Have you ever heard anyone say “It’s raining cats and dogs”? It means “It’s raining hard!”
But sometimes cats and dogs do drop from the sky! Here’s how it happens.
Not so long ago, a country far away had many large rats. The people there said, “ We need cats!” So cats were sent to them by airplane. But the country had many mountains. It was hard for an airplane to land. So the cats came down by parachute(降落伞). Did the cats like the ride? They didn’t say they didn’t! And today they are still catching rats!
In another country far away, there is snow the year around. People sometimes got lost in it.
“We need big dogs!” the people said, “The dogs could find people lost in the snow. The dogs could help bring them home. Where can we get big dogs?”
A man across the sea had big dogs to sell. “I will send dogs to you,” he said. “ I have some very big ones. They can find people lost in the snow.”
He sent the dogs by airplane.
But the airplane did not land in the snow. The dogs came down by parachute ---- you guessed it !
Did the dogs like the ride? They didn’t say they didn’t! And today they are well and happy.
They find anyone who gets lost in the snow. Then they help him get home. Good dogs!
Remember it, so you can say, “ Yes, it does rain cats and dogs sometimes. They came down by parachute!”
40.The underlined word “ it” In Paragraph 2 refers to __________.
A．the weather
B．the saying “It’s raining cats and dogs.”
C．the saying “It’s raining hard.”
D．the fact that real cats and dogs drop from the sky.
41. Cats and dogs drop from the sky because ______.
A．there are many mountains in the country.
B. it snows the year around in the country.
C. was hard for a plane to land in the two countries.
D. coming down by parachute could save money.
42．The main purpose of the passage is to _________________.
A．tell the readers cats and dogs do drop from the sky
B．tell the readers of a new meaning about an old saying.
C．show cats and dogs are our good friends.
D．show parachute is an important
阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项(A.B.C.和D)中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并标在答题卷的相应位置。
Ready to give up long showers, water parks, and unlimited water gushing（喷涌）out of your taps? A new study says more than three-hundred-thirty-five-million people are faced with water ________ now. The oceans are full, of course. But the liquid—fresh, clean water for drinking and watering crops is in short _________ in many parts of the world. Rivers are running low, lakes are shrinking, streams have stopped _________, and groundwater is being pumped(抽) dry. However, the _________ for water keeps increasing. So there comes ________ the water crisis!
What is causing the crisis? Experts say it is a complex ________ of climate change and rapid population growth. On the one hand, global climate change threatens to reduce water supplies due to ________ rainfall. On the other hand, population growth is driving _______ demand for water, prompting(促使) rivers in thirsty countries to be tapped for nearly every drop and ________ governments to pump out so-called fossil water.
Lack of water may result in several ________. It may increase health problems. Lack of water often means drinking waters are not _________. Lack of water may also result in more international _________. Countries may have to compete for water in the future. Some countries now _________ sixty percent of their fresh water from other countries. And lack of water would _________ the ability of developing to improve their _________. This is because new industries often need a large amount of _______ when they are beginning.
One partial _________ to the world water shortage, at least for countries near the sea, is to _________ more desalination(去盐作用) plants that change _________into fresh water. Another suggested solution is for water-rich countries, such as Canada, to sell water to countries which are _________ in water.
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第四部分：任务型阅读（共 10 小题，每小题 1 分，满分 10 分）
When students arrive on campus with their parents, both parties often assume that the college will function in loco parentis（处在父母位置），watching over its young charges, providing assistance when needed. Colleges and universities present themselves as supportive learning communities-as extended families, in a way. And indeed, for many students they become a home away from home. Ideally, the college nurtures（养育）its students, guiding them toward adulthood. Lifelong friendships are formed, teachers become guides, and the academic experience is enriched by social interaction. For some students, however, the picture is less beautiful. For a significant number, the challenges can become overwhelming（压力过大）．
In reality, administrators at American colleges and universities are often forced to focus as much on the new generation of students．Public institutions in particular are often faced with tough choices about which student support services to fund. Private colleges are feeling the pinch（棘手）as well．Although tuition and fees can increase as much as 6.6 percent in a single year, as they did in 2007, the high cost of doing business at public and private institutions means that students are not necessarily receiving more support in return for increased tuition and fees. To compound the problem, students may be reluctant to seek help even when they desperately need it. Just as colleges are sometimes ill equipped to respond to the challenges being posed by today's students, students themselves are sometimes ill equipped to respond to the challenges posed by college life. Although they arrive on campus with high expectations, some students struggle with shyness or perfectionism, learning disabilities or eating disorders·Still others experience failed relationships; some suffer from acute loneliness, or mental illness.
Unfortunately, higher education is sometimes more of an information delivery system than a responsive, collaborative（合作的）process. We have created cities of youth in which students can pass through unnoticed, their voices rarely heard, and their faces rarely seen. As class size grows in response to budget cuts, it becomes even less likely that troubled students, or even severely disturbed, will be noticed. When they are not, the results can be tragic.
As a teacher of creative writing who has worked with many overwhelmed students, I have found that there are ways to communicate more effectively. Most students have stories they want to share, and students in trouble can be desperate to find someone who will listen to them. Parents, as their children's primary listeners, have a key role to play. Some young people are unable to find their own way out of the dark, and a meaningful dialogue can become a light for them to see by. That is not to say that writing can be used to identify mental illness; rather, I think some of the approaches writing teachers use to enter into a reflective dialogue with students can be adopted by parents and students who want to learn more about each other. Having witnessed what can happen when a student communicates with himself, I believe this kind of responsive, one-on-one communication is more important than ever. Students in creative writing classes may have no idea that they have revealed so much about themselves because, for them, writing is like speaking inside the pages of a journal. In fact, all of us who write reveal more than we imagine. This is one of the reasons why writing, even more than speaking, can provide us with important insights into ourselves and others.
Many of us don't know our students as well as we should, yet it can be easier than we imagine to begin these necessary dialogues.
D
Researchers recently completed a study of a new method of giving health care to women in Northern Nigeria. They found women and children would use health services more often when they could see a female health worker.
Northern Nigeria is conservative area with a population that is mostly Muslim. Dr. Sally Findley is a professor at Columbia University Medical Center. She co-wrote the report on the study. She said it is unusual for women to work as health care providers there.
"Most women are not expected to be living on their own, providing health care essentially 24/7, or riding around meeting with families in the scattered hamlets."
Nigeria has one of the world's highest death rates of women connected with pregnancy and childbirth. This is called the "maternal death" rate. The worst rate of maternal death in Nigeria is in the northern region.
Male health workers do travel from town to town, but many women patients do not want to talk with a man about their own health care needs.
Dr. Findley said the trial study in Jigawa state required that many in the community be involved. It also needed support from religious leaders, even on such matters as transportation for the workers.
"We had to get permission from the state imam, the leader of all the Muslims in Jigawa, to have these female friendly motorcycles, and give permission for them to use them."
The program brought women into northern Nigeria as Community Health Extension Workers. It seems they were a big success in their community. There were five times more visits to the health center after the women health workers arrived than before. Dr. Findley said the program changed the minds of the women taking part.
"In fact, they did like this, and it did change their understanding of what they could get if they went to the facility for care."
The women of northern Nigeria could get health care at all hours in the local clinic. Mothers got help from women when they had normal births. If a mother giving birth needed more help, the Community Health Extension Workers sent her to a hospital. They also gave advice on family planning.
Each clinic had two health workers. That way, one could go out on home visits while the other was available to provide services in the clinic.
State officials in Jigawa were happy with the positive results of the study. They plan to expand the program of women community health workers.
The paper that describes the program by Sally Findley and her co-authors is published in the journal Global Health: Science and Practice.What do we know from the first paragraph_______?
| A．women and children in Northern Nigeria use health services often |
| B．there is no female health workers in Northern Nigeria |
| C．women and children in Northern Nigeria are more likely to let female health workers help them |
| D．women and children in Northern Nigeria don’t like male health workers |
Why women and children in Northern Nigeria prefer female health workers_______?
| A．Because they can’t afford the expenses |
| B．Because they don’t like male health workers |
| C．Because it is unusual for women to work as health care providers there |
| D．Because Northern Nigeria is conservative area with a population that is mostly Muslim. |
Which part in Nigeria has the worst rate of maternal death ________?
| A．the northern region | B．the southern region |
| C．the western region | D．the eastern region |
What’s the attitude of the state officials in Jigawa towards the study________?
| A．negative | B．supportive |
| C．suspect | D．indifferent |
The article most probably comes from________.
| A．a research report |
| B．a news report |
| C．a medical book |
| D．a healthy magazine |
C
Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, showed off their newest device, the Apple Watch. Mr. Cook said it is the "most personal" device Apple has ever created.
The Apple Watch is a miniature, or very small, computer a person wears on his or her wrist.There will be three models with straps to attach them to your wrist. An Apple Watch will be able to do many of the same things as an iPhone. It will show email, texts, news, health readings and other information. These apps will be customized for the watch. It will be different than just seeing what is on your phone.
Like a phone, you will be able to receive calls on your wrist. Mr. Cook smiled while describing this. "I've been wanting to do this since I was five years old," he said. "The day is finally here." Decades ago, a comic strip hero named Dick Tracy talked into his wrist watch, but until now, that has only been something possible in the future.
Mr. Cook also said it is "incredibly intimate." He said you can capture and send your heartbeat to another person with an Apple Watch.
"This is an incredibly intimate way to tell someone that you are thinking about them," he said. "I hope someone sends me one of those.
The crown of the Apple Watch is what sets this Apple product apart from other companies' smartwatches. Like the touch screen on smartphones, the crown controls what you can do. By turning the crown on an Apple Watch, one can zoom in and out, to look at a map, for example.
The watches will be available in stores in late April. They will be sold at different prices, beginning at $349. Mr. Cook called the high-end model, the one made of 18-karat gold, "jaw dropping beautiful." Its price tag will be thousands of dollars.
"The biggest surprise to me was that the price range goes up to $10,000 for the Apple Edition Watch," writes tech blogger Carolyn Nicander Mohr ofThe Wonder of Tech. "That price is quite steep for technology that may be obsolete in a year."
Apple hopes to excite consumers so they will want to buy and wear computers on their bodies. The first smartwatches from Samsung, Sony and LG have not been selling well. Only five million smartwatches were sold last year, according to Strategy Analytics. Another wearable computer, Google Glass eyewear, is no longer on the market.
Critics say one problem with Apple Watch is that you need an iPhone on your body, or nearby, to make this watch fully functional. Like a phone, it will also need to be charged each night. It remains to be seen whether people really want to carry both a smartphone and a smartwatch.
Apple has overcome skeptics before. Both computer tablets and smartphones were not popular until Apple released the iPad and iPhones.
The announcement today comes after last week's news that Apple will replace AT&T on the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The Dow Jones index includes the top 30 companies representing the U.S. economy and markets.As the newest device of Apple, the Apple Watch can show many things EXCEPT _______?
| A．news | B．texts |
| C．health readings | D．games |
What sets the Apple Watch apart from other companies' smartwatches________?
| A．the crown of the Apple Watch |
| B．the straps of the Apple Watch |
| C．the design of the Apple Watch |
| D．the price of the Apple Watch |
The reason why Apple created the Apple Watch is that_________.
| A．Apple wants to compete with Samsung, Sony and LG |
| B．Apple expects to encourage people to buy its new product |
| C．Apple wants to help people in trouble |
| D．Google Glass eyewear is no longer on the market |
According to the passage, which is NOT true_______?
| A．the Apple Watch is Apple’s newest device |
| B．The apps on the Apple Watch is the same as thos on an iphone |
| C．The crown sets the Apple Watch apart from other companies' smartwatches |
| D．the Apple Watch needs to be charged each night |
B
Schools are being urged to go back to ‘chalk and talk’ teaching that was once widespread in Britain – in order to reproduce the success the traditional methods now have in China.
Education Minister Nick Gibb said having a teacher speak to the class as a whole from the front was much more effective than children working on their own – the method which has become dominant in schools over the past 40 years.
Mr. Gibb’s intervention（干预）, which will infuriate many in the educational establishment, follows a Government scheme in which more than 70 maths teachers from British primaries went to Shanghai to study the teaching styles of their Chinese counterparts. Researchers have found that children in China achieve marks in maths up to 30 per cent higher than English pupils of the same age.
In ‘whole class’ teaching, which was common in this country until the 1950s, the teacher instructs all the pupils together by using a blackboard, or its equivalent, while testing the children with questions.
But progressive educationalists argued this was too authoritarian, and instead promoted the ‘child-centered’ approach that has been prevalent in primary schools since then. Under this system, pupils are encouraged to ‘discover’ knowledge by themselves, working at their own speed or in small groups, with the teacher offering them support.
Mr. Gibb told The Mail on Sunday: ‘I would like to see schools across the country adopt whole class teaching methods, particularly in maths and science. Research shows it is significantly more effective than other methods that concentrate more on personalized learning.’
He said Shanghai schools topped international league tables, with 15-year-olds there three years ahead of their English counterparts in maths.
Mr. Gibb added: ‘In Shanghai primary schools, whole class teaching with all pupils taking part in question and answer sessions is key to their success. All their pupils are taught the same curriculum and all are expected to reach the same high standard.’
Professor Alan Smithers, director of the Centre for Education and Employment Research at Buckingham University, said: ‘English education was overtaken with progressive ideas in recent decades, which held it was better for children to learn by themselves and at their own pace.
‘This was clearly madness, and it has taken 40 years to realize this.
‘The trouble with the trendy methods is that the children are left to their own devices, including chatting to their friends, while the teacher is elsewhere. It is a very inefficient use of time and resources.’
Mr. Gibb’s comments have been backed by recent research, which concluded that the success of pupils in the Far East is largely down to teaching methods. How does the passage mainly develop?
| A．By making comparisons. | B．By giving examples. |
| C．By explaining things. | D．By giving numbers. |
What do we know about “whole class” teaching method?
| A．The teacher speaks to the class as a whole in the front. |
| B．The teacher provides help only when necessary. |
| C．The students discover knowledge all by themselves. |
| D．The students all study at their own pace. |
What is Alan Smithers’ attitude towards the “child-centered” teaching method？
| A．Positive. | B．Negative. |
| C．Neutral. | D．Unclear. |
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