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　　Thirteen vehicles(车辆)lined up last March to race across the Mojave Desert, seeking a million in prize money．To win, they had to finish the 142-mile race in less than 10 hours．Teams and watchers knew there might be no winner at all, because these vehicles were missing a key part－drivers．

　　DARPA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, organized the race as part of a push to develop robotic vehicles for future battlefields．But the Grand Challenge, as it was called, just proved how difficult it is to get a car to speed across an unfamiliar desert without human guidance．One had its brake lock up in the starting area, Another began by throwing itself onto a wall．Another got tied up by bushes near the road after 1.9 miles．

　　One turned upside down．One took off in entirely the wrong direction and had to be disabled by remote consol(无线电信标)．One went a little more than a mile and rushed into a fence; another managed to go for six miles but stuck on a rock．The “winner,” if there was any, reached 7.8 miles before it ran into a long, narrow hole, and the front wheels caught on fire．

　　“You get a lot of respect for natural abilities of the living things,” says Reinhold Behringer, who helped design two of the ear-size vehicles for a company called Sci-Autonics, “Even ants(蚂蚁)can do all these tasks effortlessly．It’s very hard for us to put these abilities into our machines．”

　　The robotic vehicles, though with necessary modern equipment such as advanced computers and GPS guidance, had trouble figuring out fast enough the blocks ahead that a two-year-old human recognizes immediately．Sure, that very young child, who has just only learned to walk, may not think to wipe apple juice off her face, but she already knows that when there’s a cookie in the kitchen she has to climb up the table, and that when she gets to the cookie it will taste good．She is more advanced, even months old, than any machine humans have designed．

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　　There are labels(标签)inside all new clothes．The labels tell you how to take care of your clothes．The label for a shirt may tell you to wash it in warm water．A sweater label may tell you to wash in cold water．The label on a coat may say “dry clean only”, for washing may ruin this coat．If you do as the directions(说明)on the label, you can keep your clothes looking their best for a long time．

　　Many clothes today must be dry cleaned．Dry cleaning is expensive．When buying new clothes, check to see if they will need to be dry cleaned．You will save money if you buy clothes that can be washed．

　　You can save money if you buy clothes that are well made．Well-made clothes last longer．They look good even after they have been washed many times．Clothes that cost more money are not necessarily(不一定)better made．They do not always fit better．Sometimes less expensive clothes look and fit better than more expensive clothes．

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　　I grew up in a small town．My father raised chickens and ran a construction company．I was only 10 years old when my dad gave me the responsibility of feeding the chickens and cleaning up the coop．He believed it was important for me to have those jobs to learn responsibility．Then, when I was 22, I found a job in Natchbill at a country music club called the Natchbill Palace．I washed dishes and cooked from 4∶00 pm to 9∶00 pm and then went on to sing until 2∶00 in the morning．It wasn’t long before I became known as a singing cook．

　　I had been rejected so many times by record companies that it was hard not to be discouraged．One night, a woman executive from a company named Warner Brothers Records came to hear me sing．When the show was over, we sat down and talked, and after she left, I said to myself it was one more rejection．A few weeks later, my manager received a phone call－Warner Brothers Records wanted to sign a record deal with me．Soon after, I released my first record in June 1986．It sold over 2 million copies．

　　My best efforts have gone into every job I’ve ever held．It was the sense of responsibility that made me feel like a man．Knowing that I had done my best filled me with pride．I still feel that way today, even though I have become a well-known singer．

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Mr Backer is a kind-hearted man．Once he gave some food to a poor woman．Mr White, the boss of the restaurant, found it and became angry．He often gave the leftovers(剩饭菜)to some poor workers．Mr Backers lost his work for it．It was difficult for him to find work in the small country though(虽然)he was an able cook．The war made all stop．Children couldn't go to school, most shops were closed, even some farmers were hungry．Some people were made to leave their houses and they had to find the safe places．It was an autumn night．Mr Backer hadn't any food to eat and went to bed, but he couldn't fall asleep．Suddenly he heard a noise in his room．He saw a man looking for something useful there．He said nothing and watched it carefully．At last the man brought a few old clothes out of a broken paper box and took them away．He got up quickly and followed him gently(文雅地), with his quilt on his back．The man didn't find him and went into a small and wet house．Mr Backer also went in and saw there was nothing in the room．The thief(贼)saw him and was surprised．He asked, “What did you come here for?” “You have carried my things here,” said Mr Backer．“I have to move there, too!”

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　　Pupils work harder in lessons if they are taught by a man, a study has claimed．Male teachers are more likely to improve pupils' self-esteem and are judged by pupils to be more fair, according to a study published by the Department for Education．

　　But there is a significant shortage of male teachers, especially in primary schools, with reports last month indicating that almost one in three primaries has an all-female teaching staff．The latest figures heightened fears that schools are becoming dominated(主宰)by women and children are being denied access to male role models in the classroom．

　　Researchers at the London School of Economics and Westminster University conducted an experiment in which each of 1,200 pupils in 29 schools was given ＆2．They could use the money to “buy” up to 10 questions at a cost of 20p each, which they then had to answer．If they were right they were given an extra 20p, but if they were wrong they lost 209．Boys and girls who had a male teacher chose on average almost half a question more than those taught by women, indicating that they had a more positive outlook on the rewards of effort, the study said．

　　Researchers wrote：“One of the most significant results featured in this experiment is the positive effect of male teachers on effort．The experiment suggests that higher ability pupils either believed that the teacher would reward them more favorably or had a preference for working hard to please the teacher．”

　　According to the Good Teacher Training Guide, 86 per cent of new teachers entering prinmary schools are female, along with 62 per cent of those entering secondary schools．

　　Professor Alan Smithers, of Buckingham University, said：“This is an interesting and somewhat surprising finding, but it does underline the importance of having a good mix of made and female teachers in classes．”

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　　President Coolidge's statement, “The business of America is business．” still points to an important truth today－that business institutions have more prestige(威望)in American society than any other kind of organization, including the government．Why do business institutions possess this great prestige?

　　One reason is that Americans view business as being more firmly based on the ideal of competition than other institutions in society．Since competition is seen as the major source of progress and prosperity by most Americans, competitive business institutions are respected．Competition is not only good in itself, it is the means by which other basic American values such as individual freedom, equality of opportunity, and hard work are respected．

　　Competition protects the freedom of the individual by ensuring that there is no monopoly(垄断)of power．In contrast to one, all powerful government, many businesses compete against each other for profits．Theoretically, if one business which tries to take unfair advantage of its customers, it will lose to competing business which treats its customers more fairly．Where many businesses compete for the customers' dollar, they cannot afford to treat them like inferiors or slaves．

　　A contrast is often made between business, which is competitive, and government, which is a monopoly．Because business is competitive, many Americans believe that it is more supportive of freedom than government, even though government leaders are elected by the people and business leaders are not．Many Americans believe, then, that competition is as important, or even more important than democracy in preserving freedom．

　　Competition in business is also believed to strengthen the ideal of equality of opportunity．Competition is seen as an open and fair race where success goes to the swiftest person regardless of his or her social class background．Competitive success is commonly seen as the American alternative to social rank based on family background．Business is therefore viewed as an expression of the idea of equality of opportunity rather than aristocratic(贵族的)idea of inherited privilege(特权)．

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　　Nearly everyone agrees that money doesn't buy as much as it used to, no matter where you want to spend it．This is certainly true of the paper money that passes so quickly through one's hands．Inflation(通货膨胀)eats away at its buying power just as the steady appetite of waves chews at sand cliffs．But what about coins that seem to do little except clutter up purses and pockets? Unlike notes, metal money becomes more valuable the longer it is held．Especially if it is put away where it won't get scratched or worn．Why is this? One reason is that coins, being more durable, fall more readily into a category for collectors．Naturally, the rarer gold pieces must become more valuable as the price of this metal goes up．

　　But, curiously, one of the rarest coins in the world is not made of gold, but of the relatively cheaper silver．In 1840, the United States mint struck 19, 570 silver dollars．That is what its records show．Today only six of this original number remain and these are unlikely ever to reach the auction market．So what happened to some 19, 564 large silver coins, not the easiest sort of things to lose? One of the more romantic theories is that they were part of the payment to Napoleon for the American territory then known as Louisiana．But they never reached France．Somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico, the ship transporting them was sunk, either by a storm or by pirates．The probable answer to the mystery is that they were melted down－since the silver value was greater than the actual value of the coins．What is known is that whoever can come up with one will find himself instantly rich．

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　　Today, the world is rapidly urbanizing．With half of the world population expected to live in cities by the early part of the 21^st century, the Shanghai 2010 World Expo's focus on a better city bears profound meaning．

　　What might future cities look like 28 years from now? Here are some scenarios： things to come, things to go．

　　Zero waste

　　Waste disposal is one of the biggest headaches for cities．Apart from recyclable waste, everything is buried or incinerated(焚烧), only to pollute the environment．Plastic waste remains underground for several decades．The world produces much more garbage than it can dispose of．

　　Now at the Expo, all waste is delivered to a compression station where the waste is sorted, filtered, decontaminated, deodorized and compressed before finally being disposed of at designated spots．In Beijing, people living in the Asuwei area turn their household waste into organic fertilizers which are used to grow plants at residence communities．

　　No more transportation problems during Spring Festival

　　The Spring Festival, the most important Chinese holiday when everyone returns home, has caused headaches for millions of Chinese．More than 2 billion people travel at the same time, making obtaining travel tickets and the journey difficult．

　　But in 28 years, Spring Festival travel may not be a problem at all．China plans to have more than 120, 000 kilometers of railway and a rapid transportation network that will serve 90 percent of the population by 2020．And because most of China will be cities, people will not have to go to other places to find a job, so migration will no longer be so large－scale．

　　Newspapers to disappear

　　American scholar Philip Meyer predicts that newspaper will come to an end in 2043．Utagawa Reizou, former editor－in－chief of The Mainichi Daily News, believes that the newspaper will be gone in 2030．

　　This kind of prediction may worry those in print news business．In the U．K．, the circulations of national newspapers are declining．Major Japanese newspapers have gone into debt．In the U．S．, declining circulations and ad revenues have forced several newspapers to stop printing paper editions．

　　Media tycoon Rupert Murdoch thinks the future of media relies on interaction through the Internet．In the future, digital newspapers will be sent to portal web terminals through wirelessly．Readers can discuss issues with journalists and editors．Information will move faster．

　　Oil to run out

　　In August 2009, Fatih Birol, chief economist of the International Energy Agency, said that oil is running out faster than expected and that the world will likely feel the tightness in supply in the next five years．

　　Scientists have found substitutes for oil as fuel．Coal, natural gas, soar power, nuclear power and even water can replace oil as sources of energy．Flammable ice reserves alone can support humans for the next 1, 000 years．

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　　The appeal of advertising to buying motives can have both negative and positive effects．Consumers may be convinced to buy a product of poor quality or high price because of an advertisement．For example, some advertisers have appealed to people's desire for better fuel economy for their cars by advertising automotive products that improve gasoline mileage(里程)．Some of the products work．Others are worthless and a waste of consumer's money．

　　Sometimes advertising is intentionally misleading．A few years ago a brand of bread was offered to dieters with the message that there were fewer calories in every slice．It turned out that the bread was not dietetic, but just regular bread．There were fewer calories because it was sliced very thin, but there were the same number of calories in every loaf．

　　On the positive side, emotional appeals may respond to a consumer's real concerns．Consider fire insurance．Fire insurance may be sold by appealing to fear or loss．But fear of loss is the real reason for fire insurance．The security of knowing that property(财产)is protected by insurance makes the purchase of fire insurance a worthwhile investment for most people．If consumers consider the quality of the insurance plans as well as the message in the ads, they will benefit from the advertising．

　　Each consumer must evaluate her or his own situation．Are the benefits of the product important enough to justify buying it? Advertising is intended to appeal to consumers, but it does not force them to buy the product．Consumers still control the final buying decision．

阅读下面短文，从短文后所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。

　　Surtsey was born in 1963．Scientists saw the birth of this island．It began at 7∶30 a. m. on 14th November．A fishing boat was near Iceland．The boat moved under the captain's(船长的)feet．He noticed a strange smell．He saw some black smoke．A volcano(火山)was breaking out．Red hot rocks，fire and smoke were rushing up from the bottom of the sea．The island grew quickly．It was 10 metres high the next day and 60 metres high on 18th November．Scientists flew there to watch．It was exciting．Smoke and fire were still rushing up．Pieces of red hot rock were flying into the air and falling into the sea．The sea was boiling and there was a strange light in the sky．Surtsey grew and grew．Then it stopped in June 1967．It was 175 metres high and 2 kilometres 1ong．And life was already coming to Surtsey．Plants grew．Birds came．Some scientists built a house．They wanted to learn about this young island．

　　A new island is like a new world．