In what now seems like the prehistoric times of computer history, the e_arly post-war era( 战后时期 ), there was a quite widespread concern that computers would take over the world from man one day. Already today, less than forty years later, as computers are relieving us of more and more of the routine tasks in business and in our personal lives, we are facing with a less dramatic but also less foreseen problem. People tend to be over-trusting (过分信任) of computers and are re- luctant to challenge their authority. Indeed, they behave as if they were hardly aware that wrong buttons may be pushed, or that a computer may simply malfunction(失灵).

　　Obviously, there would be no point in investing(投入) in a computer if you had to check all its answers, but people should also rely on their own internal computers and check the machine when they have the feeling that something has gone wrong. Questioning and routine double checks must continue to be as much a part of good business as they were in pre-computer days. Maybe each computer should come with the following warning: for all the help this computer may provide, it should not be seen as a substitute for fundamental thinking and reasoning skills.

　　1.What is the main purpose of this passage?

　　A.To look back to the early days of computers.

　　B.To explain what technical problems may occur with computers.

　　C.To discourage unnecessary investment in computers.

　　D.To warn against the blindness to the probable shortcomings of computers.

　　答案：D

　　2.The passage recommends those dealing with computers to ________

　　A.be reasonably doubtful about them

　　B.check all their answers

　　C.substitute them for basic thinking

　　D.use them for business purpose only

　　答案：A

　　3.An "internal computer" ( Para. 2 ) is ________

　　A.a computer used exclusively by one company for its own problems

　　B.a person' s store of knowledge and the ability to process it

　　C.the most up to date in home computer a company can buy

　　D.a computer from the post-war era which is very reliable

　　答案：B

　　4.The passage suggests that the present day problem with regard to computers is ________

　　A.challenging

　　B.psychological

　　C.dramatic

　　D.over-trusting

　　答案：D

　　5.It can be inferred from the passage that the author would disapprove of ________

　　A.computer science courses in high schools

　　B.businessmen and women who use pocket calculators

　　C.maintenance(连续不断) checks on computers

　　D.companies which depend entirely on computers

　　答案：D

　　How can we get rid of garbage? Do we have enough energy sources to meet our future energy needs?

　　These are two important questions that many people are asking today. Some people think that man might be able to solve both problems at the same time. They suggest using garbage as an energy source, and at the same time it can save the land to hold garbage.

　　For a long time, people buried garbage or dumped (倾倒) it on empty land. Now, empty land is scarce. But more and more garbage is produced each year. However, garbage can be a good fuel to use. The things in garbage do not look like coal, petroleum, or natural gas; but they are chemically similar to these fossil (化石) fuels. As we use up our fossil fuel supplies, we might be able to use garbage as an energy source.

　　Burning garbage is not a new idea. Some cities in Europe and the United States have been burning garbage for years. The heat that is produced by burning garbage is used to boil wa-

　　ter. The steam that is produced is used to make electricity or to heat nearby buildings. In Paris, France, some power plants burn almost 2 million metric tons of the cities garbage each year. The

　　amount of energy produced is about the same as would be produced by burning almost a half mil- lion barrels of oil.

　　Our fossil fuel supplies are limited. Burning garbage might be one kind of energy source that we can use to help meet our energy needs. This method could also reduce the amount of gar-bage piling up on the earth.

　　6.What two problems can man solve by burning garbage?

　　A.The shortage of energy and air pollution.

　　B.The shortage of energy and the land to hold garbage.

　　C.Air pollution and the shortage of fossil fuel.

　　D.Air pollution and the shortage of land to hold garbage.

　　答案：B

　　7.Which of the following is not the result of burning garbage?

　　A.The garbage burned is turned into fossil fuels.

　　B.The heat produced is used to boil water.

　　C.The steam produced is used to make electricity.

　　D.The steam produced is used to heat buildings.

　　答案：A

　　参考解析：

　　8.According to the passage which of the following is NOT true?

　　A.About 2 million metric tons of garbage is burned in some power plants in Pads, France each year.

　　B.In a modem society, more and more garbage is produced each year.

　　C.Using garbage is a good way to solve the problem of energy shortage.

　　D.It will be too expensive to use garbage as an energy source.

　　答案：D

　　9.What is the author's attitude?

　　A.Delighted.

　　B.Sad.

　　C.Agreeing.

　　D.Disagreeing.

　　答案：C

　　10.The best title for the passage may be

　　A.Garbage and the Earth

　　B.Fossil Fuel and Garbage

　　C.Land and Garbage

　　D.Garbage--Energy Source

　　答案：D

　　Another thing an astronaut has to learn about is eating in space. Food is weightless, just as men are.Food for space has to be packed in special ways. Some of it goes into tubes that a man can squeeze into his mouth. Bite-sized cookies are packed in plastic.

　　There is a good reason for covering each bite. The plastic keeps pieces of food from travelling in the spaceship. On the earth very small pieces of food would simply fall to the floor. But gravity doesn' t pull them to the floor when they are out of the plastic in a spaceship. ( 78 ) They move here and there and can get into a man' s eyes or into the spaceship' s instruments. If any of the instru-ments is blocked, the astronauts may have trouble getting safely home.

　　As astronauts travel on longer space trips, he must take time to sleep. An astronaut can fit　himself to his seat with a kind of seat belt. Or, if he wants to, he can sleep in a sleeping bag which

　　is fixed in place under his seat. But be careful he must put his hands under the belt when he goes to sleep. This is because he is really afraid that he might touch one of controls that isn' t supposed to be touched until later.

　　11.Why would astronauts cover each bite of food in space?

　　A.Because small pieces of food would fall down to the floor.

　　B.Because weightless pieces of food might make trouble when they travel around.

　　C.Because they haven' t enough food for longer trips.

　　D.Because astronauts don' t want to waste food.

　　答案：B

　　12.In a spaceship, astronauts can

　　A.walk just as they do on the earth

　　B.not eat anything because it' s dangerous

　　C.control the spaceship when they are sleeping

　　D.not litter small things or it will make trouble

　　答案：D

　　13.In what way is food for space packed?

　　A.Very small pieces of food are put on the floor.

　　B.Some of it is put into tubes.

　　C.Small-sized cookies are packed in plastic.

　　D.Both B and C.

　　答案：D

　　14.Why does an astronaut put his hand under his belt when he ~leeps?

　　A.Because he thinks it is comfortable to sleep in that way in space.

　　B.Because he doesn' t want to touch any controls when he sleeps.

　　C.Because the instruments of the spaceship are easily broken.

　　D.Because he is afraid that the seat will move.

　　答案：B

　　15.The best title of this article is

　　A.Eating and Sleeping in Space

　　B.How Astronauts Eat in Space

　　C.Food for Space

　　D.How Astronauts Sleep in Space

　　答案：A