the British really dislike success. |
A few years ago, Paul Gerner began to gather a group of architects in Las Vegas to ask them what it would take to design a public school that used 50 percent less energy, cost much less to build and obviously improved student learning. “I think half of them fell off their chairs,” Gerner says.
Gerner manages school facilities (设施)for Clark County, Nevada, a district roughly the size of Massachusetts. By 2018, 143,000 additional students will enter the already crowded public-education system. Gerner needs 73 new schools to house them. Four architecture teams have nearly finished designing primary school prototypes (样品); they plan to construct their schools starting in 2009. The district will then assess how well the schools perform, and three winners will copy those designs in 50 to 70 new buildings.
Green schools are appearing all over, but in Clark County, which stands out for its vastness, such aggressive targets are difficult because design requirements like more natural light for students go against the realities of a desert climate. “One of the biggest challenges is getting the right site orientation(朝向),” Mark. McGinty, a director at SH Architecture, says. His firm recently completed a high school in Las Vegas. “You have the same building, same set of windows, but if its orientation is incorrect and it faces the sun, it will be really expensive to cool.”
Surprisingly, the man responsible for one of re most progressive green-design competitions has doubts about ideas of eco-friendly buildings. “I don’t believe in the new green religion,” Gerner says. “Some of the building technologies that you get are impractical. I’m interested in those that work.” But he wouldn’t mind if some green features inspire students. He says he hopes to set up green energy systems that allow them to learn about the process of harvesting wind and solar power. “You never know what’s going to start the interest of a child to study math and science,” he says.How did the architects react to Gerner’s design requirements?
| A．They lost balance in excitement. | B．they showed strong disbelief. |
| C．they expressed little interest. | D．they burst into cheers. |
Which order of steps is followed in carrying out the project?
| A．Assessment－Prototype－Design－Construction. |
| B．Assessment－Design－Prototype－Construction. |
| C．Design－Assessment－Prototype－Construction. |
| D．Design－Prototype－Assessment－Construction. |
What makes it difficult to build green schools in Clark County?
| A．The large size. | B．Limited facilities. |
| C．The desert climate. | D．Poor natural resources. |
What dose Gerner think of the ideas of green schools?
| A．They are questionable. | B．They are out of date. |
| C．They are advanced. | D．They are practical. |
Oscar-winning actress Joan Fontaine, who rose to fame during Hollywood's golden age as the star of several Alfred Hitch．cock classics, died from natural causes at her home in Carmel, northern California on December 16, 2013 aged 96, US media reports said．
Born in Japan to British parents, Fontaine moved in 1919 to California, where she and her elder sister －screen idol Olivia de Havilland－were to shape successful movie careers．Fontaine and de Havilland remain the only sisters to have won lead actress honours at the Academy Awards．Yet the two sisters also had an uneasy relationship, with Fontaine recording a bitter competition in her own account "No Bed of Roses "．
Fontaine began her acting career in her late teens with Largely less important roles on the stage and later in mostly B-movies in the 1930s． It was not before famous British film director Hitchcock spotted her a decade later that her career took off．
Greatly surprised by her expressive looks, the suspense (悬念） master cast Fontaine in his first US film, a 1940 adaptation of the Daphne du Maurier novel "Rebecca"． She received an Academy Award nomination（提名） for her performance as a troubled wife． A year later, Fontaine finally won the long-sought golden figure, for her role as leading lady in "Suspicion" opposite Cary Grant, becoming the first and only actress to earn the title for a Hitchock film．
Although her sister, Olivia de Havilland, preceded her in gaining Hollywood fame, Fontaine was the first of the sisters to win an Oscar, beating Olivia's nomination as best actress in Mitchell Leisen's "Hold Back the Dawn"．
The dislike ,between the sisters was felt at the Oscars ceremony．"I froze． I stared across the table, where Olivia was sitting．'Get up there!' she whispered commandingly," Fontaine said．"All the dislike we'd felt toward each other as children…all came rushing back in quickly changing pictures…I felt Olivia would spring across the table and seize me by the hair．"
Olivia did not win her first Oscar until 1946, for her role as the lover of a World War I pilot in Leisen's " To Each His Own"． Fontaine later made it known that her． sister had slighted her as she attempted to offer congratulations．“She took one look at me, ignored my hand, seized her Oscar and wheeled away,” she said．
The sisters were also reportedly competitors in love． Howard Hughes, a strange businessman who dated the elder de Havilland for a time, offered marriage to Fontaine several times．"I married first, won the Oscar before Olivia did, and if I die first, she'll undoubtedly be extremely angry because I beat her to it!" Fontaine once joked．
As her film career fruited in the 1950s, Fontaine turned to television and dinner theatre, and also appeared in several Broadway productions, including the Lion in Winter"． Anything but the ordinary lady, Fontaine was also a licensed pilot, a champion balloonist, an accomplished golfer, a licensed .decoration designer and a first-class cook．When she moved to California, Joan Fontaine was years old．
| A．two | B．twelve | C．twenty | D．twenty -two |
Fontaine did not become successful or popular until the _ ．
| A．1930s | B．1940s | C．1950s | D．1960s |
Fontaine won her Oscar for her role in the film of “ ”．
| A．Rebecca ' | B．Suspicion |
| C．To Each His Own | D．Hold Back the Dawn |
Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?
| A．Olivia preceded Fontaine in getting married． |
| B．Olivia gamed Hollywood fame after Fontaine． |
| C．Fontaine won an Oscar before her sister Olivia, |
| D．Fontaine wanted to meet her death before Olivia． |
The dislike between Fontaine and Olivia began when they ．
| A．competed for an Oscar | B．competed for a husband |
| C．were small children | D．were successful actresses |
As can- be seen from the passage, Fontaine was a person who was ．
| A．disliked by her family | B．always a troubled wife |
| C．able to do few jobs | D．gifted in many ways |
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