试题预览
Class___________ Name (Chinese /English) ________________ No.______
Part I Reading Section1 I read a few books written in 1920 about the future. At that time life seemed to be full of possibilities and everybody was very optimistic that technology would improve the quality of everybody’s life. Has that happened today? 1: increased free time Writers in the past guessed that increasing technology would result in a shorter working week. They worried that people lacked the skills to make the best use of all this free time. But they need not have been concerned because the opposite has happened. The workload for many office workers is now heavier and takes more time than it did in 1920. 2: the human robot It was also suggested that over the next 90 years it would become harder to tell the difference between a human and a machine. Of course it has not been possible to create a machine that can behave like a human being. Robots still don’t have private feelings and emotions as people do. 3: the paperless office When computers were introduced into offices, office workers were able to correct their work on the screen for the first time. This was felt to be such a saving of time that many people predicted that reading or writing on paper could be skipped. However this prediction lost sight of the fact that when people are writing more than two pages of text, they find reading and correcting it much more convenient in paper form. As office workers are obliged to write many reports, there are still as many, if not more, paper copies in various stages of production. In all three cases mentioned above the predictions by writers in 1920 proved to be wide of the mark. Let this be a lesson to all who take up new technology so enthusiastically!
Choose the proper answers to the following questions based on the passage above. 1．What’s the main idea of the passage? A. Today’s life quality is much better that that in 1920. B. What was predicted by the writers in 1920 is not exact. C. Technology improves the quality of everybody’s life. D. Life is difficult to be predicted as it is full of possibilities. 2. What does the underlined phrase “take up” mean in the last paragraph? A. to begin again B. to use up C. to accept D. to be interested in 3. Make a list of the differences between the predictions by writers in 1920 and today’s life, and then express the differences in a complete sentence by using contrast words(对比词).
The predictions by writers in 1920 Today’s life (1) Writers in 1920 predicted that ________ ____________________________________ ____________________________________ (2) Writers in 1920 predicted that ________ ___________________________________ ____________________________________ (3) Writers in 1920 predicted that ________ ____________________________________ ____________________________________ (4) Writers in 1920 predicted that ________ ____________________________________ (1) The workload for many office workers is now heavier and takes more time. (2) ________________________________ ___________________________________ (3)_________________________________ ___________________________________ (4) ________________________________ ___________________________________ (5)________________________________ ___________________________________ e.g. a. Writers in 1920 predicted that people would have more increased free time. However, our workload is much heavier now. b. Writers in 1920 predicted that people would have more increased free time. But our workload is much heavier now.
Section 2: Advertisement: Life can be extended indefinitely on Xeron! On my planet, nobody needs to die. It was only ten years ago that scientists here on Xeron developed technology to bring the dead back to life. That does sound strange, doesn’t it? But of course these dead ‘people’ are not made of flesh and blood but celluloid and computer chips. The scientists found that because our population was decreasing people were becoming lonely in their small settlements. So they set to work to solve the problem. After twenty years of efforts they succeeded. They discovered that ‘people’ could be copied from old home movies. The ‘person’ is combined with computer records about him or her to create a virtual ‘relative’. The family can chat and live with him or her. Once a family takes up the offer of a constant companion, their upkeep is very cheap. He or she does not need food or clothes, is never ill and does not need haircuts or new shoes. This project has been such a success that the scientists are now working on ways to bring back ‘people’ who died long ago so that they can take on new roles. In 3030 they hope to be able to reproduce some of the great people of the 20th Century: perhaps even Karl Marx, Albert Einstein, Marilyn Monroe or Chairman Mao. So if you are lonely, find an old home movie and choose the relative you would like to bring back to life. Then call Xeron 7257 and one of our representatives will call. Prices are very reasonable. So call today or write for our brochure for full details at Xeron People Regeneration Ltd, Bonjon 5675, Xeron. Please mark your envelope BROCHURE for a quick reply! Choose the proper answers to the following questions based on the passage above. 1. What’s the purpose of this passage? A. To introduce readers what dead “people” look like on Xeron. B. To persuade readers to call Xeron to copy dead “people”. C. To introduce the successful project made by scientists on Xeron. D. To tell readers how to bring dead “people” back to life. 2. Why do the scientists on Xeron bring the dead back to life? A. It almost costs nothing to keep the dead alive. B. “People” who died long ago can take on new roles. C. More great people of the 20th century can be brought back to life. D. People are becoming lonely because t
