Satellites are an important part of our ordinary lives．For example, the information for weather forecasts is sent by satellite．Some satellites have cameras which take photographs of the Earth to show how clouds are moving．Satellites are also used to connect our international phone calls．
Computer connections of the World Wide Web and Internet also use satellites. Many of our TV programs come to US through satellites．Airplane pilots also sometimes use a satellite to help them find their exact location．
We use satellites to send television pictures from one part of the world to another．They are usually 35，880 kilometers above the equator．Sometimes we can see a satellite in the sky and it seems to stay in the same place．This is because it is moving around the world at 11，000 kilometers an hour—exactly the same speed that the earth rotates．A satellite must orbit the Earth with its antennae(天线)facing the earth．Sometimes, it moves away from its orbit，So there are little rockets on it which are used to put the satellite back in the right position．This usually happens about every five or six days．
Space is not empty! Every week, more and more satellites are sent into space to orbit the Earth．A satellite usually works for about 10-12 years．Satellites which are broken are sometimes repaired by astronauts or sometimes brought back to Earth to be repaired．Often，very old or broken satellites are left in space to orbit the Earth for a very long time．This is very serious because some satellites use nuclear power and they can crash into each other．Which of the following is NOT done by satellites according to the passage?
| A．Sending information for weather forecast． |
| B．Taking photographs of the Earth． |
| C．Sending TV pictures． |
| D．Providing food for airplane pilots． |
What’s the speed the earth rotates at?
| A．35,880 kilometers per hour． | B．335,880 kilometers per hour． |
| C．11,000 kilometers per hour． | D．110,000 kilometers per hour |
Why does the satellite move around the world at the same speed as the Earth rotates?
| A．In order to take photographs． |
| B．In order to stay in a certain position in the orbit． |
| C．In order to move away from its orbit． |
| D．In order to send television pictures． |
What does the underlined word “This” refer to?
| A．A satellite． | B．A little rocket． |
| C．A satellite seems to stay in the same place in the sky． | |
| D．The satellite puts the rockets in the right position． |
Which is true of satellites?
| A．A satellite usually works for about 10-2 years． |
| B．Every time a satellite gets broken，it is brought back to the Earth to be repaired． |
| C．A broken satellite is never left in space． |
| D．They often crash into each other． |
You can be proud of yourselves, even if you can only make one or two of these green changes. The goal here is to limit carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, which are closely associated to the big problem of global-warming.
| Strategy 1: Bring your own cup to Starbucks |
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| You'll get a 10-cent discount, and it's one less paper cup to end up in a dustbin |
The store won't create more waste when they throw away a cup |
| Strategy 2: Turn off your computer |
|
| When in standby mode, your PC is still using energy |
Turning off a monitor for 40 hours a week may only save $ 5 a month, but it reduces CO2 by 750 pounds |
| Strategy 3: Reuse plastic bags |
|
| Instead of throwing away 100 billion plastic bags a year, try and get a second, third, or tenth use out of them. Better yet, next time you shop, try a reusable bag |
You're reducing pollution. The amount of oil it would take to make just 14 plastic bags would run your car for one mile |
| Strategy 4: Use recycled paper in the bathroom |
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| Most of the toilet paper we use is made from trees found in forests previously untouched by humans |
If every household replaced one roll of toilet paper with a recycled one,424,000trees would still be standing. Look for eco paper towels too |
| Strategy 5: Buy energy-efficient appliances(电器) |
|
| Replace the old fridge with an Energy Star appliance and you'll use 15 percent less energy. It might be a little expensive to buy, but you'll save money on your electricity bills and help the environment |
If we all used one Energy Star appliance at home, it would be like planting 1.7 million acres of new trees |
| Strategy 6: Plant a tree |
|
| Adding green to your garden is beautiful and earth-pleasing |
Just one tree will help make cleaner air and save the environment from 5, 000 pounds of hot carbon dioxide each year |
What is the best title for the passage?
| A．Strategies to Save Money |
| B．Ways to be Earth-Friendly |
| C．Strategies to End Global-Warming |
| D．Ways to Limit Carbon Dioxide |
According to the writer, what will happen if our PC is switched off when not in use?
| A．It will help to save a large amount of money. |
| B．It will help to reduce a great deal of CO2. |
| C．It will save the amount of oil that runs your car for a mile. |
| D．It will be like planting 1.7 million acres of new trees. |
Which strategies suggest recycling or reuse of things?
| A．Strategies 1 & 3. | B．Strategies 2 & 5. |
| C．Strategies 3 & 6. | D．Strategies 4 & 5. |
What benefits do these strategies have in common?
| A．They all help reduce the use of energy like electricity. |
| B．They all cut down the amount of the use of paper. |
| C．They all result in producing less greenhouse gases. |
| D．They all aid to preserve our trees and forest. |
Maybelle said she wouldn't be coming with me to the library. I asked why, and she said she could get all the short stories she wanted off the Internet. Saved walking all the way to the library, and putting up with my long chat on the way there, and on the way back. Maybelle is very direct like that, always has been.
"But, Maybelle, we've been walking to the library every' Monday for the last fifty years!"
She said," Why don't you get Internet'? We can send each other emails."
So I had to get Internet. I called the local high school. They said they'd send me a good student to tell me all about computers and such.
Evil thing, this Internet. Makes you lose old friends, forces you to learn new complex ideas, even if you're too old. But Maybelle said you have to be modern; otherwise, you're dead.
The kid came the next day. Tall skinny black kid, by tile name of Arsenius, said his work would cost me.
I said, "All right. As long as I get Internet."
"You need a computer, then you need to get hooked up," he said.
"Let's buy a computer and get hooked up, then."
"How much you want to spend?"
"Whatever it takes."
"How many rams you want?"
I wasn't going to show him my ignorance, so I said, "Whatever it takes."
"Let's go to the mall. You got a car?"
"In the garage."
When I opened the garage door, he gasped. Daddy's car is still there, a'57 Chevy. I never drive it. Walk everywhere.
I said," Let's walk. It's only a mile or so."
He said," Let's drive, or you will faint on me in this heat."
"Young man, I don't faint, never have. We're walking."
"I get paid by the hour," he said. "Walking will cost you a lot more. Also, you feel like carrying a computer a mile or so?"What kind of person is Maybelle?
| A．She always says what she means in an honest way. |
| B．She no longer likes reading in her old age. |
| C．She doesn't want to be friends with the writer any mort. |
| D．She doesn't want to keep up with the time. |
Why does the writer want to have Internet at his place?
| A．Because the writer believes that one is never too old to learn. |
| B．Because the writer thinks that it is better late than never. |
| C．Because of the pressure from people of his age. |
| D．Because of the convenience the Internet will bring. |
Arsenius gives _________ reasons for driving to the mall.
| A．two | B．three | C．four | D．five |
The Museum:The Charles Dickens Museum in London is the world’s most important collection of material relating to the great Victorian novelist and social commentator（时事评论员）.The only surviving London home of Dickens (from 1837 until 1839) was opened as a museum in 1925 and is still welcoming visitors from all over the world. On four floors, visitors can see paintings, rare editions, manuscripts（手稿）, original furniture and many items relating to the life of one of the most popular and beloved personalities of the Victorian age.
Opening Hours
The Museum is open from Mondays to Saturdays 10:00—17:00; Sundays 11:00—17:00.
Last admission is 30 minutes before closing time.
Special opening times can be arranged for groups, who may wish to book a private view.
Admission Charges: Adults: £5.00; Students: £4.00; Seniors: £4.00; Children: £3.00; Families: £14.00
(2 adults & up to five children)
Group Rates: For a group of 10 or more, a special group rate of £4.00 each applies. Children will still be admitted for £3.00 each.
Access: We are constantly working to improve access to the Museum and its collection. Our current projects involve the fitting of a wheelchair ramp（波道）for better access, a customer care kit and an audio tour for visitors with impaired (受损的)vision. Our Handling Sessions are also suitable for the visually（视觉上地）impaired. The Museum has developed an online virtual（虚拟的）tour through the Museum. Click here to visit all the rooms in the Museum online.
Hire the Museum: The Museum can be hired for private functions, performances soirees (社交晚会) and many other social occasions.
Find Us: The Museum may be reached by using the following buses: 7,17, 19, 38, 45, 46, 55, 243. And by these underground services: Piccadilly Line; Central Line. For a map, please click here. The British Museum and the Foundling Museum are within walking distance.The passage is probably from a(n)________.
| A．book | B．website | C．newspaper | D．announcement |
If a family with two adults and five children go to the Museum together, they will save ______ compared to going there separately.
| A．£25.00 | B．£ 14.00 | C．£ 9.00 | D．£11.00 |
According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．In any case people cannot visit the Museum after 17:00. |
| B．Visitors with poor vision cannot enjoy the Museum. |
| C．The Museum is not very far from the British Museum. |
| D．Anyone cannot hire the Museum for other uses. |
The passage is written to _______.
| A．persuade readers to visit the Charles Dickens Museum. |
| B．inform readers about the history of the Charles Dickens Museum. |
| C．offer readers some information about the Charles Dickens Museum. |
| D．tell readers how to make use of the Charles Dickens Museum. |
We were standing at the top of a church tower. My father had brought me to this spot in a small town not far from our home in Rome. I wondered why.
“Look down, Elsa,” father said. I gathered all my courage and looked down. I saw the square in the center of the village. And I saw the crisscross (十字形) of twisting, turning streets leading to the square. “ See, my dear,” father said gently. “ There is more than one way to the square. Life is like that. If you can’t get to the place where you want to go by one road, try another.”
Now I understood why I was there. Earlier that day I had begged my mother to do something about the awful(糟糕的) lunches that were served at school. But she refused because she could not believe the lunches were as bad as I said.
When I turned to father for help, he didn’t say anything. Instead, he brought me to this high tower to give me a lesson. By the time we reached home, I had a plan.
At school the next day, I secretly poured my luncheon（午餐）soup into a bottle and brought it home. Then I asked our cook to serve it to mother at dinner. The plan worked perfectly. She swallowed one spoonful and sputtered（喷溅出） “ The cook must have gone mad！” Quickly I told her what I had done, and Mother stated firmly that she would take up the matter of lunches at school the next day!
In the years that followed I often remembered the lesson father taught me. I began to work as a fashion designer two years ago. I wouldn’t stop working until I tried every possible means to my goal. Father’s wise words always remind me that there is more than one way to the square.The author's father took her to the top of a church tower to _____．
| A．enjoy the beautiful scenery of the whole town |
| B．find out how many ways lead to the square |
| C．inspire her to find out another way to solve her problem |
| D．help her forget some unpleasant things earlier that day |
What did the author want her mother to do earlier that day?
| A．Do something delicious for lunch. |
| B．Taste her awful lunch. |
| C．Dismiss the mad cook. |
| D．Speak to the school about lunch. |
By sharing her own experiences, the author tries to tell us ____________.
| A．when one road is blocked, try another |
| B．how bad the lunch of her school is |
| C．how wise her father is |
| D．about the church tower near her home |
“If you talk to the plants, they will grow faster and the effect is even better if you’re a woman.” Researchers at Royal Horticultural Society carried out an experient to find that the voice of a woman gardener makes plants grow faster.
The experiment lasted a month and by the end of the study scientists managed to discover that tomato plants grew up two inches taller when women gardeners talked to them instead of male.
Sarah Darwin was the one making the plants registered the best growth. Her voice was the most “inspiring” for plants than those of nine other gardeners when reading a passage from The Origin of Species. The great-great-granddaughter of the famous botanist(植物学家) Charles Darwin found that her plant grew about two inches taller than the plant of the best male gardener.
Colin Crosbie, Garden Superintendent at RHS, said that the finding cannot yet be explained. He assumes that women have a greater range of pitch（音高） and tone（音调） which might have a certain effect on the sound waves that reach the plant. “Sound waves are an environmental effect just like rain or light ,”said Mr Grosbie.
The study began in April at RHS Garden Wisley in Survey. Scientists started with open auditions(听力) for the people who were asked to record passages from John Wyndham's The Day of the Triffids, Shakespeare’s A Midsummer's Night Dream and Darwin's The Origin of Species.
Afterwards researchers selected a number of different voices and played them to 10 tomato plants during a period of a month. Each plant had headphones（耳机） connected to it. Through the headphones the sound waves could hit the plants. It was discovered that plants that “listened” to female voices on average grew taller by an inch in comparison to plants that heard male voices.
Miss Darwin said, “I think it is an honor to have a voice that can make tomatoes grow, and especially fitting because for a number of years I have been studying wild tomatoes from the Galapagos Island at the Natural History Museum in London.”What does the passage talk about?
| A．Plants enjoy men’s voices than women’s. |
| B．A botanical experiment in a museum. |
| C．Voice’s influence on plant growing. |
| D．Strange phenomenon（现象） at Royal Horticultural Society. |
What does the underlined sentence in paragraph 4 mean?
| A．Plants need sound as well as rain and light. |
| B．Sound is basic for the plant to grow. |
| C．Sound has a good effect as rain or light does. |
| D．Plants can’t live without sound, rain or light. |
Sarah Darwin is most likely a (an)_____.
| A．botanist | B．gardener | C．astronomer | D．environmentalist |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．The experiment ended in May. |
| B．Scientist can explain the findings clearly. |
| C．Plants enjoy listening to the passages from masterpieces. |
| D．The findings are of great importance to human beings. |