Dogs and cats are not for students who live in the dormitory. Just think about the noise, the smell and all that wild behavior—chewing on whatever they can get their teeth on, or knocking over the trash can. But don’t feel sad. There are smaller and less destructive pets to make your dormitory life colorful.
Betta fish
They make great pets with their big personality and astonishing colors, ranging from bright red, dark blue to lemon yellow. Unlike many fish, most bettas react to their owner’s presence and become more active when they are nearby, which is unusual in the fish world.
Chinchillas
Without bad smell, about the size of a rabbit and with fur so dense that they can’t get pests such as fleas(跳蚤), the friendly creature originally from the Andes Mountains in South America makes an ideal indoor pet. Chinchillas are very social animals, so if you only have one, you will become its family. In cold winter days, in a glace at this fury pet in a dorm will bring you a lot of warmth.
Land hermit crabs
In a society where owners are often asked “Are they tasty?”, land hermit crabs are among the most unlucky animals commonly kept as pets. But they are easy to care for, inexpensive and fascinating to watch. And the fact that they don’t cause any allergic reactions makes them perfect for college dormitories.
Red-eared sliders
If you’re interested in a lifelong friend, a red-eared slider makes a wonderful pet. If well cared for, they can live for around 40 years. But there are a couple of things you should know. Red-eared can grow to an adult size of up to 30cm! So you may need a larger tank quickly. In addition, you will need to provide UV lighting, water heater, and a swimming area and a basking (晒太阳) area. Housing a red eared slider is not easy.
All the dormitory pets mentioned in the text are _____.
| A．active and allergic |
| B．quiet and peaceful |
| C．colorful and tasty |
| D．small and smelly |
Which of the following is not true about these creatures?
| A．Bettas are active and rich in colors. |
| B．Chinchillas are originally mountain animals. |
| C．Land hermit crabs are allergic but tasty. |
| D．Red-eared sliders need more care from the owner. |
If you want to keep the pet as long as possible, you’d better choose _____.
| A．Betta fish |
| B．Chinchillas |
| C．Land hermit crabs |
| D．Red-eared sliders |
The text is mainly to _____.
| A．introduce the best way to keep pets |
| B．offer useful tips for choosing pets |
| C．inform students of lifestyle of pets |
| D．recommend some dormitory pets |
A punctual person is in the habit of doing a thing at the proper time and is never late in keeping an appointment.
The unpunctual man, on the other hand, never does what he has to do at the proper time. He is always in a hurry and in the end loses both time and his good name. A lost thing may be found again, but lost time can never be regained. Time is more valuable than material things. In fact, time is life itself. The unpunctual man is for ever wasting and mismanaging his most valuable asset as well as others’. The unpunctual person is always complaining that he finds no time to answer letters, or return calls or keep appointments promptly. But the man who really has a great deal to do is very careful of his time and seldom complains of want of it. He knows that he can not get through huge amount of work unless he faithfully keeps every piece of work when it has to be attended to.
Failure to be punctual in keeping one’s appointments is a sign of disrespect towards others. If a person is invited to dinner and arrives later than the appointed time, he keeps all the other guests waiting for him. Usually this will be regarded as a great disrespect to the host and all other guests present.
Unpunctuality, moreover, is very harmful when it comes to doing one’s duty, whether public or private. Imagine how it would be if those who are put in charge of important tasks failed to be at their proper place at the appointed time. A man who is known to be habitually unpunctual is never trusted by his friends or fellow men.
5. What is an unpunctual person like?
A. He always does a thing when it should be done. B. He is always very busy.
C. He always does a thing at the wrong time. D. He always keeps the appointments.
6. Why is unpunctuality very harmful?
A. Because it makes a man lose many chances of doing important affairs.
B. Because it makes a man lose friends.
C. Because it makes a man work quickly.
D. Because it makes a man be more respected by others.
7. According to the passage, which is right?
A. The punctual person has no much work to do.
B. The unpunctual person is very rich. (from www.nmet168.com)
C. The unpunctual person is often respected by his friends.
D. The unpunctual person loses what can’t be regained again.
8. According to the passage, what are good manners when you are invited to a party?
A. Arriving at the appointed time. B. Arriving before all other guests.
C. Arriving after all other guests. D. Keeping all other guests waiting.
9. Why is a person always unpunctual?
A. He is too busy.B. He has too much work to do.
C. He does care much about time. D. He doesn’t manage his time properly.
Today, ultrasonic(超声的) waves are being put to work in laboratories and factories. If an ultrasound generator is placed in a liquid, the waves move the liquid back and forth hundreds of thousands of times each second. This causes materials to mix quickly or to dissolve(使分解，使溶解) in liquids. Paint manufacturers(制造商) use ultrasound to do a better job of blending colors. The companies that make film for your camera find that mixing chemicals by the use of sound waves will produce a more sensitive film.
The new lightweight(轻量的) type of washing machine uses ultrasonic waves to get clothes clean. Its special ultrasound generator is put into a pail of soapy water containing the soiled clothes. The sound waves drive the soapy water back and forth through the cloth so fast that everything is soon clean. There is also a new kind of dishwasher that works in much the same way.
Ultrasonic waves can shake a liquid so fast that tiny holes form all through it. The liquid is actually torn apart by this action. Almost as soon as these holes are made, they fall together again. The result is a powerful pounding action. In the dairy industry this is used for the double purpose of making homogenized(使均匀，使匀质) milk and sterilizing(使无菌) it at the same time. If you look at some raw milk with a microscope, you find that it is made up of little drops of butter fat floating around in a watery liquid. In order to make milk easier to digest, these fat droplets(微粒) may be broken up by forcing the milk through very small openings. The result is called homogenized milk. When the ultrasonic method is used, the sound waves not only break up the droplets but also kill the germs in the milk by pounding them to pieces. (from www.nmet168.com)
1. Why does a paint manufacturer use ultrasound to do a better job of blending colors?
A. Because it is cheap to use ultrasound to blend colors.
B. Because the waves move the liquid so quickly that it can make materials mix quickly or dissolve in liquids.
C. Because they can mix chemicals by the use of sound waves.
D. Because the waves can clean the paint.
2. What properties does ultrasound wave have?
A. Homogenizes and sterilizes the milk. B. Mix materials and break droplets.
C. Kill germs and sterilize milk. D. Move liquids quickly.
3. What exists in the raw milk?
A. Little drops of butter fat. B. Small holes.
C. Fat droplets and germs. D. Chemicals.
4. Where is ultrasound wave not used?
A. In the paint manufacture. B. In the shop mixing bread flour.
C. In the film-making company. D. In the dairy industry.
It is over 40 years since first atomic bomb was dropped on a major city in Japan. Yet even now its effects are showing themselves and may continue to do so for years to come. Much effort and human energy have been used to try to prevent such a terrifying thing from happening again. So far there is no guarantee that it will not. Countries which already possess nuclear knowledge and resources have bombs stored away which are powerful enough to wipe out all life on earth. But this is not all. Other countries, which previously were not so advanced in technology, are gradually buying materials that can be used for making atomic devices. This nuclear energy will naturally be of great value in helping the economy of poorer nations.
The generation of electricity through nuclear power came directly from the original work on the atom bomb. Because of the increase in demand for energy and the possibility of decreasing supplies of oil and natural gas, the interest in electricity has increased. One of the by-products of nuclear power stations is plutonium (钸) produced from unclear fuel: plutonium is ingredient (成分) in bomb-making. It means that there are far more opportunities for the manufacture of bombs.
This brings the problem to a full circle again. How can something so valuable and useful be controlled so that it works for the benefit and not the destruction of man?
9. The effects of dropping the first atomic bomb ________.
A. are not overB. may go on forever
C. could last much longer D. will not be over in the near future
10. The writer says that enough atomic bombs have already been manufactured to ________.
A. wipe out JapanB. last forever
C. act as a peace-keeping device D. destroy all living things
11. The advantage of less developed countries being able to make atomic devices is that it ______.
A. gives them more opportunities for work B. will help poor countries to become richer
C. will enable them to make better explosivesD. will be of great value to them
12. The second paragraph tells us that the increased demand for electricity today ________.
A. has led to the decrease in supplies of oil
B. means that more countries are interested in nuclear power
C. has increased the risk of accidental explosions
D. has increased the very means of producing more atomic bombs
After inventing dynamites(炸药), Swedish-born Alfred Nobel became a very rich man. However, he foresaw its universally destructive powers too late. Nobel preferred not to be remembered as the inventor of dynamite, so in 1895, just two weeks before his death, he created a fund to be used for awarding prizes to people who had made worthwhile contributions to mankind. Originally there were five awards: literature, physics, chemistry, medicine, and peace. Economics was added in 1968, just sixty-seven years after the first awards ceremony.
Nobel’s original legacy of nine million dollars was invested, and the interest on this sum is used for the awards which vary from $ 30,000 to $125,000.
Every year on December 10, the anniversary of Nobel’s death, the awards (gold medal, illuminated diploma, and money) are presented to the winners. Sometimes politics plays an important role in the judges’ decision. Americans have won numerous science awards, but relatively few literature prizes.
No awards were presented from 1940 to 1942 at the beginning of World War II. Some people have won two prizes, but this is rare; others have shared their prizes.
1. What did the first award ceremony take place?
A. 1895. B. 1901. C. 1962. D. 1968.
2. The Nobel prize was established to ________.
A. honor the inventor of dynamite B. recognize worthwhile contributions to humanity
C. resolve political differences D. spend money
3. In which area have Americans received the most awards?
A. Literature. B. Economics. C. Peace. D. Science.
4. Which of the following statement is NOT true?
A. Awards vary in money value.
B. Ceremonies are held on December 10 to commemorate Nobel’s invention.
C. Politics can be of importance in selecting the winners.
D. A few individuals have won two awards.
In parts of Africa, the sky is filled with a dark cloud. But this is no rain cloud. It is a living cloud made of billions of locusts that are traveling across the continent eating everything in their path.
And in the battle to stop this disaster, a radio station in Senegal, West Africa, is offering listeners 50 kilograms of rice if they can catch and kill 50 kilograms of locusts. The radio station is in one of Senegal’s worst affected regions.
This is West Africa’s biggest locust disaster in 15 years, and it is moving east, causing huge damage to crops. As they move, they breed, and increase their number and will soon threaten Sudan in the northeast of Africa. Some say it could reach Asia.
Experts say the great damage to crops in areas already suffering from food shortages and war could cause many people to go hungry. Governments in the region are not well equipped to fight the pest.
Although leaders of 12 countries have agreed on a plan, it is not expected to be enough. “We are now treating 6,000 hectares per day with pesticide, but we need to treat 20,000 hectares per day in order to have any hope of controlling this disaster,” said Mohamed Abdallahi Ould Babah, director of locust control in Mauritania.
Requests are being made for international aid, which is the only way to limit the crisis, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization warned.
1. The purpose of offering people rice for catching locusts in Senegal is ________.
A. to get more people to eat rice so as to leave less for locusts
B. to get more people involved in the war on the locusts
C. to prevent more people from starvation
D. to get more people to listen to the radio report on locusts
2. Which of the following is not the reason for West Africans going hungry?
A. Locust disaster causes the great damage to crops.
B. Food supply is far from the need of the people.
C. These regions are affected by the war.
D. Governments are unwilling to fight the pest.
3. It can be concluded that, in order to end the locust disaster, ________.
A. leaders of 12 countries in West Africa should call on their people to take action
B. insects experts should be sent to these regions
C. other countries outside Africa should keep close watch on their own lands
D. Help from all over the world is in urgent demand
4. What does the passage mainly talk about?
A. Food shortage in Africa. B. International aid to Africa.
C. The insects attack on Africa. D. Terrible storm in Africa.