Eating Chocolate Can Make You Smarter

     Chocolate lovers know that eating chocolate makes them happy．Now it turns out that eating chocolate may also make them smarter．

     Dr．Bryan Raudenbush recently made a study to see how eating chocolate affects people’s brains．The U．S．researcher knew that chocolate contained several stimulants(兴奋剂)．But he wasn’t sure how those stimulants actually affected chocolate eaters．

    To find out，Raudenbush had a group of volunteers eat 85grams of milk chocolate．He asked another group to eat no chocolate at all．After l 5 minutes，he tested their memory and their ability to solve problems．

    The group that ate milk chocolate had higher scores．They were able to remember more words and pictures than the group that did not eat chocolate．Raudenbush concluded(得出结论) that the stimulants in chocolate increased mental(精神的)alertness(灵敏度)．

    Of course，eating chocolate doesn’t guarantee(保证)you’ll pass every test．You’ll still need to study hard!

1．Many people like eating chocolate because it can make them      ．

A．annoyed           B．unhappy          C．pleased           D．funny

2．The American researcher knew that       ．

  A．chocolate was a kind of stimulant

  B．there were some stimulants in chocolate

  C．chocolate contained many objects in it but not stimulants

  D．many people loved to eat it because of its stimulants

3．Why did Raudenbush ask a group of volunteers to eat chocolate?

  A．Because he thought it was exciting．

  B．Because he wasn’t sure how many people eat chocolate．

   C．Because his American friend asked him to do so．

   D．Because he wanted to know how stimulants affected the eaters of chocolate．

4．The result of the test is that       ．

   A．the stimulants in chocolate increased mental alertness．

   B．the group that ate chocolate had higher scores than the group that didn't eat

   C．one group ate chocolate but another didn’t eat it．

   D．Nothing happened to the groups．

5．If you want to pass every exam，        ．

   A．you will just eat enough chocolate

   B．you will ask the expert to have a chocolate test

   C．you will still need to study hard

D．you needn’t go to school

Since the 1970s, scientists have been searching for ways to link the brain with computers. Brain­computer interface (BCI) technology could help people with disabilities send commands to machines.

Recently, two researchers, Jose Millan and Michele Tavella from the Federal Polytechnic School in Lausanne, Switzerland, demonstrated (展示) a small robotic wheelchair directed by a person’s thoughts.

In the laboratory, Tavella operated the wheelchair just by thinking about moving his left or right hand. He could even talk as he watched the vehicle and guided it with his thoughts.

“Our brain has billions of nerve cells. These send signals through the spinal cord (脊髓) to the muscles to give us the ability to move. But spinal cord injuries or other conditions can prevent these weak electrical signals from reaching the muscles.’ Tavella says. “Our system allows disabled people to communicate with external world and also to control devices.”

The researchers designed a special cap for the user. This head cover picks up the signals from the scalp (头皮) and sends them to a computer. The computer interprets the signals and commands the motorized wheelchair. The wheelchair also has two cameras that identify objects in its path. They help the computer react to commands from the brain.

Prof. Millan, the team leader, says scientists keep improving the computer software that interprets brain signals and turns them into simple commands. “The practical possibilities that BCI technology offers to disabled people can be grouped in two categories: communication, and controlling devices. One example is this wheelchair.”

He says his team has set two goals. One is testing with real patients, so as to prove that this is a technology they can benefit from. And the other is to guarantee that they can use the technology over long periods of time.

41. BCI is a technology that can ________.

A. help to update computer systems            B. link the human brain with computers

C. help the disabled to recover                    D. control a person's thoughts

42. How did Tavella operate the wheelchair in the laboratory?

A. By controlling his muscles.                     B. By talking to the machine.

C. By moving his hand.                               D. By using his mind.

43. Which of the following shows the path of the signals described in Paragraph 5?

A. scalp→computer→cap→wheelchair    B. computer→cap→scalp→wheelchair

C. scalp→cap→computer→wheelchair    D. cap→computer→scalp→wheelchair

44. The team will test with real patients to ________.

A. make profits from them                         B. prove the technology useful to them

C. make them live longer                            D. learn about their physical condition

45. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?

A. Switzerland, the BCI Research Center

B. New Findings about How the Human Brain Works

C. BCI Could Mean More Freedom for the Disabled

D. Robotic Vehicles Could Help to Cure Brain Injuries

Two Chinese spacecrafts successfully completed China’s first space docking early November 3, 2011, which has taken the country a step closer to building its own space station.

Nearly two days after its launch, the unmanned spacecraft Shenzhou VIII docked with the space lab module Tiangong I more than 343 km above the earth surface. Shenzhou VIII and Tiangong I took apart after flying together for 12 days. On the 14th of November, the two spacecrafts finished the second docking. Then Shenzhou VIII parted from Tiangong I again and returned to the earth safely on the 17th. Tiangong I is still traveling around the earth in the space, waiting for the arrival of Shenzhou IX and X and so on in the near future.

That marked another great leap for China’s space program and made China the third country in the world, after the United States and Russia, to master the space docking technique (空间对接技术).

The world’s first space docking was achieved in 1966, when the manned U.S, spacecraft Gemini 8 (双子星8号) docked with an unmanned Agena Target Vehicle (阿金纳目标飞行器). Space docking is necessary to explore space beyond Earth’s orbit. “The capability increases China’s ability to act independently in space, as well as its ability to work together with others,” said Gregory Kulacki, a U.S. space scientist and senior analyst.

“With the success of its first space docking, China is now equipped with the basic technology and ability required for the construction of a space station,” said Zhou Jianping, chief designer of China’s manned space program.” The country is on its way to building a permanent manned space station around 2020.”

1.What did the success of the first space docking mean to China?

      A. China has caught up with the United States in the space exploration field.

      B. China took a step closer to building its own space station.

      C. China became the first country to master the space docking technique.

      D. China has the ability to build a permanent manned space station right now.

2.What does the underlined word “That” in the third paragraph refer to?

A. Shenzhou VIII.

B. Tiangong I

C. The Space Station

D. The success of China’s first space docking

3.What can we learn from the passage? 

A. Tiangong I will fly in the space for 12 days.

B. The first space docking of the world was achieved in 1966, by Russians.

C. Without space docking technique people can’t explore space beyond Earth’s orbit.

D. The U.S.A helped China achieve the first space docking.

4.What’s the best title of this passage?

A. The first space docking of China.

B. The history of space docking.

C. The first space docking of the world.

D. The space docking technique

Kelly is an African elephant. Now she is 19 years old. She lives in the zoo. Kelly has produced more than 100 paintings since last year. She has made over $ 3,500 for the zoo. Zoo leaders say Kelly first showed the art ability about 5 years ago. Zoo workers watched her make the marks in the sand with her trunk(象鼻). She rubbed out(抹去) the marks, then made the new ones. The zoo workers gave her brushes and paints. Soon Kelly was painting pictures. Newspaper reporters wrote about Kelly, and then people went to buy her pictures. And in this way she made a lot of money for the zoo by painting.
This is how Kelly does the painting. A zoo worker holds different color paints and Kelly touches the colors she wants. Then the worker gives her the chosen colors to the brushes in her trunk and Kelly begins to paint.
【小题1】We most probably read this story in     .
A. a magazine     B. a newspaper      C. a history textbook
【小题2】Kelly first learned to draw pictures      .
A. in the sand with her trunk      B. to make money
C. when she was 5 years old
【小题3】People asked for Kelly's pictures because      .
A. they just wanted to have fun
B. the zoo leaders asked them to do so
C. the zoo workers asked them to do so
【小题4】Kelly rubbed out the marks she had made in order to        .
A. make other ones        B. clean her trunk       C. ask for more brushes and paints
【小题5】From the story we can know that       .
A. Kelly can draw nice pictures all by herself
B. Kelly doesn't like to draw pictures at all
C. Kelly can draw pictures with the help of the zoo workers

The boy learns everything quickly because he has a good _______.

     A. memory        B. idea            C. ability           D. dream