1、中考英语复习-九年级短文阅读71.China-Made Smart E-Bus in ParisAs more and more people are worried about environmental problems, many parts of the world are seeing a growing need for eco-friendly public transport. China has made great achievements in developing such transport. Now, green transport is not only runn
2、ing in Chinas cities, but also going abroad to serve passengers in other countries.Recently, a 12-meter-long electric bus (e-bus) made in China finished a test run in Paris. The bus ran 6km in southeast Paris. It ran about 40 minutes and passed 26 traffic lights and 10 bus stops. Everything went swi
3、mmingly.Besides being powered by clean energy, the bus is also driverless. Whats more, it can record and process real-time information about people, the bus and road conditions so that it can run safely and improve driving efficiency.The success of the test run is very important for public transport
4、 in France. It was the first time in this country that a self-driving bus ran on a regular bus route. Francois Yann, a bus driver who took part in the test run said it was like a dream come true.“Once we had done the training and saw the bus running, we found the performance was actually quite wonde
5、rful,” Francois said. “It feels like a technology we were dreaming about when we were kids. And now, its all happening .”The smart e-buses are planned to be put into use on open roads in Paris in autumn next year. Isnt this exciting news?2.Walking With Correct PostureWalking is an important part of
6、our daily life. But most of us dont give much thought to how we walk or whether we are walking correctly. Walking with good posture is of great importance to all of us.Why use proper walking posture Walking may seem like a simple activity and really, it should be. When you walk, why not get as many
7、advantages that result from it as possible? First of all, proper walking posture will help you to walk faster and farther. At the same time, it is good for your physical health. Using proper posture will reduce pain, lower the risk of getting hurt, make it easier to breathe, and increase energy leve
8、ls. Whats more, walking with proper posture will help you to be more confident and improve your spirit.How to walk properlyStand up straight.Keep your eyes forward.Keep your chin up.Relax your shoulders and push them back.Keep your stomach pulled in slightly.Gently swing your arms back and forth at
9、the sides.Step lightly.What to do before and during the walkWalking with proper posture is actually not a one-and-done process. It takes time. Before you begin walking, set yourself up for the right posture. Each time you come to a halt during your walk, such as when waiting to cross a street, do a
10、posture check before you start again.Walking with correct posture isnt hard to do, but it may take some practice. Now, lets walk. 3. It Can Read Your MindI dont want to alarm you, but robots can read your mind. Kind of. Lets meet AlterEgo. AlterEgo is a new high-tech device. You can ask it questions
11、 and get answers, but silently. The device was invented by Arnav Kapur and his professor Patti Maes at MIT.AlterEgo can be fixed to the users ear and jaw. From its connection near the mouth, it picks up tiny movements in the jaw and face when the user speaks in his head. Human eyes cannot see the mo
12、vements. After the movements are sent to a special machine, the machine can match each movement with a word. Then it can talk back to the user silently through its connection behind the ear. In this way the user can ask questions and get answers through complete silence.AlterEgo was first tested wit
13、h 10 persons who asked for the answers to math problems. At that time it understood 92 percent of the words. Since then, the inventors have been teaching it new words. Right now it can be used to solve math problems, to recommend chess moves, and to do other basic tasks.There are many possibilities
14、for using AlterEgo. Since it is hands-free and silent, it allows users to ask a question without interrupting their conversations. It would also let a user who is in a very noisy place, or a user who must keep quiet, communicate easily. Perhaps most importantly, it may help people who are not able t
15、o speak normally.4.Vertical Farming7th floor Strawberries. 15th floor Carrots. It sounds like youre in the lift of a supermarket, but actually this describes a vertical farm!Vertical farming means growing plants on different levels in tall buildings. There is running water, and sunlight enters throu
16、gh glass windows with LED lights for plants that dont receive direct sunlight at some points of the day. Also, farmers in vertical farms have control over the temperature and humidity. So no matter what the weather is like outside, the plants can continue growing!Vertical farming began as an idea at
17、 Columbia University in New York City in 1999. Dickson Despommier, a professor, challenged his students to come up with ways to feed the population of Manhattan by growing food in the city. One idea was to use rooftop gardens, but that could only feed 2% of the population. Out of nowhere, Despommier
18、 suggested that people could grow plants in tall buildings in the city. Then vertical farming was born!Today, vertical farming is a reality and its growing in popularity. As is known to us, the population of the world will become larger and larger, so we will need more food. Cutting down forests to
19、grow crops would do harm to the environment, so vertical farms can be a solution. Also, because farmers can control the conditions in vertical farms, its possible to grow crops all year round.Despommier says that a 30-storey 2-hectare vertical farm can grow the same amount of crops in a year as a normal 1,000-hectare farm! In 2012, the worlds first commercial vertical farm opened in Singapore. Today, there are many vertical farms around the world.
