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Are you interested in hi-tech products? Here are some that you might find at the market pretty soon.
CX-1
Tired of dragging your bag through busy airports? Then you might want to consider CX-1. The smart suitcase uses facial recognizing software to follow its owner as he / she is checking in or heading to the gate. Though CX-1 can only move at a speed of up to seven miles per hour, a tiny tool enables owners to keep track of the suitcase’s location. It is expected to be sold on the market by late 2018.
Aibo
Sony’s latest version of the Aibo robotic dog is almost as fun as the real thing—but much less work. The pet dog can recognize its owner, obey several commands, and even recall the behavior that pleases its master the most. Aibo can also learn new tricks, take photographs, and over time, develop its own unique personality.
Forpheus
Forpheus, an “athletic” robot developed by Japanese technology company Omron. It teaches users how to play ping-pong. The 10-feet-tall machine uses a camera and artificial intelligence to track the ball’s speed and can predict the ball’s direction correctly. The smart Forpheus can also quickly test its player’s abilities and adjust the playing level, making the game fun.
Black Box VR
Though many people determine to go to the gym once a week, few reach their goal. Black Box VR wants to change that by turning hard exercise into fun video games. Using it, gym users will find themselves fighting enemies, including big creatures—all while getting exercise.
1.What is the feature of CX-1?
A. It can be opened by facial expressions.
B. It can recognize and follow its owner.
C. It can move very fast in busy places.
D. It can sense the suitcase’s location.
2.Who would most probably want an Aibo?
A. People who want to walk a dog.
B. People who often play tricks on others.
C. People who want to take high-quality photographs.
D. People who want a dog but can’t look after a real one.
3.Which product can help people do physical exercise regularly?
A. CX-1. B. Aibo.
C. Forpheus. D. Black Box VR.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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Modern zoos are different from those built fifty years ago. At that time zoos were places where people could go to see animals from many parts of the world. The animals lived in cages with iron bars (栅栏). Although the zoo keepers took good care of them, many of the animals did not feel comfortable，and they often fell ill.
In modern zoos, people can see animals in more natural conditions. The animals are given more freedom in larger places so that they can live as they would in nature. Even the appearance of zoos has changed. Trees and grass grow in cages, and water flows through the places the animals live in. There are few bars; instead, there is often a deep ditch (沟), filled with water, which surrounds a space where several sorts of animals live together as they would naturally. In an American zoo, the visitors can walk through a special huge cage that is filled with trees, some small animals and many birds, and large enough for the birds to live naturally. In a zoo in New York, with the use of special nights, people can observe certain animals that are active only at night, when most zoos are closed. Some zoos have special places for visitors to watch animals that live in the desert or under water.
Modern zoos not only show animals to visitors, but also keep and save rare animals. For this reason, fifty years from now, the grandchildren of today's visitors will still be able to enjoy watching these animals.
1.In modern zoos ________.
A. different kinds of animals are kept separately
B. animals are no longer taken good care of
C. animals have more freedom
D. visitors can walk wherever they like
2.In a modern zoo_______ feel comfortable.
A. the animals, not the visitors B. the visitors, not the animals
C. neither visitors nor animals D. both visitors and animals
3.In some zoos people can _______.
A. walk through special huge cages to watch all sorts of animals
B. see animals which live in special conditions
C. during the day observe animals that are active at night
D. watch all rare animals that may not be seen in the future
4.The main idea of the passage is that _______.
A. zoos are now places where animals can live naturally
B. zoos are places where people can see animals from all over the world
C. there should be old and modern zoos alike
D. rare animals may soon die out
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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Wearing a red nose for a day may seem like a strange way to raise money for charity. However, it seems to work in Britain. Red Nose Day (RND) is a well-known event in the UK. The aim of the day is to raise money for a charity called Comic Relief which helps people in need in Africa and in the UK.
Comic Relief was started in 1985 by Richard Curtis. He wrote the series “Blackadder” as well as the famous films “Four Weddings and a Funeral” and “Notting Hill’’. Richard’s idea to start Comic Relief was as a response to the severe lack of food in Ethiopia. It’s called Red Nose Day as on this day many people buy a plastic red nose to wear! The money made from selling red noses goes to the charity.
Red Nose Day takes place every two years in the spring and is now so well developed that many people consider it to be an unofficial national holiday. For example, many schools have non-uniform days.
The slogan for the last RND was “Do Something Funny for Money” and the money collected was used to help fund projects in the following areas: treating malaria, education, maternal health and mental health. The BBC Red Nose Day telethon raised £ 74.3 million! Money-raising events take place all over the country and many schools join in. People also donate money by post, in banks, by phone using a credit card and online.
Getting sponsored to do something is a common way to raise money on RND. If someone sponsors you it means that they agree to give you a certain amount of money for your actions. Here are some ways that people raise money: wear their pyjamas (睡衣) all day at work or in school, or grow a moustache or beard for a month.
So, if you are ever in the UK on Red Nose Day, now you know why you may find normal people wearing red noses and doing silly things! It is all for a good cause!
1.The purpose of Comic Relief is .
A. to celebrate Red Nose Day
B. to help those in need in Africa and Britain
C. to warn people against some diseases
D. to raise money for Mr. Curtis’s films
2.Red Nose Day got its name mainly from its .
A. creator B. birthplace
C. aid receivers D. products for sale
3.Which of the following is TRUE about Red Nose Day?
A. It is celebrated in the spring every other year.
B. People celebrate this day to bring happiness to others.
C. Richard Curtis, the famous writer, started Red Nose Day.
D. Some people raise money by growing a beard for a week.
4.Paragraph 4 is mainly to show that in Britain RND .
A. is considered an official holiday B. lasts for a long time
C. is popular with people D. is well designed for TV
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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Before I studied psychology, I used to think that people would laugh when funny things occurred. While I was right about that, I discovered there are lots of other psychological factors that make people laugh other than the funny part of a joke. When someone laughs at a joke, there will usually be more than one reason that makes him laugh—and the more reasons there are, the more powerful the joke will be.
I was attending a standup comedy show in Egypt, and when the man started to make fun of pedestrians crossing streets, everyone laughed their heads off. The main reason why those people strongly laughed was that almost all of them felt angry towards pedestrians who crossed streets carelessly. The joke wasn't only funny, but it also made the audience feel that they were right about being angry at those pedestrians. That is, people were laughing both because of the funny joke and because of the happiness experienced as a result of the psychological support they got.
The better a joke makes a person feel, and the more it includes other psychological factors, the more the person will like it. For example, if you envy one of your friends, and someone tells a joke that is funny and, at the same time, makes your friend seem stupid, then you will probably laugh at it louder than if you weren't jealous of him.
In short, we don't laugh only when we hear something funny; we also laugh when we experience some kind of happiness that results from the other psychological factors involved in the joke. I strongly discourage you from making fun of anyone or belittling someone to make someone else laugh. All I want to explain is that if your joke supports a person's emotions, he will certainly like it a lot.
1.What did the author find out after studying psychology?
A. Only good jokes make people laugh.
B. Many factors lead to people's laughing.
C. Funny things can make people laugh.
D. Laughter can make people healthy.
2.Why did the audience laugh loud at the pedestrians?
A. They played a trick on the pedestrians.
B. The pedestrians behaved in a funny way.
C. They could feel the pedestrians' happiness.
D. Their emotion was approved of by the show.
3.What does the underlined word “belittling” probably mean?
A. Annoy. B. Blame.
C. Look down on. D. Make up to.
4.Which of the following best shows the structure of the passage?
A.
B. 
C.
D. 
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
D. 