Police around the world have for almost 100 years relied on lie detectors to help spot criminals. But there has long been much skepticism in the scientific and legal communities about the lie detector’s reliability. Hopefully, it could soon be no longer in use.
Researchers in Britain and the Netherlands have made a breakthrough, developing a more reliable method to help conduct interviews. Rather than just record changes in pulse, blood pressure, sweating and breathing, the new system involves monitoring full-body motions to provide an indicator of signs of guilty feelings.
There is a basic fact that liars tend to keep moving their hands and feet and so an all-body motion suit will pick this up. The suit contains 17 sensors that record movement in 23 joints up to 120 times per second.
“The lie detector has been around since the 1920s and by measuring physiological stress caused by anxiety, you can only get a success rate of about 60%.”, said Ross Anderson, professor of security engineering at Cambridge University.
He said the new method, by contrast, achieved a reliability rating of over 70% and he was quite sure that they would be able to do better. In one of their experiments, the team has already achieved more than 80%.
The experiment involved 180 students and employees at Lancaster University, of which half were told to tell the truth and half to lie. They were each paid ￡7.50 for their participation in the 70-minute experiment, involving two test.
Some were interviewed about a computer game “Never End” that they played for seven minutes, while others lied about playing it having only been shown notes about it.
The second test involved a lost wallet containing ￡ 5. Some were asked to bring the wallet to a lost-and-found box while others hid it and lied about it.
“Overall, we correctly classified 82.2% of the interviewees as either being truthful or dishonest.”, the report said.
But the use of all-body suits is expensive — they cost about ￡30,000 — and can be uncomfortable, so Anderson and his colleagues are now looking at low-cost alternatives.
1.The researchers used the all-body motion suit to .
A. discover people’s joint problems
B. record people’s changes in their health
C. help find out interviewees’ mental activities
D. prevent liars from moving their hands and feet
2.What is the main disadvantage of the lie detector?
A. It has a low success rate B. It is very uncomfortable
C. It is too complex to use D. It costs a lot of money
3.How does Anderson feel about the new method?
A. Confused B. Confident
C. Doubtful D. Disappointed
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题
Police around the world have for almost 100 years relied on lie detectors to help spot criminals. But there has long been much skepticism in the scientific and legal communities about the lie detector’s reliability. Hopefully, it could soon be no longer in use.
Researchers in Britain and the Netherlands have made a breakthrough, developing a more reliable method to help conduct interviews. Rather than just record changes in pulse, blood pressure, sweating and breathing, the new system involves monitoring full-body motions to provide an indicator of signs of guilty feelings.
There is a basic fact that liars tend to keep moving their hands and feet and so an all-body motion suit will pick this up. The suit contains 17 sensors that record movement in 23 joints up to 120 times per second.
“The lie detector has been around since the 1920s and by measuring physiological stress caused by anxiety, you can only get a success rate of about 60%.”, said Ross Anderson, professor of security engineering at Cambridge University.
He said the new method, by contrast, achieved a reliability rating of over 70% and he was quite sure that they would be able to do better. In one of their experiments, the team has already achieved more than 80%.
The experiment involved 180 students and employees at Lancaster University, of which half were told to tell the truth and half to lie. They were each paid ￡7.50 for their participation in the 70-minute experiment, involving two test.
Some were interviewed about a computer game “Never End” that they played for seven minutes, while others lied about playing it having only been shown notes about it.
The second test involved a lost wallet containing ￡ 5. Some were asked to bring the wallet to a lost-and-found box while others hid it and lied about it.
“Overall, we correctly classified 82.2% of the interviewees as either being truthful or dishonest.”, the report said.
But the use of all-body suits is expensive — they cost about ￡30,000 — and can be uncomfortable, so Anderson and his colleagues are now looking at low-cost alternatives.
1.The researchers used the all-body motion suit to .
A. discover people’s joint problems
B. record people’s changes in their health
C. help find out interviewees’ mental activities
D. prevent liars from moving their hands and feet
2.What is the main disadvantage of the lie detector?
A. It has a low success rate B. It is very uncomfortable
C. It is too complex to use D. It costs a lot of money
3.How does Anderson feel about the new method?
A. Confused B. Confident
C. Doubtful D. Disappointed
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
Many years ago, people relied on the sun, the moon and stars to find their way around. Later, the compass was introduced. And now, we have satnav（卫星导航）systems to guide us. A satnav system uses groups of satellites to show the user’s location. They send information to a receiver, such as a smartphone, to show us where we are.
The earliest built satnav system is the Global Positioning Satellite System, which belongs to the US. Then there is Russia’s Global Navigation Satellite system，the European Union’s Galileo and China’s own satellite navigation system, Beidou.
On October 18, 2017, an ARJ21-700 plane, which was the first domestically（国内地） produced jet equipped with the Beidou navigation system, successfully completed a test flight. The results showed the performance of the system developed by China matches that of similar systems produced abroad, according to the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China.
Since its introduction in 2000, the Beidou navigation system has been increasing numbers of applications linked to everyday life, from shared bikes to farming.
When it comes to shared bikes, smart locks that support Beidou chips offer more accurate positioning than others, making it easier to find a bike.
Farmers can use Beidou-enabled tractors to plow（犁）the soil and use unmanned aircraft with Beidou to sow seeds, which can improve efficiency and make better use of resources. Beidou’s farming applications have spread from Heilongjiang Province to Beijing, Liaoning, Shanxi, Hubei and other regions across China.
With its many uses, the Beidou navigation system is even playing a big role in the Belt and Road Initiative（一带一路）. “To date, the Beidou system has covered most parts of the Asia-Pacific region, as well as countries along the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road,” said Yang Changfeng, chief designer of the Beidou system.
Today, there are more than 20 Beidou satellites above our heads, and China plans to launch even more this year to expand the Beidou network to better serve the Belt and Road Initiative.
“As Beidou expands its overseas reach, it will be increasingly popular in the logistics（物流） industry,” said Miao Qianjun, Secretary General of the navigation services association. “Ships, for example, can use it to position themselves while sailing across oceans to European countries, no longer limited to Southeast Asian regions in the near future.
1.What is the purpose of the first two paragraphs?
A. To compare some modern satnav systems.
B. To describe the benefits of satnav systems.
C. To tell us how satnav systems were created.
D. To introduce some satnav systems and their functions.
2.What can we know about the Beidou navigation system according to the article?
A. It was used successfully in a new jet plane.
B. It is more powerful than other satnav systems.
C. It was introduced to China on October, 2017.
D. It wasn’t used in our everyday life until recently.
3.According to the article, the Beidou navigation system is already widely used for _______.
A. plowing the soil and sowing seeds
B. improving the efficiency of network
C. producing more smart locks for shared bikes
D. navigating ships across oceans to European countries
4.What is Miao Qianjun’s attitude toward the future of the Beidou system?
A. Worried. B. Casual.
C. Positive. D. Doubtful.
高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析
More than a billion people around the world have smart phones, almost all of which come with some kind of navigation app such as Apple Maps or Amap. This raises the age-old question we meet with any technology: What abilities is our brain losing to these apps? But also, importantly: What abilities are we gaining?
Talking with people who are good at finding their way around or good at using paper maps, I often hear a lot of annoyance with digital maps. North/south direction gets messed up, and you can see only a small section at a time. I can really understand that it may be quite disturbing for the already skilled to be limited to a small phone screen.
But consider what digital navigation aids have meant for someone like me. Although being a frequent traveler, I'm so terrible at finding my way that I still use Apple Maps almost every day in the small town where I have lived for many years.
In many developed nations, street names and house numbers can be meaningful, and instructions such as go north for three blocks and──then west’’ make sense to those familiar with these rules. In Istanbul, however, where I grew up, none of those hold true. For one thing, the locals seldom use street names. Besides, the city is full of winding and ancient alleys(小巷) that cross with newer avenues at many angles. In such places, you’d better turn to the locals. In the countryside, however, there is often nobody outside to ask. In fact, along came Apple Maps, like a fairy grandmother whispering directions in my ear. Since then, I travel with a lot more confidence, and my world has opened up.
Which brings me back to my original question: While we often lose some skills after depending on new technology, this new equipment may also allow us to gain new abilities. Maybe when technology closes a door, we should also look for the doors it opens.
1.Why do people who are skilled at reading paper maps feel upset?
A.They are interested in reading paper maps,
B.They don’t know how to use navigation, apps.
C.They are limited to a single smart phone app.
D.They are confused by digital maps’ direction.
2.According to the text, which is the best way to find the destination in Istanbul?
A.Asking local people the way.
B.Following the navigation app.
C.Getting familiar with the city rules.
D.Looking for street names and house numbers.
3.What’s the author’s attitude towards the navigation apps?
A.Cautious B.Ambiguous
C.Favorable D.Critical
4.What could be the best title of the passage?
A.Benefits of Navigation Apps
B.Disadvantages of Navigation Apps
C.My World Opens Up by New Technology
D.Have Navigation Apps Worsened Our Brain?
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
The discussion on renewable energy has been going on for at least a decade and people have relied on fossil fuels almost entirely for more than a century. However, the situation when fossil fuels were the most efficient and the cheapest source of energy has been left far in the past. Many countries such as Germany and Sweden have already made significant efforts to fix this situation, employing numerous power plants working on the renewable resources of energy. The most effective among these resources is geothermal (地热的) energy.
Geothermal energy does not depend on the world’s economic and political situation as strongly as fossil fuels do. Besides, extracting (提炼) fossil fuels adds to the price of energy produced from them. Therefore, geothermal energy is much cheaper than traditional ones, saving up to 80% of the costs over fossil fuels.
Being a renewable resource, geothermal energy produces less waste and pollution than traditional energy sources. In geothermal systems, carbon dioxide makes up about 10% of air produced. Overall, in order to produce the electricity that can be used for one hour, the geothermal systems produce 0.1 pound of carbon dioxide and other harmful gases. For a comparison, a power plant producing from gas produces up to 2 pounds of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, and those power plants that work on coal (煤) produce an astonishing 3.6 pounds of greenhouse gases.
Low costs is another reason why using geothermal power plants should be the first choice for many countries. Geothermal heat systems require 25% to 50% less energy for work compared with the traditional systems for heating or cooling. Besides, geothermal equipment is less big: due to the very nature of geothermal energy, geothermal power plants have only a few moving parts, all of which can be easily sheltered inside a relatively small building. What’s more, the life span of geothermal equipment is rather long. All these make geothermal power stations easy to build and keep.
1.Fossil fuels are more expensive than geothermal energy partly because _______.
A. it is free to use geothermal energy
B. fossil fuels are nearly used up
C. the production of fossil fuels costs a lot
D. geothermal energy doesn’t depend on political situation
2.According to Paragraph 3, what can be concluded from the comparison?
A. Coal is much more efficient than gas.
B. Gas and coal are often used to produce electricity.
C. Geothermal energy is environmentally friendly.
D. The geothermal systems don’t produce harmful gases.
3.Geothermal equipment is usually not as big as that of traditional energy because of ________.
A. the nature of geothermal energy B. geothermal power plants
C. life span of geothermal equipment D. the small buildings
4.What is the main idea of this passage?
A. Many countries have benefited from geothermal energy.
B. Geothermal energy is well accepted.
C. Geothermal energy has many advantages.
D. Fossil fuels are being run out of.
高三英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析
The discussion on renewable energy has been going on for at least a decade and people have relied on fossil fuels almost entirely for more than a century. However, the situation when fossil fuels were the most efficient and the cheapest source of energy has been left far in the past. Many countries such as Germany and Sweden have already made significant efforts to fix this situation, employing numerous power plants working on the renewable resources of energy. The most effective among these resources is geothermal（地热的）energy.
Geothermal energy does not depend on the world’s economic and political situation as strongly as fossil fuels do. Besides, extracting（提炼）fossil fuels adds to the price of energy produced from them. Therefore, geothermal energy is much cheaper than traditional ones, saving up to 80% of the costs over fossil fuels.
Being a renewable resource, geothermal energy produces less waste and pollution than traditional energy sources. In geothermal systems, carbon dioxide makes up about 10% of air produced. Overall, in order to produce the electricity that can be used for one hour, the geothermal systems produce 0.1 pound of carbon dioxide and other harmful gases. For a comparison, a power plant producing from gas produces up to 2 pounds of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, and those power plants that work on coal（煤）produce an astonishing 3.6 pounds of greenhouse gases.
Low costs is another reason why using geothermal power plants should be the first choice for many countries. Geothermal heat systems require 25% to 50% less energy for work compared with the traditional systems for heating or cooling. Besides, geothermal equipment is less big: due to the very nature of geothermal energy, geothermal power plants have only a few moving parts, all of which can be easily sheltered inside a relatively small building. What’s more, the life span of geothermal equipment is rather long. All these make geothermal power stations easy to build and keep.
1.Fossil fuels are more expensive than geothermal energy partly because _______.
A. it is free to use geothermal energy
B. the production of fossil fuels costs a lot
C. fossil fuels are nearly used up
D. geothermal energy doesn’t depend on political situation
2.According to Paragraph 3, what can be concluded from the comparison?
A. Geothermal energy is environmentally friendly.
B. Gas and coal are often used to produce electricity.
C. Coal is much more efficient than gas.
D. The geothermal systems don’t produce harmful gases.
3.Geothermal equipment is usually not as big as that of traditional energy because of______.
A. the life span of geothermal equipment
B. geothermal power plants
C. the nature of geothermal energy
D. the small buildings
4.What is the main idea of this passage?
A. Many countries have benefited from geothermal energy.
B. Geothermal energy is well accepted.
C. Fossil fuels are being run out of.
D. Geothermal energy has many advantages.
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
After ruling the tennis world for almost five years,Roger Federer is adjusting to life at NO.2.But,like any king whose throne has been taken away,the Swiss star is already planning secretly bis return to power,beginning at this week's US Open.
The problem is,many experts think he will never do it.They blame everything from age and tough competition to his racket and psychology.
For years Federer,had enjoyed the view from the top.Competitors saw him as undefeated,and for the most part he was.However,before the 2008 season began,Federer had an illness that stole his strength and clearly affected his play on the court.Ever since,he has struggled to return to form,winning just two of his last 14 tournaments.
"Twenty-seven is an age when your body starts talking back to you."tennis great John McEnroe told the New York Times.
Pancho Sefura,another tennis great,noted that Federer is also facing a maturing crop of young talents."There are too many great players now,"he said,naming Britain's Andy Murray,21,and Latvia's Ernests Gulbis,20.
US magazine Sports Illustrated tennis columnist Jon Wertheim suggested that part of Federer's problem could be his insistence on using a small racket.He says that the smaller head demands ball control.But we see time and again that racket makers try to get players to use a certain stick-one they would like to market to consumers and it has a negative effect on the professional game.
Sports psychologist Jim Loehr told the Times that Federer is probably feeling "a sense of doubt"after being considered as undefeated for so long.If Federer is to recover his state of being undefeated,Loehr said he must overcome his doubt."Federer doesn't need fame and money.But he has to get better.He has to go t.o a whole new level.That's the only way he stays in the game,"he said.
As for beginning his first Grand Slam in ages as the NO.2 seed,Federer said it might be for the best."Five years almost,I was expected to win every tournament I entered,"he said,"so maybe Rafael Nadal now feels what I had to feel for a very long time.It will be interesting to see how he handles it."
1.What does the underlined part "your body starts talking back to you" in Para.4 mean?
A. Your body often argues with you.
B. You can do whatever you want.
C. Your strength is beginning to decline.
D. You are more easily to have quite terrible diseases.
2.From the passage,we know the main reason why Federer's throne was taken away is that .
A. he is becoming older and older
B. he insisted on using a small racket
C. he is facing a maturing crop of young talents
D. he had an illness that stole his strength
3.What can be inferred from the passage?
A. Now it is Nadal who has replaced Federer as the No.1 tennis player.
B. the racket makers aim at the players' better performance in games.
C. It is impossible for Federer to return to power.
D. Federer has never won a Grand Slam before.
4.What's the best title of the passage?
A. Nadal—The No.1 Tennis Player
B. Federer—Always Undefeated
C. State of Mind Plays a Important Role
D. Federer Hopes to Recover His Magic
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
Last year marked the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I. There were events around the world in memory of those who died in the conflict. We have picked out three of them inEuropean countries. Let's take a look.
Belgium
In a park, the famous Belgian artist Koen Vanmechelen had an exhibition called Coming World, Remember Me. The work consisted of 600,000 individual(个别的) clay sculptures, one for each person killed during the World War. In the center of the exhibition was a big egg made of clay, symbolizing a new world.
UK
In a small town called Aldridge, almost 100 houses in one street were covered with 24,000 poppies and statues of soldiers. They stood for the men from the area who had been' killed in the war. The flowers were chosen because of a poem written by the Canadian doctor John McCrea in 1915. They made people think of fields of blood.
France
The British artist Guy Denning arrived in La Feuille, a small town in the northwest of France, to stick life-size drawings of soldiers who never came back home. Armed with glue and a brush, Denning stuck his drawings carefully on walls. Before long 112 men, mainly young adults, were brought back to mind, if not to life.
1.What do we know about Coming World, Remember Me?
A. It's the name of an exhibition. B. It's a film about World War I.
C. It's a work standing for peace. D. It's a sculpture made of clay.
2.Why were poppies chosen to symbolize the dead soldiers?
A. The British people preferred them. B. They showed the cruelty of war.
C. A Canadian doctor suggested them. D. The fields were filled with them.
3.How was the end of World War I marked in France?
A. A memorial to the dead soldiers was built.
B. 112 wounded soldiers in the war were helped.
C. Drawings of some dead soldiers were put up.
D. Young adults were encouraged to join the army.
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
Last year marked the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I. There were events around the world in memory of those who died in the conflict. We have picked out three of them in European countries. Let's take a look.
Belgium
In a park, the famous Belgian artist Koen Vanmechelen had an exhibition called Coming World, Remember Me. The work consisted of 600,000 individual(个别的) clay sculptures, one for each person killed during the World War. In the center of the exhibition was a big egg made of clay, symbolizing a new world.
UK
In a small town called Aldridge, almost 100 houses in one street were covered with 24,000 poppies and statues of soldiers. They stood for the men from the area who had been killed in the war. The flowers were chosen because of a poem written by the Canadian doctor John McCrea in 1915. They made people think of fields of blood.
France
The British artist Guy Denning arrived in La Feuille, a small town in the northwest of France, to stick life-size drawings of soldiers who never came back home. Armed with glue and a brush, Denning stuck his drawings carefully on walls. Before long 112 men, mainly young adults, were brought back to mind, if not to life.
1.What do we know about Coming World, Remember Me?
A.It's the name of an exhibition. B.It's a film about World War I.
C.It's a work standing for peace. D.It's a sculpture made of clay.
2.Why were poppies chosen to symbolize the dead soldiers?
A.The British people preferred them. B.They showed the cruelty of war.
C.A Canadian doctor suggested them. D.The fields were filled with them.
3.How was the end of World War I marked in France?
A.A memorial to the dead soldiers was built.
B.112 wounded soldiers in the war were helped.
C.Drawings of some dead soldiers were put up.
D.Young adults were encouraged to join the army.
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
Every year on April 1, April Fools’ Day is celebrated in many countries around the world. In France, it’s called “Poisson d’Avril” or “Fish of April.” In Scotland, the holiday is often called “Gowkie Day.” In Iraq, the holiday is called Kithbet Neesan or “April Lie.”
History experts say people have celebrated April Fools’ Day for a long time. Some believe the tradition comes from the ancient Romans more than two thousand years ago. It was a day of playing games and pretending to be someone else.
Others say the day for fooling began in France in 1564, when King Charles changed the yearly calendar. He moved New Year’s Day from April 1 to January 1. Many people did not know about the change because of communication problems back then. Some people continued to celebrate New Year’s Day on April 1. Other people called them April Fools and played jokes on them.
In the United States, April Fools’ Day is just a day of joking and playing tricks on friends. These kinds of jokes are also called pranks. These jokes typically end in the prankster shouting “April Fools’!”
Simple pranks, like telling a friend a funny lie or making prank phone calls, are still common. But, major companies also get in on April Fools’ Day fun in a much bigger way. A few years ago, on April 1, Starbucks announced it was introducing new coffee cup sizes -- Plenta and Micra. The very large cups, bigger than a human head, remained useful for customers even after finishing all that coffee. According to Starbucks, the cups could be used as a rain hat, a pot for plants, or a lampshade.
It did not take long for customers to catch on to the prank! More and more people use social media or smart phone apps to play pranks on their friends on April Fools’ Day. One very annoying smart phone app, Cat Facts, sends funny facts about cats to your friends’ phones, every day.
1.Why did some people keep the old New Year’s Day?
A. It was known only by the government.
B. They wanted to be different from others.
C. They like the old celebration.
D. They didn’t know the time changed.
2.Americans celebrated April Fool’s Day to _________.
A. improve the friendship between friends.
B. have fun and play jokes on others.
C. find a chance to give children gifts.
D. escape the stress of their work.
3.What is the meaning of the underlined words “get in on” in Paragraph 5?
A. participate in. B. turn down.
C. break away from. D. give up.
4.What is the author’s purpose of writing the text?
A. To introduce a new festival.
B. To tell a story on April Fool’s Day.
C. To introduce April Fool’s Day.
D. To express love to the friends.
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
Preparations are underway around the world for Chinese New Year (Feb 19) and celebrations in China will be mirrored across the planet wherever the Chinese Diaspora (华侨) calls home. Here are some Chinatowns for those outside of China wishing to mark the day.
London
Although it may not be as large or as long-built as others, having only become a center for the Chinese community during the 1950s, London's Chinatown is a perfectly formed little firework that knows how to see in the year with a bang. Decorated with red lanterns (灯笼), previous years have seen shows with acrobatics (杂技), martial arts (武术), dance and opera nearby.
San Francisco
San Francisco's Chinatown is perhaps the most famous in the United States. The city was the main entry-point for Chinese who had crossed the Pacific to the USA during the early 19th century. Between the Grant Avenue and the Stockton Street, this historic area is a local treasure, attracting more visitors per year than the Golden Gate Bridge.
Bangkok
With a more than 100-year-old history, the Thai capital's Chinatown contains complex streets offering all kinds of tasty treats, clothes, toys and antiques. Sunday market days are such a good time to get the full atmosphere of the neighborhood. The area is also known for its gold dealers, whose shops line the road.
Mauritius
Found in Port Louis, this Mauritian Chinatown shows the island nation's rich multicultural diversity. Established in the early years of the 20th century by settlers from China, its tiny shops and restaurants serve locals and visitors. During the Chinese Spring Festival, the most exciting sight is the Dragon Dances on Rue Royale when Chinese musicians and dancers perform the traditional Lion dances through the streets.
1.According to the text, which of the following has the longest history?
A. London's Chinatown.
B. Bangkok's Chinatown.
C. Mauritius's Chinatown.
D. San Francisco's Chinatown.
2.What's special about Bangkok's Chinatown?
A. It is crowded with Chinese restaurants.
B. It is well-known for its gold business.
C. It was the major entrance for the Chinese.
D. It is where you can enjoy fireworks.
3. If you want to enjoy the Dragon Dances, you can go to ____.
A. Rue Royale in Port Louis, Mauritius
B. the Sunday market in Bangkok
C. the Grant Avenue in San Francisco
D. the Chinese community in London
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析