Bamboo is one of the nature’s most surprising plants. Many people call this plant a tree, but it is a kind of grass.
Like other kinds of grass, a bamboo plant may be cut very low to the ground, but it will grow back very quickly. A Japanese scientist recorded one bamboo plant that grew almost 1.5 meters in 24 hours! Bamboo grows almost everywhere in the world except Europe. There are more than 1,000 kinds of bamboo that grow around the world on both mountains and plains(平原).
Not all bamboo looks the same. Some bamboo plants are very thin. They may only grow to be a few centimeters wide while others may grow to more than 30 centimeters across. This plant also comes in different colors, from yellow to black to green.
Many Asian countries have been using bamboo for hundreds of years. They often use bamboo for building new buildings. As a matter of fact, the cables(绳索) that hold up the hanging bridge across the Min River in Sichuan are made of bamboo. The bridge has been in use for more than 1,000 years, and is still holding strong.
In Africa, engineers are teaching poor farmers how to find water using bamboo. These African countries need cheap ways to find water because they have no money, and their fields often die from no rain and no water. It seems that bamboo is one of the best things they can use. Bamboo pipes and drills(钻) can help to make the poor thirsty fields to be watered. How is bamboo like grass?
| A．It is thin and easy to cut. | B．It grows everywhere. |
| C．It grows quickly after its cut short. | D．It is short and green. |
The sentence “while others may grow to more than 30 centimeters across.” means “Some other bamboo plants may grow to be very _______.”
| A．short | B．strong | C．thick | D．tall |
From the text we know ______.
| A．most people call bamboo plant trees |
| B．a bamboo plant may grow 4.5 meters in three days |
| C．the bamboo plant changes its colors when it grows |
| D．a bridge held by bamboo cable was built thousands of years ago |
Why did the engineers teach the poor farmers in Africa to make use of bamboo?
| A．Because it is cheap. | B．Because it is colorful. |
| C．Because it drills fast. | D．Because it is used by Asians. |
The news report that night was about a famine(饥荒) in Ethiopia. The pictures were of people who were so thin that they looked like beings from another planet. The camera(摄像机) focused(聚焦 ) on one man so that he looked directly at me, sitting in my comfortable living room. All around was the sound of death.
It was clear that the world had not noticed this until now. You could hear the sadness in the voice of the reporter, Michael Buerk. At the end of the report he was silent. Paula started crying, and then rushed upstairs to check our baby, Fifi, who was sleeping peacefully.
I kept the news' pictures in my mind. What could I do? I was only a pop singer and by now not a very successful pop singer. All I could do was to make records which no one bought. But I would do that. I
would give all the profits(利润) of the next Rats(the name of the music group he was in) record to Oxfam, an organization in Britain which helps poor people around the world. What good would that do? It would only be a little money but it was more than I could give just from my bank account. Maybe some people would buy it because the profits were for Oxfam. And I would be protesting about this disaster(灾难). But that was not enough. What do we Learn about the writer from the text?
| A．He felt really bad because the news report made him think of his own hard life. |
| B．After he saw a news report on TV about the famine in Ethiopia, he decided that he had to do something about the problem. |
| C．His ideas on how to collect money for the people in Ethiopia were very successful. |
| D．He wanted to do nothing but be a famous singer. |
Which paragraph describes(描写) what he thought about after watching the news?
| A．Paragraph l. |
| B．Paragraph 2. |
| C．Paragraph 3. |
| D．None. |
The writer wished that ____ .
| A．he would be a very successful pop singer if he could have sold all his records |
| B．he would rather give all his money from his bank account than the little money made by making new records |
| C．perhaps people would be interested in his records because they knew that the money they paid for them would go to Oxfam. |
| D．he would make records which no one bought |
Do American children still learn handwriting in school? In the age of the keyboard, some people seem to think handwriting lessons are on the way out. 90% of teachers say they are required to teach handwriting. But studies have yet to answer the question of how well they are teaching it. One study published this year found that about three out of every four teachers say they are not prepared to teach handwriting. Some teachers are teaching handwriting by providing instruction for 10 to 15 minutes a day, and then other teachers who basically teach it for 60 to 70 minutes a day—which really for handwriting is pretty much.
Many adults remember learning that way—by copying letters over and over again. Today’s thinking is that short periods of practice are better. Many experts also think handwriting should not be taught by itself. Instead, they say it should be used as a way to get students to express ideas. After all, that is why we write.
Handwriting involves two skills. One is legibility, which means forming the letters so they can be read. The other is fluency—writing without having to think about it. Fluency continues to develop up until high school.
But not everyone masters these skills. Teachers commonly report that about one fourth of their kids have poor handwriting. Some people might think handwriting is not important any more because of computers and voice recognition programs.
But Steve Graham at Vanderbilt says word processing is rarely done in elementary school, especially in the early years. American children traditionally first learn to print, and then to write in cursive, which connects the letters. But guess what we learned from a spokeswoman for the College Board, which administers the SAT college admission test. More than 75 percent of students choose to print their essay on the test rather than write in cursive.Which of the following is WRONG for traditional handwriting in the USA?
| A．The students are taught by practicing a long period. |
| B．The letters are repeated many times. |
| C．Handwriting includes two skills. |
| D．To write in cursive is taught first. |
The underlined word “legibility” in Paragraph 3 means _____.
| A．easy to read |
| B．complex |
| C．unexpected |
| D．unreadable |
The best title for the passage is _____.
| A．How to improve handwriting in school |
| B．Right or wrong: the death of handwriting |
| C．Handwriting involves two skills |
| D．Handwriting lessons are on the way out |
The author’s attitude towards whether still to learn handwriting in school is _____.
| A．negative |
| B．objective |
| C．critical |
| D．optimistic |
If you’re wondering what the top things people do on their Hawaii vacations (besides enjoy the magnificent Hawaii beaches), look on further.
Whether you’re here to see an incredible Hawaii volcano or you want to laze on a beach at a top resort in Kona, Hawaii, knowing ahead of time what you want to do will help you make the most of your trip to Hawaii.
Volcanoes National Park
Most visitors to Hawaii want to see lava from an active Hawaii volcano, and the big island does not disappoint when it comes to this. Spread out over 333,000 acres, the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park takes up a large portion on the southern part of the Big Island. Mauna Loa, rising at 13,667 feet, is easily the largest dormant volcano in the world. Kilauea volcano is where you can see the lava floes(熔岩块) and terrible volcanic landscapes. You can spend days hiking and camping in the Hawaii volcano park, since over half of it is set aside as wilderness.
Kona Coast
The Kona Coast, on the west side of the Big Island, is home to the top resorts on the Big Island and the popular Kona vacation rentals. The Kona area enjoys great weather all year round, in addition to other activities like deep-sea fishing and snorkeling(潜水), making it a popular place for Hawaii beaches. You can also take a tour of the coffee farms that produce the world famous Kona coffee, which is organic and all natural. Kona vacation rentals are popular because many of these look out over the Pacific Ocean, and are close to excellent beaches. Whether you Hawaii vacation includes Hawaii beaches, staying at a resort or booking one of the Kona vacation rentals, this area is one of the best of all islands to stay.
Iao Valley
Iao Valley beauty has inspired Hawaiians to gather here to honour the agriculture god, Lono, during an annual festival called the Makahiki Festival. For over a hundred years visitors have been coming to the valley to enjoy the scenic beauty of this lush(青葱的) valley. There are trails in the park, so you can see the best scenery of the cloud-covered valley. These clouds have a lot to do with the shape of the valley, since these feed the streams that carved the shape of the Iao Valley.The best title for this passage is _____.
| A．Things to do in Hawaii |
| B．Rich tourism resources in Hawaii |
| C．Hawaii’s charming beauty |
| D．Wondering in Hawaii |
This passage is meant for _____.
American students
potential travelers
local residents
geographerWe can guess the meaning of “organic” is _____.
| A．man-made |
| B．green |
| C．chemical |
| D．animal |
We can read this passage from _____ in a newspaper.
| A．a tour edition |
| B．a sport edition |
| C．a social life edition |
| D．a science and technology edition |
Without proper planning, tourism can cause problems. For example, too many tourists can crowd public places that are also enjoyed by the inhabitants of the country. If tourists create too much traffic, the inhabitants become annoyed and unhappy. They begin to dislike tourists and to treat them impolitely. They forget how much tourism can help the country’s economy. It is important to think about the people of a destination(旅游目的地) country and how tourism affects them. Tourism should help a country keep the customs and beauty that attract tourists. Tourism should also advance the wealth and happiness of local inhabitants.
Too much tourism can be a problem. If tourism grows too quickly, people must leave other jobs to work in the tourism industry. This means that other parts of the country’s economy can suffer.
On the other hand, if there is not enough tourism. People can lose jobs. Businesses can also lose money. It casts a great deal of money to build large hotels, airports, first-class roads, and other support facilities(配套设施) needed by tourist attractions. For example, a major international class tourism hotel can cost as much as 50 thousand dollars per room to build. If this room is not used most of the time, the owners of the hotel will lose money.
Building a hotel is just a beginning. There must be many other support facilities as well, including roads to get to the hotel, electricity, sewers(下水道)to handle waste, and water. All of these support facilities cost money. If they are not used because there are not enough tourists, jobs and money are lost.Which of the following do you think has been discussed in the part before this selection?
| A．It is extremely important to develop tourism. |
| B．Building roads and hotels is important. |
| C．Support facilities are highly necessary. |
| D．Planning is of great importance to tourism. |
The underlined word “inhabitants” (in Paragraph 1) probably means “_____”.
| A．tourists |
| B．passengers |
| C．population |
| D．natives |
Too much tourism can cause all these problems EXCEPT _____.
| A．a bad effect on other industries |
| B．a change of tourists’ customs |
| C．over-crowdedness of places of interest |
| D．pressure on traffic |
It can be inferred from the text that _____.
| A．the author doesn’t like tourism developing so fast |
| B．local people will benefit from tourist attractions |
| C．other parts of a country’s economy won’t benefit from tourism much |
| D．we can’t build too many support facilities |
Why Melbourne? Having long lived in the shadow of Sydney, Melbourne has become a wonderful place for fashion and design and the cultural center of Australia, with an enjoyable program of festival.
What to see? The city center’s grid(格子)system of streets hides a maze(迷宫) of lanes and turn-of-the-century shopping malls where you will find the best cafes, bars and shops. The Hidden Secrets Tour (00 613 9329 9665, hiddensecretstours. com) guides will make sure you find what you’re after, whether it’s fashion, art and design or wine. £34 per person.
Where to eat? Melbourne is a paradise for those who enjoy eating delicious food, and its top chefs use fresh produce and have talent for the experimental. But for something different, enjoy yourself with an Australian Wine Tour Company trip. Departing from the city center daily, you’ll taste wines at four of the region’s best vineyards(葡萄园). It costs £48 per person, including all wine tasting, lunch and a visit to Domaine Chandon (00-613-9419-4444, austwinetourco. Com. au)
Where to stay? The Nunnery is an old convent(修道院)on the edge of the city. It has double rooms with breakfast costing £ 54 per night (00-613-9419-8637, nunnery. com. au)
How to get there? Qantas (0845-7747-767, qantas. com. au) flies from Heathrow to Melbourne twice a day £766, including taxes.
More information: Contact the official tourism site for Melbourne at visitmelbourne. com/uk
Use the links below for more on
Destination guide: Melbourne
Click here for our Melbourne page
ours in Melbourne Why is Melbourne a popular destination for Australians?
| A．Because it’s the most important city. |
| B．Because it’s well-known for festivals. |
| C．Because it is a cultural center in Australia. |
| D．Because it attracts lots of religious followers. |
To get more information about Hidden Secret Tour, you should call _____.
| A．00-613-9329-9665 |
| B．00-613-9419-4444 |
| C．00-613-9419-8637 |
| D．0845-7747-767 |
If you are interested in tasting Australian wines, you have to pay _____.
| A．£34 |
| B．£48 |
| C．£54 |
| D．£76 |