Whatifitisn’tadogeatdogworld?W-优题课

Some fish form huge schools. Could fish set up schools and teach their children how to survive in the ocean? You may ask. No. Here the “schools” are not the places where you study. They are fish shoals (鱼群) that cover tens of kilometers. What causes hundreds of millions of fish to gather and move together is one of biology’s mysteries.
Darkness appears to be the first step to the creation of shoals, according to a study published in the March 27 journal Science. A team of researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and five other institutions studied Atlantic herring (鲱鱼), which forms shoals on a fishing ground off Massachusetts. They used an underwater imaging technology and fish-finding sonar (声纳) to observe the herring over several days in autumn when they spawn (产卵).
They found that, as the sun set, fish in scattered (分散的) groups began swimming much closer to one another than they normally do. When the number of fish reached a certain point in an area, this set off a chain reaction of similar behavior that spread like a sound wave through the water.
The herring’s movement seemed to be started by sunset. The team didn’t record the breakup of these shoals, but a previous study suggested that as the sun rose, the shoals fell apart.
“When the light fades (逐渐消失), it’s safer for the fish to move away from the seabed,” says Nicholas Makris, a professor at MIT who led the research. “Once they have a certain number of other fish, they suddenly come together - forming a shoal covering tens of kilometers within tens of minutes.”
Herring form shoals to migrate during the autumn spawning season. Some shoals were 40 km across and 30 m from top to bottom. They formed in deep water and moved into more shallow waters to spawn.
Forming shoals helps protect them from predators (掠食者) by giving them simple strength in numbers. The ordered movement of the shoal means the fish can reach their spawning ground more quickly and more safely.
Scientists have never before gathered information on so many animals acting together. Understanding these herring shoals could lead to more ideas about what causes animals to move in schools, says Iain Couzin, a biologist at Princeton University, US.
1. Which school in the following expressions is used the same way as the underlined one in the first paragraph?
A. schools of thoughts B. school a horse C. a school of whales D. a medical school
2. Which of the following statements is true?
A. There are more large shoals of herring at night than in the daytime.
B. The research on Atlantic herring was conducted independently by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
C. The larger the shoal of herring is, the more slowly it moves.
D. Scientists have found out the reason why fish gather and move together in huge shoals.
3. According to the research, herring tend to get together except ______.
A.when there are predators around B. when they spawn C. when the sun sets D. when the sun rises
4. What seems to be the main reason for herring to gather and move together?
A. To avoid the darkness.
B. To keep other kinds of fish out of their spawning ground.
C. To spawn in the shallow waters.
D. To make themselves feel safe.

I was parked in front of the mall wiping off my car. Coming my way from across the parking lot was what society would consider a bum (乞丐). “I hope he doesn’t ask me for any money,” I thought.
He didn’t. He came and sat on the curb (路边) in front of the bus stop but he didn’t look like he could have enough money to even ride the bus.
After a few minutes he spoke,“That’s a very pretty car.” He was ragged (衣衫褴褛的) but he had an air of dignity.
I said “Thanks” and continued wiping off my car. He sat there quietly as I worked. “Do you need any help?” I asked.
He answered in three simple but profound words that I shall never forget.
“Don’t we all?” he said.
I was feeling high and mighty, successful and important, above a bum in the street, until those three words hit me like a shotgun.
Don’t we all?
I needed help. Maybe not for bus fare or a place to sleep, but I needed help. I reached in my wallet and gave him not only enough for bus fare, but enough to get a warm meal and shelter for the day.
Maybe the man was just a homeless stranger wandering the streets. Maybe he was more than that. Maybe he was sent by a power that is great and wise, to minister to a soul too comfortable with himself.
Don’t we all? Those three little words still ring true. No matter how much you have, no matter how much you have accomplished, you need help too. And you never know when you may see someone that appears to have it all. They are waiting for you to give them what they don’t have.
1. What was the writer doing when he met the homeless person?
A. Shopping. B. Cleaning his car. C. Admiring his car. D. Parking his car.
2. What does the underlined phrase “high and mighty” mean?
A. Tall. B. On top of the world.C. Strong and powerful. D. Filled with false pride.
3. Which of the following can best describe the writer’s feelings about himself after the encounter?
A. He felt a new sense of pride. B. Inspired and humble.
C. Great and wise. D. Successful and important.
4. What does the article tell us?
A. We should help those less fortunate than ourselves.
B. Helping a person indirectly is preferable to direct, obvious help.
C. All of us, at certain moments of our lives, need help from others and should offer help ourselves.
D. Money is all important in life.

As school starts again, there's so much more for an American parent to nag （唠叨）about, like homework，bedtime and lost hours on the Internet.
But in the age of digital childhood，Jacky Longwell, 45 , of McLean, Virginia, often text – messages what she once told her children by mouth: Be nice to your brother; walk the dog; remember your reading.
This is the world of the modern family, in which even reminding children to do something has become electronic.
There are changes in how parents nag and in what they nag about and in how often of their nagging.
With technology," you nag more, and you are a little bit more precise （其体的）with your nagging,” said Reginald Black, 46, of Woodbridge. Virginia.
For many young people electronic nagging is part of the experience of growing up.
Charles Flowers, 17, a senior at St. John’s College High School in Washington, says his mother reminds him about everything from laundry, being on time to baseball practice and mowing the lawn by text.
When she uses capitals he knows she’s serious: GET HOME!
Some say technology has made nagging less annoying. Jacky Longwell thinks texts are less emotional than spoken messages and less likely to be resisted by teenagers.
“It’s not as painful for them to hear it by text. It becomes grouped with the friendly communication.” she said. “They can’t hear the nagging.”
She thinks a good way to do it is to mix friendliness with nagging. A parent can always start by saying hello.
Not all parents like the new electronic nagging. Joyce Bouchard, 51, a mother of four in Fairfax, Virginia , texts her 14 - year - old son but says that for many things-chores, homework-the old - fashioned way works better. Nagging by text has risks. She notes: “I always think, if you’re texting them something and they’re with their friends, they are getting a big laugh out of it.”
1. The main idea of the article is .
A. what American parents like to nag about
B. why American parents like to nag their children
C. how American parents began to nag their children by text messages
D. that electronic nagging is becoming common in the US
2. The example of Reginald Black is used to show readers .
A. that her nagging is thoughtful
B. that she likes nagging her children very much
C. the kind of skills a parent needs to nag effectively
D. how the amount and kind of nagging have changed with the arrival of the digital age
3. The underlined sentence “Nagging by text has risks.” most probably means “ “
A. Nagging messages may be resisted
B. Electronic nagging costs too much
C. Receiving texts is harmful to teenagers’ health
D. Parents are likely to be addicted to nagging by text
4. We can infer from the article that .
A. it’s better for parents to nag in a friendly way
B. if nagging is electronic, it is not annoying
C. American parents generally don’t like to nag
D. American parents like to use capital letters in messages

IV、阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，共40分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中选出最佳选项。
Perhaps you do not know it, but there is something wonderful at your fingertips. You can make people happier, healthier and more hard-working just by touching their arms or holding their hands.
Doctors say that body contact(接触) is a kind of medicine that can work wonders. When people are touched, the quantity of hemoglobin (血红蛋白) — a type of matter that produces the red color in blood increases greatly. This results in more oxygen (氧气) reaching every part of the body and the whole body benefits. In experiments, bottle-fed baby monkeys were separated from their mothers for the first ten days of life. They became sad and negative. Studies showed the baby monkeys were more probable to become ill than other babies that were allowed to stay with their mothers.
Human babies react (反应) in much the same way. Some years ago, a scientist noticed that some well-fed babies in a clean nursery (托儿所) became weak. Yet babies in another nursery were growing healthily, even though they ate less well and were not kept as clean. The reason, he concluded, was that they often had touches from nurses.
Experiments show that most people like being touched. And nearly all doctors believe touch helps to reduce patients' fear of treatment. Of course there is time when a touch is not welcome. But even if we don’t like being touched, a smile can make us feel better. Smiling increases blood flow and starts the production of “happy brain” chemicals.
So let’s have a big smile and don’t forget to keep in touch.
1. Which of the following is NOT true?
A. People may not understand the importance of touching.
B. People may work harder because of body contact.
C. Your fingertips can do something wonderful.
D. Everyone knows that body contact can make people happier.
2. According to the passage, ______.
A. not all the people like being touched
B. touches from doctors and nurses have nothing to do with treatment
C. new-born baby monkeys should stay away from their mothers
D. human brains need oxygen and blood supply now and then
3. The word “benefits” in the second paragraph probably means ______.
A. to be useful or helpfulB. to get something useful or helpful C. to be ill D. to be hurt
4. The best title for the passage might be ______.
A. Why People Touch B. Smile and Touch C. Wonders of TouchD. Touch or Not

Many animals recognize their food because they see it. So do humans. When you see an apple or a piece of chocolate you know that these are things you can eat. You can also use other senses when you choose your food. You may like it because it smells good or because it tastes good. You may dislike some types of food because they do not look, smell or taste very nice. Different animals use different senses to find and choose their food. A few animals depend on only one of their senses, while most animals use more than one sense.
Although there are many different types of food, some animals spend their lives eating only one type. The giant panda（大熊猫）eats only one particular type of bamboo（竹子）. Other animals eat only one type of food even when given the choice. A kind of white butterfly（蝴蝶）will stay on the leaves of a cabbage, even though there are plenty of other vegetables in the garden. However, most animals have a more varied diet（多样化饮食）. The bear eats fruits and fish. The fox eats small animals, birds and fruits. The diet of these animals will be different depending on the season.
Humans have a very varied diet. We often eat food because we like it and not because it is good for us. In countries such as France and Britain, people eat foods with too much sugar. This makes them overweight, which is bad for their health. Eating too much red meat and animal products, such as butter, can also be bad for the health. Choosing the right food, therefore, has become an area of study in modern life.
56. We can infer from the text that humans and animals _________.
A. depend on one sense in choosing food
B. are not satisfied with their food
C. choose food in similar ways
D. eat entirely different food
57. Which of the following eats only one type of food?
A. The white butterfly. B. The small bird
C. The bear. D. The fox.
58. Certain animals change their choice of food when ___________.
A. the season changes B. the food color changes
C. they move to different places D. they are attracted by different smells
59. We can learn from the last paragraph that __________.
A. food is chosen for a good reason
B. French and British food is good
C. some people have few choices of food
D. some people care little about healthy diet