More than a hundred years ago, an American produced (创造) a game. He called it indoor tennis. The Americans were not interested in it at first so he sent it to his London friends and it became very popular (流行) in Britain. The game was then played across the dining-room table or on the floor with the net hung between two chairs. In the early days ，the balls were made of cork (软木) or rubber. The bats(球拍) were made of wood.
A few years later a hollow (空心) ball like the one we use today was invented. The game then quickly spread all over the world. An Englishman once made a bat covered with rubber. He first played the game in England and called it "ping - pong". "Ping" was the sound of the bat when it hit the ball, and "pong" was the sound of the ball when it hit the table.
小题1:Who invented the game of ping-pong?

A．A Chinese.

B．An Englishman.

C．An American.

D．We don't know.

小题2:The game was first called ________ by its producer(创造者).

A．ping- pong tennis

B．table tennis

C．our-door tennis

D．indoor tennis

小题3:What did the British think of the game?

A．Moving (感人的).

B．Interesting.

C．Terrible.

D．boring.

小题4:In the early days，the ball was________.

A．hollow	B．covered with rubber
C．made of cork or rubber	D．made of wood

小题5:The name of ping-pong has something to do with __________.

A．sound

B．size

C．history

D．place

Sometimes we feel good, such as when we get good grades or when something good happens. Sometimes we feel bad, such as when we argue with our classmates or when the teachers criticize us. Both kinds of feelings are common. Of course, we all enjoy good feelings, but when we feel unhappy, sometimes we don’t know what to do about it. Here is a plan that will help you when your feelings are bothering you.
I. ACCEPT your feelings. Say to yourself, “I am sad.” “I am seared.” “I am angry.” “I am embarrassed.” It’s all right to have these feelings.
2. RELAX and have a rest before you act. Take slow deep breaths (呼吸)and relax your body. Imagine that you are in a safe place. You can listen to some music or sing a beautiful song!
3. THINK about ways to help yourself. Thinking helps you do something smart instead of hurting yourself or making things worse.
4. DO something to help yourself. Maybe you can talk to someone, or do something you enjoy. If it doesn’t work, go back to Step3.
小题1:We feel unhappy when             .

A．we get good grades

B．everything goes well

C．someone is proud of us

D．we have a fight with our classmates

小题2:If you want to relax yourself before you act, you can           .

A．say to yourself, “I am sad.”

B．listen to some music or sing a beautiful song

C．think about ways to help yourself

D．watch thrillers with your friends

小题3:The underlined part (划线部分) “If it doesn’t work,” in the passage probably means

A．If it is broken

B．If it can’t interest you

C．If it is wrong

D．If it can’t help you

小题4:Which of the following is NOT TRUE according to the passage?

A．We felt good when we won the prize in the competition.

B．We felt bad when we lost our expensive things.

C．We can say to ourselves that we are pleased when we feel bad.

D．We can tell someone about our bad feelings when we are sad.

小题5:The passage tells us             .

A．what we can do when we feel unhappy

B．we can do nothing when we feel bad

C．we all enjoy good feelings, but bad feelings are unusual to us

D．what we can do when we feel happy

In real life, robots are mainly used in factories. They do many different jobs. Usually these jobs are too   43 , difficult or boring for humans.
Robots also help disabled people and people who cannot look after   44 . For example, scientists are making a robot to help blind people. Now many of them have a dog to help them. The dog is called a guide dog. In the future, guide dogs might be robot dogs.
One robot dog is called Meldog. It has wheels. It usually “walks” in front of its owner. It is very clever. It knows the speed of its owner’s walk. Meldog talks to its owner by   45 . The owner wears a special belt. This belt   46  instructions to the owner from Meldog such as “Stop here”, “Turn left” and “Turn right”.
In the United States, another   47  of robot helps disabled workers. This robot, called Kilroy, helps disabled computer operators. The robot   48  the sound of its owner’s voice. It follows instructions such as “Turn the page” and “Make a cup of coffee”.
Robots are also used in American   49 . They can do simple jobs. For example, they shave (刮脸) patients and brush their teeth and take meals from the kitchen to patients’ rooms. It never gets lost   50  this robot has a map of the hospital in its computer memory.

小题1:	A．interesting B．strange C．dangerous D．safe

小题2:	A．others B．another C．them D．themselves

小题3:	A．television B．radio C．loudspeaker D．mobile telephone

小题4:	A．posts B．writes C．reads D．sends

小题5:	A．type B．size C．set D．double

小题6:	A．guesses B．thinks C．hears D．sees

小题7:	A．cinema B．hospitals C．museum D．theatre

小题8:	A．until B．before C．because D．whether

Every year landslides cause 25 to 50 deaths and $2 billion in damage in the United States. And in December, a single event killed more than 2000 people in the Philippines. Sending workers to stabilize mountainsides using steel bars can help a lot, but it introduces new difficulties because of dust and loosen heavy, dangerous debris from the work. “It’s a quite dangerous job,” says Giorgio Pezzuto of D’ Appolonia, working with eight other companies. Now there may be an answer: a three-ton robot called Roboclimber.
“The idea is to operate a machine far away that can do the stabilizing job without a human being near,”says Pezzuto, manager for the project, which is supported by a European organization. Engineers say that the machine will be faster and cheaper than manual labor. The robot, a large radio-controlled four-legged spider, has cost at least $2 million so far. It should be able to climb mountainsides, drill holes and insert steel bars there. Testing should begin in May.
小题1:The underlined word “event” refers to_____

A．earthquake

B．debris

C．dust

D．landslide

小题2:The purpose in writing this text is _____

A．to tell people how serious the damage caused by landslides is

B．to tell people that sending workers to stabilize mountainsides is a dangerous job

C．to show people how to use a new robot

D．to introduce a new robot that can be used to stabilize mountainsides

小题3:What does the robot look like?

A．human being

B．spider

C．steel bar

D．a drill

小题4:A landslides cause _____________in damage in the United States Every year .

A．25 to 50 deaths	B．more than 2000 people died
C．$2 billion	D．both A and C

小题5:The biggest advantage of this product is that____

A．it will be faster and cheaper than manual labor

B．it can climb mountainsides, drill holes and insert steel bars there.

C．it can do the stabilizing job without human beings near

D．it is like a spider

E—schoolbags
Is your schoolbag too heavy to carry? The e-schoolbag will help you. It is said that e-schoolbags are going to be brought into use in Chinese middle schools soon.
Heavy schoolbags have been a serious problem for a long time. But the e-schoolbag will work it out. An e-schoolbag is much lighter than a usual schoolbag. Perhaps, the e-schoolbag should be called an e-textbook. It is as small as a usual book, but it can still have all the things for study, such as a textbook, an exercise book and so on. They can be made into chips(芯片) like stamps. The students can read the text page by page on the screen, take notes, or even send e-mails to their teachers. They only need to put the right chip into the e-schoolbag and then the students can use it.
Some people say that e-textbooks can be easily broken, while others say it is not good to student’s eyes. But only time will tell.
小题1:What is the e-schoolbag used for ? It can’t help students _________.

A．take notes

B．send e-mails

C．lighten(减轻) the schoolbag

D．read the text in the paper book

小题2:What’s the e-school like?

A．It’s bigger than a usual book.

B．It’s just as big as a usual book.

C．It’s as big as a stamp.

D．It’s not as small as a usual book.

小题3:How can e-schoolbags have all the things for study?

A．They are made into stamps

B．They are made into chips.

C．They are called e-textbooks

D．They put the books into e-schoolbags.

小题4:Which statement is NOT true according to the passage?

A．That e-schoolbags may be easily broken

B．It may not be good to student’s eyes.

C．They have been into use in school in China.

D．The e-schoolbag will solve the problem of the heavy schoolbags.

①The Dream It is everyone’s dream to work at home or not work at all．You can plan your own hours and work when you want to．There is no more rush hour and no hours that people waste when they get to and from a job every day．
②The Fact The fact is that this dream can be attained．You can stay at home，work when you want to  and make money when you need to．There are plenty of opportunities for you to make money at home，just by using your computer and the Internet．
③Start Today! Educate yourself，look closely into all the opportunities and decide on what works best for you．It will not happen during one night，but you can make the decision today and start to make it happen today．
④How Could You Do It? Do you have a blog（博客）or a personal website like millions of other people?  Are you using it to make money? Most of these blog and website owners are not．But you can do that!
⑤          When you have your computer and the Internet working for you，your businesses will be working for you 24 hours a day，seven days a week．You will make money while you sleep，travel or do whatever you want to do all day long．
⑥Get Going! There are many ways you can make money with your computer．And you can begin your Stay-at -home businesses with just a little money．What are you waiting for?
小题1:In which part of a newspaper would you most probably read this passage?

A．Sports

B．News

C．Culture

D．Business

小题2:What does the underlined word“attained”in Point ② mean ?

A．Broken

B．Achieved

C．Lost

D．Destroyed

小题3:What’s the best title for Point ⑤ ?

A．Sleep 24 Hours a Day

B．Make Money Every Moment

C．Play All Day Long

D．Travel Around the World

小题4:Which of the following is NOT TRUE according to the passage ?

A．People need a lot of money to start a stay – at – home business.

B．People can even use their blogs to make money.

C．People can plan their own time when they work at home.

D．People can make the best decision and start to make it happen today.

小题5:How is the passage organized ?

A．By using famous people’s words.

B．By giving reasons only.

C．By showing a topic and giving solutions

D．By telling old stories

Shenzhen's fast development has made it become China's most crowded city! There are about 15 million people living on its 1991square kilometers. On each square kilometer averagely live 7500 people. It is 1080 more than that in Hong Kong, and nearly 800 more than that in Guangzhou.
Besides, Shenzhen owns 2 million local vehicles, and about 300000 vehicles from other places also run on the local roads every day. The total length of the city's road is 6041 kilometers. It means each resident only owns 0.58 meters of road!
As a result, the city is facing serious environmental and resource problems. One of the problems is water shortage. The amount of fresh water for each person of the city is only 25% of the country's average. What's more, most of the water drunk by Shenzhen people comes from other areas.
小题1:According to the passage, which of the following makes Shenzhen so crowded?

A．Shenzhen has not enough water.

B．There are too many people

C．Shenzhen is developing very fast

D．Shenzhen is too small

小题2:There are _______ people living in Shenzhen now.

A．about 1991

B．about 15000000

C．about 150000

D．about 300000

小题3:In Hong Kong, there are _______ people on every kilometer?

A．about 7500

B．about 1080

C．about 800

D．about 6420

小题4:Which problem in Shenzhen is not mentioned in the passage?

A．Traffic accidents.	B．Water shortage.
C．Environmental problems	D．Population problem.

小题5:Which is the best title for this passage?

A．Largest Population in China.

B．Biggist Problems in Shenzhen

C．Busiest Roads in Shenzhen

D．Most Crowded City in China

Information is received into our brain by attention, and its quality determines (决定) how well it will be processed, saved and used afterwards.
All information we receive is chosen by our attention. Factors (因素) affecting (影响) our attention are personal interest, experience, ability, feelings, knowledge, environment, timing, and so on. The same information may attract different forms and levels of attention from different people. Some people can get and save the information easily; some may have great difficulty; while others may just turn a blind eye to it. To the same information, one may even pay different levels of attention at different times. But if the facts work together, the quality of attention may be better. Therefore, it is not surprising to see that somebody with average intelligence (智力) can have excellent performances in some fields.
The good news is that a person's attention can be shaped, trained and made stronger by effective exercise. With this in mind, we should keep improving the quality of our attention.
小题1:"it" in Paragraph 1 means _______.

A．information

B．brain

C．attention

D．quality

小题2:All information we receive depends on _______.

A．information itself	B．our attention
C．our intelligence	D．the environment

小题3:Which is not the factor that affects our attention according to the passage?

A．Interest and experience.

B．Experience and knowledge.

C．Ability and feelings.

D．Food and drinks.

小题4:About attention, which of the following statements is right?

A．People always have the same level of attention.

B．People pay the same attention to the same information.

C．A person may pay different levels of attention to the same information at different times.

D．All factors affecting attention never work together.

小题5:According to the passage, _______ can help people to make their attention better.

A．speaking more	B．effective exercise
C．hard work	D．high intelligence

A Simple Scientific Experiment

Below is a description of a single scientific experiment. It shows us how iron reacts ( 反应) with air and with water. Aim : To find out if iron rusts( 生锈) (a) in dry air ; (b) in water that has no air in it ( air- free water) ; (c) in ordinary water. Materials : 3 clean iron nails ( 铁钉) ; test tubes ; test tube holder ; cotton wool ; oil ; Bunsen burner.

Iron in dry air Method (1)Put some iron nails at the bottom of a test tube. (2)Push some cotton wool down the tube. (3)Leave the tube for one week. Result After one week, the nails have not rusted. Conclusion Iron does not rust in dry air. Iron in air-free water Method (1)Half-fill a test tube with water. (2)Boil the water for three minutes. (This makes sure there is no air in the water. (3)Put two or three clean nails in the water.

(4)Add some oil to the water. (This will keep air out of the water.) (5) Leave the tube for one week. Result The nails do not rust in the tube with air-free water. Conclusion Iron does not rust in air- free water. Iron in ordinary water Method (1)Half –fill a test tube with water and add two or three clean nails. (2)Leave the tube for one week. Result The nails rust in the tube with ordinary water. Conclusion Iron rusts in ordinary water. (238 words)

小题1:In the first part of the experiment the cotton wool is most probably used to ______________.

A．keep the air dry	B．keep the tube wet
C．make the nails rust	D．keep the tube clean

小题2:What are necessary steps to make sure the water in the tube is air free?
①Leave half a tube of water in it              
②Boil the water for some time
③Put some clean iron nails in the tube           
④Add some oil to the water

A．①②

B．①③

C．②③

D．②④

小题3:We can conclude from the experiment that only ____________ makes iron rusty.

A．dry air

B．cotton wool

C．ordinary water

D．air-free water

Ever thought of moving to a new country? How about starting a new country? Patri Friedman is planning to do just that. He left Google years ago to set up the Seasteading Institute. And his dream is to build seasteads-----floating micro-nations in the middle of the ocean.
So, what will life on a seastead be like? Probably a bit like life on a cruise liner (游轮), but much larger, with shops, gyms, swimming pools, schools and other areas. In fact, the early seasteads may actually be specially-rebuilt cruise liners. But as science advances, Friedman believes they’ll become more like floating cities, with several hundred people.
Seasteading raises a lot of questions. First of all, how will the new countries make money? The Seasteading Institute has suggested several money-making ideas, including ocean-based theme parks, casinos (赌场) and fish farming. There’s also the questions of safety. With storms, typhoons and pirates (海盗) , the high seas are a dangerous place. However, the Institute says that it can stand bad weather and prevent crimes with its well-designed systems.
So, is this just a day dream? Well, maybe not. One of the people behind the project is Peter Thiel. He founded PayPal and was one of the first investors (投资者) in Facebook. So far, he’s donated $ 500,000 to the project.
And Friedman isn’t wasting any time. He recently announced the creation of the Poseidon Award. This will be given to the first seastead with fifty people. Friedman is hoping to hand out the award in 2015.
小题1:Where did Friedman use to work?

A．In Facebook.

B．In Seastead Institute .

C．In PayPal.

D．In Google.

小题2:A future seastead may be most likely to look like ___________________.

A．a cruise liner

B．a floating city

C．a theme park

D．a fishing farm

小题3:What can we infer from the passage?

A．Friedman is planning to move to a new country.

B．Friedman is worried about the safety of seasteads.

C．Friedman has got some supporters for his project.

D．Friedman has already won the Poseidon Award.

小题4:Which of the following can be the best titles of this passage?

A．Seasteading: a new idea of living

B．Seasteading: a wild way of farming

C．Peter Thiel: a man behind the project

D．Patri Friedman: a crazy day dreamer