Have you ever stayed in a hotel? Most Chinese hotels often provide guests with things like disposable (一次性的) toothbrushes, toothpaste, shampoo and slippers. Many guests like the idea because they don't have to bring their own. But, if you travel to Beijing, remember to bring your own things. Starting from June, some hotels in Beijing will no longer provide guests with these disposables. They want to ask people to use less disposable things.
Many disposable things are made of plastic(塑料). People throw them away after only using them once. It is a waste of natural resources and is very bad for the environment. Do you know, one Chinese person makes as much as 400kg of waste a year! Most of that waste comes from disposable things. In Beijing, people throw away about 19,000 tons of plastic bags and 1,320 tons of plastic lunch bowls every year! Plastic can take between 100 and 400 years to break down. So the less plastic we throw out, the better. So, wherever you travel, bring your own things and use them again and again.
Back at home and school, you can also do something to make our world a better place. Try to do these things in your daily life:
Use cloth shopping bags, not plastic ones.
After using a plastic bag, wash it out and let it dry. Then you can use it over and over again.
Do not use paper cups. At your school canteen(食堂), use your own bowl and chopsticks instead of disposable ones.Why do many hotels provide guests with some disposable things?
| A．Let their guests be convenient during their travelling. |
| B．Hope their guests use less disposable things. |
| C．Wish their guests to save money. |
| D．Want their guests to use more disposable things. |
Some Beijing hotels will no longer provide guests with ____.
| A．cheap food and drink | B．disposable things |
| C．good service | D．free TV programs |
Which of the following is NOT true?
| A．Many disposable things are made of plastic. |
| B．Throwing disposable things away is a waste of natural resources. |
| C．Plastic is very bad for the environment. |
| D．Plastic breaks down easily. |
What can we do to make our world a better place at home and school?
| A．Use shopping bags made of plastic. |
| B．Do not throw away paper cups. |
| C．Use disposable plates, bowls and chopsticks. |
| D．Do not forget to reuse daily necessities(日用品). |
We can tell from the story that ____.
| A．people don't like disposable things at all |
| B．we can't use paper or plastic bowls at school |
| C．we should use less plastic things and protect our environment |
| D．hotels won't provide disposable things because they want to save money |
I moved into a new house in July. Since then I have met a few of my neighbors who are very nice people. For Christmas, I thought I would do something nice for each of the neighbors I knew. There were nine neighbors whom I knew by name or spoke with often when I was out in my yard. I knew which houses they lived in.
I decided to add one more to my list. This lady I decided to add lived down the street from me. I met her every morning walking to work as I drove down the street. She always smiled to me. But I had no idea who she was and which house she lived in.
I planned to make small fruit baskets and leave them on my neighbor's front porches (门廊) on Christmas Eve. I signed the cards: "Happy Holidays from 5104 Northumberland Road."
I saved the last for the friendly lady. I finally decided on a house where I met her each morning and guessed that it was hers.
My neighbors really appreciated the baskets and would tell me as they saw me in the yard or they would call, and a couple even came by to thank me.
This morning I found a small note in the mailbox. It was addressed simply: Resident, 5104 Northumberland Road.
The Thank You card really caught me by surprise. I opened it and read the message, "Thank you for the lovely fruit basket you left on our porch. It was very thoughtful. Richard Kelly passed away last week. He talked a lot about how nice it was that someone remembered him in his time of illness. He really appreciated it."
I had no idea who Richard Kelly was and that he had been seriously ill. I had left that nice lady's basket on his porch by mistake. I wanted to say sorry, but that would be wrong. I believe that Mr. Kelly Was meant to have that basket because he was dying. I hate that the nice lady did not get to receive a fruit basket on Christmas, but I believe if she knew what had happened, she would be happy. I feel pleased to have helped Richard Kelly's last days be more cheerful. How many Christmas gifts did the author intend to send?
| A．Nine. | B．Eight. | C．Ten. | D．Eleven. |
Where did the friendly lady live?
| A．She lived at the end of Northumberland Road. |
| B．Her address was 5104 Northumberland Road. |
| C．She was thought to share a house with Mr. Kelly. |
| D．The author was not sure about her address at all. |
How did the author's neighbors respond to his gifts?
| A．They liked the gifts very much and were thankful. |
| B．They were thankful that they wanted to be friends. |
| C．They all made phone calls to say "Thank You". |
| D．They all visited him by person to show gratitude. |
An Earthship is a home that is built of materials such as old tires and aluminum cans. It is the idea of a man named Michael Reynolds. Many Earthships are more or less self-sufficient because they provide their own heat, air and water. They often have gardens watered and fed by waste water. They are comfortable and ecologically friendly.
The main material used in building Earthships is tires. Tires are plentiful and can't be recycled like paper, plastic, and metal. While building supplies for most houses can be very expensive, old used tires are free.
First, the tires are packed tightly with dirt. Each full tire weighs as much as 400 pounds. The tires are then stacked like bricks. The walls are extremely strong. They also help keep an even temperature in the house (between 60 and 70 degrees) without heating and cooling systems.
The walls inside the Earthship are made of aluminum cans that are held together by cement. Then they are coated with adobe or stucco.
The roofs of Earthships are sloped so that rain and snow run into large tanks. These tanks hold all the water for the house, and pumps push the water through the pipes. Sometimes, water flows in certain areas of the house as waterfalls! Water that has been used is pumped out into the gardens where owners grow much of their own food.
In most of these houses, the southern side has huge windows that take in winter sunlight as a source of heat. Summer sun does not come in through the south windows, so it doesn't get too hot in the summer. The house also has solar panels that gather energy for lights and hot water and cooking. The Earthships have all the comforts of a regular house without the high cost of electric bills!
In a time when we are running out of energy resources, pollution is bad, and waste is piling up, Earthships are the best places to live in. For people who truly care about the environment, Earthships provide a great alternative to traditional houses. You won't be giving up any comforts, and the styles are attractive. We all hope that more and more people will build Earthships and take a huge step toward helping the environment and saving our planet. What is the main idea of this passage?
| A．Earthships are a good way to live and protect the environment. |
| B．Tanks hold water collected from rain and snow. |
| C．It's important to grow your own food in a vegetable garden. |
| D．People who live in Earthships usually live in the desert. |
Which of the following is NOT explained in the passage?
| A．How an Earthship is built. |
| B．What an Earthship is mainly made of. |
| C．Why the Earthship is so called. |
| D．How an Earthship is heated in winter. |
Which evidence best supports the idea that Earthships are environmentally friendly?
| A．They were invented by Michael Reynolds. |
| B．Water that has been used is pumped out into the garden. |
| C．They are comfortable and ecologically friendly. |
| D．The tires are packed tightly with dirt. |
Welcome to my message board!
Subject: Slimming down classics?
Mr. Handsome 2007-5-12
6: 34 AM Orion Books, which decides there is a market in creating cut-down classics (经典著作), is slimming down some novels by such great writers as L. Tolstoy, M. Mitchell and C. Bronte. Now, each of them has been whittled down to about 400 pages by cutting 30 to 40 pages percent of original, with words, sentences, paragraphs and, in a few cases, chapters removed. The first six shortened editions, all priced at £ 6.99 and advertised as great reads "in half the time", will go on sale next month, with plans for 50 to 100 more to follow. The publishing house believes that modern readers will welcome the shorter versions.
Mr. Edwards
2007-5-12
9:40 AM Well, I'm publisher of Orion Group. Thanks for your attention, Mr. Handsome.
I must say, the idea developed from a game of "shame" in my office. Each of us was required to confess (承认) to the most embarrassing blanks in his or her reading. I admitted that I had never read Anna Karenina and tried but failed to get through Gone with the Wind several times. One of my colleagues acknowledged skipping (跳读) Jane Eyre. We realized that life is too short to read all the books you want to and we never were going to read these ones.
As a leading publishing house, we are trying to make classics convenient for readers but it's not as if we're withdrawing the original versions. They are still there if you want to read them.
Ms. Weir 2007-5-12
11:35 AM I'm director of the online book club www.lovereading.co.uk
Mr. Edwards, I think your shortened edition is a breath of fresh air. I'm guilty of never having read Anna Karenina, because it's just so long. I'd much rather read two 300-page books than one 600-page book. I am looking forward to more shortened classics!
Mr. Crockatt
2007-5-12
4:38 PM I'm from the London independent bookshop Corckatt & Powell.
In my opinion, the practice is completely ridiculous. How can you edit the classics? I'm afraid reading some of these books is hard work, and that is why you have to develop as a reader. If people don't have time to read Anna Karenina, then fine. But don't read a shortened version and kid yourself it's the real thing. According to the message board, Orion Books __________.
| A．opposes the reading of original classics |
| B．is embarrassed for cutting down classics |
| C．thinks cut-down classics have a bright future |
| D．is cautious in its decision to cut down classics |
In Mr. Edwards' opinion, Orion Group is shortening classics to __________.
| A．make them easier to read |
| B．meet a large demand in the market |
| C．increase the sales of literary books |
| D．compete with their original versions |
By describing the shortened classics as "a breath of fresh air", Ms. Weir __________.
| A．speaks highly of the cut-down classics |
| B．shows her love for original classics |
| C．feels guilty of not reading the classics |
| D．disapprove of shortening the classics |
Mr. Crockatt seems to imply that __________.
| A．reading the classic works is a confusing attempt |
| B．shortening the classics does harm to the original |
| C．publishing the cut-down classics is a difficult job |
| D．editing the classic works satisfies children's needs |
How many classics are involved in the massage board?
| A．Two | B．Three | C．Four | D．Five |
F. Scott Fitzgerald, born on September 24, 1896, an American novelist, was once a student of St. Paul Academy, the Newman School and attended Princeton University for a short while. In 1917 he joined the army and was posted in Alabama, where he met his future wife Zelda Sayre. Then he had to make some money to impress her.
His life with her was full of great happiness, as he wrote in his diary: "My own happiness in the past often approached such joy that I could share it even with the person dearest to me but had to walk it away in quiet streets and take down parts of it in my diary." This Side of Paradise, his first novel, was published in 1920. Encouraged by its success, Fitzgerald began to devote more time to his writing. Then he continued with the novel The Beautiful and Damned (1922), a collection of short stories Thales of the Jazz Age (1922), and a play The Vegetable (1923). But his greatest success was The Great Gatsby, published in 1925, which quick brought him praise from the literary world. Yet it failed to give him the needed financial security. Then, in 1926, he published another collection of short stories All the Sad Young Men.
However, Fitzgerald's problems with his wife Zelda affected his writing. During the 1920s he tried to reorder his life, but failed. By 1930, his wife had her first breakdown and went to a Swiss clinic. During this period he completed novels Tender Is the Night in 1934 and The Love of the Last Tycoon in 1940. While his wife was in hospital in the United States, he got totally addicted to alcohol. Sheila Graham, his dear friend, helped him fight his alcoholism. How many novels written by Fitzgerald are mentioned in the passage?
| A．5 | B．6 | C．7 | D．8 |
Which of the following is the correct order to describe Fitzgerald's life according to the passage?
a. He became addicted to drinking.
b. He studied at St. Paul Academy.
c. He published his first novel This Side of Paradise.
d. The Great Gatsby won high praise.
e. He failed to reorder his life.
f. He joined the army and met Zelda.
| A．f-c-e-a-b-d | B．b-e-a-f-c-d |
| C．f-d-e-c-b-a | D．b-f-c-d-e-a |
We can infer from the passage that Fitzgerald __________.
| A．had made some money when he met Zelda in Alabama. |
| B．was well educated and well off before he served in the army |
| C．would have completed more works if his wife hadn't broken down |
| D．helped his friend get rid of drinking while his wife was in hospital |
The passage is probably followed by a concluding paragraph about __________.
| A．Zelda's personal life |
| B．Zelda's illness and treatment |
| C．Fitzgerald's friendship with Graham |
| D．Fitzgerald's contributions to the literary world |
What form of article do you think this passage is?
| A．Reportage. | B．Report of survey. |
| C．Biography. | D．Essay. |
When I met him, I had a lot of anger inside of me. I've lived my whole life in Spanish Harlem, but in my neighborhood, there are shoot-ups all the time. I know kids who have been shot or beaten up. I have friends who ended up in prison. I could have ended up that way, too, but Mr. Clark wouldn't let that happen.
Mr. Clark worked long hours, making sure I did my work. My grades rose. In fact, the scores of our whole class rose. One day, he took our class to see The Phantom of the Opera, and it was the first time some kids had ever been out of Harlem. Before the show, he treated us to dinner at a restaurant and taught us not to talk with our mouths full. We did not want to let him down.
Mr. Clark was selected as Disney's 2000 Teacher of the Year. He said he would draw three names out of a hat; those students would go with him to Los Angeles to get the award. But when the time came to draw names, Mr. Clark said, "You're all going."
On graduation day, there were a lot of tears. We didn't want his class to end. In 2001, he moved to Atlanta, but he always kept in touch. He started giving lectures about education, and wrote a bestselling book based on his classroom rules, The Essential 55. In 2003, Mr. Clark took some of us on a trip to South Africa to deliver school supplies and visit the orphanages (孤儿院). It was the most amazing experience of my life. It's now my dream to one day start a group of women's clubs, helping people from all backgrounds. Without Mr. Clark, the writer __________.
| A．might have been put into prison |
| B．might not have won the prize |
| C．might have joined a women's club |
| D．might not have moved to Atlanta |
The Essential 55 is __________.
| A．a show | B．a speech | C．a classroom rule | D．a book |
What can we learn in the short reading?
| A．It was in Harlem that we saw The Phantom of the Opera for the first time. |
| B．Mr. Clark taught us not to talk with our mouths full, and we did. |
| C．Mr. Clark was selected as Disney's 2000 Teacher of the Year in Los Angeles. |
| D．In 2003, Mr. Clark moved to Atlanta, and he always kept in touch with us. |
In the passage, the writer intends to tell us that __________.
| A．Mr. Clark went to South Africa because he liked travelling |
| B．Mr. Clark helped to set up a group of women's clubs |
| C．a good teacher can help raise his or her students' scores |
| D．a good teacher has a good influence on his or her students |