At dawn on Friday,May 19,1780,farmers in New England stopped to wonder at the pink color of the sun.By noon the sky had darkened to midnight blackness,causing Americans,still in the painful struggle of a prolonged war of independence,to light candles and tremble at thoughts of the Last Judgment.As the birds quieted and no storm accompanied the darkness,men and women crowded into churches,where one minister commented that “The people were very attentive”.John Greenleaf Whittier later wrote that “Men prayed,and women wept;all ears grew sharp...”
A recent study of researchers,led by Richard Guyette from the University of Missouri Tree-Ring Laboratory,has shown that vast forest fires in the Algonquin Highlands of southern Ontario and elsewhere in Canada brought this event upon New England.The scientists have discovered “fire scars” on the rings for that year,left when the heat of a wildfire has killed a part of a tree’s cambium (形成层).Evidence collected also points to a drought that year.An easterly wind and low barometric pressure(低气压) helped force smoke into the upper atmosphere.“The record fits pretty close,”says Guyette.“We had the right fuel,the drought.The conditions were all there.”
Lacking the ability to communicate quickly over long distances,Americans in 1780 remained in the dark about the event,which had disappeared by the next day.Over the next several months,the papers carried heated debates about what brought the darkness.Some were the voices of angry prediction,such as one Massachusetts farmer who wrote,“Oh! Backsliding New England,attend now to the things which belong to your peace before they are forever hid from your eyes.”Others gave different answers.One stated that “a flaming star” had passed between the earth and the sun.Ash,argued another commentator.The debate,carried on throughout New England,where there were no scientific journals or academies yet,reflected an unfolding culture of scientific enquiry already sweeping the Western world,a revolution nearly as influential as the war for independence from the English.
New Englanders would not soon forget that dark day;it lived on in folklore,poems,and sermons for generations.New Englanders crowded into churches because they were frightened by .
| A．the pink color of the sun |
| B．the darkened sky at daytime |
| C．the Last Judgment on Friday |
| D．the American War of Independence |
What can we infer about the event in New England on May 19,1780?( )
| A．Prayers remained silent and attentive. |
| B．Night birds no longer came out to sing. |
| C．People’s ears became sharper than usual. |
| D．Midday meals were served by candlelight. |
According to the researchers,the origin of the event was .
| A．an east wind |
| B．a severe drought |
| C．some burning fuel |
| D．low barometric pressure |
What can be the best title for the text?( )
| A．New England’s dark day |
| B．Voices of angry prediction |
| C．There is no smoke without fire |
| D．Tree rings and scientific discovery |
In Europe, many people make friends between their countries through town twinning. Town or city twinning means two towns in different countries agree and decide to become “twins” with a sister city relationship.
The people find pen friends in the twin town. They exchange newspapers and stamps. The school teachers discuss teaching methods with the teachers in the twin town. Officials visit the twin town for celebrations. Ordinary people travel to the twin town, too, but not very often if it is far away.
Sometimes, schools even exchange their classes for two or three weeks! For example, German middle school students study for a while at the school in their twin town in Britain, staying with British families. A few months later, their British friends come to study in Germany.
Many British towns are so pleased with the results of the twinning that they set out to find more than one twin town.
Tonbridge, a small town in Kent, for example, has twin town in both Germany and France. Richmond near London has relationships with Germany, France and even a town in a Balkan country!
Town twinning can help make friends. It helps students improve their language skills, and also helps people to understand the differences between nations.Twin towns develop __________.
| A．between European countries and China |
| B．in the English-speaking countries only |
| C．in the same country |
| D．between different countries |
One of the advantages of town twinning is__________.
| A．to earn more money |
| B．to set up schools |
| C．to improve students’ language skills |
| D．to develop industry and agriculture |
Which is the best title for the passage?
| A．Town Twinning |
| B．Friendly Town |
| C．Exchange Teachers and Students |
| D．Peace and Understanding |
Who do you think was the most important woman of the past 100 years?
Jane Addams(1860~1935)
Addams helped the poor and worked for peace. She created shelters, education opportunities and services for people in need. In 1931, Addams became the first American woman to win the Noble Peace Prize.
Rachel Carson(1907~1964)
Rachel Carson was born in the rural river town of Springdale, Pennsylvania in America. The popular book Silent Spring by Rachel Carson in 1962 made people realize the dangers and the harmful effects of pollution on humans and on the world’s lake and oceans.
Angela Merkel(1954~)
In 2005, German chose Angela Merkel as their first woman head of the country. She had been a scientist in the past. As Germany ’leader, she has had an effect on the whole world.
Sandra Day O’Connor(1930~)
When Sandra Day O’Connor finished her class at Stanford Law School, in 1952, she could not find work because she was a woman. However, she became the first woman to join the US Supreme Court in 1981 after years of hard work.
Margaret Thatcher(1925~)
In 1979, Margaret Thatcher became Britain’s first woman Prime Minister. She served until 1990, which made her the first Britain leader to serve three terms in a row. Because of her high standards and strong will, people called her Britain’s Iron Lady.
Marie Curie(1867~1934)
Polish-born scientist Marie Curie discovered that some types of metal give off energy called radiation. Her research led to new medical treatments and arms. She received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1903 and in Chemistry in 1911.Who once won the Nobel Prize?
| A．Jane Addams and Marie Curie. |
| B．Jane Addams and Margaret Thatcher. |
| C．Marie Curie and Angela Merkel. |
| D．Marie Curie and Rachel Carson. |
We can infer from the passage that Rachel Carson worked to ______.
| A．help the poor |
| B．spread geographic knowledge |
| C．protect the environment |
| D．protect the rights of women |
What do Angela Merkel and Margaret Thatcher have in common?
| A．Both of them were scientists before coming to power. |
| B．Both of them are the first woman head of their country. |
| C．Both of them are famous for being strict. |
| D．Both of them have worked for three terms. |
Who once failed to find a job?
| A．Jane Addams | B．Sandra Day O’Connor |
| C．Rachel Carson | D．Margaret Thatcher |
Parents are a child’s first teachers．But some parents never learned from good examples．In New York City, a nonprofit agency called Covenant House tries to help homeless young mothers become good parents．
The twelve or so teenagers who live at the shelter attend parenting classes four days a week．The class is called Mommy and Me．Teacher Delores Clemens is a mother of five and a grandmother．She teaches basic skills, like how to give a baby a bath and how to dress a baby depending on the season．
She remembers one student who learned from her mother not to pick up a crying baby．The mother said that would only make the child needy and overly demanding．Delores Clemens says, “that's not true．You have to hold your baby! He is crying for a reason．If you never pick him up, he's going to keep crying．Pick your baby up．Cuddle your baby．Hug him! And she started to do that．They just want a little cuddling and a little love．And it works!”
Delores Clemens says her students also learn how to be good mothers by letting themselves be mothered．Around three hundred fifty teenage mothers graduate from Covenant House's Mommy and Me class every year．
In class, with her baby son is Natasha．She lived on the streets．She is glad not only for the warmth and shelter of Covenant House．As she told reporter Adam Phillips, she is also glad for the help they offer in seeking a more secure life．
The World Health Organization says the United States has forty-one births for every one thousand girls age fifteen to nineteen．That is higher than other developed countries, as well as some developing ones．By comparison, northern neighbor Canada has fourteen births and southern neighbor Mexico has eighty-two．What is the text mainly about?
| A．Parents who are a child’s first teachers． |
| B．A class where teens learn mothering and are mothered． |
| C．A nonprofit agency that offers a more secure life． |
| D．A kind teacher who help homeless young mothers． |
Covenant Houses’ Mommy and Me class is intended to _____．
| A．help homeless young mothers become good parents |
| B．provide homeless young mothers with a warm shelter |
| C．help mothers in New York be good parents |
| D．teach some parents how to love their children |
What can we know about Delores Clemens from the text?
| A．She has a mother of five and a grandmother． |
| B．She thinks a crying baby should be picked up and hugged． |
| C．She teaches advanced skills on how to be good mothers． |
| D．She is very glad for the warmth and shelter of Covenant House． |
According to the World Health Organization, which country has the highest births for girls age fifteen to nineteen?
| A．Canada | B．the United States of America |
| C．Mexico | D．Britain |
People smile at times. However, the meaning of a smile in different cultures may be different. Depending on different cultures, smiling can express joy and amusement, but it can also show embarrassment(尴尬).
People in the United States smile a lot. Every one smiles at each other in order to show they are open and friendly. However, in China, smiling is not only an expression of happiness, but also a way to avoid being embarrassed. Chinese people like smiling when they are embarrassed in order to avoid embarrassment. Smiling is a kind of good will but not sneer（嘲笑）. For example: When a child falls down from a bike, the adults in China may smile, which is a kind of gentle encouragement and not a kind of impolite laugh.
When a person from the United States might blush（脸红）with embarrassment or become offensive(冒犯的), a Chinese might blush with smile. To avoid serious misunderstanding, people who engage in intercultural (跨文化的) communication should be able to understand the meaning of smiling properly.We can use smile to express all of the following feelings except _________,
| A．joy and happiness | B．amusement |
| C．embarrassment | D．fear |
People often smile at each other in the United States because _________.
| A．they are very happy |
| B．they want to show they are friendly |
| C．they want to hide their true feelings |
| D．they want to avoid embarrassment |
In China, seeing a child falls off a bike, an adult will smile in order to _______.
| A．laugh at him |
| B．avoid his own embarrassment |
| C．avoid embarrassment and encourage the boy |
| D．show his politeness |
What is mainly talked about in the passage?
| A．People smile at times. |
| B．Smiling can express different feelings depending on different cultures. |
| C．Americans are more open and friendly than Chinese people. |
| D．The Chinese people often hide their true feelings. |
In the past ten years, many scientists have studied the differences between men and women. And they all got the same answer: The sexes(性别) are different, because their brains are different. And this, the scientists say, makes men and women see the world in different ways.
Boys, for example, generally are better than girls at mathematical ideas. Boys also generally are better than girls at the kind of hand and eye movements necessary for ball sports. Girls, on the other hand generally start speaking earlier than boys. And they generally see better in the dark than boys and are better at learning foreign languages.
What makes men and women better at one thing or another? The answer is the brain. The brain has two sides connected by nerve(神经) tracks. The left side generally is used for mathematics, speech and writing. The right side is used for artistic creation(创造) and the expression for emotions(情感). In men and women, different areas in each side of the brain develop differently. In boys, for example, it’s the area used for mathematics. In girls, it is the area used for language skills. Another interesting difference is that the two sides of a man’s brain are connected by a smaller number of nerves than the two sides of a woman’s brain are.Which of the following is the best title of the article?
| A．Research on the Brain |
| B．Men and Women are Different in Brain |
| C．People’s Different Brains |
| D．Who Are Better, Boys or Girls |
__________ men and women think differently.
| A．The different brains make |
| B．Sex makes |
| C．The different experiences make |
| D．The influences(影响) of society make |
According to the article, girls are generally better than boys at __________ in your school.
| A．mathematics | B．physics |
| C．English | D．chemistry |
Which of the following is true?
| A．The left side of brain in boys generally develops better than that in girls. |
| B．The left side of brain in girls generally develops better than that in boys. |
| C．Men are better than women in all things. |
| D．The area in girls used for language skills develops better. |