With alarming regularity, we read about oil tankers having accidents near land and the terrible consequences of the oil spills(泄露) on people, nature, and the environment.
Millions of dollars have been used in developing special chemicals to help dismiss the spills and to clean up the animals, beaches, and land spoiled by the oil.Unfortunately, when many of these chemicals are used, more damage is caused to the environment, especially to lives in the sea.
Of all of today’s environmental disasters, an oil spill may actually be one of the least serious.Although oil is poisonous, it is a natural material.In the end, it breaks down naturally.There are, of course, long-term effects, but it is usually more serious in the short term.
Nature by itself works better than chemical materials, but when there is a spill we demand that governments act immediately with as much hi-tech knowledge as possible.In 1967 the tanker Torrey Canyon sank off the Sicily Isles near the coast of England and spilled 120,000 tones of oil into the ocean.If you go there today, you will find it hard to see any sign that it ever happened.
Governments seem to accept the risk of transporting millions of tons of oil by ship every day so that we can fill up our cars and drive around and cause even more environmental damage.Interestingly, the biggest companies in the world produce cars, and the next biggest supply the gasoline to make them run!
We should be thinking more about reducing our dependency on oil.Governments should be encouraging research into new technologies, such as cars run by solar power(太阳能), electricity, hydrogen, and so on.Much of this research has, in the past, been held back by the oil, gas, and coal.
If the world’s millions of cars were 10% more efficient(高效的)— and the industry could easily produce cars at least twice as efficient — we would need many fewer tankers crossing the oceans each year.If this happened, the risks of oil spills would be reduced, and the air we breathe would be cleaner and fresher, too.What is the passage mainly talking about?
A.Oil tanker accidents. | B.Oil spills pollution. |
C.What oil pollution is. | D.How to reduce oil pollution. |
How does the author support the idea that oil spills are not as serious as people believe?
A.By giving a description. | B.By making an argument. |
C.By giving an example. | D.By drawing a diagram. |
What does the underlined word “risk” in Paragraph 5 refer to?
A.Transportation depending more on oil. |
B.Poisonous oil breaking down naturally. |
C.Millions of tons of oil spilling into the sea. |
D.More environmental damage being caused. |
Which suggestion is made for reducing oil tank accidents according to the passage?
A.We should develop new technologies to cut oil use |
B.Tankers should not be allowed to sail near the coastlines. |
C.We should build safer oil tankers in the near future. |
D.Countries should build more oil pipelines under the sea. |
(E)
Messages can be sent across the land by means of the electric telegraph; but you cannot put up a line of telegraph posts across the sea. Messages can be sent across the
ocean by radio or by cable(电缆). The cable lies on the sea bottom and it has to have very good insulation. If any part of it is weak, the water will get through and stop all signals .
The first cable under the sea was between England and France. It was laid(放置) in 1851. In 1851 engineers tried to lay a cable across the Atlantic Ocean, but they met a
lot of difficulties. Halfway across the Atlantic the cable broke, and the ship that was laying it had to return.
Kelvin advised that another cable ought to be laid. It was made ready, and put on board a big ship. Kelvin and his friends traveled with it and after many days of hard work, they reached America without breaking the cable. Kelvin himself sent the first
message by cable from America to Britain. Unfortunately only 732 messages were sent through this cable before it broke.
The next cable was laid in 1866, and this time there were no problems. The ship
that laid it was the Great Eastern, one of the strongest ships that have ever been built.
It was driven by powerful engines and also by sails .
1. The undersea cable must be made strong enough to prevent _____.
A.. fishes from eating it B. enemy stealing it
C.water getting through it D. others cutting it
2. The first cable across the Atlantic _______.
A. was the first undersea cable
B. was only laid half- way
C. broke after only 732 messages were sent
D. never broke
3. The undersea cable Kelvin and his Mends laid was between_____.
A. England and France B. America and England
C. American and France D. England and Britain
4. The cable that Kelvin and his friends laid went through __
A. the Pacific Ocean B. the Indian Ocean
C. the Atlantic Ocean D. the Arctic Ocean
5. This passage mainly tells us _______.
A. how Kelvin laid the cable
B. how the scientists discovered the cable
C. the history of the cable in the world
D. how to lay the cable in the sea
(D)
Peter King, 15 and Mary King, 13 went to see a doctor together. Peter had a bad
cold, so the doctor gave him some pills to take. Mary had a bad cough, so the doctor |
gave her some cough medicine. These are the words on the bottle of medicine:
Cough Medicine
Shake well before use.
Take three times daily after meals.
Dosage: Adults 2 teaspoonfuls
Children 8 -14 1 teaspoonful
Child 4-7 1/2 teaspoonful
Not suitable for children below the age of 4.
Store in a cool place.
Use before October 1998.
1. Mary should take ____ in a day.
A. 2 teaspoonfuls B. 3 teaspoonfuls
C. 4 teaspoonfuls D. 1 teaspoonful
2. People aged ____ cannot take this medicine.
A. 80 B. 15 C. 20 D. 3
3. Mary or her mother should ____ the medicine after the tenth month of 1998.
A. throw away B. take two times
C. stop to take D. take 3 times more
(C)
The Romans built great "aqueducts" to carry fresh water from the mountains to the cities. Many of these aqueducts are still standing today. The Romans also built great pipes under the ground to carry away the sewage. In Rome, one of these sewage pipes (sewers) is still used today; it is 2,000 years old. The Roman Emperors even set up a government health service. They built the first great public hospitals in Europe, and they paid doctors to look after poor people.
Then the Roman Empire fell to pieces, these civilized methods of treatment disappeared from most of Europe, for more than a thousand years. People went back to the old ways. They lived in dirty conditions which helped to cause diseases(疾病); and they asked God to cure the disease. They shut mentally sick people in prisons. Or they burnt them alive because they were supposed to have magic powers.
But the work of the Greek and Roman doctors was not lost. Over a thousand years
ago, they Arabs moved into many of the Mediterranean countries. They took big parts of the old Roman lands. They translated the Greek and Roman medical books into Arabic. Arab doctors themselves make many new discoveries.
When civilization(文明) at last came back to Europe, men once again translated the Greek and Roman works on medicine into Latin. Slowly-very slowly -European doctors discovered again the things that the Greeks and Romans had known so long ago. Slowly, they began to make new discoveries. They found out more about the way the body works--the way our blood goes round our bodies, the way our nerves(神经) send messages from our brains to our muscles, the way these muscles move our bodies.
1.The word "aqueduct" probably means _______. A. something which was built long ago
B. something invented by a Roman Emperor
C. a big pipe under the ground
D. something built to supply clean water for the citizens
2. Which of the following is true?
A. The sewage pipes built by the Roman are no longer in use now. B. Sewage pipes in Arabia were built by the Romans. C. A sewage pipe still being used today in Rome was built 2,000 .years ago. D. The ancient Romans got their drinking water from underground pipes.
3. Which of the following is NOT true?
A. A government health service was set up in ancient Rome.
B. The first public hospital in Europe was built in Rome.
C. m ancient Rome doctors were paid by the government.
D. Those who were mentally sick were all burnt alive in the Roman Empire.
4. In this article, "civilized methods of treatment" refers to _______.
A. advanced forms of health care
B. the way they burnt the bodies of the dead
C. imprisonment of the mentally sick
D. what was called magic power's
(B)
The Hawaiian Islands are situated(位于) about two thousand miles away from North America, right in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Despite the distance the Islands actually make up the fiftieth state of the United States. The Islands were all formed by volcano(火山) eruption and on the largest of the islands, Hawai, or the Big Island, there are still two active volcanoes, the Mauna Loa and the Kilauea, which still erupt every few years.
On the Hawaiian islands the natives have a particularly strange way of indicating(指明) directions. They don't use the north, south, east and west system common to the rest of the world. They use the mauka and makai system. Mauka means "mountain".The mountains in Hawaii are always at the center of the islands, as these are volcanic is lands. Makai means "the sea". The islands are small and the system is simple. Wherever you want to visit, it can always be described in terms of where it lies in relation to the mountains and the sea. A typical conversation(谈话) between a native Hawaiian and a visitor might go as follows.
VISITOR: Excuse me! Could you tell me where the Sheraton Hotel is? HAWAIIAN; Well ... Let me see ! From here it's two blocks mauka,and then one
block makai. You can't miss it!
1. This article would be most likely to appear in which of the following?
A. A novel B. A collection of stories
C. A travel book D. a women's magazine
2. Choose the most suitable title for the article.
A. The Big Island B. Giving Directions in Hawaii
C. Volcanoes D. The Hawaiian Islands
3. In Hawaii the mountains are in the center of the islands because_____
A. of the weather B. of die geological conditions
C. the islands were created by volcanic eruptions
D. of the islands' location in the pacific
4. To find your way in Hawaii, you must _______.
A. refer to geographical directions B. refer to well - known establishments
C. refer to the location of the mountains and the sea
D. refer to the earth and the sea
四.阅读理解。
(A)
Overhead bridges are found in many parts of. Beijing, especially in places where traffic is very heavy and crossing the road is dangerous.
The purpose of these bridges is to enable pedestrians to cross roads safely. Over- head bridges are used in very much the same way as zebra crossings. They are more ef- ficient although less convenient because people have to climb up a long flight of steps. This is inconvenient especially to older people. When pedestrians use an overhead bridge, they do not hold up traffic. However, when they cross a busy road using a ze- bra crossing, traffic is held up, this is why the government has built many overhead bridges to help pedestrians and to keep traffic moving at the same time.
The government of Beijing has spent a large amount of money in building these bridges. For their own safety, pedestrians should be encouraged to use them instead of risking their lives by dashing across the road. Old people, however, may find it a little difficult to climb up and down the steps, but it is still much safer than walking across the road with all the danger of moving traffic.
Overhead bridges serve a very useful purpose. Pedestrians, both old and young, should make it a habit to use them. This will prevent unnecessary accidents and loss of life.
1. What is the advantage (优点)of overhead bridges mentioned in this passage?
A. Taller trucks can pass under them.
B. Pedestrians can climb up and have a view of the city.
C. They are safer for pedestrians and can keep traffic moving at the same fame.
D. They are easier and more convenient for the pedestrians.
2. Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?
A. Overhead bridges are found in every part of Beijing.
B.Overhead bridges are only found in center of Beijing. C.Overhead bridges are found in many parts of big cities in China. D. Overhead bridges are found in places where traffic is heavy.
3.Theunderlined words a zebra crossing probably mean _______.
A. a safe place across a road for pedestrians to walk across the road.
B. A wild animal from Africa that looks like a horse with broad dark brown and white stripes on its body
C. A safe place across a road for zebra to walk across the road
D. A safe place across a road for children to play a game.
4. What is the writer's attitude(态度) towards overhead bridge?
A. It is inconvenient for older people to walk across the road.
B. It is much safer for pedestrians thought climbing up and down the steps may be a little difficult.
C. An overhead bridge is more beautiful than a zebra crossing.
D. To build overhead bridges is the business of the government.