Que Liu and his wife Si En spend their mornings picking Pu’er leaves in a forest not far from their village in the highlands of southwest China.
Pu’er is a kind of tea that is famous for its complex taste. Tea lovers say its taste changes with each following steeping (续泡). But the crop this year has been small at Nannuoshan, one of the six major Pu’er mountains in Yunnan Province. The hottest weather and lowest rainfall totals in years have reduced production. “Drought has cut production by about half this spring,” said Zi Sai, the son of Que Liu and Si En.
Local officials blame climate change for an increase in drought-like conditions in recent years. The dry weather has worsened over the past 20 years, with this year’s drought breaking some records. “The entire rainfall pattern has changed due to global warming,” said Xiao Chan, head of weather services at China’s National Climate Center in Beijing.
Pu’er trees grow in the cloud-covered forests of Yunnan. The trees require no fertilizers or pesticides (农药), unlike the tea trees grown on large farms elsewhere. The adult plant normally reaches a height of four meters. Spring produces the highest-quality leaves from the trees. The summer harvest, with a higher percentage of water, is considered to be lower in quality. Summer leaves are sold for mass consumption.
The drought conditions hurt the economy of the 32 villages of Nannuoshan. “My family depends wholly on Pu’er tea for survival, earning about 200,000 yuan a year,” said Zi Sai’s uncle, Si Da, who is 44. “That represents just over $28,000. This year, our income has been cut by tens of thousands of yuan.”
While one ancient tree, said to date from 800 years ago, survived the drought, other younger trees did not. “If these kinds of trees survive, they may need three to five years for a full recovery.” Si Da added. “These trees are quite pitiful. They should have been protected like children.”
1.How is the climate in the Pu’er tea planting areas in recent years?
A.It is too wet. B.It is much colder.
C.It is changing regularly, D.It is becoming much drier.
2.What’s the advantage of Pu’er trees compared with the tea trees planted on other big farms?
A.They are short and small. B.They are pollution-free.
C.They grow on large farms. D.They are picked at all seasons.
3.What does Si Da think of the younger tea trees?
A.They were easy to live on.
B.They should have been taken good care of.
C.They took only a short time to fully recover.
D.They had better be cut down to earn money.
4.What is the main idea of the text?
A.The extreme weather ruins tea farms.
B.Famous tea in China might disappear.
C.Few tea trees survive natural disasters.
D.Drought hurts Pu’er tea crops in China.
An unusual trip to Hawaii brought two strangers closer and closer and their story deserves a wide spread.
As her plane sliced through the sky above the ocean, there came a sudden thunderstorm. Five minutes later, Uemoto and her copilot McMahon heard a strange sound. Then, without warning, they lost power to both of the engines. It took them a moment to process the fact that they might crash. The pilots powered through the items on the emergency checklist. Nothing worked. As the plane was falling, they jumped into the ocean.
By ten that night, their bodies began trembling uncontrollably in the cool night air. Something must be done to pull them through. Swimming on her stomach, Uemoto had McMahon wrap his arms around her knees so he could rest his head on the back of her legs. To be with someone else and to feel another person's comforting presence in the darkness somehow made the suffering bearable.
When the sun rose the next morning, they caught sight of the island of Hawaii, the destination they had dared dream! Suddenly, Uemoto saw a shark, which made her breath catch in her throat. "What do we do? What do we do?" Uemoto asked, panicked. "Just keep looking forward! If it comes close, I'll kick it in the eye!" said McMahon evenly. Unexpectedly, the shark circled them for about 30 minutes. Then, as quietly as it had appeared, it swam off. Uemoto and McMahon breathed a sigh of relief.
After struggling in the water for over 20 hours, there came a US Navy helicopter. It flew overhead and next banked towards them. Uemoto and McMahon burst into tears. Alone, either of them would have died. But together, they made it.
1.What caused the plane to crash?
A.A sudden thunderstorm hit the plane.
B.The engines of the plane broke down.
C.The pilots operated the plane improperly.
D.The emergency list failed to help the pilots.
2.What do we know about McMahon in paragraph 4?
A.He calmed his partner down.
B.He kicked the shark in the eye.
C.He was scared to death at the shark.
D.He managed to drive the shark away.
3.Which of the following best describes Uemoto and McMahon?
A.Ambitious and humorous. B.Clear-headed and generous.
C.Demanding and appealing. D.Strong-willed and considerate.
4.What may be the best title of the passage?
A.A Race against Death
B.A Test of Friendship
C.A Wonder Made by Joined Hands
D.A Struggle Fought in the Darkness
ZOOKEEPER FOR A DAY
Go wild with an extreme zookeeping experience!
The Khaki Extreme program is a wild behind-the-scenes zookeeping adventure like no other! The program offers the chance for 11-15 year olds to see first-hand what’s involved in looking after amazing wildlife at Australia Zoo.
During the guided adventures, you’ll gain an understanding and appreciation of what’s involved in working in one of the world’s most popular zoological and conservation areas, and you’ll love getting up close with the awesome animals.
Whether it’s helping keepers prepare diets for the animals, cleaning enclosures (围场) for large animals, or making improved activities for Australia Zoo’s wildlife — you will have a chance to get involved at grass-roots level.
After a busy morning getting up close with wildlife, you can enjoy a specially provided lunch while watching the performance in the world-famous Crocoseum. Then you’ll also receive a guided behind-the-scenes tour of the Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital. Here you’ll see the kind veterinary (兽医的) team treating sick and injured native wildlife, and you’ll learn what you can do to protect Australia’s native wild animals.
Every season is different and so is our Zookeeper for a Day Khaki Extreme program! We’ll change the animals and activities each school holiday period to keep it exciting, but with so many great animals on offer, the Khaki Extreme program is always a bunch of fun.
If reptiles (爬行动物) are more your thing, check our Zookeeper for a Day Khaki Extreme Reptile program. Here you’ll have a wild day out with some of Australia Zoo’s most scaly (有鳞屑的) and slippery friends. This program may not be available every school holiday period and program dates will be limited. Check the booking page for further details on availability.
* www.australiazoo.com.au
*Open daily 9:00 am—5:00 pm
*Bedtime for some of our animals is 4:30 pm.
*Closed Christmas Day
1.What’s the main purpose of the Khaki Extreme program?
A.To help save endangered wildlife.
B.To offer a chance to feed native wildlife.
C.To experience a real zookeeper’s life.
D.To learn how to treat injured animals.
2.What will you do after a busy morning at Australia Zoo?
A.Make a special lunch for yourself.
B.Clean enclosures for large animals.
C.Give a performance in the Crocoseum.
D.Visit the Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital.
3.What can be learned about the Khaki Extreme Reptile program?
A.It’s not always available.
B.It’s often closed at 4:30 pm.
C.It’s still open on Christmas Day.
D.It’s very popular among all the students.
假设你是李华， 第五十个世界地球日（the Earth Day）)即将到来，你校将举办以此为主题的学生海报展。请你写一封邮件邀请外教Mary来观看展览。
要点如下：
1.展览时间和地点；
2.简要介绍展览活动和内容。
注意：
1.词数100左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Mary,
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours,
LiHua
英语课上，老师要求同桌之间相互修改作文。假设以下短文为你同桌所写，请你对其进行修改。短文中共有10处错误，每句中最多有两处。错误涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（＼）划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2.只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
One day, Sally went to work by the taxi. Unfortunately, when she arrived her office, she realized that she has left her bag in the taxi.
She became worried because in the bag was the material needing for the meeting to be held in an hour.
Half an hour late, she received a call from a man, told her that he was sending the bag to her in person. Wondering where the man knew her address and telephone number, Sally went downstairs. It was actually the driver which taxi she had taken. The driver told Sally that he had found his business card in the bag so that he could find Sally. Sally expressed her thank to the driver and hurried upstairs, heading for the meeting room.
阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容(1个单词)或括号内单词的正确形式。
A crater (环形山) on Mercury sat quietly for millions of years. Surprisingly, it acquired a name — Li Qingzhao, a Chinese female poet. The International Astronomical Union named the first group of craters on the planet after 310 famous writers and artists in human history, Li1.(include). What did she do to deserve such2.honor? Compared with other male poets in China,3.have left hundreds or even thousands of poems, she has only eighty-seven.4., her artistic creativity in her5.(survive) works has earned her a permanent place in the Chinese literary circle.
She grew up in a6.(relative) relaxed atmosphere but her maiden (少女) days were so limited that the regret could be felt in her poem: ''Can't you see? The green leaves thriving (旺盛) but the red flowers fading overnight.'' The arrival and disappearance of spring is one of the most frequent themes in Chinese poetry. Li had two marriages. The first ended up her being abandoned during the war. 7. (bad) still, she suffered physical abuse from her second husband. Bravely she charged him at the court and got the8.(permit) to divorce.
In the final stage of her life.even9.no one to rely on, she never gave up hope and created many literary works that10.(leave) for generations to appreciate to date.
