Since January 2013, many cities in China have seen a lot of foggy days. In Beijing, only five days in January were free of smog (雾霾). What’s the difference between fog and smog?
According to scientists, fog is made up of tiny (微小的) drops of water and also ice particles (颗粒) during very cold conditions. Smog is dirty air that looks like a mixture of smoke and fog, caused mainly by smoke from cars and factories in cities.
An official for the Ministry of Environmental Protection told Beijing News that PM2.5 pollution is the main problem with air pollution. PM 2.5 refers to pollution with small particles 2.5 micrometers or less in diameter (直径).
According to the Chinese Academy of Sciences, two main factors that cause PM 2.5 are motor vehicles and the burning of coal.
Poor air has done harm to people’s health. Children and the elderly are more at risk. A report from Beijing Children’s Hospital shows that from January 5 to January 11, 2013, half of the patients in the hospital came for respiratory (呼吸道的) problems.
To respond to the air problem, the Chinese government and many Chinese people have started to take action.
Beijing announced a plan to use clean fuel in government vehicles and plant trees. It asked citizens to set off fewer fireworks for the Spring Festival celebration. They suggested that cars with large emissions (排放) should be banned and factories should be closely watched.
Three students from No. 4 High School in Beijing wrote a report to advise to fight the air pollution. “We hope more people will join us to protect our environment. With all our efforts, the blue skies will certainly return soon,” said Shi Yucong, 15, one of the three students.The underlined phrase “were free of” means ____________.
A.had some | B.had many | C.had no | D.had more and more |
According to the second paragraph, we can know ____________.
A.smog is a mixture of fog and smoke |
B.smog is formed (形成) during cold hours |
C.fog is made up of drops of water with smoke |
D.smoke from cars and factories cause fog |
Paragraphs 3 and 4 are mainly about ____________.
A.what PM 2.5 is and what causes PM 2.5 |
B.how to prevent PM 2.5 pollution and how PM 2.5 looks |
C.what PM 2.5 is and how to protect ourselves against PM 2.5 |
D.how seriously PM 2.5 affects us and how to deal with PM 2.5 |
What is the best title for the passage?
A.A report about air pollution | B.Let’s fight the air pollution |
C.Dirty air is bad for us | D.The air in Beijing |
It is true that people with better education are usually able to get better paying jobs. In other words, they have more chances to choose a good job while people with little or no education don't. It seems that the purpose of education is to make people get jobs. But this isn't accepted by all people.
Some people may think that a person should spend the best years of his life to get education only for a way of living. This was probably one of the earliest reasons of education. In fact, if education is just a way of making a living, people don't need to spend so much time in school. People can get education for a living in a short time. Subjects like history and geography need not be taught to everyone. Even language and maths need not be taught in detail, either. Here it is clear that education is much more than teaching a man to get a way of living.
Education is well-rounded (全面的) and it is mainly for improving a man. It is not only to teach him to speak, read and write, but also to develop his creative thinking and other abilities. After that, it is to make him a wise man and thankfully enjoy the achievements of human. Education is to make a man lead a better life. Educated people are expected to be able to listen to good music, read good books, watch plays and take an interest in the world.
I would agree that making a good living is an important reason for education, but certainly not the most important or the main reason.The earliest education was probably to_______.
A.make a man lead a better life |
B.teach a man to write and read |
C.make people get a way of living |
D.teach people to read good books |
It is expected that educated people will be able to_______.
A.accept education as a way of living |
B.take an interest in the whole world |
C.develop their abilities to make plays |
D.learn subjects like language and math |
The passage mainly tells us that_______.
A.education should make a man improve |
B.people can get education in a short time |
C.people should be able to get good paying jobs |
D.all subjects are so important for a way of living |
In classes, your teachers will talk about topics that you are studying. The information they provide will be important for you to know when you take tests. You must be able to take good written notes from what your teachers say.
Taking good notes has three stages. There are certain things you should do before class, during class, and after class. Here are the three stages of note-taking and what you should do during each class.
1. Get Ready to Take Notes
Review your notes from the previous(以前的) class before you come to class. This will help you remember what was covered and get you ready to understand the new information your teacher will provide.
Complete all assigned(布置的) readings before you come to class. Your teacher will expect that you have done this and will use and build upon this information.
Bring all note-taking materials with you to class - several pens and pencils as well as your notebook.
2. Take Notes
Keep your attention on what your teacher is saying. Paying attention to "signal statements". Examples of signal statements are "The most important point ..." and "Remember that ..," Be sure to include in your notes information that your teacher repeats or written on the blackboard.
Write quickly so that you can include all the important information in your notes. Do this by writing abbreviated (简化的) words such as med for medicine, using symbols such as % for percent, and writing short sentences. Place a "?" next to information about whose meaning you are not sure.What's the writer's purpose in writing this passage?
A.To encourage us to listen carefully in class. |
B.To tell us the importance of taking notes. |
C.To tell us how to quickly improve our study. |
D.To give us some tips on how to take notes. |
We can learn that in the writer's opinion, _______.
A.taking notes is an easy thing |
B.taking notes is important for tests |
C.teachers shouldn't provide information before tests |
D.taking notes is more important than listening to the teachers |
What will most probably be talked about next?
A.How to prepare for exams. |
B.An easy way to take notes. |
C.Note-taking after class. |
D.The importance of taking notes. |
Why do you think people who live in some hot countries eat very spicy(辛辣的)food? Is it because the spices make the food taste better? Is it just because their parents and grandparents and great-grandparents liked hot food,or is there some connection between spices and healthy food? Researchers from Cornell University think that it is because spice plants have some important chemicals. These chemicals can kill bacteria(细菌)which spoil food.
“Most common spices can kill 75 to 100 percent of the bacteria in food,”explains one of the scientists.The bacteria grow more easily and spoil(变质)food more quickly at higher temperatures.For this reason,it is more difficult to keep food from spoiling in hot climates,
Do you like your food spicy? Your answer probably tells something about the country you come from.If you like spicy food,it is possible that hundreds of years ago,when there were no fridges,people in your country started using spices to keep the food from spoiling.The traditional spicy dishes helped those people to live longer,healthier lives.Today,in a time of fridges,the spices just make the food taste good.The chemicals in spices keep food from spoiling by_________.
A.making food taste better |
B.making food hotter |
C.preventing bacteria getting into food |
D.killing bacteria in food |
Food goes bad more quickly in hot climates because_______.
A.cold temperature makes bacteria |
B.bacteria get used to hot food |
C.high temperature helps bacteria grow faster |
D.bacteria spoil food only at high temperature |
According to the passage,spices are useful in the following things except_____.
A.helping you to live longer |
B.helping to keep you healthier |
C.making your food taste better |
D.taking the place of fridges |
Millions of British people have ditched the traditional “thank you” and took the place of it with the less formal(正式的) “cheers”, according to a survey.
Although the common person will say “thank you” nearly 5,000 times a year, one in three are more likely to add a “cheers” or “ta” where it’s needed to show they are fashionable.
One in twenty now say “nice one” instead, while the younger are more likely to offer a “cool” than a “thank you”.
“Merci”, “fab” and even “gracias” were also listed as common expressions to use, as “much appreciated(感激)”.
One in twenty who took part in the survey of 2,000 people by the Food Network UK for Thank You Day, which is marked on November 24, 2011, said a formal “thank you” was now not often needed in everyday conversation. More than one in ten adults said they regularly(有规律地) won’t say thank you if they are in a bad mood. Most people stated(陈述) that saying thank you was something that their parents trained them. A huge 70 percent of those who are questioned will say thank you to a person’s face without even meaning it, while one fifth avoid(避免)saying it when they know they should.
It seems our friends and family get the stress of our bad manners. Half of them admit (承认) they’re not good at thanking those closest to them. Many of them explain that they don’t say thank you because their family “already know I’m thankful”.
When spoken words won’t do, it falls to a nice text to do the job for most people.
One third will still send a handwritten thank-you note---but 45 percent admit it’s been more than six months since they tried to send one.
A quarter of British people say “thank you” with food, with 23 percent cooking a meal to show their appreciation to someone. Another 15 percent make a cake.
It follows that 85 percent of people will be angry because of not getting the gratitude (感激)they feel they should receive. Most of the people who took part in the survey say that they say “thank you” _______.
A.when they are in good mood |
B.completely out of habit |
C.when they feel truly grateful |
D.purely out of politeness |
The underlined word “ditched” in Paragraph 1 means “________”.
A.gave up | B.used | C.shared | D.knew |
It can be learned from the passage that _______.
A.different ways of expressing gratitude are all fashionable |
B.people should avoid saying “thank you” nowadays |
C.a thank-you note is still appreciated by many people |
D.people in a bad mood never say “thank you” |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A.Most people express their gratitude to others by buying food for them. |
B.About fifty percent of people try not to say thank you when they should. |
C.Most people may feel natural when they fail to receive others’ gratitude. |
D.Many people think it unnecessary to say thanks to their family members. |
It seems that there’s a good reason why dogs are always seen as man’s best friend. Scientists have found that dogs are the only animals that can read emotion(情感)in faces much like humans. The finding suggests that like an understanding friend, dogs can see if we are happy, sad, pleased or angry.
When humans look at a new face, their eyes usually look across the left, falling on the right hand side of the person’s face first. A possible reason for this is that the right side of the human face is better at expressing emotions.
Scientists have now shown that pet dogs also have “left gaze bias(左视偏好)”, but only when looking at human faces. No other animal has been known to do like this before. Dr. Kun Guo with his team showed 17 dogs the pictures of human, dog and monkey faces as well as something else. The dogs’ eyes and heads show a strong left gaze bias when the animals see human faces. But this did not happen when they were shown other pictures, including those of dogs.
Guo suggests that over thousands of years living with humans, dogs may have developed the left gaze bias as a way to guess our emotions.
“Recent studies show that the right side of our faces can express emotions better than the left. If true, then it makes sense for dogs and humans to see the right hand side of a face first.”Why are dogs seen as man’s best friend according to the passage?
A.Because dogs are the closest animals to humans. |
B.Because dogs can read the emotions in humans’ faces easily. |
C.Because dogs can understand us better when we feel sad. |
D.Because dogs are good at expressing emotions. |
The dogs’ left gaze bias helps them _______.
A.get along well with humans |
B.express emotions quickly |
C.have more understanding friends |
D.remember more new faces |
The passage mainly wants to tell us that _______.
A.dogs have been man’s best friends for thousands of years |
B.humans have a “left gaze bias” |
C.the “left gaze bias” works on all animals |
D.dogs can read emotions the same as humans |