Thick dust rose and a large building collapsed. This was the scene in Zhu Zhou，Hunan Province on May 17. Nine people were killed and 16 injured.
Things were similar in the Sichuan earthquake. Thousands of people were buried in the ruins and lost their lives. What if we could have warned them?
People are always racking their wits to find a way of preventing buildings’ collapse. Better materials and technology help，but they are not a solution.
Just like humans，a building has its own life cycle from “birth” to “death”．If we know when a building is going to collapse，we can repair it in advance or get out of it before it falls. Now，scientists at the University of Illinois have developed a material that turns red before it breaks. The invention could be used in things like climbing ropes or bridge supports. The research was led by Nancy Sottos，a professor at the university’s Beckman Institute，and Douglas Davis，a graduate research assistant.
The secret behind the color—changing material is a type of molecule (分子)．A molecule is a group of atoms held together by chemical bonds. Imagine you and your friends standing in a circle，holding hands. Each person stands for one atom，your hands represent the bonds，and the entire circle represents a molecule. If one person lets go of his or her hands，the molecule changes color. The research team put the molecule into a soft material. When the researchers stretched the material，it turned bright red for a few seconds before it broke into two pieces. When they repeatedly stretched and relaxed the material，without breaking it，it only turned a little red.
The major problem is that light can get rid of the red color. When the team shone bright light on the molecule，the broken bond was fixed，and the color disappeared. Scientists have yet to do more research before the color—changing molecules can be used outside the lab.What does the passage mainly introduce?
| A．The collapse of a large building in Zhu Zhou, Hunan Province. |
| B．A type of molecule that can be put into a soft material |
| C．A material that turns red before it breaks. |
| D．A way of preventing building from collapsing. |
The underlined words “racking their wits” in the third paragraph mean ________.
| A．suffering a lot | B．collecting beyond imagination |
| C．losing a lot | D．thinking very hard |
Which of the following is a WRONG statement?
| A．Thousands of people died from the collapse of buildings in the Sichuan earthquake because they hadn’t been warned. |
| B．There is no building that will never collapse. |
| C．A new material has been applied to buildings to warn people of collapse. |
| D．A color—changing material can turn red before it breaks. |
What can we infer from the passage?
| A．The color—changing molecules are certain to be used outside the lab. |
| B．There will be less collapse with the help of the color—changing material. |
| C．The bright light may make the material’s warning system useless. |
| D．The problem caused by bright light will be solved by scientists soon. |
For many years, no one could communicate with people who had been born without hearing. These deaf people were not able to use a spoken language.
But, beginning in the 1700s, the deaf were taught a special language. Using this language, they could share thoughts and ideas with others. The language they used was a language without sound. It was a sign language.
How did this sign language work? The deaf were taught to make certain movements using their hands, faces, and bodies. These movements stood for things and ideas. People might move their forefingers across their lips. This meant, “You are not telling the truth.” They might tap their chins with three fingers. This meant “my uncle.”
The deaf were also taught to use a finger alphabet (字母). They used their fingers to make the letters of the alphabet. In this way, they spelled out words. Some deaf people could spell out words at a speed of 130 words per minute.
Sign language and finger spelling are not used as much as they once were. Today, the deaf are taught to understand others by watching their lips. They are also taught how to speak.
1. The deaf “talked” to other people __________.
A. by moving their hands, faces and bodies
B. by shouting and singing
C. without using any letters
D. without using any language
2. The deaf could spell out words __________.
A. by reading them aloud
B. by going here and there
C. by expressing the letters with their fingers
D. by watching others
3. Now, the deaf are trained to __________.
A. write sentences quickly
B. understand others by lip-reading
C. be good at mind-reading
D. keep alone happily
4. The story as a whole is about __________.
A. learning to spell B. teaching the deaf to speak
C. how the deaf communicate D. understanding Indian sign language
Our bodies use different amounts of calories(卡路里). The more exercise we take, the more calories we burn. If we eat food which contains more calories than we use up, then it is possible that we would increase in weight. In order to avoid becoming overweight, it is advisable (明智的) to eat a balanced (平衡的) diet and not eat too many foods that have a high calorie rating. The table below gives you some ideas of the number of calories in food.
MeatsFruits
slice of bacon 50apple 70
hamburger 300 orange 60
slice of beef 100 pear 80
sausage 180 banana 80
meat pie 500 plum 20
sausage roll 350 tomato 20
Sweets and Pastries Vegetable
small chocolate bar 190 60g beans 15
large chocolate bar 225 60g carrots 18
slice apple pie 300 60g potato 60
doughnut 200 60g onions 25
scoop of ice cream 85 60g cucumber 10
bag of potato crisps 145 60g cabbage 15
1. To keep the calorie intake (摄入) down , it is better to eat _______ .
A. chocolate B.meat pie C.fruit D.apple pie
2. How many slices of bacon equal (等于) the same number of calories as in a sausage roll?
A. 5. B. 6 C. 7 D. 8
3. Which of the following contains the most calories?
A. Cabbage B. Potato. C. Beans. D. Cucumber
4. Which word in the passage means “heavier than normal（正常）”?
A. balanced. B. advisable. C. overweight D. measurement.
四、阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）
阅读下面短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Is there anything more important than health? I don’t think so. “Health is the greatest wealth,” wise people say. You can’t be good at your studies or work well when you are ill.
If you have a headache, toothache, backache, earache or bad pain in the stomach, if you complain of a bad cough, if you run a high temperature and have a bad cold ,or if you suffer from high or low blood pressure, I think you should go to the doctor.
The doctor will examine your throat, feel your pulse, test your blood pressure, take your temperature, sound your heart and lungs, test your eyes, check your teeth or have your chest X-rayed. After that he will advise some treatment, or some medicine. The only thing you have to do is to follow his advice.
Speaking about doctor’s advice, I can’t help telling you a funny story.
An old gentleman came to see the doctor. The man was very ill. He told the doctor about his weakness, memory loss and serious problems with his heart and lungs. The doctor examined him and said there was no medicine for his disease.
He told his patient to go to a quiet place for a month and have a good rest. He also advised him to eat a lot of meat, drink two glasses of red wine every day and take long walks. In other words, the doctor advised him to follow the rule: “Eat at pleasure, drink with measure and enjoy life as it is.” The doctor also said that if the man wanted t be well again, he shouldn’t smoke more than one cigarette a day.
A month later the gentleman came into the doctor’s office. He looked cheerful and happy. He thanked the doctor and said that he had never felt a healthier man.
“But you know, doctor,” he said, “ it’s not easy to begin smoking at my age.”
1 The writer thinks that _______
A. health is more important than wealth
B. work is as important as studies
C. medicine is more important than pleasure
D. nothing is more important than money
2. The underlined part “he had never felt a healthier man ” means ______
A. he was feeling better than ever B. he wasn’t a healthy man
C. he was feeling worse than before D. he will be well again
3. From the last sentence of the passage, we learn the man ____ before the doctor told him not to smoke more than one cigarette a day.
A. was a heavy smoker B. didn’t smoke so much
C. didn’t smoke D. began to learn to smoke
4. Which of the following is NOT true?
A. The doctor usually tests his/her blood pressure when a person is ill.
B. The man told the doctor he couldn’t remember things.
C. The man thanked the doctor.
D. The man didn’t follow the doctor’s advice.
5.The author’s purpose to write the passage is to
A. tell people how to keep fit
B. tell people what a doctor will do if you are ill
C.tell a funny story about doctor
D.tell people that the doctor cured the old gentleman’s disease
The Antarctic is actually a desert. It’s the only continent on the earth without a river or lake.
The Antarctic is all ice all year round. The warmest temperature ever recorded there is zero, at the South Pole. Explorers used to think that a place so cold would have a heavy snowfall. But less than ten inches of snow falls each year. That is less than half an inch of water. The times that much water falls in parts of the Sahara.
The little snow that falls never melts. It continues to pile up deeper and deeper year after year and century after century. When the snow gets to be about 80 feet deep it is turned to ice by the weight of the snow above it.
1. Antarctic is called a desert because it _______.
A. is sandy B. is cold C. has little water D. is high
2. The snow there is very deep because it _______.
A. never stop falling B. piles up year after year
C. never melts D. falls often
3. The best title for the passage is ______.
A. Waterfall at the South Pole B. The Antarctic ------An Ice Desert
C. Snowfall at the South Pole D. The world’s Great Desert
IN THE BEDROOM
Don’t smoke in bed ------it causes 1000 fires a year, many with fatal (致命的)results.
Don’t overload your electrical points: the right way is “one appliance（电器）, one socket”（插座）.
Don’t use an electric underblanket over you or an overblanket under you. An underblanket , unless of the low- voltage type, MUST be switched off before you get into bed.
Never let furniture or clothing get close to a lighted fire. Make sure that there is a suitable guard for the room heater.
Keep aerosol-type containers （喷雾器）away from heat and NEVER burn or puncture（刺穿）them.
Don’t dim a table lamp by covering it: buy a low-wattage bulb（灯泡）.
Pajamas （睡衣）and nightdresses, especially for children and elderly people, should be made from flame- resistant material.
IF CUT OFF BY FIRE
Close the door of the room and any fanlight or other opening and block up any cracks （缝隙）with bedding, etc.
Go to the window and try to attract attention.
If the room fills with smoke, lean out of the window unless prevented by smoke and flame coming from a room below or nearby. If you cannot lean out of the window, lie close to the floor where the air is clearer until you hear the fire brigade（队）.
If you have to escape before the fire brigade arrives, make a rope by knotting together sheets or similar materials and tie it to a bed or another heavy piece of furniture.
If you cannot make a rope and the situation becomes intolerable（难耐的），drop cushions or bedding from the window to break your fall, get through the window feet first, lower yourself to the full extent of your arms and drop.
If possible drop from a position above soft earth. If above the first floor, drop only as a last resort.
1. According to the instructions, fires in the bedroom can be caused by ________.
A. one appliance, one socket
B. smoking in bed
C. underblankets, of the low- voltage type
D. all of the above-mentioned points
2. In the bedroom, you are told _______.
A. not to use an electric underblanket or an electric overblanket.
B. to use an underblanket of the low-voltage type
C. to switch off an underblanket of the low- voltage type
D. not to use an electric underblanket over you
3. You should keep furniture or clothes away from a lighted fire because ________.
A. the fire is too low
B. furniture or clothes block light
C. there is no guard in the room
D. furniture or clothes catch fire easily
4. If you are cut off by fire, you should first ______.
A. try to stop smoke from coming into the room
B. lie down and wait for the fire brigade
C. escape by jumping immediately out of the window
D. close the window and call for help