Cities need to put efforts to deal with pollution and clear the air.
Chinese cities will need to put efforts to clear up the sky when a new department to improve regional air quality is set up by 2015,according to the latest plan released by the State Council.
Besides the existing pollution control program for CO2,regional emission caps(区域排放上限) for other certain chemicals will be established in the three key air polluting areas—the Yangtze River Delta,Pearl River Delta and the Beijing-Tianjin- Hebei region. Coal-consumption caps will also be tried out in some areas,according to the plan.
The plan is aimed at dealing with regional air pollution—such as acid rain and smog—which have become increasingly obvious in China in recent years and caused a severe threat to people’s health,Zhang Lijun,viceminister of environmental protection,said in an interview on Monday.
The air quality in a city affects the areas nearby because pollutants can travel in the sky,said Chai Fahe,vice-director of Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences.
“So efforts to reduce air pollution in a single city,targeting a certain pollutant(污染物) will not be enough,” Chai said.
Zhang said the country’s major industrial districts—the Yangtze River Delta,Pearl River Delta and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region—have recorded more than 100 misty days annually in recent years.
These three regions,home to at least 200 million people,occupy only 6.3 percent of the country’s area but consume 40 percent of the country’s coal and produce half of its steel,according to official figures.
Studies also show that the visibility(能见度) in eastern regions of China has dropped by 7 to 15 km compared to that in the early 1960s,as a result of air pollution.
Liaoning province,the Shandong Peninsula,Wuhan in Hubei province and its surrounding area,the Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiangtan region in Hunan province,the Chengdu-Chongqing region,and the western coast of the Taiwan Straits are also listed as areas to carry out such regional air pollution control programs,according to the plan.
The new plan also requires an improved air quality system,which will measure the pollution levels. “The current system,which only measures some major pollutants,cannot reflect the_truepicture.” said Chai.It will not be enough to reduce air pollution in a single city because ________.
A.air pollution has been becoming more and more serious in recent years |
B.air pollution like acid rain and smog is threatening people’s health |
C.air pollutants in a city can travel in the sky and affect nearby areas |
D.air pollutants stay in fixed places over the cities |
Suppose the visibility in eastern regions of China was 130 km in the early 1960s,the visibility there nowadays is ________.
A.123 to 115 km | B.137 to 145 km |
C.123 to 145 km | D.115 to 137 km |
The main purpose of the passage is ________.
A.to inform readers of the damage caused by air pollution |
B.to introduce the new plan to control air pollution |
C.to provide official figures of air pollution levels |
D.to point out the regions affected by air pollution |
What does the underlined phrase “the true picture” in the last paragraph mean?
A.The major pollutants. |
B.The key polluted areas. |
C.The major polluted cities. |
D.The pollution levels. |
Like many new graduates, I left university full of hope for the future but with no real idea of what I wanted to do. My degree, with honors, in English literature had not really prepared me for anything practical. I knew I wanted to make a difference in the world somehow, but I had no idea how to do that. That’s when I learned about the Light house Project.
I started my journey as a Lighthouse Project volunteer by reading as much as I could about the experiences of previous volunteers. I knew it would be a lot of hard work, and that I would be away from my family and friends for a very long time. In short, I did not take my decision to apply for the Lighthouse Project lightly. Neither did my family.
Eventually, however, I won the support of my family, and I sent in all the paperwork needed for the application. After countless interviews and presentations, I managed to stand out among the candidates and survive the test alone. Several months later, I finally received a call asking me to report for the duty. I would be going to a small village near Abuja, Nigeria. Where? What? Nigeria? I had no idea. But I was about to find out.
After completing my training, I was sent to the village that was small and desperately in need of proper accommodation. Though the local villagers were poor, they offered their homes, hearts, and food as if I were their own family. I was asked to lead a small team of local people in building a new schoolhouse. For the next year or so, I taught in that same schoolhouse. But I sometimes think I learned more from my students than they did from me.
Sometime during that period, I realized that all those things that had seemed so strange or unusual to me no longer did, though I did not get anywhere with the local language, and returned to the United States a different man. The Lighthouse Project had changed my life forever.What do we know about the author?
A.His university education focused on the theoretical knowledge. |
B.His dream at university was to become a volunteer. |
C.He took pride in having contributed to the world. |
D.He felt honored to study English literature. |
According to the Paragraph 2, it is most likely that the author
A.discussed his decision with his family. |
B.asked previous volunteers about voluntary work |
C.attended special training to perform difficult tasks |
D.felt sad about having to leave his family and friends |
In his application for the volunteer job, the author
A.participated in many discussions |
B.went through challenging survival tests |
C.wrote quite a few papers on voluntary work |
D.faced strong competition from other candidates |
On arrival at the village, the author was
A.asked to lead a farming team |
B.sent to teach in a schoolhouse |
C.received warmly by local villagers |
D.arranged to live in a separate house. |
What can we infer from the author’s experiences in Nigeria?
A.He found some difficulty adapting to the local culture |
B.He had learned to communicate in the local language. |
C.He had overcome all his weaknesses before he left for home. |
D.He was chosen as the most respectable teacher by his students. |
Close your eyes for a minute and imagine what life would be like if you had a hundred dollars less. Also imagine what it would be like spending the rest of your life with you eyes closed. Imagine having to read this page, not with your eyes but with your finger-tips.
With existing medical knowledge and skills, two-thirds of the world’s 42 million blind should not have to suffer. Unfortunately, rich countries posses most of this knowledge, while developing countries do not.
ORBIS is an international non-profit organization which operates the world’s only flying teaching eye hospital. ORBIS intends to help fight blindness worldwide. Inside a DC-8 aircraft, there is a fully-equipped teaching hospital with television studio and classroom. Doctors are taught the latest techniques of bringing sight back to people there. Project ORBIS also aims at promoting peaceful cooperation(合作) among countries.
ORBIS tries to help developing countries by providing training during three-week medical programs. ORBIS has taught sight-saving techniques to over 35,000 doctors and nurses, who continue to cure tens of thousands of blind people every year. ORBIS has conducted 17 plane programs is China so far. For the seven to ten million blind in China ORBIS is planning to do more for them. At the moment an ORBIS is working on a long-term plan to develop a training center and to provide eye care service to Shanxi Province. ORBIS needs your help to continue their work and free people from blindness.
For just US$38,you can help one person see; for $380 you can bring sight to 10 people; $1,300 helps teach a doctor new skills; and for $13,000 you can provide a training program for a group of doctors who can make thousands of blind people see again. Your money can open their eyes to the world. Please help ORBIS improve the quality of life for so many people less fortunate than ourselves.The first paragraph is intended to ______.
A.introduce a new way of reading |
B.advise the public to lead a simple life |
C.direct the public’s attention to the blind |
D.encourage the public to use imagination |
What do we learn about existing medical knowledge and skills in the world?
A.They are adequate |
B.They have not been updated. |
C.They are not equally distributed |
D.They have benefited most of the blind |
ORBIS aims to help the blind by ______.
A.teaching medical students |
B.training doctors and nurses |
C.running flying hospitals globally |
D.setting up non-profit organization |
What does the author try to do in the last paragraph?
A.Appeal for donations |
B.Make an advertisement |
C.Promote training programs |
D.Show sympathy for the blind |
What can be the best title for the passage?
A.ORBIS in China |
B.Fighting Blindness |
C.ORBIS Flying Hospital |
D.Sight-saving Techniques |
If it really is what’s on the inside that counts, then a lot of thin people might be in trouble.
Some doctors now think that the internal(内部的) fat surrounding important organs like the heart or liver could be as dangerous as the external fat which can be noticed more easily.
“Being thin doesn’t surely mean you are not fat,” said Dr Jimmy Bell at Imperial College. Since 1994, Bell and his team have scanned nearly 800 people with MRI machines to create “fat maps” showing where people store fat.
According to the result, people who keep their weight through diet rather than exercise are likely to have major deposits of internal fat, even if they are slim.
Even people with normal Body Mass Index scores can have surprising levels of fat deposits inside. Of the women, as many as 45 percent of those with normal BMI scores (20 to 25) actually had too high levels of internal fat. Among men, the percentage was nearly 60 percent.
According to Bell, people who are fat on the inside are actually on the edge of being fat. They eat too many fatty and sugary foods, but they are not eating enough to be fat. Scientists believe we naturally store fat around the belly first, but at some point, the body may start storing it elsewhere.
Doctors are unsure about the exact dangers of internal fat, but some think it has something to do with heart disease and diabetes(糖尿病). They want to prove that internal fat damages the body’s communication systems.
The good news is that internal fat can be easily burned off through exercise or even by improving your diet. “If you want to be healthy, there is no shortcut. Exercise has to be an important part of your lifestyle.” Bell said.What is the passage mainly about?
A.Internal fat is of no importance. |
B.Thin people may be fat inside. |
C.Internal fat leads to many diseases. |
D.Thin people don’t have diabetes. |
According to the passage, which of the following is WRONG?
A.Exercise can help to reduce the internal fat. |
B.People can get rid of internal fat by improving diet. |
C.People with heart disease all have internal fat. |
D.Men are more likely to have too much internal fat. |
From the last paragraph, we can find that ______.
A.exercise plays an important role in people’s life for keeping healthy |
B.thin people usually have internal fat even if they are slim |
C.it is easier to burn off internal fat than external fat |
D.internal fat leading to disease has been proved |
Does handwriting matter? Not very much, according to many educators. However, scientists say it is far too soon to declare handwriting is not important. New evidence suggests that the link between handwriting and educational development is deep.
Children not only learn to read more quickly when they first learn to write by hand, but they are also better able to create ideas and remember information. In other words, it’s not only what we write that matters — but how.
A study led by Karin James, a psychologist at Indiana University, gave support to that view. A group of children, who had not learned to read and write, were offered a letter or a shape on a card and asked to copy it in one of three ways: draw the image on a page but with a dotted outline(虚线), draw it on a piece of blank white paper, or type it on a computer. Then the researchers put the children in a brain scanner and showed them the image again.
It was found that when children had drawn a letter freehand without a dotted outline or a computer, the activity in three areas of the brain were increased. These three areas work actively in adults when they read and write. By contrast, children who chose the other two ways showed no such effect. Dr. James attributes the differences to the process of free handwriting: Not only must we first plan and take action in a way but we are also likely to produce a result that is variable. Those are not necessary when we have an outline.
It’s time for educators to change their mind and pay more attention to children’s handwriting.What do scientists mean by saying “it is far too soon to declare handwriting is not important”?
A.Handwriting is not very important to children. |
B.Handwriting should not be ignored at present. |
C.Handwriting has nothing to do with education. |
D.Handwriting can not be learned in a short time. |
Which is NOT the children’s task in the experiment?
A.Copy the image on a page but with a dotted outline. |
B.Draw the image on a piece of blank white paper. |
C.Put a brain scanner and show the image again. |
D.Type the image directly on a computer. |
What does “that view” in Para. 3 refer to?
A.How we write is as important as what we write. |
B.A group of students should know what to write. |
C.Children create ideas and remember information. |
D.Children read quickly when they write by hand. |
According to the passage, the author obviously _______ giving up handwriting.
A.is for | B.doesn’t care about |
C.is responsible for | D.is against |
Medical Center:
The staff of the Medical Center aim to provide convenient and comprehensive medical care to students and staff of the university. The center is well equipped and the staff here are trained to deal with a broad range of medical problems. Both female and male doctors as well as nursing staff are available for consultation. Also,all kinds of medicines are sold here and are cheaper for students than other drugstores.
Opening Hours:24 hours from Monday to Sunday
Phone:(412)396--6649 Fax:(412)396—6648
Diving Centre:
Our experienced instructors offer one-month courses in deep-sea diving for beginners. There are two evening lessons a week, in which you learn to breathe underwater and use the equipment safely. You only need swimming costume and towel. Reduced rates for couples.
Opening Hours:Monday and Friday:6:30 p.m.—8:30 p.m.
Phone:(412)396—6312 Fax:(412)396—6706
Riding School:
You can start horse—riding at any age. Choose private or group lessons any weekday
between 9 a.m.and 8:30 p.m.(3:30 p.m.on Saturdays). There are 10 kilometers of tracks and paths for leisurely rides across farmland and open country. You will need a riding hat.
Opening Hours:Monday through Friday:9:00 a.m.—8:30 p.m.
Phone:(412)396—6754 Fax:(412)396—6752
Sailing Club:
Our Young Sailor’s Course leads to the Stage 1 Sailing qualification. You’ll learn how to sail safely and the course also covers sailing theory and first aid. Have fun with other course members , afterwards in the clubroom. There are 10 weekly two-hour 1essons (Tuesdays 6 p.m.~8 p.m.).
Opening Hours:Tuesdays:6:00 p.m.—8:00 p.m.
Phone:(412)396—6644 Fax:(412)396—6644
Watersports Club:
We use a two-kilometer length of river for speedboat racing, and water-skiing, A beginners’ course consists of ten 20-minute lessons. You will learn to handle boats safely and confidently, but must be able to swim. The club is in a convenient central position and is open daily from 9 a.m to 4 p.m,with lessons all through the day.
Opening Hours:Monday through Friday:9:00 a.m.—4:00 p.m.
Phone: (412)396—6899 Fax396—6890If you want to swim and enjoy activities which are fast and a bit dangerous, you should join ________ .
A.Diving Centre | B.Riding School |
C.Sailing Club | D.Watersports Club |
If you want to experience a new activity in the countryside in the mornings,you may fax ________.
A.(412)396—6648 | B.(412)396—6752 |
C.(412)396—6876 | D.(412)396—6706 |
If you are planning to explore the ocean depths, you should attend your lessons at ______ .
A.Monday through Friday:7:00 a.m.—10:00 p.m. |
B.24 hours from Monday to Sunday |
C.Monday and Friday:6:30 p.m.—8:30 p.m. |
D.Tuesdays:6:00 p.m.—8:00 p.m. |
Which is NOT the convenience that the Medical Center provides?
A.Nursery for newly-born babies. |
B.Well trained staff members. |
C.Good equipment. |
D.Various less expensive medicines. |