第4部分：閱讀理解

　　下面有3篇短文，每篇短文后有5道題。請根據(jù)短文內(nèi)容，為每題確定1個最佳選項。

　　第一篇

Pushbike Danger

　　Low speed bicycle crashes can badly injure - or even kill - children if they fall onto the ends of the handlebars（車把）. So a team of engineers is redesigning it to make it safer.

　　Kristy Arbogast, a bioengineer at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania, began the project wit h her colleagues. The cases they reviewed about serious abdominal （腹部的） injuries in children in the past 30 years showed that more than a third were caused by bicycle accidents. "The task was to identify how the injuries occurred and come up with some countermeasures," she says.

　　By interviewing the children and their parents, Arbogast and her team were able to reconstruct many of the accidents and identified a common cause for serious injuries. They discovered that most cases occur when children hit an obstacle at slow speed, causing them to topple （搖擺） over. To maintain their balance the children turn the handlebars through 90 degrees —— but their momentum （沖力） forces them into the end of the handlebars. The bike then falls over and the other end of the handlebars hits the ground, pushing it into their abdomen （腹部）.

　　The solution the group came up with is a handgrip （握柄） fitted with a spring and damping （減速） system. The spring absorbs up to 50 per cent of the forces transmitted （傳遞） through the handlebars in an impact. The group hopes to commercialize the device, which should add only a few dollars to the cost of a bike. "But our task has been one of education because up until now, bicycle manufacturers were unaware of the problem," says Arbogast.

　　1 The engineers are trying to improve the handlebars because

　　A they are not beautiful.

　　B they may kill children.

　　C they are likely to crash.

　　D they affect the speed of the bike.

　　2 How many abdominal injuries in children were caused by bicycle accidents?

　　A Thirty.

　　B Ninety.

　　C 50 percent.

　　D More than a third.

　　3 The word "countermeasures" in paragraph 2 means

　　A "problems".

　　B "approaches".

　　C "solutions".

　　D "actions".

　　4 Paragraph 3 mainly discusses

　　A why the children and their parents were interviewed.

　　B how serious abdominal injuries occur.

　　C when the children turn the handlebars.

　　D what stops bicycle accidents.

　　5 The advantage of the new handgrip is that

　　A it can be made cheaply.

　　B it reduces the impact in bicycle accidents.

　　C it helps to slow down the speed of the bicycle.

　　D it sells well at bicycle shops.

　　第二篇

Saving Money

　　Where you save your money often depends on what you are saving for. If you are

　　saving to buy a CD （光盤） or to go to a concert, then probably you would keep your money somewhere in your room.

　　If you are saving for a big purchase like a mountain bike or a school trip, where would you save your money?

　　One place to save money is the bank. Putting your money in a savings account will help your money earn more money. If you put your money in a piggy bank （豬形儲蓄罐）, one year later you'll still have the same amount of money you put in. If you put your money in a savings account, one year later, you'll have more money than you put in. Why?

　　When you keep your money in a bank, your money earns interest. Interest is an amount of money a bank pays you to use your money. The bank uses your money （and the money of other people, too） to loan money to people and businesses.

　　The bank will send you a statement several times a year. A Dank statement tells you how much money you have in your account. It also tells you how much interest you have earned. If you leave your money in the bank, you can watch it grow!

　　Another way you can save money is to buy a certificate of deposit or CD. If you have some money that you don't need to use for a long time, this is a good way to make your money grow.

　　You can buy a CD at a bank. You agree not to use the money for a certain period of time. That period might be from six months to five years. You can't touch your money during that time. If you do, you must pay a penalty, or fee.

　　6 Your money will earn more money if you put it

　　A in your room.

　　B in a piggybank.

　　C in your pocket.

　　D in a savings account.

　　7 A bank pays you interest for

　　A wasting your money.

　　B losing your money.

　　C using your money.

　　D decreasing your money.

　　8 Among other things, a bank statement tells you

　　A the amount of money you have in the bank

　　B the current rates of interest.

　　C the current rates of exchange.

　　D the best way to save your money.

　　9 If you draw your money before it is due, you will have to

　　A pay interest to the bank.

　　B close your account.

　　C open a new account.

　　D pay a penalty or fee.

　　10 The word "touch" in paragraph 7 could be best replaced by

　　A "deposit".

　　B "lend".

　　C "use".

　　D "cash".

　　第三篇

Almost Human?

　　Scientists are racing to build the world's first thinking robot. This is not science fiction: some say they will have made it by the year 2020. Carol Packer reports.

　　Machines that walk, speak and feel are no longer science fiction. Kismet is the name of an android （機器人） which scientists have built at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology （MIT）. Kismet is different from the traditional robot because it can show human emotions. Its eyes, ears and lips move to show when it feels happy, sad or bored. Kismet is one of the first of a new generation of androids —— robots that look like human beings —— which can imitate human feelings. Cog, another android invented by the MIT, imitates the action of a mother. However, scientists admit that so far Cog has the mental ability of a two-year-old.

　　The optimists （樂觀主義） say that by the year 2020 we will have created humanoids （機器人） with brains similar to those of an adult human being. These robots will be designed to look like people to make them more attractive and easier to sell to the public. What kind of jobs will they do? In the future, robots like Robonaut, a humanoid invented by NASA, will be doing dangerous jobs, like repairing space stations. They will also be doing more and more of the household work for us. In Japan, scientists are designing androids that will entertain us by dancing and playing the piano.

　　Some people worry about what the future holds: will robots become monsters （怪物）? Will people themselves become increasingly like robots? Experts predict that more and more people will be wearing micro-computers, connected to the Internet, in the future. People will have micro-chips in various parts of their body, which will connect them to a wide variety of gadgets （小裝置）. Perhaps we should not exaggerate （夸大） the importance of technology, but one wonders whether, in years to come, we will still be falling in love, and whether we will still feel pain. Who knows?

　　11 Kismet is different from traditional robots because

　　A it thinks for itself.

　　B it is not like science fiction.

　　C it can look after two-year-olds.

　　D it seems to have human feelings.

　　12 What makes Cog special?

　　A It looks like a mother.

　　B It behaves like a child.

　　C It can imitate the behavior of a mother.

　　D It has a huge brain.

　　13 In about 15 years' time from now, robots

　　A will become space designers.

　　B will look like monsters.

　　C will behave like animals.

　　D will think like humans.

　　14 In the future robots will also

　　A explore space.

　　B entertain people.

　　C move much faster.

　　D do all of the housework.

　　15 What is the writer's attitude to robots in the future?

　　A Critical.

　　B Hostile.

　　C Objective.

　　D Enthusiastic.

　　【參考答案】

　　1. B 2. D 3. C 4. B 5. B

　　6. D 7. C 8. A 9. D 10. C

　　11. D 12. C 13. D 14. B 15. C