A new study links heavy air pollution from coal burning to shorter lives in northern China. Researchers estimate that the half-billion people alive there in the 1990s will live an average of 5 years less than their southern counterparts because they breathed dirtier air.
China itself made the comparison possible: for decades, a now-discontinued government policy provided free coal for heating, but only in the colder north. Researchers found significant differences in both particulate pollution of the air and life expectancy in the two regions.
While previous studies have found that pollution affects human health, "the deeper and ultimately more important question is the impact on life expectancy," said one of the researchers, Michael Greenstone, a professor of environmental economics at Massachusetts Institute of 一Technology. "This study provides a unique setting to answer the life expectancy question because the(heating) policy dramatically changes pollution concentrations（含量），，，Greenstone said in an email. "Further, due to the low rates of migration in China in this period, we can know people's exposure over long time periods," he said.
The policy gave free coal for fuel boilers to heat homes and offices to cities north of the Huai Riv饥which divides China into north and south. It was in effect for much of the 1950-198,0 period of central planning, and, though discontinued after 1980, it has left a legacy（遗留） in the north of heavy coal burning, which releases particulate pollutants into the air that can harm human health. Researchers found no other government policies that treated China's north differently from the south.
The researchers collected data for 90 cities, from 1981 to 2000, on the annual daily average concentration of total suspended（悬浮的）particulates. In China, those are considered to be particulates that are 100 micrometers or less in diameter, sent out from sources including power stations, construction sites and vehicles. Among them, PM2.5 is of especially great health concern because it can go deep into the lungs.
The researchers estimated the impact on life expectancies using death data from 1991-2000． They found that in the north, the concentration of particulates was 184 micrograms per cubic meter一or 55 percent higher than in the south, and life expectancies were 5.5 years lower on average across all age ranges.The main idea of this passage is that＿·
| A．research in China finds air pollution shortened life expectancy |
| B．the government provided free coal for heating in North China |
| C．coal burning causes bad air quality across China |
| D．a new study finds different particulates in South China |
According to Greenstone,＿greatly contributed to the high pollution concentrations in North China.
| A．power stations | B．construction sites |
| C．the free heating policy | D．gases from vehicles |
It is implied in the passage that＿·
| A．coal is no longer used for heating in North China |
| B．air quality was comparatively better in South China |
| C．southerners burned coals for heating in the 1980s |
| D．people preferred to live in South China after 1980 |
The underlined word "particulates" most probably means＿．
| A．dirty clouds | B．particular smoke |
| C．harmful dust | D．dangerous bacteria |
Science can't explain the power of pets, but many studies have shown that the company of pets can help lower blood pressure and raise chances of recovering from a heart attack, reduce loneliness and spread all-round good cheer.
Any owner will tell you how much joy a pet brings. For some, an animal provides more comfort than a husband/wife. A 2002 study by Karen Allen of the State University of New York measured stress(紧张) levels and blood pressure in people—half of them pet owners—while they performed 5 minutes of mental arithmetic(心算) or held a hand in ice water. Subjects completed the tasks alone, with a husband/wife, a close friend or with a pet. People with pets did it best. Those tested with their animal friends had smaller change in blood pressure and returned most quick to base line heart rates. With pets in the room, people also made fewer math mistakes than when doing in front of other companions. It seems people feel more relaxed around pets, says Allen, who thinks it may be because pets don't judge
A study reported last fall suggests that having a pet dog not only raises your spirits but may also have an effect on your eating habits. Researchers at Northwestern Memorial Hospital spent a year studying 36 fat people and their equally fat dogs on diet-and-exercise programs; a separate group of 56 people without pets were put on a diet program. On average, people lost about 11 pounds, or 5% of their body weight. Dog owners didn't lose any more weight than those without dogs but, say researchers, got more exercise overall—mostly with their dogs—and found it worth doing.The underlined word “subjects” refers to ______.
| A．what students learned at school |
| B．people that were studied |
| C．those who had pets with them |
| D．those people without pets |
A person with heart disease has a better chance of getting well if _______.
| A．he has a pet companion |
| B．he has less stress of work |
| C．he often does mental arithmetic |
| D．he is taken care of by his family |
Why did the people do better with pets around when facing stressful tasks?
| A．They have lower blood pressure. |
| B．They become more patient. |
| C．They are less nervous. |
| D．They are in higher spirits. |
The research mentioned in the last paragraph reports that ________.
| A．people with dogs did more exercise |
| B．dogs lost the same weight as people did |
| C．dogs liked exercise much more than people did |
| D．people without dogs found the program unhelpful |
What does the text mainly discuss?
| A．What pets bring to their owners. |
| B．How pets help people calm down. |
| C．People's opinions of keeping pets. |
| D．Pet's value in medical research. |
Just as the teacher hands out the spelling test, you see Jeff pull out a small piece of paper with a lot of small words on it. Jeff hides the note into his hand but soon takes it out again. While he's taking the test, you see him looking back and forth between the teacher and his paper. There's no mistaking it — he's cheating.
Cheating can happen in a lot of different ways. When people cheat, it’s not fair to other people, like the kids who studied for the test or who were the true winners of a game.
Many people like the action of cheating. It makes difficult things seem easy, like getting all the right answers on the test. But it doesn’t solve the problem of not knowing the material and it won’t help on the next test—unless the person cheats again.
Some people lose respect for cheaters and think less of them. The cheaters themselves may feel bad because they know they are not really earning that good grade. And, if they get caught cheating, they will be in trouble at school, and maybe at home, too.
Some kids cheat because they’re busy or lazy and they want to get good grades without spending the time studying. Other kids might feel like they can’t pass the test without cheating. Even when there seems to be a “good reason” for cheating, cheating isn’t a good idea.
If you were sick or upset about something the night before and couldn’t study, it would be better to talk with the teacher about this. And if you don’t have enough time to study for a test because of swim practice, you need to talk with your parents about how to balance swimming and school.
A kid who thinks cheating is the only way to pass a test needs to talk with the teacher and his or her parents so they can find some solutions together. Talking about these problems and working them out will feel better than cheating.The author thinks that when kids cheat in class, _______.
| A．it is unfair to other people |
| B．it does harm to their heath |
| C．teachers should punish them |
| D．teachers shouldn’t stop them at once |
Some students like cheating mainly because _______.
| A．the material in the test is very difficult |
| B．they want to do better than the others |
| C．cheating can make hard things seem very easy |
| D．they have little time to study |
The fifth paragraph mainly tells us ______.
| A．cheating isn’t a good idea |
| B．why kids cheat in the test |
| C．some kids can’t pass the test without cheating |
| D．some kids don’t spend time studying |
We can learn from the passage______.
| A．cheaters are often thought highly of |
| B．people show no respect for those who cheat |
| C．parents whose kids cheat are often in trouble |
| D．kids cheat in the test because of swim practice |
Those who cheat are advised to ______.
| A．spend more time on school than on sports |
| B．find good solutions instead of cheating |
| C．try hard to be intelligent rather than lazy |
| D．ask their classmates for good methods of study |
In the fall of 1985, I was a bright-eyed girl heading off to Howard University, aiming at a legal career and dreaming of sitting on a Supreme Court bench somewhere. Twenty-one years later I am still a bright-eyed dreamer and one with quite a different tale to tell.
My grandma, an amazing woman, graduated from college at the age of 65. She was the first in our family to reach that goal. But one year after I started college, she developed cancer. I made the choice to leave college to care for her. It meant that school and my personal dream would have to wait.
Then I got married with another dream: building my family with a combination of adopt and biological children. In 1999, we adopted our first son. To lay eyes on him was fantastic—and very emotional. A year later came our second adopted boy. Then followed Son No. 3. In 2003, I gave birth to another boy.
You can imagine how busy I became, raising four boys under the age of 8! Our home was a complete zoo—a joyous zoo. Not surprising, I never did make it back to college full-time. But I never gave up on the dream either. I had only one choice: to find a way. That meant taking as few as one class each term.
The hardest part was feeling guilty about the time I spent away from the boys. They often wanted me to stay home with them. There certainly were times I wanted to give up, but I knew I should set an example for them to follow through the rest of their lives.
In 2007, I graduated from the University of North Carolina. It took me over 21 years to get my college degree!
I am not special, just single-minded. It always struck me that when you’re looking at a big challenge from the outside it looks huge, but when you’re in the midst of it, it just seems normal. Everything you want won’t arrive in your life on one day. It’s a process. Remember: little steps add up to big dreams.When the author went to Howard University, her dream was to be ______.
| A．a writer | B．a teacher | C．a judge | D．a doctor |
The author quit school in her second year of college because she ______.
| A．wanted to study by herself |
| B．fell in love and got married |
| C．suffered from a serious illness |
| D．decided to look after her grandma |
What can we learn about the author from Paragraphs 4 and 5?
| A．She was busy yet happy with her family life. |
| B．She ignored her guilty feeling for her sons. |
| C．She wanted to remain a full-time housewife. |
| D．She was too confused to make a correct choice. |
What does the author mostly want to tell us in the last paragraph?
| A．Failure is the mother of success. |
| B．Little by little, one goes far. |
| C．Every coin has two sides. |
| D．Well begun is half done. |
Which of the following can best describe the author ?
| A．Caring and determined. | B．Honest and responsible. |
| C．Ambitious and sensitive. | D．Innocent and single-minded. |
I began working in journalism when I was eight. It was my mother’s idea. She wanted me to “make something” of myself, and decided I had better start young if I was to have any chance of keeping up with the competition.
With my load of magazines I headed toward Belleville Avenue. The crowds were there. There were two gas stations on the corner of Belleville and Union. For several hours I made myself highly visible, making sure everyone could see me and the heavy black letters on the bag that said THE SATURDAY EVENING POST. When it was suppertime, I walked back home.
“How many did you sell, my boy?” my mother asked.
“None.”
“Where did you go?”
“The corner of Belleville and Union Avenues.”
“What did you do?”
“Stood on the corner waiting for somebody to buy a Saturday Evening Post.”
“You just stood there?”
“Didn’t sell a single one.”
“My God, Russell!”
Uncle Allen put in, “Well, I’ve decided to take the Post.” I handed him a copy and he paid me a nickel. It was the first nickel I earned.
Afterwards my mother taught me how to be a salesman. I would have to ring doorbells, address adults with self-confidence, and persuade them by saying that no one, no matter how poor, could afford to be without the Saturday Evening Post in the home.
One day, I told my mother I’d changed my mind. I didn’t want to make a success in the magazine business.
“If you think you can change your mind like this,” she replied, “you’ll become a good-for-nothing.” She insisted that, as soon as school was over, I should start ringing doorbells, selling magazines. Whenever I said no, she would scold me.
My mother and I had fought this battle almost as long as I could remember. My mother, dissatisfied with my father’s plain workman’s life, determined that I would not grow up like him and his people. But never did she expect that, forty years later, such a successful journalist as me would go back to her husband’s people for true life and love.Why did the boy start his job young?
| A．He wanted to be famous in the future. |
| B．The job was quite easy for him. |
| C．His mother had high hopes for him. |
| D．The competition for the job was fierce. |
From the dialogue between the boy and his mother, we learn that the mother was _______.
| A．excited | B．interested | C．ashamed | D．disappointed |
What did the mother do when the boy wanted to give up?
| A．She forced him to continue. | B．She punished him. |
| C．She gave him some money. | D．She changed her plan. |
What does the underlined word “nickel” most possibly mean?
| A．a note that is worth ten dollars |
| B．a bill signed in acknowledgement of debt |
| C．a list showing how much you have to pay |
| D．a coin that is worth five cents |
What is the text mainly about?
| A．The early life of a journalist. |
| B．The early success of a journalist. |
| C．The happy childhood of the writer. |
| D．The important role of the writer in his family. |
阅读下面短文并回答问题，然后将答案写到答题卡相应的位置上（请注意问题后的词数要求）。
[1]A program in the United States brings scientists and engineers into elementary schools to teach teachers more about how to teach science.
[2]Dave Weiss is a retired engineer. One day each week he volunteers at Georgian Forest Elementary School in Silver Spring, Maryland, near Washington. He, who is so enthusiastic and so much fun with the kids, works with teacher Fred Tenyke on science projects for ten years.
[3]Student Jada Lockwood says she enjoys Mr. Weiss' visits to her classroom. She likes the drawings he uses to explain scientific ideas.
[4]The American Association for the Advancement of Science sponsors the Senior Scientists and Engineers program. Dave Weiss has been a volunteer in that program for many years. The scientists and engineers help teachers in elementary schools improve their skills.
[5]Mr. Weiss says he and the other volunteers help teachers by providing hands-on knowledge. He notes that science is an area in which many elementary school teachers have _________experience. In elementary school, for the most part, a regular classroom teacher is responsible for teaching science, along with reading and math, and if they don't have a strong science background, just by nature, they're going to tend to underrepresent science in the curriculum.
[6]American fifteen-year-olds scored about average in science among countries that took part in testing by the OECD in 2009. The OECD is the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
[7]Dave Weiss says he is concerned about such results, but hopeful for the future for American students learning science. Fred Tenkye thinks volunteers like Dave Weiss are helping students do that. "And if you can develop a passion for science, then eventually the grades and the test scores, then that will follow and increase, too." he said.How does Dave Weiss feel when he stays with students？(no more than 10 words)
________________________________________________________________________What do the students think of Dave Weiss’s teaching？(no more than 6 words)
________________________________________________________________________Fill in the blank in Paragraph 5 with proper words. (1 word)
________________________________________________________________________What should the students do when they are learning science? (no more than 10 words)
________________________________________________________________________What’s the main idea of this passage? (no more than 10 words)
_______________________________________________________________________