Passage 4
From the world’s heaviest apple, the oldest lady to the world’s smallest dog, these are all parts of a group of the world’s strangest people and things. And they are all in the Guinness Book of Records(《吉尼斯记录》).
The book is going to celebrate its birthday this August. It began exactly half a century ago. And it’s always one of the best selling books in the world.
People now can break over 1000 records every week! Why do so many people want to break the records? Do they want their names in the book or meet more people around the world? “It gives people a chance to show they’re the best in the world.” said one of the record keepers Stewart Newport.
The book was started by Hugh Beaver from Britain. In 1951, he went shooting birds and talked with his friends about the fastest bird in Europe. Three years later, they were still talking about it. So Beaver believed that people must have different ideas. So, he decided to start a book to record the world’s truly greatest people and things in it!
The newest book came out last Tuesday. This book has a lot of interesting records. Here are two:
☆ A British dog, Whitney, is the world’s smallest dog. It’s only 76mm tall.
☆ An American woman Lee Redmond has the longest fingernails(指甲).They grew as long as 600 mm! She made the record in 1971.We can see everything in the Guinness Book of Records except .
| A．the heaviest fruits and vegetables |
| B．the smallest people and animals |
| C．the strangest people and things |
| D．very ordinary people and things |
The Guinness Book of Records has been one of the best selling books for .
| A．50 years | B．76 years | C．600 years | D．1000 years |
Newport thought many people tried to break Guinness records because .
| A．their names be kept in the world records. |
| B．their names could be seen by the whole world. |
| C．they could meet more people all over the world. |
| D．they could be known as the greatest by the world. |
Which of the following is right according to the passage?
| A．Newport started the Guinness Book of Records in Britain. |
| B．More than four thousand records are broken each month. |
| C．The Guinness Book of Records started in the year 1954. |
| D．The newest book of Guinness comes out every Tuesday. |
The writer of this passage wants to .
| A．tell us the strangest records in the world |
| B．show us the beginning of the Guinness Book of Records |
| C．give us an introduction to the Guinness Book of Records |
| D．let us know the most interesting things in the world |
| Sydney Tower Address: 100 Market St., Sydney Phone: 02 9333 9222 Fax: 02 9333 9203 Open time: 9:00 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. (Saturdays to 11:30 p.m.) Ticket: $60 (for an adult) $30 (for a child) Website: www.sydneytower.com.au How to get there: train to Town Hall Station and a short walk along Market Street How to book tickets: by phone/fax or through the web Attraction: Sydney’s best views are just the beginning! Sydney Tower takes you to the highest point above Sydney for exciting 360 views of our beautiful city. |
Sydney Tower is ________ in Sydney, Australia.
| A．the busiest street | B．the biggest station |
| C．the most beautiful park | D．the highest point |
If you want to book a ticket to Sydney Tower, you can’t ________.
| A．email sydneytower@hotmail .com |
| B．fax 02 9333 9203 |
| C．search www. sydneytower.com.au |
| D．dial 02 9333 9222 |
Frank wants to go to Sydney Tower with his two children, he will pay _________.
| A．$60 | B．$90 | C．$120 | D．$150 |
Last Saturday, Johnson went to visit Sydney Tower. He had to get down the tower __________.
| A．after 11:30 p.m. | B．before 11:30 p.m. |
| C．at 10:30 p.m. | D．by 10:30 p.m. |
The passage above is probably___________.
| A．a piece of news | B．a conversation |
| C．a story | D．an advertisement |
There are many wetlands (湿地) in China and some of them have become the world‘s important wetlands. The Chinese Yellow Sea Wetlands are among them. They are in Yancheng, Jiangsu Province. They are home for many different kinds of birds and animals. The world’s largest Milu Deer Nature Reserve(自然保护区) is in them. More than 700 milu deer live freely there. There are not many red-crowned cranes in the world, but every winter you can see some in the Red-crowned Cranes Nature Reserve in the Yellow Sea Wetlands.
The temperature in the wetlands is usually neither too high nor too low. There is a lot of rain and sunshine, too. They are really good places for wildlife. Offering food and home for some special kinds of animals and birds is not the only reason why we need to protect wetlands. Wetlands are important because they also prevent flood. But some people want to change the wetlands to make more space for farms and buildings. This means there will be less and less space for wildlife.
Luckily, more and more people are beginning to realize the important of wetlands and wildlife. Every year, on February 2nd, many activities are held to tell people more about wetlands.The Chinese Yellow Sea Wetlands are in the _______ of China.
| A．east | B．south | C．west | D．north |
Usually the weather in the wetlands is _______.
| A．hot | B．pleasant | C．cold | D．dry |
The World Wetlands Day is on _______.
| A．April 22 | B．June 25 | C．February 2 | D．March 22 |
We must protect wetlands because _______.
| A．they are home for wildlife |
| B．they can prevent flood |
| C．they can offer food to the animals and birds |
| D．all of the above |
The best title for the passage is _______.
| A．China‘s Wetlands Have All Entered the World’s List |
| B．Wetlands—Home for Wildlife and Human Beings |
| C．Special Animals in the Chinese Yellow Sea Wetlands |
| D．Wetlands—Valuable Recourses(资源) of Land on the Earth |
One day, a teacher was giving a speech to his students. He held up a glass of water and asked the class, "How heavy do you think this glass of water is?"
The students' answers ranged from 20 g to 500 g. "It does not matter on the weight itself. It depends on how long you hold it. If I hold it for a minute, it is OK. If I hold it for an hour, I will have an ache in my right arm. If I hold it for a day, you will have to call an ambulance (救护车). It is exactly the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes. "
If we carry our burdens (负担) all the time, sooner or later, we will not be able to carry on, the burden becoming increasingly heavier. "
"What you have to do is to put the glass down, rest for a while before holding it up again. "
We have to put down the burden sometimes, so that we can be refreshed and are able to carry on.
So before you return home from work tonight, put the burden of work down. Don't carry it back home. You can pick it up tomorrow.
Whatever burdens you are having now on your shoulders, let it down for a moment if you can. The teacher brought a glass of water to the class because .
| A．he was very thirsty | B．his arms were strong |
| C．it was a good example | D．he wants to share the water with students |
"A glass of water" in this passage referred to .
| A．knowledge | B．the burden | C．the time | D．the money |
According to the teacher, you may feel _ if you put down the burden sometimes.
| A．more stressed | B．much heavier |
| C．more relaxed | D．much happier |
This was a lesson about ____ .
| A．how to relax oneself in life |
| B．how to solve a physics problem |
| C．how to keep fit by drinking water |
| D．how to study well |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．You could become heavier and heavier if you held a glass of water in your hand. |
| B．All the students in the class knew what the weight of the glass of water exactly was. |
| C．The teacher had a good way of making his lesson clear and easy to be understood. |
| D．All the students can understand the teacher’s lesson. |
Obama has made history by becoming the first African-American in American history.
Obama was born in Hawaii on August 4, 1961. His parents didn’t live together when he was two years old and later divorced. Obama grew up with his mother in Hawaii, and for a few years in Indonesia. Later, he moved to New York, where he graduated from Columbia University in 1983. Obama met his wife, Robinson, in June, 1989 and married her on October 3rd, 1992. The couple’s first daughter was born in 1998, followed by a second daughter in 2001.
Obama took office in January 20, 2009. However, just when he became the president, he had to face many serious challenges ---- two foreign wars, the climate change and what he had described as “the worst financial crisis (经济危机) in a century”. But Obama said that he himself had been ready to face these challenges.
Obama’s success is a true milestone. It speaks to the fact that in America you really do get a chance to do anything, if you have the talent and abilities and you work hard enough. How old was Obama when he became the American president?
| A．48. | B．40. | C．37. | D．31. |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A. Obama grew up with his father in Hawaii.
B. Obama has two sons with Robison.
C. Obama is the first black president in the USA.
D. Columbia University is in Washington.Obama’s success tells us that __________.
| A．any black people can become the president |
| B．you can succeed if you are talented enough |
| C．everyone can succeed if he is lucky enough |
| D．a talented person can succeed if he works hard enough |
What does the underlined phrase “took office” in the third paragraph mean?
| A．生效 | B．就任 | C．离职 | D．竞选 |
According to the passage, Obama had to face the following challenges except for _____________.
| A．the climate change | B．the financial crisis |
| C．the population problem | D．foreign wars |
If you could see a movie of your life before you lived it, would you want to live it? Probably not. The excitement of living is that you don’t know what’s coming.
Sure, it’s hard to see uncertainty in such positive（积极的）light when you’re out of work, or when you feel like you’re failing. But uncertainty is really another word for chance.
When Allison graduated from Harvard, she had chances all over the place but had no idea what she wanted to do. She took a job in consulting（咨询）, but she knew she wouldn’t stay there. She took the GRE and scored so high that she was able to increase her income（收入）by teaching students. Still, she didn’t think she wanted to go to graduate school. Allison knew she wasn’t doing what she wanted, but she didn’t know what she wanted.
She worried. All her friends were going to graduate school or starting their own businesses. She was lost and felt that she would never find anything out. After six years, Allison, by having a general（全面的）plan in mind, got married, moved to the Midwest, and used her consulting experience to get a great job. Allison realized that she spent her years finding her way: time well spent, and time we must all take if we’re being honest with ourselves.
The only way to lead an interesting life is to face uncertainty and make a choice. Otherwise your life is not your own—it is a path someone else has chosen. Moments of uncertainty are when you create your life, when you become who you are. Uncertainty usually begins with a job hunt, but it doesn’t end there. Every new role we take on means another round of uncertainty. Instead of fearing it, you should find some ways to deal with uncertainty. From the first two paragraphs, we can learn that .
| A．being out of work is a sad thing |
| B．uncertainty is what makes life interesting |
| C．life in a film is more exciting than real life |
| D．chance never appears when we need it |
What troubles Allison after graduation?
| A．She couldn’t find a well-paid job. |
| B．She had no money to start a business. |
| C．She was not sure what to do. |
| D．She didn’t score high enough for graduate school. |
How did Allison feel about her six years’ working experience?
| A．Uncertain. | B．Amazed. | C．Sorry. | D．Satisfied. |
What may be discussed in the following paragraph?
| A．How to deal with uncertainty. |
| B．What role uncertainty plays in life. |
| C．Why people fear uncertainty. |
| D．Whom to go to when facing uncertainty. |