1 . On a summer day in 1948, a Swiss (瑞士的) man named George de Mestral took his dog for a walk in the mountains. After they came home, George discovered that he and his dog were both covered with burrs (带芒刺的小果实).

As an engineer, George naturally began to wonder how exactly the burrs stuck to his dog and his clothes. Then he paid careful attention to looking at them under a microscope (显微镜). He found that the burrs had very tiny hooks (钩子), which allowed them to catch on to things like clothes. George realized that he could use this finding to create a new way to fasten (扣紧) things.

As so often, it is a very long journey from the first idea to the final product. It was easy to find materials that could stick together, but finding materials that would continue to do so after years of use was not easy. George tested a very large number of different materials and production methods. After years of research and work, he invented what is known today as Velcro (魔术贴). In 1955 George started Velcro Industries to turn his idea into a product. In a few years, the product became popular around the world.

Today Velcro is used everywhere. It’s used in backpacks, jackets, wallets, children’s toys, etc. It even turns up in places you wouldn’t expect. For example, Velcro has been used by NASA for astronauts’ suits. The product was also used to hold the heart together during the very first artificial heart transplant   (人工心脏移植).

Complete the summary of the passage above with one word for each blank.

George de Mestral was an engineer from Switzerland. One day in 1948, after coming back from the mountains, he found some burrs on his clothes and his dog. Then he     1     looked at them under a microscope. He found that tiny hooks on the burrs made the burrs catch on to things like clothes. Then George had the     2     of creating a new way to fasten things. It was hard to find     3     that could stick together after years of use. George managed to do that by     4     many different materials and production methods. Finally, he invented Velcro and made it a popular product. Now, Velcro is used everywhere, even in     5     places.

2 . Match the information according to what you read.
1. Ken worries that there will be less and less space on the ground if people keep on building houses. It’s bad for human to cut down so many trees for houses.
2. Cindy is interested in houses with new technology, because it takes less time and costs less to build this kind of house. And it is better for the environment.
3. Carrie lives near the sea. Sometimes her house will be blown down by the strong wind. She really hopes that her house can be kept away from the wind.
4. Mary’s son is a super ball fan. He’s crazy about ball games. He even dreams he can live in a ball.
5. Nancy is an environmental protection member. She hopes that she can build some houses with used things like plastic, bottles and so on.

A．Some scientists are trying to turn used plastic into bricks (砖). These bricks are designed well and can be used to build houses for the poor in some parts of the world.

B．Some people live in windy places. Big winds can blow houses down. A dome (圆顶) house is able to let the wind go around it. There’s no wind in a dome house, so it’s safer in a fire.

C．Scientists have made a house that can walk. The house has six legs. It can walk over any ground. When it walks, six legs are always on the ground. A walking house would be great if there’s a flood (洪水) or a fire.

D．The 3D printed houses will be made by ICON Company. They can print a 60-square-metre house in just 12 to 24 hours. The walls of the house look like cream. Each house costs $10,000．The materials can be used again.

E．A tree house doesn’t use any space on the ground. No trees have to be cut down to make room for these houses. And the house can be built in the shape of a bee nest (蜂巢). Such a house doesn’t take long to move to a new place.

F．Some houses have been made in a shape like a ball. The walls, ceiling (天花板) and floor are all in a house with this shape. The wind moves around the outside of the house. Ball-shaped houses can be hung from things or float (漂流) on water.

3 . 任务型阅读

Note-taking is a skill that can help you do well in all your schoolwork. It can make you confident when you are studying. But unluckily, .most students don’t know how to take notes.

If your teacher writes notes on the blackboard, that’s great. You can copy them or write down the most important facts of all in class. Different teachers do things differently. For example, some teachers may focus on (关注) lots of dates and facts in class, but they only write the important ones on the blackboard. Other teachers may not write anything down, but they may repeat them.

Don’t try to write down every word in class, or you might miss some important points. Some students really learn better with the help of these notes.

Don’t be afraid to ask your teacher to repeat what you’ve missed. If your teacher speaks too fast and you can’t follow what he is saying, you can ask him after class.

Comparing your notes with your classmates can be good for your learning. It can also help you and your classmates correct some mistakes.

Note-taking also needs organization. Keep notes for each subject in one place, so that you can find everything easily when a test comes.

Good note-taking takes time. If you decide to recopy your notes every evening, you’ll surely have less time to watch TV. But you’ll save time in the coming test.

1. Note-taking can help you do well in all your schoolwork and ________ when you are studying.
2. Different teachers do things differently. Some of them may ________ some important points instead of writing them down.
3. If you always try to write down every word in class, you might/will miss ________.
4. It is helpful for you and your classmates to ________.
5. What does this passage mainly tell students?     
________________________________

5 . Robots seem to be getting cleverer and cleverer. Here are four examples.

Budgee ☆He was created by Five Elements Robotics. ☆With two wheels and a little basket, he can carry things for you while you’re at the shops.	Paro ☆He was made by Takanori Shibata. ☆He is used on patients (病人) in hospitals. ☆He can learn a name and even show feelings such as surprise, happiness and sadness.
Rover ☆He was created by a team at Sydney University. ☆He is used to make cows move together from a field to a dairy (牛奶场).	Simon ☆He was developed (研制) by the Georgia Institute of Technology. ☆He can clean up offices. ☆In tests, he could tell whether someone was paying attention to (关注) him or not.

Choose the best choice from A、B or C according to the passage.
1. Which robot can help you when you are shopping?

A．Budgee.

B．Simon.

C．Paro.

2. We can learn from the passage that Paro ________.

A．can tell whether others pay attention to him

B．was created by Five Elements Robotics

C．is used on patients in hospitals

3. What can Simon do according to the passage?

A．Show feelings.

B．Clean offices.

C．Move cows.

4. Rover can be used in________.

A．a farm

B．a company

C．a supermarket

5. Where does the passage probably come from?

A．A tourist map.

B．A medical dictionary.

C．A science magazine.