The earth's biosphere (the surface layer of the planet and the surrounding atmosphere) provides the land, air, water, and energy necessary to sustain life. This life-support system is a complex, interdependent one in which energy from the sun is changed into food for humans. The entire system depends on the sun, reasonably moderate temperature, and enough supplies of oxygen, pure water, and fertile soil.
Since the earth's creation millions of years ago, the ecosystem has worked as an interdependent system relatively undisturbed by outside forces. But recently, especially since the Industrial Revolution, human beings have begun to disturb the balance of nature. Natural resources have been severely depleted (消耗) (forests have been destroyed, fertile land worn away, water polluted, and minerals used up), and the life-support system of air, water, and land has been poisoned by a variety of waste products and chemicals.
The degree of these problems was noted in a report by the U.N. Developing Council on Environmental Quality. This report predicted that if present trends continue, the world will be more crowded and polluted and less stable ecologically and politically than the world we live in now.
The twin problems of resource shortages and pollution are caused by three social forces. First, the tremendous increase in population growth constantly increases the demand for food, energy, and other products. As the current population continues to increase, the stress on an already overburdened environment will be increased．A second source of the problem is the concentration of people in urban areas, where the ecosystem simply cannot absorb their waste products. Finally, environmental problems are worsened as more and more nations move toward modem development: an increased reliance on modern technology. As these nations become more technological, they will consume more energy, deplete more natural resources, and create more waste products than the biosphere can absorb.The life-support system is composed of _____.
| A．air, water and land | B．the earth, the sun and energy |
| C．food, land and energy | D．food, energy and the sun |
The life-support system _____.
| A．change energy from the sun into food for humans |
| B．depends on the sun for enough supplies of air, water and land |
| C．exists in the surface layer of the earth and the surrounding atmosphere |
| D．is a complex but independent system |
The life-support system has been badly damaged by _____.
| A．natural forces | B．human activities | C．social movements | D．political changes |
The passage mainly talks about _____.
| A．the effects of Industrial Revolution on human beings |
| B．the importance of life-support system to human beings |
| C．the significance of balance of nature |
| D．the destruction of life-support system and its causes |
(2013·四川，C)
LONDON—A British judge on Thursday sentenced a businessman who sold fake (假冒的) bomb detectors (探测器) to 10 years in prison, saying the man hadn't cared about potentially deadly consequences.
It is believed that James McCormick got about $77.8 million from the sales of his detectors—which were based on a kind of golf ball finder—to countries including Iraq, Belgium and Saudi Arabia.
McCormick,57, was convicted (判罪) of cheat last month and sentenced Thursday at the Old Bailey court in London.
“Your cheating conduct in selling a great amount of useless equipment simply for huge profit promoted a false sense of security and in all probability materially contributed to causing death and injury to innocent people，” Judge Richard Hone told McCormick. “You have neither regret, nor shame, nor any sense of guilt.”
The detectors, sold for up to $42,000 each, were said to be able to find such dangerous objects as bombs under water and from the air. But in fact they “lacked any grounding in science” and were of no use.
McCormick had told the court that he sold his detectors to the police in Kenya, the prison service in Hong Kong, the army in Egypt and the border control in Thailand.
“I never had any bad results from customers，” he said.
Why was McCormick sentenced to prison?
| A．He sold bombs. |
| B．He caused death of people. |
| C．He made detectors. |
| D．He cheated in business. |
According to the judge, what McCormick had done ________.
| A．increased the cost of safeguarding |
| B．lowered people's guard against danger |
| C．changed people's idea of social security |
| D．caused innocent people to commit crimes |
Which of the following is true of the detectors?
| A．They have not been sold to Africa. |
| B．They have caused many serious problems. |
| C．They can find dangerous objects in water. |
| D．They don't function on the basis of science. |
It can be inferred from the passage that McCormick ______.
| A．sold the equipment at a low price |
| B．was wellknown in most countries |
| C．did not think he had committed the crime |
| D．had not got such huge profit as mentioned in the text |
(2013·四川，B)
On a sunny day last August, Tim heard some shouting. Looking out to the sea carefully, he saw a couple of kids in a rowboat were being pulled out to sea.
Two 12 yearold boys, Christian and Jack, rowed out a boat to search for a football. Once they'd rowed beyond the calm waters, a beach umbrella tied to the boat caught the wind and pulled the boat into open water. The pair panicked and tried to row back to shore. But they were no match for it and the boat was out of control.
Tim knew it would soon be swallowed by the waves.
“Everything went quiet in my head，” Tim recalls (回忆)．“I was trying to figure out how to swim to the boys in a straight line.”
Tim took off his clothes and jumped into the water. Every 500 yards or so, he raised his head to judge his progress.“At one point, I considered turning back，” he says. “I wondered if I was putting my life at risk.” After 30 minutes of struggling, he was close enough to yell to the boys, “Take down the umbrella！”
Christian made much effort to take down the umbrella. Then Tim was able to catch up and climb aboard the boat. He took over rowing, but the waves were almost too strong for him.
“Let's aim for the pier (码头)，” Jack said. Tim turned the boat toward it. Soon afterward, waves crashed over the boat, and it began to sink. “Can you guys swim？” he cried. “A little bit，” the boys said.
Once they were in the water, Tim decided it would be safer and faster for him to pull the boys toward the pier. Christian and Jack were wearing life jackets and floated on their backs. Tim swam toward land as water washed over the boys' faces.
“Are we almost there？” they asked again and again.“Yes，” Tim told them each time.
After 30 minutes, they reached the pier.
Why did the two boys go to the sea?
| A．To go boat rowing. |
| B．To get back their football. |
| C．To swim in the open water. |
| D．To test the umbrella as a sail. |
What does “it” in Paragraph 2 refer to?
| A．The beach. | B．The water. |
| C．The boat. | D．The wind. |
Why did Tim raise his head regularly?
| A．To take in enough fresh air. |
| B．To consider turning back or not. |
| C．To check his distance from the boys. |
| D．To ask the boys to take down the umbrella. |
How did the two boys finally reach the pier?
| A．They were dragged to the pier by Tim. |
| B．They swam to the pier all by themselves. |
| C．They were washed to the pier by the waves. |
| D．They were carried to the pier by Tim on his back. |
(2013·湖北，A)
Some years ago, writing in my diary used to be a usual activity. I would return from school and spend the expected half hour recording the day's events, feelings, and impressions in my little blue diary. I did not really need to express my emotions by way of words, but I gained a certain satisfaction from seeing my experiences forever recorded on paper. After all, isn't accumulating memories a way of preserving the past?
When I was thirteen years old, I went on a long journey on foot in a great valley, wellequipped with pens, a diary, and a camera. During the trip, I was busy recording every incident, name and place I came across. I felt proud to be spending my time productively, dutifully preserving for future generations a detailed description of my travels. On my last night there, I wandered out of my tent, diary in hand. The sky was clear and lit by the glare of the moon, and the walls of the valley looked threatening behind their screen of shadows. I automatically took out my pen...
At that point, I understood that nothing I wrote could ever match or replace the few seconds I allowed myself to experience the dramatic beauty of the valley. All I remembered of the previous few days were the dull characterizations I had set down in my diary.
Now, I only write in my diary when I need to write down a special thought or feeling. I still love to record ideas and quotations that strike me in books, or observations that are particularly meaningful. I take pictures, but not very often—only of objects I find really beautiful. I'm no longer blindly satisfied with having something to remember when I grow old. I realize that life will simply pass me by if I stay behind the camera, busy preserving the present so as to live it in the future.
I don't want to wake up one day and have nothing but a pile of pictures and notes. Maybe I won't have as many exact representations of people and places; maybe I'll forget certain facts, but at least the experiences will always remain inside me. I don't live to make memories—I just live, and the memories form themselves.
Before the age of thirteen, the author regarded keeping a diary as a way of ________.
| A．observing her school routine |
| B．expressing her satisfaction |
| C．impressing her classmates |
| D．preserving her history |
What caused a change in the author's understanding of keeping a diary?
| A．A dull night on the journey. |
| B．The beauty of the great valley. |
| C．A striking quotation from a book. |
| D．Her concerns for future generations. |
What does the author put in her diary now?
| A．Notes and beautiful pictures. |
| B．Special thoughts and feelings. |
| C．Detailed accounts of daily activities. |
| D．Descriptions of unforgettable events. |
The author comes to realize that to live a meaningful life is ________.
| A．to experience it |
| B．to live the present in the future |
| C．to make memories |
| D．to give accurate representations of it |
(2013·天津，C)
Poet William Stafford once said that we are defined more by the detours(绕行路)in life than by the narrow road toward goals. I like this image. But it was quite by accident that I discovered the deep meaning of his words.
For years we made the long drive from our home in Seattle to my parents' home in Boise in nine hours. We traveled the way most people do: the fastest, shortest, easiest road, especially when I was alone with four noisy, restless kids who hates confinement(限制)and have strong opinions about everything.
Road trips felt risky, so I would drive fast, stopping only when I had to. We would stick to the freeways and arrive tired.
But then Banner, our lamb was born. He was rejected by his mama days before our planned trip to Boise. I had two choices: leave Banner with my husband, or take him with me. My husband made the decision for me.
That is how I found myself on the road with four kids, a baby lamb and nothing but my everlasting optimism to see me through. We took the country roads out of necessity. We had to stop every hour, let Banner shake out his legs and feed him. The kids chased him and one another. They'd get back in the car breathless and energized, smelling fresh from the cold air.
We explored side roads, catching grasshoppers in waisthigh grass. Even if we simply looked out of the car windows at baby pigs following their mother, or fish leaping out of the water, it was better than the best ride down the freeway. Here was life. And new horizons(见识)．
We eventually arrived at my parents' doorstep astonishingly fresh and full of stories.
I grew brave with the trip back home and creative with my disciplining technique. On an empty section of road, everyone started quarreling. I stopped the car, ordered all kids out and told them to meet me up ahead. I parked my car half a mile away and read my book in sweet silence.
Some road trips are by necessity fast and straight. But that trip with Banner opened our eyes to a world available to anyone adventurous enough to wander around and made me realize that a detour may uncover the best part of a journey—and the best part of yourself.
Why did the author use to take freeways to her parents' home?
| A．It was less tiring. |
| B．It would be faster and safer. |
| C．Her kids would feel less confined. |
| D．She felt better with other drivers nearby. |
The author stopped regularly on the country roads to ______.
| A．relax in the fresh air |
| B．take a deep breath |
| C．take care of the lamb |
| D．let the kids play with Banner |
What does the author discover from the trip according to Paragraph 6?
| A．Freeways are where beauty hides. |
| B．Getting close to nature adds to the joy of life. |
| C．Enjoying the beauty of nature benefits one's health. |
| D．One should follow side roads to watch wild animals. |
Why did the author ask the kids to get out of the car on their way back home?
| A．To give herself some time to read. |
| B．To order some food for them. |
| C．To play a game with them. |
| D．To let them cool down. |
What could be the best title for the passage?
| A．Charm of the Detour. |
| B．The Road to Bravery. |
| C．Creativity out of Necessity. |
| D．Road Trip and Country Life. |
(2013·福建，C)
This is What a REAL Silver Dollar Looks Like
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You read the headlines. You know that troubled economic times have put global currency on a rollercoaster (过山车) ride. But millions have found a smarter way to build longterm value with highgrade collectable silver. And right now, those people are lining up to secure some of the last 2012 U. S. Mint Silver Eagles, America's Newest Silver Eagle Dollars. Today, you can graduate to the front of that line. Buy now and you can own these brilliant uncirculated Silver Dollars for only $38.95!
You Can't Afford to Lose
Why are we releasing (发行) this silver dollar for such a remarkable price? Because we want to introduce you to what hundreds of thousands of smart collectors and satisfied customers have known since 1984—New York Mint is the place to find the world's finest highgrade coins. That's why we're offering you this Brilliant Uncirculated 2012 U. S. Silver Eagle for as little as $37.45 (plus s/h)．
Timing is Everything
Our advice? Keep this to yourself. Because the more people who know about this offer, the worse it is for you. Demand for Silver Eagles in 2011 broke records. Experts predict that 2012 Silver Eagles may break them all over again. Due to rapid changes in the price of silver, prices may be higher or lower and are subject to(受……影响) change without notice. Supplies are limited. Call immediately to add these Silver Eagles to your holdings before it's too late.
Offer Limited to 40 per household 2012 American Silver Eagle Coin
Your cost 1－4 Coins
$38.95 each＋s/h
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$38.45 each＋s/h
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$37.95 each＋s/h
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$37.45 each＋s/h
Note: $10 s/h (shipping and handling) for each purchase
For fastest service, call tollfree 24 hours a day
1－888－201－7143
Offer Code (代码) ASE177－04
Please mention this code when you call.
New York Mint 14101
Southcross Drive W．，Dept. ASE177－04
Burnsville, Minnesota 55337
www. NewYorkMint. com
What is stressed in the ad?
| A．The coin is of high quality and worth collecting. |
| B．The coin can be circulated as a currency. |
| C．Limited supplies guarantee a stable price of the coin. |
| D．Demand for the coin is bound to break records. |
If you buy six 2012 U. S. Mint Silver Eagles by post, you should pay at least ________.
| A．$230.7 | B．$233.7 |
| C．$240.7 | D．$243.7 |
The ad strongly encourages people to purchase the silver coins by ________.
| A．shopping online |
| B．making a phone call |
| C．lining up in front of the stores |
| D．writing to the company |
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