Arabs consider it extremely bad manners to start talking business immediately. E

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Arabs consider it extremely bad manners to start talking business immediately. Even the busiest government official always takes extra time to be polite and offer refreshments (茶点). No matter how busy you are, you should make time for this.
The conference visit is a way of doing business throughout the Arab world. Frequently, you will have to discuss your business in the presence of strangers, who may or may not have anything to do with your business. Do not be surprised if your meeting is interrupted several times by people who come into the room unannounced, whisper, or speak softly to the person with whom you are talking, and leave. Act as though you do not hear, and never show displeasure at being interrupted.
Making decisions quickly is not an Arab custom. There is a vagueness (模糊) in doing business in the Middle East which will puzzle a newcomer. Give yourself lots of time and ask lots of questions.
When an Arab says “yes”, he may mean “maybe”. When he says “maybe”, he probably means “no”. You will seldom get a direct “no” from an Arab because it is considered not polite. Instead of “no”, he will say “inshallah”, which means “if God is willing”. On the other hand, “yes” does not necessarily mean “yes”. A smile and a slow nod might be like an agreement but in fact your host is being polite. An Arab considers it rude to disagree with a guest.
小题1:The main purpose of this article is to explain _________________.

A．why you need extra time when you visit Arab countries

B．how to be polite when doing business in the Arab world

C．why Arab officials are so busy

D．what Arabs say when doing business

小题2:According to the article, which of the following would be considered polite?

A．You leave angrily because of interruptions.

B．You demand an immediate decision.

C．You refuse a cup of tea and show pictures of your product right away.

D．You look out of the window while a stranger comes in to speak with your host.

小题3:Which of the following is NOT an Arab custom?

A．To care less about being interrupted during their meeting.

B．Often to give you a vague answer.

C．Seldom to say “no” directly.

D．Seldom to hesitate to start talking business in the presence of strangers.

答案

小题1:B
小题2:D
小题3:D

解析

略

举一反三

Drink drivers could be prohibited from driving under the influence if new technology from Nissan is introduced.
The Japanese car maker has developed a new odor (气味) detection system designed to prevent drivers from operating a car if they are over the legal limit. The system works by using a series of sensors (传感器) to detect the level of alcohol the driver has consumed.
A high-sensitivity alcohol odor sensor is built into the gear stick (变速杆), which is able to detect the presence of the driver’s palm as he or she attempts to start driving. If the alcohol level detected is above a pre-determined limit, the system automatically locks the transmission(变速器), immobilizing the car. A voice alert is also issued via the car navigation system telling the driver that he or she is over the limit.
Extra sensors are also placed in the driver and passenger seats and a warning is issued if these sensors detect the presence of alcohol in the air inside the vehicle cabin.
While still in the developmental stage the concept of drink driving detectors being built into cars has generally been welcomed by many drivers.
Nissan said the technology is part of a project aimed at halving the number of fatalities (灾祸) and serious injuries in Nissan cars by 2015 compared to 2005 levels.
小题1:The detection system works _______________.

A．by detecting the smell of alcohol in the vehicle cabin

B．by measuring the volume of the alcohol in vehicle cabin

C．by detecting the weight of the school in the vehicle cabin

D．by using a car navigation system

小题2:What do we know about the detection system?

A．The detection system is still in the developmental stage.

B．The new technology from Nissan has been introduced.

C．The driving detectors are being built into cars.

D．The system has already been used in some car companies.

小题3:The driver’s attitude toward the detection system is that of _______________.

A．annoyance

B．welcome

C．unconcern

D．doubt

小题4:What’s the main idea of the passage?

A．Nissan will release drink-proof cars.

B．Traffic accidents will be decreased.

C．A project halving the number of accidents.

D．A new odor detection system.

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Today just as technology changed the face of industry, farms have

experienced an “agricultural revolution”. On the farm of today, machines provide almost all the power.
One of the most important benefits will be the farm puter. A few forward-looking farmers are already using puters to help them run their farms more efficiently. The puters help them keep more accurate records so they can make better decisions on what crops to plant, how much livestock(家畜) to buy, when to sell their products, and how much profit they can expect. Many puter panies have been developing special puter programs just for farmers. Programs are being written for pig producers, grain farmers, potato farmers, and dairy farmers. In the future, farmers will be able to purchase puter programs made to their needs. Because of the growing importance of puters on the farm, students at agricultural colleges are required to take puter classes in addition to their normal agricultural courses. There can be no doubt that farmers will rely on puters even more in the future. While the old-time farm depended on horse power, and modern farms depend on machine power, farms of the future will depend on puter power.
Another technological advance which is still in the experimental stage is the robot, a real “mechanized hired hand” that will be able to move and, in some ways, think like a human being. Agricultural engineers believe that puter-aided robots will make shocking changes in farming before the end of the century. Unlike farmers of the present, farmers of the future will

find that many day-to-day t

asks will be done for them. Scientists are now developing robots that will be able to shear（修剪） sheep, drive tractors, and harvest fruit. Even plex jobs will be done by robots. For example, in order to milk their cows, farmers must first drive them into the barn, then connect them to the milking machines, watch the machines, and disconnect them when they are finished. In the future, this will all be done by robots. In addition, when the milking is pleted, the robots will automatically check to make sure that the milk is pure. The plete change of the farm is far in the future, but engineers expect that some robots will be used before long.
小题1:Which sentence carried the main idea of the whole passage?

A．The first sentence of the third paragraph.

B．The first sentence of the second paragraph.

C．The first sentence of the first paragraph.

D．The last sentence of the second paragraph.

小题2: According to the passage, puters can not help farmers decide _______.

A．how much money they can earn from their products

B．whether to plant a certain kind of crop

C．what livestock to raise

D．when to sell their products

小题3:Which of the following statements is true?

A．Farmers in the future will depend totally on puters.

B．Farmers mainly use machines on their farms at present.

C．Both puters and robots have been in use on today’s farms.

D．Students at agricultural colleges must take puter classes because they can do

Nothing without the help of puters on today’s farms.
小题4:What is the best title for the whole passage?

A．puter, Farmers’ Best Friend	B．Farmers in The Future
C．The Agricultural Revolution	D．puters and Robots

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Scientists are building the world’s first thinking robot. It’s true. Some say machines that walk, speak and feel will have been made by 2020.Kismet is the name of a robot which scientists have built this year at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Kismet is different from traditional robots because it can show human emotions. Its eyes, ears and lips move to show when it feels happy, sad or bored. Kismet is one of the first robots of a new generation that look like human beings and can imitate human feelings.
Some people say that by 2020 we will have created robots with brains similar to those of adult human beings. These robots will be designed to look like people to make them more attractive and easier to sell. What kind of jobs will they do? In the future, robots like Robonaut, a robot invented by NASA, will be doing dangerous jobs, like repairing space stations. They will also be doing more and more of the household work for us. In Japan, scientists are designing robots that will entertain people by danc

ing and playing the piano.
Meanwhile, people who worry about the future are wondering whether robots will become monsters? Will people themselves become increasingly like robots? Experts predict that more and more people will be wearing micro-computers connected to the Internet in the future. People will have microchips in various parts of their body, which will connect them to a wide variety of small machines. Perhaps we should not exaggerate(夸大) the importance of technology, but one may wonder whether, in years to come, we will still be falling in love, and whether we will feel pain.
Who knows?
小题1:Kismet is different from traditional robots because______.

A．it is made in the MIT, USA	B．it is able to express its own feelings
C．it is the first modern robot	D．it is able to show human feelings

小题2:Possibly, robots will be able to ______in about ten years from now.

A．think like human beings	B．do all kinds of jobs for us
C．imitate human feelings	D．become dangerous monsters

小题3:The underlined word “one” can be best replaced by_____.

A．some experts

B．the writer himself

C．some scientists

D．people in general

小题4:It can be inferred from this passage that_______.

A．robots will take the place of human beings in the future

B．the importance of technology has been exaggerated

C．scientist have designed different kinds of robots

D．robots might be a helper or a danger.

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Australia －a huge island continent that lies to the south of Asia. Australia－more than two hundred years old, a nation that is still growing.
Its big cities lie on the southeast coast, this is where most Australians live. Australians prefer to own their own houses, though some live in apartments. Australians are a suburban（郊区的） people. The suburbs surround the cities for many miles, and so efficient transport is of great importance. As the economy grows, so do its industries- a higher level of production, a wider range of products.
The Australian works hard, but he likes his leisure. The climate makes outdoor activities the most popular.
Canberra, the capital of Australia, is a planned modern city located inland. Australia is governed by a parliamentary democracy(议会民主). The representatives of other countries have their embassies here. Australia wants to strengthen relations with her neighbors.
Australia is a strange land

, a land of vast expanses- fertile valleys, snow fields and deserts- also a land with unique animal, many that can not be found on any other continent in the world today.
Much of the continent is dry, but man has utilized the land, made it productive, with its tools, with its technology. This is the driest continent of all, and water is a precious possession, more precious than all other natural resources. Large dams are built to collect the water, there to irrigate the fields of pastures（牧场） and crops.
But Australia is changing. The land of wool and wheat is now

a land of large-scale industry and mining. The costs of developing the new mineral discoveries are enormous, but the rewards are great too.
Australia — a young and developing nation. Australia — a nation that wants to communicate with its neighbors.
小题1:Australia is an island located ______ of Asia and its big cities lie ____ of the coast.

A．to the south; on the southeast	B．to the north; on the southwest
C．to the east; on the northeast	D．to the east; on the southwest

小题2:We can infer from the passage that the Australian likes outdoor activities for the _____ climate.

A．dull and wet

B．fine and shiny

C．gloomy and rainy

D．wet and cold

小题3:____ is the most precious source in Australia.

A．Mineral resource

B．Animal

C．Desert

D．Water

小题4:Which of the following statements about Australia is wrong?

A．Australians are a suburban people

B．Australia is governed by a parliamentary democracy.

C．Australia prefers to live in the downtown of big cities.

D．Wool and wheat used to be the main products of Australia.

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“Mobile phone killed my man,” screamed one headline last year. Also came claims that an unpublished study had found that mobile phones could cause memory loss. And a British newspaper devoted its front page to a picture supposedly showing how mobile phones could heat the brain.
F

or anyone who uses a mobile phone, these are worrying times. But speak to the scientists whose work is the focus of these scares and you hear a different story.
One of the oddest effects comes from the now famous “memory loss” s

tudy. Alan Preece and his colleagues at the University of Bristol placed a device that imitated the microwave radiation of mobile phones to the left ear of volunteers. The volunteers were good at recalling words and pictures they had been shown on a computer screen. Preece says he still can’t comment on the effects of using a mobile phone for years on end. But he rules out the suggestion that mobile phones have an immediate effect on our cognitive（认识的）abilities. “I’m pretty sure there is no effect on short-term memory,” he says.
Another expert, Tattersall, remarked that his latest findings have removed fears about memory loss. One result, for instance, suggests that nerve cell synapses（神经元突触） exposed to microwaves become more — rather than less — receptive to undergoing changes linked to memory formation.
An even happier outcome would be that microwaves turned out to be good for you. It sounds crazy, but a couple of years ago a

team led by William Adey at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in California found that mice exposed to microwaves for two hours a day were less likely to develop brain tumours when given a cancer-causing chemical.
“If it doesn’t certainly cause cancer in animals and cells, then it probably isn’t going to cause cancer in humans,” says William. And while there’s still no absolute evidence that mobile phone use does damage your memories or give you cancer, the conclusion is: don’t be afraid.
小题1: Mobile phone users are worried because ______.

A．they are not sure whether mobile phones can cause memory loss

B．it’s said that mobile phones have a lot of side effects

C．one headline reported “Mobile phone killed my man”

D．a British newspaper s

howed mobile phones could heat the brain

小题2: According to this passage, we can know that _____.

A．the mobile phone is a most wonderful invention

B．there’s no need to worry about the radiation from mobile phones

C．something must be done to stop people using mobile phones

D．mobile phone companies shouldn’t cheat customers

小题3: What would be the best title for this passage? ______.

A．New Mobile Phones.	B．Special Mobile Phones.
C．New Special Investigation: Mobile Phones.	D．New Investigation.

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