Imagine, one day, getting out of bed in Beijing and being at your office in Shanghai in only a couple of hours, and then, after a full day of work, going back home to Beijing and having dinner there．
Sounds unusual, doesn't it? But it's not that unrealistic, with the development of China’s high-speed railway system. And that’s not all. China has an even greater high-speed railway plan to connect the country with Southeast Asia, and eventually Eastern Europe．
China is negotiating(谈判) to extend its own high-speed railway network to up to 17 countries in 1 0 to 15 years, eventually reaching London and Singapore．
China has proposed three such projects. The first would possibly connect Kunming with Singapore via Vietnam and Malaysia. Another could start in Urumqi and go through Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, and possibly to Germany. The third would start in the northeast and go north through Russia and then into Western Europe．
If China’s plan for the high-speed railway goes forward, people could zip over from London to Beijing in under two days．The new system would still follow China’s high-speed railway standard. And the trains would be able to go 346 kilometers an hour, almost as fast as some airplanes．
China’s bullet train(高速列车), the one connecting Wuhan to Guangzhou, already has the World’s fastest average speed. It covers 1,069 kilometers in about three hours．
Of course, there are some technical challenges to overcome. There are so many issues that need to be settled, such as safety, rail gauge(轨距), maintenance(保养) of railway tracks. So, it’s important to pay attention to every detail. But the key issue is really money. China is already spending hundreds of billions of yuan on domestic railway expansion．
China prefers that the other countries pay in natural resources rather than with capital（资本的）investment. Resources from those countries could stream into China to sustain development．
It’ll be a win-win project. For other countries, the railway network will definitely create more opportunities for business, tourism and so on, not to mention the better communication among those countries．
For China，such a project would not only connect it with the rest of Asia and bring some much-needed resources, but would also help develop China’s far west．We foresee that in the coming decades, millions of people will migrate to the western regions，where the land is empty and resources unused. With high-speed trains, people will set up factories and business centers in the west once and for all. And they’ll trade with Central Asian and Eastern European countries．
1. China’s new high-speed railway plan will be a win-win project because ．
A. China will get much-needed resources and develop its western regions
B. China and the countries involved will benefit from the project in various ways
C. China will develop its railway system and communication with other countries
D. the foreign countries involved will develop their railway transportation, business and tourism
2. According to the passage，the greatest challenge to the new high-speed railway plan is ．
A. technical issues B. safety of the system
C. financial problems D. maintenance of railway tracks
3.Which of the following words best describes the author’s attitude
towards China’s high-speed railway plan?
A. Critical． B. Reserved． C. Doubtful D. Positive．
4.Which of the following might be the best title for the passage?
A. New Railway Standards B. Big Railway Dreams
C. High-speed Bullet Trains D. International Railway Network
Mauritius, with its full name the Republic of Mauritius, an island country, lies 1,200 miles off the southeastern coast of Africa, and just east of Madagascar, another African island country, which is larger by far than Mauritius. It covers 788 square miles and has a population of 1,100,000, about 750,000 Indians, 300,000 Chinese and 20,000 Whites included. They are living together peacefully, although they share such different beliefs as Hindu, Roman Catholic, Muslim and so on.
The country can be divided into many parts with different climates all because of its peculiar terrains (地形). In the center there are volcanoes several thousand feet high, and 90% of its arable land is covered with sugarcane.
There were no people living on the island before the Dutch landed on it in 1638. The Dutch abandoned it in 1710, and five years later, the French came and succeeded in planting sugarcane there. It was conquered by Britain in 1818. As a result, its official language is English. The main big cities are Beau-Bassin and Mahebourg, with Port Louis as its capital.
Mauritius has many rare and unique animals, such as the snakes, parrots and lizards. The giraffe is a type of animal with a very long neck and legs and yellow skin with dark spots. It is the tallest of all living animals.
Mauritius was extremely poor when it declared its independence in 1968. In the past ten years, obvious economic prosperity(繁荣) has shown itself in this island country. Nowadays its business, culture and tourism are developing rapidly. Every year, thousands of millions of people rush there to enjoy the silver sand beach and song and dance performances with native national characteristics.
1. The underlined word “abandoned” in the third paragraph means ___________.
A. took its place B. gave it up
C. left for it D. held it out
2.The right order that shows the history of Mauritius should be ___________.
a. seized by the French b. became its master
c. ruled by the Dutch d. conquered by the British
A. b, a, c, d B. a, c, d, b
C. d, c, a, b D. c, a, d, b
3. According to the passage all of the following statements are true EXCEPT______.
A. Arable land covers 90% of the country’s total area
B. Tourism is one of the driving forces for the economic development of Mauritius.
C. More than half of Mauritius population are Indians
D. British ruled the island longer than French and Dutch
4.Which of the following maps shows the right position of Mauritius?
(Mau = Mauritius; Ma = Madagascar; A = Africa)
A. B.
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MA MA
 |
|
||||||
 |
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||||||
Mau Mau
C. D.
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MA
MA
Mau
Mau
Have you ever wondered?
1. Why do airplanes take longer to fly west than east?
It can take five hours to go west-east from New York(NY) to London but seven hours to travel east-west from London to NY. The reason for the difference is an atmospheric phenomenon known as the jet(喷射) stream. The jet stream is a very high altitude wind which always blows from the west to the east across the Atlantic. The planes moving at a constant air speed thus go faster in the west-east direction when the air moving with the wind than in the opposite direction.
2. What would happen if the gravity(重力) on Earth was suddenly turned off?
Supposing we could magically turn off gravity. Would buildings and other structures float away? What happened would depend on how strongly the things were attached to the Earth. The Earth is moving at quite a speed moving at over a thousand miles per hour. If you turn something round your head on a string, it goes around in a circle until you let go of the string. Then it flies off in a straight line. “Switching off ” gravity would be like letting go of the string. Things not attacked to the Earth would fly off in a straight line . People in buildings would suddenly shoot upwards at a great speed until they hit the ceiling. Most things would fly off into space.
1.What information can we get from the first passage?
A. It is the jet stream that affects how fast airplanes fly.
B. Planes go slower when they are moving with the wind.
C. It takes more time to fly from NY to London than from London to NY.
D. The jet stream always blows from the east to the west across the Atlantic.
2.The word “shoot” underlined in the 2nd passage probably means“ ”.
A. send for B. move quickly C. come out D. grow quickly
3.It can be inferred that without gravity .
A. buildings and other structures would float away
B. trees and buildings would not so easily fly off
C. something around your head would not float away
D. everything outside buildings would fly off into space
4. Where can we most probably read this text?
A. In a research paper. B. In a short story.
C. In a travel magazine. D. In a students’ book
In 1955, a man named Raymond Kroc entered a partnership with two brothers named McDonald. They opened a popular restaurant in California which sold food that was easy to prepare and serve quickly. Hamburgers, French fries, and cold drinks were the main food there. Kroc opened similar eating places under the same name, “McDonald’s”, and they were an instant success. He later took over the company, and today it is one of the most famous and successful “fast-food” in America and round the world.
Why was his idea successful? Probably the most important reason was that his timing was right. In the 1950s, most married women stayed home to keep house and take care of their children. In the 1960s, many women returned to the workplace. This meant that they had less time or energy to prepare meals, so they spent more on “ TV dinners ” and fast-food restaurants. Single parents also have little time to spend in the kitchen. People living alone also depend on this type of food, since cooking for one is often more trouble than it is worth.
Fast-food is not part of the diet of all Americans. Another trend of the 1960s, sometimes called the back-to-nature movement influenced many people to avoid food that was packaged or processed(处理). This preference for natural food continued to this day.
From the success of Raymond Kroc’s fast-food business, we can say that social economic trends influence where and what we eat.
1.The underlined sentence “Cooking for one is often more trouble than it is worth” means that ______.
A. cooking for some people is worth more money
B. it is not worthwhile to take too much time to cook for one person
C. there are more problems when one person cooks
D. divorce (离婚) causes people to change their eating habits
2.An idea implied but not directly stated in the reading is that ________.
A. many married women began to work in the 1960s
B. natural foods are still popular today
C. fast food is not part of the diet of all Americans
D. divorce causes people to change their eating habits
3.McDonald’s success lies in the following causes BUT_________.
A. people living alone tend to depend on fast food
B. single parents have little time to spend in the kitchen
C. many women returned to the workplace in the 1960s
D. Kroc chose the “Mc Donald” brothers as his partners
4.The main idea of the reading is that ________.
A. Raymond Kroc is the most successful fast-food business owner in the world
B. social and economic changes affect eating habits
C. fast-food is easy to prepare and serve quickly
D. Americans eat either fast food or natural food
When I first entered university, my aunt, who is an English professor, gave me a new English dictionary. I was 36 to see that it was an English-English dictionary, also known as a monolingual dictionary. 37 it was a dictionary intended for non-native learners, none of my classmates had one. 38 , to be honest, I found it extremely 39 to use at first. I would look up words in the dictionary and 40
not fully understand the meanings. I was used to the 41 bilingual dictionaries, in which the words are 42 both in English and Chinese. I really wondered why my aunt 43 to make things so difficult for me. Now, after studying English at university for three years, I 44 that monolingual dictionaries are 45 in learning a foreign language.
As I found out, there is, 46 , often no perfect equivalence(对应)between two 47 in two languages. My aunt even goes so far as to 48 that a Chinese “equivalent” can never give you the 49 meaning of a word in English! 50 , she insisted that I read the definition(定义)of a word in a monolingual dictionary 51 I wanted to get a better understanding of its meaning. 52 , I have come to see what she meant.
Using a monolingual dictionary for learners has helped me in another important way. This dictionary uses only a(n) 53 number of words, around 2,000, in its definitions. When I read these definitions, I am 54 exposed to(接触)the basic words and learn how they are used to explain objects and ideas. 55 this, I can express myself more easily in English.
1.A. worried B. sad C. surprised D. nervous
2. A. Because B. Although C. Unless D. If
3.A. But B. So C. Or D. Then
4. A. difficult B. interesting C. helpful D. practical
5.A. thus B. even C. still D. again
6.A. new B. familiar C. earlier D. ordinary
7.A. explained B. expressed C. described D. created
8.A. offered B. agreed C. decided D. happened
9. A. imagine B. recommend C. predict D. understand
10. A. natural B. better C. easier D. convenient
11. A. at least B. in fact C. at times D. in case
12. A. words B. names C. ideas D. characters
13.A. hope B. declare C. doubt D. tell
14.A. exact B. basic C. translated D. expected
15.A. Rather B. However C. Therefore D. Instead
16. A. when B. before C. until D. while
17. A. LargelyB. Generally C. Gradually D. Probably
18. A. extra B. average C. total D. limited
19. A. repeatedl B. nearly C. immediately D. anxiously
20.A. According to B. In relation to C. In addition to D. Because of
— ____.
— Thank you. I certainly will.
A. Happy birthday to you
B. Let me help you with your English
C. Please remember me to your grandparents
D. Don’t forget to post the letter
