Experts have put forward detailed plans for a tunnel (隧道) to join Taiwan with the Chinese mainland.
The shortest proposed(建议) route would be 126 kilometers-more than twice the length of the English Channel Tunnel. And the longest proposed route would be 207 kilometers.
A recent conference in Xiamen, Fujian Province brought together more than 70 experts. The event was co-sponsored (共同发展) by universities from Taiwan and the Chinese mainland. Fujian is the province where both proposed routes would begin.
There is no direct passenger access between the mainland and Taiwan by air or sea at the moment. Experts say that it is better to start research sooner rather than later, although there is a lack of government funding. There are no technical problems to build a Taiwan tunnel. But it will require an improved political relationship across the Straits.
A professor of Tsinghua university said, “A special feature of huge projects is that the period of preparation is longer than the period of construction.”
For example, he said, the English Channel Tunnel took 14 years of planning and had been discussed for two centuries. And preparations for the huge Three Gorges dam on the Yangtze River began in the 1950s.
The Xiamen conference focused on the longest southern route, which would use the Taiwan-controlled islands of Jinmen and Penghu as stepping stones.
The first stage of the new project could be a bridge to cross the five kilometers between Xiamen and Jinmen. This would mean that travelling from Xiamen to Jinmen by car would only take five minutes.
The longest tunnel now being planned anywhere in the world is the 54-kilometer Land tunnel to link Lyon in France with Turin in Italy. The tunnel will not be completed until 2015-2020.
1.Which is the longest tunnel in the world at present?
A．The English Channel Tunnel. B．The tunnel between Lyon and Turin.
C．The Taiwan Straits tunnel. D．The passage doesn't mention it.
2.The example of English Channel Tunnel shows _______.
A．it’s not easy to complete a huge project
B．there are many problems to be solved before doing something
C．discussions among countries usually take a lot of time
D．the preparation takes longer time than the construction
3.Which of the following is NOT true?
A．Universities both at home and abroad have sponsored (赞助) the plan.
B．If the project is completed, the world's longest tunnel will appear.
C．You can’t reach Taiwan from the mainland directly at present.
D．The starting point of the proposed tunnel is in Fujian.
4.What is the possible difficulty in carrying out the plan?
A．The lack of money for the project from the government.
B．Improving the relationship between Taiwan and the mainland.
C．The detailed plans for the tunnel.
D．The technical problems with the tunnel.
Dr Wiseman started “the laugh lab” project in September 2001. It is the largest study of humour. Participants are invited to log on to the laugh lab website, give a few personal details , tell their favorite jokes and judge the jokes told by other people.
The project will last for a year, and the organizers hope to finally discover the world’s funniest joke. But there is also a serious purpose, the researches want to know what people from different nations and cultures find funny. And they want to find out the differences between the male and female sense of humor. The idea is that if we want to understand each other, we have to find out what makes us laugh.
This is a subject that has long interested psychologists and philosophers. Most of the time, people are not completely honest. We do things that society expects us to and say things that help us get what we want. But laughing cannot be controlled. When we laugh, we tell the truth about ourselves.
By December 2001 over 10,000 jokes had been submitted(提交). This gave the scientists enough evidence to make early conclusions. It seems that men and women do have different senses of humor, for instance.
“Our findings show the major differences in the ways in which males and females use humor,” said Dr Wiseman. “Males use humor to appear superior(优越的) to others, while women are more skilled in languages and prefer word play.”
Researchers also found that there really is such a thing as a national sense of humor. The British enjoy what is usually called “toilet humor”. But the French like their jokes short and sharp: “You’re a high priced lawyer. Will you answer two questions for $500?” “Yes. What’s the second question?”
The Germans are famous for not having a sense of humor. But the survey found that German participants were more likely to find submitted jokes funny than any other nationality. Perhaps that proves the point. Is this joke funny? I don’t know, but let’s say yes, just to be safe.
Dr Wiseman and his workmates also submitted jokes created by computer. But none of those who took part in the survey found any of them amusing. Perhaps this is relief. Computers already seem like they can do everything. At least they should leave the funny stuff to us.
1.Scientist started “the laugh lab” project ____________
A．to find the funniest joke in European countries
B．to know what funny people are from different nations and cultures
C．to find out the differences between the male and female sense of humor
D．to get more personal details about participants
2.What is the main idea of the 4 th and 5 th paragraph?
A．Man and woman have different senses of humour.
B．Male and female have similar senses of humour.
C．About 10,000 jokes have been submitted from September 2001 to December 2001.
D．Scientists have collected enough evidence to make conclusions.
3.The writer gave the examples of the British, the French and the Germans .
A．to show that French people have a better sense of humour
B．to prove the British people have a sense of “toilet humour”
C．to show people from different nations have different senses of humour
D．to prove that the Germans have no sense of humour
4.Which statement is TRUE according to the passage?
A．The jokes by computer are less funny than those by humans
B．The Germans cannot find the submitted jokes amusing
C．Males are better at word play compared with women
D．Females like to use humor to show that they are superior
They stood outside the door – two children in shabby outgrown coats.
“Any old papers, lady?”
I was busy, I wanted to say no until I saw the snow on their clothes. And their little sandals (凉鞋) were also covered with snow.
“Come in and I’ll make you a cup of hot cocoa.”
There was no conversation. Their wet sandals left marks upon the floor. I served them cocoa and toast with jam to strengthen them against the cold outside. Then I went back to the kitchen and started again on my household.
The silence in the front room got me to look inside. The girl held the empty cup in her hands, looking at it. The boy asked in a flat voice, “Lady, are you rich?”
“Am I rich? Mercy, no! ”
I looked at my shabby sofa. The girl put her cup back in its saucer carefully.
“Your cups match your saucers, she said.”
They left then, holding their bundles of papers against the wind. They hadn’t said thank you. They didn’t need to. They had done more than that. Plain blue cups and saucers. But they matched.
I tasted the potatoes and looked at the meat. Potatoes and meat, the roof over my head, my man with a good steady job – these things matched, too.
I moved the chairs back from the fire and tidied the living room. The muddy prints of small sandals were still wet upon my floor. I let them be. I wanted them there in case I ever forget again how very rich I am.
1.Why did the author let the two children in?
A．To offer them some warm clothes
B．To serve them some cocoa and food
C．To sell them some old paper
D．To show off her matched cups and saucers
2.What can be seen from the passage is that .
A．the author was very rich and unkind
B．the children took away the cups and saucers
C．the author’s husband had a steady job
D．the two children were looking for jobs.
3.It can be inferred from the passage that .
A．it was snowing outside when the story happened
B．the two children put some money on the table before leaving.
C．the two children had never seen a matched cup and saucer.
D．the author gave the cups and saucers to the two children
4.The best title of the story would be “ .”
A．Any Old Papers, Lady? B．Lady, Are You Rich?
C．Two Matched Cups and Saucers D．A Rich Lady and Two Children
Every year on my birthday, from the time I turned twelve, a white gardenia (栀子花) was delivered to my house. No card or note came with it. 1to the flower shop were always useless – it was a cash 2. After a while I stopped trying to 3who the sender was and just delighted in the beauty and perfume of the white flower. But I never 4imagining who the sender might be. Some of my 5moments were spent daydreaming about it.
My mother asked me whether there was someone for whom I had done a(n) 6kindness who might be showing 7. Perhaps the neighbor I helped when she was 8a car full of groceries. Or maybe it was the old man 9the street whose mail I helped to get during the 10so he wouldn’t have to venture down his icy step. 11a teenager, though, I had more fun guessing that it might be a 12who had noticed me 13I didn’t know him.
One month before my high school graduation, my father died of a heart attack. He was 14some of the most important events in my life. I became completely 15in my upcoming graduation and the dance. When my father died, I 16the dance and the dress for it. The next day before the dance, I found a dress on the sofa. I didn’t 17if I had a new dress or not, but my mother did.
She wanted her children to feel 18and lovable, imaginative, believing that there was a magic in the world and 19in the face of hard times. Actually mother wanted her children to see themselves much like the gardenia-loveable, 20and perfect. The gardenia stopped coming when my mother died.
1.A．Calls B．Quarrels C．Messages D．Letters
2.A．service B．deal C．bargain D．offer
3.A．recognize B．imagine C．wonder D．discover
4.A．failed B．stopped C．succeeded D．enjoyed
5.A．saddest B．painful C．happiest D．loneliest
6.A．special B．common C．valuable D．important
7.A．concern B．attitude C．interest D．appreciation
8.A．repairing B．washing C．unloading D．starting
9.A．across B．through C．from D．onto
10.A．spring B．summer C．autumn D．winter
11.A．As B．Like C．Be D．With
12.A．friend B．superman C．teacher D．boy
13.A．as if B．even though C．in case D．so that
14.A．considering B．expecting C．missing D．preparing
15.A．disappointed B．uninterested C．discouraged D．concentrated
16.A．forgot B．lost C．hated D．expected
17.A．wonder B．believe C．care D．know
18.A．contented B．respected C．thanked D．loved
19.A．trouble B．beauty C．difficulty D．love
20.A．strong B．beautiful C．smelly D．lucky
--- Haven you written these letters?
--- No, time to do any other work yet.
A．hardly I have had B．hardly have I had
C．I have had hardly D．I hardly have had
into account, the bachelor decided to accept the job.
A．Taking everything B．Everything taking
C．With everything taking D．While everything was taken
