单选题{{B}}第二篇{{/B}}
{{B}}Sleep{{/B}} We all know that the normal human daily cycle
of activity is of some 7 - 8 hours' sleep alternating with some 16 - 17 hours'
wakefulness and that, broadly speaking, the sleep normally coincides with the
hours of darkness. Our present concern is with how easily and to what extent
this cycle can be modified. The question is no mere academic
one. The case, for example, with which people can change from working in the day
to working at night is a question of growing importance in industry where
automation calls insistently for round-the-clock working of machines. It
normally takes from five days to one week for a person to adapt to a reversed
routine of sleep and wakefulness, sleeping during the day and working at night.
Unfortunately, it is often the case in industry that shifts are changed every
week; a person may work from 12 midnight to 8 a.m. one week, 8 am to 4 pm the
next, and 4 pm to 12 midnight the third and so on. This means that no sooner has
he got used to one routine than he has to change to another, so that much of his
time is spent neither working nor sleeping very efficiently. One
answer would seem to be longer periods on each shift, a month, or even three
months. Recent research by Bonjer of the Netherlands, however, has shown that
people on such systems will revert to their normal habits of sleep and
wakefulness during the weekend and that this is quite enough to destroy any
adaptation to night work built up during the week. The only real
solution appears to be to hand over the night shift to a corps of permanent
night workers whose nocturnal wakefulness may persist through all weekends and
holidays. An interesting study of the domestic life and health of night-shift
workers was carried out by Brown. She found a high incidence of disturbed sleep,
digestive disorder and domestic disruption among those on alternating day and
night shifts, but no abnormal occurrence of these symptoms among those on
permanent night work.
单选题According to the passage, the writer of this article seems to be _______.
单选题They gave
on-the-spot
broadcast while the performance was in process on the stage.
单选题On the Net Friends Come and Go, Talking of... The young woman was visibly (51) and clearly wanted to get something off her chest. "What's up?" I (52) "I've just been defriended," she said. Now "defriended" is a word (53) ! am not familiar. ! have been befriended (54) and befriended--many people since arriving in Beijing. But defriended? It turns (55) this is a new word created by the Interact-savvy younger generation specifically in relation to the worldwide social networking phenomenon, Facebook. Those who join can invite friends to become members of the site, (56) . They can then share photographs, "chat", swap messages and observations and perform a host of other mutually accessible applications. I've seen some people's sites (57) hundreds of friends, all moments away down a fiber optic cable, providing they are logged on to their computers or hooked up to a high-spec cell phone, It creates the possibility of "befriending" anyone in the world who has online access. Currently, Facebook has 150 million users. That means there's a lot of "friends" out there. The (58) is that you can be "defriended"--you can be denied access to the Face, book site someone who had previously invited to be his or her friend. And you can do it without the potential for instant recrimination. Where once, in the school playground on child might have petulantly shouted (59) another, "I'm not going to be your fried any more" the same hurt and loss of face can be performed remotely with the chick of a button. A (60) aspect of "defriending" is that, unlike with other applications such as the "what are you thinking about?" posting a digital depository of the often dire, (61) , dull and desperate, no message is sent out alerting you or your contacts about the change m status. You only find out you have (62) when you try to visit a "friend's" site, and you find you can no longer get in the delay of the discovery is all too often doubly hurtful. Just as bombs are dispatched impersonally (63) an unseen enemy in modem warfare, (64) relationships are blown out of the window with the same callous disregard, without the risk of any face-to-face comeback. One second you arc there, (65) you are deleted.
单选题It is a poem that
celebrates
the joys of love.
单选题For young children, getting dressed is a
complicated
business.
单选题With the stop-motion process, many separate shots can be combined into a single image.
单选题Taxi Riding
In a moment of personal crisis, how much help can you expect from a New York taxi driver? I began studying this question after watching the "Taxicab Confessions", a series of documentaries in which hidden cameras record the secrets of unsuspecting taxi riders. I found the results varied.
One morning I got into three different taxis and announced: "Well, it"s my first day back in New York in seven years. I"ve been in prison. " Not a single driver replied, so I tried again. "Yeah, I shot a man in Reno," I explained, hoping the driver would ask me why, so I could say casually, "Just to watch him die. " But nobody asked. The only response came from a Ghanaian driver: "Reno? That is in Nevada?"
Taxi drivers were uniformly sympathetic when I said I"d just been fired. "This is America," a Haitian driver said. "One door is closed. Another is open. " He argued against my plan to burn clown my boss"s house: "If you do something silly and they put you away, you cannot look for another job." A Pakistani driver even turned down a chance to profit from my loss of hope : he refused to take me to the middle of the George Washington Bridge, a $20 trip. "Why do you want to go there? Go home and relax. Don"t worry. Take a new job. "
One very hot weekday in July, while wearing a red ski mask and holding a stuffed pillowcase with the word "BANK" on it, I tried hailing a taxi five times outside different banks. The driver picked me up every time. My ride with Guy-Caaude Thevenain, a Haitian driver, was typical of the superb assistance I received.
"Is anyone following us?"
"No," said the driver, looking in his rearview mirror at traffic and me.
"Let"s go across the park," I said, "I just robbed the bank there. I got $25,000. "
"$25,000?" he asked.
"Yeah, you think it was wrong to take it?"
"No, man, I work 8 hours and I don"t make almost $70. If I can do that, I do it too. "
As we approached 86th and Lexington, I pointed to the Chemical Bank.
"Hey, there"s another bank," I said, "could you wait here a minute while I go inside?"
"No, I can"t wait. Pay me now. " His reluctance may have had something to do with money—taxi drivers think the rate for waiting time is too low—but I think he wanted me to learn that even a bank robber can"t expect unconditional support.
单选题Who Wants to Live Forever? If your doctor could give you a drug that would let you live a healthy life for twice as long, would you take it? The good news is that we may be drawing near to that date. Scientists have already extended the lives of flies, worms and mice in laboratories. Many now think that using genetic treatments we will soon be able to extend human life to at least 140 years. This seems a great idea. Think of how much more time we could spend chasing our dreams, spending time with our loved ones, watching our families grow and have families of their own. "Longer life would give us a chance to recover from our mistakes and promote long term thinking," says Dr. Gregory Stock of the University of California School of Public Health. "It would also raise productivity by adding to the year we can work." Longer lives don't just affect the people who live them. They also affect society as a whole. "We have war, poverty, all sorts of issues around, and I don't think any of them would be at all helped by having people live longer," says US bioethicist Daniel Callahan. “The question is 'What will we get as a society?' I suspect it won't be a better society." It would certainly be a very different society. People are already finding it more difficult to stay married. Divorce rates are rising. What would happen to marriage in a society where people lived for 140 years? And what would happen to family life if nine or 10 generations of the same family were all alive at the same time? Research into ageing may enable women to remain fertile for longer. And that raises the prospect of having 100-year-old parents, or brothers and sisters born 50 years apart. We think of an elder sibling as someone, who can protect us and offer help and advice. That would be hard to do if that sibling came from a completely different generation. Working life would also be affected, especially if the retirement age was lifted. More people would stay in work for longer. That would give us the benefits of age, skill, wisdom and good judgment. On the other hand, more people working for longer would create greater competition for jobs. It would make it more difficult for younger people to find a job. Top posts would be dominated by the same few individuals, making career progress more difficult. And how easily would a 25-year-old employee be able to communicate with a 125-year-old boss? Young people would be a smaller part of a society in which people lived to 140. It may be that such a society would place less importance on guiding and educating young people, and more on making life comfortable for the old. And society would feel, very different if more of its members were older. There would be more wisdom, but less energy: Young people like to move about. Old people like to sit still. Young people tend to act without thinking. Old people tend to think without acting. Young people are curious and like to experience different things. Old people are less enthusiastic about change. In fact, they are less enthusiastic about everything. The effect of anti-ageing technology is deeper than we might think. But as the science advances, we need to think about these changes now. "If this could ever happen, then we'd better ask what kind of society we want to get," says Daniel Callahan. "We had better not go anywhere near it until we have figure those problems out./
单选题Britain"s Solo Sailor
Ellen MacArthur started sailing when she was eight, going out oil sailing trips with her aunt. She loved it so much that she saved her money for three years to buy her first small sailing boat. When she was 18, she sailed alone around Britain and won the "Young Sailor of the Year" award.
But Ellen really became famous in 2001. Aged only 24, she was one of only two women who entered the Vendee Globe round the world solo race, which lasts 100 days. Despite many problems, she came second in the race out of 24 competitors and she was given a very warm welcome when she returned.
Ambition and determination have always been a big part of Ellen"s personality. When she was younger, she lived in a kind of hut (棚屋) for three years while she was trying to get sponsorship to compete in a transatlantic race. Then she took a one-way ticked to France, bought a tiny seven meter Class Mini yacht, slept under it while she was repairing it, and then she raced it 4,000 kilometers across the Atlantic in 1997, alone for 33 days.
Ellen has had to learn many things, because sailing single-handed means that she has to be her own captain, electrician, sail maker, engineer, doctor, journalist, cameraman and cook. She also has to be very fit, and because of the dangers of sleeping for long periods of time when she"s in the middle of the ocean. She has trained herself to sleep for about 20 minutes at a time.
And she needs courage. Once, in the middle of the ocean, she had to climb the mast (桅杆) of a boat to repair the sails-at four o"clock in the morning, with 100 kph winds blowing around her. It took her many hours to make the repairs. Ellen says: "I was exhausted when I came down. It"s hard to describe how it feels to be up there. It"s like trying to hold onto a big pole, which for me is just too big to get my arms around, with someone kicking you all the time and trying to shake you off."
But in her diary, Ellen also describes moments which make it all worthwhile (值得的): "A beautiful sunrise started the day, with black clouds slowly lit by the bright yellow sun. I have a very strong feeling of pleasure, being out here on the ocean and having the chance to live this. I just feel lucky to be here."
单选题His Own Way to Express Love
Yesterday was our three—year anniversary. We didn"t do anything romantic; we just walked hand in hand and talked about our past and the future. This was pretty much what I had expected.
Andy is an unromantic guy: no sweet words or roses. Smart as he is, he is a little bit shy expressing his love. In contrast, I am an outspoken (直言不讳) girl who likes to show her feelings directly. So needless to say, I often feel that he is insensitive. I envy other girls who are surrounded by sweet words.
I was in this sullen mood until I heard a beautiful sentence one day: "If one does not love you in the way you like, it does not mean that he does not love you." This simple but sensible sentence made me think about our happy days and recall his deep concern for me.
One cold winter night, I got a high fever. He hurried to my dormitory and took me to the hospital. He was in such a hurry that he even forgot to wear socks. After arrival, he ran through the hospital handling all the formalities (手续). When I was put on a drip (点滴), he told me interesting stories to make me happy. Being held in his warm arms and listening to his tender (温柔的) voice, I had never felt so safe and comfortable. Gradually, I fell asleep. When I woke up 15 minutes later, he was still mumbling (咕哝地说) to me. He explained that if he had stopped talking I would have woken up. At that moment, I found love in his eyes.
Another time, I had a bad quarrel with my best friend. Although I knew it was my fault, I refused to admit it. I was angry when he insisted I apologize to her. He said that it was difficult to admit a mistake, but this was what everyone should do. The next morning, I apologized to my friend and asked for her forgiveness.
My unromantic boyfriend cares about my health like my father, understands me like my mother and helps me like my elder brother.
单选题The sea was calm and still.A. quiteB. quietC. yetD. rough
单选题He has a very outgoing Upersonality/U and makes Mends very easily.
单选题I {{U}}seldom{{/U}} watch TV.
A. rarely
B. frequently
C. normally
D. occasionally
单选题She was sent a box of chocolates along with a letter saying she was Ufired/U.
单选题Technology Transfer in Germany When it comes to translating basic research into industrial success, few nations can match Germany. Since the 1940s, the nation's vast industrial base has been fed with a constant stream of new ideas and expertise from science. And though German prosperity (繁荣) has faltered (衰退) over the past decade because of the huge cost of unifying east and west as well as the global economic decline, it still has an enviable record for turning ideas into profit. Much of the reason for that success is the Fraunhofer Society, a network of research institutes that exists solely to solve industrial problems and create sought-after technologies. But today the Fraunhofer institutes have competition. Universities are taking an ever larger role in technology transfer, and technology parks are springing up all over. These efforts are being complemented by the federal programmes for pumping money into start-up companies. Such a strategy may sound like a recipe for economic success, but it is not without its critics. These people worry that favouring applied research will mean neglecting basic science, eventually starving industry of fresh ideas. If every scientist starts thinking like an entrepreneur (企业家), the argument goes, then the traditional principles of university research being curiosity-driven, free and widely available will suffer. Others claim that many of the programmes to promote technology transfer are a waste of money because half the small businesses that are promoted are bound to go bankrupt within a few years. While this debate continues, new ideas flow at a steady rate from Germany's research networks, which bear famous names such as Helmholtz, Max Planck and Leibniz. Yet it is the fourth network, the Fraunhofer Society, that plays the greatest role in technology transfer. Founded in 1949, the Fraunhofer Society is now Europe's largest organisation for applied technology, and has 59 institutes employing 12, 000 people. It continues to grow. Last year, it swallowed up the Heinrich Hertz Institute for Communication Technology in Berlin. Today, there are even Fraunhofers in the U. S. and Asia.
单选题The English first attempted to settle in Maine at the {{U}}mouth{{/U}} of the Kennebec River in 1607.
单选题I like George; he is so down-to-earth.A. practicalB. friendlyC. amusingD. honest
单选题It is said that Joe comes from a wealthy family.A. poorB. largeC. richD. happy
单选题{{B}}第二篇{{/B}}
{{B}}Shrinking Water Supply Poses Threat
to Peace{{/B}} "Water, which is essential for life, costs nothing.
On the other hand, diamonds, which are essential for nothing, cost a lot."
Unfortunately, the world has changed considerably since an 18th century
economist made this remark. What was true over 200 years ago is
certainly no longer true now, in a number of countries people pay as much for
water in their homes as they do for electricity. Like health, we
ignore water when we have it — unless there are floods, of course. Once there is
a threat to our water supply, however, water can quickly become the only thing
that matters. We know only too well that, without water, there can be no
life. The situation is now becoming so bad that environmentalist
feel it may be necessary to shock the world into saving water in a similar way
to the shock caused by the oil crises in the 1970s. At that
time, the oil crisis became such a serious threat to the lives of everyone in
the developed countries that it made people conscious of the importance of
saving oil and provided powerful encouragement for governments to look for other
forms of energy. The result undoubtedly was of major benefit to
energy conservation. There is now no longer and unlimited supply
of fresh water. About 97 per cent of the planet's water is seawater. Another 2
per cent is locked in icecaps and glaciers. There are also reserves of fresh
water under the earth's surface but these are too deep for us to use
economically. Unfortunately, competition is growing fiercely for
what little water is available. It may be a matter of time before that
competition becomes a conflict. To make matters worse, the
world's population is increasing so rapidly that it is expected to grow to about
8 billion in 30 years — an increase of 60 per cent. Moreover, in
many developed countries throughout the would, flush lavatories and washing
machines mean the average person now uses 300 litres of water a day compared
with 50 at the beginning of the century. At the other extreme,
according to the World Health Organization, one qu0rter of the world's
population still lacks safe drinking water and proper sanitation. Most live in
the southern hemisphere, where supplies of fresh water are put in jeopardy
through dirty industrial practices, poor irrigation and erosion.
The social stability of the world is no longer threatened by global wars,
the Cold War, ... However, the supply of water could soon become the chief
threat to such stability. There is already evidence of this happening,
especially in Africa. Recently the Egyptian Government
threatened 'to destroy any dams built on the Nile if they considered the dams
would affect their supply of fresh water. What is required
immediately is an awareness of the true value of water and the formation of
sensible water conservation strategies. It is also of vital
importance to have a consensus on how best to use shared Water resources for the
benefit of all the countries in the world as well as an examination of the best
methods for the distribution of the world's
water.