1.AEuropeanspacecrafttookofftodaytospearheadthesearchforanother"Earth"amongthestars.
2.TheCorotspacetelescopeblastedoffaboardaRussianSoyuzrocketfromtheBaikonurcosmodromeinKazakhstanshortlyafter2.20pm.
3.Corot,shortforconvectionrotationandplanetarytransits,isthefirstinstrumentcapableoffindingsmallrockyplanetsbeyondthesolarsystem.Anysuchplanetsituatedintherightorbitstandsagoodchanceofhavingliquidwateronitssurface,andquitepossiblylife,althoughaleadingscientistinvolvedintheprojectsaiditwasunlikelytofind"anylittlegreenmen".
4.DevelopedbytheFrenchspaceagency,CNES,andpartneredbytheEuropeanSpaceAgency(ESA),Austria,Belgium,Germany,BrazilandSpain,Corotwillmonitoraround120,000starswithits27cmtelescopefromapolarorbit514milesabovetheEarth.Overtwoandahalfyears,itwillfocusonfivetosixdifferentareasofthesky,measuringthebrightnessofabout10,000starsevery512seconds.
5."Atthepresentmomentwearehopingtofindoutmoreaboutthenatureofplanetsaroundstarswhicharepotentialhabitats.Wearelookingathabitableplanets,notinhabitedplanets.Wearenotgoingtofindanylittlegreenmen,"ProfessorIanRoxburgh,anESAscientistwhohasbeeninvolvedwithCorotsinceitsinception,toldtheBBCRadio4Todayprogramme.
6.ProfRoxburghsaiditwashopedCorotwouldfind"rockyplanetsthatcoulddevelopanatmosphereand,iftheyaretherightdistancefromtheirparentstar,theycouldhavewater".
7.Tosearchforplanets,thetelescopewilllookforthedimmingofstarlightcausedwhenanobjectpassesinfrontofastar,knownasa"transit".Althoughitwilltakemoresophisticatedspacetelescopesplannedinthenext10yearstoconfirmthepresenceofanEarth-likeplanetwithoxygenandliquidwater,Corotwillletscientistsknowwheretopointtheirlenses.
8.MeasurementsofminutechangesinbrightnesswillenablescientiststodetectgiantJupiter-likegasplanetsaswellassmallrockyones.Itistherockyplanets-thatcouldbenobiggerthanabouttwicethesizeoftheEarth-whichwillcausethemostexcitement.Scientistsexpecttofindbetween10and40ofthesesmallerplanets.
9.Corotwillalsoprobeintostellarinteriorsbystudyingtheacousticwavesthatrippleacrossthesurfaceofstars,atechniquecalled"asteroseismology".
10.Thenatureoftheripplesallowsastronomerstocalculateastar’sprecisemass,ageandchemicalcomposition.
11."Aplanetpassinginfrontofastarcanbedetectedbythefallinlightfromthatstar.Smalloscillationsofthestaralsoproducechangesinthelightemitted,whichrevealwhatthestarismadeofandhowtheyarestructuredinternally.Thisdatawillprovideamajorboosttoourunderstandingofhowstarsformandevolve,"ProfRoxburghsaid.
12.Sincethediscoveryin1995ofthefirst"exoplanet"-aplanetorbitingastarotherthantheSun-morethan200othershavebeenfoundbyground-basedobservatories.
13.Untilnowtheusualmethodoffindingexoplanetshasbeentodetectthe"wobble"theirgravityimpartsonparentstars.ButonlygiantgaseousplanetsbiggerthanJupitercanbefoundthisway,andtheyareunlikelytoharbourlife.
14.Inthe2010s,ESAplanstolaunchDarwin,afleetoffourorfiveinterlinkedspacetelescopesthatwillnotonlyspotsmallrockyplanets,butanalysetheiratmospheresforsignsofbiologicalactivity.
15.Ataroundthesametime,theUSspaceagency,Nasa,willlaunchTerrestrialPlanetFinder,anotherspacetelescopedesignedtolocateEarth-likeplanets.
ChoosetheappropriateletterfromA-Dforquestion1.
1.Corotisaninstrumentwhich
(A)canhelptosearchforcertainplanets
(B)isusedtofindplanetsintheorbit
(C)canlocateplanetswithhumanbeings
(D)canspotanyplanetswithwater.
Dothefollowingstatementsagreewiththeinformationgiveninthereadingpassage?Forquestions2-5write
TRUEifthestatementagreeswiththeinformation
FALSEifthestatementcontraictstheinformation
NOTGIVENifthereisnoinformationonthisinthepassage
2.Scientistsaretryingtofindoutabouttheplanetsthatcanbeinhabited.
3.BBCRadio4recentlyfocusesonthebroadcastingofCorot.
4.Passingobjectsmightcauseafallinlight.
5.CorotcantellwhetherthereisanotherEarth-likeplanet.
Basedonyourreadingofthepassage,completethesentencesbelowwithwordstakenfromthepassage.UseNOMORETHANTHREEWORDSforeachanswer.
Withmeasurements,scientistswillbeabletosearchforsomegaseousandrockyplanets.Theywillbeextremelyexcitediftheycandiscoversomesmall6.__________,theexpectednumberofwhichcouldbeupto7.__________.
Corotwillenablescientiststostudythe8.__________ofstars.Inthisway,astar’smass,ageandchemicalcompositioncanbecalculated.
AccordingtoProfRoxburgh,changesinlightcanbecausedbypassingplanetsorstar9.__________.Therelatedstatisticscangainusabetter10.__________ofthestarformationandevolvement.
Observatorieshavefoundmanyexoplanets,whichare11.__________otherstarsthantheSun.Thecommonwayusedinfindingexoplanetscanonlydetecthugegasplanets,whichdonot12.___________.
WiththelaunchingofDarwin,astronomerswillbeabletoanalysewhetherthoserockyplanetshave13.__________forlife.
1. 答案：A
2. 答案：TRUE
3. 答案：NOT GIVEN
4. 答案：TRUE
5. 答案：FASLE
6. 答案：rocky planets
7. 答案：40
8. 答案：interiors
9. 答案：oscillations
10. 答案：understanding
11. 答案：orbiting
12. 答案：harbour life
13. 答案：atmospheres
暫無解析
-----Didyounoticehimcomein?
-----No.I________afootballgame.
Intheearlieststagesofman'sdevelopmenthehadnomoreneedofmoneythananimalshave.Hewascontentwithverysimpleformsofshelter,madehisownroughtoolsandweaponsandcouldprovidefoodandclothingforhimselfandhisfamilyfromnaturalmaterialsaroundhim.Ashebecamemorecivilized,however,hebegantowantbettershelter,moreefficienttoolsandweapons,andmorecomfortableandmorelastingclothingthancouldbeprovidedbyhisownneighborhoodorbytheworkofhisownunskilledhands.Forthesethingshehadtoturntotheskilledpeoplesuchassmiths,leatherworkersorcarpenters.Itwasthenthatthequestionofpaymentarose.
Atfirsthegotwhathewantedbyasimpleprocessofexchange.Thesmithwhohadnotthetimetolookafterlandorcattlewasgladtotakemeatorgrainfromthefarmerinexchangeforanaxeoraplough.Butasmoreandmoregoodswhichhadnofixedexchangevaluecameonthemarket,exchangebecametoocomplicatedtobesatisfactory.Anotherproblemarosewhenthosewhomadethingswantedtogetstocksofwoodorleather,oriron,buthadnothingtoofferinexchangeuntiltheirfinishedgoodswereready.Thusthedifficultiesofexchangeledbydegreestotheinventionofmoney.Insomecountrieseasilyhandledthingslikeseedsorshellsweregivenacertainvalueandthefarmer,insteadofpayingthesmithforanewaxebygivinghimsomemeatorgrain,gavehimsomanyshells.Ifthesmithhadanyshellsleftwhenhehadboughthisfood,hecouldgetstocksoftherawmaterialsofhistrade.Insomecountriesquitelargethingssuchascowsorcamelsorevenbigflatstoneswereusedfortrade.Later,piecesofmetal,bearingvaluesaccordingtotherarityofthemetalandthesizeofthepieces,orcoinswereused.Moneyasweknowithadarrived.
1.Exchangeofgoodsbecamedifficultbecause_________.
Amanbecamemorecivilized
Bsmithsbegantolookafterlandorcattleintheirsparetime
Cmoreandmoregoodswhichhadnofixedexchangealuescametothemarker
Dfarmershadn'tenoughgrainormeattoprovidefor
skilledworkers
2.Moneywasnotuseduntil_______.
Apaperwasinvented
Bpeoplepracticedasimpleprocessofexchange
CnothingcouldbeofferedinexchangeDtheexchangeofonethingforanotherbecametoocomplicated
3.Thebesttitleforthispassageis_____.
AWhatismoney
BWhataremoney'sfunctions.
CTheimportanceofmoney
DThebeginningofmoney
1.Thefailureofahigh-profilecholesteroldrughasthrownaspotlightonthecomplicatedmachinerythatregulatescholesterollevels.Butmanyresearchersremainconfidentthatdrugstoboostlevelsof'good'cholesterolarestilloneofthemostpromisingmeanstocombatspirallingheartdisease.
2.DrugcompanyPfizerannouncedon2Decemberthatitwascancellingallclinicaltrialsoftorcetrapib，adrugdesignedtoraiseheart-protectivehigh-densitylipoproteins(HDLs).Inatrialof15000patients，asafetyboardfoundthatmorepeoplediedorsufferedcardiovascularproblemsaftertakingthedrugplusacholesterol-loweringstatinthanthoseinacontrolgroupwhotookthestatinalone.
3.Thenewscameasakickintheteethtomanycardiologistsbecauseearliertestsinanimalsandpeoplesuggesteditwouldlowerratesofcardiovasculardisease."Therehavebeennoredflagstomyknowledge,"saysJohnChapman，aspecialistinlipoproteinsandatherosclerosisattheNationalInstituteforHealthandMedicalResearch(INSERM)inPariswhohasalsostudiedtorcetrapib."Thiscancellationcameasacompleteshock."
4.TorcetrapibisoneofthemostadvancedofanewbreedofdrugsdesignedtoraiselevelsofHDLs，whichferrycholesteroloutofartery-cloggingplaquestotheliverforremovalfromthebody.Specifically，torcetrapibblocksaproteincalledcholesterolestertransferprotein(CETP)，whichnormallytransfersthecholesterolfromhigh-densitylipoproteinstolowdensity，plaque-promotingones.Statins，incontrast，mainlyworkbyloweringthe'bad'low-densitylipoproteins.
Underpressure
5.Researchersarenowtryingtoworkoutwhyandhowthedrugbackfired，somethingthatwillnotbecomeclearuntiltheclinicaldetailsarereleasedbyPfizer.Onehintliesinevidencefromearliertrialsthatitslightlyraisesbloodpressureinsomepatients.Itwasthoughtthatthismildproblemwouldbeoffsetbytheheartbenefitsofthedrug.Butitispossiblethatitactuallyprovedfatalinsomepatientswhoalreadysufferedhighbloodpressure.Ifbloodpressureistheexplanation，itwouldactuallybegoodnewsfordrugdevelopersbecauseitsuggeststhattheproblemsarespecifictothiscompound.OtherprototypedrugsthatarebeingdevelopedtoblockCETPworkinaslightlydifferentwayandmightnotsufferthesamedownfall.
6.ButitisalsopossiblethatthewholeideaofblockingCETPisflawed，saysMotiKashyap，whodirectsatherosclerosisresearchattheVAMedicalCenterinLongBeach，California.WhenHDLsexcretecholesterolintheliver，theyactuallyrelyonLDLsforpartofthisprocess.SoinhibitingCETP，whichpreventsthetransferofcholesterolfromHDLtoLDL，mightactuallycauseanabnormalandirreversibleaccumulationofcholesterolinthebody."You'reblockingaphysiologicmechanismtoeliminatecholesterolandeffectivelyconstipatingthepathway,"saysKashyap.Goingup
7.Mostresearchersremainconfidentthatelevatinghighdensitylipoproteinslevelsbyonemeansoranotherisoneofthebestroutesforhelpingheartdiseasepatients.ButHDLsarecomplexandnotentirelyunderstood.Oneapproveddrug，calledniacin，isknowntobothraiseHDLandreducecardiovascularriskbutalsocausesanunpleasantsensationofheatandtingling.Researchersareexploringwhethertheycanbypassthissideeffectandwhetherniacincanlowerdiseaseriskmorethanstatinsalone.Scientistsarealsoworkingonseveralothermeanstobumpuphigh-densitylipoproteinsby，forexample，introducingsyntheticHDLs."Theonlythingweknowisdeadinthewateristorcetrapib，notthewholeideaofraisingHDL,"saysMichaelMiller，directorofpreventivecardiologyattheUniversityofMarylandMedicalCenter，Baltimore.
Questions7-13
Matchtorcetrapib，HDLs，statinandCETPwiththeirfunctions(Questions8-13)..WritethecorrectletterA，B，CorDinboxes8-13onyouranswersheet.NBYoumayuseanylettermorethanonce.
7.Ithasbeenadministeredtoover10,000subjectsinaclinicaltrial.
8.Itcouldhelpridhumanbodyofcholesterol.
9.Researchersareyettofindmoreaboutit.
10.Itwasusedtoreducethelevelofcholesterol.
11.AccordingtoKashyap，itmightleadtounwantedresultifit'sblocked.
12.Itproducedcontradictoryresultsindifferenttrials.
13.ItcouldinhibitLDLs.Listofchoices
A.TorcetrapicB.HDLSC.StatinD.CETP
Tobeginwith,"muzak"(音樂廣播網(wǎng))wasintendedsimplytocreateasoothing(安慰)atmosphere.Recently,however,it'secomebigbusiness—thanksinparttorecentresearch.Dr.RonaldMilliman,anAmericanmarketingexpert,hasshownthatmusiccanboostsalesorincreasefactoryroductionbyasmuchasathird.But,ithastobelightmusic.Afastonehasnoeffectatallonsales.Slowmusiccanincreasereceiptsby38%.Thisisprobablybecauseshoppersslowdownandhavemoreopportunitytospotitemstheyliketobuy.Yet,slowmusicisn'talwaysanswer.Dr.Millimanfound,forexample,thatinrestaurantsslowmusicmeantcustomerstooklongertoeattheirmeals,whichreducedoverallsales.Sorestaurantsownersmightbewelladvisedtoplayup-tempomusictokeepthecustomersmoving—unlessofcourse,theresultingindigestionleadstocomplaints!
練習(xí)：
1.Thereasonwhybackgroundmusicissopopularisthat______.
A.itcanhaveapowerfuleffectonthosewhohearit
B.itcanhelptocreateasoothingatmosphere
C.itcanboostsalesorincreasefactoryproductionerywhere
D.itcanmakecustomerseattheirmealsquickly
2.Backgroundmusicmeans________.
A.lightmusicthatcustomersenjoymostB.fastmusicthatmakespeoplemovefast
C.slowmusicthatcanmakecustomersenjoytheirmeals
D.themusicyouarelisteningtowhileyouaredoingomething
3.Restaurantownerscomplainaboutbackgroundmusicbecause______.
A.itresultsinindigestion
B.itincreasestheirsales
C.itkeepscustomersmoving
D.itdecreasestheirsales
4.Theword"up-tempomusic"probablymeans_____.
A.slowmusic
B.fastmusic
C.lightmusic
D.classicalmusic
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.
