The most important use of drifting (漂流) bottles is to find ocean currents. When the position and direction of currents are known, ships can use the forward movement of a current or stay away from currents that would carry them off their course. Benjamin Franklin was one of the first to use bottles in the study of currents. He wondered why British mall ships needed a week or two longer than U.S. ships needed in order to cross the Atlantic Ocean. Franklin thought the Gulf Stream (墨西哥灣流) might explain this difference.
Franklin talked with captains of U.S. ships. He found that they knew each turn of the Gulf Stream. They used the current in every possible way. From his talks with the captains. Franklin made his first map of the Gulf Stream. Then he checked his map by using sealed (密封的) bottles. The map that he finally made is still used, with only a few changes, today. 
【小題1】 Why are drifting bottles used?

A．To determine the position of a ship

B．To carry message across the ocean

C．To predict the direction of a ship.

D．To find the direction of a current

【小題2】What led Franklin to talk with U.S. captains?

A．U.S. ships were longer than British ones.

B．British ships could sail the Atlantic faster than U.S. ones.

C．U.S captains knew more about maps.

D．U.S. ships could sail the Atlantic faster than U.S. ones.

【小題3】What did Franklin make after his talks with U.S. captains?

A．A map of the Atlantic Ocean.	B．A map of the Gulf Stream..
C．A map of ocean currents.	D．A map of his first voyage.

【小題4】What did Franklin do in order to make an exact map?
A. He compared his own map with other maps
B. He talked with many U.S. captains.
C. Both B and C.
D. He used drifting bottles to check his map.

The temperature is rising again in the Arctic. The sea ice area has dropped to one of the lowest levels on record， climate scientists reported last week.
“The new Arctic Report Card tells a story of widespread and continued effects of a warming Arctic，” said Jackie Richter-Menge of the US’s Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory.
“This isn’t just a climatological (氣候?qū)W的) effect. It impacts the people that live there，” she added.
Scientists concerned about global warming focus on the Arctic because that is a region where the effects are expected to be felt first， and that has been the case in recent years.
There was a slowdown in Arctic warming in 2009， but in the first half of 2010 warming was near a record pace. The monthly readings were over 4 degrees Celsius above normal in northern Canada， according to the report card. The report card was prepared by 69 researchers in eight countries.
Researchers said last winter’s big snow storms that struck some Northern countries were tied to higher Arctic temperatures.
“Normally the cold air is bottled up in the Arctic，” said Jim Overland of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. “But last December and February， winds that normally blow west to east across the Arctic were instead bringing the colder air south，” he said.
“As we lose more sea ice... warming in the atmosphere can create more of these winter storms，” Overland said.
There is a powerful connection between ice cover and air temperatures， Richter-Menge explained. When temperatures warm， ice melts. When ice melts it shows darker surfaces underneath ， which absorb  more heat. “That， in turn， causes more melting and on the cycle goes，” she said.
In September the Arctic sea ice extent was the third smallest in the last 30 years， added Don Perovich of the US Army Laboratory. He said the three smallest ice covers have occurred in the last four years.
【小題1】Scientists care so much about the warming in the Arctic region because 　　　　.

A．the climate in the Arctic doesn’t change much

B．global warming effects are most serious in the Arctic region

C．there has been a major decrease of Arctic warming in recent years

D．by studying the region they can make predictions about the future impact of global warming

【小題2】. Which of the following shows that the Arctic is getting warmer？ 
A. The surface of the sea ice in Arctic is getting darker and darker.
B. The Arctic sea ice extent has disappeared over the last 30 years.
C. The sea ice extent has increased to one of the highest levels on record.

【小題3】 What does the underlined word “cycle” refer to？  

A．Ice giving off heat when it melts.

B．Higher temperatures bringing more storms.

C．The cause and the result of the melting.

D．The life of the people living in the Arctic getting worse.

【小題4】 According to researchers what led to big snow storms attacking some Northern countries last winter？                 

A．Higher Arctic temperatures.

B．The melting ice.

C．The cold wind blowing west to east.

D．Cold air bottled up in the Arctic.

【小題5】 What is the main point of the article？         

A．Last winter’s big snow-storms.

B．Winds in the Arctic region.

C．Arctic warming and its possible effects.

D．Changes to the life of people living in the Arctic.

Astronauts aboard the space station celebrated a space first on Wednesday by drinking water that had been recycled from their urine(尿), sweat and water got from air. They said "cheers," clicked drinking bags and toasted NASA workers on the ground.
The urine recycling system is needed for astronaut stations on the moon and Mars. It also will have NASA money because it won’t have to ship up as much water to the station by space shuttles or cargo rockets. Besides, it’s important as the space station is about to expand from three people living on board to six.
The recycling system had been brought up to the space station last November by space shuttles Endeavour, but it couldn’t be used until samples(樣品) were tested back on earth. So when it came time to actually drink up, NASA made a big deal of it. The three-man crew stood holding their drinks and congratulated engineers in two NASA centres that worked on the system.
“This is something that had been the stuff of science fiction,” American astronaut Michael Barratt said before taking a small mouthful. “The taste is worth trying.”
The new system takes the combined urine of the crew from the toilet, moves it to a big tank, where the water is boiled off, and the vapor(水蒸氣) is collected. The rest of the urine is thrown away. Then the water vapor is mixed with water from air, and then it goes through filters (過(guò)濾器). When six crew members are aboard it can make about six gallons from urine in about six hours.
“Some people may find the idea of drinking recycled urine distasteful, but it is also done on earth, but with a lot longer time between urine and the tap,” said Marybeth Edeen, the space station’s national lab manager.
The technology NASA developed for this system has already been used for quick water purification after the 2004 Asian tsunami.
【小題1】 According to the text, the recycling system is important because ___________.

A．it makes traveling to the moon for the average person possible

B．with it NASA won’t need to ship any water up the space station

C．it can help meet the need for more water after the crew is expanded

D．it protects the environment in space by reducing the amount of waste

【小題2】What’s the RIGHT time order of the following events?
a. The samples of the recycled water were tested on earth.
b. Astronauts celebrated the space first of making water from urine
c. The recycling system was brought up to the space station.
d. The technology for the system was used to quickly purify water.

A．a(chǎn), d, c, b

B．a(chǎn), c, b, d

C．d, a, c, b

D．d, c, a, b

【小題3】From Para. 5 we can know ____________.

A．the theory behind the recycling system	B．the effect of the recycling system
C．the process of recycling urine	D．a(chǎn)n opinion on recycling urine

【小題4】What did Edeen say about recycled urine and the recycling system?

A．The taste of recycled urine is not as good as that of common water.

B．The recycling system has made a science fiction story come true.

C．The idea of drinking recycled urine makes astronauts feel unpleasant.

D．It takes a longer time on earth to make water from urine than in space.

【小題5】What is the best title for the passage?

A．The Research of NASA Has Made Great Progress.

B．New Technology Is Used in the Space Station.

C．Drink up: Space Station Recycles Urine to Water.

D．Good News: Water Recycled from Urine Tastes Good

Researchers believe that the insect(昆蟲) is better at managing congestion (擁擠) than humans. Ants are the most many type of animal on earth with brains that contain about 250,000 cells ---- the largest among insects.
Now an intelligence expert Dr. Dirk Helbing says understanding more about ants could help solve one of the headaches of modern life -- road congestion.
His team set up an "ant motorway" with two routes of different widths from the nest to some sugar syrup (糖漿). Soon the narrower（更窄的） route soon became crowded（擁擠的）. But when an ant returning along the crowded route to the nest met with another ant just starting out, the returning ant pushed the newcomer onto the other path. However, if the returning ant had enjoyed a trouble-free journey, it did not send the newcomer in a different direction.
The result was that just before one route became clogged , the ants had turned to another route and traffic jams never formed.
The researchers also created a computer model of more complex ant networks with routes of different lengths. The team found that even though ants being sent in another direction sometimes took a longer route, they still got to the food quickly and efficiently.
Dr. Helbing, of the Dresden University of Technology in Germany, said that while you cannot allow cars to meet with traffic coming in the opposite（相反的）direction as a form of traffic control, you could do the next best thing and allow them to communicate.
His plan is to force cars traveling in one direction to tell oncoming traffic what the conditions they are about to meet with-- so they can avoid that situation if necessary.
【小題1】The first paragraph suggests that _______.

A．a(chǎn)nts have a special way to manage congestion

B．a(chǎn)nts are clever and good at dealing with the traffic jams because of developed brain

C．insects are similar to animals in dealing with the traffic jams because of developed brain

D．insects have more advantages than humans

【小題2】 The underlined word "clogged" can be replaced by _______ in the following four words.

A．cleaned

B．narrowed

C．crowded

D．shortened

【小題3】If an ant returns along crowded route to the nest, how does the ant solve the traffic problem?

A．The ant will change the direction of its own.

B．The ant stopped the newcomer from moving ahead and forced the newcomer to wait there patiently.

C．The ant can't direct the newcomer.

D．The ant will push the newcomer to the other route, so traffic jams won't form.

【小題4】 What's the advice that Dr. Helbing gives us?

A．The cars cannot be allowed to communicate with traffic coming in the opposite direction.

B．The cars can communicate with traffic in the same direction.

C．The cars that travel in one direction can tell oncoming traffic about the traffic conditions.

D．We should build more routes of different lengths and widths.

閱讀下面短文，從A、B、C、D四個(gè)選項(xiàng)中選出最佳選項(xiàng)，并在機(jī)讀卡上相應(yīng)番號(hào)處將該項(xiàng)涂黑。
June 5 is World Environment Day. This makes us pay more attention to our environment and the need to protect it.
When Wang Boxuan, a Beijing high schoolboy, uses up his exercise books, he does not throw them away. Each one is stored at his school with hundreds of exercise books given by other students. Then they are sold to a Beijing paper making factory.
The paper is recycled and used again by students and teachers in the school. At the same time, the money made from the sales goes towards schools in Inner Mongolia for planting trees and grass. This place is one of the sources of the sandstorms that often attack Beijing during springtime.
Wang’s school is one of the schools in the capital that take part in the “Green Promise” —environmental protection activity. So far, nearly 210,000 students have taken part in the activity, collecting more than 87 tons of waste paper.
Students are eager to help make the capital a more pleasant place.
【小題1】 What do Wang Boxuan and his schoolmates do with the waste exercise books?

A．Throw them away.	B．Store and sell them.
C．Cut them into pieces.	D．Give them to the students in Inner Mongolia.

【小題2】 What is the money used for?　　

A．Buying new exercise books.	B．Helping poor students.
C．Planting trees and grass.	D．Being stored.

【小題3】What can we infer from the third paragraph？　

A．Students will have no exercise books to use in many years.

B．There will be no waste paper in many years.

C．The sandstorms will be weaker in Beijing in many years.

D．Beijing will be much dirtier in many years.

【小題4】Choose the right order according to this passage?
1     Trees and grass were planted.
2     Schools in Inner Mongolia received the money.
3     Students collected waste paper.
4     Students sold the paper to a paper making factory.

A．③②④①

B．②①④③

C．③④②①

D．③②①④

【小題5】 Which is the best title for the passage?

A．Planting Trees.	B．Green Promise.
C．Collecting Waste Paper.	D．Making Money.

Animals are more like us than we ever imagined．They feel pain, they experience stress, they show affection, excitement and love．All these findings have been made by scientists in recent years---and such results are beginning to change how we view animals.
Strangely enough, some of this research was sponsored by fast food companies like McDonald’s and KFC．Pressured by animal rights groups , these companies felt they had to fund scientists researching the emotional and mental states of animals.
McDonald’s, for instance, funded studies on pig behavior at Purdue University, Indiana．This research found that pigs seek affection and easily become depressed if left alone or prevented from playing with each other．If they become depressed, they soon become physically ill．Because of this, and other similar studies, the European Union has banned the use of isolating pig stalls from 2010．In Germany, the government is encouraging pig farmers to give each pig 20 seconds of human contact a day, and to provide them with toys to prevent them from fighting
Other scientists have shown that animals think and behave like humans．Koko, the 300-pound gorilla at the Gorilla Foundation in Northern California, for instance, has been taught sign language．Koko can now understand several thousand English words, more than many humans who speak English as a second language．On human IQ tests, she scores between 70 and 95.
Before such experiments, humans thought language skills were absent from the animal kingdom．Other myths are also being overturned, like the belief that animals lack self-awareness．Studies have also shown that animals mourn their dead, and that they play for pleasure.
These striking similarities between animal and human behavior have led some to ask a question: “If you believe in evolution, how can’t you believe that animals have feelings that human  beings have?”
Until recently, scientists believed that animals behaved by instinct and that what appeared to be learned behavior was merely genetically-programmed activity．But as Koko the Gorilla shows, this is not the case．In fact, learning is passed from parent to offspring far more often than not in the animal kingdom.
So what implications does this knowledge have for humans? Because of this, should we ban hunting and animal testing? Should we close zoos? Such questions are being raised by many academics and politicians．Harvard and 25 other American law schools have introduced courses on animal rights．Germany meanwhile, recently guaranteed animal rights in its constitution---the first country to do so.
【小題1】McDonald’s and KFC give money to support scientist to do research on animals, because_____

A．they are international big companies.

B．they love animals.

C．they are pressured by animal right groups.

D．they earn a large amount of money and want to do some good deeds.

【小題2】The research on pigs at Purdue University shows that______

A．pigs love being alone.

B．pigs easily become physically ill.

C．pigs need affection.

D．pigs don’t like to play with each other.

【小題3】Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A．Animals behave by instinct.

B．Animals have self-awareness.

C．Animals have feelings and love.

D．Animals do not have language skills.

【小題4】Should we ban hunting and animal testing?

A．Yes.

B．No

C．Not certain

D．Not mentioned

Electronic waste, or e-waste, refers to electronic products that are no longer usable. This can include TVs, cell phones and computers and other office electronics, electronic toys and videos machines. Today, the average turnover（更換）rate for a computer in the United States is every two years, according to the environmental group, Greenpeace.
The group's Dai Yun says e-waste is a global problem. "The electronic industry is one of the fastest growing industries in the world. The high speed of growth in this industry means more and more electronic products are being wasted and thrown away. If no one decides to retrieve the old products and process them properly, the electronic waste will sweep over the earth like the huge wave behind me and pollute the Earth seriously."
Greenpeace works out that 20 to 50 million tons of e-waste are produced globally each year. The components（部件）in many electronic products contain harmful chemicals that pollute ground water and the environment.
At present , the U.S. has no federal law for the disposal (處理) of e-waste although a few states have e-waste recycling programs in place, but there is no law. The U.S. exports much of its e-waste to third world countries, such as India and China, where workers took apart computers for valuable parts, hoping to sell them for money. But harmful wastes expert, Dr. Bakul Rao, says that's a dangerous practice. "From now on, the recyclers are not very educated. All they know is they can retrieve copper or gold out of it. So, the easiest way to do that is leach (過(guò)濾) it out in an acid or burn it off to retrieve it. So, that's where they don't know how to deal with it, neither do they have any health systems in place. So, their exposure is more."
【小題1】What does the underlined word "retrieve" (paragraph 2) probably mean?

A．look into

B．take apart

C．get back

D．throw away

【小題2】What of the following statements is true according to the passage？

A．The U.S. has strict national laws for dealing with e-waste.

B．Third world countries import e-waste to get valuable parts, which is a safe and easy way to make money.

C．The way uneducated workers deal with old computers does great harm to the environment as well as to their own health.

D．More and more electronic waste is being wasted and thrown away mainly because of people's bad habits.

【小題3】 What is the purpose of writing the passage?

A．To attract more people's attention to e-waste.

B．To call on people not to throw away e-waste anywhere.

C．To tell people what e-waste is and how to deal with it well.

D．To warn people to break away from the electronic industry.

【小題4】The next paragraph probably concerns ___.

A．how to deal with e-waste properly

B．how to protect ourselves from harm by e-waste

C．How to slow down the development in the electronic industry

D．how to make full use of e-waste

Perhaps the most famous theory, the study of body movement, was suggested by Professor Ray Birdwhistell. He believes that physical appearance is often culturally programmed. In other words, we learn our looks—we are not born with them. A baby has generally informed face features. A baby, according to Birdwhistell, learns where to set the eyebrows by looking at those around-family and friends. This helps explain why the people of some areas of the United States look so much alike, new Englanders or Southerners have certain common face features that cannot be explained by genetics(遺傳學(xué)). The exact shape of the mouth is not set at birth, it is learned after. In fact, the final mouth shape is not formed until well after new teeth are set. For many, this can be well into grown-ups. A husband and wife together for a long time often come to look alike. We learn our looks from those around us. This is perhaps why in a single country area where people smile more than those in other areas. In the United States, for example, the South is the part of the country where the people smile most frequently. In New England they smile less, and in the western part of New York State still less. Many southerners find cities such as New York cold and unfriendly, partly because people on Madison Avenue smile less than people on Peachtree Street in Atlanta. Georgia. People in Atlanta, Georgia. People in largely populated areas also smile and greet each other in public less than people in small towns do.
【小題1】 Ray Birdwhistell believes that physical appearance ____.

A．has little to do with culture	B．has much to do with culture
C．is ever changing	D．is different from place to place

【小題2】According to the passage, the final mouth shape is formed ___.

A．before birth	B．a(chǎn)s soon as one’s teeth are newly set
C．sometime after new teeth are set	D．a(chǎn)round 15 years old

【小題3】 Ray Birdwhistell can tell what area of the United States a person is from by ___.

A．how much he or she laughs	B．how he or she raises his or her eyebrows
C．what he or she likes best	D．the way he or she talks

【小題4】 This passage might have been taken out of a book dealing with ___.

A．physics

B．chemistry

C．biology

D．none of the above

Birds that are half-asleep—with one brain hemisphere (半球) alert and the other sleeping—control which side of the brain remains awake, according to a new study of sleeping ducks.
Earlier studies have documented half-brain sleep in a wide range of birds. The brain hemispheres take turns sinking into the sleep stage characterized by slow brain waves. The eye controlled by the sleeping hemisphere keeps shut, while the wakeful hemisphere’s eye stays open and alert. Birds also can sleep with both hemispheres resting at once.
Decades of studies of bird groups led researchers to predict extra alertness in the end-of-the-row sleepers which tend to be attacked more easily. Sure enough, the end birds tended to watch carefully on the side away from their companions. Ducks in the inner spots showed no preference for gaze direction.
Also, birds napping at the end of the line depend on single-hemisphere sleep, rather than total relaxation, more often than inner ducks did. Turning 16 birds through the positions in a four-duck row, the researchers found that compared with 12 percent for birds in internal spots, outer birds half-asleep during some 32 percent of napping time.
“We believe this is the first evidence for an animal behaviorally controlling sleep and wakefulness at the same time in different regions of the brain,” the researchers say.
The results provide the best evidence for a long-standing assumption that single-hemisphere sleep evolved as creatures scanned for enemies. The preference for opening an eye on the lookout side could be widespread, he predicts. He’s seen it in a pair of birds napping side-by-side in the zoo and in a single pet bird sleeping by a mirror. The mirror-side eye closed as if the reflection were a companion and the other eye stayed open.
Useful as half-sleeping might be, it’s only been found in birds and such water animals as dolphins, whales, and seals. Perhaps keeping one side of the brain awake allows a sleeping animal to surface occasionally to avoid drowning.
Studies of birds may offer unique insights into sleep. Jerome M. Siegel of the UCLA says he wonders if birds’ half-brain sleep “is just the tip of the iceberg.” He supposes that more examples may turn up when we take a closer look at other species.
【小題1】According to the passage, birds often half sleep because ______.

A．they have to watch out for possible attacks

B．their brain hemispheres take turns to rest

C．the two halves of their brain are differently structured

D．they have to constantly keep an eye on their companions

【小題2】What is implied about the example of a bird’s sleeping in front of a mirror?

A．An imagined companion gives the bird a sense of security.

B．Birds prefer to sleep in pairs for the sake of their security.

C．The phenomenon of birds napping in pairs is widespread.

D．A single pet bird enjoys seeing its own reflection in the mirror.

【小題3】 While sleeping, some water animals tend to keep half awake in order to ______.

A．a(chǎn)lert themselves to the approaching enemy

B．emerge from water now and then to breathe

C．be sensitive to the ever-changing environment

D．a(chǎn)void being swept away by rapid currents

【小題4】By saying “just the tip of the iceberg”, Siegel suggests that ______.

A．half-brain sleep has something to do with icy weather

B．the mystery of half-brain sleep is close to being solved

C．most birds living in cold regions tend to be half sleepers

D．half-brain sleep may exist among other species

What is the relationship between violence and sports? Psychologists say that there are many reasons for violence at sports events. One is alcohol. Many fans drink a lot at games. When people drink, they are more likely to do abnormal things. Psychologist Dennis Brock says, “Quiet people become loud. Normally nonviolent people become destructive． ”
David Sampson, a sports sociologist, says, “These are often celebratory riots— a large number of very happy people mixed in with large amounts of alcohol. They don’t often seem dangerous in the beginning, but things get violent quickly． ”
Another reason for violence at sports events is the crowd. When individuals are in a large group of people, they can lose their sense of personal responsibility. Edward Hirt, a social Psychologist, says that research shows that people do things in crowds that they would never do alone. People in crowds feel anonymous — no one knows who they are. Crowds also make people feel powerful. They stop making personal decisions. They just follow the crowd. Social psychologists call this a “mob mentality．”
Dave Zarifis, head of public safety says, “Some people don’t even come to celebrate. They want to drink hard and make trouble. Someone does something stupid, and it grows from there. You get a mob mentality. People think it’s OK to do almost anything. They think, ‘There are so many of us and not enough of them． ’ ”
Social psychologist Dr. Sharon Kennedy says that there are some things officials can do to prevent violence. Making sure that an area is not overcrowded is very important. Officials should also think of games as “big parties．” Then they will prepare differently. Kennedy says that in Great Britain they are controlling the problem with cameras in all the stadiums. “When you know someone is watching, you are much less likely to behave badly． ”
【小題1】Which of the following best gives the main idea of the first two paragraphs? 

A．There’s a connection between violence and sports

B．One cause of violence at sports events is alcohol．

C．There are many reasons for violence at sports events．

D．David Sampson and Dennis Brock have the same opinion．

【小題2】Which of the following does NOT belong to a “mob mentality”?

A．“I must drink some alcohol to stop myself feeling shy． ”

B．“ It’s safe to do what many people are doing． ”

C．“There are so many of us and not enough of them． ”

D．“ No one knows I’m doing this． ”

【小題3】How many experts are quoted by the writer of this passage?

A．Two．

B．Four．

C．Three．

D．Five．

【小題4】The last paragraph is mainly about ______．

A．how to turn games into big parties

B．why to install cameras in stadiums

C．how to prevent violence at sports events

D．how to avoid oneself behaving badly

【小題5】What lesson can we learn from this passage?

A．Never drink any alcohol no matter where you are．

B．Whenever you are watching a game, you should keep quiet．

C．Never follow blindly no matter how many people are doing something．

D．Be careful when you are at a stadium because there are cameras there．