Have you ever wondered?
1. Why do airplanes take longer to fly west than east?
It can take five hours to go west-east from New York (NY) to London but seven hours to travel east-west from London to NY. The reason for the difference is an atmospheric phenomenon (大气现象) known as the jet stream (气流). The jet stream is a very high altitude (=" above" sea level) wind which always blows from the west to the east across the Atlantic. So the planes moving at a constant air speed go faster from the west to the east when they are moving with the wind than in the opposite.
2. What would happen if the gravity on Earth was suddenly turned off?
Supposing we could magically turn off gravity. Would buildings and other structures（建筑物）float away? What happened would depend on (依靠) how strongly the things were attached (吸附) to the earth. The earth is moving at quite a speed, moving at over a thousand miles per hour. If you turn something around your head on a string, it goes around in a circle until you let go of the string. Then it flies off in a straight line. ‘Turning off’ gravity would be like letting go of the string. Things not attached to the earth would fly off in a straight line. People in buildings would suddenly shoot upwards at a great speed until they hit the ceiling (=" top" surface of a room). Most things outside would fly off into space.What information can we get from the first passage?
| A．It is the jet stream that affects how fast airplanes fly. |
| B．Planes go slower when they are moving with the wind. |
| C．It takes more time to fly from NY to London than from London to NY. |
| D．The jet stream always blows from the east to the west across the Atlantic. |
The underlined word “shoot” in the 2nd paragraph means “_________”.
| A．send for | B．move quickly | C．come out | D．grow quickly |
It can be known that without gravity _________.
| A．buildings and other structures would float away |
| B．trees and buildings would not so easily fly off |
| C．something around your head would not float away |
| D．everything outside buildings would fly off into space |
Where can we read this passage?
| A．In a research paper. | B．In a short story. |
| C．In a travel magazine. | D．In a student’s book |
London has a population of over 7,000,000. From about the year 1800 until World War II, London was the biggest city in the world. But now there are many cities which are much bigger than it. London is famous for many things. Tourists come from all over the world to visit its famous buildings and hear the famous clock, Big Ben. Like many big cities, London has problems with traffic and pollution which stop the city from developing. Over one million (百万) people a day use the London underground, but there are still too many cars on the streets. The air isn’t clear, but it is anyhow cleaner than it was 100 years ago. For me, the best things about London are the parks. There are five in the city center. But my children’s favorite place is Hamleys, the biggest toy shop in the world. What’s the Chinese for “underground” in the passage?
| A．隧道 | B．地铁 | C．地下 | D．通道 |
When was London the biggest city in the world?
| A．In 1750. | B．In 1850. |
| C．In 1950. | D．In the 21st century. |
What’s Big Ben in London?
| A．It’s a toy shop. | B．It’s a park. |
| C．It’s a clock. | D．It’s a museum. |
How many people use the London underground every day?
| A．Over half of its population. | B．Over three quarters of its population. |
| C．Over 100,000. | D．Over 1,000,000. |
How was the air in London 100 years ago?
| A．It was much cleaner than it is now. |
| B．It was the same as it is now. |
| C．It was the cleanest in the history of London. |
| D．It was not as clean as it is now. |
阅读理解
Bicycle tour and race
A bike tour and race will be held on August 26 and 27 (Sat. & Sun.). At 5:30 a.m. the riders will leave Tian’anmen Square and ride the first 35 kilometers as a training leg. Then the next 55 kilometers leg, from Yanjiao to Jixian, will be the first competitive part of the tour. The riders and their bikes will then be taken from Jixian to Changli.
The second racing leg of the tour will be from Changli to the seaside of Nandaihe, covering a distance of 20 kilometers. Saturday night includes the stay at Nandaihe and supper. Sunday morning is free for playing at the seaside. At noon all the people and their bikes will be taken back to Beijing.
Cost: 200 yuan
Telephone: 4675027
Brazilian footballers
The Brazilian Football Club will play Beijing Guo’an Team at the Workers’ Stadium on August 26. The club has four national team players. Also coming is 2004 US World Cup star Romario who has promised to play for at least 45 minutes.
Ticket prices: 60, 100, 150 yuan
Time / Date: 4:30p.m., August 26 (Sat.)
Telephone: 5012372
Rock climbing
The Third National Rock Climbing Competition will be held on August 26-27 at the Huairou Mountain-climbing Training Base. More than 10 teams from Beijing, Wuhan, Dalian, Jilin and other places will take part in it. A Japanese team will give an exhibition climbing. Free for spectators.
Take a long-distance bus from Dongzhimen to Huairou.
Time / Date: 9-12 a.m., August 26 and 27
Telephone: 7143177, 7144850, Wang Zhenghua The main purpose of announcing the above events is to give information about ______.
| A．visiting teams | B．famous players |
| C．things to do for the weekend | D．prices to pay for the sports events |
If you take part in the bicycle tour, you will ride for ______ kilometers in the competition.
| A．35 | B．55 | C．75 | D．110 |
The underlined word “leg” in “Bicycle tour and race” probably means ______.
| A．race | B．part of the training |
| C．practice | D．part of the tour |
What is special about the rock climbing competition?
| A．A foreign team takes part in it. |
| B．You can watch it without paying. |
| C．You don’t have to be a sportsman to take part. |
| D．The bus trip to the place of the competition is free. |
If you want to find something to do for Saturday afternoon, you will call ______.
| A．4675027 | B．7143177 | C．5012372 | D．7144850 |
为下面4位同学找到他们需要的网站（71-74），并写出一个自己经常浏览的网站地址。Betty: I want to get some pictures of Beijing.
Tony: I would like to have some information about basketball.
Daming: I want to learn English.
Lingling: I want to buy a birthday present online.
A. www.NBA.com: The latest news about Rockets basketball players.
B. www.24en.com: You can speak, write, read and listen to English.
C. www.ebay.com: A really big shop online. You can buy anything you need.
D: www.beijingphoto.com: Pictures about some places in Beijing.ch______________________________.
“If you want to see a thing well, reach out and touch it!”
That may seem a strange thing to say. But touching things can help you to see them better.
Your eyes can tell you that a glass ball is round. But by holding it in your hands, you can feel how smooth and cool the ball is. You can feel how heavy the glass is. When you feel all these about the ball, you really see it. With your skin, you can feel better. For example, your fingers can tell the difference between two coins in your pocket. You can feel a little drop of water on the back of your hand, too. You can even feel sounds against your skin. Have you ever wanted to know why some people like very loud music? They must like to feel the sounds of music.
All children soon learn what “Don’t touch!” means. They hear it often. Yet most of us keep on touching things as we grow up. In shops, we touch things we might buy: food, clothes. To see something well, we have to touch it. The bottoms of our feet can feel things, too. You know this when you walk on warm sand, cool grass or a hard floor. All feel different under your feet.
There are ways of learning to see well by feeling. One way is to close your eyes and try to feel everything that is touching your skin. Feel the shoes on your feet, the clothes on your body, the air on your skin. At first, it is not easy to feel these things. You are too used to them!
Most museums are just for looking. But today some museums have some things to touch. Their signs say, “Do touch!” There you can feel everything on show.
If you want to see better, reach out and touch. Then you will really see!By touching things .
| A．you will have a strange feeling |
| B．you will learn how to reach out your hand |
| C．you can learn more about them |
| D．you can tell what colors they really are |
Which of the following can be the best title of the story?
| A．Touching by Feeling | B．To See or to Feel |
| C．To See Better—Feel | D．Ways of Feeling |
Which of the following parts can tell you the difference between two coins in your pocket?
| A．Your fingers. | B．Your eyes. | C．Your skin. | D．Your back. |
Which of the following is NOT true?
| A．Touching is helping us to see better. |
| B．Our skin may help us enjoy music. |
| C．People don’t have to learn to feel. |
| D．Visitors can’t feel the things on show in any museums. |
Do you have any foreign friends? Do you know their characteristics(特征)?
The Germans are very quiet and they always keep calm. They don’t like to speak more words. They look very serious. They like different kinds of amusements. The Germans are very hard—working. They like tidiness, especially the women, who always keep their home clean.
In some ways, the Englishmen look the same as the Germans. They are very quiet and never talk too much with the strangers. They are really polite, so we often hear they say “Thank you.” Or “Sorry.” The gentlemen are also the Englishmen.
The French’s holidays are very long. They like traveling and usually spend their long time staying in other countries. The Frenchmen are more outgoing than the Germans. It is very easy to make friends with them.
Compared to the Frenchmen, the Americans are more outgoing. And they are even opener than all of the Europeans. They don’t like to depend on others. So it is very common that the students do part-time jobs in their free time. And in Americans’ eyes, success is an important part in their life. According to the passage, ______are very quiet.
| A．only the Germans |
| B．only the Englishmen |
| C．only the Frenchmen |
| D．both the Germans and the Englishmen |
In the writer’s eyes, the gentlemen are______.
| A．the Germans | B．the Frenchmen | C．the Englishmen | D．the Americans |
What can we learn about the Frenchmen from the passage?
| A．They are more outgoing than the Americans. |
| B．It is very easy to make friends with them. |
| C．They like traveling in their own country. |
| D．They look serious and are always hard-working. |
Which is the best title of the passage?
| A．Foreigners’ hobbies. |
| B．Who are more outgoing? |
| C．Characteristics of the foreigners. |
| D．Success is an important part in Americans’ life. |
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