【推荐1】Scientists think that there has been life on the earth for hundreds of millions of years. However, we have not found life on any other planets yet.

The earth is a planet and it goes around the sun. Seven other planets also go around the sun. None of them has an environment like that of the earth, so scientists do not think they will find life on them. The sun and its planets are called the solar system, and our solar system is a small part of much larger group of stars and planets, called the Galaxy or the Milky Way. There are billions of stars in the Galaxy, and our sun is only one of them.

Scientists have also discovered many other galaxies in the universe. They are very far away and their light has to travel for many years to reach us. So how large is the universe? It is impossible to imagine.

Scientists have sent spaceships to the planet Mars to take photos. They have even sent spaceships to travel outside the solar system. However, no spaceship has travelled far enough to reach other stars in our Galaxy.

Scientists have always asked the questions: with so many stars in the universe, are we alone, or is there life out there in space? Have there been visitors to the earth from other planets? Why has no one communicated with us? We do not know the answers... yet.

1. How long has there been life on the earth?

A．For hundreds of years.	B．For millions of years.
C．For hundreds of millions of years.	D．We don’t know.

2. What does the underlined “that” refer to in paragraph 2?

A．the sun

B．the environment

C．scientists

D．life

3. Scientists have ________.

A．found life on Mars	B．known how large the universe is
C．discovered many other galaxies in the universe	D．travelled to other stars in our Galaxy

4. According to the passage, which is true?

A．The sun is a planet.

B．There are eight planets in our solar system.

C．The light from the stars in other galaxies can’t reach us.

D．Spaceships have visited most of the universe.

5. What is the best title of the passage?

A．Anyone out there?	B．Life on the earth
C．The sun and the other stars	D．The stars at night

【推荐2】①Most people have a place to call home on Earth. What about in outer space? The International Space Station(ISS) became our first “home” in space in 2000. It welcomed its first crew(队) that year, paving the way(铺平道路) for 20 years of future research.

②“You just have this impression that we’re all citizens(公民) of not a country, but of the planet,” former NASA astronaut Scott Kelly told National Geographic about working in ISS. “We’re all in this thing called humanity(人类) together.”

③Over the past 20 years, the ISS has mainly been used as a science lab, hosting 241 people from 19 countries, according to NASA. They have gone on spacewalks, done research on how space affects the human body, and even grown plants in space.

④ ▲ . For example, the station’s water purification(净化) technology has been used in poor areas to provide clean drinking water. The station also helps to warn us of natural disasters(灾难), such as earthquakes.

⑤However, after being our home in space for over 7,000 days, the station is starting to get old. It has leaked(泄漏) air a few times. Scientists think that the station can keep working until 2024. After that, scientists will bring it down to Earth. It is believed that Earth’s atmosphere(大气) will burn up most of the station. Other debris(残骸) will fall into the Pacific Ocean.

⑥In the future, space will be home to more stations like the ISS. NASA is building a space station that is smaller than the ISS near the moon. Also, China will have its own space station up in 2022.

1. What did Scott Kelly feel about his work in space?

A．Comfortable

B．Proud

C．Bored

D．Lonely

2. The astronauts have _______ while working in ISS.

(a. gone on spacewalks        b. provide clean water for poor areas       c. stopped earthquakes       

d. learned how space affects the human body            e. grown plants )

A．abc

B．abd

C．ade

D．bde

3. Which of the following sentences can be put in the ▲ .

A．We don’t know why we call the ISS our first “home”.

B．The station has also done something good to us on earth.

C．You want to know who has visited the ISS over the years.

D．People may wonder how scientists live on the station.

4. If we put the passage into three parts, which of the following is the best?
(Para. 1=① Para. 2= ② Para. 3=④ Para. 4=④ Para. 5=⑤ Para. 6=⑥)

A．①；②③④⑤；⑥	B．①；②③④；⑤⑥
C．①②；③④；⑤⑥	D．①②；③④⑤；⑥

【推荐3】A group of scientists discovered a gas called phosphine on Venus (金星). That means there may be living things on the planet. This made many people start to imagine the talk between aliens and humans. Imagining himself as the life on Venus, a reporter from No. 1 Middle School wrote the following letter to people of Earth on the school newspaper.

Attention, People of Earth! Fine. The big secret is out. Many of your finest scientists have discovered there is life tens of millions of miles away—here, on the beautiful planet of Venus. Congratulations! However, we are asking you: Please stay away. We’re serious. We are not interested. No spacecraft to Venus, no exploring tasks, no visits. If we wake up one morning and find so many of you people walking around in spacesuits, we’re going to be really sad. We don’t want to be impolite. It’s just that we’re quite surprised and unpleasant by what you’ve been going on down there. Earth is in a mess. There are too many cars running on the roads, which creates lots of traffic jams. Many people suffer from serious illnesses. Some people do great damage to the forests and rivers. What’s worse, there are even fights between countries, etc. No wonder so many of you want to leave Earth for another planet. Leave us alone. Keep right where you are. We know you’d like it here. That’s what frightens us. You’d all move to our planet at once. If we start having you all up here, pretty soon, the other aliens like Martians and Jupiterians are going to come, too. But we can’t imagine what terrible things will happen to us! Venus is not Earth. It’s not your home. We suggest Earth people ▲ . It is a practical way to save you and your future generations. God bless you!

1. How will the Venusian feel if many Earth people visit Venus?

A．Interested.

B．Unhappy.

C．Excited.

D．Surprised.

2. What does the underlined sentence “what you’ve been going on down there” refer to?

A．Earth people found life on Venus by spaceship.

B．Earth people created different problems in their own life.

C．Earth people fought against aliens from other planets.

D．Earth people want to move to Venus with other aliens.

3. What can be filled in the blank ▲ ?

A．invite more aliens to live with you

B．run away from your own planet quickly

C．improve your planet by solving the problems

D．come to live with Martians or Jupiterians

4. Who actually wrote the letter?

A．An alien from Mars.

B．A scientist from Venus.

C．A Venusian from Planet Venus.

D．A reporter from a school newspaper.

【推荐1】A science fiction flying car looks like a normal car, but it is an aircraft (飞行器) that anybody can fly directly from any place to another without using roads or runways. Science fiction writers have written about flying cars for a long time. But now flying cars will soon fly out of the world of science fiction into our real world. And the dream of the science fiction writers will soon come true.

The first-known sky car is the FSC-1. The FSC-1 looks like an expensive sports car. You can drive the FSC-1 on the road like a normal car. If you touch a button, its wings and propeller (螺旋桨) fold out and then it can take off, fly and land as an airplane. The owners of the FSC-1 can choose if they want to drive or fly.

Another flying car or sky car is the Moller Skycar M400. Although you can’t drive it on the roads, it is small and easy to fly and can take off and land like a helicopter (直升飞机). Urban Aeronautics’ X-Hawk is another type of sky car. It is expected to be available for about $3 million.

Just like any new technology, flying cars have taken a long time to be developed. But some experts think the technology is far from what people imagine when they are sitting in traffic. It still needs to be improved.

1. The writer thinks that flying cars will be no longer a dream because ________.

A．science fiction writers’ ideas are stupid	B．they are too expensive to make
C．they will soon be available	D．they are only in science fiction

2. The FSC-1 can ________.

A．change itself into a robot	B．move on water like a ship
C．be flown only like an airplane	D．be driven like a car and flown like an airplane

3. The Moller Skycar is different from the FSC-1 because ________.

A．it can’t fly	B．it can’t be driven like a car
C．it is difficult to land	D．it is much more expensive

【推荐2】When you want to go somewhere, you can easily find your way by using a map app on your smartphone. Your smartphone “knows” where you are and can tell you where to go.

This is possible with the help of satellite navigation (satnav) systems. A satnav system uses groups of satellites (卫星) to find out where people are. It sends information to a receiver, such as a smartphone.     1    

On June 23, the last satellite of China’s Beidou Navigation Satellite System was launched into space.     2     It is one of four global navigation systems, along with US’ GPS, Russia’s GLONASS and the European Union’s Galileo.

On July 31, Beidou started providing full-scale global services (全面的全球服务).     3    

Since 2000, China has launched 59 Beidou satellites. Beidou can be used in areas that include farming, public services and business.     4     This summer, people along the Yangtze River used Beidou-based device to monitor (监测) floodwaters in real-time with an accuracy of just a few centimeters.

    5     It allows people to send text messages up to 1,200 Chinese characters in length when mobile phone services are interrupted (中断) by natural disasters.

A．The more satellites a system has, the more accurate (精确的) it is.

B．Beidou also has a unique messaging ability.

C．Beidou, China’s own satnav system, was finally completed.

D．It has a positioning (定位) accuracy of under 10 meters.

E．More than 120 countries and regions (地区) are now using Beidou services.

【推荐3】Most of us are using our phones, iPads, and computers. But what if you’re blind? Are you able to do it? Of course! Blind people use assistive technology (AT) (辅助技术) to help themselves. There are many types, and different technologies help to deal with different disabilities (残疾).

How would you use a computer if you could not see the screen (屏幕)? Don’t worry Screen readers can help you. With them, blind people can use a system of keyboard orders instead of a mouse to get where they need to go. Screen readers can read aloud the words on the screen to the blind, or they can be connected to refreshable Braille displays (盲文显示机).

Refreshable Braille is an electronic way of reading Braille. Refreshable Braille displays can turn the words on the screen into Braille. They can then appear on the screen and can be read with a finger. When the person finishes reading some words, the following words will appear. Refreshable Braille displays are very helpful to people who are deaf and blind.

Blind students use AT in the classroom to catch up with their classmates and do homework. Students who have poor eyesight can use an electronic magnifier (放大镜) to see what the teacher is writing, on the blackboard.

Blind students use refreshable Braille displays to quietly read an e-book Textbooks can be read with AT, such as hardcopy Braille, refreshable Braille, or the audio format, according to the students’ abilities and hobbies.

The development in AT makes it more possible for disabled people to learn, compete, and communicate with normal people.

1. What does the first paragraph show us?

A．AT is becoming better and better.

B．The new technology can bring health to blind people.

C．AT makes it possible for disabled people to live a normal life.

D．Most of the disabled people use the same technology.

2. What is the use of screen readers?

A．They can read Braille to use.

B．They can teach key board orders.

C．They can turn the words on the screen into sounds.

D．They can help users read in a slower way

3. What is the main idea of Paragraph 4?.

A．Blind students' learning’ ability.	B．The challenges of AT in schools.
C．Blind students' physical’ problems.	D．The use of AT in the class.

4. Who may be interested in reading this passage?

A．Doctors.

B．Disabled people.             C Workers.            D. Computer users.