There have been many great inventions, things that changed the way we live. The first great invention was one that is still very important today- the wheel. This made it easier to carry heavy things and to travel long distances.
For hundreds of years after that there were few inventions that had as much effect(影响) as the wheel. Then in the early 1800’s the world started to change. There was little unknown land left in the world. People didn’t have to explore(探测) much anymore. They began to work instead to make life better.
In the second half of the 19th century many great inventions were made. Among them were the camera, the light and the radio. These all became a big part of our life today.
The first part of the 20th century saw more great inventions. The helicopter in 1909. Movies with sound in 1926. The computer in 1928. And jet planes in 1930. This was also a time when a new material was first made. Nylon came in 1935. It changed the kind of clothes people wear.
By this time most people had a very good life, Man has a desire to explore again, the world was known to man but the stars were not. Man began looking for ways to go into space. Russia made the first step. Then the United States took a step. Since then other countries, including China and Japan, have made their steps into space.
In 1969 man took his biggest step from the earth. Americans first walked on the moon. This is certainly just a beginning thought. New inventions will someday allow us to do things we have never yet dreamed of.

1. 1.

   This passage talks mainly about________.

   1. A.
      why cars were very important        
   2. B.
      when light was invented
   3. C.
      which country made the first step into space 
   4. D.
      how inventions effect people’s life
2. 2.

   Nylon came out nearly at the same time as _______.

   1. A.
      radio
   2. B.
      camera
   3. C.
      jet planes
   4. D.
      movies
3. 3.

   Which of the statements is not true?

   1. A.
      The wheel was the first great invention that is still very important today. For hundredsof years after that there were many other inventions having as much effect as the wheel.
   2. B.
      America, Russia, Japan and China began to explore the stars before1969.
   3. C.
      In the early 1800’s people began to work instead of exploring more unknown land to make life better.
   4. D.
      New invention will change our life greatly in the future.
4. 4.

   What does “ a desire” mean in the sentence “Man had a desire to explore more.”?

   1. A.
      a good way
   2. B.
      a new invention
   3. C.
      a strong wish
   4. D.
      a wonderful idea
5. 5.

   Man didn’t have a desire to explore a lot_______.

   1. A.
      at the beginning of the 1800’s
   2. B.
      in the 1960’s
   3. C.
      since the 1900’s
   4. D.
      from the 1800’s to the 1960’s

 There is not enough oil in the world now. As time goes by ,it becomes less and less ,so what are we going to do when it runs out? Perhaps we will go back to use horses ,carriages and bicycles .

 In the Second World War ,some people didn＇t use gas made from petroleum （石油）in their cars .They made gas from wood and plants instead . The cars didn＇t go fast ,but they ran ,so this was better than nothing. However, in the future, we can＇t cut down all our trees to make gas; we need our trees for other things, too.

Besides different types of gas, we can also use electricity(电)to run our cars but first we must make the electricity ！Some countries have coal and they make electricity with that, but we might not always have coal, either. Other countries have big ,strong rivers and they can use the power of water to turn turbines(涡轮机) and make electricity more easily and cheaply.

We are also able to get power from the ocean tides. We put turbines into the mouth of the river .Then the tide comes in ,the water turns the turbines and then it goes out ,it turns them again.

Which of these ways will be used to run our cars in the future?

1.When might people have to go back to using horses and carriages?

A. When they are poor    

B. When they run out of oil

C. When they need more exercise

D. When there aren＇t any big trees in the world

2.How many ways are suggested to make electricity in the passage?

A.2           B.5          C.4                 D.3

3.The passage is mainly about             .

A. how to run our cars

B. what to do when oil runs out

C. different types of gas

D. the way to make electricity

How would we travel without maps? It would be a bit adventurous (冒险的) to set off from Oxford University to go to London Bridge if there wasn't a map of the London Underground at each station. In fact, a lot of the early map-makers were adventurers and explorers, especially in the 15th and 16th centuries.
So what did people do before there were maps? Well, it was quite easy to use natural signs like mountains and rivers if you were travelling on foot or riding a horse. People took small boats down rivers and followed coastlines. And it was much more logical (合理的) to use time, not distance, to measure (计量) journeys: the next village is a three-hour ride, for example.
In fact, in the earliest maps, people didn't draw landmarks. They drew the stars. It was very easy to see the night sky and use it for navigation (航行). The sky was a lot clearer before the light pollution from cities that we have today. When towns and cities were built, people drew road maps which gave correct distances and directions.
The London Underground was opened in 1863 and it also used a road map style. But a man called Henry Beck realized that travelling by train wasn't the same as driving your car across London. Passengers only needed to know which stations to change at. His new design (设计) for the Underground map wasn't very popular with the train companies at first. But the passengers loved it and in 1933, 700,000 copies were printed.
These days, of course, you can ride a bike, drive a car or go through a forest and know where you are exactly, using a GPS. It's really difficult to get lost!
【小题1】What was drawn in the earliest maps?

Hundreds of years ago, life was harder than it is today. People didn’t have modern machines. There was no medicine, either.

Life today brings new problems. One of the biggest is pollution. Water pollution has made our rivers and lakes dirty. It kills our fish and pollutes our drinking water. Noise pollution makes us talk louder and we become angry more easily. Air pollution is the most serious kind of pollution to all living things in the world.

Cars, planes and factories all pollute our air every day. Sometimes the polluted air is very thick. People cannot see the sky clearly.

Many countries are making rules to fight against pollution. Factories now must clean their water before they throw it away. And they mustn’t let dirty smoke go into the air.

There are many things we can do to fight against pollution. We should put waste things in dustbins and do not throw them on the ground. We should go to work by bike or on foot instead of taking a car or a bus. If there are fewer people driving, there will be less pollution.

    Rules are not enough. We should do our best to fight against pollution.

1.Which of the following is NOT true about life in the past?

2.What should people do to fight against pollution?

3.The most serious pollution is              .

4.What should factories do to fight against pollution?

5.From the passage, we know that              .

He was a stranger in this town, so the local people didn’t know _______.