1 . Welcome to your future life!
You get up in the morning and look into the mirror. Your face is firm and young-looking. In 2035, medical technology is better than ever. Many people at your age could live to be 150, so at 40, you’re not old at all. And your parents just had an anti-aging(抗衰老的) treatment. Now, all three of you look the same age!
You say to your shirt, “Turn red.” It changes from blue to red. In 2035, “smart clothes” contain particles(粒子) much smaller than the cells(细胞) in your body. The particles can be programmed to change your clothes’ color or pattern(样式).
You walk into the kitchen. You pick up the milk, but a voice says,“ You shouldn’t drink that!” Your fridge has read the chip (芯片) that contains information about the milk , and it knows the milk is old . In 2035, every article of food in the grocery store has such a chip.
It’s time to go to work. In 2035, cars drive themselves. Just tell your “smart car” where to go. On the way, you can call a friend using your jacket sleeve. Such “smart technology” is all around you.
So will all these things come true? “For new technology to succeed,” says scientist
Andrew Zolli ,“it has to be so much better that it replaces what we have already.” The Internet is one example—what will be the next?
1. We can learn from the text that in the future__________.| A．people will never get old |
| B．everyone will look the same |
| C．red will be the most popular color |
| D．clothes will be able to change their pattern |
| A．Food in the grocery store will carry electronic information. |
| B．More drinks will be given for sale. |
| C．Milk in the grocery store will stay fresh much longer. |
| D．Milk will be harmful to health. |
| A．Cars will be able to drive automatically(自动地). |
| B．Fridges will know what people need. |
| C．Jacket sleeves can be used as a guide. |
| D．Nothing can replace the Internet. |
| A．Food and clothing in 2035 |
| B．The reason for the success of new technology. |
| C．Medical treatments of the future. |
| D．Future technology in everyday life. |
2 . People have always wanted to know what the future will look like. Then, how can we?
But why do we need to predict the future? Predicting the future is important for two reasons: First, we need to start to think about what kind of future we would like for ourselves and to pass on to the next generation.
How about the virtual worlds? It might be in the future to experience the sand between your toes, and hear the waves, just lying in your bed at home.
| A．So what will the future look like then? |
| B．Will this change in the next 150 years? |
| C．Predicting the future can help us in many ways. |
| D．However, you’ll never get the feeling of being there. |
| E．Well, to understand the future, you must know the past. |
| F．However, no matter how real the experience will feel, it doesn’t happen for real. |
| G．Then we need to know what decisions we need to make today that will give the best result in the future. |
3 . What if we had the power to control time, instead of moving from the past to the present to the future? What if we could jump, loop and travel through time in a machine? What if we could go wherever and whenever we pleased?
This ability would allow us to witness historic wonders, change decisions and see people from the past. We could right wrongs and stop wars from starting.
The mysterious puzzle of time has kept people debating its nature for hundreds of years. Science fiction writers have turned it into imaginative stories. Some scientists have even attempted to explain it using math. This math tries to make the dream of time travel come true.
The scientist Albert Einstein said that time and space are one thing. He called it “spacetime.” Einstein said that there are three dimensions in space: height, width and depth. A scientist named Hermann Minkowski added time as a fourth dimension.
Einstein introduced two ideas that have led to theories about the possibility of time travel. The first is relativity. The idea of relativity is that the force of gravity causes space to bend, which causes time to twist. The second idea focuses on special relativity. The idea is that a traveler moving super-fast through flat spacetime will enter the future. Einstein considered time “relative” because it is measured based on where we are on Earth or in space.
Stephen Hawking is a famous scientist. He believes that a time machine will never be built. If it were possible, he thinks we would already know. If a time machine could be built, how come no one from the future has invaded us?
The first science fiction story with this theme is The Clock That Went Backward by Edward P. Mitchell, which was published in 1881. Since then, thousands of books, films and television shows have explored the idea of time travel, in which some tools such as phones, watches, photographs and old books take travelers backward and forward.
Will time travel ever happen? Who knows? Most important is to keep your eyes open and have a sense of wonder.
1. What is the author’s purpose of writing the first paragraph?| A．To show time and space are connected. |
| B．To show people’s interest in time travel. |
| C．To draw readers’ attention to time travel. |
| D．To make people believe time travel is possible. |
| A．Time travel is possible in the future. |
| B．People can’t move faster than light. |
| C．Time travel is against scientific rules. |
| D．Spacetime is not a real thing in theory. |
| A．The first science fiction story. |
| B．Some tools used in time travel. |
| C．Edward P. Mitchell, the pioneer. |
| D．Different works about time travel. |
| A．cautious. | B．pessimistic |
| C．sceptical | D．optimistic. |
4 . I read with interest a recent article on Galactocorp’s planned Shuttlejet flight later this year. I cannot imagine more stupid thing than this, so-called space tourism, and can’t help wondering what on earth humanity is coming to if this can be successful business.
Many may think that space travel is the highest human achievement, which may be the condition when scientific endeavor (努力) is the aim. However, when it comes to space tourism, think we may have found the top of human stupidity. Consider the high cost of getting into space, the billions of dollars wasted on building the Shuttlejet, and the many thousands spent by the passengers—and for what? So that forty fat cats can have a first-class meal along with six minutes of weightlessness, before returning to earth? Never before has so much money been spent for so little benefit (利益). I invite all space tourists to come around to my house. I can treat them to a big dinner and they can have jump on the trampoline (蹦床), and they’ll only need to pay me half the price of Galactocorp.
Further, the money can be used in a smarter way. Think of the many worthy causes that would benefit from the money that has been thrown away on this project already. There are many medical programs in those poor countries. A few hundred thousand dollars could make a big difference to the lives of thousands of people. The benefits would last far longer than six minutes.
Not only is the Shuttlejet a terrible waste of money, it’s also a terrible waste of resources (资源). Think about the materials required to build and the things required to drive the Shuttlejet. Do we really want to pollute the environment for such a pointless exercise and waste so much money for such a pointless exercise?
In a word, we all need to come back down to earth and forget this stupid dream of space tourism.
1. What’s the author’s purpose in writing this text?| A．To ask for advice. | B．To stop project. |
| C．To share his idea. | D．To express his interest. |
| A．Helping the fat cats lose weight. |
| B．Asking people to have fun in his house. |
| C．Providing a trampoline for space tourists. |
| D．Preparing first-class-meal for the forty cats. |
| A．It costs space tourists a lot of money. |
| B．It is just a scientific aim. |
| C．It is bad for the environment. |
| D．It causes a lot of waste in money and resources. |
| A．The project is unrealistic. | B．The project is unscientific. |
| C．The money should be spent on earth. | D．Space is nothing compared with earth. |
5 . Who is smarter? A human being or artificial intelligence(人工智能)?
The question swept the world when a Google－developed program called AlphaGo defeated the world top player，South Korean Lee Se－del，4－1.
So，what comes next?
Some people have been arguing that artificial intelligence，or AI in short，will be a bad thing for humans. In an interview with the BBC in 2014，UK scientist Stephen Hawking warned that “the development of full artificial intelligence could mean the end of the human race.”
So are we really about to live in the world shown in the Terminator movies?
“Not quite，” answered The Economist. After all，it's not hard to get a computer program to remember and produce facts. What is hard is getting computers to use their knowledge in everyday situations.
“We think that，for the human being，things like sight and balance(视觉平衡)，are natural and ordinary in our life.” Thomas Edison，founder of Motion Figures，a company that is bringing AI to boys，told the newspaper. “But for a robot，to walk up and down just like human beings requires various decisions to be made every second，and it's really difficult to do.”
As The Economist put it，“We have a long way to go before AI can truly begin to be similar to the human brain，even though the technology can be great.”
Meanwhile，John Markoff of The New York Times said that researchers should build artificial intelligence to make people more effective.
“Our_fate_is_in_our_own_hands，” he wrote.“Since technology depends on the values of its creators，we can make human choices that use technology to improve the world.”
1. What was the result of the match?| A．Lee Se－del won AlphaGo 4－1. | B．Lee Se－del was defeated. |
| C．Google program beat AlphaGo. | D．Neither side won the match. |
| A．It's very hard for AI to beat the human brain. |
| B．AI would take the place of human beings. |
| C．AI can make various decisions quickly. |
| D．AI does better than humans in sight and balance. |
| A．Stephen Hawking. | B．John Markoff. |
| C．The New York Times. | D．The Economist. |
| A．AI will improve the world completely. |
| B．AI is in the control of human beings. |
| C．AI may bring disasters to human beings. |
| D．AI will make our future out of control. |
6 . Can you imagine waking up each day in a house that is
It is a commonly accepted fact that
So, where does this leave the many countries in the world
Inventive architects may have come up with a
7 . Let us suppose it is now about A. D. 2063. Let’s make believe it is about fifty years from now. Of course, things have changed and life is very different.
Voyages to the moon are being made every day. It is as easy to take a holiday on the moon today as it was for the people in 1960 to take a holiday in Europe. At a number of scenic spots on the moon, many hotels have been built. The hotels are air-conditioned, naturally. In order that everyone can enjoy the beautiful scenery on the moon, every room has at least one picture window. Everything imaginable is provided for entertainment of the young and the old.
What are people eating now? People are still eating food. But many foods now come in pill form, and the food that goes into the pill continues to come mainly from green plants.
Since there are several times as many people in the world today as there were a hundred years ago, most of our planet’s surface has to be filled. The deserts are irrigated with water and crops are no longer destroyed by pests. The harvest is always good.
Farming, of course, is very highly developed. Very few people have to work on the farm. It is possible to run the farm by just pushing a few buttons now and then.
People are now largely vegetarians. You see, as the number of people increases, the number of animals decreases. Therefore, the people have to be vegetarians and we are healthier both in our bodies and in our minds, and we know the causes and cure of disease and pain, and it is possible to get rid of diseases. No one has to be ill any more.
Such would be our life in 2063.
1. When was the passage written?| A．In about A. D. 2060. |
| B．In about 1960. |
| C．In about 2013. |
| D．In about 2004. |
| A．Many tourists. |
| B．Many other animals. |
| C．Many plants. |
| D．A sea. |
| A．Biscuits in pill form. |
| B．Foods in pill form. |
| C．Foods in water form. |
| D．Foods in gas form. |
| A．there are fewer population |
| B．there are more pests |
| C．there is less water |
| D．the crops are getting better |
This idea may sound like something from a science fiction (科幻小说), but it is actually being taken seriously by many researchers. This suggests the future for the "red planet" will be the main topic for discussion at an international conference hosted by NASA (美国宇航局) this week. Leading researchers as well as science fiction writers will attend the event.
Turning Mars into a little earth has long been a topic in science fiction,” said Dr Michael Meyer, NASA's senior scientist for astrobiology (太空生物学)．“Now, with scientists exploring the reality, we can ask what are the real possibilities of changing Mars.”
Most scientists agree that Mars could be turned into a little earth, although much time and money would be needed to achieve this goal.
But many experts are shocked by the idea. "We are destroying our own world at an unbelievable speed and now we are talking about ruining another planet," said Paul Murdin from the Institute of Astronomy, Cambridge, UK.
Over the past months, scientists have become increasingly confident .They will find Martian life forms. Europe and America's robot explorers have found proof that water, mixed with soil, exists in large amounts on the planet.
1. The passage is about________.
| A．Mars supporting life |
| B．finding water in the Mars |
| C．a plan turning Mars into a little earth |
| D．the necessity of changing Mars |
| A．are short of confidence |
| B．will gain the support of NASA |
| C．are asking for advice on how to carry it out |
| D．realize that it’s not easy to achieve their goal |
| A．He is for the idea. |
| B．He is active in the idea. |
| C．He is against the idea. |
| D．He doesn’t care about it. |
| A．They have no idea about the plan. |
| B．They will find Martian lives very soon. |
| C．They may achieve their goals some day. |
| D．They have found much proof of Martian lives. |
9 . "If popular culture has taught us anything, it is that someday mankind must face and destroy the growing harm caused by robots." Author Daniel Wilson's description of How to Survive a Robot Uprising seems like it is straight out of a robot disaster movie. "The problem with cleverly-designed robots is that we become dependent on them," says Wilson.
The classic movie Westworld describes an amusement park where, after a safety error, the robots spend a killing period of time. Yet in reality, statistics show that as technology improves there is a trend towards increased safety. Similarly, public transport systems using computers and machines are believed to be more reliable than those in human control, and a robot-assisted operation is more precise and results in fewer medical problems.
But where does the idea of robots being cruel and harmful come from? "Robots were pop culture figures before they existed," says Wilson. "They were frightening creatures in novels. When robots really started existing, they already had this image(形象) set up not based on reality. That's exactly what happened—a movie monster became real."
Recent reports talked of a robot "attack" on a worker in Sweden. Even if these references to an attack rather than an error are meant in joke, this only makes the problem worse. "We're so interested in the robot-attack storyline that it can influence the way real robot-safety problems are discussed," says one journalist. But with robots becoming increasingly advanced, is it going to come a time when an error could become an unkind and cruel attack?
"Robots are just a bunch of metal," says one engineer. "If you are scared, then you are scared of the people building them." So what do engineers think we should be afraid of? Nanotechnology is the science which involves developing and making extremely small but very powerful machines. Some engineers suggest that with these new developments come "severe dangers" if they are used inappropriately. Its theory goes that "the small size and rapid potential of nano-built weaponry（武器）will make it difficult to control and hard to keep out of the hands of terrorists. "And this is a view shared by some artificial intelligence experts. "With robots...if it makes an error, you can unplug it and shut it down. But if you have lots of nano-built weapons, which are extremely small, there is no way you can do the same thing."
1. In the first paragraph, Daniel Wilson ________.| A．confirms the existence of robots |
| B．introduces the development of robots |
| C．states that robots are potentially dangerous |
| D．suggests that we should be dependent on robots |
| A．designers of the first robots spread this idea |
| B．reality shows they are the same as in the movies |
| C．movie audience continue to give this impression |
| D．they were originally described this way in novels |
| A．is intended as a joke |
| B．serves as a serious warning |
| C．presents the technical problem |
| D．expresses sympathy for the worker |
| A．Robots could use it inappropriately. |
| B．It could make robots harder to control. |
| C．It could be more dangerous than robots. |
| D．There'll be more terrorist attacks because of it. |
Tired of carrying around that heavy wallet? Soon you won’t need to! The next generation of smart phones will have NFC technology, which lets you pay for things with your smart phones. All you do is enter your credit card information into your phone. Then, when you are in a shop that allows NFC payments, you just wave your phone over a special instrument at the checkout. The purchase is instantly charged to your credit card.
Ever seen someone wearing something and wished you knew where to get it? Soon it will be easy with PicCommerce, new technology that uses image-recognition software. Here’s how it works. If you see something you like, simply take a photo of it with your smart phone. Then, your phone will send the image to a special server, which will respond with information about where you can buy it and how much it will cost.
Sick of your smart phone battery going flat? With so many applications draining (消耗) the battery, the latest phones need to be charged every day. But next generation smart phones will come with built-in chips that can connect to an antenna (天线) in your home. And as long as your phone is within range of the antenna, you will be able to charge your smartphone wirelessly, even if it is in your pocket.
Worried about getting your smart phones wet in the rain? A company called Hz0 has invented WaterBlock, new technology that makes your phone completely waterproof. And it’s so effective that your phone will even work underwater.
Fed up with carrying a heavy phone around? Soon, you will be able to get a PaperPhone! “Flexible phones are the future,” said scientist Roel Vertegaal. So, what are the benefits of flexible phones? Well, it means that instead of carrying your phone in your pocket, you could wear it wrapped around your wrist, for example.
Of course, there is just the problem: with so much new smart phone technology around, you will soon need to buy a new phone!
1. To pay with your smart phone, you need to ________.
| A．go to a bank | B．store money in the phone |
| C．have a credit card | D．buy a special instrument |
| A．will have chips instead of batteries |
| B．may consume less power |
| C．needn’t be charged frequently |
| D．will be charged easily |
| A．They will be easier to carry. |
| B．They will be cheaper. |
| C．They will be smaller. |
| D．They will be easier to operate. |
| A．Basic Functions of Smart phones |
| B．The Future of Smart phones |
| C．Advantages of Modern Smart phones |
| D．The Development of Phone Technology |
