MEGADIM, Israel (AP)-The worst forest fire in Israel's history on Thursday destroyed one of the country's few forested areas, killing at least 36 guards on their way to rescue prisoners there, destroying homes and forcing the evacuation (疏散) of thousands. The fire ran through the Carmel forest in Israel's Galilee, reaching the coastal city of Haifa, jumping from place to place in the forest. The fire broke out around midday and quickly spread and was still burning out of control as midnight approached. Investigators (调查者) supposed that the fire could have been set accidentally, or it might have been a criminal act, but pretty much ruled out (排除) some sort of attack by a Palestinian group. “This is a huge disaster，” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. “The government is using all means to control the fire.” He said some countries such as Cyprus, Italy, Russia and Greece agreed to provide backup. Most of the dead were Prison Service guards racing through the fire toward a prison to evacuate the prisoners, most of them Palestinians. A tree fell across the road, blocking their bus. Some guards were burned alive inside, while others died as they tried to escape. Fourteen bodies were found near the burnt bus 10 hours after the fire started. The fire heavily damaged one of Israel's few large forests, made up of natural growth and planted areas, a favorite place for camping and a home for dozens of species of wildlife. Forestry workers tried to evacuate animals from the fire. The forest recovered slowly from a fire in 1989, but experts said Thursday's big fire was many times worse. Some Prison Service guards died when they tried to ________.
| A．control the running prisoners | B．put out the fierce forest fire |
| C．get away from the burning bus | D．save the guards trapped in the fire ． |
According to the investigators, which of the following might be the cause of the fire?
| A．Prisoners set the fire purposely. | B．The fire broke out all by itself. |
| C．A Palestinian group did it. | D．The fire was started by accident. |
We learn from the text that ________.
| A．all of the dead were Prison Service guards |
| B．the forest once suffered a fire in the 1980s |
| C．the animals didn't suffer from the fire |
| D．the fire caused 50 deaths altogether ． |
The text is mainly about ________.
| A．the worst forest fire in Israel's history |
| B．the actual cause of the worst ever forest fire |
| C．the damage caused by the forest fire |
| D．the government's efforts in controlling the fire |
A newly-published study has shown that loneliness can spread from one person to another, like a disease. Researchers used information from the Framingham Study, which began in 1948. The Framingham Study gathers
information about physical and mental health, personal behavior and diet. At first, the study involved about 5,000 people in the American state of Massachusetts. Now, more than 12,000 individuals are taking part.
Information from the Framingham Study showed earlier that happiness can spread from person to person. So can behaviors like littering and the ability to stop smoking.
University of Chicago psychologist John Cacioppo led the recent study. He and other researchers attempted to show how often people felt lonely. They found that the feeling of loneliness spread through social groups.
Having a so
cial connection with a lonely person increased the chances that another individual would feel lonely. In fact, a friend of a lonely person was 52% more likely to develop feelings of loneliness. A friend of that person was 25% more likely. The researchers say this shows that a person could indirectly be affected by someone’s loneliness.
The effect was strongest among friends. Neighbors were the second most affected group. The effect was weaker on husbands and wives, and brothers and sisters. The researchers also found that loneliness spread more easily among women than men.
The New York Times newspaper reports that, on average, people experience feelings of loneliness about 48 days a year. It also found that every additional friend can decrease loneliness by about five percent, or two and a half fewer lonely days.
Loneliness has been linked to health problems like depression and sleeping difficulties. The researchers believe that knowing the causes of loneliness could help in reducing it.
The study suggests that people can take steps to stop the spread of loneliness. They
can do this by helping individuals they know who may be experiencing loneliness. The result can be helpful to the whole social group.What is TRUE about the Framingham Study?
| A．It was only conducted in 1948. |
| B．It involves more than 12,000 participants. |
| C．It was led by John Cacioppo. |
| D．It showed that any behavior could spread. |
Which statement about the spread of loneliness is true?
| A．The spreading effect was the second strongest among friends. |
| B．No spreading effect was found on husbands and wives. |
| C．Women are more likely to be affected than men. |
| D．Brothers are more easily affected than neighbors. |
What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．Actions should be taken to help lonely people. |
| B．People feel lonely for many reasons. |
| C．Ways to fight against loneliness. |
| D．Lonely people can affect others. |
BUKHANNON, West Virginia—Two rescue teams slowly moved along a two-mile path on Monday night to the site of a coal mine explosion that trapped 13 miners, who had not been heard from since the early morning accident．
Meanwhile, at a nearby church, more than 250 family members and friends gathered, waiting for updates（最新报道）on the rescuers’ progress．
The miners were trapped at about 6:30 and many families weren’t informed of the accident until about 10 a．m-more than three hours after it happened．“It’s very upsetting, but you’ve got to be patient, I guess,” said John Helms, whose brother, Terry, was trapped in the mine．
The trapped miners were about 260 feet underground and about 10,000 feet from the Sago Mine’s entrance, said
Roger Nicholson, general counsel from International Coal Group．
At a late night news conference, Nicholson said one team had advanced about 4, 800 feet in the four hours since entering the mine just before 6 p．m．Another team entered the mine about 30 minutes later．
He said the crew was very experienced, with some members having worked underground for 30 to 35 years．The miners were equipped with about one hour of breathable oxygen each．The company has not released the names of the miners．
The teams test the air about every 500 feet, and have to disconnect （remove
） the power to the phones they use to communicate with the surface before doing that．“ We don’t want to be energizing anything if it’s in an atmosphere with burnable gases,” Kips said．
The cause of the explosion was not immediately known．High levels of carbon monoxide were discovered shortly after the explosion, which delayed rescue efforts, but those levels have since subsided（减退）, authorities said．According to the passage, we can infer that ________．
| A．all the miners who were trapped underground were still alive |
| B．communication with the trapped miners was cut off |
| C．the two rescue teams entered the mine at the same time |
| D．the rescue started as soon as the accident happened |
If the first team advanced at an average speed, they could dig about _______ per hour．
| A．1,000 feet | B．2,400 feet | C．1,200feet | D．4,800feet |
Where can the passage be seen?
| A．In a magazine． | B．In a newspaper． |
| C．In a science book．． | D．On an advertisement． |
Which of the following shows the position where
the miners were trapped?
London, Reuters---What could annoy teenagers enough to make them stop hanging out with friends and go home？
No, it’s not a visit from their mothers, and not a threat to take away their cellphones or pocket money.
It’s high-frequency noise. The UK police recently agreed to use a device (装置) called the Sonic Teenager Deterrent. It sends out a sound that makes teenagers become so impatient and angry that they have to cover their ears tightly and walk away.
The sound is at extreme high-pitch that can be heard by those under 20. The body’s natural ability to detect some wave bands (波段) decreases almost entirely after 20, so few adults can hear the sounds. The black-box device, nicknamed the Mosquito because of its sound, can be fixed to the outside walls of shops, offices and homes. It sounds to youngsters like a crazy insect or a badly played violin. But it causes no physical damage.
A number of police forces and councils have given permission to use the system and want to install it at trouble spots.
Staffordshire Police Inspector Amanda Davies, who has given the device to shopkeepers in the Moorlands area, said," It is controlled by the shopkeepers--if they can see through their window that there is a problem, they turn the device on for a while until the group has run away."The device can be used to ____________.
| A．threaten teenagers in public |
| B．drive away trouble-makers under 20 |
| C．help mothers control their teenage children |
| D．help the police control shopkeepers |
From the passage we can know that ___________.
| A．young people often suffer from pains in ears |
| B．shopkeepers are troubled by noisy insects |
| C．high-frequency noise is beyond the listening ability of people over 20 |
| D．the police invented a new device to deal with teenagers |
The purpose of the writer to write the passage is ________.
| A．to advertise a new hi-tech device |
| B．to tell the reader a piece of news |
| C．to sell the device to shopkeepers |
| D．to inform the public as the spokesman of the police |
Who will welcome the device most?
| A．Shopkeepers. | B．The police. | C．Young people. | D．The producer. |
OLYMPIA, March 24—Luo Xuejuan, a swimming gold medalist at the Athens 2004 Olympic Games, became the first Chinese person to relay the Olympic Flame in Greece on Monday, receiving the flame from the first Olympic torchbearer(火炬手), Greek Alexandros Nikolaidis.
Despite her previous experience as a torchbearer in the Beijing leg of the Athens 2004 torch relay, Luo felt honored and proud of being chosen as the first Chinese torchbearer, the Xihua News Agency reported Luo as saying in an interview.
She talked about the great responsibility that she felt, as she believed she was representing every Chinese athlete and even Chinese person by running her leg of the relay.
Regarding missing the torch lighting ceremony because she had to be in an assigned location to wait for the flame, Luo felt no regret. “Even though I couldn’t see it, I was able to feel the flame light and knew that it was happening at a place nearby,” she said.
Luo expressed her belief that even if people couldn’t communicate with words, the Olympic Flame enables the transmission of the Olympic spirit and brings smiles wherever it might go. In Luo’s mind, the Olympic spirit represents purity, competition, friendship, enthusiasm, peace and harmony.Why didn’t Luo see the torch lighting ceremony?
| A. She was late for the ceremony. |
| B. She was not allowed to go there. |
| C. She waited for the flame as the next torchbearer. |
| D. The ceremony took place at a place far away. |
Choose the best explanation for the underlined word “leg” in Paragraph Three.
| A. One of the long parts that connect the feet to the rest of the body. |
| B. The part of a pair of trousers. |
| C. One of the long thin parts on the bottom of a table. |
| D. One part of a journey or race. |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A. Luo Xuejuan was the first Olympic torchbearer in Greece. |
| B. Luo had never been selected as a torchbearer before. |
| C. Luo believed that the Olympic flame helped communication among people. |
| D. Luo felt regretful because she missed the torch lighting ceremony. |
What’s the best title of the passage?
| A. Luo Xuejuan: A Swimming Gold Medalist. |
| B. The Torch Lighting Ceremony |
| C. The Torch Relay Had Begun |
| D. Luo Xuejuan: the First Chinese Torchbearer of Athens Torch Relay |
This passage is most likely to be seen in a .
| A. novel |
B. newspaper |
C. magazine |
D. textbook |
Dolphins and sharks are showing up in surprisingly shallow water just off the Florida coast. Mullets, crabs, rays and small fish gather by the thousands off an Alabama pirer. Birds covered in oil are crawling deep into marshes（沼泽）, never to be seen again.
Marine scientists studying the effects of the BP disaster（英国石油公司漏油事件）are seeing some strange phenomena. Fish and other wildlife seem to be fleeing the oil out in the Gulf and clustering in cleaner waters along the coast in a trend that some researchers see as a potentially troubling sign. The animals’ presence close to shore means their usual habitat is badly polluted, and the crowding could result in mass die-offs as fish run out of oxygen. Also, the animals could easily be captured by their enemies.
The nearly two-month-old spill（漏油）has created an environmental disaster in US history as tens of millions of gallons have flown into the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem. Scientists are seeing some unusual things as they try to understand the effects on thousands of species of marine life.
For nearly four hours Monday, a three-person crew with Greenpeace cruised past delicate islands and mangrove-dotted inlets in Barataria Bay off southern Louisiana. They saw dolphins by the dozen frolicking（嬉戏）in the oily sheen（光泽）and oil-tinged pelicans feeding their young. But they spotted no dead animals.
"I think part of the reason why we’re not seeing more yet is that the impacts of this crisis are really just beginning," Greenpeace marine biologist John Hocevar said.
The counting of dead wildlife in the Gulf is more than an academic exercise; the deaths will help determine how much BP pays in damages.What do the marine life react to the BP disaster?
| A．Birds crawl deep into caves. |
| B．Dolphins and sharks show up in deep water. |
| C．Tens of thousands of marine animals are found dead. |
| D．Sea creatures flee from oil spill, gathering near seashore. |
The environmental disaster was caused by .
| A．the damage of the Mexico Gulf ecosystem |
| B．the lack of environmental sense of BP |
| C．the nearly two-month-old oil spill |
| D．the crowding marine life |
What is John Hocevar’s attitude towards the disaster?
| A．Worried. | B．Disappointed. | C．Depressed. | D．Neutral. |
From the passage, we can infer that .
| A．BP will pay much money according to the number of dead wildlife there |
| B．marine scientists have seen some strange phenomena |
| C．the disaster has little influence on dolphins |
| D．a three-person crew reached no conclusion |
The test is most probably a ______ .
| A．newspaper ad | B．book review |
| C．science news report | D．science fiction story |
The government-run command post in Tunis is staffed around the clock by military personnel, meteorologists and civilians. On the wall are maps, crisscrossed with brightly colors arrows that painstakingly track the fearsome path of the enemy.
What kind of invader gives rise to such high-level monitoring? Not man, not beast, but the lowly desert locust(蝗虫). In recent months, billions of the 3-inch-long winged warriors have descended on Algeria, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia, blackening the sky and eating up crops and vegetation. The insect invasion, the worst in 30 years, is already creating great destruction in the Middle East and is now treating southern Europe. The current crisis began in late 1985 near the Red Sea. Unusually rainy weather moistened the sands of the Sudan, making them ideal seedbed for the locust, which lays its eggs in the earth. The insect onslaught threatens to create yet another African famine. Each locust can eat its weight (not quite a tenth of an ounce) in vegetation every 24 hours. A good-size swarm of 50 billion insects eats up 100,000 tons of grass, trees and crops in a single night.
All ﹩150 million may be needed this year. The U.S. has provided two spraying planes and about 50,000 gal. of pesticide. The European Community has donated ﹩3.8 million in aid and the Soviet Union, Canada, Japan and China have provided chemical-spraying aircraft to help wipe out the pests. But relief efforts are hampered by the relative mildness of approved pesticides, which quickly lose their deadly punch and require frequent replications. The most effective locust killer dieldrin has been linked to cancer and is banned by many Western countries and some of the affected African nations. More than 5 million acres have been dusted with locust-killing chemicals; another 5 million will be treated by the end of June.
On May 30, representatives of Tunisia, Algeria, Libya, Morocco and Mauritania will meet in Algiers to discuss tactics to wipe out the ravenous swarms. The move is an important step, but whatever plan is devised, the locust plague promised to get worse before the insects can be brought under control.The main idea of the first sentence in the passage is that ______.
| A．the command post is stationed with people all the time. |
| B．the command post is crowded with people all the time. |
| C．there are clocks around the command post. |
| D．the clock in the command post is taken care of by the staff. |
The favorable breeding ground for the locust is ______.
| A．rich soil. | B．wet land |
| C．paces covered crops and vegetation | D．the Red Sea |
People are alert at the threat of the locust because ______.
| A．the insects are likely to create another African famine. |
| B．the insects may blacken the sky. |
| C．the number of the insects increases drastically. |
| D．the insects are gathering and moving in great speed. |
Which of the following is true?
| A．Once the pesticides are used, locust will die immediately. |
| B．Relief efforts are proved most fruitful due to the effectiveness of certain pesticides. |
| C．Dieldrin, the most effective locust killer, has been widely accepted in many countries. |
| D．Over 10 million acres of affected area will have been treated with locust-killing chemicals by the end of June. |
The purpose for affected nations to meet in Algiers on May 30 is ______.
| A．to devise anti-locust plans. |
| B．to wipe out the swarms in two years. |
| C．to call out for additional financial aid from other nations. |
| D．to bring the insects under control before the plague gets worse. |
A new report says only about half of all students in the main school systems of America’s largest cities finish high school. The report notes higher rates of graduation — over 70% —in areas surrounding the cities. Researchers studied high school graduation rates from the 2003, 2004 school year. They also identified the nation’s fifty largest cities. The largest, New York City, had a population of more than eight million. The smallest city was Wichita, Kansas. It had about three hundred and sixty thousand people.
Researchers used a system of measurement called the cumulative promotion index to find graduation rates. School officials in many of the cities studied said the resulting numbers were too low. That is because different areas use different methods to find graduation rates. Critics say many methods do not give a true picture of the number of students who leave high school before finishing.
Other studies have put the national graduation rate at about 70%. But experts agree that too many students are not completing high school. They estimate the number at more than one million each year. The report was prepared for America’s Promise Alliance. The private group aims to help children receive services they need to succeed.
General Colin Powell was chairman of America’s Promise Alliance when it was formed in 1997. He attended the press conference Tuesday where the report was released. He said studies have shown that the US must do more to educate the leaders and work force of the future.
Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings also spoke. She said the government will propose that states use the same methods when reporting graduation rates. Alliance officials also announced the start of a nationwide campaign to improve graduation rates. It is to include a series of meetings to be held in every state over the next two years. The meetings will bring together elected leaders, business owners, students, parents and education officials. They will develop plans to increase the number of Americans who finish high school.The author wants to tell us ___________.
| A．too many Americans do not finish high school |
| B．different methods to find graduation rates |
| C．services American children need to receive |
| D．the increase of the number of Americans who finish their high school |
From Paragraph 1 we can infer that __________.
| A．there are 8,360,000 people in the US’ fifty largest cities |
| B．Wichita in Kansas is the smallest city in the US |
| C．50% of the people in the US don’t finish their high school education |
| D．high school graduation rates in or near the biggest cities are higher |
The underlined word “picture” probably can be replaced by “_______”.
| A．situation |
B．scene |
C．image |
D．mood |
From the last paragraph, we can draw a conclusion that _______-.
| A．secretary of Education Margaret Spellings didn’t believe that number from the report |
| B．the government will stop using the cumulative promotion index to find graduation rates |
| C．secretary of Education Margaret Spellings announced the start of a nationwide campaign to improve graduation rates |
| D．the low graduation rates should be paid attention to by the government and the society |
Two years ago, the Funk family of suburban Chicago adopted a Chinese baby girl who had been abandoned on a sidewalk near a Yangzhou textile factory.
Last year and halfway across the United States, the Ramirez family of suburban Miami adopted a girl who had been abandoned a week later on the same spot.
Both families named their daughters Mia. It turns out, a first name and Chinese heritage aren’t the only things the three-year-olds have in common. The girls’ mothers—Holly Funk and Diana Ramirez—met on a website for parents who had gone through international adoptions. After a flurry of e-mails comparing photographs and biographical details, DNA testing proved the families’ suspicions: The girls are probably fraternal (手足般的) twins.
“I was in shock,” said Ramirez, who lives with her husband Carlos in Pembroke Pines, Florida. “Well, now this is for real.”
The Internet and Web groups revolving around international orphanages are increasingly being used to link adopted children with biological kin(亲属). The site that the Funks and Ramirezes used has a membership of 137 people, with 15 sets of twins and seven sets of siblings whose relationships have been confirmed.
At a reunion on Friday at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, Mia Diamond Funk Mia Hanying Ramirez shyly surveyed each other, then reached for each other’s hand.
DNA tests established an 85 percent probability that the girls are at least half sisters. Scientists did not have a biological parent to test and reach a greater certainty, but given their ages and physical similarities, experts say it is likely they are fraternal twins.
Douglas and Holly Funk hope to take Mia to Miami in October. Both sets of parents say they are committed to staying in touch and often let the twins talk to each other on the phone.. Both the adopted girls shared a first name ________.
| A．because they both came from China |
| B．because of their physical similarities |
| C．because their US parents suspected they were twins |
| D．for no good reason |
Why did the girls’ mothers meet on the Internet?
| A．To compare photographs of the two girls. |
| B．To communicate with other people who had adopted children abroad. |
| C．To test their suspicion. |
| D．To exchange experiences on adopting children. |
Experts are still not 100 percent sure that the two girls are fraternal twins because ________.
| A．DNA tests are still not accurate enough |
| B．the two girls were born by different parents |
| C．the DNA of a biological parent is still missing |
| D．one girl is born a week later than the other |
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Adopted Twins Reunited on Internet |
| B．Adopted Twins Live happily in the US. |
| C．Suspicion Turned into Reality |
| D．The Story of Adopted Twins and Their Parents |
IQUIQUE, Chile (Reuters) — Rescue workers at the San Jose gold and copper mine in northern Chile had reason to sing this week. A small hole drilled into the earth became a passage to freedom for 33 trapped miners, who spent 69 days underground. “Never have people been trapped for so long so deeply,” says a doctor at NASA, the American space agency, which helped in the rescue.
But the chief medical officer for the miners said most are in good enough health to leave the hospital within a day or so. The first three recovered and went home Thursday night.
For much of the day the miners relaxed with Chilean President Sebastian Pinera. The 32 Chileans and 1 Bolivian still wore special sunglasses to protect their eyes.
A partial mine collapse on 5th August trapped them more than half a kilometer underground. They had to stretch a two-day food supply. For two weeks no one knew if they were alive or dead. Later, they received supplies.
The first miner rescued on Wednesday was Florencio Avalos. The second was Mario Sepulveda, who talked about how the experience tested his faith. The last miner up was Luis Urzua, who was the shift leader when his crew became trapped.
Rescuers used a metal cage to pull the miners to safety in less than 24 hours — faster than expected. The rescue capsule was a half-meter wide and known as the Phoenix, an imaginary bird from ancient stories. It bursts into flames but is continually reborn and rises from the ashes.
Chile’s Navy built the capsule with advice from mining experts and NASA engineers. It worked like an elevator, traveling up and down on a cable through a shaft（竖井）drilled 622 meters into the rocks.
Millions of people around the world watched the rescue. More than one thousand journalists traveled to the mine in the Atacama Desert to report on the rescue. They joined family members of the miners and rescue crews housed in an area of tents known as Camp Hope.
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Rescued miners speak out | B．A rebirth for 33 rescued miners in Chile |
| C．Miners’ life deep underground | D．Chilean president honors rescued miners |
How many rescued miners are still in hospital?
| A．3. | B．33. | C．30. | D．69. |
|
The rescue is great for the reason that ______.
| A．it lasted so long and the miners were trapped so deep |
| B．the American space agency took part |
| C．Chilean President was on the rescuing spot |
| D．33 trapped miners were saved |
Brave Frenchman Found Halfway Around the World (NEW YORK)A French tourist highly praised for rescuing a twoyearold girl in Manhattan said he didn’t think twice before diving into the freezing East River.
Tuesday’s DailyNews said 29yearold Julien Duret from France is the man who left the spot quickly after the rescue last Saturday.
He lifted the little girl out of the water after she fell off the bank at the South Street Seaport museum.He handed the girl to her father, David Anderson, who had dived in after him.
“I didn’t think at all，” Duret told the DailyNews.“It happened very fast.I reacted very fast.”
Duret, an engineer on vacation, was walking with his girlfriend along the pier (码头) when he saw something falling into the water.He thought it was a doll, but realized it was a child when he approached the river.In an instant, he took off his coat and jumped into the water.
When he reached the girl, she appeared lifeless, he said.Fortunately，when she was out of the water, she opened her eyes.
Anderson said his daughter slipped off the bank when he was adjusting his camera.An ambulance came later for her, said Duret, who was handed dry clothes from onlookers.Duret caught a taxi with his girlfriend shortly after.
The rescue happened on the day before he left for France.Duret said he didn’t realize his tale of heroism had greatly moved New York until he was leaving the city the next morning.
“I don’t really think I’m a hero，”said Duret.“Anyone would do the same thing.”Why was Duret in New York?
| A．To meet his girlfriend. |
| B．To work as an engineer. |
| C．To spend his holiday. |
| D．To visit the Andersons. |
What did Duret do shortly after the ambulance came?
| A．He was interviewed by a newspaper. |
| B．He asked his girlfriend for his dry clothes. |
| C．He went to the hospital in the ambulance. |
| D．He disappeared from the spot quickly. |
．Who dived after Duret into the river to save the little girl?
| A．David Anderson. |
| B．A passerby. |
| C．His girlfriend. |
| D．A taxi driver. |
Down on the beach of Dover, 56-year-old Channel swimmer Jackie Cobell bravely set off for Calais. The time was 6:40 am. 28 hours and 44 minutes later the exhausted, successful mother from Kent crawled (爬行) to the shore and walked proudly into the record books. After five years in training, Mrs Cobell became the slowest person to cross the Channel under her own steam. The previous record for the slowest crossing, set by Henry Sullivan at 26 hours and 50 minutes, has stood for 87 years before Mrs Cobell started at Dover Saturday morning.
She had struggled through changing tides that swept her first one way, then the other. It turned the 21-mile crossing into a 65-mile one. She declared, “Time and tide wait for no man—and they certainly didn’t wait for me. I was fully expecting it to get dark before I got to Calais but I never imagined I’d also see the dawn again. But I wasn’t going to give up.”
Her feat(壮举) raised more than $2,000 in charity sponsorship for research into Huntingdon’s disease, a sum that was continuing to grow as news of her achievement spread. That was why she did it. “I don’t really know myself,” she said. “ I just kept thinking of all the people I’d be letting down if I stopped.”
Mrs Cobell took to the water so well at school. But after bringing up two daughters, she started to gain weight. Five years ago she took up swimming again and decided to prepare for the Channel challenge to lose weight. She became much fitter. Then came the big swim. “I practiced on Windermere lake,” she said. “it’s about half the distance of the Channel so I just double
d it, added some extra time, and worked out I could probably get to Calais in about 16 hours.”
Her husband David, trainer, official observer and friend sailed alongside her on a boat. She said, “I sang to keep myself going. When they told me I was a record breaker I thought they were just having a joke—until I realized it was the record for the slowest crossing. But maybe next time I might be a bit quicker.”According to Paragraph 1, Mrs Cobell_____________.
| A．started to learn swimming five years ago |
| B．arrived at Calais on late Sunday morning |
| C．wanted to break the record for the slowest crossing |
| D．was too exhausted to move after crossing the Channel |
Why did Mrs Cobell spend so much time crossing the Channel?
| A．Because the tides changed her direction. |
| B．Because she was not in good condition. |
| C．Because she wasn’t good at swimming. |
| D．Because the winds kept her from swimming fast. |
Mrs Cobell crossed the Channel for the main purpose of____________.
| A．taking a risk |
| B．losing more weight |
| C．raising money for charity |
| D．becoming famous worldwide |
How did Mrs Cobell feel about the record she set?
| A．Dissatisfied | B．Excited | C．Annoyed | D．Proud |
CBC is a famous air company which has over twenty planes carrying passengers and goods, flying along 12 fixed lines all over the world. Its service is very good but some passengers are still not satisfied with it and that is why in 2004 and 2005 the company received letters of complaints from consumers or passengers who pointed out over a dozen kind of problems which are divided in groups in the following table. Those concerning passengers’ things carried on the plane are baggage problems. Customer service refers to service work which passengers are not satisfied with. Overselling of tickets is about the fact that more seats are sold and as a result the plane is too crowded to be safe. Refund problems appear when passengers fail to receive the money paid back to them because of what they have lost. Fares are problems concerning the price of tickets.
Consumer Complaints Received By the CBC
| Category |
2004 |
2005 |
| Flight problems |
20.2% |
22.1% |
| Baggage |
18.3% |
21.8% |
| Customer service |
3.1% |
11.3% |
| Over sales of seats |
10.5% |
11.8% |
| Refund problems |
10.1% |
8.1% |
| Fares |
6.4% |
6.0% |
| Reservation & Ticketing |
5.8% |
5.6% |
| Tours |
3.3% |
2.3% |
| Smoking |
3.2% |
2.9% |
| Advertising |
1.2% |
1.01% |
| Credit |
1.0% |
0.8% |
| Special passengers |
0.9% |
0.9% |
| Others |
6.0% |
5.3% |
| Total Number of Complaints |
2,988 |
1,792 |
About how many complaints about Credit were received by the CBC in 2004?
| A．28 | B．29 | C．30 | D．31 |
By about what percentage did the total number of complaints decrease from 2004 to 2005?
| A．40% | B．60% | C．75% | D．100% |
If the circle graphs below show total consumer complaints for 2004, which graph shows a dark part that is about Flight problems and Refund problems together?
Which of the following statements can be inferred from the table?
a. In 2004 and in 2005, complaints about Flight problems, Baggage, and Customer service
together took more than 40 percent of all consumer complaints received by the CBC Company.
b .The number of special passengers complaints was unchanged from 2004 to 2005.
c .From 2004 to 2005 the number of Flight problems complaints increased by more than 2 percent.
| A．only a | B．only b | C．a and b | D．a and c |
From the passage we can know that _______ .
| A．customers are not satisfied with CBC |
| B．sometimes CBC sells more tickets than its plane’s fixed seats |
| C．CBC has more than twenty planes which fly to all the capital cities of the world |
| D．customers can only buy tickets with cash |
Iodine (碘）– rich salt was the hottest item on Chinese shelves Thursday, being snapped up (抢购) by shoppers after rumors spread that iodine intake could help protect one’s body from radiation damage, although the authorities have confirmed that the nuclear crisis in Japan had not affected China.
Rumors also spread about radioactive substances being leaked into ocean water that could pollute Chinese coasts.
The crazy buying has occu
rred nationwide, from the supposedly easily – harmed eastern coastal provinces to regions far – inland such as Xinjiang.
Supermarkets and convenience stores began reporting the lack of salt stocks from early Wednesday, with all salt sold out at many Carrefour and Wal – Mart stores. Some online clothes stores have begun offering salt as a bonus to customers.
Relevant government departments were trying hard to stop this round of panic – buying.
The Ministry of Health deniedthe rumor that eating more iodine – rich salt could repair damage from radiation, saying that it is technically impossible to absorb enough iodine for radiation prevention from eating salt.
The government urges the local market authorities to keep all salt sellers in check and to prevent storing and overpricing.
Also the spokesman of the government said that China’s seawater, as a source of salt, would not be affected by the nuclear crisis, as it would be impossible for radioactive substances to reach Chinese waters via the eastward ocean current.
“Reasons behind the salt rush include unclear information on the development of the nuclear crisis and terrifying media reports of the severity of a possible complete meltdown. If the fear of a Chernobyl – like catastrophe cannot be ended, the crazy buying will likely continue,” said a professor from Beijing University.
Beijing urged Tokyo Thursday to better release information at the Fukushima plant.What caused the crazy buying of iodine – rich salt?
| A．The rumor caused by the unclear information. |
| B．The shortage of iodine – rich salt in stores. |
| C．The multi – functions of iodine in salt. |
| D．The richness of iodine in salt in China. |
Some online clothes stores began offering salt as a bonus to customers because _______.
A．they can increase their sales by doing so B．the salt from them is more effective
C．the customers prefer to buy salt on line D．the salt from the on-line store is freeIt’s quite clear that some sellers want to store iodine-ric
h salt is to _______.
| A．increase the sales of related products | B．raise the price of products online |
| C．make more money from it | D．meet the needs of the market |
Why is it impossible for radi
oactive substances to reach Chinese waters?
| A．The ocean is really too large. | B．The distance from Japan is too far. |
| C．The nuclear pollution is not so serious. | D．The ocean current is eastward. |
Which of the following should be the best title of the passage?
| A．Panic Salt Buying Creates Bitter Crisis | B．Effect of the Terrible Disaster in Japan |
| C．A Rumor Throughout the Country. | D．Iodine-rich Salt Prevents Radiation. |
The crisis at the damaged Fukushima Dai-Ichi Nuclear Power Station in northern Japan has raised worries about radiation risks. We spoke Tuesday with Jonathan Links, an expert in radiation health sciences. He is a professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Maryland.
Professor Links says workers within the nuclear plant are the only people at risk of extremely high doses of radiation.
JONATHAN LINKS: "Of course, we don't know what doses they've received, but the only persons at risk of acute radiation effects are the workers."
For other people, he says, there may be a long-term worry. People can get cancer from low doses of ionizing radiation, the kind released in a nuclear accident.
Professor Links says scientists can use computers to quickly model where radioactive material has blown and settled. Then they measure how large an area is contaminated. He says if the situation is serious enough, officials could take steps like telling people not to eat locally grown food or drink the water.
JONATHAN LINKS: "But that would only be the case if there was a significant release and, because of wind direction, the radioactive material was blown over the area, and then settled out of the air into and onto water, plants, fruits and vegetables."
The reactors at Fukushima are on the Pacific coast. But Professor Links says people should not worry about any radioactive material leaking into the ocean.
JONATHAN LINKS: "Even in a worst-case scenario accident, the sea provides a very high degree of dilution. So the concentration of radioactivity in the seawater would still be quite low."
Japan is the only country to have had atomic bombs dropped on it. That memory from World War Two would create a stronger "psychological sensitivity" to radiation exposure, Professors Links says.
Next month is the twenty-fifth anniversary of the explosion and fire that destroyed a reactor at Chernobyl in Ukraine. The nineteen eighty-six event was the world's worst accident in the nuclear power industry.
A new United Nations report says more than six thousand cases of thyroid cancer have been found. These are in people who were children in affected areas of Belarus, Russia and Ukraine. The report says that by two thousand five the cancers had resulted in fifteen deaths.
The cancers were largely caused by drinking contaminated milk. The milk came from cows that ate grass where radioactive material had fallen.
To get the latest updates, go to www.unsv.com.
Contributing: James BrookeThe passage mainly tells us __________.
| A．What measures the Japan Government takes to solve the nuclear crisis . |
| B．Worries and influences caused by the nuclear crisis . |
| C．With great efforts of scientists , the Japan Government has put the nuclear crisis under control . |
| D．To explain that the nuclear crisis has less effect on its neighboring countries. |
Which of the following is NOT the influences caused by the leak of Fukushima Dai-Ichi Nuclear Power Station?
| A．Workers at the nuclear station are suffering the risk of death . |
| B．People can get cancer from low doses of ionizing radiation, the kind released in a nuclear accident. |
| C．The radioactive material may be blown over the area causing the pollution to water . |
| D．The concentration of radioactivity in the seawater can not be diluted. |
What’s the meaning of the underlined word “dilution”?
| A．chemical | B．salt | C．dissolution | D．elimination |
According to the passage which of the following is not TRUE ?
| A．Water people drink ,food and vegetables people eat may be polluted by nuclear radiation . |
| B．Japan is the only country to have had atomic bombs dropped on it. |
| C．You can go to www.unsv.com. to get the latest news . |
| D．The nuclear accident in Japan is the worst in the nuclear power industry. |
试题篮
()
粤公网安备 44130202000953号
