It looked just like another aircraft from the outside.The pilot told his young passengers that it was built in 1964，a Boeing KC-135 refuelling tanker，based on the 707.But appearances were deceptive，and the 13 students from Europe and USA who boarded the aircraft were in for the flight of their lives.
For 12 months，science students from across the continents had competed to win a place on the flight at the invitation of the European Space Agency.The challenge had been to suggest imaginative experiments to be conducted in weightless conditions.
For the next two hours the Boeings flight resembled that of an enormous bird which had lost its reason，shooting upwards towards the heavens before moving down towards Earth.The intention was to achieve weightlessness for a few seconds.
The aircraft took off smoothly enough，but any feelings that I and the young scientists had that we were on anything like a scheduled passenger service were quickly dismissed when the pilot put the plane into a 45-degree climb which lasted around 20 seconds.Then the engines cut out and we became weightless.Everything became confused，and left or right，up or down no longer had any meaning.After ten seconds of free-fall descent （下降） the pilot pulled aircraft out of its nosedive.The return of gravity was less immediate than its loss，but it was still sudden enough to ensure that some students came down with a bump.
Each time the pilot cut the engines and we became weightless，a new team conducted its experiment.First it was the Dutch，who wanted to discover why cats always land on their feet.Then it was the German team，who conducted a successful experiment on a traditional building method to see if it could be used for building a future space station.The Americans had an idea to create solar sails that could be used by satellites.
After two hours of going up and down in the plane doing experiments，the dominant feeling was one of excitement rather than sickness.Most of the students thought it was an unforgettable experience and one that would be keen to repeat.
（1）What did the pilot do with the plane？ CC
A．He climbed and then made the plane fall slowly.
B．He climbed and then made the plane turn over.
C．He quickly climbed and then stopped the engines.
D．He took off normally and then cut the engines for 20 seconds.
（2）What was the point of being weightless？ DD
A．To show the judges of the competition what they could do.
B．To prepare the young scientists for future work in space.
C．To see what conditions are like in space.
D．To allow the teams to try out their ideas.
（3）The pronoun "it" （in the last paragraph） refers to BB.
A．the excitement
B．the trip
C．the opportunity
D．the plane
（4）The passage is intended to DD.
A．report on a new scientific technique
B．encourage young people to take science
C．show scientists what young people can do
D．describe the outcome of a scientific competition
【答案】C；D；B；D
【解答】
【點(diǎn)評(píng)】
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發(fā)布：2024/5/27 14:0:0組卷：4引用：1難度：0.5
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1．Scientists say they have created a new device that can turn brain signals into electronic speech．The invention could one day give people who have lost the ability to speak a better way of communicating than current ones．
The device was developed by researchers from the University of California，San Francisco．Their results were recently published in a study in the journal Nature．Scientists created a "brain machine connection" that was set in the brain．The device was built to read and record brain signals that helped control the muscles to produce speech．These include the lips，tongue and jaw．
The study involved five volunteer patients who were being treated for epilepsy （癲癇）．The individuals had the ability speak and already had electrodes （電極） set in their brains．The volunteers were asked to read several hundred sentences aloud while the researchers recorded their brain activity．
The researchers used audio recordings to reproduce the vocal （發(fā)聲的） muscle movement which is the key to producing human speech．Future studies will test the technology on people who are unable to speak．
The study reports the reproduced sentences were understandable to hundreds of human listeners asked to write out what they heard．The listeners were able to write out 43 percent of sentences with perfect accuracy．
Edward Chang is a professor of the university's Well Institute．He was a lead researcher on the project．Chang admitted that much more research of the system would be needed to reach the goal of perfectly reproducing spoken language．
（1）Who will probably benefit most from this device？
A．Those unable to hear．
B．Those unable to see．
C．Those unable to speak．
D．Those unable to write．
（2）What do we know about the "brain machine connection"？
A．It could control the muscles．
B．It could produce human speech．
C．It could transform brain signals．
D．It could read and record brain signals．
（3）Which of the following is important for production of human speech？
A．Brain activity．
B．Muscle control．
C．Audio recording．
D．Vocal muscle movement．
（4）In which section of a newspaper may this text appear？
A．Science．
B．Fashion．
C．Education．
D．Entertainment．發(fā)布：2024/12/17 1:30:1組卷：9引用：4難度：0.7 -
2．Houses have been getting progressively "smarter" for decades，but the next generation of smart homes may offer what two Case Western Reserve University scientists are calling an "Internet of Ears".
Today's smart home features appliances，entertainment systems，security cameras and lighting，heating and cooling systems that are connected to each other and the Internet.They can be accessed and controlled remotely by computer or smartphone apps.
But a group of electrical engineering and computer science professors in the Case School of Engineering have been experimenting with a new suite of sensors （傳感器）.This system would read not only the vibrations （震動(dòng)），sounds and even other movements associated with people and animals in a building，but also any slight changes in the existing electrical field.
While there still maybe a decade or so away，the home of the future could be a building that adjusts to your activity with only a few small，hidden sensors in the walls and floor without the need for monitoring cameras.
"We are trying to make a building that is able to 'listen' to the humans inside，" said Ming Chun Huang，an assistant professor in electrical engineering and computer science."We are using principles similar to those of the human ear，where vibrations are picked up and our algorithms （計(jì)算程序） recognise them to determine your specific movements.That's why we call it the 'Internet of Ears'."
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Huang said they have used as few as four small sensors in the walls and floor of a room.
As for privacy concerns，the system would not be able to identify individuals，although it could recognise people's different ways of walking.
（1）What uniqueness does the smart home of the next generation have？
A．It uses the advanced Internet technology.
B．It is controlled remotely by a computer.
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（2）What's the key part of the system in the smart home？
A．The sensors.
B．The vibrations.
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D．The monitoring cameras.
（3）Which is the function of the smart home of the next generation？
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B．Recognising different people.
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（4）What may be the best title for the text？
A．Various Smart Houses.
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D．What Are Next Smart Homes Like？發(fā)布：2024/12/9 9:30:1組卷：22引用：1難度：0.7 -
3．A new study suggests that dark markings on the planet Mars represent sand —not water.The research in 2015 suggested that lines on some Martian hills were evidence of water.Yet American scientists now say these lines appear more like dry，flows of sand.If water is present，it is likely to be a small amount.Water in liquid form would be necessary for microbial（微生物的） life.
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"I still think that Mars has a great potential for having had life early on in its history，" Meyer said. "As long as that's true，we also have a reasonable possibility of life still being on Mars.It just happens to be cryptic or well hidden."
NASA currently has no robotic vehicle—either on Mars or in development—with the ability to climb steep slopes.The lack of such equipment has engineers coming up with ideas like Martian helicopters or planes without pilots.
（1）What do American scientists find on Mars now according to their study？
A．A lot of little life.
B．An amount of water.
C．Some Martian hills.
D．Dark markings are sand.
（2）When do the markings come out？
A．In Martian spring.
B．In Martian summer.
C．In Martian autumn.
D．In Martian winter.
（3）What's Meyer's opinion about having life on Mars？
A．Doubtful.
B．Trustful.
C．Indifferent.
D．Objective.
（4）What does the underlined word "cryptic " in Paragraph 4 mean？
A．Undiscovered
B．Strange.
C．Magical.
D．Icy.發(fā)布：2024/12/3 12:0:1組卷：54引用：3難度：0.7
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