Not all bodies of water are so evidently alive as the Atlantic Ocean, an S-shaped body of water covering 33 million square miles. The Atlantic has, in a sense, replaced the Mediterranean as the inland sea of Western civilization. Unlike real inland seas, which seem strangely still, the Atlantic is rich in oceanic liveliness. It is perhaps not surprising that its vitality has been much written about by ancient poets.
“Storm at Sea”, a short poem written around 700, is generally regarded as one of mankind’s earliest artistic representations of the Atlantic.
When the wind is from the west
All the waves that cannot rest
To the east must thunder on
Where the bright tree of the sun
Is rooted in the ocean’s breast.
As the poem suggests, the Atlantic is never dead and dull. It is an ocean that moves, impressively and endlessly. It makes all kinds of noise—it is forever thundering, boiling, crashing, and whistling.
It is easy to imagine the Atlantic trying to draw breath—perhaps not so noticeably out in mid-ocean, but where it meets land, its waters bathing up and down a sandy beach. It mimics(模仿) nearly perfectly the steady breathing of a living creature. It is filled with symbiotic existences, too; unimaginable quantities of creatures, little and large alike, mix within its depths in a kind of oceanic harmony, giving to the waters a feeling of heartbeat, a kind of sub-ocean vitality. And it has a psychology. It has personalities: sometimes peaceful and pleasant, on rare occasions rough and wild; always it is strong and striking.Unlike real inland seas, the Atlantic Ocean is______.
| A．always energetic | B．lacking in liveliness |
| C．shaped like a square | D．favored by ancient poets |
What is the purpose of using the poem “Storm at Sea” in the passage?
| A．To describe the movement of the waves. |
| B．To show the strength of the storm. |
| C．To represent the power of the ocean. |
| D．To prove the vastness of the sea. |
What does the underlined word “symbiotic” mean?
| A．Living together. | B．Growing fast. |
| C．Moving harmoniously. | D．Breathing peacefully. |
In the last paragraph, the Atlantic is compared to______.
| A．a beautiful and poetic place | B．a flesh and blood person |
| C．a wonderful world | D．a lovely animal |
When another old cave is discovered in the south of France，it is not usual news．Rather，it is art ordinary event．Such discoveries are so frequent these days that hardly anybody pays heed to them．However，when the Lascaux cave complex was discovered in 1940，the world was amazed．Painted directly on its walls were hundreds of scenes showing how people lived thousands of years ago．The scenes show people hunting animals，such as bison or wild cats．Other images show birds and，most noticeably，horses，which appear in more than 300 wall images，by far outnumbering all other animals．
Early artists drawing these animals accomplished a monumental and difficult task．They did not limit themselves to the easily accessible walls but carried their painting materials to spaces that required climbing steep walls or crawling into narrow passages in the Lascaux complex．
Unfortunately，the paintings have been exposed to the destructive action of water and temperature changes，which easily wear the images away．Because the Lascaux caves have many entrances，air movement has also damaged the images inside．
Although they are not out in the open air, where natural light would have destroyed them long ago，many of the images have been destroyed and are barely recognizable．To prevent further damage，the site was closed to tourists in 1963，23 years after it was discovered．What can be the best title for the text?
| A．Wild Animals in Art | B．Hidden Prehistoric Paintings |
| C．Exploring Caves Respectfully | D．Determining the Age of French Caves |
The underlined phrase“pays heed to”in Paragraph 1 probably means _____________．
| A．discovers | B．watches | C．notices | D．buys |
According to the text，which animals appear most often on the cave walls?
| A．Birds | B．Bison | C．Horses | D．Wild cats |
Why was painting inside the Lascaux complex a difficult task?
| A．It was completely dark inside． |
| B．The caves were full of wild animals． |
| C．Painting materials were hard to find． |
| D．Many painting spaces were difficult to reach． |
According to the text，all of the following have caused damage to the paintings except________________.
| A．temperature changes | B．air movement |
| C．water | D．tourists |
Jenny found her old bicycle at the back of the garage．It was a lot smaller than she remembered．When she sat on it and put her feet on the pedals，her knees nearly touched her chin. She then asked her dad for a new bicycle．
“Well，I’m sorry，but I can’t afford a bicycle now，“said Dad．“Why don’t you work and earn some money? You can save up for a bicycle yourself．”
Jenny began to work．That day she earned five dollars for cutting the grass and ten dollars for mowing the lawn for her dad．
That night Jenny went on the computer．She wrote“Gardening and Housework—Ten dollars an hour．Call Jenny at 23 Roseville Lane．“She decorated the page with pictures of cleaning and gardening equipment．She printed it fifty times．Then she posted the pages through all the doors on her street．
That week，Jenny was very busy! Lots of people had jobs to do，but they didn’t have time to do them．So they called Jenny．Every day，Jenny rushed home from schoo1．She did her homework quickly，and then she went out to work．
At the end of the week．she had$65! She told her father．
“That’s enough for a second hand bicycle.”he said．
“Yes，but if I work for one more week，I might have enough money for a new bike，“said Jenny．“In two more weeks，I could buy a really good bicycle! I think that's what I'll do. I want to have the best bicycle in the class，because I earn it myself!”
Jenny’s dad hugged her．“I think you learned something important．We appreciate things a lot more when we earn them．When we get something without earning it，we do not realize its true value．”What was the problem with Jenny’s old bicycle?
| A．It was broken． | B．It was too dirty． |
| C．Jenny didn't like it． | D．It was too small． |
Why didn’t Jenny’s dad buy her a bicycle?
| A．He wanted to teach her a lesson． |
| B．He was too busy． |
| C．He had just bought Jenny a birthday present. |
| D．He didn’t think it was a good idea． |
How much money did Jenny earn on the first day?
| A．＄10． | B．＄5． | C．＄65． | D．＄15． |
How did Jenny tell her neighbors about her new business?
| A．She mailed letters to them． |
| B．She delivered messages by hand． |
| C．she sent them an email． |
| D．She talked to all her neighbors． |
We can infer from Jenny’s words at the end of the story that she was ___________．
| A．pleased because she had learnt a useful lesson |
| B．grateful to her father for his advice |
| C．optimistic about making more money |
| D．disappointed because she couldn’t afford a new bicycle |
DAVID Beckham. Cristiano Ronaldo and Rnfacl Nadal while you watch sports and admin* the players’ skills, do you ever notice how handsome the players are?
Yes, sportsmen tend to be handsome. And they haven’t only attracted the interest of the audience even scientists are now studying their good looks.
In a recent study, Erik Postma, a biologist at the University of Zurich in Switzerland, collected the headshots（头像）of 80 professional athletes from I hr 2012 Tour He France, a bicycle race held in Franco. The race, which covers 3,200 kilometers in 23 days, is often considered to In* one of the hardest endurance（耐力）events, according to The Telegraph.
Postma then asked female participants to score the cyclists’ attractiveness.judging them only based on their facial appearances. So, if a participant recognized any of the cyclists, meaning she knew how good he was at the sport, her score wouldn’t count.
After comparing all the scores with the cyclists’ performances in the 2012 race, Postma was surprised to find that the best riders were rated on average 25 percent more attractive than the worst ones. For example, one of the cyclists, Maxime Monfort , came third in terms of attractiveness and sixth in terms of performance, reported Discovery News.
But where did women get the ability to single out a good rider by simply looking at his face?
According lo Postma, evolution (进化) seems to be the answer. In ancient times, women preferred to marry strong men because they would provide good genes for their children. A man with great endurance was also able to cover long distances to hunt for food, which would allow him to better feed the family. “That’s why endurance performance was a key evolutionary factor.” Postma told Discovery News.
As you can see, it’s not that sportsmen ate more attractive themselves, women were just born to think of them that way.
Perhaps surprisingly, when Postma did the same test with male participants, he found that men actually had a quite similar view on which riders were handsome. Even
though most men aren’t aware of it. they inherited (继承) this ability from their ancient past, when it was necessary to “spot potential competitors” , explained Postma.What did Erik Postma ask female participants to do in his study?
| A．To help collect the headshots of professional cyclists from the Tour de France. |
| B．To pick out the cyclists whom they are familiar with or appreciate most. |
| C．To rate the cyclists’ attractiveness according to facial appearance. |
| D．To predict the cyclists ’ performances based on facial appearance. |
What did Postma discover from his study?
| A．The more attractive a cyclist was, the better he performed in the race. |
| B．Generally, a cyclist’s endurance had nothing to do with his attractiveness. |
| C．Attractive cyclists proved to have less endurance than those who were less attractive. |
| D．Those who performed best in the games were considered more attractive than those who performed worst. |
What can we conclude from the last three paragraphs?
| A．Women and men hold quite different views on male attractiveness. |
| B．Men with good looks tend to lie less popular than men with great endurance. |
| C．A man with great endurance appealed to women in ancient times and this remains the same today. |
| D．Most men don* t have the same ability as women to single out a good sportsman by simply looking at his face. |
Northern Lights Tour
Located in the middle of the northern lights belt, Troms can offer some of the highest level* of northern lights activity on earth. Perhaps Tromso is the world's best place for a Northern Light? Tour.
Join one of our Northern Lights Holidays this winter. It could become one of the greatest experiences in your life.
DESTINATION Troms county. Norway.
PRICE $450 per person
WHEN 2th September until 31st March.
PICK-UP Each evening at 6PM outside your hotel.
DROP-OFF Earliest at 12AM. When we have a sighting we often stay out later, at no extra cost. t
SIZE OF GROUP Maximum 8 participants is recommended and normal, but not absolute A small group allows more freedom in terms of chasing the northern lights.
INCLUDED
-Transportation each day in a comfortable car
-A meal each day
-All necessary equipment such as snowshoes , flashlight, water-filled bottle. woolen
underwear, a warm hat, warm shoes. warm stockings, and reindeer skin In lie on. if needed.
-A guide who will do anything necessary to find the northern lights.
EXCITING CHASE
A Northern Lights Holiday means an intense and exciting chase to the coast or deep into the wild, perhaps even to the Finnish holder. Each day on a Northern Lights Tour we contact meteorologists shortly before departure to get accurate information. In order
to find out where we will have best chances to see the northern lights.
WE GUARANTEE A GREAT TRIP
The northern lights are unpredictable, but we guarantee that we’will do everything to find it. Patience is a keyword on Northern Lights Tour.
ECO-TOURISM
We offer ecologically sustainable and responsible tours Travelling in small groups is an essential part of the ecotourism concept, as small groups have lesser impact on nature and will not disturb the wildlife unnecessarily.A small group is preffcrrd for the following reasons EXCEPT that .
| A．a small group is free to run after thr northern lights |
| B．a small group has less effect on cost |
| C．a small group can serve the travel < ost |
| D．a small group will not disturb wildlife |
The underlined word “it” refers to “”.
| A．the northern lights tour | B．patience |
| C．equipment | D．the northern lights |
We can infer that .
| A．if tourists stay out late, they have to pay more |
| B．every tourist group is not sure to see the northern lights |
| C．every tourist group get the money back if they don’t see the northern lights |
| D．the northern lights can be seen every day from 20th September to 31st Marth |
The passage is most likely to be taken from a(n).
| A．advertisement | B．news report | C．science textbook | D．tourist brochure |
ARE you a dog person or a cat person?
With so many photos and videos of cats and dogs doing cute things online, it’s easier than ever to answer which of these furry friends you like more. There are many reasons why people prefer one type of pet over the other. So, have you ever wondered what your preference for cats or dogs says about you?
In fact, a 2010 study done by Sam Gosling , a psychologist at the University of Texas, US, and his graduate student Carson Sandy found that dog people are more extroverted（外向的）agreeable and serious than cat people.
“Cats will occasionally engage in social activities, but usually after only a few minutes they will abandon the game. Dogs, on the other hand, will often engage in play, like fetching a thrown lull, for hours at a lime," said Modem Dog magazine.
Just on the basis of dogs' nature being more sociable than cats’, you may expect that the personalities of dog people also reflect higher sociability. And Cosling’s study found that dog people are generally about 15 percent more extroverted and 13 percent more agreeable, both of which are associated with social altitude.
In addition, dog people are 11 percent more conscientious than cat people.
“Conscientiousness" is a tendency In show self-discipline（自律）,to complete tasks and aim for achievement. This quality also shows a preference for planned rather than spontaneous （一时冲动的） behavior.
In comparison, cat people an; about 12 percent more anxious, but they are also 11 percent more “open” than dog people, due to a general appreciation for art, emotion, imagination, curiosity, adventure, unusual ideas and variety of experience. And people high on openness are more likely to hold unconventional beliefs.
Despite vast differences, there an some things that cat people and dog people have in common. “Both types of people consider themselves close to nature, dislike animal-print clothing and generally optimists. ” noted Mother Nature Network.What does the article mainly talk about?
| A．Differences between dogs and cats in their personality qualities. |
| B．Factors that influence people’s preference for dogs or cats. |
| C．How raising a pet helps shape your personality. |
| D．What your preference for dogs or cats reveals about you. |
The underlined phrase “engage in ”in the fourth paragraph probably means .
| A．get involved in | B．benefit from |
| C．take little interest in | D．perform well in |
According to the study done by Sam Costing, dog owners tend tothan cat owners.
| A．be more imaginative and creative |
| B．live a more organized life |
| C．love to get close to nature more |
| D．be more easygoing and adventurous |
According to the article, both dog people and cat people .
| A．are generally self-disciplined |
| B．are usually positive and care about nature |
| C．are likely to hold unconventional beliefs |
| D．like to wear animal-print clothing; |