For years and years people have been saying that the railways are dead．“We can do without railways” people say，as if motorcars and planes made the railways unnecessary．We all keep hearing that trains are slow，that they lose money，that they’re dying．But this is far from the truth．In these days of expensive oil，the railways have become highly competitive with motorcars and planes．If you want to carry people or goods from place to place，they’re cheaper than planes．And they have much in common with planes．A plane goes in a strange line and so does a railway．What is more，it takes you from the heart of a city into the heart of another．It doesn’t 1eave you as a plane does，miles and miles from the city center．It doesn’t hold you up as a car does，in endless traffic jams．And a single train can carry goods which no plane or motorcar could ever do．Far from being dead，the railways are very much alive．Modern railway lines give you a smooth，untroubled journey．Where else can you eat well，sleep in comfort，feel safe and enjoy the scene while you are traveling at speed at the same time? And we are only at the beginning．For we have just entered the age of super-fast trains, traveling at 1 50 miles an hour and more．Soon we will be wondering why we spent so much on motorways we can't use because we have not enough money to buy the oil and planes we can't fly in for the same reason.

Some people think the railways are dead for many reasons except that ______   ．

  A．planes and motorcars will take the place of trains  B．oil is expensive today

  C．trains are slow                              D．railways lose money

The writer’s idea seems to be that ______   ．

  A. we can do without railways    B．trains have much in common with motorcars and planes

  C．motorcars and planes are not as good as trains D．trains are as good as motorcars and planes

According to the writer，which of the following is NOT true?

  A．It is cheaper to travel by train than by plane．

  B．The railway station is usually at the center of a city．

  C．When you get off the plane you will find yourself right in the city center．

  D．No motorcar or plane can carry as many goods as a train does．

From the underlined sentence at the end of the passage，we can infer that    ．

  A．1ess and less people will take planes and motorways in the future

  B．the people have known that the train is better than planes and motorways

  C．trains will be more popular in the future

  D．nobody likes spending much money on motorways

Without most people realizing it, there has been a revolution in office work over the last ten years．Before that time, large computers were only, used by large, rich companies that could afford the investment．With the advancement of technology, small computers have come onto the market, which are capable of doing the work which used to be done by much larger and expensive computers, so now most smaller companies can use them

The main development in small computers has been in the field of word processors (处理器) , or WPS as they are often called．40% of British offices are now estimated to have a word processor and this percentage is growing fast．

There are many advantages in using a word processor for both secretary and manager．The secretary is freed from a lot of daily work, such as re-typing letters and storing papers．He or she can use this time to do other more interesting work for the boss．From a manager's point of view, secretarial time is being made better use of and money can be saved by doing daily jobs automatically outside office hors．

But is it all good? If a lot of daily secretarial work can be done automatically, surely this will mean that fewer secretaries will be needed．Another worry is the increasing medical problems related to work with visual display units (显示器)．The case of a slow loss of sight among people using word processors seems to have risen greatly．It is also feared that if a woman works at a VDU for long hours, the unborn child in her body might be killed．Safety screens to put over a VDU have been invented but few companies in England bother to buy them．                                                                                 

Whatever the arguments for and against word processor, they are a key feature (特征) of this revolution in office practice．

Then years ago, smaller companies did not use large computers because_________．

A．these companies had not enough money to buy such expensive computers

     B．these computers could not do the work that small computers can do today

     C．these computers did not come onto the market

     D．these companies did not need to use this new technology

According to the writer, the main feature of the revolution in office work

   over the last ten years is __________．

   A．the saving of time and money   B．the use of computers in small companies

   C．the wide use of word processors       D．the decreasing number of secretaries

It is implied but not directly stated in the passage that with the use of word

   processors _________．

   A．some secretaries will lose their jobs

   B．daily jobs can be done automatically outside office hours

   C．medical problems related to work with a VDU have increased

   D．the British companies will make less money

Which of the following statements is NOT true?

   A．There are both advantages and disadvantages in using a word processor

   B．The British companies care much for the health of the people using word processors．

   C．The technology in the field of computers has been greatly advanced over the last ten years．

   D．Using word processors , secretaries can get more time to do more interesting work for their bosses．

It can be concluded from the passage that ________．

   A．safety screens are of poor quality

   B．working at a VDU for a long time is good for one's health

   C．more and more British offices will use word processors

   D．British companies will need fewer and fewer manages

A sunflower is a sunflower. A mobile phone is a mobile phone. But can you combine the two to do something for your local environment? As early as next year it may well be possible. When you have finished with your mobile phone you will be able to bury it in a garden or a plant pot and wait for it to flower.

A biodegradable (生物所能分解的) mobile phone was, this month, introduced by scientists. It is hoped that the new type of phone will encourage consumers to recycle.

Scientists have come up with a new material over the last five years. It looks like any other plastic and can be hard or soft, and is able to change shape. Over time it can also break down into the soil without giving out any poisonous chemicals. British researchers used the new material to develop a phone cover that contains a sunflower seed. When this new type of cover turns into waste, it forms fertilizers. These feed the seed and help the flower grow.

Engineers have designed a small transparent (透明的) window to hold the seed. They have made sure it only grows when the phone is thrown away. “We’ve only put sunflower seeds into the covers so far. But we are working with plant experts to find out which flowers would perform best. Maybe we could put roses in next time,” said one scientist.

As phone technology is developing so quickly, people are constantly throwing their mobiles away. This means manufacturers are under pressure to find ways of recycling them. Some 650 million mobile phones have been sold this year. Most of them will be thrown away within two years, adding plastic, heavy metal and chemical waste to the environment. A biodegradable cover can offer some relief (缓解) for nature , according to the scientists.

“The seed comes out and the flower grows in the pot so you don’t have to concern yourself with the phone when you have finished using it,” said Kerry Kirwan. She leads the research team, which is based at the University of Warwick in Britain.

What is the purpose of this passage?

A. To tell the popularity of biodegradable cell phones.

B. To persuade the reader to buy the biodegradable cell phone.

C. To discuss the development of phone technology.

D. To introduce an environmentally-friendly cell phone to readers.

People throw away their cell phones most probably because _______.

A．there is something wrong with them

B．no sunflowers can grow out of them

C．they are out of fashion

D．they are becoming cheaper and cheaper

It could be learned from the passage that _________.

A．developing the new type of phone is mainly to protect the environment

B．phone-makers will benefit much more from the new type of phone

C．the new type of phone will certainly be popular with users all over the world

D．the phones that can be recycled are available only in Britain now

Without most people realizing it, there has been a revolution in office work over the last ten years. Before that time, large computers were only used by large rich companies that could afford the investment. With the advancement of technology, small computers have come on to the market which are capable of doing the work which used to be done by much larger and more expensive computers, so now most smaller companies can use them.

The main development in small computers has been in the field of word processors, or WPS as they are often called. 40% of British offices are now estimated(估计) to have a word processor and this percentage is growing fast.

There are many advantages in using a word processor for both secretary and manager. The secretary is freed from a lot of daily work, such as re-typing letters and storing papers. He or she can use this time to do other more interesting work for the boss. From a manager's point of view, secretarial time is being made better use of and money can be saved by doing daily jobs automatically outside office hours.

But is it all good? If a lot of daily secretarial work can be done automatically, surely this will mean that fewer secretaries will be needed. Another worry is the increasing medical problems related to work with visual display units(显示器). The case of a slow loss of sight among people using word processors seems to have risen greatly. It is also feared that if a pregnant woman works at a VDU for long hours, an unborn child in her body might be killed. Safety screens to put over a VDU have been invented but few companies in England bother to buy them.

Whatever the arguments for and against word processors, they are a key feature of this revolution in office practice.

Ten years ago, large computers were only used by large companies because ________ .

A. small companies did not have enough money to buy such expensive computers

B. large computers could not do the work that small companies can do today

C. large computers did not come on to the market

D. small companies did not need to use this new technology

According to the writer, the main progress made in office work over the last ten years is ________ .

A. the saving of time and money            B. the use of computers in big companies

C. the wide use of word processors          D. the decreasing number of secretaries

We can infer from the passage that with the use of word processors ________ .

A. some secretaries will lose their jobs

B. daily jobs can be done automatically outside office hours

C. medical problems related to work with a VDU have increased

D. the British companies will make less money

Without most people realizing it, there has been a revolution in office work over the last ten years．Before that time, large computers were only, used by large, rich companies that could afford the investment．With the advancement of technology, small computers have come onto the market, which are capable of doing the work which used to be done by much larger and expensive computers, so now most smaller companies can use them

The main development in small computers has been in the field of word processors (处理器) , or WPS as they are often called．40% of British offices are now estimated to have a word processor and this percentage is growing fast．

There are many advantages in using a word processor for both secretary and manager．The secretary is freed from a lot of daily work, such as re-typing letters and storing papers．He or she can use this time to do other more interesting work for the boss．From a manager's point of view, secretarial time is being made better use of and money can be saved by doing daily jobs automatically outside office hors．

But is it all good? If a lot of daily secretarial work can be done automatically, surely this will mean that fewer secretaries will be needed．Another worry is the increasing medical problems related to work with visual display units (显示器)．The case of a slow loss of sight among people using word processors seems to have risen greatly．It is also feared that if a woman works at a VDU for long hours, the unborn child in her body might be killed．Safety screens to put over a VDU have been invented but few companies in England bother to buy them．                                                                                  

Whatever the arguments for and against word processor, they are a key feature (特征) of this revolution in office practice．

Then years ago, smaller companies did not use large computers because_________．

A．these companies had not enough money to buy such expensive computers

     B．these computers could not do the work that small computers can do today

     C．these computers did not come onto the market

     D．these companies did not need to use this new technology

According to the writer, the main feature of the revolution in office work

   over the last ten years is __________．

   A．the saving of time and money   B．the use of computers in small companies

   C．the wide use of word processors       D．the decreasing number of secretaries

It is implied but not directly stated in the passage that with the use of word

   processors _________．

   A．some secretaries will lose their jobs

   B．daily jobs can be done automatically outside office hours

   C．medical problems related to work with a VDU have increased

   D．the British companies will make less money

Which of the following statements is NOT true?

   A．There are both advantages and disadvantages in using a word processor

   B．The British companies care much for the health of the people using word processors．

   C．The technology in the field of computers has been greatly advanced over the last ten years．

   D．Using word processors , secretaries can get more time to do more interesting work for their bosses．

It can be concluded from the passage that ________．

   A．safety screens are of poor quality

   B．working at a VDU for a long time is good for one's health

   C．more and more British offices will use word processors

   D．British companies will need fewer and fewer manages