Exploring space is a dream shared by many people, but few have ever experienced the thrill of space adventure. A few years ago, that field was open only to those who worked for NASA or the space programs of other nations. But now private companies are getting into the space race.

       Google and the X PRIZE Foundation have joined forces to challenge ordinary people to explore the moon. The first team that successfully soft-lands a robotic rover(天體登陸車) on the moon will receive a $20 million prize. The second team to touch down on the moon will win $5 million. Teams can also win an additional $5 million in bonus prizes for completing tasks such as discovering water ice.

       To win, contestants(競(jìng)賽者) must land their craft on the surface of the moon and let it roam for more than 500 meters, or 1.640 feet. The craft must also send video and Internet clips(片斷) back to Earth in real time.

       Google and the X PRIZE Foundation announced the competition on September 13,2007. "The Google Lunar X Prize calls on entrepreneurs(企業(yè)家), and engineers from around the world to return us to the lunar surface and explore this environment for the benefit of all humanity," said Peter H. Diamandis, the head of the foundation, when the contest was announced. "We hope to bring this historic private space race into every home and classroom," he added.

       Teams are already gathering at the first commercial spaceport in the Mojave Dessert in California to work on their spaceship designs. Contestants have until December 31, 2012 to qualify(取得資格) for the contest, which expires in 2014. The last time humans went to the moon, the voyage inspired a generation of scientists and explorers. Google and the X PRIZE Foundation are hoping that their contest will get even more people to reach for the moon, the stars and beyond.

1.If the first team land their craft on the surface of the moon and discover water ice, how much prize money will they receive?

       A.$ 5 million.          B.$ 10 million.         C.$ 20 million.        D.$ 25 million.

2.Why are Google and the X PRIZE Foundation calling on people to go to the moon?

       A.Further exploration of the moon will benefit mankind.

       B.They want everyone to join in the space race.

       C.They require video and Internet clips of the moon’s surface.

       D.They hope that new exploration will find life on the moon.

3.To win the contest, contestants must do the following EXCEPT       .

       A.land the craft on the moon                    B.let craft roam for over 500m

       C.discover water ice on the moon             D.send video and Internet clips back to Earth

4.It can be learned from the passage that          .

       A.no private company has ever set foot on the moon so far.

       B.contestants can win the prize so long as they touch down on the moon

       C.contestants don’t have to design their own spaceships

       D.the contest will end in 2012

5.What’s the main idea of the passage?

       A.More scientists are working on spaceship designs.

       B.Google and the X PRIZE Foundation joined forces to land on the moon.

       C.More teams are encouraged to join in the race to explore the moon.

       D.The first commercial spaceport has just been completed in California.

練習(xí)冊(cè)系列答案
相關(guān)習(xí)題

科目:高中英語 來源: 題型:閱讀理解

 Section B (18 marks)

      Directions: For each blank in the following passage there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with the word or phrase that best fits the context.

      Behind our house is the start of a fascinating trail (小徑). This trail is one of the old roads that wind through untold miles of forest. My   36  , Beans, and I walk the trail frequently. Normally, Beans sniffs alongside the trail to follow the smell of a deer track or   37   some cause known only to him.

      Beans is a white dog, quite handsome and very   38 . He not only understands what

we tell him, but also often makes sounds as if he were trying to   39   back.

      One morning, we took a different route, which led us to an unfamiliar trail. I was sure this trail would eventually lead us to our familiar   40  . But, no. We seemed to be far off course. After two hours, I suddenly realized that Beans probably   41   the way home. So I urged, "Beans, take me home." He ran down a new trail. But it merely led to an intersection (岔道口) of trails.

      Soon it became   42   that we were getting nowhere. I began to picture the rest of the day in the   43  , without food or drink. We had walked about ten miles. But Beans seemed totally   44  . The sniffing and exploring was going well for him.

     Finally, we   45   a crossroad near a highway. Lady Luck suggested I should turn left. We did and   46   reached a cottage beside a field. I knocked on the door and explained my situation to an old man. He laughed and then drove us home.

     Since our adventure, I   47   that Beans probably knew all along how to get home.

He was just having too much fan exploring new trails.

36. A. deer             B. dog              C. lady            D. man

37. A. imagine          B. consider          C. explore          D. present

38, A. smart            B. sweet            C. slow            D. shy

39. A. turn             B. kick              C. jump           D. speak

40. A. driveway         B. path             C. crossroad        D. highway

41. A. knew            B. saw              C. showed         D. made

42. A, mysterious        B. ridiculous        C. fascinating       D. apparent

43. A. house            B. forest            C. field            D. cottage

44. A. unconcerned      B. unconscious       C. undecided       D. uncomfortable

45. A. left for           B. went off          C. came to         D. drove toward

46. A. punctually        B. frequently        C. formally         D. shortly

47. A. regretted         B. remembered       C. concluded       D. confirmed

查看答案和解析>>

科目:高中英語 來源:2011-2012學(xué)年江蘇省淮安市吳承恩中學(xué)高一第一次調(diào)研英語試卷 題型:完型填空

完形填空(共20小題;每小題1分,滿分20分)
閱讀下面短文,掌握其大意,從每題所給的(A、B、C和D)四個(gè)選項(xiàng)中選出最佳選項(xiàng),并在答題卡上將該項(xiàng)涂黑。
When I was a boy, every holiday that I had seemed wonderful. My   36  took me by train or by car to a hotel by the   37 . All day, I seem to remember, I   38  on the sands with strange   39  children. We made houses and gardens, and   40  the tide destroy them. When the tide went out, we   41  over the rocks and looked down at the fish in the rock-pools.
In those days the   42  seemed to shine always brightly   43  the water was always warm. Sometimes we  44  beach and walked in the country, exploring(搜尋) ruined houses and dark woods and climbing trees. There were   45  in one’s pockets or good places where one could   46  ice creams. Each day seemed a life-time.
Although I am now thirty-five years old, my idea of a good   47  is much the same as it was. I   48  like the sun and warm sand and the sound of   49  beating the rocks. I no longer wish to   50  any sand house or sand garden, and I dislike sweets.   51 , I love the sea and often feel sand running through my fingers.
Sometimes I   52  what my ideal(理想的) holiday will be like when I am   53 . All I want to do then, perhaps, will be to lie in bed, reading books about   54  who make houses and gardens with sands, who watch the incoming tide, who make themselves   55  on too many ices creams.

【小題1】
A.teacherB.parents C.nurseD.younger sister
【小題2】
A.seaB.lakeC.mountainD.river
【小題3】
A.playedB.sleptC.satD.stood
【小題4】
A.movingB.excitingC.a(chǎn)nxiousD.nervous
【小題5】
A.madeB.broughtC.watchedD.heard
【小題6】
A.collectedB.jumpedC.turnedD.climbed
【小題7】
A.lightB.sunC.moonD.lamp
【小題8】
A.a(chǎn)ndB.yetC.butD.or
【小題9】
A.leftB.came to C.stood byD.played by
【小題10】
A.sweetsB.sand C.ice-creamsD.money
【小題11】
A.makeB.sellC.buyD.offer
【小題12】
A.houseB.holiday C.gardenD.tide
【小題13】
A.hardlyB.a(chǎn)lmostC.stillD.perhaps
【小題14】
A.wavesB.tides C.handsD.feet
【小題15】
A.destroyB.fix C.useD.build
【小題16】
A.ButB.HoweverC.OtherwiseD.Besides
【小題17】
A.wonderB.feel C.understandD.believe
【小題18】
A.strongB.weakC.youngD.old
【小題19】
A.childrenB.boysC.girlsD.grown-ups
【小題20】
A.happyB.tiredC.sadD.sick

查看答案和解析>>

科目:高中英語 來源:2011陜西師大附中西工大附中高三第六次適應(yīng)性訓(xùn)練英語試卷 題型:完型填空

For Senior 3 students, choosing which college to attend can be the most exciting and thrilling time in their entire school lives. This is also true for an American girl 26  Melanie.
Melanie’s dad, James Porter, who is the chief of police for a Chicago suburb, wants Melanie to  27  nearby Northwestern University, where she’s  28  been accepted. But Melanie, 17, really wants to go to Georgetown University in Washington, D.C, where she’s been wait-listed.
When she gets an unexpected  29  from Georgetown University, she decides to 30 a road trip with a few 31 female friends. Melanie believes it is her first step  32 adulthood. But  33 the fact that this trip is “girls only”, James isn’t  34  with the prospect(期望) of his little princess  35  the world without him. He wants to protect her, so he joins the girls and hopes he can convince Melanie to go to Northwestern.  36  Melanie’s father only has the best of  37 , his presence  38 an endless series of comic encounters(遭遇).
After following their faulty device  39  into the backwoods (偏遠(yuǎn)地區(qū)), James and Melanie  40  Melanie’s little brother and his pet pig have been hiding in the spare compartment (隔間). What should be a simple tyre change  41  the expensive car rolling down a mountain, forcing them to hike to a nearby hotel…. All these disasters add spice(額外的趣味) to their trip while along the way a father and a daughter  42  get the chance to really  43  each other.
All parents,  44  they have college students or not, can relate to the bittersweet realization that their kids are growing up.  45  what Melanie and James have done, we all can find the delicate (脆弱的) balance between staying connected and letting go.

【小題1】. .
A.named
B.naming
C.name
D.names
【小題2】. .
A.join
B.send
C.a(chǎn)ttend
D.pass
【小題3】. .
A.still
B.a(chǎn)lways
C.yet
D.a(chǎn)lready
【小題4】. .
A.a(chǎn)ppointment
B.interview
C.visit
D.meeting
【小題5】. .
A.provide
B.offer
C.take
D.hold
【小題6】. .
A.closing
B.close
C.closed
D.closely
【小題7】. .
A.toward
B.for
C.during
D.with
【小題8】.  
A.though
B.while
C.once
D.despite
【小題9】.  
A.satisfying
B.successful
C.comfortable
D.meaningful
【小題10】. .
A.seeking
B.examining
C.searching
D.exploring
【小題11】. .
A.Since
B.Because
C.While
D.When
【小題12】.  
A.intentions
B.a(chǎn)ttempts
C.efforts
D.planning
【小題13】. .
A.comes about
B.leads to
C.calls in
D.turns out
【小題14】. .
A.lately
B.late
C.deeply
D.deep
【小題15】.  
A.discover
B.invent
C.recognize
D.realize
【小題16】. .
A.succeeds in
B.brings in
C.results from
D.results in
【小題17】.  
A.hopefully
B.finally
C.firstly
D.certainly
【小題18】. .
A.a(chǎn)gree to
B.speak to
C.talk to
D.turn to
【小題19】. .
A.whether
B.if
C.what
D.why
【小題20】. .
A.As
B.Like
C.For
D.Except

查看答案和解析>>

科目:高中英語 來源:2012-2013學(xué)年上海市金山中學(xué)高二下學(xué)期期中考試英語卷(帶解析) 題型:完型填空

The universities are schools of education and research but the main reason for their existence is not in the knowledge taught to the students or in the opportunities for the economic or social ___50___ resulting from the research findings.
The true function of a university is that it keeps the ___51___ between knowledge and the real life. It unites the students with ordinary life in a ___52___ way. The university passes on information, but it ___53___ the information imaginatively. Imagination is the driving force for the society’s future development.  Students’ imagination is the very ___54___ every university should protect and encourage. A university which ___55___ to do so has no reason for existence. With imagination, knowledge is not only knowledge: it includes all possibilities. It’s no longer a ___56___ on students’ memory. It’s food for thought and ___57___ for creative inventions.
Imagination is not ___58___ knowledge. Instead, it is a way leading to more knowledge. It works by thoroughly studying the current knowledge and then exploring every possibility about the knowledge. In the exploration, new knowledge ___59___. Imagination enables men to construct a new vision of the world and it adds ___60___ to life through endless possibilities. Imaginative people are restless all along.
Youth is imaginative and if the university can help preserve this precious wealth, the power of imagination can ___61___ change the world. Besides, it should also be made clear that imagination won’t be most effective without necessary experience.  The problem of the current world is that those who are imaginative have only little experience ___62___ those who are experienced have weak imaginations. The ___63___ left for the universities is to hold together these two factors for the whole human race to ___64___ greater development and happiness.

【小題1】
A.problemB.developmentC.lifeD.inquiry
【小題2】
A.connectionB.a(chǎn)ttractionC.differenceD.tradition
【小題3】
A.technicalB.difficultC.creativeD.basic
【小題4】
A.supposesB.conveysC.expectsD.weighs
【小題5】
A.spiritB.goodsC.messageD.theory
【小題6】
A.triesB.pretendsC.failsD.means
【小題7】
A.burdenB.treasureC.scheduleD.science
【小題8】
A.resultB.materialC.costD.figure
【小題9】
A.superior toB.familiar withC.separate fromD.strict with
【小題10】
A.takes shapeB.steps inC.sets offD.speeds up
【小題11】
A.proofB.excitementC.greedD.seed
【小題12】
A.temporarilyB.carefullyC.reluctantlyD.finally
【小題13】
A.becauseB.unlessC.whileD.until
【小題14】
A.sympathyB.solutionC.conditionD.purpose
【小題15】
A.requireB.fixC.imagineD.a(chǎn)chieve

查看答案和解析>>

科目:高中英語 來源:廣東省揭陽市2010屆高三第二次高考模擬考試(英語) 題型:閱讀理解

We can see how the product life cycle works by looking at the introduction of instant coffee. When it was introduced, most people did not like it as much as "regular" coffee and it took several years to gain general acceptance (introduction stage). At one point, though, instant coffee grew rapidly in popularity and many brands were introduced (stage of rapid growth). After a while people became attached to one brand and sales leveled off (stage of maturity). Sales went into a slight decline when freeze-dried coffees were introduced (stage of decline).
  The importance of the product life cycle to marketers is this: different stages in the product life cycle call for different strategies. The goal is to extend product life so that sales and profits do not decline. One strategy is called market modification. It means that marketing managers look for new users and market sections. Do you know, for example, that the backpacks that so many students carry today were originally designed for the military?
  Market modification also means searching for increased usage among present customers or going for a different market, such as senior citizens. A marketer may re-position the product to appeal to new market sections.
  Another product extension strategy is called product modification. It involves changing product quality, features, or style to attract new users or more usage from present users. American auto manufacturers are using quality improvement as one way to recapture(奪回) world markets. Note, also, how auto manufacturers once changed styles dramatically from year to year to keep demand from falling.
46. According to the passage, when people grow accustomed to one particular brand of a product, its            sales will ______.                       
A. decrease gradually                                 B. become unstable
C. improve enormously                            D. remain at the same level
47. The first paragraph tells us that a new product is _____ .
 A. usually introduced to satisfy different tastes
 B. often more expensive than old ones
 C. often inferior to old ones at first
 D. not easily accepted by the public
48. Marketers need to know which of the four stages a product is in so as to _____ .
 A. work out marketing policies                   B. promote its production
  C. increase its popularity                                      D. speed up its life cycle
49. The author mentions the example of "backpacks"(Line 4, Para.2 ) to show the importance of             _______ .
  A. increasing usage among students       B. pleasing the young as well as the old
  C. exploring new market sections             D. serving both military and civil needs
50. In order to recover their share of the world market, U.S. auto makers are _______ .
  A. improving product feature                     B. making their products better
C. modernizing product style                    D. increasing product quantity

查看答案和解析>>

同步練習(xí)冊(cè)答案