Tuvalu, north of Fiji, is a tiny country in the Pacific Ocean.
Storms and huge waves are a constant threat and none of Tuvalu's nine little islands is more than five metres above sea level. Salt water is already entering the country's drinking water supply, as well as damaging plants that produce fruit and vegetable.It fears it will be swallowed up by the sea. Without urgent help, the country's days are numbered.
But Tuvalu is not the first place to face sinking into the sea. Venice, a historic city in Italy best known for its canals, has sunk about 24cm over the past 100 years. Experts say that it will have sunk another 20-50cm by 2050. A century ago, St. Mark's Square, the lowest point in the city, flooded about nine times a year. Nowadays, it happens more than 100 times.
While Venice is slowly sinking into the mud on which it stands, Tuvalu's rising sea level is caused by global warming.
The average global temperature has increased by almost 0.5 centigrade degree over the past century; scientists expect it to rise by an extra 1-3 degrees over the nex
t 100 years.
Warmer wea
ther makes glaciers melt, adding more water to the ocean. The warmer temperatures also make water expand, so it takes up more space, causing the sea level to rise. The sea level has risen about 10-25cm in the last 100 years.
People have been increasing the greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, such as CO2, through burning coal, oil and gas. This adds to the power of the greenhouse effect, making the planet even warmer.
Many scientists believe that, if the warming is not stopped, there will be huge climate changes. The sea level could rise by one metre this century.
Should this come true, millions of homes would be swallowed up by the sea and the world will be flooded with "climate refugees" looking for somewhere else to live. We can infer from Paragraph 2 that ______.
| A．Tuvalu is in danger of being swallowed up by the sea |
| B．all Tuvalu’s islands are about five meters above the sea level |
| C．drinking water in Tuvalu has been destroyed |
| D．Tuvalu is often flooded by storms and waves |
The author uses Tuvalu and Venice as examples in order to explain ______.
| A．they are the first places sinking into the sea |
| B．they are both sinking into the mud where they stand |
| C．they will disappear in the future |
| D．their trouble is caused by global warming |
What does the underlined word “refugees” mean?
| A．People forced away from their homeland. |
| B．Sudden changes caused by world climate. |
| C．Animals whose lives are closely connected with weather. |
| D．Bad effect of climate changes. |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the text?
| A．The main cause of global warming is human pollution. |
| B．The average global temperature has risen by 1-3 centigrade degrees over the past 100 years. |
| C．The warmer temperature causes the sea level to rise. |
| D．There will be huge climate changes unless the warming is stopped. |
According to the passage, the root cause of global warming is _______.
| A．the burning of coal, oil and gas | B．the position change of the solar system |
| C．human pollution | D．carbon dioxide emission |
I think it was my mother who taught me the meaning of honesty. Not because she actually was honest, but because she lied all the time. She felt that the easiest way out of any given situation was generally the best way out. And, for her, that generally meant telling a “little white lie”. As a young child I thought it was kind of cool. And, naturally, when I would come to her with a concern or question wondering what I should do, she generally advised me to lie.
“Mom, I told Theresa that I would go over to her house, but now I would rather go to Sue's house to play.”
“Tell Theresa you're sick，” she would advise. And generally I did. But I didn't seem blessed with her lack of conscience. On many painful occasions Theresa would find out that I really went to Sue's house without her. These occasions taught me that it is more painful to be caught in a lie than it is to tell the truth in the first place. I wondered how it was possible that my mother had never learned that lesson.
I started thinking of all the lies that I'd heard her tell. I remembered the time she told someone that her favorite restaurant had closed, because she didn't want to see them there anymore. Or the time she told Dad that she loved the lawnmower he gave her for her birthday. Or when she claimed that our phone lines had been down when she was trying to explain why she hadn't been in touch with a friend of hers for weeks. And what bothered me even more were all the times she had involved me into her lies. Like the time she told my guidance counselor that I had to miss school for exploratory surgery
, when she really needed me to babysit. And it even started to bother me when someone would call for her and she would ask me to tell them that she wasn't there.
So, I started my own personai fight against her dishonesty. When I answered the phone and it was someone my mother didn't want to talk to, I said, “Louise, mom is here, but she doesn't want to talk to you.” The first time I did it, she punished me, but I refused to apologize. I told her that I had decided that it was wrong to lie. And the next time it happened I did the same thing. Finally, she approached me and said, “I agree that lying is not the best thing to do, but we need to find a way to be honest without being rude.” She admitted that her methods weren't right, and I admitted that mine were a bit too extreme.
Over the past few years, the two of us have worked together to be honest—and yet kind. Honesty should mean more than not lying. It should mean speaking the truth in kindness. Though I started by trying to teach my mom the importance of honesty, I ended up gaining a deeper understanding of the meaning of the term.
The author's mother ________.
| A．thought white lies were not lies |
| B．helped the author get out of trouble with white lies |
| C．told the author to lie when in trouble |
| D．taught the author the importance of being honest |
The author ________.
| A．was thankful to her mother's advice |
| B．felt more awkward when being caught lying |
| C．found that telling the truth hurt more than telling a lie |
| D．felt guilty when hurting people with her honesty |
It can be inferred that the author's mother ________.
| A．met her friends in the same restaurant regularly |
| B．didn't get along with the author's teachers |
| C．was not popular among her friends |
| D．wanted to have something else for her birthday |
Finally the author and her mother agreed that ________.
| A．kindheartedness is more important than honesty |
| B．appropriate methods are the key to telling a good lie |
| C．honesty is defined as kindness as well as truthfulness |
| D．absolute honesty is basic to good interpersonal relationships |
51 ．She described all the things she had to do －one was to make her bed－from the moment she woke up until she flew out of the door for work．I suggested she experiment by not making her bed for two weeks．She was shocked, probably thinking I’d been raised by wolves in a forest． 52 ．
Two weeks later she went into my office beaming．She had left her bed unmade for the first time in 42 years－and nothing bad had happened．“And you know what?” she said．“I don’t dry my dishes anymore, either．”
53 ．One was discovering that she had choices in her life that she had never seen before．The other was giving herself permission to be less that perfect．This story shows an important principle （原理） about managing time: No one can do it all．Each of us has to make choices and accept trade – offs．The problem is, many people choose in ways that put themselves and their health last．They take better care of their houses and cars than they do of themselves． 54 .
So what is the solution? There’s an easy way．Decide what you want in your life, and put that first．On a daily basis, that should include regular meals, enough sleep and time with your family．Exercise, leisure, friendships and hobbies should also be regular aspects of life． 55 ．The choice is yours: whatever makes you feel good about yourself and your life．Take a nap（小憩）．Take a walk．Take time to play the piano．Stop bringing your briefcase home from the office．Stop keeping your house as clean as your mother kept hers．Fill more of your time with want – to – dos instead of have – to – dos．
| A．This woman had made two major breakthroughs （突破）． |
| B．Above all, you needn’t do anything for yourself regularly． |
| C．They put everyone else’s needs ahead of their own． |
| D．However, she went along with my idea． |
E．Most people do not take time to relax themselves．
F．The point is to do something for yourself every day．
G．A patient came to see me about the stress in her life．
The pupils of the remote Beau-Roc primary school in Haiti are chanting (singing the same words again and again)．One of them plays a guitar made from an empty oil tin．Their headmistress, Emile Jean-Noel, is one of the few women school headteachers in the country．
Today, over 70% of Haitian population live without proper food, water, schools, or housing． To reduce the hunger that prevents learning and to encourage parents to send their children to school, meals are provided by the World Food Programme．
"We are so cut off that we have many difficulties," comments Emile, adding that finding chalk, school books and other materials is practically impossible．Emile tries to encourage people around her to make use of available resources．Her efforts are bearing fruit．One of her successes was convincing local women to contribute to their children' s schooling and increase their income by selling embroidery（刺绣） and other handicrafts．
Recent political instability（不稳定）has meant that the country has not invested （投资） in education for ten years．Only 44% of children go to school and less than half of them finish primary school. Less than a third of these children go on to secondary school．In rural areas it is not rare to find 17 and 18 year olds in primary school- Beau-Roc has only 4 teachers for 260 pupils．Emile works constantly to improve her pupils' environment．Under her direction, a local worker is now constructing a store house for the food delivered regularly by the WFP．
Not only is Emile' s salary small, but she receives it irregularly．For her, transport is a real headache．She lives five kilometers away and has to take the tap tap, a privately-owned bus, costing more than she can afford．
"The decision to be a rural teacher in Haiti should not be taken lightly" , Emile comments． "With all the sacrifices and risks it requires, only those who are really cut out for teaching should do it．" However, Emile loves her job．"I always feel at home with the children and, because the parents understand what I'm doing, I try to give my best．"Which of the following is extremely difficult for Beau-Roc primary school?
| A．Teaching the women how to make embroidery and other handicrafts． |
| B．Persuading local women to care about their children' s education． |
| C．Encouraging people around to use those available resources． |
| D．Finding chalk, school books and other materials． |
In the last paragraph, "those who are really cut out for teaching" refer to people who are _____．
| A．dismissed from teaching | B．unfamiliar with teaching |
| C．qualified for teaching | D．cautious about teaching |
What topic is presented in this passage?
| A．Hardship for teachers． | B．Devotion to education． |
| C．Politics and children． | D．Love and beauty． |
In many cultures white is often associated with something positive．A white-collar job, for instance, is the kind of job many people look for, working with your brain and not your hands．
White has a clean and pure image．That is why doctors, dentists, and nurses usually wear white uniforms．Babies are dressed in white at baptisms（洗礼）and brides wear white wedding gowns at weddings．White in these cases is the symbol of innocence or purity．
Sometimes white is used in expressions that are not good．“Whitewash” is one such expression．At first, “whitewash” meant to paint over something with white paint to make it look better．However, it means something different today: to hide or to cover up mistakes or failures．
A “white elephant” is another example of white used in a negative way．In ancient Thailand, a white elephant was regarded as a sacred animal, but it was very expensive to keep．The kings of those days presented a white elephant to the people they wanted to ruin．Once they received this holy, royal animal as a gift, they were not allowed to sell or kill it．Today, a “white elephant” means something that is big, useless, and unwanted．In America, when people want to get rid of their furniture or clothes, they often have a “white elephant sale”．
The text is mainly about________．
| A．the meanings of white in English culture | B．the history of some English idioms |
| C．some interesting customs in English culture | D．some useful English words and expressions |
Which expression has an historical background ?
| A．White-wash． | B．White-collar． |
| C．White elephant． | D．White elephant sale． |
In which statement does “white” have a negative meaning?
| A．A boy is dressed in white at baptisms． | B．A bride wears a white wedding gown． |
| C．A man whitewashes his crime． | D．A girl finds a white collar job． |
The author develops the text mainly by ______．
| A．analyzing its cause and effect | B．providing typical examples |
| C．comparing different ideas | D．following the time order |
For a writer, there is hardly any greater honor than winning the Nobel Prize for literature.
And for a woman writer, claiming the prize is even harder, for only eight women once won it. Austria’s Elfriede Jelinek is the ninth and the first since 1996.
The Stockholm-based Swedish Academy announced last Thursday that Jelinek won this year’s Nobel Prize in literature. She is recognized for her socially critical(批判的) novels and plays.
Jelinek, 57, made her literary debut (初次露面) in 1967. She has written plays, novels and poetry. She is best known for her autobiographical 1983 novel “The Piano Teacher”, made into a movie in 2001.
The basic theme of her work is the inability of women to live as people beyond the roles and personalities traditionally expected of them. Her characters struggle to lead lives not normally acceptable in society. “The nature of Jelinek’s texts is often hard to define. They shift between prose(散文) and poetry and songs, they contain theatrical scenes and film script,” said the academy.
The Nobel Prize was founded by Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel. Nobel died in 1896 and left his fortune of about US $920 million to a fund to honor people who have helped other human beings. This year each prize is worth US $13 million. The underlined word “them” in the last second paragraph refers to _______.
| A．roles | B．people | C．texts | D．women |
Elfrede Jelinek won the Nobel Prize just because _______.
| A．she was an Austrian woman writer |
| B．she wrote socially critical novels and plays |
| C．her novel “The Piano Teacher” was made into a movie |
| D．the nature of her texts is hard to define. |
Which of the following about the Nobel Prize is TRUE?
| A．It is harder for a woman writer to win than a man writer. |
| B．The total prize every year was $920 million. |
| C．Women writers were not awarded until 1996. |
| D．Only eight women writers won the prize since 1996. |
This passage is most likely taken from _______.
| A．a travel magazine | B．a history book | C．a newspaper | D．an advertisement |
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