【推荐1】The Mars 2020 rover, which will set off for the Red Planet this year, will not only search for traces of ancient life, but pave the way for future human missions, NASA’s scientists said on Friday as they introduced the vehicle. 

The rover has been constructed in a large, sterile room at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, near Los Angeles, where its driving equipment was given its first successful test last week.

Shown to invited journalists on Friday, it is scheduled to leave Earth in July 2020 from Florida’s Cape Canaveral, becoming the fifth US rover to land on Mars seven months later in February.

“It’s designed to seek the signs of life, so we’re carrying a number of different instruments that will help us understand the geological and chemical situations on the surface of Mars,” deputy mission leader Matt Wallace told AFP.

Among the devices aboard the rover are 23 cameras, two “ears” that will allow it to listen to Martian winds, and lasers used for chemical analysis.

Approximately the size of a car, the rover is equipped with six wheels like the former US rover, Curiosity, allowing it to travel along rocky land.

Speed is not a priority for the vehicle, which merely has to cover around 200 yards (about 180 metres) per Martian day—approximately the same as a day on Earth.

Fueled by a tiny nuclear reactor, it has seven-foot-long (about 2 metres) articulated arms and a drill to crack open rock samples in locations scientists identify as potentially suitable for life.

We are hoping to move fairly quickly. We’d like to see the next mission launched in 2026 where the rover will get to Mars, pick up the samples, put them into a rocket and finally bring them back to the Earth, said Wallace. NASA’s Mars 2020 rover will remain active for at least one Martian year, which is around two years on Earth.

1. What does the underlined part “pave the way” in Paragraph 1 mean?

A．Make preparations.

B．Find suitable landing sites.

C．Set up research centers.

D．Construct roads.

2. What can we know about the Mars 2020 rover?

A．It looks much like a car with six wheels.

B．It is an updated version of the US rover Curiosity.

C．It is solar-powered and can crack open rock samples.

D．It is able to perform different tasks on Mars in search of the signs of life.

3. If you search for the passage on the website of China Daily, where can you probably find it?

A．Lifestyle.	B．Region.
C．World.	D．Culture.

4. What is the main idea of the passage?

A．The Mars 2020 rover has successfully passed its first test.

B．NASA is planning a new round of space exploration.

C．Future human missions on Mars are on the way.

D．A new rover will be launched to carry out scientific research on Mars.

【推荐2】Squirrels eavesdrop on(窃听) the chatter of songbirds to work out whether the appearance of a predator(食肉动物) is cause for alarm, researchers have found. Animals including squirrels have previously been found to eavesdrop on cries of alarm from other creatures. But the latest study suggests animals may also keep an ear out for everyday chitchat among other species as a way to assess whether there is trouble around.

Writing in the journal Plos One, researchers reported on how they made their discovery by observing 67 grey squirrels as they wandered about different areas in the residential regions of Oberlin.

After 30 seconds of observing a squirrel, researchers played it a recording of the call of a red-tailed hawk(鹰), which lasted a couple of seconds-and their behaviour in the next 30 seconds was monitored. The squirrels were then played a three-minute recording of several different species of songbird chattering on a feeder.

The results revealed that in the 30 seconds after hearing the hawk call, the squirrels increased the percentage of their time spent “vigilant”(警惕) compared with before the call, while they also looked up more often to scan the environment. Squirrels that were played bird chatter raised their heads less often during the recording and the number of these “look-ups” dropped off faster over time.

“Recognition of bird chatter as a sign of safety is likely adaptive, as squirrels that can safely reduce their vigilance level in the presence of bird chatter probably are able to increase foraging(觅食) success,” the authors wrote.

The team suggested that with levels of human-made noise increasing, squirrels may find it harder to eavesdrop on birds, meaning they may have to spend more time being alert and less time foraging.

Dr Jakob Bro-Jorgensen, co-author of the study from Oberlin College, said: “The study calls attention to how animals can gather information from their environment by using cues that may at first glance seem irrelevant,” he said. “And it makes you wonder how the more and more pervasive(无处不在的) impact of human activities on natural soundscapes may reduce survival of wildlife in ways we haven’t thought of.”

1. What does the new research find about squirrels’ eavesdropping?

A．It lacks scientific evidence.

B．It is more widespread and broader.

C．It needs to be further investigated.

D．It is contradictory to previous findings.

2. What is paragraph 4 mainly about?

A．The subject of the experiment.

B．The findings of the experiment.

C．The process of the experiment.

D．The purpose of the experiment.

3. Why is recognition of bird chatter as a sign of safety important for squirrels?

A．They can escape from potential risks.

B．It helps them to forage food successfully.

C．They can adapt to a new environment quickly.

D．It ensures their safety when playing with their mates.

4. What does the last paragraph mainly talk about concerning the research?

A．Its impacts.	B．Its potential application.
C．Its limitations.	D．Its follow-up study.

【推荐1】Prison Break is a huge hit thanks to its handsome star, Wentworth Miller. His character, Michael Scofield, is the engine that drives the show.

Having committed a crime to get into prison and break out with his innocent brother, Michael Scofield is one of the most interesting personalities on TV. But what about the man behind the character?

Miller is a hard guy to figure out. He does not come from a normal background and has never lived his life in a typical way.

Miller didn’t take a direct path to fame and fortune. He graduated from Princeton University in 1995, not with a degree in theatre or film, but in English. He didn’t even act when he was in college. His only performance experience was in his university’s singing group. Yet, at graduation Miller still decided to make the move to Hollywood.

Miller has always been different. Although he is American, he was in Britain when his father was studying there. His family background is also a special mix of cultures. “My father is black and my mother is white. That means I have always been caught in the middle. I could be either one, which can make you feel out of place,” Miller says.

Following his unusual path, Miller did not start trying out for films and TV shows when he first got to Hollywood. Instead, he worked as a lowly production assistant, not what you would expect from a Princeton graduate. However, it all paid off for Miller in the end.

In 2002, Miller played a role in the drama Dinotopia(《恐龙帝国》). He starred as a thoughtful and shy man. Producers remembered his performance when they were casting Prison Break two years later.

1. What does the passage mainly talk about?

A．Michael Scofield in Prison Break.	B．Hollywood’s recent big hit—Prison Break.
C．Miller’s unusual path to fame and fortune.	D．The man who will take over all of the world.

2. The writer thinks “Miller is a hard guy to figure out” because _________.

A．it’s difficult to tell him from others

B．he is a shy man and hard to cooperate with

C．he always has ideas hard for people to understand

D．his family background and life experience are very special

3. Which is the closest in meaning to the underlined sentence “it all paid off for Miller in the end”?

A．Miller put a lot of extra work for his final success.

B．Miller gained fame and fortune at last with his first film.

C．Miller finally succeeded even if he has been in low position.

D．Miller managed to pay off his debts with his small income in the end.

4. Which of the following statements is TRUE about Miller?

A．He is chosen to play Michael Scofield due to his interesting personality.

B．His performance in Dinotopia makes some contributions to his success.

C．He has the same experience with the character Michael Scofield.

D．He is angry about his being born into a mixed cultural family.

【推荐3】Kenzo Tange was one of the most famous Japanese architects (建筑师)of the 20th century. He was born on September 4,1913 in Osaka, Japan. Tange spent his childhood in Chinese cities, Hankou and Shanghai, but was later raised in Imabari.

In 1930 Tange moved to Hiroshima to study at a high school. During his stay there, Tange came across the works of a Swiss architect, Le Corbusier and made up his mind to seek architecture. He finally started studying architecture in 1935 at University of Tokyo's architecture department.

After graduation Tange worked at the office of Kunio Maekawa. During this period he traveled a little and as World War II started, he flew back to Tokyo and started his post graduate studies at University of Tokyo. There he developed interest in urban design and started reading widely about Greek and Roman marketplaces.

In 1946 KenzoTange got the position of assistant professor at the University of Tokyo and became a professor in 1963 at the Department of Urban Engineering.

Tange's interest in urban design grew throughout his career and his urban projects, master plans and other urban structures gained a lot of admiration and appreciation. Tange's Tokyo Plan won him international recognition. In his plan, he suggested extending city growth out of the city over the bay and for this purpose he used bridges, man-made islands, floating parking and huge structures. Some of his wonderful projects are: Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, Hiroshima (1955), Centro Direzionale, Naples (1982)and Tokyo Dome Hotel （2000).

Tange is one of the most famous Japanese architects who struggled hard to make traditional Japanese architecture come to life by combining traditional methods with modern trends. He worked so closely on it that he finally gained his worldwide popularity as an architect whose work was so purely and strongly Japanese in nature. KenzoTange died on 22 March, 2005 at the age of 92 in Tokyo, Japan.

1. Why did Kenzō Tange decide to study architecture?

A．His teacher affected him deeply.	B．He was moved by Chinese buildings.
C．He was inspired by Le Corbusier's works.	D．It could make him famous in the world.

2. What made Kenzō Tange get global recognition?

A．Tokyo Plan.	B．Centro Direzionale.
C．Tokyo Dome Hotel.	D．Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum.

3. What does the underlined word “it” in the last paragraph refer to?

A．Kenzō Tange' work.

B．Building some huge structures in urban areas.

C．Making Japanese architecture popular in the world.

D．Helping traditional Japanese architecture gain life again.

4. In which column of a newspaper can you read the text?

A．Sports.

B．People.

C．Health.

D．Fashion.