From beach balls, pool toys, and jump houses, inflatable technology takes a big step forward forits next frontier: space station. A new kind of tech will be aboard Space X ’s eighth supply mto the International Space Station (ISS). A compressed living module will be delivered andattached to the station where, in the void of space, it will expand into a new habitat for astronauts. 

Designed by Bigelow Aerospace, the inflatable space habitat is one area NASA is exploringfor potential deep space habitats and other advanced space missions.“The ‘Bigelow Expandable Activity Module,’ or the BEAM, is an expandable habitat thatwill be used to investigate technology and understand the potential benefits of such habitatsforhuman missions to deep space, ” NASA Administrator Charles Bolden wrote in a blog post. 

The habitats could be a way to “dramatically increase ” the space available for astronautswhile also offering added protection from the dangers of space, like radiation and spacedebris, the NASA press release says. 

But how is an inflatable space station supposed to be a viable means of housing for spacetravelers? BEAMs are far more than balloon-like rooms where astronauts can take asylum.Technically, the modules don’t inflate― they expand, according to the company. Andbeyond just air, the habitats are reinforced with an internal metal structure. The outside iscomposed of multiple layers of material including things like rubber and kevlar to protectfrom any speeding debris. 

Inside SpaceX ’s Dragon spacecraft on the way to the ISS, the BEAM will be approximately 8feet in diameter. It will expand once deployed in space to offer 565 cubic feet of space forastronauts. “It’ll be the first time human beings will actually step inside this expandablehabitat in space,” former astronaut George Zamka, who has worked for Bigelow Aerospace,told USA Today. [“There won’t be this sense of it being like a balloon. ”] 

But astronauts won’t be getting inside the module for some time yet.The BEAM will beattached to the Tranquility Node and deployed. Inside the module are a series of tools thatwill help the crew of the ISS monitor different aspects of the expandable area to see how itacts in space. The crew will watch heat, radiation, orbital debris, and provide informationabout the viability of using similar modules in the future. 

The testing is scheduled to go on for a two-year time period, after which the module will bereleased and burn up in the atmosphere. NASA’s partnership with Bigelow fits Mr. Bolden ’sdesire to help grow a robust private sector industry to commercialize aspects of space ― aprocess he sees as vital if humans want to reach farther cosmic destinations. “The world oflow Earth orbit belongs to industry, ” Bolden said at a press conference in January .

What is special about the new living module on SpaceX ’s eighth mission to ISS?

Write a composition in no less than 150 words on the topic: What Do You Think of Advanced Artificial Intelligence. Read the following words in English. You should write according to the outline given below. Write your composition on the ANSWER SHEET.

1. Google’s DeepMind Alpha Go program has beaten all the world champions of the game Go in a series of battles between man and artificial intelligence.

2. Some people fear advanced artificial intelligence because?

3. Your attitude towards advanced artificial intelligence.

为了找到实验室试验的替代实验，经济学家会密切关注由历史提供的自然实验。例如，当中东的一次战争中断了原油供应时， 油价在全球范围内狂涨。对于石油及石油产品的消费者来说，这样的一次事件会降低生活水平。对于经济决策者来说，它给他们出了一道难题，即如何做出最佳应对。但对于经济学家来说，它为研究重要自然资源对世界经济的影响提供了一次机会，且这种机会在战时的油价飞涨结束很久依然存在。因此，整本书中，我们会分析很多历史事件。这些历史事件值得研究，因为，它们让我们对旧时的经济有所了解，更重要的是，因为它们使我们能够说明和评价当今的经济理论。

(4)__________________________________

(2)__________________________________

(3)__________________________________

What does the author mean by “while the tinsel is hot (Line 2, Para. 6)?

Economics is no different. Supply, demand, elasticity, comparative advantage, consumer surplus,deadweight loss--these terms are part of the economist ’s language. In the coming chapters, youwill encounter many new terms and some familiar words that economists use in specialized ways.(1)At first, this new language may seem needlessly arcane. But, as you will see, its value lies in itsability to provide you a new and useful way of thinking about the world in which you live. 

Economists try to address their subject with a scientist ’s objectivity. They approach the studyof the economy in much the same way as a physicist approaches the study of matter and abiologist approaches the study of life: (2)They devise theories, collect data, and then analyze thesedata in an attempt to verify or refute their theories. 

To beginners, it can seem odd to claim that economics is a science. After all, economists donot work with test tubes or telescopes. (3)The essence of science, however, is the scientificmethods--the dispassionate development and testing of theories about how the world works. 

This method of inquiry is as applicable to studying a nation ’s economy as it is to studying thearth’s gravity or a species ’ evolution. (4)As Albert Einstein once put it, “The whole ofnothing more than the refinement of everyday thinking. ” (225words) 

(1)__________________________________

In a thank-you note, “The book will be my good companion when I am alone”serves as________.

According to Ms. Demeanor, showing appreciation has the benefit of ________.

Of all the people on my holiday shopping list, there was one little boy for whom buying a gift hadbecome increasingly difficult. He ’s a wonderful child, adorable and loving, and he ’s not firritable or spoiled. Though he lives across the country from me, I receive regular updates andphotos, and he likes all the things that the boys his age want to play with. Shopping for him shouldbe easy, but I find it hard to summon up any enthusiasm, because in all the years I ’ve givpresents, he never once sent me a thank-you note. 

“Sending thank-you notes is becoming a lost art, ” mourns Mary Mitchell, a syndicated columnistknown as “Ms. Demeanor”and author of six etiquette books. In her view, each generation,compared with the one before, is losing a sense of consideration for other people. “Withoutrespect, ” she says, “you have conflict. ” 

Ms. Demeanor would be proud of me: I have figured out a way to ensure that my children alwayssend thank-you notes. And such a gesture is important, says Ms. Demeanor, because “a gratefulattitude is a tremendous life skill, an efficient and inexpensive way to set ourselves apart in thework force and in our adult lives. Teach your children that the habit of manners comes frominside ― it ’s an attitude based on respecting other people. ”