In the last 500 years nothing about people-not their clothes, ideas, or languages has changed as much as what they eat. Chocolate (巧克力) drink was first made from the seeds of the cacao (可可) tree by South American Indians. The Spanish introduced it to the rest of the world during the 1500s. And although it was very expensive, it quickly became popular, In London, shops where chocolate drinks were served became important places. Some still exist today. The potato is also from the New World. Around 1600, the Spanish brought it from Peru to Europe, where it soon was widely grown. Ireland became so dependent (依赖的) on it that thousands of Irish people starved (挨饿) when the crop failed during the years of 1845-1846, and thousands more were forced to go to live in America.
There are many other foods that have traveled from South America to the Old World. But some others went in the opposite direction. Brazil is now the world's largest grower of coffee, and coffee is an important crop in other South American countries. But it is native to Ethiopia. It was first made into a drink by Arabs during the 1400s. According to an Arabic story, coffee was discovered when a goat keeper named Lakdi noticed that his goats were eating red fruits on a coffee tree. He tried one and
experienced the "wide-awake (彻底清醒的)" feeling that one third of the world's population now starts the day with. According to the passage, which of the following changed more than others?
| A．Clothes. |
| B．Ideas. |
| C．Languages. |
| D．Foods. |
Chocolate drink was first invented in while coffee was first invented in _______.
| A．Spain; Brazil |
| B．South America; the Old World |
| C．Spain; Ethiopia |
| D．London; Rent |
In 1845, thousands of Irish people were forced to live in America mainly because .
| A．Ireland became dependent on the potato |
| B．the potato was brought to Europe from Peru |
| C．they could easily get potato in America |
| D．the production of potatoes reduced(减少) |
According to the passage, who first made chocolate drink from the seeds of the cacao tree?
| A．People in Peru |
| B．People in Brazil. |
| C．South American Indians. |
| D．People in Ethiopia. |
From the passage we can conclude (得出结论) that millions of people drink coffee .
| A．in the morning |
| B．at noon |
| C．in the afternoon |
| D．in the evening |
Vending machines （投币式自动售货机） are found in 16% of U．S．elementary schools, 52% of middle schools and 88% of high schools．About 22% of students in grades 1 through 12 buy food in vending machines each day—and those purchases added an average of 253 calories to their diets, according to a new study in the September issue of the Journal of School Health．
Just to be clear, those were not 253 calories' worth of tofu, yogurt or carrot．The most popular vending machine items included soft drinks, candy, chips, crackers, cookies, cakes and ice cream．On the plus side （好的方面）, kids also bought low-fat milk, fruit juice and even fruit, the study found．
But the eventual effect on kids' diets was not good．Those who bought from vending machines ate an average of 156 grams of sugar per day, compared with 146 grams for those who abstained （节制）．They also consumed less fiber, iron and vitamin B．
One silver lining: Vending machine customers ate 4% less sodium （钠） than other students--an average of 3,287 milligrams per day compared with 3,436 mg for those who didn't buy from vending machines．That's probably because the extra snacks made kids too full to eat as much at mealtimes, when dishes are especially Salty．In any event, kids should eat no more than 1,200 to 1,500 mg of sodium each day, according to the Mayo Clinic．Even for adults, the government recommends a daily limit of 2,300 mg．
Overall, vending machines in school appear to be a threat to children's health．The researchers calculated that all that snacking adds up to about14 extra pounds per child per school year．For some students this might be a serious contributor to weight issues．The study was based on data collected from 2,309 children nationwide for the third School Nutrition Dietary Assessment Study, which was
conducted by the U．S．Department of Agriculture's Food and Nutrition Service．The students using vending machines take in less of all the following EXCEPT ．
| A．sugar | B．fiber | C．vitamin | D．iron |
The underlined words “One silver lining” mean “”．
| A．a discouraging condition at present |
| B．a bright side of a difficult situation |
| C．an urgent warning from health experts |
| D．an increasing concern from the public |
Why do kids buying food from vending machines take less salt probably?
| A．They prefer less salty food． |
| B．They have formed healthy eating habits． |
| C．They eat less food at mealtimes． |
| D．They take less junk food as snacks． |
What's the purpose of the text?
| A．To teach children a balanced diet． |
| B．To introduce the finding of a new study． |
| C．To remind parents of children's health． |
| D．To tell the history of vending machines． |
A simple piece of clothesline hangs between some environmentally friendly Americans and their neighbors．
On one side stand those who see clothes dryers （干衣机） as a waste of energy and a major polluter of the environment．As a result, they are turning to clotheslines as part of the “what-I-can-do environmentalism．”
On the other side are people who are against drying clothes outside, arguing that clotheslines are unpleasant to look at．They have persuaded Homeowners Associations （HOAs） access the U．S．to ban outdoor clotheslines, because clothesline drying also tends to lower home value in the neighborhood．
This has led to a Right-to-Dry Movement that is calling for laws to be passed to protect people’s right to use clotheslines．So far, only three states have laws to protect clothesline．Right-to-Dry supporters argue that there should be more．
Matt Reck, 37, is the kind of eco-conscious（有生态意识的）person who feeds his trees with bathwater and reuses water drops from his air conditioners to water plants．His family also uses a clothesline．But on July 9, 2007, the HOA in Wake Forest, North Carolina, told him that a dissatisfied neighbor had telephoned them about his clothesline．The Recks paid no attention to the warning and still dried their clothes on a line in the yard．“Many people say they are environmentally friendly but they don’t take matters into their own hands,” says Reck．The local HOA has decided not to take any action, unless more neighbors come to them．
North Carolina lawmakers are saying that banning clotheslines is not the right thing to do．But HOAs and housing businesses believe that clothesline drying reminds people of poor neighborhoods．They worry that if buyers think their future neighbors can’t even afford dryers, housing prices will fall．
Environmentalists say such worries are not necessary, and in view of global warming, that idea needs to change．As they say, “The clothesline is beautiful．Hanging clothes outside should be encouraged．We all have to do at least something to slow down the process of global warming．” One of the reasons why supporters of clothes dryers are trying to ban clothesline drying is that ______．
| A．clothes dryers are more efficient |
| B．clothesline drying reduces home value |
| C．clothes dryers are energy-saving |
| D．clothesline drying is not allowed in most U．S．states |
Who are in favor of clothesline drying?
| A．Housing businesses. |
| B．Environmentalists． |
| C．Homeowners Associations． |
| D．Reck’s dissatisfied neighbors． |
What is mainly discussed in the text?
| A．Clothesline drying: a way to save energy and money． |
| B．Clothesline drying: a lost art rediscovered． |
| C．Opposite opinions on clothesline drying． |
| D．Different varieties of clotheslines． |
Questionnaire(调查表，问卷)
Read the questions and answer YES or NO, then you will find out how good you are.
1. When you don 't understand something, you ask questions.□
2. You like listening to older people talk about the past.□
3. You think that you can learn something interesting from everyone around you. □
4. You are brave enough when you have to talk to people you don't know.□
5. You enjoy reading books about famous people.□
6. You always see and talk to different people.□
7. You are interested in learning new ways of doing things.□
8. You enjoy sharing experiences with friends and learning from people of all ages. □
9.You talk a lot about yourself.□
10. Even if you are often wrong, you make your own decisions.□
11.You hate teaching what you are good at: sports, technology, whatever.□
12.Your parents don't understand you, so you don't talk to them much.□
SCORE(打分数) NOW!
Score 2 points if you answer YES to each of the first 8 questions, and 0 if you choose NO.
Score 2 points if you answer NO to each of the last 4 questions, and 0 if you choose YES.
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18—24 You are friendly and open-minded. You make people feel important by listening to what they have to say. You'll probably succeed in learning al1 kinds of interesting things. Good for you!
10--16 Remember that every single person you know can teach you something. You will greatly make your life rich and colorful.
0- 8 About 400 years ago, a famous writer wrote, "No man is an island. "This is still useful today. Try to be more open and interested in people around you.If you say "YES" to all these questions , you'll get ____ points.
| A．12 | B．16 | C．20 | D．24 |
When you score 22 points, you are _____.
| A．shy and nervous | B．silent and serious |
| C．open and friendly | D．brave and strong |
"No man is an island." in the text probably means that _____.
| A．the famous writer was very clever |
| B．everything is the same as 400 years ago |
| C．you will feel happy if on an island |
| D．you can not live alone in the world |
Thanksgiving(感恩节) Day was near. The first grade teacher gave her class a fun task——to draw a picture of something for which they were thankful.
Most of the class would celebrate the holiday with turkey(火鸡) and other traditional goodies(好吃的东西) of season. These, the teacher thought, would be the subjects of her students’ art. And they were. But Douglas made a different kind of picture. He drew a hand. Nothing else. Just an empty hand. Douglas was a different kind of boy. Most of the time, as other children played together, Douglas was likely to stand close by her side. Everyone could guess the pain he felt from his eyes.
His picture interested other students. Whose hands could it be? One child guessed it was the hand of a farmer, because farmers raise turkeys. Another suggested a police officer, because the police protect and care for people. Still others guessed it was the hand of God, for Gold feeds us.
The teacher stopped at Douglas desk, bent down, and asked him whose hand it was. The little boy looked away and said, “ It’s yours, teacher.”
She recalled the times she had taken his hand and walked with him here and there. How often had she said, “Take my hand, Douglas, we’ ll go outside.” or, “ Let me show you how to hold your pencil.” Douglas was thankful for his teacher’s hand. It means much to Douglas. He might not always say thanks, but he’ll remember the hand that reaches out. She wiped her tears away and went on with her work.What did most students think of when given the task?
| A．Hand | B．Turkey | C．God | D．Farmer |
Douglas drew an empty hand in order to_____.
| A．show thanks to his teacher | B．ask for a turkey |
| C．attract other students’ attention | D．make the teacher cry |
How did the teacher feel when Douglas told her the answer?
| A．Sad | B．Happy | C．Moved | D．Interested. |
The underlined word “recall” in paragraph 5 means_____.
| A．pass | B．spend | C．waste | D．remember |
Macao(澳门) is only forty miles from Hong Kong and it is easy to reach. You can get there by sea. It is an interesting place and it had a long history. Macao is part of China and most people living there are Chinese.
The first Europeans to go to Macao came from Portugal(葡萄牙). More than four hundred years ago the Portuguese went there to trade with China. Some settled and made their homes there. They built strong forts(堡垒,炮台) to guard the city and the harbor. They also built churches, schools, hospitals and other places. Slowly the city grew. People from many countries came to live and work in Macao.
Today many people visit Macao. Some only go there to watch dog-racing or motor-racing or to gamble(赌博) with their money. But Macao is a quiet and peaceful place. It is pleasant just to walk around and look at old buildings and forts. You feel you are back in the old days. Of course, some of the buildings are now in ruins. The Church of St. Paul has only the front wall with many steps leading up to it. But it is still interesting to see.
When you are hot and tired, there are small cool gardens to rest in. when you are hungry, there are good restaurants with many kinds of food. Nearby there are some islands, which are also nice and are easy to get to. There is certainly a lot to do in Macao. Macao is easy to get to because_________.
| A．most people there are Chinese |
| B．it is not far away from Hong Kong |
| C．it is very fast and cheap by sea |
| D．it is an interesting place |
You feel in Macao you are back in the old days because_________.
| A．most of the buildings are now in ruins |
| B．you can watch dog-racing or motor-racing |
| C．you can go about to see the old buildings and forts |
| D．it is a peaceful place |
Where will you have a break when you feel tired?
| A．In good restaurants. | B．In small cool gardens. |
| C．On some islands. | D．In beautiful parks. |
The writer’s idea seems to be that_________.
| A．people from many countries came to live and work in Macao |
| B．Portuguese were willing to do business in China |
| C．people in Macao serve good food |
| D．Macao is a quiet and peaceful place with a lot to see and to do |