Everyone has done experiments in high school laboratories, but have you ever thought about designing a satellite to explore space?
On Nov. 19, a team of students from Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in the US awed peers and even scientists by successfully launching a satellite.
The first satellite designed and built by high school students was sent up into space along with a record-setting. 28 other small ones on a rocket were sent from a NASA center in Virginia, CNN reported. It took the students seven years to build.
The students call their tiny satellite TJ3Sat, which is named after their school. It is just 10x10x12 centimeters and weighs only 0.89 kilograms, according to Orbital Sciences, a company which developed the rocket and supported the students’ project. It can be controlled with a smartphone.
Like most satellites, TJ3Sat can send and receive data. The small spacecraft is equipped with a voice synthesizer (合成器), which can switch text to voice and transmit those sounds back to Earth over radio waves, said Orbital officials. In this case, anyone can give it a try via the project’s website (school website) by submitting (提交) a text. The texts that get approved will be sent to the satellite, changed to voice and then broadcast back to Earth via radio waves.
“I can say ‘Go Colonials’ on our ground station and when it is on the other side of the world, in India, someone can hear ‘Go Colonials’over the radio,” the team explains on the website.
The satellite will stay in space for at least three months.
School principal Evan Glazer told The Washington Post that the project started in 2006 as an activity in the spare time. Later it became a research project for a select group of seniors.
At a time when American students are busy with SATs, the launch of the satellite shows what diligent teenagers can achieve when allowed to pursue their own curiosities, Glazer said.
“It used to be that kids growing up wanted to be an astronaut,” Andrew Petro, program executive (主管) for small spacecraft technology at NASA, said in a statement. “I think we might be seeing kids saying what they want to do is build a spacecraft. The idea here is that they really can do that.”
小題1: The underlined word “awed” in the second paragraph is closest in meaning to ___.

A．influenced

B．a(chǎn)mazed

C．delighted

D．inspired

小題2: Which of the following statements about TJ3Sat is TRUE according to the article?

A．It took a group of students about a decade to build the satellite.

B．Besides TJ3Sat, 28 other small satellites were built by the students.

C．TJ3Sat can receive text messages that the students send into space, which it can change to voice messages and broadcast back to Earth.

D．TJ3Sat is expected to stay in orbit for the next year, sending out messages together with information about its position in space.

小題3: According to the article, the launch of the satellite _______.

A．is evidence of the advance of spacecraft technology

B．proves that hard-working teenagers can achieve a lot

C．shows the importance of extracurricular activities at school

D．has inspired many people to take an interest in space travel

Mona Lisa, the mysterious woman in Leonardo da Vinci's 16th century masterpiece, had just given birth to her second son when she sat for the painting, a French art expert said on Tuesday. The discovery was made by a team of Canadian scientists who used special infrared(紅外線) and three-dimensional（三維的）technology to study the paint layers on the work, which now sits in the Louvre museum in Paris.
Bruno Mottin of the French Museums' Center for Research and Restoration said that on very close examination of the painting it became clear that the Mona Lisa's dress was covered in a thin transparent gauze veil.（透明面紗）
"This type of gauze dress was typical of the kind worn in early 16th century Italy by women who were pregnant or who had just given birth. This is something that had never been seen up to now because the painting was always judged to be dark and difficult to examine," he told a news conference.
"We can now say that this painting by Leonardo da Vinci was painted in memory of  the birth of the second son of Mona Lisa, which helps us to date it more precisely to around 1503."The young woman with the ambiguous half smile has been identified as Lisa Gherardini, wife of Florentine merchant Francesco de Giocondo. She had five children.
"People always wrote that Mona Lisa had allowed her hair to hang freely over her shoulders. This greatly surprised historians because letting your hair hang freely during the Renaissance was typical of young girls and women of poor virtue (美德)," he said.
The team had hoped to discover more details about Leonardo’s painting techniques, which the artist used to create a hazy (朦朧的) effect. But scientist John Taylor said the team had been disappointed by the lack of brush stroke（筆觸）detail on the painting.
小題1:According to the latest research, Mona Lisa was __________.

A．a(chǎn) woman of poor virtue	B．da Vinci’s second wife
C．a(chǎn) woman who was pregnant	D．the wife of Florentine merchant

小題2:We can infer from the test that ___________.

A．The research has been carried out in France

B．Mona Lisa was painted in 1503 at the latest

C．In da Vinci’s time women could only wear short hair

D．the most difficulty is to identify the paint layers

小題3:What is probably the best title for the test?

A．Mona Lisa ,the Mysterious Woman

B．Mona Lisa was a New Mother

C．Great Discovery in Painting

D．Leonardo’s Painting Technique

小題4:The information reported in the text was first got from _______________.

A．a(chǎn) newspaper	B．the Internet
C．a(chǎn) news conference	D．the museum

The illegal ivory trade has been a major problem in Africa for decades. Poachers(偷獵者) and hunters have killed off hundreds of thousands of elephants to obtain this precious material. Now, affected areas are taking action. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) announced on Wednesday that key states where poaching takes place have promised to stop the ivory trade and protect Africa’s elephants.
In the 1980s, as many as 1 million elephants across Africa were killed for their ivory tusks. This continued until 1989, when the Convention on International Trade in Species (CITES) voted to ban all trade in ivory. With trade choked off, demand for ivory fell. Elephant populations slowly began to increase. However, this progress was short-lived.
According to the IUCN, 2011 saw the highest levels of poaching and illegal ivory trading in at least 16 years. Around 25,000 elephants were killed in Africa that year. Preliminary data from the IUCN shows even higher levels of illegal trade may have been reached in 2013. “With about 22,000 elephants illegally killed in 2012, we continue to face a critical situation,” said John E. Scanlon, CITES Secretary-General. “Current elephant poaching in Africa remains far too high, and could soon lead to local extinctions if the present killing rate continues.”
At the African Elephant Summit, key African states where elephants make their home agreed to develop a “zero-tolerance attitude” towards poaching. The deal calls for maximum sentences for poachers and hunters, and increased cooperation between affected states. Officials are determined to classifying wildlife trading as a serious crime — and to making sure that the people who commit it are punished. All participants at the conference agreed to sign the deal. With these states coming together, there may yet be hope for elephants. (293 words)
小題1:What’s the best title for this passage?

A．New Hope for Elephants.	B． Elephants are dying.
C．Elephants are valuable.	D． How to protect elephants

小題2:The underlined phrase “choked off” in Paragraph 2 can be replaced by “________”.

A． appreciated

B． prevented

C． admitted

D． explored

小題3:Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?

A．The CITES has helped to improve elephants’ situation ever since 1989.

B．Around one million elephants across Africa were killed for their ivory tusks in the 1980s.

C．The poaching and illegal ivory trading in 2011 were very serious.

D．The situation of elephants in 2012 was still terrible.

小題4: All of the following measures will be taken to protect elephants EXCEPT ________.

A．to identify wildlife trading a serious crime

B．to punish those who buy or sell wildlife belongings

C．to sentence all wildlife poachers and hunters to death

D．to work together to fight against wildlife hunting

小題5:What’s the main idea of this passage?

A．The illegal ivory trade has been a major problem in Africa.

B．Elephants in Africa may die out because of the illegal poaching.

C．Hunting elephants will be recognized as a very serious crime.

D．A new agreement aims to develop a “zero-tolerance attitude” towards poaching.

Studies show farmland in Africa is often lacking in important nutrients. But researchers say combining different farming methods may help.
Since the world food crisis several years ago, researchers have directed more of their attention to small farms. Most farms in areas south of the Sahara Desert are only about one or two hectares. One of the goals is to increase production without necessarily clearing more land to grow additional crops. 
American researchers say that can happen with greater use of an agricultural system called perennation. It mixes food crops with trees and perennial plants – those that return year after year.
Mr. Reganold, who is with Washington State University, says poor soil may have resulted from years of weathering that washed away many nutrients. He says some farmers may have done more harm than good.
He estimates that up to two billion dollars worth of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium is lost from African soil each year.
The scientist says the word perennation defines three systems that are already used in Africa. The oldest of the three is called evergreen agriculture. This is where farmers plant trees with their crops. John Reganold says farmers in Africa have been doing this for sixty years, but it seems to be growing in popularity.
The method is gaining widespread use in countries such as Niger, Burkina Faso, Malawi and Zambia. The trees are planted among maize, millet or sorghum crops. They not only add nitrogen to the soil through their roots, but also through their leaves when they fall off and break down. At other times of the year, the trees can protect plants from strong sunlight.
Mr. Reganold was one of three researchers who wrote a report about perennation. It was published in the journal Nature.
小題1:Farmland in Africa ________.

A．is often small in size

B．can produce more than enough crops for Africans

C．is short of important nutrients

D．has got the attention of scientists around the world

小題2:Researchers focused their attention on small farmlands for the reason that ________.

A．Africa was going through a food crisis

B．most farms in areas south of the Sahara Desert are small

C．there are not enough farmlands

D．farmers may grow additional crops on farmland

小題3:The word“perennation”mentioned in this passage ________.

A．is a farming method of planting food crops with trees

B．is a new farming method

C．can help African people produce more food than they need

D．is gaining widespread use around the world

小題4:We can infer from the passage that ________.

A．perennation will be widely used by farmers in Africa

B．American government will help African countries increase food production

C．African countries is short of farmland

D．some farmers are destroying their farmland in Africa on purpose

小題5:This report is mostly likely to be a journal of ________.

A．food

B．environment

C．a(chǎn)griculture

D．gardening

China's top labor official said the country is planning to push back the age at which workers can retire.
Yin Weimin, minister of human resources and social security, demonstrated that we did not put a timetable on the move when he spoke about it during a forum at the weekend.
"Delaying the retirement age is a very complicated issue and we will study it according to the situations of population and employment and consider different groups of people," Yin said.
He noted that hikes in the retirement age have been brought in by many countries and can be a good way to deal with an aging population and ensure the healthy and stable development of social security.
The life expectancy of Chinese people is now 73 years and is expected to rise to 74 during the next five years, he said.
Nearly three out of 10 Chinese people will be older than 60 by 2040, according to a United Nations forecast.
The retirement age in China currently is 60 for men and 55 for female civil servants and 50 for female workers.
The idea of delaying the retirement age is being widely supported by government officials, while many laborers and non-government employees were less enthusiastic about the prospect of working for longer. Currently, they have to pay into their pension plans for at least 15 years before they can retire.
Chen Xianlian, a female worker at a motorcycle parts manufacturer in Chongqing municipality is among those who would like to see the retirement age left as it is. “I have to do lots of tough and repetitive work every day and I feel very tired after my working day,” the 41-year-old said. “All my colleagues are discussing the government's possible move to lift the retirement age. None of us wants to work any extra years.”
University graduates also fear that any rise in the retirement age could limit their employment opportunities.
小題1:We can learn from the passage that ________.

A．China is not planning to push back the age at which workers can retire

B．China is discussing the problem of delaying the retirement age now

C．China is probably going to delay the retirement age

D．China has pushed back the age at which workers can retire

小題2:The underlined word “hikes” in Paragraph 4 means ________.

A．increasing

B． marching

C． pushing

D． discussing

小題3:According to the current policy, Chen Xianlian has to work ________ more years from now before her retirement

A．14

B． 9

C． 19

D． 15

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

A．All the Chinese people support the new policy.

B．The life expectancy of Chinese people is expected to rise to 73 during the next five years.

C．The retirement age in China will be 60 for men and 55 for female civil servants and 50 for female workers.

D．The government did not set a fixed timetable on the new policy.

小題5:It can be inferred from the text that ________.

A．Chen Xianlian is a civil servant.

B．Delaying the retirement age is a very complicated issue.

C．Many countries have begun to delay the retirement age.

D．It may be harder for the university graduate to find a job in the future.

A 16-year-old boy finds himself on a boat in the Pacific Ocean after escaping a shipwreck(海難). Even worse, he is left with a huge tiger for company. But he manages to survive after 227 days of fighting against all the hardships of the sea.
Pi, the lead character in Oscar-winning Ang Lee’s new movie Life of Pi, went through an inspiring journey of growth and self-discovery. So did 19-year-old Suraj Sharma, the Indian actor who plays him.
But it was a lucky chance that opened up the opportunity for the new star. Sharma was a regular student who lived with his mathematician parents in Delhi, India. As the director traveled to Mumbai to find his Pi, the teenager went along with his younger brother, who had acted in a couple of movies, to audition(試鏡). But little did Sharma know that he would end up winning the role from 3, 000 hopefuls.
Lee said he saw Pi in Sharma: “Not only does he have a compelling and wise look. He has this rare talent.” The director said that in the final round, Sharma gave one of the “most compelling readings we had. In the end, he was in tears.” Understandably, Sharma didn’t want to let Lee down. “He (Lee) had given me this opportunity. I had to give it my best,” Sharma told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
Sharma swam for four or five hours a day until he was completely comfortable with the water. He also worked on his body because he had to first gain weight and then quickly lose weight as the story developed. He even had rats run all over him to prepare for his role. Lee was impressed by the teenager, especially his endurance and patience in staying in a water tank for many hours each day. Sharma was only 16 when Lee signed him. After three years of shooting, Sharma said he had matured with Pi’s journey.
小題1:What is the function of the first paragraph?

A．To introduce the topic of the passage.

B．To appeal to readers to watch a movie.

C．To attract readers to continue reading.

D．To suggest the theme of this passage.

小題2:We can know from the passage that ________.

A．Sharma wanted to become a mathematician

B．Sharma had acted in a couple of movies

C．Sharma was sure to win in the audition

D．Many teenagers wanted to act the role Pi

小題3:What does the phrase “to let somebody down” in Paragraph 4 mean?

A．To make somebody disappointed.

B．To seat somebody down.

C．To reject somebody’s requirement.

D．To take down somebody’s information.

小題4:Which of the following words can be used to describe Sharma?

A．Confident and passionate.

B．Talented and diligent.

C．Strong and courageous.

D．Endurable and easily-excited.

小題5:The passage is intended to introduce ________.

A．the thrilling escape from a shipwreck

B．how an Oscar-winning movie attracts audience

C．a(chǎn) young actor became matured when acting in a movie

D．the difficulty in winning a role in a movie

LONDON (Reuters)    Ecotourism is causing a lot of damage to wildlife and may be endangering the survival of the very animals people are flocking to see, according to re­searchers.
Biologists and conservationists are worried because polar bears, dolphins, penguins and other creatures are getting stressed and losing weight and some are dying.
"Evidence is growing that many animals do not react well to tourists in their backyard，” New Scientist magazine said.
The immediate effects "researchers have noticed are changes in behavior, heart rates. or stress hormone levels but they fear it could get much worse and over the long term “ could endanger the survival of the very wildlife they want to see. ”
Although money produced through ecotourism, which has been growing at about 10-30 percent a year, has major benefits for poor countries and people living in rural areas, the Swiss-based World Conservation Union (IUCN) and some governments fear not all projects are audited（審計(jì)） and based on environmentally friendly policies，according to the magazine.
Transmission of disease to wildlife，or small changes to wildlife health through dis­turbance of daily life or increased stress levels, while not obvious to the casual observer, may translate to lower survival and breeding，” said Philip Seddon , of the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand.
Scientists have noticed that bottleneck dolphins along the northeastern coast of New Zealand become nervously excited when tourist boats arrive. Similar changes in behavior have been observed in polar bears and yellow-eyed penguins in areas visited by colorists are producing smaller babies.
Conservationists are now calling for more research into the effect of ecotourism on ani­mals and say the industry must be developed carefully. They also want studies done before new ecotourism projects are started.
“The animals’ welfare should be very important because without them there will be no ecotourism，” said Rochelle Constantine of the University of Auckland in New Zealand
小題1:Which is not discovered to have changed in animals disturbed by tourists?

A．behavior

B．birth rate

C．hormone levels

D．heart rates

小題2:We may learn from the text that _____.

A．ecotourism must be developed properly

B．polar bears are losing weight without enough food

C．a(chǎn)ll the poor countries have stopped ecotourism

D．money produced through ecotourism should be spent on wildlife

小題3:Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the text?

A．Many animals do not react well in their backyard

B．Studies should be done before new ecotourism projects are started

C．Ecotourism has been growing at about 10—30 percent a year.

D．polar bears in areas visited by ecotourists are producing smaller babies.

小題4:What Rochelle Constantine said in the last paragraph implies that _____.

A．if people want to get high income, they must develop ecotourism

B．a(chǎn)nimals have rights to live their own life

C．a(chǎn)nimals are people's good friends

D．people should take good care of wildlife

Debra Veal is a very brave woman. She took part in a race to row across the Atlantic，a journey for about 3, 360 kilometers. She was in one of the 36 small rowing boats that set off on October 7^th,  2001 from Tenerife. Each small boat was the same with food for the journey. She arrived in Barbados on January 26^th ,  2002 after rowing across the Atlantic for three-and-a-half months.
Debra began the journey with her husband in a small boat called Troika Transatlantic. But after 14 days he became very afraid, so he was taken off the small rowing boat. This did not make Debra give up. For the next hundred days, she rowed her small boat against the waves and the wind.
When she at last arrived at the end of her journey,  she was reluctant ( 不情愿的 ) to leave her boat though her husband and family were there to welcome her. The boat had carried her safely to the end of the journey. She said,  "I just want to toast(給……敬酒)this lady, this very special lady. I am full of sadness that I will have to leave her. She has protected me through many storms. "
小題1:Debra Veal's husband gave up because_________.

A．he had to look after their child	B．it was a dangerous journey
C．there was no food for the journey	D．he was fed up with the journey

小題2:"this lady" refers to_________.

A．her mother

B．her boat

C．herself

D．the journey

小題3:Which of the following is right?

A．The journey lasted 100 days.

B．Each boat was different.

C．Debra Veal wanted to leave her boat as soon as the race ended.

D．It was hard to get to the end of the journey.

You have probably heard of the Mozart effect. It’s the idea that if children or even babies listen to music composed by Mozart, they will become more intelligent. A quick Internet search reveals plenty of products to assist you in the task. Whatever your age there are CDs and books to help you taste the power of Mozart’s music, but when it comes to scientific evidence that it can make you more clever, the picture is more mixed.
The phrase “the Mozart effect” was made up in 1991, but it was a study described two years later in the journal Nature that sparked real media and public interest about the idea that listening to classical music somehow improves the brain. It is one of those ideas that sound reasonable. Mozart was undoubtedly a genius himself; his music is complex and there is a hope that if we listen to enough of it ,we’ll become more intelligent.
The idea took off, with thousands of parents playing Mozart to their children, and in 1998 Zell Miller, the Governor of the state of Georgia in the US, even asked for money to be set aside in the state budget so that every newborn baby could be sent a CD of classical music. It was not just babies and children who were exposed to Mozart’s music on purpose, even an Italian farmer proudly explained that the cows were played Mozart three times a day to help them to produce better milk.
I’ll leave the debate on the impact on milk yield to farmers, but what about the evidence that listening to Mozart makes people more intelligent? More research was carried out but an analysis of sixteen different studies confirmed that listening to music does lead to a temporary improvement in the ability to handle shapes mentally, but the benefits are short-lived and it doesn’t make us more intelligent.
小題1:What can we learn from paragraph 1?

A．Mozart composed many musical pieces for children.

B．Children listening to Mozart will be more intelligent.

C．There are few products on the Internet about Mozart’s music.

D．There is little scientific evidence to support Mozart effect.

小題2:Why did many people believe in the idea of Mozart Effect?

A．Because a study described it in the journal Nature.

B．Because Mozart himself was a genius.

C．Because Mozart’s music is enjoyable.

D．Because Mozart’s music makes people relaxed.

小題3:The underlined sentence in paragraph3 suggests that       .

A．people were strongly against the idea

B．the idea was accepted by many people

C．Mozart played an important part in people’s life

D．the US government helped promote the idea

小題4:What is the author’s attitude towards the Mozart effect?

A．Favorable

B．Objective

C．Doubtful

D．Positive

小題5:What would be the best title for the passage?

A．Listening to Mozart , necessary?	B．What music is beneficial?
C．What is the Mozart effect?	D．To be or not to be?

An eighteen-year-old high school student from Utah won the top prize in the Intel Science Talent Search in the United States. The winner received a computer and a scholarship for a college education.
More than 1,500students from across the country entered projects in the competition this year. Their research included chemistry, medicine, physics, mathematics, engineering, and computer science-almost every area of science.
Forty students were invited to Washington, D.C. for the final judging. A group of scientists judged them on their research abilities, critical thinking skills and creativity. The judges also questioned the students about scientific problems before deciding on the winners.
The top winner received 100,000 dollars for college. Shannon Babb of American Fork High School studied the water quality of tile Spanish Fork River in Utah for six years. She found that people have a harmful effect on the river through human activity, including agriculture. And she suggested ways to improve the water quality in the future. These include educating the public not to put household chemicals down the drains（下水道）, which lead to the river eventually.
Seventeen-year-old Yi Sun of the Hanker School in San Jose, California, earned the second place. He won a 75,000-dollar scholarship for new discoveries about a mathematical theory known as random walks. His work could help computer scientists and chemists. Yi Sun was born in China.
The third-place winner was also seventeen and born in China. Yuan “Chelsea” Zhang of Montgomery Blair High School in Rockville, Maryland, won a 50,000-dollar scholarship. She researched the molecular genetics（分子遺傳學(xué)）of heart disease. Her findings could aid the development of new medicines.
The Intel Science Talent Search is the oldest science competition for high school students in the United States. It is 65 years old this year. Past winners have gone on to receive six Nobel prizes and other top honors in science and math.
小題1:What do we know about the talent search project?  

A．Most of its winners have received Nobel prizes.

B．The project includes researches in every area of science.

C．Only a small part of the students can attend the final judging.

D．Most of the winners come from Asian countries.

小題2:According to the text,         .   

A．water quality in Utah will be better than that in the other states

B．the river was polluted only by those living near it

C．Shannon Babb suggested more than one way to improve the water quality

D．household chemicals should be kept in the drains forever

小題3:Which of the following about the girl from Maryland is NOT true? 

A．The scholarship she received was half as many as Shannon Babb.

B．Her discovery is of great help to Chinese medicine.

C．Her research will contribute to the cure of heart disease.

D．She and the second-place winner Yi Sun have something in common.

小題4:What is the text mainly about?  

A．Three winners' contributions to science and math.

B．Three Chinese students won the Science Talent Search.

C．Great rewards were given to winners in the competition.

D．Winners of the Intel Science Talent Search in the US.

小題5:Where are you most likely to find this text?  

A．In a newspaper.

B．In a handbook.

C．In a textbook.

D．In a medical magazine.