Everyday rubbish could provide a valuable source of energy thanks to a clever new invention. Smelly methane（沼气）gas expelled from landfill sites containing tones of rotting household waste could be used to produce a valuable energy resource. In Europe alone land fill tips produce 94 billion cubic meters of methane per year but currently only one percent of what could be a valuable source of energy is used, the rest is burnt off to prevent an explosive build up of gas.
Methane gas forms when organic matter breaks down and is drawn off from large rubbish tips by pipes sunk into the middle of the waste. Until now this process wasn’t possible on small sites because the pipe allowed oxygen to seep in and that stop the breakdown process.
Viktor Popov of the Wessex Institute of Technology has now developed a system to modify existing landfill sites by making them airtight while the methane is extracted from sunken wells. The site is covered by a special three-layered skin whose two outer layers are made of clay with a pressurized（加压的）layer of carbon dioxide gas in the middle. As the methane is sucked out through a central well it is replaced by carbon dioxide from the middle layer rather than oxygen, allowing the breakdown process to continue.
Unfortunately there are no plans to use the power of methane even though Popov claims his invention could provide a valuable source of energy over the next 20 years.The passage mainly introduces ______ to us.
| A．how to make methane | B．a new way to make use of rubbish |
| C．the valuable things in rubbish | D．the amount of rubbish beig reused |
From the passage we can see that _____.
| A．in Europe 94 billion cubic meters of methane is produced every year |
| B．some of the waste will explode if it is not burnt off |
| C．99% of the rubbish has been burnt off in Europe |
| D．only a very small part of this kind of energy is used in Europe |
In the passage the underlined word “that” refers to ______.
| A．methane gas | B．the long pipe | C．oxygen | D．the rubbish |
Which of the following statement is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．Oxygen can cause the breakdown process to stop. |
| B．When the methane is sucked out, oxygen will enter from the middle layer. |
| C．Carbon dioxide doesn’t affect the breakdown process. |
| D．The new invention has not been put into use. |
The idea of light pollution has developed with the increase of lights in cities. In many areas, this light makes it difficult or impossible to observe stars and planets in the night sky.
There are a number of reasons why light pollution is important. One has become clear at the Mount Wilson Observatory near Los Angeles, California. Today, light from Los Angeles makes the night sky above Mount Wilson very bright. It is no longer an important reasearch center because of light pollution.
Light pollution threatens to reduce the scientific value of research telescoples in other important observatories. They include Lick Observatory near San Jose, California and Yerkes Observatory near Chicago, Illionis.
Light pollution is the result of wasted energy. Bright light that shines into the sky is not being used to provide light where it is needed on Earth. Poorly designed lighting causes a great deal of light pollution. Lights that are brighter than necessary also cause light pollution.
Most people in America are surprised to find out that they are able to see our own galaxy(星系)，the Milky Way, with their own eyes. But about threefourths of Americans cannot see the Miky Way because of manmade light.
Objects in the night sky are resources that provide everyone with wonder. But light pollution threatens to prevent those wonderful sights from being seen.Light pollution usually occurs________.
| A．in cities | B．in the country |
| C．in wild areas | D．in developing countries |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Mount Wilson Observatory is the most important one in America. |
| B．Light pollution affects observatories only. |
| C．In the dark night people can observe the sky clearly. |
| D．Astronomers can observe the stars clearly by the lights of the cities. |
The victims affected by the light pollution are________.
| A．children | B．grownups | C．students | D．observatories |
The tea gardens in Sri Lanka are actually large estates(种植园). The best tea usually comes from plants grown on high grounds, the cool hilltops with rows and rows of tea plants. The plants are about one metre apart. The plant is often pruned so that it remains only 60 to 90 centimetres high. Pruning is important because it encourages the growth of tender hoots, or young leaves. It is from these shoots that the best in got.
Practically all the tea pickers are women. The estates like to employ women pickers because they are more careful. Their thin fingers can easily remove the twin leaves and new shoots from the plant, which are the parts used for processing(加工)tea. The pickers carry large baskets into which they throw their pickings. A skilled worker can harvest between 9 to 14 kilogrammes of tea leaves a day. Usually new shoots can be picked from the plants about every ten or fifteen days.
Processing tea shoots into the familiar dry tea leaves requires great care and skill. There are various methods of processing depending on the type of tea required. For black tea, the young green leaves are first spread out on shelves to dry. This process removes much of its water and the leaves become soft. After this, the leaves are passed through heavy rollers. This operation will press the leaves for juices which give the tea both its colour and taste. Then the leaves are spread out on floors and left to ferment(发酵)under wet conditions. Fermentation develops the rich taste of black tea. The fermented leaves are then dried with a hotair blower until they become rolledup black leaves. The final step is to sort and grade them before the black tea is ready for sale to countries all over the world.In the first paragraph, the word“pruning”means______.
| A．regular cutting of the plants. | B．frequent watering |
| C．regular use of chemicals | D．growing the plants high in the mountain |
One of the reasons why women are employed to do the picking is that________.
| A．they work harder than men do in picking |
| B．they can throw their picking more easily into the baskets |
| C．their fingers fit them better for the job |
| D．they can move easily find the twin leaves |
How many processing steps are mentioned in the last paragraph?
| A．Three. | B．Four. | C．Five. | D．Six. |
What's the writer's purpose in writing the passage?
| A．To introduce various methods of tea processing. |
| B．To persuade readers to buy tea from Sri Lanka. |
| C．To tell a story that had happened in the tea gardens. |
| D．To inform readers of tea growing, picking and processing. |
Honey(蜂蜜)from the African forest is not only a kind of natural sugar, it is also delicious. Most people, and many animals, like eating it. However, the only way for them to get that honey is to find a wild bees' nest(巢)and take the honey from it. Often, these nests are high up in trees, and it is difficult to find them. In parts of Africa, though, people and animals looking for honey have a strange and unexpected helper一a little bird called a honey guide.
The honey guide does not actually like honey, but it does like the wax (蜂蜡) in the beehives (蜂房). The little bird cannot reach this wax, which is deep inside the bees’ nest. So, when it finds a suitable nest, it looks for someone to help it. The honey guide gives a loud cry that attracts the attention of both passing animals and people. Once it has their attention, it flies through the forest, waiting from time to time for the curious animal or person as it leads them to the nest. When they finally arrive at the nest, the follower reaches in to get at the delicious honey as the bird patiently waits and watches. Some of the honey, and the wax, always falls to the ground, and this is when the honey guide takes its share.
Scientists do not know why the honey guide likes eating the wax, but it is very determined in its efforts to get it. The birds seem to be able to smell wax from a long distance away. They will quickly arrive whenever a beekeeper is taking honey from his beehives, and will even enter churches when beeswax candles are being lit.Why is it difficult to find a wild bees' nest?
| A．It's small in size. | B．It's hard to recognize. |
| C．It's covered with wax. | D．It's hidden in trees. |
What do the words "the follower" in Paragraph 2 refer to?
| A．A bee. | B．A bird. | C．A beekeeper. | D．A honey seeker. |
The honey guide is special in the way____________。
| A．it gets its food | B．it goes to church |
| C．it sings in the forest | D．it reaches into bees' nests |
What can be the best title for the text?
| A．Wild Bees | B．Wax and Honey |
| C．Honey-Lover's Helper | D．Beekeeping in Africa |
What makes one person more intelligent than another? What makes one person a genius, like the brilliant Albert Einstein, and another person a fool? Are people born intelligent or stupid, or is intelligence the result of where and how you live? These are very old questions and the answers to them are still not clear.
We know, however, that just being born with a good mind is not enough. In some ways, the mind is like a leg or an arm muscle. It needs exercise. Mental (done with the mind) exercise is particularly important for young children. Many child psychologists (心理学家) think that parents should play with their children more often and give them problems to think about. The children are then more likely to grow up bright and intelligent. If, on the other hand, children are left alone a great deal with nothing to do, they are more likely to become dull and unintelligent.
Parents should also be careful with what they say to young children. According to some psychologists, if parents are always telling a child that he or she is a fool or an idiot, then the child is more likely to keep doing silly and foolish things. So it is probably better for parents to say very positive (helpful) things to their children, such as “That was a very clever thing you did.” or “You are such a smart child.”The words “intelligent” and “brilliant” in the first paragraph probably mean _______ while “dull” in the second paragraph means ________.
| A．great and important; common |
| B．pretty and handsome; ordinary-looking |
| C．bright and splendid; slow in thinking and understanding |
| D．hopeful and helpful; careless |
A person ________ is more likely to become a genius.
| A．whose parents are clever |
| B．often thinking about difficult problems |
| C．often helped by his parents and teachers |
| D．born with a good brain and putting it into active use |
It is better for parents ________.
| A．to praise and encourage their children more often |
| B．to be hard on their children |
| C．to leave their children alone with nothing to do |
| D．to give their children as much help as possible |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the article?
| A．Parents play an important part in their children’s growth. |
| B．Intelligence is obviously the result of where and how you live. |
| C．The less you use your mind the duller you may become. |
| D．What makes a person bright or stupid is still under discussion. |
___1____ Maybe you thought that they were just happy. After all, you probably sing or whistle when you are happy.
However, they sing most of the time for a very different reason. ____2___ Some scientists believe that birds do sing some of the time just because they are happy.
Do you know what a “territory” is? A territory is an area that an animal, usually the male, claims(声称)as its own. ____3___ No other families of the same species are welcome. Your yard and house are your territory where only your family and friends are welcome. If a stranger should enter your territory and threaten you, you might shout. Probably this would be enough to frighten him away. If so, you have actually scared the stranger away without having to fight him. A bird does the same thing. But he expects an outsider almost any time, especially at nesting(筑巢)season. So he is screaming all the time, whether he can see an outsider or not.__4__.
Birds sing loudest in the spring when they are trying to attract a mate and warn others not to enter the territory of theirs. You can see that birds have a language all their own. ___5__
| A．Only he and his family are welcome there. |
| B．Most of it has to do with attracting mates and setting up territories. |
| C．Have you ever wondered why birds sing? |
| D．Their singing is actually a warning to other birds to stay out of their territory. |
E. Have you ever wondered why birds sing?
F. Most of the language is widely used.
G. This screaming is what we call a bird’s song, and it is usually enough to keep an outsider away.
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