B
Fear and its companion pain are two of the most useful things that man and animals possess if they are used. If fire didn’t hurt when it burned, children would play with it until their hands were burned away. Similarly, if pain existed but fear didn’t, a child could burn itself again and again because fear would not warn it to keep away from the fire that had burnt it before. A really fearless soldier—and some do exist—is not a good soldier because he is soon killed; and a dead soldier is of no use to his army. Fear and pain are therefore two guards without which man and animals might soon die out.
In our first sentence we suggested that fear ought to be properly used. If, for example, you never go out of your house because of the danger of being knocked down and killed in the street by a car, you are letting fear rule you too much. The important thing is not to let fear rule you, but instead, to use fear as your servant and guide. Fear will warn you of dangers; then you have to decide what action to take.
In many cases, you can take quick and successful action to avoid the danger. For example, you see a car coming straight towards you; fear warns you, you jump out of the way, and all is well.
In some cases, however, you decide that there is nothing that you can do to avoid the danger. For example, you cannot prevent an airplane crashing into your house, and you may not want to go and live in a desert where there are no airplanes. In this case, fear has given you its warning, you have examined it and decided on your course of action, so fear of the particular danger is no longer of any use to you, and you have to try to overcome it.
60. Children would play with fire until their hands are burnt away if _________.
A. they were not well educated at school B. they had never played with fire before
C. they had no sense of pain D. they were fearful of pain
61. People sometimes succeed in timely avoiding danger because _________.
A. they have gained experience B. they are warned of the danger and take quick action
C. they jump out of the way in time D. they are calm in face of danger
62. What is implied but not stated in the passage?
A. Too much fear is harmful
B. Fear is always something helpful
C .Fear is something that can be avoided
D. Fear ought to be used as our guide in our life
63.The best title for this passage should be __________.
A. No Pains, No Gains B. Pain and Actions
C. The Value of Fear D .The Reason Why People Fear
Animals can move from place to place, but plants cannot. When an animal is under attack, it can run away or fight back. Plants certainly cannot run away, and they lack teeth and claws. But plants can defend themselves by using both physical and chemical means.
Some plants have their own ways to keep animals away. For example, the leaves of the holly plant have sharp spines (刺) that discourage grass-eating animals. Holly leaves on lower branches have more spines than leaves on upper branches. This is because the lower leaves are easier for most animals to reach.
Some plants, such as the oak tree, have thick and hard leaves that are difficult for animals to eat. Some grasses may contain a sandy material; eating such grasses wears down the animal's teeth.
Many plants also have chemical defenses. Some plants produce chemicals that taste bitter or cause an unpleasant reaction. Some plants may fight against an attack by increasing the production of these chemicals. When a caterpillar (毛虫) bites a tobacco leaf, the leaf produces a chemical messenger. This messenger sends to the roots the information to produce more nicotine. The higher levels of nicotine discourage the caterpillar.
Many plants depend on both physical and chemical defenses. A certain plant in China, for instance, has prickly (多刺的) leaves, and each prickle contains poisonous venom (毒液). A single experience with this kind of plant will teach an animal to stay away from it in the future.The holly plant has more spines on the lower leaves because most animals________.
| A.are not tall enough | B.like the lower leaves only |
| C.are not clever enough | D.can get the lower leaves easily |
To defend themselves, oak trees use________.
| A.chemical means | B.physical means |
| C.bitter chemicals | D.sandy materials |
How does tobacco protect itself against an attack from a caterpillar?
| A.Its leaves fight against the attack by physical means. |
| B.Its roots send a messenger to discourage the caterpillar. |
| C.Its roots increase the production of nicotine when it is attacked. |
| D.Its leaves produce poisonous sand to drive the caterpillar away. |
What would be the best title for this passage?
| A.Plants and Animals | B.How Plants Defend Themselves |
| C.Attacks and Defenses | D.How Animals Eat Plant Leaves |
BRITAIN is a popular tourist place.But tours of the country have advantages and disadvantages.
GOOD NEWS
Free museums.No charge for outstanding collections of art and antiquities(文物).
Pop music.Britain is the only country to compare with the US on this score.
Black cabs.London taxi drivers know where they are going even if there are never
enough of them at weekends or night.
Choice of food.Visitors can find everything from Ethiopian to Swedish restaurants.
Fashion.Not only do fashion junkies love deeply and respect highly brand names
such as Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen; street styles are justly loved, too.
BAD NEWS
Poor service.“It’s part of the image of the place.People can dine out on the rudeness they have experienced,” says Professor Tony Seaton, of Luton University’s International Tourism Research Center.
Poor public transport.Trains and buses are promised to defeat the keenest tourists, although the overcrowded London tube is inexplicably (难以理解的) popular.
Rain.Still in the number one complaint.
No air-conditioning.So that even splendidly hot summers become as unbearable as the downpours.
Overpriced hotels.The only European country with a higher rate of tax on hotel rooms is Denmark.
Licensing hours.Alcohol (酒) is in short supply after 11 p.m. even in “24-hour cities”.What do tourists complain most?
| A.Poor service. | B.Poor public transport. |
| C.Rain. | D.Overpriced hotels. |
What do we learn about pop music in Britain and the US through this passage?
| A.Pop music in Britain is better than that in the US. |
| B.Pop music in Britain is as good as that in the US. |
| C.Pop music in Britain is worse than that in the US. |
| D.Pop music in Britain is quite different from that in the US. |
When are people not able to get alcohol?
| A.At 12: 00 p.m. | B.At 10: 00 p.m. | C.At 11: 00 p.m. | D.At 9: 00 p.m. |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A.You have to pay to visit the museums. |
| B.It’s very cheap to travel by taxi there. |
| C.You cannot find Chinese food there. |
| D.The public transport is poor there. |
SEE a cell phone cover that you like on Taobao? Forget about placing an order, paying the bill online and waiting for days for it to be delivered to you. In the near future, you'll be able to get it in minutes just by hitting "print" on your computer.
You might find it hard to believe that you could actually "print" an object like you would a picture.But it is not that hard to understand how it would work. Just as a traditional printer sprays (喷) ink onto paper line by line, modern 3-D printers spread material onto a surface layer by layer, from the bottom to the top, gradually building up a shape.
Instead of ink, the materials the 3-D printer uses are mainly plastic, resin (树脂)and certain metals. The thinner each layer is --- from a millimeter to less than the width of a hair --- the smoother and finer the object will be.
This may sound like a completely new technology, but the truth is that 3-D printing has been around since the late 1980s. Back then, it was barely affordable for most people, so few knew about it.
Last year, though, saw a big change in the 3-D printing industry--- printers became much cheaper. For example, 10 years ago a desktop 3-D printer might have cost £20,000 (200,000 yuan), while now they cost only about £ 1,000, according to the BBC.
Taken out of the factory and introduced to more diverse and common uses, 3-D printing can create just about anything you can think of ---flutes (笛子), bikinis, jewelry, aircraft parts and even human organs. In fact, scientists from Cornell University in New York have just made an artificial ear using a 3-D printer, according to Science Daily. The fake ear looks and acts exactly like a natural one.
However, as 3-D printing becomes more commonplace, it may bring about certain problems --- such as piracy. "Once you can download a coffee maker, or print out a new set of kitchen utensils (餐具) on your personal 3-D printer, who will visit a retail (零售的) store again?" an expert in 3-D printing told Forbes News. Even more frightening, what if anyone in the world could use a 3-D printer to print out a fully functioning gun?According to the article, in the future, the 3-D printing technology will ___.
| A.enable people to make better purchases online |
| B.be applied as widely in our daily lives as computers |
| C.change the way we make many products |
| D.shorten the time it takes for people to get what they buy online |
What was the big event happening in the 3-D printing industry last year?
| A.The 3-D printing technology was taken out ofthe factory. |
| B.The 3-D printer became more affordable forconsumers. |
| C.The 3-D printer was used for medical treatmentfor the first time. |
| D.3-D printing technology began to be used invarious fields. |
How is the last paragraph developed?
| A.By analyzing a cause and an effect. | B.By making comparisons. |
| C.By giving examples. | D.By presenting research findings. |
What is the best title of the passage?
| A.Printing out everything | B.Technology in the future |
| C.Online shopping disappearing | D.Great demand for 3-D printers |
Looking for some inspiration or the “write” kind of ideas for your creative stories? To start with, some writers describe winter by using their five senses or their imagination. Others write on their favorite winter activity. Whatever you choose to write about, working on a winter story can always help to improve your writing skills. Now read the following story and see if it helps get rid of any icy writing block you’ ve been struggling with.
A Winter Adventure
Beep, beep. Beep-beep: the alarm clock rang. Slowly, I got out of warm bed down onto the wooden floor which the winter had thrown its cold upon. The bitter cold temperature penetrated(穿透)my socks and I hurried to put my feet in shoes.
Looking out of the window, I watched the white snow, soft and thick, drop onto rooftops and trees. Half an hour later, finishing the last of my hot chocolate, I prepared to enter the adventure that waited for me outside. I buttoned my jacket and fastened my boots. Hat on, I opened the door and was greeted by the winter coldness.
In the depths of winter, the early morning did not have the rush of the rest of the year. Most of my neighbours were put off by the cold, and stayed in bed until the sun had climbed higher into the sky.
Unseen by those who remained locked inside their homes, warm in their beds, I enjoyed being alone with the beauty of the wintertime. Those indoors were unable to appreciate the snow-scapes, ice crystals, frost and the crisp(清新的)breeze. For them, the coming of winter meant just the arrival of the cold.
Appreciation depends on contrasts. One cannot love the warmth of April if one has not known the freezing cold of winter. Later that year, the heat of the sun on my skin would be all the more wonderful for my memories of that cold morning and others like it.The underlined word “adventure” refers to____________.
| A.getting out of bed on the cold winter morning. |
| B.enjoying the loveliness of the winter outdoors |
| C.going skiing on the cold winter morning |
| D.throwing snowballs with friends. |
According to the story A Winter Adventure, most of the neighbours _________.
| A.didn’t work in winter | B.stayed up late in winter |
| C.missed the beauty of winter | D.enjoyed the seasons except winter |
Which of these statements is true according to the story A Winter Adventure?
| A.Of all the seasons, the writer loves winter most. |
| B.The writer regrets that he went out on the freezing cold winter morning. |
| C.The writer believes contrast makes our experiences of the seasons lovelier. |
| D.The writer values the autumn and summer more than the winter |
What function does the story A Winter Adventure serve?
| A.To share some winter thoughts with readers. |
| B.To show readers how to work on a winter story. |
| C.To inspire readers to take more exercise in winter |
| D.To tell readers how to appreciate the beauty of winter. |
One day, Wilson was walking quietly along the road when someone hit him hard on the back of his neck. He looked behind him, and saw a young man whom he had never seen before.
“How dare you hit me like that?” shouted Wilson.
The young man said he had mistaken Wilson for a friend of his and that he thought Wilson was making a lot of noise about nothing.
This insult(侮辱) made Wilson even angrier, of course, and he at once decided to bring the young man before a judge.
Now , the judge who heard the case was a friend of the young man’s father’s, and, although he pretended to be quite fair, he was thinking about what he could do to protect the young man from being punished while at the same time not to be appearing unfair.
Finally he said to Wilson, “I understand your feelings in this matter very well. Would you be satisfied if I let you hit the young man as he hit you?”
Wilson said he would not be. The young man had insulted him and should be properly punished.
“Well, then,” said the judge to the young man, “I order you to pay ten coins to Wilson.”
Ten coins was very little for such a crime, but the young man did not have it with him, so the judge allowed him to go and get it.
Wilson waited for him to return with the money. He waited an hour, and then two hours, while the judge took care of other business.
When it was nearly time for the court to close, Wilson chose a moment when the judge was especially busy, came up quietly and hit him hard on the back of the neck. Then he said to him, “I am sorry, but I can’t wait any longer. When the young man comes back, tell him that I have passed my right to the ten coins on to you.”Why did the young man hit Wilson from behind?
| A.Wilson had hit him before. |
| B.He had mistaken Wilson for a friend of his. |
| C.Wilson was a stranger there. |
| D.Wilson made a lot of noise when he was walking. |
The judge thought about how to protect the young man because .
| A.he thought it a small matter |
| B.as a judge, he should be fair |
| C.he thought the man too young to be punished |
| D.the young man was his friend’s son |
According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?
| A.The young man was ordered to hit himself as hard as he had done on Wilson. |
| B.Wilson was allowed to do more insulting on the young man. |
| C.Wilson was allowed to hit the young man as hard as he had done. |
| D.The young man was ordered to hand a lot of money to Wilson. |
The judge allowed the young man to go home, hoping .
| A.he would not return any more | B.he could escape from there |
| C.he would return in two hours | D.he would get the money |