The wedding took place in a Birmingham hotel. The bride and her father arrived in a new black American sports car. Her father looked nervous and uncomfortable in front of the cameras. The bride wore a silk wedding dress. She smiled nervously at the waiting photographers and went to a room on the first floor where she met her future husband for the very first time.
Carla Germaine and Greg Cordell were the winners of a radio station’s competition. The aim of the competition was to find two strangers prepared to marry without having met each other. Miss Germaine, 23, is a model. Mr. Cordell, 27, is a TV salesman. They were among the two hundred people who entered for a particular “experiment” organized by BMRB radio in Birmingham, England. Greg and Carla were among eight finalists who were interviewed live on radio. They took a lie detector (测谎仪)test and the station also spoke to their friends and family about their personalities. The competition judges included an astrologer(占卜家)who declared that they were suited.
The couple celebrated their wedding with a wedding breakfast and a party for 100 guests in the evening, but not everyone shared their joy. Miss Germaine’s mother looked anxious through-out the wedding and Mr. Cordell’s parents are reported to be less than delighted.
Organizations, including the marriage guidance service Relate, have criticized the marriage. As one expert put it, “we have enough problems getting young people to take marriage seriously. Marriage should always be about love.”
The couples are now on a Caribbean honeymoon followed by journalists. Their other prizes include a year’s free use of a wonderful apartment in the centre of Birmingham, and a car. But will it last?
How did the couple’s parents react to the wedding?
A.The bride’s mother shared their joy. |
B.The bridegroom’s parents were not that joyful. |
C.The bridegroom’s parents were quite delighted. |
D.The bride’s father felt uncomfortable about the wedding. |
Some experts believe that ________.
A.marriage without the couple’s meeting each other first ends up in divorce. |
B.most young people take marriage seriously except this couple. |
C.taking a lie detector test can not solve all the marriage problems. |
D.young people nowadays are too careless about marriage. |
One of the prizes for the couple is ________.
A.to use an apartment free for some time. |
B.to spend their honeymoon wherever they like. |
C.to have a wedding dress free. |
D.to own an American sports car. |
Which of the following is the best title of the passage?
A.A Wedding Based on love. | B.Two Strangers and a Wedding. |
C.A Short--lived Marriage. | D.A Well--Matched Couple. |
A pair of giant pandas from southwest China’s Sichuan Province arrived at their new home in Belgium’s Pairi Daiza zoo, some 60km southwest of downtown Brussels, at around 15:00 local time (1400GMT) on February 23, 2014.
About 2,500 people, many of them excited children waving national flags of China and Belgium as well as panda-decorated flags or wearing costume of Panda greeted the pandas along the road to the zoo.
Visitors today can only observe the pandas through a closed-circuit television system in the reception.
Officials said they wanted the pandas fully adapted to their new home before making public debut in April.
The pandas, Xing Hui, the male and Hao Hao, the female, are both 4 years old and are on lease from a breeding center in southwest China’s Sichuan Province.
The lease term is 15 years, according to officials with the China Conservation and Research Center for Giant Pandas, the world’s largest research base for the species.
“It’s a good thing for Belgium.” Nicole Duflot, a grandmother coming to the zoo with her husband and her grandson told Xinhua, “We can’t see the Panda today but it’s a great thing for us to come here.”
The Pandas will be living in a panda hall of 5,300 square meters within the zoo.
“I hope Xing Hui and Hao Hao will enhance friendship between Belgium and China.” Liao Liqiang, the Chinese ambassador to Belgium, said during an interview with Xinhua.
What was the main purpose of China leasing pandas to Belgium?
A.We were supposed to make money from Belgium. |
B.We meant to improve the relationship between China and Belgium. |
C.We expected to amuse the Belgian children. |
D.We wanted to make the pandas adapt to the environment abroad. |
The underlined word “debut” probably means ___________.
A.first appearance | B.ceremony | C.announcement | D.argument |
According to the passage, which statement is right?
A.Xing Hui and Hao Hao will live in the city centre of Brussels. |
B.Xing Hui and Hao Hao were very popular with the elders in Belgium. |
C.Xing Hui and Hao Hao will come back to China in 2029. |
D.Xing Hui and Hao Hao were born in 2008 in Sichuan Province. |
On the first day of the pandas’ arrival, visitors could ___________.
A.gently feel the pandas along the road to the zoo |
B.get into the panda hall of 5,300 square meters |
C.take pictures with the pandas freely |
D.watch the pandas through the TV system in the zoo |
From the passage, we can predict that______________.
A.Belgium’s Pairi Daiza Zoo will make much money soon |
B.Xing Hui and Hao Hao will be very well treated in their new home |
C.Belgium’s Pairi Daiza Zoo will serve the Chinese visitors with free admission |
D.pandas will be best-sellers in Belgium |
Dining in a completely dark room, unaware what’s on your plate while sitting next to a complete stranger may not sound like an ideal restaurant experience but it’s certainly an intriguing way to spend a rainy night in London.
Dans le Noir, close to London’s financial district, is a restaurant full of blind waiters and waitresses who become your eyes around the restaurant, whose original Paris branch opened in 2004.
In the bar with the light, you choose whether you want the fish, meat or vegetable, but the dishes themselves remain a secret, as do the ingredients of the “surprise” cocktails. Bags, coats and devices(设备)that light up, including watches and mobile phones, are kept in the bar. Placing your hand on the shoulder of your guide, you are led to a table in a black dining room that sets up to 60 people. And it is dark.
The waiters tell you when the food is being placed down in front of you, then the fun begins, trying to get food into your mouth, then identifying just what it is that’s on your plate, and finally whether you have missed any of it.
It’s also a great chance to break social convention and eat using your fingers. Those same fingers are also the only way you can tell how much wine you’re pouring into your glass.
The happy atmosphere in the dining room also made the night memorable. You can’t really avoid talking to the person next to you at the long tables and guessing what the dishes are certainly provides adequate fuel for the conversations.
All will be revealed at the end of the meal when you are led back out into the lit bar. Not only do you finally get to see what you’ve just been eating but also who you’ ve been talking to for the last 90 minutes.
What does the underlined word “intriguing.” in the first paragraph mean?
A terrible B. interesting C. expensive D. new
According to the text, “ Dans le Noir”__________.
A is far from London’s financial district
B has its first branch opened in Britain
C is very popular among blind customers
D has a dining room which can seat up to 60 people
We know from the text that the customers in “Dans le Noir”_________.
A.are forbidden to eat with their fingers |
B.can talk to the strangers at table |
C.will book the menu in a dark bar |
D.can take their mobile phones into the dining room |
What’s the main purpose of the text?
A.To help blind people find a job in restaurants. |
B.To show how to open a restaurant with a new idea. |
C.To show how to enjoy the time in a dark restaurant. |
D.To introduce and attract customers to “Dans le Noir ”. |
BEIJING, (Xinhua) —China’s capital city launched its first underground library, “M Subway Library” on Jan. 12,2015. The theme of its first activity is “Our Characters”. Citizens riding the special train on subway Line 4 now can read e-books provided by the National Library by scanning the QR code in the carriage.
“M Subway Library” is a public welfare program initiated by the Beijing MTR and the National Library to provide qualified book resources to the public through the platform of public transportation. The library will organize different themed activities regularly and recommend a dozen free books to the public each year in the long term.
XINING, (Xinhua) —A bullet train made its maiden trip from Xining city to Lanzhou city in Northwest China on Dec. 26, 2014, marking the start of the full operations of the Lanxin high-speed railway. The Lanxin high-speed railway links Urumqi in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region with Xining, capital of Qinghai Province, and Lanzhou, capital of Gansu Province, slashing the total travel time from more than 23 hours to 11 hours and 50 minutes. The 1,776-kilometer high-speed rail line, with a designed speed of 250 kilometers per hour, is China’s first high-speed railway built in a high-altitude region.
NINGBO, (Xinhua) —Ningbo Subway Line 1 started running special trains with 3D paintings featuring the city’s culture starting on Dec. 20, 2014.Through the paintings, the city in East China’s Zhejiang province seeks to share its culture and attract more outside visitors. The paintings focus on four themes: rice cake, fishing festival, books and Buddhism.
The purpose of launching “M Subway Library” is to .
A.earn more money by making advertisements in the carriage |
B.attract more tourists to come to Beijing to take the subway |
C.make the idea of “Green Travel” go deep into people’s mind |
D.offer the passengers an additional reading platform |
Which of the following statements is correct according to the news?
A.The Lanxin high-speed railway covers Gansu, Xinjiang and Tibet. |
B.It is China’s first high-speed railway. |
C.It has a length of 1,776 kilometers. |
D.It will take you 11 hours and 50 minutes to travel from Xining to Urumqi. |
What can you enjoy when you ride the special train on subway Line 1 in Ningbo?
A.Chinese classical music. |
B.3D paintings about Ningbo’s culture. |
C.Traditional Chinese paintings. |
D.3D films which were shot in Ningbo. |
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(衣橱).
Even so,Ma prefers a low key approach.“If you eat a tasty egg why would you want to see the hen?” she says.
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.
What does the underlined word in paragraph 1 mean?
A.opened | B.invented |
C.forecast | D.hid |
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.the designer is more important than the design |
C.paying such great attention to her was unnecessary |
D.her satisfaction 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’s opinions are totally different from Peng’s
D Peng had liked Ma’s designs long before they met each other.
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 |
The Norwegian Government is doing its best to keep the oil industry under control. A new law limits exploration to an area south of the southern end of the long coastline; production limits have been laid down (though these have already been raised); and oil companies have not been allowed to employ more than a limited number of foreign workers. But the oil industry has a way of getting over such problems, and few people believe that the Government will be able to hold things back for long. As one Norwegian politician said last week: “ We will soon be changed beyond all recognition.”
Ever since the war, the Government has been carrying out a program of development in the area north of the Arctic Circle. During the past few years this program has had a great deal of success. Tromso has been built up into a local capital with a university, a large hospital and a healthy industry. But the oil industry has already started to draw people south, and within a few years the whole northern policy could be in ruins.
The effects of the oil industry would not be limited to the north, however. With nearly 100 percent employment, everyone can see a situation developing in which the service industries and the tourist industry will lose more of their workers to the oil industry. Some smaller industries might even disappear altogether when it becomes cheaper to buy goods from abroad.
The real argument over oil is its threat to the Norwegian way of life. Farmers and fishermen do not make up most of the population, but they are an important part of it, because Norwegians see in them many of the qualities that they regard with pride as essentially Norwegian. And it is the farmers and the fishermen who are most critical of the oil industry because of the damage that it might cause to the countryside and to the sea.
The Norwegian Government would prefer the oil industry to ______.
A.provide more jobs for foreign workers |
B.slow down the rate of its development |
C.sell the oil it is producing abroad |
D.develop more quickly than at present |
The Norwegian Government has tried to ______.
A.encourage the oil companies to discover new oil sources |
B.prevent oil companies employing people from northern Norway |
C.help the oil companies solve many of their problems |
D.keep the oil industry to something near its present size |
According to the passage, the oil industry might lead northern Norway to ______.
A.the development of industry |
B.a growth in population |
C.the failure of the development program |
D.the development of new towns |
In the south, one effect to the development of the oil industry might be ______.
A.a large reduction on unemployment |
B.a growth in the tourist industry |
C.a reduction in the number of existing industries |
D.the development of a number of service industries |
Norwegian farmers and fishermen have an important influence because ______.
A.they form such a large part of Norwegian ideal |
B.their lives and values represent the Norwegian ideal |
C.their work is so useful to the rest of Norwegian society |
D.they regard oil as a threat to the Norwegian way of life |
The younger daughter of former New York Mayor Richard White has moved her wedding from New Year’s Eve to this Thursday so her mother, who has been fighting against cancer for 11 years, can take part in the ceremony, a family spokesman said on Wednesday, Oct, 12, 2013. Elizabeth Lally White, who turns 28 on Thursday, will marry Sam Peterson in Spiaggia, a restaurant on North Michigan Avenue. The reception also will be held at the restaurant, which had been previously scheduled to host the couple’s engagement party on Thursday.
Lally White’s mother, Maggie, 68, was reported to have caught breast cancer in 2002. She had an operation in her leg in April and she was hospitalized twice in the weeks following the procedure for treatment of flu-like symptoms that doctors said were not related to the cancer. Maggie, who has used a walker or a wheelchair during most public appearances in recent years, is well beyond the average survival time for someone with breast cancer.
“As the mayor himself has said, she had a pretty difficult summer.” said Jacquelyn Heard, who served Mayor White’s press secretary for years and followed him to the same international law firm that he joined after leaving office in May. “She was not able to get around the way that she normally would do. This year, she has had quite a few setbacks and they’ve been pretty well documented. Lally White decided to reschedule the wedding so that her mom can participate in the festivities (庆祝活动).” Heard said. Lally White is a doctoral candidate at De-Paul University and plans to work with autistic (孤独症) children, and Sam Peterson works in insurance, Heard said.
Richard and Maggie White married in 1972 and had three children in addition to Lally — Nora, Patrick and Kevin. But Kevin was born with a disease and died in 1981 at 33 months.
When was Elizabeth Lally White born?
A.In 1983. | B.In 1987. | C.In 1985. | D.In 1984. |
What can we infer from Paragraph 2?
A.Maggie, 68, is recovering now. |
B.Maggie caught breast cancer in 2002. |
C.The cancer caused some flu-like symptoms on Maggie. |
D.Average breast cancer patients lived a life shorter than Maggie. |
Why did Lally White reschedule her wedding?
A.She was afraid that her mother couldn’t participate her wedding on New Year’s Eve. |
B.She was eager to work with autistic children after wedding. |
C.Her family will move out of New York. |
D.Her mother will accept operation because of her disease. |
How many children did the former mayor and his wife give birth to?
A.3. | B.4. | C.5. | D.6. |
What does the passage mainly talk about?
A.The political life of former Mayor. |
B.The brave wife of former Mayor. |
C.The wedding of former Mayor’s daughter. |
D.The family life of former Mayor. |
Cities need to put efforts to deal with pollution and clear the air.
Chinese cities will need to put efforts to clear up the sky when a new department to improve regional air quality is set up by 2015, according to the latest plan released by the State Council.
Besides the existing pollution control program for SO2, regional emission caps (区域排放上限) for other certain chemicals will be established in the three key air polluting areas— the Yangtze River Delta, Pearl River Delta and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region. Coal-consumption caps will also be tried out in some areas, according to the plan.
“The plan is aimed at dealing with regional air pollution—such as acid rain and smog—which have become increasingly obvious in China in recent years and caused a severe threat to people’s health,” Zhang Lijun, vice-minister of environmental protection, said in an interview on Monday.
“The air quality in a city affects the regions nearby because pollutants (污染物) Can travel through the atmosphere,” said Chai Fahe, vice-director of Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences.
“So efforts to reduce air pollution in a single city, targeting a certain pollutant will not be enough,” Chai said.
Zhang said, “The country’s major industrial districts—the Yangtze River Delta, Pearl River Delta and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region—have recorded more than 100 misty days annually in recent years.”
These three regions, home to at least 200 million people, occupy only 6. 3 percent of the country’s area but consume 40 percent of the country’s coal and produce half of its steel, according to official figures.
Studies also show that the visibility (能见度) in eastern regions of China has dropped by 7 to 15 km compared to that in the early 1960s, as a result of air pollution.
Liaoning province, the Shandong Peninsula, Wuhan in Hubei province and its surrounding area, the Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiangtan region in Hunan province, the Chengdu-Chongqing region, and the western coast of the Taiwan Straits are also listed as areas to carry out such regional air pollution control programs, according to the plan.
The new plan also requires an improved air quality system, which will measure the pollution levels. “The current system, which only measures some major pollutants, cannot reflect the true picture.” said Chai.
It will not be enough to reduce air pollution in a single city because .
A.air pollution has been becoming more and more serious in recent years |
B.air pollution like acid rain and smog is threatening people’s health |
C.air pollutants in a city can travel in the sky and affect nearby areas |
D.air pollutants stay in fixed places over the cities |
. Suppose the visibility in eastern regions of China was 130 km in the early 1960s, the visibility there nowadays is .
A.123 to 115 km | B.137 to 145 km |
C.123 to 145 km | D.115 to 137 km |
. The main purpose of the passage is .
A.to inform readers of the damage caused by air pollution |
B.to introduce the new plan to control air pollution |
C.to provide official figures of air pollution levels |
D.to point out the regions affected by air pollution |
. What does the underlined phrase“the true picture”in the last paragraph mean?
A.The major pollutants. |
B.The key polluted areas. |
C.The major polluted cities. |
D.The pollution levels. |
It is generally believed that we are getting cleaned when we step under a shower. We are, but we’re also giving a home to lots of tiny little creatures we didn’t even know about. A showerhead carries thousands of bacteria called Mycobacterium.These can cause problems like coughs and tiredness, and a general feeling of poorliness (身体不舒服). When you turn on the water, the bacteria go from the showerhead onto and into your body.
This is a finding of Norman R. Pace and his team at the University of Colorado, in the US. The scientists investigated bacteria in all kinds of human environment, including showers.Pace's team looked at 45 showerheads in nine American cities. They discovered that 30 percent of them had large amounts of flying Mycobacterium.
But Pace said that they pose few threats to the health.Only those with a weak immune system might need to worry.He told the New York Times that the bacteria are not as unpleasant as might be thought.He said that having a shower is no more dangerous than anything else we do in the morning.
But for those who feel sick about the idea of all those microorganisms (微生物), he had some advice. Let the water run for 30 seconds before getting into the shower. Why? The number of bacteria is smaller than that when the water is just turned on. If that seems like a waste of water, he added that you could also change your showerhead every few months.
However, Pace had good news too. He has also been testing the air in US subways. Apart from iron particles (粒子), which are ground off the track by the wheels of trains, subway air is fresh. The reason is that a train’s movement pumps fresh outdoor air into the tunnels.
Pace explained that he wanted to understand the natural microbial environments of public places. This kind of knowledge might help discover the microbes to be used in a bioterrorist (生物恐怖分子) attack.
From the finding of Norman R. Pace, after taking a shower, we might cough or feel tired because .
A.it’s easy to get a cold when taking a bath |
B.the showerhead carries many bacteria causing illness |
C.we don’t get cleaned while showering |
D.we don’t get a weak immune system |
According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?
A.Hot water could kill most of bacteria in showerheads. |
B.Of 45 showerheads surveyed in nine cities, 30 carried large amounts of Mycobacterium. |
C.Changing showerheads is the only way to avoid microorganisms. |
D.Shower water contains much less bacteria after being left to run for 30 seconds. |
We can learn from the third paragraph that .
A.having a shower in the morning is more dangerous than at other time |
B.the bacteria always threat people’s health |
C.there is no reason to fear microorganisms for people with strong immune system |
D.it is better to do some exercise in the morning than have a shower |
The underlined word “pose” in the third paragraph probably means “______”.
A.cause | B.avoid | C.describe | D.promise |
What contributes to fresh air in US subways?
A.The train’s movement. | B.Iron particles. |
C.Train wheels. | D.Air conditioners on the trains. |
Beijing—(13, July) China sent up a new data relay satellite(数据中继卫星), Tianlian I-02, on Monday at the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in South-western Sichuan province.The new satellite will promote the country's satellite communication network for space docking(对接).
The satellite was launched on a Long-March-3C carrier rocket at 11:41 p.m., sources at the centre told Xinhua News Agency.The satellite separated from the rocket 26 minutes after its launch and was then successfully delivered into a geostationary transfer orbit (地球同步转移轨道).
Developed by the China Academy of Space Technology under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, the satellite is the country's second data relay satellite.The first, Tianlian I-01, was launched on April 25.2008.
The two satellites will form a network to improve communications between China's spacecraft and bases on Earth, according to the centre.They will also be used to help the nation's first space docking, scheduled for the second half of this year.
As planned, China will launch space module Tiangong-I, which was designed as a platform that will dock with an unmanned spaceship, Shenzhou, for the county's first space-docking mission this year.
Two more Shenzhou spaceships will dock with Tiangong-I next year, and one will be manned by two or three astronauts, according to China Manned Space Engineering Office, which was the main user of the Tianlian I series data relay satellites.
“The new satellite can cover a greater area to track and command the country’s space vehicles in low-Earth orbits, such as manned spacecraft and remote sensing satellites, from a higher position in outer space.Only three satellites of this kind are needed to form a global communication network, and China has two now.” Pang Zhihao, a researcher and deputy editor-in-chief of Space International, said.
The satellite could also equip astronauts with real-time communications, which will benefit the country's future manned space flights, he said.
What is the main purpose to send up Tianlian I-02 ?
A.To test the function of a Long-March-SC carrier rocket. |
B.To carry some astronauts into space to do some research. |
C.To send more information and clearer pictures to mobile phones on the earth. |
D.To promote the country's satellite communication network for space docking. |
From the passage we know .
A.one more such satellite is needed to form a global communication network |
B.the satellite was developed by China Manned Space Engineering Office |
C.it was less than three years since China launched its first date relay satellite of this kind |
D.the satellite could help track and command space vehicles in orbits because it's lower in position |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the news report?
A.Shenzhou Ⅷ is a manned spaceship. |
B.Tiangong-I will dock with three Shenzhou spaceships next year. |
C.the satellite is of great importance to China's space exploration. |
D.china’s first space docking will be done in the second half of next year. |
The best title of the passage could be___________.
A.China Launched a New Space Shuttle |
B.China's Plan for Space Exploration |
C.China’s Progress in China's Space Exploration |
D.New Satellite Helps China's Space Exploration |
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 |
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 |
Twelve-year-old twins Lily and Audrey Andrews are teaching kids how to cook in unusual ways with their creative recipes(食谱).Growing up in Northern California, the sisters have created their very first cookbook. Jack and Jill caught up with the girls to talk about food.
Jack and Jill: How did you two become interested in cooking?
Audrey: When we were younger, we watched cooking shows on the Food Network instead of cartoons. We were hooked and began doing anything we were allowed to do in the kitchen.
JJ: Who taught you both how to cook?
Lily: Our mom and dad taught us the basics, but when we were about 6 years old, we took cooking classes with one of our mom’s friends who is a cook. We have also taken adult classes at our local cooking school.
JJ: Do you have a favorite dish you like to cook?
A: In the winter, Lily and I love making hot soup. In the summer, we’re always coming up with new salads. We love cooking with friends and family, and one recipe that everyone can help us with is our Beef Stir Fry.
JJ: For the eater who wants to start cooking and trying new foods, where do you suggest they begin?
L: Start by adding new things to foods you already enjoy! Try to add a little curry(咖喱) to your favorite chicken dish. Start small, and slowly you’ll be open to trying tons of new things!
The underlined word “hooked” in Paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to “________”.
A.worried | B.frightened | C.surprised | D.interested |
The twins began to learn to cook ________.
A.from their parents |
B.from their mom’s friend |
C.when they went to school |
D.when they were 6 years old |
What dish do the twins like to cook the most?
A.Hot soup. |
B.New salads. |
C.It is up to the season. |
D.It depends on their family. |
The twins advise the eater who wants to cook to ________.
A.create lots of new things |
B.cook the chicken dish first |
C.prepare well before cooking |
D.try something new little by little |
Last Friday a storm swept through two villages in the New Territories, destroying fourteen homes. Seven others were so badly damaged that their owners had to leave them,and fifteen others had broken windows or broken roofs. One person was killed,several were badly hurt and taken to hospital,and a number of other people received smaller hurt. Altogether over two hundred people were homeless after the storm.
A farmer,Mr.Tan, said that the storm began early in the morning and lasted for over an hour.
“I was eating with my wife and children,”he said,“When we heard a loud noise. A few minutes later our house fell down on top of us. We tried our best to climb out but then I saw that one of my children was missing. I went back inside and found him,safe but very frightened.”
Mrs. Woo Mei Fong said that her husband had just left for work when she felt that her house was moving. She ran outside at once with her children.
“There was no time to take anything.” she said,“A few minutes later,the roof came down.”
Soldiers helped to take people out of the flooded area and the welfare department(福利机构)brought them food,clothes and shelter.
How many homes altogether were damaged in the storm?
A.Fourteen. | B.Twentyone. |
C.Twentynine. | D.Thirtysix. |
Where was Mr.Tan when the storm first began?
A.He was in bed. | B.He was inside the house. |
C.He was outside the house. | D.He was on the roof. |
Which of the following may be the best title for this passage?
A.A Terrible Storm | B.A Lucky Woman |
C.Good Soldiers | D.Clever People |
New research shows that the healthy brain may hold memories which we don’t even remember. In The Journal of Neuroscience, experts report that the brain might hold more memories than people realize, but that restoring those memories can be tricky.
Memory Check
First, participants saw a list of 120 real words mixed with 80 nonsense words. Next, they saw another word list and tried to remember which words had been on the first list. Meanwhile, their brains were scanned with functional magnetic resonance(核磁共振) imaging.
While participants reviewed the second word list, their brain scans showed more activity in a certain brain area -- the posterior(后部的) median temporal lobe(脑叶) -- when they saw words that had been on the first word list.
But participants didn’t always remember that they’d seen those words before. Sometimes, they goofed and said they hadn’t seen those words before. In other words, the posterior median temporal lobe was more sensitive to memory than participants’ consciousness, the researchers note.
“Album”of Memories
Another part of the median temporal lobe also attracted the scientists’ attention. The anterior(前面的)median temporal lobe showed more activity when participants thought they were seeing a new word, the study shows.
So, why did participants sometimes mess up their memory recall? It might be that two parts of their brain -- the posterior and anterior median temporal lobes -- might be dueling(决斗) for the upper hand in deciding what actually happened in the past, the study notes.
In other words, memories might have a photo album in the brain, but sometimes we forget what’s on all of the photo album’s pages.
A person sometimes has difficulty recalling because .
A.he is unconscious when he gets his memories |
B.he forgets what is on the pages of the photo album |
C.there are two parts in his brain dueling for the upper advantage |
D.the anterior median temporal lobe is more active than the posterior |
According to the passage the researchers are .
A.studying how a person remembers things |
B.studying a magazine The Journal of Neuroscience |
C.examining posterior and anterior median temporal lobes |
D.doing experiments to find out what disturbs a person’s memory |
What did the experts discover when the participants saw the words on the first word list appear on the second word list?
A.The instrument worked faster. |
B.The participants were more conscious. |
C.The posterior median temporal lobe was more active. |
D.The anterior median temporal lobe was more active. |
The underlined wordgoofedin the fourth paragraph means .
A.made a mess of | B.made an answer for |
C.made out of | D.made the best of |
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