The massive polar bear moved slowly along therocky shoreline, just a yard or so from the stormywaters of the Arctic Ocean. Occasionally it raised itshead to sniff the Arctic air, hoping perhaps to find aneasy meal of an exhausted seal. It was late July, and inthis uninhabited area of the Norwegian archipelago,much of the drift ice had melted. This made hunting for seals — a polar bear's favorite meal — nearlyimpossible.
With a westerly wind at its back, the male bearcontinued to patrol the shore. Then, perhaps catchingthe smell of something unusual, it stopped dead in itstracks. Following its nose, it can smell a decayingwhale from 20 miles away, and the bear suddenlyturned downwind and inland. It was closing in on itsprey.
It was to be the adventure of a lifetime. For almost two years, longtime friends Sebastian PlurNilssen and LudvigFjeld, both 22, had been trainingfor this two-month-long expedition. Hoping to followin the footsteps of other Norwegian explorers such asRoald Amundsen and Thor Heyerdahl, the two wereattempting to become the first to paddle around theentire Svalbard islands, a trip of more than l,100miles through one of the world's most remoteregions.
To keep fit, they had worn dry suits and travelled through the ice-filled rivers near their hometowns outside Oslo, pulled heavy kayaks overglaciers, and jumped into the freezing waters to toughen themselves.
They spent much time practicing shooting. Asmany Arctic experts had told them,if they needed todefend themselves from a polar bear, they'd have little time to think. Each carried a gun in awaterproof bag lashed to their kayaks. Holdingsteady, controlling their breathing, aiming, and thenshooting: It all had to be second nature. What made the polar bear's hunting for seals difficult?
A.The rocky shoreline. |
B.The melting of the ice. |
C.The uninhabited area. |
D.The extreme cold. |
The reason why the bear stopped its patrol suddenly was that _____
A.the westerly wind blew heavily at its back |
B.it caught the smell of the decaying whale |
C.it felt so worn-out and hungry |
D.it was eager to get close to its prey |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A.Sebastian PlurNilssen and LudvigFjeld are both nearly thirty years old. |
B.Roald Amundsen and Thor Heyerdahl were trying to paddle around the Svalbard islands. |
C.The shooting skill is important for the explorers to defend themselves from the bear. |
D.Sebastian PlurNilssen and LudvigFjeld have succeeded in paddling around the Svalbard islands. |
The underlined word in the passage probably means"_______".
A.encourage |
B.strengthen |
C.enjoy |
D.entertain |
Some scientists say that animals in the ocean are increasingly threatened by noise pollution caused by human beings. The noise that affects sea creatures comes from a number of human activities. It is caused mainly by industrial underwater explosions, ocean drilling, and ship engines. Such noises are added to natural sounds. These sounds include the breaking of ice fields, underwater earthquakes, and sounds made by animals themselves.
Decibels(分贝) measured in water are different from those measured on land. A noise of one hundred and twenty decibels on land causes pain to human ears. In water, a decibel level of one hundred and ninety-five would have the same effect.
Some scientists have suggested setting a noise limit of one hundred and twenty decibels in oceans. They have observed that noises at that level can frighten and confuse whales.
A team of American and Canadian scientists discovered that loud noises can seriously injure some animals. The research team found that powerful underwater explosions were causing whales in the area to lose their hearing. This seriously affected the whales’ ability to exchange information and find their way. Some of the whales even died. The explosions had caused their ears to bleed and become infected.
Many researchers whose work depends on ocean sounds object to a limit of one hundred and twenty decibels. They say such a limit would mean an end to important industrial and scientific research.
Scientists do not know how much and what kinds of noises are harmful to ocean animals. However, many scientists suspect that noise is a greater danger than they believed. They want to prevent noise from harming creatures in the ocean.
1.According to the passage, which of the following is increasingly dangerous to sea creatures?
A. The man-made noises. B. The noises made by themselves
C. The sound of earthquakes D. The sound of the ice-breaking
2. Which of the following is discussed in the second paragraph?
A. Different places with different types of noises.
B. The very human ears sensitive to all types of noises.
C. The same noise measured differently on land and in the ocean.
D. The ocean animal’s reaction to noises.
3. As to the influence of noises on whales, which of the following statements is TRUE?
A. They are deaf to noises. B. Noises at a certain level may hurt them.
C. They are easily confused by noises D. Noises will limit their ability to reproduce
4. According to the passage, what will scientists most probably do in the future?
A. They will try their best to decrease noise.
B. They will work hard to cut down noise pollution.
C. They will study the effect of different noises.
D. They will protect animals from harmful noises.
第二部分阅读理解(共25小题。第一节每小题2分,第二节每小题1分;满分45分)
第一节阅读下列短文,从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C、D)中,选出最佳选项,并在
答题卡上将该项涂黑。
When I was about 12, I had an enemy, a girl who liked to point out my shortcomings. Week by week her list grew: I was very thin, I wasn’t a good student, I talked too much, I was too proud, and so on. I tried to bear all this as long as I could. At last, I became very angry. I ran to my father with tears in my eyes.
He listened to me quietly, and then asked. “Are the things she says true or not? Jane, didn’t you ever wonder what you’re really like? Well, you now have that girl’s opinion. Go and make a list of everything she said and mark the points that are true. Pay no attention to the other things she said.”
I did as he told me. To my great surprise, I discovered that about half the things were true. Some of them I couldn’t change (like being very thin), but a good number I could – and suddenly I wanted to change. For the first time I got a fairly clear picture of myself.
I brought the list back to Daddy. He refused to take it. “That’s just for you,” he said. “You know better than anyone else the truth about yourself. But you have to learn to listen, not just close your ears in anger and feeling hurt. When something said about you is true, you’ll find it will be of help to you. Our world is full of people who think they know your duty. Don’t shut your ears. Listen to them all, but hear the truth and do what you know is the right thing to do.”
Daddy’s advice has returned to me at many important moments. In my life, I’ve never had a better piece of advice.
1.Which do you think would be the best title for this passage?
A. Not an Enemy, but the Best Friend B. The Best Advice I’ve Ever Had
C.My Father D. My Childhood
2.What does “Week by week her list grew” mean?
A. Week by week she discovered more shortcomings of mine and pointed them out to me.
B. She had made a list of my shortcomings and she kept on adding new ones to it so that it was growing longer and longer.
C. I was having more and more shortcomings as time went on.
D. Week by week, my shortcomings grew more serious.
3.Why did her father listen to her quietly?
A. Because he believed that what her daughter’s “enemy” said was mostly true.
B. Because he had been so angry with his daughter’s shortcomings that he wanted to show this by keeping silent for a while.
C. Because he knew that his daughter would not listen to him at that moment.
D. Because he wasn’t quite sure which girl was telling the truth.
4. What did the father do after he had heard his daughter’s complaint?
A. He told her not to pay any attention to what her “enemy” had said.
B. He criticized her and told her to overcome her shortcomings.
C. He told her to write down all that her “enemy” had said about her and pay attention only to the things that were true.
D. He refused to take the list and have a look at it.
Tamiflu does not kill but prevents H1N1 from further proliferation (繁衍) till the virus limits itself in about 1-2 weeks (its natural cycle).H1N1, like other Influenza A viruses, only infects the upper respiratory tract and proliferates (only) there.The only way of entry are the nostrils(鼻孔) and mouth/ throat.In a global epidemic of this nature, it's almost impossible not coming into contact with H1N1.
Contact with H1N1 is not so much of a problem as proliferation is.
While you are still healthy and not showing any symptoms of H1N1 infection, in order to prevent proliferation, some very simple steps can be practiced:
1.Frequent hand-washing.
2."Hands-off-the-face" approach.Resist all temptations to touch any part of face (unless you want to eat or bathe).
3.Gargle(漱口) twice a day with warm salt water (use Listerine if you don't trust salt).H1N1 takes 2-3 days after initial infection in the throat/ nasal cavity to proliferate and show characteristic symptoms.Simple gargling prevents proliferation.In a way, gargling with salt water has the same effect on a healthy individual that Tamiflu has on an infected one.Don't underestimate this simple, inexpensive and powerful preventative method.
4.Similar to 3 above, clean your nostrilsat least once every day with warm salt water,Which is very effective in bringing down viral population.
5.Strengthen your natural immunity with foods that are rich in Vitamin C .If you have to supplement with Vitamin C tablets, make sure that it also has Zinc to boost absorption.
6.Drink as much of warm liquids as you can.Drinking warm liquids has the same effect as gargling, but in the reverse direction.They wash off proliferating viruses from the throat into the stomach where they cannot survive, proliferate or do any harm.
7.All these are simple ways to prevent, within means of most households, and certainly much less painful than to wait in long queues outside public hospitals.
1.What part of a person’s body do H1N1flu viruses mainly infect?
A.one’s lung B.the upper respiratory tract
C.one’s heart D.one’s throat and lung
2.H1N1 flu viruses go into our bodies by ________.
A.touching B.diet C.breathing D.dirt
3.What does the underlined word “underestimate” mean ?
A.assign too low a value to
B.drop the cost of
C.pay more attention to
D.calculate the number of money
4.The author presents this passage by ______.
A.telling an interesting story B.testing an idea by reasoning
C.introducing some practical methods D.describing some activities in a natural order
The words of Gandhi, Einstein and other great thinkers are to be quoted in service announcements on London’s Underground.
Transport for London has asked Turner Prize-winning artist Jeremy Deller to edit a list of mottos to be used by tube drivers.Gandhi’s “there is more to life than increasing its speed” and the artist Cezanne’s “we live in a rain-bow of chaos” are among the quotes.Deller hopes they will make passengers’ journeys a bit more thought-provoking(发人深省的).
Deller’s original plan was to abolish all public announcements for a day.“It makes me feel annoyed,” he said.“It’s like some psychological warfare(战争 ) on the passengers.”
But his idea was refused by the manager of Transport for London, who instead agreed to the plan of replacing some announcements with something more human and attractive.
Sally Shaw, who is running the scheme for Transport for London, says it is part of an attempt to improve day-to-day interaction and rely less on automated announcements.
“I think everyone has their own little philosophy on their journeys.And if we can get more of that out in the air, that would be great,” she said.
Susy Wells, one of the drivers to test the idea out on the London Underground, is also enthusiastic about it.
She said, “I like to make my own announcements and it’s nice to get passengers to think as well.”
What’s more, some quotes are helpful to the drivers.They help the passengers become more understanding about the drivers’ work.
The quotes such as Thomas Fuller’s “a stumble(绊脚) may prevent a fall” are popular for helping explain why a little inconvenience was sometimes necessary to keep the system safe.
1.The underlined phrase “tube drivers” probably means______.
A.taxi drivers B.subway drivers
C.truck drivers D.bus drivers
2.Why did Deller want to abolish all public announcements on the underground?
A.Because they cause a war among passengers.
B.Because the public announcements make Deller tired.
C.Because the public announcements are dull.
D.All public announcements are not suitable for the passengers.
3.The reason why the sayings are to be quoted on London’s Underground is ______.
A.that everyone has their own life motto
B.that sayings are believed to be more human and attractive
C.that sayings can help develop spiritual civilization in London
D.that saying can make drivers think more
4.The best title of this passage would be _____.
A.Changes on London’s Underground
B.Culture on London’s Underground
C.Some Quotes Seen on London’s Underground
D.Introduction to London’s Underground
Sports can help you keep fit and get in touch with nature.However, whether you are on the mountains, in the waves, or on the grassland, you should be aware that your sport of choice might have great influence on the environment.
Some sports are resource-hungry.Golf, as you may know, eats up not only large areas of countryside, but also tons of water.Besides, all sorts of chemicals and huge amounts of energy are used to keep its courses (球场) in good condition.This causes major environmental effects.For example, in the dry regions of Portugal and Spain, golf is often held responsible for serious water shortage in some local areas.
There are many environment-friendly sports.Power walking is one of them that you could take up today.You don’t need any special equipment except a good pair of shoes; and you don’t have to worry about resources and your purse.Simple and free, power walking can also keep you fit.If you walk regularly, it will be good for your heart and bones.Experts say that 20 minutes of power walking daily can make you feel less anxious, sleep well and have better weight control.
Whatever sport you take up, you can make it greener by using environment-friendly equipment and buying products made from recycled materials.But the final goal should be “green gyms”.They are better replacements for traditional health clubs and modern sports centers.Members of green gyms play sports outdoors, in the countryside or other open spaces.There is no special requirement for you to start your membership.And best of all, it’s free.
1.The author thinks the golf is resource-hungry because of the following EXCEPT that_____.
A.Golf wastes large areas of countryside
B.Golf runs out of much water
C.Keeping golf court in good condition needs too much energy
D.Golf is bad for people’s health
2.According to the passage, which of the following is an environment-friendly sport?
A.swimming in the pool B.hiking in the hills
C.playing basketball in the gym D.motor racing in the desert
3.The reason why the author uses power walking as an example mainly is because _________.
A.it improves our health B.it uses fewer resources
C.it is an outdoor sport D.it is recommended by experts
4.The purpose of the author’s writing this passage is to ______.
A.show us the function of major sports
B.encourage us to go in for green sports
C.discuss the major influence of popular sports
D.introduce different types of environment-friendly sports