B
Expressions about water are mostly as common as water itself.
The expression “to be in hot water” is one of them. It is a very old expression. Hot water was used five hundred years ago to mean being in trouble. One story says it got that meaning from the custom of throwing extremely hot water down on enemies attacking a castle. That no longer happens. But we still get “in hot water”. When we are in hot water, we are in trouble. It can be any kind of trouble, serious or not so serious. A person who breaks a law can be in hot water with the police. A young boy can be in hot water with his mother if he walks in the house with dirty shoes.
“Being in deep water” is somewhat like being in hot water. When you are in deep water, you are in a difficult position. Imagine a person who can not swim being thrown in water over his head. You are in deep water when you are facing a problem that you don’t have the ability to solve. You can be in deep water, for example, if you invest in stocks without knowing anything about the stock market.
“To keep your head above water” is a colorful expression that means staying out of debt. A company seeks to keep its head above water during economic hard times. A man who loses his job tries to keep his head above water until he finds a new job.
“Water over the dam” is another expression about past events. It is something that is finished, and cannot be changed. The expression comes from the idea that water has floated over a dam and cannot be brought back again. When a friend is troubled by a mistake he or she has made, you might tell him or her to forget about it. You say it is water over the dam.
Another common expression “to hold water” is about the strength or weakness of an idea or opinion that you may be arguing about . It probably comes from a way of testing the condition of a container. If it can hold water, it is strong and does not have any holes; if it does not hold water, then, it is weak and not worth debating.
“Throwing cold water” also is an expression that deals with ideas or proposals. For example, you want to buy a new car because the old one has some problems, but your wife throws cold water on the idea because she says a new car costs too much.
60. Don’t cheat in this exam! Or you’ll if you are caught cheating by the teacher.
A. be in hot wate B. have to hold water
C . be in deep water D. keep your head above water
61.The expression using water in Paragraph has almost the same meaning as “Things done cannot be undone.”
A. 3 B. 4 C . 5 D. 6
62. We can see from this passage that many of the expressions using water have meanings.
A. double B. unpleasant C . close D. moral
63.The best title for this passage should be .
A. The history of water B. Cold water or hot water
C . Water and it culture D. Expressions concerning water
An enjoyable trip
On October 28th, we began our exciting trip to the world-famous sand island—Fraser Island, which is said to be the world largest sand island and it is one of the world cultural heritages (遗产). We were really amazed by the spectacular view there.
The road to the island is really tough and bumpy. The bus driver, who was also our guide was a very strong man. He was optimistic (乐观的) and helpful. I found he was all smiling on the way though the ride was not very smooth. We stopped for several times because the cars in front of us were blocked by sand. The road was completely sand about 50 centimeters high. We were thrown back and forth like taking a rollercoaster (过山车). All of us couldn’t help laughing when we were shaken from side to side. It took us more than an hour to arrive there. I guess this road is one of the most impressive things.
The beach is so wonderful and terrific! This was my first visit to the seaside. The broad sea made me speechless. We were really thrilled by the amazing view. We couldn’t stop taking so many pictures. The bus ran along the beach with the sea water on one side and bushes on the other side. The view outside the bus was really fantastic! The driver told us there were dingoes (野犬) in the bush. When we were sitting on the bus, we kept on searching the faraway bush for a dingo. Unfortunately, we didn’t see one.
The lake is the next destination we went to. This lake which is ringed by white sand beaches lies peacefully on the hill, which is 18 meters above the sea level. The crystal clear water from the rainfall is sparkling (闪光). Male students jumped into the lake without taking off the clothes. They played with water like small children. Nowhere else in the world can you find such a wonderful fairly land.
The forest is the last place we visited. Those towering rainforests grow on sands. There are many varieties of species. Some trees are so tall and have a history of 500 years. Some gum trees are quite strange because their barks (树皮) fall. The driver told us that this was because they wanted to protect themselves from worms or fires. This forest is home to many animals. We could hear bird singing when we were walking in the shade from the trees.
The tour to Fraser Island makes a deep impression on us. It provides us magnificent views. It is well worth a visit. 
For more than twenty years scientists have been searching for signs of life on other planets. Most of these searches have been done over the radio. The hope is that someone in outer space may be trying to get in touch with us. Scientists also have sent radio and television messages on spaceships traveling through space, on the chance that someone may be receptive to such messages.
Scientists are using powerful radio telescopes to listen to signals from about 1,000 stars, all within 100 light years of earth. In addition, they will scan the entire sky to “listen” for radio messages from more distant stars. Using a computer, they will be able to monitor more than eight channels at one time. Scientists are looking for any signal that stands out from the background noise.
Of the 200 billion stars in the Milky Way galaxy (银河星系), scientists find that 5% are like our sun. Perhaps half of them have a planet like earth. Such a planet would be a reasonable distance from the star for temperatures to be right for the evolution (进化) of life. Based on the inhabitable (that can be lived in) planets in our galaxy, most scientists agree that chances are likely that one or more of these planets support some life.
However, many scientists wonder whether intelligent (智能的) life exists on other planets. Some believe that twenty years of searching without any intelligible messages shows that no one is out there. They say that the evolution of intelligence comparable to ours is unlikely.
Other scientists believe that our search hasn’t been long enough to rule out the possibility that intelligent life exists in our galaxy. Although our sun family is only about five billion years old, our galaxy is about 20 billion years old. In that time, some scientists think it is likely that civilization much more advanced than ours have developed. Perhaps these civilizations send us no signals; perhaps we have not recognized the signals they have sent us. If we hope to find intelligent life, these scientists believe that we have to keep looking. According to the passage, how many planets in our galaxy might be inhabitable?
| A．5 billion． | B．10 billion. | C．15 billion. | D．200 billion |
The first paragraph in this passage is mainly about ________ .
| A．how scientists are looking for signs of life on other planets |
| B．why scientists are looking for signs of life on other planets |
| C．where scientists are looking for signs of life on other planets |
| D．when scientists are looking for signs of life on other planets |
Which of these statements is True based on the information in the passage?
| A．The earth is one of the oldest planets in our galaxy. |
| B．Most scientists believe that there is intelligent life on other planets. |
| C．Scientists don’t believe that there might be life on other planets. |
| D．Scientists are trying different ways to find signs of life on other planets. |
BUKHANNON, West Virginia—Two rescue teams slowly moved along a two-mile path on Monday night to the site of a coal mine (矿) explosion that trapped 13 miners, who had not been heard from since the early morning accident.
Meanwhile, at a nearby church, more than 250 family members and friends gathered, waiting for updates (最新报道) on the rescuers’ progress.
The miners were trapped at about 6:30 and many families weren’t informed of the accident until about 10 a.m.—more than three hours after it happened. “It’s very upsetting, but you’ve got to be patient, I guess,” said John Helms, whose brother, Terry, was trapped in the mine.
The trapped miners were about 260 feet underground and about 10,000 feet from the Sago Mine’s entrance, said Roger Nicholson, general counsel from International Coal Group.
At a late night news conference, Nicholson said one team had advanced about 4,800 feet in the four hours since entering the mine just before 6 p.m. Another team entered the mine about 30 minutes later.
He said the crew was very experienced, with some members having worked underground for 30 to 35 years. The miners were equipped with about one hour of breathable oxygen (氧气) each. The company has not released the names of the miners.
The teams test the air about every 500 feet, and have to remove the power to the phones they use to communicate with the surface before doing that. “We don’t want to be energizing (通电) anything if it’s in an atmosphere with burnable gases,” Kips said. The cause of the explosion was not immediately known. High levels of carbon monoxide (一氧化碳) were detected shortly after the explosion, which delayed rescue efforts, but those levels have since subsided (减退), authorities said. According to the passage, we can infer that ________.
| A．all the miners who were trapped underground were still alive |
| B．communication with the trapped miners was cut off |
| C．the two rescue teams entered the mine at the same time |
| D．the rescue started as soon as the accident happened |
If the first team advanced at an average speed, they could dig about ________ per hour.
| A．1,000 feet | B．2,400 feet | C．1,200 feet | D．4,800 feet |
Which of the following shows the position where the miners were trapped?
Where can the passage be seen?
| A．In a magazine. | B．In a newspaper. | C．In a science book. | D．On an advertisement. |
Habits, whether good or bad, are gradually formed. When a person does a certain thing again, he is driven by some unseen force to do the same thing repeatedly, then a habit is formed. Once a habit is formed, it is difficult, and sometimes impossible, to get rid of. It is therefore so important that we should pay great attention to the formation of habits. Children often form bad habits, some of which remain with them as long as they live. Older persons also form bad habits lasting as long as they live, and sometimes become ruined by bad habits.
There are other habits which, when formed in early life, are of great help. Many successful men say that much of their success has something to do with certain habits in early life, such as early rising, honesty and so on.
Among the habits which children should not form are laziness, lying, stealing and so on. These are all easily formed habits. Unfortunately older persons often form habits which could have been avoided.
We should keep away from all these bad habits, and try to form such habits as will be good for ourselves and others. are formed little by little.
| A．Only good habits | B．Only bad habits |
| C．Both good habits and bad habits | D．Either good habits or bad habits |
The underlined word “them” in the first paragraph refers to .
| A．bad habits | B．good habits | C．children | D．other persons |
Why should we pay much attention to the formation of habits?
| A．Because habits are of great help to every one of us. |
| B．Because a man can never get rid of a habit. |
| C．Because it’s hard and sometimes even impossible to throw away bad habits. |
| D．Because we are forced to do them again and again. |
According to the passage, early rising .
| A．has something to do with success | B．is an easily formed habit |
| C．is such a habit as should have been avoided | D．is such a beneficial habit as will be kept |
I still remember the day when my mom said, “Let’s get you some new clothes.” You can imagine that to any little girl that would mean the world, but to me it meant the universe, because we were not very rich. After she said that, all I could think about was what kinds of clothes I would choose. To my surprise, my mom allowed me to pick out three dresses: a pink one, a blue one and a yellow one. The yellow one was my favorite.
I had a best friend named Seema, whose family was even poorer than ours. We played and studied together, and spent the best days of our childhood laughing at the silly stories we made up. I was excited to show her my three beautiful new dresses. She loved them all and was happy for me, but tearfully explained to me that her father could only afford to buy her clothes for her birthday. I felt sorry, and then did something that surprised even myself: I asked her to pick out one of my dresses for herself. To my disappointment, she picked up my favorite—the yellow one. Please remember, I was only seven years. My heart almost popped out (跳出) of my chest. But as she held it against her body, and I saw how brightly she smiled, I stopped feeling any hurt. I told her it looked lovely on her.
I’ll always remember Seema’s smile, and how at that moment nothing mattered more. When you value your friendships, nothing else matters! We’re still best friends today.Why did the new clothes mean the universe to the author?
| A．She loved dressing up more than anything else. |
| B．She thought they would make her more beautiful. |
| C．Her family was poor, and new clothes were very rare. |
| D．Her mother only bought her new clothes for her birthday. |
The author let Seema pick out one of her dresses because she wanted to _______.
| A．show her pity for Seema’s family | B．show off her family’s wealth |
| C．make Seema become her best friend | D．exchange it with Seema’s dress |
When Seema chose the yellow dress, the author was disappointed because ________.
| A．she was not generous | B．she didn’t expert to lose her favorite dress |
| C．Seema chose her favorite dress on purpose | D．Seema was careless about her feelings |
What can we conclude from the passage?
| A．Getting a best friend means losing other things. | B．Being generous is not easy. |
| C．Children like sharing their favorite things. | D．Friendship is precious (珍贵的). |