Say you are a 17th century construction worker who’s worked hard to build a splendid tower for the dead wife of your emperor.
Now say that the emperor orders your fingertips cut off so your can never build another one . Yes, this story is about the Taj Mahal, one of the most famous buildings in the world. And
the tale behind the construction is just as impressive as the building itself.
First, there’s the emperor of northern India, Shah Jehan, also called the King of the World.
In 1612, Shah Jehan married Mumtaz Mahal. Mad in love, they had 14 children over the next 20 years. But then sadness came. As Mumtaz was about to give birth to child number 14, she said she heard her unborn baby cry out. It was a sign of death. And as Mumtaz lay dying ,
she asked Jehan to build a lasting memorial（纪念物）to celebrate their love.
The heartbroken Jehan ordered his wife’s dying wish carried out, and more than 20,000 workers worked nearly 2 years to complete the construction. In 1653, Jehan placed Mumtaz’s remains under the center of the building.
Later, son number five, Aurangzeb, murdered his brothers and took over the power from his aging father. Jehan lived the rest of his days, eight years, imprisoned not far from the Taj Mahal. Jehan was only allowed to climb onto the top of his prison to see the timeless treasure from a distance. But never again would he be allowed to visit it until he was buried next to his wife.
Today, 25,000 people visit the Taj Mahal each day. Though the reason for building the tower was a strange and sad story, people who see its breath-taking beauty are reminded of the happiness that inspired its construction.
64. The first two paragraphs were written mainly to show that .
A. the Taj Mahal is an unusual historic building
B. ancient Indian emperors were cruel
C. construction workers led a hard life in ancient India .
D. India has some of the most famous buildings in the world.
65. The Taj Mahal was first built as .
A. a prison B. a gift to Mumtaz C. a memorial building D. a tourist attraction
66. From the passage we can learn that Mumtaz probably died in .
A. 1626 B. 1632 C. 1634 D.1653
67. The underlined word “happiness” in the last paragraph refers to “ ”.
A. the married happiness of the emperor and his wife
B. the great pleasure Jehan once found in exercising his power.
C. the happiness Jehan felt on completing the Taj Mahal
D. the pleasure tourists experience when visiting the Taj Mahal
American researchers found females are the more talkative sex because of a special “language protein(蛋白质)” in the brain.
The study, conducted by neuroscientists （神经学家）and psychologist from the University of Maryland, concluded that women talked more because they had more of the Foxp2 protein. The research, published in the Journal of Neuroscience, found that higher levels were found among humans that were women but in rats that were males. Their findings came after it was previously claimed that ladies speak about 20,000 words a day – over 13,000 more than men. “This study is one of the first to report a sex difference in the expression of a language-associated protein in humans or animals,” said Prof Margaret McCarthy, who led the study. In their study, the researchers attempted to determine what might make male rats more vocal than their female friends.
They separated four-day-old rats from their mothers and then counted the number of times they cried out in the “ultrasonic range”, the frequencies higher than humans can hear, over five minutes. While both sexes called out hundreds of cries, the males called out twice as often, they found. But when the pups were returned to their mother’s cage, she fussed over her sons first. Tests conducted on the parts of the brain known to be associated with vocalcalls showed the male pups have up to twice as much Foxp2 protein as the females. The researchers then increased the production in the brains of female pups and reduced it in males. This led to the female rats crying out more often and their mothers showing more interest to them. In contrast, males became less “talkative”.
The researchers then tested samples from ten children, aged between three and five, which showed that females had up to 30 per cent more of the Foxp2 protein than males, in a brain area key to language in humans.
“Based on our observations, we assume higher levels of Foxp2 in girls and higher levels of Foxp2 in male rats is an indication that Foxp2 protein levels are associated with the more communicative sex,” said Prof McCarthy.
“Our results imply Foxp2 as a component of the neurobiological basis of sex differences in vocal communication in mammals. ”From the second paragraph, we can learn that ________.
| A．women always speak more words than men |
| B．men and male rats have low levels of language protein |
| C．women and male rats have similar levels of Foxp2 |
| D．McCarthy isn’t the first to find females more talkative |
The underlined phrase “fussed over” in the third paragraph probably means______.
| A．paid attention to | B．related to | C．put pressure on | D．counted on |
The researchers carried out the experiments on rats in order to _______.
| A．test which part of the brain is key to language in rats and humans |
| B．prove the levels of Foxp2 protein in humans and rats are different |
| C．determine the reason why female rats are more talkative than male rats |
| D．discover the association between Foxp2protein and vocal communication |
Which of the following can be the best title for the passage ?
| A．Tests on humans and rats |
| B．Why women are the talkative sex |
| C．Sex differences in Foxp2 protein |
| D．Foxp2 protein determines oral ability |
Snow falls in the Earth’s extreme North and South throughout the year. However， the heaviest snowfalls have been reported in the mountains of other areas during winter. Snow is even known to fall near the Equator (赤道)，but only on the highest mountains.
Snow contains much less water than rain, but much of the water the world uses comes from snow. Melting snow provides water for rivers, electric power stations and agricultural crops. In the western United States, mountain snow provides up to seventy-five percent of all surface water supplies.
Snowfall helps to protect plants and some wild animals from winter weather. Fresh snow is made largely of air trapped among the snow crystals (晶体). Because the air has trouble moving, the movement of heat is limited. Snow also influences the movement of sound waves. The surface of the snow takes in, or absorbs, sound waves. As snow grows older or if there have been strong winds, it can become hard and flat. Then, the snow’s surface will help to send back sound waves.
Snow may be beautiful, but it can be deadly. It is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of people. Many people die in traffic accidents on roads covered with snow and ice or from being seriously stuck in the winter storm. Others die from heart attacks caused by too much physical activity out in the cold.
People may not be able to avoid living in areas where it snows often. However, they can avoid becoming victims of snowstorms. People should stop driving and stay at home until the storm has passed. People living in these areas should carry emergency supplies in their vehicle. These include food，emergency medical supplies，and extra clothing to stay warm and dry.Mountain snowfall _____.
| A．provides up to seventy—five percent of water supplies worldwide |
| B．has never occurred near the Equator of the earth |
| C．brings less of the water the world uses than rain does |
| D．is heavier than that in the South and the North Poles |
Snow protects plants and wild animals from cold weather by _____.
| A．supplying much more air | B．limiting heat movement |
| C．absorbing strong winds | D．sending back sound waves |
Snow can be deadly mainly because it can _____.
| A．cause road accidents |
| B．make people stuck in winter storms |
| C．make people victims of snowstorms |
| D．lead to heart attacks |
What will the text probably tell us following the last paragraph? ____.
| A．How to prevent heart attacks out in cold |
| B．Where we can get emergency supplies |
| C．How to drive during snowstorms |
| D．Why we should stay warm and dry in winter |
April 11, 2003 12:44 a. m. PST, Associated Press
The respiratory(呼吸系统) virus known as SARS has appeared to spread in the United States only to family members of health workers with close contact to a sick person.
On Thursday, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said there might be a case of severe acute respiratory syndrome（综合症） spreading through the workplace.
Dr. Julie Gerberding said a suspected SARS virus patient who became ill after traveling to Asia might have infected a co-worker in Florida, which made her “very worried”.
So far, a dozen people—nine family members and three health workers—were infected after coming into close contact with the person with SARS. The rest of the 166 suspected American cases have something to do with people who were infected while traveling in Asia.
In the Gainesville, Fla. area, a 47-year-old woman was believed to have been infected at work by a 60-year-old woman who was the nation’s first suspected SARS case, said Tom Belcuore, director of the Alachua County health department.
Since the World Health Organization announced a worldwide warning last month about SARS, the United States has started infection control in hospitals and among families of suspected cases.
Florida officials said a school in Okaloosa County went through a cleaning after a 6-year-old boy suspected of having SARS appeared at school with slight symptoms. “Health officials are watching the boys’ contacts at school to make sure no one else is infected,” said Rob Hayes, health department spokesman, “The boy may have been infected from a family member,” Hayes said, “We immediately became aware of it and had the child sent home. He’s staying at home with his family until 10 days after symptoms disappear.”
The researchers guessed that the virus might have come from animals. However, the scientists have not ruled out the possibility that some other microbe might also help make SARS more serious or easier to catch.The best title for this text is _______.
| A．A Worldwide Warning |
| B．Suspected SARS Cases |
| C．What Is SARS |
| D．Possible Spread of SARS in the USA |
The writer wrote this text mainly to _______.
| A．discuss the danger of SARS |
| B．report research result about SARS |
| C．inform people of the spread of SARS |
| D．explain to the readers what SARS is |
How many cases of suspected SARS are there in the U.S.A. according to the text?
A. 166. B.178. C. 12. D. 181.
Ottawa is the capital of Canada. It is the second largest city in Ontario and the fourth largest city in the country.
The Centre Block is the main building on Parliament Hill (国会山). It is also the location of several ceremonial spaces, such as the Hall of Honor and the Memorial Chamber. The present Centre Block is the second iteration of the building，after the first was destroyed by fire in
1916，and it is one of the most recognizable buildings in Canada.
Downtown Ottawa is the commercial and economic centre of the city. Most of the buildings are office towers. While most of Ottawa’s high tech industry is based elsewhere, it has a significant presence in the downtown core. The downtown also contains a number of apartments, hotels, and the older single family homes and townhouses along its edges.
The National Gallery of Canada is one of Canada’s premier art galleries. The Gallery has a large and varied collection of paintings, drawings, sculpture and photographs. Although its focus is on Canadian art, it also holds works by some noted American and European artists.
The Rideau Canal is the oldest continuously operated canal system in North America. At the very beginning，the purpose of the Rideau Canal was military, as it was intended to provide a secure supply and communication route between Montreal and the British naval base in Kingston. It remains in use today primarily for pleasure boating, with most of its original structures undamaged. The locks on the system open for navigation in mid-May and close in mid-October. What does "iteration" probably mean in the 2nd paragraph? _____.
| A．repair | B．copy | C．design | D．landmark |
In the core of Downtown Ottawa, we could see _____.
| A．a large number of tall towers |
| B．a number of apartments and hotels |
| C．head offices of Ottawa’s high tech industry |
| D．the older single family homes and townhouses |
Collections in the National Gallery of Canada are mainly _____.
| A．paintings and drawings |
| B．sculpture and photographs |
| C．artwork by Americans and European |
| D．works by Canadian artists |
Which of the following is true about the Rideau Canal? _____.
| A．It was originally for the military purpose |
| B．It is the oldest canal system in North America |
| C．The original structures remain never changed |
| D．People can only go boating from May to October |
An Israeli law banning too skinny models went into effect with the start of 2013. The law, approved last March in Israel, requires models to prove they have maintained a Body Mass Index (BMI) of at least 18.5 for three months before a fashion show. That means a woman who is 5'8'' tall can weigh no less than 119 pounds.
“This law is another step in the war against eating disorders,” said physician Adatto. “Underweight models,” he explained, “can no longer serve as role models for innocent young people who copy their false image of being skinny.”
But some critics in this country say it is misguided, focusing on weight instead of health. They also say the Israeli ban is bound to fail because of the strong power of the fashion industry. “I think it’s an approach that isn’t going to work.” Said eating disorder expert Susan Ice, who worked with an organization which creates a healthy working environment for models.
But Adatto told the reporter that he began to concern the issue after meeting an ambitious model who looked like she needed to be hospitalized. He said. “I realized that only legislation can change the situation. There was no time to waste, so many girls were dieting to death.”
However, the efforts to regulate models’ weight in Spain and Italy have not resulted in significant changes in part because of difficulties in determining reliable methods of measuring weight and health.
Still, folks including Ice say there’s no denying that images from Hollywood and the fashion industry can be difficult for young women to deal with. “Certainly I don't believe the modeling industry has caused the rise in eating disorders, but it makes it harder,” she says. “It’s a difficult recovery environment, worshiping thinness as the beauty ideal.”What does BMI in the first paragraph refer to?
| A．A new show held by those skinny models. |
| B．A worldwide prize for the healthiest model. |
| C．A measure of body health based on height and weight. |
| D．A kind of medicine to cure eating disorders. |
One benefit the new Israeli law may bring is ________.
| A．to change the working conditions of models |
| B．to prevent models from suffering from eating disorders |
| C．to lower the chance of skinny models’ death |
| D．to provide guidance for women worshiping thinness |
In the opinion of the critics, the law won’t succeed because .
| A．the fashion industry is much too influential |
| B．it misleads young women to form a bad eating habit |
| C．it doesn’t provide a proper approach that can work well |
| D．it doesn’t create a healthy working environment for models |
According to the passage, the new Israeli law banning skinny models is .
| A．practical | B．acceptable | C．reasonable | D．controversial |
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