The earth is getting warmer. The planet is suffering. But what can you do about it? Reduce the amount of waste you generate. Use cleaner energy sources and go greener today, starting with these steps:
.1. Get a reusable water bottle
Americans buy about 25 billion single-serving plastic water bottles each year. That's an average of 83 bottles per person per year. Plastic bottles take plenty of resources to produce, including fuel for transportation and petroleum to make the plastic. Even recycling bottles uses energy.
.2. Eat less meat
You don't need to become a vegetarian to help save the planet. Eating meat just one day less a week can reduce your negative impact on the environment. More water, energy and land are required to produce meat than to produce grain.
.3. Switch to energy-efficient light bulbs
Most households use standard incandescent (白炽的) bulbs. But compact fluorescent (荧光的) light bulbs, or CFLs, use 66 percent less energy than standard bulbs, produce just as much light, last up to 10 times longer and don't need to be replaced as often. If every household in the United States replaced just one incandescent light bulb with a CFL bulb, it would equal removing one million cars from the road.
.4. Buy organic and local food
Did you know that only 1 percent of pesticides (杀虫剂) applied to crops reach the pests they target? The rest enter the environment. Organic food is grown without the use of pesticides. Organic farming can use 50 percent less energy than traditional farming methods. Buying local food saves on the fuel used to transport food grown elsewhere, thousands of miles across the country or around the world.
.5. Recycle your electronics
Everyone knows the importance of recycling glass and plastic, but what about cell phones, computers, CDs and batteries? Electronics are responsible for about 40 percent of toxic (有毒的) heavy metals such as lead and mercury. Check with your city's recycling facilities to see if they take electronics.
1.The readers of this passage are called on to ______.
A. help reduce global warming B. use water in a wise way C. donate money for charity D. keep a balanced diet
2.What is an advantage of CFLs according to the passage?
A. They use more energy but produce more light. B. They can last longer so don't need to be replaced often. C. They cost less than standard incandescent bulbs. D. They are as energy-efficient as incandescent bulbs.
3.Which of the following figures is correct according to the passage?
A. Every year an American buys 63 plastic water bottles on average. B. Eating meat one day less a week helps cut environment costs. C. 99 of the pesticides used on crops is effective in practice. D. Electronics account for half of poisonous heavy metals on the earth.
4.Which can be the best title for this passage?
A. Why is the earth getting warmer? B. What can we do about pollution? C. How can you lead a greener life? D. Who is to blame for global warming?
A curriculum vitae (CV) provides an overview of a person's life and qualifications. You know that you're a star but without a knock-out CV, no-one else will believe you. Here's how to impress and write yourself into a better job.
First, be concise (简洁的). "It's not War and Peace." says Steven Kirkpatrick, the managing director of Adecco Staffing. Recruiters (考官) who have to plough through hundreds of CVs don't enjoy flowery long articles. Use active verbs and ensure that every sentence counts.
Second, tell the truth. "The most important thing is not to lie," Kirkpatrick says. "People decorate their CV by adding things to make themselves more attractive," he says, only to embarrass themselves later. "If your first impression is a lie, it's not a great basis for moving forward."
Then, focus on your skills. A CV is a selling tool and how you break down what you have learnt and what you can do is me most important. "It's OK to simplify job titles to make them clearer," Sharman says. "Just outline your achievements and experience to back that up, and say more about your recent roles."
Also, personalize it. "There's nothing as bad as getting an automatically created CV from a website," Kirkpatrick says. "What they are buying is you, so sell them you. It's always nice to have personal information that makes you a human being," Sharman says. But do try to stand out from the crowd.
Finished? So you've written the perfect CV. That's the job half done. Last but not least, check out how to write the perfect covering letter.
1.For what purpose does the author write this passage?
A. To teach readers how to behave in job interviews. B. To tell readers how to improve their writing skills. C. To instruct readers on how to apply for a job. D. To advise readers on how to write a CV.
2.What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 2 probably mean?
A. It doesn't have to be too long. B. It should be true. C. It needs to be fun to read. D. It ought to be polite.
3.Which of the following would the author recommend?
A. Tell lies about your education and experience. B. Focus on what work you are able to do. C. Download sample CVs from websites. D. Provide a nice photo of yourself.
4.How many tips are given in this passage?
A. Five. B. Four. C. Three. D. Two.
Sitting in a dark movie theater with your friends. and a tub of popcorn (H^) sounds like a perfect way to spend a Saturday night, and it could be, if you are willing to share your popcorn with the entire row of moviegoers around you.
A review of movie-theater popcorn reveals an alarming amount of fat, salt and calories in even the smallest sizes. A large tub of popcorn at Regal Cinemas, for example, holds 20 cups of popcorn and has 1,200 calories, 980 milligrams of sodium (钠) and 60 grams of saturated (饱和的) fat. Adding just a tablespoon of butter adds 130 calories. And do not forget that it comes with free refills.
Not so hungry? The medium size popcorn, even the small, at 11 cups, delivers 670 calories, 550 milligrams of sodium .and 24 grams of saturated fat. The findings may surprise those who believe it is a relatively healthy snack. In fact, plain air-popped popcorn is low in calories and free of saturated fat. Movie theater popcorn, however, is popped in oil, often coconut oil, which is 90 percent saturated fat. Add salt to it, and your once-healthy snack turns into a health offender.
One way to make your popcorn healthier? Ask the theater to pop the corn without salt. The best way to make your movie snack healthier, however, would be to skip the popcorn.
"You could share a tub of popcorn with 10 friends," Dr. Nestle, a professor of nutrition at New York University, said. "Or, what a concept, watch the movie without eating anything."
1.The review finds that movie theatre popcorn may contain all the following EXCEPT ______.
A. butter B. sodium C. saturated fat D. pepper
2.What does the author think of popcorn prepared in coconut oil?
A. It is a healthy snack. B. It does harm to our health. C. It looks like a perfect choice. D. It is very nutritious.
3.Which kind of popcorn causes the least health concern?
A. Movie theatre popcorn. B. Popcorn sold at Regal Cinemas. C. Large size popcorn. D. Plain air-popped popcorn.
4.What is Dr. Nestle's suggestion to moviegoers?
A. Avoid eating popcorn. B. Share popcorn with friends. C. Not eating anything in the movie theatre. D. Try eating other kind of food.
On the last day of his life, my dog Otto spent that morning of spring napping in the garden. This was always one of his favorite things to do, even before the days when he was too old and too weak to get out of a car by himself.
I probably would have started crying over Otto right then, if my two other little dogs hadn't suddenly raced past. Larry, who was a puppy, got knocked into Otto, then licked Otto's ear, and that got Otto excited, and Otto barked and tried to stand up again, but it was hard for him.
Soon it was time for me to drive to see Steve, our vet.
When Steve gave Otto the first shot, it made him woozy (眩晕的). Otto wandered over to where Steve and I were sitting and settled down between us. He has always liked to touch everyone in his pack, if possible, while he sleeps.
After Steve gave him the last shot and Otto stopped breathing, he didn't look like Otto anymore. He looked like an old gray-brown piece of beat-up carpet, and I suddenly realized what bad shape he'd been in for a long, long time. I wondered if he'd been in much more pain than I knew. Wondering made me feel even worse.
The week after Otto died was not good. Every morning when I walked Larry and Sticky in the neighborhood, somebody would come up and say they had heard about Otto and they were sorry. They were all Otto's friends and some of them cried. Others, like Debbie who lives on my street, reminded me about how, even at the end. Otto would stand between her twins' stroller (婴儿车) and the street when the garbage truck went by. "Like it was his job to protect them," she marveled.
Otto has left us, but his memory lives on.
1.How did the author feel when Otto was napping in the garden?
A. She felt like crying. B. She thought life was beautiful. C. She found spring was wonderful. D. She was relieved.
2.According to the passage, how did the dog die?
A. He had an accident on the street. B. He died naturally. C. He was made to die by a vet. D. He starved.
3.What can we know about Otto?
A. He was already too old to bark. B. He liked people to keep him company. C. He died a very painful death. D. He was protected by the neighbours.
4.We can see from the passage that Sticky is a ______.
A. cat B. dog C. child D. neighbour
Mr. Brozina is a single father and an elementary school librarian who reads aloud for a living. When his daughter, Kristen, hit fourth grade, he proposed The Streak: to see if they could read together for 100 straight bedtimes without missing once.
When The Streak reached 100, they celebrated with a pancake breakfast, and Kristen whispered, "I think we should try for 1,000 nights."
Mr. Brozina was delighted, but what he was thinking was, a thousand nights?! "I thought, we'll never do it," he recalled. "And then we got to 1,000, and we said, 'How can we stop?' "
For 3,218 nights (and some mornings, if Mr. Brozina was coming home too late to read). The Streak went on. It progressed from picture books to middle-school classics to Harry Potter, Agatha Christie, Dickens and Shakespeare, continuing on, until Kristen's first day of college.
In those nine-plus years, they survived many close calls. When Kristen was still in elementary school, her father went to Washington. "The phone rang at 10:45 at the hotel and it was Kristen," Mr. Brozina recalled. "She said, 'Dad, we forgot The Streak!' Fortunately, I always traveled with several books and we read right then and there."
This spring, Kristen graduated from Rowan' University. She has performed as you'd expect for a product of The Streak, an English major with a 3.94 average. She also won two national writing contests, was an editor of the humor arid literary publications and won the annual English department award.
1.According to the passage, Mr. Brozina and his daughter read together for .
A. 100 bedtimes B. 1000 nights C. over nine years D. nearly 3000 nights and some mornings
2.In the passage, the underlined phrase in Paragraph 1 probably means _____.
A. the period of time for reading together B. me children's book C. the special night C. the school work
3.How has Kristen benefited from reading with her father?
A. She has grown closer to her father. B. She has become a school librarian herself. C. She has performed well at university. D. She has won many reading awards.
4.This passage is about a father who _____.
A. is very strict in his work B. enjoys reading when travelling C. makes his daughter love reading D. has a hard time bringing up his daughter
阅读下面短文，从短文所给各题的四个选项（A, B, C, D）中选能填入相应空白处的最佳选项。
In 1991, 1 spent five months in Niger. There were many things I found difficult about this place—the climate and beggars were my biggest complaints. One day, a friend and I 1for neighbouring Burkina Faso to work in a health clinic. Arriving by taxi at our 2in Burkina, we began to 3. I had a large backpack and a smaller daypack. With my daypack between my legs, I reached for my larger piece of 4. Out of the darkness, a motorbike with two men 5slowly Without warning, one of the men grabbed my daypack 6the motorbike swept close by. Within seconds, the two were out of sight, 7up by the night. The bag had everything 8to me, my passport, money and an airline ticket. I was in deep trouble. All I wanted was to leave this hell.
Then, walking through Burkina's streets the following week, I was 9rudely by an old woman who stretched her hand in my face. "Cadeau (gift)! Cadeau!" she 10in French.
I'd had enough. I was sick and 11of the country. I told her 12in French, "I have no 'cadeau'. I have no money A thief stole all my money a week ago and now I can't 13your country. I cannot give you anything."
The beggar woman listened 14and thought about my words. "Then I will give you a cadeau," she announced and 15into the folds of her dress. Kindly, she placed an old, dark brown coin in my 16. I looked at it in 17. It was an extremely small amount of money—but for this woman, the coin 18a meal. At that moment, I saw the beauty of the 19of Burkina Faso, and appreciated the kindness of me 20.
1.A. went B. headed C. served D. worked
2.A. destination B. spot C. goal D. station
3.A. rest B. dine C. load D. unload
4.A. equipment B. furniture C. luggage D. medicine
5.A. rode B. drove C. approached D. left
6.A. because B. as C. until D. after
7.A. taken B. brought C. turned D. swallowed
8.A. memorable B. important C. beautiful D. wonderful
9.A. cheated B. charged C. stopped D. questioned
10.A. cried B. whispered C. threatened D. demanded
11.A. fond B. proud C. aware D. tired
12.A. pleasantly B. firmly C. actively D. bravely
13.A. get rid of B. take advantage of C. get out of D. take notice of
14.A. attentively B. anxiously C. curiously D. coldly
15.A. reached B. pulled C. looked D. came
16.A. pocket B. bag C. dress D. palm
17.A. fright B. disappointment C. shock D. satisfaction
18.A. bought B. meant C. ordered D. prepared
19.A. country B. society C. nature D. people
20.A. foreign B. poor C .rich D. female
