【天津市2015年中考英语试题】 阅读理解
Vanuatu is an island nation in the South Pacific. It is one of the smallest countries in the world. But for those who are interested in adventure and sport, there is a lot to do. Vanuatu’s islands offer visitors two of the most exciting and dangerous activities in the world: volcano（火山）surfing and land diving.
Volcano Surfing
On Tanna Island, Mount Yasur rises 300 meters into the sky. Yasur is an active volcano, and it erupts（爆发）almost every day, sometimes several times a day. For centuries, people have climbed this mountain to visit the top. Recently, people have also started climbing Yasur to surf the volcano. In some ways, volcano surfing is like surfing in the sea, but in other ways it’s very different. Volcano surfers try to escape the erupting volcano—without getting hit by flying rocks! It’s fast, fun and dangerous—the perfect extreme sport（极限运动）.
Land Diving
Most people are familiar with bungee jumping, but do you know bungee jumping started on Pentecost Island in Vanuatu and is almost fifteen centuries old? The activity, first called land diving, is part of a religious ceremony（宗教仪式）. A man ties tree vines（树藤）to his legs. He then jumps head-first from a high tower to touch the earth with the top of his head—without breaking the vine. Every spring, island natives (men only) still take part in this amazing activity.In Line 2, what does the word “those” mean?
| A．People. | B．Animals. | C．Activities. | D．Islands. |
According to the passage, Mount Yasur ______.
| A．is no longer active | B．is on Pentecost Island |
| C．erupts almost every day | D．rises 800 meters into the sky |
Why have people recently started climbing Mount Yasur?
| A．People can climb it easily. | B．People can make money. |
| C．People can watch snow on it. | D．People can surf the volcano. |
Which of the following about land diving is true?
| A．It is not dangerous at all. |
| B．It was first called “bungee jumping”. |
| C．It is a traditional activity in Vanuatu. |
| D．It came to Vanuatu from another country. |
What is the purpose of the passage?
| A．To tell people not to do dangerous sports. |
| B．To explain what volcano surfing and land diving are. |
| C．To talk about the world’s best volcano surfer and land diver. |
| D．To compare activities in Vanuatu with sports in New Zealand. |
FROM THE EDITOR
DEAR
READERS．
Happy birthday to us! TIME zine's firse（期刊） came out on March3， 1923． Sure， 96 isn't the most special birthday， comparing with the 100th birthday． But we take every opportunity（ 机会）to celebrate． TIME for Kids came along just a little bit later， in 1995． Soon， we will have our 25th birthday！
We have run our Kid Reporter program for many years． Many kids who took part in the program as a reporter are professional journalist（职业记者）now． While they were working with TFK， they caught some great opportunities， like interviewing political leaders， famous people， Olympic athletes， scientists， and more．
Do you dream of being a reporter？ Come and join us! On March 15， we will hold our annual（一年一度的） competition to find our next group of TIME for Kids Reporters． Editors from TFK will choose 10 best students．
I hope you will have a chance to report for our magazines and websites during the 2019﹣2020 school year．
All the best，
（1）According to the passage， TIME for Kids will have its birthday．
A． 96th
B． 100th
C． 23rd
D． 25th
（2）What will editors from TFK do in their annual competition？
A． Take part in the program．
B． Interview political leaders．
C． Choose 10 best students．
D． Report for their magazines．
（3）How long will the next group of reporters work with TFK？
A． Half a year．
B． One year．
C． Two years．
D． Three years．
（4）Andrea Delbanco is ．
A． a reader
B． an editor
C． a reporter
D． a student
（5）You can find the passage in ．
A．a website
B． a book
C． a novel
D． a diary
In many places the weather changes during the year． These changes are called seasons． In the north and south there are four seasons in a year． At the North and South Pole， there are only two seasons． In tropical（热带） places near the Earths equator（ 赤道）． there are two seasons a wet season and a dry season． Each season brings changes． They are important for plants and animals that live in different parts of the world．
Spring starts when the day and night are the same length． The weather gets warmer and sunnier． Trees and plants start to grow． Many animals have their babies in spring．
Summer begins on the longest day of the year． In the north this is on June 21 or 22． Summer is usually the warmest and sunniest time of the year． Fruit grows faster on trees and plants． Young animals grow bigger and stronger．
Autumn starts when the day and night are the same length again． During autumn， the leaves change color and fall down from the trees． Some animals collect food before winter comes．
Winter begins on the shortest day of the year． In the north this is on December 21 or 22． The weather is colder and in some places there is lots of snow． Plants and trees stop growing． Some animals， like bats and bears， find places to hide and sleep． This is called hibernation．
（1）There are seasons on Greenland（格陵兰岛） at the North pole．
A．four
B． three
C． two
D．one
（2）Many animals in spring．
A． have babies
B． change color
C． collect food
D． stop growing
（3）Fruit grows faster on trees and plants in ．
A． Spring．
B． Summer．
C． Autumn．
D． Winter．
（4）The meaning of the underlined word "hibernation"is in Chinese
A．迁徒
B．寒冷
C．储藏
D．冬眠
（5） start when the day and night are the same length．
A．Spring and summer
B． Summer and autumn
C． Autumn and winter
D． Spring and autumn
Need a reason to be happy？ Then you will be happy to know that March 20th is the International Day of happiness．
The united Nations set up the International Day of happiness in 2012 to remind us that happiness is a basic human goal and right．
It was celebrated for the first time in 2013． On that day， we celebrated hundreds of " Happy Heroes" ﹣ those who did so much to bring happiness to others． They helped the homeless to live a comfortable life and the poor kids to go to school．
The 2014 Day of Happiness actions asked people to share pictures of making them happy． People all over the world showed their favourite pictures on the Internet． "It's exciting to see so many people sharing photos of what makes them happy．" Joe， a senior high school students from Canada said． The 2015 Day of happiness actions gave attention on relationships． Modern society is leaving more and more people felling lonely． On that day， thousands of people all around the world reached out to make new connections with others． They visited their neighbours， gave calls to the doctors they didn't know very well， drove the strangers to station for free…
The theme of the 1029 Day of Happiness is "Happier Together"． It encourages people worldwide to focus on what we have in common， rather than what divides us．
（1）When is the International Day of Happiness？
（2）Why did the United Nations set up the International Day of Happiness？
（3）How did Joe feel when he saw many people sharing photos？
（4）According to the passage， more and more people are feeling happy in modern society，aren't they？
（5）What is the theme of 2019 Day of Happiness？
Dereck and Beverly are wildlife animal filmmakers（电影制片人）． They have made lots of films about animals and plants．
Their job is to keep and protect the big cats of Africa from damage（伤害）． Beverly also takes photos of the lions and her pictures have appeared in National Geographic magazines．
When they were kids， Dereck was quiet and healthy， he was good at math and science． Beverly had a twin brother． At that time， her brother and she often got their mother into trouble! Beverly was a dancer， an athlete， played the piano （not very well）， and was a class leader． Her favourite subject was science and she always got excellent grades in her science exams．
When in the field， their work starts at around 4 am． After drinking a cup of tea， they drive out into a bush（灌木丛）to find their subjects． Sometimes that is a lion pride（群）． Lions are family animals， they usually live in groups of 15 or more． Sometimes that is a single leopard（花豹）． They follow the animals for the day， filming， researching， and collecting facts， information or pictures． They don't stop working even when they have lunch． They are often back in camp by 8 pm．
When talking about the favourite places to explore， Dereck says， "We live in it!" Beverly thinks being in nature is her favourite． Dereck thinks running or taking a swim in the Okavango swamp（沼泽）﹣especially swimming close to crocodile（鳄鱼）is great fun， but Beverly says， "Swimming is fun but crazy in these waters．"
（1）From the second paragraph， we can know when they were kids， ．
A． Dereck was outgoing
B． Beverly was quiet and healthy
C． Beverly could play the piano very well
D． Dereck and Beverly were both good at science
（2）When Dereck and Beverly are in the field， the right time order（时间顺序）is that they
．
①drink a cup of tea②follow the animals③drive out ④find their subjects
A． ①②③④
B． ①④③②
C． ①③④②
D． ④①③②
（3）How many hours do they usually work every day？
A． Eight．
B． Ten．
C． Twelve．
D． Sixteen．
（4）What does the passage mainly talk about？
A． Animals and plants．
B． The story of Dereck and Beverly．
C． National Geographic magazines．
D． Dereck and Beverly's childhood．
（5）From the passage， we can infer（推断）that ．
A． Dereck and Beverly don't love at all
B． Dereck and Beverly are famous film stars
C． it's safe to take a swim in the Okavango swamp
D． their work is dangerous sometimes， but they like it
Thanks to the ancient Silk Road， the lands of Italy and China have been connected for more than 2，000 years． Tourists from China and every corner of the world come to visit Italy every year． Here are four famous cities of Italy．
|
Rome Coliseum |
Rome is the birth place of science， culture and of course， art in Europe． It is the perfect combination（结合）of the modern and the classical． When one walks around the city， one can see many museums． Of course， Rome is also considered as the fashion（时尚）centre of the world now． The Rome Coliseum is today considered one wonder（奇迹）of the modern world． |
|
Pisa is a small city． It is famous for the leaning tower of Pisa． If you think that Pisa has only one leaning tower， you may just be wrong． This city has three leaning towers． Home of the famous scientist Galileo， Pisa is also known for its universities because the city is home of some of the most important universities in Europe． |
Leaning Tower |
|
David |
Florence is one of the most important provinces around Italy． Shopping here， you'll find David， the most famous statue（雕像）of Michelangelo． If you are planning to spend a couple of days in Florence， you likely will not want to lose the opportunity to see and enjoy Arnolfo Tower， it will be open on Sunday and Monday from 9 am to 6 pm．（closed in case of rain）． |
|
Venice is a city over a hundred islands． You can visit most interesting places of the city by walks or by the famous gondolas． Art exhibitions， film festivals and famous carnival（狂欢节）make Venice a place that can be visited any time of the year． |
|
（1）According to the passage， is considered as a fashion center of the world now．
A． Rome
B． Pisa
C． Florence
D． Venice
（2）Pisa is also famous for its besides leaning towers．
A． universities
B． art exhibitions
C． film festivals
D． museums
（3）We can visit Arnolfo Tower ．
A． at 8 am on Sunday
B． at 9 am on Tuesday
C． at 9 pm on Saturday
D． at 10 am on Monday
（4）According to the passage， which one of the following is NOT true？
A． Pisa has three leaning towers．
B． You'll find David when you go shopping in Florence．
C． You can visit most interesting places of Venice by walks or by bus．
D． Every year， thousands of tourists all over the world come to visit Italy．
（5）What is the best title of the passage？
A． Italy and China．
B． The ancient Silk Road．
C． All roads lead to Rome．
D． Four famous cities of Italy．
gondolas