Brrriiinnng. The alarm clock announces the start of another busy weekday in the morning. You jump out of bed, rush into the shower, into your clothes and out the door with hardly a moment to think. A stressful journey to work gets your blood pressure climbing. Once at the office, you glance through the newspaper with depressing stories or reports of disasters. In that sort of mood, who can get down to work, particularly some creative, original problem-solving work?
The way most of us spend our mornings is exactly opposite to the conditions that promote flexible, open-minded thinking. Imaginative ideas are most likely to come to us when we’re unfocused. If you are one of those energetic morning people, your most inventive time comes in the early evening when you are relaxed. Sleepy people’s lack of focus leads to an increase in creative problem solving. By not giving yourself time to tune into your wandering mind, you’re missing out on the surprising solutions it may offer.
The trip you take to work doesn’t help, either. The stress slows down the speed with which signals travel between neurons (神經(jīng)細(xì)胞), making inspirations less likely to occur. And while we all should read a lot about what’s going on in the world, it would not make you feel good for sure, so put that news website or newspaper aside until after the day’s work is done.
So what would our mornings look like if we wanted to start them with a full capacity for creative problem solving? We’d set the alarm a few minutes early and lie awake in bed, following our thoughts where they lead. We’d stand a little longer under the warm water of the shower, stopping thinking about tasks in favor of a few more minutes of relaxation. We’d take some deep breaths on our way to work, instead of complaining about heavy traffic. And once in the office—after we get a cup of coffee—we’d click on links not to the news of the day but to the funniest videos the web has to offer. 
小題1:According to the author, we are more creative when we are _______.

A．focused

B．relaxed

C．a(chǎn)wake

D．busy

小題2:What does the author imply about newspapers?

A．They are solution providers.

B．They are a source of inspiration.

C．They are normally full of bad news.

D．They are more educational than websites.

小題3: By “tune into your wandering mind” (in Para. 2), the author means “_______”.

A．wander into the wild

B．listen to a beautiful tune

C．switch to the traffic channel

D．stop concentrating on anything

小題4:The author writes the last paragraph in order to _______.

A．offer practical suggestions

B．summarize past experiences

C．a(chǎn)dvocate diverse ways of life

D．establish a routine for the future

Do you know how it is when you see someone yawn and you start yawning too? Or how hard it is to be among people laughing and not laugh yourself? Well, apparently it's because we have mirror neurons (神經(jīng)元）in our brains.
Put simply, the existence of mirror neurons suggests that every time we see someone else do something, our brains imitate (模仿)it，whether or not we actually perform the same action. This explains a great deal about how we learn to smile, talk, walk, dance or play sports. But the idea goes further： mirror neurons not only appear to explain physical actions _y they also tell us that there is a biological basis for the way we understand other people.
Mirror neurons can undoubtedly be found all over our brains, but especially in the areas which relate to our ability to use languages, and to understand how other people feel. Researchers have found that mirror neurons relate strongly to language. A group of researchers discovered that if they gave people sentences to listen to ( for example ："The hand took hold of the ball" ) , the same mirror neurons were triggered as when the action was actually performed (in this example, actually taking hold of a ball).
Any problems with mirror neurons may well result in problems with behavior. Much researeh suggests that people with social and behavioral problems have mirror neurons which are not fully functioning. However, it is not yet known exactly how these discoveries might help find treatments for social disorders.
Research into mirror neurons seems to provide us with ever more information concerning how humans behave and interact(互動(dòng)）.Indeed, it may turn out to be the equivalent (相等物）for ncurosciencc of what Einstein's theory of relativity was for physics. And the next time you feel the urge to cough in the cinema when someone else does--well，perhaps you'll understand why.
小題1:Mirror neurons can explain         .

A．why we cry when we are hurt

B．why we cough when we suffer from a cold

C．why we smile when we see someone else smile

D．why we yawn when we see someone else stay up late

小題2:The underlined word "triggered" in the third paragraph probably means “  ”

A．set off

B．cut off

C．built up

D．broken up

小題3:We can learn from the passage that mirror neurons  .

A．relate to human behavior and interaction

B．control human physical actions and feelings

C．result in bad behavior and social disorders

D．determine our knowledge and language abilities

小題4:What is the passage mainly about?

A．Ways to find mirror neurons.

B．Problems of mirror neurons.

C．Existence of mirror neurons.

D．Functions of mirror neurons.

You may think that sailing is a difficult sport, but it is really not hard to learn it. You do not need to be strong. But you need to be quick. And you need to understand a few basic rules about the wind.
First, you must ask yourself, “Where is the wind coming from? Is it coming from ahead or behind or from the side?” You must think about this all the time on the boat. The wind direction tells you what to do with the sail.
Let’s start with the wind blowing from the behind. This means the wind and the boat are going in the same direction. Then you must always keep the sail outside the boat. It should be at a 90° angle (角度) to the boat. Then it will catch the wind best.
If the wind is blowing from the side, it is blowing across the boat. In this case, you must keep the sail half way outside the boat. It should be at a 45° angle to the boat. It needs to be out far enough to catch the wind, but it shouldn’t flap (擺動(dòng)). It shouldn’t look like on a flagpole. If it is flapping, it is probably out too far, and the boat will slow down.
Sailing into the wind is not possible. If you try, the sail will flap and the boat will stop. You may want to go in that direction. It is possible, but you can’t go in a straight line. You must go first in one direction and then in another. This is called tacking. When you are tacking, you must always keep the sail inside the boat.
小題1:What should you consider first while sailing?

A．Sailors’ strength.	B．Wave levels.
C．Wind directions.	D．Size of sails.

小題2:What does the word “It” underlined in Paragraph 4 refer to?

A．The boat.

B．The wind.

C．The sail.

D．The angle.

小題3:What do you have to do when sailing against the wind?

A．Move in a straight line.	B．Allow the sail to flap.
C．Lower the sail.	D．Tack the boat.

小題4:Where can you probably find the text?

A．In a popular magazine.	B．In a tourist guidebook.
C．In a physics textbook.	D．In an official report.

Sea turtles come in many different sizes, shapes and colors. The shell of each sea turtle species is different in length, color, shape and the arrangement of the scales（鱗片）.
Sea turtles do not have teeth but use their jaws （下巴）to eat. Their sense of smell is excellent. Their eyesight underwater is good, but they have near-sighted eyes out of water. Their special bodies make them adapt to life at sea. However, sea turtles maintain（保持） close ties to land.
Female sea turtles have to go to the seaside to lay their eggs in the sand; therefore, all baby sea turtles begin their lives on land. Most research on sea turtles has been focused on female turtles nesting and the baby sea turtles in the nest, largely because they can be found most easily. After decades of studying sea turtles, much has been learned about. However, many mysteries（謎） still remain.
Researchers do not yet know how long baby turtles spend in the open sea, or exactly where they go. People believe they spend their earliest years floating in the sea, where they do little more than eat and grow. Once turtles reach dinner-plate size, they appear at feeding grounds in waters near the shore. They grow slowly and take between 15 and 50 years to grow old enough to bear baby sea turtles, depending on the species. There is no way to know the age of a sea turtle from its physical appearance. It is believed that some species can live for over 100 years.
小題1:Which of the following statements is NOT true about sea turtles?

A．They don’t use teeth to eat.

B．They have a good sense of smell.

C．Sea turtles are more adaptable to life at sea.

D．Different species have different shells.

小題2:The underlined phrase “near-sighted eyes” in the second paragraph means_____.

A．good eyesight	B．bad eyes
C．excellent eyes	D．poor eyesight

小題3:Which of the following questions is answered in the text?

A．Why do female turtles lay eggs on land?

B．Why can’t people tell how old a sea turtle is from its appearance?

C．Where do the baby turtles usually go?

D．Do sea turtles grow very fast?

小題4:What would be the best title for the text?

A．Mysteries About Sea Turtles

B．Baby and Female Sea Turtles

C．The Growth of Different Sea Turtles

D．The Characteristics（特點(diǎn)） of Sea Turtles

By the mid-nineteenth century, the term "icebox" had entered the American language, but ice was still only beginning to affect the diet of ordinary citizens in the United States. The ice trade grew with the growth of cities. Ice was used in hotels, taverns(酒館), and hospitals, and by some forward-looking city dealers in fresh meat, fresh fish, and butter. After the Civil War (1861-1865), as ice was used to refrigerate freight cars, it also came into household use. Even before 1880, half of the ice sold in New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore, and one-third of that sold in Boston and Chicago, went to families for their own use. This had become possible because a new household convenience, the icebox, a precursor (前身) of the modern fridge, had been invented.
　　Making an efficient icebox as not as easy as we might now suppose. In the early nineteenth century, the knowledge of the physics of heat, which was essential to a science of refrigeration, was rudimentary(未發(fā)展的). The commonsense notion that the best icebox was one that prevented the ice from melting was of course mistaken, for it was the melting of the ice that performed the cooling. Nevertheless, early efforts to economize ice included wrapping up the ice in blankets, which kept the ice from doing its job. Not until near the end of the nineteenth century did inventors achieve the delicate balance of insulation(絕緣) and circulation needed for an efficient icebox.
　　But as early as 1803, and ingenious Maryland farmer, Thomas Moore, had been on the right track. He owned a farm about twenty miles outside the city of Washington, for which the village of Georgetown was the market center. When he used an icebox of his own design to transport his butter to market, he found that customers would pass up the rapidly melting stuff in the tubs of his competitors to pay a premium price(高價(jià)) for his butter, still fresh and hard in neat, one-pound bricks. One advantage of his icebox, Moore explained, was that farmers would no longer have to travel to market at night in order to keep their produce cool.
小題1:Where was ice used after the Civil War?

A．In refrigerating freight cars and households.

B．In hotels, taverns and hospitals

C．In families of New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore.

D．In fresh meat, fish and butter by city dealers.

小題2:What was essential to to make an icebox efficient according to the passage?

A．Keeping the ice from melting

B．Knowledge of the physics of heat.

C．Balance of insulation and circulation

D．Making efforts to reduce the use of ice

小題3:The second paragraph is mainly about_____

A．the deveopment of icebox

B．the theoretical foundation of icebox

C．the wrong ideas about icebox

D．the way of using icebox

小題4: What can we infer from the text?

A．Thomas Moore is the inventor of modern fridge

B．The butter produced by Thomas Moored is better in quality than other famers’

C．Knowledge of the physics of heat plays an important part in inventing a good icebox

D．Before 1880, most of the sold ice was used for family use.

小題5: Without an ice box, farmers had to go to the market at night ________.

A．to sell their produce at high price

B．to go home earlier

C．to keep their produce fresh

D．to win more customers than their competitors

Our surroundings are being polluted faster than nature and man’s present efforts cannot prevent it. Time is bringing us more people, and more people will bring us more industry, more cars, larger cities, and the growing use of man-made materials.
What can explain and solve this problem? The fact is that pollution is caused by man—by his desire for a modern way of life. We make “increasing industrialization” our chief aim. So we are often ready to offer everything: clean air, pure water, good food, our health and the future of our children. There is a constant flow of people from the countryside into the cities, eager for the benefits of our modern society. But as our technological achievements have grown in the last twenty years, pollution has become a serious problem.
Isn’t it time we stopped to ask ourselves where we are going—and why? It makes one think of the story about the airline pilot who told his passengers over the loudspeaker, “I’ve some good news and some bad news. The good news is that we’re making rapid progress at 530 miles per hour. The bad news is that we’re lost and don’t know where we’re going.” The sad fact is that this becomes a true story when spoken of our modern society.
小題1:Man cannot prevent the world from being polluted mainly because______.

A．the population of the world is decreasing fast

B．people use too many man-made materials

C．we have more and more industry

D．we are producing more cars, trucks and buses

小題2:According to the passage, what does man value most?

A．Industry.	B．Health.
C．Clean air.	D．The future of the children.

小題3:The story about the airline pilot tells us that ______.

A．man knows where the society is going

B．people do not welcome the rapid development of modern society

C．man can do little about the problem of pollution

D．the writer is worried about the future of our society

小題4:People crowd into the cities because ______.

A．they want very much to find well-paid jobs

B．they are anxious to enjoy the achievements of our society

C．they have become tired of their homeland

D．they have a strong wish to become industrial workers

How to Beat On-line Credit-card Thieves
The Internet has led to a huge increase in credit-card fraud. Your card information could even be for sale in an illegal web site.
Web sites offering cheap services should be regarded with care. On-line shoppers who enter their credit-card information may never receive the goods they thought they bought.
The thieves then go shopping with your card number--- or sell the information over internet.
Computers hackers（黑客） have broken down security（安全） systems raising questions about the safety of cardholder information. Several months ago, 25,000 customers of CD Universe, and on-line music retailer（批發(fā)商）, were not lucky. Their name, addresses and credit-card numbers were posted on a web site after the retailer refused to pay US $157,828 to get back the information.
Credit-card firms are now fighting against on-line fraud. Master-card is working on plans for Web-only credit card, with a lower credit limit. The card could be used only for shopping on-line. However, there are a few simple steps you can take to keep from being cheated.
Ask about your credit-firm’s on-line rules. Under British law, cardholders are responsible for the first US $78 of any fraudulent spending.
And shop only at secure sites: Send your credit-card information only if the web site offers advanced secure system. If the security is in place, a letter will appear in the bottom right-hand corner of your screen. The web site address may also start the extra “s” stands for secure.
If you still have any doubt, give your credit-card information over the telephone.
Keep your password safe: Most on-line sites require a user name and password before placing an order. Treat your password with care.
小題1:What do most people worry about the Internet according to this passage?

A．fraud on the Internet	B．computer hackers
C．illegal web site	D．shopping on line

小題2:How many pieces of advice does the passage give to you?

A．1

B．2

C．3

D．4

小題3:You are shopping on the web and you want to buy a TV set, what does this article suggest doing?

A．You can go to the website and buy it without doubt.

B．Send your credit card information as soon as the web asks you to do so.

C．Give your credit card information over telephone if you have doubt.

D．Don’t pay money until your TV set is sent to you.

小題4:Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．Computer hackers sold the retailer’s information to a web site to get money.

B．A reliable website offers you an advanced secure system.

C．You can depend on the password to protect your information.

D．The on-line credit-card thieves stole your credit-card and paid with it.

Have you ever heard of blogs (博客)? If you haven’t, you should have. It’s here, it’s growing and it’s having an influence on our life. Surf the Internet and you’ll find blogs everywhere. A blog, shortened from “weblog”, is a public Internet journal written by one person or a group of people. It is a website in which a person or a group can place news, personal thoughts, text, photos, video or audio files, or links upon which visitors can comment. A blog lets you post on the Internet without having to know web design or be technical. You are given an environment to make dated entries on the topic of your choice which are “published”, so other people can read them.
Authoring a blog, maintaining a blog or adding an article to an existing blog is called “blogging”. Blogging has revolutionized Internet publishing in the last several years because it gives everyone with Internet access the opportunity to become an online writer. Objects, such as “text and photos” in a blog can be called “blog posts”, “posts”, or “entries”. The person who posts these entries is called a “blogger”.
Now, somewhere around the world, a blog is created almost every 6 seconds. Because it’s great potential, Bill Gates views it as important as e-mail, BBS, and MSN. He’s trying to make blogs the important tools for future business communications.
小題1:A blog is           .

A．a(chǎn) comment	B．a(chǎn)n Internet journal
C．a(chǎn) design	D．a(chǎn) link

小題2:A person can do the following things in a blog EXCEPT _______.

A．talk to others

B．give comments

C．read articles

D．enjoy photos

小題3:Who is a blogger?

A．A person who posts letters.

B．A person who writes articles.

C．A person who posts text or photos in a blog.

D．A person who is an online publisher.

小題4:According to the passage, the reason why blogs are so popular is that they ____.

A．give everyone the chance to be an online writer

B．can be created by people without much knowledge of computer technology

C．enable a blogger to place news, personal thoughts, text and photos and give comments

D．a(chǎn)ll of the above

American researchers have developed a technique that may become an important tool in fighting AIDS virus from attacking its target-cells in the body's defense system．When AIDS virus enters the blood，it searches for blood cells called T4 lymphocytes(淋巴細(xì)胞)．The virus connects to the outside of T4 lymphocytes．Then it forces its way inside．There it directs the cells' genetic material to produce copies of the AIDS virus．This is how AIDS spreads．
Researchers think they may be able to stop AIDS from connecting to T4 ceils．When AIDS virus finds a T4 cell，it actually connects to a part of the cell called CD4 protein．
Researchers want to fool the virus by putting copies or clones of the CD4 protein into the blood．This way the AIDS virus will connect to cloned protein instead of the real ones．Scientists use genetic engineering methods to make the clones．Normally a CD4 protein remains on the T4 cell at all times；the AIDS virus must go to it．
In a new technique，however，the cloned CD4 protein is not connected to a cell．It floats freely，so a lot more can be put into the blood to keep the AIDS virus away from real CD4 protein on T4 cells．One report says the．AIDS virus connects to cloned protein just as effectively as it connects to real protein．That report was based on tests with blood cells grown in labs．The technique is just now beginning to be tested in animals．If successful，it may be tested in humans within a year．
小題1:The new technique can     .

A．cure AIDS

B．kill the AIDS virus

C．prevent the AIDS virus from spreading

D．produce new anti-AIDS cells

小題2:When the AIDS virus enters the blood，it is reproduced by     .

A．itself

B．the blood cells

C．the CD4 protein

D．the genetic material of T4 lymphocytes

小題3:The AIDS virus connects to cloned protein instead of the real CD4 protein because    .

A．cloned protein stays On the T4 cells

B．it connects to cloned protein more effectively

C．cloned protein is made by genetic engineering methods

D．cloned protein floats freely，and many more can be put into the blood

小題4:Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A．The new technique has been tested in labs．

B．The new technique is being tested in animals．

C．The new technique may be tested in humans．

D．The new technique is now under clinic test．

小題5:The best title for this passage is     ．

A．AIDS-a deadly disease

B．A new technique in fighting AIDS

C．The spread of AIDS virus

D．The cloned CD4 protein

"We do look very different; we're older. Leo's 38, I'm 37. We were 21 and 22 when we made that film. You know, he's fatter now -- I'm thinner.". So says Kate Winslet, who is thrilled at the 3-D re-release of Titanic to coincide with the 100th anniversary of the ship's demise. “ It happens every time I get on any boat of any kind." She recalls. There are all the people who want her to walk to the front of the ship and re-create her famous pose, arms flung wide. Most people remember the tragedy: The British passenger ship -- said to be unsinkable -- hit an iceberg and sank on April 15, 1912, during its maiden voyage from England to New York City. More than 1,500 people died. But little known is what the world learned from the sinking to prevent future incidents.
Probably the greatest deficiency （不足）of the Titanic was that she was built 40 years before the widespread use of the wonderful invention radar(雷達(dá)). Her only defense against icebergs and hidden obstacles was to rely on manned lookouts. On that fateful night the eyesight of trained lookouts only provided 37 seconds of warning before the collision.
Traveling at nearly 30 miles an hour the Titanic was moving far too fast to avoid the huge iceberg. The warning did prevent a head-on collision as the officer on the bridge managed to turn the ship slightly.
The last ship to send a warning was the California. She was within ten miles of the Titanic during the disaster, but her radio operator went to bed at midnight and never received any of the SOS messages from the Titanic. That was one of the important lessons learned from the catastrophe, the need for 24-hour radio operators on all passenger liners.
Another lesson learned was the need for more lifeboats. The Titanic remained afloat(漂浮) for almost three hours and most of the passengers could have been saved with enough lifeboats.
1,500 passengers and workers died in the 28 degree waters of the Atlantic. Out of the tragedy, the sinking did produce some important maritime reforms. The winter travel routes were changed to the south and the Coast Guard began to keep an eye on the location of all icebergs. The new rules for lifeboats were obvious to all. There must be enough lifeboats for everybody on board.
The most important lesson learned was that no one would ever again consider a ship unsinkable- no matter how large or how well constructed. Never again would sailors place their faith in a ship above the power of the sea.
小題1:The text mainly tells us ______.

A．the reason why the Titanic sank in the Atlantic Ocean

B．how the unsinkable ship of Titanic sank in the Atlantic Ocean

C．the lessons that we could learn from the accident of theTitanic

D．the things we should do to protect the lives on the ship

小題2:According to the passage, which of the following could we infer?

A．If the captain had been more careful, he could have had the chance to save the Titanic.

B．If radar had existed 40 years ago, the Titanic would have never disappeared from the world.

C．If the lookout had had much more experience, he could have had the time to save the Titanic.

D．If there had been enough lifeboats on the Titanic, the Titanic would not have sunk in the Atlantic.

小題3:What would be the best title for the passage?

A．Lessons from the Titanic	B．Technology is Important
C．Demands of Passengers	D．Power of Sea

小題4:What’s the sailors’ attitude towards the ships after the tragedy?

A．They think there really exists the unsinkable ship.

B．They think ships could eventually defeat the sea.

C．They think there is no power that could control the sea.

D．They think the bigger the ship is, the safer it is.