Imagine you’re at a party full of strangers. You’re nervous. Who are these people? How do you start a conversation? Fortunately, you’ve got a thing that sends out energy at tiny chips in everyone’s name tag. The chips send back name, job, hobbies, and the time available for meeting-whatever. Making new friends becomes simple.
This hasn’t quite happened in real life. But the world is already experiencing a revolution using RFID technology.
An RFID tag with a tiny chip can be fixed in a product, under your pet’s skin, even under your own skin. Passive RFID tags have no energy source-batteries because they do not need it. The energy comes from the reader, a scanning device, that sends out energy (for example, radio waves) that starts up the tag immediately.
Such a tag carries information specific to that object, and the data can be updated. Already, RFID technology is used for recognizing each car or truck on the road and it might appear in your passport. Doctors can put a tiny chip under the skin that will help locate and obtain a patient’s medical records. At a nightclub in Paris or in New York the same chip gets you into the VIP (very important person) section and pays for the bill with the wave of an arm.
Take a step back:10 or 12 years ago, you would have heard about the coming age of computing. One example always seemed to surface: Your refrigerator would know when you needed to buy more milk. The concept was that computer chips could be put everywhere and send information in a smart network that would make ordinary life simpler.
RFID tags are a small part of this phenomenon. “The world is going to be a loosely coupled set of individual small devices, connected wirelessly,” predicts Dr.J.Reich. Human right supporters are nervous about the possibilities of such technology. It goes too far tracking school kids through RFID tags, they say. We imagine a world in which a beer company could find out not only when you bought a beer but also when you drank it. And how many beers. Accompanied by how many biscuits.
When Marconi invented radio, he thought it would be used for ship-to-shore communication, not for pop music. Who knows how RFID and related technologies will be used in the future. Here’s a wild guess: Not for buying milk.
1.The article is intended to .
A. warn people of the possible risks in adopting RFID technology
B. explain the benefits brought about by RFID technology
C. convince people of the uses of RFID technology
D. predict the applications of RFID technology
2.We know from the passage that with the help of RFID tags, people .
A. will have no trouble getting data about others
B. will have more energy for conversation
C. will have more time to make friends
D. won’t feel shy at parties any longer
3.Passive RFID tags chiefly consist of .
A. scanning devices B. radio waves
C. batteries D. chips
4.Why are some people worried about RFID technology?
A. Because children will be tracked by strangers.
B. Because market competition will become more fierce.
C. Because their private lives will be greatly affected.
D. Because customers will be forced to buy more products.
5.The last paragraph implies that RFID technology .
A. will not be used for such matters as buying milk
B. will be widely used, including for buying milk
C. will be limited to communication uses
D. will probably be used for pop music
This is a dangerous world we live in. The number of murders goes up every year, people are dying of cancer, more people contract HIV, more teens are using drugs, ect. You know this because you’ve heard all the statistics on the news and in the paper. But do you really have an accurate idea what they mean? The numbers are going up, but how do they compare to the growth in population? Are more cases of these diseases being reported because of better testing techniques, or are the diseases more common? The fact is that without knowing the background statistics mean very little.
This growing trend of reporting only part of the information is becoming dangerous. For example, several years ago a high school student reported the dangers of the chemical known as dihydrogen monoxide. This chemical, found in most cancerous tumors, is often found in the blood of people drunk on alcohol, and causes complete physical and mental dependence for those who take the chemical even once. After reading his report, more than 75% of his Advanced Placement Chemistry class voted to forbid this dangerous chemical! Every one of the above statement is true, yet this chemical is necessary to all life on earth. The students made a mistake because they voted knowing only a few statements and statistics, rather than the chemical’s full background.
The point of this article is that one should be aware of what is and is not being said. When one finds a new fact or number, one should try to consider other important information before forming an opinion with only half-truths. Always remember that the author is trying to convince you of his or her own view, and will leave our information that is different from his view. For example, look again at the statistics that suggest skiing is safe. Only 32 people die each year when skiing, while 897 die from lightening strikes, but which is really more dangerous? If you think more about it, you will realize far fewer people go skiing each year than the number of people in danger of a lightning strike. When you think about it again, skiing is more dangerous than you might at first think when looking at the statistics. If we teenagers are to be left in this world, we had better be able to think critically, and form our own views, rather than be easily persuaded by another’s. To be warned is just to be prepared.
1.What’s the author’s attitude towards the growing trend of reporting only part of the
information?
A. Disapproving B. Positive C. Indifferent D. Dangerous
2.In the first paragraph, what does the writer suggest?
A. We are now living in a dangerous world.
B. We get a lot of false statistics from the media.
C. There are around us more and more murders diseases, ect.
D. Statistics alone without full background don’t give us an accurate picture of things.
3.What’s the purpose of the writer’s using the two examples in the second paragraph?
A. To argue that high school students are easily persuaded.
B. To prove what is necessary to us might be dangerous.
C. To show the danger of reporting only part of the information.
D. To warn us of the harmful substance around us.
4.Relative information is often left out because ___________________.
A. it is not important
B. the author is trying to show what he or she says is true
C. readers will consider other important information
D. readers are able to form an opinion with half-truths
5.What can we learn from the passage?
A. Some measures must be taken to protect our dangerous world.
B. The growing trend of reporting only half-truths is getting out of control.
C. Teenagers ought to improve their ability of telling right from wrong.
D. We should learn to think critically and look at problems from all sides.
For new countries joining the European Union, and older ones getting used to their dark red passport, becoming “Europeans” is a bit like marrying a large and strange family.
Europeans have a lot in common but it is their differences, not their similarities, that attract the attention of sociologies and market researchers, and are more interesting
35% of
Germans live alone, but only 9% of Spaniards. Perhaps this explains why
Spaniards lead Europe in the habit of going out for a drink.
The British
attend more adult evening classes than anyone else in Europe, and the Belgians
least. So it can’t just be the dark evenings. There are no figures on how
many Britons go for a drink afterwards. If there were, they might be up at the
top with Spain.
The British
think black cats are lucky. Every other European country regards them unlucky.
The French are
the most athletic Europeans. Next come the Dutch. But the Belgians, just over
the border, play fewest sports.
The Germans
spend twice as much on heating as the Spaniards. Well, of course they do, it’s colder.
Dutch husbands
do the household shopping a lot more often than Italians or Spaniards.
The French are
the champion public transport commuters(经常往返者)of Europe. If you hate commuting, go and live in the Netherlands, where journeys to work are shorter than anywhere else.
The amount of
direct eye-contact between strangers is three times greater among Spaniards
than it is among the British or Swedes. So, sharing a lift is a torture for
both the British and the Swedish.
There are exceptions to all these rules. Deal with them in the spirit of my 8-year-old daughter. “If you don’t understand each other’s language, just laugh a lot and eat and point at things.”
1.We can know from this passage that______________.
A. sociologist are most interested in the idea of European Union
B. most European countries are not willing to join the European Union
C. Europeans have more differences than similarities
D. trade opportunities exit in the cultural differences in the European Union
2.If you work and live in Belgium, you will______________.
A. have to change your living places often
B. not get used to its cold weather
C. seldom sees people playing sports
D. be invited to go for a drink frequently
3.The underlined sentence means that the British and Swedish _________________.
A. care about their safety most B. like to appear gentle and smart
C. hate to look at each other face to face D. enjoy a richer life than others
4.Which of the following statements is TRUE about Spain?
A. Spaniards hate direct eye-contact between strangers.
B. Spaniards like to go for a drink after dark.
C. Spaniards spend twice as much on heating as the Germans.
D. In Spain, husbands do more household shopping than those in Italy.
5.In the last paragraph, the author wants to express his idea that ______________.
A. his daughter knows well how to understand foreigners in unfamiliar situations
B. Europeans actually share the same culture even if they have different languages
C. being a European, you will have no living trouble at all in the European Union
D. there are differences between European countries, but don’t take them too
seriously
Directions：For each blank in the following passage there are four words of phrases marked with A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with a word that best fits the context.
As the pace of life continues to increase, we are fast losing the art of relaxation. Once you are in the habit of rushing through life, being on the go from morning till night, it is hard to 1down. But moderate relaxation is necessary for a healthy mind and body. 007
Stress is a 2part of everyday life and there is no way to 3it. In fact, it is not the bad thing that it is often supposed to be. A certain amount of stress is important to provide motivation and give 4to life. It is only when the stress gets out of control that it can lead to poor performance and ill health.
The amount of stress a person can bear 5very much on the individual. Some people are not afraid of stress, and such 6are obviously chief material for managerial responsibilities. Others lose heart at first 7of unusual difficulties. When exposed to stress, in whatever form, we react both chemically and physically. In fact we make a choice between 8and fight. And in more ancient days the choices made the 9between life and death. The crises we meet today are unlikely to be so extreme, but however little the stress, it requires the same response. It is when such a reaction 10long, through continued exposure to stress, that health becomes _ 11. Such serious conditions as high blood pressure and heart diseases have 12links with stress. Since we cannot remove stress from our lives we need to find ways to deal with it. It would be unwise to do so even if we could.
So what do you think of stress? What is your way to deal with it?
13A. turn B. get C. calm D. slow
14A. terrible B. hard C. natural D. physical
15A. accept B. avoid C. solve D. tolerate
16A. instruction B. influence C. resource D. purpose
1.A. spends B. calls C. depends D. insists
2.A. characters B. situations C. personalities D. patterns
3.A. impression B. sight C. view D. glance
4.A. heaviness B. pressure C. fright D. peace
5.A. choice B. difference C. promise D. decision
6.A. lasts B. stands C. lives D. continues
7.A. changeable B. endangered C. injured D. balanced
8.A. developed B. found C. achieved D. established
Directions: Complete the following passage by using ONE word that best fits the context.
US President Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize on October 9 for 9.calls to reduce the world’s nuclear weapons and work 10.world peace.
Since taking office in January as the 11.African American president, Obama has called for the cutting of nuclear weapons and worked to restart the Middle East peace process.
The prize, 12.$ 1.4 million, will be handed over to Obama in Norway on December 10. Obama will also get a gold medal and a diploma.
The Nobel Committee said it attached special importance to Obama’s work for a world 13.nuclear weapons.
“Only very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama attracted the world’s 14.and given its people hope for 15.better future,” the Nobel Committee said.
16.people had guessed Obama might be the winner before the award, many Nobel watchers believed it was too early to award the president.
What the remote areas need most _______ education to children and what the children need ________ good textbooks at the moment.
A. is; are B. are; is C. was; were D. were; was
---- What should I do with this passage?
---- ______ the main idea of each paragraph.
A. Finding out B. Found out C. Find out D. To find out
