Many people like the feeling of the gentle wind in spring. Many like to see the falling leaves dancing in the wind in autumn. But sometimes, when the wind becomes a storm, it can be very destructive (毁灭性的).
A series of such storms struck the US last month and caused very serious damage and human pain.
Every year, major storms cause many problems around the world. There is nothing people can do to stop these powerful forces of nature. But new techniques are helping scientists to predict how, when, and where big storms will happen. The more exact scientists’ warnings are, the better people can prepare for the storms.
Predictions are improving. “We’ve gotten better over the years, especially the last few years,” says Phil Klotzback, a scientist at an American university. How is a storm formed? Even if scientists know where a storm will happen, winds can suddenly change, carrying the storm to a new direction. “For a hurricane to happen, conditions have to be just right,” Klotzback says.
First, the ocean water needs to be warm enough so that it evaporates and rises into the air. As it rises, the air containing drops of water cools and turns back into liquid. This process gives off heat. This produces energy like an engine that causes winds to increase. It drives the formation of a hurricane.
If wind speeds reach 40 miles per hour, the system is called a “ tropical storm”, and it gets a name. At 75 miles per hour, it becomes a hurricane. Hurricanes that hit the US start when a thunderstorm forms off the coast Africa. Storms also develop over tropical waters in other parts of the world.
On average, 60 or 70 storms form off Africa every year. About 10 of them get names. There are usually about six hurricanes. Two tend to be very big, with winds of 115 miles per hour or a bit higher.
The hurricane season lasts from June to November. Ninety percent of all hurricanes hit in August, September and October.
1.According to the text, hurricanes usually ________.
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A．form off the coast of Africa and America |
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B．hit parts of the world in summer and autumn |
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C．cause sea winds to rise and blow over the sea |
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D．strike the US but cause no damage |
2. The underlined word “evaporates” (in Paragraph 5) probably means “________”
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A．begins to move |
B．gets lost |
C．becomes hot |
D．changes into a gas |
3.Which of the following about the information of a hurricane is the correct order?
a. The ocean water evaporates and goes into the air.
b. Heat creates energy and causes winds to increase.
c. The vapor cools.
d. The ocean water is warm enough.
e. The vapor changes back into liquid.
f. This course gives out heat.
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A．a, d, e, b, c, f |
B．a, b, c, f, d, e |
C．d, a, c, e, f, b |
D．d, a, b, c, e, f |
(NEW YORK) A French tourist highly praised for rescuing a two-year-old girl in Manhattan said he didn’t think twice before diving into the freezing East River.
Tuesday’s Daily News said 29-year-old Julien Duret from France was the man who left the spot quickly after the rescue last Saturday.
He lifted the little girl out of the water after she fell off the bank at the South Street Seaport museum. He handed the girl to her father, David Anderson, who had dived in after him.
“I didn’t think at all,” Duret told the Daily News. “It happened very fast. I reacted very fast.”
Duret, an engineer on vacation, was walking with his girlfriend along the pier(码头) when he saw something falling into the water. He thought it was a doll, but realized it was a child when he approached the river. In an instant, he took off his coat and jumped into the water.
When he reached the girl, she appeared lifeless, he said. Fortunately, when she was out of the water, she opened her eyes.
Anderson said his daughter slipped off the bank when he was adjusting his camera. An ambulance came later for her, said Duret, who was handed dry clothes from onlookers. Duret caught a taxi with his girlfriend shortly after.
The rescue happened on the day before he left for France. Duret said he didn’t realize his story of heroism had greatly moved New York until he was leaving the city the next morning.
“I don’t really think I’m a hero,” said Duret. “Anyone would do the same thing.”
1.Why was Duret in New York?
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A．To meet his girlfriend. |
B．To spend his holiday. |
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C．To work as an engineer. |
D．To visit the Andersons. |
2.What did Duret do shortly after the ambulance came?
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A．He was interviewed by a newspaper. |
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B．He went to the hospital in the ambulance. |
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C．He disappeared from the spot quickly. |
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D．He asked his girlfriend for his dry clothes. |
3. Who dived after Duret into the river to save the little girl?
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A．David Anderson |
B．A passer-by |
C．His girlfriend |
D．A taxi driver |
4.What is probably the headline of this news report ?
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A．A Careless Father |
B．A Poor Girl |
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C．Warm-hearted Onlookers |
D．Brave Frenchman Found |
The market is a concept. If you are growing tomatoes in your backyard for sale you are producing for the market. You might sell some to your neighbor and some to the local manager of the supermarket. But in either case, you are producing for the market. Your efforts are being directed by the market. If people stop buying tomatoes, you will stop producing them.
If you take care of a sick person to earn money, you are producing for the market. If your father is a steel worker or a truck driver or a doctor or a grocer, he is producing goods or service for the market.
When you spend your income, you are buying things from the market. You may spend money in stores, supermarkets, gas stations and restaurants. Still you are buying from the market. When the local grocer hires you to drive the delivery truck, he is buying your labor in the labor market.
The market may be something abstract (抽象的). But for each person or business that is making and selling something, it is very concrete. If nobody buys your tomatoes, it won’t be long before you get the message. The market is telling you something. It is telling you that you are using energies and resources in doing something the market doesn’t want you to do.
1. Which of the following would be the best title of the passage?
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A．Selling and Buying. |
B．Everything you do is producing for the market. |
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C．What is the market? |
D．What the market can do for you. |
2.All of the following acts are producing for the market except________.
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A．working in a bank |
B．attending a night school |
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C．driving a taxi |
D．growing beans for sale |
3.You are buying from the market when you________.
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A．borrow a book from the library |
B．drive to the seaside for a holiday |
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C．look after your children |
D．dine at restaurant |
4.The word “concrete” in the last paragraph may most probably mean________.
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A．serious |
B．important |
C．necessary |
D．real |
The 92-year-old, thin, calm and proud lady, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o’clock, even though she is nearly blind, moved to a nursing home today.
Her husband of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. After many hours of waiting patiently in the hall of the nursing home, she smiled sweetly when told her room was ready.
As she walked slowly to the elevator, I provided a true description of her tiny room, including the old sheets that had been hung on her window. “I love it,” she said with the happiness of an eight-year-old having just been presented with a new puppy.
“Mrs. Jones, you haven’t seen the room…just wait.”
“That doesn’t matter,” she replied. “Happiness is something you decide ahead of time. Whether I like my room or not doesn’t depend on how the furniture is arranged. It’s how I arranged my mind. I have already decided to love it. It’s a decision I make every morning when I wake up. Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I’ll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I’ve stored away.” She went on to explain, “Old age is like a bank account. You take what you’ve put in. So, my advice to you would be to put in a lot of happiness in the bank account of memories. Thank you for your part in filling my memory bank.” And with a smile, she said, “All my memories are happy ones.”
Mrs. Jones was always happy in the nursing home and she died at the age of 108.
1.We can infer from the passage that the author________.
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A．is one of Mrs. Jones’ children |
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B．is a relative of Mrs. Jones |
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C．works in the nursing home |
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D．is the owner of the nursing home |
2.The room in which the old lady will live________.
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A．is very comfortable |
B．is fairly big |
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C．isn’t well equipped |
D．is equipped with new furniture |
3.Mrs. Jones was very happy when told about her room because she________.
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A．couldn’t see what her room was like |
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B．thought the nursing home was her home |
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C．would have to live in the nursing home |
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D．had already made up her mind to be happy |
4. Which of the following words can best describe Mrs. Jones?
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A．Proud. |
B．Pleasant. |
C．Determined |
D．Honest |
After my 26 second-graders finished reciting the text, they settled back in their seats. But Duane was still __21__ there. Duane was a bright and lovable student, __22__ his mother, a single parent, had many problems such as drinking. __23__ that he might have had a bad night, I walked over to him to see what was wrong. As he looked up, I could see the __24__ in his dark eyes.
“Mrs. Brown, aren’t you going to open my present for you?” he asked __25__. “I put it on your desk.”
Getting back his gift from my desk, he handed it to me. I noticed my gift __26__ to be a matchbox. Duane told me that this was really a jewelry box __27__ a matchbox. As I opened it, the __28__ of two beer caps surprised me. Duane __29__ me that they were two earrings. He had noticed that I __30__ wore earrings and wanted me to have some pretty ones.
I was __31__ by Duane’s creativity and thoughtfulness. __32__ birth, one of my ears was slightly deformed (畸形的). Fearing that wearing earrings might __33__ to the ear, I avoided wearing them. But how could I __34__ to wear these precious earrings given by this __35__ child?
As I placed the earrings on my ears, my __36__ clapped, and Duane stood proudly beside me.
Since then, the matchbox remained on my desk. It __37__ me of Duane’s act of kindness and of the lessons he taught me. Although his __38__ at home was bad, Duane continued to see the good in life. Although poor, he still wanted to __39__. Whenever I see Duane’s gift on my desk, I feel encouraged. If I am having __40__ reaching a student, I’ll try to be like Duane and give that student a piece of my heart.
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— Are you getting a new apartment this year?
—________ I can’t afford to pay my bills. How can I buy a new apartment?
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A．Don’t mention it. |
B．You must be joking. |
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C．Are you sure? |
D．Good idea! |
