For more than ten years John Grimshaw has been pioneering a gentle revolution. He aims to get us going by bike on Britain’s network of disused railways. He works as an engineer for Sustrans, a Bristol-based charity.
He believes that there is no benefit or logic behind the building of bigger and faster roads that only encourage people to use cars more extravagantly(过分地). Britain’s roads being built ignore all but the motorists while miles of railway tracks no longer used by trains lie wasted.
His organization started work in 1994 with a modest five mile track from Bristol to Bath, and cyclists and walkers now make a million journeys a year on the path. Sustrans has since completed a further 150 miles throughout Britain with the help of volunteer workers.
Building such paths is not easy or cheap. Sustrans buys or leases(租借) land from British Rail and the paths can cost from 6,000 pounds up to 8, 0000 pounds per kilometer to build. Money comes from central and local government, charity bodies and gifts from individuals.
To encourage more walkers and cyclists along its paths, Sustrans plans to construct a work of art on every mile of path it builds. Most of their tracks quickly transport people from the city to the countryside. The latest route runs from the heart of Glasgow to Loch Lomond. Relics (遗迹)of the great railway age litter the routes—station houses, signals boxes and even steam trains.
Some might consider John Grimshaw a traveler from the past, out of touch with the modern world, but for many he is preparing the way for an alternative for a car-mad world.
1.The aim of Sustrans is to _________.
a. encourage people to use cars more efficiently
b. use old railway lines for leisure purposes
c. provide a cycling network across Britain
d. build better and faster roads
2.How does Sustrans finance its work?
a. with a mixture of money from the government and donations
b. with money from British Rail
c. by leasing its land
d. by using volunteer workers
3.Which of the following is TRUE?
a. Sustrans will not build any more tracks after Glasgow to Loch Lomond
b. Sustrans will have to clear the track of relics
c. Sustrans makes the countryside more accessible to the public
d. Sustrans believes more drivers will use their tracks.
Directions: For each blank in the following passages there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with the word or phrase that best fits the context.
People born in the autumn live longer than those born in the spring and are less likely to fall chronically(经常) ill when they are older, according to an Austrian scientist. Using census(人口统计) data for more than one million people in Austria, Denmark and Australia, ____52____ at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research in the northern German town of Rostock found the month of birth was ___53____ to life expectancy over the age of 50. ____54____ differences in what mothers ate during pregnancy, and ___55____ occurring at different times of the year could both have an ___56____ on the health of a new-born baby and could ___57____ its life expectancy in older age. "A mother giving birth in spring spends the __58____ phase (阶段)of her pregnancy in winter, when she will eat less vitamins than in summer," said Gabriele Doblhammer, one of a team of scientists who ___59____ the research. "When she stops breast-feeding and starts giving her baby ___60___ food, it’s in the hot weeks of summer when babies are likely to be exposed to infections of the digestive system." In Austria, adults born in autumn (October-December) lived about seven months __61___ than those born in spring (April-June), and in Denmark adults with birthdays in autumn outlived those born in spring by about four months. In the southern hemisphere, the picture was __62____. Adults born in the Australian autumn - the European ___63___ - lived about four months longer than those born in the Australian spring. The study ___64___ people born at the beginning of the 20th century, using death certificates and census data. Although ___65___ at all times of the year has improved since then, the seasonal pattern ___66___, Doblhammer said.
52. a. scientists b. doctors c. readers d. who
53. a. familiar b. used c. related d. devoted
54. a. Seasonal b. Physical c. Mental d. Occasional
55. a. accidents b. infections c. ideas d. nutrition
56. a. efficiency b. result c. cause d. impact
57. a. shorten b. lengthen c. harm d. influence
58. a. first b. last c. middle d. initial
59. a. broke through b. led to c. carried out d. insisted on
60. a. normal b. fast c. general d. sea
61. a. shorter b. longer c. younger d. healthier
62. a. similar b. different c. contrary d. opposite
63. a. spring b. summer c. autumn d. winter
64. a. depended on b. investigated into c. called for d. focused on
65. a. food b. situation c. living conditions d. nutrition
66. a. changes b. improves c. persists d. declines
Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.
|
a. selection b. professional c. Eventually d. added e. generation ae. financial ad. Especially ac. experiencing ab. choosing bc. switch |
One-quarter of today’s student population are suffering from symptoms of depression. Of that group, almost half will experience depression intense enough to call for __43___ help. But many reject that idea, because they don’t want people to think there is something wrong with them.
There are three reasons why today’s college students are suffering more than in earlier ____44___. First is a weaker family support structure. Today, with high divorce rates and many parents __45___ their own psychological difficulties, the traditional family is not always available for help.
Another problem is __46_____ pressure. In the past ten years education costs have risen about 66 percent at public colleges and 90 percent at private schools. __47_____, most students must work part-time.
A final cause of students’ depression is the large __48_____ of majors available. Because of the difficulty of ___49___ a major, college can prove a time of great indecision. Many students ___50____ majors. As a result, it is becoming common for them to take five or six years to get a degree. It can be disappointing to students to be faced with the __51____ costs.
He was proud of being chosen to participate in the game and he ______ us that he would try as hard as possible.
a. insured b. ensured c. assumed d. assured
On the pop chart, Norah Jones' "Come Away With Me" is still at No. 5, really surprising for a CD that was _____ two years ago.
a. related b. relieved c. released d. relaxed
Any passenger who has booked the plane ticket must _____ it three days before the departure date.
a. claim b. confirm c. declare d. replace
