A small town in Tasmania, an island off the south coast of mainland Australia, is making itself an environmental role model by becoming the country's first plastic bag-free town.
Since April 28, Coles Bay's population of 175 and its tourist shoppers have been using reusable paper or cloth bags to carry their shopping.
Ben Keamey, a local businessman who supports the bag ban, said it would cut the amount of waste and prevent damage to native wildlife that try to eat the plastic.
"Most businesses here come from the tourism and that's all based on the environment, so people were pretty supportive," he said.
Every year Australians use more than six billion plastic bags. More than half of these come from the supermarket. Since it takes years for the bags to biodegrade(生物递减分解), tens of millions end up polluting the environment. They kill about 100,000 sea-birds and animals, which mistake bags for food, every year.
Only in the past few months have major Australian supermarkets begun cutting on their use of plastic bags. Environmental groups are pushing for a plastic bag fee like that in Ireland. There, since plastic bags cost 10 pence (about 1 yuan) each, their use has been cut by 90 per cent.
Pollution caused by plastic bags is a big headache for countries all over the world. As early as 1999, Beijing said that only plastic bags of certain thickness could be used. This was to encourage them to be used again and again, since an average of six million plastic bags are used there every there every single day.Which might be the best title for this passage?
A.Deadly Plastic Bags | B.The End of Plastic Bags |
C.How to Reuse Plastic Bags | D.The Present Situation of Plastic Bags |
Plastic bags will not be used by the native people of Coles Bay because they ______.
A.cause the environmental pollution | B.are not easy to be reused |
C.are not as good as cloth bags | D.are not strong enough |
Which of the following statements is NOT true?
A.Plastic bags kill many animals in Australia each year. |
B.Most Australian supermarkets have begun cutting on their use of plastic bags. |
C.People at Coles Bay think poor environment may affect their tourism. |
D.You have to pay for the plastic bags if you go shopping in Ireland. |
The example of Coles Bay is to show that ______.
A.people take serious actions to deal with the plastic bag problem |
B.people begin to realise the harm of using plastic bags |
C.Australia is the first country in solving the plastic bag problem |
D.Australians are aware of the importance of protecting the small town |
Which of the following measures on plastic bags is NOT mentioned in the passage?
A.To forbid to use them by law. |
B.to charge fee for plastic bags. |
C.To make them thick enough to be reuseable. |
D.To make them environmentally friendly. |
HOLIDAY FUN AT THE POWERHOUSE
500 HARRIS STREET ULTIMO·TELEPHONE(02)9217 0111
Join in the holiday fun at the Powerhouse this month linked to our new exhibition, Evolution & Revolution: Chinese dress1700s to now. DON’T FORGET our other special event, the Club Med Circus School which is part of the Circus(马戏团)!150years of circus in Australia exhibition experience!
◆Chinese Folk Dancing: Colorful Chinese dance and musical performances by The Chinese Folk Dancing School of Sydney. Dances include: the Golden stick dance and the Chinese drum dance. A feature will be the Qin dynasty Emperor’s count dance .Also included is a show of face painting for Beijing opera performances.
Sunday 29 June and Wednesday 2 July in the Turbine Hall, at 11.30 am & 1.30 pm.
◆Australian Chinese Children’s Arts Theatre: W ell-known children’s play experts from Shanghai lead this dynamic youth group. Performances include Chinese fairy tales and plays.
Thursday 3 to Sunday 6 July in the Turbine Hall, at 11.30 am & 1.30 pm.
◆Chinese Youth League: A traditional performing arts group featuring performance highlights such as the Red scarf and Spring flower dances ,and a musician playing Er Hu.
Sunday 6 to Tuesday 8 July in the Turbine Hall,11.30 am to 1.30 pm.
◆Kids Activity: Make a Paper Horse :Young children make a paper horse cut-out.(The horse is a frequent theme in Chinese painting, including a kind of advancement.)Suitable for ages 8~12 years.
Saturday 28 June to Tuesday 8 July in the Turbine Hall,12.00 pm to 1.00 pm.
◆Club Med Circus School: Learn circus skills, including the trapeze, trampolining and magic.Note only for children over 5.There are 40 places available in each 1 hour session and these must be booked at the front desk,level 4,on the day.
Tuesday 1 to Saturday 5 Julyat 11.30 am & 1.00 pm.
Enjoy unlimited free visits and many other benefits by becoming a Family member of the Powerhouse.Our family memberships cover two adults and all children under the age of 16 years at the one address.
Members receive Powerline,our monthly magazine,discounts in the shops and the restaurants,as well as free admission to the Museum.All this for as little as $50.00 a year!Call(02)9217 0600 for more details.When can you watch the Chinese drum dance?
A.On July 2. | B.On July 3. |
C.On July 6. | D.On July 8. |
To learn the magic tricks,you can go to .
A.Kids Activity | B.Chinese Youth League |
C.Club Med Circus School | D.Children’s Arts Theatre |
What is required if you want to enjoy free visits to the Museum?
A.Calling(02)9217 0600. |
B.Gaining family membership. |
C.Coming for the holiday fun. |
D.Paying Powerline $50.00 a year. |
What is the main purpose of the text .
A.To attract visitors. | B.To present schedules. |
C.To report the performances. | D.To teach kids Chinese arts. |
Have you ever complained why life is so tiring? Does the sky sometimes seem dark to you? Are your studies sometimes not successful? Well, friends, cheer up and smile all the time. If you see the world with your warm heart, you’ll find that the whole world smiles to you.
While in school, sometimes you are tired of your lessons, but have you ever noticed the happy smile on your teacher’s face when you did a good job?
One day it is fine. Just before you go out, it suddenly starts to rain. Maybe you would feel very sad and start to complain about the weather. But dear friends, why don’t you sit down and listen to the free concerts that the nature offers you? And with the timely rain, crops in the fields will grow better and better and farmers will have a good harvest.
Although everyone wants to succeed in what he tries to do, sometimes failure can’t be avoided. I think failure is not terrible, and the terrible thing is that we are afraid of it and give up hope. When we face failure, we must be confident in ourselves, draw a useful lesson from it and try our best to finish what we have decided to do. As a popular saying goes, “Failure is the mother of success”.
Attitude decides everything. With an optimistic attitude life is easy and pleasant. Let’s smile to whatever we meet and the whole world will smile to us.People sometimes complain _________.
A.the sky is always dark |
B.their studies are successful |
C.they see the world with their heart |
D.life is tiring |
When we face failure, we ___________.
A.must be confident in ourselves |
B.shouldn’t be afraid of it |
C.shouldn’t give up hope |
D.All of the above |
The best title for the passage is_______.
A.Smile and the World Smiles to You |
B.Complaining about Life |
C.Failure is the Mother of Success |
D.It is Very Hard to Succeed |
Liu Huan is a professor at the University of International Business and Economics. He is also a noted musician and popular singer in the Chinese mainland.
Born on Aug. 26, 1963 in to a teacher’s family in Tianjin, Liu enrolled at the University of International Relations in Beijing in 1981, majoring in French literature. He was retained at the university as a faculty member(教职工)after graduation in 1985. He won two first prizes in Beijing’s first-ever university English and French singing contests in 1985. To help promote local education by teaching music, he lived in Shizuishan, a remote area in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, in 1985~1986. He was appointed a professor at the University of International Business and Economics to teach the history of Western music in 1991, and has been working at the university for more than 20 years.
As a professor, Liu is invited every year to colleges and universities in Beijing to teach music courses. As a famous musician, when asked if his classes differ from other teachers’, Liu simply said, “Nothing different. While standing on the platform, I am just a teacher. Everything outside has nothing to do with me at that moment. ”
Since becoming a professional singer in 1985, Liu’s singing has been widely welcomed across the country. He won many national awards, including the Top 10 Film and TV Singers in the Country in 1988, in 1990 and in 1992. On Aug. 8, 2008, Liu sang a duet “You and Me” with Sarah Brightman at the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games, reaching the top of his singing career. In addition to singing, Liu Huan also creates original scores for film and TV. His works have been well received by both audiences and his peers in the industry.
Therefore, Liu is chosen to act as one of the four judges on “The Voice of China” , a surprisingly popular singing talent show which has been aired on Zhejiang Satellite TV since July 13, 2012. At the same time, his fellow judges are Na Ying, Yang Kun, and Harlem Yu.What does the underlined word “noted” in the first paragraph mean?
A.Famous. | B.Skilled. | C.Gifted. | D.Important. |
Liu Huan used to live in Shizuishan, a remote area in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region to_____
A.learn about their customs and cultures |
B.improve his ability of composing music by living in the village |
C.help promote local education by teaching music |
D.find some talented students in music |
When he reached the top of his singing career, he was .
A.45 | B.22 | C.28 | D.49 |
Which is NOT true of the description about his musical achievements?
A.He has won the Top 10 Film and TV Singers in the Country three times. |
B.He succeeded in singing a duet “You and Me” with Sarah Brightman at the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games. |
C.He creates many original scores for film and TV. |
D.He is the only one who acts as a judge on “The Voice of China”. |
Pat O’Burke was a poor Irishman with a large family, and one morning, waking up very early from cold and hunger, he decided to go shooting in a wood near his cottage. The wood belonged to Lord Northwood, a rich gentleman, Pat had no right to go there, but in it there were swarms of rabbits and flocks of birds that were good to eat, and Pat determined to take the risk. Suddenly he saw the owner, with a group of friends, coming towards him in the wood. There was a look of anger on Lord Northwood's face as he caught sight of the gun in Pat's hands. Pat's heart sank with fear, but he saw there was no hope of escape, so he walked boldly(大胆) up to the company and said to Lord Northwood, “Good morning, sir, and what has brought you out so early this morning?” Lord Northwood, rather surprised, said he and his Mends were taking a little exercise to get an appetite(食欲) for their breakfast. Then, looking at Pat with suspicion(怀疑), he said, “but why are you out so early in the morning?” “Well, sir” said Pat, “I just came out to see if I could get a breakfast for my appetite.” The whole crowed burst into laughter at Pat's ready wit(机智,风趣), and with a smile Lord Northwood walked on, leaving Pat to try his luck with the rabbits.This is a story about _____.
A.a rich man who owned a big wood |
B.a poor Irishman who lived all by himself |
C.a clever man who tried to get something to eat |
D.an Irish hunter with a large family |
There was a look of anger on Lord Northwood's face. Why?
A.He was not expecting Pat at this early hour. |
B.He knew Pat was coming for shooting. |
C.He didn't like the poor Irishman at all. |
D.Pat had not told him he would come. |
Why was Lord Northwood surprised?
A.He had not expected such a bold question from Pat. |
B.He wondered why Pat didn't run away. |
C.Pat wasn't afraid of him. |
D.Pat had a gun in his hands. |
What made the whole crowd burst into laughter?
A.Pat's funny looks |
B.Pat's interesting remarks |
C.Pat's quick and humorous response |
D.Pat's promise to leave fight away |
Hi, everybody !
Welcome to our newly-opened Richards Cinema Bookstore!
Now let me introduce to you some of the new film books in our store.
Are you Chinese film fans? OK, here comes the latest 25 New Takes about Chinese films. It is a collection of 25 fresh readings of different Chinese films from the 1930s to the present. In recent years, Chinese films are very popular in the States, such as Crouching Tiger and Hidden Dragon, Hero, and Flowers of Shanghai.
Do you like French films? Well, here is The French Cinema Book. It covers French films from the 1890s to the beginning of the 21st century. It is written for all lovers of French cinema: students and teachers, specialists and fans, and so on.
Maybe you are Indian film fans and star-chasers. Then here is Encyclopedia ( 百科全书 ) of Indian Cinema. The book is a complete introduction to all the best Indian films. It also offers a full list of names of the famous and successful film stars in the past ten years. You know, the Indian film industry is the largest in the world after our Hollywood.
If you like British films, we have The British Cinema Book. It is a good review of British cinema. This book contains a good many nice pictures.
In our bookstore, you can also find books about Mexican, Japanese, Australian, German and Italian films.
Well, please help yourselves to some coffee or tea, and have a good time here!The speaker of the passage is most probably _______
A.the author of 25 New Takes |
B.a tourist in the cinema bookstore |
C.the manager of the cinema bookstore |
D.a reader of Encyclopedia of Indian Cinema |
How many Asian countries does the speaker refer to when he talks about the film books?
A.Two. | B.Three. | C.Four. | D.Nine. |
Which of the following statements is NOT mentioned in the passage?
A.Indian cinema is second only to Hollywood. |
B.The British Cinema Book includes a complete list of names of stars. |
C.Crouching Tiger and Hidden Dragon is well received in the States. |
D.The French Cinema Book covers over a century's French films. |
The purpose of the speaker is_______.
A.to satisfy the customers' various tastes |
B.to keep the authors in the cinema bookstore |
C.to offer the tourists chances to meet the film stars |
D.to take the readers into film producers |