One of the world's richest men has taken a close interest in one of man’s most basic functions: visiting the toilet．Bill Gates’s charitable organization, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, is looking for inventors to design the loo of the future, which, they hope, would improve sanitation for millions of people around the world．

So, what's wrong with the traditional flush toilet? Firstly, it wastes a huge amount of potential drinking water．Secondly, they are more likely to cause pollution．This is a real problem in many areas of the developing world, where, according to United Nations estimates, unsafe sanitation causes half of all hospitalizations．Younger people are particularly at risk．Illnesses which cause diarrhea are responsible for the deaths of about 1.5 million children a year．Finally, standard lavatories simply aren’t practical in remote areas．

The challenge set by Bill Gates was to come up with a latrine which works without running water, electricity or aseptic tank(化粪池)．It also needed to operate for less than 5 cents．28 designs were displayed at the recent Reinvent the Toilet Fair in Seattle, USA．Among them was one which turned human waste into electricity using microwaves, another which converted human waste into charcoal, and yet another which used urine for flushing．

But the winner was a solar-powered design which generated hydrogen gas and electricity.The team from the California Institute of Technology（CIT）picked up a prize of $ 100,000.

But clearly Bill Gates doesn’t feel he’s flushing money down the toilet．After the Seattle event he said, “We, couldn’t be happier with the response we’ve gotten,” Gates has even pledged $370m more to the future toilet project．They hope to field test more prototypes over the next three years．

1.Why is Bill Gates paying people to invent new toilets?

A．Because he wants to test people’s sense of creativity．

B．Because he wants to improve sanitation for many people．

C．Because he thinks the traditional ones are out of fashion．

D．Because he can’t design this kind of things himself．

2.Which of the following is NOT a problem with the traditional flush toilet?

A．They waste too much water．

B．They might cause diseases．

C．They are not always practical．

D．They are too complicated to use.

3.The underlined word “latrine” in the third paragraph might have similar meanings to the word “__ ”n the text．

A．Loo              B．sanitation          C．diarrhea          D．prototype

4.The team from CIT won the prize because their design        .

A．can change human waste into electricity

B．can turn human waste into charcoal

C．can produce power with solar energy

D．can use urine for flushing

5.If someone “flush money down the toilet”, they are       .

A．showing off their wealth

B．being angry with their work onditions

C．wasting money for nothing

D．expressing their great determination

One of the world's richest men has taken a close interest in one of man’s most basic functions: visiting the toilet．Bill Gates’s charitable organization, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, is looking for inventors to design the loo of the future, which, they hope, would improve sanitation for millions of people around the world．
So, what's wrong with the traditional flush toilet? Firstly, it wastes a huge amount of potential drinking water．Secondly, they are more likely to cause pollution．This is a real problem in many areas of the developing world, where, according to United Nations estimates, unsafe sanitation causes half of all hospitalizations．Younger people are particularly at risk．Illnesses which cause diarrhea are responsible for the deaths of about 1.5 million children a year．Finally, standard lavatories simply aren’t practical in remote areas．
The challenge set by Bill Gates was to come up with a latrine which works without running water, electricity or aseptic tank(化粪池)．It also needed to operate for less than 5 cents．28 designs were displayed at the recent Reinvent the Toilet Fair in Seattle, USA．Among them was one which turned human waste into electricity using microwaves, another which converted human waste into charcoal, and yet another which used urine for flushing．
But the winner was a solar-powered design which generated hydrogen gas and electricity.The team from the California Institute of Technology（CIT）picked up a prize of $ 100,000.
But clearly Bill Gates doesn’t feel he’s flushing money down the toilet．After the Seattle event he said, “We, couldn’t be happier with the response we’ve gotten,” Gates has even pledged $370m more to the future toilet project．They hope to field test more prototypes over the next three years．
【小题1】Why is Bill Gates paying people to invent new toilets?

One of the world's richest men has taken a close interest in one of man’s most basic functions: visiting the toilet．Bill Gates’s charitable organization, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, is looking for inventors to design the loo of the future, which, they hope, would improve sanitation for millions of people around the world．

So, what's wrong with the traditional flush toilet? Firstly, it wastes a huge amount of potential drinking water．Secondly, they are more likely to cause pollution．This is a real problem in many areas of the developing world, where, according to United Nations estimates, unsafe sanitation causes half of all hospitalizations．Younger people are particularly at risk．Illnesses which cause diarrhea are responsible for the deaths of about 1.5 million children a year．Finally, standard lavatories simply aren’t practical in remote areas．

The challenge set by Bill Gates was to come up with a latrine which works without running water, electricity or aseptic tank(化粪池)．It also needed to operate for less than 5 cents．28 designs were displayed at the recent Reinvent the Toilet Fair in Seattle, USA．Among them was one which turned human waste into electricity using microwaves, another which converted human waste into charcoal, and yet another which used urine for flushing．

But the winner was a solar-powered design which generated hydrogen gas and electricity.The team from the California Institute of Technology（CIT）picked up a prize of $ 100,000.

But clearly Bill Gates doesn’t feel he’s flushing money down the toilet．After the Seattle event he said, “We, couldn’t be happier with the response we’ve gotten,” Gates has even pledged $370m more to the future toilet project．They hope to field test more prototypes over the next three years．

66. Why is Bill Gates paying people to invent new toilets?

      A．Because he wants to test people’s sense of creativity．

     B．Because he wants to improve sanitation for many people．

      C．Because he thinks the traditional ones are out of fashion．

      D．Because he can’t design this kind of things himself．

67. Which of the following is NOT a problem with the traditional flush toilet?

       A．They waste too much water．                     B．They might cause diseases．

       C．They are not always practical．                    D．They are too complicated to use.

68.The underlined word “latrine” in the third paragraph might have similar meanings to the word “__ ”n the text．

        A．Loo                  B．sanitation                   C．diarrhea              D．prototype

69. The team from CIT won the prize because their design         .

      A．can change human waste into electricity         B．can turn human waste into charcoal

      C．can produce power with solar energy             D．can use urine for flushing

70. If someone “flush money down the toilet”, they are        .

      A．showing off their wealth                      B．being angry with their work onditions

      C．wasting money for nothing                        D．expressing their great determination

Last December, I performed 30 shows in 11 days. I knew it would be a tiring tour before I set off, but I just wanted to be there to support our men and women.

From the minute I walked onstage the afternoon I arrived at the army, the soldiers were cheering, singing along at the top of their voices. I had done hundreds of concerts, but it was my first time to perform for troops. Looking at the smiling faces of these soldiers --- some of them only teenagers --- I felt great joy moving through me. They were the loveliest fans I had ever met. Then, from out of nowhere, words came into my head. “I want to play you something new … a song just came in my head minutes ago. It’s called Here with Me,” I told them. Cheers rang out. As I sang, I could see the tears in some of soldiers’ eyes. I finished to thunderous applause.

At the autograph(亲笔签名)part afterward, one of the soldiers took out a picture of a high school student. “This is my girl. You know, I miss her so much,” he said. “That new song you sang … it meant so much to me. Those were the words I’ve always wanted to tell her.

I realized that the song wasn’t about me and that it was, in fact, a gift for these men and women. I played it in every concert after that, always with the same unbelievable reaction.

On the long plane ride home I kept thinking about the soldiers I’d met. They risked their lives every day to defend our country, yet they were grateful for a simple concert. I decided to record the new song to thank our men and women           in uniform(制服).

1.Which of the following words can best take the place of the word “troops” in the second paragraph?

A．officials           B．teenagers         C．soldiers           D．students

2.When the author performed on the stage, he felt _____.

A．pleased           B．nervous           C．confident         D．worried

3.What might be the topic of the new song?

A．The tiring army life

B．The danger of being a soldier

C．The excitement of going to a concert

D．The family one misses

4.From the text, we can infer that the author _____.

A．served in the army before

B．received many gifts during shows

C．was impressed by the soldiers

D．always cared for the soldiers

5.The passage is most probably written by a(n) _____.

A．dancer           B．teacher           C．singer            D．official leader

In urban China，where English is almost the official second language，many Chinese people have learned to speak as professionally as native speakers. However they may have an accent and make a few minor grammatical mistakes.Years ago many people used a certain Chinese-English dictionary or a series of textbooks and accepted their teachings. Consequently，language learners developed a peculiar vocabulary. Some people call these word choices “Chinglish”. The words are not incorrect—native speakers still understand them—but they stand in the way of using standard English. Here are some common examples, both from written and spoken English:
Clever (adj.): Native speakers usually say “smart” instead. “Smart” is a broader and more common word. “Clever” suggests an ability to think your way out of a specific problem or take advantage of a specific situation. Being smart serves you for life.
Examination(n.): Use “exam”, the short form of it, or the more common word, “test”. (The verb for all three words is “take”.) Another word you may hear is “quiz”. It means a short and relatively unimportant test that the teacher often gives as a surprise.
Film: This is largely a technical word. The common term is “movie”. (Native speakers often say “short film for the movie”.)
House (n.): a stand-alone building with its own street entrance that is home to one family. A home in a building full of families is an “apartment” or a “flat”. When in doubt, just say “home”.
Puzzled (adj.): We use this word to describe mild reactions to difficult math problems, and not even very often for this purpose (we say “I’m stumped” or “I have no idea” instead). But when we’re addressing a life issue such as whether to pursue (从事) a graduate education or go straight to work, we say “confused”. This is a stronger word as well as a more common one.
49. The writer wrote this passage to______.
A. prove there are so many Chinese people learning English in a wrong way
B. teach us to choose correct and exact English words to express ourselves
C. tell people that if we want to speak English as well as native speakers we must memorize as many English words as possible
D. explain what Chinglish is
50. According to the passage, which of the following is more common?
A. Would you like to go to the film tonight?
B. He will take an examination next week.
C. Tom is cleverer than his brother.
D. He felt confused whether he would go abroad for further study.
51. This passage suggests that______.  
A. native speakers say “I’m puzzled with this math problem.” more often used than they say “I’m stumped with the math problem.”
B. the word “home” is much often used than the word “house” in spoken and written English
C. the word “examination” is more common than its short form“exam”
D. we can say “do a quiz”
52. We can infer from the passage that______.  
A. native speakers can understand “Chinglish”
B. saying “take a test” is more common
C. to English learners, developing more English vocabulary doesn’t mean speaking good English
D. it’s easy to learn English words well