The United States has all sorts of geography, from deserts to beaches, mountains to flatlands. These conditions help create all sorts of weather: hot, wet, dry, mild and so on. Sometimes all in one day!
1. But others have dry air, so the heat does not feel so bad. In winter, parts of the country get cold and snowy while others stay warm and sunny. This is the difference between, for example, New York City on the East Coast and Los Angeles on the West Coast. Yet even the East Coast has its warm places in winter, like Florida.
2. The Pacific coast has smaller temperature changes, and calmer conditions, than along the Atlantic. Weather in the central and northeastern parts of the country is affected by cold air from Canada and warm air from the Caribbean. 3. The hurricane season is, officially, from June to November. The weather service says the United States gets more severe weather than any other country.
You know, we do not mean to scare you with all this talk about bad weather. The country also has lots of really nice weather. If you ever plan a trip to the United States, just be sure to read the local weather reports. 4.
A. Conditions can change quickly in a short period of time.
B. That way you can get prepared for whatever the weather may bring.
C. To know about the local weather conditions.
D. Hurricanes are ocean storms that strike mainly in the Southeast.
E. The oceans affect weather along the coasts.
F. In summer, some areas get very hot and the air is very wet.
G. The winter is warm in Florida.
An 11-year-old boy who has been compared to Spanish Impressionist (印象派画家), the great Pablo Picasso, is holding his first exhibition at Llangollen’s Gardening Show this weekend.
Hamad al-Humaidhan, who was born in Kuwait but now lives in Bath, Britain, had no previous knowledge of art history when he first picked up a brush.
But he began to paint his favourite football player, Cristiano Ronaldo, using Picasso’s trademarks (标志) —bright colours and impressionistic forms.
His father said, "I’ve got lots of books about Picasso and I showed them to Hamad but he didn’t know anything about Picasso —it’s just naturally the way he sees it and he just loves to paint."
His first painting of Ronaldo, done when he was just nine, was sold at auction (拍卖) in Bath for ￡650, which drew the attention of local art businessman Steve Turner. "A colleague sent me some pictures of Hamad’s work and I just couldn’t believe the size of it and how the colours blended (融合) together," he said. "He had talent and I thought Picasso had been reborn.""I’ve shown his work to private art collectors. They liked them very much and everyone was eager to buy, so the first six paintings have been snapped up. I bought two of them myself. The next set of his works will go on show for the first time at Llangollen, which will be the first opportunity for the public to see his amazing talent."
Hamad enjoys maths at school but ranks painting higher. "I think I prefer painting! It makes me relaxed and when I feel tired I just pick up a paint brush," he said. "I just close my eyes and see how it’s going to look and then I just paint it —I paint every day. I just love the colours and I want people to enjoy my paintings."
Now Hamad is nervously waiting for the opening of his exhibition.
1.What is the text mainly about ?
A. Hamad’s father.
B. Hamad and his talent for painting.
C. Hamad’s first painting.
D. The similarities between Hamad and Picasso.
2.From the text, we can learn that Hamad ________.
A. began to learn painting when he was a boy
B. has read many books about art history
C. likes Cristiano Ronaldo very much
D. knows a lot about Picasso
3.According to the text, Hamad’s first painting of Ronal-do ________.
A. has bright colours and impressionistic forms
B. was bought by Steve Turner
C. was completed five years ago
D. is his favourite work
4.What does the underlined phrase "snapped up"in the fifth paragraph probably mean?
A. Shown to the public.
B. Bought very quickly.
C. Cleaned up.
D. Hung up.
5.What can we learn from the text?
A. Steve Turner speaks very highly of Hamad.
B. Hamad prefers maths to painting.
C. Hamad’s works will be sold after the show.
D. The public can see all Hamad’s paintings at the show.
My first full-time job after high school was selling vacation packages（旅行产品） via the telephone for a well-known company. One day, I was put throughto a man who sounded a bit out of breath. I started with my normal pitch (音高), expecting to hear the normal reply —"I don’t want any."
Instead, he spoke in a faint, weak voice and told me how he wished to take a vacation I was offering, but he couldn’t because he was dying of illness. He explained how he was lacking in oxygen then, and it took almost all his energy to answer the call. He asked if I smoked, which I did, and begged me to stop. He told me smoking was what was killing him. He told me to spend every day with my loved ones, and tell them how much I love them. At this point, I couldn’t control myself. We ended the call, but I held on my phone to prevent another call coming in so I could collect myself.
I wrote down his name and address, and sent him a card appreciating（感谢）his advice and praying for him and his family. Shortly after, I received a letter from Frank, along with a picture of him and his wife. We continued to write back and forth over the next few months, and became very fond of each other. He was old enough to be my grandfather, and in many ways, I felt as if he was.
About a year later I received a letter from his wife. When I started to read, tears came to my eyes. She told me how Frank’s battle with the disease had finally come to an end, and he passed away shortly before the Christmas. She wanted to thank me for the letters to Frank, and explained how Frank touched(感动) many lives over the years. At his funeral, to show just that, they read the 1st letter I had written to Frank to show how he affected a 19-year-old boy he’d never met.
1.The author was then probably working for ______.
A. a travel agency
B. a cigarette company
C. an e-shopping store
D. a vacation school
2.The underlined part "collect myself" in the second paragraph probably means "_______".
A. gather together
B. disappoint myself
C. cheer myself up
D. calm down
3.What can we infer from the text?
A. Frank was in hospital while answering the phone.
B. Frank is actually the author’s grandfather.
C. There was something wrong with Frank’s lung.
D. The author asked Frank to travel and he took his advice.
4.We can learn from the text that the author ________.
A. took down Frank’s name and address to visit him in person
B. was warmly welcomed by her customers when she called them
C. didn’t stop smoking even though Frank asked him to
D. kept in touch with Frank through letters until he died
5.At Frank’s funeral the author’s 1st letter to Frank was read in order to ____.
A. encourage people to fight against disease and live bravely
B. show that Frank touched（触动）many people’s hearts
C. show the good relationship between Frank and the author
D. make the author remember the letter
What’s the capital of Australia? If you answer Sydney, you’re wrong, with travel website VirtualTourist.com (www.virtualtourist.com) coming up with a list of the six most surprising non-capital cities in the world.
1) New York City, New York
It may be king of the hill and the top of the heap (堆), but only figuratively (比喻地). NYC is not the country’s capital, which is Washington DC. Nor is it the state capital, an honor given to the upstate(北部地区的) town of Albany, which is also the birthplace of perforated (穿孔的)toilet paper.
2) Sydney, Australia
Although it is famous for its harbor and opera house, Sydney is not the capital. Canberra, which is just less than its one-hundred-year celebration, is actually the capital of Australia.
3) Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
It’s fun, exciting and has something for everyone, but that still doesn’t make it Brazil’s capital. While the city which is famous for the festival used to be the capital, Brasilia now takes that position.
4) Johannesburg, South Africa
Interestingly, South Africa has more than one capital city, none of which are Johannesburg. Divided by branch of government the capitals are: Bloemfontein, the capital of the judiciary (司法的), Pretoria, the capital of the administrative branch and Cape Town acting as the country’s legislative (立法的) capital.
5) Geneva, Switzerland
Neither this nor Zurich serves as the country’s capital. The attractive, quiet, UNESCO-recognized town of Bern holds this honor.
6) Timbuktu, Mali
Mysterious, exotic (异国情调的), and perhaps the country’s most recognizable name, it takes second place to the city of Bamako. Bamako considered the fastest growing city in Africa. It is also a world-famous center for music. Bamako is attracting famous singers to its local pubs where hometown artists play through the night.
1.Perforated toilet paper comes from _______.
A. Geneva
B. Johannesburg
C. New York City
D. Albany
2.We can learn from the text that _______.
A. Cape Town is South Africa’s legislative capital
B. Canberra is also called the land "Down Under"
C. Pretoria is South Africa’s judiciary capital
D. Bamako is the fastest growing city in the world
3.Which of the following can best describe Bern?
A. Charming and peaceful.
B. Fun and exciting.
C. Mysterious.
D. Exotic.
4.What can we infer from the text?
A. Bamako is famous for its industry.
B. Canberra is well-known for its opera.
C. Each country has only one capital.
D. Canberra has a history of less than 100 years.
5.This text is mainly about _________.
A. some famous big cities in the world
B. some famous mistaken capital cities in the world
C. features of some capitals in the world
D. traveling in some big cities in the world
I first went to hear a live rock concert when I was eight years old. My brother and his friends were all___ of a heavy metal group called Black Wednesday. When they ____that Black Wednesday were going to perform at our local theater. They all bought ___for the performance. However, at the last minute, one of the friends couldn’t go, so my brother __ me the ticket. I was really ___!
I remember the buzz（嘈杂声）of excitement inside the theater as we all found our___.After a few minutes，the lights went down and everybody became__.I could barely make out the stage in the___.We waited. Then there was a roar from the crowd, like an explosion, as the first members of the band__the stage. My brother leaned over and shouted something in my ear, but I couldn’t___what he was saying. The first song was already starting and the music was as____as a jet engine. I could___the drum beats and the bass notes in my stomach.
I can’t recall any of the songs that the band played. I just ___that I really enjoyed the show and didn’t want it to___.But in the end, after three encores（加演）, the show finished. We left the___and walked unsteadily out onto the pavement. I felt a little dizzy, as if I had just___from a long sleep. My ears were still__with the beat of the last song.
After the __, I became a Black Wednesday fan too for a few years before getting into other kinds of music. Once in a while, __, I listen to one of their songs and ____I’m back at that first show.
1.A. members B. fans C. friends D. volunteers
2.A. discovered B. thought C. predicted D. guessed
3.A. flower B. drinks C. tickets D. clothes
4.A. offered B. returned C. found D. booked
5.A. relaxed B. excited C. embarrassed D. encouraged
6.A. space B. entrance C. spots D. seats
7.A. quiet B. comfortable C. serious D. nervous
8.A. silence B. darkness C. noise D. smoke
9.A. fell upon B. got through C. stepped onto D. broke into
10.A. hear B. forget C. repeat D. bear
11.A. hard B. loud C. sweet D. fast
12.A. touch B. feel C. enjoy D. digest
13.A. remember B. understand C. believe D. realize
14.A. continue B. delay C. change D. finish
15.A. party B. opera C. theater D. stage
16.A. escaped B. traveled C. woken D. benefited
17.A. aching B. ringing C. burning D. rolling
18.A. performance B. competition C. interview D. celebration
19.A. besides B. otherwise C. instead D. though
20.A. decide B. regret C. imagine D. conclude
—What do you think about the band’s singer?
—I think she’s great. ________
—I agree.
A. I’m with you on that. B. It’s up to you.
C. Let’s get going. D. She’s really got something.
