A town in Oxfordshire has become the first in the UK to have biomethane（生物甲烷）gas from human waste piped to their homes for gas central heating and cooking.
Up to 200 families in Didcot now receive the gas via the national gas power system. Head of energy and technology at British Gas, Martin Orrill, said customers wouldn’t notice any difference as the gas is purified（提炼）to the highest standard and has no smell. The gas is produced at a sewage（污物）treatment works plant in Didcot.
The entire process takes only less than three weeks, with the sewage being collected and sent first to settlement tanks. The solid waste material is then fed into digesters, where anaerobic bacteria（厌氧菌）digest the sewage, with the aid of enzymes（酶）to speed up the process. The digestion process produces methane, which can be burned to drive machines to produce electricity, or can be purified and fed into the gas network and piped to homes and businesses. British Gas says supplying the gas rather than electricity is far more efficient since around two-thirds of the energy is lost in producing electricity.
Partners in the Didcot project, British Gas, Scotia Gas Networks, and Thames Water, all hope to expand the process to other towns, and other companies such as Ecotricity and United Utilities have also announced biomethane projects being planned. One of these projects, in Manchester, could be supplying 500 homes with biomethane by mid next year. Another British Gas project in Suffolk will provide gas from digestion of brewery wastes to around 235 families.
The Didcot project cost ￡2.5m and was influenced by promises of government aids aimed at encouraging companies to develop renewable technologies. An EU directive means the UK must ensure at least 15 percent of its energy is from renewable sources by 2020.
The UK produces about 1.73 million tons of sewage annually. If all sewage treatment works in the UK were fitted with the technology, they could supply gas for up to 350,000 families.Which of the following is true of the biomethane gas?
| A．It’s mainly made from rotting plants. |
| B．It’s an environmentally friendly gas. |
| C．Its production process is too long. |
| D．It’s easily recognized by the customers. |
What is the function of the enzymes?
| A．To digest the solid waste material. |
| B．To help get rid of anaerobic bacteria. |
| C．To help purify the biomethane. |
| D．To speed up the digestion process. |
According to British Gas, the biomethane gas had better be used _____.
| A．as the power for the vehicles |
| B．for the heating and cooking |
| C．to produce the electricity |
| D．to drive a variety of machines |
The last three paragraphs mainly show that _____.
| A．UK government supports the biome thane projects |
| B．the biome thane projects are very costly |
| C．the biome thane projects still face many barriers |
| D．the biome thane projects are promising |
What should the text belong to?
| A．Computer science. | B．Engineering. | C．Energy. | D．Business. |
One day last summer, watching the boys and girls trying to catch butterflies I remembered something happened when I was young．When I was a boy of 12 in South Carolina, something happened to me that cured me forever of wanting to put any wild creature in a cage.
We lived on the edge of a wood, and every evening at dusk the mockingbirds would come and rest in the trees and sing. No musician can sing more beautiful than the birds. I decided that I would catch a young bird and keep it in a cage and in that way would have my own private musician.
I finally succeeded in catching one and put it in a cage. At first, the bird flied about the cage, but eventually it settled down in its new home. I felt very pleased with myself and looked forward to some beautiful singing from my tiny musician.
I had left the cage out, and on the second day my new pet’s mother flew to the cage with food in her mouth. The baby bird ate everything she brought to it. I was pleased to see this. Certainly the mother knew better than I how to feed her baby.
The following morning when I went to see how my bird was doing, I discovered it on the floor of the cage, dead. I was shocked! What had happened! I had taken good care of my little bird.
Arthur Wayne, the famous ornithologist, happened to be visiting my father at the time, hearing me crying over the death of my bird, explained what had occurred. “A mother mockingbird, finding her young in a cage, will sometimes bring it poison berries. She thinks it better for her young to die than to live in cage.”
Never since then have I caught any living creature and put it in a cage. All living creatures have a right to live free.Why did the writer catch a mockingbird when he was a boy of 12?
| A．He had just got a new cage. |
| B．He liked its beautiful feather. |
| C．He wanted a pet for a companion. |
| D．He wanted it to sing for him. |
The mockingbird died because it ______.
| A．drank the poisonous water by mistake |
| B．was frightened to death |
| C．refused to eat anything |
| D．ate the poisonous food its mother gave it |
An ornithologist probably means ______.
| A．a religious person | B．a kind person |
| C．an expert in birds | D．a schoolmaster |
What is the most important lesson the writer learned from the incident?
| A．Freedom is very valuable to all living things. |
| B．All birds put in a cage won’t live long. |
| C．You should keep the birds from their mother. |
| D．Be careful about food you give to baby birds. |
Long long ago, there was a man who was good at shooting arrows．He asked the king to declare him as the greatest archer（射手） of the country．The king was about to do so when an old servant of the king said，“Wait，sir．I know an old man who lives in the forest．He is a much greater archer．Let this young man go to him and learn from him for at least three years．”
The man could not believe what the servant said，but he went and found the old man and he was! For three years he learned from him．Then one day，when he thought he had learned everything，the thought arose in him：“If I kill this old man，then I will be the greatest archer．”
The old man had gone to cut wood and he was coming back carrying wood on his shoulder．The young man hid behind a tree，waiting to kill him．He shot an arrow．The old man took a small piece of wood and threw it．It struck the arrow and the arrow turned back and wounded the young man very deeply．The old man came，took out the arrow and said。“I knew that some day or other you were going to do this．That’s why I have not taught you this secret．There is no need to kill me．My Master is still alive，and I’m nothing before him．You must be with him for at least thirty years．And he is very old，so go fast! Find the old man!”The young archer wanted to kill the old man because_______.
| A．he could then become the greatest archer |
| B．he had nothing more to learn from him |
| C．the old man refused to teach him everything |
| D．the king’s old servant ordered him to do SO |
What do you think would most probably happen next?
| A．The young archer died from the wound soon after． |
| B．The king declared the young man the greatest archer． |
| C．The young archer found the old man’s master and killed him． |
| D．The young archer set off to look for the old man’s master． |
What lesson can you learn from the story?
| A．Always use a piece of wood to protect yourself from an arrow． |
| B．You must never try to become better than your teacher． |
| C．The older a man is，the better archer he usually becomes． |
| D．There’s always someone better than you in this world． |
GU Zhaodi, 60, had taken water for granted for years. In fact, no one in the beautiful lake city of Wuxi, Jiangsu Province had bothered to spare a thought on water.
But all that changed dramatically overnight last month when taps in the city ran dry. Due to a blue-green algae(藻类) outbreak in Taihu Lake, China’s third largest freshwater lake and the source of drinking water for 4 million Wuxi residents(居民), water from the city’s taps became dark and smelly.
“I can’t believe there is no water for drinking, let alone cooking and washing,”said Ｇu.
The lake was blanketed with the algae, giving off a strong smell of rotting meat. A stone thrown into it took a long time to sink. Experts said that algae usually boom because of hot water and rich chemicals like phosphor(磷)in the water.
“High temperature and a lack of rain in the past few months helped the growth of algae,”said Zhang Lijun, an official from the State Environment Protection Administration. “However, pollution from human activity should be most blamed for the disaster.”
Taihu Lake is surrounded by many small factories, whichsprang up in the 1980s.Inthe 1990s,many foreign-funded(外资的) companies joined in. The industries prospered(繁荣)，Wuxi has grown into one of the wealthiest cities in East China.
But that came at the price of pollution. The lake was treated like a waste dump(垃圾堆)，with factories emptying industrial waste and untreated sewage(污水)into it.
Although, after the government's effort, life in the city has gone back to normal, the one-week crisis（危机）rang a bell for the government and local people.“It's time to rebuild the beauty of nature, or our lives will be at risk,”said Gu.
“A safe environment comes first. Economic growth will be nothing without fresh water to drink and clean air to breathe.” said China Daily.The following can help the blue green algae grow______
| A．high water temperature |
| B．rich chemicals in the water |
| C．a lack of rain |
| D．plentiful water and sunshine |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．The one-week disaster has made the local people realize the importance of building a beautiful city. |
| B．It is human activity rather than the algae that is to blame for the water pollution. |
| C．Only when the environment is safe and friendly can man live a better and healthier life. |
| D．Environment should be taken into consideration first if a city plans to develop its economic. |
Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
| A．Who is to blame, man or algae? |
| B．Water turned off |
| C．Water pollution troubled Wuxi |
| D．Algae threatened Taihu Lake |
According to the passage ,Taihu Lake________
| A．is the third largest lake in China. |
| B．is surrounded by many foreign-funded factories and companies. |
| C．used to be a waste dump. |
| D．suffered from industrial waste，untreated sewage and algae. |
The underlined phrase “sprang up” in the sixth paragraph means______
| A．develop quickly | B．produce goods quickly |
| C．come to life | D．grow up |
A traveller was staying in an Egyptian village. One day, she held up her camera to take pictures of the children. Suddenly the young ones began to shout at her. The traveller's face turned red and she apologized to the head for what she was doing, and told him she had forgotten that people in some places believed a person would lose his soul(灵魂) if his picture was taken. She explained to him the operation of a camera for a long time. Several times the head tried to say something, but he couldn't. When she believed that the head didn't fear any longer, the traveller then let him speak. With a smile, he said, "The children were trying to tell you that you forgot to take off the lens(镜头) cap!" The children shouted when the traveller was taking pictures of them because ______.
| A．they didn't want to stop playing |
| B．the traveller forgot to take off the cap on her head |
| C．they didn't want to have their pictures taken |
| D．the traveller was not doing well with her camera |
The traveller made an apology to (向……道歉) the head because _______.
| A．she thought it was not right to take people's pictures without telling them beforehand(事先) |
| B．the children would lose their souls |
| C．she had stayed in the village too long |
| D．she didn't take a picture of the head first |
The traveller explained how to use a camera to the head because _______.
| A．the head was very interested in her camera |
| B．the head wanted to learn to take pictures |
| C．she was afraid of the head |
| D．she wanted the head not to worry about what she was doing |
When the head smiled, it's clear that _______ .
| A．the children wanted to play with her |
| B．the traveller didn't know what the children meant |
| C．he wanted the traveller to tell him something else |
| D．the traveller didn't let him speak |
Which of the following is NOT right?
| A．The traveller knew something about people in some countries. |
| B．The children wouldn't mind if the traveller took pictures of them. |
| C．The head was afraid that the traveller's camera would hurt the children. |
| D．The traveller didn't understand why the children shouted. |
City buses are white and blue. Please board at the front door and pay the fare as you get on. The fare per ride is $1.50 for adults and $1.00 for senior citizens. The fare may be paid by cash, bus pass or multiple passes. Please pay the exact amount directly into the slot at the top of the fare box. Remember that bills are not accepted and drivers cannot make change for riders.
When you wish to get off the bus, please notify the driver in advance by pressing one of the buttons provided throughout the bus for this purpose. The bus may pass bus stops without stopping if no one is getting off or waiting to get on.
There are five subway lines in the city. The fare is set at five rates from $2.00 to $3.50 according to the number of predetermined “price zones” traveled. To purchase the appropriate ticket, please check the fare on the boards installed above the ticket-selling machines in each subway station.
Pass through the automated ticket gates by inserting the ticket into the slot. When getting off the subway at a station beyond the validity of the ticket, pay the additional fare at a fare-adjustment machine. What is the lowest cost of a subway ride for an adult?
| A．$1.00. | B．$1.50 . | C．$2.00. | D．$3.50. |
How can a rider determine the fare of a subway ride?
| A．It is automatically determined. |
| B．It is always $2.00 |
| C．Fare-adjustment machines determine the fare. |
| D．All fares are posted. |
Bus riders can NOT use _________.
| A．change | B．bills | C．a bus pass | D．a multiple pass |
According to the information, all bus riders should _________.
| A．exit from the back door |
| B．let the driver know in advance if they want to get off |
| C．ask the driver for chang. |
| D．pay according to a “price zone” |
This text mainly tells us _________.
| A．how to use city buses and subways |
| B．how convenient city buses and subways are |
| C．how to pay the fare for city buses and subways |
| D．how well city buses and subways are equipped |