Libraries give kids a quiet and safe place to read and learn. For over 100 years, libraries have played an important role in Americans’ education. But how are these book-filled buildings changing with the times? You may be surprised to find out.
Benjamin Franklin famously founded (创建) America’s first lending library in 1731. But the public library system got its biggest development in the American history in the late 1800’s. Businessman Andrew Carnegie donated (捐赠)millions of dollars to help build free public libraries across the country. Between 1886 and 1919, Carnegie’s donations helped build 1,679 new libraries.
Carnegie believed that libraries could offer the chances to Americans, young and old. He knew that the more libraries there were, the more people would have opportunities to read and use books, speeches and news.
If you can easily find a public library in your community(社区), you’ll get more chances. After all, the United States has 9,225 public libraries. Today, libraries keep growing. Seven tenths of the libraries have free Internet. It provides(提供) much more information and opportunities机会) to ask for jobs online.
Libraries are also teaching kids about the fun of reading. The new program Read! Build! Play! adds reading into playtime. As kids listen to a book that is being read aloud, they use Legos (乐高积木) to build images(图像) from the story happily. Today’s libraries are always looking for creative programs to bring people into the library.
Benjamin Franklin once said, “The doors of wisdom(智慧) are never shut.” As long as(只要) the doors of public libraries are open, what he said is most certainly correct!Benjamin Franklin founded the first lending library in _______.
A.1731 | B.1800 | C.1886 | D.1919 |
How many public libraries have free Internet now?
A.2767. | B.6458. |
C.9225. | D.1679. |
The right order of the following statements is ______ .
①The public library system in America developed fast.
②The first lending library was founded.
③ Libraries provide information and chances to ask for job online.
④ Libraries try to bring people into the library by using creative programs.
A.②①③④ | B.②③④① |
C.③④①② | D.①②③④ |
The best title for the passage is _______.
A.the libraries in the world |
B.libraries and opportunities |
C.libraries teach kids to read and learn |
D.the development of the American libraries |
Have you ever wondered why birds sing? Maybe you thought that they were just happy. After all, you probably sing or whistle when you are happy.
Some scientists believe that birds do sing some of the time just because they are happy. However they sing most of the time for a very different reason. Their singing is actually a warning to other birds to stay out of their territory.
Do you know what a ‘territory’ is? A territory is an area that an animal, usually the male, claims as its own. Only he and his family are welcome there. No other families of the same species are welcome. Your yard and house are your territory where only your family and friends are welcome. If a stranger should enter your territory and threaten you, you might shout. Probably this would be enough to frighten him away.
If so, you have actually scared the stranger away without having to fight him. A bird does the same thing. But he expects an outsider almost any time, especially at nesting(筑巢)season. So he is screaming all the time, whether he can see an outsider or not. This screaming is what we call a bird’s song, and it is usually enough to keep an outsider away.
Birds sing loudest in the spring when they are trying to attract a mate and warn others not to enter the territory of theirs.
You can see that birds have a language all their own. Most of it has to do with attracting mates and setting up territories.
1. Some scientists believe that most of the time bird’s singing is actually________.
A. an expression of happiness B. a way of warning
C. an expression of anger D. a way of greeting
2. What is a bird’s ‘territory’?
A. A place where families of other species are not accepted.
B. A place where a bird may shout at the top of its voice.
C. An area for which birds fight against each other.
D. An area which a bird considers to be its own.
3. Why do birds keep on singing at nesting season?
A. Because they want to invite more friends.
B. Because their singing helps frighten outsiders away.
C. Because they want to find outsiders around.
D. Because their singing helps get rid of their fears.
4. How does the writer explain bird’s singing?
A. By comparing birds with human beings. B. By reporting experiment results.
C. By describing birds’ daily life. D. By telling a bird’s story.
Think about it
Escaping a fire is a serious matter. Knowing what to do before a fire breaks out can save a life. For example, people should know the safety measures to take before opening a hall door during a fire. Also, make sure everyone knows how to unlock doors that may be in the escape path. At times, a key is needed to unlock a door from the inside. So, keep the key in the lock. Or, you can put the key on a key ring and put it where it can be found easily.
If you live in a flat, know the ways you can use to get out. Show everyone in the family these paths. Remind everyone of the importance of using stairways or fire escapes, not lifts.
From most homes and lower floors of a block of flats, escape through windows is possible. Learn the best way of leaving by a window with the least chance of serious injury.
In a home fire, windows are often theonly means of escape. The second floor window sill is usually not more than 13 feet from the ground. An average person, hanging by the finger tips, will have a drop of about six feet to the ground. Of course, it is safer to jump a short way than to stay in a burning building. Roll away from the building when you land.
Windows are also useful when you’re waiting for help. Often you’ll be able to stay in the room for several minutes if you keep the door closed and the window open. Keep your head low in the window to be sure you get fresh air rather than smoke that may have leaked into the room.
On a second or third floor, the best windows for escape are those which open onto a roof. From the roof, a person can either drop to the ground or await rescue. Dropping onto sidewalk or pavement might end in injury. Bushes, soft earth, and grass can help to break a fall. A rope ladder should be considered when the drop is too great.
In a town where the fire department acts quickly, it may be best to wait for rescue. Close the doors and wait by an open window for help. Shout for help. Be sure to close the door before opening a window. Otherwise, smoke and fire may be drawn into the room.
1. We can learn from the passage that windows are __________.
A. easily brokenB. easy to catch fire C. good escape paths D. useful to put out a fire
2. If you happen to be in a room during a fire, it’s a good idea to ________.
A. open a window B. use the lifts C. stand quite stillD. put out the fire
3. We can learn from the article that in a home fire______.
A. people should close the window and open the door
B. soft earth can reduce the chance of being injured
C.it’s always safer to jump out than to stay
D.rope ladders should not be used
4. What is the main idea of this article?
A.We can turn to the firemen during a fire.
B. We should keep in mind the escape paths.
C.People should know what to do before a fire breaks out.
D.People should find help as soon as possible during a fire.
III. 阅读理解
阅读下面短文,掌握其大意,然后从文后所给各题的四个选项中,选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。
When you turn on the radio, you hear an advertisement. When you watch television, you hear and see an advertisement. If you turn the pages of a newspaper or magazine, again you find a advertisement. If you walk down the street, you see one advertisement board after another. All day, every day, people who want to sell something compete to catch your attention. As a result, advertisements are almost everywhere.
In the West, advertisements are the fuel that makes mass media(媒体)work. Many TV stations, newspapers, magazines, radio stations are privately(私人)owned. The government does not give them money. So where does the money come from? From advertisements. Without advertisements, there would not be these private businesses.
Have you ever asked yourself what advertising is? Through the years, people have given different answers to the question. For some time it was felt that advertising was a means of “keeping your name before the public.” And some people thought that advertising was “truth well told.” Now more and more people tend to define(定义) it in this way: Advertising is the paid, nonpersonal, and usually persuasive presentation of goods, services and ideas by identified sponsors through various media.
First, advertising is usually paid for. Various sponsors(赞助商) pay for the ads we see, read, and hear over the various media. Second, advertising is nonpersonal. It is not face-to-face communication. Although you may feel that a message in a certain advertisement is aimed directly at you, in reality, it is directed at large groups of people. Third, advertising is usually persuasive. Directly or indirectly it urges people to do something. All advertisements try to convince(说服) people that the product, idea, or service advertised can benefit them. Fourth, the sponsor of the advertisement must be identified. From the advertisement, we can see if the sponsor is a corporation, or a committee, or an individual. Fifth, advertising reaches us through traditional and non-traditional mass media. Included in the traditional media are newspapers, magazines, radio, television, and films. Non-traditional media include the mail, matchbox covers, and billboards.
1. The existence of the privately owned mass media depends financially on the support of ____ .
A. the government B. their owners’ families C. advertisements D. the audience
2. The passage seems to say that different definitions of advertising are given due to __ ____.
A. the change of time B. the subject of the advertisements
C. people’s age difference D. people’s different perspectives (角度)
3. According to the passage, who are most probably paying for the advertisements? __ ____.
A. Corporations. B. Committees. C. Individuals. D. All of the above.
4. According to the passage, which of the following statements about the features of advertisements is NOT true? _____.
A. Advertising must be honest and amusing B. Advertising is meant for large groups of people
C. There is the description of things advertised D. The sponsors are always mentioned
附加题:阅读理解(共5小题;每小题3分,满分15分。把答案涂到答题卡上)
Not many years ago, a wealthy and rather strange old man named Johnson lived alone in a village in the south of England. He had made a lot of money in trading with foreign countries. When he was seventy-five, he gave £ 12,000 to the village school to buy land and equipment for a children‘s playground.
As a result of his kindness, many people came to visit him. Among them was a newspaperman. During their talk, Johnson remarked that he was seventy-five and expected to live to be a hundred. The newspaperman asked him how he managed to be healthy at seventy—five. Johnson had a sense of humor. He liked whisky and drank some each day. “I have an injection (注射) in my neck each evening.”he told the newspaperman, thinking of his evening glass of whisky.
The newspaperman did not understand what Johnson meant. In his newspaper he reported that Johnson was seventy-five and had a daily injection in his neck. Within a week Johnson received thousands of letters from all over Britain, asking him for the secret of his daily injection.
1. Johnson became a rich man through _________.
A. doing business. B. making whisky.
C. cheating. D. buying and selling land.
2. The gift of money to the school suggests that Johnson __________.
A. had no children. B. was a strange man.
C. was very fond of children. D. wanted people to know how rich he was.
3. Many people wrote to Johnson to find out __________.
A. what kind of whisky he had. B. how to live longer.
C. how to become wealthy. D. in which part of the neck to have an injection.
4. The newspaperman ____________.
A. should have reported what Johnson had told him.
B. shouldn‘t have asked Johnson what injection he had.
C. was eager to live a long life.
D. should have found out what Johnson really meant.
5. When Johnson said he had an injection in his neck each evening, he really meant that ______.
A. he liked drinking a glass of whisky in the evening.
B. he needed an injection in the neck.
C. a daily injection in the evening would make him sleep well.
D. there was something wrong with his neck.
It was Monday. Mrs Smith's dog was hungry, but there was not any meat in the house.
Considering that there was no better way. Mrs Smith took a piece of paper, and wrote the following words on it:“Give my dog half a pound of meat.”Then she gave the paper to her dog and said gently:“Take this to the butcher(屠夫). and he's going to give you your lunch today.”
Holding the piece of paper in its mouth, the dog ran to the butcher's. It gave the paper to the butcher. The butcher read it carefully, recognized that it was really the lady's handwriting and soon did it as he was asked to. The dog was very happy, and ate the meat up at once.
At noon, the dog came to the shop again. It gave the butcher a piece of paper again. After reading it. he gave it half a pound of meat once more.
The next day, the dog came again exactly at noon. And as usual, it brought a piece of paper in the mouth. This time, the butcher did not take a look at paper, and gave the dog its meat, for he had regarded the dog as one of his customers
But, the dog came again at four o'clock. And the same thing happened once again. To the butcher's more surprise, it came for the third time at six o'clock, and brought with it a third piece of paper. The butcher felt a bit puzzled. He said to himself,“This is a small dog. Why does Mrs Smith give it so much meat to eat today?”
Looking at the piece of paper, he found that there were not any words on it!
1.Mrs Smith treated her little dog quite_________.
A. cruelly B. fairly C. kindly D. friendly
2.It seemed that the dog knew well that the paper Mrs Smith gave it _______.
A. might do it much harm B. could do it much good
C. would help the butcher D. was worth many pounds
3. The butcher did not give any meat to the dog __________.
A. before he felt sure that the words were really written by Mrs Smith
B. when he found that the words on the paper were not clear
C. because he had sold out all the meat in his shop
D. until he was paid enough by Mrs Smith
4. From its experience, the dog found that ________.
A. only the paper with Mrs Smith's words in it could bring it meat
B. the butcher would give the meat to it whenever he saw it
C. Mrs Smith would pay for the meat it got from the butcher
D. a piece of paper could bring it half a pound of meat
5.At the end of the story, you'll find that _______.
A. the dog was clever enough to write on the paper
B. the dog dared not go to the butcher's any more
C. the butcher was told not to give any meat to the dog
D. the butcher found himself cheated by the clever animal