D
Earth is the third planet from the sun. It is one of the four inner planets. The other three inner planets are Mercury, Venus, and Mars. The inner planets are also called the rocky planets, because th
ey are made of rocks.
Earth is often called the “Water Planet”, because it is the only planet in our solar system which has liquid water on its surface. About 70% of the surface of Earth is covered by water! The other part of Earth is made up of continents and islands which have different landforms on them. Examples of landforms are mountains and plains. Plants and animals can live on Earth, because it has so much water.
Earth spins very quickly compared to other planets. It only takes Earth 24 hours to spin around its axis one time. One Earth day is 24 hours long! Earth orbits the sun in 365 days! This makes one Earth year 365 days long!
Earth is the only planet in our solar system where humans, other animals, and plants can live. There is plenty of water to drink or to live in. Water is present on Earth in its big oceans and in the air! Clouds are made of water vapor. The atmosphere has a lot of oxygen in it for animals to breathe, but the rest of our “air” is made up of water vapor, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, and other gases. The air is perfect for plants to grow. Earth temperature is not the same in all places, but the temperature is just right for plants, animals, and humans in most places on Earth.
Like the other inner planets, Earth has volcanoes. Volcanoes on Earth are different from those on other planets, because they still erupt. Scientists think that there may be active volcanoes on other planets and moons in our solar system, but they are still studying this.
Earth has one planet which we call the Moon. The surface of the Moon has many craters on it These were caused when meteorites hit it. It has many volcanoes on it which do not erupt anymore. We can see the moon at night without using a telescope. It is the closest space object to our planet ,Earth.
68.Earth is called the Water Planet,______.
A. because animals need water B. the water makes it look blue from space
C. it has liquid water on its surface D. Earth is the third planet from the sun
69. It takes Earth ______to orbit the sun in one year.
A.24 hours B.24 days C.365 days D.360 days
70. Life exists on Earth,______.
A. because the water, air, and temperature are just right
B. there is water vapor in clouds
C. Earth is the planet closest to the sun
D. earth has volcanoes
71.The craters on the moon were caused by______.
A. meteorites hitting its surface B. active volcanoes
C. volcanoes which do not erupt anymore D. some reasons that are not mentioned
The Josephson Institute, a Los Angeles-based ethics institute, surveyed 29,760 students at 100 high schools nationwide, both public and private. The survey found that 35% of boys and 26% of girls admitted stealing from a store within the past year and 64% have cheated on a test, which suggests that today' s young people are less honest than previous generations.
However, Josephson addressed that today's youth are no less honest than their predecessors. "The question is not whether things are worse, but whether they are bad enough to attract concern. This is not a time to complain but to take thoughtful, positive actions. "
Roberta Gerold, superintendent of the Middle Country School District and a leader of the campaign, said parents and school officials need to be more diligent – for example, emphasizing to students the distinctions between original and borrowed work. "Adults are not taking this very seriously," he said. "The schools are not doing even the most moderate thing."
Nijmie Dzurinko, executive director of the Philadelphia Student Union, said the findings were not at all reflective of the inner-city students she works with as an advocate for better curriculum and school funding. "A lot of people like to blame society's problems on young people, without recognizing that young people aren't making the decisions about what's happening in society. "
Riddile, who for four decades was a high school teacher, agreed that more pressure could lead to more cheating, yet he said, "I would take these students over other generations. I found them to be more responsive, more rewarding to work with. We have to create situations where it's easy for kids to do the right things. We need to create classrooms where learning takes on more importance than having the right answer. "
60. According to the first paragraph, we know that __________.
A. the Josephson Institute is a Los Angeles-based public school
B. students in ethics institute are honest
C. cheating on tests is very common in America
D. more public school students admitted stealing
61. What does the underlined phrase "borrowed work" refer to?
A. Ideas taken from other person's works. B. Words borrowed from another language.
C. Homework assigned by the teachers. D. Work done by your classmates.
62. Which of the following statements is TRUE?
A. Riddile takes the young students over other generations.
B. Roberta Gerold found them to be more responsive.
C. Nijmie Dzurinko said the findings were reflective of the inner-city students.
D. Josephson addressed that today's youth are less honest than their predecessors.
63. According to the passage, we can infer that it's _________ that should be to blame for the problem.
A. the students B. previous generations C. public schools D. parents and schools
Matches made over the Internet often do not last long because people end up choosing unsuitable partners and forming emotional bonds before meeting face-to-face, an Australian university researcher has found.
Women were especially susceptible (易于) to finding Mr. Wrong, as they send to be attracted by witty (巧妙) comments or clever emails, said psychologist Matthew Bambling from the Queensland University of Technology.
"You can never assume things are the way they seem online," Bambling said. "Just because they can write a clever comment or a witty email, doesn' t mean they will be Mr. Right, that' s for sure," he said, adding some men use the concept of "netting," sending emails to dozens of women and hoping one might respond.
Bambling said you can find a partner online, but warned those using the Web to find love to be aware of the traps.
"There's definitely a disinhibition (失控) affect online," he said, with people more likely to exaggerate their good points while hiding anything negative.
"Few guys for example would say ' look, I' m a middle aged alcoholic who's been married five times, pick me'. They're going to present themselves as a good catch. "
He said it was easy for people to quickly invest too much emotionally in an online relationship because they don' t see the full picture of the person they are emailing.
Bambling said people can avoid many of the problems by meeting early in the actual relationship, rather than by getting to know each other only by email.
He suggests couples arrange to meet over coffee after a few emails, which will help people from building up a fantasy image of their match.
"The main thing to remember is to make real life contact as soon as possible if you are interested in someone, because then you will know if a relationship is a possibility," he said.
72. Bambling suggests we should be ________ about the online relationship.
A. rejective B. favorable C. cautious D. acceptable
73. The underlined word "exaggerate" in paragraph 6 probably means " ".
A. enlarge B. invent C. remove D. cover
74. What is suggested by Bambling for a better online relationship?
A. Writing clever comments or emails to girls frequently.
B. Finding a partner online through one night respond.
C. Making real life contact before further development.
D. Investing much more emotion in your partner.
75. Which of the following will be a suitable tide?
A. Online love, blind and brief B. Convenient way to find love
C. Real love online D. Dangerous online relationship
NEW YORK (Reuters) Electric cars will not be dramatically cleaner than autos powered by fossil fuels until they rely less on electricity produced from usual coal-fired power plants, scientists said on Monday.
"For electric vehicles to become a major green alternative, the power fuel has to move away from coal, or cleaner coal technologies have to be developed," said Jared Cohon, the chair of a National Research Council report released on Monday.
About half of U. S. power is generated (产生) by burning coal, which gives off many times more of traditional pollutants than natural gas, and about twice as much of the main greenhouse gas carbon dioxide.
Nuclear and renewable power would have to generate a larger portion of U. S. power for electric cars to become much greener compared to gasoline-powered cars, Cohan, who is president of Carnegie Mellon University, said in an interview.
Advances in coal burning, like capturing carbon at power plants for permanent burial underground, could also help electric cars become a cleaner alternative to vehicles powered by fossil fuels, he said.
Pollution from energy sources did $120 billion worth of damage to human health, agriculture and recreation in 2008, and electricity was responsible for more than half of file damage, said the NRC report.
Electric cars have their benefits such as reducing imports of foreign oil. But they also have hidden costs.
Materials in electric car batteries are hard to produce, which adds to the energy it takes to make them. In fact, the health and environmental costs of making electric cars can be 20 percent greater than usual cars, the report said.
The report estimated that electric cars could still cost more than gas-powered cars to operate and manufacture in 2030 unless U. S. power production becomes cleaner.
64. Why are electric cars not clean enough?
A. Because they run too slowly. B. Because they are too expensive.
C. Because they rely on coal-fired power. D. Because they give off more carbon dioxide.
65. We can infer from the passage that ________.
A. electric cars will soon take the place of gas-powered cars
B. no one holds hope for electric cars at present
C. electric cars waste more energy than before
D. some people believe that electric cars are more cleaner
66. Which of the following is not mentioned as a way to make electric cars cleaner?
A. Developing cleaner coal technologies. B. Making electric cars run faster.
C. Generating more nuclear power. D. Making advances in coal burning.
67. What kind of attitude the writer holds towards the future of electric cars?
A. The writer thinks highly of electric cars.
B. The writer believes electric cars will disappear in the end.
C. The writer thinks it' s hard to popularize electric cars at present.
D. The writer thinks it' s impossible for us to use electric cars before 2030.
第三部分：阅读理解 (共20小题；每小题2分, 满分40分)
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。
There is nothing else but economy that occupies the minds of Americans at present times of economic stress and recession. The negative statistics on unemployment, housing costs and consumer confidence keep coming and coming, leaving people not just scared to spend money, but also very stressed and emotionally exhausted. This stress has an impact on everything, starting with our sleep, mood, physical health, relationships, and eating habits.
"Times of economic stress lead to increased rates of depression," says Dr. Christopher Palmer, director of continuing education at McLean Hospital in Belmont, Massachusetts. "It worsens illness in people who have been constantly depressed. But it also causes new cases of depression. Just the fear of losing one's job can put people over the edge. "
And, without any doubt, just depression alone can create a variety of negative health effects.
1. SLEEP
33 per cent of Americans reported that they have lost sleep due to the economic crisis.
26 per cent say they are sleeping less than 6 hours per night, which is considered to be at least one hour less than the most favorable 7 to 8 hours recommended by sleep experts.
2. MENTAL HEALTH, STRESS AND HEART
80 per cent of Americans reported last year that the economy is a significant source of stress; 49 per cent said the situation makes them feel nervous or anxious; 48 per cent reported that they felt very sad and have developed depression.
Nearly twice the risk of heart attack or death was found in coronary-artery-disease patients with the highest levels of depression or anxiety. Among those individuals, a 10 per cent higher risk of heart attack or death was found in those whose anxiety rose over time.
3. RELATIONSHIPS
The chances of violent behavior are nearly 6 times higher for individuals who are left without a job.
Workplace stress can lead to domestic violence.
Money is the number one source of disagreement in the early years of marriage.
56. Which of the following is true according to the text?
A. Now Americans don't dare to spend money.
B. Now most Americans have problem in sleeping.
C. Economy is the most troubling problem for Americans.
D. Economic crisis has destroyed many American families.
57. How does the economic crisis affect Americans according to the passage?
A. They sleep fewer than six hours.
B. They sleep less than the proper amount.
C. Diseases caused by economy make them sleepless.
D. They lose sleep at night.
58. If a person is out of work, he might _________.
A. become more violent B. get divorced C. get rid of workplace stressD. go mad
59. The best title of this passage probably is _________.
A. The World Economic Crisis Are Getting worse
B. Economic Crisis Affects Our Health
C. Economic Crisis Causes Trouble to Sleep
D. Ordinary People Suffer Greatly in Economic Crisis
Each cell in the human body contains about 25,000 to 35,000 genes, which carry information that determines your traits. Traits are characteristics you inherit from your parents; this means your parents pass some of their characteristics on to you through genes. For example, if both of your parents have green eyes, you might inherit the trait of green eyes from them. Or if your mom has freckles, you might inherit that trait and wind up with a freckled face. And genes aren’t just in humans — all animals and plants have genes, too.
Genes hang out all lined up on thread-like things called chromosomes. Chromosomes come in pairs, and there are hundreds, sometimes thousands of genes in one chromosome. The chromosomes and genes are made of DNA, which is short for deoxyribonucleic acid.
Chromosomes are found inside cells, the very small units that make up all living things. A cell is so tiny that you can only see it through the lens of a strong microscope, and there are billions of cells in your body. Most cells have one nucleus. The nucleus, which is sort of egg-shaped, is like the brain of the cell. It tells every part of the cell what to do. How does the nucleus know so much? It contains our chromosomes and genes. Tiny as it is, the nucleus has more information in it than the biggest dictionary you’ve ever seen.
71. What is the best title of this passage?
A. What Is a Gene? B. How Do Genes Work?
C. What Does A Gene Consist of? D. How Do Nucleus Command Cells?
72. What does the underlined word “inherit” probably mean in the first paragraph?
A. carryB. sendC. obtain D. pass
73. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A. The parents pass some characteristics on to their children.
B. All living things receive traits from the old generations.
C. One’s green eyes might be passed on from the parents.
D.A mother’s freckled face might affect her young’s face.
74. From the passage we can know that______________.
A. genes can decide all your characteristics from parents.
B. genes exist inside cells that make up all living things.
C. genes tells every part of the cell what to do .
D. Chromosomes come in pairs containing genes.
75. From the passage we can conclude that ___________.
A. not all cells have one nucleus inside .
B. not all living things are made up of cells.
C. genes aren’t in humans but in animals and plants.
D. DNA is made of chromosomes and genes.