The long, lonely voyage of the Japanese ghost ship is over.
A US Coast Guard cutter poured cannon fire into an abandoned Japanese ghost ship that had been drifting since last year’s tsunami, sinking the vessel into waters more than 305 meters deep in the Gulf of Alaska and removing the danger it posed to shipping and the coastline on Thursday.
The cutter’s guns tore holes in the 164-foot Ryou-Un Maru, and then it began to take on water and lean to one side. In about four hours, the ship disappeared into the sea, said Chief Petty Officer Kip Wadlow.
The ship had no lights or communications system, and its tank was able to carry more than 7,570 liters of diesel fuel. Officials, however, didn’t know exactly how much fuel was aboard.
“It’s less risky than it would be running into shore or running into other ships,” coast guard spokesman Paul Webb said.
The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Environmental Protection Agency studied the problem and decided it is safer to sink the ship than let the fuel evaporate and pollute the sea environment.
Ryou-Un Maru was probably among the first wave of the 1.5 million tons of garbage of refrigerators, washing machines, televisions, roofs and fishing nets heading toward North America since last March when a magnitude-9.0 earthquake struck Japan.
As the coast guard was ready to fire on the vessel, a Canadian fishing vessel, the 19-meter Bernice C, claimed the rights to save the ghost ship in international waters.
Plans to sink it were paused so the Canadian crew could have a chance to take the stricken ship. A Canadian official with knowledge of the situation told the Associated Press that the Bernice C was unable to drag it.
Then the Canadian boat left, and once it was about 10 kilometers from the Japanese vessel, the Coast Guard began to fire, first with 25 mm shells, then a few hours later with ammunition twice that size.
State officials have been working to test the danger of garbage including materials affected by a damaged nuclear power plant, to see if Alaska residents, seafood or wild animals could be affected.
1.Which of the following is NOT the reason for sinking the Japanese ship?
A.It had no lights or communications system.
B.It might be washed up onto the shore.
C.It was a danger to other passing ships.
D.The oil it carried could pollute the sea.
2.The plan to fire on the Japanese ghost ship was paused because ____________.
A.the ghost ship was beyond the reach of the Coast Guard’s guns
B.the shells were not powerful enough to sink the ghost ship
C.state officials worried the ghost ship might give out radiation
D.a Canadian fishing boat wanted to save the ghost ship
3.Which of the following could be the best title for the passage?
A.Japanese ghost ship arriving at US
B.Tsunami garbage heading to US
C.Cannon fire sinking Japanese ghost ship
D.Japanese ghost ship polluting the Pacific
It is quite reasonable to blame traffic jams, the cost of gas and the great speed of modern life, but manners on the road are becoming horrible.Everybody knows that the nicest men would become fierce tigers behind the wheel.It is all right to have a tiger in a cage, but to have one in the driver’s seat is another matter altogether.
Road politeness is not only good manners, but good sense too.It takes the most cool-headed drivers great patience to give up the desire to beat back when forced to face rude driving.On the other hand, a little politeness goes a long way towards reducing the possibility of quarrelling and fighting.A friendly nod or a wave of thanks in answer to an act of politeness helps to create an atmosphere of good will and calm so necessary in modern traffic condition.But such behaviors of politeness are by no means enough.Many drivers nowadays don’t even seem able to recognize politeness when they see it.
However, misplaced politeness can also be dangerous.Typical examples are the driver who waves a child crossing the street at a wrong place into the path of oncoming cars that may be not able to stop in time.The same goes for encouraging old ladies to cross the road wherever and whenever they want to.It always amazes me that the highways are not covered with the dead bodies of these grannies (奶奶).
An experienced driver, whose manners are faultless, told me it would help if drivers learnt to correctly join in traffic stream without causing total blockages that give rise to unpleasant feelings.Unfortunately, modern drivers can’t even learn to drive.Years ago, experts warned us that the fast increase of the car ownership would demand more give-and-take from all road users.It is high time for all of us to take this message to heart.
1.According to the passage, troubles on the road are often caused by .
A.road conditions B.the speed of modern life
C.the large number of cars D.the behavior of the drivers
2.In the writer’s opinion, .
A.drivers should show road politeness properly.
B.strict traffic rules are badly needed
C.unskillful drivers should be punished
D. drivers should avoid traffic jams
3.The underlined word “give-and-take” in the passage means .
A.politeness and impoliteness
B.willingness to give in to each other’s wishes
C.offering help to others as much as possible
D.good manners and bad manners
4.What is the best title of the passage?
A.Road Politeness
B.Traffic Problems
C Bad Manners on the Road
D.Good Drivers and Bad Driver
People have been burying the dead at Salem’s Hope Cemetery since 1833. The place is filled with old gravestones and gothic mausoleums(哥特式陵墓), the spirits of the dead hanging over the land like an early morning fog.
Keeping watch, a few steps from the road with her skirt over the pedestal (基座), is Goldie Belle Taylor, her face weathered but otherwise in good condition. On this day, she is holding a bunch of pink rises because Goldie Belle always holds flowers. Someone makes sure of that.
“And she has had fresh flowers in her hands for the last 150 years.” Karen Biery lives in Damascus, about five miles west of Hope Cemetery. She’s written a book based on the legend of Goldie Belle Taylor titled Believe. In 1886, at the age of two, young Goldie Belle used her hands to sop up (抹去) the left over elderberry juice from her father’s iron kettle. She died not long after from poisoning. She was the love of her dad’s life, and he was so upset that he sold the family farm to buy the Italian made statue, which today marks her grave.
At first, it was her father who brought the flowers and laid them in her hands. When he died in 1896, the flowers kept coming. Her flowers are different per season. Why do the flowers keep miraculously appearing? People have tried to find out by having camped by the statue, but not even the groundskeepers have been able to catch the criminal.
It’s said that a fairy arrives at Hope Cemetery looking for the grave of her birth mother. She comes across Goldie Belle’s statue.
1.The underlined word “that” in paragraph 2 probably refers to________.
A.her face in good condition
B.her bunch of pink roses
C.Goldie Belle Taylor is holding pink roses
D.Goldie Belle Taylor always holds flowers
2.It can be inferred from the third paragraph __________.
A.her father was poisonous B.the iron kettle was poisonous
C.elderberry juice was poisonous D.it was her father that hated her
3.After her father died, the flowers in the hands of Goldie Belle Taylor_______.
A.usually change B.were stolen
C.are no longer fresh D.come from a criminal
4.What would be the best title for the passage?
A.A fairy brings the flowers. B.The mystery of Goldie’s flowers.
C.What happens to the girl? D.How do the flowers get there?
Tolerance: Respect the difference in others
You may not realize it, but you are doing much more than just studying when you are at school. School is also the place 36 you learn to get on well with people. But this is not 37 easy. What can you do 38 you just don’t like one of your classmates?
If you discover that you have problems 39 your classmates or friends, the most important thing to learn is tolerance. Tolerance is the 40 to realize and respect the 41 in others. We can not change the way that other people do, 42 it is important to learn to live happily with them.
Practicing tolerance will allow everyone to form better 43 with each other. Getting to know someone 44 help you understand why they do things 45 from you. It is important to remember that something different does not exactly mean that it is bad. 46 teaches us to keep an even (平和的) temper and open mind..
You need to 47 an old saying, “Treat others how you want 48 ”. You would like to be treated kindly by your classmates, so it is 49 to treat them with equal kindness. If you tolerate 50 it does not mean that you have to like it. No one is asking you to 51 who you are or what you believe in. Tolerance just means that you should be 52 of the differences in others and not try to make them change.
It is important to 53 tolerance, because it will make everyone’s lives easier. Learn to accept people for their different abilities and interests. The world is very 54 , and practicing tolerance in your own school and city can help make 55 .
1. A.which B.where C.that D.when
2. A.hardly B.seldom C.always D.already
3. A.unless B.since C.because D.if
4. A.getting along with B.making apologies to
C.getting away from D.fleeing from
5. A.reflection B.benefit C.patience D.ability
6. A.characteristics B.thoughts C.things D.differences
7. A.so B.and C.but D.although
8. A.moods B.habits C.relationships D.feelings
9. A.must B.may C.should D.dare
10. A.fortunately B.easily C.differently D.attentively
11. A.Patience B.Experience C.Tolerance D.Kindness
12. A.keep in touch B.keep in mind C.keep up with D.keep away from
13. A.to treat B.being treated C.to be treated D.to be treating
14. A.attractive B.important C.possible D.interesting
15. A.something B.anything C.everything D.nothing
16. A.change B.remind C.promise D.Decide
17. A.convenient B.respectful C.negative D.unselfish
18. A.stop B.cancel C.prevent D.practice
19. A.diverse B.same C.individual D.apparent
20. A.no difference B.an effect C.an apology D.a difference
——It is a long time _____I saw you last.
——Yes.And it will be a long time _____ we see each other again.
A.when; before B.after; when C.since; before D.since; until
-----How good the news is for you! ------ ______________.
A.It's kind of you to say so . B.You are friendly to tell me
C.I'm glad to see that . D.It's nice to hear from you