The auto industry, aviation (航空) giants and l...

The auto industry, aviation (航空) giants and lots of new companies are increasingly entering the race toward producing flying cars and air taxis, many of which are said to be fully electric. On the surface, there are so many innovations happening that it’s easy to forget that the world hasn’t even seen a fully autonomous car yet, let alone an electric flying vehicle you can park in your driveway.

In fact, there are several hurdles before people are riding through the air. “They are short on technology, and they are short on regulation.” said Jennings-Bates, vice president of a car company.

Uber and Boeing, both world famous companies, have announced ambitious plans for air taxis. However, the types of vehicles they have in mind would require magical electric batteries that don’t exist yet.

Whether the United States actually needs flying cars remains relatively unclear. Aviation experts say that air vehicles help solve congestion problems in big cities. “Today, we have a lot of traffic congestion on the roadways,” said Laurie Garrow, associate director for the Center for Urban and Regional Air Mobility at Georgia Tech. “Air taxis would provide a solution for that.” Others argue that putting traffic in the skies doesn’t solve very much. “We aren’t going to change the world in terms of traffic with flying cars,” said Jennings-Bates. “At best, it may take the place of traffic in the area, which is arguably less pleasant.”

Some experts say it’s not a question of whether flying cars will take off. Instead, it’s a question of how soon the concepts would be safe enough for humans to occupy. “Everyone is very excited and they’re coming up with very different designs,” Garrow said. “But you have a lengthy certification process that will need to go through to make sure the craft and flights are safe.” She estimates that it’ll be about 20 years before the U.S. sees more than test flights.

1.What can we infer about flying cars from Paragraph 1?

A.They are fully electric. B.They are unavailable yet.

C.They need special driveway. D.They equal autonomous cars.

2.What does the underlined “hurdles” in Paragraph 2 refer to?

A.Ambitious plans. B.Big problems.

C.Electric batteries. D.Current innovations.

3.According to Garrow, what’s the main concern about flying cars?

A.Test flights. B.Design.

C.Production. D.Safety.

4.What does the text mainly talk about?

A.Why we should produce flying cars. B.How hard the race of making flying cars is.

C.How close we are to seeing flying cars. D.What people’s opinions are about flying cars.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Under new rules posted by the Civil Aviation (航空) administration of China on Friday, pilots will have to pass a “level four” test of Mandarin Chinese, China’s official language. Those who speak with an accent that “often impedes” comprehension will not pass. These rules take effect in January 2016.

China’s 56 ethnic groups speak more than 80 languages and dialects. Even native Mandarin speakers can have trouble communicating with each other depending on the strength of their accents, which can be mutually unintelligible (难理解的).

One flight trainer illustrated the scope for linguistic confusion, especially when common English aviation terms are used. Asked if there is a problem on board, a Chinese pilot might answer in the negative with the words mei you, or “there isn’t.” But someone speaking with a heavy Sichuan accent would pronounce mei you as “May day” — unconsciously parroting the universally recognized distress call (遇难信号).

Like their international counterparts (对应物), Chinese aviators have developed codes to avoid confusion resulting from homonyms (同音异义字) or near-homonyms. They use the terms yao for one and guai for seven, which are otherwise pronounced yi and qi respectively and easily confused.

The new rule could affect all pilots, who must renew their license every six years, and adds to a growing list of burdens for the profession.

1.What does the underlined word “impedes” in Para 1 mean?

A. improves　　 B. helps

C. misleads　　 D. limits

2.Which of the following is true according to the passage?

A. Sichuan dialect has the contrary meaning to Mandarin.

B. Native Mandarin speakers can understand each other well.

C. It isn’t necessary for a pilot to pass the test before January 2016.

D. “May day” is a distress call in our everyday life.

3.What is the purpose of the Chinese aviators using the terms yao for one and guai for seven?

A. To avoid misunderstanding.

B. To communicate with their international counterparts.

C. To pass the test.

D. To avoid their accents.

4.What is the best title for the passage?

A. Chinese Pilots Told to Get Rid of Regional Accents

B. Chinese Pilots

C. Rich Chinese Languages

D. Hard to Be a Chinese Pilot

高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析

Leaders in the aviation （航空）industry plan to launch a campaign that they hope will work against what they call a " flight shaming（使蒙羞）” movement. They say flight shaming has weakened peopled demand for air travel in Europe . Some travelers there are increasingly concerned about the effects of flying on the environment. Activists have been calling for greater action against climate change. That includes avoiding air travel.

Flight shaming has affected air travel demand in many European countries, including Britain, France and Germany. The campaign will try to explain to the public how the industry is reducing its effect on the environment. Juniac, head of IATA, said the flight shaming movement gave off "misleading information"..

The International Air Transport Association （IATA） is organizing the plan through the Air Transport Action Group, a group of aviation industry organizations and companies. Juniac didn't say when the campaign would start, but noted that details would be available to airports and airlines.

Commercial flying is estimated to cause about 2.5% of worldwide carbon emissions（释放）. However, that number could rise as worldwide air travel increases.

The aviation industry says it has already cut carbon emissions by one-half since 1990. The improvements are mainly the result of aircraft that use fuel more effectively. The industry plans to cut emissions further by 2050. It has a goal of stopping the growth of carbon emissions by 2020.

Airlines also have warned of the harmful effects of the flight shaming movement. Some have criticized the industry for failing to explain itself Tim Clark，president of the airline Emirates，said that improvements in technology have reduced the environmental effects of passenger airplanes.

1.What is flight shaming movement about?

A.Weakening peopled demand to travel abroad.

B.Calling on all to fight against global warming.

C.Announcing the environmental harm of flying.

D.Scaring people from approaching the airport.

2.How does Juniac comment on flight shaming movement?

A.It ignores the efforts of airlines to reduce pollution.

B.Airlines will charge the movement for their loss.

C.Airlines are to blame for the cause of the movement.

D.It has positive effects in urging airlines to be green.

3.What conclusion can we draw from the fifth paragraph?

A.The effective use of fuel has made air travel greener.

B.Flight shaming movement has caused great loss for airlines.

C.With more passengers? carbon emissions by planes may rise.

D.The aviation industry aims to stop carbon emission by 2020.

4.What is the text mainly about?

A.Improvement of air quality since flight shaming. movement.

B.Opposition of aviation industry against flight shaming movement,

C.Travelers' inconvenience caused by flight shaming movement,

D.Measures by aviation industry to reduce environmental pollution.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

The US auto (汽车) industry, a symbol of the American spirit, narrowly escaped a sudden breakdown, _____ China has become the world's top automaker.

高三英语单项填空简单题查看答案及解析

Find Your Adventure at the Space and Aviation(航空) Center

If you’re looking for a unique adventure, the Space and Aviation Center (SAC) is the place to be. The Center offers programs designed to challenge and inspire with hands-on tasks and lots of fun.

More than 750,000 have graduated from SAC, with many seeking employment in engineering, aviation, education, medicine and a wide variety of other professions. They come to camp, wanting to know what it is like to be an astronaut or a pilot, and they leave with real-world applications for what they’re studying in the classroom.

For the trainees, the programs also offer a great way to earn merit badges(荣誉徽章). At Space Camp, trainees can earn their Space Exploration badge as they build and fire model rockets, learn about space tasks and try simulated(模拟) flying to space with the crew from all over the world. The Aviation Challenge program gives trainees the chance to earn their Aviation badge. They learn the principles of flight and test their operating skills in the cockpit(驾驶舱) of a variety of flight simulators. Trainees also get a good start on their Wilderness Survival badge as they learn about water- and land-survival through designed tasks and their search and rescue of ＂downed＂ pilot.

With all the programs, teamwork is key as trainees learn the importance of leadership and being part of a bigger task.

All this fun is available for ages 9 to 18. Families can enjoy the experience together, too, with Family Camp programs for families with children as young as 7.

Stay an hour or stay a week — there is something here for everyone!

For more details, please visit us online at www.sac.com.

1.Why do people come to SAC?

A.To experience adventures.

B.To look for jobs in aviation.

C.To get a degree in engineering.

D.To learn more about medicine.

2.To earn a Space Exploration badge, a trainee needs to 　　　　　　 .

A.fly to space

B.get an Aviation badge first

C.study the principles of flight

D.build and fire model rockets

3.What is the most important for trainees?

A.Leadership. B.Team spirit.

C.Task planning. D.Survival skills.

高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析

The auto company succeeded in developing a new type of new energy vehicle, ________ countless failure.

A.experiencing B.to experience C.to have experienced D.having experienced

高三英语单项填空困难题查看答案及解析

The construction of the two new railway lines ________ by now.

高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

Clothing rental is a hot new industry and retailers (零售商) are demanding to get on board in hopes of attracting green shopper.

But is renting fashion actually more environmentally-friendly than buying it, and if so, how much more? Journalist and author Elizabeth Cline investigated (调查) this question and concluded that it's not as sustainable as it seems.

Take shipping, for example, which has to go two ways if an item is rented — receiving and returning. Cline writes that consumer transportation has the second largest carbon footprint of our collective fashion habit after manufacturing.

She writes, ''An item ordered online and then returned can send out 20 kilograms of carbon each way, and increases up to 50 kilograms for rush shipping. By comparison, the carbon impact of a pair of jeans purchased from a physical store and washed and worn at home is 33.4 kilograms, according to a 2015 study by Levi's.''

Then there's the burden of washing, which has to happen for every item when it's returned, regardless of whether or not it was worn. For most rental services, this usually means dry cleaning, a high impact and polluting process. All the rental services that Cline looked into have replaced perchloroethylene (氯乙烯), a carcinogenic (致癌的) air pollutant, still used by 70 percent of US dry cleaners, with alternatives, although these aren't great either.

Lastly, Cline fears that rental services will increase our appetite for fast fashion, simply because it's so easily accessible. There's something called ''share washing'' that makes people waste more precisely because a product or service is shared and thus is regarded as more eco-friendly. Uber is one example of this, advertised as ''a way to share rides and limit ear ownership.'' and yet ''it has been proven to discourage walking,bicycling, and public transportation use.''

Renting clothes is still preferable to buying them cheap and throwing them in the dustbin after a few wears, but we shouldn't let the availability of these services make us too satisfied. There's an even better step — that's wearing what is already in the closet.

1.What is Elizabeth Cline's attitude toward clothing rental?

A.Approving. B.Unfavorable.

C.Objective. D.Enthusiastic.

2.The Uber example in Paragraph 6 indicates that　　　　 .

A.rental services are on the rise

B.clothing rental will be as successful as Uber

C.renting clothes might waste more than expected

D.renting clothes might make people lose interest in fast fashion

3.The author suggests that we should　　　　 .

A.give up renting any clothing

B.purchase inexpensive clothes

C.rent clothes rather than buy them

D.make full use of clothes we've possessed

4.What is the passage mainly about?

A.Clothing rental is a new fashion.

B.Clothing rental is retailers' preference.

C.Renting clothes is not that eco-friendly.

D.Renting-clothes business is in a dilemma.

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Amazon is breaking into physical retail in a new way. The online retail giant revealed a new kind of physical store concept in a video published on Monday.

The store, called Amazon Go, doesn't work like a typical Walmart or supermarket. Instead, it's designed so that shoppers will use an app, also called Amazon Go, to automatically add the products that they plan to buy to a digital shopping cart by scanning a QR code(二维码). They can then walk out of the building without waiting in a checkout line because Amazon will charge their Amazon account and send them a receipt.

The first Amazon Go store is located in Seattle, where Amazon is headquartered. For years, there have been rumors the e-commerce company would expand its dominance from digital to physical shopping. Amazon began experimenting with physical bookstores a year ago, but Amazon Go may mark its boldest bet on physical ones yet. By removing much of the staff needed to operate a store, Amazon keeps costs lower than traditional competitors. It's also in a strong position to bring together data on its customers' shopping habits online and offline to make better suggestions in all situations.

However, Amazon's move deeper into physical retail shops comes in a sensitive political climate. The company could be perceived as being a threat to some of the 3.4 million Americans who work as cashiers, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. On the campaign trail, Donald Trump repeatedly criticized Amazon and its founder Jeff Bezos for “getting away with murder tax-wise” and having “a huge antitrust(反垄断) problem.” Will the President& shy; elect add “job killer” to the list of criticisms?

Amazon's effort to launch a new kind of retail store predates(在……之前) the rise of Donald Trump. “Four years ago we asked ourselves: what if we could create a shopping experience with no lines and no checkout? Could we push the boundaries of computer vision and machine learning to create a store where customers could simply take what they want and go?” The company says on an informational page about Amazon Go. For now, Amazon is starting slow. The Amazon Go is only open to Amazon employees in our Beta program, and is scheduled to open to the public in early 2017.

1.In Amazon Go, people can ________ .

A. buy products by paying cash

B. buy carts without scanning a QR code

C. have no bother to check out and queue

D. use an app to wait in a checkout line

2.What can we infer from the third paragraph?

A. Amazon has dominated the physical bookstores.

B. Amazon can contribute to reducing the cost of staff.

C. Amazon manages to take the place of physical shopping.

D. Amazon can ignore each customer's advice in all situations.

3.The reason why Donald Trump repeatedly criticized Amazon Go is that Amazon Go　 ________ .

A. would result in a political crisis

B. would threaten the career of cashiers

C. may result in a huge antitrust

D. is No.1 job killer in the list of criticisms

4.The main purpose of writing the passage is　 ________ .

A. to introduce the Amazon Go store

B. to explain how Amazon Go works

C. to arouse people's interest in Amazon

D. to indicate Trump's attitude to Amazon

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

The invention of steam engine greatly sped up the industrial revolution, which _____ a lot to the take-off of the world.

高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析