C
Life may have evolved on at least three planets within a newly discovered solar system 39 light years from Earth. Astronomers at the NASA have discovered no less than seven roughly Earth-sized worlds orbiting a dwarf star in the system. Scientists had previously identified a tiny number of "exoplanets", which are believed to have the qualities needed to support life. However, the new system contains an unprecedented(前所未有) number of Earth-sized, probably rocky planets, and is being acknowledged as an "accelerated leap forward" in the search for extraterrestrial (外星球的)life.
Three of the new planets are said to be particularly promising because there might exist oceans. Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator of NASA, told a press conference in Washington: "This gives us a hint that finding a second Earth is not a matter of 'if', but 'when'."
The planets were discovered using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, which was able to track how fast each of the planets crossed the star Trappist-l and completed an orbit. From this the research team calculated how far the planets were from their star, and therefore how likely they are to be habitable.
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope is already being used to search for atmospheres around the planets. Future telescopes, including the proposed European Extremely Large Telescope and the James Webb Space Telescope, may be powerful enough to discover markers of life, such as oxygen in the atmospheres of exoplanets.
Astronomers believe there could be as many as 40 billion potentially habitable worlds in our
galaxy, the Milky Way. Prof Zurbuchen said that now was a "gold-rush phase" in the search for
these exoplanets.
29. What makes the new discovery significant?
A. Ample markers of life B. The potential to support life.
C. Great distance from Earth. D. The search for extraterrestrial life.
30. What helps explore atmospheres around the exoplanets?
A. Spitzer Space Telescope. B. Hubble Space Telescope.
C. European Extremely Large Telescope. D. James Webb Space Telescope.
31. What may be the best title for the text7
A. New Solar System Found B. Second Earth Discovered
C. Why to Explore Outer Space D. Gold-Rush Stage to Come
D
Why do we read poetry? First obvious one: because we enjoy it. The only other reason is for
academic purposes, and that's not why this is here.
Many of us read poetry simply because we often feel depressed and hopelessly lost, and in poetry we see how beautiful and strange everything is. So in that way poetry calms our anxiety.
There are many different kinds of poems. They are not all calming. Some poems make me anxious, angry, scared, and sad, which is why I value them As a reader, I want a full meal, not just dessert. I want the sweet and the bitter. Often, I read poetry when I'm already relaxed. In fact, I read more when I'm not stressed out.
Here are the main reasons I respond to poetry, as far as I can tell. Metrical(格律的) poems are about setting up rules and then bending them. Usually. this is done by setting up a rhythm and then violating it or almost violating it. And then returning to Lt again. This satisfies my desire for order and also my desire for testing boundaries:
Poetry plays with language and often slams words together in surprising ways. which is thrilling the way food can be when the chef has paired ingredients you never thought would taste good together but somehow do.
Many poems are dense. Words mean two or three things at once and lots of suggestions are packed between the lines. This is intellectually inspiring and it allows me to read the same poem over and over always finding new things in it
And, of course, there's the subject matter. It interests me just as it would if the same subject was explored in a story or essay. Not all poems interest me in this way, but then not all stories and essays do, either.
32. What kind of poems does the author probably enjoy reading?
A Academic poems. B Valuable poems.
C. Poems that calm readers down. D Poems that arouse feelings.
33. What does the underlined word "it" in Paraglaph4 refer to?
A. Setting up a rhythm B. Poetry. C. Violating rules D. Rhythm.
34. Why does poetry appeal to the author'?
A. It plays with words. B It sounds surprising
C. It is rich in meaning. D It is filled with new ideas.
35. What can we infer from the text?
A The author doesn't like all the essays. B Reading poems requires patience.
C. The subject counts a lot to the author. D. Writing poems is similar to cooking.
