In Greek mythology(神话), fire is a gift form God, stolen from Zeus(宙斯) by Prometheus and handed over to humans suffering from cold. What could be more natural than sitting around a beautiful fire on a winter night, at a campsite in the Berkshires?
Hard as it may be to believe, the fireplace—long considered a trophy(奖杯), particularly in a city like New York—is acquiring a social shame. Among those who desire to be environmentally responsible, it is joining the ranks of bottled water and big houses.
Sally Treadwell, a 51-year-old public relations executive in Boone, N.C., said nothing makes her happier than building a fire on a cold winter night. But most of the time she doesn’t, because she feels too guilty about the damage it may do to the environment. Every time she builds a fire, it causes “inner conflict,” she said. “It’s a guilty pleasure”.
“The smoke from a fire smells very nice,” said Diane Bailey, a senior scientist with the Natural Resources Defense Council in San Francisco. “But it can cause a lot of harm. The tiny particles(颗粒) can cause illness, and can cross into the bloodstream, causing heart attacks as well as worsening other conditions.”
Growing concerns about the air pollution and health problems caused by smoke from wood fires are urging a number of areas across the country to pass laws regulating them. Idaho offers a tax cut to people who replace uncertified(不合格的)wood stoves with “greener” ones; San Joaquin County in California forbids selling a home unless its wood stove is replaced with an E.P.A. certified one；and Palo Alto and other governments in California forbid wood-burning fireplaces in new construction.
Certainly, many think otherwise. In any case, most fireplaces are used far too infrequently to cause any real damage to the environment, said Stephen Sears, the vice president of the Brick Industry Association, voicing an opinion shared by some.
Perhaps not coincidentally, sales of wood-burning equipment dropped to 235,000 in 2009 from 800,000 in 1999, according to the Brick Industry Association. It also reports that approximately 35,000 fireplaces were installed in the United States in 2009, compared to 80,000 in 2005. Certainly those numbers reflect the economic slowdown, but the may also be affected by growing mixed feelings to wood fries.We can infer from the 2nd paragraph that ________.
| A．big houses are not considered environmentally friendly |
| B．bottle water is a good companion for a fire place |
| C．a fireplace is viewed as a sign of success |
| D．people in New York are laughed at for their tradition |
Sally’s “inner conflict” in the 3rd paragraph resulted from ________.
| A．her love for the fireplace |
| B．the damage to the environment |
| C．the concern about her health |
| D．her mixed emotion fro the fireplace |
In terms of the regulations about wood fires we can learn from the passage that_______.
| A．uncertified fireplaces are forbidden in Idaho |
| B．some people are against the woodfire controlling regulations |
| C．only energy-efficient wood stoves can be used in the US |
| D．all the people support measures taken to control the use of fireplaces |
What is the author’s purpose in writing the passage?
| A．To urge people to burn less wood |
| B．To discuss wood-burning’s impact |
| C．To throw light on the causes of the fireplace’s decline |
| D．To indicate the cooling love for the fireplace |
One summer night Ludwig Beethoven took a walk in the suburb (市郊) of Bonn. Suddenly a gentle wind came. He heard some music. He listened carefully and found it was his F sonata. He followed the music and came to a small house. There through the window, he saw a girl playing a very old piano and a young man was making shoes beside her, he pushed the door open and went in. The host received him very warmly and told him that the girl was his sister, who was blind but very fond of music. They couldn’t afford to send her to a master. So she was only trying to play some music she heard the neighbors play. She knew it was the work of a great composer. Beethoven was very much moved. Suddenly the candle was blown out. Moonlight struck on the girl’s slender figure. Then Beethoven played music for them. He played so wonderful that the brother and sister were amazed. That was his famous Clair de lune.Beethoven heard the music because ______.
| A．it was played loudly | B．there was a slight wind |
| C．the piano was old | D．he stopped walking |
The young man and the girl were _____.
| A．brother and sister | B．husband and wife |
| C．lovers | D．good friends |
The girl couldn’t go to the teacher most probably because_____.
| A．she was blind |
| B．her brother didn’t want her to go |
| C．they were too poor |
| D．good friends |
Beethoven played some music____.
| A．before he was moved |
| B．as soon as he came in |
| C．when he saw the piano |
| D．after he heard the moving story |
Beethoven, a famous musician in the world, was born in Germany in 1770.
In his childhood Beethoven didn’t have a happy life．His father was a singer. When he was only four, his father began to make him practise hour after hour on different musical instruments(乐器). If he did not put his heart into it, his father would beat him or make it hard on him.
Beethoven loved music and he learned so fast that he was able to go around to give concerts, when he was only a boy of eleven. At the age of seventeen, he won high praise from Mozart, the great musician at that time.
Beethoven was often poor and ill during his life. After one illness, he suddenly found himself deaf. At that time he was only thirty-one. It was a blow(打击)to him indeed.
But he still went on working and writing music pieces. To people’s surprise, some of his best pieces were written after he lost his hearing.
In 1827, leaving more than 300 pieces, the great musician died. But his name is still remembered to this day.Beethoven was a ______ musician.
| A．America | B．French |
| C．German | D．British |
What happened when he was thirty-one? ___________.
| A．He was blind | B．He was deaf |
| C．He gave concerts | D．He won high praise |
Why didn’t Beethoven have a happy life in his childhood? ___________.
| A．Because his family was poor |
| B．Because he had to practise a lot of musical instruments |
| C．Because his father was strict with him |
| D．Both B and C |
The great musician lived in the world for only ______ years.
| A．43 | B．70 | C．57 | D．60 |
When were some of his best pieces written? ____________.
| A．At the age of 11 |
| B．At the age of 17 |
| C．Before he was deaf |
| D．After he became deaf |
What did Beethoven do after he lost his hearing? ____________.
| A．He never gave in |
| B．He stopped writing music pieces |
| C．He lost his heart |
| D．He went to see a doctor |
The US will seek to expand its own oil production in an attempt to reduce dependence on imported oil and bring down fuel prices, President Obama says. New contracts for exploration will be signed in non-protected areas of Alaska and in the Gulf of Mexico.
In his weekly speech, the President insisted the US could reduce its need for imported oil and improve safety. Using his speech to tell Americans that he understood their concerns about rising prices, President Obama focused particularly on the price of fuel, which has risen in recent months.
US consumers have historically enjoyed cheap fuel, but have seen prices rise in recent months even though US oil production in 2010 reached its highest level for seven years.
Although the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 was serious, Mr. Obama said the Gulf remained a key part of the country’s future energy supply.
The President’s proposals (议案) come after Republicans (共和党人) introduced a series of proposals that would expand and speed up oil and gas production.
The White House has criticized the Republican proposals for safety reasons, but Mr. Obama was clear in his speech that he felt safety and environmental standards could be maintained even though production might rise.
“I believe that we should continue to expand oil production in America — even as we increase safety and environmental standards,” he said.
“As a nation, we should be investing in the clean, renewable sources of energy that are the solution to high gas prices.”
Mr. Obama has previously called for a step-change in energy policy, saying the US must move towards getting 80% of its electricity from clean energy sources by 2035.Which of the following is NOT included in Mr. Obama’s speech?
| A．The dependence on imported oil. |
| B．Improving safety standards. |
| C．The reason for the rising oil prices. |
| D．Expanding oil production. |
Mr. Obama thinks the Republican proposals are ______.
| A．not safe enough |
| B．not environmentally friendly |
| C．practical |
| D．clear |
What can we learn from the text?
| A．The US has got most of its electricity from clean energy. |
| B．US oil production is too small to keep the present low fuel prices. |
| C．The US produced the most oil in 2010 in its history. |
| D．The Gulf is still important in energy supply in spite of the oil spill in 2010. |
Which of the following can serve as the title?
| A．Obama: US will seek oil in Alaska and Gulf of Mexico |
| B．Obama: US will import less oil to improve safety and environmental standards |
| C．Obama: the time of high fuel prices will be gone |
| D．Obama: clean, renewable sources of energy are the solution to high gas price. |
(Reuters) — A group of Chinese scientists and explorers are looking for international help to organize a new search for the country’s answer to Bigfoot, known locally as the “Yeren”, or “wild man”.
Over the years, more than 400 people have said they saw the half-man, half-ape (半猿) Yeren in a remote, mountainous area of the central province of Hubei, state news agency Xinhua said on Saturday.
Expeditions (探险) in the 1970s and 1980s found hair, a footprint, and a sleeping nest suspected of belonging to the Yeren, but there has been no conclusive proof, the report added.
Witnesses describe a creature that walks upright and is more than 2 meters tall with grey, red or black hair all over its body, Xinhua said.
Now the Hubei Wild Man Research Association is looking for volunteers from around the world to join them on another expedition to look for the Yeren.
“We want the team members to be devoted, as there will be a lot of hard work in the process,” Luo Baosheng, vice president of the group, told Xinhua.
But the team will have to come up with about 10 million yuan ($1.50 million) first, and is talking to companies and other bodies to secure the money, so there is no timetable yet for when they may start, the report added.
China is no stranger to cryptozoology. There are many tales about mysterious, monster-like creatures in remote parts of the country. For example, Tibetans have long talked about the existence of the Yeti (喜马拉雅雪人), or “Abominable Snowman”, in the high mountains of their snowy homeland.What the volunteers for this expedition need most is _____.
| A．experience | B．enthusiasm |
| C．confidence | D．devotion |
The timetable for starting the trip depends on _____.
| A．the number of explorers |
| B．government’s support |
| C．the finance |
| D．local people’s guiding |
According to the text, the underlined word “cryptozoology” in the last paragraph probably refers to _____.
| A．the study of mysterious animals |
| B．the study of human beings |
| C．dangerous expeditions |
| D．tourism industry |
What would be the best title for this text?
| A．Volunteers for an expedition needed |
| B．Scientists to look for China’s Bigfoot |
| C．International cooperation in finding wild man |
| D．Yeren appeared in Hubei again |
Australia’s koalas could be wiped out within 30 years unless urgent action is taken to stop the losing in population, according to researchers They say development, climate change and bushfires have all combined to reduce the number of wild koalas sharply. The Australian Koala Foundation said a recent survey showed the population could have dropped by more than half in the past six years. Previous estimates (估计) put the number of koalas at more than 100,000, but the latest calculations (计算) suggest there could now be as few as 43,000.
The foundation collected field data from 1,800 sites and 80,000 trees to calculate the numbers. In one area in northern Queensland estimated to have 20,000 koalas a decade ago, a team of eight people could not find a single animal in four days of searching.
The foundation said besides problems caused by cutting down forests, hotter and drier conditions because of global warming had reduced the nutritional (营养的) value of their staple food, eucalyptus leaves, leading to poor nutrition for them.
Koalas, which live in the forests in Australia’s east and south, are very fussy (爱挑剔的) about what types of the leaves they eat.
Foundation chief Deborah Tabart said: “The koalas are missing everywhere we look. It’s really no tree, no me. If you keep cutting down trees you don’t have any koalas.”
She is hoping the new figures will persuade the government’s Threatened Species Steering Committee (TSSC) to list the koala as threatened. But committee chairman Bob Beeton said a decision was not likely recently and the koala’s status as one of the country’s favourite animals would not be a factor. “There’s a number of species which are attractive and people have special feelings towards them. We don’t consider that,” Mr Beeton was reported as saying by the AFP agency.The writer gives the example of the area in northern Queensland in Paragraph 3 to show that _____.
| A．the forests are being damaged heavily |
| B．the environment is being polluted seriously |
| C．the number of koalas is dropping quickly |
| D．koalas usually live in wild mountainous areas |
Global warming is an important cause of koalas’ reduction because _____.
| A．koalas can hardly stand the hot weather |
| B．koalas cannot get enough water to drink |
| C．the leaves koalas eat are losing nutritional value |
| D．the leaves koalas eat cannot grow in hot weather |
According to Bob Beeton, _____.
| A．koalas are his favourite animals |
| B．a decision will be made to protect koalas |
| C．they needn’t pay special attention to koalas |
| D．koalas needn’t be protected at all |