When you watch TV programs about wild animals, it is surprising to see how an antelope can escape a lion’s attack. In the wilderness, everyone has a stunt. Even plants have their own ways of fighting off enemies.
Over millions of years of evolution, plants have developed a unique defence system. Chemicals are wildly used for survival. By making their leaves, flowers, roots and fruits distasteful or poisonous(有毒的) to enemies, plants can fight back.
One such plant is the Golden Wattle tree. The British scientist David Cameron has found when an animal eats the tree’s leaves, the amount of poison increases in the other leaves. “It’s like the damaged leaves telephoning the others telling them to fight together against the enemy, ” he said.
The tree also sends defence messages to neighboring plants by giving out a special smell. Golden Wattle trees in the surrounding 45 meters will get the message and produce more poison within 10 minutes. Now, if an enemy eats too many of the trees’ leaves, it will die.
Every species of plant or tree is good at the production of a particular set of chemicals. A herbivore that can safely eat the leaves of one tree may be poisoned by its neighbor.
In this way, plants have developed not only individual defence system, but also shared it with others. This makes it impossible for a single animal to destroy even a small area of forest. Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
| A．Plants Fight back with Poisons |
| B．Plants Can Kill Animals |
| C．Animals and Plants |
| D．Lions and Antelopes |
According to the study, if one Golden Wattle tree is attacked by animals, it can________.
| A．tell other trees to protect it |
| B．produce more poison within 10 minutes |
| C．send defence messages to the neighboring plants |
| D．kill the animals with its leaves |
In this passage the underlined word “herbivore” probably means animals which ________.
| A．live on both animals and plants | B．feed on smaller animals |
| C．live on trees | D．feed on plants or grass |
The last paragraph of the passage suggests that this kind of defence system________.
| A．does great harm to the animals | B．does good to the forests |
| C．is helpful to some animals | D．harms the forests |
Photos that you might have found down the back of your sofa are now big business!
In 2005, the American artist Richard Prince’s photograph of a photograph, entitled (Cowboy), was sold for $ 1, 248, 000.
Prince is certainly not the only contemporary artist to have worked with so-called “found photographs”—a loose term given to everything from discarded(丢弃的) prints discovered in a junk shop to old advertisements or amateur photographs from a stranger’s family album. The German artist Joachim Schmid, who believes “basically everything is worth looking at”, has gathered discarded photographs, postcards and newspaper images since 1982. In his on-going project, Archiv, he groups photographs of family life according to themes: people with dogs; teams; new cars; dinner with the family; and so on.
Like Schmid, the editors of several self-published art magazines also champion (捍卫) found photographs. One of them, called simply Found, was born one snowy night in Chicago, when Davy Rothbard returned to his car to find under his wiper(雨刷) an angry note intended for someone else: “Why’s your car HERE at HER place?” The note became the starting point for Rothbard’s addictive publication, which features found photographs sent in by readers, such as a poster discovered in your drawer.
The whole found-photograph phenomenon has raised some questions. Perhaps one of the most difficult is: can these images really be considered as art? And if so, whose art? Yet found photographs produced by artists, such as Richard Prince, may raise endless possibilities. What was the cowboy in Prince’s Untitled doing? Was he riding his horse hurriedly to meet someone? Or how did Prince create this photograph? It’s anyone’s guess. In addition, as we imagine the back-story to the people in the found photographs artists, like Schmid, have collated (整理), we also turn toward our own photographic albums. Why is memory so important to us? Why do we all seek to freeze in time the faces of our children, our parents, our lovers, and ourselves? Will they mean anything to anyone after we’ve gone?
In the absence of established facts, the vast collections of found photographs give our minds an opportunity to wander freely. That, above all, is why they are so fascinating.The first paragraph of the passage is used to _________.
| A．remind readers of found photographs |
| B．advise reader to start a new kind of business |
| C．ask readers to find photographs behind sofa |
| D．show readers the value of found photographs |
The underlined word “them” in Para 4 refers to __________.
| A．the readers | B．the editors |
| C．the found photographs | D．the self-published magazines |
By asking a series of questions in Para 5, the author mainly intends to indicate that ________.
| A．memory of the past is very important to people |
| B．found photographs allow people to think freely |
| C．the back-story of found photographs is puzzling |
| D．the real value of found photographs is questionable |
The author’s attitude towards found photographs can be described as _________.
| A．critical | B．doubtful | C．optimistic | D．satisfied |
In bringing up children, every parent watches eagerly the child’s acquisition(学会) of each new skill---the first spoken words, the first independent steps, or the beginning of reading and writing. It is usual that parents hurry the child beyond his natural learning rate, but this can set up dangerous feelings of failure and states of worry in the child. This might happen at any stage. A baby might be forced to use a toilet too early, and a young child might be encouraged to learn to read before he knows the meaning of the words he reads. On the other hand, though, if a child is left alone too much, or without any learning opportunities, he loses his natural enthusiasm for life and his desire to find out new things for himself.
Parents vary greatly in their degree of strictness towards their children. Some may be especially strict in money matters, other are severe over time of coming home at night or punctuality (准时) for meals. In general, the controls imposed (强加的) represent the needs of the parents and the values of the community as much as the child’s own happiness.
As regards the development of moral standards in the growing child, consistency is very important in parent teaching. To forbid a thing one day and excuse it the next is not foundation for morality. Also, parents should realize that “example is better than precept”. If they are not sincere and do not practise what they preach (说教), their children may grow confused, and emotionally insecure when they grow old enough to think for themselves, and realize they have been to some extent fooled.
A sudden awareness of a marked difference between their parents’ principles and their morals can be a dangerous disappointment. Eagerly watching the child’s acquisition of new skills ________.
| A．should be avoided |
| B．is universal among parents |
| C．sets up dangerous states of worry in the child |
| D．will make him lose interest in learning new things |
When children are learning new skills, parents should _________.
| A．encourage them to read before they know the meaning of the words they read |
| B．not expect too much of them |
| C．achieve a balance between pushing them too hard and leaving them on their own |
| D．create as many learning opportunities as possible |
The second paragraph mainly tells us_________.
| A．parents should be strict with their children |
| B．parents controls satisfy only the needs of the parents and the values of the community |
| C．parental restrictions vary, and are not always enforced for the benefit of the children alone |
| D．parents vary in their strictness towards their children according to the situation |
In moral matters, parents should _________.
| A．observe the rules themselves |
| B．be aware of the marked difference between adults and children |
| C．forbid things which have no foundation in morality |
| D．satisfy their children’s needs |
The girl looking for the job turned out to be excellent but she ended up giving her employer a headache when it also turned out that she used an unreal diploma(文凭).
In December, a Civil Administration Bureau in the city of Wuhan, Hubei Province, announced that it needed five new staff members. Some 120 people applied and took the exam. Applicants were required to show proof of a college degree at least.
Mei Jing beat everyone in the test and the interview. When a follow-up check was done, however, her education certificate(证书) was discovered to be an unreal one.
This was a bit of an embarrassment for the employers. A dilemma, one might say. If she were hired because of her excellent performance, she still wouldn't have the qualifications on paper. But, if she were dropped because she didn't meet the education requirements, they would lose a good worker. Tough problem!
While Mei's future hangs in the balance, the public having learned of the case got involved. Some people said the Bureau should employ her, since results are the only important thing. “After all, ability is more important than a diploma, ”said one office worker.
Others, however, have attacked Mei's dishonesty. They said that morality was, after all, more important than talent, especially in the case of a government position. Mei wasn't honest, so she shouldn't be hired.
But, Shen Ronghua, the head of the Shanghai Public Administration and Human Resources Institute, tries to be a bit more philosophical.
“There is still a sort of 'diploma means this' prejudice among people,” Shen explains, “Many employers regard a diploma as the only sign of ability and talent.”
So, with this in mind, people may pay little attention to whether someone has real ability or not. They turn to chasing a diploma instead. The unreal diploma is the natural product of this thought.
The conclusion? "China needs a new human resource system. The new system will not define a person only by his or her diploma, " Shen says.What's the meaning of the underlined word “dilemma” in Paragraph Four?
| A．A problem easy to deal with or solve. |
| B．A situation in which it is difficult for you to make the decision. |
| C．A difference in two or more statements, ideas, or stories. |
| D．Something said or done that is funny. |
What can we infer from this news report?
| A．The Civil Administration Bureau of Wuhan employed the girl. |
| B．The girl was not employed because of dishonesty. |
| C．It remained to be seen whether the girl was to be employed or not. |
| D．Another Human Resource Institute employed the girl. |
What does Shen Ronghua mean by saying “diploma means this”?
| A．A diploma can tell whether a person is honest or not. |
| B．A diploma is the only sign of ability and talent. |
| C．A diploma is what you get after you finish a course. |
| D．A diploma means a job. |
Which of the following do you think is the best title of this news report?
| A．A Girl's Unlucky Experience. | B．Unreal Diploma. |
| C．Dishonesty Has Been Attacked. | D．Can A Diploma Be All There Is. |
Telephone, television, radio, telegraph and the Internet all help people communicate with each other. As a result, ideas and news of events spread quickly all over the world. For example, within seconds, people can know the results of an election in another country. An international football match comes into the homes of everyone with a television set. News of a disaster such as an earthquake or a flood can bring help from distant countries within hours. Help is on the way. Because of modern technology like the satellites that travel around the world, information travels fast.
How has this speed of communication changed the world? To many people, the world has become smaller. Of course this does not mean that the world is actually physically smaller. It means that the world seems smaller. Two hundred years ago, communication between the continents took a long time. All news was carried on ships that took weeks or even months to cross the ocean. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, it took six weeks for news from Europe to reach America. This time difference influenced people’s actions. For example, one battle, or fight, in the War of 1812 between England and the United States could have been avoided. A peace agreement had already been signed. Peace was made in England, but the news of peace took six weeks to reach America. During these six weeks, the large and serious Battle of New Orleans was fought. Many people lost their lives after a peace treaty had been signed. They would not have died if news had come in time. In the past, communication took much more time than it does now.
There was a good reason why the world seemed so much larger than it does today.According to this passage, ________ is very important to people in a disaster area.
| A．transportation | B．modern technology | C．latest news | D．a new idea |
From the passage we learn that ________.
| A．the world now seems smaller because of faster communication |
| B．the world is actually smaller today |
| C．the world is changing its size |
| D．the distance between England and America has changed since the War of 1812 |
Two hundred years ago, news between the continents was carried _____.
| A．by telephone and telegraph | B．by land | C．by air | D．by sea |
The New Orleans Battle could have been avoided if the peace agreement had been signed ______.
| A．by important people | B．in 1812 | C．in America | D．in England |
O。Henry wasa pen name used by an America writer of short stories.His real namewas WilliamSydney
People enjoyed reading O. Henry’s stories because
| A．they had surprise endings | B．they were easy to understand |
| C．they showed his love for the poor | D．they were about New York City |
O. Henry went to prison because .
| A．people thought he had stolen money from the newspaper |
| B．he broke the law by not using his own name |
C．he wanted to write stories about prisoners |
| D．people thought he had taken money that was not his |
What do we know about O. Henry before he began writing?
| A．He was well-educated. | B．He was not serious about his work. |
| C．He was devoted to the poor. | D．He was very good at learning. |
Where did O. Henry get most material for his short stories?
| A．His life inside the prison. | B．The newspaper articles he wrote. |
| C．The city and people of New York. | D．His exciting early life as a boy. |
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