Genetically modified (转基因 ) foods have become a focus point of agriculture throughout the news today. This has an effect on many different aspects of the agriculture world. From the seed dealer, to the farmer that buys the seed, to the workers that the farmer sells to; all are affected by the new technologies that are involved in this part of production agriculture.
Genetically modified foods have come under heavy fire lately. There are some countries that are against buying these types of foods. They are being tested for safety by the best scientific experts in Europe, the US and the rest of the world. They are not for sale until they have gone through this complete safety process. Since they are a new product, and any slight problem with them could affect a whole country, these tests are very necessary.
These safety tests are carried out because of the new rules that were made with the Novel Foods Regulation. Begun in May of 1997, the Novel Foods Regulation set up an EU-wide pre-market system for all novel foods. A novel food is described as one that has not been eaten by EU consumers widely in the past. By setting up this program the EU hopes to keep its consumers safe from any possible side effects of any new food products.
There are a variety of ways in which genetic modification has helped food producers. They can improve the nutritional (营养的) value or the storage conditions of the food. Today there are only two genetically modified foods that have been allowed for use, these are GM soybean and GM maize.
Despite any safety checks, many people are still cautious about eating genetically modified foods. By providing these people with the necessary information, we can allow them to make decisions about these foods.What do we know about the novel food?
| A．It’s very popular in EU. |
| B．It’s bad for people’s health. |
| C．It’s a new kind of food. |
| D．Its story has been published. |
Genetically foods are allowed to be sold if they are .
| A．tested for safety | B．of high quality |
| C．more nutritional | D．grown in Europe |
From paragraph 2, we can learn that genetically modified foods .
| A．do no harm to people |
| B．have caused some problems |
| C．are well received after being tested |
| D．are criticized and attacked by many people |
What’s the writer’s attitude towards genetically modified foods?
| A．We should warn people that they are too dangerous to be eaten. |
| B．We should give people information about them so that they can decide whether to buy them |
| C．We should encourage people to eat them because they are more nutritional. |
| D．We should tell people that they are trying to fool the farmers. |
Scotland is a well-developed tourist destination, with tourism generally being responsible for sustaining 200, 000 jobs mainly in the service sector, with tourist spending averaging at £4 bn per year. Tourists from the United Kingdom make up the bulk (主体) of visitors to Scotland. In 2002, for example, UK visitors made 18.5 million visits to Scotland, staying 64.5 million nights and spending £3.7 bn. In contrast, overseas residents made 1.58 million visits to Scotland, staying 15 million nights and spending £806 m. In terms of overseas visitors, those from the United States made up 24% of visits to Scotland, with the United States being the largest source of overseas visitors, and Germany (9%), France (8%), Canada (7%) and Australia (6%), following behind.
Scotland is generally seen as clean, unspoilt destination with beautiful scenery which has a long and complex history, combined with thousands of historic sites and attractions. These include prehistoric stone circles, standing stones and burial chambers, and various Bronze Age, Iron Age and Stone Age remains. There are also many historic castles, houses, and battlegrounds, ruins and museums. Many people are drawn by the culture of Scotland.
The cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow are increasingly being seen as a cosmopolitan（全世界的）alternative to Scotland’s countryside, with visitors year round, but the main tourist season is generally from April to October inclusive. In addition to these factors, the national tourist agency, VisitScotland, have deployed a strategy of niche (适当的) marketing, aimed at exploiting, amongst other things, Scotland’s strengths in golf, fishing and food and drink tourism. Another significant, and increasingly popular reason for tourism to Scotland — especially by those from North America— is genealogy, with many visitors coming to Scotland to explore their family and ancestral roots.People from ________ visited Scotland most.
| A．the USA | B．France | C．the UK | D．Germany |
For Chinese students, the best time to visit Scotland is in ________.
| A．the Spring Festival | B．the winter vocation |
| C．the summer vacation | D．any time |
Scotland mainly impresses tourists with its ________.
| A．food and drink |
| B．beautiful scenery with cultural relics |
| C．big cities like Edinburgh |
| D．many North Americans’ family and ancestral roots |
In 2002, visitors from the US made about ________ visits to Scotland.
| A．18.5 m | B．1.58 m | C．4.45 m | D．0.38 m |
Which of the following is true according to the text?
| A．In history, many Scotlanders moved to North America. |
| B．Overseas visitors do not like to stay in Scotland for the night. |
| C．VisitScotland is trying to change people’s impression on Scotland. |
| D．Overseas visitors come to Scotland mainly to explore their family roots. |
The English are often described as unfriendly people who don’t talk to strangers（陌生人）。 But not London taxi drivers. I once asked one cabby to describe his life to me and he didn’t stop talking until I arrived home half an hour later. He told me many interesting stories and this is one of them.“Some strange things happen late at night. The other day I was taking a woman home from a party. She had her little dog with her. When we got to her house， she found that she’d lost her key. So， I waited in the cab with her dog while she climbed in through the window.”
“I waited and waited. After half an hour of ringing the bell I decided to find out what was going on. I tied the dog to a tree and started to climb in through the window. The next thing I knew was that the police came. They thought I was to rob the house！ Luckily， the woman came downstairs. She’d gone to sleep and forgotten about me and the dog. I was in such a hurry to get away that I forgot to ask her for the fare.” What does the writer think of the London taxi driver？
| A．They are unfriendly. | B．They like to talk to strangers. | C．They talk too much. | D．They are not English. |
From the passage， we know_________.
| A．the writer is the taxi driver’s friend | B．the writer often travels by taxi |
| C．the writer is a foreigner visiting London | D．the writer lives in London |
What does “cabby” mean？
| A．Taxi. | B．Stranger. | C．Taxi driver. | D．Londoner. |
Why did the taxi driver wait for the woman？
A. Because she had left her dog with him.
B. Because she had not paid him.
C. Because she wanted to go out again.
D. Both A and B. Why do you think the woman didn’t go out of the house again.
| A．Because she didn’t want to pay the taxi driver. |
| B．Because she was so tired that she had forgotten about the taxi driver. |
| C．Because she wanted to keep the taxi driver waiting. |
| D．Because she wanted to go to sleep first. |
When you walk along a street in a big city in the United States， you may see clocks in most stores. Radio announcers give the correct time during the day. People there think that it is important to know the time. Most Americans have watches. They want to do certain things at certain times. They do not want to be late. Not all people all over the world value time. Suppose you visit a certain country in South America. You would find that people living there do not like to rush. If you had an appointment（约会）with someone， he would probably be late. He would not care for arriving on time. In some countries in South America， even the radio programs may not begin right on time， nor do the radio announcers think it important to announce the right time. Many people regard a clock as a machine. It seems to them that a person who does everything on time is controlled（控制）by a machine. They do not want a clock or any machine to have that much power over their lives.There are clocks in most stores in the US cities because ______.
| A．people in the stores want to sell these clocks |
| B．bosses want to make their stores beautiful |
| C．people think it important to know the time |
| D．they needn't wear watches when they are away from home |
The underlined word “rush” in the passage most probably means ______.
| A．“run” | B．“race” |
| C．“hurry” | D．“move” |
If you had an appointment with someone in some place in South America， he might not arrive on time， and this is because ______.
| A．he didn't have a watch with him |
| B．he forgot to have a look at a watch or a clock |
| C．he didn't think it important to arrive on time |
| D．he didn't like an appointment with someone |
In some countries in South America ______.
| A．the radio announcers do think it important to announce the exact time |
| B．the radio programs many start a bit early or late |
| C．many people think a clock has much power |
| D．most people do not want to be controlled by others |
From the passage we can see ______.
A. most Americans like to have an appointment with others
B. radio announcers all over the world give the correct time
C. people in some countries in the South America are very poor
“Mum, what does it mean when someone tells you that they have a skeleton（骨骼）in the closet（衣橱）?” Jessica asked. “A skeleton in the closet?” her mother paused thoughtfully. “Well, it’s something that you would rather not have anyone else know about. For example, if in the past, someone in Dad’s family had been arrested for stealing a horse, it would be ‘a skeleton in his family’s closet’. He really wouldn’t want any neighbor to know about it.”
“Why pick on my family?” Jessica’s father said with anger. “Your family history isn’t so good, you know. Wasn’t your great-great-grandfather a prisoner who was transported to Australia for his crimes?” “Yes, but people these days say that you are not a real Australian unless your ancestors arrived as prisoners.” “Gosh, sorry I asked. I think I understand now,” Jessica cut in before things grew worse.
After dinner, the house was very quiet. Jessica’s parents were still quite angry with each other. Her mother was ironing clothes and every now and then she glared at her husband, who hid behind his newspaper pretending to read. When she finished, she gathered the freshly pressed clothes in her arms and walked to Jessica’s closet. Just as she opened the door and reached in to hang a skirt, a bony arm stuck out from the dark depths and a bundle of white bones fell to the floor. Jessica’s mother sank in a faint（晕倒）, waking only when Jessica put a cold, wet cloth on her forehead. She looked up to see the worried faces of her husband and daughter.
“What happened? Where am I?” she asked. “You just destroyed the school’s skeleton, Mum,” explained Jessica. “I brought it home to help me with my health project. I meant to tell you, but it seemed that as soon as I mentioned skeletons and closets, it caused a problem between you and Dad.” Jessica looked in amazement as her parents began to laugh madly. “They’re both crazy,” she thought.According to Jessica’s mother, “a skeleton in the close” means ______.
| A．a family honor | B．a family story | C．a family secret | D．a family treasure |
What can we learn about some Australians’ ancestors form Paragraph 2?
| A．They were brought to Australia as prisoners. |
| B．They were the earliest people living in Australia. |
| C．They were involved in some crimes in Australia. |
| D．They were not regarded as criminals in their days. |
Jessica’s mother fell down into a faint because she was ______.
| A．frightened | B．knocked | C．injured | D．surprised |
Why did Jessica bring a skeleton home?
| A．She planned to keep it for fun. |
| B．She needed it for her school task. |
| C．She was curious about it. |
| D．She intended to scare her parents. |
Jessica’s parents laughed madly at the end of the story probably because ______.
| A．they were crazy |
| B．they were over excited |
| C．they realized their misunderstanding |
| D．they both thought they had won the quarrel |
The world is not coming to an end on December 21st, 2012, the US space agency announced to dispel （消除）widespread rumors fueled by the Internet and a new Hollywood movie．
The latest big screen 2012 was based on stories according to the Mayan calendar．It showed that by the end of 2012, a Planet X will collide （碰撞） with the earth．
Some websites accuse NASA of hiding the truth on the planet's existence, but the US space agency considered such stories as tricks．"There is no basis in fact for these claims," NASA said in its website．"If such a collision were real, scientists would have been tracking it for at least the last decade, and we would see it with our eyes now．Obviously, it doesn't exist and there will be no threat to the earth in 2012," it insisted．"After all, our planet has been getting along just well for more than four billion years," added NASA．
There is another planet, Eris, floating in space．But the small planet will remain safely fixed in the outer solar system and it can come no closer than four billion miles to the earth, according to NASA．
And even if the planets were to line up as some have forecast, the effect on our plant would be very little．"And while comets and asteroids （小行星） have always hit the earth, big hits are very rare," NASA noted．The last major collision was believed to be 65 million years ago, resulting the end of dinosaurs （恐龙）．
"We are sure that there are no threatening asteroids as large as the one that killed the dinosaurs," the space agency said．What played a key role in the spread of the rumors?
| A．The Internet and the film 2012． | B．The Mayan calendar． |
| C．The US space agency． | D．The television screen． |
The underlined word "it" in Paragraph 3 probably refers to _________.
| A．the collision | B．the threat | C．the Planet X | D．the NASA website |
We can conclude from the passage that __________.
| A．the film 2012 is well accepted in the science field |
| B．scientists have been tracking Planet X for over ten years |
| C．the earth will exist for more than four billion years |
| D．the rumors caused a panic among some people |
What do we know about Eris according to the passage?
| A．It doesn't exist in the universe． |
| B．It won't threaten the earth． |
| C．It is too far to be seen． |
| D．It is similar to the earth. |