It is natural that children are curious about the world around them. For example, they want to know how their hearts beat. They want to know why the ocean water tastes salty.
As children grow up, they become curious about different kinds of things. When they are babies, they are interested in the parts of their bodies and in the smiles of their mothers. They become interested in the physical world around them: the plants, the animals, the sky. Later, they become interested in the things that people have made: wheels, bicycles, cars. And when they are adults, their curiosity continues. Sometimes this curiosity leads to a career (生涯、职业) in science.
Scientists spend their lives trying to find out about the world．Those who work with the earth sciences study the earth, the oceans, and the skies. Other scientists who study living things work with the biological sciences. A third group of scientists study the physical sciences, e. g. physics, chemistry.
These scientists have already discovered a lot about our world．For example, they tell us why your heart beats fast when you run. They say that when you are quiet, your heart normally beats sixty-five or seventy-five times a minute. Your heart is a pump (泵) that pumps blood to all parts of the body. The blood carries oxygen and nutrition. When you run, your muscles work very hard and use the nutrition that the blood carries to them. The muscles need oxygen, too . So your brain sends a signal to the heart. The signal means that the muscles need more nutrition and oxygen. Then the heart beats fast and sends blood quickly to the muscles. It may beat 90 to 140 times a minute.
Of course, scientists cannot answer all of our questions. If we ask, “Why does the ocean water taste salty” scientists will say that the salt comes from rocks. When a rock gets very hot or very cold, it cracks. Rain falls into cracks. The rain then carries the salt into the earth and into the rivers. The rivers carry the salt into the ocean. But then we ask , “What happens to the salt in the ocean? The ocean does not get saltier every year.” Scientists are not sure about the answer to this question.
We know a lot about our world, but there are still many answers that we do not have, and we are curious.
1.According to the passage, which of the following statements is true?
A．People of different ages are interested in different things
B．People in different countries are interested in different things.
C．Men and women are curious about different things.
D．People are curious in the same way.
2.Scientists who work with the biological sciences study____.
A．the earth , the oceans and the sky B．plants and animals
C．man-made things D．ocean water
3.When you run, your muscles need ____.
A．more nutrition and oxygen B．more signals C．more salt D．water
4.A rock cracks _____.
A．in wet regions B．in dry regions
C．at very high or very low temperatures D．when salty water falls in
5.People are always curious because ____.
A．they cannot explain many things B．they know nothing about the world
C．they know little about the world D．they want to be scientists
Chocolate is good for your heart, skin and brain. Usually, people think that chocolate is bad for their health. They describe chocolate as “something to die for” or say “death by chocolate”．Now they should bite their tongues! Evidence(证据) is showing that some kinds of chocolate are actually good for you in the following ways:
A happier heart
Scientists at Harvard University recently examined 136 studies on cocoa—the main ingredient in chocolate and found that it does seem to strengthen the heart．Studies have shown heart benefits from increased blood flow．These benefits are the result of cocoa’s chemicals, which seem to prevent both cell damage and inflammation(炎症)．
Better blood pressure
If yours is high, chocolate may help．Jeffrey Blumberg from Tufts University recently found that people with high blood pressure who ate 3.5 ounces of dark chocolate per day for two weeks saw their blood pressure drop quickly．
Muscle magic
Chocolate milk may help you recover after a hard workout(锻炼)．In a small study at Indiana University, people who drank chocolate milk between workouts did better on a tiredness test than those who had some sports drinks．
Better for your skin．German researchers gave 24 women a half-cup of special cocoa every day．After three months, the women’s skin was moister(滑润的)and smoother．The research shows that chocolate helps protect and increase blood flow to the skin, improving its appearance．
Brain gains
It sounds almost too good to be true, but research suggests that chocolate may improve your memory, attention span, reaction time, and problem-solving by increasing blood flow to the brain．
1.Which of the following is wrong?
A. Coca’s chemicals can prevent both cell damage and inflammation.
B. Chocolate may help you lower your blood pressure.
C. People early know chocolate is good for their health.
D. chocolate may improve your memory, attention span, reaction time, and problem-solving.
2.What’s the meaning of the underlined sentence in the fourth paragraph?
A．Sports drinks are better than chocolate milk．
B．Sports drinks can make people easy to be tired．
C．Drinking milk can keep you energetic at work．
D．We should drink chocolate milk between times when we work hard．
3.What’s the main idea of the text?
A．Chocolate, a Healthy Food B．More Chocolate, Less Health
C．Chocolate and Blood Pressure D．Advice on Eating Chocolate
4.The conclusion that chocolate may help lower blood pressure was brought out by ．
A．scientists at Harvard University
B．Jeffrey Blumberg from Tufts University
C．scientists at Indiana University
D．German researchers
5.What’s the meaning of “bite their tongues” in the first paragraph?
A．．Think of it．． B．Speak up． C. Stop talking D．Listen to it
He wishes the holiday season would end already. His back aches, his red suit feels like a spacesuit , his cheeks have gone tight from smiling for 12 hours —and still the kids keep coming and coming , like ants at a picnic . As Christmas becomes more commercialized (商业化) across the U. S. and Canada, so must Santas. As the holiday begins earlier each year, so must its spokesmen .
The questions from children these days are harder than ever. Now, with thousands of children expecting a father or mother serving in Iraq or Afghanistan, the questions are as heart-breaking as they are unanswerable. For example, “Can you please bring Daddy home from the war in time for Christmas morning?”
Santas also have a pretty good chance of getting sued (指控). A professional Santa Claus in Canada told a story: A Santa had a girl on his knee, and he commented, “You have nice eyes and nice hair.” The girl later said it was sexual harassment (骚扰) . When a Santa feels anxious, he often shows it in the same ways ordinary people do: The Santas were always seen to hang around at the dinner table when the show ended. Many of them just sleep in bed for several days and don’t see other children again.
1.In the first paragraph, “spokesmen” refers to .
A .businessmen B. political leaders
C. organizers of the activities D. Santa Clauses
2.The passage implies that the job of Santa Claus is .
A. well-paid B. very hard C. worth doing D. dangerous
3.According to the third paragraph, Santas may sometimes be blamed(责备) for .
A. doing something against the law B. hanging around the dinner table
C. being lazy and sleeping in bed for days D. not playing their roles as expected
4.What would be the best title for the passage ?
A. Christmas: Not a Good Festival for Santas B. Is Santa Claus Really Alive?
C. A Christmas Story D. What Does Santa Claus Do for Children?
Every year on my birthday, from the time I turned 12, a white gardenia was delivered to my house. No card came with it. Calls to the flower-shop were not helpful at all. After a while I stopped trying to discover the sender’s name and just delighted in the beautiful white flower in soft pink paper.
But I never stopped imagining who the giver might be. Some of my happiest moments were spent daydreaming about the sender. My mother encouraged these imaginings. She’d ask me if there was someone for whom I had done special kindness. Perhaps it was the old man across the street whose mail I’d delivered during the winter. As a girl, though, I had more fun imagining that it might be a boy I had run into.
One month before my graduation, my father died. I felt so sad that I became completely uninterested in my upcoming graduation dance, and I didn’t care if I had a new dress or not. But my mother, in her own sadness, would not let me miss any of those things. She wanted her children to feel loved and lovable. In truth, my mother wanted her children to see themselves much like the gardenia-lovely, strong and perfect with perhaps a bit of mystery(神秘).My mother died ten days after I was married. I was 22. That was the year the gardenia stopped coming.
1. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
A．A childhood Dream. B．A Mother’s Love.
C．A Graduation Party. D．A Special Birthday.
2.The mother insisted that her daughter go to the graduation dance because _________.
A．she could take care of things herself B．she hoped she would find a boyfriend
C．she wanted her to be happy and strong D．she thought education was most important
3.Who was the sender of the flower?
A．A boy the writer had run into. B．One of the writer’s neighbors.
C．One of the writer’s classmates. D．The writer’s mother.
Charles R. Drew was a medical student at Columbia University in New York. Before he graduated, he wrote an article __41___ blood bank, that is, the storing of blood. Up till then, a lot of people had died from loss of blood __42___ there was no blood bank.
When the United States entered the Second World War, it became __43___ to set up blood banks. Dr Drew became __44___ of the Red Cross’s first blood bank. When the Red Cross __45___ blood banks to collect and store blood for men __46__ in battle, black American gave blood along with the whites. At ___47__ their blood was not accepted. Later blood from the blacks was ___48___ but was stored in a __49___ place from “white” blood. Although the best doctors __50___ that there was __51___ difference at all between the blood of blacks and whites, the Red Cross, with the support of the government, __52___ to separate black blood from white blood.
After the war, Dr Drew was ___53__ from Washington with three other doctors to attend a medical meeting in a southern state. In northern Carolina their car went __54___ a ditch（深沟）and Dr Drew was __55___ hurt. He had lost __56__ blood by the time a passing car took him to the __57___ hospital. But they were stopped at the gate of the hospital. “__58__him to the hospital for blacks.” No matter __59___ they said, they could not get into the hospital. They had to take him to the __60___ hospital, but on the way Dr Drew died because he had lost too much blood.
1.A. of B. on C. for D. in
2.A. though B. if C. because D. and
3.A. possible B. impossible C. unimportant D. necessary
4. A. visitor B. head C. receiver D. supporter
5.A. started B. expected C. promised D. forbade
6. A. died B. killed C. wounded D. fighting
7.A. most B. least C. first D. last
8.A. received B. accepted C. lost D. found
9. A. good B. cool C. hot D. separate
10.A. discovered B. invented C. insisted D. regretted
11.A. little B. much C. some D. no
12.A. began B. refused C. stopped D. continued
13.A. driving B. walking C. arriving D. running
14.A. from B. into C. along D. off
15.A. hardly B. nearly C. badly D. not
16.A. some B. little C. all D. much
17.A. biggest B. most modern C. nearest D. cheapest
18.A. Take B. Bring C. Send for D. Find
19.A. how B. what C. where D. who
20.A. colored B. better C. farthest D. same
E-mail , as well as cellphones, _____an important part in daily communication.
A. have played B. play C. are playing D. is playing
