Languages have been coming and going for thousands of years, but in recent times there has been less coming and a lot more going. When the world was still populated by hunter-gatherers, small, tightly knit(联系) groups developed their own patterns of speech independent of each other. Some language experts believe that 10,000 years ago, when the world had just five to ten million people, they spoke perhaps 12,000 languages between them.
Soon afterwards, many of those people started settling down to become farmers, and their languages too became more settled and fewer in number. In recent centuries, trade, industrialization, the development of the nation-state and the spread of universal compulsory education, especially globalisation and better communications in the past few decades, all have caused many languages to disappear, and dominant languages such as English, Spanish and Chinese are increasingly taking over.
At present, the world has about 6,800 languages. The distribution of these languages is hugely uneven. The general rule is that mild zones have relatively few languages. Often spoken by many people while hot, wet zones have lots, often spoken by small numbers. Europe has only around 200 Languages: the Americas about 1,000, Africa 2,400; and Asia and the Pacific perhaps 3,200, of which Papua New Guinea alone accounts for well over 800. The median number(中位数) of speakers is a mere 6，000, which means that half the worlds languages are spoken by fewer people than that.
Already well over 400 of the total of 6,800 languages are close to extinction(消亡), with only a few elderly speakers left. Pick, at random, Busuu in Cameroon (eight remaining speakers), Chiapaneco in Mexico(150). Lipan Apache in the United States(two or three) or Wadjigu in Australia (one, with a question-mark): none of these seems to have much chance of survival.
1.What can we infer about languages in hunter-gatherer times?
A.They developed very fast. B.They were large in number.
C.They had similar patters. D.They were closely connected
2.Which of the following best explains "dominant" underlined in paragraph 2？
A.Complex. B.Advanced.
C.Powerful. D.Modern.
3.How many languages are spoken by less than 6, 000 people at present?
A.About 6,800 . B.About 3,400
C.About 2,400 D.About 1,200.
4.What is the main idea of the text?
A.New languages will be created.
B.Peoples lifestyles are reflected in languages.
C.Human development results in fewer languages.
D.Geography determines language evolution.
This year’s flu season is pretty scary. To try to minimize the effects, public officials are still urging anyone who hasn’t yet gotten their flu shot to get one as soon as possible. However, even if every single person got a shot in the arm, the vaccine(疫 苗)—with its excellent 36 percent effectiveness—would not prevent everyone from getting infected with the annoying virus. Knowledge is power, so here's what goes on in your body when you come down with the flu.
The influenza virus primarily attacks your nose, throat, and the tubes that lead to your lungs. But the flu is so much more than that. Your muscles ache, your head hurts, and your appetite goes down, among other things. To our surprise, almost all of these symptoms have less to do with the virus itself than with your immune( 免 疫 的)response to them. Unfortunately, the very defense you have in place to get rid of the flu is the reason you feel so painful when you recover.
The virus usually enters through your mouth, typically by way of your hands . But it takes a few days for symptoms to set in. While this process might cause some harm to your nose and throat, it's nothing major, and nothing like the symptoms that typically accompany a bad or even mild case of the flu.
The real fun starts when your immune system begins to fight. Your immune system comes in two parts: the innate system and the adaptive. The innate immune system is essentially an all-purpose tool. As soon as your body senses the presence of any injury or invader , the innate immune system launches into action by producing tiny proteins called cytokines and chemokines. The cytokines reproduce almost immediately and start to attack the virus. This increase in immune cells creates a serious inflammation( 炎 症 ) throughout the body. But the worst is still to come.
Meanwhile, the chemokines work with the adaptive immune system to help create T cells. These cells are a special type of white blood cell that works in a much more specific way: They find the influenza virus, identify what's special about it, and create something unique on their surface that finds and destroys similar invaders.
1.What can we infer from Paragraph 1?
A.All the vaccine is not effective.
B.No one can avoid catching this year's flu.
C.This year's flu is the most serious one in recent years.
D.Public health officials have to use a gun when necessary.
2.Why many parts of your body suffer while you're recovering from a flu?
A.Because recovery from illness is painful.
B.Because your immune system is working against your defense system.
C.Because your body is fighting hard against the flu.
D.Because the influenza virus attacks your nose, throat and other parts.
3.The underlined word “fun” in Paragraph 4 can be replaced by .
A.joy B.battle
C.action D.program
4.What's the main idea of Paragraph 4?
A.The fight between innate immune system and the adaptive.
B.The categories of immune system.
C.The way immune system works.
D.The process of the development of immune system.
I always felt sorry for the people in wheelchairs. Some people, old and weak, cannot get around by themselves. Others seem perfectly healthy, dressed in business suits. But whenever I saw someone in a wheelchair, I only saw a disability, not a person.
Then I fainted(昏倒)at Euro Disney due to low blood pressure. This was the first time I had ever fainted, and my parents insisted that I rest for a while after first aid. They said to me, “Never mind!” I agreed to take it easy, but as I stepped toward the door, I saw my dad pushing a wheelchair in my direction! Feeling the color burn my cheeks, I asked him to wheel that thing right back to where he found it.
I could not believe this was happening to me. Wheelchairs were fine for other people but not for me, as my father wheeled me out into the main street, people immediately began to treat me differently.
Little kids ran in front of me, forcing my father to stop the wheelchair suddenly. I was thrown back and forth. “Stupid kids! They have perfectly good legs. Why can’t they watch where they are going?” I thought. People stared down at me, pity in their eyes. Then they would look away, maybe because they thought the sooner they forgot me the better.“I’m just like you!” I wanted to scream.” The only difference is you’ve got legs, and I have wheels.”
People in wheelchairs are not stupid. They see every look and hear each word. Looking out at the faces, I finally understood: I was once just like them. I treated people in wheelchairs exactly the way they did not want to be treated. I realized it is some of us with two healthy legs who are truly disabled.
1.The author once when she was healthy.
A.helped disabled people
B.looked down upon disabled people
C.imagined herself sitting in a wheelchair
D.saw some healthy people moving around in wheelchairs
2.The experience of the author tells us that .
A.life is the best teacher
B.people often eat their bitter fruit
C.life is so changeable that nobody can foretell
D.one should not do to others what he would not like others to do to him
3.What is the best title for this passage?
A.How to get used to wheelchairs.
B.People in wheelchairs should be treated equally.
C.People whth two lges are truly healthy.
D.The difference between healthy people and the disabled.
Personal Robot
Make your parents and teachers happy!
Are you having problems finishing your homework on time? Do you avoid tidying your room until your mom shouts at you? You don’t need to worry if you buy a Mr. Helping Hand personal robot. Mr. H can be programmed to organize your homework. Your own personal robot will follow you around, putting away books and objects that you have left on the floor or bed.
Mr. H also has these features (特点)：
• weighs only 500 grams
• includes long-lasting batteries(电池)
• comes with a 5-year guarantee
• remembers simple instructions
Originally (最初) sold for $499
NOW ONLY $ 299
WATCH CONTROL
This is a watch that James Bond would be proud to wear!
This is NOT a watch for ordinary people!
Your electronic PENGO WATCH CONTROL
• acts as a remote control for TVs and videos.
• gives you a daily weather forecast.
• reminds you when to hand in your homework.
• sets off a silent warning alarm when parents or teachers are near.
Besides, your PENGO WATCH CONTROL will always tell you the time accurately!
Originally sold for $199
NOW ONLY $ 99
For further information, click here.
1.With help from a Mr. H, you can ________.
A.stop using batteries
B.finish your homework on time
C.remember your teacher’s instructions
D.get your room tidied on your way home
2.You can get your Mr. H for ________.
A.$499 B.$299 C.$199 D.$99
3.A PENGO WATCH CONTROL can help you to ________.
A.repair your TV B.organize your homework
C.be a James Bond D.know what the weather is like
4.Where would you be most likely to find the two texts?
A.On a notice board B.In a company brochure
C.On a teenage website D.In a college newspaper
假如你是班长李华，你们班的外教 Smith 最近生病住院了,请代表你们班的同学给他写封慰问信，内容包括:
1. 表示难过； 2. 感谢他的付出； 3. 希望给他一些帮助。
注意：1. 词数:100左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Smith,
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours，
Li Hua
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。每处错误仅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。
For 65 years, Mr Li has been walk around our neighborhood twice the day. It’s a part of his daily exercise routine. He is a retiring biology teacher. As Mr Li gets older and older, he has to rest several times along his route. Therefore, he still gets up early and sticks his routine. The neighbors have noticed his stop. We place different chairs along our route and invite him to sit and took a rest. Now, the mile-long route is spotted with chairs. When we see Mr Li to go by, we realize we should also get out but have a walk.
