For centuries, humans have wondered whether there is life on Mars. Scientists have asked why Mars is losing its atmosphere. Last week, the question was answered with a song. “The answer is blowing in the wind,” said Michael Meyer, taking a line from a Bob Dylan song. Meyer is the lead scientist for NASA’s Mars Exploration Program. It turns out that solar winds from the sun are slowly blowing away Mars’ atmosphere.
Today, Mars has a thin atmosphere. It is cold and dry, with a desert-like environment. Jakosky says it used to be much more different. “When we look at ancient Mars, we see a different type of surface. One that had valleys looked like they were carved by water, lakes that were standing for a long period of time. We see an environment that was much more able to support liquid water.”
Recently they found a kind of liquid water that flows with salt down a mountain area of the planet. But it is not always there. Scientist Michael Meyer describes what they found: “We’re seeing water, with the salt that’s able to flow down the sides of the cliff. Why is this important? That means there is water on Mars, on the surface of Mars today.”
Scientists already knew that ice exists on Mars. So why is it important to find liquid water? Meyer explains: “It means that we have a resource. And when we're looking at sending humans to Mars, water is one of the key things that we need to have, not only for astronauts to drink, but also to make oxygen, to make fuel.”
Sending humans to Mars is still in the distant future. NASA is aiming for the 2030s. Both US government and private industries are developing rockets and spacecraft to get people to Mars.
1.Why is the atmosphere of Mars disappearing?
A.Because Mars doesn't have water to keep the atmosphere.
B.Because the atmosphere is affected by the earth.
C.Because the atmosphere is blown away by the solar wind.
D.Because Mars has no condition to make the atmosphere exist.
2.Which of the following are the functions of the water on Mars?
①Taking shower. ②Drinking for astronauts. ③Making fuel.
④Watering plants. ⑤Producing oxygen. ⑥Washing clothes.
A.②④⑤ B.①③④⑤ C.②③④⑥ D.②③⑤
3.What can we infer from the passage?
A.Whether water exists on Mars or not isn’t important to humans.
B.Mars’ atmosphere has changed a lot since it existed.
C.We can successfully send humans to Mars from now on.
D.Water can not appear on Mars because of its thin atmosphere.
4.Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
A.Mars Has Conditions to Support Humans
B.Mars Is Strongly Influenced by the Solar Wind
C.Mars and Its Thin Atmosphere
D.Water Does Exist on Mars
Chinese cuisine is widely known and enjoyed all around the world. Who doesn’t long for a favorite Chinese dish? But there is one interesting concept concerning Chinese food which is almost unheard of in the West, and which is becoming increasingly ignored by the youth of the East—the ancient custom of “tonic food”.
Tonic food is food which is consumed to improve one’s well-being or avoid sickness. For instance, it was once the custom for new mothers to eat a sesame oil (麻油) hot pot every day for the first month after giving birth. It was believed that this dish would benefit the muscles, reduce pain, improve circulation, stimulate sweating, and warm the body. Some foods, such as goat meat and spinach, are seen as “hot”, while others, such as Chinese cabbage and radish, are seen as “cold”. One should be careful not to eat too much of either “hot” or “cold” food. However, how much “hot” or “cold” food one should eat depends on the time of the year, how the food is prepared and what it is prepared with, and the individual’s health.
The custom of employing tonic foods for a healthier life also influences the catering industry. Chinese herbal medicines, such as wolfberry (枸杞), can be found on many a restaurant menu, either added to fruit tea or as a beneficial addition to a dish. These herbs attract customers, such as over-worked office staff, in need of a modest pick-me-up.
So, whether you need to boost your strength with a large helping of chicken soup, or increase your mental powers with a serving of pig’s brain soup, you may find that this ancient Chinese custom could be just the tonic you were looking for.
1.What is the present situation of tonic food?
A.It is catching less attention. B.It is enjoyed by many young people.
C.It is well known worldwide. D.It is becoming increasingly popular.
2.What is believed to benefit new mothers?
A.Chinese cabbage. B.Fruit tea. C.Sesame oil hot pot. D.Pig’s brain soup.
3.Which of the following best explains “catering” underlined in Paragraph 3?
A.Medicine. B.Restaurant. C.Education. D.Fashion.
4.What can be a suitable title for the text?
A.The Charm of Chinese Cuisine
B.The Popularity of Tonic Food
C.An Introduction to Chinese Tonic Food
D.Differences Between hot Food and Cold Food
When my family moved to America in 2010 from a small village in Guangdong, China, we brought not only our luggage, but also our village rules, customs and culture. One of the rules is that young people should always respect elders. Unluckily, this rule led to my very first embarrassment in the United States.
I had a part-time job as a waiter in a Chinese restaurant. One time, when I was serving food to a middle-aged couple, the wife asked me how the food could be served so quickly. I told her that I had made sure they got their food quickly because I always respect the elderly. As soon as I said that, her face showed great displeasure. My manager, who happened to hear what I said, took me aside and gave me a long lecture about how sensitive Americans are and how they dislike the description “old”. I then walked back to the table and apologized to the wife. After the couple heard my reason, they understood that the problem was caused by cultural differences, so they laughed and were no longer angry.
In my village in China, people are proud of being old. Not so many people live to be seventy or eighty, and people who reach such an age have the most knowledge and experience. Young people always respect older people because they know they can learn from their rich experience.
However, in the United States, people think “growing old” is a problem since “old” shows that a person is going to retire or that the body is not working well. Here many people try to keep themselves away from growing old by doing exercises or jogging, and women put on makeup, hoping to look young. When I told the couple in the restaurant that I respect the elderly, they got angry because this caused them to feel they had failed to stay young. I had told them something they didn’t want to hear.
After that, I changed the way I had been with older people. It is not that I don’t respect them any more; I still respect them, but now I don’t show my feelings through words.
1.The author brought the couple their food very fast because _______.
A.the manager asked him to do so B.the couple wanted him to do so
C.he respected the elderly D.he wanted more pay
2.When the author called the couple “elderly”, they became _______.
A.nervous B.unhappy
C.satisfied D.excited
3.After this experience, the author _______.
A.changed his way with older people B.made friends with the couple
C.no longer respected the elderly D.lost his job in the restaurant
4.Which of the following is TRUE?
A.The more the author explained, the angrier the couple got.
B. The author wanted to show his feelings through words after his experience.
C.From this experience, the author learned more about American culture.
D.The manager went back to the table and apologized to the couple.
You probably know who Marie Curie was, but you may not have heard of Rachel Carson. Of the outstanding ladies listed below, who do you think was the most important woman of the past 100 years?
Jane Addams (1860-1935)
Anyone who has ever been helped by a social worker has Jane Addams to thank. Addams helped the poor and worked for peace. She encouraged a sense of community by creating shelters and promoting education and services for people in need. In 1931, Addams became the first American woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize.
Rachel Carson (1907-1964)
If it weren’t for Rachel Carson, the environmental movement might not exist today. Her popular 1962 book Silent Spring raised awareness of the dangers of pollution and the harmful effects of chemicals on humans and on the world’s lakes and oceans.
Sandra Day O’Connor (1930-present)
When Sandra Day O’Connor finished third in her class at Stanford Law School, in 1952, she could not find work at a law firm because she was a woman. She became an Arizona state senator (参议员) and, in 1981, the first woman to join the U.S. Supreme Court. O’Connor gave the deciding vote in many important cases during her 24 years on the top court.
Rosa Parks (1913-2005)
On December 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, Rosa Parks would not give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger. Her simple act landed Parks in prison. But it also set off the Montgomery bus boycott. It lasted for more than a year, and kicked off the civil-rights movement. “The only tired I was, was tired of giving in,” said Parks.
1.What is Jane Addams noted for in history?
A.Her social work.
B.Her teaching skills.
C.Her efforts to win a prize.
D.Her community background.
2.What was the reason for O’Connor’s being rejected by the law firm?
A.Her lack of proper training in law.
B.Her little work experience in court.
C.The discrimination against women.
D.The poor financial conditions.
3.Who made a great contribution to the civil-rights movement in the U.S.?
A.Jane Addams. B.Rachel Carson.
C.Sandra Day O’Connor. D.Rosa Parks.
请你用英语给 21 世纪英文报写一份香港著名记者闾丘露薇的简介。
（写作内容）
1.闾丘露薇，(Lvqiu Luwei)英文名 Rose，身高 165cm,1965 年出生在上海
2.1992 年获得复旦大学哲学系(Philosophy)学士(Bachelor)学位,1995 年移居香港。
3.1997 年 6 月加入凤凰卫视(Phoenix Television)，成为凤凰卫视第一批有经验的新闻记者。
4.对工作充满热情，全情投入到新闻工作中，曾采访报道过许多重大国际事件
5.2001 年 11 月，她是第一位成功进入伊拉克(Iraq)进行战地采访的华人女记者，获得胡锦涛主席的赞扬。
（写作要求）1.词数 100 左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
On June 23, 1970, I had just left the Army after completing my one-year duty in Vietnam. I was on ________ returning home in Texas. I had been warned about the ________ of our fellow countrymen. There was no ______ welcome for us when we came home from that unpopular war.
I sat, in uniform, in a window seat, _______ eye contact with my fellow passengers. No one was sitting next to me, which added to my ________. A little girl suddenly appeared in the passage. She ________ and, without saying a word, ________ handed me a magazine. I accepted her ________, her quiet “welcome home”. All I could say was, “Thank you.” Her small gesture of ___________ was the first I had experienced in a long time.
I always believe in the connection between _________ when they reach out to come another.
That girl __________ has no memory of what happened years ago. She might have been told to do that by her mother. It doesn’t matter ________ she gave me the magazine. The ________ thing is that she did.
Since then, I have followed her ________ and tried in different ways for different people, to _________ for them. Like me on that plane ride long ago, they will _________ know why a stranger gave a hand. But I absolutely know that my _________ since then are all because of that little girl. Her kindness of offering a magazine to a ________, scared and lonely soldier has been __________ all through my life. I have to believe that my small ________ have the same effect on others. And to that girl , now a woman, I would like to say again: thank you.
1.A.bus B.train C.plane D.boat
2.A.stories B.difficulties C.unfriendliness D.enthusiasm
3.A.hometown B.school C.cold D.immediate
4.A.seeking B.noticing C.keeping D.avoiding
5.A.pride B.loneliness C.anger D.excitement
6.A.smiled B.listened C.turned around D.bent down
7.A.naturally B.proudly C.shyly D.worriedly
8.A.offer B.donation C.accompany D.contact
9.A.invitation B.sympathy C.agreement D.inspiration
10.A.soldiers B.strangers C.families D.girls
11.A.similarly B.finally C.immediately D.undoubtedly
12.A.when B.how C.why D.where
13.A.memorable B.satisfactory C.important D.valuable
14.A.instruction B.guidance C.advice D.example
15.A.do the same B.find a seat C.get things ready D.pass a magazine
16.A.always B.never C.happily D.obviously
17.A.feelings B.ideas C.models D.attempts
18.A.busy B.young C.excited D.tired
19.A.accepted B.spread C.honored D.ignored
20.A.actions B.benefits C.contributions D.sacrifices
