27. Even the most sophisticated Japanese robots are __________.
28. Robots are less popular in Britain today partly because ________.
29. One disadvantage of using robots is that they consume ___________.
30. The use of robots increases ___________.
A too much energyB based on American designsC they are too costlyD they are not reliableE quality controlF free of charge
第4部分：阅读理解（第31—45题，每题3分，共45分）
下面有3篇短文，每篇短文后有5道题，每道题后面有4个选项。请根据文章的内容，从每题所给的4个选项中选择1个最佳答案，涂在答题卡相应的位置上。
第一篇 Eta Carinae
As possibly the galaxy’s (银河) most massive star, Eta Carinae is now engaging in some very unusual behaviour. Australian astronomers, being in the Southern Hemisphere (半球), are able to observe it clearly.
In the 19th century, Eta Carinae was for a time the third brightest star in the sky. It has now become less bright so that binoculars (双筒望远镜 )are needed to see it. “It seems to be brightening and becoming less bright over a period of many years”, said Dr Bob Duncan from the Australia Telescope National Facility.
While it is not unusual for stars to vary in brightness, the period is usually much shorter. “Since 1992 it has become four times brighter, and then last year it began to drop dramatically,” he said.
The problem in observing Eta Carinae is that it has been surrounded by a cloud of gas and dust, making it hard to see the star directly. However, radio waves and infrared light (红外线)can pass through this cloud, so telescopes that receive these wavelengths can observe what is occurring.
Eta Carinae is of particular interest to astronomers because it seems to be in its death throes（剧痛）. Being so large it will end up as a supernova (超新星). There has not been a supernova in our galaxy since the invention of the telescope. While a 1987 explosion in a nearby galaxy gave astronomers plenty of valuable data, they are hungry for an even closer look.
Eta Carinae has other unique features, and is the only star known to produce an ultraviolet(紫外线)laser that is brighter than that produced by the Sun. Lasers have been observed in other frequencies from a few stars.
31. Eta Carinae is now engaging in
A. some very common behaviour
B. some very dull behaviour
C. some very frightening behaviour.
D. some very strange behaviour
32. The word “period” in Paragraph 3 means the length of time
A. over which star vary in brightness
B. for which Eta carinae’s brightening lasts.
C. Eta carinae takes to become a supernova.
D. it takes the laser from Eta carinae to travel to the earth.
33. Eta Carinae is hard to observe because
A. it is too far away.
B. there is too much dust and gas around it.
C. the binoculars are not powerful enough.
D. it does not send out infrared light.
34. Astronomers are particularly interested in Eta Carinae because
A. it is in its final stage.
B. it is a supernova.
C. it exploded in 1987.
D. it is brighter than the sun.
35. Which of the following statements about Eta Carinae is NOT true?
A. It will end up as a supernova.
B. It can be seen only through binoculars.
C. It is the only star that sends out an ultraviolet laser.
D. Its ultraviolet laser is brighter than that of the Sun.
第二篇 New Foods and the New World
In the last 500 years, nothing about people – not their clothes, ideas, or languages – has changed as much as what they eat. The original chocolate drink was made from the seeds of the coca tree (可可树)by South American Indians. The Spanish introduced it to the rest of the world during the 1500’s. And although it was very expensive, it quickly became fashionable. In London, shops where chocolate drinks were served became important meeting places. Some still exist today.
The potato is also from the New World. Around 1600, the Spanish brought it from Peru to Europe, where it soon was widely grown. Ireland became so dependent on it that thousands of Irish people starved when the crop failed during the “Potato Famine(饥荒)” of 1845-1846, and thousands more were forced to leave their homeland and move to America.
There are many other foods that have traveled from South America to the Old World. But some others went in the opposite direction. Brazil is now the world’s largest grower of coffee, and coffee is an important crop in Colombia and other South American countries. But it is native to Ethiopia, a country in Africa. It was first made into a drink by Arab during the 1400’s.
According to an Arabic legend, coffee was discovered when a person name Kaldi noticed that his goats were attracted to the red berries on a coffee bush. He tried one and experienced the “wide-awake” feeling that one-third of the world’s population now starts the day with.
36. According to the passage, which of the following has changed the most in the last 500 years?
A. Food
B. Clothing
C. Ideology.
D. Language.
37. “Some” in the last sentence of the first paragraph refers to
A. some cocoa trees.
B. some chocolate drinks.
C. some shops.
D. some south american indians.
38. Thousands of Irish people starved during the “Potato Famine” because
A. they were so dependent on potatoes that they refused to eat anything else.
B. they were forced to leave their homeland and move to america.
C. the weather conditions in ireland were not suitable for growing potatoes.
D. the potato harvest was bad.
39. Which country is the largest coffee producer?
A. Brazil.
B. Colombia.
C. Ethiopia.
D. Egypt.
40. Which of the following statements is NOT true, according to the passage?
A. One third of the world’s population drinks coffee.
B. Coffee is native to Colombia.
C. Coffee can keep one awake.
D. Coffee drinks were first made by Arabs.
第三篇 London’s First Light Rail System
The Docklands Light Railway (DLR) took just three years to build at a cost of ￡77 million. It is London’s first Light Rail System, but its route follows that of a number of older lines, which carried the nineteenth century railways through the crowed districts of the East End.
The section of the line from the Tower Gateway Station to Poplar follows the line of one of London’s earliest railways, the London & Blackwell (1840), a cable-drawn railway (later converted to steam) which carried passengers to steam ships at Blackwell Pier, and provided transport for the messengers and clerks who went backwards and forwards between the docks (码头) and the city every day.
From Poplar to Island Gardens, a new line crosses high above the dock waters, and then joins the old track of the Millwall Extension Railway, built to service the Millwall Docks (1868) and to provide transport for workers in the local factories. This line was horse-drawn for part of its route, until the 1880s.