Britain is set to face an increase in cold winters, with up to oneinseven hitting the UK with
longer periods of time when temperatures are below freezing, a study has suggested.The
prediction was based on research that found out how low solar activity affected winter weather
patterns.
     However, the researchers were eager to stress that their findings did not suggest that the
region was about to fall suddenly into a "little ice age"．The findings appear in the journal
Environmental Research Letters."We could get to the point where oneinseven winters are very cold, as we had at the start of last winter and all through the winter before last."said coauthor
Mike Lockwood, professor of space environment physics at the University of Reading.
Using the Central England Temperature (CET) record, the world's longest instrumental data
series that dates back to 1659,the team said that in general temperatures during recent winters
had been obviously lower than the longerterm temperatures."The mean CET for December,
January and February for the recent relatively cold winters of 2008～2009 and 2009～2010
were 3.50℃ and 2.53℃ respectively," they wrote."However, the mean value for the previous 20 winters had been 5.04℃.The series of lower winter temperatures in the UK during the last three years had raised questions about the probability of more similar, or even colder winters
occurring in the future."
     Last year Professor Lockwood and colleagues published a paper that found a link between
fewer sunspots and atmospheric conditions that "blocked" warm westerly winds reaching
Europe during winter months, opening the way for cold easterly winds from the Arctic and
Russia to sweep across the region.Professor Lockwood, while acknowledging that there were a
range of possible meteorological factors (氣象因素) that could influence blocking events, said
the latest study moved things forward by showing that there was "improvement in the predictive skill" when solar activity was taken into consideration.

1. We can know from the second paragraph that ________.

A. research shows that Britain will soon fall into an ice age
B. Mike Lockwood's research focuses on space environment physics
C. it was quite cold in Britain over the entire winter last year
D. so far oneinseven winters have been very cold in Britain

2. The underlined word "mean" in Paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to "________"．

A. average  
B. stable
C. ungenerous  
D. changeable

3. What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A. It was sunspots that blocked warm westerly winds reaching Europe.
B. Meteorological factors hardly have any influence on blocking events.
C. The latest study done by Professor Lockwood was of little practical value.
D. Considering solar activity or not affects the accuracy of weather forecasting.

4. What's the best title of the passage?

A. Another Big Danger Approaching the UK
B. Research Finds out Solar Activity Is to Blame for the Cold
C. UK Faces More Cold Winters Due to Weaker Solar Activity
D. Changes in Weather Patterns Should Be Responsible for Low solar Activity

     What if you arrived home to find a delicious hot meal waiting for you, prepared by your very own kitchen
robot? It might sound like science fiction, but professors at the university of Tokyo have taken the first steps
toward making that scenario a reality. The team recently introduced a humanoid kitchen robot that can pour
tea and other drinks into cups and serve them to guests. When teatime is over, the robot can also wash the
dishes and put them away.
     In California, another interesting kitchen robot has been developed. Called the Readybot, it can pick up
objects and either store them in cabinets or put them in the trash. It also carries a separate floor-cleaning robot
that can operate by itself. Unlike the Japanese robot, Readybot is not humanoid. Instead, it looks more like a
large box with arms and wheels.
     Readybot was created by engineers and designers who established a club called the Readybot Challenge.
They believe that in the future millions of robots will be needed in homes to perform ordinary household tasks.
Readybot is just the first step in their plan to create a robot that can tackle jobs not only in kitchens but in other
rooms of homes and in offices as well.
     Clearly there are technological hurdles to overcome before robots can cook a complete dinner, and there
are also many safety concerns. Not everyone (especially parents) would be comfortable with the idea of robots
in their house, manipulating hot pans and sharp knives. The European Commission recently funded a project
to study these concerns.

1. What does the writer imply about the Japanese robot?

A. It performs fewer functions than readybot can.
B. It looks more like a person than Readybot does.
C. It speaks more languages than Readybot does.
D. It costs 1ess to manufacture than Readybot does.

2. Where do the engineers and designers hope that Readybot will operate in the future?

A. On spacecraft
B. In automobiles
C. On playgrounds
D. At companies

3. What does the writer imply about parents?

A. They have shown tremendous interest in kitchen robots.
B. They don't have strong opinions about kitchen robots.
C. They might think that kitchen robots could be dangerous.
D. They can't wait to buy kitchen robots for their homes.

4. According to the writer, what has the European Commission done for the project?

A. It has built factories
B. It has printed manuals
C. It has hired workers
D. It has provided money

     A branch of psychology called neurolinguistic programming has made an interesting and useful discovery:
You can change the way you imagine or remember things without changing what you imagine, and it will
change your feelings. For example, if a visual memory makes you sad whenever you think about it, you can
make that mental picture smaller and dimmer, and when you do, the memory won't make you as sad. Since
you haven't changed the content of the memory, you haven't lost any information. You have simply made it
less painful.
     When you visually remember a pleasant memory, you can made the picture more colorful and the money
will give you even more intense good feelings. You can make your pictures of the future brighter, wider,
deeper, or you can bring the images closer. Changes like these will make you feel different-even when you
leave the content of the picture the same.
     These are general guidelines (指導方針). You'll need to experiment for yourself to find out what will work
for a particular image. For a few people, making an exciting picture brighter makes the feelings less intense.
And for some kinds of pictures, increasing the brightness would cause the feelings to become less intense-for
example, a romantic memory.
     What is true for visual images also applies to the way you talk to yourself.
     For example, if you have trouble motivating yourself, try changing the tone of voice you use when you
spread to yourself. Some people order themselves around. The voice they use to talk to themselves is harsh and
commanding. Listening to yourself being bossy can have the same effect as listening to someone else being
bossy: It can make you want to rebel. Change your tone to friendly or seductive, and you might feel more
motivated. When you tell yourself, "I can do it," fill your internal voice with enthusiasm and back it up with
inspiring music. The possibilities are in fact endless.
     The important thing to understand is that they way you code your inner world has an impact, and you have
quite a bit of control over that coding. You can change it deliberately. When you do, it will change your feelings,
which change your actions, which will change the world around you.

1. Which is the best title of the passage?

A. You Can Change the World Around You
B. Be Merry
C. You Can Change People's Attitude towards You
D. Talk to Yourself in a Friendly Way

2. The underlined word "deliberately" can be replaced by _____.

A. by change
B. on purpose
C. difficultly
D. wiser

3. We can infer that if we make a sad mental picture bigger and brighter, we can become _____.

A. happier
B. sadder
C. calmer
D. wiser

4. What does the underlined sentence "Some people order themselves around" suggest?

A. Some people order a lot of food.
B. Some people order others to follow their instructions.
C. Some people are very hard on themselves.
D. Some people are very strict with themselves.

(     )1. Mike spent his childhood mostly in his father's study, where he read novels by British and American
writers. Next term he will become a senior student. He thinks it's time that he read more of their works and
learned to write about them.
(     )2. Joseph is good at the language arts, and in his spare time he likes to write short stories. It is his wish
that his stories would be printed in local newspapers. So he is thinking of taking a course to develop his writing
skills such as wording and paragraph organization.
(     )3. A lively and caring girl, Anna takes an active part in social activities. She is trying to write reports for
newspapers about what she sees and hears. But few of them are accepted because of poor organization of
information. She feels the need to improve her writing and communication skills next term.
(     )4. Jan traveled worldwide with his parents when he was very young. Under their influence, he becomes
greatly interested in stories of travel and adventure. He hopes to write his own stories in the future. So next
term, he will choose a course to study the best writing of this type.
(     )5. Susan comes from China. As a junior back home, she wrote quite a lot of short stories, some of which
were published in newspapers. Her parents hoped she read some classics by Asian and Western writers. She
thinks it helpful in her writing. So she is going to take a course of this kind next term.

     The pupils of the remote Beau-Roc primary school in Haiti are chanting. One of them plays a guitar made
from an empty oil tin. Their headmistress, Emile Jean-Noel, is one of the few women school headteachers in
the country.
     Today, over 70% of Haitian population live without proper food, water, schools, or housing. To reduce the
hunger that prevents learning and to encourage parents to send their children to school, meals are provided by
the World Food Programme.
     "We are so cut off that we have many difficulties," comments Emile, adding that finding chalk, school books
and other materials is practically impossible. Entile tries to encourage people around her to make use of available
resources. Her efforts are bearing fruit. One of her successes was convincing local women to contribute to
their children's schooling and increase their income by selling embroidery (刺繡) and other handicrafts.
     Recent political instability has meant that the country has not invested (投資) in education for ten years.
Only 44% of children go to school and less than half of them finish primary school. Less than a third of these
children go on to secondary school. In rural areas it is not rare to find 17 and 18 year olds in primary school-
Beau-Roc has only 4 teachers for 260 pupils. Emile works constantly to improve her pupils' environment.
Under her direction, a local worker is now constructing a store house for the food delivered regularly by the
WFP.
     Not only is Emile's salary small, but she receives it irregularly. For her, transport is a real headache. She
lives five kilometers away and has to take the tap, a privately-owned bus, costing more than she can afford.
     "The decision to be a rural teacher in Haiti should not be taken lightly", Emile comments. "With all the
sacrifices and risks it requires, only those who are really cut out for teaching should do it." However, Emile
loves her job. "I always feel at home with the children and, because the parents understand what I'm doing,
I try to give my best."

1. Which of the following is extremely difficult for Beau-Roc primary school?

A. Teaching the women how to make embroidery and other handicrafts.
B. Persuading local women to care about their children' s education.
C. Encouraging people around to use those available resources.
D. Finding chalk, school books and other materials.

2. The many figures in Paragraph 4 indicate _____.

A. poor investment in Haitian education
B. political instability in Haiti
C. challenges in Emile's life
D. Emile's constant efforts

3. In the last paragraph, "those who are really cut out for teaching" refer to people who are _____.

A. dismissed from teaching
B. unfamiliar with teaching
C. qualified for teaching
D. cautious about teaching

4. What topic is presented in this passage?

A. Hardship for teachers.
B. Devotion to education.
C. Politics and children.
D. Love and beauty.

     In a few years, you might be able to speak Chinese,Korean,Japanese,French,and English-andall at the
same time. This sounds incredible,but Alex Waibel,a computer science professor at US's Car-negie
Mellon University (CMU) and Germany's University of Karlsruhe,announced last week that it may soon
be reality. He and his team have invented software and hardware that could make it far easier forpeople
who speak different languages to understand each other.
     One application,called Lecture Translation,can easily translate a speech from one language into
an-other. Current translation technologies typically limit speakers to certain topics or a limited vocabulary. Us-ers also have to be trained how to use the programme.
     Another machine can send translations of a speech to different listeners depending on what
languagethey speak. "It is like having a simultaneous translator right next to you but without disturbing the
person next to you,"Waibel said
     Prefer to read? So- called Translation Glasses transcribe(轉錄) the translations on a tiny
liquid-crystal display(LCD) screen.
     Then there's the Muscle Translator. Electrodes capture the electrical signals from facial muscle
movements made naturally when a person is mouthing words. The signals are then translated into speech.
The electrodes could be replaced with wireless chips implanted in a person's face,according to
research-ers.
     During a demonstration held last Thursday in CMU's Pittsburgh campus,a Chinese student named
Sang Jun had 11 tiny electrodes attached to the muscles of his cheeks,neck and throat. Then he
mouthed-without speaking aloud- a few words in Mandarin (普通話) to the audience. A few seconds
later,the phrase was displayed on a computer screen and spoken out by the computer in English and
Spanish: "Let me introduce our new prototype."
     This particular instrument,when fully developed,might allow anyone to speak in any number of
lan-guages or,as Waibel put it,"to switch your mouth to a foreign language". "The idea behind the
universi-ty's prototypes is to create'good enough' bridges for cross- cultural exchanges that are
becoming more common in the world,"Waibel said.
     With spontaneous(自發(fā)的) translators, foreign drivers in Germany could listen to traffic warnings on
the radio; tourists in China could read all the signs and talk with local people;leaders of different
coun-tries could have secret talks without any interpreters there.

1.What can't be learned from the text?

A.The spontaneous translators will help us a lot.
B. There is no Muscle Translator in the world now.
C. Muscle Translators can translate what you think into speech if you just move your mouth.
D. A lecture translation can translate what you said into other languages easily.

2. What does the underlined word mean?

A. happening at at the same time.          
B. happening by itself.
C. similar in size.                     
D. Similar in quality.

3.What's the final destination of inventing the language translators?

A. To make cultural exchanges between different countries easier.
B. To help students learn foreign languages more easily.
C. To make people live in foreign countries more comfortably.
D. To help people learn more foreign languages in the future.

4. What can be inferred from the seventh paragraph?

A. The translator is so good that it can translate any language into the very language you need.
B. The translator is becoming more and more common in the world as a bridge.
C. With the help of the translator,you only need to open your mouth when you want to say
     something without saying the exact words at all.
D.The translator needs to be improved before being put into market.

5. Where can we probably find this passage?

A. A newspaper.                          
B. A magazine on science.
C. A fairy tale.                            
D. A scientific fantasy book.

     What is the relationship between violence and sports? Psychologists say that there are many
reasons for violence at sports events．One is alcohol．Many fans drink a lot at games．When
people drink, they are more likely to do abnormal things．Psychologist Dennis Brock says,
"Quiet people become loud．Normally nonviolent people become destructive． "
     David Sampson, a sports sociologist, says, "These are often celebratory riots- a large number
of very happy people mixed in with large amounts of alcohol．They don't often seem dangerous
in the beginning, but things get violent quickly． "
     Another reason for violence at sports events is the crowd．When individuals are in a large
group of people, they can lose their sense of personal responsibility．Edward Hirt, a social
Psychologist, says that research shows that people do things in crowds that they would never
do alone．People in crowds feel anonymous - no one knows who they are．Crowds also
make people feel powerful．They stop making personal decisions．They just follow the crowd．
Social psychologists call this a "mob mentality".
Dave Zarifis, head of public safety says, "Some people don't even come to celebrate．They want
to drink hard and make trouble．Someone does something stupid, and it grows from there．You
get a mob mentality．People think it's OK to do almost anything．They think, 'There are so many
of us and not enough of them． '
Social psychologist Dr．Sharon Kennedy says that there are some things officials can do to prevent
violence．Making sure that an area is not overcrowded is very important．Officials should also think
of games as "big parties．" Then they will prepare differently．Kennedy says that in Great Britain they
are controlling the problem with cameras in all the stadiums．"When you know someone is watching,
you are much less likely to behave badly． "

1. Which of the following best gives the main idea of the first two paragraphs?  

A. There's a connection between violence and sports
B. One cause of violence at sports events is alcohol．
C. There are many reasons for violence at sports events．
D. David Sampson and Dennis Brock have the same opinion.