Text 1
Retailers are looking at bigger sales numbers for digital television sets this Christmas sea son, boosting the spirits of federal regulators and the industry. Government and industry analysts alike have worried that this nation of TV viewers is shifting its gaze too slowly to digital from old-fashioned analog sets.
Yet almost 7 million digital television, or DTV, sets will be sold this year, according to the Consumer Electronics Association, a trade group for manufacturers and retailers. Roughly 3 million of these sets will be sold during the last three months of the year.
Independent groups also predict a big sales spike.
Homes in the United States will have 12.1 million high-definition or HDTV sets-- the most sophisticated form of DTV sets--by the end of the year, compared with 7 million at the end of 2003, according to the Yankee Group, a Boston technology research outfit.
HDTVs have accounted for the vast majority of about 13 million digital televisions sold since the fall of 1998.
"The numbers are very encouraging. We believe consumers are embracing this technology," says Jenny Miller, the Consumer Electronics Association’s spokeswoman.
A boost in sales of digital televisions will be welcome news for major retailers anxiously watching the Christmas shopping season that began yesterday. Many national retailers lured customers into their stores with extra-early hours and deep discounts.
DTV sets still sell behind traditional analog sets. Almost 22 million analog sets are expected to be sold this year, outpacing even the rosiest predictions for DTV sales.
Until recently, consumers who wanted to buy DTV experienced sticker shock. When the sets first reached the market in the late 1990s, they cost several thousand dollars, turning off many consumers.
Now, prices for basic ,DTV sets generally start at about ＄ 500. HDTV sets offer the best-quality picture and sound and can cost as much as ＄15,000, according to Consumer Reports, published by the nonprofit Consumers Union advocacy group.
"You’re talking about a couple of hundred dollars at the very least, unless you go for a flat panel or plasma screen, in which case you’re talking thousands of dollars," says Aditya Kishore, senior analyst for the Yankee Group.
In addition to falling prices, analysts credit the sales boost for DTV to an increase in the number of programs broadcast in digitally compatible "high definition" as well as a government-led consumer education campaign.

The most important reason why DTVs sell less than traditional sets is that（）

A:people are reluctant to abandon their old TV sets. B:the traditional sets are much cheaper than DTVs. C:the DTV retailers always close their doors at an early time. D:people have been used to watching traditional analog TVs.

Text 1
Retailers are looking at bigger sales numbers for digital television sets this Christmas sea son, boosting the spirits of federal regulators and the industry. Government and industry analysts alike have worried that this nation of TV viewers is shifting its gaze too slowly to digital from old-fashioned analog sets.
Yet almost 7 million digital television, or DTV, sets will be sold this year, according to the Consumer Electronics Association, a trade group for manufacturers and retailers. Roughly 3 million of these sets will be sold during the last three months of the year.
Independent groups also predict a big sales spike.
Homes in the United States will have 12.1 million high-definition or HDTV sets-- the most sophisticated form of DTV sets--by the end of the year, compared with 7 million at the end of 2003, according to the Yankee Group, a Boston technology research outfit.
HDTVs have accounted for the vast majority of about 13 million digital televisions sold since the fall of 1998.
"The numbers are very encouraging. We believe consumers are embracing this technology," says Jenny Miller, the Consumer Electronics Association’s spokeswoman.
A boost in sales of digital televisions will be welcome news for major retailers anxiously watching the Christmas shopping season that began yesterday. Many national retailers lured customers into their stores with extra-early hours and deep discounts.
DTV sets still sell behind traditional analog sets. Almost 22 million analog sets are expected to be sold this year, outpacing even the rosiest predictions for DTV sales.
Until recently, consumers who wanted to buy DTV experienced sticker shock. When the sets first reached the market in the late 1990s, they cost several thousand dollars, turning off many consumers.
Now, prices for basic ,DTV sets generally start at about ＄ 500. HDTV sets offer the best-quality picture and sound and can cost as much as ＄15,000, according to Consumer Reports, published by the nonprofit Consumers Union advocacy group.
"You’re talking about a couple of hundred dollars at the very least, unless you go for a flat panel or plasma screen, in which case you’re talking thousands of dollars," says Aditya Kishore, senior analyst for the Yankee Group.
In addition to falling prices, analysts credit the sales boost for DTV to an increase in the number of programs broadcast in digitally compatible "high definition" as well as a government-led consumer education campaign.

From the beginning of the text, we can learn that（）

A:the country has popularly accepted digital TVs. B:the retailers have a bad sale of DTVs except Christmas. C:the viewers still pay more money on old-fashioned TV sets. D:the government and industry are upset by the present market situation of DTVs.

Text 1
Retailers are looking at bigger sales numbers for digital television sets this Christmas sea son, boosting the spirits of federal regulators and the industry. Government and industry analysts alike have worried that this nation of TV viewers is shifting its gaze too slowly to digital from old-fashioned analog sets.
Yet almost 7 million digital television, or DTV, sets will be sold this year, according to the Consumer Electronics Association, a trade group for manufacturers and retailers. Roughly 3 million of these sets will be sold during the last three months of the year.
Independent groups also predict a big sales spike.
Homes in the United States will have 12.1 million high-definition or HDTV sets-- the most sophisticated form of DTV sets--by the end of the year, compared with 7 million at the end of 2003, according to the Yankee Group, a Boston technology research outfit.
HDTVs have accounted for the vast majority of about 13 million digital televisions sold since the fall of 1998.
"The numbers are very encouraging. We believe consumers are embracing this technology," says Jenny Miller, the Consumer Electronics Association’s spokeswoman.
A boost in sales of digital televisions will be welcome news for major retailers anxiously watching the Christmas shopping season that began yesterday. Many national retailers lured customers into their stores with extra-early hours and deep discounts.
DTV sets still sell behind traditional analog sets. Almost 22 million analog sets are expected to be sold this year, outpacing even the rosiest predictions for DTV sales.
Until recently, consumers who wanted to buy DTV experienced sticker shock. When the sets first reached the market in the late 1990s, they cost several thousand dollars, turning off many consumers.
Now, prices for basic ,DTV sets generally start at about ＄ 500. HDTV sets offer the best-quality picture and sound and can cost as much as ＄15,000, according to Consumer Reports, published by the nonprofit Consumers Union advocacy group.
"You’re talking about a couple of hundred dollars at the very least, unless you go for a flat panel or plasma screen, in which case you’re talking thousands of dollars," says Aditya Kishore, senior analyst for the Yankee Group.
In addition to falling prices, analysts credit the sales boost for DTV to an increase in the number of programs broadcast in digitally compatible "high definition" as well as a government-led consumer education campaign.

Speaking of the number of digital televisions sold in 2003, the author implies that（）

A:the more complicated TV sets are, the more they are sold. B:most of the homes have bought different kinds of DTVs. C:the producers feel very discouraged to see these numbers about DTVs' sales. D:the consumers are more and more interested in DTVs.

Section Ⅱ Reading Comprehension Part A Directions: Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET 1. Text 1 Retailers are looking at bigger sales numbers for digital television sets this Christmas sea son, boosting the spirits of federal regulators and the industry. Government and industry analysts alike have worried that this nation of TV viewers is shifting its gaze too slowly to digital from old-fashioned analog sets. Yet almost 7 million digital television, or DTV, sets will be sold this year, according to the Consumer Electronics Association, a trade group for manufacturers and retailers. Roughly 3 million of these sets will be sold during the last three months of the year. Independent groups also predict a big sales spike. Homes in the United States will have 12.1 million high-definition or HDTV sets-- the most sophisticated form of DTV sets--by the end of the year, compared with 7 million at the end of 2003, according to the Yankee Group, a Boston technology research outfit. HDTVs have accounted for the vast majority of about 13 million digital televisions sold since the fall of 1998. "The numbers are very encouraging. We believe consumers are embracing this technology," says Jenny Miller, the Consumer Electronics Association’s spokeswoman. A boost in sales of digital televisions will be welcome news for major retailers anxiously watching the Christmas shopping season that began yesterday. Many national retailers lured customers into their stores with extra-early hours and deep discounts. DTV sets still sell behind traditional analog sets. Almost 22 million analog sets are expected to be sold this year, outpacing even the rosiest predictions for DTV sales. Until recently, consumers who wanted to buy DTV experienced sticker shock. When the sets first reached the market in the late 1990s, they cost several thousand dollars, turning off many consumers. Now, prices for basic ,DTV sets generally start at about ＄ 500. HDTV sets offer the best-quality picture and sound and can cost as much as ＄15,000, according to Consumer Reports, published by the nonprofit Consumers Union advocacy group. "You’re talking about a couple of hundred dollars at the very least, unless you go for a flat panel or plasma screen, in which case you’re talking thousands of dollars," says Aditya Kishore, senior analyst for the Yankee Group. In addition to falling prices, analysts credit the sales boost for DTV to an increase in the number of programs broadcast in digitally compatible "high definition" as well as a government-led consumer education campaign.

The most important reason why DTVs sell less than traditional sets is that（）

A:people are reluctant to abandon their old TV sets. B:the traditional sets are much cheaper than DTVs. C:the DTV retailers always close their doors at an early time. D:people have been used to watching traditional analog TVs.

The 35-year-old mystery of why fertilizers decrease biodiversity has finally been solved. The secret They increase competition for sunlight. Adding fertilizers 1o grasslands increases the productivity of plants, but leads to a major drop in biodiversity.
The amount of nitrogen(氮) and phosphorus(磷) available to plants has doubled in the last 50 years, but the reason why this has harmed diversity has not been easy to answer. The debate has centred on whether fertilizers increase competition above or below ground-for sunlight or soil resources
To resolve the argument, Yann Hautier and Andy Hector from the University of Zurich, Switzerland built their own experimental plant community from scratch. Hautier’s team grew 32 plant communities for tour years, before transferring them to a glass house. Each community comprised four different sets of six species. Half were fertilized, the others were left unfertilized. Half of each of these sets had light added, using a system of three fluorescent tubes that were raised as the canopy grew, while the other half were left to grow in normal light conditions.
After two years, the sets that were fertilized in normal light conditions showed a significant increase in productivity anti biomass, but lost around one-third of their species diversity compared to the unfertilized groups. Those that were fertilized and given additional light showed no significant loss of diversity.
To uncover whether underground competition for root space had any influence on biodiversity, the team added two new species of plant at the beginning of the second year. The roots of half these plants were contained in plastic tubes, which prevented any below-ground competition: the other half were left exposed.
Removing below, ground competition from fertilized plots had no detectable impact on the mortality (死亡率) of the seedlings (幼苗), compared to those that were exposed to full root competition, says Hautier.
"In the fertilized groups without additional light, there was no difference with or without the root-tube-they died both ways. Even if we remove competition below ground, these plants are unable to grow. "
Drew Purves, a computational ecologist from Microsoft Research Cambridge is impressed with the team’s findings. "This is a rare example of a simple experiment providing an unambiguous answer to an important ecological question. If these results are general to temperate grasslands-which seems likely-then we can start to develop more targeted policies to offset (补偿, 抵消) one of the most important sources of diversity loss in grasslands. /
What did Hauntier’s team do in their study

A:They grew 32 plant communities for tour years and then transferred them to a house. B:They grew four sets of six different species and fertilized them. C:They add light to halt of these sets, and left the other half growing in normal light conditions. D:They put the plant communities in different glass houses and observed them separately.

The 35-year-old mystery of why fertilizers decrease biodiversity has finally been solved. The secret They increase competition for sunlight. Adding fertilizers 1o grasslands increases the productivity of plants, but leads to a major drop in biodiversity.
The amount of nitrogen(氮) and phosphorus(磷) available to plants has doubled in the last 50 years, but the reason why this has harmed diversity has not been easy to answer. The debate has centred on whether fertilizers increase competition above or below ground-for sunlight or soil resources
To resolve the argument, Yann Hautier and Andy Hector from the University of Zurich, Switzerland built their own experimental plant community from scratch. Hautier’s team grew 32 plant communities for tour years, before transferring them to a glass house. Each community comprised four different sets of six species. Half were fertilized, the others were left unfertilized. Half of each of these sets had light added, using a system of three fluorescent tubes that were raised as the canopy grew, while the other half were left to grow in normal light conditions.
After two years, the sets that were fertilized in normal light conditions showed a significant increase in productivity anti biomass, but lost around one-third of their species diversity compared to the unfertilized groups. Those that were fertilized and given additional light showed no significant loss of diversity.
To uncover whether underground competition for root space had any influence on biodiversity, the team added two new species of plant at the beginning of the second year. The roots of half these plants were contained in plastic tubes, which prevented any below-ground competition: the other half were left exposed.
Removing below, ground competition from fertilized plots had no detectable impact on the mortality (死亡率) of the seedlings (幼苗), compared to those that were exposed to full root competition, says Hautier.
"In the fertilized groups without additional light, there was no difference with or without the root-tube-they died both ways. Even if we remove competition below ground, these plants are unable to grow. "
Drew Purves, a computational ecologist from Microsoft Research Cambridge is impressed with the team’s findings. "This is a rare example of a simple experiment providing an unambiguous answer to an important ecological question. If these results are general to temperate grasslands-which seems likely-then we can start to develop more targeted policies to offset (补偿, 抵消) one of the most important sources of diversity loss in grasslands. /
The scientists found in the experiment that

A:the sets that were fertilized in normal light were more productive and diverse. B:the fertilized plants with added light also lost their biodiversity. C:below-ground competition had no significant impact on the biodiversity of plants. D:the more fertilizer yon use the more active the plants ar

第三篇　Obesity(肥胖) in the Western World 　　Obesity is rapidly becoming a new scourge of the western world, delegates agreed at the 11th European Conference on the issue in Vienna Wednesday to Saturday. According to statements before the opening of the conference —— of 2,000 specialists from more than 50 countries 一 1. 2 billion people worldwide are overweight, and 250 million are obese. 　　Professor Bernhard Ludvik of Vienna General Hospital said，“ Obesity is a chronic illness. In Germany，20 per cent of the people are already affected，but in Japan only one per cent. ” But he said that there was hope for sufferers thanks to the new scientific discoveries and medication. 　　Professor Friedrich Hopichler of Salzberg said, "We are living in the new age (but) with the metabolism(新陈代谢) of a stone-age man" “I have just been to the United States. It is really terrible. A pizza shop is springing up on every comer. We have been overrun by fast food and Coca-Cola-ization. ” 　　Many of the experts stressed that obesity was a potential killer. Hopichler said, “Eighty percent of all diabetics are obese，also fifty per cent of all patients with high blood pressure and fifty per cent with adipose(脂肪的) tissue complaints. ” "Ten per cent more weight means thirteen per cent more risk of heart disease. Reducing one’s weight by ten per cent leads to thirteen per cent lower blood pressure. ” 　　Another expert Hermann Toplak said that the state health services should improve their financing of preventive programs. "Though the health insurance pays for surgery (such as reducing the size of the stomach) when the body-mass index is more than 40. That is equivalent to a weight of 116 kilograms for a height of 1.70 meters. One should start earlier. ” 　　Ludvik said that prevention should begin in school. “ Child obesity (fat deposits) correlates(与……相关) with the time which children spend in front of TV sets. ” 　　The consequences were only apparent later on. No more than fifteen per cent of obese people lived to the average life expectancy for their population group. "The consequences” in the last paragraph result from people_____.

A:reducing their weight B:eating fast food C:getting obese D:spending too much time in front of TV sets

请根据下面提供的单据完成关于《出境货物报检单》中的单项选择题。 “数/重量”一栏应填写（）。

A:50SETS B:55/CTN C:1000CTNS D:55000SETS

“数/重量”一栏应填写( )。

A:50 SETS B:55/CTN C:1000 CTNS D:55000 SETS