Herearesomeoftheworld’smostimp-优题课

The German shepherd runs off and noses around in the grass of Kenya’s Laikipia Plateau. “OK, Oakley,” the dog’s handler orders, “Find it!”
Oakley sniffs (嗅) until he comes to a bush, then stops, sits, and looks up at his handler. She bends to see what he has found: the waste of an endangered African wild dog. “Good dog!” she praises. The handler pulls a tennis ball from her pocket. Oakley jumps for his reward.
“He doesn’t actually want the waste,” says Aimee Hurt, a founding member of the U.S.-based group Working Dogs for Conservation. Hurt is in Kenya to train both Oakley and his handler. “He finds it so he can play with his ball. We’re the ones who want the waste.”
Detection dogs are sometimes taught to locate actual animals. Black-footed ferrets (雪貂) have been studied with their help. But more often the dogs learn to locate the waste of creatures such as bears, wolves and mountain lions.
What the dogs find provides scientists with data about a species. Scientists can use the DNA collected from animal waste to identify individuals, sex, and population sizes — all without ever seeing the animal itself. “It can take years to gather this kind of information if you have to trap animals,” Hurt explains.
Waste analysis might make a huge difference when wild species are accused of attacking domestic livestock (家畜). Hurt says, “A good detection dog will find the waste so we can see what the animal is actually eating.” This may help reduce problems between people and wildlife.
The underlined word “She” in Paragraph 2 refers to “_____”.

A．the German shepherd

B．an African wild dog

C．Aimee Hurt

D．the handler

Oakley is interested in finding the waste because _____.

A．he wants to study endangered animals

B．he can get a tennis ball to play with

C．he wants to eat it

D．he wants to play with it

Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．Trapping animals is not difficult.

B．People are making efforts to protect the environment.

C．Detection dogs attack domestic livestock frequently.

D．Collecting animal waste is a good way to gather information.

What is the main idea of the passage?

A．Detection dogs can help scientists study wildlife.

B．Detection dogs can defend wildlife.

C．Detection dogs can help the police catch the criminals.

D．Detection dogs can help local people defend domestic livestock.

A migraine headache（偏头疼） can cause disabling pain．People may not feel back to normal for hours or even for days．
Migraine headaches are most common among young adults and middle-aged people．In the United States, about eighteen percent of women and six percent of men report having migraines．
People who suffer from migraines can find that different “triggers” in different people may get a headache started．Stress can act as a trigger．
Many migraine sufferers say hot weather and low barometric pressure（气压） can act as triggers, but researchers say they did not have much scientific evidence of that—until now．
In a new study, a team examined the medical records of seven thousand hospital patients．The patients had visited the emergency room at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts, because of a headache．More than two thousand of them had been found to have a migraine．
The team then compared those records to weather conditions in the twenty-four hours before the hospital visits．For every increase of five degrees Celsius in air temperature, the patients had a seven and one-half percent higher risk of migraine．Decreases in barometric pressure two to three days before the visit also appeared to cause headaches．
A separate study has found that age, gender and where a person has extra body fat may affect the risk of migraine．It found that overweight people between the ages of twenty and fifty-five may have a higher risk．On average, those who were larger around the middle were more likely to have migraines than those of the same age with smaller waistlines（腰围）．
Experts suggest that losing weight in the stomach area may help younger people who experience migraines, especially women．Doing exercises regularly is also helpful to reducing migraine headaches．
Title:

	● ． ● Not feel back to normal for hours or even days．
People suffering from it	Young adults and
_______		Hot weather→ every increase of five degrees Celsius: seven and one-half percent higher risk of migraine
→ decreases two to three days before the visit appeared to cause headaches
A separate study	and where a person has extra body fat→ overweight people between twenty and fifty-five have a higher risk
	● Lose weight in the stomach area． ●．

Stepfamilies are commonplace in the United States and their number continues to grow．While stepfamilies differ widely in their make-up， they all consist of a parenting couple and children， one or more of whom is of a previous union．Such combinations of his kids， her kids， and then， possibly， kids of the new union make for complicated and often trying difficulties， more challenging than those of traditional families．
Since stepfamilies involve more people and， consequently， more potential problems from the start than do childless new marriage， it is wise for the couple to do some careful planning prior to （＝before） marriage．Not only do the prospective（预期的） marital partners need agreement about their own carriers， life goals， finance and special interests， they must also prepare for new relationship with their children and attempt to accommodate their individual needs and feelings．Furthermore， there are often the rights of other relatives to consider．
As for any family， the basic ingredient（成分） of a successful stepfamily are affection， kindness and mutual（相互的） respect．However， love alone is not enough．Certainly love is the cornerstone upon which the foundation of any family is built， but there are also many other important ingredients involved in building a successful stepfamily．
Surveys reveal that successful families regard the ability to communicate openly as the most important factor in their success．Communication is what keeps families on track and functioning as a unit．Although healthy communication is easier for some people than for others， this skill can be learned and improved．Healthy communication involves speaking clearly and listening carefully．
By their very nature， stepfamilies often are complicated by past events that give rise to ambivalent（矛盾的） loyalties， lingering（持久的） hurts， fears，feelings of guilt and unrealistic dreams．The difficulties that arise within the stepfamilies are human and understandable．However， there are ways to confront（面临） and resolve them．For example， support groups and professional counselors（法律顾问） are available in most communities to provide help and guidance when communications stopped and problems seem overwhelming（压倒性的）．
Planning and building a stepfamily is not a responsibility to take lightly．It can be a very trying and， at times， seemingly impossible effort．Many potential troubles can arise and threaten to destroy the stepfamily．Nevertheless， meeting and mastering these special challenges can bring unexpected satisfactions and rewarding depths of family closeness and affection．
According to the passage， there are 　　　　 in the United States．

A．no stepfamilies

B．more stepfamilies than ever before

C．fewer stepfamilies than ever before

D．fewer stepfamilies than traditional ones

Which of the following can help avoid the potential problems arising in a stepfamily？

A．The pursuit of the same careers．

B．Professional interventions（干涉）．

C．The development of special interests．

D．Careful planning before the marriage．

Many people believe that 　　　　 contributes most to the building of a successful stepfamily．

A．everlasting loyalties

B．open communication

C．kindness and mutual respect

D．persistent（持久稳固的） affection

It is natural for a stepfamily to be 　　　　．

A．unrealistic

B．complicated

C．ambivalent

D．guilty

According to the author， planning and building a stepfamily is 　　　　．

A．impossible

B．satisfying and rewarding

C．discouraging and frustrating

D．a difficult and trying experience

Researchers found that people become happier and experience less worry after they reach the age of fifty．In fact, they say by the age of eighty-five, people are happier with their life than they were when they were eighteen years old．
The findings came from a survey of more than 340,000 adults in the United States．The Gallup（民意调查） Organization questioned them by telephone in 2008．At that time, the people were between the ages of eighteen and eighty-five．
The researchers asked questions about emotions like happiness, sadness and worry．They also asked about mental or emotional stress．
Arthur Stone at Stony Brook University in New York led the study．His team found that levels of stress were highest among adults between the ages of twenty-two and twenty-five．The findings showed that stress levels dropped sharply after people reached their fifties．Happiness was highest among the youngest adults and those in their early seventies．The people least likely to report feeling negative emotions were those in their seventies and eighties．
Researchers say they do not know why happiness increases as people get older．One theory is that, as people grow older, they grow more thankful for what they have and have better control of their emotions．They also spend less time thinking about bad experiences．
Professor Stone says the emotional patterns could be linked to changes in how people see the world, or maybe even changes in brain chemistry．
The researchers also considered possible influences like having young children, being unemployed or being single．But they found that influences like these did not affect the levels of happiness and well-being related to age．
The study also showed that men and women have similar emotional patterns as they grow older．However, women at all ages reported more sadness, stress and worry than men．
What can be the best title of the text?

A．Happiness Varies with Ages	B．Experience More, Worry Less
C．The Older, the Wiser	D．Being Young, Being Happy

We can learn from the research that _________．

A．only when people get older will they feel happier

B．stress levels among the youngest are the highest

C．older people tend to be grateful

D．older people usually have no worries

According to the research, when people get older, _________．

A．they miss the old days	B．they are physically weak
C．they have better self-control	D．they are more emotional

What would the author probably talk about next?

A．What influences happiness．	B．How to live better．
C．How to keep happier．	D．Why women are less happier．

The author is intended to _________．

A．advise how to reduce stress

B．introduce a scientific finding

C．describe how to do research

D．talk about human emotions

SHANGHAI - Health experts in Shanghai are calling for more protection for young children as the latest research shows about half of the youngsters are suffering from secondhand smoke．
About 45 percent of children suffer passive smoking in families, 50 percent in public places, and almost 6 percent on public transportation, shows a research released by the Shanghai Children's Medical Center on Tuesday．
"Not only adults but also children and newborn babies are at risk for the adverse effects of passive smoking," said Tang Jingyan, a doctor at the Shanghai Children's Medical Center．
"Actually, those young children whose bodies are still growing and developing are more sensitive to the effects of secondhand smoke．"
Research has shown that children who are exposed to secondhand smoke will suffer from more colds, coughs and sore throats, and they are more likely to suffer from bronchitis, pneumonia and will have a higher risk of developing cancer．
Doctors even suggested that children suffering passive smoking are more likely to have behavioral problems and may not develop mentally as quickly as their peers．
Other research by the Shanghai Children's Medical Center has found that more than 80 percent of child patients in the center live in a smoke-filled household, where one or both parents smoke．
"Though doctors have stressed the harm of passive smoking over and over, it is still hard to reach a totally 'smoke free' home," said a pediatrician named Zhang Yiwen, noting that parents are often tempted to smoke even though they have learned the harmful effects of secondhand smoke．
China has 540 million people suffering from passive smoke, 180 million of them younger than 15．The age of smokers is also getting lower, earlier reports said．
"There are more young smokers than before．You can see young people wearing a school uniform and carrying a schoolbag light a cigarette on the street．Some of them are even female students," said Jing Xingming, a professor of children's developmental behavior at the center．
"Children like to imitate adults, especially their parents．If parents often smoke at home, it is very likely children will develop a smoking habit, which can cause a vicious circle," Jin said．
Reports from the Ministry of Health said China has about 350 million smokers, of whom 15 million are underage smokers．Also, around 40 million of the country's 130 million children aged between 13 and 18 had tried smoking, and 15 million had become addicted to tobacco．
What is the main idea of the passage?

A．About half of the youngsters are suffering from secondhand smoke．

B．Experts are calling for more protection for youngsters from smoking．

C．More and more youngsters are picking up the habit of smoking．

D．Smoking does great harm to the health of the youngsters．

What kind of the youngsters most possibly develop a habit of smoking?

A．Children of non-smoking mothers．	B．Children of non-smoking fathers．
C．Children of heavy smokers．	D．Children from some smoking centers．

Which of the following disease may not be connected with secondhand smoking?

A．Cancer．	B．Behavioral problems．
C．Sore throats．	D．Coughs．

The underlined word “vicious” in the last paragraph but one most probably means ___________．

A．complete	B．simple
C．great	D．bad

What can be inferred from the passage?

A．About 80% of the children in the Shanghai Children's Medical Center smoke heavily．

B．About 45 percent of children suffer passive smoking in the Shanghai Children's Medical Center．

C．About 540 million people are heavy smokers in China．

D．Children aged between 13 to 18 are more likely addicted to smoking．

The Tokyo Metro and Toei Lines	Features: The Tokyo Metro and Toei lines that compose Tokyo’s massive subway system carry almost 8 million people each day, making it the busiest system in the world. The system is famous for its oshiya--- literally, “pusher”--- who shove passengers into crowded subway cars so the doors can close. And you think your commute is hell．
The Moscow Metro	Features: The Moscow Metro has some of the most beautiful stations in the world. The best of them were built during the Stalinist era and feature chandeliers, marble moldings and elaborate murals. With more than 7 million riders a day, keeping all that marble clean has got to be a burden.
The Hong Kong Metro	Features: The Hong Kong MTR has the distinction of being one of the few subway systems in the world that actually turns a profit. It’s privately owned and uses real estate development along its tracks to increase income and ridership. It also introduced “Octopus cards” that allow people to not only pay their fares electronically, but buy stuff at convenience stores, supermarkets, restaurants and even parking meters. It’s estimated that 95 % of all adults in Hong Kong own an Octopus card.
Shanghai Metro	Features: Shanghai is the third city in China to build a metro system, and it has become the country’s largest in the 12 years since it opened. Shanghai Metro has 142 miles of track and plans to add another 180 miles within five years. By that point, it would be three times larger than Chicago “L”. The system carries about 2.18 million people a day.
The London Metro	Features: Londoners call their subway the Underground, even though 55 percent of it lies above ground．No matter when you’ve got the oldest mass-transit system in the world, you can call it anything you like. Trains started in1863 and they’ve been running ever since. Some 3 million people ride each day, every one of them remembering to “Mind the gap”.

A．The Tokyo Metro and Toei Lines	B．The Moscow Metro
C．The London Metro	D．The Hong Kong MTR