The year is 2094. It has been announced that a comet （彗星）is heading towards the earth. Most of it will miss our planet, but two pieces will probably hit the southern half of the earth.
On 17 July, a piece of 4 kilometers wide comet enters the Earth’s atmosphere with a massive explosion（爆炸）. About half of the piece is destroyed, but the remaining part hits the South Atlantic at 200 times the speed of sound. The sea boils and a huge hole is made in the seabed. Huge waves are created and spread outwards form the hole. The wall of water, a kilometer high, rushes towards southern Africa at 800 kilometers an hour. Cities on the African coast are totally destroyed and millions of people are drowned（淹死）.
Before the waves reach South America, the second piece of the comet lands in Argentina. Earthquakes and volcanoes ash set off in the Andes Mountains. The shock waves move north into California and all around the Pacific Ocean. The cities of Los Angeles, San Francisco and Tokyo are completely destroyed by earthquakes. Millions of people in the southern half of the earth are already dead, but the north won’t escape for long. Because of the explosions, the sun is hidden by clouds of dust, temperatures around the world fall to almost zero. Crops are ruined. The sun won’t be seen again for many years. Wars break out as countries fight for food. A year later, no more than 10 million people remain alive.
Could it really happen? In fact, it has already happened more than once in the history of the earth. The dinosaurs were on the Earth for over 160 million years. Then 65 million years ago they suddenly disappeared. Many scientists believe that the Earth was hit by a piece of object in space. The dinosaurs couldn’t live through the cold climate that followed and they died out. Will we meet the same end? What is mainly described in the passage?
| A．A historic discovery. |
| B．An event in imagination. |
| C．A research on space. |
| D．A scientific adventure. |
When the first piece hits the South Atlantic, it causes________.
| A．an earthquake |
| B．hunger |
| C．an Earth explosion |
| D．huge waves |
Why can’t the northern half of the earth escape for long?
| A．Because the land is covered with water. |
| B．Because the light and heat form the sun cannot reach the earth. |
| C．Because people there cannot live at the temperature of zero. |
| D．Because wars break out among countries. |
By giving the example of dinosaurs, the author tries to prove_________.
| A．animals could not live in the cold climate |
| B．what happened 65 million years ago was an invented story |
| C．the human beings will die out in 2094 |
| D．the Earth could be hit by other objects in space |
For about three years now, I have been writing poetry. It was not until my junior year in high school that I developed an interest, love, and skill for writing poetry.
Back in elementary school, I love to write stories. I would write stories on post-it notes and anywhere I could. Yet when I had to write a limerick （五行打油诗）for an assignment, I could not wrap my head around poetry. I had a very hard time figuring out how to rhyme words and have the words make sense. I eventually tossed the paper with the attempted limerick in the trash. I did not try my hand at poetry again until several years later.
Many years later in my freshman year of high school, my English teacher gave my class a poetry project as an assignment. I still remember my limerick assignment and was afraid of doing the poetry. For the project, we had to analyze a poem and write a response to it. I choose to respond to Robert Frost’s poem Fire and Ice. I also wrote my own poem first. I become really excited when writing the poem.
Two years later, I started writing poetry, as a hobby and for fun. To learn how good or bad my poems were, I handed them in to some magazines and contests. I won second place in the North Carolina Poetry Society’s Sherry Pruitt Award Contest with a poem called The Ocean, and had my two poems published as high merit (优等) poems. I have continued to write poetry, and have even self-published three collections of poetry in both print and e-book formats, which can be found at my store on Lulu.
Now, I love writing poetry, but I don’t hate writing short stories. I just find it more difficult and not my style of writing, even though I still write short stories occasionally.When the author was a pupil, he ____.
| A．liked writing stories |
| B．was good at writing poetry |
| C．could understand poetry well |
| D．was often praised by his teacher |
When given the poetry project in high school, the author was ______.
| A．excited | B．annoyed |
| C．confident | D．worried |
The author took up writing poetry as a hobby when he ____.
| A．was in Grade Three in high school |
| B．worked as a storekeeper |
| C．was in Grade One in high school |
| D．was at college |
How did the author increase his confidence in writing poetry?
| A．He wrote a lot of poems and asked advice from his teacher |
| B．He published three collections of poetry by himself |
| C．He submitted his poems to magazines contests |
| D．He gave up writing stories and only wrote poetry |
Ereading and ebooks are slowly conquering the world.Compared to traditional paper books，ebooks in some schools and universities attract more interest because the information flow seems much easier to manage and comes in a greatly higher quantity.
Japan is known for the reformminded attitude towards the gadget(精巧装置) world and for the fact that it is one of the first countries that encouraged in the educational system the emailing of homework.
The digital textbook looks like the logical step in the world of learning.It is natural but it is also completely untraditional.
The plan of the largest publishing companies to get in line with the trend is to save a large quantity of paper and make the kids become interested in learning using a cool gadget.Many USA universities and colleges have made students be used to the procedure of downloading the courses and of course the procedure involves interactive software and also the chance of using the computer.
The traditional education system is still unwilling when it comes to giving up books.The standard approach of information taught out of a book and Shakespeare read out of an old school novel makes studying English as traditional as it can be.
In a world where kids would rather see the movie than read a book，the digital age has brought along a completely different flavor to reading.Bringing that flavor in school will make teaching a greener and also a completely different matter.Why are ebooks so popular in the world?
| A．It's cheap to buy. |
| B．It's effective to use. |
| C．It's convenient to bring. |
| D．It's the latest fashion. |
Which of the following words can best take the place of the word “reformminded” in the second paragraph?
| A．Oldfashioned. | B．Aggressive. |
| C．Rejecting. | D．Progressive. |
In America，the students are encouraged to________．
| A．apply the procedure of downloading the courses |
| B．communicate with their teachers using computer |
| C．research some interactive software for their studies |
| D．do their homework in computer instead of in paper |
What's the author's attitude to the digital textbooks?
| A．Being against. | B．Being for. |
| C．Not mentioned. | D．Being neutral. |
Tom appeared on the sidewalk with a bucket of whitewash and a long-handled brush. He stopped by the fence in front of the house where he lived with his aunt Polly. He looked at it, and all joy left him. The fence was long and high. He put the brush into the whitewash and moved it along the top of the fence. He repeated the operation. He felt he could not continue and sat down.
He knew that his friends would arrive soon with all kinds of interesting plans for the day. They would walk past him and laugh. They would make jokes about his having to work on a beautiful summer Saturday. The thought burned him like fire.
He put his hand into his pockets and took out all that he owned. Perhaps he could find something to pay someone to do the whitewashing for him. But there was nothing of value in his pockets. So he put the bits of toys back into his pockets and gave up the idea.
At this dark and hopeless moment, a wonderful idea came to him. It filled his mind with a great, bright light. Calmly he picked up the brush and started again to whitewash.
While Tom was working, Ben Rogers appeared. Ben was eating an apple as he walked along the street. When he came close to Tom, he stopped.
Tom went on whitewashing. He did not look at Ben. Ben stared a moment and then said: “Hello! I’m going swimming, but you can’t go, can you?”
No answer. Tom moved his brush carefully along the fence and looked at the result with the eye of an artist. Ben came nearer. Tom’s mouth watered for the apple, but he kept on working.
Ben said, “Hello, old fellow, you’ve got to work, hey?”
Tom turned suddenly and said, “Why, it’s you, Ben! I wasn’t noticing.”
“I’m going swimming. Don’t you wish you could? But of course you’d rather work. You seem to like it very much.”
“Like it? Well, I don’t see why I shouldn’t like it. Does a boy get a chance to whitewash a fence every day?”
Ben stopped eating his apple. Tom moved his brush back and forth, stepped back to look at the result, added a touch here and there, and stepped back again. Ben watched every move and got more and more interested. Soon he said,
“Tom, let me whitewash a little.”
Tom thought for a moment, was about to agree; but he changed his mind.
“No, no, it won’t do, Ben. You see, Aunt Polly wants this fence to be perfect. It has got to be done very carefully. I don’t think there is one boy in a thousand, maybe two thousand, that can do it well enough.”
“No — is that so? Oh come, let me just try. Only just a little.”
“Ben, I’d like to, but if it isn’t done right, I’m afraid Aunt Polly ...”
“Oh, I’ll be careful. Now let me try. I’ll give you half of my apple.”
“Well, here — No, Ben, now don’t. I’m afraid ...”
“I’ll give you all of it.”
Tom gave up the brush with unwillingness on his face, but joy in his heart. And while Ben worked at the fence in the hot sun, Tom sat under a tree, eating the apple, and planning how to get more help. There were enough boys. Each one came to laugh, but remained to whitewash. And when the middle of the afternoon came, Tom had won many treasures. The fence had been whitewashed three times. If he hadn’t run out of whitewash, Tom would have owned everything belonging to his friends.
He had discovered a great law of human action that in order to make a man or a boy want a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difficult to get.Why did Tom take all his bits of toys out of his pockets?
| A．Because he was tired and wanted to play with his toys. |
| B．Because he wanted to exchange his toys with his friends. |
| C．Because he wanted to give his toys to his friends. |
| D．Because he wanted to know if he could buy help with his toys. |
Tom was about to agree to let Ben whitewash when he changed his mind because ______.
| A．Tom wanted to do the whitewashing himself |
| B．Tom planned to make Ben give up his apple first |
| C．Tom was unwilling to let Ben do the whitewashing |
| D．Tom was afraid Ben couldn’t do the whitewashing well. |
We can learn from the passage that ______.
| A．Tom was fond of whitewashing the fence |
| B．Tom had a lot of friends who were ready to help him |
| C．Tom managed to let other boys do the whitewashing for him |
| D．Tom was better at whitewashing the fence than others |
Which of the following is the most suitable title for this passage?
| A．The Happy Whitewasher |
| B．Tom And His Fellows |
| C．Whitewashing A Fence |
| D．How To Make Things Difficult To Get |
Are you still troubled by a disease called overactive bladder(膀胱)? Why not try TOVIAZ, a medicine used to treat adults 18 years older facing such a condition?
You are strongly advised not to take TOVIZ if you have following symptoms:
★ Your stomach empties slowly.
★ You are suffering from eye problems.
★ You’re allergic to any ingredients of TOVIAZ.
Remember the possible side effects of TOVIAZ
★ Dry mouth.
★ Constipation(便秘)
★ Dry eyes.
★ Trouble empting the bladder
Remember to ask your doctor for a complete list, since these aren’t all possible side effects of TOVIAZ.
More Detailed Instructions to take TOVIAZ:
★ Your doctor may give you the lower 4mg dose of TOVIAZ if you have severe kidney problem.
★ Take TOVIAZ with liquid and swallow the tablet whole. Do not chew, divide or crush the tablet.
★ You can take either TOVIAZ with or without food.
★ If you miss a dose of TOVIAZ, start taking it again the next day.
★ Decreased sweating and severe heat illness can occur when TOVIAZ is used in hot environments.
★ Drinking alcohol while taking TOVIAZ may cause increased sleepiness.
What is the main purpose of the passage?
| A．To present a discovery on a scientific research. |
| B．To give information about a kind of medicine. |
| C．To teach patients ways of recovery from illness. |
| D．To show the importance of taking proper medicine. |
What can be inferred from the passage?
| A．There are only four possible side effects of TOVIAZ. |
| B．Don’t take TOVIAZ if you are allergic to its ingredient. |
| C．It’s unwise for people under 18 years old to use TOVIAZ |
| D．You may feel excited while eating TOVIAZ with alcohol. |
Which of the statements about taking TOVIAZ is TRUE?
| A．It’s OK to take it with food or without food. |
| B．Chew the tablet well before you swallow it. |
| C．Use TOVIAZ in hot environment to cure heat illness. |
| D．If you miss a dose, do take it right away on the same day. |
Charles Dickens is often thought of as one of the greatest British writers. February 7 marked the 200th anniversary of his birthday. Yet for many, his language is old-fashioned and his stories often improbable. So why do so many people know and read Dickens today?
One reason is the British government’s insistence that every child studies a Dickens novel at school. Alongside William Shakespeare, Dickens is on every English literature school reading list.
His stories, though often long by today’s standards, are great moral tales. They are filled with colorful characters.
Earlier this month, a ceremony was held in Portsmouth, where Dickens was born. Prince Charles said at the ceremony, “Dickens used his creative genius to campaign passionately for social justice… His characterization (人物刻画) is as fresh today as on the day it was written.”
His books stand out from many other writers because of his insight into human nature. Dickens, like Shakespeare, tells us truths about human behavior. They are as true in the 21st century as they were to his readers in the 19th century.
Readers have returned to Dickens’ books again and again over the years to see what he has to say about their own times.
No surprise then that it was Dickens whom Britons turned to during the economic crisis in the last couple of years. Dickens helped them make sense of a world that was rapidly falling apart. The BBC adapted one of his less well-known novels, Little Dorrit, into a popular television drama that introduced many Brits to the novel for the first time. A dark story about greed and money, it was the perfect illustration of bad times.
As long as Dickens’s novels have something to say to modern audiences, it seems likely that he will remain one of Britain’s best-loved writers. In the article, the author intends to tell us ______.
| A．why Dickens’ novels still appeal to readers in modern times |
| B．that Dickens’ works are no longer popular among young people |
| C．why the British government puts Dickens on school reading lists |
| D．that Dickens and Shakespeare’s works are required for study at school |
In Britain, people still read Dickens because of ______.
a) romance in his books
b) moral value in his books
c) his colorful characters
d) his insight into human nature
e) government education requirement
f) his prediction of the current economic crisis
| A．abdf | B．bcde | C．bdef | D．abed |
We can infer from the article that ______.
| A．it’s better to read Dickens in time of difficulty |
| B．Dickens was a great social observer of his time |
| C．human nature seems worse during bad times |
| D．Dickens’s novels are short and easy to read |
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．Little Dorrit is one of Dickens’ best-known novels. |
| B．Dickens’ novels are of greater value during economic crisis. |
| C．Dickens’ works have gained more popularity than Shakespeare’s |
| D．Dickens’ novels are still of realistic significance to today’s world. |