Monitoring global warming usually requires a Ph. D. and enough maths to glaze your eyes. But that Francisco Lopez and Ruby Nostrant track（记录）what climate change is doing to five different plants in Tucson, Arizona and they are only in the second grade.
“We are collecting data because the weather is changing and the plants are blooming,” Ruby explained.
Scores of other students at Borton Primary Magnet School and Sunnyside High School in Tucson are heading outdoors to be part of a new scientific push to figure out how the biological timing of the earth is changing. It’s a research project that the average person, even a kindergartner, can join in.
The National Phenology（生物气候学）Network is calling on volunteers to help track early spring blooms and eventually changes in animals caused by global warming. It’s called Project Budburst. When it was first open to the public last year, thousands of people participated in 26 states.
“All people can contribute to it by tracking the timing of flowering events or leaf-out events for plants and animals in their backyard,” said Phenology Network director Jake Weltzin. He calls the volunteers “citizen-scientists.”
The idea is that tracking flowers blooming—especially lilacs（丁香）; which everyday people have helped track for decades—is fairly simple. The Website http://www.Windows.ucar.edu/ citizen_science/budburst/index.html gives directions on what to look for in different parts of the country.
University of Maryland professor David Inouye said it’s so easy to figure out what’s blooming that a lack of special knowledge isn’t a problem.
University of Arizona ecology graduate student Lisa Benton coordinated（协调）the Tucson high school students as they looked at plants five minutes from their high school. Each student has specific guidelines and she’s been happy so far with the data she is getting. For his part, second-grader Francisco said he had fun helping out.
“I like going out in the desert,” he said. “I want to be an Einstein.”Francisco Lopez and Ruby Nostrant are monitoring global warming by __________.
| A．watching early spring blooms and changes in animals |
| B．studying the biological timing of earth |
| C．collecting data of the local weather |
| D．tracking the early spring blooms of some local plants |
Those who participate in Project Budburst are mostly ___________.
| A．ecology college graduates | B．high school students |
| C．common people | D．experts |
What David Inouye says suggests that ____________.
| A．the study carried out by students is convincing |
| B．the students still need special training to study climate change |
| C．it is difficult to study climate change |
| D．to figure out what’s blooming needs special knowledge |
Who is primary school student joining in the Project Budburst?
| A．Lisa Benton. | B．David Inouye |
| C．Francisco Lopez. | D．Jake Weltzin. |
We can conclude from the passage that _______.
| A．changes in animals caused by global warming happen earlier than those in plants |
| B．the biological timing of earth is changing because of climate change |
| C．the effect of climate change in Tucson, Arizona can be hardly noticed |
| D．all the plants in Tucson, Arizona are blooming earlier because of climate change |
Far from the land of Antarctica(南极洲), a huge shelf of ice meets the ocean. At the underside of the shelf there lives a small fish, the Antarctic cod.
For forty years scientists have been curious about that fish. How does it live where most fish would freeze to death? It must have some secret. The Antarctic is not a comfortable place to work and research has been slow. Now it seems we have an answer.
Research was begun by cutting holes in the ice and catching the fish. Scientists studied the fish’s blood and measured its freezing point.
The fish were taken from seawater that had a temperature of -1.88℃ and many tiny pieces of ice floating in it. The blood of the fish did not begin to freeze until its temperature was lowered to -2.05℃. That small difference is enough for the fish to live at the freezing temperature of the ice-salt mixture.
The scientists’ next research job was clear: Find out what in the fish’s blood kept it from freezing. Their search led to some really strange thing made up of a protein(蛋白质) never before seen in the blood of a fish. When it was removed, the blood froze at seawater temperature. When it was put back, the blood again had its antifreeze quality and a lowered freezing point.
Study showed that it is an unusual kind of protein. It has many small sugar molecules(分子) held in special positions within each big protein molecule. Because of its sugar content. It is called a glycoprotein. So it has come to be called the antifreeze fish glycoprotein. Or AFGP.What is the text mainly about?
| A．The terrible conditions in the Antarctic. |
| B．A special fish living in freezing waters. |
| C．The ice shelf around Antarctica. |
| D．Protection of the Antarctic cod. |
Why can the Antarctic cod live at the freezing temperature?
| A．The seawater has a temperature of -1.88℃. |
| B．It loves to live in the ice-salt mixture. |
| C．A special protein keeps it from freezing. |
| D．Its blood has a temperature lower than -2.05℃. |
What does the underlined word “it” in Paragraph 5 refer to?
| A．A type of ice-salt mixture. | B．A newly found protein. |
| C．Fish blood. | D．Sugar molecule. |
What does “glycol-” in the underlined word “glycoprotein” in the last paragraph mean?
| A．sugar | B．ice | C．blood | D．molecule |
Tom was one of the brightest boys in the year, with supportive parents. But when he was 15 he suddenly stopped trying. He left school at 16 with only two scores for secondary school subjects. One of the reasons that made it cool for him not to care was the power of his peer(同龄人) group.
The lack of right male(男性的) role models in many of their lives — at home and particularly in the school environment(环境) — means that their peers are the only people they have to judge themselves against.
They don’t see men succeeding in society so it doesn’t occur to them that they could make something of themselves. Without male teachers as a role model, the effect of peer actions and street culture(文化) is all-powerful. Boys want to be part of a club. However, schools can provide the environment for change, and provide the right role models for them. Teachers need to be trained to stop that but not in front of a child’s peers. You have to do it one to one, because that is when you see the real child.
It’s pointless sending a child home if he or she has done wrong. They see it as a welcome day off to watch television or play computer games. Instead, schools should have a special unit where a child who has done wrong goes for the day and gets advice about his problems — somewhere he can work away from his peers and go home after the other children.Why did Tom give up studying?
| A．He disliked his teachers. |
| B．His parents no longer supported him. |
| C．It’s cool for boys of his age not to care about studies. |
| D．There were too many subjects in his secondary school. |
What seems to have a bad effect on students like Tom?
| A．Peer groups. | B．A special unit. |
| C．The student judges. | D．The home environment. |
What should schools do to help the problem schoolboys?
| A．Wait for their change patiently. |
| B．Train leaders of their peer groups. |
| C．Stop the development of street culture. |
| D．Give them lessons in a separate area. |
A teacher’s work is most effective with a schoolboy when he ______.
| A．is with the boy alone |
| B．teaches the boy a lesson |
| C．sends the boy home as punishment |
| D．works together with another teacher |
Heroes of Our Time
A good heart
Dikembe Mutombo grew up in Africa among great poverty and disease. He came to Georgetown University on a scholarship(奖学金) to study medicine — but Coach(教练) John Thompson got a look at Dikembe and had a different idea. Dikembe became a star in the NBA, and a citizen of the United States. But he never forgot the land of his birth, or the duty to share his fortune with others. He built a new hospital in his old hometown in the Congo. Af friend has said of this good-hearted man: “Mutombo believes that God has given him this chance to do great things.”
Success and kindness
After her daughter was born, Julie Aigner-Clark searched for ways to share her love of music and art with her child. So she borrowed some equipment, and began filming children’s videos(录像) in her own house. The Baby Einstein Company was born, and in just five years her business grew to more than $20 million in sales. And she is using her success to help others — producing child safety videos with John Walsh of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Julie says of her new program: “I believe it’s the most important thing that I have ever done. I believe that children have the right to live in a world that is safe.”
Bravery and courage
A few weeks ago, Wesley Autrey was waiting at a Harlem subway station with his two little girls when he saw a man fall into the path of a train. With seconds to act, Wesley jumped onto the tracks, pulled the man into the space between the rails(铁轨), and held him as the train passed right above their heads. He insists he’s not a hero. He says: “We have got to show each other some love.”What was Mutombo praised for?
A. Being a star in the NBA. B. Being a student of medicine.
C. His work in the church. D. His willingness to help the needy.Mutombo believes that building the new hospital is ______.
| A．helpful to his personal development |
| B．something he should do for his homeland |
| C．a chance for his friends to share his money |
| D．a way of showing his respect to the NBA |
What did the Baby Einstein Company do at its beginning?
| A．Produce safety equipment for children. |
| B．Make videos to help protect children. |
| C．Sell children’s music and artwork. |
| D．Look for missing and exploited children. |
Why was Wesley Autrey praised as a hero?
| A．He helped a man get across the rails. |
| B．He stopped a man from destroying the rails. |
| C．He protected two little girls from getting hurt. |
| D．He saved a person without considering his own safety. |
I travel a lot, and I find out different “styles”(风格) of directions every time I ask “How can I get to the post office?”
Foreign tourists are often confused(困惑) in Japan because most streets there don’t have names; in Japan, people use landmarks(地标) in their directions instead of street names. For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, “Go straight down to the corner. Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market. The post office is across from the bus stop.”
In the countryside of the American Midwest, there are not usually many landmarks. There are no mountains, so the land is very flat; in many places there are no towns or buildings within miles. Instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distances. In Kansas or Iowa, for example, people will say, “Go north two miles. Turn east, and then go another mile.”
People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map; they measure distance in time, not miles. “How far away is the post office?” you ask. “Oh,” they answer, “it’s about five minutes from here.” You say, “Yes, but how many miles away is it?” They don’t know.
It’s true that a person doesn’t know the answer to your question sometimes. What happens in such a situation? A new Yorker might say, “Sorry, I have no idea.” But in Yucatan, Mexico, no one answers “I don’t know.” People in Yucatan believe that “I don’t know” is impolite. They usually give an answer, often a wrong one. A tourist can get very, very lost in Yucatan!When a tourist asks the Japanese the way to a certain place, they usually ______.
| A．describe the place carefully | B．show him a map of the place |
| C．tell him the names of the streets | D．refer to recognizable buildings and places |
What is the place where people measure distance in time?
| A．New York. | B．Los Angeles. | C．Kansas. | D．Iowa. |
People in Yucatan may give a tourist a wrong answer ______.
| A．in order to save time | B．Los Angeles. |
| C．so as to be polite | D．for fun |
What can we infer from the text?
| A．It’s important for travelers to understand cultural differences. |
| B．It’s useful for travelers to know how to ask the way properly. |
| C．People have similar understandings of politeness. |
| D．New Yorkers are generally friendly to visitors. |
At a certain time in our lives we consider every place as the possible sites(地点) for a house. I have thus searched the country within a dozen miles of where I live. In imagination I have bought all the farms, one after another, and I knew their prices.
The nearest thing that I came to actual ownership was when I bought the Hollowell place. But before the owner completed the sale with me, his wife changed her mind and wished to keep it, and he offered me additional dollars to return the farm to him. However, I let him keep the additional dollars and sold him the farm for just what I gave for it.
The real attractiong of the Hollowell farm to me were its position, being about two miles from the village, half a mile from the nearest neighbor, bounded(相邻) on one side by the river, and separated from the highway by a wide field. The poor condition fo the house and fences showed that it hadn't been used for some time. I remembered from my earliest trip up the river that the house used to be hidden behind a forest area, and I was in a hurry to buy it before the owner finished getting out some rocks, cutting down the apples trees, and clearing away some young trees which had grown up in the fields. I wanted to buy it before he made any more of his improvements. But it turned out as I have said.
I was not really troubled by the loss. I had always had a garden, but I don't thing I was ready for a large farm. I believe that as long as possible it is better to live free and uncommitted (无牵挂的). It makes but little difference whether you own a farm or not.
| 1． |
What do we know about the author?
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| 2． |
Why did the author decide to buy the Hollowell place?
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| 3． |
Why did the author want to buy the farm in a hurry?
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| 4． |
The underlined words "the loss" in the last paragraph refer to.
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| 5． |
What does the author believe as important in life?
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