Every human being has a unique^① arrangement of the skin on his fingers and this arrangement is unchangeable. Scientists and experts have proved the uniqueness of finger-prints and discovered that no exactly similar pattern is passed on from parents to children, though nobody knows why this is the case.

The ridge structure on a person’s fingers does not change with growth and is not affected by surface injuries. Burns, cuts and other damage to the outer part of the skin will be replaced in time by new one, which bears a reproduction of the original^② pattern. It is only when the inner skin is injured that the arrangement will be destroyed. Some criminals make use of this fact to remove their own finger-prints but this is a dangerous and rare step to take.

Finger-prints can be made very easily with printer’s ink. They can by recorded easily. With special methods, identification^③ can be achieved successfully within a short time. Because of the simplicity and economy of this system, finger-prints have often been used as a method of solving criminal case. A suspected man may deny a charge but this may be in vain. His finger-prints can prove who he is even if his appearance has been changed by age or accident.

When a suspect leaves finger-prints behind at the scene of a crime, they are difficult to detect with the naked eye. Special techniques are used to “develop” them. Some of the marks found are incomplete but identification is possible if a print of a quarter of an inch square can be obtained.

Notes:

unique  adj. 唯一的，独特的

original  adj. 最初的，原始的

identification  n. 辩认，鉴定

Scientists and experts have proved that the pattern of a human being’s finger skin ________.

A. is similar to his mother’s          

B. is valuable to himself only

C. is like that of others with the same type of blood

D. is different from that of all others

If your fingers are wounded by knife, fire or other means, the structure of skin will ________.

A. be changed partly                  B. be replaced by a different one

C. be the same when the wound is recovered      D. become ugly

Some criminals remove their own finger-prints by ________.

A. using printer’s ink           B. injuring the inner skin

C. damaging the outer skin       D. damaging the colour

Finger-prints have often been used as a method of solving criminal case because it ________.

A. is complicated but reliable     B. is simple and not expensive

C. is expensive but easy to do          D. can bring a lot of money

The Pentagon

五角大楼

    美国号称世界头号军事大国，其武力干涉几乎渗透到全球，有人开玩笑说：“只要五角大楼打个喷嚏，整个地球都会震动。”五角大楼是什么? 让我们揭开它神秘的面纱，好好地认识一下这座建筑的运作职能吧。

    The Pentagon，or the headquarters of the US Department of Defense，is one of the largest office buildings in the world，taking up a total land of 583 acres．The five-sided structure itself occupies an area of 29 acres．Each of its five outside wails is 921 feet long．It has three times the floor space as the Empire State Building or half again as much space as either of the New York's World Trade Center towers．

    Working inside this huge building are over 25 000 employees，one half of them being civilians and the other half members of the U．S． armed forces．During the last year of the Second World War there were 37 000 people，both military and civilian，working inside the Pentagon．In the Korean and Vietnam War periods，31 000．The employees are scattered among hundreds of offices that occupy a floor space of 3705793 square feet．

While inside the building they tell time by 4 200 clocks，drink from 685 water fountains，utilize 280 rest rooms，consume 30 000 cups of coffee，6 000 tins of milk and 5 000 bottles of soft drinks of various kinds every day，with a total staff of 600 persons preparing and serving food and drinks to the Pentagon employees，daily．

    Notes

    Pentagon n．五边形；五角大楼　　  civilian n．平民

    military n．军人　　　　　　　　  scatter v．分散

    utilize v．利用；应用　　　　　　 consume v期待的

complacent  adj. 自满的　　　　　　　 idly  adv. 无效地；懒洋洋地

stout  n. 烈性黑啤酒　　　　　　　　  gratuity  n.　小费

egalitarian   n.　＆ adj. 平等；平均主义（的）

Which statement is true?

A. The British bar staffs dislike people who make up their minds immediately.

B. They like people who can wait in line.

C. They hope people who want to have another drink ring the bell hanging behind the counter.

D. If you offer them a drink to express your tips, they will feel happy.

    Comprehension question

The building is called “the Pentagon ”because________．

A．it is the largest building in the world

B．it lies in the U．S．A．

C．it has five sides

  D．it is a secret place