July 21st, 2007 was a typical English summer’s day — it rained for 24 hours! As usual, I rushed home from work at midday to check on the house. Nothing was amiss. By the time I lift work at 5 pm, however, the road into our village was flooded. Our house bad never been flooded but, as I opened the front door, a wave of water greeted me. Thank God the kids weren’t with me, because the house was 5 feet deep in water. We lost everything downstairs. And the plaster had to be torn off the walls, ceilings pulled down.
At first we tried to push on through. We didn’t want to move the children out of home, so we camped upstairs. we put a sheet of plastic across the floor to protect us from the damp. But after three months, we felt very sick, so we moved to a wooden house in a park. The house was small, but at first we were all just delighted to be in a new place. Unfortunately, things took longer than expected and we were there for 10 months. The life there was inconvenient. What surprised me most was how much I missed being part of a community（社区）.We had lived in a friendly village with good neighbours, and I’d never thought how much I’d miss that.
Although-our situation was very bad, it’s difficult to feel too sorry for yourself when you look at what’s happening elsewhere. I watched a news report about floods in Northern India and thought , “We didn’t have a straw hut（茅草房）that was swept away , and our house is still sanding . We’re lucky .”
We moved back home in August. With December coming, there’s reconstruction work to be done, so it’s difficult to prepare for Christmas. But I can’t wait — I’m going to throw a party for our friends in the village to say thanks for their support. This year , I won’t need any gifts — living away from home for months has made me realize how little we actually need or miss all our possessions . Although we are replacing things, there’s really no rush — we have our home back, and that’s the main thing.What does the underlined word “amiss” in the first paragraph mean?
| A．Wrong. | B．Missing. | C．Right. | D．Found. |
It can be inferred from the text that the author .
| A．was sick of staying upstairs |
| B．cared much about her children |
| C．could not stand living a wooden house |
| D．did not deal well with her family affairs during the flood |
Why does author say that they were lucky in the third paragraph?
| A．Because her situation was not serious. |
| B．Because many other places were flooded. |
| C．Because she had been to Northern India. |
| D．Because some others suffered even more. |
What does the author mainly want to express by telling her story?
| A．She valued human feelings more than before. |
| B．She realized she almost didn’t need possessions. |
| C．She found Christmas gifts no longer badly needed. |
| D．She thought her own home was the most important. |
Language is a major problem for the European Union (EU) . The Treaty (条约) of Rome ,which created the organization that finally became the EU, stated that each country’s language must be treated equally. The original six countries had only three languages between them: French, German and Dutch/Flemish. However, there are now 15 countries in the EU, with a total of 12 languages. EU documents must be translated into all these languages, and at official meetings the speeches must be translated into all the languages by interpreters.
All this translating is very expensive and time-consuming. It is said that nearly half of all employees of the EU are engaged in translating documents and speeches and nearly half of the EU’s administrative (管理方面的) costs are spent on this task. In the near future it is probable that several more countries, most of them having their own languages, will join the EU, thus making the situation even worse.
The problem is just cost; there are practical difficulties as well. With 12 languages, there are 132 possible “translation situations” that might be needed. It is often difficult to find people in the right place at the right time who can translate from, for example, Danish into Greek, or Dutch into Portuguese, at a high professional standard.
In practice the problem has been less serious by the use of English in many contacts between EU officials , since almost all of them speak some English. However, any move to reduce the number of official languages (perhaps to four or five) would be a blow to the pride of the smaller countries. Another commonly suggested solution is to make English the official language for all EU business. However, this is strongly resisted by powerful member countries like France and Germany .The organization that finally became the EU _______.
| A．included 132 languages |
| B．was set up by the Treaty of Rome . |
| C．started with three countries . |
| D．was started by France and Germany . |
What’s the main purpose of this passage?
| A．To show that the problem cannot be solved . |
| B．To criticize the European Union for inefficiency . |
| C．To find out a problem and show how serious it is. |
| D．To give a solution to a problem . |
The writer mentions “Danish into Greek” as an example of _______.
| A．a situation that occurs often. |
| B．a situation that might be difficult to deal with . |
| C．languages easily being interpreted. |
| D．one of the 12 situations that requires an interpreter |
The writer suggests that if the number of official languages was reduced, _______.
| A．Only languages which are easy to translate would be used officially. |
| B．The smaller member countries would be pleased . |
| C．the EU would not know which official languages to choose . |
| D．Countries whose languages were not used officially would be unhappy . |
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| A．improve your sleeping quality |
| B．listen to TV without disturbing others |
| C．change TV channels without difficulty |
| D．become interested in ballgame programs |
What makes TV Ears different from other headsets?
| A．It can easily set TV on mute. |
| B．Its headset volume is adjustable. |
| C．It has a new noise reduction car tip. |
| D．It applies special wireless technology. |
This advertisement is made more believable by _____.
| A．using recommendations |
| B．offering reasons for this invention |
| C．providing statistics. |
| D．showing the results of experiments. |
Hidden in our subconsciousness (潜意识) is a perfect mental picture. We see ourselves on a long trip that goes across the continent. We are traveling by train. Out the windows, we think in the passing scene of cars on nearby highways, of children waving at a crossing, of cattle feeding on a distant hillside, of smoke pouring from a power plant, or row upon row of corn and wheat, of flat lands and valleys, of mountains and rolling hills, of city skylines and village halls.
But uppermost in our minds is the final destination. On a certain day at a certain hour, we will pull into the station. Bands will be playing and flags waving. Once we get there, so many wonderful dreams will come true and the pieces of our lives will fit together like a completed jigsaw（拼图玩具） puzzle. How restlessly we pace the aisles(通道), condemning the minutes for loitering --waiting, waiting, waiting for the station.
“When we reach the station, that will be it!” we cry. “When I’m 38.” “When I buy a new 450SL Mercdes Benz!” “When I put the last kid through college.” “When I have paid off the loan!” “When I get a promotion.” “When I reach the age of retirement, I shall live happily ever after! ”
Sooner or later, we must realize there is no station, no one place to arrive at once and for all. The true joy of life is the trip. The station is only a dream. It constantly outdistances us.
“Relish(appreciate) the moment” is a good motto, actually it isn’t the burdens of today that drive man mad. It is the regret over yesterday and the fear of tomorrow. Regret and fear are twin thieves who rob us of today.
So stop pacing the aisles and counting the miles. Instead, climb more mountains, eat more ice cream, swim more rivers, watch more sunsets, laugh more and cry less. Life must be lived as we go along. Then the station will come soon enough.Why does the author describe the mental picture?
| A．To lead us into a perfect world. |
| B．To let people enjoy the scenery. |
| C．To introduce an actual trip of his. |
| D．To compare it to our life’s journey. |
How do people feel when they’re on their trip?
| A．Puzzled. | B．Happy. | C．Relaxed. | D．Impatient. |
What does the author mean by “Regret and fear are twin thieves who rob us of today” in Line 2 Paragraph 5?
| A．Regret and fear are responsible for the loss of today. |
| B．We must be careful of the two thieves: regret and fear. |
| C．regret and fear stop us from enjoying our present life. |
| D．We’re frequently challenged by the two : regret and fear. |
Why does the author write the passage?
| A．To teach us a good lesson. |
| B．To tell us the right attitude to life. |
| C．To advice us to forget our worries. |
| D．To stop us wandering along the aisles. |
When my friend put out the idea of homeschooling to her parents, the first reaction they gave was, “You are cutting the child off the world.” Did the child really get cut off or did the child socialize better?
The moment we hear of homeschooling, we think the child will have no opportunities to interact with peers. However, in my friend’s opinion, we forget that when attending a regular school, the child is not into socializing all the while. The child is confined to so many other activities. Studies take a major role in a child’s life. The child hardly has the time to interact at school.
The child might be meeting and studying along with many peers; however, how many kids interact with all the kids in a class? But in homeschooling system, as my friend mentioned, the kid has all the time and can plan his day accordingly. During the day the child studies just like other school-going kids but with no burden of homework and project work, the child has so much free time in the evening as to effectively interact and play with peers. The quality time the child spends in education is really impressive.
Homeschooled kids have the opportunity to socialize more often as they have a lot of time in their hands. They can also make socializing a regular habit. Just as my friend said, her child goes to a neighboring park almost every day and has a set of friends who go there daily. Other children get back home to finish off homework and project work whereas her child who is already through with studies gets the opportunity to spend time with family members.
When I heard this, I really felt how lucky the child was. Definitely the child had a better opportunity to socialize when compares with my kids. However, I might not consider homeschooling for my kid, as I am so used to the traditional schooling system and feel regular schooling the safest bet.What is the author’s attitude towards his friend’s idea of homeschooling?
| A．Surprised. | B．Interested. |
| C．Negative. | D．Confident. |
The author’s purpose in writing the passage is to _________.
| A．explain what homeschooling is. |
| B．express his views on homeschooling. |
| C．share his ways of teaching his children. |
| D．promote homeschooling. |
The underlined word “confined” in the Para.2 can be replaced by _______.
| A．free | B．restricted |
| C．devoted | D．accustomed |
According to the author what is the biggest advantage of homeschooling children?
| A．They can be better at socializing. |
| B．They can be more popular. |
| C．They will become braver. |
| D．They can study better. |
Life in the Clear
Transparent animals let light pass through their bodies the same way light passes through a window. These animals typically live between the surface of the ocean and a depth of about 3,300 feet—as far as most light can reach. Most of them are extremely delicate and can be damaged by a simple touch. Sonke Johnsen, a scientist in biology, says, “These animals live through their life alone. They never touch anything unless they’re eating it, or unless something is eating them.”
And they are as clear as glass. How does an animal become see-through? It’s trickier than you might think.
The objects around you are visible because they interact with light. Light typically travels in a straight line. But some materials slow and scatter(散射) light, bouncing it away from its original path. Others absorb light, stopping it dead in its tracks. Both scattering and absorption make an object look different from other objects around it, so you can see it easily.
But a transparent object doesn’t absorb or scatter light, at least not very much, Light can pass through it without bending or stopping. That means a transparent object doesn’t look very different from the surrounding air or water. You don’t see it ----you see the things behind it.
To become transparent, an animal needs to keep its body from absorbing or scattering light. Living materials can stop light because they contain pigments(色素) that absorb specific colors of light. But a transparent animal doesn’t have pigments, so its tissues won’t absorb light. According to Johnsen, avoiding absorption is actually easy. The real challenge is preventing light from scattering.
Animals are built of many different materials----skin, fat, and more----and light moves through each at a different speed. Every time light moves into a material with a new speed, it bends and scatters. Transparent animals use different tricks to fight scattering. Some animals are simply very small or extremely flat. Without much tissue to scatter light, it is easier to be see—through. Others build a large, clear mass of non-living jelly-lie(果冻状的)material and spread themselves over it .
Larger transparent animals have the biggest challenge, because they have to make all the different tissues in their bodies slow down light exactly as much as water does. They need to look uniform. But how they’re doing it is still unknown. One thing is clear for these larger animals, staying transparent is an active process. When they die, they turn a non-transparent milky white.According to Paragraph 1, transparent animals_______.
| A．stay in groups |
| B．can be easily damaged |
| C．appear only in deep ocean |
| D．are beautiful creatures |
The underlined word “dead” in Paragraph 3 means__________.
| A．silently | B．gradually |
| C．regularly | D．completely |
One way for an animal to become transparent is to ________.
| A．change the direction of light travel |
| B．gather materials to scatter light. |
| C．avoid the absorption of light |
| D．grow bigger to stop light. |
The last paragraph tells us that larger transparent animals________.
| A．move more slowly in deep water |
| B．stay see-through even after death |
| C．produce more tissues for their survival |
| D．take effective action to reduce light spreading |