Snow-melting Agent
A heavy snow can kill pests and this means a good harvest next year.This will bring as well as trouble to urbanites.
On Nov.16,2003,a cold air current brought a heavy snow to Beijing.To prevent traffic jams,related government departments mobilized people to clear off snow on streets.
One of the most effective ways to clear off snow on roads is to scatter snow-melting agent on the roads.The major component of the snow-melting agent is salt.The snow-melting agent can make snow stop from freezing,make it easier to clear off the road,and allow traffic to flow smoothly.But it also brings about some hidden dangers.In the spring of 2003,over 300 000 trees in Beijing urban districts died.After analyzing soil around these trees,experts discovered that the salt content of these soils was 392 times higher than normal.Where did the excessive salt come from?After investigating,forestry experts found that when clearing snow in the winter,people usually heap snow containing snow-melting agent at trees’ roots,and that when the snow melts,this agent penetrates the soil and increases its salt content.The snow-melting agent indirectly killed the trees.
Statistics show that during a heavy snow in 2002,over 1000 tons of snow-melting agent was scatterred on streets in Beijing.Snow water containing a large amount of snow-melting agent got into the soil through sewers.
In addition,salt in the snow-melting agent can expedite the corrosion of steel bars in concrete buildings and cause the concrete to crack and peel,shortening the life of roads.
Scientists and government officials are required to solve traffic problems caused by heavy snows as soon as possible and at the same time try to reduce the negative effects of the snow-melting agent.This is a difficult problem placed before them.Related authorities have framed some local criteria to regulate the production and use of snow-melting agents.
Now,more harmless snow-melting agents are being developed.Now that even snow-melting agents that meet today’s criteria must still be used carefully,we have to rely more on our manpower and machines to clear off snow.
This year,in addition to using snow-melting agents,Beijing will use a large number of snow vehicles to clear snow on roads.In more places,citizens are mobilized to clear snow with their hands.This may be a test of a city’s civilization level.Salt is a snow-melting agent while _________ is a cleaning agent.
| A．water | B．soap | C．a washing-machine | D．a housewife |
The third paragraph of the text is mainly about _______.
| A．the side effect of snow-melting agent |
| B．a case of damage to trees caused by snow-melting agent |
| C．the results of using snow-melting agent |
| D．the uses of snow-melting agent |
According to the text,the most practical way to clear off snow is to _________.
| A．use snow-melting agent as much as possible |
| B．only use more harmless snow-melting agent |
| C．encourage people to clear snow with their hands |
| D．use more snow vehicles |
This text most probably appears in_________.
| A．a newspaper | B．a magazine on latest findings |
| C．a book on salt | D．a magazine on environmental protection |
A new generation addiction is quickly spreading all over the world. Weboholism, a twentieth century disease, affects people from different ages.They surf the net, use e-mail and speak in chat reoms. They spend many hours on the computer, and it becomes a compulsive habit. They cannot stop, and it affects their lives.
Ten years ago, no one thought that using computers could become Compulsive
behavior that could affect the social and physical life of computer users. This obsessive behavior has affected teenagers and college students. They are likely to log on computers and spend long hours at different websites.
They become hooked on computers and gradually their social and school life is
affected by this situation. They spend all free time surfing and don't concentrate on homework, so this addiction influences their grades, and success at schools. Because they can find everything on the websites, they hang out there. Moreover, this addiction to websites influences their soeial life.
They spend more time in front of computers than with their friends. The relation with their friends changes. The virtual life becomes more important than their real life. They have a new language that they speak in the chat rooms and it causes cultural changes in society,
Because of the change in their behavior, they begin to isolate themselves from the society and live with their virtual friends. They share their emotions and feelings with friends Who they have never met in their life.Although they feel confident on the computer, they are not confident with real life friends they have known all their fife. lt is a problem for the future. This addictive behavior is beginning to affect the whole world. The passage is about
| A．the cause of weboholism | B．the advantage of weboholism |
| C．the popularity of weboholism | D．the influence of weboholism |
The underlined word"obsessive" in the second paragraph most probably means
| A．attractive | B．addictive | C．professional | D．potential |
We can learn from the passage that.
| A．weboholism has the greatest effect on teenagers |
| B．teeangers can hardly balance real and virtual life |
| C．people are addicted to games on the lnternet |
| D．virtual life is more vivid and attractive anyway |
Which of the following is NOT true of weboholism?
| A．It contributes to the development of the web. |
| B．The chat room language may change social culture. |
| C．The problem will have a negative influence on our future. |
| D．People addicted to the web often become inactive in real life. |
The author's attitude towards weboholism is that of being
| A．objective | B．positive | C．opposed | D．acceptable |
Dear Michelle:
Why can't my daughter manage her life better? She is 17 and an honor student, but she seems to be wasting her life away with a boyfriend who is holding her back.
He consumes every waking, minute of her precious time and smooth-talks her as well.
His goal is to get her to agree to go to the college of his choice, not her choice, and because his grades are lower, his choice will be limited.
I feel like I want to rescue her, but she pushes me away and shuts me out. She has only brought us pride and joy; and now this! Help!
A worried mother
Dear Mother of a 17-year-old Girl:
Hmmmmm. What's the matter with kids today? Remember that song from "Bye Bye
Birdie"?
Well if you do not, let me fill you in about teenagers and their life-management skills.Do not expect too much too soon because at the ripe age of 17, life-management is not within their reach, not should it be.
Life experience creates both the conditions and the skills for management, and if management went before experiene, there would be tittle of it.
Your daughter is an honor student for good reasons. She is smart, studies with
intelligence and you have given her good Values.
When the time comes for her to apply for college, and she visit the ones that were specifically desigened for student the top of their grade, she will most likely break away from her boyfriend's influenee.
It is rare for an honor student to change the path of their academic career for puppy love. That being said, them might be some adoldscent wisdom in her behavior after all.
Perhaps she is choosing to worry you, her parents, for unconscious reasons. Being such a good girl and being a steady source of joy might have become a bit too much for her.
Let your daughter have her own private moment of 11th grade rebellion. She deserves a break from perfection.
MichelleFrom the mother's letter we can learn that her daughter
| A．is being fooled by the boy | B．has fallen behind in her studies |
| C．doesn't talk much with her mother | D．has chosen which college to attend |
According to Michelle; 17-year-teenagers.
| A．are too young to manage their life |
| B．are old enough to live their own life |
| C．should have managemnent before experience |
| D．have reached the age of an adult |
The underlined word"puppy-love"refer to
| A．false love | B．foolish love | C．pure love | D．adolescent love |
Michelle seems to believe that the daughter will finally
| A．come up with the right decision |
| B．follow her boyfriend's advice |
| C．worry her parents for unconscious reasons |
| D．influence her boyfriend's behavior |
The best title for the passage would be
| A．College of kids' own choice |
| B．How can I help my girl? |
| C．How to manage teenagers' life? |
| D．A 17-year-old girl and her mother |
Electric ears are dirty.In fact, not only are they dirty, they might even be more dirty than their gasoline-powered cousins.
People in California love to talk about "zero-emissions vehicles", but people in California seem to be clueless about where electricity comes from. Power plants mostly use fire to make it. Aside from the new folks who have their roofs covered with solar cells, we get our electricity from generators. Generators are fueled by something---usually coal, oil,but also by heat generated in nuclear power plants. There are a few wind farms and geothermal plants as well, but by far we get electricity mainly by burning something.
In other words, those "zero-emissions" cars are likely coal-burning cars. It's just because the coal is burned somewhere else that it looks clean. It is not. It's as if the California Greens are. covering their eyes---"If I can't see it, it's not happening." Gasoline is an incredibly efficient way to power a vehicle; a gallon of gas has a lot of energy in it.But when you take that gas (or another fuel) and first use it to make electricity, you waste a nice part of that energy, mostly in the form of wasted heat---at the generator, through the transmission lines, etc.
A gallon of gas may propel your car 25 miles. But the electricity you get from that gallon of gas won't get you nearly as far---so electric cars bum more fuel than gas-powered ones. If our electricity came mostly from nukes; or geothermal,or hydro, or solar, or wind,then an electric car truly would be clean. But for political, technical,and economic reasons,we don't use much of those energy sources.
In addition,electric cars' batteries which are poisonous for a long time will eventually end up in a landfill.And finally, When cars are the polluters, the pollution is spread across all the roads. When it's a power plant, though, all the junk is in one place. Nature is very good at cleaning up when things are too concentrated, but it takes a lot longer when all the garbage is in one spot. What does "clueless" mean in paragraph 2?
| A．People are seeing the California Greens everywhere. |
| B．People in California love to talk about zero-emissions vehicles. |
| C．People in California love to have their roofs covered with solar cells. |
| D．People there have no idea that so far electricity mainly comes from burning |
coal, oil,etc. What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．Electric cars are not clean at all |
| B．Electric cars are better than gasoline-powered ones. |
| C．People cast doubts on electric cars' batteries. |
| D．Gasoline is an efficient way to powera vehicle. |
The electricity we get from a gallon of gas may make our ear run
| A．not less than 25 miles | B．more than 25 miles |
| C．no more than 25 miles | D．not more than 25 miles |
According to the passage, electric cars.
| A．do not burn fuel and more environmentally-friendly |
| B．are toxic because it is difficult for nature to clean it up when their batteries are buried in one spot. |
| C．are very good at cleaning up when things are not too concentrated |
| D．are poisonous for a long time and will eventually end up in a landfill |
It can be inferred from the passage that
| A．being green is good and should be encouraged in communication |
| B．electric cars are not clean in that we get electricity mainly by burning something |
| C．zero-emissions vehicles should be chosen to protect our environment |
| D．electric cars are now the dominant vehicle compared with gasoline-powered |
cousins
After our early morning wake-up, we are still a couple of
hours away from the overlooks.It is pitch black.I can feel the
heavy humid fog left behind my last night's rain. This is why
the tour memo listed "flashlight". Unfortunately; the majority
of our hiking party of nine must have missed the memo, so we
have only four flashlights between us.
An hoar later,we are on the trail. It is dark, foggy, wet and the rocks are alippery.We alternate places between the flashlights "haves" and "have-nots". As we march, the only voices heard are from the "haves": "Step up, step down, watch out for the rock on your left."
We reach Intipunku with only 15 minutes to spare. The view at sunrise is not what we were told in the travel brochures. Three feet in front of our faces is a white substance called "fog".
As we walk towards the Machu Picchu ruins, my anticipation is mounting. When will the fog lift? Slowly, as if someone is cranking up a curtain, Huayna Picchu begins to appear,overlooking Machu Picchu. First there are fleeting glimpses, and then finally, there is, in its full splendor.
When I envisioned going to Machu Picchu, I always thought of mysterious ruins and the famous postcard picture looking toward Huayna Picchu. But there is more to this man-made / natural wonder of the World. It is the adventure of getting there. I knew I wanted to experience the feel of the Inca culture and the energy of this sacred valley, I also knew I didn't want to take the train, but needed to hike. Depending on your starting point,the Inca Trail is 25 to 33miles of semi-arid desert, breathless mountain passes and stunning tropical cloud forest. Our hike took us four nights and 25 miles to finish.
Our local guide MaurO keeps telling us "no worries, the hike is 90 percent mental and only 10 percent physical. "I am not convinced that the physical percentage is correct, but I definitely become more and more excited as we are now getting closer to Machu Picchu.By getting myself into good shape, running 20 miles and hiking a 500-foot-high hill five to seven times per week before I left for Peru, I was able to enjoy the beauty of the hike and not worry much about aching muscles and lungs. About flashlights, which of the following statements is true?
| A．The local guide had asked them to take flashlights for the hike. |
| B．They had taken enough flashlights for the hike. |
| C．Before they got to Intipunku, they depended a lot on their flashlights. |
| D．They used flashlights all the time. |
Put the following events into the right order.
a. They reached Intipunku,
b. They read the travel brochures.
c. They walked on the trail in the dark.
d. They advanced to get closer to Maehu Picchu.
e. They enjoyed the splendor of Huayna Picchu.
| A．ebade | B．bacde | C．abced | D．bcaed |
What does the underlined word "anticipation" in Paragraph Four mean?
| A．expectation | B．excitement | C．disappointment | D．enthusiasm |
What can NOT be inferred from the text?
| A．The writer made good preparation for the tour. |
| B．The Inca Trail took them four nights. |
| C．Machu Picchu is in the country of Peru. |
| D．They reached Intipunku ahead of time. |
According to the writer, what attracted him most in the tour?
| A．Mysterious ruins. | B．The famous post-card picture. |
| C．The hiking. | D．The Inca culture. |
There is a saying in France that states, "The government could fall, the Louvre （卢浮宫）could be broken into or creatures from other planets could land on earth, but if any of these things happened during the Tour de France, no one would notice．" The Tour de France is the most famous cycling race in the world．It begins in July and runs for three weeks．Cyclists who race in the Tour de France ride in six legs or stages of the race, and they have between one to four days of rest between each leg of the race．The rider who completes all six legs of the race in the shortest overall time wins．
The Tour de France began as a publicity stunt（惊人的表演） for the French sports newspaper, L’Auto．Hcnri Desgranges, who worked for L’Auto, came up with the idea for "the greatest bike race in the world, "and on July 1,1903, the first Tour de France began．Sixty cyclists began that first leg of the race which started in front of the Alarm Clock Cafe just outside of Paris．This first leg took them 467 kilometers to Lyon．The first Tour de France received an astonishing 2,000 francs．Maurice Garin, the most popular cyclist in France at that time, won the first Tour de France．It took him 94 hours and 33 minutes to ride all 2,428 kilometers of the race．This time was three hours faster than the second -place rider．Over the weeks during which the race was run, the idea of the Tour de France slowly caught the imagination of the people of France．The race has been run every year since that time, except during the years of World War I and World War Ⅱ．
The Tour de France has developed several special honors for which racers compete．Above all, the highest honor is the " yellow jersey"．Mr．Desgranges introduced the yellow jersey in 1919 to show the leading racer each rider's total time in order to find the racer with the lowest time．That racer wears the yellow jersey during the day's race．Other honors include the "green jersey " which is given to the rider who sprints the best by riding the fastest over short distances, and the "polka dot jersey" for the best rider in the mountains along the route．Who wins the Tour de France?
| A．The first cyclist to finish the race． |
| B．The cyclist with the most points． |
| C．The cyclist with the polka dot jersey． |
| D．The cyclist with the shortest overall time． |
Henri Desgranges was.
| A．a photographer | B．a famous cyclist |
| C．the man who first won the Tour de France | |
| D．the man who first thought of the Tour de France |
How many stages make up the Tour de France?
| A．One． | B．Four． | C．Six． | D．Ten |
The yellow jersey is worn by____.
| A．the fastest daily cyclist | B．the fastest overall cyclist |
| C．the youngest cyclist | D．the champion from the previous year |