Reading – Unit 8 trang 57 SBT Tiếng Anh 12: Cuộc sống trong tương lai...

A. READING

Read the passage and circle the best answer A, B, C, or D.

[ Đọc bài và khoanh tròn đáp án đúng nhất A, B, C hoặc D]

Futurologists predict that many aspects of life will probably be very different in 2030. Here are the predictions about some of them.
Entertainment
TV channels will have disappeared. Instead, people will choose a programme from a “menu” and a computer will send the programme directly to the television. Today, we can use the World Wide Web to read newspaper stories and see pictures on a computer thousands of kilometres away. By 2030, music, films, programmes, newspapers, and books will come to us by the computer.
“Holographic Feedback TV” will have arrived. Holograms are pictures that have height, width and depth. Simple holograms exist today and “virtual reality” games are already popular. By 2030, we will be able to see, smell and touch the things that we see on television.
The environment
Water will have become one of our most serious problems. In many places, agriculture is changing and they are growing fruit and vegetables to export. This uses a lot of water. Demand for water will increase ten times between now and 2030 and there could be serious shortages. Some futurologists predict that water could be the cause of war if we don’t act now.
Transport
Cars will run on new, clean fuels and they will go very fast. Cars will have computers to control the speed of the car and there won’t be any accidents. Today, many cars have computers that tell drivers exactly where they are. By 2030, the computer will control the car and drive it to your destination.
Space planes will take people halfway around the world in two hours. Today, the United States Space Shuttle can go into the space and land on Earth again. By 2030, space planes will fly all over the world and people will fly from Los Angeles to Tokyo in just two hours.
Technology
Robots will have replaced people in factories. Many factories already use robots – they don’t ask for pay rises or go on strike, and they work 24 hours a day. By 2030, we will see robots everywhere – in factories, schools, offices, hospitals, shops and homes.
Medicine
Medical technology will have conquered many diseases. Today, there are electronic devices that connect directly to the brain to help people hear. By 2030, we will be able to help blind and deaf people to see and hear again.
Scientists will have discovered how to control genes. Scientists have already produced clones of animals. By 2030, scientists will be able to produce clones of people, and decide how they look, how they behave and how much intelligence they have.

1. What does the word “futurologist” in the first sentence mean?
A. a person who comes from the future
B. a person who explores the predictions and possibilities about the future
C. a person who will work in the future
D. a person who makes the future better

2. What does the clause “water could be the cause of war” in paragraph 4 mean?
A. People can fight each other for water.
B. Wars can bring people more water.
C. Water can stop wars.
D. People don’t want to have wars for water.

3. Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of cars in 2030?
A. They run on clean fuels.                 C. They are self-driven.
B. They go very fast.                         D. They tell people where they should go.