With fears of a possible nuclear meltdown(核反应堆堆芯的熔毁) in Japan building up, evidence has come to light that the nation received warnings over the stability of its power plants from an international watchdog more than two years ago.
As the Telegraph is reporting, an official from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in Decem
ber 2008 that safety rules were out of date, and strong earthquakes would cause a “serious problem” for the power stations.
A U.S. embassy document, by quoting（引用）an unnamed expert, states: “He (the IAEA official) explained that safety guides for earthquakes have only been updated three times in the last 35 years and that the IAEA is now re-examining them. Also, the presenter noted recent earthquakes in some cases have gone beyond the design basis for some nuclear plants, and that this is a serious problem that is now driving earthquake safety work.”
The Telegraph also reports that the government responded to the warnings by building an emergency response center at the Fukushima Daiichi plant designed to resist magnitude-7.0 earthquakes. Friday's earthquake, originally named a magnitude-8.9 shock, has since been upgraded to magnitude-9.0.
Other nuclear experts state IAEA officials had willingly ignored lessons from the Chernobyl disaster to protect the nuclear industry's expansion, reports Bloomberg. “After Chernobyl, all the force of the nuclear industry was directed to hide this event, for not creating damage to their reputation,”Russian nuclear accident specialist Iouli Andreyev tells Reuters, before noting that radiation from spent fuel rods（棒）stored close to reactors at Fukushima looked like an example of putting profit before safety. “The Japanese were very greedy, and they used every square inch of the space. But when you have a dense(密集的) placing of spent fuel in the basin, you have a high possibility of fire if the water is removed from the basin.” From the passage, we know that ____________.
| A．people fear that the nuclear meltdown will possibly become more and more serious in Japan |
B．people are becoming more and more afraid of a possible nuclear meltdown in Japan |
| C．Japan made no response to the warnings over the safety of its power plants |
| D．Iouli Andreyev warned Japan not to store spent fuel rods close to reactors |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．Japan was warned of the stability of its power plants when they were built over 2 years ago. |
| B．Safety guides for earthquakes should be updated three times in 35 years. |
| C．The emergency response centre at the Fukushima Daiichi plant can not resist Friday’s earthquake. |
| D．IAEA officials advised Japan to ignore lessons from the Chernobyl disaster. |
IAEA officials were willing to ignore lessons from the Chernobyl disaster because they want ________.
| A．to put profit before safety. | B．the nuclear industry to develop |
| C．to protect the reputation of Japan | D．every inch of land to be made good use of |
The writer develops this passage mainly by__________.
| A．making comments | B．providing facts |
| C．quoting what experts say | D．analysing what happened |
The Basics of Math—Made Clear
Basic Math introduces students to the basic concepts of mathematics, as well as the fundamentals of more tricky areas. These 30 fantastic lectures are designed to provide students with an understanding of arithmetic(算数) and to prepare them for Algebra (代数) and beyond.
The lessons in Basic Math cover every basic aspect of arithmetic. They also look into exponents (指数), the order of operations, and square roots. In addition to learning how to perform various mathematical operations, students discover why these operations work, how a particular mathematical topic relates to other branches of mathematics, and how these operations can be used practically.
Basic Math starts from the relatively easier concepts and gradually moves on to the more troublesome ones, so as to allow for steady and sure understanding of the material by students. The lectures offer students the chance to “make sense” of mathematical knowledge that may have seemed so frightening. They also help students prepare for college mathematics and overcome their anxiety about this amazing — and completely understandable — field of study.
By the conclusion of the course, students will have improved their understanding of basic math. They will be able to clear away the mystery (神秘性) of mathematics and face their studies with more confidence than they ever imagined. In addition, they will strengthen their ability to accept new and exciting mathematical challenges.
Professor H. Siegel, honored by Kentucky Educational Television as “the best math teacher in America,” is a devoted teacher and has a gift for explaining mathematical concepts in ways that make them seem clear and obvious. From the basic concrete ideas to the more abstract problems, he is a master in making math lectures learner-friendlier and less scary.
With a PhD in Mathematics Education from Georgia State University, Dr. Siegel teaches mathematics at Central Arizona College. His courses include various make-up classes and a number of lectures for future primary school teachers.
If the course fails to provide complete satisfaction to you, you can easily exchange it for any other course that we offer. Or you can get your money back.What does the course Basic Math mainly cover?
| A．Arithmetic. | B．College Mathematics. |
| C．Algebra. | D．Mathematics Education. |
What benefits can students expect from Basic Math?
| A．Stronger imaginative ability. |
| B．Additional presentation skills. |
| C．Greater chances of becoming teachers. |
| D．More mathematical confidence. |
What can we learn about Professor H. Siegel?
| A．He is a guest lecturer at Kentucky Educational Television. |
| B．He works in Georgia State University. |
| C．He is to deliver 30 lectures in Basic Math. |
| D．He specializes in training teachers. |
Where is the passage most likely to have been taken from?
| A．A news report. | B．An advertisement |
| C．A lesson plan. | D．A book review |
You’ve just come home, after living abroad for a few years. Since you’ve been away, has this country changed for the better or for the worse?
If you’ve just arrived back in the UK after a fortnight’s holiday, small changes have probably surprised you—anything from a local greengrocer suddenly being replaced by a mobile-phone shop to someone in your street moving house.
So how have things changed to people coming back to Britain after seven, ten or even 15 years living abroad? What changes in society can they see that the rest of us have hardly noticed—or now take for granted? To find out, we asked some people who recently returned.
Debi: When we left, Cheltenham, my home town, was a town of white, middle-class families—all very conservative (保守的).The town is now home to many eastern Europeans and lots of Australians, who come here mainly to work in hotels and tourism. There are even several shops only for foreigners.
Having been an immigrant (移民) myself, I admire people who go overseas to find a job. Maybe if I lived in an inner city where unemployment was high, I’d think differently, but I believe foreign settlers have improved this country because they’re more open-minded and often work harder than the natives.
Christine: As we flew home over Britain, both of us remarked how green everything looked. But the differences between the place we’d left behind and the one we returned to were brought sharply into focus as soon as we landed.
To see policemen with guns in the airport for the first time was frightening — in Cyprus, they’re very relaxed — and I got pulled over by customs officers just for taking a woolen sweater with some metal-made buttons out of my case in the arrivals hall. Everyone seemed to be on guard. Even the airport car-hire firm wanted a credit card rather than cash because they said their vehicles had been used by bank robbers. But anyway, this is still a green, beautiful country. I just wish more people would appreciate what they’ve got.After a short overseas holiday, people tend to ______ .
| A．expect small changes |
| B．notice small changes |
| C．welcome small changes |
| D．exaggerate (夸大) small changes |
How does Debi look at the foreign settlers?
| A．Cautiously. | B．Skeptically. |
| C．Positively. | D．Critically. |
When arriving at the airport in Britain, Christine was shocked by ______ .
| A．the tight security | B．the messy arrivals hall |
| C．the relaxed policemen | D．the bank robbers |
Which might be the best title for the passage?
| A．Life in Britain. | B．Britain in Memory. |
| C．Britain in Future. | D．Back in Britain. |
Most children, even the youngest of children, are delighted to be around cats and dogs. But these pets carry plenty of germs and allergens（过敏原）, prompting researchers to ask: Are cats and dogs really safe for children？
A study finds that, contrary to many parents’ fears, owning cats or dogs does not increase a child’s risk of developing allergies, and in fact, may actually protect them. The study’s lead author, Dr. Dennic Ownby of the Medical College of Georgia, says that even he was “very surprised” by the results. Ownby and colleagues followed more than 470 children from birth to age 6 or 7, comparing those exposed to cats and dogs during their first year of life to those who were not.
By using skin-prick tests for detecting common allergies, the researchers found that, contrary to what many doctors had been taught for years, children who had lived with a pet were not at greater risk.
Even more remarkable, children who had two or more dogs or cats had an even greater reduction, up to 77 percent, in risk of allergies. Researchers suggest this protective effect may be the result of early exposure to lots of bacteria that are carried by dogs and cats. Exposing young children to these bacteria helps "exercise" their immune systems early in life so that they're better able to resist allergic diseases later.
There's something very important in that first year of life when the immune(免疫) system is developing that we can retrain it away from an allergic response, said Dr. William Davis.
And while researchers are not encouraging parents to buy dogs or cats just to reduce a child’s allergy risk, they say if a family already has one or more animals, there's no need to get rid of them.Why do the researchers feel “very surprised” by the results of the study?
| A．Because the results are contrary to their expectation． |
| B．Because so many children are playing with cats and dogs． |
| C．Because parents are so much worried about their children． |
| D．Because children with animals may develop allergies easily． |
Compared with children who have pets，those who haven’t ______.
| A．will lose the chance to develop immune system |
| B．will reduce the harm from bacteria |
| C．may suffer allergic diseases more often |
| D．can keep doctors away |
The underlined word “it” in the fifth paragraph refers to________.
| A．the early life | B．an allergic disease |
| C．something important | D．immune system |
What is the passage mainly about?
| A．How to protect your kids from allergies |
| B．Bacteria do good to your kids |
| C．Your pets may be helping your kids |
| D．Advantages of owning pets |
I was very sympathetic with world leaders burdened with resolving conflicts between nations. When my three children were young, in most days it was hard to keep my house from becoming a war zone. It got worse as they grew older. Three years ago, Zack, then 16, couldn’t make it through a day without playing tricks on his sisters, Alex and Taryn, then 11 and 9.
My husband and I tried to understand his adolescent moodiness. We begged, reasoned, punished, and left heartfelt notes on his bed about how his behavior was hurting our family. His response was a shrug and “I say it because it’s true”.
I even tried telling the girls to fight back. But it was a bad idea. Now I had three kids at war. At wit’s end, I poured my heart out to my sister in an e-mail. She wrote back, “Don’t e-mail me. E-mail him.”
Our son was online every day, mailing and instantly messaging his friends. So what if I was within shouting distance? Maybe he would actually hear me this way. There’d be no yelling or door slamming（猛然关闭）. Zack wouldn’t feel under attack. And with a few simple keystrokes, he could respond. Or not. Zack didn’t reply for days. When he finally did, his entire message was four words. I expected the worst, but then smiled when I read them, ”You are right. I’m sorry.” The kids still fought, of course, but Zack scaled back the abuse (恶习). Best of all, I now have an effective way to communicate with not one but three easily annoyed teens. They don’t tune me out as much. They don’t like to listen to me nag (唠叨) .Or as Alex says, “You’re so much nicer online.”
All I know is that the house is quiet, and we’re talking. In fact, Taryn just instantly messaged me from upstairs. It’s time to take her to softball practice.The purpose of this passage is to tell us _________ .
| A．how to solve family problems |
| B．how a mother shows her love to her children |
| C．how to treat kids in a more sensible way |
| D．the value of understanding between parents and children |
By the first sentence of the passage, the author really means to be_______.
| A．humourous | B．sympathetic |
| C．serious | D．inspiring |
How did Zack react when the author first tried to stop his bad behavior？
| A．He was annoyed and got worse. |
| B．He talked back to the author. |
| C．He felt sorry and changed. |
| D．He was persuaded and acted politely. |
阅读理解
（共15小题；每小题2分，共30分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Marek was a farmer who lived in a village far away. One day he became very ill, and everyone thought he would die. They sent for a doctor, who arrived two days later and examined the sick man. The doctor asked for a pen and some paper to write down the name of the medicine. But there was no pen or paper in the village, because no one could read or write.
The doctor picked up a piece of burnt wood from the fire. Using the wood, he wrote the name of the medicine on the door of the house. "Get this medicine for him," he said,"and he will soon get better."
Marek's family and friends did not know what to do. They could not read the strange writing. Then the village baker had an idea. He took off the door of the house, put it on his cart and drove to the nearest town. He bought the medicine, and Marek was soon well again. He would not let anyone wash the magic words away from the door.
People in the village thought Marek would die since .
| A．he was seldom ill |
| B．he was seriously ill |
| C．he was badly wounded |
| D．doctor could do nothing for him |
It took the doctor two days to reach the village because .
| A．he didn't like to go to the village |
| B．he had to prepare some medicine |
| C．the village was far from the town |
| D．there was an accident on his way to the village |
When the doctor arrived, he .
| A．gave Marek a careful check up |
| B．gave the medicine to Marek |
| C．became very tired and took a rest |
| D．became very angry |
The doctor wanted after the careful examination.
| A．a cup of tea |
| B．a pen and some paper |
| C．to light a fire |
| D．the door of the house |
On what did the doctor write the name of the medicine?
| A．Floor. | B．A piece of burnt wood. |
| C．A piece of paper. | D．The door of the house. |
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