Delicate Arch
Delicate Arch can be found in Arches National Park in Utah, USA. The arch stands alone at a height of 52 feet and is considered one of Utah’s most important landmarks. In 2002, the Olympic torch passed through this arch to mark the beginning of the winter games.
This 15-meter high and 110-meter long impressive natural rock formation is located in Western Australia. It looks like a large, smooth wave ready to break. Algae（海澡）grow on the surface of Wave Rock.
The Wave
The Wave is located on the slopes of the Coyote Buttes. Arizona, USA. This incredible formation can be reached by hiking approximately 4.8 kilometers, making the round trip to and from The Wave a nearly 9.7-kilometer hike that climbs about 107 meters in altitude.
James Bond Island
James Bond Island can be found in Aohang-Nga National Park in Thailand. The needle-shaped rock formation was named James Bond Island because it was featured in a 1974 Bond film The Man with the Golden Gun.
Devil’s Tower
The formation known as Devil’s Tower can be found in Wyoming, USA. Also known as Bear Tower, the rock formation is actually the neck of a volcano. It rises 386 meters-above the surrounding land and the top of it is 1.558 meters above sea level.
The Giant’s Causeway
The Giant’s Causeway is located in Northern Ireland and has a series of over 40, 000 columns made of basalt（玄武岩）. Each column is connected and the formation is believed to be a result of volcanic ash. Believe it or not, when this formation was first discovered, scientists argued as to how it was formed. Some thought it was natural, others thought it was manmade, and some thought that perhaps it had been created by a giant!
Bryce Canyon National Park
One of the most impressive rock formations in the world is the Bryce Canyon in Utah, USA. It is a national park and despite its name, it is not actually a canyon, but rather a giant natural amphitheater（圆形竞技场）created by erosion.
Pierce Rock
This rock formation is one of the largest natural arches in the world. This natural arch named Pierce Rock is an island in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, Canada. It is 433 meters long, 90meters wide, and 88 meters at its highest point.
55．Which of the following rock formations is located in Asia?
A．Wave Rock. B．James Bond Island
C．The Giant’s Causeway. D．Pierce Rock.
56．Which of the following rock formations is related to a volcano?
A．The Wave B．Devil’s Tower.
C．Bryce Canyon National park. D．Pierce Rock.
57．Which of the following words can best describe the rock formations?
A．Impressive B．Unexpected C．Surprising D．Unexceptional
58．According to the passage, the scientists once argued with regard to ________ at first.
A．why Pierce Rock was so featured
B．when Bryce Canyon National park came into being
C．what on earth these formations are connected with
D．how the Giant’s Causeway Was formed
Gallows humor（黑色幽默）seem like a mistake, or at least in poor taste. But psychologists say that gallows humor can be an important way to relieve stress. “Humor makes you feel in control and it can give you that feeling that everything is okay even when it's not,” says James M. Jones, a psychology professor at the University of Delaware.
Psychologists say that just because you're laughing doesn't mean you’re wasting time. Occasional teasing among colleagues, particularly if it revolves around things associated with the job, can boost creativity, departmental cohesiveness（凝聚力）and performance.
“There are a lot of stressors out there,” says Ed Dunkelblau, a psychologist with the Institute for Emotionally Intelligent Learning in Chicago. “But gallows humor is a way of making difficult things a little less difficult.”
This is true as long as the humor is used for the right purpose. The main point of it should be inspiring people --- not laughing at them. “Anything that would lift morale（士气）in terms of the company would be good humor,” says Thierry Guedj, a professor of business and psychology at Boston University. “Before you say or do anything, think about, ‘How is this helping my employees’ morale?’”
You want to give your employees and co-workers a sense of belonging, so don’t make observations that are aggressive. Most obviously, Dr Guedj says, don’t make comments about people’s physical appearance, or faith. If you have any doubt, it's appropriate, don't go through with it.
Or you can take aim at the one person you know won't be offended（冒犯）:Yourself. “If there's going to be a joke or story, it should be you,” Mr. Dunkelblau says. For example, if you're a marketing manager reviewing a failed campaign that you led, begin with a line like, “The guy who gave permission to this deal might just be looking for work next week.”
“People with the ability to laugh at themselves can give other people permission to laugh at themselves too,” Mr. Jones says. “And if you can laugh at yourself, you feel better about yourself.”According to the text, gallows humor has the following functions EXCEPT ________.
| A．reducing pressure |
| B．improving performance |
| C．making people more creative |
| D．leading to a big mistake |
What is Ed Dunkelblau’s attitude towards gallows humor?
| A．Positive. | B．Negative. | C．Neutral. | D．Uncertain. |
Which of the following would Dr. Guedj most probably agree with?
| A．Gallows humor is the basic source of morale. |
| B．Gallows humor allows people to laugh at others. |
| C．Gallows humor may sometimes be used for the wrong purpose. |
| D．Anything that may lift morale can be called gallows humor. |
When people use gallows humor, they should ________.
| A．observe who is aggressive |
| B．show a sense of belonging |
| C．doubt about the result of humors |
| D．try to avoid irritating others |
What can we infer from the text?
| A．People tend to laugh at others rather than themselves. |
| B．Laughing at ourselves can help relieve the stress of others. |
| C．People can’t avoid offending others with gallows humor. |
| D．People who laugh at themselves are hard to be friends with. |
Life is full of change, and this leads to growth. Change is what keeps our lives moving, and allows us to achieve what we desire and deserve. Like it or not, we need to be willing to go with the flow, and be adaptable when something doesn’t go according to plan. A catalyst is a person that causes something else to happen, and if you’re not currently a catalyst for change, here are some things you can do to become one.
Take a look at what you’ve got going on in your life right now. Write down everything that comes to mind. Is there anything that jumps out at you that you're not content with? Is there something that isn't moving forward as quickly as you would like it to? Identifying what you want to change is the first step to getting somewhere with it.
Take the initiative to make change happen. Once you have identified what you want to work on changing, write down several possible "next steps" you can take to realizing that change. Whatever it is you want to change, you won't get very far without having specific actions in mind to carry out. Start small, and then focus on items that are a bit more involved or difficult and just keep going!
When carrying out a change, it’s great if you’re able to bounce ideas off other people, particularly if they can help you implement that change in some way. Be receptive to feedback, but realize that others’ opinions are not golden. Also remember to give feedback when asked for it. Be sure it's genuine and that you are able to stand behind it.
Create an environment for change. There is nothing more discouraging than trying to create change in an environment that is not conducive to it. It’s like trying to stick to a diet in a house that is filled with chips, cookies, ice cream and chocolate; you are just making it more difficult for yourself.
Change is good, and often leads to process improvement, increased productivity and efficiency. Take the initiative, and make changes to your life to get to where you want to go faster than you are going right now.If you decide to change, you should start by _________.
| A．going with the flow |
| B．changing from day to day |
| C．writing down good ideas |
| D．making sure you know what to change |
Which of the following is TRUE, according to the fourth paragraph?
| A．One should accept others’ opinions uncritically. |
| B．One should be cautious about the opinions of others. |
| C．It’s more important to get than to give feedback. |
| D．Change may not happen without ideas from other people. |
The underlined words “bounce ideas off other people” in the fourth paragraph probably mean
“_________”.
| A．get approval from others |
| B．get your ideas across to other people |
| C．get others’ feedback about your ideas |
| D．carry out your ideas without the help of others |
What can we infer from the text?
| A．Change benefits us in different ways. |
| B．Creating a good environment is the most important step. |
| C．It’s discouraging to try to change one’s environment. |
| D．Being a catalyst for change is risky but rewarding. |
Which would be the best title for the text?
| A．How to achieve what you desire. |
| B．How to be a catalyst for change. |
| C．How to act according to your plans. |
| D．How to move in the right direction. |
My mother, Marisol Torres, came with her family to Australia in the early 1960s. Then my parents’ marriage ended and Mum began the study of precious stones. Her interest in opals (猫眼石) took her to the New South Wales remote town of Lightning Ridge. There were no luxuries (奢华的享受), but she was closer to nature and had a chance to find black opals and make some money.
My mother was beautiful with dark hair and brown eyes, but she was also quiet and shy. Early in the Ridge years, she kept to herself, but later, she started going to the neighbourhood centre to make friends.
It was her dream to mine, but her get-rich-quick thinking was unrealistic. She was cheated and she was never very successful. But she kept a sense of humour and a charming smile.
Then, just as friendships began to blossom, she was diagnosed with cancer and had to return south for treatment. She had the intention of cooking Spanish food as special treat for her Ridge friends, but died too soon. In her honour, my aunt, Marisa, and I fulfilled her desire when we visited the Ridge in March last year.
People who mine the Ridge come from a cross section of society, from lawyers to travels. Looks don’t mean much: it can be hard to tell who is millionaire and who is poor. Opals attracted Sebastian and Hanna Deisenberger to Lightning Ridge. They planned a two-year stay, but became permanent residents.
Then there’s Neil Schellnegger, 45, who moved to the area with his parents when he was a child. He lives with his son, Luke. Luke is a shy 19-year-old boy who enjoys helping his dad. They haven’t had much luck over the past couple of years, but their passion for opals conquers disappointment. They love the peaceful lifestyle.
Danny Hatcher, 38, is a second-generation miner and president of the Lightning Ridge Miners’ Association. He is an optimistic man, driven by the desire to find the perfect opal. “It’s magic,” he explains. “Once you start opal mining you don’t want to do anything else… There is always the potential for finding a million dollars. Nothing beats it.”
It’s a place where dreams --- spiritual or material --- can be fulfilled; a place, for one last bet in life. What made the author’s mother go to Lightning Ridge?
| A．The luxurious life there. | B．Her new marriage there. |
| C．Her interest in opals. | D．Her passion for nature. . |
After the author’s mother died, she fulfilled her desire by __________.
| A．treating her mother’s Ridge friends with Spanish food |
| B．writing a biography about her whole life |
| C．decorating her house in Lightning Ridge |
| D．finding a lot of black opals in Lightning Ridge |
We know from the passage that _________.
| A．the rich and the poor can be distinguished by their looks |
| B．Luke is a successful miner, just like his father |
| C．Sebastian is planning to leave Lightning Ridge |
| D．Danny Hatcher’s parents were miners in Lightning Ridge |
Lightning Ridge is a place where dreams can be fulfilled because __________.
| A．there are precious stones and life is peaceful |
| B．there are people from all walks of life |
| C．there are rich people who can help poor people |
| D．there is a lot of gold hidden in the ground |
What is the author’s purpose of giving Neil Schellnegger and Danny Hatcher as examples?
| A．To show the magic power of opal mining. |
| B．To tell people it isn’t always hard to mine opals. |
| C．To warn people not to take up this kind of job. |
| D．To persuade people to look for more resources for the country. |
阅读下面短文并回答问题，然后将答案写到答题卡相应的位置上(请注意问题后的词数要求)。
[1] Weeks after his wife died, Rao Pingru started to paint pictures of her. From the first time he saw her putting on makeup in a mirror, to their wedding at which they promised “to love and cherish”, to her lying in bed on her final days – all the images of their nearly 60 – year marriage have been food for his art.
[2] “ When I create her with brushstrokes, she is there, and our story doesn’t perish,(死亡)” said Rao, 91, a retired military man and former editor. He has filled 18 albums of drawings in the past four years, which he called Our Story.
[3] At first, the Jiangxi native was only trying to pass time and leave something so his grandchildren could “know about their grandparents” who have been through war, poverty, sickness and, perhaps most importantly, love.
[4] Rao met Meitang as a blind date when he came back from war in 1946. “ It’s a strange thing. You just have to meet the right person to have that feeling,” he said, thinking of how lovely she was. During their early dates, Rao _________________ “the three words”. Instead, he sang a pop song of the time, Rosemary, I love you, to express his feelings, on a park bench in Nanchang, Jiangxi province.
[5] The first two years of their marriage was “ the sweetest time” of Rao’s life, as he recalled, in spite of the turbulence following the war. The couple adopted a happy – go – lucky policy wherever they traveled, worked and lived. They managed to escape robbery by hiding their possessions in tires while Rao was working in Guizhou province.What is the main idea of the passage? (no more than 12 words)
__________________________________________________________________What does the underlined word “ food”(Para 1) refer to? (no more than 9 words)
__________________________________________________________________Why did Rao begin his drawings? (no more than 16 words)
__________________________________________________________________Please fill in the blank (Para 4)with proper words to complete the sentence. (no more than 5 words)
___________________________________________________________________What is Rao and his wife’s attitude towards life? (no more than 4words)
___________________________________________________________________
Once in a blue moon,(极为罕见) there is one on New Year's Eve. Revelers ringing in 2010 will be treated to a so-called blue moon. According to popular definition, a blue moon is the second full moon in a month. But don't expect it to be blue - the name has nothing to do with the color of our closest celestial(天空的) neighbor. A full moon occurred on December 2. It will appear again on Thursday in time for the New Year's countdown.
The New Year's Eve blue moon will be visible in the United States, Canada, Europe, South America and Africa. For partygoers in Australia and Asia, the full moon does not show up until New Year's Day, making January a blue moon month for them.
A full moon occurs every 29.5 days, and most years have 12. On average, an extra full moon in a month - a blue moon - occurs every 2.5 years. The last time there was a lunar double take was in May 2007. New Year's Eve blue moons are rarer, occurring every 19 years. The last time was in 1990; the next one won't come again until 2028.
“Blue moons have no astronomical significance,” said Greg Laughlin, an astronomer at the University of California. “`Blue moon' is just a name in the same sense as a `hunter's moon'(a full moon in octorber) or a `harvest moon,'” Laughlin said in an e-mail.
The popular definition of blue moon came about after a writer for Sky & Telescope magazine in 1946 misinterpreted the Maine Farmer's Almanac and labeled a blue moon as the second full moon in a month. In fact, the almanac(年历) defined a blue moon as the third full moon in a season with four full moons.What’s the color of blue moon?
| A．blue | B．golden | C．green | D．red |
If you are in China, in which month can you see the blue moon?
| A．December, 2009 | B．November, 2009 |
| C．January, 2010 | D．February, 2010 |
Compared with the hunters moon, the blue moon ________ .
| A．is more beautiful | B．is rarer | C．is larger | D．is brighter |
Which full moon should be called blue moon according to the original definition?
| A．The second full moon in a month with two full moons. |
| B．The third full moon in a month with three full moons. |
| C．The second full moon in a season with four full moons. |
| D．The third full moon in a season with four full moons. |
What would be the best title for the passage ?
| A．Rare New Year’s Eve Blue Moon to Ring in 2010 |
| B．Blue Moon to Take Us Good Fortune |
| C．The Best Time to Observe Blue Moon |
| D．The Reason for Blue Moon’s Appearing |
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