The most exciting storms are the ones with flashes of lightning.Unfortunately,those are scarce,unless you are near the Catatumbo River in Northwestern Venezuela.Here,nature's grandest sound and light show is often seen, because it happens about 160 nights a year.And it lasts for as long as 10 hours at a time.And unlike other lightning storms that cause just one or two flashes,this one is with as many as 280 per hour.It is the highest in the world. Besides,each one of them is so powerful that each can power every light bulb in South America.Not surprisingly,they can be seen for almost 250 miles.Fishermen and sailors often use them to guide them across the waters during dark nights.
What's even more surprising is that the lightning has been happening above the same spot where the Catatumbo River meets Lake Maracaibo for thousands of years.The best part is that the show is different every night.That's because the color of the lightning changes,depending on the amount of water in the atmosphere.On dry nights,the lightning appears white.When the air is not dry,it helps split up the bright light into red,orange and even purple.
Strangely enough,though this has been going on for centuries,scientists have still not been able to figure out the cause of this phenomenon.Some say that the storms are the result of the interaction of the area's unusual topography（地貌）,wind and heat.Others,however,believe that the storms are caused by a kind of gas in the area.The locals simply think that it is the "spirit of Catatumbo" that lights up the night sky.
1.According to Paragraph 1,if we say something is scarce,we probably mean .
A. it is far away B. it is very terrible
C. it can be hardly seen D. it can be very dangerous
2.We know that in Northwestern Venezuela, .
A. people daren't go out at night
B. it rains heavily almost every day
C. lightning is used to power light bulbs
D. storms with flashes of lightning are common
3.What has the greatest influence on the colors of the lightning?
A. The spot of the lightning
B. The air of the lightning spot
C. The color of the environment
D. The level of water in the Catatumbo River
4.From the last paragraph,we learn that .
A. scientists will no longer study the lightning storms there
B. locals know about the lightning storms better than scientists
C. heat in Northwestern Venezuela is different from any other place
D. the reason why such lightning storms happen there is still unknown
Born on August 9,1963,New Jersey,Whitney Houston almost seemed bound to become a singer.Her mother Cissy Houston was the choir（唱诗班）minister at New Hope Baptist Church,and it was there that a young Whitney got her start.
When she was 19,Whitney Houston was discovered in a nightclub by the famous Clive Davis of Arista Records. In 1983,Houston made her debut（首演）on national television.In 1985,she released her debut album Whitney Houston and almost immediately became a sensation.Over the next year,her hit singles Saving All My Love for You and How Will I Know helped the album reach the top of the charts,where it staved for fourteen weeks in a row. Houston won a Grammy in 1986 for Saving All My Love for You.
By 1992,Whitney Houston was on top of the world,but her life was about to get very complicated very quickly. That year she married the R&B singer Bobby Brown.At first the marriage was passionate and loving,but things turned sour as the decade progressed and both Brown and Houston battled drug abuse.
In spite of these growing personal troubles,Whitney Houston continued to progress in her career,crossing over successfully into acting in 1992 by starring in The Bodyguard.Her single from the movie,I will Always Love You, proved to be Houston's biggest hit ever,spending a record-breaking fourteen weeks on top of the US charts.
In the late 1990s and early 2000s,Whitney Houston's increasingly rocky marriage,struggles with drug and health problems threatened her career.Over the next few years,Houston attempted to break her drug habit and divorced Bobby Brown in 2007.
After almost a decade of struggling with her personal life,Houston seemed to be pulling herself together.She released a new album,I Look to You,in 2009.The recording received a warm welcome from music fans.
In early 2012,Houston worked on a new musical film Sparkle with Jordin Spark.Unfortunately,Houston didn't live long enough to see it.
Whitney Houston died on February 11,2012,in Los Angeles.With her passing,the music world has lost one of its most outstanding stars.
1.From the first paragraph,we know that .
A. Whitney Houston grew up in a nearby church.
B. Whitney Houston came from a single-parent family.
C. Whitney Houston had to support her family by singing when she was a child.
D. Whitney Houston grew up in a musical background.
2.Which shows the right order of the following events?
a.Whitney Houston divorced the R&B singer Bobby Brown.
b.Whitney Houston began to sing at New Hope Baptist Church.
c.Whitney Houston starred in the film The Bodyguard.
d.Whitney Houston worked on a new musical film Sparkle.
A. bcad B. badc
C. abdc D. cadb
3.What's the author's attitude towards Houston's death?
A. Ashamed B. Regretful
C. Hopeless D. Delightful
4.Which can be the best title of the passage'?
A. Whitney Houston's music talent B. Whitney Houston's achievement
C. Whitney Houston's lite story D. Whitney Houston's sudden death
Centre,Inc.
JOB DETAILS
Job Title: Food Service Assistant
Hours Per Week: 20-24
Wage: $15.77
Job Type: Off-Campus Job
Work Type: Non work-study job
Position Description:
Centre,Inc.is hiring Food Service Assistant.
Details:
Gain experience that combines well with a Culinary Degree.Working hours include weekdays 3-7 pm and every other weekend 11 am-7 pm.Must be willing to work every other weekend and during some holidays.20-24 hours per week.$ 11-75 per hour+$ 4.02 per hour (see benefits),Total$15.77 per hour.
Duties:
Prepare and serve food to people of a community correctional facility（社区管教所）.Work under the direction of the Dietary Manager.
Requirements:
Must be flexible,reliable,and energetic.Must pass a criminal background check,drug test,and physical test.
Apply:
Stop by and fill out an application at 123 15th Street N.Fargo,ND 58102 or e-mail your resume to alannawa@centreinc.org
Benefits:
Additional $ 4.02 per hour health and welfare benefit,paid vacation,pro-rated holiday pay,employee assistance programs and wellness program.
Centre,Inc.is an EEO/AAP employer and will recruit（招募）,hire,train,and promote,into all job levels,the most qualified persons without regard to race,color,religion,gender identity,or national origin.
EMPLOYER DETAILS
Address: 123 15th St N
City/State: Fargo,ND
Phone: 701-373-8354
Email: alannawa@centreinc.org
Date Posted: 10-20-16 3:18:49 pm
Job Number: 20622
1.What field does this position belong to?
A. Food service. B. Education.
C. Medical care. D. Mass media.
2.How much will be paid if you work for 20 hours per week?
A. $ 282 B. $ 235
C. $ 315.4 D. $ 378.48
3.What will the company NOT do before employing a person?
A. Check criminal background B. Confirm family background
C. Examine physical health D. Hold a drug test
4.If you want to apply for this position,you can .
A. post your resume to the company B. send information via fax
C. call them at 701-373-8354 D. go to apply for it in person
第二节 （20 分）
假设你是红星中学高三学生李华，请根据以下四幅图的先后顺序，写一篇英文周记，记录毕业前夕你们制作以“感恩母校”为主题的毕业纪念视频的全过程。注意：词数不少于60。提示词：视频video
第一节 （15分）
你的英国朋友Jim所在的学校要组织学生来中国旅行，有两条线路可以选择：“长江之行”或者“泰山之旅”。Jim来信希望你能给些建议。请你给他回信，内容包括：
1.你建议的线路；
2.你的理由；
3.你的祝愿。
注意：1.词数不少于50；
2.开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数。
Dear Jim,
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
Yours,
Li Hua
根据短文内容，从短文后的七个选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。
Every animal sleeps, but the reason for this has remained foggy. When lab rats are not allowed to sleep, they die within a month. 1
One idea is that sleep helps us strengthen new memories. 2 We know that, while awake, fresh memories are recorded by reinforcing (加强) connections between brain cells, but the memory processes that take place while we sleep have been unclear.
Support is growing for a theory that sleep evolved so that connections between neurons(神经元) in the brain can be weakened overnight, making room for fresh memories to form the next day. 3
Now we have the most direct evidence yet that he is right. 4 The synapses in the mice taken at the end of a period of sleep were 18 per cent smaller than those taken before sleep, showing that the connections between neurons weaken while sleeping.
If Tononi’s theory is right, it would explain why, when we miss a night`s, we find it harder the next day to concentrate and learn new information — our brains may have smaller room for new experiences.
Their research also suggests how we may build lasting memories over time even though the synapses become thinner. The team discovered that some synapses seem to be protected and stayed the same size. 5 “You keep what matters,” Tononi says.
A. We should also try to sleep well the night before.
B. It’s as if the brain is preserving its most important memories.
C. Similarly, when people go for a few days without sleeping, they get sick.
D. The processes take place to stop our brains becoming loaded with memories.
E. That’s why students do better in tests if they get a chance to sleep after learning.
F. “Sleep is the price we pay for learning,” says Giulio Tononi, who developed the idea.
G. Tononi’s team measured the size of these connections, or synapses, in the brains of 12 mice.
