【湖北省荆州市2015年中考英语试题】阅读下列短文，从每篇短文后所给各题的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。
A new term might be the best time to make new friends, but it can be hard to begin the first conversation. Below are four useful ways. Take a look.
Search for common interests. Talking about shared interests, such as sports and popular talent shows, is the easiest way to make a successful talk with someone.
Welcome the silence. In fact, sometimes silence is needed in order to continue a conversation. Remember that if you say something, the other person may need time to understand it.
Keep it positive(积极的). To make great small talk, you should keep things fun. You should be cheerful and able to laugh over things that aren’t very interesting. These will make the other person want to keep talking to you.
Take it as a learning experience. Every time you meet someone from other places, it’s a good chance to learn something new. You can learn more about their cultures and nations. These make you a more interesting person to talk to as well.
How many ways are mentioned to start a conversation in the reading?
| A．Only one. | B．Three. | C．Four. | D．Five. |
You can start a meaningful conversation by according to the reading.
A. travelling to other countries
B. studying very hard in the class
C. talking about the same interests
D finding someone from other places
If someone is talking about something you don't like, you should according to the reading.
| A．stop the conversation at once |
| B．be cheerful and relaxed |
| C．keep silent all the time |
| D．talk about something new |
Are some people born clever and others born stupid? Or is intelligence (智力) developed by our environment and our experience? Strangely enough, the answer to these questions is yes. In some degree, our intelligence is given to us at birth, and no education can make a genius (天才) out of a child born with low intelligence. On the other hand, a child who lives in a boring environment will develop his intelligence less than one who lives in a rich environment. Therefore, the limits（限度) of a person’s intelligence are fixed at birth, whether or not he reaches those limits will depend on his environment. This point of view is now held by most experts.
It is easy to show that intelligence is something that we are born with. The closer the blood relationship between two people is, the closer their intelligence is likely to be. If we take two strangers by chance from the population, it seems that their degree of intelligence will be completely different. If, on the other hand, we compare two twins, they will very likely be as intelligent as each other. Relatives like brothers and sisters, parents and children, usually have similar intelligence, and this clearly suggests that intelligence depends on birth.
Imagine now that we take two twins and put them in different environments. We might send one, for example, to a university and the other to a factory separately where the work is boring. We would soon find differences in intelligence developing, and this shows that environment as well as birth plays an important part. This result is also suggested by the fact that people who live in close contact with each other, but who are not related at all are likely to have similar degree of intelligence.
| A．At birth |
| B．Through education |
| C．Both at birth and through education |
| D．Neither at birth nor through education |
| A．稳固 | B．确定 | C．修理 | D．安排 |
| A．Become a genius. |
| B．Still become a genius if he should be given special education. |
| C．Reach his intelligence limits in rich environment. |
| D．Never reach his intelligence in his life. |
| A．The importance of their intelligence. |
| B．The role of environment on intelligence. |
| C．The importance of their jobs |
| D．The part that birth plays |
A pretty, well-dressed young lady stopped a taxi in a big square, and said to the driver, “Can you see that young man at the other side of the square?”
“Yes,” said the taxi-driver. The young man was standing outside a restaurant and looking impatiently at his watch every few seconds.
“Take me over there.” said the young lady.
There were a lot of cars and buses and trucks in the square, so the taxi-driver asked, “Are you afraid to cross the street?”
“Oh, no!” said the young lady. “But I said that I would meet that young man for dinner at one o’clock, and it is now a quarter to two. If I arrive in a taxi, it will at least seem as if I have tried not to be too late.”
| A．She arrived in a taxi. |
| B．She got there by bus. |
| C．She got there on foot. |
| D．The story didn’t tell us about it. |
| A．45 minutes late | B．not late at all |
| C．15 minutes late | D．one hour late |
| A．was too tired to walk |
| B．didn’t want to be late for the date（约会） |
| C．wanted to be seen in a hurry |
| D．thought the square was too crowded |
| A．Beijing | B．Shanghai | C．Guangzhou | D．Nanjing |
| A．Jennifer Lee. | B．Chris Buck. |
| C．Jennifer Lee and Chris Buck. | D．The students. |
| A．a novel | B．a university poster |
| C．a science book | D．a textbook |
先通读下面的短文，然后根据短文内容，在文章后表格的空格内填入一个最恰当的单词。每个空格只能填一个单词。
Every time we turn on the TV or take a ride in a car, we could be adding to a problem called acid rain(酸雨). In this article, we’ll learn something important about acid rain.
The formation of acid rain
When people use fuels (燃料), such as coal and gasoline(汽油), poisonous（有毒的） gases are given off. When these gases come together with rain, acid rain forms. Many power stations burn fuels in order to create the electricity(电) that we use in our homes and offices every day. Cars and trucks also send these gases into the air when they burn gasoline. When rain meets these gases, harmful things called acids form. This is acid rain.
The harm of acid rain
Acid rain destroys（破坏） everything. It poisons our rivers, ponds and lakes and oceans along with the life in them. It pollutes our soils and crops, harm trees, and can cause the death of fish and plants. Acid rain also eats away at our buildings.
The prevention of acid rain
We need to reduce and even stop the pollution that gets into our air. Turn off lights, televisions and other electrical appliances(电器) if we are not using them. Walk and take a bike whenever possible. If we are travelling a long distance, take a bus or train to save fuel.
As research shows, acid rain harms our environment. But people everywhere can take small steps now to help protect our environment and make our children change.
| Whenever we use electricity or drive our cars we may add something bad to the air around us. And even worse, we may cause a terrible problem—acid rain. |
|
| The formation of acid rain |
When fuels, such as coal and gasoline are burnt, harmful gases are sent into the air. When these gases |
| The harm of acid rain |
Acid rain is greatly |
| The prevention of acid rain |
Trying to prevent the pollution that gets into the air is |
| Research tells us that acid rain harms our environment. So people around the world can take small steps now to |
My mom isn’t fancy like other moms．They wear fancy clothes and drive fancy cars．My mom wears her gardening clothes when she walks me to school．
When fancy moms laugh，their laughs sound soft and whispery．You can hear my mom’s laugh from down the hall．I show her how to laugh quietly and she practices．But before long she starts laughing even harder than before．
At the talent show，my mom cheers loudly，“Bravo，everyone！Bravo！”instead of clapping politely the way fancy moms do．
For our class hike（徒步旅行），parents are invited．At breakfast I go over my rules for Mom，“Please don’t whistle．Don’t laugh loudly．No clapping．And stay in line．”
The other moms show up wearing fancy jackets and sneakers．My mom wears cutoffs，a floppy straw hat，and her old hiking boots．
We hike along，all in a line．Soon Mom starts to whistle her hiking songs，She’ll Be Coming Round the Mountain．I shake my head at her．She stops and whispers，“Oops．Sorry，Jane．”
We keep hiking．Everything is perfect until…
Our teacher，Ms．Steele，stops and points，“A snake！”All the moms hold their kids hands and back up，except my mom．“Watch out！It might be poisonous（有毒的）！”Ms．Steele says．
The other moms shuttle back some more．However，my mom steps forward and says，“Hmm．Let’s see what kind it is．Nope，lt’s not poisonous．”
I shut my eyes．I know what’s coming next．Mom makes a sudden attack．“Got it！”she says．The other moms scream，not sounding fancy at all．
Kids gather around as Mom examines the snake．“It’s OK to touch，”she says．
Everyone’s too scared，but I go first．“snakes aren’t slimy，”I tell them．Right away，others line up．A couple of the fancy moms come up to touch the snake’s tail．
Later，Ms．Steele tells us to draw our favorite part of the hike．After a while，I look around quickly．Everyone’s picture is of Mom and me with the snake．
As we hike back to the bus，I squeeze Mom’s hand．“I’m glad I didn’t tell you my don’t-catch-snakes rule．”She smiles．But soon，she’s whistling her hiking songs again！
I start to make her silent，then stop．Instead，I take a deep breath and sing out too．Everyone joins in，even the fancy moms．The word“fancy”in this passage is close to“ ___________”．
| A．fashionable or expensive | B．energetic or valuable |
| C．modern or comfortable | D．common or popular |
Jane tries to make some rules for her mom because ．
| A．she expects her mom not to catch snakes |
| B．she is afraid her mom will make her lose face |
| C．she wants her mom to be different from others |
| D．she wishes her mom to act more politely than the other moms |
Jane begins to feel proud of her mom when ．
| A．she goes first to touch the snake and other kids follow her |
| B．she joins her mom in singing together with the other moms |
| C．she tries to stop her mom whistling but later she gives up |
| D．she finds everyone drawing about her mom and her with the snake |
Which can be the best title for the passage？
| A．My Mom Isn’t Fancy | B．Our Hike Isn’t Perfect |
| C．An Unpleasant Talent Show | D．An Unforgettable Experience |