1、【题目】1 There's a dimmer switch inside the sun that causes its brightness to rise and fall on timescales of around 100,000 years - exactly the same period as between ice ages on Earth. So says a physicist who has created a computer model of our star's core.

2 Robert Ehrlich of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, modelled the effect of temperature fluctuations in the sun's interior. According to the standard view, the temperature of the sun's core is held constant by the opposing pressures of gravity and nuclear fusion. However, Ehrlich believed that slight variations should be possible.

3 He took as his starting point the work of Attila Grandpierre of the Konkoly Observatory of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. In 2005, Grandpierre and a collaborator, Gábor ágoston, calculated that magnetic fields in the sun's core could produce small instabilities in the solar plasma. These instabilities would induce localised oscillations in temperature.

4 Ehrlich's model shows that whilst most of these oscillations cancel each other out, some reinforce one another and become long-lived temperature variations. The favoured frequencies allow the sun's core temperature to oscillate around its average temperature of 13.6 million kelvin in cycles lasting either 100,000 or 41,000 years. Ehrlich says that random interactions within the sun's magnetic field could flip the fluctuations from one cycle length to the other.

5 These two timescales are instantly recognisable to anyone familiar with Earth's ice ages: for the past million years, ice ages have occurred roughly every 100,000 years. Before that, they occurred roughly every 41,000 years.

6 Most scientists believe that the ice ages are the result of subtle changes in Earth's orbit, known as the Milankovitch cycles. One such cycle describes the way Earth's orbit gradually changes shape from a circle to a slight ellipse and back again roughly every 100,000 years. The theory says this alters the amount of solar radiation that Earth receives, triggering the ice ages. However, a persistent problem with this theory has been its inability to explain why the ice ages changed frequency a million years ago.

7 "In Milankovitch, there is certainly no good idea why the frequency should change from one to another," says Neil Edwards, a climatologist at the Open University in Milton Keynes, UK. Nor is the transition problem the only one the Milankovitch theory faces. Ehrlich and other critics claim that the temperature variations caused by Milankovitch cycles are simply not big enough to drive ice ages.

8 However, Edwards believes the small changes in solar heating produced by Milankovitch cycles are then amplified by feedback mechanisms on Earth. For example, if sea ice begins to form because of a slight cooling, carbon dioxide that would otherwise have found its way into the atmosphere as part of the carbon cycle is locked into the ice. That weakens the greenhouse effect and Earth grows even colder.

9 According to Edwards, there is no lack of such mechanisms. "If you add their effects together, there is more than enough feedback to make Milankovitch work," he says. "The problem now is identifying which mechanisms are at work." This is why scientists like Edwards are not yet ready to give up on the current theory. "Milankovitch cycles give us ice ages roughly when we observe them to happen. We can calculate where we are in the cycle and compare it with observation," he says. "I can't see any way of testing [Ehrlich's] idea to see where we are in the temperature oscillation."

10 Ehrlich concedes this. "If there is a way to test this theory on the sun, I can't think of one that is practical," he says. That's because variation over 41,000 to 100,000 years is too gradual to be observed. However, there may be a way to test it in other stars: red dwarfs. Their cores are much smaller than that of the sun, and so Ehrlich believes that the oscillation periods could be short enough to be observed. He has yet to calculate the precise period or the extent of variation in brightness to be expected.

11 Nigel Weiss, a solar physicist at the University of Cambridge, is far from convinced. He describes Ehrlich's claims as "utterly implausible". Ehrlich counters that Weiss's opinion is based on the standard solar model, which fails to take into account the magnetic instabilities that cause the temperature fluctuations.

Questions 1-4

Complete each of the following statements with One or Two names of the scientists from the box below.

Write the appropriate letters A-E in boxes 1-4 on your answer sheet.

A. Attila Grandpierre

B. Gábor ágoston

C. Neil Edwards

D. Nigel Weiss

E. Robert Ehrlich

1. ...claims there a dimmer switch inside the sun that causes its brightness to rise and fall in periods as long as those between ice ages on Earth.

2. ...calculated that the internal solar magnetic fields could produce instabilities in the solar plasma.

3. ...holds that Milankovitch cycles can induce changes in solar heating on Earth and the changes are amplified on Earth.

4. ...doesn't believe in Ehrlich's viewpoints at all.

Questions 5-9

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the reading passage?

In boxes 5-9 on your answer sheet write

TRUE if the statement is true according to the passage

FALSE if the statement is false according to the passage

NOT GIVEN if the information is not given in the passage

5. The ice ages changed frequency from 100,000 to 41,000 years a million years ago.

6. The sole problem that the Milankovitch theory can not solve is to explain why the ice age frequency should shift from one to another.

7. Carbon dioxide can be locked artificially into sea ice to eliminate the greenhouse effect.

8. Some scientists are not ready to give up the Milankovitch theory though they haven't figured out which mechanisms amplify the changes in solar heating.

9. Both Edwards and Ehrlich believe that there is no practical way to test when the solar temperature oscillation begins and when ends.

Questions 10-14

Complete the notes below.

Choose one suitable word from the Reading Passage above for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 10-14 on your answer sheet.

The standard view assumes that the opposing pressures of gravity and nuclear fusions hold the temperature ...10...in the sun's interior, but the slight changes in the earth's ...11... alter the temperature on the earth and cause ice ages every 100,000 years. A British scientist, however, challenges this view by claiming that the internal solar magnetic ...12... can induce the temperature oscillations in the sun's interior. The sun's core temperature oscillates around its average temperature in ...13... lasting either 100,000 or 41,000 years. And the ...14... interactions within the sun's magnetic field could flip the fluctuations from one cycle length to the other, which explains why the ice ages changed frequency a million years ago.

答案：

1. E

See the sentences in paragraph 1(There's a dimmer switch inside the sun that causes its brightness to rise and fall on timescales of around 100,000 years - exactly the same period as between ice ages on Earth. So says a physicist who has created a computer model of our star's core.) and para.2 (Robert Ehrlich of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, modelled the effect of temperature fluctuations in the sun's interior.)

2. A B

See para.3: Grandpierre and a collaborator, Gábor ágoston, calculated that magnetic fields in the sun's core could produce small instabilities in the solar plasma.

3. C

See para.8: Edwards believes the small changes in solar heating produced by Milankovitch cycles are then amplified by feedback mechanisms on Earth.

4. D

See para.11: Nigel Weiss, a solar physicist at the University of Cambridge, is far from convinced. He describes Ehrlich's claims as "utterly implausible".

5. False

See para.5: for the past million years, ice ages have occurred roughly every 100,000 years. Before that, they occurred roughly every 41,000 years.

6. False

See para.7: "In Milankovitch, there is certainly no good idea why the frequency should change from one to another," ... Nor is the transition problem the only one the Milankovitch theory faces.

7. Not Given

See para.8: if sea ice begins to form because of a slight cooling, carbon dioxide?is locked into the ice. That weakens the greenhouse effect. (The passage doesn抰 mention anything about locking Co2 into ice artificially.)

8. True

See para.9: there is no lack of such mechanisms. "If you add their effects together, there is more than enough feedback to make Milankovitch work,"?"The problem now is identifying which mechanisms are at work." This is why scientists like Edwards are not yet ready to give up on the current theory.

9. True

See the sentences in para.9 (According to Edwards, he says. "I can't see any way of testing [Ehrlich's] idea to see where we are in the temperature oscillation.") and para.10 (Ehrlich concedes this. "If there is a way to test this theory on the sun, I can't think of one that is practical).

10. constant

See para.2: According to the standard view, the temperature of the sun's core is held constant by the opposing pressures of gravity and nuclear fusion.

11. orbit

See para.6: Most scientists believe that the ice ages are the result of subtle changes in Earth's orbit, Earth's orbit gradually changes shape from a circle to a slight ellipse and back again roughly every 100,000 years.

12. instabilities

See para.3: magnetic fields in the sun's core could produce small instabilities in the solar plasma. These instabilities would induce localised oscillations in temperature.

13. cycles

See para.4: …allow the sun's core temperature to oscillate around its average temperature of 13.6 million kelvin in cycles lasting either 100,000 or 41,000 years.

14. random

See para.4: Ehrlich says that random interactions within the sun's magnetic field could flip the fluctuations from one cycle length to the other.

解析：

暂无解析

1、【题目】1.The failure of a high-profile cholesterol drug has thrown a spotlight on the complicated machinery that regulates cholesterol levels.But many researchers remain confident that drugs to boost levels of 'good' cholesterol are still one of the most promising means to combat spiralling heart disease.

2.Drug company Pfizer announced on 2 December that it was cancelling all clinical trials of torcetrapib，a drug designed to raise heart-protective high-density lipoproteins (HDLs).In a trial of 15000 patients，a safety board found that more people died or suffered cardiovascular problems after taking the drug plus a cholesterol-lowering statin than those in a control group who took the statin alone.

3.The news came as a kick in the teeth to many cardiologists because earlier tests in animals and people suggested it would lower rates of cardiovascular disease."There have been no red flags to my knowledge," says John Chapman，a specialist in lipoproteins and atherosclerosis at the National Institute for Health and Medical Research (INSERM) in Paris who has also studied torcetrapib."This cancellation came as a complete shock."

4.Torcetrapib is one of the most advanced of a new breed of drugs designed to raise levels of HDLs，which ferry cholesterol out of artery-clogging plaques to the liver for removal from the body.Specifically，torcetrapib blocks a protein called cholesterol ester transfer protein (CETP)，which normally transfers the cholesterol from high-density lipoproteins to low density，plaque-promoting ones.Statins，in contrast，mainly work by lowering the 'bad' low-density lipoproteins.

Under pressure

5.Researchers are now trying to work out why and how the drug backfired，something that will not become clear until the clinical details are released by Pfizer.One hint lies in evidence from earlier trials that it slightly raises blood pressure in some patients.It was thought that this mild problem would be offset by the heart benefits of the drug.But it is possible that it actually proved fatal in some patients who already suffered high blood pressure.If blood pressure is the explanation，it would actually be good news for drug developers because it suggests that the problems are specific to this compound.Other prototype drugs that are being developed to block CETP work in a slightly different way and might not suffer the same downfall.

6.But it is also possible that the whole idea of blocking CETP is flawed，says Moti Kashyap，who directs atherosclerosis research at the VA Medical Center in Long Beach，California.When HDLs excrete cholesterol in the liver，they actually rely on LDLs for part of this process.So inhibiting CETP，which prevents the transfer of cholesterol from HDL to LDL，might actually cause an abnormal and irreversible accumulation of cholesterol in the body."You're blocking a physiologic mechanism to eliminate cholesterol and effectively constipating the pathway," says Kashyap.Going up

7.Most researchers remain confident that elevating high density lipoproteins levels by one means or another is one of the best routes for helping heart disease patients.But HDLs are complex and not entirely understood.One approved drug，called niacin，is known to both raise HDL and reduce cardiovascular risk but also causes an unpleasant sensation of heat and tingling.Researchers are exploring whether they can bypass this side effect and whether niacin can lower disease risk more than statins alone.Scientists are also working on several other means to bump up high-density lipoproteins by，for example，introducing synthetic HDLs."The only thing we know is dead in the water is torcetrapib，not the whole idea of raising HDL," says Michael Miller，director of preventive cardiology at the University of Maryland Medical Center，Baltimore.

Questions 7-13

Match torcetrapib，HDLs，statin and CETP with their functions (Questions 8-13)..Write the correct letter A，B，C or D in boxes 8-13 on your answer sheet.NB You may use any letter more than once.

7.It has been administered to over 10,000 subjects in a clinical trial.

8.It could help rid human body of cholesterol.

9.Researchers are yet to find more about it.

10.It was used to reduce the level of cholesterol.

11.According to Kashyap，it might lead to unwanted result if it's blocked.

12.It produced contradictory results in different trials.

13.It could inhibit LDLs.List of choices

A.TorcetrapicB.HDLSC.StatinD.CETP

答案：

7.A

8.B

9.B

10.C

11.D

12.A

13.C

解析：

7、见第二段。题目中administer一词意为“用药”，subject一词为“实验对象”之意。

8、见第四段“…toraiselevelsofHDLs，whichferrycholesteroloutofartery-cloggingplaquestotheliverforremovalfromthebody.”即HDLs的作用最终是将choleserol清除出人体：“…forremovalfromthebody”。

9、见第四段“ButHDLsarecomplexandnotentirelyunderstood.”

10、见第二段“…plusacholesterol-loweringstatin”，即statin是可以降低cholesterol的。

11、见第六段“SoinhibitingCETP，…mightactuallycauseanabnormalandirreversibleaccumulationofcholesterolinthebody.

12、见第三段。

13、见第四段“Statins，incontrast，mainlyworkbyloweringthe'bad'low-densitylipoproteins.”

1、【题目】How shops can exploit people's herd mentality to increase sales

1.A TRIP to the supermarket may not seem like an exercise in psychological warfare—but it is.Shopkeepers know that filling a store with the aroma of freshly baked bread makes people feel hungry and persuades them to buy more food than they had intended.Stocking the most expensive products at eye level makes them sell faster than cheaper but less visible competitors.Now researchers are investigating how “swarm intelligence” (that is，how ants，bees or any social animal，including humans，behave in a crowd) can be used to influence what people buy.

2.At a recent conference on the simulation of adaptive behaviour in Rome，Zeeshan-ul-hassan Usmani，a computer scientist from the Florida Institute of Technology，described a new way to increase impulse buying using this phenomenon.Supermarkets already encourage shoppers to buy things they did not realise they wanted: for instance，by placing everyday items such as milk and eggs at the back of the store，forcing shoppers to walk past other tempting goods to reach them.Mr Usmani and Ronaldo Menezes，also of the Florida Institute of Technology，set out to enhance this tendency to buy more by playing on the herd instinct.The idea is that，if a certain product is seen to be popular，shoppers are likely to choose it too.The challenge is to keep customers informed about what others are buying.

3.Enter smart-cart technology.In Mr Usmani's supermarket every product has a radio frequency identification tag，a sort of barcode that uses radio waves to transmit information，and every trolley has a scanner that reads this information and relays it to a central computer.As a customer walks past a shelf of goods，a screen on the shelf tells him how many people currently in the shop have chosen that particular product.If the number is high，he is more likely to select it too.

4.Mr Usmani's “swarm-moves” model appeals to supermarkets because it increases sales without the need to give people discounts.And it gives shoppers the satisfaction of knowing that they bought the “right” product—that is，the one everyone else bought.The model has not yet been tested widely in the real world，mainly because radio frequency identification technology is new and has only been installed experimentally in some supermarkets.But Mr Usmani says that both Wal-Mart in America and Tesco in Britain are interested in his work，and testing will get under way in the spring.

5.Another recent study on the power of social influence indicates that sales could，indeed，be boosted in this way.Matthew Salganik of Columbia University in New York and his colleagues have described creating an artificial music market in which some 14,000 people downloaded previously unknown songs.The researchers found that when people could see the songs ranked by how many times they had been downloaded，they followed the crowd.When the songs were not ordered by rank，but the number of times they had been downloaded was displayed，the effect of social influence was still there but was less pronounced.People thus follow the herd when it is easy for them to do so.

6.In Japan a chain of convenience shops called RanKing RanQueen has been ordering its products according to sales data from department stores and research companies.The shops sell only the most popular items in each product category，and the rankings are updated weekly.Icosystem，a company in Cambridge，Massachusetts，also aims to exploit knowledge of social networking to improve sales.

7.And the psychology that works in physical stores is just as potent on the internet.Online retailers such as Amazon are adept at telling shoppers which products are popular with like-minded consumers.Even in the privacy of your home，you can still be part of the swarm.

Questions 1-6

Complete the sentences below with words taken from the reading passage.Use NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer.

1.Shopowners realize that the smell of _______________ can increase sales of food products.

2.In shops，products shelved at a more visible level sell better even if they are more _______________.

3.According to Mr.Usmani，with the use of “swarm intelligence” phenomenon，a new method can be applied to encourage _______________.

4.On the way to everyday items at the back of the store，shoppers might be tempted to buy _______________.

5.If the number of buyers shown on the _______________ is high，other customers tend to follow them.

6.Using the “swarm-moves” model，shopowners do not have to give customers _______________ to increase sales.

答案：

1.答案：(freshly baked) bread.

2.答案：expensive.

3.答案：impulse buying.

4.答案：other (tempting) goods/things/products.

5.答案：screen.

6.答案：discounts.

解析：

1、(第1段第2行：Shoppersknowthatfillingastorewiththearomaoffreshlybakedbreadmakespeoplefeelhungryandpersuadesthemtobuymorefoodthantheyintended.)

2、(第1段第4行：Stockingthemostexpensiveproductsateyelevelmakesthemsellfasterthancheaperbutlessvisiblecompetitors.)

3、(第2段第1句：AtarecentconferenceonthesimulationofadaptivebehaviourinRome，Zeeshan-ul-hassanUsmani，acomputerscientistfromtheFloridaInstituteofTechnology，describedanewwaytoincreaseimpulsebuyingusingthisphenomenon.)

4、(第2段第2句：Supermarketsalreadyencourageshopperstobuythingstheydidnotrealisetheywanted:forinstance，byplacingeverydayitemssuchasmilkandeggsatthebackofthestore，forcingshopperstowalkpastothertemptinggoodstoreachthem.)

5、(第3段第4行：Asacustomerwalkspastashelfofgoods，ascreenontheshelftellshimhowmanypeoplecurrentlyintheshophavechosenthatparticularproduct.Ifthenumberishigh，heismorelikelytoselectittoo.)

6、(第4段第第1句：MrUsmani's“swarm-moves”modelappealstosupermarketsbecauseitincreasessaleswithouttheneedtogivepeoplediscounts.)

1、【题目】Don't wash those fossils!

Standard museum practice can wash away DNA.

1.Washing, brushing and varnishing fossils — all standard conservation treatments used by many fossil hunters and museum curators alike — vastly reduces the chances of recovering ancient DNA.

2.Instead, excavators should be handling at least some of their bounty with gloves, and freezing samples as they are found, dirt and all, concludes a paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences today.

3.Although many palaeontologists know anecdotally that this is the best way to up the odds of extracting good DNA, Eva-Maria Geigl of the Jacques Monod Institute in Paris, France, and her colleagues have now shown just how important conservation practices can be.This information, they say, needs to be hammered home among the people who are actually out in the field digging up bones.

4.Geigl and her colleagues looked at 3,200-year-old fossil bones belonging to a single individual of an extinct cattle species, called an aurochs.The fossils were dug up at a site in France at two different times — either in 1947, and stored in a museum collection, or in 2004, and conserved in sterile conditions at -20 oC.

5.The team's attempts to extract DNA from the 1947 bones all failed.The newly excavated fossils, however, all yielded DNA.

6.Because the bones had been buried for the same amount of time, and in the same conditions, the conservation method had to be to blame says Geigl."As much DNA was degraded in these 57 years as in the 3,200 years before," she says.

Wash in, wash out

7.Because many palaeontologists base their work on the shape of fossils alone, their methods of conservation are not designed to preserve DNA, Geigl explains.

8.The biggest problem is how they are cleaned.Fossils are often washed together on-site in a large bath, which can allow water — and contaminants in the form of contemporary DNA — to permeate into the porous bones."Not only is the authentic DNA getting washed out, but contamination is getting washed in," says Geigl.

9.Most ancient DNA specialists know this already, says Hendrik Poinar, an evolutionary geneticist at McMaster University in Ontario, Canada.But that doesn't mean that best practice has become widespread among those who actually find the fossils.

10.Getting hold of fossils that have been preserved with their DNA in mind relies on close relationships between lab-based geneticists and the excavators, says palaeogeneticist Svante P bo of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany.And that only occurs in exceptional cases, he says.

11.P bo's team, which has been sequencing Neanderthal DNA, continually faces these problems."When you want to study ancient human and Neanderthal remains, there's a big issue of contamination with contemporary human DNA," he says.

12.This doesn't mean that all museum specimens are fatally flawed, notes P bo.The Neanderthal fossils that were recently sequenced in his own lab, for example, had been part of a museum collection treated in the traditional way.But P bo is keen to see samples of fossils from every major find preserved in line with Geigl's recommendations — just in case.

Warm and wet

13.Geigl herself believes that, with cooperation between bench and field researchers, preserving fossils properly could open up avenues of discovery that have long been assumed closed.

14.Much human cultural development took place in temperate regions.DNA does not survive well in warm environments in the first place, and can vanish when fossils are washed and treated.For this reason, Geigl says, most ancient DNA studies have been done on permafrost samples, such as the woolly mammoth, or on remains sheltered from the elements in cold caves — including cave bear and Neanderthal fossils.

15.Better conservation methods, and a focus on fresh fossils, could boost DNA extraction from more delicate specimens, says Geigl.And that could shed more light on the story of human evolution.

(640 words nature )

Glossary

Palaeontologists 古生物学家

Aurochs 欧洲野牛

Neanderthal (人类学)尼安德特人，旧石器时代的古人类。

Permafrost (地理)永冻层

Questions 1-6

Answer the following questions by using NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer.

1.How did people traditionally treat fossils?

2.What suggestions do Geigl and her colleagues give on what should be done when fossils are found?

3.What problems may be posed if fossil bones are washed on-site? Name ONE.

4.What characteristic do fossil bones have to make them susceptible to be contaminated with contemporary DNA when they are washed?

5.What could be better understood when conservation treatments are improved?

6.The passage mentioned several animal species studied by researchers.How many of them are mentioned?

Questions 7-11

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the passage? Please write TRUE if the statement agrees with the writer FALSE if the statement does not agree with the writer NOT GIVEN if there is no information about this in the passage.

7.In their paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences，Geigl and her colleagues have shown what conservation practices should be followed to preserve ancient DNA.

8.The fossil bones that Geigl and her colleagues studied are all from the same aurochs.

9.Geneticists don't have to work on site.

10.Only newly excavated fossil bones using new conservation methods suggested by Geigl and her colleagues contain ancient DNA.

11.Paabo is still worried about the potential problems caused by treatments of fossils in traditional way.

Questions 12-13

Complete the following the statements by choosing letter A-D for each answer.

12.“This information” in paragraph 3 indicates:

[A] It is critical to follow proper practices in preserving ancient DNA.

[B] The best way of getting good DNA is to handle fossils with gloves.

[C] Fossil hunters should wear home-made hammers while digging up bones.

[D] Many palaeontologists know how one should do in treating fossils.

13.The study conducted by Geigl and her colleagues suggests:

[A] the fact that ancient DNA can not be recovered from fossil bones excavated in the past.

[B] the correlation between the amount of burying time and that of the recovered DNA.

[C] the pace at which DNA degrades.

[D] the correlation between conservation practices and degradation of DNA.

答案：

1.washing, brushing, varnishing 见第一段。

2.handling with gloves / freezing samples ( any one of the two ) 见第二段。

3.losing authentic DNA / being contaminated / contamination ( any one of the three) 见第八段“Not only is the authentic DNA getting washed out, but contamination is getting washed in”(答being contaminated或 contamination比较保险)

4.they are porous porous 的意思是多孔的。见第八段“...which can allow water — and contaminants in the form of contemporary DNA — to permeate into the porous bones.”

5.human evolution 见第十五段。其中“shed light on sth”的意思是使某事显得非常清楚，使人了解某事。

6.4 分别为第四段的“an extinct cattle species, called an aurochs”，即欧洲野牛，已经绝迹;第十一段“Neanderthal”， 是人类学用语，尼安德特人，旧石器时代的古人类;第十四段“woolly mammoth”和“cave bear”，其中mammoth是猛犸，一种古哺乳动物。

7.T 见第二段。

8.T 见第四段“Geigl and her colleagues looked at 3,200-year-old fossil bones belonging to a single individual of an extinct cattle species, called an aurochs.”即他们研究的骨化石是一头欧洲野牛身上的。

9.NG

10.F 见第十二段第一、二句话。

11.T 见第十二段末句“But P bo is keen to see samples of fossils from every major find preserved in line with Geigl's recommendations — just in case.”意即为保险起见，Paabo还是非常希望见到用Geigl建议的方法保存的化石样本。“just in case” 的意思是以防万一，就是Paabo对用传统保存处理的化石不放心的意思。

12.A 见第三段。This information就是前一句中“...just how important conservation practices can be”(to preserve good DNA)。“be hammered”之中hammer一词的意思是不断重复强调。

13.D 面信息。需要理解文章各处关于Geigl和她的同事所作的研究。

解析：

暂无解析

1、【题目】1There'sadimmerswitchinsidethesunthatcausesitsbrightnesstoriseandfallontimescalesofaround100,000years-exactlythesameperiodasbetweeniceagesonEarth.Sosaysaphysicistwhohascreatedacomputermodelofourstar'score.

2RobertEhrlichofGeorgeMasonUniversityinFairfax,Virginia,modelledtheeffectoftemperaturefluctuationsinthesun'sinterior.Accordingtothestandardview,thetemperatureofthesun'scoreisheldconstantbytheopposingpressuresofgravityandnuclearfusion.However,Ehrlichbelievedthatslightvariationsshouldbepossible.

3HetookashisstartingpointtheworkofAttilaGrandpierreoftheKonkolyObservatoryoftheHungarianAcademyofSciences.In2005,Grandpierreandacollaborator,Gáborágoston,calculatedthatmagneticfieldsinthesun'scorecouldproducesmallinstabilitiesinthesolarplasma.Theseinstabilitieswouldinducelocalisedoscillationsintemperature.

4Ehrlich'smodelshowsthatwhilstmostoftheseoscillationscanceleachotherout,somereinforceoneanotherandbecomelong-livedtemperaturevariations.Thefavouredfrequenciesallowthesun'scoretemperaturetooscillatearounditsaveragetemperatureof13.6millionkelvinincycleslastingeither100,000or41,000years.Ehrlichsaysthatrandominteractionswithinthesun'smagneticfieldcouldflipthefluctuationsfromonecyclelengthtotheother.

5ThesetwotimescalesareinstantlyrecognisabletoanyonefamiliarwithEarth'siceages:forthepastmillionyears,iceageshaveoccurredroughlyevery100,000years.Beforethat,theyoccurredroughlyevery41,000years.

6MostscientistsbelievethattheiceagesaretheresultofsubtlechangesinEarth'sorbit,knownastheMilankovitchcycles.OnesuchcycledescribesthewayEarth'sorbitgraduallychangesshapefromacircletoaslightellipseandbackagainroughlyevery100,000years.ThetheorysaysthisalterstheamountofsolarradiationthatEarthreceives,triggeringtheiceages.However,apersistentproblemwiththistheoryhasbeenitsinabilitytoexplainwhytheiceageschangedfrequencyamillionyearsago.

7"InMilankovitch,thereiscertainlynogoodideawhythefrequencyshouldchangefromonetoanother,"saysNeilEdwards,aclimatologistattheOpenUniversityinMiltonKeynes,UK.NoristhetransitionproblemtheonlyonetheMilankovitchtheoryfaces.EhrlichandothercriticsclaimthatthetemperaturevariationscausedbyMilankovitchcyclesaresimplynotbigenoughtodriveiceages.

8However,EdwardsbelievesthesmallchangesinsolarheatingproducedbyMilankovitchcyclesarethenamplifiedbyfeedbackmechanismsonEarth.Forexample,ifseaicebeginstoformbecauseofaslightcooling,carbondioxidethatwouldotherwisehavefounditswayintotheatmosphereaspartofthecarboncycleislockedintotheice.ThatweakensthegreenhouseeffectandEarthgrowsevencolder.

9AccordingtoEdwards,thereisnolackofsuchmechanisms."Ifyouaddtheireffectstogether,thereismorethanenoughfeedbacktomakeMilankovitchwork,"hesays."Theproblemnowisidentifyingwhichmechanismsareatwork."ThisiswhyscientistslikeEdwardsarenotyetreadytogiveuponthecurrenttheory."Milankovitchcyclesgiveusiceagesroughlywhenweobservethemtohappen.Wecancalculatewhereweareinthecycleandcompareitwithobservation,"hesays."Ican'tseeanywayoftesting[Ehrlich's]ideatoseewhereweareinthetemperatureoscillation."

10Ehrlichconcedesthis."Ifthereisawaytotestthistheoryonthesun,Ican'tthinkofonethatispractical,"hesays.That'sbecausevariationover41,000to100,000yearsistoogradualtobeobserved.However,theremaybeawaytotestitinotherstars:reddwarfs.Theircoresaremuchsmallerthanthatofthesun,andsoEhrlichbelievesthattheoscillationperiodscouldbeshortenoughtobeobserved.Hehasyettocalculatethepreciseperiodortheextentofvariationinbrightnesstobeexpected.

11NigelWeiss,asolarphysicistattheUniversityofCambridge,isfarfromconvinced.HedescribesEhrlich'sclaimsas"utterlyimplausible".EhrlichcountersthatWeiss'sopinionisbasedonthestandardsolarmodel,whichfailstotakeintoaccountthemagneticinstabilitiesthatcausethetemperaturefluctuations.

Questions1-4

CompleteeachofthefollowingstatementswithOneorTwonamesofthescientistsfromtheboxbelow.

WritetheappropriatelettersA-Einboxes1-4onyouranswersheet.

A.AttilaGrandpierre

B.Gáborágoston

C.NeilEdwards

D.NigelWeiss

E.RobertEhrlich

1....claimsthereadimmerswitchinsidethesunthatcausesitsbrightnesstoriseandfallinperiodsaslongasthosebetweeniceagesonEarth.

2....calculatedthattheinternalsolarmagneticfieldscouldproduceinstabilitiesinthesolarplasma.

3....holdsthatMilankovitchcyclescaninducechangesinsolarheatingonEarthandthechangesareamplifiedonEarth.

4....doesn'tbelieveinEhrlich'sviewpointsatall.

Questions5-9

Dothefollowingstatementsagreewiththeinformationgiveninthereadingpassage?

Inboxes5-9onyouranswersheetwrite

TRUEifthestatementistrueaccordingtothepassage

FALSEifthestatementisfalseaccordingtothepassage

NOTGIVENiftheinformationisnotgiveninthepassage

5.Theiceageschangedfrequencyfrom100,000to41,000yearsamillionyearsago.

6.ThesoleproblemthattheMilankovitchtheorycannotsolveistoexplainwhytheiceagefrequencyshouldshiftfromonetoanother.

7.Carbondioxidecanbelockedartificiallyintoseaicetoeliminatethegreenhouseeffect.

8.SomescientistsarenotreadytogiveuptheMilankovitchtheorythoughtheyhaven'tfiguredoutwhichmechanismsamplifythechangesinsolarheating.

9.BothEdwardsandEhrlichbelievethatthereisnopracticalwaytotestwhenthesolartemperatureoscillationbeginsandwhenends.

Questions10-14

Completethenotesbelow.

ChooseonesuitablewordfromtheReadingPassageaboveforeachanswer.

Writeyouranswersinboxes10-14onyouranswersheet.

Thestandardviewassumesthattheopposingpressuresofgravityandnuclearfusionsholdthetemperature...10...inthesun'sinterior,buttheslightchangesintheearth's...11...alterthetemperatureontheearthandcauseiceagesevery100,000years.ABritishscientist,however,challengesthisviewbyclaimingthattheinternalsolarmagnetic...12...caninducethetemperatureoscillationsinthesun'sinterior.Thesun'scoretemperatureoscillatesarounditsaveragetemperaturein...13...lastingeither100,000or41,000years.Andthe...14...interactionswithinthesun'smagneticfieldcouldflipthefluctuationsfromonecyclelengthtotheother,whichexplainswhytheiceageschangedfrequencyamillionyearsago.

答案：

1. E

See the sentences in paragraph 1(There's a dimmer switch inside the sun that causes its brightness to rise and fall on timescales of around 100,000 years - exactly the same period as between ice ages on Earth. So says a physicist who has created a computer model of our star's core.) and para.2 (Robert Ehrlich of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, modelled the effect of temperature fluctuations in the sun's interior.)

2. A B

See para.3: Grandpierre and a collaborator, Gábor ágoston, calculated that magnetic fields in the sun's core could produce small instabilities in the solar plasma.

3. C

See para.8: Edwards believes the small changes in solar heating produced by Milankovitch cycles are then amplified by feedback mechanisms on Earth.

4. D

See para.11: Nigel Weiss, a solar physicist at the University of Cambridge, is far from convinced. He describes Ehrlich's claims as "utterly implausible".

5. False

See para.5: for the past million years, ice ages have occurred roughly every 100,000 years. Before that, they occurred roughly every 41,000 years.

6. False

See para.7: "In Milankovitch, there is certainly no good idea why the frequency should change from one to another," ... Nor is the transition problem the only one the Milankovitch theory faces.

7. Not Given

See para.8: if sea ice begins to form because of a slight cooling, carbon dioxide?is locked into the ice. That weakens the greenhouse effect. (The passage doesn抰 mention anything about locking Co2 into ice artificially.)

8. True

See para.9: there is no lack of such mechanisms. "If you add their effects together, there is more than enough feedback to make Milankovitch work,"?"The problem now is identifying which mechanisms are at work." This is why scientists like Edwards are not yet ready to give up on the current theory.

9. True

See the sentences in para.9 (According to Edwards, he says. "I can't see any way of testing [Ehrlich's] idea to see where we are in the temperature oscillation.") and para.10 (Ehrlich concedes this. "If there is a way to test this theory on the sun, I can't think of one that is practical).

10. constant

See para.2: According to the standard view, the temperature of the sun's core is held constant by the opposing pressures of gravity and nuclear fusion.

11. orbit

See para.6: Most scientists believe that the ice ages are the result of subtle changes in Earth's orbit, Earth's orbit gradually changes shape from a circle to a slight ellipse and back again roughly every 100,000 years.

12. instabilities

See para.3: magnetic fields in the sun's core could produce small instabilities in the solar plasma. These instabilities would induce localised oscillations in temperature.

13. cycles

See para.4: …allow the sun's core temperature to oscillate around its average temperature of 13.6 million kelvin in cycles lasting either 100,000 or 41,000 years.

14. random

See para.4: Ehrlich says that random interactions within the sun's magnetic field could flip the fluctuations from one cycle length to the other.

解析：

暂无解析

1、【题目】Selling Digital Music without Copy-protection Makes Sense

A.　It was uncharacteristically low-key for the industry’s greatest showman. But the essay published this week by Steve Jobs, the boss of Apple, on his firm’s website under the unassuming title “Thoughts on Music” has nonetheless provoked a vigorous debate about the future of digital music, which Apple dominates with its iPod music-player and iTunes music-store. At issue is “digital rights management” (DRM)—the technology guarding downloaded music against theft. Since there is no common standard for DRM, it also has the side-effect that songs purchased for one type of music-player may not work on another. Apple’s DRM system, called FairPlay, is the most widespread. So it came as a surprise when Mr. Jobs called for DRM for digital music to be abolished.

B.　This is a change of tack for Apple. It has come under fire from European regulators who claim that its refusal to license FairPlay to other firms has “locked in” customers. Since music from the iTunes store cannot be played on non-iPod music-players (at least not without a lot of fiddling), any iTunes buyer will be deterred from switching to a device made by a rival firm, such as Sony or Microsoft. When French lawmakers drafted a bill last year compelling Apple to open up FairPlay to rivals, the company warned of “state-sponsored piracy”. Only DRM, it implied, could keep the pirates at bay.

C.　This week Mr. Jobs gave another explanation for his former defence of DRM: the record companies made him do it. They would make their music available to the iTunes store only if Apple agreed to protect it using DRM. They can still withdraw their catalogues if the DRM system is compromised. Apple cannot license FairPlay to others, says Mr Jobs, because it would depend on them to produce security fixes promptly. All DRM does is restrict consumer choice and provide a barrier to entry, says Mr Jobs; without it there would be far more stores and players, and far more innovation. So, he suggests, why not do away with DRM and sell music unprotected? “This is clearly the best alternative for consumers,” he declares, “and Apple would embrace it in a heartbeat.”

D.　Why the sudden change of heart? Mr Jobs seems chiefly concerned with getting Europe’s regulators off his back. Rather than complaining to Apple about its use of DRM, he suggests, “those unhappy with the current situation should redirect their energies towards persuading the music companies to sell their music DRM-free.” Two and a half of the four big record companies, he helpfully points out, are European-owned. Mr Jobs also hopes to paint himself as a consumer champion. Apple resents accusations that it has become the Microsoft of digital music.

E.　Apple can afford to embrace open competition in music players and online stores. Consumers would gravitate to the best player and the best store, and at the moment that still means Apple’s. Mr Jobs is evidently unfazed by rivals to the iPod. Since only 3% of the music in a typical iTunes library is protected, most of it can already be used on other players today, he notes. (And even the protected tracks can be burned onto a CD and then re-ripped.) So Apple’s dominance evidently depends far more on branding and ease of use than DRM-related “lock in”.

F.　The music giants are trying DRM-free downloads. Lots of smaller labels already sell music that way. Having seen which way the wind is blowing, Mr Jobs now wants to be seen not as DRM’s defender, but as a consumer champion who helped in its downfall. Wouldn’t it lead to a surge in piracy? No, because most music is still sold unprotected on CDs, people wishing to steal music already can do so. Indeed, scrapping DRM would probably increase online-music sales by reducing confusion and incompatibility. With the leading online store, Apple would benefit most. Mr Jobs’s argument, in short, is transparently self-serving. It also happens to be right.

Notes to Reading Passage 1

1. low-key:

抑制的，受约束的，屈服的

2. showman:

开展览会的人, 出风头的人物

3. unassuming:

谦逊的, 不夸耀的, 不装腔作势的

4. iPod：

(苹果公司出产的)音乐播放器

5. iTunes store：

(苹果公司出产的)在线音乐商店

6. get off person’s back:

不再找某人的麻烦，摆脱某人的纠缠

7. gravitate:

受吸引，倾向于

8. unfazed:

不再担忧，不被打扰

Questions 1-7

Do the following statemets reflect the claims of the writer in Reading Passage 1?

Write your answer in Boxes 1-7 on your answer sheet.

TRUE if the statement reflets the claims of the writer

FALSE if the statement contradicts the claims of the writer

NOT GIVEN if it is impossbile to say what the writer thinks about this

1. Apple enjoys a controlling position in digital music market with its iPod music-player and iTunes music-store.

2. DRM is a government decree issued with a purpose to protect downloaded music from theft by consumers.

3. Lack of standardization in DRM makes songs bought for one kind of music player may not function on another.

4. Apple has been criticized by European regulators since it has refused to grant a license FairPlay to other firms.

5. All music can be easily played on non-iPod music devices from Sony or Microsoft without too much fiddling.

6. Apple depends far more on DRM rather than branding for its dominance of the digital music devices.

7. If DRM was cancelled, Sony would certainly dominate the international digital music market.

Questions 8-10

Choose the appropriate letters A-D and write them in boxes 8-10 on your answe sheet.

8. Which of the following statements about Mr. Jobs’ idea of DRM is NOT TRUE?

A. DRM places restrictions on consumer’ choice of digital music products available.

B. DRM comples iTunes buyers to switch to a device made by Sony or Microsoft.

C. DRM constitutes a barrier for potential consumers to enter digital music markets.

D. DRM hinders development of more stores and players and technical innovation.

9. The word “unfazed” in line 3 of paragraph E, means___________.

A. refused

B. welcomed

C. not bothered

D. not well received

10. Which of the following statements is TRUE if DRM was scapped?

A. Sony would gain the most profit.

B. More customers would be “locked in”.

C. A sudden increase in piracy would occur.

D. Online-music sales would probably decrease.

Questions 11-14

Complete the notes below.

Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from Reading Passage 1 for each answer.

Write your answers in boxes 11-14 on your answer sheet.

Mr. Steve Jobs, the boss of Apple, explains the reason why he used to defend DRM, saying that the company was forced to do so: the record companies would make their music accessible to …11...only if they agreed to protect it using DRM; they can still…12…if the DRM system is compromised. He also provides the reason why Apple did not license FairPlay to others: the company relies on them to …13….But now he changes his mind with a possible expectation that Europe’s regulators would not trouble him any more in the future. He proposes that those who are unsatisfactory with the current situation in digital music market should …14… towards persuade the music companies to sell their music DRM-free.

答案：

1. TRUE

See the second sentence in Paragraph A “… the future of digital music, which Apple dominates with its iPod music-player and iTunes music-store.”

2. FALSE

See the third sentence in Paragraph A “…At issue is “digital rights management” (DRM)—the technology guarding downloaded music against theft.”

3. TRUE

See the fourth sentence in Paragraph A “Since there is no common standard for DRM, it also has the side-effect that songs purchased for one type of music-player may not work on another.”

4. TRUE

See the second sentence in Paragraph B “It has come under fire from European regulators who claim that its refusal to license FairPlay to other firms has “locked in” customers.”

5. NOT GIVEN

The third sentence in Paragaph B only mentions music from the iTunes store, nothing about that of Sony or Microsoft. “Since music from the iTunes store cannot be played on non-iPod music-players (at least not without a lot of fiddling).”

6. FALSE

See the last sentence in Paragraph E “So Apple’s dominance evidently depends far more on branding and ease of use than DRM-related “lock in”.

7. NOT GIVEN

See the fourth sentence in Paragraph F only mentions music generally, no particular information about business prospect of Sony “Indeed, scrapping DRM would probably increase online-music sales by reducing confusion and incompatibility.”

8. B

See the fourth sentence of Paragraph C “All DRM does is restrict consumer choice and provide a barrier to entry, says Mr Jobs; without it there would be far more stores and players, and far more innovation.”

9. C

See the third sentence of Paragraph E and the context “Mr Jobs is evidently unfazed by rivals to the iPod. Since only 3% of the music in a typical iTunes library is protected, most of it can already be used on other players today.”

10. A

See the last four sentences of Paragraph F “Wouldn’t it lead to a surge in piracy? No, because most music is still sold unprotected on CDs, people wishing to steal music already can do so. Indeed, scrapping DRM would probably increase online-music sales by reducing confusion and incompatibility. With the leading online store, Apple would benefit most.”

11. the iTunes store

See the second sentence of Paragraph C “They would make their music available to the iTunes store only if Apple agreed to protect it using DRM.”

12. withdraw their catalogues

See the third sentence of Paragraph C “They can still withdraw their catalogues if the DRM system is compromised.”

13. produce security fixes

See the fourth sentence of Paragraph C “Apple cannot license FairPlay to others, says Mr Jobs, because it would depend on them to produce security fixes promptly.”

14. redirect their energies

See the second sentence of Paragraph D “Rather than complaining to Apple about its use of DRM, he suggests, “those unhappy with the current situation should redirect their energies towards persuading the music companies to sell their music DRM-free.”

解析：

暂无解析

1、【题目】SellingDigitalMusicwithoutCopy-protectionMakesSense

A.　Itwasuncharacteristicallylow-keyfortheindustry’sgreatestshowman.ButtheessaypublishedthisweekbySteveJobs,thebossofApple,onhisfirm’swebsiteundertheunassumingtitle“ThoughtsonMusic”hasnonethelessprovokedavigorousdebateaboutthefutureofdigitalmusic,whichAppledominateswithitsiPodmusic-playerandiTunesmusic-store.Atissueis“digitalrightsmanagement”(DRM)—thetechnologyguardingdownloadedmusicagainsttheft.SincethereisnocommonstandardforDRM,italsohastheside-effectthatsongspurchasedforonetypeofmusic-playermaynotworkonanother.Apple’sDRMsystem,calledFairPlay,isthemostwidespread.SoitcameasasurprisewhenMr.JobscalledforDRMfordigitalmusictobeabolished.

B.　ThisisachangeoftackforApple.IthascomeunderfirefromEuropeanregulatorswhoclaimthatitsrefusaltolicenseFairPlaytootherfirmshas“lockedin”customers.SincemusicfromtheiTunesstorecannotbeplayedonnon-iPodmusic-players(atleastnotwithoutalotoffiddling),anyiTunesbuyerwillbedeterredfromswitchingtoadevicemadebyarivalfirm,suchasSonyorMicrosoft.WhenFrenchlawmakersdraftedabilllastyearcompellingAppletoopenupFairPlaytorivals,thecompanywarnedof“state-sponsoredpiracy”.OnlyDRM,itimplied,couldkeepthepiratesatbay.

C.　ThisweekMr.JobsgaveanotherexplanationforhisformerdefenceofDRM:therecordcompaniesmadehimdoit.TheywouldmaketheirmusicavailabletotheiTunesstoreonlyifAppleagreedtoprotectitusingDRM.TheycanstillwithdrawtheircataloguesiftheDRMsystemiscompromised.ApplecannotlicenseFairPlaytoothers,saysMrJobs,becauseitwoulddependonthemtoproducesecurityfixespromptly.AllDRMdoesisrestrictconsumerchoiceandprovideabarriertoentry,saysMrJobs;withoutittherewouldbefarmorestoresandplayers,andfarmoreinnovation.So,hesuggests,whynotdoawaywithDRMandsellmusicunprotected?“Thisisclearlythebestalternativeforconsumers,”hedeclares,“andApplewouldembraceitinaheartbeat.”

D.　Whythesuddenchangeofheart?MrJobsseemschieflyconcernedwithgettingEurope’sregulatorsoffhisback.RatherthancomplainingtoAppleaboutitsuseofDRM,hesuggests,“thoseunhappywiththecurrentsituationshouldredirecttheirenergiestowardspersuadingthemusiccompaniestoselltheirmusicDRM-free.”Twoandahalfofthefourbigrecordcompanies,hehelpfullypointsout,areEuropean-owned.MrJobsalsohopestopainthimselfasaconsumerchampion.AppleresentsaccusationsthatithasbecometheMicrosoftofdigitalmusic.

E.　Applecanaffordtoembraceopencompetitioninmusicplayersandonlinestores.Consumerswouldgravitatetothebestplayerandthebeststore,andatthemomentthatstillmeansApple’s.MrJobsisevidentlyunfazedbyrivalstotheiPod.Sinceonly3%ofthemusicinatypicaliTuneslibraryisprotected,mostofitcanalreadybeusedonotherplayerstoday,henotes.(AndeventheprotectedtrackscanbeburnedontoaCDandthenre-ripped.)SoApple’sdominanceevidentlydependsfarmoreonbrandingandeaseofusethanDRM-related“lockin”.

F.　ThemusicgiantsaretryingDRM-freedownloads.Lotsofsmallerlabelsalreadysellmusicthatway.Havingseenwhichwaythewindisblowing,MrJobsnowwantstobeseennotasDRM’sdefender,butasaconsumerchampionwhohelpedinitsdownfall.Wouldn’titleadtoasurgeinpiracy?No,becausemostmusicisstillsoldunprotectedonCDs,peoplewishingtostealmusicalreadycandoso.Indeed,scrappingDRMwouldprobablyincreaseonline-musicsalesbyreducingconfusionandincompatibility.Withtheleadingonlinestore,Applewouldbenefitmost.MrJobs’sargument,inshort,istransparentlyself-serving.Italsohappenstoberight.

NotestoReadingPassage1

1.low-key:

抑制的，受约束的，屈服的

2.showman:

开展览会的人,出风头的人物

3.unassuming:

谦逊的,不夸耀的,不装腔作势的

4.iPod：

(苹果公司出产的)音乐播放器

5.iTunesstore：

(苹果公司出产的)在线音乐商店

6.getoffperson’sback:

不再找某人的麻烦，摆脱某人的纠缠

7.gravitate:

受吸引，倾向于

8.unfazed:

不再担忧，不被打扰

Questions1-7

DothefollowingstatemetsreflecttheclaimsofthewriterinReadingPassage1?

WriteyouranswerinBoxes1-7onyouranswersheet.

TRUEifthestatementrefletstheclaimsofthewriter

FALSEifthestatementcontradictstheclaimsofthewriter

NOTGIVENifitisimpossbiletosaywhatthewriterthinksaboutthis

1.AppleenjoysacontrollingpositionindigitalmusicmarketwithitsiPodmusic-playerandiTunesmusic-store.

2.DRMisagovernmentdecreeissuedwithapurposetoprotectdownloadedmusicfromtheftbyconsumers.

3.LackofstandardizationinDRMmakessongsboughtforonekindofmusicplayermaynotfunctiononanother.

4.ApplehasbeencriticizedbyEuropeanregulatorssinceithasrefusedtograntalicenseFairPlaytootherfirms.

5.Allmusiccanbeeasilyplayedonnon-iPodmusicdevicesfromSonyorMicrosoftwithouttoomuchfiddling.

6.AppledependsfarmoreonDRMratherthanbrandingforitsdominanceofthedigitalmusicdevices.

7.IfDRMwascancelled,Sonywouldcertainlydominatetheinternationaldigitalmusicmarket.

Questions8-10

ChoosetheappropriatelettersA-Dandwritetheminboxes8-10onyouranswesheet.

8.WhichofthefollowingstatementsaboutMr.Jobs’ideaofDRMisNOTTRUE?

A.DRMplacesrestrictionsonconsumer’choiceofdigitalmusicproductsavailable.

B.DRMcomplesiTunesbuyerstoswitchtoadevicemadebySonyorMicrosoft.

C.DRMconstitutesabarrierforpotentialconsumerstoenterdigitalmusicmarkets.

D.DRMhindersdevelopmentofmorestoresandplayersandtechnicalinnovation.

9.Theword“unfazed”inline3ofparagraphE,means___________.

A.refused

B.welcomed

C.notbothered

D.notwellreceived

10.WhichofthefollowingstatementsisTRUEifDRMwasscapped?

A.Sonywouldgainthemostprofit.

B.Morecustomerswouldbe“lockedin”.

C.Asuddenincreaseinpiracywouldoccur.

D.Online-musicsaleswouldprobablydecrease.

Questions11-14

Completethenotesbelow.

ChooseNOMORETHANTHREEWORDSfromReadingPassage1foreachanswer.

Writeyouranswersinboxes11-14onyouranswersheet.

Mr.SteveJobs,thebossofApple,explainsthereasonwhyheusedtodefendDRM,sayingthatthecompanywasforcedtodoso:therecordcompanieswouldmaketheirmusicaccessibleto…11...onlyiftheyagreedtoprotectitusingDRM;theycanstill…12…iftheDRMsystemiscompromised.HealsoprovidesthereasonwhyAppledidnotlicenseFairPlaytoothers:thecompanyreliesonthemto…13….ButnowhechangeshismindwithapossibleexpectationthatEurope’sregulatorswouldnottroublehimanymoreinthefuture.Heproposesthatthosewhoareunsatisfactorywiththecurrentsituationindigitalmusicmarketshould…14…towardspersuadethemusiccompaniestoselltheirmusicDRM-free.

答案：

1. TRUE

See the second sentence in Paragraph A “… the future of digital music, which Apple dominates with its iPod music-player and iTunes music-store.”

2. FALSE

See the third sentence in Paragraph A “…At issue is “digital rights management” (DRM)—the technology guarding downloaded music against theft.”

3. TRUE

See the fourth sentence in Paragraph A “Since there is no common standard for DRM, it also has the side-effect that songs purchased for one type of music-player may not work on another.”

4. TRUE

See the second sentence in Paragraph B “It has come under fire from European regulators who claim that its refusal to license FairPlay to other firms has “locked in” customers.”

5. NOT GIVEN

The third sentence in Paragaph B only mentions music from the iTunes store, nothing about that of Sony or Microsoft. “Since music from the iTunes store cannot be played on non-iPod music-players (at least not without a lot of fiddling).”

6. FALSE

See the last sentence in Paragraph E “So Apple’s dominance evidently depends far more on branding and ease of use than DRM-related “lock in”.

7. NOT GIVEN

See the fourth sentence in Paragraph F only mentions music generally, no particular information about business prospect of Sony “Indeed, scrapping DRM would probably increase online-music sales by reducing confusion and incompatibility.”

8. B

See the fourth sentence of Paragraph C “All DRM does is restrict consumer choice and provide a barrier to entry, says Mr Jobs; without it there would be far more stores and players, and far more innovation.”

9. C

See the third sentence of Paragraph E and the context “Mr Jobs is evidently unfazed by rivals to the iPod. Since only 3% of the music in a typical iTunes library is protected, most of it can already be used on other players today.”

10. A

See the last four sentences of Paragraph F “Wouldn’t it lead to a surge in piracy? No, because most music is still sold unprotected on CDs, people wishing to steal music already can do so. Indeed, scrapping DRM would probably increase online-music sales by reducing confusion and incompatibility. With the leading online store, Apple would benefit most.”

11. the iTunes store

See the second sentence of Paragraph C “They would make their music available to the iTunes store only if Apple agreed to protect it using DRM.”

12. withdraw their catalogues

See the third sentence of Paragraph C “They can still withdraw their catalogues if the DRM system is compromised.”

13. produce security fixes

See the fourth sentence of Paragraph C “Apple cannot license FairPlay to others, says Mr Jobs, because it would depend on them to produce security fixes promptly.”

14. redirect their energies

See the second sentence of Paragraph D “Rather than complaining to Apple about its use of DRM, he suggests, “those unhappy with the current situation should redirect their energies towards persuading the music companies to sell their music DRM-free.”

解析：

暂无解析

1、【题目】Howshopscanexploitpeople'sherdmentalitytoincreasesales

1.ATRIPtothesupermarketmaynotseemlikeanexerciseinpsychologicalwarfare—butitis.Shopkeepersknowthatfillingastorewiththearomaoffreshlybakedbreadmakespeoplefeelhungryandpersuadesthemtobuymorefoodthantheyhadintended.Stockingthemostexpensiveproductsateyelevelmakesthemsellfasterthancheaperbutlessvisiblecompetitors.Nowresearchersareinvestigatinghow“swarmintelligence”(thatis，howants，beesoranysocialanimal，includinghumans，behaveinacrowd)canbeusedtoinfluencewhatpeoplebuy.

2.AtarecentconferenceonthesimulationofadaptivebehaviourinRome，Zeeshan-ul-hassanUsmani，acomputerscientistfromtheFloridaInstituteofTechnology，describedanewwaytoincreaseimpulsebuyingusingthisphenomenon.Supermarketsalreadyencourageshopperstobuythingstheydidnotrealisetheywanted:forinstance，byplacingeverydayitemssuchasmilkandeggsatthebackofthestore，forcingshopperstowalkpastothertemptinggoodstoreachthem.MrUsmaniandRonaldoMenezes，alsooftheFloridaInstituteofTechnology，setouttoenhancethistendencytobuymorebyplayingontheherdinstinct.Theideaisthat，ifacertainproductisseentobepopular，shoppersarelikelytochooseittoo.Thechallengeistokeepcustomersinformedaboutwhatothersarebuying.

3.Entersmart-carttechnology.InMrUsmani'ssupermarketeveryproducthasaradiofrequencyidentificationtag，asortofbarcodethatusesradiowavestotransmitinformation，andeverytrolleyhasascannerthatreadsthisinformationandrelaysittoacentralcomputer.Asacustomerwalkspastashelfofgoods，ascreenontheshelftellshimhowmanypeoplecurrentlyintheshophavechosenthatparticularproduct.Ifthenumberishigh，heismorelikelytoselectittoo.

4.MrUsmani's“swarm-moves”modelappealstosupermarketsbecauseitincreasessaleswithouttheneedtogivepeoplediscounts.Anditgivesshoppersthesatisfactionofknowingthattheyboughtthe“right”product—thatis，theoneeveryoneelsebought.Themodelhasnotyetbeentestedwidelyintherealworld，mainlybecauseradiofrequencyidentificationtechnologyisnewandhasonlybeeninstalledexperimentallyinsomesupermarkets.ButMrUsmanisaysthatbothWal-MartinAmericaandTescoinBritainareinterestedinhiswork，andtestingwillgetunderwayinthespring.

5.Anotherrecentstudyonthepowerofsocialinfluenceindicatesthatsalescould，indeed，beboostedinthisway.MatthewSalganikofColumbiaUniversityinNewYorkandhiscolleagueshavedescribedcreatinganartificialmusicmarketinwhichsome14,000peopledownloadedpreviouslyunknownsongs.Theresearchersfoundthatwhenpeoplecouldseethesongsrankedbyhowmanytimestheyhadbeendownloaded，theyfollowedthecrowd.Whenthesongswerenotorderedbyrank，butthenumberoftimestheyhadbeendownloadedwasdisplayed，theeffectofsocialinfluencewasstilltherebutwaslesspronounced.Peoplethusfollowtheherdwhenitiseasyforthemtodoso.

6.InJapanachainofconvenienceshopscalledRanKingRanQueenhasbeenorderingitsproductsaccordingtosalesdatafromdepartmentstoresandresearchcompanies.Theshopssellonlythemostpopularitemsineachproductcategory，andtherankingsareupdatedweekly.Icosystem，acompanyinCambridge，Massachusetts，alsoaimstoexploitknowledgeofsocialnetworkingtoimprovesales.

7.Andthepsychologythatworksinphysicalstoresisjustaspotentontheinternet.OnlineretailerssuchasAmazonareadeptattellingshopperswhichproductsarepopularwithlike-mindedconsumers.Evenintheprivacyofyourhome，youcanstillbepartoftheswarm.

Questions1-6

Completethesentencesbelowwithwordstakenfromthereadingpassage.UseNOMORETHANTHREEWORDSforeachanswer.

1.Shopownersrealizethatthesmellof_______________canincreasesalesoffoodproducts.

2.Inshops，productsshelvedatamorevisiblelevelsellbettereveniftheyaremore_______________.

3.AccordingtoMr.Usmani，withtheuseof“swarmintelligence”phenomenon，anewmethodcanbeappliedtoencourage_______________.

4.Onthewaytoeverydayitemsatthebackofthestore，shoppersmightbetemptedtobuy_______________.

5.Ifthenumberofbuyersshownonthe_______________ishigh，othercustomerstendtofollowthem.

6.Usingthe“swarm-moves”model，shopownersdonothavetogivecustomers_______________toincreasesales.

答案：

1.答案：(freshly baked) bread.

2.答案：expensive.

3.答案：impulse buying.

4.答案：other (tempting) goods/things/products.

5.答案：screen.

6.答案：discounts.

解析：

暂无解析

1、【题目】new weapon to fight cancer

1. British scientists are preparing to launch trials of a radical new way to fight cancer, which kills tumours by infecting them with viruses like the common cold.

2. If successful, virus therapy could eventually form a third pillar alongside radiotherapy and chemotherapy in the standard arsenal against cancer, while avoiding some of the debilitating side-effects.

3. Leonard Seymour, a professor of gene therapy at Oxford University, who has been working on the virus therapy with colleagues in London and the US, will lead the trials later this year. Cancer Research UK said yesterday that it was excited by the potential of Prof Seymour’s pioneering techniques.

4. One of the country’s leading geneticists, Prof Seymour has been working with viruses that kill cancer cells directly, while avoiding harm to healthy tissue. "In principle, you’ve got something which could be many times more effective than regular chemotherapy," he said.

5. Cancer-killing viruses exploit the fact that cancer cells suppress the body’s local immune system. "If a cancer doesn’t do that, the immune system wipes it out. If you can get a virus into a tumour, viruses find them a very good place to be because there’s no immune system to stop them replicating. You can regard it as the cancer’s Achilles’ heel."

6. Only a small amount of the virus needs to get to the cancer. "They replicate, you get a million copies in each cell and the cell bursts and they infect the tumour cells adjacent and repeat the process," said Prof Seymour.

7. Preliminary research on mice shows that the viruses work well on tumours resistant to standard cancer drugs. "It’s an interesting possibility that they may have an advantage in killing drug-resistant tumours, which could be quite different to anything we’ve had before."

8. Researchers have known for some time that viruses can kill tumour cells and some aspects of the work have already been published in scientific journals. American scientists have previously injected viruses directly into tumours but this technique will not work if the cancer is inaccessible or has spread throughout the body.

9. Prof Seymour’s innovative solution is to mask the virus from the body’s immune system, effectively allowing the viruses to do what chemotherapy drugs do - spread through the blood and reach tumours wherever they are. The big hurdle has always been to find a way to deliver viruses to tumours via the bloodstream without the body’s immune system destroying them on the way.

10. "What we’ve done is make chemical modifications to the virus to put a polymer coat around it - it’s a stealth virus when you inject it," he said.

11. After the stealth virus infects the tumour, it replicates, but the copies do not have the chemical modifications. If they escape from the tumour, the copies will be quickly recognised and mopped up by the body’s immune system.

12. The therapy would be especially useful for secondary cancers, called metastases, which sometimes spread around the body after the first tumour appears. "There’s an awful statistic of patients in the west ... with malignant cancers; 75% of them go on to die from metastases," said Prof Seymour.

13. Two viruses are likely to be examined in the first clinical trials: adenovirus, which normally causes a cold-like illness, and vaccinia, which causes cowpox and is also used in the vaccine against smallpox. For safety reasons, both will be disabled to make them less pathogenic in the trial, but Prof Seymour said he eventually hopes to use natural viruses.

14. The first trials will use uncoated adenovirus and vaccinia and will be delivered locally to liver tumours, in order to establish whether the treatment is safe in humans and what dose of virus will be needed. Several more years of trials will be needed, eventually also on the polymer-coated viruses, before the therapy can be considered for use in the NHS. Though the approach will be examined at first for cancers that do not respond to conventional treatments, Prof Seymour hopes that one day it might be applied to all cancers.

Questions 1-6

Do the following statements agree with the information given in the reading passage? For questions 1-6 write

TRUE if the statement agrees with the information

FALSE if the statement contradicts the information

NOT GIVEN if there is no information on this in the passage

1.Virus therapy, if successful, has an advantage in eliminating side-effects.

2.Cancer Research UK is quite hopeful about Professor Seymour’s work on the virus therapy.

3.Virus can kill cancer cells and stop them from growing again.

4.Cancer’s Achilles’ heel refers to the fact that virus may stay safely in a tumor and replicate.

5.To infect the cancer cells, a good deal of viruses should be injected into the tumor.

6.Researches on animals indicate that virus could be used as a new way to treat drug-resistant tumors.

Question 7-9

Based on the reading passage, choose the appropriate letter from A-D for each answer.

7.Information about researches on viruses killing tumor cells can be found

(A) on TV

(B) in magazines

(C) on internet

(D) in newspapers

8.To treat tumors spreading out in body, researchers try to

(A) change the body’ immune system

(B) inject chemotherapy drugs into bloodstream.

(C) increase the amount of injection

(D) disguise the viruses on the way to tumors.

9.When the chemical modified virus in tumor replicates, the copies

(A) will soon escape from the tumor and spread out.

(B) will be wiped out by the body’s immune system.

(C) will be immediately recognized by the researchers.

(D) will eventually stop the tumor from spreading out.

Questions 10-13

Complete the sentences below. Choose your answers from the list of words. You can only use each word once.

NB There are more words in the list than spaces so you will not use them all.

In the first clinical trials, scientists will try to ……10…… adenovirus and vaccinia, so both the viruses will be less pathogenic than the ……11…….These uncoated viruses will be applied directly to certain areas to confirm safety on human beings and the right ……12…… needed. The experiments will firstly be ……13……to the treatment of certain cancers

答案：

1.答案：FALSE (见第2段：If successful, virus therapy could eventually form a third pillar alongside radiotherapy and chemotherapy in the standard arsenal against cancer, while avoiding some of the debilitating side-effects. Virus therapy 只能避免一些副作用，而不是根除。)

2.答案：TRUE (见第3段，特别是最后一句： Cancer Research UK said yesterday that it was excited by the potential of Prof Seymour’s pioneering techniques. )

3. 答案：NOT GIVEN (文中没有提到virus可以抑制肿瘤细胞再生长)

4. 答案：TRUE (见第5段第3、4句： 这里“cancer’s Achilles’ heel”指 “If you can get a virus into a tumour, viruses find them a very good place to be because there’s no immune system to stop them replicating.” Achilles’ heel的意思是“唯一致命弱点”)

5. 答案：FALSE (见第6段第第1句：Only a small amount of the virus needs to get to the cancer.)

6. 答案：TRUE (见第7段：Preliminary research on mice shows that the viruses work well on tumours resistant to standard cancer drug. ……, which could be quite different to anything we’ve had before." )

7. 答案：B (见第8段第1、2句：Researchers have known for some time that viruses can kill tumour cells and some aspects of the work have already been published in scientific journals. Journal意思是“日报、期刊、杂志”)

8. 答案：D (见第9段第1句：Prof Seymour’s innovative solution is to mask the virus from the body’s immune system, …… “mask”的意思是“掩盖、隐蔽、伪装”， 在这里和 “disguise”同义。)

9. 答案：B (见第11段第2句： If they escape from the tumour, the copies will be quickly recognised and mopped up by the body’s immune system.. “mop up”这里与 “wipe out” 同义，意思是“消灭、歼灭”。)

10.答案：disable (见第13段最后1句：For safety reasons, both will be disabled to make them less pathogenic in the trial, but Prof Seymour said he eventually hopes to use natural viruses. )

11. 答案：natural ones (见第13段最后1句：For safety reasons, both will be disabled to make them less pathogenic in the trial, but Prof Seymour said he eventually hopes to use natural viruses. )

12. 答案：dosage (见第14段第1句：The first trials will use uncoated adenovirus and vaccinia and will be delivered locally to liver tumours, in order to establish whether the treatment is safe in humans and what dose of virus will be needed.)

13. 答案：directed (见第14段最后1句：Though the approach will be examined at first for cancers that do not respond to conventional treatments, …)

解析：

暂无解析