Robots that can chat，find misplaced glasses，draw aeroplanes and play with your children are drawing thousands of visitors’ attention during an expo in Tokyo as Japan adapts to changes in society.
Robots，such as the soundsensitive Chapit，answer simple questions and even joke with people to help the lonely fight loneliness and stay active in old age.
“Many older people in Japan live alone and have no one to talk to，” said Kazuya Kitamura，a representative of the expo organizer.“Communication robots accompany people and don’t mind listening to the same stories over and over again.”
While Chapit，a relatively simple robot，managed to allure a corporate partner，many researchers，such as Kiyoshi Matsumoto，a professor at the University of Tokyo，struggle to interest sponsors for more expensive projects.
Matsumoto’s “Personal Mobility Robot”，equipped with four cameras and a sensor to recognize the user’s centre of gravity，is designed to help the elderly move around without pressing buttons，using joysticks(操纵杆) or rotating(转动) wheels as in traditional wheelchairs.
The robot can also help find misplaced glasses by identifying them with a sensor.
“We have developed a robot that can assist many people，but because of the high cost，we still haven’t found a sponsor，”said Matsumoto，who added that the cost of the machine，if massproduced，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.
Other robots，such as the awardwinning “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 their parents work.
Japan has one of the world’s fastestageing societies and the government predicts that by 2050 the proportion of people over 65 will reach 40 percent.
1.The underlined word “allure” in Paragraph 4 can be replaced by ________.
A．strike B．exclude
C．connect D．attract
2.Personal Mobility Robot can help people ________.
A．find misplaced glasses
B．move around with pressing buttons
C．use joysticks
D．rotate wheels
3.It is difficult to find sponsors for the 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
4.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
In a Chinese modern dance competition on TV one very unique couple won one of the top prizes.The lady，in her thirties，was a dancer who had ____ since she was a little girl.Later in life，she lost her entire left arm in an accident and fell into a state of ____ for a few years.
Someone then asked her to coach a children’s dancing group.From that point on，she realized that she could not ____ dancing.So，she started to do some of her old routines，but，having lost her arm，she had also lost her ___.It took a while before she could even make simple turns and spins without ____.
Then a few months later she ____ a man in his twenties who had lost a leg in an accident.She was determined to find him and ____ him to dance with her.He had never danced.And to dance with one leg...He said，“Are you ____ with me？No way！”
But，she didn’t ____，and he agreed to think about it.“I have nothing else to do anyway，” he thought.Then she started to ____ him dancing.The two ____ a few times because he had no concept of using muscle，how to ___ his body，and knew none of the ____ things about dancing.When she became ____ and lost patience with him，he would walk out.____，they came back together and started training ____.
They hired a choreographer(舞蹈指导) to ___ routines for them.She would fly high (held by him) with both arms (a sleeve for an arm) flying in the air.He could bend ____ by one leg with her leaning(倚靠) on him，etc.
When I watched this I didn’t ____ realize that she was missing an arm ___ I was focusing on the guy with only one leg.Really quite amazing!
1.A.operated B．played
C．trained D．competed
2.A.relief B．depression
C．confusion D．recovery
3.A.learn B．understand
C．forget D．face
4.A.chance B．balance
C．advantage D．promise
5.A.following B．checking
C．noticing D．falling
6.A.heard of B．searched for
C．came across D．waited for
7.A.require B．allow
C．lead D．persuade
8.A.arguing B．joking
C．discussing D．agreeing
9.A.carry on B．give up
C．settle down D．set off
10.A.teach B．show
C．leave D．watch
11.A.broke up B．gave in
C．put off D．returned back
12.A.change B．present
C．improve D．control
13.A.important B．interesting
C．basic D．special
14.A.excited B．annoyed
C．moved D．shocked
15.A.Unfortunately B．Eventually
C．Generally D．Jokingly
16.A.seriously B．differently
C．publicly D．gradually
17.A.discover B．arrange
C．perform D．design
18.A.raised B．kept
C．supported D．carried
19.A.still B．hardly
C．nearly D．even
20.A.because B．if
C．before D．though
Almost every machine with moving parts has wheels，yet no one knows exactly when the first wheel was invented or what it was used for.We do know，however，that they existed over 5,500 years ago in ancient Asia.
The oldest known transport wheel was discovered in 2002 in Slovenia.It is over 5,100 years old.Evidence suggests that wheels for transport didn’t become popular for a while，though.This could be because animals did a perfectly good job of carrying farming tools and humans around.
But it could also be because of a difficult situation.While wheels need to roll on smooth surfaces，roads with smooth surfaces weren’t going to be constructed until there was plenty of demand for them.Eventually，road surfaces did become smoother，but this difficult situation appeared again a few centuries later.There had been no important changes in wheel and vehicle design before the arrival of modern road design.
In the mid1700s，a Frenchman came up with a new design of road—a base layer(层) of large stones covered with a thin layer of smaller stones.A Scotsman improved on this design in the 1820s and a strong，lasting road surface became a reality.At around the same time，metal hubs (the central part of a wheel)came into being，followed by the pneumatic tyre(充气轮胎) in 1846.Alloy wheels were invented in 1967，sixty years after the appearance of tarmacked roads(柏油路)．As wheel design took off，vehicles got faster and faster. (2013·重庆，C)
1.What might explain why transport wheels didn’t become popular for some time?
A．Few knew how to use transport wheels.
B．Humans carried farming tools just as well.
C．Animals were a good means of transport.
D．The existence of transport wheels was not known.
2. What do we know about road design from the passage?
A．It was easier than wheel design.
B．It improved after big changes in vehicle design.
C．It was promoted by fastmoving vehicles.
D．It provided conditions for wheel design to develop.
3. How is the last paragraph mainly developed?
A．By giving examples.
B．By making comparisons.
C．By following time order.
D．By making classifications.
4. What is the passage mainly about?
A．The beginning of road design.
B．The development of transport wheels.
C．The history of public transport.
D．The invention of fastmoving vehicles.
The inventor of the world wide web，Tim BernersLee，has won an important award which comes with a prize bag of one million euros (￡671,000)．The “Father of the Web” was named as the first winner of the Millennium Technology Prize by the Finnish Technology Award Foundation.He said he had just been “in the right place at the right time” and did not want his photo taken.
In 1991，he came up with a system to organize，link and browse(浏览) Net pages which revolutionized the Internet.The British scientist was knighted(封爵) for his pioneering work in 2003.
Sir Tim created his program while he was at the particle physics institute，Cern，in Geneva.The computer code he came up with let scientists easily share research findings across a computer network.In the early 1990s，it was called the “world wide web，” and is still the basis of the web as we know it.
The famous man never went on to commercialize his work.Instead he worked on expanding the use of the Net as a channel for free expression and cooperation.
“The web is encouraging new types of social networks and opening up new ways for information management and business development.The web has significantly improved many people’s ability to obtain information central to their lives，”said Pekka Tarjanne，chairman of the Millennium Technology Prize award committee.
Just under 80 people from 22 countries were nominated(提名) for the prize for their work in the areas of health，communication，new materials and the environment.
The Millennium Technology Prize was set up by the Finnish Technology Award Foundation，an independent body backed by the public and private money which aims to recognize outstanding creations.
Sir Tim currently heads up the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston，where he is now based as an academic.
1.It can be learned from the first two paragraphs that ________.
A．it is Tim BernersLee that invented the Internet
B．no one was able to surf the Net before the world wide web was invented
C．the Internet can’t be used so widely without Tim BernersLee’s invention
D．the Millennium Technology Prize was set up for Tim BernersLee
2.After inventing the world wide web，Tim BernersLee ________.
A．became the first person to receive the Millennium Technology Prize
B．became the first person to be knighted by the Queen of England
C．began to cooperate with many scientists in other areas
D．was given over one million pounds for his great contribution
3.Which of the following best describes Tim BernersLee?
A．Optimistic. B．Modest.
C．Ambitious. D．Careful.
4.What would be the best title for the text?
A．The Millennium Technology Prize
B．Tim BernersLee
C．The World Wide Web
D．New Honor for the Web’s Inventor
Maybe you love them and want to pet every one you see.Or maybe you’re afraid of them and want to move to a dogfree neighborhood.Either way，dogs are a part of life.Millions of people have dogs as pets.You’ll see them all over town，in the city，country，and even when you’re on vacation.
Like many kinds of pets—no matter how small or cute they are—dogs need to be respected as animals that，under certain conditions，could hurt you.Nearly 5 million dog bites happen every year in the United States.No one wants a dog bite，but how do you prevent one?
One dog expert has come up with an easy way for kids to remember some tips to prevent dog bites.It spells “DOG SAFE”．
Don’t tease，please：Teasing a dog can make it angry enough to bite.For instance，if a dog has food or a toy，never try to take it away.You wouldn’t like it if someone took your snack(点心) while you were eating it!
Only pet with permission：Never pet a dog without asking the owner if it’s OK.Some dogs don’t like to be touched by strangers.
Give space：Little kids especially might run right up to a lovely dog and try to pet it or give it a hug.But dogs need space.Crowding a dog can frighten or anger the dog.
Slow down：Some dogs like to chase(追逐) and bite.Of course，you don’t want to be chased or bitten！The way to avoid it is to go slow around dogs.Never run toward them or away from them.If a dog you don’t know runs toward you，freeze.If you need to get away，back up slowly.
Always get help：You may want to bring home a dog that seems lost or injured.But animals who are lost or injured may be very frightened or in pain.Find a grownup instead who can decide how to care for the animal.
Fingers together：When feeding a dog a treat，put the treat in the palm of your hand and keep your fingers and thumb close together.Why？The dog is less likely to get confused about which is the treat—the doggie snack or your finger!
Even good dogs can bite：Some people are very surprised when their dog bites someone，but all dogs can bite.Avoid doing things that make dogs scared or angry，such as backing them into a corner or bothering them when they are sleeping.
1.The purpose of the text is to ________.
A．help kids avoid being bitten by dogs
B．show methods of feeding dogs
C．warn dog owners of danger
D．warn kids to keep away from dogs
2.You won’t make a dog angry if ________.
A．you let it alone while it is eating
B．you pretend to take its food away
C．you exchange toys with it
D．you play together with it
3.Which of the following is TRUE according to the text?
A．The owner will be angry if you pet his or her dog.
B．Dogs don’t like to play with people they are familiar with.
C．A dog may rush up to a kid happily when a kid runs straight to it.
D．You can’t pet a dog unless its owner allows you to.
4.Seeing a dog running after you，you’d better ______.
A．escape quickly
B．hide in a safe place
C．slow down or just stop
D．turn to the owner
I’ve always had strong opinions of how love should be expressed，but others had their own ways of showing care.
What I ___ most about visiting my boyfriend’s parents is the loud tick of the clock in the dining room as we ____ ate our meal.With so little conversation I was quick to ____ his family as cold.When we got into the ____ to go home，his father suddenly appeared.___，he began to wash his son’s windscreen.I could feel he is a caring man through the glass.
I learned another lesson about love a few years later.My father often ____ me early in the morning.“Buy Xerox.It’s a good sharp price，” he might say when I answered the phone.No pleasant ___ or inquiry about my life，just financial instructions.This manner of his ___ me and we often quarreled.But one day，I thought about my father’s success in business and realized that his concern for my financial security lay behind his ____ morning calls.The next time he called and told me to buy a stock，I ____ him.
When my social style has conflicted with that of my friends，I’ve often felt ___.For example，I always return phone calls ____ and regularly contact my friends.I expect the same from them.I had one friend who rarely called，answering my messages with short emails.I rushed to the ____：She wasn’t a good friend！My anger ____ as the holidays approached.But then she came to a gathering I ____ and handed me a beautiful dress I had fallen in love with when we did some windowshopping the previous month.I was ____ at her thoughtfulness，and regretful for how I’d considered her to be ____.Clearly I needed to change my expectations of friends.
Far too often，I ignored their ____ expressions，eagerly expecting them to do things in my ____.Over the years，however，I’ve learned to ____ other persons’ love signs.
1.A.remember B．enjoy
C．value D．admire
2.A.excitedly B．nervously
C．silently D．instantly
3.A.regard B．treat
C．find D．think
4.A.bus B．train
C．car D．plane
5.A.Punctually B．Carefully
C．Proudly D．Coldly
6.A.visited B．interrupted
C．warned D．telephoned
7.A.greeting B．meeting
C．apology D．explanation
8.A.interested B．angered
C．encouraged D．surprised
9.A.long B．short
C．warm D．polite
10.A.praised B．remembered
C．blamed D．thanked
11.．A.content B．guilty
C．curious D．disappointed
12.A.in order B．in turn
C．without delay D．without difficulty
13.A.feeling B．suggestion
C．judgment D．belief
14.A.disappeared B．grew
C．helped D．declined
15.A.opened B．refused
C．hosted D．invited
16.A.depressed B．upset
C．fascinated D．shocked
17.A.uncaring B．dishonest
C．unhappy D．discouraged
18.A.unique B．common
C．pleasant D．familiar
19.A.opinion B．way
C．mind D．life
20.A.send B．read
C．give D．express
