The wheel was one of man’s first inventions and yet it has also proved one of the most useful. So wide and varied are the uses of the wheels, in machines and vehicles of all kinds, that it is difficult to imagine what the world would be like without them. It is surprising to hear it said, therefore, that the wheel’s importance will perhaps be greatly reduced by the end of the century by an invention so new as to be still unnamed.
The invention is a machine the floats above any surface on a cushion of air. The cushion is formed when air is blown into this saucer, the machine rises to a height that may vary from a few inches to a few feet.
Industry is already using one form of the inversion to deal with heavy loads. It can lift them. with ease and since there are no wheels, and therefore no friction , they can be put into motion with the touch of a finger.
The new invention, however , is having a great effect on transport, Not only does it make expensive road systems unnecessary, but it enables vehicles to travel well over land or water. This unique to reach most destinations has given rise to the prediction that wheeled vehicles may be uncommon at the end the century as aeroplanes were at the beginning.
1. The first paragraph tells us that______.
A. the wheel was man’s earliest invention.
B. the wheel’s usefulness has yet to be proved.
C. wide wheels have a variety of important uses.
D. a new invention may make wheels less important.
2. The phrase “with the touch of a finger” in the third paragraph means______.
A. without difficulty B. by electricity .
C. without friction D. by hand.
3. The passage tells us that the new invention __________.
A. is more important for industry than for transport.
B. will one day be used instead of aeroplanes.
C. makes it possible to travel without using roads.
D. will replace wheeled vehicles using roads.
4. According to the passage, the new invention _______.
A. will soon get a name B. can go almost anywhere
C. is lighter than air D. was uncommon a century ago
Do you know a child who has used first aid to save a life or help an injured person?
St．John Ambulance is seeking young people who have acted quickly, calmly and effectively at a real emergency for its annual Young First Aider of the Year awards．
The awards are open to all those under 18, and the closing date for nomination (提名) is April 30, 2016.The winners will be invited to attend a special ceremony in June, 2016.
“St．John Ambulance believes it is essential for young people to learn first aid so that they can help anyone who is injured,” said Sandra Stocker, director of St．John Ambulance Awards Committee．“The Young First Aider of the Year is a wonderful way to celebrate their bravery and quick-thinking．”
Nomination for the Young First Aider of the Year is now open．Please complete and return the nomination forms as soon as possible and certainly no later than April 30, 2016.The committee will decide which of the nominees will receive the Young First Aider of the Year awards by considering the actions of the nominees along with their ages and other factors．You should send any evidence you have with the nomination form, showing the nominees’ actions．
Examples of evidence could include:
◆ Newspaper clippings (剪报) of the incident．
◆ Police incident record numbers．
Once a nomination form is received, the nominee or nominator may be approached for further details of the incident．For further information please get in touch with Sandra Stocker by email or on 020-73244082 or 020-732440813.
Find out who our winners will be for 2016.What does the passage intend to tell the readers?
| A．Young people should learn first aid to help the injured． |
| B．Learning first aid can help young people win an award． |
| C．The injured are encouraged to act quickly and calmly． |
| D．St．John Ambulance makes profit by training first aiders． |
If you suggest someone for the awards, you should ______．
| A．attend the awards ceremony |
| B．make a speech introducing yourself |
| C．provide the details of the incident |
| D．have a good knowledge about first aid |
Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
| A．Demand for First Aiders |
| B．Importance of First Aid |
| C．St．John Ambulance Awards |
| D．Young First Aider of the Year |
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
A Special Appointment
Years ago I moved to Woodland Hills to take a job in a small hospital’s emergency department．No one wanted to work on Christmas Eve, so the shift (轮班) went to me．I kissed my family goodbye and went off to spend the night in the hospital．It was a thankless job．
At 9 pm, the ambulance brought in a man in his 60s who was having a heart attack．His face was pale, and he was frightened． The whole night I did my best to save his life．Before I left in the morning to spend Christmas with my family, I stopped by to see how he was doing．It was still tough, but he had survived the night and was sleeping．
The following year I got Christmas Eve duty again．At 9 pm sharp, the ward clerk told me there was a couple who wanted to speak with me．When I approached them, the man introduced himself as Mr．Lee and said, “You probably don’t remember me, but last Christmas Eve you saved my life．Thank you for the year you gave me．” He and his wife hugged me, handed me a small gift, and left．
The following year a new doctor had joined the group, but I wanted to see if Mr．and Mrs．Lee would return．This time, I volunteered for the shift．I kept an eye on the door．Once again, at exactly 9 pm, the Lees appeared, carrying a warmly wrapped bundle．It was their new grandchild． Mr．Lee, his family and I spent 13 Christmas Eves together．In the later years the staff all knew about the story and would work to give me time with him in the break room, where we spent a half-hour each Christmas Eve．
The last year I saw him, he brought me a gift．I carefully opened the package and found a crystal (水晶) bell inside．It was engraved (镌刻) with a single word: Friendship．Now, my family, friends and I ring that bell every Christmas Eve at exactly 9 pm and offer our best wishes to the man who we won’t forget．Working on Christmas Eve was considered “a thankless job” because ______．
| A．most patients were seriously ill |
| B．patients refused to express thanks |
| C．doctors had nothing to do on that day |
| D．doctors couldn’t get praise for the hard job |
When the author left the hospital the next morning, Mr．Lee ______．
| A．was really angry with her |
| B．was still in a state of danger |
| C．got ready to leave the hospital |
| D．recovered from his heart attack |
According to the passage, the author formed a habit of ______．
| A．celebrating Christmas Eve with her family |
| B．giving Christmas gifts to the hospital staff |
| C．spending Christmas Eve with Mr．Lee in hospital |
| D．ringing the bell for patients in the emergency department |
Why does the author ring the bell on Christmas Eve?
| A．To honor her working experience． |
| B．To tell kids the traditional custom． |
| C．To show the beginning of the holiday． |
| D．To remember an old friend of hers． |
The Puritans (清教徒) get a bad reputation in America—especially when it comes to alcohol.
Mayflower, the first ship that came over from England to Massachusetts Bay, actually carried more beer than water．In fact the Founding Fathers of America liked a drink—Samuel Adams was a partner in his father’s brewery, and Thomas Jefferson was famous for importing European wines.
Early Americans took a healthful small drink for breakfast, whiskey was a typical lunchtime drink, ale (麦芽酒) accompanied supper and the day ended with another drink called nightcap．Most Americans in 1790 consumed an average of 5.8 gallons of pure alcohol a year．In 1830, consumption reached 7.1 gallons a year and alcoholism was starting to have a serious influence on communities．Women and children might be in physical danger if the man of the house began drinking．If he became ill or lost his job through drinking, there was no social safety net to support or protect his family．Eventually, alcoholism was being treated as a disease.
By the late 19th Century, support for Prohibition, banning the manufacture and sale of alcohol, was powerful．The first arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol was in 1897.On 16 January 1919, Prohibition was set into law．However, by the 1930s when American economy was experiencing a hard time it was widely believed that making alcohol legal again would provide badly-needed jobs and taxes．So in February of 1933, Prohibition was endeD． Still, Prohibition had a great influence on alcohol drinking in this country．In 1955, Americans drank an average of 2.3 gallons of pure alcohol a year．The Prohibition movement was still quite strong after Prohibition ended and it led to a lot of local prohibition on alcohol.
The American presidency has done a lot to rehabilitate alcohol and make it respectable again．Presidents Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama can all be seen on film drinking socially and making official toasts with international celebrities.Which is TRUE about the Puritans according to the passage?
| A．Their ancestors came to America to sell alcohol. |
| B．They founded the breweries in European countries. |
| C．They had a habit of alcohol drinking. |
| D．They were the major importer of alcohol. |
In what way was an alcoholic’s family affected by alcoholism?
| A．His family couldn’t afford the drink. |
| B．His family might suffer financially. |
| C．His wife and children might become ill. |
| D．His family ought not be treated equally. |
What can be learned about Prohibition in America?
| A．It came into law in the 19th century. |
| B．It discouraged alcohol drinking. |
| C．Its effect disappeared after its removal. |
| D．It failed to forbid drunk driving. |
The passage mainly talks about__________.
| A．the brief history of alcohol drinking in America |
| B．American presidents’ affection for alcohol drinking |
| C．the Puritans’ bad reputation in America |
| D．the reasons why Prohibition came into law |
Gregory Kloehn digs through dustbins every day, but not for the reason that most people would think．He isn’t homeless．In fact he is trying to help the homeless.
Gregory began his life as a sculptor．But he often felt that his sculptures, which just stood in rich people’s houses for years, lacked a meaningful purpose．So in 201l he decided to put his artistic energies into creating homes to sell—not ordinary homes but small structures built entirely from recycled materials.
The thought of creating homes for the homeless didn’t occur to him until the year 2013, when a homeless couple asked him for a tarp(防水布)．Instead of a tarp, Gregory offered them something better: a small home with a water tank, a kitchen and a trap for waste．They were so grateful that Gregory decided to focus his efforts on helping house the homeless population in his city．And soon his “Homeless Homes Project” was started.
Before starting a new home, Gregory, goes hunting for materials by digging through dustbins．Everything he finds is usable—refrigerator doors become house doors; washing machine doors often serve as windows, and the tops of cars become strong roofs．He put wheels at the bottom for users to move their homes around easily．Each home takes two to three days to make．
So far Gregory has donated dozens of homes to the city’s most needy．While his small low-cost mobile homes are not the final solution to the problem of homelessness, they are really practical and do provide a warm and safe place for the homeless to stay in．They are simply a way for one man to do something nice for those in need of some help.
Gregory has written a book titled Homeless Architecture, where he explains techniques to build those homes and he is now working on weekend workshops．“A lot of people who hear about what I’m doing want to get involved,” he said． “Maybe we can meet someplace and put a couple of homes together.”Why did Gregory turn from making sculptures to creating homes?
| A．He had no home to live in． |
| B．He had to make more money. |
| C．He lost interest in sculpture. |
| D．He wanted to help the homeless. |
The author mentions the story in Paragraph 3 to tell us____________.
| A．Gregory’s small homes were popular among the homeless |
| B．how Gregory got the idea of “Homeless Homes Project” |
| C．the homeless couple asked Gregory to produce more homes |
| D．housing the homeless in a city was not an easy task |
What can we conclude from Paragraph 4?
| A．Gregory has great trouble hunting for materials for his small houses． |
| B．It takes Gregory a long time to produce a home． |
| C．Gregory’s work requires imagination and creativity |
| D．Everything in the dustbins will be used in Gregory’s work． |
What can we infer from the last paragraph?
| A．Gregory’s project will help more homeless people. |
| B．Gregory doesn’t need to make small homes now． |
| C．Gregory’s work will completely solve the homelessness problem． |
| D．A single person can make no difference to social problems． |
Nanjing and Hangzhou summer camps offered
We are looking for hard-working and open-minded English teachers to join the Nanjing ( Jiangsu Province) and Hangzhou ( Zhejiang Province) summer camps !
Both of the summer camps will run from the beginning of July to the end of August．You will be expected to teach spoken English to Chinese students of different ages．We encourage you to bring your own culture to the classes to make things more interesting.
The information of the Nanjing camp:
● Working hours: 40 hours per week, 5 working days per week.
● Salary: about 7, 000 RMB per month.
● Accommodation: free (single room).
The information of the Hangzhou camp:
● Working hours: 5 hours per day ( =" 50" min./class x 6 classes), one day rest per week.
● Salary: 20,160 RMB in total (420 RMB per day =" 70" RMB/class x 6 classes).
● Accommodation: free (shared room).
The requirements of the summer camps:
● Native English speakers (US, England, Canada, Australia, New Zealand).
● A university degree.
● Teaching experience.
Please send us your resume (简历), copies of certificates and passport if you are interested in the camps.
E-mail: teacher1324@ sinA． com．cn
For more information you can visit our website at http://www．English summer camps.com．cn.Look forward to hearing from you soon!What kind of people is the passage mainly written for?
| A．Chinese-English teachers． |
| B．Foreign-English teachers. |
| C．Chinese-speaking students． |
| D．English-learning students. |
How long will a teacher work for the summer campsa?
| A．Less than one month． |
| B．About five weeks. |
| C．About eight weeks． |
| D．More than two months. |
Which of the following people might be accepted as a teacher at the summer camps?
A． Wang Li, an excellent teacher from China.
B． Robert, a high school student from the USA.
C． Linda, an experienced university teacher from Canada.
D． Jerry, a university student from Australia.Compared with the Nanjing camp, the Hangzhou camp __________.
| A．has longer working hours |
| B．has fewer students to teach |
| C．provides better accommodation |
| D．pays a higher salary |