You don't need to get in a time-traveling machine to see how technology will reshape our lives, such as the way we shop. Several new technologies that are to change your buying habits already exist. Let's see what's in store for your future shopping.

Try it on, virtually. Want to shop online for a new pair of eyeglasses? You don't need to guess which pair looks best on you — use the eBay Fashion iPhone app to try a pair of eyewear you're checking out on a picture of your face. But what if you want to buy something bigger? Thanks to Microsoft Kinect's motion tracking camera, you can cover clothes on your screen body. You can even choose the background of your virtual fitting room to enrich your shopping experience.

Get a perfect, custom fit. Everyone's body is shaped differently. To get a perfect fit, you sometimes have to get your clothes changed. But by using 3D scanning technology, all the clothes you buy will fit your body perfectly. Some companies scan your body using high-tech to get the most accurate measurements, so they can make special clothes just for you.

High-tech shopping carts and checkout counters. High-tech shopping carts could, in time, be a common sight in malls and supermarkets. Microsoft Kinect-enabled carts are currently under test. The cart can follow you along the aisles (通道), controlled merely by your movement and your voice. In China, a supermarket chain introduced tablet-equipped carts that guide shoppers around the stores' aisles.

In the United States, several supermarkets use a device called Scan It that gives buyers the freedom to scan purchases on their own while they shop. While it's great not having to line up at a checkout counter, we wouldn't mind it if the store used Toshiba's new Object Recognition Scanner. The machine identifies a product as soon as it's placed in front of a camera just by its shape and color, even if it has no bar code.

主题语境: 人与社会  体裁: 说明文

The Internet is an  (amaze) information resource. Students, teachers,  researchers use it as  important tool. Journalists use it to find information for stories. Doctors use it to learn more about unfamiliar diseases and the  (late) medical development. Ordinary people use it for shopping, banking, bill-paying, and communicating with family and friends. People all over the world use it (connect) with individuals from other countries and cultures. However, while there are many positive developments associated with the Internet, there are also certain fears and (concern). One concern is a lack of control over what  (appear) on the Internet. With television and radio the editors will check the accuracy of the content of programs, and with television there are limits on what kinds of programs can  (broadcast) and at what time of the day. However,  the Internet, parents cannot check a published guide to determine what is  (suit) for their children to see.

Nowadays, with the development of the Internet, emojis (表情符号) are more and more popular among netizens. Some people even feel difficult to talk online without using emojis. Emojis help netizens to communicate with each other easily and vividly. Yet, not all emojis are properly used on social media. So we are going to introduce some common but confusing emojis to help you have a better understanding of these small signs.

⒈ A recent survey shows, over 53% people use the emoji when they are chatting online. Some people think it means "I'm shy", but others only use it when they are surprised or shocked. But what does it really mean? It is still an unsolved question.

⒉ What do you think of this sign?  Believe it or not, 80% of netizens use it under the meaning of "It is not funny at all, but I have to smile." Is it right?  Of course not!It actually means that "I saw what you did (usually bad things) and I want to give you a sinister (奸诈的) smile. "

⒊ People have very different opinions on this emoji. The Apple company has told that this emoji means "high-five (嗨, 击掌)". But most people still use the incorrect meaning—pray. Some netizens even think, "If you see this emoji as two people give each other a high five, you must be a bad guy."

⒋ According to the official guidelines (官方指南), it is used as "smile through tears (破涕为笑)". However, most young netizens consider this emoji as "laugh to tears" or simply "LOL", which means "laugh out loud".

Most people have never heard of Tim Berners-Lee. He is not nearly as rich or famous as Marc Andreessen, who is the founder of Netscape, or Bill Gates, whose name has become a well-known word.

Berners-Lee, who works in a small office at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is the creator of the World Wide Web. The creation of the Web is so important that some people compare Berners-Lee to Johann Gutenberg, who invented printing by movable type (活字) in the fifteenth century.

Berners-Lee was born in England in 1955. His parents, who helped design the world's first commercially (商业地) available computer, gave him a great love of mathematics and learning.

In 1980, Berners-Lee went to work at CERN, a physics laboratory in Geneva, Switzerland, where he had a lot of material to learn quickly. He had a poor memory for facts and wanted to find a way to help him keep track of things he couldn't remember. He invented a software program that allowed him to create a document that had links to other documents. He continued to develop his idea through the 1980s. He wanted to find a way to connect the knowledge and creativity of people all over the world.

In 1991, his project became known as the World Wide Web. The number of Internet users started to grow quickly. However, Berners-Lee is not completely happy with the way the Web has developed. He thinks it has become a passive tool for so many people, not the tool for creativity that he had imagined.

In 1999, Berners-Lee published a book called WeavingtheWeb, in which he answers questions he is often asked, "What were you thinking when you invented the Web? ""What do you think of it now? ""Where is the Web going to take us in the future?"

Teenagers in England do much the same as children in America do. They enjoy sending messages by their mobile phones and they also like swimming, listening to the latest music, watching TV and surfing the Internet.

How do teenagers in England spend their free time and holidays? Let's follow Sally, a British teenager, and spend five days with her during her school holiday.

Day One

After breakfast, Sally's mother went out and left her alone at home. She checked her mobile phone during lunch—one of her friends sent her a message early in the morning. Dinner was at 6: 30 pm. After that, she finished her English homework. Then she surfed the Internet.

Day Two

Sally and her mother paid a visit to their friends and went swimming together. Later, they went shopping for clothes and books, and had dinner in a restaurant.

Day Three

She went to the supermarket with her mother to buy fish and chips for lunch as well as some pens. After she got back home, she spent the next few hours surfing the Internet and watching TV.

Day Four

She surfed the Internet. Her mother took her out for lunch before she went to work. She then read stories after lunch.

Day Five

She woke up at 2 pm, and so did her mother. They went to a park. Her mother met some friends there. When they got home, it was already time for dinner. Afterwards, she did her homework until 10 pm.

Today, people use the Internet to shop, play games, make friends and read the news. Many young people can't imagine life without it.  In fact, the Internet has been used for a much longer time than most people think.

In 1957, the United States was in the middle of the Cold War. The Soviet Union(苏联) had sent up the first satellite (卫星), named Sputnik, into space. This meant the Soviets were ahead of the U. S. in technology. Americans were afraid.  One of the ideas was a network (网络) that would let people across the country communicate by using computers.

 It was first tried out in 1969. For another twenty years, it was used only by scientists who worked with the U. S. government and by some engineers. Then, in 1990, the army of America gave the control of the Internet to the National Science Foundation.

The biggest change in the way that people use the Internet came in 1992. For the first time, the Internet was opened to the general public, creating what is now known as the World Wide Web.  Today, no one government controls the Internet and it just gets bigger and bigger. It makes our world different.

A. The network took more than ten years to develop.

B. Soon, people began finding all kinds of different things they could do on the Internet.

C. Most older people, on the other hand, think the Internet is only 10 or 15 years old.

D. People began to be fond of the Internet.

E. They didn't know what to do.

F. The Internet then became available to colleges all over the United States and to scientists across Europe.

G. Scientists in the army of America started developing ideas for protecting the country.

It was raining pretty hard on Halloween, but that wasn't going to stop my little sister Kate and me from trick-or-treating. We decided to start at Miss Parson's house. Miss Parson was loved by us kids who lived nearby because she often shared her self-made cookies with us. We usually finished them in a second, especially when we were hungry after class. Sometimes, when we visited her or did something for her, she always gave us surprise.

Kate and I wondered what kinds of treats she'd offer. As we walked down the street, I held an umbrella, a bag for candy, and my sister's hand. Jack-o-Lanterns gave soft light along the street. Spider webs hung in all the windows. Parents who were dressed up like monsters(怪物) stood in doorways. After we had walked a few blocks, we were wet from head to toes, and I felt Kate was trembling with cold.

There was a light on at Miss Parson's house, but there were no ghosts, goblins (小妖精), or Jack-o-Lanterns. We climbed up the steps and saw Miss Parson through a window. She was drinking a cup of hot tea.

"Maybe she doesn't celebrate Halloween," Kate said with a sigh, disappointedly.

"Well, even if she doesn't, she usually likes it when we visit her," I said and knocked on the door.

Miss Parson seemed surprised when she opened it and saw our dressing. "Is today Halloween? " she asked. "I completely forgot. I am so sorry!"

注意：续写词数应为150左右。

Miss Parson rushed us into her house.

……

The next morning, a hot and sweet discussion about Miss Parson and Halloween spread among us kids.

Many people like to search the Internet. Exploring the Internet is one of the most important activities of the day. The Internet1 the outside world closer to people's homes. Some people say the world is 2than before because of the Internet.

What's going on in 3 countries? How do people live in places far away? Is there a good sports game 4? What's the life like in the 5 part of the sea? 6 you want to answer all these questions, 7 come to the Internet. Of course, people can also learn 8 reading or listening to the radio. But with the Internet they can learn better and more easily. A lot of 9 can be collected at great speed.

Can we go shopping without leaving 10? Can we see a doctor without going to the hospital? Can we 11 without going to school? Can we draw money without going to a 12? All these things used to be impossible, but now they have become quite 13. The Internet helps us open our 14. The Internet often gives us new ideas. In a word, it helps us in many 15. Great changes have taken place in our life since the use of the Internet.

1）自我介绍(包括英语能力);

2）参加意图(介绍中国、了解其他国家);

3）希望获准。

注意：

1）词数80左右;

2）可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯;

3）邮件开头和结尾已为你写好。

Dear Sir or Madam,

……

Regards,

Li Hua

Last weekend, I went to Mark's new house nearby a forest for a little get-together. After lunch when I was talking with him and his wife Cody, he asked me, "Hey Thoran, have you ever been to a secret spot?" Before I could even finish saying no, Cody and Mark were already at the door with their jackets on. And the next moment we were heading out into the forest with a camera, a fishing net and a plastic bucket(桶).

We walked through the forest along a path by a small river. Breathing the fresh air, we three talked and laughed all the way.

"Hey!What are you guys doing?" Someone suddenly shouted from behind. Mark and Cody's eyes immediately widened, and without a word they started running. I had no choice but to follow them, getting my shoes wet and dirty with mud. We probably ran for about 10 minutes before Mark and Cody slowed down. I stopped to catch my breath and asked, "Who was that?"

Mark replied, "The most annoying neighbor ever. If he catches up with us, there's no telling what could happen. He is always making fun of us. I dislike him." We kept walking on for a few more minutes. Then a beautiful lake appeared before our eyes. "Wow!Amazing!" I shouted and could hardly hold back my excitement. The lake was large and the water was deep and blue, looking so peaceful with tall trees around it.

注意：续写记数应为150左右。

Looking around, we saw a boat floating by the shore.

……

"Help! Help! Help!" I was so frightened and cried for help.