Scientists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have reported evidence that Mars was warmer and wetter long ago than it is today.  The Caltech scientists say they have directly established the temperature of Mars four billion years ago. At least, they established the surface temperature on part of the planet at that time. The researchers say it is the first such evidence to be discovered and presented.
The Caltech scientists say carbonate（碳酸鹽）minerals formed on Mars at about eighteen degrees Celsius. They reached the finding after studying a meteorite（隕石）that had its beginnings near the Martian surface.
Today, the average temperature on Mars is sixty-three degrees below zero Celsius.
The finding was reported on the website of the National Academy of Sciences. Caltech Assistant Professor Woody Fischer helped to prepare the report. He says eighteen degrees Celsius is not especially cold or hot. He says this makes the finding extremely interesting. Knowing the temperature can give scientists an idea of the climate on Mars long ago. It can also help them decide whether the planet had liquid water. Spacecraft orbiting Mars have shown what appear to be rivers, lakebeds and mineral deposits. These pictures suggest that, at one time, water did flow there. Mars Rover vehicles and other spacecraft have proved the information.

The meteorite the scientists examined is one of the oldest known rocks in the world. It is called the Allan Hills meteorite. Its name came from the place in Antarctica where it was found in 1984. The meteorite is believed to have blown loose from the Mars' surface when another space rock struck its "home."
【小題1】The underlined word “establish” in Paragraph 1 probably means “___________”.

A．to set up

B．to make people accept a belief

C．to discover or prove

D．to start having a relationship with others

【小題2】How did the scientists reach the finding?

A．By studying Allan Hills meteorite.

B．By using spacecraft orbiting Mars.

C．By studying minerals gathered on Mars.

D．By studying a meteorite on the Martian surface.

【小題3】According to the fourth paragraph, what have spacecraft orbiting Mars done?

A．Measuring the temperature of Mars.

B．Taking photos of the surface of Mars.

C．Finding that there is water flowing on Mars.

D．Proving where human beings will probably land on Mars.

【小題4】Where can we most probably read this passage?

A．In a biography of scientists.	B．In a geography magazine.
C．In an environment report.	D．In a science report.

Around the world coral reefs(珊瑚礁) are facing threats(威脅) brought by climate change and great changes in sea temperatures. While ocean warming has been the primary focus for scientists and ocean policy managers, cold events can also whiten corals. A new study by scientists compared damaged to corals exposed to heat as well as cold stress. The results show that cool temperatures can cause more damage in the short term, but heat is more destructive(破壞性的) in the long run.
Climate change is widely known to produce warming conditions in the oceans, but extreme cold-water events have become more frequent and serious as well. In 2010, for example, coral reefs around the world faced on of the coldest winters and one of the hottest summers on record.
During a unique experiment, corals under cold temperatures suffered greater damage in just days compared with heat treated corals. Yet the researchers found that corals were eventually able to adjust to the cold conditions, make their health stable and continue to grow. However, over the long term corals subjected to heat suffered more greatly than those in cold, with evidence of severe whitening and growth stoppage, which leads to death.
The coral’s ability to adjust to cool temperatures surprised the researchers, who say the study’s results show the complexities(復(fù)雜性) of monitoring coral health in response to different environmental factors(因素).
“Global warming is associated with increases but also decreases of temperatures,” said Deheyn, one of the researchers. “Not much has been known about the comparative effects of temperature decrease on corals. These results are important because they show that corals react differently to temperature differences, which is important for future management of coral reefs in the field of climate change.”
【小題1】Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．Corals are unable to adjust to temperature changes.

B．Cold temperature causes greater damage to corals.

C．Hot temperature helps coral reefs to grow quickly.

D．Heat and cold damage corals in their own ways.

【小題2】We can learn from the passage that         .

A．scientists used to pay no attention to the effect of cold events on corals

B．2010 witnessed one of the greatest temperature differences on record

C．corals prefer warmer conditions to cold temperatures in the long run

D．global warming has nothing to do with the decrease of temperature

【小題3】According to the research,            .

A．corals may continue to grow in cold events after a few days

B．cold events help corals grow more quickly in a short time

C．corals show no response to hot temperatures in the first days

D．corals are whitened mainly because of warm temperatures

【小題4】Scientists reached the conclusion through              .

A．news report

B．scientific study

C．great imagination

D．natural conditions

Recently we told you about a finding that more years of school could help students get higherscores on intelligence tests．That was the finding of a study of teenage males in Norway．Now，other research shows that physical activity may help students do better in their classes .
The research comes as educators in some countries are reducing time for activities like physical education．They are using the time instead for academic subjects like maths and reading．The studies appeared between 2007 and 2013．They included more than 55，000 children，aged 6 to 18．
Amika Singh：“Based on the results of our study，we can conclude that being physically active is beneficial for academic performance. There are，first，Physiological explanations，like more blood flow, and so more oxygen to the brain．Being physically active means there are more hormones(荷爾蒙)produced like endorphins(內(nèi)啡肽)．And endorphins make your stress level lower and  your mood improved, which means you also perform better.”
Also，students involved in organized sports learn rules and how to follow them．This could improve their classroom behavior and help them keep their mind on their work．
The study leaves some questions unanswered，however．Ms．Stash says it is not possible to say whether the amount or kind of activity affected the level of academic improvement．This is because of differences among the studies .
Also．they were mostly observational studies．An observational study is where researchers do not do controlled comparisons．They only describe what they observe．So they might observe a link that students who are more active often have better grades．But that does not necessarily mean being active was the cause of those higher grades．
The researchers said they found only two high - quality studies．They called for more high-
quality studies to confirm their findings．They also pointed out that “outcomes for other parts of the world may be quite different. ”
Still，the general finding was that physically active kids are more likely to do better in school．Ms．Singh says schools should consider that finding before they cut physical education programs．Her paper on “Physical Activity and Performance at School”is published in the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine．
【小題1】The passage mainly tells us that ＿＿＿＿

A．a(chǎn) research on physical education has been done by the researchers

B．there exists a possibility that physical activity leads to higher grades

C．the amount or kind of activity directly affects academic level

D．the research shows that the children aged 6 to 1 8 don't do sports

【小題2】Which of the following is TRUE?

A．Being mentally active is good for academic subjects．

B．The more hormones you have，the more stressed you will get．

C．They have found many high-quality studies to prove the research．

D．The educators in the research think studies，not exercise，mean much to students．

【小題3】The underlined sentence in Paragraph 7 probably means ＿＿＿＿.

A．good marks result from high-quality study

B．findings probably vary in different areas

C．physical activity will spread all over the world

D．a(chǎn)cademic performance depends on the surroundings

【小題4】What's the purpose of writing the passage?

A．To call our attention to the sports at school．

B．To introduce all types of physical activities．

C．To represent the academic performance．

D．To improve students' health ．

Move Earth—It’s Not Science Fiction

LONDON—Scientists have found an unusual way to  prevent our planet from overheating: move it to a cooler spot. All you have to do is send a few comets(彗星)in the direction of Earth, and its orbit will be changed. Our world will then be sent spinning into a safer, colder part of the solar system.
This idea for improving our climate comes from a group of US National Aeronautics and Space Administration(NASA)engineers and American astronomers. They say their plan could add another six billion years to the useful lifetime of our planet—effectively doubling its working life.
The plan put forward by Dr. Laughlin, and his colleagues Don Korycansky and Fred Adams, needs carefully directing a comet or asteroid so that it passes close by our planet and sends some of its gravitational energy to Earth.
“Earth’s orbital speed would increase as a result and we would move to a higher orbit away from the Sun, ”Laughlin said.
Engineers would then direct their comet so that it passed close to Jupiter or Saturn. The comet would pick up energy from one of these giant planets. Later its orbit would bring it back to Earth, and the process would be repeated.
In the short term, the plan provides an ideal way to global warming, although the team was actually concerned with a much greater danger. The Sun is certain to heat up in about a billion years and so“seriously compromise” our biosphere(生物圈)—by cooking us.
That’s why the group decided to try to save Earth.
The plan has one or two worrying aspects, however. For a start, space engineers would have to be very careful about how they directed their asteroid or comet towards Earth. The smallest miscalculation(誤算)in orbit could fire it straight at Earth—with deadly consequences.
There is also the question of the Moon. As the current issue of Scientific American magazine points out, if Earth was pushed out of its current position, it is“most likely the Moon would be stripped away from Earth”. This would greatly change our planet’s climate.
【小題1】What makes the scientists plan to move Earth?

A．A few comets are moving to the direction of Earth.

B．Earth’s working life is coming to an end soon.

C．Earth will become too hot for mankind to keep alive.

D．The moon is moving farther and farther away from Earth.

【小題2】If the plan is successful, Earth will have a working life of　　　years.

A．12 billion	B．6 billion
C．18 billion	D．24 billion

【小題3】What serious problems might the plan cause according to the passage?

A．The comet might hit Earth and man might lose the Moon.

B．Earth might be moved too far away and man might be frozen to death.

C．The comet might hit Jupiter or Saturn and never return to Earth.

D．Earth’s working life might be greatly shortened.

【小題4】What does the underlined word“compromise”mean?

A．Provide.	B．Benefit.
C．Share.	D．Endanger.

What makes humans smarter than other animals? We’ve got a bigger brain, of course. But when it comes to brains, is bigger always better?

Traditionally, scientists have thought that humans’ superior intelligence derived(源于)mostly from the fact that our brains are three times bigger than those of our nearest living relatives, chimpanzees. People even used to believe that because men have slightly larger brains than women that men are smarter.
This, however, is not the truth. Scientists at University College London in the UK have found that brain organization, and not brain size, is the key to the superiority of human intelligence, reported Live Science.
Through millions of years of evolution, our ancestors were constantly pushed to get smarter so that they could meet the demands of new environments. However, holding this growing intelligence in increasingly large brains was not the best choice because bigger brains require more energy to power. “This is when reorganization may come into play, ”said Christophe Soligo, a member of the London research team.
In the study, scientists looked at the brains of 17 species of primates(靈長(zhǎng)目動(dòng)物), including monkeys, apes and humans. They found that in the process of evolution, brains didn’t keep growing as a whole. Certain regions of the brain grew prior to others in response to species’ needs, and in this way they could make the best use of their limited brain space.
For example, when early humans were struggling to survive, the brain region in charge of using tools and finding food grew in size more than other regions. But in modern times, the prefrontal cortex(前額皮質(zhì))—the region in charge of social cognition(認(rèn)知), moral judgments and goal-directed planning—grew more than the rest of the brain.
Think of the brain as a room. If a big room is poorly organized, it doesn’t necessarily store more stuff than a smaller one.
Paul Manger, professor at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa, explains this principle using the example of whales. He told Scientific American: “Whales have big brains, absolutely. But if you look at the actual structure of the brain, it’s not very complex. Brain size only matters if the rest of the brain is organized properly. ”
【小題1】It has recently been found that humans are smarter than the other animals mainly because　　　.

A．they are a species of primates

B．they have much larger brains

C．their brain structure is more complex

D．they were constantly pushed to get smarter

【小題2】According to the article, in recent human evolution, 　　　.

A．the brain kept growing in size to adapt to new environments

B．most regions of the brain didn’t change

C．the prefrontal cortex grew more than the rest of the brain

D．humans’ brains became increasingly simple so that humans could survive

【小題3】What can we conclude from the article?

A．Gender makes a difference in intelligence.

B．The size of the brain has nothing to do with intelligence.

C．Species whose brain is organized properly tend to be smarter.

D．Larger brains are usually organized better than smaller ones.

【小題4】The method the writer uses to develop the last paragraph is　　　.

A．by presenting research data

B．by giving examples

C．by making a comparison

D．by analyzing cause and effect

While students in Hainan are quite used to clear skies, Beijing teenagers are not so lucky. As another warm winter approaches, the city can expect the normal clouds of smoke caused by air pollution.

But things may start to improve soon. The government is co-operating with a US-based environmental protection agency to update existing buses and trucks with clean fuel technology. The new technology could reduce air pollutants in existing diesel engines(柴油機(jī))by 40 percent. The programme will begin by testing buses in Beijing to see if the technology can be applied to them.
“We encourage the development of public transports. But at the same time we need to reduce pollution from them, ”said an official.
Efforts are being made to improve the capital’s environment with tighter controls on emissions(排放). Some heavily polluting factories and construction sites, such as those owned by the steel giant Shougang Group, have been asked to cut production in November and December or be closed.
Beijing was the third polluted city in the world at the end of last century, according to the UN. But thanks to recent measures, the capital has made some progress. Last year 224 clear days were rated as having good air quality. In 1998 the air quality index(指數(shù))gave just 100 days as good.
“I am glad to see an improvement, ”said a senior 1 boy living in the northwest of Beijing. “Compared to other places, the air quality of Beijing is still worrying though. I hate pollution. Once I was riding my bike in the morning when I almost had a traffic accident because I couldn’t see a car only metres away from me in fog. ”
In early October, the skies were covered by such a thick fog that a display show by the visiting French Air Force was called off.
Rapid development, industry, traffic fumes and sandstorms from the desert all contribute to the city’s bad air.
【小題1】 The passage is mainly about　　　.

A．a(chǎn) programme aiming at improving Beijing’s air quality

B．progress made in Beijing’s air quality

C．Beijing’s air pollution

D．the differences between Hainan and Beijing

【小題2】Which of the following is NOT the measure taken or to be taken to improve Beijing’s air quality?

A．Clean fuel technology will be used in public transports.

B．Some factories have been asked to cut production.

C．Some construction sites have been told to be closed.

D．A display show of airplanes has been called off.

【小題3】 We can infer from the passage that, with the aim of being an ecological(生態(tài)的)city, 　　　.

A．far more still needs to be done

B．nothing else needs to be done

C．a(chǎn)ll traffic has to be closed

D．the development of the city has to be slowed down

【小題4】Which of the following is NOT correct according to the passage?

A．Beijing’s air quality is getting worse and worse.

B．Rapid development, industry, traffic fumes and sandstorms are all the causes of bad air quality.

C．People see clouds of smoke in the sky in the winter of Beijing.

D．The government is making efforts to stop air pollution.

Humans have sewn by hand for thousands of years. It was said that the first thread was made from animal muscle and sinew (腱). And the earliest needles were made from bones. Since those early days, many people have been involved in the process of developing a machine that could do the same thing more quickly and with greater efficiency.
Charles Wiesenthal, who was born in Germany, designed and received a patent on a double-pointed needle that eliminated the need to turn the needle around with each stitch (縫合) in England in 1755. Other inventors of that time tried to develop a functional sewing machine, but each design had at least one serious imperfection. [來(lái)源:學(xué),科Frenchman Barthelemy Thimonnier finally engineered a machine that really worked. However, he was nearly killed by a group of angry tailors when they burned down his garment factory. They feared that they would lose their jobs to the machine.
American inventor Elias Howe, born on July 9, 1819, was awarded a patent for a method of sewing that used thread from two different sources. Howe’s machine had a needle with an eye at the point, and it used the two threads to make a special stitch called a lockstitch. However, Howe faced difficulty in finding buyers for his machines in America. In frustration, he traveled to England to try to sell his invention there. When he finally returned home, he found that dozens of manufacturers were adapting his discovery for use in their own sewing machines.
Isaac Singer, another American inventor, was also a manufacturer who made improvements to the design of sewing machines. He invented an up-and-down-motion mechanism that replaced the side-to-side machines. He also developed a foot treadle(腳踏板) to power his machine. This improvement left the sewer’s hands free. Undoubtedly, it was a huge improvement of the hand-cranked machine of the past. Soon the Singer sewing machine achieved more fame than the others for it was more practical, it could be adapted to home use and it could be bought on hire-purchase. The Singer sewing machine became the first home appliance, and the Singer company became one of the first American multinationals.
However, Singer used the same method to create a lockstitch that Howe had already patented. As a result, Howe accused him of patent infringement（侵犯）. Of course, Elias Howe won the court case, and Singer was ordered to pay Howe royalties（版稅）. In the end, Howe became a millionaire, not by manufacturing the sewing machine, but by receiving royalty payments for his invention.
【小題1】Barthelemy Thimonnier’s garment factory was burned down because _____________.

A．people did not know how to put out the fire

B．Elias Howe thought Thimonnier had stolen his invention

C．the sewing machines was couldn’t work finally

D．workers who feared the loss of their jobs to a machine set fire

【小題2】Which of the following is NOT TRUE according to the passage?  

A．Singer is an American inventor and manufacturer.

B．The Singer sewing company became more practical.

C．The foot treadle helped to make the sewer’s hands free.

D．Singer made improvements to the design of sewing machines.

【小題3】Why did the court force Isaac Singer to pay Elisa Howe a lifetime of royalties?

A．Because the judge was against Singer for his surly attitude.

B．Because Howe had already patented the lockstitch used by Singer.

C．Because Singer had borrowed money from Howe and never repaid it.

D．Because Singer and Howe had both invented the same machine.

【小題4】Which of the following would be the best title for this passage?

A．A Stitch in Time Saves Nine

B．The Case between Howe and Singer

C．Patent Laws on the Sewing Machine

D．The Early History of the Sewing Machine

Can people change their skin color without suffering like pop king Michael Jackson? Perhaps yes. Scientists have found the gene that determines skin color.
The gene comes in two versions, one of which is found in 99 percent of Europeans. The other is found in 93 to 100 percent of Africans, researchers at Pennsylvania State University report in the latest issue of Science.
Scientists have changed the color of a dark-striped zebra-fish（斑馬魚(yú)） to uniform gold by inserting a version of the pigment (色素) gene into a young fish. As with humans, zebra-fish skin color is determined by pigment cells, which contain melanin (黑色素). The number, size and darkness of melanin per pigment cell determine skin color.
It appears that, like the golden zebra-fish, light-skinned Europeans also have a mutation (變異) in the gene for melanin production. This results in less pigmented skin.
However, Keith Cheng, leader of the research team, points out that the mutation is different in human and zebra-fish genes.
Humans acquired dark skin in Africa about 1.5 million years ago to protect bodies from ultra-violet rays of the sun (太陽(yáng)光紫外線), which can cause skin cancer.
But when modern humans leave Africa to live in northern latitudes, they need more sunlight on their skin to produce vitamin D. So the related gene changes, according to Cheng.
Asians have the same version of the gene as Africans, so they probably acquired their light skin through the action of some other gene that affects skin color, said Cheng.
The new discovery could lead to medical treatments for skin cancer. It also could lead to research into ways to change skin color without damaging it like chemical treatment did on Michael Jackson.
【小題1】The passage mainly tells us that ________.

A．people can not change their skin color without any pain

B．the new discovery could lead to research into ways to change skin color safely

C．pop king Michael Jackson often changed his skin color as he liked

D．scientists have found out that people’s skin color is determined by the gene

【小題2】It can be inferred from the passage that _____________.

A．nowadays people who want to change their skin color have to suffer a lot from the damage caused by the chemical treatment

B．Europeans and Africans have the same gene

C．the new discovery could help to find medical treatments for skin cancer

D．there are two kinds of genes

【小題3】Scientists have done an experiment on a dark-striped zebra-fish in order to _____________.

A．find the different genes of humans’

B．prove the humans’ skin color is determined by the pigment gene

C．find out the reason why the Africans’ skin color is dark

D．find out the ways of changing people’s skin color

【小題4】 The reason why Europeans are light-skinned is probably that _____________.

A．they are born light-skinned people

B．light-skinned Europeans have mutation in the gene for melanin production

C．they have fewer activities outside

D．they pay much attention to protecting their skin

【小題5】The writer’s attitude towards the discovery is ______________.

A．neutral

B．negative

C．positive

D．unconcerned

With 10, 600 bicycles in circulation，Paris city officials are hoping the program will provide people with more environmentally friendly transportation．

It seems both Parisians and tourists are taking advantage of the program．Since its launch a little over two weeks ago，Vélib has already seen almost half a million rentals．And，with the addition of 10，000 more bikes and 700 more stations in the next 12 months，city officials expect at least 200，000 regular users by year end．
Parisian Olivier Bioret has already gone for a spin on one of Vélib’s vehicles and plans to make use of them more often．
“It’s a real pleasure—when，like me，you don’t have space enough in your flat to have your
own bike—to be able to discover．to cross Paris and not have to take the subway，”he said．
As a socialist and longtime green activist，Mayor Bertrand Delanoe regards Vélib as just a part of his plan to reduce car traffic and，thus，lower pollution by 2020．
Apart from its environmental benefits，Vélib is also being praised as a way of collecting money for the city，for all the money from rentals goes to the city government．
Paris is not alone in its attempt to profit from the power of the bicycles．
Across the globe，cities such as Barcelona，which stated its bike-share program in March with 1,500 vehicles and 100 stations，and New York，which launched a five-day trial program last month，are using bicycles as a way to cut back on both traffic and pollution．
However，it remains to be seen whether people’s acceptance of these programs is simply a
passing fashion or whether this movement has the power to take root and transform the face of public transportation around the world．
【小題1】The real purpose of Vélib is________．

A．to help people save money and space

B．to make some money for the city government

C．to provide convenience to both Parisians and tourists

D．to reduce traffic and pollution in the city

【小題2】Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．There will be 700 stations in one year’s time．

B．There will be over 20, 000 bikes in use in a year．

C．In the first two weeks there were nearly a million rentals．

D．There will be 200, 000 regular rentals each day by year end．

【小題3】We can know from the passage that_________．

A．other cities also have such programs

B．Parisians can use the bicycles free of charge

C．Paris sets an example to many other cities

D．Paris is the first city to start such a program

【小題4】As to the future of the program，the author is_________．

A．critical

B．optimistic

C．uncertain

D．negative

Although cats may be one of the most popular pets today, little is known about how and when humans and cats set up their close relationship.
The earliest evidence for human–cat interaction dates back to prehistoric Cyprus（史前塞浦路斯）, where the remains of a wild cat and a human — dated 9,500 years old — were found buried together.
A new study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences has confirmed the first direct evidence of a human–domestic cat relationship among Chinese farmers 5,300 years ago. Researchers studied the bones of cats, dogs, deer and other animals unearthed in an excavation (挖掘) near a village in Central China. By using some ways, scientists showed that the cats were living on a mostly millet(黍)–based diet, just like the domesticated dogs and pigs from the site.
"The most reasonable explanation for a high consumption of millet–based food is that the cats had formed a stable and mutual relationship with humans and could easily feed on rodents (嚙齒動(dòng)物) around human villages, find leftover food or even have been fed by people intentionally," said Hu Yaowu from the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, whose research focuses on the relationship between humans and domesticated animals.
"It is very interesting for us to find the consumption of millet-based foods by the cats, since this kind of evidence had long been missing.” Hu explains. Since cats usually eat meat, such a diet would be unexpected, unless the cats were being fed by people, the study argues. The researchers also found that one of the cats survived to reach old age, implying that it had a safe place to live and enough to eat.
Why the farmers wanted to keep cats nearby or make them "pets" could be answered by other evidence. Chinese archaeologists found some storage containers were specifically designed to keep out rodents — a vermin (害獸) that cats could certainly have helped with.
The simplified theory is that rats were attracted to the food of farmers, and so were harmful to farmers. Cats were attracted to the rats, and so farmers formed a mutually beneficial relationship with cats, taking care of them in return for pest control.
【小題1】The evidence found in the remains dating back to prehistoric Cyprus means         .

A．human made cats pets as early as 9,500 years ago

B．human interacted with cats very early

C．cats didn’t appear until prehistoric Cyprus

D．when cats became domesticated

【小題2】Apart from cats, Hu Yaowu and his teams may also study         .

A．the preventions of pests from grains

B．the history of Chinese farming

C．the dogs and pigs

D．the ways to keep pets

【小題3】Which of the following is NOT the evidence of Chinese farms’ keeping cats?

A．Cats didn’t feed on meat.

B．The cats consumed large amounts of millet–based foods.

C．One of the cats survived to reach old age.

D．Some storage containers were specifically designed to keep out rodents.

【小題4】What are the reasons for farmers to keep cats?

A．Helping keep other domesticated animals.

B．Not letting cats eat food.

C．Supplying meat for human.

D．Helping reduce the amount of pests.

【小題5】In which part of a newspaper would be the passage most probably appear         .

A．Entertainment	B．Environment
C．Human and Science	D．Life and fashion