英语报刊阅读练习(四)

初二英语报刊阅读四（1）Question : What is more astonishing than a 6000 ton whale on a flatbed truck being driven down the street ?Answer : A 6000 ton whale on a flatbed truck exploding and raining blubber (fat of whales ) all over the sidewalk .Thats what happened in Taiwan recently, when a dead sperm whale being shipped to the Halobios Research Centre for an autopsy (尸体解剖) developed an extremely bad case of gas and blew up before it reached its destination .The whale was found alive on a Taiwan beach last weekend, and died shortly after it was discovered. Since the 56-foot whale was the largest whale ever beached on Taiwans shores , scientists wanted to study it and perform an autopsy for educational purpose .Obviously, too much time passed between when the animal died and the time it was set to be moved to the autopsy location, because it had already started to go bad .When things rot , they give off gases as a by-product . In the whales case , the gases were trapped in its belly . The pressure inside the rotting creature grew so much that it popped like an over-filled balloon . Unfortunately , it was on a truck in the middle of the city of Taiwan at the time; cars and shops lining the street were covered with whale bits and juices , much to their owners discouragement .According to news reports , traffic was tied up for hours while officials tried to clean up the streets .Newspaper editors worldwide were probably smiling to themselves , since they had a ready-made headline; several reports about the incident were titled “There She Blows!” after the famous line from the book Moby Dick . 1The purpose of the question at the beginning of this news report is to _.Aexplain the reason Bsell newspapers Cattract readers Dgive an immediate answer 2The whales explosion is the result of _.Apressure from gases building up in the creature as it began to rot Bthe long transport of the creature from the beach to the center Cthe extremely busy traffic in the streets it passed by Dthe quick process of rotting of the animal 3What is the correct order of the incidents ?a. The whale was set to a flatbed truck . b. The whale was discovered .c. The whale exploded .d. The whale died .Ab; c; a ; d Bd; c; b; a Cb; d; a; c Dd; b; a; c 4What do we know from the last paragraph ?ASome newspaper editors were laughed at .BMoby Dick is the name of a woman writer .CAll the newspapers reported the story under the same title .DThe title “There She Blows!” is taken from the book Moby Dick .（2）The three biggest lies in America are : (1) “The check is in the mail.” (2) “Of course Ill respect you in the morning .” (3) “It was a computer error.”Of these three little white lies , the worst of the lot by far is the third . Its the only one that can never be true . Today , if a bank statement cheats you out of $ 900 that way , you know what the clerk is sure to say : “It was a computer error .” Nonsense . The computer is reporting nothing more than what the clerk typed into it .The most annoying case of all is when the computerized cash register in the grocery store shows that an item costs more than it actually does . If the innocent buyer points out the mistake, the checker , bagger and manager all come together and offer the familiar explanation : “It was a computer error .”It wasnt, of course . That high-tech cash register is really nothing more than an electric eye . The eye reads the Universal Product Code; that ribbon of black and white lines on the package; and then checks the code against a price list stored in memory . If the price list is right , youll be charged accurately .Grocery stores update the price list each day; that is , somebody sits at a keyboard and types in the prices . If the price they type in is too high , there are only two explanations : carelessness or dishonesty . But somehow “a computer error” is supposed to excuse everything .One reason we let people hide behind a computer is the common misunderstanding that huge , modern computers are “electric brains” with “artificial intelligence.” At some point there might be a machine with intelligence , but none exists today . The smartest computer on earth right now is no more “intelligent” than your average screwdriver (螺丝刀). At this point in the development of computers the only thing any machine can do is what a human has instructed it to do .1We are told that a high-tech cash register is really just _.Aa simple adding machine Ban electric instrument of sight Ca way to keep employees honest Dan expensive piece of window dressing 2Grocery store price lists are updated by_ .Aan employee Ba telephone receiver Can adding machine Da typewriter 3According to the passage, which of the following statements is true ?AThat high-tech cash register is anything but an electric eye .BThe grocery stores update the price list every other day .CThere is no machine with intelligence today.DThere are four biggest lies in America .4Which of the following describes the main idea of the passage ?AComputers are stupid and inefficient .BComputer errors are basically human errors .CComputers can help department stores update the price list .DSupermarket price errors are often made through dishonesty .（3）Robots frequently star in science fiction movies and books. But, that wasnt enough and theyve begun jumping off the screen and into r_1_. So if you have some things youd like a robot to do, youd better make a(n) l_2_ right now. They may be here faster than you can snap your fingers.Last week in HongKong, for example, customers were attracted to a restaurant not because of the food, but because of a robot waiter. The robot g_3_ customers and took their orders. The customers could give the names of the dishes they wanted by tapping on the robots screen to complete the order. Robot Waiter 1, as its known, can only take orders - it still cant serve. But restaurant owners say they have plans to add another robot-waiter to the s_4_ in the near future.At the end of last month, a robot Albert Einstein was on display in NewYork. He not only gave physics grades but also r_5_ different faces with a camera in his eyes. And in October, hundreds of robots around the world will show up in Suzhou for the RobotCup, a World Cup Soccer Game - for robots. Some people are afraid of the robot revolution - sci-fi novelist Isaac Asimov d_6_ this in his work “Robot revolution, the making of I”. But many more people cant wait to e_7_ the fascinating world that robots can bring us in the future. （4）Im Susan Clark with the Special English program WORDS AND THEIR STORIES.Young Mister Smith had an idea for his employer. It was an idea for saving money for the company by increasing prices. At the same time, Smith suggested that the company sell goods of less value.If his employer liked the idea, Smith might be given more pay. Perhaps he might even get a better job with the company.Business had been very slow. So Mister Smiths employer thought a few minutes about the idea. But then she shook her head. I am sorry, Smith, his employer said. It just will not wash.Now, the meaning of these English words should be, It will not get clean.Yet Smiths idea did not have anything to do with making something clean. So why did his employer say, It will not wash?Most word experts agree that it will not wash means it will not work.Eric Partridge wrote that the saying probably developed in Britain in the eighteen hundreds. Charlotte Bronte used it in a story published in eighteen forty-nine. She wrote, That wilnt wash, miss. Mizz Bronte seems to have meant that the dyes used to color a piece of clothing were not good. The colors could not be depended on to stay in the material.In nineteenth century England, the expression came to mean an undependable statement. It was used mainly to describe an idea. But sometimes it was used about a person.A critic once said of the poet Robert Browning, He wont wash. The critic did not mean that the poet was not a clean person.He meant that Brownings poems could not be depended on to last.Today, we know that judgment was wrong.Robert Browning still is considered a major poet.But very few people remember the man who said Browning would not wash.Happily for the young employee Smith, his employer wanted him to do well in the company. So the employer talked turkey to him. She said, Your idea would be unfair to our buyers. Think of another way to save money.A century ago, to talk turkey meant to talk pleasantly. Turkeys in the barnyard were thought to be speaking pleasantly to one another. In recent years, the saying has come to mean an attempt to teach something important.Word expert Charles Funk tells how he believes this change took place.He says two men were shooting turkeys together. One of them was a white man. The other was an American Indian. The white man began stating reasons why he should get all the turkeys for himself. But the American Indian stopped him. He told the white man, Now, I talk turkey to you.Mister Smith thought of a better idea after his employer talked turkey to him. He was given an increase in pay. So if your idea will not wash, try talking turkey to yourself and come up with a better idea.（5）High school students in Asia often do better than American students on international math and science tests. Experts say part of this is because schools in countries like China and South Korea do better at preparing students to take tests. Yet some of these same countries want to learn what makes American students good at creativity and critical thinking.Foreign educators often visit Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria, Virginia, near Washington. This past summer, seventy-five school principals visited from China.Evan Glazer, the principal of Thomas Jefferson, says the school combines science and math with literature and other liberal arts.EVAN GLAZER: “Curriculum, when its seen within one particular context, youre really just developing knowledge and skills. But if you want to look at the complexity of real problems and original solutions, it requires people to come at them from different angles. And so we foster a lot of team teaching, with pairing up teachers from different disciplines so that, when theyre offering challenges to students, that they have a variety of perspectives as they approach problems.”The admissions process is intensely competitive. Thomas Jefferson is part of the Fairfax County Public Schools but serves a wider area. The number of students from families of Asian ethnicity at the school reached fifty percent this past year.The program was created in partnership with local businesses in nineteen eighty-five. The goal was to improve education in science, math and technology.Some students do university-level research in fields such as microelectronics, neuroscience and biotechnology. Students can also learn from working with professionals, says Mr. Glazer.EVAN GLAZER: “We certainly cultivate a culture of inquiry and research so th