In the Ituri forest of America live many tribes,one of which is Pygmy. Most of the Pygmies in the tribe are not taller than four feet. They weigh only about eighty pounds each.
In spite of their small size, they are the best hunters among all the jungle people. Even the great elephant can be caught by them.
Since they do not plant any crops, Pygmies are constantly moving around. They seldom sleep in one camp for more than a few days. In their camps there is not furniture at all except for some weapons such as spears, bows and arrows. There are no cooking pots either. Food is eaten uncooked or smoked over a lire. So when the tribe moves to a new camp there is nothing to carry except these weapons and babies too small to walk.
Pymies can move on the tree tops almost as skillfully as monkeys. Often they travel great distances through the branches without touching the ground.
One of the surprising facts about these small men and women is their great appetite(食欲). A Pygmy can eat up sixty bananas at a single meal besides quantities of meat. After eating, they will lie on their hard earth bed and groan(呻吟)in all night. But in the morning, they are ready to eat the same amount of food or fight among themselves.Pygmies are small in size, but they are brave in ______.
A.hunting | B.shooting | C.eating | D.fighting with their enemies |
Pygmies are so skillful that _____.
A.they never walk on the ground | B.they can move on the top of trees |
C.they always walk with sticks | D.they can hang from the branches |
The writer wrote this article so as to ______
A.ask people to learn from Pygmies |
B.help Pygmies go out of the forests |
C.let us know the local condition and customs of the Pygmies |
D.tell us the world is big and wide |
Why do Pygmies move from place to place continuously? The main reason is that _____.
A.that want to look after wild animals | B.they always walk with sticks |
C.they plant no crops | D.they don’t sleep in one camp |
Pierre is a 25-year-old penguin at the California Academy of Sciences. Due to his old age, he was going bald, which made him feel too cold to swim in the pool. Therefore, biologists at the academy had a wetsuit created for this penguin to help him get back in the swimming pool.
Unlike marine mammals, which have a layer of fat to keep them warm, penguins depend on their waterproof feathers. Without them, Pierre was unwilling to jump into the swimming pool and ended up trembling on the side of the pool while his 19 peers played in the water.
"He was cold; he would shake," said Pam Schaller, a senior biologist. Schaller first tried a heat lamp to keep Pierre warm. Then she got another idea: if wetsuits keep humans warm in the cold Pacific, why not make one for Pierre?
Schaller designed the suit, which covered Pierre’s body and had small openings for his flippers.
“I would walk behind him and look at where there were any gaps, and cut and refit and cut and refit until it looked like it was extremely suitable,” she said.
One concern was that the other penguins would reject Pierre in his new suit, but in fact, they accepted his new look. He swam freely and got along with others well, although he was the only penguin with a black stomach.
Schaller couldn’t say for sure whether the wetsuit allowed Pierre to recover his fine feathers, but “certainly we were able to keep him comfortable during a period of time that would have been very difficult for him to stay comfortable”.
Pierre will take off his suit after his new feathers grow back. Pierre felt too cold to swim in the pool because of _____.
A.not having a layer of blubber |
B.having few feathers due to old age |
C.having no wetsuit |
D.others penguins rejecting him |
The idea of making a wetsuit for Pierre came from _____.
A.total invention |
B.waterproof feathers |
C.the use of wetsuit on humans |
D.the use of heat lamp |
Schaller followed Pierre in order to see _____.
A.whether other penguins would reject him |
B.if anywhere of wetsuit needed to be cut and refit |
C.if the wetsuit kept warm |
D.whether the wetsuit would keep the feathers from recovering |
The best title of the passage is _____.
A.Wetsuit for An Old Penguin |
B.Old Penguin Getting Bald |
C.Unwilling to Swim |
D.Strange Look of PierreB |
Anne and Joseph are talking about an interesting question. Why do some people change their names? There can be many reasons. Hanna changed her name to Anne because she thought it would be easier for people to remember. On the other hand, Joseph is thinking about changing his name to an unusual name because he wants to be different.
People have a lot of reasons for changing their names. Film stars, singers, sportsmen and some other famous people often change their names because they want names that are not ordinary, or that have special sound. They chose the “new name” for themselves instead of the name their parents gave them when they were born.
Some people have another reason for changing their names. They have moved to a new country and want to use a name that is usual there. For example, Li Kaiming changed his name to Ken Lee when he moved to the United States. He uses the name Ken at his job and at school. But with his family and Chinese friends, he uses Li Kaiming. For some people, using different names makes life easier in their new country.
In many countries, a woman changes her family name to her husband’s after she gets married. But today, many women are keeping their own family name and not using their husband’s. Sometimes, women use their own name in some situations(情况)and their husband’s in other situations. And some use both their own name and their husband’s.Hanna changes her name to Anne because “Anne” is for people to remember.
A.louder | B.easier | C.prettier | D.harder |
Famous people want their new names to .
A.have special sound | B.be ordinary |
C.have no meaning | D.be unknown |
Mr. Li uses his new name when he .
A.stays with his family | B.is at his job |
C.is among Chinese friends | D.comes back to China |
Which of the following statement is TRUE?
A.Women have to change their names when they get married. |
B.Women can’t use their husband’s name without permission. |
C.If a singer becomes famous, he or she has to change his or her name. |
D.Some people changed their names in order to get much more attentions. |
What is the best title(标题)of this passage ?
A.Family Names | B.Women’s Names |
C.Changing Names | D.Special Names |
Everyone knows that exercise is important. We all need to exercise. Doctors say it is good for us. It makes your heart and body strong. Children who often exercise are more alert (灵活). This means they do better in tests and schoolwork than those who don’t exercise.
There are many ways to exercise. You can walk, run, swim, skate, or play ball games. Make sure you exercise in the following ways; you have to like what you’re doing. Exercise enough— but not too much. It’s best to exercise twice each week, Thirty minutes each time is enough. Try all kinds of things until you find one, two or even three sports that feel right for you.
You can exercise at fitness centers. They have a lot of equipment(设备)there. The equipment will help to exercise your arms, legs and other parts of your body to make you fit. Some people buy equipment for their homes. But it is very expensive.
Exercising can be fun. Friends can exercise together at a fitness center or they can play sports together. How do you exercise?In the text, the writer tells us that we all need to .
A.drink | B.sleep | C.exercise | D.work |
Which of the following sports is not mentioned (提到) in the next?
A.Fishing | B.Running | C.Swimming | D.Walking |
The words “fitness centers” in the next mean .
A.商务中心 | B.健身中心 | C.购物中心 | D.医疗中心 |
The sentence, Children who often exercise are more alert, tells us that people who often exercise can do better in .
A.running | B.skate | C.swim | D.studies |
Exercising can be fun, because .
A.it makes your heart and body strong |
B.it makes you study better |
C.people can buy equipment for their home |
D.friends can play sports together |
English is spoken as a first language by most people in the USA, Britain, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and Canada. However, English is spoken all over the world. It is the main language in over 60 countries, such as India, Singapore and in many of the Caribbean and Pacific islands. In those places English is often a second language.
English is also as an important international language in many other countries, like China and Japan. People in these countries use it for business, and travelers to these countries use English when they get there. Other people may learn English because they enjoy reading books in English, listening to British or American music or watching American films.
English has changed a lot these years and still goes on changing. It is no longer right to talk about British English or American English if the speaker doesn’t come from those countries. People in Japan or Korea, for example, may use the American spelling but may not sound like Americans.
English will be the most widely used language in the world in the 21st century. This language no longer belongs to British, American or Australian speakers. It belongs to anyone who can use this language. After you leave school, you will almost certainly need it.In how many countries is English spoken as a first language in the world?
A.Five. | B.Four. | C.Three. | D.Six. |
In which other countries is English spoken as a main language?
A.Britain, USA and Australia. |
B.India, Singapore and many of Caribbean and Pacific islands. |
C.China and Japan. |
D.New Zealand, Ireland and Canada. |
People from other countries learn English for .
A.passing exams |
B.business and traveling |
C.reading English books, enjoying English music or watching films |
D.Both B and C |
If people in Japan or Korea use the American spelling, they .
A.will speak the same as Americans |
B.may not sound like Americans |
C.will speak British English |
D.will speak English much better |
Which topic is the best for the passage?
A.A first language in the world. |
B.A second language in the world. |
C.English around the world. |
D.A useful language. |
Most people look forward to retirement as a time when they can finally take up activities that they never had the time or energy to pursue before. Bust some recent studies on people in their golden years are disturbing: they suggest that retirees are more likely to suffer from depression and possibly higher rates of other diseases such as heart disease and high blood pressure. That’s why a new study of French workers is welcome news.
Led by Hugo Westerlund, a professor of psychology at Stockholm University, the study of more than 14,000 workers found lower rates of depression and fatigue(疲劳) in people after they got tired while they were still employed.
The scientists followed the employees of the French national gas and electric company for 14 years. They found in the year immediately after retirement, the volunteers reported 40% fewer depressive symptoms than they had in the year before their retirement. The researchers also found an 81% drop in reports of both mental and physical fatigue over the same time period.
Clearly, said Westerlund, much of these decrease in physical and mental fatigue can be traced back to relief from the stresses of work. The decline in depressive symptoms suggests that retirement may be having a positive mental effect, too, which may have a lot to do with the generous pensions(养老金) that French workers enjoy. Most retirees in that country still benefit from about 80% of their yearly salaries.
“The economic or financial situation in retirement is very important,” Westerlund says. “We don’t know if the decrease in fatigue and depressive symptoms is because of the removal of something bad while in work or the addition of something good while in retirement. But no matter the reason, if life in retirement is not comfortable, then we won’t see the improvements we did.”
However, in European nations like France, governments are considering changes to pension plans, which may affect retirees’ health after they leave their jobs—with less of a financial safety net, workers may no longer seem so mentally and physically happy to be out of work.
(Note: Answer the questions or complete the statements in NO MORE THAN TEN WORDS)According to some recent studies, retired people may have depression and higher rates of other disease like ____________________________________.
Westerlund’s group found that in the year just after the retirement most retired French workers felt much less tired both __________________________________.
What dies the word “improvements” in paragraph 5 refer to?
_______________________________________________________________Retirement may make people happier with ___________________________________