国家电网专业技术人员电力英语水平考试阅读理解

阅读理解

Passage1

Haveyoueverseenamoonthatlooksunbelievablybig?It

hangsoverthehorizonlikeahuge,palehot-airballoon.Many

peoplethinkofthebrightfullmoonofautumnortheharvest

moonthatway-likeahuge,palehot-airballoon.Butcanyou

alwaystrustyoureyes?

Theharvestmoonisthefullmoononadaynearestthe

firstdayofautumn.Fullornearlyfull,itrisesearlyinthe

eveningforseveralnightsinarow,Itbringsfarmerswell-lit

eveningstoharvesttheircrops.

Theharvestmooncanlookhuge.Butdoesitreallyfillmore

oftheskythananordinaryfullmoon?

Whydoesthemoonlookbiggerwhenitisnearthehorizon?

Ourbrainscomparethesizeofthemoonwiththesizeofthe

objectsweseeonthehorizon.Weknowthatthedistant

mountains,homes,orskyscrapersarereallylarge.And,sincethe

moonismuchfartherawaythanisthedistantlandscape,

we"see"themoonasbeinglargerthanitwouldotherwiselook.

1.Towhatdowecomparethesizeoftheharvestmoon?

A.MountainsB.BuildingC.HomesD.Allofthese

2.Themainpurposeofthearticleisto

A.informB.persuadeC.praiseD.convince

3.Theauthorknewmostpeoplefindthemoon

A.mysteriousB.interestingC.boringD.soordinary

4.Themoonlooksbiggerif

A.itisautumnB.itisnearthehorizonC.homesarenearD.it

isaclearnight

5.Theautumnmoon.

A.ismorebeautifulthanitreallylooksB.isthebrightestobject

inthesky

C.risesslowlyatdawnD.helpsfarmersseeastheyharvest

theircrops

Passage2

Strangethinghappenstotimewhenyouravel.Becausethe

earthisdividedintotwenty-fourtimezonesonehourapart,you

canhavedayswithmoreorfewerthantwenty-fourhours,and

weekswithmoreorfewerthansevendays.

Ifyoumakeafive-daytripacrosstheAtlanticOcean,your

shipentersadifferenttimezoneeveryday.Asyouentereach

zone,thetimechangesthehour.Travelingwest,yousetyour

clockback；travelingeast,yousetitahead.Eachdayofyour

triphaseithertwenty-fiveortwenty-threehours.

IfyoutravelbyshipacrossthePacificyoucrossthe

internationaldateline.Byagreement,thisisthepointwherea

newdaybegins.Whenyoucrosstheline,youchangeyour

calendarthefullday,backwardorforward.Travelingeast,today

becomesyesterday；travelingwest,itistomorrow!

1.Thebesttitleforthisselectionis

A.ATripAcrosstheAtlanticB.HowTimeChangesAround

theWorld

C.CrossingtheInternationalDateLineD.HowtimeZone

WereSetUp

2.Thedifferenceintimebetweenzonesis

A.sevendaysB.twenty-fourhours

ConehourD.morethansevendays

3.FromthisselectionitseemstruethattheAtlanticOcean

A.isinonetimezoneB.isdividedintotwenty-fourtime

zones

C.isdividedintofivetimezonesD.cannotbecrossedinfive

days

4.Theinternationaldatelineisthenamefor

A.thebeginningofanynewtimezoneB.thepointwheretime

changesbyonehour

C.thepointwhereanewdaybeginsD.anytimezoneinthe

PacificOcean

5.Ifyoucrosstheoceangoingeast,yousetyouclock

A.aheadonehourineachnewtimezoneB.aheadonetimefor

thewholetrip

C.backonefulldayforeachonefulldayD.aheadby

twenty-threehours

Passage3

HolidaysintheUnitedStatesusuallyoccuratleastoncea

month.Mostmonthshaveanationalholidaythathasbeen

arrangedtobecelebratedonaMonday.Theholidayshaveall

beendecidedtobecelebratedonaMondaysothattheworkers

mayhave3-dayweekends-thatis,Saturday,Sundayand

Mondayinordertorestortravelordothingswiththeirfamilies.

MajorholidaysintheUnitedStatessuchasNewYear'sDayor

ChristmasDayortheday,whenwerememberthefirstsettlesof

theUnitedStates,calledThanksgivingDayarecelebratedal1

overthecountryDuringtheseholidaysmostbusinesscloseand

theworkersstayhomeandcelebratewiththeirfamilies.

Vacationcanbefrom2weeksayearto4weeksayear.This

usuallydependsonhowlongyou'vebeenworkingfora

company,whattypeofpositionyouhave,whetheryouhavea

veryhighpositionoraveryimportantpositionandit'sdifficult

tofindsomeonetoreplaceyouInthiscase,youmighttakea

fewdaysatatimeratherthantakingonemonthallatonce.

Usuallythemoretimeyouspendworkingforacompany,the

moretimeyoumaygetforavacation

1.ThegovernmentoftheUnitedStatesmakesitarulefor

workerstohaveaweekendalmostonceamonth.

A.1-dayB.2-dayC.3-dayD.4-day

2.WorkersintheUnitedStatessometimesworkfrom.

A.Mondayt>SaturdayB.TuesdaytoSunday

C.ThursdaytoFridayD.TuesdaytoFriday

3.WhichstatementisNOTtrueaccordingtothispassage?

A.OnlyafewshopsremainopenonNewYear'sDay

B.Mostoftheworkerneedn'tworkonChristmasDay.

C.Daysonvacationmustbemorethanalltheholidaysina

year.

D.Alltheworkershaveahalf-monthvacation

4.Thereasonwhysomeonehastodividehisvacationinto

severalpartsisthat

A.noonecanbefoundtotakehisplace

B.hehasn'tamosthighposition

C.heplaysanimportantroleinhiswork

D.hehasn'tbeenworkingforhiscompanyforalongtime

5.Whichofthefollowingisthebesttitleforthispassage?

A.HolidaysintheUnitedStates.

B.vacationintheUnitedStates

C.HowDOtheworkersSpendTheirHolidays

D.SomethingAbouttheholidaysandVacationintheU.S

Passage4

SarahWinchesterwasaveryrichwoman.Shedidn'tbuy

manyjewelsorfancyclothes.Instead,shespentmillionsof

dollarstobuildahouse.ThestrangethingaboutSarah'shouse

wasthatitwasneverfinished.Workonthehousewentonfor38

yearbecauseSarahwasafraidtostopbuildingit.

Sarah'shousewasnearSanJose,CaliforniaEveryday,a

crewofcarpenters,plumbers,andotherworkersarrivedthere.

Sarahwantedmoreroomsandmoredoorsandmorewindows,

sotheworkerskeptonbuildingthem.Thehousewasseven

floorshighandhad160rooms.Therewere2000doorsand

10000windows.Therewerealsothreeelevators,ninekitchens,

and47fireplaces.

WhydidSarahwantahousethatkeptgeeingbigger?The

reasonseemedtobethatSarahwasafraidofdying.Shethought

shewoulddiewhenthehousewasfinished,soshemadecertain

thatitwasneverfinished.

SarahWinchester'splanseemedtohaveworkedbecause

shelivedtobe83yearsold.Finally,herhousewasfinished.

1.WhatdidSarahkeepdoingtoherhouse?

A.Makingitcleaner.B.Makingitquieter.

C.Makingitbigger.D.Makingitmorebeautiful

2.ThestorysaysthatSarah'shousehad

A.7floorsB.40floorsC.160floorsD.3floors

3.WhodidtheworkonSarah'shouse?

A.Sarahherselfandotherworkers.

B.Sarah'schildrenandotherworkers.

C.Carpentersandplumbersandotherworkers

D.Engineersandotherworkers.

4.Howlongdidtheworkonthehousecontinue?

A.For7years.B.For38years.C.For83years.D.Thestory

doesn'ttell.

5.Sarah'shousewasfinallyfinished

A.whenshemovedinB.whenshespentallhermoney

C.whenshediedD.whenshewasseriouslyill

Passage5

Thedinerisonlyahumblerestaurant,butithasaspecial

placeinAmericanlife.Dinersappearinournovels,plays,

poems,andmovies.Manyartistshaveuseddinersasscenesfor

theirpaintings.Whyaredinerssofascinatingtous?

Thedinerattractsmanydifferentkindsofpeople.Itisa

heavenforlonelytruckdriversfarawayfromhome.

Constructionworkerslearnaboutnewjobsindistantcities.

Travelingsalesmenexchangegossipwithoneanother.

Teenagerssitintheirbooths,eatinghamburgers.

Thepeoplewhoworkindinersarealsointeresting.Wheredid

thenewwaitresscomefrom?Willsheremainhere,orwillshe

suddenlyrunoffoneday,asthelastonedid?Andisthe

short-ordercookreallyanescapedprisoner,fleeingfromthe

law?

Everyonecomestothedinerforadifferentreason.Some

wanttoworkthere.Andsomewanttoeatthere.Somestayfor

years,andothersstayonlyforafewminutes.But,forallof

them,thedinerisabright,warmstopoverbetweentheendless

stretchesofanopenroad.

1.What'sthemainideaofparagraph27

A.Theattractionofdinerstodifferentpeople.B.Foodoffered

atdiners.C.Howpeopleeatatdiners.D.Whenpeoplecometo

diners.

2.Thepurposeofthelastparagraphisto

A.tellusaboutthereasonforpeoplecomingtodiners

B.'inviteustotrydinersasastopoverbetweenstretchesofan

openroad

C.giveasummaryofthewholepassage

D.statethemajorpointoftheprecedingparagraph

3.Whydotruckdriverslikeadiner?

A.It'saplacetogossip.B.It'saplaceforfliesandahamburger

C.It'sahavenagainstloneliness.D.It'saplacetolearnabout

newjobs.

4.Dinersattract

A.onlytruckdriversB.manydifferentkindsofpeopleC.

novelistsD.escapedprisoners

5.Dinersare-----

A.quietB.unpleasantC.bxuriousD.fascinating

Passage6

Inthepasttwoyears,millionsofAmericanshavesuddenly

embracedthebicyclesasifitwereastartlingnewinvention.

Annualbikesalesdoubledbetween1960and1970,andthere

arenearly70millionbikesintheUnitedStatestoday.That'S

morethantwoforeverythreeautomobiles.

Ofcourse,thebikehasbeenaroundformorethan150

years,andthisisn'tAmerica'sfirstbicycleboom.Awaveof

bikeenthusiasmsweptthelandinthelate1800sandbicycle

productionhittwomillionunitsin1897.Thenwiththecoming

oftheauto,bicyclingdeclined;andfordecadesremained

popularonlywithchildrenandafewadultfaddists.

Now,nationalpreoccupationwithairpollutionandphysical

fitnesshasbroughtthebikebacktotheforefront-particularly

withadults.Morethaneightmillionbikesweresoldinthe

UnitedStateslastyearandathirdofthemwenttoadults.The

yearbefore,only15percentofnewbikesaleswereforadults.

1.Theword“embrace“inthefirstsentenceisclosestin

meaningto

A.makeuseofB.takesomeoneintoalmsC.containD.

dealwith

2.Itcanbeconcludedthatifpeoplecontinuetoconcern

themselveswithairpollutionandphysicalfitness,

A.stricterairstandardswillbeenforcedB.fewerautomobiles

willbesoldC.AmericanswillenjoybetterhealthD.bicycle

saleswillcontinuetorise

3.Thebicycleis

A.enjoyingastrongrevivalB.creatingtrafficproblems

C.popularonlywithchildrenD.replacingthefamilycars

4.ThereadercanalsoconcludethatAmericansare

A.quicktofollowtheexampleofothersB.interestedin

comfortandluxuryC.concernedwiththequalityoftheirlives

D.childishinthewaytheyrelaxandexercise

5.Inthesentence"...andthisisn'tAmerica'sfirstbicycle

boom.^^Theword''boom"means

A.arapidincreaseinsaleB.supermarketC.arapidincrease

inpriceD.shop

Passage7

Doctorshaveknownforalongtimethatextremelyloud

noisescancausehearingdamageorloss.Thenoisecanbethe

soundofajetairplaneormachinesinfactoriesorloudmusicor

othercommonsoundsfoundathomeandatwork.

Apersononlyneedstohearthenoiseforlittlemorethan

onesecondtobeaffected.

AnAmericanscientisthadfoundthatusingaspirincan

increasethetemporaryhearinglossordamagefromloudnoise.

Hedidanexperiment,usinganumberofmalestudentsata

universitywhoallhadnormalhearing.Hegavethemdifferent

amountsofaspirinfordifferentperiodsoftime,thenhetested

theirhearingability.Hefoundthatstudentswhoweregivenfour

gramsofaspirinadayfortwodayssufferedmuchgreater

temporaryhearinglossthanthosewhodidnotuseaspirin.The

hearinglosswasabouttwiceasgreat.

ThescientistsaidmillionsofpersonsintheUnitedStates

usemuchlargeramountsofaspirinthanwereusedinthestudy.

Hesaidthesepersonsfaceaseriousdangerofsufferinghearing

lossfromloudnoises.

1.Doctorshavelongknownthat

A.onewillbecomedeafwhenhehearsaloudnoise

B.hearingdamageorlosscanbecausedbysoundsofallkinds

C.onemaylosehishearingwhenhehearsaterriblyloudnoise

D.commonsoundsathomearenotharmfultotheear

2.Thispassagesuggeststhatone'sheating

A.willbedamagedevenifhehasheardaloudnoiseforless

thanonesecond

B.willbedamagedevenifhehasheardaloudnoiseforonly

littlemorethanonesecond

C.willnotbedamagedifhehasheardaloudnoiseforonly

littlemorethanonesecond

D.willnotbedamagedifhehaslittlemorethanonesecondto

getready

3.Accordingtothispassage,oneconclusionyoucandrawis

thataspirin

A.shouldneverbetakenmorethanfourgramsdaily

B.candamageone'shearingwhenitisgivenmorethanfour

gramsdaily

C.makeshearingdamagefromloudnoiseworse

D.increaseshearinglossbythreetimes

4.MillionsofAmericansareindangerofsufferinghearingloss

becausethey

A.oftentakejetairplanesontrips

B.likelisteningtoloudmusic

C.aredrownedinloudnoisesathomeaswellasatwork

D.taketoomuchaspirin

5.ThepurposeoftheexperimenttheAmericanscientistdidwas

tofind

A.howmuchaspirinwouldaffectaperson'shearing

B.howmuchaspirinshouldbegiveninthetreatmentofthe

patientswithhearingdamagefromloudnoises

C.whetherthepersonwhohadhearingdamageshoulduse

aspirin

D.whetheraspirinwouldincreasethetemporaryhearing

damagefromloudnoises

Passage8

Justtwomonthsago,Ana,ateenager,waspreparingforan

importantexam.Winnersreceivescholarshipsandbeableto

studyintheUnitedStates.Anaknewhergradeswereexcellent,

butsherealizedthatshemustdowellontheexamsinorderto

qualifyforthe$3000stipend.AlthoughAnahadworriedabout

theinterviewpartoftheexam,shecamethroughwithflying

colors.ShespoketotheAmericanintervieweraboutherfamily

backgroundanddiscussedhereducationalplanswiththem.Her

hardworkpaidoff,forshewasoneofthetwentyawardeda

four-yearscholarshipearlierthismonth.

NowAnacannotbelievethatsheissittinginabusiness

managementclassattheUniversityofCaliforniaatLosAngeles.

AlthoughshehashadsevenyearsofEnglishlanguageclasses,

Anaisfindin2itdifficulttounderstandtheprofessor.Nowshe

mustworktwiceashardtomaintainherhighgrades.

1.Anarealizesthat

A.hergradesarepoor

B.shemustdowellontheexam

C.sheissittinginabusinessmanagementclass

D.shemustworktwiceashardtogetgoodgrades

2.AnahasbeenstudyingEnglishfor

A.sevenyearsB.twomonthsC.allherlifeD.thelasttwo

years

3.Anaexperiencesdifficultywith

A.textsB.technicaldefinitionsC.theprofessor'slecturesD

alloftheabove

4.Anatellstheinterviewersabout

A.herflyingcolorsB.herfamily

C.herdifficultyinunderstandingnewwordsD.herworries

abouttheinterview

5.Thebestmainideaforthefirstparagraphis

A.Anahasmanyexperiencestakingtheinterviewexam

B.Anapreparesfortheinterviewexam

C.Anacomesthroughwithflyingcolors

D.Anatakesexams

Passage9

Anymistakemadeintheprintingofastampraisesits

valuetostampcollectors.Amistakeononeinexpensivepostage

stamphasmadethestampworthamillionandahalftimesits

originalvalue.

Themistakewasmademorethanahundredyearsagoin

BritishcolonyofMauritius,asmallislandintheIndianOcean.

In1847,andorderforstampswassenttoLondonprinters.

Mauritiuswastobecomethefourthcountryintheworldtoissue

stamps.

Beforetheorderwasfilledanddelivered,aballwas

plannedatMauritiusGovernmentHouse,andstampswere

neededtosendouttheinvitationsAlocalprinterwasinstructed

tocopythedesignforthestamps.Heaccidentallywrotedown

thewords"PostOffice"insteadof"PostPaid"ontheseveral

hundredstampsthatheprinted.

Todaythereareonlytwenty-sixofthesemisprintedstamps

left-fourteenOnepennyOrange-RedsandtwelveTwopenny

Blues.BecauseoftheTwopennyBlues5rarenessandage,

collectorshavepaidasmuchas$16800forit.

1.Apostagestamp'svaluetocollectorsisraisedif

A.therearefewotherslikeitleft

B.therearenomistakesonthestamp

C.amistakeismadeintheprinting

D.bothAandB

2.In1847mostcountriesoftheworldwere

A.notyetusingpostagestamps

B.collectingvaluablestamps

C.buyingtheirownstamps

D.printingtheirownstamps

3.In1847,themistakeonthelocallyprintedpostage

stampswasinthe

A.spellingofpostageB.priceC.wordingD.color

4.$16800isthecollector'svalueof

A.theOnepennyOrange-Red

B.theTwopennyBlue

C.anystampprintedin1847

D.bothAandB

5.Thevaluablestampsweredesignedby

A.MauritiusgovernmentB.Britishgovernment

C.MauritiusprintersD.Britishprinters

Passage10

IntheEnglisheducationalsystem,studentstakethreevery

importantexaminations.Thefirstistheeleven-plus,whichis

takenattheageofelevenoralittlepast.Atonetimetheability

oraptitudeshownontheeleven-pluswouldhavedeterminedifa

childstayedinschool.Now,however,allchildrencontinuein

ucomprehensivevschools,andtheeleven,plusdetermines

whichcoursesofstudythechildwillfollowAttheageoffifteen

orsixteen,thestudentsaretestedfortheOrdinaryLevelofthe

GeneralCertificateofEducation.Thisexaminationcoversa

widerangeofsubjects;oncestudentshavepassedthisexam,

theyareallowedtospecialize,sothattwo-thirdsormoreoftheir

coursewillbeinphysics,chemistry,classicallanguages,or

whatevertheywishtostudyatgreaterlength.Thefinal

examination,ateighteen,coversonlythecontentofthespecial

subjects.Evenattheuniversities,studentsstudyonlyintheir

concentratedarea,andveryfewstudentseverventureoutside

thatsubjectagain;inarealsense,theEnglishboyorgirlisa

specialistfromtheageoffifteen.

1.Thepurposeofthispassageisto

A.showwhymostEnglishstudentsare“specialists”

B.showthesuperiorityoftheEnglisheducationalsystem

C.discussthequalitiesoftheEnglisheducationalsystem

D.describethreeteststhattheEnglisheducationalsystem

isbasedon

2.TheexamfortheOrdinaryLeveloftheGeneral

CertificateofEducationisadministratedattheageof

A.fifleenB.eighteenC.elevenD.thirteen

3.Wemayconcludefromthepassagethat

A.theexamthatistakenatageeighteenisnarrowerthan

theothertwoexams

B.failureontheeleven-plusexamexcludesastudentfrom

furtherschooling

C.highereducationismuchnarrowerinscopeinEngland

thaninAmerica

D.physicsandchemistryarethetwomostpopularsubjects

4.Thepassagesuggeststhat

A.mostpeopleinEnglandarecollegegraduates

B.schoolingisverycloselycontrolledinEngland

C.thefailurerateoneleven,plusexamisquitehigh

D.England'sstructurededucationalsystemhasreducedthe

illiteracyrateinthatcountrydramatically

5.Asusedinthelastsentence,theword“venture“means_

A.totaketheriskB.tostudyC.totaketheexamofD.to

specialize

Passage11

Forcenturies,inthecountriesofsouthandSoutheastAsia

theelephanthasbeenanintimatepartoftheculture,economy

andreligion.AndnowheremoresothaninThailand.Unlikeits

Africancousin,theAsianelephantiseasilydomesticated（驯化）.

Therareso-calledwhiteelephantshaveactuallylentthe

authorityofkingshiptoitsrulersanduntilthe1920sthe

nationalflagwasawhiteelephantonaredbackground.Tothe

earlyWesternvisitorsthecountry5sromanticnamewas“Landof

theWhiteElephantn.

Today,however,thestoryisverydifferent.Outofwork

andoutofland,theThaielephantstrugglesforsurvivalina

nationthatnolongerneedsit.Theelephanthasfounditself

moreorlessabandonedbypreviousownerswhohavemoved

ontoadifferenteconomicworldandawesternizedsociety.And

whiletheelephant'sproblemsbeganmanyyearsago,nowit

ratesaverylownationalpriority.

Howthisreversalfromnationalicon（圣像）toneglected

animalcameaboutisataleofworseningenvironmentalandthe

changinglivesoftheThaisthemselves.AccordingtoRichard

Lair,Thailand'sexpertontheAsianelephantandauthorofthe

reportGoneAstray,attheturnofthecenturytheremaywell

havebeenasmanyas100000domesticelephantsinthecountry.

InthenorthofThailandaloneitwasestimatedthatmorethan

20000elephantswereemployedintransport,1000ofthem

aloneontheroadbetweenthecitiesofChiangMaiandChiang

Saen.Thiswasatatimewhen90percentofThailandwasstill

forest-ahabitat（栖息地）thatnotonlysupportedtheanimalsbut

alsomadethemnecessarytocarrygoodsandpeopleNothing

ploughsthroughdenseforestbetterthanamassivebut

sure-footedelephant.

By1950theelephantpopulationhaddroppedtoastill

substantial13397,buttodaythereareprobablynomorethan

3800,withanother1350roamingfreeinthenationalparks.But

now,Thailand'sforestcoversonly20percentofthelandThis

deforestation（采伐森林）isthecentralpointoftheelephant's

difficultsituation,forithaseffectivelyputtheanimalsoutof

work.Thiscentury,astheroadnetworkgrew,sotheelephant's

roleasabeastofburdendeclined.

1.WhatcanweknowaboutAfricanelephantsfromthe

passage?

A.Itiseasytotamethem

B.Itishardtotamethem.

C.TheyarelivingabetterlifethanAsianelephants.

D.TheirfateisquitesimilartothatofAsianelephants

2.Thailandwasoncecalled“LandoftheWhiteElephantn

because

A.whiteelephantisrarelyseenandthusveryspecial

B.whiteelephantwasanationalsymboluntilthe1920s

C.whiteelephanthashelpedkingstogaintheruling

authority

D.thisnamewassoromanticthatitwaspopularamong

visitors

3.WhyistheThaielephantuoutofwork”，accordingtothe

author?

A.Becausetheelephantsarenolongerusefultotheir

owners.

B.Becausetheirownersarewesternizedandneglectthem

C.Becausethegovernmentpayslittleattentiontothe

problem.

D.Becausetherearetoomanyelephantsandtoofewjobs.

4.Whichofthefollowingstatementsistreeaboutthe

elephantpopulationatvarioustimes?

A.Therewere100000tamedelephantsattheturnofthe

century.

B.20000elephantswereemployedintransportinThailand

attheturnofthecentury.

C.By1950theelephantpopulationinThailandhasbeen

quitesmall.

D.Todaytheelephantpopulationisestimatedat5150.

5.Thepassageismostprobablyfrom

A.atravelmagazineB.ahistorybook

C.aresearchreportD.anofficialannouncement

Passage12

Thecommunicationsexplosionisonthescaleoftherail,

automobileortelephonerevolution.Verysoonyou'llbeableto

recordyourentirelifeelectronically-anythingamicrophoneora

cameracansenseyou511beabletostore.Inparticular,the

numberofimagesapersoncapturesinalifetimeissuretorise

dramatically.ThethousandimagesayearItakeofmychildren

onadigitalcameraareallprecioustomeInageneration'stime,

mychildren'schildrenwillhavetotalimagedocumentationof

theirentirelives-avisualdiaryoftremendouspersonalvalue.

InCambridge,we'realreadyworkingonmillimeter-square

（平方毫米）computingandsensingdevicesthatcanbelinkedto

theInternetthroughtheradionetwork.Thissortofconnectivity

willexpanddramaticallyastinycommunicationsdevices

becomedirt-cheapandmultiply.Justimaginewhatthepainton

thewallcoulddoifithadthissortofcommunicationsdustinit：

changecolor,playmusic,showmoviesorevenspeakofyou.

Fallingcostsraiseotherpossibilitiestoo.Because

launchingspacevehiclesisabouttobecomeverymuchcheaper,

thenumberofsatellitesislikelytogoupgreatly.There9slotsof

spaceuptheresowecouldhavemillionsofthem.Andifyou

havemillionsoflow-orbitsatellitesyoucanestablishaglobal

communicationsnetworkthatcompletelydoesawaywith

towersandpoles.

SpeechissoflexiblethatIexpectvoicecommunicationto

becomealmostfreeeventually：you'llpayjustamonthlyfixed

chargeandbeabletomakeasmanycallsasyouwant.Bythen

peoplewillalsohavefixedlinkswithbusinesscontacts,friends

andrelatives.OnedayIanticipatebeingabletokeepintouch

withmyfamilyinPolandonanoptical-fiberaudio-videolink；

we'llbeabletositdown“together“toeat.

CarsarcaninterestingIT-platformbecausetheyhavebig

batteriesandthelotsofsofarunconnecteddigitaldevices.Soon

eachonewillbeontheInternetsoyourchildrencanplaygames

whileyou'retravelingandyourpartnercandealwiththeiremail.

AndeverylamppostcouldbeontheInternettoo-eachonewith

sensorstomonitorlight,pollution,airqualityandtrafficflow.

1.Bysayingthathetakesmayimagesofhischildren,the

authorwantsto

A.showhisgreatinterestinphotography

B.comparehisownlifewithhischildren's

C.displaytheinfluenceofcommunicationsonlife

D.demonstratetheeaseofenjoyinglifeelectrically

2.Theauthormostprobablythinksthecommunications

dustis

A.worthlessB.amazingC.smallD.cheap

3.Whichofthefollowingstatementsaboutthelow-orbit

satellitesistrue?

A.Thelow-orbitsatellitescanhelpreducethecostsof

communicationsnetwork.

B.Thelow-orbitsatelliteswillenableallthe

communicationsnetworktocombine

C.Thelow-orbitsatelliteswouldreplacetowersand

polesfunctionally.

D.Therewillbemorelow-orbitsatellitesthanother

kindsofsatellites.

4.Accordingtothepassage,anoptical-fiberaudio-video

linkcanenableusto

A.talkandseeeachothernomatterwhereweare

B.eatwithourfamilynomatterwhereweare

C.talkorseeanyonewewantfreeofcharge

Dfindmorebusinesspartnersandfriends

5.Thephrase“eachone”(Line2,Para.5)canbebest

replacedby

A.eachdigitaldeviceB.eachcarC.eachbatteryD.each

Oerson

Passage13

Manyprivateinstitutionsofhighereducationaroundthe

countryareindanger.Notallwillbesaved,andperhapsnotall

deservetobesaved.Therearelow-qualityschoolsjustasthere

arelow-qualitybusiness.Wehavenoobligationtosavethem

simplybecausetheyexist.

Butmany