Before we start a voyage, we usually try to find out more or less definitely where we are bound and how we are supposed to get there.
I happen to have the “Concise Oxford dictionary” on my desk and that will do as well as any other. The word I am looking for appears at the bottom of Page 344. edition 1912.
“Geography: the science of the earth's surface, form, physical features, natural and political divisions, climate, productions and population.”
I could not possibly hope to do better, but I still stress some of the aspects of the case at the expenses of others, because I intend to place man in the centre of the stage. This book of mine will not merely discuss the surface of the earth and its physical features, together with its political and natural boundaries. I would rather call it a study of man in search of food and shelter and leisure for himself and for his family and an attempt to his background or has reshaped his physical surroundings in order to be comfortable and well nourished and happy with his limited strength.
Among the two million human beings in the world, there is of course the widest possible range for all sorts of experiments of an economic and social and cultural nature. It seems me that those experiments deserve our attention before anything else. For a mountain is after all merely a mountain until it has been seen by human eyes and has been walked on by human feet and until its and slopes and valleys have been occupied and fought over and planted by a dozen generation of hungry settlers.
The Atlantic Ocean was just as wide and deep and as wet and salty before the beginning of the 13th century as after, but it took the human touch to make it what it is today—a bridge between the New World and the Old, the highway for the commerce between East and West.
For thousands of years the endless Russian plains lay ready to offer their abundant harvest to whoever should take the trouble to sow the first grain. But the aspect of that country today would he a very different one if the hand of a German or a Frank, rather than that of a Slav, had guided the iron-pointed stick that plowed the first furrows (犁沟).
The island of Nippon would shake and quake just as continually, whether they happened to be settled by Japanese or by the Tasmanian race, but in the latter case they would hardly be able to feed 60,000,000 people.
Generally speaking, I have paid more attention to the purely “human” side of geography than to the commercial problems which are so important in a day and age devoted to mass production.In the first four paragraphs, the author wants to share with the readers ______.
| A．his approach to planning a voyage |
| B．his emphasis on using a dictionary |
| C．his definition of the word “geography” |
| D．his altitude to the earth's physical features |
Which of the following will the author NOT consider to be on experiment according to Paragraph 5?
| A．Exploring a mountain. |
| B．Climbing a mountain. |
| C．Planting on slopes and valleys. |
| D．Becoming hungry. |
Which of the following is implied about the Atlantic Ocean?
| A．It is wide, deep, wet and salty. |
| B．Human touch makes it important. |
| C．There is a bridge over it. |
| D．The highway is busy there. |
The author mentioned the Russian plains and the island of Nippon to show that _____.
| A．they both feed a lot of people |
| B．they enjoy very good natural conditions |
| C．different people may make the same place different |
| D．their natural conditions haven't changed for many years |
BLOOD DRIVE ＆ MARROW（骨髓）REGISTRATION
“These patients deserve a chance at a normal, happy future and they rely on the kindness of the strangers to make that happen.
— Daisy, Isabelle’s Mother
Isabelle is the daughter of Daisy and Saman Mirzaei. In January 2008 Isabelle was diagnosed（诊断）with a genetic blood disorder，beta thalassemia. Isabelle’s body
is unable to produce healthy red blood cells. As a result, Isabelle has been receiving blood transfusions (输血) every 4-6weeks since she was 11 months old. A lifetime of regular transfusions can lead to serious medical problems. Her only chance at a normal, healthy life is to have a marrow transplant. Isabelle is an only child, so doctors have started a search for an unrelated marrow donor through The Match Registry. The Mirzaei family asks that you consider helping patients like Isabelle by registering to be a marrow donor and give the gift of life, the gift of blood.
Held at Wiley Hall
Wednesday, March 26, 2014
Behind Heathman Dormitory/Butterfield Rd.
12:00 PM - 6 :00 PM
Don’t forget to bring your driver’s license or another form of identification when you donate.
Visit www.ribc.org to make an appointment, Sponsor Code 3390.
FREE Kingston Pizza ! ! !
Marrow Donors: BE THE MATCH
bethematch.org
•be 18 to 44 years old
•in good health
•give a swab(化验标本)of your cheek cells for marrow typing
•FREE—sponsored（赞助）by Michael’s Fund
WWW. ribc. org 800-283-8385
The Rhode Island Blood Center distributes blood products to hospitals
in Rhode Island and Southern New England.We can learn from the passage that__________.
| A．the blood drive is organized by Isabelle's mother |
| B．Isabelle receives blood transfusions regularly |
| C．Isabelle has been ill for 11 months |
| D．doctors will sponsor Isabelle's family |
To be a marrow donor, you must_____________.
| A．be a relative of the patient | B．carry a driver's license |
| C．be at least 18 years old | D．apply to Michael's Fund |
Those who want to help patients like Isabelle can ___________.
| A．come to Wiley Hall every Wednesday |
| B．visit www. ribc. org for an appointment |
| C．contact their parents at 800-283-8385 |
| D．call at hospitals in Rhode Island |
Every one of the gymnasts who went to National Qualifiers (国家冠军赛资格赛) showed up with that goal in mind. Everyone gave it their all.
And I hate admitting it, but I was an exception. I did not do my best. Not for the ribbon exercise, nor for the club exercise. Knowing that I could have reached a little further to catch my ribbon, focused a little more so the stick wouldn’t slip through my fingers, tried a little harder to clean up those errors, but I didn’t, still bothers me.
After my disappointing competition, I tried my best to keep my eyes dry. But soon tears burned the edges of my eyes, and as I blinked, the first tear rolled down my cheek. Even though I angrily wiped my tears away before she looked at me, the evidence of my self-pity session presented itself clearly in the form of dirty makeup and reddened eyes.
My mom hated to see me cry, especially because I had no right or reason to. I had messed up — that wasn’t anyone’s fault but mine — and crying wouldn’t help at all. “Why are you crying, Amanda?” she asked, perhaps more pointedly (尖刻地) than intended, but I heard the concern in her voice. Unable to form all the emotions into words, I just looked away and avoided her questions.
“Tell me now why you’re crying.” Her voice this time wasn’t as gentle as it was before; it was filled with frustration and impatience. “Why are you crying?” she whispered again, but this time her voice was shaky and flooded with pain. This was the first time I’d ever seen my mom cry; my mom, who was always so strong and was there to encourage me through the roughest times, was now crying, and I was the reason for it. Finding my voice, I tentatively asked, “Why are you crying?”
She looked at me and answered exactly what I was afraid to hear, “I hate to see you hurting yourself.” So it was my fault. I had put those tears in her eyes. I had filled her with pain, with helplessness and with sadness.
I’ll never forget her pained expression. It forced me to realize how shortsighted and close-minded I’d been. I decided that no matter what happens in the future, I will never lose myself to regret.Which words reflect the change of the mother’s emotions?
| A．Painful — impatient — concerned |
| B．Concerned — frustrated — painful |
| C．Satisfied — painful — frustrated |
| D．Frustrated — angry — painful |
What did Amanda determine to do?
| A．Never cry in face of her mom. |
| B．Never compete as a gymnast. |
| C．Never involve herself in self-pity. |
| D．Never make up before games. |
The Great Fire of London started in the very early hours of 2 September 1666. In four days it destroyed more than three-quarters of the old city, where most of the houses were wooden and close together. One hundred thousand people became homeless, but only a few lost their lives.
The fire started on Sunday morning in the house of the King's baker in Pudding Lane. The baker, with his wife and family, was able to get out through a window in the roof. A strong wind blew the fire from the bakery into a small hotel next door. Then it spread quickly into Thames Street. That was the beginning.
By eight o'clock three hundred houses were on fire. On Monday nearly a kilometer of the city was burning along the River Thames. Tuesday was the worst day. The fire destroyed many well-known buildings, old St Paul's and the Guildhall among them.
Samuel Pepys, the famous writer, wrote about the fire. People threw their things into the river. Many poor people stayed in their houses until the last moment. Birds fell out of the air because of the heat.
The fire stopped only when the King finally ordered people to destroy hundreds of buildings in the path of the fire. With nothing left to burn, the fire became weak and finally died out.
After the fire, Christopher Wren, the architect, wanted a city with wider streets and fine new houses of stone. In fact, the streets are still narrow; but he did build more than fifty churches, among them was new St Paul's.
The fire caused great pain and loss, but after it London was a better place: a city for the future and not just of the past.It seems that the writer of the text was most sorry for the fact that ______.
| A．many famous buildings were destroyed |
| B．the birds in the sky were killed by the fire |
| C．some people lost their lives |
| D．the King's bakery was burned down |
Why did the writer cite (引用)Samuel Pepys’ words?
| A．Because Pepys was among those putting out the fire. |
| B．Because Pepys also wrote about the fire. |
| C．To give the reader a clearer picture of the fire. |
| D．To show that poor people suffered most. |
Which of the following were reasons for the rapid spread (扩散)of the big fire?
(a) There was a strong wind.
(b) The streets were very narrow.
(c) Many houses were made of wood.
(d) There was not enough water in the city.
(e) People did not discover the fire earlier.
| A．(a) and (b) |
| B．(a), (b), (c), (d) and (e) |
| C．(a), (b), (c) and (d) |
| D．(a), (b) and (c) |
Babies born in summer are more likely to become short-sighted in late life, a study has shown.
As many as a quarter of all cases of short-sightedness are caused by too great an exposure to sunlight in the first weeks of life, say eye experts.
They are advising all parents to put sunglasses on their babies during the first weeks.
Scientists had already established that over-exposure to sunlight caused shortsightedness in animals.
Researchers who compared the months in which babies were born with whether they needed glasses later on say the principle also applies to humans.
A study of almost 300,000 young adults-the largest of its kind-showed that those born in June and July had a 25 per cent greater chance of becoming severely short-sighted than those born in December or January.
Research leader Professor Michael Belkin, of Tel Aviv University, said it was because prolonged illumination(光照) causes the eyeball to lengthen-causing short-sightedness.
Hence the more light a newborn is exposed to, the more the eyeball lengthens and the worse the short-sightedness will be.
The mechanism which lengthens the eyeball is associated with levels of melatonin(褪黑激素), a pigment (色素) which protects the skin against harmful rays of the sun.
In young babies not enough melatonin is released as protection, meaning they are more vulnerable to sunburn and changes to eyeball shape.
Sight expert Professor Daniel O’Leary, of Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge, said “At the moment we don’t know the precise cause of why light exposure affects sight, but the evidence seems to prove that it is one of the reasons for people becoming shortsighted.”Melatonin is a kind of material to ___________.
| A．prevent the eyes from becoming near-sighted |
| B．protect the skin from harmful sun rays |
| C．make our body strong |
| D．protect babies’ eyes from summer sun |
From what Professor Daniel O’Leary says we can conclude that ___________.
| A．there is no evidence that shortsightedness is related to exposure to sunlight |
| B．whether light exposure affects sight still needs to be further proved |
| C．he believes that light exposure can cause shortsightedness |
| D．he tries to give the cause of why light exposure affects sight |
One day a few years ago, a very funny thing happened to a neighbor of mine. He is a teacher at one of London’s medical schools. He had finished his teaching for the summer term and was at the airport on his way to Russia to give a lecture. He had put a few clothes and his lecture notes in his shoulder bag, but he had put Rupert, the skeleton(人体骨骼) to be used in his lecture, in a large brown suitcase(箱子). At the airport desk, he suddenly thought that he had forgotten to buy a newspaper. He left his suitcase near the desk and went over to the shop.
When he got back he discovered that someone had taken his suitcase by mistake. He often wonders what they said when they got home and found Rupert.Who wrote the story?
| A．The teacher’s neighbor |
| B．The neighbor’s teacher |
| C．A medical school teacher |
| D．Rupert’s teacher |
Which of the following might have happened afterwards?
| A．the teacher got back Rupert but not the suitcase |
| B．the teacher got back neither the suitcase nor Rupert |
| C．the teacher got back the suitcase but not Rupert |
| D．the teacher got back both the suitcase and Rupert |