What would you do if you were lost in the dark forest at night? The first sensible lesson is that you shouldn’t bother trying to find your way in the dark at all, but just stay put until dawn. Because then you won’t trip over things? No, mainly because you’ll have an idea of direction. The sun rises in the east. But you will be amazed at how many people forget they know that. Apparently, the area underneath a holly bush provides a good makeshift shelter — they are thick, and evergreen. The next thing to do — or rather not to do — is panic, for the obvious reason that unless there is someone there to hear you scream, it will get you nowhere. Just try to think of nice, happy things.
There is always a point in films when a person who is lost in the desert or the snow, dehydrated(脱水的) and exhausted, comes across a set of their own footprints and realizes they have just walked in a huge, round circle. It is wrong to owe it to the unequal strengths or different lengths of your legs. Experiments prove that, without the sun or the moon (or landmarks) as a fixed guide, lots of small errors add up over time so the brain can’t correctly identify the “straight ahead” direction. To just get out of somewhere, pick a spot on the horizon and just head for it.
There are several ways to find directions in the dark, and by far the best is to establish north using the stars. Most people can identify the Plough, which is part of Ursa Major. It looks a lot like a saucepan. The Plough rotates through the sky, but let’s imagine the saucepan lying horizontally (水平地), with its handle on the left. You need to trace a line from the star at the right-hand base of the pan, through the star at the right-hand rim (边沿), and follow it upwards; the north star is roughly five times the distance between those two “pointer” stars. Then drop a vertical line from the North Star to the horizon and that’s north.
“Tonight is very cloudy and I can’t see the Plough.” Maybe luckily, it is quite windy. Keep in mind that almost all of our weather comes from a south-westerly direction. (This only works if you are in the British Isles). To find the direction, you can throw light bits of dried-out grass in the air and see which way they blow; or, if there are clouds and patches of clear sky, see which way they blow across the stars. You can also get an idea of direction from leggy plants. If they look as if they have been blown over, they will probably be pointing north-east. If they are simply leaning in one direction as they grow, there’s a good chance that is south (they will be reaching towards the sun). The last thing to do is to judge your direction and off you go.
68. What might be the best title of the passage ?
A. How to survive in the forest B. How to protect yourself in the forest
C. How to direct your way out of the wild D. What to do if you are lost
69. Which of the following pictures matches the description of the position of the north star?
70. Why will people often walk in a circle if they are lost in the desert or the snow?
A. Because without anything to refer to for directions, the brain will be confused by errors.
B. Because one of the legs is longer and stronger than the other.
C. Because the desert or the snow usually covers a large area for people to get across.
D. Because people usually feel dehydrated and exhausted in the desert or the snow.
Today, roller skating is easy and fun.But a long time ago, it wasnt easy at all. Before 1750, the idea of skating didn’t exist. That changed because of a man named Joseph Merlin. Merlin’s work was making musical instruments. In his spare time he liked to play the violin. Joseph Merlin was a man of ideas and dreams. People called him a dreamer.
One day Merlin received an invitation to attend a fancy dress ball(化装舞会). He was very pleased and a little excited. As the day of the party came near, Merlin began to think how to make a grand entrance at the party. He had an idea. He thought he would get a lot of attention if he could skate into the room. Merlin tried different ways to make himself roll. Finally, he decided to put two wheels under each shoe. These were the first roller skates. Merlin was very proud of his invention and dreamed of arriving at the party on wheels while playing the violin.
On the night of the party Merlin rolled into the room playing his violin. Everyone was astonished to see him. There was just one problem. Merlin had no way to stop his roller skates. He rolled on and on. Suddenly, he ran into a huge mirror that was hanging on the wall. Down fell the mirror, breaking to pieces. Nobody forgot Merlin’s grand entrance for a long time!The text is mainly about ________.
A.a strange man | B.an unusual party |
C.how roller skating began | D.how people enjoyed themselves in the 18th century |
People thought Merlin was a dreamer because he _________.
A.often gave others surprises | B.was a gifted musician |
C.invented the roller skates | D.was full of imagination |
Merlin put wheels under his shoes in order to ________ .
A.impress the party guests | B.arrive at the party sooner |
C.test his invention | D.show his skill in walking on wheels |
What is the main point the writer is trying to make in the last paragraph?
A.The roller skates needed further improvement. |
B.The party guests took Merlin for a fool. |
C.Merlin succeeded beyond expectation. |
D.Merlin got himself into trouble. |
Education is required and free for every child in the United States. Most children start school by the age of six. They attend eight years of elementary school and four years of high school (or secondary school ).The money for free public schools comes from taxes, and each state is responsible for its own educational system .State legislatures (立法机关) set the educational requirements but leave the management of the schools in the hands of the local communities .Most states require their children to go to school until a certain age. This age varies from 16 to 18 years according to the laws of the individual state. The Federal government contributes funds to the states for additional schools and schools services.
After graduation from high school, a student can start his higher education in two –year college, a four-year college, a university or a specialized professional school----either public or private. Most colleges admit students on the basis of their high-school records. The cost of a college education is expensive in private universities, but it is much less in those supported by states and cities. Many students receive scholarships from the schools, the government, or private foundations and organizations. More than 50 percent of the college students work to help pay their college expenses.
Only 2 percent of the population of the country cannot read and write.Where does the money for public schools come from ?
A. From the Federal government
B. From the state legislatures.
C. From taxes
From the parents of the school children.What is the educational system in the United States based on ?
A.The Federal government | B.Individual school |
C.Individual state | D.Local communities |
What percentage of the population is illiterate (文盲) ?
A.50 | B.2 | C.4 | D.6 |
How are college expenses of most students paid ?
A.They won earnings from part-time work .
B.Scholarship from the schools, the government or private foundations.
C. Taxes .
D. Both A and B.
T-shirts out; uniforms in
School uniforms(制服) are becoming more and more popular across the U.S.A. That’s no surprise, because they offer many benefits. They immediately end the powerful social sorting and labeling (标记) that come from clothing. If all students are dressed in the same way, they will not pay too much attention to their clothing, and some of them will not be laughed at for wearing the “wrong” clothes.
Some people are against the strict rule of school uniforms, but they do not realize that students already accept a kind of rule — wanting to look just like their friends. The difference is that the clothing students choose for themselves creates social barriers(障碍); school uniforms tear those barriers down.
As in other places, uniforms remind the wearers of their purposes and duties. For example, when a man or woman puts on a police uniform, he or she becomes, for a time, the symbol (象征) of law and order. The uniform means to the wearer his or her special duties and sends the same message to everyone the wearer meets. People with different jobs wear uniforms of one kind or another. For students, the school uniform reminds them that their task for the six or seven hours they are in school is to get an education.
Some parents are unhappy about uniforms, saying that school uniforms will affect their childrens creativity. First, as noted above, the clothes students choose to wear do not necessarily express their individuality (个性). They just copy their classmates. Second, students have the rest of the day to be as creative as they like. While they’re in school, their job is to master reading, writing, and maths; this should take up all the creativity they have. Mastery of those skills will be good for the students to build up their creativity in every way. In Paragraph 1, the word “benefits” probably means.
A.tasks | B.messages | C.differences | D.advantages |
From the passage we learn that uniforms in general.
A.prevent the wearers from being laughed at |
B.help the wearers keep their duties in mind |
C.are seen as a symbol of power |
D.help to create social barriers |
Some people are against school uniforms because.
A.they fail to realize that students have accepted the uniforms |
B.they believe that uniforms will make students less creative |
C.they don’t agree that uniforms can remove social barriers |
D.they think that school uniforms are too popular |
The author would probably agree that.
A.it makes no difference whether to wear school uniforms or not |
B.students’ individuality may not come from school education |
C.students’ creativity is related to the clothes they choose |
D.school uniforms help to create equality among students |
School uniforms are becoming more and more popular and important because _____
A.they can stop the powerful social sorting and labeling. |
B.if all students are dressed in the same way, they will not pay too much attention to their clothing. |
C.uniforms can remind the wearers of their purposes and duties |
D.school uniforms will affect their children’s creativity. |
Who's in control of your life? Who's pulling your strings? For the majority of us, it's other people-society, colleagues, friends, family or our religious community. We learned this way of operating when we were very young, of course. We were brainwashed. We discovered that feeling important and feeling accepted was a nice experience and so we learned to do everything we could to make other people like us. As Oscar Wilde puts it, "Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else's opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation."
So when people tell us how wonderful we are, it makes us feel good. We long for this, good feeling like a drug—we are addicted to it and seek it out wherever we can. Therefore, we are so eager for the approval (赞同) of others that we live unhappy and limited lives, failing to do the things we really want to. Just as drug addicts and alcoholics live worsened lives to keep getting their fix(一剂毒品), we worsen our own existence to get our own constant fix of approval.
But, just as with any drug, there is a price to pay. The price of the approval drug is freedom—the freedom to be ourselves. The truth is that we cannot control what other people think. People have their own agenda, and they come with their own baggage and, in the end, they're more interested in themselves than in you. Furthermore, if we try to live by the opinions of others, we will build our life on sinking sand. Everyone has a different way of thinking, and people change their opinions all the time. The person who tries to please everyone will only end up getting exhausted (tired) and probably pleasing no one in the process.
So how can we take back control? I think there’s only one way make a conscious decision to stop caringwhat other people think. We should guide ourselves by means of a set of values—not values imposed from the outside by others, but innate values which come from within. If we are driven by these values and not by the changing opinions and value systems of others; we will live a more authentic, effective, purposeful and happy life.What Oscar Wilde says implies that________.
A.most people have a variety of thoughts |
B.we have thoughts similar to those of others |
C.other people's thoughts are more important |
D.most people's thoughts are controlled by others |
What does the author try to argue in the third paragraph?
A.Changing opinions may cost us our freedom. |
B.We may lose ourselves to please others. |
C.We need to pay for what we want to get. |
D.The price of taking the drug is freedom. |
It can be concluded from the passage that_______.
A.it's better to do what we like |
B.we shouldn't care what others think |
C.we shouldn't change our own opinions |
D.it's important to accept others' opinions |
The author tries to persuade the readers to accept his arguments mainly by________.
A.analyzing causes and effects | B.providing examples and facts |
C.discussing questions | D.making suggestions |
The word “conservation” has a thrifty meaning. To conserve is to save and protect, to leave what we ourselves enjoy in such a good condition that others may also share the enjoyment. Our forefathers had no idea that human population would increase faster than the supplies of raw materials: most of them, even until very recently, had the foolish idea that the treasures were “limitless” and could “last forever”. Most of the citizens of earlier generations knew little or nothing about the complicated and delicate system that runs all through nature, and which means that, as in a living body, an unhealthy condition of one part will sooner or later be harmful to all the others.
Fifty years ago, nature study was not part of school work; scientific forestry was a new idea; wood was still cheap because it could be brought in any quantity from distant woodlands; soil destruction and river floods were not national problems; nobody had yet studied long-term climatic cycles in relation to proper land use; even the word “conservation” had nothing of the meaning that it has for us today.
For the sake of ourselves and those who will come after us, we must now set about correcting the mistakes of our forefathers. Conservation should be made part of everybody’s daily life. To know about the water table (水位) in ground is just as important to us as a knowledge of the basic math formulas. We need to know why all watersheds (上游集水区) need the protection of plant life and why the running current of streams and rivers must be made to give their full benefit to the soil before they finally escape to the sea. We need to be taught the duty of planting trees as well as of cutting them. We need to know the importance of big, grown trees, because living space for most of man’s fellow creatures on this planet is figured not only in square measure of surface but also in cubic(立方体的)volume above the earth. In a word, it should be our goal to restore as much of the original beauty of nature as we can.The author’s attitude towards the use of natural resources is_________.
A.positive | B.uninterested | C.optimistic | D.critical |
According to the author, the greatest mistake of our forefathers was that________.
A.they had no idea about scientific forestry |
B.they had little or no sense of environmental protection |
C.they were not aware of the importance of nature study |
D.they had no idea of how to make good use of raw materials |
To avoid repeating the mistakes of our forefathers, the author suggests that ________.
A.we plant more trees |
B.natural sciences be taught to everybody |
C.environmental education be given to everybody |
D.we return to nature |
How can you understand the underlined sentence in the last paragraph?
A.Our living space on the earth is getting smaller and smaller. |
B.Our living space should be measured in cubic volume. |
C.We need to take some measures to protect space. |
D.We must preserve good living condition for both birds and animals. |