Long long ago people made fires from lightning(闪电)。 But they had to keep the fire burning, for they couldn’t start it again if there was no lightning. Later, they found out hitting two piece of stone together could make a spark (火花). The spark could fire dry leaves. In this way they could make the fire again if it went out. Them people also learned to make a fire by rubbing. They made a hole on a big piece of wood and put a smaller stick into the hole. They turned the stick again and again. After a few minutes they got a fire.
As years went by, people learned other ways to make a fire. Sometimes they used the heat from sun. they held a piece of glass in the right way and made a piece of paper on fire.
About two centuries ago, people began to make matches (火柴). Matches brought people a quick and easy way to make fire. Today matches are still being used, but people have more new ways to make fires. One of them is to use an electric fire starter. Of course an electric fire starter is much more expensive than a box of matches. But it is more useful.A spark can _________.
| A．fire any leaves | B．burn anything | C．burn dry leaves | D．keep fires burning |
We can also get a fire by _________.
| A．making a hole on a big piece of wood |
| B．putting a smaller stick into the hole |
| C．turning the stick hard for a while |
| D．doing all the above together |
Matches have been used _________.
| A．for about two thousand years |
| B．for about two hundred years |
| C．since people began to use fire for cooking |
| D．since people used the heat from the sun. |
From this passage we know _______.
| A．using matches is the easiest and most useful way to make fires |
| B．people don’t use matches any more since they had electric fire starters |
| C．today there are only two ways to make fires |
| D．some forest fires happen from lightning |
Choose the right order of the ways to make fires people got to know _________.
a. with a match b. from the sun c. from lightning
d. by rubbing e. with an electric fire starter.
| A．d ,b, c, a,e | B．d, c, b, a, e | C．c, d, b, a, e | D．c, b, d, a ,e |
On April 24th, another natural disaster—the oil spill(泄露) in the Gulf of Mexico, happened．Millions of dollars have been used to help stop the spill and to clean up the animals, beaches, and land spoiled by the oil．Unfortunately, when many of these chemicals are used, more damage is caused to the environment, especially to lives in the sea．
But governments seem to accept the risk of transporting millions of tons of oil by ship every day so that we can fill up our cars and drive around and cause even more environmental damage．Interestingly, the biggest companies in the world produce cars, and the next biggest supply the gasoline to make them run.
Of all of today's environmental disasters, an oil spill may actually be one of the least serious．Although oil is poisonous, it is a natural material．In the end, it breaks down naturally．In 1967 the tanker Torrey Canyon sank off the Scilly Isles near the coast of England and spilled 120,000 tons of oil into the ocean．If you go there today, you will find it hard to see any sign that it ever happened．
However, we should be thinking more about reducing our dependency on oil．Governments should be encouraging research into new technologies, such as cars run by solar power（太阳能）, electricity, hydrogen, and so on．Much of this research, in the past, was stopped by the oil, gas, and coal．
If the world's millions of cars were 10% more efficient（高效的）,we would need many fewer tankers crossing the oceans each year．If this happened, the risks of oil spills would be reduced, and the air we breathe would be cleaner and fresher, too．What is the passage mainly talking about?
| A．Oil spills pollution． | B．What oil pollution is． |
| C．Oil tanker accidents． | D．How to reduce oil pollution. |
How does the author support the idea that oil spills are not as serious as people believe?
| A．By giving a description． | B．By making an argument． |
| C．By giving an example． | D．By comparing． |
Which suggestion is made for reducing oil tank accidents according to the passage?
| A．We should build safer tankers in the near future． |
| B．We should develop new technologies to cut oil use． |
| C．Tankers should not be allowed to sail near the coastlines． |
| D．Countries should build more oil pipelines under the sea． |
Where can you read this article?
| A．In a story book． | B．In a science magazine． |
| C．In a novel． | D．In a travel guide． |
It is well known that the Japanese people’s love of fish is almost as a bee’s interest in honey．As fish populations were decreasing, fishing companies were forced to fish further and further away from the shore．Then they had a big challenge－how to keep the fish fresh for longer．So they decided to keep the fish stored in freezers on the boats．But the public did not like frozen fish．So again the fishing companies had a new bigger challenge．What they decided to do was to have fish tanks on their boats．After catching fishes, they would put them in the tanks and keep them living there until they got back to shore．But in this protected environment, lacking predators (掠食者)，the fish stopped moving around．The Japanese public felt these dull fish did not taste fresh, which had an unpleasant effect upon sales．Once again the fishing companies had an even bigger challenge
Stop for a minute! Before we go any further, I would like to ask “What are your challenges? How do you handle an unexpected challenge?” May I think it this way that you should try to attack your challenges? Conquer（战胜） them with a Swiss army knife．Take the most proper and simple tool that you can adopt to deal with your situation.
Now back to our story．How did the Japanese finally figure out the fresh fish problem？Sharks! You might think the same．Sharks were caught and put into the tanks with other fishes．Don’t sharks eat fish? Well, they do eat a few fish, but they did also keep more fish active and alert (警觉的)．The fish stay fresh because they are challenged.
Now, try to keep yourself fresh by finding your own shark to offer yourself a challenge in your own business and career.The main reason for the fishing company to fish in the far sea was that .
| A．the fish resource near the shore was on the decrease |
| B．the fishes farther away from the sea tasted fresher |
| C．people would prefer eating fresh fishes to less fresh ones |
| D．it was getting harder and harder to keep fishes fresh |
From the text we can learn that .
| A．Japanese people love honey as much as a bee does |
| B．the fish kept in tanks didn’t sell well because of their taste |
| C．the fish stored in the protected environment tasted the best |
| D．the fish kept in tanks didn’t taste fresh because they died before reaching the restaurant |
The underlined part of the last paragraph means “ .”
| A．If you went fishing, you might do as the fishing companies did |
| B．Try to find a big shark, and you will meet your challenge |
| C．To succeed in life, you should always be ready to meet challenges |
| D．Sharks are usually compared to the challenges in people’s life |
The purpose for the author to write the passage is to .
| A．tell the readers “no pains, no gains” |
| B．tell the readers how the Japanese keep the fish fresh |
| C．advise readers to look for challenges to make progress |
| D．advise readers to find something difficult to do |
American magician David Blaine left the glass box in which he had lived for 44 days without food on October 19．2003．Hundreds of people came to watch the end of his starvation experiment, which has become one of London’s main tourist attractions.
Looking thinner and darker, 30-year-old Blaine was taken out of his box over the River Thames and immediately went to hospital．He was then slowly reintroduced to food, a process doctors say could be life threatening．He had been drinking only water since September 5.
A native of Brooklyn, New York, Blaine first became known as a street magician in the early 1990s．He soon found himself doing magic tricks in bars for the likes of American actor Leonardo DiCaprio and his super model friends.
Over the last decade Blaine has become famous with a combination of breathtaking magic and clever tricks aimed at getting a lot of attention.
In 1999, he was buried in a coffin(棺材) for one week and, in 2000, he spent 62 hours in a giant block of ice．Last year he stood on top of a 25-meter pillar(柱子) in the center of New York for 35 hours before jumping into a pile of boxes.
“I think a lot of people are unable to accept that they’re able to do what they can do,” he said．“They don’t realize we can survive．The human being is an amazing creation.” But he seems to have suffered from spending so long in the glass box．He said that at times he was unable to see, had serious back pains and lost his sense of taste.It is __________ for David Blaine to eat food after such a long starvation.
| A．pleasant | B．delicious | C．dangerous | D．important |
Having spent such a long time in the glass box, he suffered the following EXCEPT that __________.
| A．he had become blind | B．he had serious back pains |
| C．he lost his sense of taste | D．he was in weak health |
Which of the following can best describe David Blaine?
| A．Serious | B．Adventurous | C．Mad | D．Crazy |
Which of the following is NOT true of David Blaine?
| A．Blaine immediately went to hospital after he was taken out of his box. |
| B．Blaine was born and brought up in England. |
| C．In Blaine’s opinion, people can create a wonder． |
| D．Blaine didn’t have any food for 44 days. |
In 2004，the World Health Organization，WHO，warned of a possible outbreak of another serious disease which may be even more deadly than SARS．The WHO believes that it is likely that bird flu will spread to human beings in the next few years．If it does，up to seven millions people could die from the disease．
Diseases like bird flu are caused by viruses，that is，tiny things which change and become more dangerous over time．When a new type of a common virus changes，it may be able to get past the bod
y’s immune(免疫的)system．If that happens，humans are in great danger until a cure or treatment becomes available．
There have always been viruses and people always get sick，of course，but as we saw with SARS，the situation is more difficult today．People travel more than ever before，which means that disease can spread quickly and across large areas——in fact the whole world．
Scientists are already working on drugs that will prevent or limit the effect of a new virus，but the process takes time．It is just as important to make sure that countries，especially poor countries，are prepared to deal with the disease. New disease usually affect poor areas the most，so we must help develop health care in all countries．The situation is more serious today because ．
| A．people travel more | B．people don’t eat healthy food |
| C．there aren’t enough hospitals | D．scientists can’t find a cure |
From this pass
age we know ．
| A．bird flu will surely spread to human beings in the next few years． |
| B．a virus changes and become less dangerous over time． |
| C．SARS is 1ikely to come again in some years． |
| D．poor areas usually suffers more from new diseases than rich areas． |
The possible title of this passage is
| A．The Work of WHO |
| B．Scientists Are Working Hard on Drugs for Diseases |
| C．What Is a Virus |
| D．Virus Changes and Causes New Diseases Over Time |
From the earliest times，man has been interested in art．People have often worked together to collect and save the world's art treasures．
Fine art treasures from many countries are kept in an art museum called the Louvre in Paris，France．The works of art have been collected by the people of France over many centuries．
The Louvre has not always been a museum．The first building was a fort（炮台）．In 1190，it was the king's castle with high walls and a round tower．It had a moat to prevent his enemies from walking in ．
Over the years，the number of buildings around the castle grew．By 1350，the castle was no longer needed as a fort．The Louvre became a palace home for French kings and queens．
During times of peace，new treasures were brought in．Du
ring days of war，many treasures were stolen，and the buildings were damaged．
When Francis I became king of France in 1515，he brought in artists from many countries．One of the artists was Leonardo da Vinci from Italy．Da Vinci's"Mona Lisa"is the best known painting in the museum today．
In 1793，the Louvre became a public museum，just as it is now．It is a place where art treasures have been saved for everyone to enjoy．On the whole，this passage is mainly about____.．
| A．an art museum called the Louvre |
B．an Italian artist named Leonardo da Vinci |
C．a king of France named Francis I |
D．the best known painting in Louvre |
Why is it good for great art to be kept in public museums？
| A．It helps people remember who the King of France is． |
B．It keeps people out of the palaces． |
C．It gives everyone a chance to enjoy good art． |
D．It helps people to know who is the greatest artist． |
From the passage we know that _____．
| A．it is not possible for treasures to be stolen |
B．old forts always make the best museums |
C．great art should be shared with all the people |
D．king Francis I of France brought in artists from an old fort |
In the third paragraph the word"moat"probably means_____．
| A．a high tower built in former times where soldiers watched out for enemies |
B．a long and deep ditch（沟） dug round a castle and was usually filled with water |
C．a cart pulled by horses on which soldiers fought |
D．a long and high wall around castle |
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