Today, over six billion people live on the planet. This means that there are very few places on Earth with no people. One place that has very few people is at the bottom of the Earth. In Antarctica, the icy continent surrounding the South Pole, you will not find anyone who lives there all the time.
First, Antarctica is the coldest place on Earth. For example, it can be –l30℃ in the winter. Humans cannot live in this kind of environment. Because it is so cold, very few plants or animals live there. This means there are no farms and no places to find wild plants or animals to eat.
Second, Antarctica can be dangerous. Many people think that it is safe to travel to Antarctica in the summer months when it is warmer. However, Antarctica is mostly ice, so when it’s summer, the ice melts. When the ice melts, the ice can break. So, people cannot travel around Antarctica during the summer. If the ice breaks, they could fall into the water and die.
Another serious problem in Antarctica is the sun. Because Antarctica is mostly ice, there are no trees so there is no shade. Also, the ground is mostly white ice so the sun bounces off (反射) it. The light from the sky and the light from the ground can burn people’s skin and hurt their eyes. People must be very careful in this situation. For example, they must wear sunglasses to protect their eyes. They must also cover their hands and faces all the time.
Although Antarctica is a tough place to live, explorers have discovered coal in Antarctica. This leads them to believe that Antarctica at one time was a land of swam (沼泽) and forests.
1.This text is mainly about _____.
A. the discovery of Antarctica
B. how people travel around Antarctica
C. different animals found in Antarctica
D. why it is difficult to live in Antarctica
2.We can learn from the text that _____.
A. Antarctica is a place with no animals
B. no people can survive in Antarctica
C. Antarctica is colder than any other continent on Earth
D. the temperature in Antarctica is below zero all the time
3.When is the most dangerous time to travel around Antarctica?
A. In spring. B. In summer. C. In autumn. D. In winter.
Getting close to active or erupting volcanoes can be dangerous. But for Michael Rampino, it’s all in a day’s work. Rampino is a volcanologist, a scientist who studies volcanoes and how they affect our planet. Rampino has been close to red-hot lava flows (熔岩流) in Hawaii and explosive volcanoes in Indonesia. He knows when to get close to an active volcano and when to back away.
Rampino wasn’t always a volcanologist. He worked for NASA for seven years. He studied rocks until he began to research climate change and the effects that volcanoes have on climate. He became interested in the subject. “Once I started working with volcanoes,” Rampino said, “I was hooked.”
Rampino is a professor at New York University. As part of his job, he travels to areas where volcanoes have been active. “Active” means they have erupted within the past few centuries and probably will erupt again. Rampino studies the deposits (沉积物) of ash and other materials from the eruptions. The ash may hold clues to what happened to the Earth in the distant past. It may also help scientists predict what could happen to Earth’s climate in the future.
Rampino doesn’t work alone. He works with a team of scientists who use computers to stimulate (模拟) the effects volcanoes have on Earth’s atmosphere.
Being a volcanologist may be hard work, but it’s also fun. “It’s cool traveling the world studying volcanoes,” Rampino says. When he talks to students about his work, he tells them that his goal is “to understand the events that have shaped Earth’s history.”
1.To Rampino, being close to active volcanoes is _____.
A. adventurous but meaningful
B. scary but necessary
C. impossible and unnecessary
D. dangerous but urgent
2.The underlined word “hooked” in Paragraph 2 probably means “_____”.
A. trapped B. touched C. frightened D. attracted
3.Rampino’s study on volcanoes might help _____.
A. warn people to protect the environment
B. support the study of Earth’s future climate
C. tell the future eruption time of the volcanoes
D. reduce the possibility of the volcanoes’ eruptions
4.In which part of a newspaper could we find this text?
A. Climate. B. History. C. People. D. Business.
What would you do if Martians (火星人) kidnapped (绑架) your mom? In the 3-D animated movie Mars Needs Moms, a young boy named Milo finds himself in this exact difficult situation. The aliens want to steal Milo’s mother’s “momness” for their own young. Now it’s up to the 9-year-old to get his mom back before she is lost forever.
Every good action movie has a bad guy. The villain (反派角色) in this film is the Martian Supervisor, played by Mindy Sterling. The Supervisor has an icy cold heart. Remarkably, Sterling acted out almost all of her scenes in a special Martian language created just for the movie. “Learning Martian was a piece of cake,” Sterling said. “There wasn’t too much to learn; sometimes, I just made it up!”
Anyone who has a mother will be moved by this movie. In fact, anyone who loves someone will be moved by this movie. Maybe it is because the story was inspired by a real-life event. The movie is based on a novel by prize-winning cartoonist Berkeley Breathed. He wrote the book after a dinner-table incident between his wife and son, who was then 4 years old. That night, Breathed’s son had thrown his broccoli into the air and rushed out of the room angrily, yelling at his mother on the way out. Breathed told his son, “You might think differently about your mom if she were kidnapped by Martians.” He wrote the novel that same evening.
All kids get into arguments with their parents. The fights may be about homework, chores or eating vegetables. Mars Needs Moms tells us to look past these silly disagreements and to remember the importance of family and the things that really matter.
1.In the movie Mars Needs Moms the aliens want to _____.
A. kill Milo’s mother
B. take Milo as their kid
C. make Milo’s mother their kids’ mom
D. send their kids to Milo’s family
2.To Mindy Sterling, learning Martian language is _____.
A. simple B. difficult C. interesting D. unacceptable
3.What made Breathed write the novel?
A. The movie producer’s idea.
B. His wife’s inspiration and help.
C. His good relationship with his mother.
D. His son’s bad behavior toward his mother.
4.In the last paragraph the author wants to _____.
A. advise children to help with the housework
B. encourage readers to learn something from the movie
C. stress the importance of doing something different
D. ask parents to be good teachers of their children
Melbourne Zoo’s Close-up Visits will bring you face to face with some of our zoo’s most popular animals.
Each experience includes a 6×8 photograph, taken by one of our professional photographers, to help you keep the memory of your visit to Melbourne Zoo.
Please note: The price of a Close-up Visits ticket does not include entry to Melbourne Zoo.
Meerkat Close-up
|
Price per person |
$30 |
|
Max group size |
4 people |
|
Restrictions (限制) |
Minimum age: 5. Children aged 5 to 12 must be accompanied by a paying adult |
|
Time |
11:30 am |
Big Tortoise Close-up
|
Price per person |
$15 |
|
Max group size |
4 people |
|
Restrictions |
Children under 12 must be accompanied by a paying adult |
|
Time |
11:00 am |
Giraffe Close-up
|
Price per person |
$30 |
|
Max group size |
6 people |
|
Restrictions |
Minimum age: 5. Children aged 5 to 12 must be accompanied by a paying adult |
|
Time |
11:30 am |
Kangaroo Close-up
|
Price per person |
$30 for up to 2 people |
|
Max group size |
4 people |
|
Restrictions |
Children under 12 must be accompanied by a paying adult |
|
Time |
2:00 pm |
Bookings Information
● Bookings can be made by calling Zoo Photos on 0392859406.
● Bookings can be made on the day by visiting Zoo Photos from 9:30 am.
● A Zoo Photo Animal Experience does not include entry to Melbourne Zoo.
Terms and Conditions
● Group size and restrictions are needed to pay attention to.
● The photographer have the right to stop any experience at any time for reasons relating to animals’ health or visitors’ bad behavior.
1.If you buy a ticket for Melbourne Zoo’s Close-up Visits, you _____.
A. can enter Melbourne Zoo for free
B. are asked to work for the wildlife
C. can have a photo of yourself taken
D. aren’t allowed to meet animals face to face
2.If you are free in the afternoon, you may choose to see _____.
A. kangaroos B. giraffes C. big tortoises D. meerkats
3.Giraffe Close-up is different from Meerkat Close-up in _____.
A. price B. max group size C. restrictions D. time
4.What do we know from the passage?
A. You can make a booking from 9 in the morning.
B. Children of all ages can visit the animals in the zoo.
C. The photographer has the right to deal with your photos.
D. You may be forced to leave the zoo if you behave badly.
One morning Raman, a true master of the art of archery (箭术), invited his favorite student to watch a display of his skill. The student had 36 this more than a
hundred times before, but he still obeyed his 37.
Together, they went into a nearby wood and reached a tall 38. Raman picked a rose flower and 39 it on one of the branches of the tree. He 40 opened his bag and took out three objects: his 41, an arrow and a white handkerchief.
Raman stood one hundred paces from the spot where he had placed the 42. Facing his target, he 43 his student to blindfold (蒙住眼睛) him with the handkerchief. The student did as his teacher 44.
“How often have you seen me practice the sport of archery?” Raman asked him 45.
“Every day,” replied his student. “And you have 46 managed to hit the rose from three hundred paces away.”
With his eyes covered by the 47, Raman placed his feet firmly on the ground and 48 the bowstring (弓弦) with all his strength. Aiming at the rose on the 49, he let the arrow fly. The arrow whistled through the air, 50 it did not even hit the tree, missing the target by a few meters.
“Did I 51 it?” said Raman, removing the handkerchief from his eyes.
“No, you missed 52,” replied the student. “I thought you were going to 53 me the power of thought and your ability to perform magic.”
“I have 54 taught you the most important lesson about the power of thought.” replied Raman. “When you 55 something, concentrate only on that: No one will ever hit a target they cannot see.”
1.A. thought B. seen C. heard D. felt
2.A. teacher B. boss C. father D. monitor
3.A. wall B. tree C. pole D. house
4.A. buried B. educated C. signed D. placed
5.A. first B. now C. then D. finally
6.A. bow B. hammer C. apple D. knife
7.A. arrow B. shoe C. flower D. bag
8.A. advised B. expected C. encouraged D. asked
9.A. planned B. imagined C. requested D. promised
10.A. angrily B. calmly C. disappointedly D. sadly
11.A. never B. almost C. always D. also
12.A. cloth B. handkerchief C. paper D. leaf
13.A. drew back B. brought up C. held back D. took off
14.A. ground B. branch C. tip D. root
15.A. and B. for C. so D. but
16.A. touch B. learn C. miss D. hit
17.A. completely B. suddenly C. quickly D. carefully
18.A. show B. give C. offer D. lend
19.A. again B. even C. just D. seldom
20.A. buy B. find C. notice D. want
---- How did you find the rock music concert last night?
---- _____.
A. I went there by bike B. I’ll do my best
C. It was fascinating D. You are absolutely right
