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With help from a Mr. H, you can .
| A．stop using batteries |
| B．finish your homework on time |
| C．remember your teachers’ instructions |
| D．get your room tidied on your way home |
A PENGO WATCH CONTROL can help you to .
| A．repair your TV | B．organize your homework |
| C．be a James Bond | D．know what the weather is like |
Where would you be most likely to find the two texts?
| A．On a notice board. | B．In a company brochure. |
| C．On a teenage website. | D．In a college newspaper. |
Everyone needs friends. We all like to feel close to someone. It is nice to have a friend to talk, laugh and do things with. Sure, there are times when we need to be alone. We don’t always want people around. But we would feel lonely if we never had a friend.
Not two people are the same. Sometimes friends don’t get along well. That doesn’t mean they no longer like each other. Most of the time, they will go on being friends. Sometimes friends move away. Then we feel very sad. We miss them very much. But we can call them and write to them. Maybe we would never see them again. And we can make new friends. It is surprising to find out how much we like new people when we get to know them. Families sometimes name their children after a close friend. Many places are named after men and women, if they are friendly to people in the town. Some libraries are named in this way. So are some schools. We think of these people when we go to these places.
There is some good news for people, if they have friends. These people live longer than those people who don’t have friends. Why? It could be that they are happier. Being happy helps you stay well, or it could be just knowing that someone cares. If someone cares about you, you take better care of yourself.
Which of the following places people name their friendly people is NOT mentioned in the
passage?
| A．A room. | B．A school. |
| C．A library. | D．A town. |
Why do people who have friends live longer?
| A．They know more about the friendship. |
| B．They take less care of themselves. |
| C．They care more about their friends. |
| D．They feel happier and healthier. |
This passage mainly tells us ________.
| A．that people need friends |
| B．that people are all friends |
| C．how to get to know friends |
| D．how to name a place |
Students who date (约会) in middle school have significantly worse study skills, are four times more likely to drop out of school and report twice as much alcohol and tobacco use than their single classmates, according to new research from the University of Georgia.
“Romantic relationships are a symbol of adolescence（青春期）, but very few studies have examined how adolescents are different in the development of these relationships.” said Pamela Orpinas, study author and professor in the College of Public Health.
Orpinas followed a group of 624 students over a seven-year period from 6th to 12th grade. Each year, the group of students completed a survey indicating whether they had dated and reported the frequency of different behaviors, including the use of drugs and alcohol. Their teachers completed questionnaires (调查表) about the students' academic efforts. He found some students never or hardly ever reported dating from middle to high school, and these students had the best study skills according to their teachers. Other students dated infrequently in middle school but increased the frequency of dating in high school.
“At all points in time, teachers rated the students who reported the lowest frequency of dating as having the best study skills and the students with the highest dating as having the worst study skills,” according to the journal article. Study skills refer to behaviors that lead to academic success such as doing work for extra credit, being well organized, finishing homework, working hard and reading assigned chapters.
“Dating a classmate may have the same emotional complications of dating a co-worker,” Orpinas said, “When the couple break up, they have to continue to see each other in class and perhaps witness the ex-partner dating someone else. It is reasonable to think this could be linked to depression and divert (转移) attention from studying.”
“Dating should not be considered a ceremony of growth in middle school.”Orpinas concluded.According to the passage, students who date in middle school may_____.
| A．have poorer academic performances |
| B．be more likely to hurt others |
| C．enjoy better school lives |
| D．are less likely to use alcohol and tobacco |
When doing his study, Orpinas _____.
| A．followed a group of students of 6th and 12th grade |
| B．found that the students' study skills have connection with their frequency of dating |
| C．completed questionnaires about the students' academic efforts |
| D．completed a survey and a report each year |
What can possibly happen to the school couples after they break up?
| A．They will miss their ex-partners sometimes. |
| B．They don't want to see each other any longer. |
| C．Their attention to studying will be affected. |
| D．They will think it's reasonable to get depressed. |
Orpinas’ attitude towards dating in middle school is _____.
| A．supportive | B．negative |
| C．indifferent | D．positive |
We don’t know how different our future will be in the future. We can only try to imagine it.
At first we think about human relationship. In the year 2050, we will use computers almost every day. We will be making new friends through the Internet----even our husbands or wives will be met in this way. It will be much faster and easier for us. On the other hand, our relationships with people won’t be as important as they are today----we will feel a little lonely.
Computers will also help us in many other activities in 2050. For example, they will be used by the children at school to make their learning easier. In addition, there will be much more other machines which will play a similar role as computers, like robots which will do the housework for us.
Spending holidays will also be completely different. Traveling to other planets or to the moon will be available for everyone. Means of transport will, of course, change, too. We will be using solar-powered cars, which will be much more environmentally friendly.
We could expect that the faster technological progress would lead to a more polluted environment. But it isn’t true. We will pay more attention to protecting the environment. And, scientists will probably find cures for many dangerous diseases, like cancer or AIDS. Therefore, our surroundings as well as our health will be in a better condition.
Although we can’t predict the exact changes which will be made in the world, we often think about them. We worry about our and our children’s future; we have expectations, hopes as well as fears. But I think we should be rather sanguine about our future. We should be happy and believe good things will happen.Why will people probably feel a little lonely in 2050?
| A．Because the number of people will become much smaller. |
| B．Because people won’t communicate with each other much often. |
| C．Because people won’t like making friends with each other. |
| D．Because there will be less face-to-face communication. |
According to the passage, which of the following will happen in 2050?
| A．It won’t be difficult for people to travel to other planets. |
| B．The way of spending holidays will be the same as that of today. |
| C．The relationship between people will be more important than today. |
| D．Our environment will be much more polluted with a growing number of cars. |
The underlined word “sanguine” in the last paragraph most probably means ______.
| A．disappointed | B．optimistic |
| C．curious | D．surprised |
What does the passage mainly talk about?
| A．How people will communicate in the year 2050. |
| B．What high technology will appear in the year 2050. |
| C．How people will travel and spend their holiday in the year 2050. |
| D．What our life will be like in the year 2050. |
Gunman Adam Lanza shot and killed 20 children in two classes of Grade One in Sandy Hook Elementary School. The only survivor(幸存者) is a six-year-old girl. She escaped by lying on the floor pretending to be killed.
After the accident , she ran out of the school building covered from head to feet with blood (血). The first thing she said to her mother was, “ Mommy, I was OK, but all my friends were dead,” Pasrtor(牧师) Jim Solomon told the ABC news’s Lara Spencer this weekend , “I thought it was impossible for her to escape from being killed without others’ help. She could behave so calmly in such a dangerous and frightening situation. She has wisdom beyond her age, for sure.”
The girl, whose name is not being written out for special reasons, was the first student to run out of the accident place at Sandy Hook, Solomon said. He said the young girl described the gunman to her mother in a way that only a young child could. “Well, she saw someone who she felt was angry, and someone who she felt was mad,” Solomon said. “Somehow, at that moment, thank God, she was able to act as if she were already dead and saved herself. And that is very unusual and admirable (令人钦佩的) for so young a girl.” she said.
There were 20 students killed on Friday in Sandy Hook Elementary School, eight boys and 12 girls. Six teachers were also killed. “Her parents told me that they couldn’t stand the feeling of a survivor’s guilt（ 负罪）, because so many of their friends no longer have their children but they have theirs.” Solomon said.
“I think you can understand their feelings as well,” he said how the girl’s mother and father were feeling about the disaster. “I don’t know whether I would have the kind of feeling that they have if the same thing happened to me.”How did the six-year-old girl escape from being killed?
| A．By fighting against the killer |
| B．By pretending to be killed |
| C．By running away quickly |
| D．By getting protection from teachers |
According to the passage, which word can best show the quality of the girl?
| A．Strong | B．Friendly |
| C．Wise | D．Curious |
From the passage, we can know that___________________.
| A．all students in Sandy Hook were killed |
| B．Solomon didn’t remember the name of the girl |
| C．eight other children escaped the accident |
| D．people didn’t know the six-year-old girl’s name |
Why did the girl’s parents feel guilty?
| A．Because they had some relationship with the gunman. |
| B．Because they didn’t tell the skills of escaping to other children. |
| C．Because their daughter survived while their friends didn’t. |
| D．Because they didn’t report the terrible accident ahead of time. |
As computers become all the more popular in China, Chinese people are increasingly depending on computer keyboards to input Chinese characters. But if they use the computer too much, they may end up forgetting the exact strokes（笔画）of each Chinese character when writing on paper. Experts suggest people, especially students, write by hand more.
Do you write by hand more or type more? In Beijing, students start using a computer as early as primary school. And computer dependence is more wide-spread among university students. Almost all their homework and essays are typed on a computer.
All the students interviewed say they usually use a computer.
It’s faster and easier to correct if using a computer. And that’s why computers are being applied more and more often to modern education. But when people are taking stock in computers increasingly, problems appear.
“When I'm writing with a pen, I find I often can't remember how to write a character, though I feel I’m familiar with it.”
“I’m not in the mood to write when faced with a pen and paper.”
Many students don't feel this is something to worry about. Now that it's more convenient and quick to write on a computer, why bother to handwrite?
Many educators think differently. Shi Liwei , the headmaster of a famous primary school in the capital said “Chinese characters enjoy both practical and aesthetic(审美的) value. But those characters typed with computer keyboards only have their practical value. All the artistic beauty of the characters is lost. And handwriting contains the writer’s emotion(情绪). Through one’s handwriting, people can get to know one's thinking and personality. Beautiful writing will give people a better first impression of them.”
To encourage students to handwrite more, many primary schools in Beijing have made writing classes compulsory(必修的)and in universities, some professors are asking students to turn in their homework and essays written by hand.The students interviewed prefer to write using a computer mainly because______.
| A．they can correct the mistakes they make quickly and conveniently |
| B．they are usually asked to e-mail their homework and essays |
| C．they find it not easy to remember how to write a character |
| D．computers have become popular in China |
Which of the following statements of the advantages of handwriting is NOT TRUE ?
| A．Chinese characters enjoy both practical and aesthetic value. |
| B．Handwriting can impress people well and build up one’s self-confidence. |
| C．Handwriting contains the writer’s emotion. |
| D．The writer’s thinking and personality are shown in his or her handwriting. |
The underlined expression “taking stock in”(Paragraph 4) probably means __________.
| A．getting bored with | B．getting curious about |
| C．becoming crazy about | D．getting dependent on |
We can infer from the passage that __________.
| A．writing by hand will give way to typing by computer one day |
| B．more and more students will give up writing on a computer |
| C．more and more students will pay attention to handwriting |
| D．the typed article better expresses one’s emotion and quality |
Many years ago, when I was fresh out of school and working in Denver, I was driving to my parents’ home in Missouri for Christmas. I stopped at a gas station about 50 miles from Oklahoma City, where I was planning to stop and visit a friend. While I was standing in line at the cash register I said hello to an older couple who were also paying for gas.
I took off, but had gone only a few miles when black smoke poured from the back of my car. I stopped and wondered what I should do. A car pulled up behind me. It was the couple I had spoken to at the gas station. They said they would take me to my friend’s. We chatted on the way into the city, and when I got out of the car, the husband gave me his business card.
I wrote him and his wife a thank-you note for helping me. Soon afterward, I received a Christmas present from them. Their note that came with it said that helping me had made their holiday meaningful.
Years later, I drove to a meeting in a nearby town in the morning. In late afternoon I returned to my car and found that I’d left the lights on all day, and the battery was dead. Then I noticed that the Friendly Ford dealership --- a shop selling cars --- was right next door. I walked over and found two salesmen in the show room.
“Just how friendly is Friendly Ford?” I asked and explained my trouble. They quickly drove a pickup truck to my car and started it. They would accept no payment, so when I got home, I wrote them a note to say thanks. I received a letter back from one of the salesmen. No one had ever taken the time to write him and say thank you, and it meant a lot, he said.
“Thank you”--- two powerful words. They’re easy to say and mean so much.The author planned to stop at Oklahoma City ________.
| A．to pay at the cash register |
| B．to see his parents |
| C．to visit a friend |
| D．to make a plan with his friend |
The words “took off” underlined in Paragraph 2 means “_________”.
| A．put up | B．turned off |
| C．moved off | D．set up |
What happened when the author found smoke coming out of his car?
| A．The couple offered to help him. |
| B．The couple sent him a business card |
| C．He had it pulled back to the gas station. |
| D．He called his friend for help. |
How does the author explain the importance of expressing thanks in the passage?
| A．By telling his own experiences |
| B．By doing an experiment |
| C．By explaining cause and effect |
| D．By using quotations(引语) |
For more than six million American children, coming home after school means coming home to an empty house. Some deal with the situation by watching TV. But all of them have something in common. They spend part of their time alone. They're called latchkey children, They're children who look after themselves while their parents work outside. Lynette Long was once the headmaster of an elementary school. She said, “We had a school rule against wearing jewelry. A lot of the kids bed chains around their necks with keys attached. 1 was often telling them to put them inside their shirts. There were so many keys that it never came to my mind what they meant.” Slowly , she learned they were house keys.
She and her husband began talking to the children who had them. They learned of the effect working parents had on their children. Fear is the biggest problem faced by the children at home alone. One in each three latchkey children the Longs talked to are reported to be scared. Many had nightmares and were worried about their own safety.
The most common way latchkey children deal with their fears is by hiding. It might be in a shower stall under a bed, in a closet. The second is TV. They’ll often play it at high volume.
It ‘s hard to get numbers on latchkey children and most patents are slow to admit they leave their children alone.
| A．are growing in numbers |
| B．suffer problems from being left alone |
| C．watch too much TV during the day |
| D．are also found in middle schools |
| A．tiredness | B．freedom |
| C．loneliness | D．fear |
| A．We had a school rule against wearing jewelry. |
| B．A lot of kids had chains around their necks. |
| C．I was often telling them to put their keys inside their shirts. |
| D．She learned the chains around their necks were house keys. |
| A．night suit | B．night habit |
| C．terrible dreams at night | D．staying up at night |
| A．latchkey children enjoy being left alone |
| B．latchkey children try to hide their feeling |
| C．latchkey children often watch TV with their parents |
| D．it's difficult to find out how many latchkey children there |
One afternoon after school had finished , Peter and Jane were walking along the street. Suddenly they heard a big noise.
“Come on” shouted Peter.“That sounds like an accident. Let’ see what’s happened.”
They ran to where the noise came from. As soon as they got there, they could see what had happened. A small car had knocked into the side of a truck. The accident had happened in a quiet street with only four houses in it. Peter and Jane were the first ones to reach the site. No other people came.“We must be the only ones who saw the accident,” said Jane. They found that both the car driver and the truck driver were hurt.
“Peter,” said Jane,“ Run back down the road to Mrs Day’s house. Ask her to call the policemen and the ambulance. Hurry. I’ll stay here.”
Off went Peter as fast as he could. There was nothing Jane could do but wait. She knew that when people were hurt in an accident, they shouldn’t be moved. It wasn’t long before the police car and the ambulance arrived. The policeman got the car door open and they carried the man out. Then they got the truck driver out. The men weren’t seriously hurt, but they were both taken to the hospital. The policemen thanked Peter and Jane, “You were very good to act so quickly when you saw the accident. Thank you for all your help.”
| A．in a quiet street one school day afternoon |
| B．in a busy street one school day afternoon |
| C．in a quiet street one Sunday after noon |
| D．in a busy street one Sunday afternoon |
| A．Only Peter |
| B．Peter and Jane |
| C．Peter, Jane and Mrs Day |
| D．Peter , Jane, Mrs Day and the policemen |
| A．Only the car driver was hurt |
| B．Only the truck driver was hurt |
| C．Neither of the two drivers was hurt |
| D．Both the drivers were hurt |
| A．Jane | B．The drivers |
| C．Mrs Day | D．Peter |
| A．she was too frightened to do anything |
| B．she was alone after Peter left |
| C．she was waiting for Peter. |
| D．she knew she shouldn’t move the two drivers. |
About six years ago I was eating lunch in a restaurant in New York City when a woman and a young boy sat down at the next table. I couldn’t help overhearing parts of their conversation. At one point the woman asked, “So, how have you been?” And the boy who could not have been more than seven or eight years old replied, “Frankly, I’ve been feeling a little depressed lately.”
This incident stuck in my mind because it strengthened my growing belief that children are changing. As far as I can remember, my friends and I didn’t find out we were “depressed” until we were in high school.
The evidence of a change in children has increased steadily in recent years. Children don’t seem childlike any more. Children speak more like adults, dress more like adults and behave more like adults than they used to.
Whether this is good or bad is difficult to say, but it certainly is different. Childhood as it once was no longer exists. Why?
Human development is based not only on born biological states, but also on patterns of access to social knowledge. Movement from one social role to another usually involves learning the secrets of the new situation. Children have always been taught adult secrets, but slowly and in stages: traditionally, we tell sixth graders things we keep hidden from fifth graders.
In the last 30 years, however, a secret-revelation machine has been fixed in 98 percent of American homes. It is called television. Television passes information, indiscriminately, to all viewers alike, whether they are children or adults. Unable to resist the temptation, many children turn their attention from printed texts to the less challenging, more vivid moving pictures.
Communication through print, as a matter of fact, allows for a great deal of control over the social information to which children have access. Reading and writing involve a complex code of symbols that must be memorized and practised. Children must read simple books before they can read complex materials.Traditionally, a child is supposed to learn about the adult world _________ .
| A．through touch with society |
| B．gradually and under guidance |
| C．naturally and by biological instinct |
| D．through exposure to social information |
In the author’s opinion, the phenomenon that today’s children seem adult like is caused by _____.
| A．the widespread influence of television |
| B．the poor arrangement of teaching content |
| C．the fast step of human intellectual development |
| D．the constantly rising standard of living |
Why is the author in favor of communication through print for children?
| A．It enables children to gain more social information. |
| B．It develops children’s interest in reading and writing. |
| C．It helps children to memorize and practise more. |
| D．It can control what children are to learn. |
What does the author think of the change in today’s children?
| A．He feels amused by the children’s adultlike behavior. |
| B．He thinks it is a phenomenon worthy of note. |
| C．He considers it a positive development. |
| D．He seems to be upset about it. |
As the new semester begins，millions of college students across the country are trying hard to remember how best to write a paper-or，more likely，how best to delay that paper．
Procrastination is the thief of time and a lot of students suffer from it．They can spend whole days in the library doing nothing but staring into space，eating snacks，surfing the Internet，watching videos and looking at their pretty peers sitting around them，who，most likely，are doing nothing either．
Paralyzed by their habit to procrastinate，they write micro blogs about their fears，asking their online friends if they sometimes have the same issue．But this does nothing to solve their problems．
According to a recent report by the BBC，95 percent of us procrastinate at some point and 20 percent of the world’s population are procrastinators，complicating their lives with their continual delaying of tasks．
Procrastinators like to find excuses to justify their behavior，but BBC columnist Rowan Pelling says they are all wrong．Many procrastinators tell themselves they are perfectionists who work best under pressure．Pelling says this is nonsense，as work done at the last minute is more likely to have mistakes than work done on time．
She says the behavior of procrastinators often makes them feel flustered and ashamed，inconveniences others，and annoys loved ones．
Fortunately，social scientists have made tireless efforts to understand this behavioral shortcoming and offer strategies to control it．Piers Steel，a Canadian social scientist and author of The Procrastination Equation，believes humankind is“designed”to procrastinate．Nevertheless，he suggests a couple of good ways to get through the task at hand．
The first one is obvious：Break the task down into small pieces and work your way through them methodically．
The second is clever：Give a trusted friend a sum of money and tell them that if you don’t complete the task you have undertaken by a specific time，they can keep it or donate it to a cause you hate.What does the underlined word“Procrastination” in the second paragraph refer to?
| A．A bad habit of putting work or tasks off． |
| B．A thief who steals time and money in college. |
| C．A college student who learns nothing． |
| D．A study way of doing nothing in the library. |
According to Rowan Pelling，we can learn that procrastinators .
| A．can find reasonable excuses for their behavior |
| B．are able to work best under pressure |
| C．are more likely to avoid mistakes at work[] |
| D．may upset themselves and their loved ones more frequently |
Which of the following may Piers Steel support?
| A．Human beings are not born to be procrastinators． |
| B．Complete your tasks or work step by step． |
| C．Give your trusted friend money and ask him to help you finish your tasks． |
| D．You can’t control procrastination but you can avoid it． |
What’she best title of the text?
| A．Who steals my time? |
| B．The solutions to procrastination |
| C．I’ll do it tomorrow，I swear! |
| D．Don’t do nothing! |
Google has been collecting tons of data about smartphone usage around the world.Here are some of the most surprising and interesting facts：
Android is most popular in Japan, with 55% of respondents(调查对象) using it, compared with 39% for iOS. Android is also number one in a few other countries, including New Zealand (41%), the US(40%), and China (38%)．
iOS is farthest ahead in Switzerland, with 52% usage vs 23% for Android.Other countries where iOS is far ahead include Australia (49% vs 25% Android), Canada (45% vs 23% Android and 23% Blackberry), and France (43% vs 25% Android)．
In Egypt, Windows Mobile is far more popular than iOS.13% of survey respondents use the Microsoft smartphone platform, behind Symbian (19%) and Android (14%). iOS is very far down at 4%.
Mobile social networking is biggest in Mexico and Argentina, where 74% and 73% of users visit a social network daily. But mobile social is weak in Japan where 34% of users never visit a social network on their phone, and this figure rises to 41% in Brazil.
Watching video is most popular in Saudi Arabia, with 59% of respondents doing it daily. Number two is Egypt, with 41%.
Chinese users shop from their phones.59% of Chinese users do this, compared with only 41% in second place Egypt. Chinese users also love to write reviews.41% of them write a review of a local business after looking it up on their smartphone. Number two, Japan, is far behind, with only 24% of respondents doing this.Which of the following best describes the usage of the smartphone operating systems in Egypt?
| A．Windows Mobile＞iOS＞Symbian＞Android |
| B．Android＞Windows Mobile＞iOS＞Symbian |
| C．iOS＞Android＞Symbian＞Windows Mobile |
| D．Symbian＞Android＞Windows Mobile＞iOS |
In which of the following countries is mobile social networking least popular?
| A．Brazil. | B．Japan. | C．Mexico. | D．Argentina. |
In which section of a newspaper can we most probably read the passage?
| A．Health. | B．Environment. |
| C．Technology. | D．Entertainment. |
Several dollars equal nothing for some people, but make a difference for others. Steve has just lost his wife to cancer and everything they had is gone due to the treatment. He now lives in the shelter for the homeless. So we know each other.
Just like other homeless people, he didn’t think he needed anything. But once he mentioned to me he needed eye glasses. His voice hesitated a bit, he looked down, and it appeared like he thought such a request was just a dream. Too much to hope for? It was as if his wish were known by me only.
I submitted an application for him to a program that is supposed to provide a free eye examination and glasses. Three months later, I phoned to ask what was up with the appointment but they told me there was a cash flow problem until late summer.
Steve showed disappointment, thanked me and started to walk away. I said, “Hold on, I will figure out a way to get you an eye examination and glasses.” His face lit up a tiny bit. He had seen some of the things I have done for other people in our shelter and to me it looked like he might have a line of hope.
I took a picture of him and posted his picture and his story in the Twitter. In about 4 days, eight people from around the world donated $25 each and one person donated $40 and I made up the rest to get him an eye exam and glasses.
Steve picked up his glasses on Wednesday: May 11th, 2011. Today Steve has returned to a previous job he had in a nearby car wash. Because he now has glasses he will be able to see what he is doing while cleaning the vehicles. He is starting a second job at a pet center next week!We can learn from the first two paragraphs that ______.
| A．it took a long time to treat Steve’s wife |
| B．homeless people never ask for anything |
| C．Steve was too embarrassed to ask for help |
| D．the author and Steve have been friends for years |
The program failed to satisfy Steve because ______.
| A．it was already out of business |
| B．it had some trouble in finance |
| C．Steve didn’t submit the application himself |
| D．it’s not designed for people like Steve |
What can be inferred from the passage?
| A．The program was closed three months ago. |
| B．Steve used to work as a salesman in a car factory. |
| C．Steve got $240 in total from kind-hearted people. |
| D．The author might be a volunteer in the shelter. |
The best title for the passage is probably ______.
| A．Money can sometimes talk |
| B．Small help can really count |
| C．Two heads are better than one |
| D．God helps those who help themselves |
Move Earth—it’s no science fiction
LONDON—Scientists have found an unusual way to prevent our planet from overheating: move it to a cooler spot. All you have to do is send a few comets（彗星）in the direction of Earth, and its orbit will be changed. Our world will then be sent spinning into a safer, colder part of the solar system.
This idea for improving our climate comes from a group of US National Aeronautics and Space Administration（NASA） engineers and American astronomers. They say their plan could add another six billion years to the useful lifetime of our planet—effectively doubling its working life.
The plan put forward by Dr Laughlin, and his colleagues Don Korycansky and Fred Adams is designed to carefully direct a comet or asteroid（小行星） so that it passes close by our planet and sends some of its gravitational energy to Earth.
“Earth’s orbital speed would increase as a result and we would move to a higher orbit away from the Sun,” Laughlin said.
Engineers would then direct their comet so that it passed close to Jupiter or Saturn. The comet would pick up energy from one of these giant planets. Later its orbit would bring it back to Earth, and the process would be repeated.
In the short term, the plan provides an ideal way to global warming, although the team was actually concerned with a much greater danger. The sun is certain to heat up in about a billion years and so “seriously compromise” our biosphere（生物圈）by cooking us.
That’s why the group decided to try to save Earth.
The plan has one or two worrying aspects, however. For a start, space engineers would have to be very careful about how they directed their asteroid or comet towards Earth. The smallest miscalculation（误算）in orbit could fire it straight at Earth—with deadly consequences.
There is also the question of the Moon. As the current issue of Scientific American magazine points out, if Earth was pushed out of its current position, it is “most likely the Moon would be stripped(剥去) away from Earth,” it states. This would greatly change our planet’s climate.What makes the scientists plan to move Earth?
| A．A few comets are moving to the direction of Earth. |
| B．Earth’s working life is coming to an end soon. |
| C．Earth will become too hot for mankind to keep alive. |
| D．The moon is moving farther and farther away from Earth. |
If the plan is successful, Earth will have a working life of ______ years.
| A．12 billion | B．6 billion |
| C．18 billion | D．24 billion |
What serious problems might the plan cause according to the passage?
| A．The comet might hit Earth and man might lose the moon. |
| B．Earth might be moved too far away and man might be frozen to death. |
| C．The comet might hit Jupiter or Saturn and never return to Earth. |
| D．Earth’s working life might be greatly shortened. |
What does the underlined word “compromise” mean?
| A．provide | B．benefit |
| C．share | D．Endanger |
Carmen Arace Middle School is situated in the town of Bloomfield，but four years ago it faced many of the same challenges as inner—city schools nearby：low scores in standardized tests and dropping enrollment（入学率）of students．Then the hard-driving headmaster, Delore Bolton，persuaded her school to shake up the place by buying a laptop computer for each student and teacher to use in school and at home．For good measure，the board provided wireless Internet access at school．Total cost :$5 million．
Now an hour before classes start，every seat in the library is taken by students eager to get online．The teacher talks about rocks as students view them at a colorful website，after school students on buses pull laptops from backpacks to get started on homework．Since the computers arrived，scores in state tests are up 35％and the enrollment increases by 20％．
Indeed，school systems in rural areas are eager to follow Carmen Arace Middle School’s example．Angus King，the state governor, has proposed using$50 million from an unexpected budget to supply computers for students．
However, the school is seeking federal grant money to expand the laptop program．In the meantime，most of the problems have been worked out．Some students use computers to visit unauthorized websites，but teachers have the ability to track where students have been and restrict them．“That is the worst when they disable you” says a boy．The habit is rubbing off on parents．“I taught my mom to use e-mail．”says the honorable girl．“And now she is taking computer classes．I’m so proud of her!’’By introducing the laptop program, Delore Bolton has .
| A．shaken the belief of both teachers and students |
| B．witnessed a remarkable improvement in students’ test scores and enrollment |
| C．spent more time visiting unauthorized websites with the laptop program |
| D．changed class-room teaching in public schools |
Students are limited when they get online because ．
| A．they view lessons at a colorful website |
| B．they will waste an awful lot of money |
| C．they visit unauthorized website sometimes |
| D．they are disabled students |
From the passage we learn that .
| A．the laptop program also has a positive influence on parents |
| B．the laptop program in urban schools is forbidden by parents |
| C．students only visit the school website in Carmen Arace Middle School |
| D．students generally like the idea of having their online activities tracked |
What is the passage mainly about?
| A．Middle schools are faced with challenges today. |
| B．A school with high enrollment can do well． |
| C．Computers are of importance in modern education． |
| D．Laptops can help improve students’ school performance． |
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