A scientist turns out to be able to see the future by offering each of some four-year-olds a piece of candy and watching how he or she deals with it. Some children reach eagerly for the treat they see. Some last a few minutes before they give in. But others are determined to wait until the last moment.

By the time the children reach high school, something remarkable has happened. A survey found that those who as four-year-olds had enough self-control to hold out generally grew up to be more popular, adventurous, confident and dependable. The children who gave in to temptation early on were more likely to be lonely, easily frustrated and inflexible .

Actually, the ability to delay reward is a sign of emotional intelligence which doesn’t show up on an IQ test.

The hardware of the brain and the software of the mind have long been scientists’ concerns. But brain theory can’t explain what we wonder about most, like the question why some people remain upbeat in the face of troubles that would sink a less resistant soul.   

Here comes the theory of Daniel Goleman, writer of Emotional Intelligence: when it comes to predicting people’s success, brain ability as measured by IQ may actually matter less than the qualities of mind once thought of as “character”.

EQ is not the opposite of IQ. What researchers have been trying to understand is how they work together; how one’s ability to handle stress, for instance, affects the ability to concentrate and put intelligence to use. Among the elements for success, researchers now generally agree that IQ counts for about 20%; the rest depends on everything from social class to luck.

While many researchers in this relatively new field are glad to see emotional issues finally taken seriously, some few fear EQ invites misuse.

1.Which of the following is true of EQ and IQ according to the text?

2. The underlined word “upbeat” in Paragraph 4 probably means         .

3.What is most likely to be written in the paragraph that follows?

Scientists have developed a non-stick chewing gum(口香糖). The new gum can     (remove) easily from pavements, shoes and clothes. It’s the result of polymer (聚合体) research at the University of Bristol and could be launched commercially in 2008.      it catches on(流行), the product will solve      major headache for present authorities around the world.

“A great     (disadvantage) of our Clean Gum is that it is easy to remove and has the potential to be    (environment) degradable (可降解的),” said Terence Cosgrove, a professor of chemistry      helped to found a company called Revolymer to commercialize the technology.

Today’s chewing gums are made   synthetic latex(人工制造的乳液), which is resistant to the weather and is strongly sticky. The new gum adds a special polymer to change its properties(特性),       (make) it far less sticky.

In two street trials,       commercial gums remained stuck to the pavement        Clean Gum came away naturally in all cases.

Babies born in summer are more likely to become short-sighted in late life, a study has shown.

As many as a quarter of all cases of short-sightedness are caused by too great an exposure to sunlight in the first weeks of life, say eye experts.

They are advising all parents to put sunglasses on their babies during the first weeks.

Scientists had already established that over-exposure to sunlight caused short-sightedness in animals.

Researchers who compared the months in which babies were born with whether they needed glasses later on say the principle also applies to humans.

A study of almost 300,000 young adults─the largest of its kind─showed that those born in June and July had a 25 per cent greater chance of becoming severely short-sighted than those born in December or January. Research leader Professor Michael Belkin, of Tel Aviv University, said it was because prolonged illumination(光照) causes the eyeball to lengthen, causing short-sightedness.

Hence the more light a newborn is exposed to, the more the eyeball lengthens and the worse the short-sightedness will be.

The mechanism which lengthens the eyeball is associated with levels of melatonin(褪黑激素), a pigment (色素) which protects the skin against harmful rays of the sun.

In young babies not enough melatonin is released as protection, meaning they are more vulnerable to sunburn and changes to eyeball shape.

Sight expert Professor Daniel O’Leary, of Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge, said “At the moment we don’t know the precise cause of why light exposure affects sight, but the evidence seems to prove that it is one of the reasons for people becoming short-sighted.”

1.    Babies born in summer are more likely to be short-sighted ____________.

       A. because the summer sun is too strong for babies

       B. because babies born in summer have lengthened eyeballs

       C. if they are exposed to much sunlight in the first weeks after they are born

       D. if parents don’t know a proper way to protect their babies’ eyes

2.    Melatonin is a kind of material to ___________.

       A. prevent the eyes from becoming near-sighted

        B. protect the skin from harmful sun rays

       C. make our body strong

       D. protect babies’ eyes from summer sun

3.      From what Professor Daniel O’Leary says we can conclude that ___________.

       A. there is no evidence that short-sightedness is related to exposure to sunlight

       B. whether light exposure affects sight still needs to be further proved

       C. he believes that light exposure can cause short-sightedness

       D. he tries to give the cause of why light exposure affects sight

4.      The underlined word “vulnerable” in the passage probably means __________.

       A. easy to be harmed                               B. resistant

       C. protective                                             D. changeable

During the years after the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center, structural engineers have been trying hard to solve a question that would otherwise have been completely unthinkable: Can building be designed to stand catastrophic blasts (攻击；爆破) by terrorists?

    Soon after the terrorist attacks on the twin towers, structural engineers from the University at Buffalo and the Multidisciplinary Center for Earthquake Engineering Research (MCEER) traveled to ground zero as part of a project funded by the National Science Foundation. They spent two days beginning the task of formulating (构思) ideas about how to design such structures and to search for clues on how to do so in buildings that were damaged, but still are standing.

    “Our objective in visiting ground zero was to go and look at the buildings surrounding the World Trade Center, those buildings that are still standing, but that sustained damage,” said Mr. Bruneau, Ph.D. “Our immediate hope is that we can develop a better understanding as to why those buildings remain standing, while our long-term goal is to see whether earthquake engineering technologies can be married to existing technologies to achieve enhanced performance of buildings in the event of terrorist attacks,” he added.

    Photographs taken by the investigators demonstrate the monumental damage to the World Trade Center towers and buildings nearby. One building a block away from the towers remains standing, but was badly damaged. “This building is many meters away from the World Trade Center and yet we see a column (柱子) there that used to be part of that building,” explained A. Whittaker, Ph.D. “The column became a missile that shot across the road, through the window and through the floor.”

    The visit to the area also brought some surprises, according to the engineers. For example, the floor framing (框架) system in one of the buildings was quite strong , allowing floors that were pierced by tons of falling debris (残砾) to survive. “Good framing systems may provide a simple, but reliable strategy for blast resistance,” he added. Other strategies may include providing alternate paths for gravity loads in the event that a load-bearing column fails. “We also need a better understanding of the mechanism of collapse,” said A. Whittaker. “We need to find out what causes a building to collapse and how you can predict it.”

    A. Reinhorn, Ph.D. noted that “earthquake shaking has led to the collapse of buildings in the past. Solutions developed for earthquake-resistant design may apply to blast engineering and terrorist-resistant design. Part of our mission now is to transfer these solutions and to develop new ones where none exist at present.”

1.The question raised in the first paragraph is one _____ .

A. that was asked by structural engineers a month ago

B. that is too difficult for structural engineers a month ago

C. that was never thought of before the terrorist attack

D. that terrorists are eager to find a solution to

2.The column mentioned by Dr. Whittaker _____ .

A. was part of the building close to the World Trade Center

B. was part of the World Trade Center

C. was shot through the window and the floor of the World Trade Center

D. damaged many buildings near the World Trade Center

3.A surprising discovery made by the investigators during their visit to ground zero is that _____.

A. floors in the faraway buildings remained undamaged

B. some floor framing systems demonstrate resistance to explosion

C. complex floor framing systems are more blast resistant

D. floors in one of the buildings were pierced by tons of debris

4. What Dr. Reinhorn said in the last paragraph may imply all the following EXCEPT that _____.

A. blast engineers should develop new solutions for terror-resistant design

B. blast engineering can borrow technologies developed for terror-resistant design

C. solutions developed for earthquake-resistant design may apply to terrorist-resistant design

D. blast engineering emerges as a totally new branch of science

Redwood trees are the tallest plants on the earth，reaching heights of up to 100 meters．They are also known for their longevity，typically 500 to 1000 years，but sometimes more than 2000 years．A hundred million years ago，in the age of dinosaurs，redwoods were common in the forests of a much more moist and tropical North America．As the climate became drier and colder，they declined to a narrow strip along the Pacific coast of Northern Califomia．

The trunk of redwood trees is very strong and usually forms a single straight column．It is covered with a soft bark．This bark can be pretty thick，well over two feet in the more mature trees．It gives the older trees a certain kind of protection from insects，but the main benefit is that it keeps the center of the tree harmless from moderate forest fires because of its thickness．This fire resistant quality explains why the giant redwood grows to live that long．While most other types of trees are destroyed by forest fires，the giant redwood actually prospers because of them．

Moderate fires will clear the ground of competing plant life，and the rising heat dries and opens the ripe fruit of the redwood，releasing many thousands of seeds onto the ground below．

??? New trees are often produced from shoots，little baby trees，which form at the base of the trunk．These shoots grow slowly，fed by the root system of the “mother’’ tree．When the main tree dies，the shoots are then free to grow as full trees，forming a “fairy ring” of trees around the original tree．These trees，in turn，may give rise to more shoots，and the cycle continues．

1.Why were redwood trees easier to find in the forests of North America millions of years ago?

A．The trees were taller and stronger．

B．The soil was softer for seeds to develop．

C．The climate there was warmer and wetter．

D．The temperature was lower along the Pacific coast．

2.Which of the following is a function of the tree bark as mentioned in the passage?

A．It allows redwood trees to bear seeds．

B．It prevents redwood trees from attack by insects．

C．It helps redwood trees absorb water in the air．

D．It makes redwood trees more beautiful and appealing．

3.Why do redwood trees grow to live that long according to the passage?

A．They have heavy and straight tree trunks．

B．They are properly watered and catered to．

C．They are more resistant to fire damage than other trees．

D．They produce many young trees to maintain their life cycle．

4.How does a “fairy ring’’ form according to the passage?

A．By killing an old tree．????????????? ????????????? ????????????? ????????????? B．By connecting root systems．

C．By inserting holes into old trees．????????????? ????????????? D．By surrounding a mature tree．