The government of Norway is planning to build an unusual storage center on an island in the Arctic Ocean. The place would be large enough to hold about two million seeds. The goal is to present all crops known to scientists. The British magazine New Scientist published details of the plan last month. The structure will be designed to protect the world’s food supply against nuclear war, climate change and other possible threats. It will be built in a mountain on the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen. The mountain is less than one thousand kilometers from the North Pole, the northernmost position on earth.
An international group called the Global Crop Diversity Trust is working on the project. The director of the group, Cary Fowler, spoke to New Scientist. He said the project would let the world rebuild agriculture if, in his word, “the worst came to the worst”. Norway is expected to start work next year. The project is expected to cost three million dollars. Workers will drill deep in the side of a sandstone mountain. Temperatures in the area never rise above 0ºC. The seeds will be protected behind walls a meter thick and high-security door.
The magazine report says the collection will represent the products of ten thousand years of farming. Most of the seeds at first will come from collections at seed banks in Africa, Asia and Latin America. To last a long time, seeds need to be kept in very low temperatures. Workers will not be present all the time. But they plan to replace the air inside the storage space each winter. Winter temperatures on the island are about eighteen degrees below 0ºC. The cold weather would protect the seeds even if the air could not be replaced.
Mr. Fowler says the proposed structure will be the world’s most reliable gene bank. He says the plant seeds would only be used when all other seeds are gone for some reason. Norway first proposed the idea in the 1980s. But security concerns delayed the plan. At that time, the Soviet Union was meeting in Rome of the Food and Agriculture Organization.
The project is meant to ______.
| A．increase the world’s food output in the future |
| B．carry out some scientific experiments on plant genes |
| C．protect crop seeds from dying out in case of possible disasters |
| D．build an exhibition centre of the world’s plant seeds |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the above passage?
| A．The government of Norway will perform the project alone. |
| B．Seeds to be collected there were produced ten thousands years ago. |
| C．Spitsbergen is chosen because it is free of the threat unclear war forever. |
| D．Temperature is a major consideration when choosing the storage place. |
We can infer from the text that _______.
| A．People will get newly-developed seeds from the center every year. |
| B．The storage center will greatly promote world agriculture |
| C．Norway had meant to build the storage centre about 30 years before. |
| D．There haven’t been any seed storage centers in the world before. |
What is probably the best title of the passage?
| A．The Best Place to Store Seeds |
| B．Noah’s Ark（诺亚方舟）of Plant Seeds in Plan |
| C．Concerns of World Food Supply |
| D．A New Way to Feed the World |
Jack Andraka from Maryland won the grand prize at the 2012 Intel International Science and Engineering Fair. It is the largest high school science competition in the world. The Maryland teenager is the youngest winner of the $75,000 prize. He was chosen from among 1,500 students in 70 countries.Jack Andraka invented a test for pancreatic cancer （胰腺癌）. He started to learn it after losing a close family friend to the disease. “I went on the Internet and I found that 85%of all pancreatic cancers are found late, when someone has less than 2% chance of survival（生存）, ” he says, “and I was thinking,’ That’s not right. We should be able to do something.’” He found that early discovery is important to increasing the chances of surviving the disease.
The Maryland teenager asked to work in a laboratory at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore and was allowed. There he developed a simple paper test, which can recognize the disease in a single drop of blood. His test has proved correct 90% of the time. It also is 100 times more sensitive（敏感的）than other tests. “It costs 3 cents per test, and then it takes only 5 minutes to run,” he said.
Jack’s success wouldn’t have been possible without Anirban Maitra, a professor at Johns Hopkins. He was the only person among the 200 researchers Jack wrote to who showed interest in his project. “I was very surprised that this was a 15-year-old who was writing this. I wanted to meet this clever young man and see what he wanted to talk about and so I called him over for an interview（会面）. ”
Jack worked in Professor Maitra’s laboratory, completing his project in 7 months. The government has given the Maryland teenager patent rights（专利权）to the pancreatic cancer test. He is now talking with companies about developing the test into a simple product.
Whatever happens, the professor believes Jack Andraka’s name is one we will be hearing again over the next 10 to 20 years. What made Jack Andraka research pancreatic cancer?
| A．A high school task. | B．A professor’s encouragement. |
| C．Losing a friend. | D．Doubts about the present test. |
Jack Andraka’s research on pancreatic cancer __________.
| A．proved to be very successful |
| B．was 100 times cheaper than other tests |
| C．gave patients a 90% chance of survival |
| D．was finished at the high school of Maryland |
We can infer（推断）from the text that Jack Andraka __________.
| A．left a deep impression on Professor Maitra |
| B．was thought highly of by companies |
| C．got support from others easily |
| D．wasn’t afraid of failure |
The underlined sentence in the last paragraph suggested Jack Andraka will __________.
| A．become rich |
| B．make contributions（贡献）continually |
| C．get a good job |
| D．make products to treat cancer |
What’s the best title for the text?
| A．Intel International Science and Engineering Fair |
| B．Jack Andraka’s Fights Against Cancer |
| C．Research on Pancreatic Cancer |
| D．Teenager Cancer Researcher |
Mother-of-three Carmen Blake called her midwife(助产师)to ask for an ambulance when she went into labor unexpectedly with her fourth child.
But the 27-year-old claims she was refused an ambulance and told to walk the 100m from her house in Leicester to the city’s nearby Royal Infirmary(医院).
Her daughter Mariah was delivered on a pavement outside the hospital by a passer-by, just before ambulance crews arrived.
Ms Blake said she started going into labor at about 7:15 am on Sunday, August 2. She said, “I phoned up the Royal Infirmary, it’s just across the road.
“I went into the bath and realized she was gong to come quickly. I didn’t think I’d be able to make it out of the bath, so I phoned the maternity(妇产科的) ward back and told them to get an ambulance out.”
They said they were not sending an ambulance and told me I had had nine months to sort out a lift.
Experienced mother MS Blake today said she knew she had to get herself out of the bath and try to get to the hospital.
Eventually MS Blake and her friends enlisted the help of a physiotherapist(理疗师) who happened to be passing on her way to work. She dialed 999 and helped deliver baby Mariah while waiting for emergency services.
Ms Blake said despite the happy ending she was upset she was told to make her own way to the hospital as, being an experienced mum, she knew she did not have the time.
Today a government spokeswoman said, “We are disappointed that Ms Blake was not happy with the advice and care she received and will of course investigate any complaint. We are pleased that both Ms Blake and her daughter are well and healthy.” Carmen Blake, the 27-year-old mother, gave girth to her new child Mariah .
| A．in the city’s Royal Infirmary |
| B．in the ambulance on her way to hospital |
| C．out of the bath at home |
| D．in the street on her way to hospital |
The underline3d phrase “went into labor” in the first paragraph probably means .
| A．felt worried | B．felt tired | C．gave birth to | D．went to sleep |
It can be inferred that .
| A．there were not enough ambulance in the Royal Infirmary |
| B．the story ended with a sad ending |
| C．the maternity ward said Ms Blake only needed a lift |
| D．the maternity ward said Ms Blake ought to call earlier |
Carmen Blake accused the Royal Infirmary of .
| A．failing to send an ambulance to help her |
| B．having killed her newly-born baby |
| C．not taking good care of her and her baby |
| D．refusing to admit her into the hospital |
March 22, 20II---Most restaurants in the United States offer their customers a glass of tap water at no charge with their meal, but this week many restaurants are asking dinners to pay a dollar, or more, for a glass of water. Cards on their tables explain that this small amount helps bring clean water to children around the world. It’s called the UNICEF Tap Project.
“UNICEF’s Tap Project is really all about bringing attention to the fact that over 900 million people around the globe do not have access to good, clean, healthy drinking water,” says Cary Stem, who heads the US Fund for UNICEF. She adds that water-borne illness is the second-highest cause of preventable childhood death in the world.
“Each and every day approximately 4,100 children die just because they don’t have that access - 4,100 every single day.”
The public service campaign encourages people to help change that statistic with a simple, affordable action: paying a dollar to get a glass of tap water at a restaurant.
“One dollar buys enough good, clean water for a child for 40 days,” Stem says.
“The tap project has expanded since it began five years ago with 300 restaurants in New York City. This year, Stem says, about 3,000 restaurants across the country are participating in the campaign. We raised about $2.5 million over the last five years of this campaign,” says Stem. “Last year, we raised over $1 million for the first time. This year we’re hoping to top that.”
Stem credits the continued success of the campaign to an army of volunteers who support the tap project and raise money in their communities.
The UNICEF Tap Project is promoting its efforts with a simple motto: when you take water, give water. Currently, UNICEF works in more than 100 countries around the world to improve access to safe water and sanitation facilities in schools and communities.
Stem hopes that, by participating in the project, more Americans will realize that what they often take for granted is a precious and scarce resource in many other parts of the world.Restaurants began to charge for tap water to _______.
| A．increase their profit |
| B．urge customers to save water |
| C．raise people’s awareness of the world water problem |
| D．collect money for those without access to safe water |
We can learn from the text that the Tap Project ________.
| A．began in New York City |
| B．was started by volunteers |
| C．is hoping to collect $2.5 million this year |
| D．provides help for 1,000 countries in the world |
It can be learned that _______.
| A．the Tap Project began in 2006 |
| B．America suffers a serious problem |
| C．4,100 children die of water pollution every year |
| D．water-borne illnesses are the biggest killer of children |
How does Cary Stem feel about the work of the Tap Project?
| A．Concerned | B．Hopeful | C．Disappointed | D．Angry |
It's not much, but it's home. Francis Chan, an engineer, lives in Hampstead, north London, in a flat that's just 4ft wide by 21ft long. He loves it.
Tiny though it is, it has got all the comforts. Peter Baynes, Chan’s architect (建筑师),has achieved a clever piece of design, according to architectural experts.
The Chan mini-house was built on what was once a path down the side of a big Victarian house. Not an inch of space is wasted.
When you step in through the front door, you're standing in the shower, on Britain' s only self-cleansing doormat (自动清洁门垫). A door opens on to an equally tiny toilet with washbasin. Two steps further in comes the kitchen, complete with full-sized cooker and fridge, and washer/ drier. A worktop folds down from the wall.
Another step and you're into the dining/ office area. Four people can sit here for dinner, says Chan as he sets the table-top into place. He even has a fold-down drawing-board for when he's working at home. The bed is hidden under a cover board right at the back. "I don't even have to make the bed," Chan says." I just put the cover down. "
Chan's business suits hang neatly on the wall over the bed. Daylight comes in through the skylight. The house feels like a very small boat and Chan admits he toyed with the idea of naming it the "boat-house".
"It cost around ￡4,700 to build last year. Now it's been valued at ￡30,000. It proves that good design doesn't need to cost more. It just needs a lot of care." says Chan.By saying "It's not much" (line 1, para. 1), the author means that Chan's flat______.
| A．is cheap | B．has cheap furniture | C．has a simple design | D．is fairly small |
Where is Chan's flat?
| A．Next to a big house | B．Under an old building |
| C．In a busy London street | D．By the side of a country road |
Which of the following is the right order of things described in the text?
| A．Shower, kitchen, toilet, dining table and bed |
| B．Shower, toilet, dining table, kitchen and bed |
| C．Shower, toilet, kitchen, dining table and bed |
| D．Shower, kitchen, toilet, bed and dining table |
What is the purpose of this writing?
| A．To sell Chan's flat for more money |
| B．To tell people how to take care of small flat |
| C．To introduce to readers a cleverly-designed flat |
| D．To call on engineers to design their own home |
Playing basketball isn’t ladylike. That’s what Jewell Chapman’s high school headmaster told her in 1961 when he was against the girls’ basketball program.
“We were very discouraged, ” said Chapman, a forward（前锋）for her high school team of Des Moines.
Nearly 50 years later, Chapman is back on the playground. She’s 62 and plays for “Hot Pink Grannies”, joining about 10 other women on a team whose uniforms are black trousers and hot pink socks. They play in the Iowa Granny Basketball League.
It’s one of dozens of basketball leagues for women over 50 that have arisen across the country. For some, it’s a chance to exercise and meet people; for others, it’s a once – refused chance to make up.
“You see more and more elderly women’s teams taking part in state and national competitions,” said Michael Rogers, a professor in sports studies at Wichita State University. “In the future it will be something common to have leagues like this.”
Yearly surveys by the National Sporting Goods Association show the number of women aged 55 and older who play basketball at least 50 times a year has grown from 16,000 in 1995 to nearly 131,000 ten years later.
The women on the Hot Pink Grannies are good – natured but competitive when game time comes.
“I think I’m tough” says Colleen Pulliam, 69, showing off her strong arms at her challengers in a game against “Strutters”, known for their bright yellow socks.
Granny Basketball Leagues and similar groups spread quickly through much of the country, including California, Louisiana, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C.Which is right about Chapman?
| A．She thinks playing basketball isn’t ladylike. |
| B．She is now 62 years old and feels discouraged. |
| C．She plays basketball again about 50 years later. |
| D．She is a forward in the Hot Pink Grannies. |
The underlined sentence “it’s a once – refused chance to make up” in the fourth paragraph means .
| A．it is chance to realize their old dream |
| B．it is chance to take part in sports |
| C．it is chance to earn a reputation |
| D．it is chance to compete for medals |
Who is probably a player of “Hot Oink Grannies”?
| A．Des Moines. | B．Colleen Pulliam. | C．Michael Rogers. | D．Strutters. |
Which of the following statements is true?
A．Some elderly women play basketball with the purpose of getting wealthy.
B．Granny Basketball Leagues have spread all over the USA.
C．The women on the Hot Pink Grannies are good – natured and less competitive.
D．The number of women aged 55 and older who play basketball has greatly increased.From the passage we can infer .
| A．in the 1960s, playing basketball wasn’t considered as a girls’ sport |
| B．the color of the socks is of great importance to granny players |
| C．more and more granny players are confident about getting higher scores |
| D．Jewell Chapman’s high school headmaster has already changed his attitude |
LONDON - A British judge on Thursday sentenced a businessman who sold fake (假冒的) bomb detectors (探测器) to 10 years in prison, saying the man hadn't cared about potentially (潜在的) deadly consequences.
It is believed that James McCormick got about $77.8 million from the sales of his detectors ---which were based on a kind of golf ball finder---to countries including Iraq, Belgium and Saudi Arabia. McCormick, 57, was convicted (判罪) of cheats last month and sentenced Thursday at the Old Bailey court in London.
"Your cheating conduct in selling a great amount of useless equipment simply for huge profit promoted a false sense of security and in all probability materially contributed to causing death and injury to innocent people," Judge Richard Hone told McCormick. "You have neither regret, nor shame, nor any sense of guilt."
The detectors, sold for up to $42,000 each, were said to be able to find such dangerous objects as bombs under water and from the air. But in fact they "lacked any grounding in science" and were of no use. McCormick had told the court that he sold his detectors to the police in Kenya, the prison service in Hong Kong, the army in Egypt and the border control in Thailand.
"I never had any bad results from customers," he said. Why was McCormick sentenced to prison?
| A．He sold bombs. | B．He caused death of people. |
| C．He made detectors. | D．He cheated in business. |
According to the judge, what McCormick had done _______.
| A．increased the cost of safeguarding |
| B．lowered people's guard against danger |
| C．changed people's idea of social security |
| D．caused innocent people to commit crimes |
Which of the following is true of the detectors?
| A．They have not been sold to Africa. |
| B．They have caused many serious problems. |
| C．They can find dangerous objects in water. |
| D．They don't function on the basis of science. |
It can be inferred from the passage that McCormick _______.
| A．sold the equipment at a low price |
| B．was well-known in most countries |
| C．did not think he had committed the crime |
| D．had not got such huge profit as mentioned in the text |
While many other teen stars built up their celebrity status(名人地位) by working hard on popular TV shows, Justin shot straight to the top by using social media.
A few years ago, Justin uploaded(上传) videos of himself on YouTube, showing covers of his favorite songs at home. He just saw it as a bit of fun for friends and family, but when music manager Scooter Braun saw one of the videos, he flew to Justin’s hometown of Ontario, Canada to sign him up. Justin was just 13.
Shortly after, Justin was flown to the US. He eventually started working with R&B superstar Usher. Justin’s first album My world was released in 2009. But all the time, Justin continued to build his fan base on his YouTube account, where some of his original home videos can still be found, and where he continues to post music. “I wasn’t sending mixtapes or anything like that to record labels,” he told us when we met him on his promotional tour for his latest film Justin Bieber: Never Say Never. “I was just doing regular stuff at home and I just posted videos online without purpose. I would never be here if it wasn’t for the Internet and YouTube.”
But it isn’t just YouTube that helps Justin’s popularity. He also updates his Twitter account (@Justin-Bieber) regularly and has about 8.8 million followers. In fact, he’s so popular that Justin was responsible for 3% of the site’s activity at one time and so popular that entire racks of servers on Twitter were devoted to him.
In light of his story, many young, aspiring artists are now taking advantage of Twitter and YouTube. Both these sites can help artists build fan bases in the hope that they’ll become the next big thing. Justin added, “I think my story brings hope to people and I think that’s very important. The only thing holding you back is yourself. Never say never.”What is the best title for the passage?
| A．A famous young man | B．YouTube---A popular website |
| C．Justin’s way to success | D．Social media is the most important |
The underlined word “covers” in Paragraph 2 means_____.
| A．The cover of a book. |
| B．The shelter from attack. |
| C．The sheet on the bed. |
| D．Another version of a pop song by a different artist. |
Which one is right according to the passage?
| A．Justin posted videos online in order to succeed. |
| B．Justin becomes a celebrity partly owing to social media. |
| C．Justin has the same way to succeed as others. |
| D．Justin has built many websites. |
What can we know from Paragraph 5?
| A．Many young, aspiring artists are objection to Justin’s way. |
| B．Many celebrities like Justin must appear in the future. |
| C．Justin tells others never to depend on social media. |
| D．Justin has set an example to many young, aspiring artists. |
JIUQUAN, China—China’s Shenzhou-9 spacecraft blasted off(点火升空)at 6:37 pm Saturday, from a remote desert in western China, sending a crew of three, including the country’s first female astronaut, into space.
The successful launch, powered by a Long March 2F rocket, was shown live on state television Saturday from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert in western China.
The Chinese astronauts will complete the country’s first manned space docking mission(载入太空对接任务), an important step in Beijing’s ambitious plan to build a permanent space station by 2020. Possible future missions could include sending a man to the moon.
The crew is expected to spend more than 10 days in space and dock with the Tiangong-1 space lab module, which China launched in September 2011. Two of them will live and work inside the module to test its life-support systems, while the third will remain in the capsule to deal with any unexpected emergencies.
China first launched a man into space in 2003, followed by a two-man mission in 2005 and a three-man trip in 2008 that featured the country’s first spacewalk. In November 2011, the unmanned Shenzhou-8 successfully docked twice with Tiangong-1 by remote control. The manned docking would be considered a milestone for China’s space program.
China is hoping to join the United States and Russia as the only countries to send independently maintained space stations into orbit(轨道). It is already one of just three nations to have launched manned spacecraft on their own.
The program is a source of enormous national pride for China, reflecting its rapid economic and technological progress and ambition to rank among the world’s leading nations.From the passage, we know that .
| A．China plans to build a permanent space station on the moon in the near future |
| B．the Shenzhou-9 will dock with Tiangong-1 for the third time |
| C．the success launch of Shenzhou-9 is a milestone for China’s space program |
| D．plenty of people had the opportunity to watch the live broadcast o the launch on TV |
In space, the three astronauts will complete the following tasks EXCEPT______.
| A．handling some emergencies | B．testing the life-support system |
| C．walking in space | D．docking with a space lab module |
What can be concluded according to the passage?
| A．More and more manned space stations will be sent into space from China. |
| B．The docking of Shenzhou-9 will be more successful than that of Shenzhou-8. |
| C．There are only three countries which sent space station into space. |
| D．The rapid development of China’s economy and technology has contributed a lot to the success of Shenzhou-9 program. |
What’s the main idea of the passage?
| A．China sent its first woman into outer space. |
| B．Shenzhou-9 sent three astronauts, including a female, into space. |
| C．China’s advanced space technology amazed the world. |
| D．Three Chinese astronauts began their space voyage. |
A public high school in the rural town of Boonsboro，Maryland，offers a special program recently. Top students in the ninth and tenth grades can attend single－sex classes for math，science，English and social studies.
The aim is to help teenagers keep their mind on their work by keeping males and females apart. Rebecca Brown chooses the students for what Boonsboro High School calls the Academy. “What we really want to do is take that top group of kids and take them to the very highest level they can achieve here，so that they’re prepared for college，” she said. They need high marks and test scores and strong teacher recommendations. They also need to be involved in activities.
Michael Bair has been at Boonsboro High School for twenty years and directs the Academy. His ninth－grade English class for boys centers on books that he believes boys find interesting. “The novels they’re reading now，are very manly novels. They’re novels that deal with the arrogance(傲慢)of man and the pride of man.” One of those books，for example，is “The Call of the Wild” by Jack London. This classic story tells of a dog stolen from his home and sold to work as a sled dog in Canada’s Klondike Gold Rush.
On this day，the students are working in small groups. Vincent and Logan explain why they’re drawing pictures that relate to the story. Vincent said，“The main character，Buck，gets abducted(绑架), and they send him off to the Yukon in a train. So I’m drawing part of the story where he’s in the train. It gets you to visualize the setting of the story and gets you to think more about what’s going on in the story，the important events of the story.”“ Instead of just doing work sheets about it，this is a lot more fun，” Logan added happily.
Morgan Van Fleet likes being in the Academy. She says boys and girls act differently when they are together in a classroom. “To me，it almost seems like it’s hindering(妨碍) your chances at developing yourself because you’re more focused on ‘Oh，I wish they’d shut up. Oh，what do they think of me？’ instead of focusing on what’s the homework or what’s going on in this class，what’s the lesson.”What is the purpose of the text?
| A．To educate. | B．To persuade. | C．To instruct. | D．To introduce. |
In Rebecca Brown’s opinion，________.
| A．any student in Boonsboro High School can take part in the program |
| B．students in the program are expected to get well prepared for college |
| C．students can all achieve their highest levels in the program |
| D．students don’t have to join in the activities. |
The underlined word “visualize” in Paragraph 4 probably means “________”．
| A．form a picture of | B．pay a visit to |
| C．take a look at | D．have a gift for |
What can we conclude from the text?____________.
| A．Michael Bair considers it unsuitable for boys to read the book “The Call of the Wild”． |
| B．Vincent thinks that his drawings can help understand the novel better. |
| C．Jack London is a main character in the book “The Call of the Wild”． |
| D．Morgan Van Fleet thinks the program does no good to her. |
The text is probably taken from________.
| A．a school’s introduction | B．a teacher’s diary |
| C．a headmaster’s speech | D．a news report |
“I stepped out and was flabbergasted,” local journalist Bahram Baloch told the BBC. “I could see this gray, dome-shaped (圆顶形的) body in the distance, like a giant whale swimming near the surface. Hundreds of people had gathered to watch it in disbelief.”
This island has become a global curiosity. How was it formed in just a few minutes?
As you might already know, many islands in the sea are formed by volcanoes. There are numerous volcanoes under the sea. As the hot lava erupts and cools down, it piles up and forms the shape of a mountain. When the mountain “grows” to higher than the sea level, the part that’s above the water is what we call an “island”.
This is how the island was formed after the Pakistan earthquake, except that instead of a regular volcano, it was a “mud volcano” that brought about this island. Lava is not the only thing that’s locked under the Earth’s crust — there is also gas. When an earthquake happens and breaks part of the crust, the gas is released at an extremely high speed, pushing mud up to the surface, according to National Geographic.
But only earthquakes that are extremely powerful can cause mud volcanoes to push up enough mud to produce islands — and this 7.7-magnitude earthquake in Pakistan was strong enough. The island is about 20 meters high, up to about 90 meters wide and 30 meters long, nearly the size of a soccer field.
In fact, mud volcano islands aren’t new. This is the fourth island of this kind in the region since 1945. But those islands usually didn’t last long.
“It will probably be gone within a couple of months,” said Bill Barnhart, a researcher with the US Geological Survey. After all, “it’s just a big pile of mud that was on the seafloor that got pushed up”.What is the article mainly about?
| A．The disastrous effects of coastal earthquakes. |
| B．The difference between mud volcanoes and regular volcanoes. |
| C．How islands are formed by mud volcanoes. |
| D．The great natural wonders of Pakistan. |
The underlined word “flabbergasted” in Paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to __________.
| A．surprised | B．disappointed | C．worried | D．curious |
We can infer from the article that __________.
| A．the new island near the coast of Pakistan actually took a few months to form |
| B．scientists still know little about different types of volcanoes |
| C．another earthquake is likely to happen in Pakistan within a couple of months |
| D．not all volcanoes change the geological appearance of the Earth |
According to the article, islands formed by mud volcanoes __________.
| A．are quite difficult to locate |
| B．usually disappear after a short period of time |
| C．are formed by hot lava from volcanoes |
| D．used to be part of the Earth’s crust |
Chinese writer Mo Yan has won the 2012 Nobel Prize in Literature, announced the Swedish Academy in Stockholm on Thursday. The win makes Mo Yan the first Chinese citizen to win the Nobel in its 111-year history. Informed of his win today, the author, who was having dinner at home, was “overjoyed and scared”.
Born in 1955 to parents who were farmers, Mo Yan — a pen name for Guan Moye, grew up in Gaomi, Shandong province in eastern China. At the age of 12, he left school to work, first in agriculture, later in a factory. In 1976 he joined the army and during this time began to study literature and writing.
He published his first book in 1981, but found literary success in 1987 with Hong Gaoliang Jiazu, which was successfully filmed in the same year, directed by famous Chinese director Zhang Yimou. In his writing, Mo Yan draws on his youthful experiences and on settings in the province of his birth and his works show the life of Chinese people as well as the country’s unique culture and folk customs. Mo Yan is known as a productive writer. In addition to his novels, he has published many short stories and essays on various topics. Despite his social criticism, he is seen in his homeland as one of the most famous contemporary authors. Dozens of his works have been translated into English, French, Japanese and many other languages.
The awarding ceremony will be held on December 10. The winner will win a medal, a personal diploma and a cash award of about $1 million. How did Mo Yan feel when he was told about the news?
| A．Excited and proud. | B．Worried and cautious. |
| C．Happy and surprised. | D．Uncertain and shocked. |
One of Mo Yan’s characteristics of writing is that he ________.
| A．writes about topics he is familiar with |
| B．focuses on social problems in the country |
| C．describes his characters in a unique way |
| D．explains difficult matters in simple words |
What’s the best title for this passage?
| A．How Mo Yan Gets Nobel Prize |
| B．An Introduction to Nobel Prize |
| C．Mo Yan Wins Nobel Prize in Literature |
| D．A World Famous Writer, Mo Yan |
Sports News of the Week
Bolt gains 100m title again in Moscow
Last updated: Monday, Aug-12-2013, 08:54
USAIN BOLT of Jamaica won the men's 100 meters final during the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Moscow on Sunday．
Usain Bolt was made to look human by a combination of a Russian rainstorm and a fired-up Justin Gatlin on Sunday but the Jamaican superstar was still good enough to regain his world 100 meters title in a surging 9．77 seconds．
With former world and Olympic champion and twice-banned doper Gatlin leading at halfway, Bolt was forced to race a rival, rather than the clock．
Jason Dufner wins PGA Championship
Last Updated: Monday, August 12, 2013, 10:38
Jason Dufner won his first major title at the 95th PGA Championship, the top U．S． golf competition, seizing an early lead on Sunday at Oak Hill, Texas and holding on for victory despite a bogey-bogey finish．
The 36-year-old American, who squandered a four-shot lead with four holes to play in losing the 2011 PGA Championship, fired a final-round two-under par 68 to finish on 10-under par 270 for 72 holes．
Isinbaeva leads harvest day for host Russia at Moscow worlds
Last updated: Wednesday, August 14, 2013, 10:35
Russia's "pole vault queen" Elena Isinbaeva ignited the Luzhniki stadium as she claimed her third world title on the fourth day of the 2013 IAAF World
Championships here on Tuesday, which saw host Russia harvested two gold and one silver medals in seven finals.
Ireland's Heffernan wins world walk title at 35 Last Updated: Wednesday, August 14,2013,15:15
Ireland's Robert Heffernan won the world championship 50km walk title on Wednesday as the 35-year-old finally tasted glory after 13 years of heartbreak and near-misses．
Heffernan, fourth in the 2012 Olympic 50km and fourth in both walks at last year's European championships, broke clear of Mikhail Ryzhov after 35km to deny Russia a clean sweep of the walks after they took gold in both 20km events earlier in the week．When did Bolt regain the men's 100 meters final?
| A．August 11． | B．August 12． | C．August 13． | D．August 14． |
Where is the PGA held?
| A．Jamaica． | B．Russia． | C．America． | D．Ireland． |
______ won the world championship at last after trying hard for 13 years．
| A．Jason | B．Bolt | C．Isinbaeva | D．Heffernan |
Three astronauts returned to Earth safely on Wednesday after a successful 15-day mission （任务）, marking another step forward towards the country’s goal of building a manned space station by 2020.
Zhang Youxia, commander-in-chief of China’s manned space program, said the Shenzhou X mission was a “complete success”.
The Shenzhou X landed safely in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region at about 8:07 a.m. on June 26, 2013. All three astronauts were in good physical condition.
Nie Haisheng, commander of the Shenzhou X crew and a second-time space traveler, was the first to get out of the bowl-like module（舱）, followed by Wang Yaping, the only female astronaut of the mission, and Zhang Xiaoguang. During a brief welcoming ceremony held at the landing area, the astronauts waved happily to a crowd consisting of officers, the search and recovery team, and health personnel.
“It feels really good to be back home,” said astronaut Nie Haisheng.
“We are dreamers, and we have now realized our dream,” said Zhang Xiaoguang. “Our space dream knows no limit, and our hard work will never stop,” he said.
Compared with its previous mission Shenzhou IX last year, the Shenzhou X is no longer experimental but considered an applicable shuttle（航天飞机）system for sending astronauts and supplies to orbiting modules. The mission aims to further test technologies designed for docking（对接）and supporting astronauts’ stay in space, as well as to use new technologies related to the construction of a space station.
In its 15-day journey in space, Shenzhou X docked with the orbiting space lab Tiangong-1 twice, once through automatic operation and the other manual（手控的）.The Tiangong-1 space lab has been in orbit for more than 600 days. It’s designed to work for two years. The module is considered the first step in building a permanent space station in the future. And the astronauts spent 12 days in Tiangong-1, where they conducted space medical experiments, technical tests and gave a science lesson to students on Earth on June 19 about basic physics principles. The lecture was the second video class sent from space, with US astronaut Barbara Morgan’s 25-minute class being the first in 2007.
China is the third country after the United States and Russia to acquire the technologies and skills necessary for space rendezvous（交会）and docking procedures, as well as supply manpower and material for an orbiting module via different docking methods.
Previous docking procedures conducted between Shenzhou-type spacecraft and the orbiting space lab included two automated dockings by the unmanned Shenzhou-8 in 2011 and both an automated and manual docking by the manned Shenzhou-9 in 2012.
Since its first manned space space mission in 2003, China has sent ten astronauts and six spacecrafts into the space.According to the passage, the Shenzhou X ________.
| A．was sent into space on June 11, 2013 |
| B．is still an experimental shuttle system |
| C．sent many supplies to the manned space station |
| D．returned to Earth safely on the afternoon of June 26 |
China sent the Shenzhou X into space to ________.
| A．learn how to make use of a manned space station |
| B．prove the importance of the manned space program |
| C．experiment on how to make astronauts stay in space safely |
| D．test new technologies for the construction of a space station |
We can learn from the passage that ________.
| A．Nie Haisheng is the only male astronaut of the mission |
| B．The Tiangong-1 space lab was founded in 2012 |
| C．China is the second country to give a space class |
| D．the Tiangong-1 was mainly designed to serve Shenzhou X |
What is the best title for the passage?
| A．China Prepares for Next Manned Mission |
| B．Shenzhou X Spacecraft Mission Is a Success |
| C．China’s Shenzhou X Is Now in Space |
| D．Astronauts of Shenzhou X Mission Are Meeting Media |
When Peng Liyuan stepped off the plane in Moscow, the whole world wanted to know who dressed the elegant first lady. The reporter released the secret—Ma Ke.
Peng Liyuan has been wearing Ma Ke’s designs for more than a decade, a fact that was only highlighted recently when she was on her first state visit, accompanying her husband President Xi Jinping. The elegant and attractive Peng, formerly a popular singer, has been compared with the US’ first lady Michelle Obama and France’s Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, since stepping off the airplane in Moscow on March 22. Suddenly, everyone was curious to know more about the first lady’s wardrobe.
Even so, Ma prefers a low-key approach. “If you eat a tasty egg why would you want to see the hen?” she says of all the media attention.
Ma’s relationship with Peng began 10 years ago after a concert in Guangzhou when a reporter told Peng she knew the designer behind the label Exception de Mixmind. Peng asked for an introduction because she was a fan of Ma’s designs and had been wearing them for years.
The two naturally became friends. Ma says, “The painting reflects the painter, and clothes reflect both the designer and the wearer. Someone desires fame and wealth, or love and sympathy; what you have in your heart is reflected in the design. Those who don’t share my philosophy won’t buy my clothes. Peng is a caring person, devoted to charity and environmental protection, which is exactly what I’m doing now.”
However, regardless of the brand, Peng’s support of Chinese labels has surprised millions of Chinese who favor foreign fashion brands.
“Instead she presented a vision of Chinese fashion, desiring to bring Chinese designers to the world stage,” says a western designer.
The first lady’s double-breasted coat and her black leather handbag aren’t available at any of Exception’s shops, though Exception’s physical stores do have seen a rising number of visitors.In the underlined sentence in Paragraph 3 Ma Ke mentioned “an egg and the hen” to show .
| A．it is hard to explain “Which came first, the egg or the hen?” |
| B．paying such great attention to her was unnecessary |
| C．the outcome was more important than the process |
| D．her dissatisfaction with the media attention on her dress |
What can be inferred from the passage?
| A．First ladies compete with each other whenever they are together. |
| B．Peng’s suits can be bought in Ma Ke’s clothes stores. |
| C．Ma Ke offered to design the first lady’s clothes through her friends. |
| D．Peng had liked Ma’s designs long before she got to know her in the flesh. |
In the passage, Peng Liyuan .
| A．often reflects on what she has in her heart before choosing clothes |
| B．is sympathetic and has a strong environmental consciousness |
| C．always desires the exceptional charm of the brand |
| D．is knowledgeable in philosophy |
Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．Peng wears the dress designed by a Chinese designer probably to support Chinese brands. |
| B．Many citizens found Peng Liyuan’s choice quite unexpected. |
| C．Black leather handbags like Peng’s are widely sold in bag stores in big cities. |
| D．After Peng Liyuan’s visit to Moscow Ma Ke’s clothes became more popular. |
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