Thirteen vehicles lined up last March to race across the Mojave Desert, seeking a million in prize
money. To win, they had to finish the 142-mile race in less than 10 hours. Teams and watchers knew
there might be no winner at all, because these vehicles were missing a key part －drivers.
     DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, organized the race as part of a push
to develop robotic vehicles for future battlefields. But the Grand Challenge, as it was called, just
proved how difficult it is to get a car to speed across an unfamiliar desert without human guidance. One
had its brake lock up in the starting area. Another began by throwing itself onto a wall. Another got tied
up by bushes near the road after 1.9 miles.
     One turned upside down. One took off in entirely the wrong direction and had to be disabled by
remote  control. One went a little more than a mile and rushed into a fence; another managed to go for
six miles but stuck on a rock. The "winner," if there was any, reached 7.8 miles before it ran into a long,
narrow hole, and the front wheels caught on fire.
     "You get a lot of respect for natural abilities of the living things," says Reinhold Behringer, who helped
design two of the car-size vehicles for a company called Sci-Autonics. "Even ants  can do all these tasks
effortlessly . It's very hard for us to put these abilities into our machines."
     The robotic vehicles, though with necessary modern equipment such as advanced computers and
GPS guidance, had trouble figuring out fast enough the blocks ahead that a two-year-old human
recognizes immediately, Sure, that very young child, who has just only learned to walk, may not think to
wipe apple juice off her face, but she already knows that when there's a cookie in the kitchen she has to
climb up the table, and that when she gets to the cookie it will taste good. She is more advanced, even
months old, than any machine humans have designed.

1. Watchers doubted if any of the vehicles could finish the race because        .

A. the road was too rough for the drivers      
B. they did not have any human guidance
C. the distance was too long for the vehicles
D. the prize money was unattractive to the drivers

2. DARPA organized the race in order to         .

A. raise money for producing more robotic vehicles
B. train more people to drive in the desert
C. build up body.
D. improve the vehicles for future wars

3. From the passage we know "robotic vehicles" are a kind of machines that         .

A. can do effortlessly whatever tasks living thing can
B. can take part in a race across 142 miles with a time limit
C. can move from place to place without being driven by human beings
D. can show off their ability to turn themselves upside down

4. In the race, the greatest distance one robotic vehicle covered was          .

A. about eight miles    
B. six miles 
C. almost seven miles    
D. about nine mile

5. In the last paragraph, we can conclude that____

A.  a long way to go for a robotic vehicle to finish a 142-mile race without any difficulties
B.  a long way to go for a little child who has just learned to walk to reach the cookie .
C. a long way for a robotic vehicle to deal with a simple one that a little child can solve
D. a long way for a little child to understand the importance of wiping apple juice off its face

     Brazil has become one. of the developing world's great successes at reducing population growth but
more by accident than design. While countries such as India have made joint efforts to reduce birth rates, Brazil had better results without really trying, says George Martine at Harvard.
     Brazil's population growth rate dropped from 2. 99% a year between 1951 and 1960 to 1. 93% a
year between 198 land 1990, and Brazilian women now have only 2. 7 children on average. Martine says
this figure may have fallen still further since 1990, an achievement that makes it the envy of many other
Third World countries.
     Martine puts it down to, among other things, soap operas (肥皂劇) and installment (分期付款) plans
introduced in the 1970s. Both played an important, although indirect, role in lowering the birth rate. Brazil
is one of the world's biggest producers of soap operas. Globo, Brazil's most popular television network,
shows three hours of soaps six nights a week, while three others show at least one hour a night. Most
soaps are based on wealthy characters living the high life in big cities. 
     Although they have never really tried to work in a message towards the problems of reproduction,
they describe middle and upper class values: not many children, women working, says Martine. They sent
this image to all parts of Brazil and made people conscious of other patterns of behaviour and other
values, which were put into a very attractive package.
     Meanwhile, the installment plans tried to encourage the poor to become consumers. " This led to an
enormous change in consumption patterns and consumption was incompatible (不相容的) with unlimited
reproduction," says Martine.

1. According to the passage, Brazil has lowered its population growth ________.

A. by educating its citizens
B. by careful family planning  
C. by limiting birth rate        
D. by chance

2. According to the passage, many Third World countries____

A. are unwilling to control the birth rate.
B. are willing to join Brazil in controlling their birth rate soon
C. haven't yet found an effective measure to control their population
D. haven't realized the importance of TV plays in family planning

3. Soap operas have helped in lowering Brazil's birth rate because ________.

A. they educate people.            
B. they have gradually changed people's way of life
C. people are drawn to their attractive package  
D. they popularize birth control measures

4. What is Martine's conclusion about Brazil's population growth?

A. The desire for consumption helps to reduce birth rate.
B. The increase in birth rate will be controlled.
C. Consumption goes with reproduction.
D. A country 's production is limited by its population growth.

5. According to the passage, soap operas show that they have ____in the middle class.

A. one or two babies.        
B. many babies      
C. only a boy   
D. only a girl

     Being thirteen has certain problems that only another thirteen-year-old would understand. The biggest,
I think, is learning to get along well with adults. I have found that when dealing with grown-ups, it is wise
to remember two things.
    1. Always use your head
    2. Never use your head
      For instance, one day just before supper, my mother sent me to the store for a loaf of whole-wheat
bread. They didn't have any. When I told my mother, she said, "Well, what kind did you get?" I told her
I didn't get any. She looked as if I had just announced that I was leaving home for good. "For goodness'
sake!" She said, "If they hadn't had whole-wheat, you should have got something else! Why don't you
use your head?"
     Not long after that, she sent me to the store for red oilcloth. They didn't have any, so I bought seven
yards of purple. I thought it was pretty. Mother didn't. She said, "Who ever heard of purple oilcloth in a
red kitchen?" I told her I was only trying to use my head. She said. "Well, don't ! And in the future, if you
can't get what I send you for, don't get anything."
     See what I mean?         
     There are other things that seem a little strange, too. If my father goes out for the evening, he tells me
to "look after" my mother and sister. But if the family goes out, and I want to stay home, my father won't
let me. He doesn't feel comfortable if I am home alone. That means I am old enough to "look after" my
mother and sister but not old enough to "look after" myself.
       Another problem is what to do when you trip over the cat and land with your head in the refrigerator, causing a large lump to appear just over the right eyebrow. In that case, your father could feel free to say with a few choice words. Your sister could shed enough tears to dampen the whole room. Your mother
could, and probably would, do both. But you? You are thirteen and can't do anything! You are too young
to curse, and "big boys" don't cry. So you just stand there looking more stupid than usual. But in spite of
all this I still think thirteen is a wonderful age!

1. The main idea of the passage is that____.
                      
A. young children are boring
B. being thirteen involves too may responsibilities
C. a thirteen-year-old boy is the sun of the family
D. thirteen-year-olds have special problems

2. The author says the biggest problem is_____.   
                   
A. learning how to use one's head
B. assuming responsibilities
C. showing you can be trusted
D. learning how to get along with grown-ups

3. The author thinks that his father should allow him to ____.       
             
A. go shipping by himself  
B. stay at home alone
C. look after the family  
D. use his head

4. The author complains that there is no acceptable way for a thirteen-year-old boy to____.

A. prevent his sister from crying
B. act when he is in the kitchen
C. avoid tripping over the cat    
D. behave when he hurts himself

5. The author believes being a boy of thirteen is _____.         
           
A. frustrating   
B. painful    
C. delightful    
D. tiring  

     There are two types of people in the world. Although they have equal degree of health and wealth
and other comforts of life, one becomes happy and the other becomes unhappy. This arises from the
different ways in which they consider things, persons, events and the resulting effects upon their minds.
       People who are to be happy fix their attention on the convenience of things: the pleasant parts of
conversation, the well prepared dishes, the goodness of the wine and the fine weather. They enjoy all
the cheerful things. Those who are to be unhappy think and speak only of the opposite things. Therefore,
they are continually dissatisfied. By their remarks, they sour the pleasure of society, offend (hurt) many
people, and make themselves disagreeable everywhere. If this turn of mind was founded in nature, such
unhappy persons would be the more to be pitied. The intention of criticizing(批評(píng)) and being disliked is
perhaps taken up by imitation(模仿). It grows into a habit, unknown to its possessors. The habit may be
strong, but it may be cured when those who have it realize its bad effects on their interests and tastes. I
hope this little warning may be of service to them, and help them change this habit.
      Although in fact it is chiefly an act of the imagination, it has serious results in life since it brings on
deep sorrow and bad luck. Those people offend many others; nobody loves them, and no one treats
them with more than the most common politeness and respect. This frequently puts them in bad temper
and draws them into arguments. If they aim at getting some advantages in social position or fortune,
nobody wishes them success. Nor will anyone start a step or speak a word to favor their hopes. If they
bring on themselves public objections, no one will defend or excuse them, and many will join to criticize
their wrongdoings. These should change this bad habit and be pleased with what is pleasing, without
worrying needlessly about themselves and others. If they do not, it will be good for others to avoid any
contact(接觸) with them. Otherwise, it can be disagreeable and sometimes very inconvenient, especially
when one becomes mixed up in their quarrels.

1. People who are unhappy _______.

A. always consider things differently from others
B. usually are affected by the results of certain things
C. usually misunderstand what others think or say
D. always discover the unpleasant side of certain things

2. The phrase "sour the pleasure of society" most nearly means "_______".
A. have a good taste with social life
B. make others unhappy
C. tend to please others openly    
D. enjoy the pleasure of life

3. We can conclude from the passage that _______.

A. we should pity all such unhappy people
B. such unhappy people are dangerous to social life
C. people can get rid of the habit of unhappiness
D. unhappy people can not understand happy persons

4. If such unhappy persons insist on keeping the habit, the author suggests that people should _______.

A. prevent any communication with them
B. show no respect and politeness to them
C. persuade them to recognize the bad effects
D. quarrel with them until they realize the mistakes

5. In this passage, the writer mainly _______.

A. describes two types of people
B. laughs at the unhappy people
C. suggests the unhappy people get rid of the habits of unhappiness
D. tells people how to be happy in life

     Several years ago, I had a huge falling out with one of my best friends. So huge, in fact, that now I
can't even remember what happened.
     In the past nine years, I've seen her twice, and each time we've been polite but distant. And that
troubles me because we were once close friends. I'd like nothing more than to go back nine years, and
continue our friendship. But how? How do you reconnect with friends you've lost throughout the years?
     Linking to your past
    The desire to reconnect with lost friends isn't unusual. Why? Because friends link us to the past.
"Friends from years ago are custodians(監(jiān)護(hù)人)of our past," says Sandy Sheehy, author of Connecting: The Enduring Power of Female Friendship.
    Although you can share information about your past with friends you've met recently, you don't have
a shared history with them. So you wind up only telling them about your past, rather than sharing it with
them.
    But many people never try to reconnect. Women especially have trouble taking that first step. Shynes
s or fear that the other person doesn't want to reconnect often stops many women. And that shouldn't
be. Your friends probably want to be in touch with you as much as you want to be in touch with them.
     Searching for friends
     Fortunately, finding lost friends isn't as difficult as it once was, thanks to tools like the Internet. Our
experts offer these suggestions for locating contact information:
    ＊Search Internet sites designed to locate people like classmates.com and switchboard.com.
    ＊Contact your high school or college alumni(校友)office to request current address information.
    ＊Surf online yellow pages. Check current phone records from your friend's hometown.
    ＊Network with other friends who might have known your friend.
    ＊Get in touch with any of her relatives, if you know where they live. If you know where she works,
find the company's web site and search the directory of personnel.

1. What is the subject discussed in the passage?

A.How to make new friends.
B.How to rediscover friendships.
C.How to develop healthy friendships.
D.How to keep in touch with friends.

2. The underlined sentence "friends from years ago are custodians of our past" means ____________.

A..many years ago old friends kept something for us
B.in the past old friends took care of us
C.old friends are part of our life history
D.old friends know what wrong things we did in the past

3. According to the passage what makes us reluctant to reconnect old friends?

A. Lack of money.
B. Shortage of time.
C. Regret and shame.
D. Fear and shyness.

4. How can we make contact with the lost friends according to the passage?

A. By asking other friends of the information on your lost friends.
B. By going direct to the place where he works.
C.By asking the local post office about your friends' new address.
D. By putting an advertisement in your friends' local town.