阅读理解

　　Sep．30

　　I moved into the dormitory today－an ugly building and near a busy main road too．My room is small but quite pleasant．I must get some posters for the walls, though．I met a few fellow students at supper(the food was awful!)They all look much younger than me．They are, of course!

　　Oct．07

　　Lectures began last Monday．So far they haven't been very interesting(except for the man who lectures on drama．He's first class)．Personally, I'd much rather go to the library and read, but I have to attend ten lectures a week．Those are the "rules"!Well, at least you meet people there．

　　Oct．12

　　I realiy don't like life in the dormitory at all．The food is bad and the students are noisy．They stay up half the night and play games just outside my room．When on earth do they sleep?When do they work?Besides, I don't like my room．It's just like living in a box!It looks even smaller now, with the posters on the wall．I am wondering how long it will he before I can feel as comfortable as I did living in my high school dormitory．

　　Oct．26

　　I tried to explain some of my problems to my supervisor today．She listened－but that was about all．"You have to go to lectures, you know, Ann, "she lold me．''And the dormitory is cheap and convenient．""Cheap and convenient"!Well．il isn't "cheap"if you can't eat the food and it isn't "convenient"if you can't sleep at night!

　　Oct．30

　　I can't believe it!Three other students－I met them at a lecture and they' re all about my own age－have invited me to share a flat with them．It's in an old house and it has its own kitchen, so we can cook for ourselves．And my room－righy at the top of the house－is fantastic!

　　Nov．10

　　I moved into my new room last Sunday．I feel really happy．Life is going to be so much more fun from now on!

阅读理解

　　Some people who find themselves facing a problem react by just giving up．But it is not good to escape from problems by giving up or by making excuses for failures．You may be sure that all young people go through the same difficult process that you are going through：meeting new situations, developing new skills, and testing their abilities．

　　If you are unhappy about something, face it．Try to state the problem in a few words, so that you will know exactly what you are up against．Then see if you can “put your finger” on the cause of your unhappiness．

　　In many cases, we only “think” there is no solution to a particular problem．But often we can overcome the problem and achieve the goal by making a direct attack．

　　For example, a boy wanted to be a debater(辩论家)．When he tried out for the debating team as a freshman, the coach thought he was hopeless．He was shy; he had a high-pitched voice; and his posture(体态)was poor．Although he was given little hope of success, he took advantage of every opportunity to debate．He studied successful speakers and evaluated his own weaknesses and advantages．Then he spent many hours learning all the facts on the topics for debate, and worked at developing good posture and at speaking clearly．By his junior year, he made the school debating team, and in his senior year he was on the winning team in his state．He achieved his goal because he had made a direct attack upon his problem．

　　Although direct attack is often the best way to meet problems, we have to be realistic(现实的)in judging situations．Sometimes it is necessary to change either the method or the goal．

　　A boy who wants to be a great football player may not be too strong and not quite fast enough for football．In this situation, becoming a great football player may be an unreasonable goal for him．However, he may become outstanding in tennis or golf, and satisfy his desire to take part in sports．

　　A girl who is not good-looking may decide that she cannot win popularity with her face, and so she may try to develop an interesting personality, which eventually will get her much further．In this situation, she must change her method of achieving her goal．

　　So, although direct attack is often the best way to handle problems, it is important to study the situation and make a wise decision about what to do．

阅读理解

　　It might have been a really bad stressful day, feeling trapped inside by the cold and snow which surrounded us．My husband was the first to shift his consciousness．He dressed accordingly and announced that he was going outside to build a giant snowman．

　　At first he stood alone, piling massive amounts of snow．Soon after a neighbor joined in my husband's quest to embrace the opportunity the winter presented．Maintaining less than desirable attitudes, we reluctantly put on our snow gear(用具)and headed outside．It wasn't long before we were smiling and enjoying the abundance of snow that Mother Nature had provided．Others came to our yard one by one to give a hand in the making of our giant snowman．

　　In the end we all stood back and marveled at what we had created．He was eleven feet high, twenty-five feet around at the base and decorated with many household items supplied by various families．There he stood, our glorious, gigantic(巨人般的)snowman．

　　People drove by and smiled．Some even stopped to enjoy his existence．The spirit that went into creating him seemed to catch on and we all enjoyed it while the cold temperatures allowed．

　　With the passing of time, the spring made its way back into our yard and the snowman changed form considerably．In a final effort to save what we created for just a little bit longer somebody stopped by and changed the snowman's remains to look like a rabbit．

　　As I prepared for the start of another week, I decided to check my email before going to bed．I found a curious message that contained the subject line：enjoy the snowman．I decided to read the message even though I did not recognize who sent it．The words it contained melted my heart．

　　The email said：…your neighbor looks on in disbelief!I am sure you people are enjoying the sounds and smells, along with sights of spring．The energy displayed in Mr．Snowman or Ms, is filled with vigor and joyous energy．You and your family keep it up, as this is what the world needs now．Love sweet love．More power to you and your loved ones, keep sharing with the world around．

　　Perhaps it was more than snowman we built that day．I'd like to agree that it was．The message seems clear．Our circumstances will turn out to be what we make of them．The possibilities are endless and the choice is ours．

阅读理解

　　By analyzing academic data from 10 states, representing the testing of more than 7.2 millions of youths, U．S．researchers found that gender differences in math scores were extremely small among all ethnic groups in grades 2－11．

　　These findings are in contrast to earlier results from 1990 that indicate measurable differences favoring males in complex problem-solving, beginning in the high school years．

　　Janet Hyde from University of Wisconsin and colleagues reported their study results in the journal Science on Friday．

　　Currently, women are largely absent from the highest levels of careers in mathematics, the physical sciences, and engineering．In the United States, Ph．D．programs in engineering currently average only about 15 percent women, and similar statistics have led to stereotypes(成见)about girls and women lacking in mathematical ability．

　　Now, it is clear that the general population no longer shows a gender difference in mathematical skills, according to this latest report．

　　And this new data on academic performance in the United States shows that students are tested frequently on "recall" and "skill/concept" items, but rarely on "strategic thinking"(战略思维)or "extended thinking" concepts．

　　If standardized tests do not assess(评估)the sorts of reasoning that are crucial to careers in science and math, then the skills may not be taught, putting American students at a disadvantage to students in other countries where testing and instruction focuses on more challenging content．"This is a gap that should be fixed," Hyde said．

阅读理解

United Nations Climate Change Conference

　　The U．N．Climate Change conference opened in Copenhagen, Denmark on Dec．7th with some 15,000 delegates and observers from nearly 200 countries attending what is called the last best chance for an agreement to combat(与……战斗)global warming．

　　Their aim is to find common ground, including on reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, promotion and transfer of new more eco-friendly technology and the necessary funding to make this possible, especially for the less developed and poorer nations．It also means coming up with long term vision and cooperation for the future．

　　Most scientists believe the warming trend is mainly caused by human activity, especially the use of fossil fuels(矿物燃料)and the cutting down of forests．Skeptics(怀疑论者)say global warming is part of a natural cycle of climate change．

　　In Copenhagen, experts and officials alike are putting the emphasis on what people and governments can do to cut the emission of greenhouse gasses．

　　Scientists say a 25 to 40 percent cut in carbon-dioxide emissions is needed to control global warming．The European Union, China, and India have already pledged(保证)reductions．The United States is waiting for Congressional(国会的)approval for a proposal put forward by the Obama administration．

　　Barack Obama, President of the United States said, “Each of us must do what we can when we can to grow our economies without endangering our planet－and we must all do it together．We must seize the opportunity to make Copenhagen a significant step forward in the global fight against climate change…”

　　Desmond Tutu, Archbishop of South Africa said, “Worldwide, we have the chance to start turning the tide of climate change, but only if all governments commit themselves to a fair, binding(有约束力的)and sustainable climate agreement in Copenhagen．”

阅读理解

　　Quickly, the picture comes alive with hyperlinks(超链接), offering the names of the buildings, towers and street features that appear in the photo．The hyperlinks lead to information about the history, services and context of all the features in the photo．You have just hyperlinked your reality．

　　That might be a little unbelievable, but the technology exists and is no fevered imagination．This is not a cool small machine invented for the next James Bond movie; this is a working technology just developed by European researchers．It could be coming to a phone near you, and soon．

　　This, as the marketing types say, is a game changer．It develops a completely new interface(界面)that combines web-technology with the real world．It is big and fresh, but it goes much further and has much greater influence．

　　The development of the system is most outstanding because image recognition technology has long been pregnant with promise, but seemed to suffer from an unending labour．

　　Now MOBVIS has not only developed image recognition; it has also developed more applications for the technology; and it has adapted it to the world's most popular technology：the mobile phone．

　　The MOBVIS system completely rewrites the rules for exploration and interaction with your physical environment．The system begins with panoramas(一连串景象)．These panoramas form the basis of a city database．It can match buildings, towers, banners and even logos that appear in the panoramas．

　　A user simply takes a picture of the street feature, MOBVIS compares the user's photograph to the panoramas and then identifies the buildings from the picture you take and the relevant links are returned．

　　Then you simply click on the links, using a touch-screen phone, and the MOBVIS system will provide information on the history, art, architecture or even the menu, if it is a restaurant, of the building in question．

阅读理解

　　Overview(概要)How do the earthquakes in Chile and Haiti compare?Here, students perform a gallery walk to learn more about the earthquakes from a specific point, and then do a specific research and presentation project or response activity．Finally, they seek answers to their unanswered questions．

　　Materials Print copies of photographs, charts, documents and other visuals to display, as described below; computer(s)with Internet access(optional), research materials, handouts．

　　Warm-up Choose and prepare a“gallery”of photographs, graphics, news reports and other materials to display around the room to enable students to consider the 2010 earthquake in Chile．

　　Depending on course program, choose materials for the gallery that provide a window on the two quakes, through one of the following specific points, or the focus of your choice：

　　Earthquakes through History Putting the 2010 Chilean and Haitian quakes into historical view related to other earthquakes, including the 1960 Chilean quake and the 2004 Asian earthquake and tsunami．

　　Rescue and Aid Considering domestic and international response to the disasters by militaries, governments and aid organizations, including rescue and recovery as well as efforts to provide food, water, health care and shelter to those affected．

　　Related The article Underwater Plate Cuts 400 Mile Gash compares several earthquakes：

　　Mr．Lin figured that the quake on Saturday was 250 to 350 times more powerful than the Haitian quake．

　　But Paul Caruso noted that at least on land, the effects of the Chilean tremor(震动)might not be as bad．For one thing, he said, the quality of building construction is generally better in Chile than in Haiti．And the fact that the quake occurred offshore should also help limit the destruction．In Haiti, the rupture(断裂)occurred only a few miles from the capital, Port-au-Prince．The rupture on Saturday was centered about 60 miles from the nearest town, Chillan, and 70 miles from the country's second-largest city, Concepción．

　　Read the article using the following questions．

　　Questions For discussion with others and reading comprehension：

How does the 2010 Chilean earthquake compare to the 1960 Chilean earthquake?

　　Why do scientists believe that the 2010 Chilean earthquake will not cause the same level of damage as January's Haitian earthquake did?

　　How does the 2010 Chilean earthquake compare to the 2004 Indonesian earthquake?

　　What reasons do scientists give to explain why the Indonesian quake caused so much more damage than the recent Chilean earthquake?

阅读理解

　　If you enjoyed the spring-like sunshine over the weekend and thought the weather has finally turned a corner, you're sadly mistaken．

　　Chilly(寒冷的)days and grey clouds are forecast for the week－making it far too early to pack away the winter woollies．

　　Temperatures will struggle to rise above zero at night and fail to make double figures during the day．

　　People enjoy the spring sunshine in Sefton Park, Aigburth, Liverpool．Forecasters have predicted a return to chilly weather this week．

　　Met Office forecaster Charlie said,“It was a nice, dry, bright weekend in many parts and Monday is going to be a similar affair for many．”

　　“Temperatures will be between 5℃and 8℃, which is below average for the start of spring．”

　　The sun will disappear from the south of the country after today, with dry but cloudy conditions forecast for tomorrow and Wednesday．

　　Wednesday will be warmest of the three, with temperatures peaking at 9℃．But this is still two degrees below the March average for the district．

　　Overnight, temperatures will drop sharply, with lows of minus 3℃for the next three nights．

　　“It will generally stay on the cold side of average,”said Mr．Powell．

　　The March misery comes at the end of the coldest winter for more than 30 years．

　　Temperatures in December, January and February struggled to stay above zero, with the UK's average 1.5℃, making it the deepest freeze since 1978－79．

　　It claimed there was just a one-in-seven chance of a cold December to February．

　　The agency also sadly predicted a“barbecue summer”, saying it was“quite optimistic”that it would be warmer and drier than average．

　　Following the two mistakes, the Met Office has dropped its long-range seasonal forecasts and will instead publish a monthly prediction for Britain, updated once a week．

　　In its defense, it says that while short-term forecasts are extremely accurate, Britain's size and geographical position makes long-term predictions much more challenging．

　　It also points out that it gave warning of any heavy falls of snow this winter．

阅读理解

　　Jackie Heinricher's love affair with bamboo started in her backyard．“As a child, I remember playing among the golden bamboo my dad had planted, and when there was a slight wind, the bamboos sounded really musical．”

　　A fisheries biologist, Heinricher, 47, planned to work in the salmon industry in Seattle, where she lived with her husband, Guy Thornburgh, but she found it too competitive．Then her garden gave her the idea for a business：She'd planted 20 bamboo forests on their seven-acre farm．

　　Heinricher started Boo-Shoot Gardens in 1998．She realized early on what is just now beginning to be known to the rest of the world．It can be used to make fishing poles, skateboards, buildings, furniture, floors, and even clothing．An added bonus：Bamboo absorbs four times as much carbon dioxide as a group of hardwood trees and releases 35 percent more oxygen．

　　First she had to find a way to mass-produce the plants－a tough task, since bamboo flowers create seed only once every 50 to 100 years．And dividing a bamboo plant frequently kills it．

　　Heinricher appealed to Randy Burr, a tissue culture expert, to help her．“People kept telling us we'd never figure it out,”says Heinricher．“Others had worked on it for 27 years!I believed in what we were doing, though, so I just kept going．”

　　She was right to feel a sense of urgency．Bamboo forests are being rapidly used up, and a United Nations report showed that even though bamboo is highly renewable, as many as half of the world's species are threatened with dying out．Heinricher knew that bamboo could make a significant impact on carbon emissions(排放)and world economies, but only if huge numbers could be produced．And that's just what she and Burr figured out after nine years of experiments－a way to grow millions of plants．By placing cuttings in test tubes with salts, vitamins, plant hormones, and seaweed gel, they got the plants to grow and then raised them in soil in greenhouses．

　　Not long after it, Burr's lab hit financial difficulties．Heinricher had no experience running a tissue culture operation, but she wasn't prepared to quit．So she bought the lab．

　　Today Heinricher heads up a profitable multimillion-dollar company, working on species from all over the world and selling them to wholesalers．“If you want to farm bamboo, it's hard to do without the young plants, and that's what we have,”she says proudly．

阅读理解

　　Disposing(处理)of waste has been a problem since humans started producing it．As more and more people choose to live close together in cities, the waste-disposal problem becomes increasingly difficult．

　　During the eighteenth century, it was usual for several neighboring towns to get together to select a faraway spot as a dumpsite．Residents or trash haulers(垃圾托运者)would transport household rubbish, rotted wood, and old possessions to the site．Periodically(定期的)some of the trash was burned and the rest was buried．The unpleasant sights and smells caused no problem because nobody lived close by．

　　Factories, mills, and other industrial sites also had waste to be disposed of．Those located on rivers often just dumped the unwanted remains into the water．Others built huge burners with chimneys to deal with the problem．

　　Several facts make these choices unacceptable to modern society．The first problem is space．Dumps, which are now called landfills, are most needed in heavily populated areas．Such areas rarely have empty land suitable for this purpose．Property is either too expensive or too close to residential(住宅区的)neighborhoods．Long-distance trash hauling has been a common practice, but once farm areas are refusing to accept rubbish from elsewhere, cheap land within trucking distance of major city areas is almost nonexistent．

　　Awareness of pollution dangers has resulted in more strict rules of waste disposal．Pollution of rivers, ground water, land and air is a price people can no longer pay to get rid of waste．The amount of waste, however, continues to grow．

　　Recycling efforts have become commonplace, and many towns require their people to take part．Even the most efficient recycling programs, however, can hope to deal with only about 50 percent of a city's reusable waste．