April Fool’s Day（愚人节）, was a day of laughing and jokes. This day is kept in many countries, not only in Britain and the USA. This is a day to play jokes and make people laugh. Nobody knows when was the beginning of this custom. Some people connect it with the end of winter and the return of spring which make people merry and ready to play jokes.
In Scotland young people were sent for hen’s teeth or bird’s milk and everybody laughed when they could find such things. In the USA and Britain some people could place a sign on a person’s back with the words “push me!” Children often tell a grown-up that his sock is torn or he has something black on his face, and then shout “April Fool!” There is also the old purse（钱包） trick. A purse is left lying in the street, but when someone wants to take it, it is quickly pulled back by a string which the hidden joker holds in his hand. Or the purse may be filled with stones. Sometimes invitations are sent to people, asking them to come and visit somebody, but when they come they see that nobody expects them. Some people like to telephone to the zoo on the day and ask for Mr. Fish, Miss Fox or Mrs. Cat. All these jokes are very old but still they make people laugh. ____________knows when the custom of April Fool’s Day started．
| A．One | B．Anyone | C．Nobody | D．Someone |
Many tricks are played on April Fool’s day except ____ ．
| A．phoning the zoo | B．placing a sign on someone’s back |
| C．playing cards | D．leaving a purse in the street |
The purpose of playing jokes is to _____ ．
| A．for fun | B．make people laugh |
| C．make fool of oneself | D．fool someone |
The best title of the passage is ____ ．
| A．How people in the west spend their April Fool’s Day |
| B．Customs are different |
| C．How British people celebrate their holidays |
| D．How April Fool’s Day comes about |
Besides containing attractive flowers, trees and other plants that beautify the community, eco-friendly rain gardens are healthy for the environment and the people living and working nearby.
A rain garden is not very different from a traditional garden. It is just a far more eco-friendly garden. Usually it is built lower than the ground. Rain gardens make smart use of rain and storm water by temporarily holding water from rain and storms and letting it soak slowly into the ground before it runs into streams or enters the public drinking water supply.
Thus, a rain garden keeps the water, allowing it to be used as needed by plants in the rain garden, rat
her than flowing immediately into nearby streams and going unused. The water will soak slowly into the ground within a day or two. This creates an advantage that the rain garden does not allow mosquitoes to breed. This is a simple, attractive, and eco-friendly “green” way to treat storm water.
What’s more, planting a rain garden helps reduce pollution and improve the environment. Without using expensive machinery and chemicals, rain gardens remove harmful chemicals in the rainwater and cut down on the amount of pollution reaching streams and rivers by up to 30%.
Native plants are recommended for rain gardens because they are more used to the local climate, soil, and water conditions. They may attract local wildlife such as native birds. Water your rain garden immediately after planting and once a week, unless you have had at least an inch of rain during the week. Once the native plants establish the necessary root system, it will require little care.
Often, local governments and private businesses develop large rain gardens in their yards and in public parks as a way to improve the environment and solve flooding problems. However, you don’t need to be a professional environmental engineer to create a rain garden. As long as you’re eco-conscious homeowners, you can help the environment by building smaller rain gardens in your yards. Which of the following is the eco-friendly function of rain gardens discussed in Paragraph 4?
| A．They can keep the rain and storm water. |
| B．They can help reduce the pollution problem. |
| C．They can be healthy for the people around. |
| D．They can make the environment more beautiful. |
One of the main reasons why native plants are recommended is that ______.
| A．they cost less and are much easier to get |
| B．they may attract local wildlife to come |
| C．they require little care from the local gardeners |
| D．they are more used to the local growing conditions. |
We can infer from the passage that after native plants are planted, rain gardens ______.
| A．need little water |
| B．need little care |
| C．need to be watered every day |
| D．needn’t be watered if there is at least an inch of rainwater per week |
A recent study of ancient and modern elephants has come up with the unexpected conclusion that the African elephant is divided into two distinct (不同的) species
The discovery was made by researchers at York and Harvard universities when they were examining the genetic relationship between the ancient woolly mammoth and mastodon to modern elephants—the Asian elephant, African forest elephant and African savanna elephant
Once they obtained DNA sequences (序列) from two fossils (化石)，mammoths and mastodons， the team compared them with DNA from modern elephants. They found to their amazement that modern forest and savanna elephants are as distinct from each other as Asian elephants and mammoths.
The scientists used detailed genetic analysis to prove that the African savanna elephants and the African forest elephants have been distinct spec
ies for several million years. The divergence of the two species took place around the time of the divergence of Asian elephants and woolly mammoths. This result amazed all the scientists.
There has long been debate in the scientific community that the two might be separate species but this is the most convincing scientific evidence so far that they are indeed different species.
Previously, many naturalists believed that African savanna elephants and African forest elephants were two populations of the same species despite the elephants’ significant size differences. The savanna elephant has an average shoulder height of 3.5metres while the forest elephant has an average shoulder height of 2.5metres. The savanna elephant weighs between six and seven tons, roughly double the weight of the forest elephant. But the fact that they look so different does not necessarily mean they are different species. However, the proof lay in the analysis of the DNA.
Alfred Roca, assistant professor in the department of Animal Sciences at the University of Minois, said, “We now have to treat the forest and savanna elephants as two different units for conservation purpose. Since 1950 all African elephants have been conserved as one species. Now that we know the forest and savanna elephants are two very distinct animals, the forest elephant should become a bigger priority (优先)for conservation purpose .”One of the fossils studied by the researchers is that of ________.
| A．the Asian elephant | B．the forest elephant |
| C．the savanna elephant | D．the mastodon elephant |
The underlined word “divergence” in paragraph 4means “________”
| A．evolution | B．exhibition | C．separation | D．examination |
The researcher’s conclusion was based on a study of the African elephant’s _____
| A．DNA | B．height | C．weight | D．population |
What were Alfred Roca’s words mainly about?
| A．The conservation of African elephants. |
| B．The purpose of studying African elephants |
| C．The way to divide African elephants into two units |
| D．The reason for the distinction of African elephants |
Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?
| A．Naturalist’s Belief about Elephants. |
| B．Amazing Experiment about Elephants |
| C．An Unexpected Finding about Elephants |
| D．A Long scientific Debate about Elephants |
Baths have long been considered of medical importance to man. In Greece there are the ruins of a water system for baths built over 3,000 years ago. The Romans had warm public baths. In some baths, as many 3,000 persons could bathe at the same time.
Treating disease by taking bathing has been popular for centuries. Modern medical bathing first became popular in Europe and by the late 1700’s h
as also become popular in the United States.
For many years frequent bathing was believed to be bad for one’s health. Or
dinary bathing just to keep clean was avoided, and perfume was often used to cover up body smells!
By the 1700’s doctors began to say that soap and water were good for health. They believed that it was good for people to be clean. Slowly, people began to bathe more frequently. During the Victorian Age of the late 19th century, taking a bath on Saturday night became com
on.
In the United States ordinary bathing was slow to become popular. During the 18th and early 19th centuries, many Americans were known as “The Great Unwashed!” In one American city , for example, a person was only allowed to take a bath every thirty days! That was a law!
Frequency of bathing today is partly a matter of habit. People know that bathing for cleanliness is important to health, Doctors know that dirty bodies increase the chance of diseases. As a result, in the United States, people generally bathe often. Some people bathe once a day at least. They consider a daily bath essential to good health.A water system for baths was built by _______ over 3,000 years ago.
| A．the Romans | B．the Greeks |
| C．the Americans | D．the Europeans |
Dirty bodies can ______ .
| A．ruin one’s business | B．cause disease |
| C．drive customers away | D．cause good health |
In the 18th century doctors believed that being clean was .
| A．unimportant | B．good for health | C．harmful | D．important |
The underlined word perfume probably means .
| A．a sweet smelling substance | B．good health |
| C．a strange smelling substance | D．large wealth |
Which of the following gives the main idea of the passage?
| A．Everybody in America takes a daily bath. |
| B．We should often take baths |
| C．Taking baths has become popular in the world. |
| D．Bathing has become easier and cheaper. |
A 33-year-old financial analyst in California recently quit his job to devote himself to an unpaid job teaching math on the Internet, and his lessons are reaching almost 100,000 people a month. Salman Khan’s voice is heard every day on the net --- by tens of thousands of students around the world who are hungry for help learning math. He has posted 1,200 lessons on YouTube ... lessons that appear on an electronic blackboard, which range from basic addition to advanced mathematics for science and finance. And they are free.
Khan lives in Silicon Valley, with his
wife, a doctor, and their new baby. He got the idea for his “Khan Academy” four years ago, when he taught a young cousin how to convert kilograms to grams. With Khan’s help, the cousin got good at math, and Khan began a new career.
Now, Khan records his lessons himself, but he never goes on camera. “It feels like my voice in their head. You’re looking at it and it feels like someone’s over your shoulder talking in your ear, as opposed to someone at the blackboard, which is distant from you,” he said.
When Springfield High School in Palo Alto, California invited Khan to speak in person --- he immediately connected to the students there.
The idea of short lessons that can be played over and over again attracted high school senior Bridget Meaney. She says she had trouble with math in the seventh grade. “I think the teachers are good, but they can’t teach at a speed that’s perfect for everyone,” she said. “I like the idea of learning something in class but then going back and pressing pause or rewind and actually getting a deeper understanding of it.”
Originally, Khan kept his lessons short because of YouTube restrictions. Now, he thinks short is better. “Education researchersnow tell me that 10 minutes is how long someone can have a high level of concentration. And anything beyond that and your brain switches off,” he said.
For Khan, teaching math, science, and finance is just the beginning. He says he’s ready to expand his YouTube site to include other subjects as well.What gave Khan the idea of teaching math online?
| A．His success in helping his cousin learn math. |
| B．His discovery that many students found learning math difficult. |
| C．A suggestion made to him at a local high school. |
| D．His interest in Internet teaching. |
Why does Khan never go on camera?
| A．He’s too shy to show his face on camera. |
| B．It’s restricted by YouTube for education videos. |
| C．He wants to keep distance from the viewers. |
| D．He wants to create a more relaxed learning atmosphere. |
From the passage, we know that ________.
| A．Khan travels to many schools to promote his lessons |
| B．Khan plans to include more subjects in the future |
| C．Khan gives live math lessons every day for free |
| D．Khan set up the Khan Academy with his wife |
Why does Bridget Meaney like Khan’s les
sons?
| A．Khan teaches seventh grade math better than her teacher. |
| B．The lessons can be watched repeatedly until fully understood. |
| C．She can perfectly follow the pace of Khan’s teaching. |
| D．She cannot concentrate when learning in class. |
What does Khan mean by “short is better” in the 6th paragraph?
| A．Keeping the lessons short can ensure better concentration. |
| B．YouTube recommends short lessons for its site. |
| C．Short lessons encourage students to return to the website. |
| D．Students enjoy short mathematics lessons more. |
Food sometimes gets poisoned with harmful things. A person who eats such food can get an illness called food poisoning. Food poisoning is usually not serious, but some types are deadly. The symptoms of food poisoning usually begin within hours of eating the poisoned food. Fever is one of the most common symptoms.
Certain microorganisms（微生物）cause most types of food poisoning. Bacteria and other microorganisms can poison eggs, meat, vegetables, and many other foods. 
After entering the body, these tiny living things release（释放）poisons that make people sick.
Some chemicals can also cause food poisoning. They are often added to food while it is being grown, processed, or prepared. For example, many farmers spray chemicals on crops to kill weeds and insects. Some people may have a bad reaction to those chemicals when they eat the crops.
Some plants and animals contain natural poisons that are harmful to people. These include certain kinds of seafood, grains, nuts, seeds, beans, and mushrooms.
When people handle food properly, the risk of food poisoning is very small. Microorganisms multiply rapidly in dirty places and in warm temperatures. This means that people should never touch food with dirty hands or put food on unwashed surfaces. Food should be kept in a refrigerator to stop microorganisms from growing. Meat needs to be cooked thoroughly to kill any dangerous microorganisms. People should also wash food covered with chemicals before eating it. Finally, people should not eat wild mushrooms or other foods that grow in the wild. Some of these foods may contain natural materials that are poisonous to humans. In addition, some types of fish can be poisonous.
Most people recover from food poisoning after a few days of resting and drinking extra water. If people eat natural poisons, they must go to the hospital right away to have their stomachs emptied.Which of the following statements is NOT true?
| A．Food when poisoned can make people sick. |
| B．Food poisoning means death. |
| C．Food poisoning comes in varieties. |
| D．Food poisoning can be serious. |
We know from the passage that the symptoms of food poisoning .
| A．are always accompanied by a fever |
| B．are too common to be noted |
| C．can be noticed within hours |
| D．can he ignored |
Food poisoning can be caused by all the following EXCEPT .
| A．some chemicals |
| B．low temperatures |
| C．some tiny living things |
| D．certain natural materials |
From Paragraph 5,we can learn that .
| A．mushrooms should not be eaten |
| B．vegetables are safer than meat and seafood |
| C．natural poisons are more dangerous than chemicals |
| D．different types of food should be handled differently |
It can be inferred from the passage that .
| A．natural materials are safe in food processing |
| B．chemicals are needed in food processing |
| C．food poisoning can be kept under control |
| D．food poisoning is out of control |