2010 was a good year for American farmers. They earned about eighty-two billion dollars. That is almost one-third more than that they earned last year. And it is twenty-six percent higher than the ten-year average. Values for grain and oilseed crops are up about three percent from last year. The value of animal production is up by almost seven percent. In 2011, farm exports are expected to break the all-time high set in 2008.The Agriculture Department says exports in 2011 could top one hundred and twenty-six billion dollars. The largest buyer of agricultural products is expected to be Canada. But farm exports to China are predicted to come within five hundred million dollars of Canadian purchases. Secretary Vilsack says countries in Southeast Asia and the Middle East are also buying more from American farmers. Poor growing conditions overseas played an important part in higher prices for American crops in 2010.Charlotte Hebe brand is chief executive of the International Food and Agricultural Trade Policy Council in Washington. She said drought conditions had a big effect over the summer. She said,"There were horrible weather problems, not just in Russia but also in some of the other former Soviet Union countries." Wheat prices rose after Russia stopped wheat exports,although Russia later eased the ban ."Wheat used to be America's top crop. What's interesting,though,is that wheat production has actually become less over the past few years because corn has become the most popular crop,"said economist Charlotte Hebebrand. Corn is mostly fed to animals. But Miss Hebebrand said with the recent increase in wheat prices, American farmers might plant more wheat again. Corn and wheat are the two largest crops supported by the government. According to what Miss Hebebrand said, we know American farmers will ---- A) stop feeding corn to animals B) export most of their corn C) try to increased wheat production D) try to get more support from the governmet
C
(Question)
_ In order to reduce air pollution and oilshortages, automobile manufacturers have announced their plans to develop hybrid vehicles for the Chinese market. Toyota's hybrid car Prius will be ready to drive in China this week. Let's have a look at the new car. Any vehicle is a hybrid when it combines two or more sources of power. Hybrid cars run off a rechargeable battery and gasoline. Hybrid cars have special engines, which are smaller than traditional gasoline engines. They run at 99 percent of their power when the car is cruising . A specially designed battery motor provides extra power for running up hills or when extra acceleration is needed. Step into a Prius, and turn on the engine. The first thing you notice is how much quieter it is than a traditional car. At this point, the car's gasoline engine is dormant . The electric motor will provide power until the car reaches about 24 km/h. If you stay at a low speed, you are effectively driving an electric car, with no gasoline being used, and no waste gas gives off. The onboard computer makes the decision about when to use a gas engine, when to go electric, and when to use a combination of the two. If you go over 24 km/h, when you step on the gas pedal , you are actually telling the computer how fast you want to go. The electronic motor recharges automatically using a set of batteries. When driving at high speed, the gasoline engine not only powers the car, but also charges the batteries. Any time you use the brake, the electric motor in the wheels will work like a generator and produce electricity to recharge the batteries. As a consequence, the car's batteries will last for around 200,000 miles. Which of the followings is NOT true? A) The hybrid cars reduce air pollution and oilshortages. B) The car's gasoline engine doesn't work until it reaches about 24 km/h. C) This kind of car is completely controlled by an onboard computer. D) A specially designed battery motor provides extra power when needed.
(Answer)
C
Ques: Thirteen vehicles lined up last March to race across the Mojave Desert , seeking a million in prize money . To win , they had to finish the 142-mile race in less than 10 hours . Teams and watchers knew there might be no winner at all , because these vehicles were missinge a key part drivers . DARPA , the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency , organized the race as part of a push to develop robotic vehicles for future battlefields . But the Grand Challenge , as it was called , just proved how difficult it is to get a car to speed across an unfamiliar desert without human guidance . One had its brake lock up in the starting area . Another began by throwing itself onto a wall . Another got tied up by bushes near the road after 1.9 miles . One turned upside down . One took off in entirely the wrong direction and had to be disabled by remote control . One went a little more than a mile and rushed into a fence ; another managed to go for six miles but stuck on a rock . The "winner," if there was any , reached 7.8 miles before it ran into a long , narrow hole , and the front wheels caught on fire . "You get a lot of respect for natural abilities of the living things," says Reinhold Behringer , who helped design two of the car-size vehicles for a company called Sci-Autonics . "Even ants can do all these tasks effortlessly . It's very hard for us to put these abilities into our machines ." The robotic vehicles , though with necessary modern equipment such as advanced computers and GPS guidance , had trouble figuring out fast enough the blocks ahead that a two-year-old human recognizes immediately , Sure , that very young child, who has just only learned to walk , may not think to wipe apple juice off her face , but she already knows that when there's a cookie in the kitchen she has to climb up the table , and that when she gets to the cookie it will taste good . She is more advanced , even months old , than any machine humans have designed . From the passage we know "robotic vehicles" are a kind of machines that_. A) can do effortlessly whatever tasks living thing can B) can take part in a race across 142 miles with a time limit C) can show off their ability to turn themselves upside down D) can move from place to place without being driven by human beings
Ans:
D