George,whenyourbigbrotherandyo-优题课

Many of the most damaging types of weather begin quickly, strike suddenly, and disappear rapidly, destroying small areas while leaving neighboring areas untouched．Such event as a tornado struck the northeastern part of Edmonton, Alberta, in July 1987．Total damages from the tornado went beyond $250 million, the highest ever for any Canadian storm．
Traditional computer models of the atmosphere have limited value in predicting short-lived local storms like the Edmonton tornado, because the available weather data are generally not detailed enough to allow computers to study carefully the slight atmospheric changes that come before these storms．In most nations, for example, weather-balloon observations are taken just once every twelve hours at places separated by hundreds of miles．With such limited data, traditional forecasting models do a much better job predicting general weather conditions over large areas than they do forecasting specific local events．
Until recently, the observation intensive method needed for exact, very short-range forecasts, or “Nowcasts,” was not possible．The cost of equipping and operating many thousands of conventional weather stations was extremely high, and the difficulties concerned in rapidly collecting and processing the weather data from such a network were hard to overcome．
Fortunately, scientific and technological advances have overcome most of these problems．Radar systems and satellites are all able to make detailed, nearly continuous observation over large areas at a lower cost．Communications satellites can send out data around the world cheaply and immediately, and modern computers can quickly collect and analyze this large amount of weather information．
Meteorologists（气象学者）and computer scientists now work together to design computer programs and video equipment able to change weather data into words and graphic displays that forecasters can understand easily and quickly．As meteorologists have begun using these new technologies in weather forecasting offices, Nowcasting is becoming a reality．
1．Why can’t traditional computer models predict short-lived local storms?
A．The weather data people collect are often wrong．
B．Detailed weather data in some small areas are not available．
C．The computers are not advanced enough to predict them．D．The computers are not used to forecast specific local events．
2．The word “Nowcast” in Paragraph 3 means ________．
A．a network to collect storm data
B．a way of collecting weather data
C．a more advanced system of weather observation
D．a forecast which can predict weather in the small area
3．What can make “Nowcasts” a reality according to the passage?
A．Scientific and technological advances． B．Advanced computer programs．
C．Computer scientists． D．Meteorologists．
4．What does the passage mainly talk about?
A．The advantages of “Nowcasts”． B．A tornado in Edmonton, Alberta．
C．The difficulty in predicting tornado． D．A great development in weather forecast．

Nothing says love like a dozen long – stemmed roses on Valentine’s Day．More than a million roses will be sold during this festival for lovers, the biggest day of the year for the nation’s rose industry．It’s going to remain the most popular flower because love never goes out of style．
Yes, a rose is a rose．But selling them is no longer a beautiful experience for traditional flower shops．Supermarkets now offer convenience to the busy and discount rose shops help those hopelessly in love save money．Roses only is a good example of a discount rose retailer that was transformed from a traditional shop to answer the challenge in the’ 90s．
Inside this store on Sixth Avenue near 40 th Street, contemporary white furniture and wall – to – wall mirrors give it an expensive look．Customers move about freely among the counters, looking eagerly at the roses in more than 50 colors from shelf to shelf．Some customers say it’s the high quality of the roses that attracts them there．“I spent $ 20 but the flowers looked like I paid 60 or 70 dollars,” says one customer．
Studies show more people are buying roses in ones, two and threes these days．In fact, more than half of all roses are sold in bunches of fewer than a dozen．But Roses Only's low prices encourage people to spend．Even on Valentine's Day, when the price of a dozen roses and delivery can soar as high as $150, 12 of Roses Only's most expensive flowers sell for just $35．The company's key to success is to hold prices down by controlling every link in the rose chain．It grows its own roses in the sunshine of the Andes Mountains．In addition, the company also sells other items such as ballons and stuffed animals．
While discount rose retailers are witnessing their business bloom, U．S．rose growers aren’t able to compete with the fierce foreign competition．More than 57% of roses sold in the USA are grown in other countries．The biggest foreign producers are Colombia and Ecuador, which accounted for almost 90% of the total imported last year．The trend has hurt domestic rose growers such as Johnson Flowers of California, considered to be this country's leading producer．
Now, instead of fighting overseas rivals, the Johnsons are trying to work with them．"We have a few big fighting overseas rivals, the Johnsons are trying to work with them．“We may also widen our business to include the service area and be a representative for overseas flower producers．”
As a result of severe competition, those in the rose business long for the good old days, whereas ordinary people benefit from the low price．
1．What is the central theme of this text?
A．The US rose business is going from bad to worse in spite of the efforts made．
B．The rose will remain the most popular flower as love never goes out of date．
C．The rose business is trying to meet the challenges in the market to succeed．
D．The rose industry plays an important role in American economy．
2．How does Roses Only obtain success in the discount rose retailing field?
A．By setting up more chain stores across the country．
B．By selling roses in supermarkets．
C．By selling high quality roses at a low price．
D．By selling roses by the dozen．
3．Which of the following shows the structure of the passage? （①to ⑦ represent paragraphs 1 to 7）
4．After reading the passage, we learn all of the following EXCEPT __________．
A．Selling roses is no longer as easy for traditional flower shops as it was．
B．Almost 90% of roses sold in US are imported from Colombia and Ecuador．
C．US rose growers are faced with intense foreign competition．
D．the Johnsons are trying to co-operate with foreign competitors instead of fighting them．

A team from Krakow, in Poland, used functional magnetic resonance imaging （机能性核共振成像）（FMRI）to assess brain activity when 40 volunteers were shown various images．Men showed activity in areas which dealt with what action they should take in order to avoid or face up to danger．But the study found more activity in the emotional centers of women's brains．The researchers, from another university, carried out scans on 21 men and 19 women．Brain activity was monitored while the volunteers were shown images of objects and images from ordinary life designed to remind different emotional states．
The images were displayed in two runs．For the first run, only negative pictures were shown．For the second run, only positive pictures were shown．
While viewing the negative images, women showed stronger and broader activity in the left thalamus（神经床）．This is an area which passes sense information to the pain and pleasure centres of the brain．Men showed more activity in an area of the brain called the left insula（脑岛）, which plays a key role in controlling natural functions, including breath, heart rate and digestion．Generally, activity in this area tells the body to either run away from danger, or meet it head on - the so-called "fight or flight response"．
While viewing positive images, women showed stronger activity in an area of the brain associated with memory．With men, the stronger activity was recorded in an area associated with visual processing．Dr Urbanik believes these differences suggest women may analyze positive stimuli（刺激）in a broader social context and associate positive images with a particular memory．
For instance, viewing a picture of a smiling child might remind memories of a woman's own child at this age．On the contrary, male responses tend to be less emotional．
1．The research shows that men response differently to__________compared with women．
A．different images B．ordinary life
C．different activities D．medical scan
2．According to the passage, when faced with danger, ____________．
A．women react more slowly than men B．women usually try to avoid it
C．men usually have no reaction D．men react to it more directly
3．What is discussed in the 4 th paragraph?．
A．Men and women’s different memories B．The different responses to the children
C．Different reactions to positive stimuli D．Negative results of the visual processing
3．The passage mainly develops______．
A．by inferring B．by comparing
C．by listing examples D．by giving explanations

Open adj．, verb, nounadj．NOT CLOSED1 allowing things or people to go through: A wasp flew in the open window． She had left the door wide open．
2 （of sb’s eyes, mouth, etc．） with eyelids or lips apart: She had difficulty keeping her eyes open （=" because" she was very tired）．He was breathing through his open mouth．3 spread out; with the edges apart: The flowers are all open now．
4 not blocked by anything: The pass is kept open all the year．NOT FASTENED5 not fastened or covered, so that things can easily come out or be put in: The bag burst open and everything fell out．
verbDOOR / WINDOW / LID1 [vn] to move a door, window, lid, etc．so that it is no longer closed: Mr Chen opened the car door for his wife． close2 [v] to move or be moved so that it is no longer closed: The door opened and Alan walked in． The doors of the bus open automatically．closeCONTAINER / PACKAGE3 [vn] to remove the lid, undo the fastening, etc．of a container, etc．in order to see or get what is inside: Shall I open another bottle? She opened her bag and took out her passport．EYES4 [vn, v] if you open your eyes or your eyes open, you move your eyelids upwards so that you can see closeCOMPUTING5 [vn, v] to start a computer program or file so that you can use it on the screenopen doors for sb to provide opportunities for sb to do sth and be successful open your / sb’s eyes （to sth） to realize or make sb realize the truth about sth: Travelling really opens your eyes to other cultures．open your / sb’s mind to sth to become or make sb aware of new ideas or experiences．
open the way for sb/sth （to do sth） to make it possible for sb to do sth or for sth to happen: The agreement could open the way for the country to pay off its debts．—more at heart, heaven open into / onto sth to lead to another room, area or place: This door opens onto the yard． The two rooms open into each other．open out to become bigger or wider: The street opened out into a small square．open out （to sb） to become less shy and more willing to communicate open up1 to talk about what you feel and think: It helps to discuss your problems but I find it hard to open up．2 to begin shooting: Anti-aircraft guns opened up．3 （often used in orders） to open a door, container, etc．: Open up or we’ll break the door down! open up1 to become or make sth possible, available or able to be reached: The new catalogue will open up the market for our products． The railway opened up the east of the country．
2 to begin business for the day; to start a new business: I open up the store for the day at around 8．30． close up3 to start a new business: There’s a new Thai restaurant opening up in town． close down
noun the open [sing．] OUTDOORS1 outdoors; the countryside: Children need to play out in the open．NOT HIDDEN2 not hidden or secret: Government officials do not want these comments in the open．
1．Which of the following “open” is closest in the meaning with the “open” in the sentence “The book lay open on the table．”
A．She had left the door wide open．
B．The bag burst open and everything fell out．
C．The flowers are all open now．
D．He opened the letter and read it．
2．Fill in the blank in the sentence “He’s eager to __________different kinds of music．”
A．open the minds of his audience to
B．open the eyes of his audience to
C．open the way for his audience to listen to
D．open doors for his audience to listen to
3．What does the phrase “ the open” mean in “ When you feel tired after a day’s hard work, you’d better invite some friends to the open to relax yourself．”
A．the gym B．the cinema C．the countryside D．the music room
4．Choose one of the following to complete the sentence, “Exciting possibilities__________for her in the new job”．
A．were opening out B．were opening into
C．were opening onto D．were opening up

第二部分：阅读理解（第一节20小题；第二节共5小题；每小题2分，满分50分）
第一节：阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。
A
Fat and shy, Ben Saunders was the last kid in his class picked for any sports team．“Football,tennis,cricket—anything with a round ball,I was useless,”he says now with a laugh．But back then be was the one always made fun of in school gym classes in Devonshire, England．
It was a mountain bike he received for his 15th birthday that changed him．At first he went biking alone in a nearby forest．Then he began to ride the bike along with a runner friend．Gradually,Saunders set his mind on building up his body, increasing his speed and strength．At the age of 18,he ran his first marathon．
The following year, he met John Ridgway and was hired as an instructor at Ridgway’s School of Adventure in Scotland, where he learned about Ridgway’s cold-water exploits．Greatly interested, Saunders read all he could about North Pole explorers, and adventures, then decided that this would be his future．
In 2001, after becoming a skillful skier, Saunders started his first long-distance expedition（探险） towards the North Pole．It took unbelievable energy．He suffered frostbite（冻疮）, ran into a polar bear and pushed his body to the limit, pulling his supply-loaded sled（雪橇） up and over rocky ice．
Saunders has since become the youngest person to ski alone to the North Pole, and he’s skied more of the North Pole by himself than any other British man．His old playmates would not believe the change．
Next October, Saunders,27, heads south from the coast of Antarctica to the South Pole and back, a 2900-kilometre journey that has never been completed on skis．
1．What change happened toSaunders after he was 15 years old?
A．He became good at most sports． B．He began to build up his body．
C．He joined a sports team． D．He made friends with a runner．
2．The underlined word “exploits”（Paragraph 3） is closest in meaning to ______．
A．journeys B．researches C．adventures D．operations
3．Which of the following is the correct order of the events that happened to Saunders?
a．He ran his first marathon． b．He skied along in the North Pole．
c．He rode his bike in a forest． d．He planned an adventure to the South Pole．
A．acdb B．cdab C．acbd D．cabd
4．What does the story mainly tell us about Saunders?
A．He is a success in sports． B．He is the best British skier．
C．He is Ridgway’s favorite student． D．He is a good instructor at school．