Some people think that as more and more people have televisions in their homes, fewer and fewer people will buy books and newspapers. Why read an article in the newspaper, when the TV news can bring you the information in a few minutes and with pictures? Why read the life story of a famous man, when a short television program can tell you all that you want to know?
Television has not killed reading, however. Today, newspapers sell in very large numbers. And books of every kind are sold more than ever before. Books are still a cheap way to get information and enjoyment. Although some books with hard covers are expensive, many books are printed today as paperbooks (平装本), which are quite cheap. A paperback collection of short stories, for example, is always cheaper than an evening at the cinema or the theater, and you can keep a book for ever and read it many times.
Books are a wonderful provider of knowledge and pleasure and some types of books should be in every home. Every home should have a good dictionary. A good encyclopedia (百科全书), though expensive, is useful, too, because you can find information on any subject. Besides, you can have such books as history books, science textbook, cookbooks, and collections of stories and poems. Then from time to time you can take a book of poems off your shelves and read the thoughts and feelings of your favorite poets.It can be inferred from the passage that ________.
| A．TV programs are a chief provider of knowledge. |
| B．cinemas are the best choice in getting information. |
| C．reading is a cheap way of learning and having fun. |
| D．newspapers are an expensive way to enjoy oneself. |
What does the sentences “Television has not killed reading, however ” underlined in the second paragraph suggest?
| A．People only need reading, though. |
| B．Reading is still necessary today. |
| C．Reading is more fun than television. |
| D．Watching television doesn’t help reading. |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．Fewer and fewer people will buy books. |
| B．A good dictionary should be kept in every home. |
| C．Books with hard covers sell better than paperbooks. |
| D．More people like TV programs about famous men. |
One kind of female butterfly mates only once in its life -- and then closes its wings to avoid "harassment" when pursued by persistent and unwanted males, a Japanese researcher said.
Observations of the Small Copper Butterfly, a colourful orange and black butterfly, showed that some females closed their wings when males flew by, but only when they were males of their own species, said Jun-Ya Ide, an associate professor at Kurume Institute of Technology in Fukuoka, western Japan.
"When we looked into why, the males were courting the females. They do this very stubbornly, so the females sometimes try to get away -- or prefer to stay unobserved," he added.
Ide and his colleagues brought a model of a male butterfly near the females to test their reactions and found that young females that had yet to mate kept their wings open, but those that had already mated closed them.
Not only can the persistent attentions of unwanted suitors harm the delicate females, fleeing from them -- with the male often in pursuit -- uses up strength and can even shorten their lives, he added.
"Closing their wings makes them less visible, helping them avoid communication with their own species. We figured they were trying to avoid harassment by males," Ide said.What does the word “harassment”mean in the paragraph？
| A．attack | B．embarrassment |
| C．sexual invasion | D．threat |
Why some some females closed their wings when males flew by？
| A．because they close their wings to avoid "harassment" when pursued by persistent and unwanted males. |
| B．because the female butterfly mates only once in its life. |
| C．because they don’t like the male butterfly at all. |
| D．because they are afraid of the male butterfly. |
According the the passage, which is correct?
| A．The females closed their wings when males flew by. |
| B．Only the model of a male butterfly can make the young female butterflies to keep their wings open. |
| C．The female butterfly mates only once in its life |
| D．Not only can the persistent attentions of wanted suitors harm the delicate females, fleeing from them with the male often in pursuit -- uses up strength and can even shorten their lives. |
In a cold winter, a couple had to move out from the luxury villa because of bankruptcy. The husband worked day and night to support the family but with no care of his wife. So she thought, “he doesn't love me anymore, he just cares his business...not me”.
One day, she began to take a bath, he stopped her at the door, "Let me take it first, OK?" "Why not let me shower first," she asked. "I was tired, sweetie, you take it later, OK?" She was totally depressed.
On a morose day, she found nothing to do and turned on his computer, a few words blurred her eyes...it was his diary:
Today, I was quite sad, she asked me why I was always taking the bath first, and I said to her, I was exhausted. She was unhappy, in her mind, I treated her not as well as usual, but how can I do? I wasn’t as rich as before! We moved to the small apartment, there was only a shower in such a freezing winter. But I found that if one person took the shower first, the room could get a little warm, so every time I rushed to the bathroom first. I was thinking that, when she took the shower, the room would get warmer, at least1℃, 2℃or 3℃
Now I can't give her comfortable life, bring her the luxury restaurant, buy expensive dresses for her, but at least, I can give her 1℃love.Why was the husband always taking the bath first?
| A．Because he was tired from work. |
| B．Because he wanted to get the bathroom warmer. |
| C．Because he didn’t love her anymore. |
| D．Because he treated his wife not as well as usual. |
What does the underlined word “bankruptcy” in the first paragraph probably mean?
| A．crash | B．failure | C．moving | D．diseases |
The best title of the passage may be ______.
A troubleB. Husband and wife
C. A romantic love story D.1 ℃love
The most famous statue-the Sphinx in Egypt has been damaged. The experts are trying to find out the cause to protect it.
As we all know, the Sphinx has the body of a lion and the face of a man. It was cut from limestone(石灰石) near Egypt's pyramids about 4, 500 years ago. Not long ago a large piece of stone fell from the Sphinx's right shoulder.
In order to protect the statue from more harm, a computer was placed on it to measure rainfall, wind speed and air temperature. The computer also measured the amount of water and air pollution, the direction of wind and the temperature of the statue itself. The effects of age, wind, water and pollution have greatly weakened the Sphinx. Sunlight, wind, water and pollution have been eroding the outside of the statue for centuries. The experts hope that the information from the computer will help protect it from more damage. They say the more they know about what is destroying the Sphinx, the more they can do to protect it.What does this passage mainly tell us?
| A．The reason why the Sphinx was set up. |
| B．The great importance of the Sphinx in Egyptian history. |
| C．The detailed(详尽的) course and cause of the damage to the Sphinx. |
| D．The experts are trying to find out the cause so as to protect the Sphinx. |
Which of the following is TRUE?
| A．The Sphinx has completely fallen down. |
| B．The Sphinx is made of a kind of rock, which can be destroyed by wind, rain and so on. |
| C．The Sphinx is made of a kind of rock, which is hard enough not to be damaged by anything. |
| D．The Sphinx is in too poor condition to be protected. |
Which of the following is wrong?
| A．The Sphinx is more than 4, 500 years old. |
| B．The advanced instruments(仪器)can help protect cultural relics. |
| C．Both the Sphinx and the pyramids are well known to the world. |
| D．From now on no damage will happen to the Sphinx. |
Friendship Day in India falls on the first Sunday of August every year. It is celebrated with many activities.
Young people in India spend the day with their closest friends and have fun together. Most youngsters in India plan a movie or have a meal with their friends. Many friends may go on a drive to tourist places or make a plan for camping. Some friends go to the supermarket to do some shopping. On Friendship Day, most stores offer discounted prices for customers and it is the perfect day to buy something for friends.
Some friends go to parties that are organized by many restaurants in order to attract youngsters. Such parties are very enjoyable. You can get food at a discounted price. Some friends just decide to meet up (碰头，相聚) at someone’s home and talk about their happy time. The time good friends spend sitting together and talking over a cup of coffee is precious and unforgettable.
Long-distance friends call up each other on this day and wish each other with warm feelings. Some of them even plan to meet up on this particular day. Yet some others plan a surprising visit just to see their friend gasp (喘息) in shock!
In 2009, Friendship Day in India falls on August 2nd. So don’t forget to celebrate it with your friends.When is Friendship Day celebrated in India?
| A．On August 2nd every year. |
| B．On the third weekend of August every year. |
| C．On August 1st every year. |
| D．On the first weekend of August every year. |
According to the text, which of the following is the most popular way that youngsters in India celebrate Friendship Day?
| A．Traveling with friends | B．Seeing a film with friends |
| C．Dancing with friends | D．Going shopping with friends. |
How many ways are discussed in Paragraph 3 that friends spend Friendship Day together?
| A．Two | B．Three | C．Four | D．Five |
The underlined phrase “a surprising visit” in Paragraph 4 refers to “____”.
| A．a visit to a friend who hasn’t expected it |
| B．a visit to a friend who has dreamed of it for a long time |
| C．a visit to a friend who tries to avoid it |
| D．a visit to a friend who lives in a faraway place |
You may know the English letters A, B and C. But do you know there are people called ABC? You may like eating bananas. But did you know there is a “banana person”? How strange! Are these people from “another Earth”? No. They are just Chinese people like you and me.
ABC means American-Born Chinese. An ABC is a Chinese, but was born in the United States. Sometimes, people call an ABC a “banana person”. A banana is yellow outside and white inside. So, when a person is a banana, he or she is white inside--thinking like a Westerner and yellow outside--looking like a Chinese.
Do you know why? Usually, ABCs know little about China or the Chinese language. Some of them don’t speak Chinese.
But if ABCs cannot speak Chinese, can we still call them Chinese people? Yes, of course. They are Chinese. They are overseas (海外) Chinese. These people may be citizens(公民) of another country like the US, Canada or Singapore. But they have Chinese blood. Their parents, grandparents or even great-grandparents were from China. They all have black eyes and black hair.
But they are not Chinese citizens. They are not the people of the People’s Republic of China. For example, we all know the famous scientist? C.N. Yang(杨振宁). He got the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1957. The Chinese love him, but he is an American citizen.“ABC” in this passage means “____________”.
| A．three English letters | B．a kind of banana |
| C．Chinese born in America | D．Americans born in China |
What’s the author’s purpose in writing this passage?
| A．He wants to tell us something about “ABC”. |
| B．He wants to show that Chinese are well respected in America. |
| C．He wants to tell us some knowledge about the English language. |
| D．He wants to introduce the American culture to us. |
Chinese in Western countries are called “banana persons” because ____.
| A．their bodies are white inside but yellow outside |
| B．they think like Westerners but look like Chinese |
| C．they were born in China but go to study in America |
| D．they like to eat bananas |
C.N. Yang is mentioned here to show that ____.
A. American Chinese are great.
B. we love American Chinese
C. The Chinese can win Nobel Prizes
D. American Chinese are not Chinese citizens