The computer is a useful machine. It is the most important invention in many years. The oldest kind of computer is the abacus , used in China centuries ago, but the first large, modern computer was built in 1946. A computer then could do maths problems quite fast. Today computers are used in many ways and can do many kinds of work. In a few years the computer may touch the life of everyone, even people in faraway villages. In the last few years, there have been great changes in computers. They are getting smaller and smaller, and computing faster and faster, Many scientists agree that computers can now do many things, but they cannot do everything. Who knows what the computers of tomorrow will be like? Will computers bring good things or bad things to people? The scientists of today will have to decide how to use the computers of tomorrow. Computers can do _ . A) everything B) anything C) nothing D) lots of things
D
(Question)
The postal clerk laughed and said, "I have never had anyone hand in money before, but I will put it in an envelope. Please write your name and telephone number on the front. If no one claims the money, we will call you." The lady explained, "I have lost money before and it was never turned in. I remember how I felt. I don't want to make someone else feel that way." Then she left the post office. At almost the same time a very young man rushed in. He approached the postal clerk and asked, "Has anyone turned in any money recently?" He told the clerk the amount, and the clerk laughed again. "As a matter of fact, yes!" she responded. "It was turned in just a couple of minutes ago." The look of relief on the young man's face is a memory I will have for a long time. He said he thought the money was safe in his coat pocket when he walked in to check his mailbox. Only when he arrived home did he realize that it was no longer there. I finally finished preparing the package to be mailed, but I was the one who had a very special surprise in the post office. What can we learn from the story? A) A friend in need is a friend indeed. B) Without money you can do nothing. C) Few people like to help others nowadays. D) Strangers' kindness also makes a difference.
(Answer)
D
Ques: What shapes a man's ability and skill was always a question to psychologists until a few decades ago when findings show that they for the most part come from practice ---- repetitive and endless practice. The psychologist K. Anders Ericsson of the University of Florida and his team, based on a survey of a violin class in a college of music, have found that the students whose levels are rated as "A" have spent on average over 10,000 hours on violin-practice, those with level B a bit less than 8,000 hours, and those with average or lower levels no more than 5,000 hours. The result of the survey is widely preferred because it suggests that practice makes perfect, that is, the distinction between "excellent" and "good" lies more in hard work than in natural intelligence. Malcolm Gladwell points out in his latest book Outliers: The Story of Success: "Practice isn't the thing you do once you're good. It's the thing you do that makes you good." Besides, he thinks IQ plays little part in the formation and development of ability. "When one has an IQ of 120," writes he, "what is beyond it does not make an evidential difference in real life." However, scientists' experimental results are quite different from the psychologists'. Their findings show success in many areas depends on intelligence --- and not a little. David Lubinski and Camilla Benbow of Vanderbilt University, with their research group, carried out a milestone research. They selected from Youth Talented Search 2000 teenagers of or under 13 whose SAT results ranked top1%. After tracking the achievements the 2,000 "wonder children" made in academy and career, Lubinski and Benbow's group found that those ranking top 1% have more possibility (averagely by two to four times) to get a doctor's degree, a certificate, and publish academic theses and works than those ranking top 9%. As a conclusion, it's a great advantage in the real world to have a high IQ. What is the writer's attitude to psychologists' and scientists' conclusions about man's ability and skill? A) He is more in favor of psychologists'. B) He prefers scientists' to psychologists'. C) He takes an objective attitude to both. D) He supports both conclusions equally. Ks5u
Ans: C
Fifteen years ago, I entered the Boston Globe, which was a temple to me then. It wasn't easy getting hired. But once you were there, I found, you were in. Globe jobs were for life-guaranteed until retirement. For 15 years I had prospered there--moving from an ordinary reporter to senior editor. I would have a lifetime of security if I stuck with it. Instead, I had made a decision to leave. I entered my boss's office. Would he be angry? I wondered. He had a famous temper. "Matt, we have to have a talk," I began. "I came to the Globe when I was twenty-four. Now I' m forty. There' s a lot I want to do in life. I'm resigning. " "To another paper?" he asked. I reached into my coat pocket, but didn't say anything. I handed him a letter that explained everything. It said that I was leaving to start a new media company. We were at a rare turning point in history. I wanted to be directly engaged in the change. "I' m glad for you," he said, quite out of my expectation. "I just came from a board of directors meeting and it was seventy-five percent discouraging news. Some of that we can deal with. But much of it we can' t," he went on. "I wish you all the luck in the world," he concluded. "And if it doesn't work out, remember, there is always a place here for you." Then I went out of his office, walking through the newsroom for more good-byes. Everybody was saying congratulations. Everybody--even though I'd be risking all the financial security I had carefully built up. Later, I had a final talk with Bill Taylor, chairman and publisher of the Boston Globe. He had turned the Globe into a billion-dollar property. "I' m resigning, Bill," I said. He listened while I gave him the story. He wasn't looking angry either. After a pause, he said, "Golly, I wish I were in your shoes. " When the writer decided to resign, the Globe was faced with _ . A) a trouble with its staff members B) a shortage of qualified reporters C) an unfavorable business situation D) a good business situation
C