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Find Which Direction Is South
Do you have a good sense of direction? If not, please take with you a compass. But if you forget to take a compass, you can still find your way.
It’s never a good idea to imagine that the family member who was entrusted（委托）with the job of map-reading actually knows where the family is. You can tell by the slightly confused load on their faces that nothing on the ground seems to match the map. Never mind. The shu is shining and it’s still morning. If you don’t know the exact time, you can still find out where south is, but you’ll need to be patient.
①Find a straight sick and put it in the ground in a place where you can mark its shadow.
②Try to position the stick as vertically（垂直）as you can. You can check this by making a simple plumb line （铅锤线）with a piece of string and weight. You haven’t got any string? OK, use a thread from your clothes with a button tied at the end to act as a weight.
③Mark the end of the shadow cast by the stick.
④Wait approximately half an hour and mark the end of the shadow again.
⑤Keep doing this until you have made several marks.
⑥The mark nearest the stick will represent the shortest shadow, which is cast at midday, when the sun is highest in the sky and pointing to the exact south.
⑦Pick a point in the distance along the line between the shortest shadow and the stick.
⑧That point is south of where you are.
⑨Now you can turn the map, like you did before, and find which way you should be travelling.
1.To find the direction, we ought to be patient probably because
A. it is not easy to find a proper stick B. it is not easy to position the stick
C. it takes hours to make the marks D. it takes about half an hour to make the marks
2.The passage would probably be most helpful to________.
A. those who draw maps B. those who get lost
C. those who make compasses D. those who do experiments
3.Which of the following pictures best shows the way of finding the direction of south?
4.The author presents this passage by.
A. telling an interesting story B. describing an activity in a lively way
C. testing an idea by reasoning D. introducing a practical method
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You either have a sense of direction，or you don’t．But why is it that some people could find Their way across the Sahara without a map，while others can lose themselves in the next street?
Scientists say we’re all born with a sense of direction，but it is not properly understood how it works．One theory is that people with a good sense of direction have simply worked harder at developing it．Research being carried out at Liverpool University supports this idea and suggests that if we don’t use it，we lose it．
“Children as young as seven have the ability to find their way around．”says Jim Martland，Research Director of the project．“However，if they are not allowed out alone or are taken everywhere by car，they never develop the skills”
Jim Martland also emphasizes that young people should be taught certain skills to improve their sense of direction．He makes the following suggestions：
●If you are using a map．turn it so it relates to the way you are facing．
●If you leave your bike in a strange place．put it near something like a big stone or a tree．
Note landmarks on the route as you go away from your bike．When you return，go back along the same route．
●Simplify the way of finding your direction by using lines such as streets in a town，streams，or walls in the countryside to guide you．Count your steps so that you know how far you have gone and note any landmarks such as tower blocks or hills which Call help to find out where you are．Now you will never get lost again !
60．Scientists believe that ．
A．some babies are born with a sense of direction
B．people learn a sense of direction as they grow older
C．people never lose their sense of direction
D．everybody possesses a sense of direction from birth
61．What is true of seven—year—old children according to the passage?
A．They never have a sense of direction without maps
B．They should never be allowed out alone if they lack a sense of direction．
C．They have a sense of direction and can find their way around．
D．They can develop a good sense of direction if they are driven around in a car．
62．If you leave your bike in a strange place，you should ．
A．tie it to a tree so as to prevent it from being stolen
B．draw a map of the route to help remember where it is
C．avoid taking the same route when you come back in it
D．remember something easily recognizable on the route
63．According to the passage the best way to find your way around is to ．
A．ask policemen for directions
B．use walls，streams or streets to guide yourself
C．remember your route by looking out for steps and stairs
D．count the number of landmarks that you see
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You either have it, or you don’t— a sense of direction, that is. But why is it that some people could find their way across the Sahara without a map, while others can lose themselves in the next street?
Scientists say we’re all born with a sense of direction, but it is not properly understood how it works. One theory is that people with a good sense of direction have simply worked harder at developing it. Research being carried out at Liverpool University supports this idea and suggests that if we don’t use it, we lose it.
“Children as young as seven have the ability to find their way around. Says Jim Martland, Research Director of the project. “However, if they are not allowed out alone or are taken everywhere by car, they never develop the skills.”
Jim Martland also emphasizes that young people should be taught certain skills to improve their sense of direction. He makes the following suggestions:
l If you are using a map, turn it so it relates to the way you are facing.
l If you leave your bike in a strange place, put it near something like a big stone or a tree. Note landmarks on the route as you go away from your bike. When you return, go back along the same route.
l Simplify the way of finding your direction by using lines such as streets in a town. Streams, or walls in the countryside to guide you. Count your steps so that you know how far you have gone and note any landmarks such as tower blocks or hills which can help to find out where you are.
Now you need never get lost again!
1.Scientists believe that ______.
A. some babies are born with a sense of direction
B. people learn a sense of direction as they grow older
C. people never lose their sense of direction
D. everybody possesses a sense of direction from birth
2.What is true of seven-year-old children according to the passage?
A. They never have a sense of direction without maps.
B. They should never be allowed out alone if they lack a sense of direction.
C. They have a sense of direction and can find their way around.
D. They can develop a good sense or direction if they are driven around in a car.
3.If you leave your bike in a strange place, you should ______.
A. tie it to a tree so as to present it from being stolen.
B. draw a map of the route to help remember where it is.
C. avoid taking the same route when you come back to it.
D. remember something easily recognized on the route.
4.According to the passage, the best way to find your way around is to ______.
A. ask policemen for directions.
B. use walls, streams and streets to guide yourself.
C. remember your route by looking out for steps and stairs.
D. count the number of landmarks that you see.
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With his good sense of direction, he _____ quickly and easily get round in the new city.
| A．can | B．must | C．should | D．need |
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Some people have a very poor sense of direction. Unluckily, I am one of them. I have visited a place many times but I may still get lost there the next time.
When I was a little girl, I never dared to ask strangers the way. And so I used to walk around in circles and hope that by chance I would get to the place I was going to.
Now, I am no longer too shy to ask people for directions, but I often receive helpless or even wrong information. So I try to avoid giving people wrong directions. If anyone ever asks me the way somewhere, I would say, “Sorry, I am a stranger here.”
Once on my way to work I was stopped by a man. He asked me if I could tell him the way to the Friendship Building. I gave him my usual reply. But just as I walked on only a few steps, I realized that he had asked the way to my office building. However, I had no time to turn back and look for him. I was rushing to meet with someone at my office and I didn’t want to keep him waiting.
When I just got to my office, the secretary(秘书) showed in the man who had asked me for directions. Imagine how embarrassed I was and how surprised he was when we saw each other at the first sight.
1.The writer always refuses to give people directions because _____________.
A.she is a stranger to the city B.she doesn’t know the people
C.she has no time to help others D.she’s afraid of giving wrong directions
2.A man stopped the writer on the way to _____________.
A.sell her something B.ask her the time
C.make friends with her D.ask for the direction
3.The Friendship Building is the place where the writer ______________.
A.lives B.studies
C.works D.teaches
4.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A.The writer is too shy to give others directions.
B.The writer has a very poor sense of direction.
C.The writer never got lost when she was young.
D.The man was quite nervous when he saw the writer.
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David won’t get lost—he has a good ________ of direction.
A. feeling B. idea C. experience D. sense
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For many men, the idea that they have a better sense of direction than women has been improved by a scientific study.
Researchers from Norway scanned on the brains of volunteers as they completed navigation (导航) tasks to discover men are more skillful at finding their way because they use a separate part of their brain. According to lead researcher Dr. Cal Pintzka from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), men and women have different navigational strategies.
Med use basic directions—the use of north, south, east and west—during navigation to a greater degree. Men’s sense of direction was more effective. They quite simply got to their destination faster. “If they’re going to the Students Society building in Trodheim, for example, men usually go into the general direction where it is located.” Dr. Pintzka explained.
Women usually orient (标定方向) themselves along a route to get there, for example, go past the hairdresser and then up the street and turn right after the shore.
The study shows that using the basic directions is more efficient because it is a more flexible strategy. The destination can be reached faster because the strategy depends less on where you start.
Meanwhile, the study also shows both men and women use large areas of the brain when they navigate, but some areas were different. The man used the hippocampus (海马体) more, whereas women use their frontal areas to a greater extent. That degrees with the fact that the hippocampus is necessary to make use of basic directions. Losing one’s sense of direction is one of the first symptoms in Alzheimer’s disease.
Understanding how men and women use different brain areas and strategies to navigate, researchers will be able to enhance the understand of the disease’s development, and develop coping strategies for those already affected.
1. How are men different from women in navigation?
A. They use a separate part of their brain.
B. They deal with navigation in complex ways.
C. They make different actions to the road signs.
D. They form different images of road conditions.
2. What strategy do men usually take to find a place?
A. Finding out all possible routes.
B. Remembering all the landmarks.
C. Making out the general direction.
D. Drawing a general map of the place.
3.Why is men’s strategy more efficient?
A. Because it is much easier to be carried out.
B. Because it is more helpful to identify roads.
C. Because it is simpler for telling directions.
D. Because it is less limited by the starting place.
4.What does the passage mainly tell us?
A. Getting to the destination is no more a difficult thing.
B. Men have a better sense of direction than women.
C. Alzheimer’s disease can be prevented effectively.
D. Hippocampus is playing a key role in navigation.
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______ well, you need to have a good sense of balance.
A．Danced B．To dance C．Dance D．Dancing
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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 (墨西哥湾流) 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.
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
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.
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.
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.
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— In my opinion, your sister is not fit to be a driver．
—____．She has no sense of direction．
A．It depends B．That's it
C．It makes no difference D．It's up to you