Everybody hates rats(老鼠). But in the earthquake capitals of the world—Japan, Los Angeles, Turkey—rats will soon be man’s new best friends.
What happens after an earthquake? We send in rescue dogs. Why? Because they can smell people. They help rescuers to find living people. But dogs are big and they can’t get into small spaces. So now a new research project is using a smaller animal to save lives: the rat.
How does it work? First, the rat is trained to smell people. When this happens, the rat’s brain gives a signal(信号). This is sent to a small radio on its back and then the rescuers follow the radio signals. When rat’s brain activity jumps, the rescuers know that someone is alive. The rat has smelled that person.
Although there are already robots which can do this job, rats are better. Christian Linster at Cornell University, New York, says, “Robots’ noses don’t work well when there are other smells around. Rats are good at that. ” Rats can also see in the dark. They are cheaper and quicker to train than dogs, and unlike robots, they don’t need electricity!
The “rat project” is not finished, but Julie Ryan of International Rescue Corps in Scotland says, “It would be fantastic. A rat could get into spaces we couldn’t get to, and a rat would get out if it wasn’t safe. ” Perhaps for the first time in history, people will be happy to see a rat in a building, but only after an earthquake, of course.
【小题1】 In the world earthquake capitals, rats will become man’s best friends because they can ______.

A．take the place of man’s rescue jobs

B．find the position of people alive who are trapped in buildings

C．serve as food for people alive who are trapped in buildings

D．get into small spaces

【小题2】From the third paragraph we know the rescuers can judge a person is alive by ______.

A．the noise made by the rat

B．the rat’s unusual behavior

C．the signal sent by the radio on the rat’s back

D．the smell given off by the person

【小题3】In doing rescue jobs, ______.

A．rats smell better than dogs

B．dogs don’t need to be trained to smell people

C．robots’ sense of smell can be affected by other smells around

D．rats can see in the dark and they are smaller than robots

【小题4】Rats have all the following advantages EXCEPT that ______.

A．they are more fantastic than other animals

B．they are less expensive to train than dogs

C．they don’t need electricity

D．they are small and can get into small places

 

They travel in groups, noses just inches away form GPS screen. Suddenly a boy shouts “I found it!”, grinning and walking away from the group.

The others focus on their screens. “Me. too!” shouts another a moment later, until all six kids are crowded around a tree, pulling out a plastic bottle painted to look like tree bark. It doesn’t seem like much from the outside, but everyone gathers around, eager to see what’s inside.

This is geocaching, a high-tech game played using coordinates (坐标) and global positioning systems to find hidden “treasures”.

It’s open to anyone—hiders or seekers—with a GPS and access to www.geocaching.com, where more than half a million users download and upload the coordinates of nearly 1 million hidden caches (储藏物) and write about their experiences in this worldwide hunt.

Although some adventures can take hours or even days, the contents inside the actual cache usually aren’t valuable—often just a book or a small trinket (小饰品).

But participants aren’t in it for the treasure. They say it’s a great way to exercise. Or it brings them to remote destinations or historical sites. Some consider it an extreme sport, looking for geocaches hidden in mountains or in other nearly inaccessible locations.

Jeffrey Howe, 41, sees it as an opportunity to take kids on adventures to unfamiliar places. The youths at the shelter mostly come form the city, but geocaching has taken them to parks, the suburbs, and, once, to a 498-meter-high mountain.

“Geocaching is a way to give kids the idea that there’s a whole world out there other than what they know from their home neighborhoods and video games,” he said.

How does it work? Log onto the Website and enter your zip code (邮编), then search for caches near your location. Although posted coordinates will take a GPS within about 4.5 meters of a cache, a good hide will require seekers to do a bit of hunting around. Caches can’t be buried underground, nor can they be hidden on private property (财产), in dangerous locations or in some national parks.

Posts written about the find—whether successful or unsuccessful—are an important part of the game, with users proudly recording the places to which they’ve traveled.

1.    What is the meaning of the underlined word geocaching in paragraph 3?

         A. A computer game played all over the world.

         B. A TV series popular around the world.

         C. An outdoor game of hiding and finding things.

         D. A name of the latest GPS.

2. In geocaching, which of the following statements about players is NOT TRUE?

         A. Players need to have GPS to play the game.

         B. Players need to download the coordinates to find the hidden caches.

         C. Players need to be young and strong to the play the game.

         D. Players are asked to hide things in parks or other places most people can reach.

3.    What is Jeffrey Howe’s attitude toward geocaching?

         A. Negative.     B. Objective.    C. Uncertain.   D. Supportive.

4.    Many people like to play this game because __________.

         A. they take pleasure in the process of the game

         B. they like to visit historical sites

         C. they want to find some treasure

         D. they want to change their lives

 

 

Traffic TV

Avoid the jams — see where tailbacks are before you set off and while on the move. Traffic TV is free to use on your personal computer and only £4 per month (see below for other network charges) on your mobile.

How does it work?

Over 7,500 Trafficmaster cameras monitor traffic flow on over 8,000 miles of motorways and roads across the UK, keeping you up to date 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Traffic TV on your mobile

This downloadable application lets you see where jams are building up, the speed of vehicles at hotspots, and live pictures from thousands of roadside cameras.

Traffic TV is £4 a month for Orange mobile customers, after a 30 day free try-out. On other networks Traffic TV is £5 a month, after a 7 day free try-out.

Listen to live traffic news

Don’t want the download? Then simply dial the numbers below from your mobile to hear the latest traffic updates.

＊Orange mobile users call 177 (calls cost up to 55p a minute)

＊Other mobile users call 1740 (calls cost up to 59p a minute)

Help friends avoid jams

Simply enter your friend’s email address to send them a link to this service.

1.How can users get live traffic information?

A. By mobile phone or through Internet.          B. By watching a TV programme.

C. By listening to the radio report.               D. By using Trafficmaster cameras.

2.How long may a customer use the service if his/her network is Orange and he/she pays £20?

A. About 120 days.     B. About 127 days.      C. Five months.   D. Six months.

3. What is the purpose of this advertisement?

A. To provide readers with live traffic information.

B. To help Orange customers to avoid traffic jam.

C. To attract mobile users to buy Traffic TV service.

D. To explain how Traffic TV and live traffic news work.

4. You may read this advertisement most probably ___________.

A. in a travel guide       B. on a web page      C. on a road sign     D. in a newspaper

 

1 

London has become a cycle friendly zone after the launch of a new bike hire scheme．It has been designed to encourage more people to cycle in and around central London．

So how does it work？First you have to sign up to the scheme to be sent a key．The key will unlock one of the bikes，which are kept at docking stations in and around central London．You have to pay an access fee for the key and then you pay as you go，for the length of time you use the bike．

Transport for London, which runs the scheme，are hoping to have 6，000 bikes and 400 docking stations in place by the end of the year．The new hire system is hoping to ease congestion in London and is expected to generate up to 40，000 extra cycle trips a day into the city centre. London Mayor Boris Johnston launched the scheme and said London had been “filled with thousands of gleaming machines that will transform the look and feel of our streets and become as common place on our roads as black cabs and red buses”.

However，there have been a few problems since the scheme was launched last Friday．On the first day some people found they couldn’t dock their bike properly and their usage of the bike had not registered．Transport for London did admit they had been expecting a few “teething problems” and have said they wouldn’t charge for the first day as a“gesture of goodwill”．Some other people have criticized the lack of docking stations and locks for the bikes as well as the price it costs to hire the bicycles．

Despite the comments，the green-thinking London Mayor still seems very positive about things，saying，“My campaign for the capital to become the greatest big cycling city in the world has taken a gigantic pedal-powered push forwards．”

1.Which is the correct order of a bike hire？

 a．pay a usage charge according to the time    b．pay for the key

 c．cycle in and around central London  d．sign up as a member to get a key

 A．b-d-c-a  B．b-c-a-d   C．d-c-b-a   D．d-b-c-a

2.．Which of the following is NOT the “teething problems” of the scheme？

 A．People were unable to lock properly．

 B．People could not dock the bikes properly．

 C．People had no enthusiasm about the scheme．

 D．It’s too expensive for some people to hire a bike．

3.．From the passage we know __________．

 A．the ‘cycling revolution’ failed once started

 B．the scheme will be put off due to the problems

 C．all the citizens in London are in favor of the scheme

 D．the London Mayor has great confidence in the scheme

 

Traffic TV
Avoid the jams — see where tailbacks are before you set off and while on the move. Traffic TV is free to use on your personal computer and only £4 per month (see below for other network charges) on your mobile.
How does it work?
Over 7,500 Trafficmaster cameras monitor traffic flow on over 8,000 miles of motorways and roads across the UK, keeping you up to date 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Traffic TV on your mobile
This downloadable application lets you see where jams are building up, the speed of vehicles at hotspots, and live pictures from thousands of roadside cameras.
Traffic TV is £4 a month for Orange mobile customers, after a 30 day free try-out. On other networks Traffic TV is £5 a month, after a 7 day free try-out.
Listen to live traffic news
Don’t want the download? Then simply dial the numbers below from your mobile to hear the latest traffic updates.
＊Orange mobile users call 177 (calls cost up to 55p a minute)
＊Other mobile users call 1740 (calls cost up to 59p a minute)
Help friends avoid jams
Simply enter your friend’s email address to send them a link to this service.
【小题1】How can users get live traffic information?

A．By mobile phone or through Internet.	B．By watching a TV programme.
C．By listening to the radio report.	D．By using Trafficmaster cameras.

【小题2】How long may a customer use the service if his/her network is Orange and he/she pays £20?

A．About 120 days.

B．About 127 days.

C．Five months.

D．Six months.

【小题3】 What is the purpose of this advertisement?

A．To provide readers with live traffic information.

B．To help Orange customers to avoid traffic jam.

C．To attract mobile users to buy Traffic TV service.

D．To explain how Traffic TV and live traffic news work.

【小题4】You may read this advertisement most probably ___________.

A．in a travel guide

B．on a web page

C．on a road sign

D．in a newspaper