Ford, the second largest car maker in the world, celebrates its 100th birthday this month.

    And it is already looking forward to its next 100 years. Ford expects to have nearly half its cars powered by fuel cells by the year 2050.

    In the meantime, another car maker in the US, General Motors (GM), is building the technology for cars to be powered by fuel cells.

    So, what makes fuel cells so special? Why are car makers so enthusiastic (热衷的) about them?

    Fuel cells are based on an electrochemical process. They change chemical energy from hydrogen (氢) and oxygen into electrical energy.

    Fuel cells pollute much less than traditional power sources. They produce little more than water as a byproduct. Car makers expect them to cut CO₂ emissions (散发) in half and so make cars more environmentally friendly.

    Fuel cells are not dependent on oil supplies. Instead, they run on hydrogen, the most common element in the universe. And they can be refueled. Car makers expect fuel cells to lessen the industry’s need to rely on decreasing oil supplies.

    Using fuel cells, without the traditional motor, engineers have many more possibilities for developing cars.

    A fuel cell frame can last 20 years, so car bodies could change with drivers’ needs or even with the seasons and be replaced at will.

    Owners could switch from a sports car to a family car while keeping the same fuel cell frame. This is a much cheaper solution to buying a whole new vehicle.

    “A fuel cell car is more than just a new concept car, it’s the start of a revolution in how cars are designed, built and used.”Said GM Chief Executive Rick Wagoner.

    While this may sound great, fuel cells are still too expensive to produce. For cars, they can be ten times the price of normal engines.

    The current test models can cost US $1 million or more.

    Besides Ford and GM, a number of other car makers are now testing fuel cell vehicles. And all are aiming for mass production by 2010. By that time, the cost of buying a fuel cell car should be as affordable as that of a traditional car.

    1. The problem facing the fuel cell car is that ________.

    A. it’ll be hard to produce in large quantities

    B. it’ll be too dear for people to buy

    C. people can’t get used to it

    D. its body changes too quickly

    2. The underlined word“they”(in Paragraph 6) refers to“________”.

    A. hydrogen and oxygen　　　　　　　　　　　　    B. car makers

    C. fuel cells　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　   D. traditional power sources

    3. The underlined word“lessen”(in Paragraph 6) probably means ________.

    A. reduce　　　　　　　　　　 B. keep　　　　　　　　  C. display　　　　　　  D. increase

    4. It can be concluded that this article is mainly written for ________.

    A. car experts　　    B. car engineers　　 C. general readers   D. students of science

    5. The main purpose of writing this article is ________.

    A. to announce a business plan

    B. to sell a new type of cars

    C. to introduce a new type of car power source

D. to introduce two America’s car makers

 

Ford, the second largest car maker in the world, celebrates its 100th birthday this month.

    And it is already looking forward to its next 100 years. Ford expects to have nearly half its cars powered by fuel cells by the year 2050.

    In the meantime, another car maker in the US, General Motors (GM), is building the technology for cars to be powered by fuel cells.

    So, what makes fuel cells so special? Why are car makers so enthusiastic (热衷的) about them?

    Fuel cells are based on an electrochemical process. They change chemical energy from hydrogen (氢) and oxygen into electrical energy.

    Fuel cells pollute much less than traditional power sources. They produce little more than water as a byproduct. Car makers expect them to cut CO₂ emissions (散发) in half and so make cars more environmentally friendly.

    Fuel cells are not dependent on oil supplies. Instead, they run on hydrogen, the most common element in the universe. And they can be refueled. Car makers expect fuel cells to lessen the industry’s need to rely on decreasing oil supplies.

    Using fuel cells, without the traditional motor, engineers have many more possibilities for developing cars.

    A fuel cell frame can last 20 years, so car bodies could change with drivers’ needs or even with the seasons and be replaced at will.

    Owners could switch from a sports car to a family car while keeping the same fuel cell frame. This is a much cheaper solution to buying a whole new vehicle.

    “A fuel cell car is more than just a new concept car, it’s the start of a revolution in how cars are designed, built and used.”Said GM Chief Executive Rick Wagoner.

    While this may sound great, fuel cells are still too expensive to produce. For cars, they can be ten times the price of normal engines.

    The current test models can cost US $1 million or more.

    Besides Ford and GM, a number of other car makers are now testing fuel cell vehicles. And all are aiming for mass production by 2010. By that time, the cost of buying a fuel cell car should be as affordable as that of a traditional car.

    1. The problem facing the fuel cell car is that ________.

    A. it’ll be hard to produce in large quantities

    B. it’ll be too dear for people to buy

    C. people can’t get used to it

    D. its body changes too quickly

    2. The underlined word“they”(in Paragraph 6) refers to“________”.

    A. hydrogen and oxygen　　　　　　　　　　　　    B. car makers

    C. fuel cells　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　   D. traditional power sources

    3. The underlined word“lessen”(in Paragraph 6) probably means ________.

    A. reduce　　　　　　　　　　 B. keep　　　　　　　　  C. display　　　　　　  D. increase

    4. It can be concluded that this article is mainly written for ________.

    A. car experts　　    B. car engineers　　 C. general readers   D. students of science

    5. The main purpose of writing this article is ________.

    A. to announce a business plan

    B. to sell a new type of cars

    C. to introduce a new type of car power source

D. to introduce two America’s car makers

 

阅读理解

　　Ford, the second largest car maker in the world, celebrates its 100th birthday this month. And it is already looking forward to its next 100 years. Ford expects to have nearly half its cars powered by fuel cells by the year 2050．

　　In the meantime, another car maker in the US, General Motors (GM), is building the technology for cars to be powered by fuel cells.

　　So, what makes fuel cells so special? Why are car makers so enthusiastic (热忠的) about them?

　　Fuel cells are based on an electrochemical process. They change chemical energy from hydrogen (氢) and oxygen into electrical energy.

　　Fuel cells pollute much less than traditional power sources. They produce little more than water as a byproduct. Car makers expect them to cut CO₂ emissions (散发) in half and so make cars more environmentally friendly.

　　Fuel cells are not dependent on oil supplies. Instead, they run on hydrogen, the most common element in the universe. And they can be refueled. Car makers expect fuel cells to lessen the industry's need to rely on decreasing oil supplies.

　　Using fuel cells, without the traditional motor, engineers have many more possibilities for developing cars.

　　A fuel cell frame can last 20 years, so car bodies could change with drivers' needsor even with the seasonsand be replaced at will.

　　Owners could switch from a sports car to a family car while keeping the same fuel cell frame. This is a much cheaper solution to buying a whole new vehicle.

　　“A fuel cell car is more than just a new concept car, it's the start of a revolution in how cars are designed, built and used.” Said GM Chief Executive Rick Wagoner.

　　While this may sound great, fuel cells are still too expensive to produce. For cars, they can be ten times the price of normal engines.

　　The current test models can cost US $ 1 million or more.

　　Besides Ford and GM, a number of other car makers are now testing fuel cell vehicles. And all are aiming for mass production by 2010. By that time, the cost of buying a fuel cell car should be as affordable as that of a traditional car.

1．The problem facing the fuel cell car is that ________.

[　　]

A．it'll be hard to produce in large quantities

B．it'll be too dear for people to buy

C．people can't get used to it

D．its body changes too quickly

2．The underlined word “they” (in Paragraph 6) refers to “________”.

[　　]

3．The underlined word “lessen” (in Paragraph 6) probably means ________.

[　　]

4．It can be concluded that this article is mainly written for ________.

[　　]

5．The main purpose of writing this article is ________.

[　　]

A．to announce a business plan

B．to sell a new type of cars

C．to introduce a new type of car power source

D．to introduce two America's car makers