It seems that we are one step closer to finding alien life and maybe a future home for humanity. Scientists from NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) have found a new solar system filled with planets that look like Earth and could even support life.
The group of seven planets, which orbits a star called Trappist-1, is 40 light years away from Earth in the constellation of Aquarius(水瓶座). And three of them are in the so-called “habitable (宜居的)zone” ----the area around a star where liquid water is most likely to be found. This is important because water is a necessary ingredient for life.
All of the planets were found using a method called “transit photometry.” This works by watching out for when a planet passes in front of its host start. This blocks out a small amount of light, allowing us to see the planet and learn about its size.
“This is an amazing planetary system---not only because we have found so many planets, but because they are all surprisingly similar in size to the Earth,” astronomer Michael Gillon from the University of Liege in Belgium told The Independent.
Trappist-1 is a “dwarf star (矮星)” which is colder and shines dimmer than our sun. If a person were on one of the seven planets, everything would look a lot darker than usual. The amount of light heading toward our eyes would be about 200 times less than we get from the sun, according to The Independent.
Because of that, Trappist-1, together with many other dwarf stars, was never on the list of places where scientists look for alien life. but Michael Gillon, lead researcher behind the discovery, decided to give dwarf stars a chance. He built a telescope in Chile to observe 60 of the closest dwarf stars, and it turned out that Trappist-1 was worthy of the effort.
The researchers hope that they can spend more time watching the newly found planets to learn more about them. Even though more research is needed before determining whether these planets could really support life, the discovery is still encouraging. It shows just how many Earth-size planets could be out there.
“The discovery gives us a hint that finding a second Earth is not just a matter of if, but when,” NASA scientist Thomas Zurbuchen told the Telegraph.
1.Which of the following statements is TRUE about the newly found planets?
A. It will take human beings about 40 years to travel to them
B. Some of them might have the proper conditions to support life
C. They are spread out in the habitable zone around Trappist-1
D. Underground ice has been found in some them
2.“Transit photometry” is a special method mainly used to ________.
A. tell apart different stars
B. test the brightness of stars
C. search for and measure planets
D. work out the distance between stars
3.We can infer from the article that _______.
A. scientists will soon find an Earth-like planet that can support human life
B. researchers know a little about the environment on the newly found planets
C. dwarf stars have long been a popular choice in the hunt for Earth-like planets
D. the size of a planet is the top concern when scientists search for a “second Earth”
4.Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
A. Life in space soon?
B. Any aliens in space?
C. Trappist-1, a dark dwarf star
D. New record, seven new solar systems
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题
It seems that we are one step closer to finding alien life and maybe a future home for humanity. Scientists from NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) have found a new solar system filled with planets that look like Earth and could even support life.
The group of seven planets, which orbits a star called Trappist-1, is 40 light years away from Earth in the constellation of Aquarius(水瓶座). And three of them are in the so-called “habitable (宜居的)zone” ----the area around a star where liquid water is most likely to be found. This is important because water is a necessary ingredient for life.
All of the planets were found using a method called “transit photometry.” This works by watching out for when a planet passes in front of its host start. This blocks out a small amount of light, allowing us to see the planet and learn about its size.
“This is an amazing planetary system---not only because we have found so many planets, but because they are all surprisingly similar in size to the Earth,” astronomer Michael Gillon from the University of Liege in Belgium told The Independent.
Trappist-1 is a “dwarf star (矮星)” which is colder and shines dimmer than our sun. If a person were on one of the seven planets, everything would look a lot darker than usual. The amount of light heading toward our eyes would be about 200 times less than we get from the sun, according to The Independent.
Because of that, Trappist-1, together with many other dwarf stars, was never on the list of places where scientists look for alien life. but Michael Gillon, lead researcher behind the discovery, decided to give dwarf stars a chance. He built a telescope in Chile to observe 60 of the closest dwarf stars, and it turned out that Trappist-1 was worthy of the effort.
The researchers hope that they can spend more time watching the newly found planets to learn more about them. Even though more research is needed before determining whether these planets could really support life, the discovery is still encouraging. It shows just how many Earth-size planets could be out there.
“The discovery gives us a hint that finding a second Earth is not just a matter of if, but when,” NASA scientist Thomas Zurbuchen told the Telegraph.
1.Which of the following statements is TRUE about the newly found planets?
A. It will take human beings about 40 years to travel to them
B. Some of them might have the proper conditions to support life
C. They are spread out in the habitable zone around Trappist-1
D. Underground ice has been found in some them
2.“Transit photometry” is a special method mainly used to ________.
A. tell apart different stars
B. test the brightness of stars
C. search for and measure planets
D. work out the distance between stars
3.We can infer from the article that _______.
A. scientists will soon find an Earth-like planet that can support human life
B. researchers know a little about the environment on the newly found planets
C. dwarf stars have long been a popular choice in the hunt for Earth-like planets
D. the size of a planet is the top concern when scientists search for a “second Earth”
4.Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
A. Life in space soon?
B. Any aliens in space?
C. Trappist-1, a dark dwarf star
D. New record, seven new solar systems
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
Researchers at Cornell University are one step closer to building robots that are more like humans. This new method is one you might not expect. However, a soft robot muscle that "sweats" to regulate its temperature. "Sweating takes advantage of evaporated (蒸发)water loss to rapidly dissipate heat and can cool below the environmental temperature. So as is often the case, biology provided an excellent guide for us as engineers."
The fingerlike devices are 3D printed, water powered, and can be used to grab things. They are made of two soft chemical materials: a base layer of (CH3) 2 CH-C3H5 NO covered in a multihole layer of (C3H5 NO)n. When the fingers reach a temperature of 30°C (86°F), the base layer reacts by shrinking, squeezing the water through the top pores (毛孔)in the top layer. The drying up is so efficient that the surface temperature of the actuator can drop by 21°C in just 30 seconds. That's three times more efficient than in humans. When wind from a fan is thrown into the mix, they cool down around six times as fast. The evaporation also cooled the object held by the actuator hand.
"The best part of this artificial strategy is that the heat regulation is based on the material itself," said T. J. Wallin, co-lead author, a research scientist at Facebook Reality Labs. "We did not need to have sensors or other components to control the sweating rate. When the local temperature rose above the set point, the pores would simply open and close on their own. "
While the result is exciting, it is only a first step. The robot has its weaknesses. The sweat can make the robot hand slippery, so the team is examining textures to improve its grasp. When the sweating takes place, the robot's mobility is also blocked and needs to refill its water supply.
"I think that the future of making these more biologically similar materials and robots is going to rely on the material composition," said co-lead author Rob Shepherd, an associate professor of mechanical and engineering. "This brings up a point about the importance of research involving several different academic subjects or areas, where really no one group has all the answers. "
1.Which can best replace the underlined word "dissipate" in paragraph 1?
A.turn down B.put aside
C.drive away D.take in
2.What can control the heating performance of the robot?
A.Its artificial material. B.Its accurate sensor.
C.Its sensitive devices. D.Its working surroundings.
3.What does paragraph 4 mainly talk about?
A.The disadvantages of the robot.
B.The next step of the researchers.
C.The rules the robot has to follow.
D.The effect of the new development.
4.What can we infer from Shepherd's words?
A.The future of the robot is promising.
B.The similar materials are too difficult to develop.
C.Only working together can make the robot more successful.
D.The next step of his team is to search for suitable software.
高三英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析
China launched its fifth Beidou orbiter into space on Sunday morning, moving it one step closer to its goal of building a navigation(导航) and positioning satellite network.
The Beidou, or Compass, system is being built to rival the US-developed GPS, the European Union's Galileo and Russia's Global Navigation Satellite System. It can allow travelers, drivers and military officials to know their locations.
The fifth orbiter was launched on top of a Long March 3A carrier rocket at 5:30 am on Sunday from Xichang of Southwest China's Sichuan province.
It is the third Compass satellite launched this year, following launches on Jan 17 and June 2.
The short interval of less than two months since the last launch demonstrated that "the country is stepping into a busy period of launching the Compass satellites", an unnamed official in charge of the project said last month.
The first two orbiters were launched in 2007 and 2009 respectively.
Sun Jiadong, the Beidou program's chief designer, said on June 21 in a TV interview that China would launch 13 to 15 Beidou navigation satellites into orbit by 2012 to form a network that provides regional service covering the neighboring areas.
And in about 10 years, the network would be expanded to include more than 30 satellites covering the globe, he said.
The system is a crucial part of the country's space infrastructure for providing navigation and positioning services in transportation, meteorology, petroleum prospecting, forest fire monitoring, disaster forecasting, telecommunications and public security.
In addition, a global positioning system is crucial to any country's national security and defense, said Ran Chengqi, an official in charge of the program, referring to the fact that the US initially built its GPS system for military purposes.
It is unimaginable for China to go without such a system, he said.
Earlier reports cited（引用） Song Xiaojun, a Beijing-based military expert, as saying that 90 percent of the world's current weapons systems need a global positioning system.
1.This news report was probably released________.
A．in January, 2010 B．in June, 2010 C．in July, 2010 D．in August, 2010
2.The Compass System is expected to finally cover________in the future.
A．China B．China and its neigh boring areas
C．Asia, Europe and Oceania D．the earth
3.At the very beginning, the GPS system was built to help________.
A．military officers to judge their locations B．travelers to know their locations
C．drivers to reach their destinations easily D．hunters to find wild animals smoothly
高三英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析
—It seems that people are becoming more and more selfish.
—How much happier life would be if we ________to the values of the past!
A. would return B. had returned
C. return D. were to return
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
---Without smart phones, people closer to each other.
---Er, it seems to be high tech that has widened the distance between people.
A. be B.was C.is D.would be
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
We won’t think of human clones and any reason to suggest that we are closer to producing them today than we were yesterday.
A. neither there is B. neither there was
C. nor is there D. nor was there
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
The two girls are so alike that strangers find ___ difficult to tell one from the other．
A．it B．them C．her D．that
高三英语单项填空困难题查看答案及解析
The two girls are so alike that strangers find ____ difficult to tell one from the other.
A. it B. them C. her D. that
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
The two girls are so alike that strangers find_____ difficult to tell one from the other.
A. it B. them C. her D. that
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
The two girls are so alike that strangers find _____ difficult to tell one from the other.
A. it B. them C. her D. that
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析