The Sahara Festival is a celebration of the very recent past. The three-day event is not fixed to the same dates each year, but generally takes place in November or December. It is well attended by tourists, but even better attended by locals.
During the opening ceremonies, after the official greetings from the government leaders, people who attend the festival begin to march smartly before the viewing stands, and white camels transport their riders across the sands. Horsemen from different nations display their beautiful clothes and their fine horsemanship. One following another, groups of musicians and dancers from all over the Sahara take their turn to show off their wonderful traditional culture. Groups of men in blue and yellow play horns and beat drums as they dance in different designs. On their knees in the sand, a group of women in long dark dresses dance with their hair: their long, dark, shiny hair is thrown back and forth in the wind to the rhythm of their dance.
The local and visiting Italian dogs are anxious to run after hares. The crowd is on its feet for the camel races. Camels and riders run far into the distance, and then return to the finish Line in front of the cheering people.
Towards the evening, there comes the grand finale of the opening day, an extremely exciting horserace. All the riders run very fast on horseback. Some riders hang off the side of their saddles. Some even ride upside down -- their legs and feet straight up in the air -- all at full speed. Others rush down the course together, men arm in arm, on different horses. On and on they went. SO fast and so wonderful!The Sahara Festival is a festival which________.
| A．has a very long history in North Africa |
| B．is held in the same place on the same day |
| C．is attended mainly by the people in the Sahara |
| D．is celebrated mostly by travelers from different countries |
Before the races begin, ________ take part in the activities during the opening ceremonies.
| A．musicians, dancers, horses and hares |
| B．camel riders, musicians, dogs and hares |
| C．horsemen, dancers, camels and dogs |
| D．musicians, officials, camels and horses |
The underlined word "finale" in the fourth paragraph most probably means the _______of the opening day.
| A．first part | B．middle | C．last part | D．whole |
This passage mainly tells readers_______.
| A．what happens on the opening day of the Sahara Festival |
| B．how people celebrate during the three-day Sahara Festival |
| C．what takes place at the closing ceremonies of the Sahara Festival |
| D．how animals race on the first and the last days of the Sahara Festival |
Millions of people all over the world spend their holidays travelling. They travel to visit other countries, modern cities and ancient towns. They travel to enjoy these special places, or just to relax. It is always interesting to discover new things and different ways of life, such as by meeting different people, trying different food, and listening to different music.
People who live in the country like to go to big cities. They like to spend their time visiting museums and art galleries, looking at shop windows and dining at restaurants. People who live in the city usually like a quiet holiday by the sea or in the mountains, with nothing to do but walk and bathe in the sun.
Most travellers take a camera with them and take pictures of everything that interests them. Then, perhaps years later, they can look at the photos and be reminded of the happy time they once had.
People often travel by train, by boat or by car. All means of travelling have their advantages and disadvantages and people choose one according to their plans and the places they are going.
If we travel a lot, we will see and discover a lot of things that we could never see or experience at home, though we may read about them in books and newspapers. The best way to study geography is to travel, and the best way to get to know and understand people is to meet them in their own homes.What is interesting to do when people travel?
| A．To find the advantages and the disadvantages of travelling. |
| B．To listen to different music and take pictures. |
| C．To discover new things and different ways of life. |
| D．To go to big cities and meet different people. |
How do people usually spend a quiet holiday by the sea or in the mountains?
| A．They spend their time visiting museums and art galleries. |
| B．They do nothing but walk and bathe in the sun. |
| C．They do nothing but sleep outdoors. |
| D．They go to look at shop windows and eat at restaurants. |
Why do many travellers take pictures of everything they like?
| A．Because they like taking all kinds of pictures. |
| B．Because they all take a camera with them while travelling. |
| C．Because the pictures are beautiful to look at. |
| D．Because the pictures can remind them of the happy time. |
What’s the best way to study geography?
| A．To travel a lot and experience more. |
| B．To meet some more people in their homes. |
| C．To learn in books or in newspapers. |
| D．To see and experience at home. |
What can we infer from the last paragraph?
| A．We’d better go the countryside for a holiday. |
| B．Taking photos in a trip is unnecessary. |
| C．It’s good for us to travel more if possible. |
| D．Cities are the best choice of all the travellers. |
Sometimes willpower is a lot like the television remote control — hard to find just when you want it most. Whether you’re trying to lose weight, stop smoking, get to the gym regularly，developing your sense of willpower is an important part of changing any behavior. _____. But there are ways to increase your willpower.
Don’t try to change your economic situation, win a promotion and lose weight all on the same morning. Establish one clear, specific goal and make a realistic plan for achieving it. Extra willpower sometimes requires extra energy, so don’t stretch yourself too thin. ____.
Whatever your goal is, don’t expect to achieve it overnight. ____ . If you are trying to kick a caffeine habit, start by replacing your morning cup of coffee with a glass of water, instead of vowing never to drink coffee again. Congratulate yourself on the small achievements that will pave the way toward a larger one. These successes help your willpower grow.
____. Ask friends, family or colleagues for assistance and tell them exactly how they can help. If your credit card bills have increased sharply, for instance, let friends know that you are cutting back on expenses. Suggest having a common dinner instead of meeting at an expensive restaurant. Find a support group or organization related to your goal and attend their meetings. You can get valuable advice, understanding and information.
If possible, change your environment to encourage positive behavior. Want to get in shape? Keep an extra set of workout clothes in your office as a reminder to stop by the gym on the way home. Quitting smoking? ____.
| A．Change your environment to change your life |
| B．Real success takes time. |
| C．Avoid bars or restaurants where you might be attracted to light up. |
| D．Changing your behavior requires more than willpower. |
E. Improve your willpower by a support network.
F. Breaking a bad habit or forming a new and healthy one can be difficult.
G. Focus on one goal at a time.
Lack of exercise is considered a risk factor for cancer. There is considerable evidence that inactivity is connected with increased risk for lung cancer, breast cancer, etc.
In the Aerobics Center Longitudinal Study, more than 32,000 people (25,000 men and 7,000 women) were given a preventive medical examination that included a machine exercise test to measure physical fitness. They were given a physical fitness score, with one being the lowest and five being the highest fitness level. Then these people were followed for an average of 8 years. During this time, 179 men and 44 women died of cancer.
Data from the Aerobics Center Longitudinal Study show people have lower rates of cancer with higher levels of physical fitness. Studies from the Cooper Institute for Aerobics Research in Dallas suggest that men with high fitness levels are less likely to die of cancer.
The Aerobics Center Longitudinal Study also found that fitness level was more important than weight in predicting longevity (长寿). While results showed that fitness and normal weight are the ideal combination, researchers found that men who were fat but performed well in the machine performance had just a slightly increased all-cause death rate, including cancer, compared to the more slim men. The fat, but fit, men particularly lived longer than the slim, but flabby (肌肉松弛的), men.
These statistics called for a warning to the overweight: The first health goal for the overweight should be to become as fit as possible at their current weight.
67. The text mainly talks about________.
| A．the effect of exercise on reducing chances of cancer |
| B．how to lose weight effectively |
| C．different ways to keep slim |
| D．fat men live longer than slim ones |
68. What’s Paragraph 2 mainly about?
| A．The study on the life of the overweight. |
| B．The study on the relationship between taking exercise and cancer. |
| C．The study on the ways of losing weight. |
| D．The study on the effects of machine exercise. |
69. Which of the following is NOT true according to Paragraph 4?
| A．Fitness levels have more effects than weight on people’s longevity. |
| B．A man who is fit and has normal weight is most likely to live longer. |
| C．Slim men are more likely to live longer. |
| D．Fat people who like exercising are also likely to live longer. |
70. The author thinks the most important thing for the overweight is to ______.
| A．increase their fitness levels | B．choose to eat vegetables |
| C．be on a diet | D．ask for help from doctors |
Just when scientists think they have discovered and recorded every species of insect that crawls the earth they find something new. Earlier this month, Peter Jager, the head of Frankfurt’s Senckenberg Research Institute reported the discovery of a unique eyeless spider.
The creature that has a leg span (跨度) of six centimeters and a body size of just twelve millimeters was found in a cave inside the tiny nation of Laos, in Southeast Asia. It was identified as a member of the Huntsman spider, a large family that consists of 1100 species. However, the other members of the family all have eyes. The spider is the first one that has no eyes. They believe that the kind of spider has adapted to the fact that they do not really need the eyes to such a degree that they have dispensed with them altogether.
But they are not the only creature to have done that. Over the years, scientists have discovered completely blind cave fish, and even a freshwater crab, which happens to live in the same cave as this eyeless spider!
Surrounded by Burma and China on the northwest, Vietnam on the east, Cambodia on the south and Thailand on the west, the landlocked nation of Laos is filled with a large number of new and exotic (新奇的) species. In the last few years researchers have discovered the Saola—never-before-seen antelope-like creature, a small deer species called muntjacs, a tiny stripped rabbit and a rock rat that was thought to have been extinct 11 millions years ago. In addition to that it is also home to over one hundred species of large mammals ranging from tigers to macaques and over 165 species of amphibians (两栖动物) and reptiles like the terrible King cobra and the noisy Tokay gecko, a permanent resident inside most Laos households.
64. Which of the following is the best title of passage?
| A．Laos full of a large number of exotic species |
| B．Laos popular with plenty of strange species |
| C．Every species of insect discovered and recorded by scientists |
| D．World’s first eyeless spider discovery in Southeast Asia. |
65. What does the second paragraph mainly tell us about the unique eyeless spider?
| A．The eyesight, identification and family members. |
| B．The size, identification and the reason for being eyeless |
| C．The body, species and living environment |
| D．The size, identification and the species |
66. The underlined part “dispensed with” (in 2nd Para) means _________.
| A．got rid of | B．put up with | C．carried away | D．taken no notice of |
Worried about how many calories you will get in that piece of pizza, chocolate cake or bag of chips? A new iphone application Mealsnap may help. Users just need to take a picture of the meal with the phone, and it will give a calorie read-out almost immediately.
Mealsnap was developed by DailyBurn, a health social network that focuses on helping its users lead healthier lifestyles. It has created several other health and diet-related iphone applications. The applications gives users a quick reply. To do that, it matches the taken picture to a databank containing the calorie information of nearly 500,000 kinds of food. Users then get the range of calories for the meal that is photographed.
We started with something simple — an apple. A couple of minutes later the application replied that it was an apple and between 64 and 96 calories. More impressive was the reply we received after sending a photo of mixed salad bowl. Mealsnap replied that the bowl contained “yellow rice with corn, boiled eggs and beans” and that the food was between 532 and 798 calories.
Mr. Smith, director of DailyBurn, said that usual calorie counting needed a long time, but that the application made it easier to know the calories in food. That’s why it is so popular among those who are trying hard to lose weight.
In addition, Mealsnap can serve as a food diary. No need to write down what they’ve eaten, the photos will be stored. Then users can keep a visual log (记录). Mr. Smith said: “It’s like a food journal, but easier. All you do is to take the picture. The simple act of recording something can cause a psychological change that can help people on their health journey. Knowing the calorie range makes me think more about what I’m eating.
60. The purpose of DailyBurn is to _______.
| A．help people have a healthy life |
| B．make iphone more popular |
| C．help people find ways to lose weight |
| D．persuade people to buy iphone products |
61. We can know from the passage that Mealsnap is ________.
| A．a camera | B．a phone | C．a calculator | D．an application |
62. What can be learned from the third paragraph?
| A．Mealsnap can also tell what the food is. |
| B．Mealsnap is only useful for simple things. |
| C．The result of Mealsnap isn’t always right. |
| D．Mealsnap needs a long time to show the calorie range. |
63. Which would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Mealsnap iphones work as a health signal |
| B．Mealsnap iphones offer you a health signal |
| C．Mealsnap iphones — the best-selling phones |
| D．Mealsnap iphones count your calories |