People in several American states may be surprised to see cars on city streets without a driver. Experimental driverless vehicles now are legal in Florida, Nevada and California. They are pointing the way to a future that is not far down the road. The high-tech company Google has a number of self-driving cars, which had covered 480,000 kilometers by August. Volvo is among the companies doing road tests and says it plans to sell driverless cars by 2020.
In September, California Governor Jerry Brown signed an act to allow autonomous vehicles on the roads of his state. “Today we’re looking at science fiction becoming tomorrow’s reality—the driverless car.” The technology for these cars includes cameras, radar and motion sensors. The systems have been improved through competitions sponsored by the US government agency DARPA. Engineer Richard Mason of the Rand Corporation helped design driverless vehicles for DARPA challenge races.
“Cars have become much more fuel-efficient, and new electronic features are making Hondas safer,” said Angie Nucci of Honda America. “A camera on the passenger-side mirror actually engaged on your guiding screen so you can safely change lanes.” Other safety features include warning systems on the front and the sides of the cars. These systems help drivers, but don’t replace them. Curator Leslie Kendall of the Petersen Automotive Museum said autonomous cars will make the high ways safer．
“By taking out drivers, you also remove most risks of an accident,” Kendall said. He said consumers, however, may be unwilling to lose control. “It may take them time to come to realize that the technology is indeed reliable, but it will have to prove itself first.”
Mason said the technology already works and the biggest challenge now is getting down the cost for driverless vehicles from hundreds of thousands of dollars to something more affordable. He said this will happen as the technology is improved.
1.What can we learn from Paragraph l?
A. Volvo will be the first to sell driverless cars.
B. Driverless cars are pointing us a faraway future.
C. Driverless vehicles are now legal in the whole USA.
D. Google’s self-driving cars have covered a long distance.
2.We learn that Governor of California Jerry Brown_________.
A. helped design self-driving cars
B. supports self-driving cars on roads
C. considers self-driving cars science fiction
D. improved the self-driving car systems
3.According to Richard Mason, what is the biggest challenge for driverless cars?
A. They are not allowed to run on the road.
B. Their technical problems remain to be solved.
C. They are now too expensive for consumers.
D. They are more dangerous for people on the street.
4.Which is the best title for the passage?
A. The Benefits of the Self-driving Cars
B. The Biggest Challenge of the Self-driving Cars
C. Safer or More Dangerous Self-driving Cars
D. Self-driving Cars—Science Fiction Future Is Near
A Southampton University team found that people who were vegetarians by 30 had recorded five IQ points higher on average at the age of 10. Researchers said it could explain why people with a higher IQ were healthier as a vegetarian diet was linked to lower heart disease and obesity rates. The study of 8,179 people was reported in the British Medical Journal.
Twenty years after the IQ tests were carried out in 1970, 366 of the participants said they were vegetarians — although more than 100 reported eating either fish or chicken.
Men who were vegetarians had an IQ score of 106, compared with 101 for non-vegetarians; while female vegetarians averaged 104, compared with 99 for non-vegetarians. There was no difference in the IQ scores, between strict vegetarians and those who said they were vegetarians but reported eating fish or chicken.
Researchers said the findings were partly related to better education and higher class, but it remained statistically significant after adjusting for these factors.
Vegetarians were more likely to be female, to be of higher social class and to have higher academic or vocational qualifications than non-vegetarians. However, these differences were not reflected in their annual income, which was similar to that of non-vegetarians.
Lead researcher Catharine Gale said, “The findings that children with greater intelligence are more likely to report being vegetarians as adults, together with the evidence on the potential benefits of a vegetarian diet on heart health, may help to explain why a higher IQ in childhood or adolescence is linked with a reduced risk of coronary heart disease in adult life.
But Dr Frankie Phillips of the British Dietetic Association said，“It is like the chicken and egg. Do people become vegetarians because they have a very high IQ or is it just that they are clever enough to be more aware of health issues？”
1.What’ s the result of the research mentioned in the text?
A. Children with a higher IQ are less likely to have heart disease later in life.
B. Intelligent children are more likely to become vegetarians later in life.
C. Intelligent children tend to belong to higher social class later in life.
D. Children with a healthier heart tend to have a higher IQ later in life.
2.It was found in the research that________.
A. most of the participants became vegetarians 20 years after the IQ tests were carried out
B. female vegetarians were more likely to have higher annual income than non-vegetarians
C. vegetarians who ate fish or chicken were of similar intelligence with strict vegetarians
D. vegetarians were more likely to have higher annual income than non-vegetarians
3.Catharine Gale talked about “being vegetarians” in a(n)________way.
A. doubtful B. favorable
C. negative D. objective
4.What’ s the best title for the text?
A. Get more IQ points!
B. Be a vegetarian, please!
C. A high IQ is linked to being a vegetarian
D. Vegetarian diet cuts heart risk
HOTEL INFORMATION
Baymont Inn Ft.Lauderdale
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Room Information
Rooms are equipped with Double, Queen , or King bed (s) , smoking or non-smoking based on location and availability. Provided in each spacious guest room is a hair dryer, coffee maker, iron, ironing board, 25’TV and guest voice mail．
Check-in Time：7:00 P. M.
Hotel Amenities：Air Conditioned, Free Parking, 24 Hour Front Desk, Pool, Television with Cable, Coffee Maker in Room, Hairdryers Available．
Beach Plaza Hotel
625 N．Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd, Ft．Lauderdale, FL 33304
Room Information
The oceanfront accommodations at Beach Plaza Hotel are some of the most affordable on Fort Lauderdale Beach．Each room features direct-dial telephone, cable television and daily maid service．The very affordable efficiency studios even include full kitchens! All rooms surround the private poolside garden courtyard．
Check-in Time：7:05 P. M.
Hotel Amenities：Air Conditioned, Coffee Maker in Room, 24 Hour Front Desk, Parking, Hairdryers Available, Pool, Television with Cable．
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Room Information
Guest rooms feature TVs, in-room movies, Internet access, in-room safes, alarm clock radios, hairdryers, refrigerators, microwaves, and balconies．
Check-in Time：7:00 A.M.
Hotel Amenities：Parking，Heated Pool, Television with Cable, and Coffee Maker in Room．
1.Which hotel gives a promise?
A．Beach Plaza Hotel． B．Baymont Inn Ft . Lauderdale．
C．Baymont Inn Hotel． D．Fort Lauderdale Plaza Hotel．
2.In which hotel parking is the cheapest?
A．Beach Plaza Hotel． B．Baymont Inn Ft . Lauderdale．
C．Baymont Inn Hotel． D．Fort Lauderdale Plaza Hotel．
3.If you ______ , you will probably go to Beach Plaza Hotel．
A．enjoy seeing films without leaving your hotel room
B．want to eat food cooked by yourself in the hotel
C．are fond of swimming in heated water
D．are a cigarette smoker
4.Which of the following is NOT true to the ads?
A．In Beach Plaza Hotel a 24-hour maid is available．
B．All of the three hotels provide television with cable．
C．You can keep your money in the room safe in Fort Lauderdale Plaza Hotel．
D．While staying in Fort Lauderdale Plaza Hotel, you can surf the Internet．
There has been an outpouring of love for a 23-year-old disabled woman whose dog was killed in front of her while a groomer(美容师) tried to trim(修剪) its claws.
Calls and e-mails came from as far away as the Upper Peninsula and Arizona as well as Oakland and Macomb counties, offering Laurie Crouch, who uses a wheelchair because of multiple sclerosis(硬化症), everything from dogs to money, such as that from Jason Daly of Roseville who said, “ I would like to buy her a new dog.”
A story about the death of Crouch’s pet, Gooch, was printed on the front page of Macomb Daily. Crouch said a man sat on the dog to trim its nails. Gooch died after one claw was trimmed.
Crouch yelled at the groomer to stop when she saw Gooch was struggling to breathe, but she said she was ignored. “If I could have walked, I would have put my hands on her and pulled her off my dog and physically stopped her, but I can’t do that.” Gooch was not a trained service animal, but naturally helped Crouch by picking up things for her.
“This case is absolute animal abuse(虐待),” Larry Obrecht, division manager of the Oakland County Animal Shelter in Auburn Hills, said.
People who read the story contacted Oakland Press to offer help. A message, from Rebecca Amett of Giggles N Wiggles Puppy Rescue, in Roseville, said, “We have puppies to donate … and want to help the young woman who lost her service dog.”
“When Gooch was with me, I was happy,” Crouch said, “I think I can be happy again but no animal can replace Gooch. There’s never going to be another Gooch out there but I think I will find a dog that can bring me joy again.”
1.What does the passage mainly tell us?
A. A disabled woman’s service dog.
B. A cruel groomer killed a disabled woman’s dog.
C. People’s love for a disabled woman who lost her dog.
D. Disabled woman loves to have the dog as company.
2. People called and emailed to .
A. offer help and care to Laurie Crouch.
B. give their angry voice to the groomer.
C. offer a cure for Crouch’s disease.
D. tell Crouch how to punish the groomer.
3.We can infer from the passage that .
A. Crouch refused to take another dog.
B. Crouch must be sad after losing her dog.
C. Crouch has accepted another dog from a stranger.
D. Crouch can live well without a dog’s company.
很多学生在考试中失败并不是因为他们的能力不够，而是因为压力太大。请根据你的亲身经历，谈谈你对压力的看法以及你应对压力的措施，词数120左右。
阅读下面短文并回答问题，然后将答案写到答题卡相应的位置上（请注意问题后的词数要求）。
【1】Sometime early in the next century, human beings will move into habitats on Mars. They will live there for about a year, and then will be replaced with another set of pioneers. The establishment of this base on Mars will advance our knowledge of the solar system and aid in our understanding of the earth.
【2】We already know that Mars is like the earth in many ways: general size; presence of water; length of day; range of temperatures. These similarities have caused many people to consider a century-long project: to terraform Mars. Terraforming means changing a planet’s surface so that Earth’s life forms can survive there. This concept, previously found only in science fiction is now being seriously considered by scientists.
【3】Terraforming Mars is theoretically simple: add nitrogen and oxygen to the atmosphere; pump water to the surface; and add the earth’s plants and animals in the order in which they developed on Earth. But it will take at least 300 years.
【4】Some people think that such a project is too huge for humans to accomplish, but there are very good reasons to make the attempt. The earth now contains some 7 billion people, and no one knows how many humans the earth can support. Our very existence and numbers are threatening many other species with extinction. We also have had some experience with terraforming our own planet: changing the landscape, the atmosphere and the climate. At present, we are aware of the importance of terraforming the earth as we try to control global warming, air and water pollution, and protect some natural habitats.
【5】While the future of such a project is daunting(令人生畏的), it is not impossible. Even if earth-bound societies come and go in the next 300 years, the project can continue through the work of the Mars settlers without the need for constant backing from earth.
【6】The future existence of humanity may very well depend on our ability to terraform Mars.
1.What’s the purpose of establishing a base on Mars in the 1st paragraph? ( not more than 12 words)
2.List three ways Mars is like the earth. ( not more than 9 words)
3.What’s the author’s attitude towards the project? (1 word)
4.What does the future existence of humanity most probably rely on? ( not more than 6 words)
5.What’s the main idea of this passage? (not more than 8 words)
