Green is an important color in nature. It is the color of grass and the leaves on trees. It is also the color of most growing plants.
Sometimes, the word “green” means young, fresh and growing. For example, a greenborn is someone who has no experience. In the 15 th century, a greenborn was a young cow or an ox whose borns(角)had not yet developed. A century later, a greenborn was a soldier who had no experience in war. By the 18 th century, a greenborn had the meaning it has today—a person who is new in a job.
Someone who is good at growing plants is said to have a green thumb(大拇指). The expression comes from the early 20 th century. A person with a green thumb can make plants grow quickly and well. The Green Revolution(绿色革命)is the name given some years ago to the development of new kinds of rice and other grains. It was the result of hard work by agricultural scientists who had green thumbs.
Green is also the color used to describe the powerful feeling. Jealousy(嫉妒). The green eyed monster is not a dangerous animal from outer space. It is an expression used about 400 years ago by the British writer William Shakespeare in his play “Othello”. It describes the unpleasant feeling when someone has something he wants.
In most places in the world, a green light is a signal(信号)to move ahead. In everyday speech, a green light means approval(赞成)to continue with a project.A new solider was called a greenborn in the ____ century.
| A．15 th | B．16 th | C．18 th | D．20 th |
A person with a green thumb____.
| A．is good at growing plant |
| B．really has a green thumb |
| C．has no experience in war |
| D．is new in a job |
A man may meet the green eyed monster if ____.
| A．he sees a dangerous animal |
| B．he can’t get something |
| C．he reads a sad play |
| D．his friend gets a prize that he wants |
This passage doesn’t mention the history of the expression “____”.
| A．a green thumb | B．a greenborn |
| C．the green eyed monster | D．a green light |
Which would be the best title of the passage?
| A．Green, the color of grass and trees |
| B．The stories about the color “green” |
| C．Green, a sign of approval |
| D．Different meanings of “green” |
The population of the Earth is growing faster. It is important that we look after the Earth. We need it!
The Earth gives us a lot of things. We also give the Earth a lot, but some of the things are not good.
In nature, when something dies, other animals and plants get food from it. Every animal or plant gives food for other animals or plants. However, animals can’t get food from many of the things that we ‘give’ the Earth. Animals and plants can’t eat metal, plastic and glass. These things will stay in the ground for many, many years.
Some rubbish is very dangerous for plants and animals. In some places, many animals live together. One animal makes food for many more animals. If we put rubbish and chemicals in the water, the plankton(浮游生物) can die. If there isn’t any plankton, many animals have nothing to eat.
So what can we do? Don’t leave any rubbish in the countryside! Don’t make so much rubbish!The Earth gives us ___________.
| A．food | B．rubbish | C．chemicals | D．pollution |
When something dies in nature, _________.
| A．water and grass are polluted |
| B．plastic and wood become food |
| C．other animals and plants get food |
| D．metal and glass stay in the ground |
We must _______ to look after the Earth.
| A．put metal in the ground | B．use more wood |
| C．keep frogs in the water | D．make less rubbish |
E—schoolbags
Is your schoolbag too heavy to carry? The e-schoolbag will help you. It is said that e-schoolbags are going to be brought into use in Chinese middle schools soon.
Heavy schoolbags have been a serious problem for a long time. But the e-schoolbag will work it out. An e-schoolbag is much lighter than a usual schoolbag. Perhaps, the e-schoolbag should be called an e-textbook. It is as small as a usual book, but it can still have all the things for study, such as a textbook, an exercise book and so on. They can be made into chips(芯片) like stamps. The students can read the text page by page on the screen, take notes, or even send e-mails to their teachers. They only need to put the right chip into the e-schoolbag and then the students can use it.
Some people say that e-textbooks can be easily broken, while others say it is not good to student’s eyes. But only time will tell.What is the e-schoolbag used for ? It can’t help students _________.
| A．take notes |
| B．send e-mails |
| C．lighten(减轻) the schoolbag |
| D．read the text in the paper book |
What’s the e-school like?
| A．It’s bigger than a usual book. |
| B．It’s just as big as a usual book. |
| C．It’s as big as a stamp. |
| D．It’s not as small as a usual book. |
How can e-schoolbags have all the things for study?
| A．They are made into stamps |
| B．They are made into chips. |
| C．They are called e-textbooks |
| D．They put the books into e-schoolbags. |
Which statement is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．That e-schoolbags may be easily broken |
| B．It may not be good to student’s eyes. |
| C．They have been into use in school in China. |
| D．The e-schoolbag will solve the problem of the heavy schoolbags. |
Soon computers and other machines will be able to remember you by looking at your eyes! The programme works because everyone’s eyes are different. So in the future you won’t have to remember a number when you want to use a machine or take money out of a bank. You’ll just have to look at the machine and it will be able to tell who you are.
The eye-recognition programme is already being tested in shops and banks in the USA, Britain, Spain, Italy and Turkey. Soon, this technology will take the place of all other ways of finding out who people are.
However, scientists are working on other systems. Machines will soon be able to know you from the shape of your face or hand or even your smell! We already have machines that can tell who you are from your voice or the mark made by your finger.
Eye-recognition is better than other kinds because your eyes don’t change as you get older, or get dirty like hands or fingers. And even twins have different eyes, so the programme can be up to 94％ correct, depending on how good the technology is. Some programmes may only be right 51％ of the time. In Britain, it was found that 91％ of people who had tried it said that they liked the idea of eye-recognition. In the future your computer will be looking you in the eye. So smile!How does the eye-recognition programme work?
| A．You write your number. | B．You show your ID card. |
| C．You look at the machine. | D．You say your name. |
Why can the programme be up to 94％ correct?
| A．Because eyes never change. |
| B．Because hands or fingers can get dirty. |
| C．Because people like the idea of the programme. |
| D．Because the programme is widely used around the world. |
The eye-recognition programme can know you from ___________.
| A．the shape of your hand |
| B．the shape of your foot |
| C．your voice |
| D．your mark made by your finger |
Which of the following is true?
| A．The programme is being tested in Japan. |
| B．Machines with other systems can also tell who you are. |
| C．91％ of people like the idea of the programme. |
| D．Computers can remember you by looking at your clothes. |
What does Paragraph 4 talk about?
| A．Introduction to other kinds of programmes. |
| B．Advantages of the programme. |
| C．The places where the programme is tested. |
| D．The way how the programme works. |
When I was growing up in America, I was ashamed of my mother’s Chinese English. Because of her English, she was often treated unfairly. People in department stores, at banks, and at restaurants did not take her seriously, pretended not to understand her, or even acted as if they did not hear her.
My mother has realized the disadvantages of her English as well. When I was fifteen, she used to have me call people on phone to pretend I was she. I was forced to ask for information or even to yell at people who had been rude to her. One time I had to call her stockbroker. I said in a voice that was not very convincing, “This is Mrs. Tan.” And my mother was standing beside me, whispering loudly, “Why he doesn’t send me the cheek. It’s already two weeks late.”
And then, in perfect English I said: “I’m getting rather anxious .You agreed to send the check two weeks ago, but it hasn’t arrived.” Then she talked more loudly. “What does he want? I’ll come to New York and say it in front of his boss.” And so I turned to the stockbroker again, “I can’t accept any more excuses. If I don’t receive the check immediately, I have to speak to your manager when I am in New York next week.”
The next week we ended up in New York. While I was sitting there red-faced, my mother, the real Mrs. Tan, was shouting to his boss in her broken English. When I was a teenager, my mother’s broken English embarrassed me. But now, I see it differently. To me, my mother’s English is perfectly clear, perfectly natural. It is my mother tongue. Her language, as I hear it, is clear and direct. It was the language that helped me form the way I saw things, expressed ideas, and made sense of the world.Why was the author’s mother poorly treated?
| A．She couldn’t speak English well. |
| B．Her English was very good. |
| C．She was not clearly heard. |
| D．She was not very polite. |
From Paragraph 2, what can we know about the author?
| A．She was good at pretending. |
| B．She was rude to the stockbroker. |
| C．She was ready to help her mother. |
| D．She was unwilling to phone for her mother |
What does the author think of her mother’s English now?
| A．It confuses her. |
| B．It embarrasses her. |
| C．It helps her understand the world. |
| D．It helps her forgive rude people. |
What can we infer from the passage?
| A．Chinese English is clear and natural to native speakers. |
| B．Chinese English may bring inconvenience in America. |
| C．Chinese English has a very bad name in America. |
| D．Chinese English is impolite to native speakers. |
What is the best title of the passage?
| A．Great Mother | B．A Chance |
| C．Mother’s Chinese English | D．Perfect English |
Every year landslides cause 25 to 50 deaths and $2 billion in damage in the United States. And in December, a single event killed more than 2000 people in the Philippines. Sending workers to stabilize mountainsides using steel bars can help a lot, but it introduces new difficulties because of dust and loosen heavy, dangerous debris from the work. “It’s a quite dangerous job,” says Giorgio Pezzuto of D’ Appolonia, working with eight other companies. Now there may be an answer: a three-ton robot called Roboclimber.
“The idea is to operate a machine far away that can do the stabilizing job without a human being near,”says Pezzuto, manager for the project, which is supported by a European organization. Engineers say that the machine will be faster and cheaper than manual labor. The robot, a large radio-controlled four-legged spider, has cost at least $2 million so far. It should be able to climb mountainsides, drill holes and insert steel bars there. Testing should begin in May.The underlined word “event” refers to_____
| A．earthquake | B．debris | C．dust | D．landslide |
The purpose in writing this text is _____
| A．to tell people how serious the damage caused by landslides is |
| B．to tell people that sending workers to stabilize mountainsides is a dangerous job |
| C．to show people how to use a new robot |
| D．to introduce a new robot that can be used to stabilize mountainsides |
What does the robot look like?
| A．human being | B．spider | C．steel bar | D．a drill |
A landslides cause _____________in damage in the United States Every year .
| A．25 to 50 deaths | B．more than 2000 people died |
| C．$2 billion | D．both A and C |
The biggest advantage of this product is that____
| A．it will be faster and cheaper than manual labor |
| B．it can climb mountainsides, drill holes and insert steel bars there. |
| C．it can do the stabilizing job without human beings near |
| D．it is like a spider |