Why would an animal kill itself? It seems a strange question, and yet it is one that has made some scientists curious for a long time. For there is a kind of animal called lemming（旅鼠）, that periodically killed themselves together, and no one knows just why!
The small creatures which live in the Scandinavian mountains, feed on a diet of roots and special insects and live in nests they dig underground. When their food supply is large, the lemmings live a normal and undisturbed life.
However, when the lemmings’ food supply becomes too low to support the population, a singular migration（迁徙）begins. The lemmings leave their nests in groups. Great numbers of them begin to travel across the Scandinavian plains, a journey that may last weeks. The lemmings eat everything in their path, continuing their long march until they reach the sea.
The reason for what follows remains unbelievable to naturalists. Upon reaching the coast, the lemmings do not stop but swim by the thousands into the sea. Most stay afloat only a short time before they tire, sink and drown.
A common theory for this mass self-killing is that the lemmings do not realize that the ocean is such a huge body of water in their cross-country journey, the animals must cross many smaller bodies of water, such as rivers and small lakes. They may think that the sea is just another such swimmable path to go through. But no final answer has been found to the strange happening.
1.The passage is mainly about______.
A. how lemmings find food
B. why animals kill themselves
C. the lemmings’ self-killing
D. the food supply in the Scandinavian mountains
2.A reason for the lemmings’ self-killing might be that they______.
A. go mad from a lack of food
B. hope to find fish for food
C. decide to reduce the population
D. think they can cross the sea
3.Why are scientists curious about the lemmings’ behavior?
A. Because they are the only animals that live in Scandinavia.
B. Because it is very unusual for animals to kill themselves.
C. Because of the amount of food they can eat on their march to the sea.
D. Because they can gather together in such huge numbers.
4.The underlined word “singular” means______.
A. unusual B. single C. wonderful D. common
在高中即将毕业之际，请你用英语准备一篇“国旗下讲话”的演讲稿。
内容要求：
1. 高中三年的收获和遗憾；
2. 展望大学生活所面临的挑战；
3．对高一，高二学生的建议。
注意：
1. 可适当发挥，使文章内容充实、连贯；
2. 开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数；
3. 文中不得出现考生的具体信息；
4. 词数120左右。
Dear schoolmates,
Good morning!
As I am graduating, I’d like to ____________________________________________
Good luck to all of you!
Yours
Li Hua
阅读下面短文，根据以下要求：1）汉语提示, 2）首字母提示, 3）语境提示, 在每个空格内填入一个适当的英语单词，并将该词完整地写在右边相对应的横线上，所填单词要求意义准确，拼写正确。
Hello, everyone. My name is water. I’m one of the most important 1. (自然) resources in the world. I’m very proud of 2. because almost no everyday tasks can beperformed w 3. me. My nickname is liquid gold because I’m precious. People in some areas are always _____4.___(埋怨) about not having enough of me. W 5. still, only 5 per cent of the fresh water is _______6.____(可用的) in rivers and lakes. So protect me and save as 7. of me as possible!. Remember: don’t leave the tap r 8. when you brush your teeth. Don’t throw rubbish into rivers, 9. . Nor pour me into them when I’m dirty.Never waste even a drop, o 10. you’ll run out of me in the near future.
At the top of a three-storey brick house Sue and Johnsy had their studio. In November a cold, unseen stranger, whom the doctors called Pneumonia(肺炎), touched one here and there with its icy fingers. Johnsy was struck down, and she lay, hardly moving, on her bed looking through the window at the blank side of the next brick house.
One morning the busy doctor invited Sue into the hallway(走廊).
“She has one chance in ten,” he said, “And that chance is for her to want to live. She has made up her mind that she’s not going to get well. I will do all that I can. But whenever my patient begins to count the carriages in her funeral procession(队列), I subtract 50 percent from her chance to live.”
After the doctor had gone, Sue went into the workroom and cried. Then she came into Johnsy’s room with her drawing board, whistling.
Johnsy lay hardly moving with her face toward the window. Sue stopped whistling, thinking she was asleep.
She arranged her board and began a drawing. As Sue was sketching, she heard a low sound. She went quickly to the bedside.
Johnsy’s eyes were open wide. She was looking out the window and counting backward.
“Twelve,” she said, and a little later “eleven”; and then “ten”, and “nine”; and then “eight” and “seven”, almost together.
Sue looked out the window. What was there to count? There was only the blank side of the brick house twenty feet away. An old ivy vine(常春藤) climbed halfway up the brick wall. Its branches clung(紧紧缠着), almost bare, to the bricks.
“What is it, dear?” asked Sue.
“Six,” said Johnsy, in almost a whisper. “They’re falling faster now. Three days ago there were almost a hundred. There goes another one. There are only five left now”.
“Five what, dear? Tell me.”
“Leaves. On the ivy vine. When the last one falls, I must go, too. Didn’t the doctor tell you?”
“Oh, I never heard of such nonsense,” said Sue. “What have old ivy vine leaves to do with your getting well? Why, the doctor told me this morning that your chances for getting well real soon were ten to one! Try to take some soup now.”
“There goes another. No, I don’t want any soup. I want to see the last one fall before it gets dark. Then I’ll go , too.”
“Johnsy, dear,” said Sue, bending over her, “will you promise me to keep your eyes closed, and not look out the window until I’m done working? I need the light or I would draw the shade down.”
“Tell me as soon as you have finished,” said Johnsy, closing her eyes, “because I want to see the last one fall. I’m tired of waiting. I want to turn loose my hold on everything and go sailing down, down, just like one of those poor, tired leaves.”
1.By saying “Pneumonia touched one here and there” (in the first paragraph), the author means that _________.
A.some people were affected by the illnesses of others
B.pneumonia caused damage to the ivy vine
C.two people became ill
D.many people came down with the illness
2. How did Johnsy feel about the situation during the passage?
A. confident B. hopeless C. tired D. curious
3.We can learn from the passage that _____________.
A.Sue came into the room whistling perhaps because she thought Johnsy might like the music.
B.Johnsy’s life was compared to the carriages in a funeral procession
C.Sue told a lie to Johnsy about the doctor’s words
D.Johnsy wanted to know about the falling ivy leaves to meet her own curiosity
4.The underlined word “subtract” in the third paragraph probably means “________”.
A. reduce B. hope C. add D. doubt
5.The passage is probably taken out of ______________.
A. a newspaper B. a novel
C. a medical report D. a girl’s diary
It was an international drug dealing case, one that involved a lot of money and a lot of violence. Agents who had entered the organization had worn wires and collected evidence for years. A conviction(法庭判决) depended on an accurate translation of their tape recordings. “Five languages were involved, “says Liz Elting, 44, one of the owners of TransPerfect, the translation company chosen for the job. “The slightest mistake could mean the criminals would go free.”
When Elting started her business 18 years ago with Phil Shawe, both were attending New York University’s Stern School of Business. Neither realized just how many situations would require their services. TransPerfect’s 4,000 linguists(通晓外语的人) cover more than 100 languages.
Getting Ahead with Liz Elting
What inspired you to start TransPerfect?
When I was eight, my dad bought a KFC in Portugal. Unfortunately, the Portuguese didn’t want anything American. They thought my dad was a CIA spy! That taught me how fast things can change. I’ve studied in Spain and worked in Venezuela. This business is the perfect combination of my love for languages, cultures and business.
Is the staff multilingual?
Many are. I speak French and Spanish. My partner, Phil, who is American, likes to say he speaks English on a good day.
What languages are requested most often?
Spanish and Japanese. Chinese, Middle Eastern, Indic(South Asia), and Eastern Europeans are on the rise.
How difficult is it to manage such a diverse workforce（员工团队）?
Our challenge is to be culturally appropriate in every country. When we hand our year-end bonuses in the US, for example, we have to remember that in India, bonuses are given in the fall.
Any advice for someone starting a business?
Get started before you have kids. In the beginning, I didn’t know how to do this business on the side. I wasn’t married, didn’t have kids, and wasn’t concerned about balancing my work and personal life. Now, with strong managers in place, I can spend more time with my family (husband Michael Burlant and sons Zachary, nine and Jacob, seven), traveling and playing baseball.
1.What is the purpose of the first paragraph?
A. To report on an international drug dealing case.
B. To encourage people to start a business before they have kids.
C. To present the importance of learning foreign languages.
D. To introduce Liz Elting and her company TransPerfect.
2.What does the underlined word “wires” mean in the passage?
A. A type of clothes costing a lot of money.
B. A piece of equipment designed to record messages.
C. Thin metal worn to protect yourself against violence.
D. A organization symbol made of thin metal.
3.Neither realized just how many situations would require their services. is ______________.
A. a company that offers international legal services
B. one which has branches in countries all over the world
C. one whose staff all have to speak several languages.
D. a company whose services are in great demand.
4.It can be inferred that _______________.
A. Liz learned that love is the answer to problems of cultural misunderstanding
B. Liz started her company with a schoolmate at the age of 18.
C. The success is simply a little beyond Liz and her partner’s expectations
D. Liz and Phil are now strong managers with rich experience.
Serving only adults, Ramsey House offers you professional hotel standards of accommodation and food service coupled with the friendly, relaxed atmosphere of a high-class non-smoking guest house.
Situated within walking distance of St David’s, the smallest city in Europe, the house stands in its own attractive gardens and has private off-road parking. In the opposite direction, there is easy access to the Pembrokeshire Coast Path, where you can see some of Britain’s most spectacular coastal scenery with its abundant bird life and wild flowers.
We have three double and three twin rooms. Each is individually furnished and decorated to 4-star standard with comfortable beds, central heating, remote control color TV, hair dryers and plenty of mirrors. All the rooms have a modern, well-lit en-suite bathroom with WC, shaver socket and electric shower.
All first-floor rooms have views of either the sea, the Cathedral or open country, and there are three ground-floor rooms with garden views, ideal for guests unable to climb stairs.
Our full Welsh breakfast offers you a great start to the day with homemade bread, cookies and preserves. We can also prepare fresh picnic lunches for your day out walking the Coast Path or on the beaches.
There is comfortable lounge with lots of books and leaflets about Pembrokeshire to help you plan your trips. Weather permitting, guests may enjoy the peace and quiet of our gardens and watch the birds feeding. Drinks are served in both the garden and lounge.
We also have secure bicycle storage, a drying room and light laundry facilities.
Nearby are some of the safest and cleanest beaches in Europe offering a variety of water sports including sailing, surfing, wind-surfing and sea angling. Visitors are welcome at St. David’s City Golf Club and several other Pembrokeshire clubs. We are also conveniently situated for easy access to the bird sanctuary islands of Ramsey, Skomer and Skokholm.
A warm welcome awaits you at Ramsey House all year round. You will find it the ideal touring center in all seasons.
House Owners: Ceri &Elaine Morgan
01437 72021
1.According to the passage, St. David’s is the name of _________________.
A. a Bed & Breakfast hotel B. the Coast Path
C. a Welsh town D. Ramsey House
2.Which of the following is TRUE?
A. Guests may come to this house by car or by bike without parking problems.
B. Guests have to eat their lunches out on the Coast Path or the beaches.
C. Guests staying in the lowest-level rooms have a good view of the sea.
D. On the Coast Path guests can enjoy water sports and play golf.
3.Which of the following tourists may not be interested in this ad?
A. Ana, a wheelchair user, who enjoys holidays by the coast.
B. A married couple with two young children showing interest in Pembrokeshire.
C. Tina, a Ph.D graduate, who attaches great importance to travel safety.
D. Xavier, a bird-watching enthusiast, who knows little about the local area.
