When building houses, people used to think about not only the climate of the areas but also the building materials and the fashions for their houses. However, since electricity became more and more expensive, people began to pay much more attention to the energy they could get for their houses and the new ways they could find to protect their houses from both cold and heat.
Houses of an old yet new type have been widely built. In some parts of the world, people share their houses with their livestock (家畜). During cold weather, they gather their cows, goats, or other animals and keep them on the first floor of their houses. The reasons are that the animals can be protected from the cold and that they can help to heat the houses as well. The body heat given off by the animals rises to the second floor of the houses, where people live. By sharing their houses with their livestock, people gain a source of heat.
People who live in or near cities do not usually keep livestock. However, home builders use the fact that heat rises. This natural law can be used in building houses in these areas. Instead of keeping livestock on the first floor, builders fill it with large rocks. As they are open to the sun’s rays during cold weather, these rocks take in heat. They also give off the heat, and, of course, the warm air rises into the living areas of the houses. So these houses are energy saving.
House building becomes a great challenge to building designers and energy engineers. They try to meet this challenge by learning from old traditions and by using modern technology. And someday in the future, people will be able to live in more energy saving houses.
1.What did people begin to consider as electricity was no longer cheap?
A．The climate of their areas
B．The energy for their houses
C．The fashions for their houses
D．The building materials for their houses
2.People in some areas gain a source of heat by _________.
A．Keeping their livestock downstairs
B．Protecting their livestock from the cold
C．Sharing their houses only with their cows
D．Living on the second floor with their livestock
3.The underlined words “natural law” in the third paragraph refer to the fact that ________.
A．Heat raises the temperature in the houses
B．Heat increases the temperature of rocks
C．Heat goes up if temperature is raised
D．Heat goes in the upward direction
4.From the passage, we can infer that __________.
A．People will no longer consider building materials in the future
B．Energy saving buildings will become more popular in the future
C．Almost all people will move into the houses heated by large rocks
D．Energy engineers will devote themselves only to modern technology.
Happy birthday
The China National Opera (CNO) will give a concert to celebrate its 50th birthday.
Different generations of CNO vocalists(声乐家), like Li Guangxi, Yao Hong and Ma Mei, will present the concert which will feature both songs from famous operas like “The White-haired Girl” and “The Hundredth Bride”, as well as arias(独唱曲) of such Western opera classics as “Madame Butterfly”, “La Traviata” and “Rigoletto”.
Time/Date:7:30pm, September 7,8
Location: Tianqiao Theatre
Tel: 65514787, 83156170
Tickets:60～500 yuan (US $7.3～60.2)
Folk music
A concert will be held to feature some recently-composed traditional Chinese music works.
The concert, given by the Folk Orchestra of China Opera and Ballet Theatre, will include such pieces as “Memory of Childhood”, “Memorial Ceremony for God” and “Wine Song”.
Time/Date:7:30pm, September 13
Location: Concert Hall at the National Library of China
Tel: 68485462, 68419220
Tickets:30～200 yuan (US $ 3.6～24.1)
Moon music
A concert of traditional Chinese music will be given on the eve of the Moon Festival which falls on September 21 this year.
The concert will feature a number of famous pieces centered on the theme of the moon, such as “Moonlight”, “Spring Night on a Moonlit River” and “Lofty Mountain and Flowing River”.
A number of established traditional Chinese music performers, like Zhou Yaokun and Fan Weiqing, will play solos as well as collaborate(合作) with the folk music orchestra.
Time/Date:7:30pm, September 20
Location: Grand Theatre of the Cultural Palace of Nationalities
Tel : 66068888, 66069999
1.If you want to buy tickets for listening to the music “Memory of Childhood”, you will dial ____ .
A. 65514787 B. 83156170 C. 68485462 D. 66069999
2.Which statement is TRUE according to the passage?
A. Li Guangxi, Yao Hong and Ma Mei stand for the same generation of CNO vocalists.
B. “Lofty Mountain and Flowing River” is a traditional Chinese music.
C. “Rigoletto” is a famous piece on the theme of the moon.
D. Zhou Yaokun will play solos and Fan Weiqing will collaborate with the folk music orchestra.
3. “Madame Butterfly” is .
A. a Chinese opera B. a song
C. a piece of music D. a Western opera
4.In which part of a newspaper will the article be published?
A. Entertainment B. Sports C. Culture D. News
Dolphins are not fish, but warm-blooded animals. They live in groups, and speak to each other in their own language. In this way they are like other animals, such as bees and birds. But dolphins are very different from almost all land animals. Their brain is nearly the same size as our own, and they live a long time --- at least twenty or thirty years.
Like some animals, dolphins use sound to help them find their way around. They also use these sounds to talk to each other and to help them find food. We now know they do not use their ears to receive these sounds, but the lower part of the mouth, called the jaw.
Strangely, dolphins seem to like man, and for thousands of years there have been stories about the dolphin and its friendship with people.
There is a story about sailors in the 19th century. In a dangerous part of the sea off the coast of New Zealand, they learnt to look for a dolphin called Jack. From 1871 to 1903 Jack met every boat in the area and showed it the way. Then in 1903 a passenger on a boat called The Penguin shot and wounded Jack. He recovered and for nine years more continued to guide all ships through the area－except for The Penguin.
Today, some people continue to kill dolphins, but many countries of the world now protect them and in these places it is against the law to kill them.
1.Dolphins are different from many other animals in that they _____.
A. live in groups B. have their own language
C. are warm-blooded D. have large brains
2.Which of the following does the dolphin use to help it find its way around?
A. Its jaw. B. Its ears
C. Its nose. D. Its eyes.
3.By telling the story of Jack the writer wanted to show that _____.
A. people are cruel to animals
B. Jack is different from other dolphins
C. dolphins are friendly and clever
D. dolphins should be protected by law
4.Why did the sailors off the coast of New Zealand look for Jack?
A. They wanted his help.
B. They enjoyed playing with him.
C. He was lonely and liked to be with people
D. He was seriously wounded.
When I was young, I had an old neighbor named Dr. Gibbs. He didn’t look like any doctor I’d ever known. He never shouted at us for playing in his yard. I remembered him as a neighbor who was nicer than anyone else in the neighborhood. When Dr. Gibbs was happy, he was planting trees. And his life’s goal was to make it a forest.
Dr. Gibbs had some interesting theories about planting. He talked about trees that weren’t watered would grow deep roots in search of water. So he never watered his trees. He planted an oak (橡树) and, instead of watering it every morning, he beat it with the rolled-up newspaper. I asked him why he did that, and he said it was to get the tree’s attention.
Dr. Gibbs died a couple of years. Every now and then, I walk by his house and look at the trees that he planted twenty-five years ago. They’re very strong now.
I planted a couple of trees a few years later. I watered them regularly and took good care of them. Whenever a cold wind blows, they shake their leaves and branches.
The funny thing about those trees of Dr. Gibbs was that difficulty seemed to help them in ways comfort and ease never could.
1.What was Dr. Gibbs’ life goal?
A. To save more lives. B. To build a forest.
C. To make a lot of money. D. To study plants.
2.One of Dr. Gibbs’ theories about planting was that ______.
A. he often talked to the trees
B. he kicked the trees heavily
C. he never watered the trees
D. he buried the leaves around the roots
3.What does the writer mainly want to tell us?
A. Trees are not as weak as we think.
B. Difficulty is necessary for growth
C. Planting trees is good for the environment.
D. We should listen to others’ advice.
书面表达
假如你是李华，你的美国朋友Jamie发邮件告诉你他对中国传统文学非常感兴趣，但是在阅读时遇到了很多困难，比如很多汉字不认识，读不懂文章的意思等等，希望得到你的帮助。请用英文给Jamie回邮件。
内容要点如下：
1．表示理解并给予安慰；
2．提出建议并说明理由。
注意：
1．词数100左右：
2．可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。信中不能出现本人相关信息。
短文改错
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处错误。每句中最多有两处。错误涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号(∧)，并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线(＼)划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线。并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：
1．每处错误及其修改均仅限一词：
2．只允许修改10处，多者(从第11处起)不计分。
This morning I saw off my aunt at railway station．There were many passenger in the waiting room．I saw an old lady crying sad because she had lost her ticket and not able to afford another one．I was thinking about helping her when a man come up to comfort her．Then he bought her a ticket with his own money．The old Lady was so moving that she could hardly say a word．She grasped his hand and asked for his name or address．But he only smile and said，“It’s my pleasure．”Then he left away quickly．I was greatly moved by such a man he warmed others with his love．
