Sugar—free beets（甜菜）that still taste sweet, tastier tomatoes and brighter-colored fruits and vegetables that stay ripe（熟的）longer are all foods that are being grown now. How can they
carry traits, such as being tastier, brighter, and riper? They are genetically engineered.
Genetic engineering（基因工程）is like making a change in a recipe. For example, when you make cakes, you mix together all of the usual ingredients. If you add an extra ingredient, like salt, the cakes will taste differently.
Genes are ingredients in the recipe for life. They carry the traits of living things. Your genes dictate what color hair and eyes you’ll have, how tall you’ll be, as well as many other traits. Genes carry traits for plants, too. By adding genes to a plant, you can sometimes create new traits. For example, adding a certain gene to a potato plant can make the potato plant distasteful to bugs（虫子）. This makes some farmers happy because they don’t have to use chemicals to keep bugs away from their plants.
It sounds great, but some people are opposed to the idea of food that is genetically engineered. Ronnie Cummins, from the Campaign for Food Safety, is against it. He says that one of the major concerns is allergies（过敏）. Supermarkets don’t always label foods that are genetically engineered. A customer could unknowingly buy food that has an added gene from another plant that he or she is allergic to. It could be dangerous.
Gary Burton from Monsanto, a seed（种子）company that engineers food, disagrees. He says his company tests for allergies. Burton believes that genetic engineering is a valuable tool for making better food. The technology can help farmers use less insecticide（杀虫剂）and grow healthier crops. Burton thinks there are many advantages.
But Cummins says that we just don’t know what will happen in the future if we keep adding genes to foods. We could mistakenly create a monster.
People have different opinions about genetic engineering. One side supports it and thinks it will only help us. The other side is opposed to playing with nature and fears health risks. Which side do you think is right?What could be a good thing about food that is genetically engineered?
| A．It’s more expensive. |
| B．It could taste different. |
| C．It requires less insecticide. |
| D．It’s not labeled in the supermarket. |
In general, who does not support the idea of genetic food?
| A．People from seed companies. |
| B．Farmers who use engineered seeds. |
| C．People from the Campaign for Food Safety. |
| D．Scientists who create genetically engineered food. |
It can be inferred that .
| A．growing genetic foods will make farmers richer |
| B．people will eat more genetic foods in the future |
| C．using fewer chemicals could make the food tastier |
| D．there could be unknown dangers about genetic foods |
What is the best title of this passage?
| A．Future Farming |
| B．Genetic Engineering |
| C．Foods with a Difference |
| D．Genetically Engineered Fruits |
All over the world, the global diet includes fast food—prepared items from inexpensive restaurants, snack bars, or food stands. Some examples of American fast food are hamburgers, hot dogs, sandwiches, fried chicken, and so on. Some types of international fast foods might be German sausage and Schnitzel, Italian pizza, Japanese sushi and tempura, Chinese eggrolls and noodles and the like. The variety of fast foods all over the world is growing. Even so, this kind of style is becoming worldwide. Fast-food places usually prepare and serve the items quickly. Many are part of fast-food chains (eating places with the same name and company owner). For example, the biggest and most famous American fast-food chain serves hamburgers in nearly every part of the world.
For several reasons, many people choose fast food. First, it is quick and convenient. Second, it is cheaper than special home-cooked meals or formal restaurant dinners. And third, it is easy to find every eating place with the same company name. The atmosphere and style of most fast-food places is casual, comfortable, and familiar.
Why do other eaters stay away from this fast, easy kind of nourishment? The main reason is its low nutritional value. Fast food doesn’t have large amounts of fiber, vitamins, minerals, and the like-elements necessary for good nutrition and health. In contrast (相反), most types of fast food have a lot of fat, sugar, or salt in them. Possibly, these things can cause or increase health disorders, like heart disease, and some kinds of cancer. Recently, these quick and easy kinds of world wide nourishment are generally getting better and more healthful. For example, many fast-food restaurants now have put vegetable items on their menus.
Of course, human beings around the world don’t always eat in fast-food places.The variety of food choices is large now and is probably going to increase. The number of food preparation methods is growing too. Cooking customs, eating habits, and food preferences all over the world are becoming more healthful. In these and other ways, the global diet is changing. From Paragragh 1,we can know that __________________.
| A．America serves four kinds of fast food |
| B．we used to have more types of fast food |
| C．different countries have different types of fast food |
| D．America serves fewer fast food than other countries |
The underlined phrase “stay away from” means __________.
| A．move away from | B．disorder | C．get out of | D．dislike |
The passage is mainly about ___________.
| A．the changing global diet |
| B．the increasing types of diet |
| C．the reason why people choose fast food |
| D．the reason why people dislike fast food |
A strong earthquake has hit the town of Galta 200 kilometres north of Madras. The earthquake hit the town at 7:15 yesterday evening. The earthquake measured(量出) 7.2 on the Richter scale(里克特震级), the strongest for five years.
The earthquake happened as most people were having their evening meal at home. There were very few people outside in the streets. Buildings fell down and many fires started. The electricity and water were cut off.
As it was dark, the emergency services had a lot of problems. There was no electricity for lights, and there was no water to put out the fires. Early this morning, planes flew over the town to see the damage.
The emergency services are now trying to reach the town. The nearest airport is at Bandel, about 100 kilometers away. The railway station at Galta is closed, because four bridges fell down in the earth. The nearest train station is 32 kilometres away at Solan. We shall have more reports for you during the day. What were the most people doing when the earthquake hit the town?
| A．Sitting outside. | B．Cutting off the electricity. |
| C．Staying at home. | D．Starting fires. |
Why didn’t the emergency services reach the town?
| A．Because it was dark. | B．Because planes flew over. |
| C．Because there was no water. | D．Because four bridges fell down |
How far is the nearest airport from the town?
| A．About 100 kilometers away. | B．32 kilometres away. |
| C．About 72 kilometers away. | D．200 kilometres north of Madras. |
How long will you travel if you go to Cayman Islands?
| A．Two weeks. | B．Ten days. | C．One day. | D．Three days. |
Where is Betsy travelling?
| A．From Ensenada to Hawaii. | B．On Cayman Islands. |
| C．On beach. | D．At a shop. |
Who is having a vacation on Cayman Island?
| A．Betsy. | B．Betsy’s parents. | C．Larry. | D．Robby. |
Farmer Ed Rawlings smiles as he looks at his orange trees. The young oranges are growing well in Florida’s weather. Warm sunshine and gentle rains, along with Ed Rawlings’ expert care, will produce a good crop（收成）of oranges this year.
However, Ed has to guard against Florida’s changeable winter weather. In January and February, temperatures can destroy Ed’s entire orange crop. Having farmed in Florida for the past 35 years, Ed is prepared for the frost(霜). When temperatures drop below freezing, Ed tries to save his crop by watering his orange trees. The water freezes and forms a thin layer(层) of ice around the trees. Strange as it may sound, this thin layer of ice actually keeps the fruit warm.
What happens is simple. When the trees are watered, the water loses heat and becomes ice. The warmth of the heat it loses is taken in by the fruit and keeps its temperature at a safe level. Ed has effectively used this method to save many orange crops.
But Ed still faces difficulties. The trees must be watered at the exact moment the temperature drops to the freezing point. Also, just the right quantity(数量)of water must be used. Too much water can form a thicker layer of ice that will break the tree’s branches(树枝). Another difficulty is that wind blows away the heat, so Ed has to worry about not only when but also how often his trees should be watered, and how much water should be used.
Computer technology may help Ed with some of these worries. With equipment(设备), air and soil temperatures and wind speed can be measured. The information is fed into a computer which can calculate(计算) when the temperature will drop below freezing. The computer can correctly decide the quantity of water to be used and how frequently( ) the trees should be watered. Ed finds looking after his orange trees a lot easier with the help of a computer, and, his customers will have the benefits(利益) of computer—age oranges. The passage is mainly about______.
| A．a farmer expert cares for his orange trees |
| B．the different uses of computers |
| C．growing oranges in Florida’s changeable weather |
| D．different ways of frost protection |
Ed tries to protect his crop by______.
| A．using a wind machine to drive away the cold air |
| B．equipping his orange trees with a computer |
| C．watering it at the proper time |
| D．picking his fruit at the first sign of frost |
According to the passage, the computer technology______.
| A．removes the need for frost protection |
| B．prevents temperature from dropping |
| C．tells farmers why outdoor temperatures change |
| D．helps the farmer get a better harvest |
Years ago, I lived in a building in a large city. The building next door was only a few feet away from mine. There was a woman who lived there, whom I had never met, yet I could see her seated by her window each afternoon, sewing(缝纫)or reading.
After several months had gone by, I began to notice that her window was dirty. Everything was unclear through the dirty window. I would say to myself, “I wonder why that woman doesn’t wash her window. It really looks terrible.”
One bright morning I decided to clean my flat, including washing the window inside. Late in the afternoon when I finished the cleaning, I sat down by the window with a cup of coffee for a rest. What a surprise! Across the way, the woman sitting by her window was clearly visible(可见的). Her window was clean!
Then it dawned on me. I had been criticizing(批评)her dirty window, but all the time I was watching hers through my own dirty window.
That was quite an important lesson for me. How often had I looked at and criticized others through the dirty window of my heart, through my own shortcomings(缺点)? Since then, whenever I wanted to judge(评判)someone, I asked myself first, “Am I looking at him through my own dirty window?” Then I try to clean the window of my own world so that I may see the world about me more clearly. The writer was surprised that______.
| A．the woman was sitting by her window |
| B．the woman’s window was clean |
| C．the woman did cleaning in the afternoon |
| D．the woman’s window was still terrible |
“It dawned on me” probably means “_______”.
| A．I began to understand it | B．it cheered me up |
| C．I knew it grew light | D．it began to get dark |
It’s clear that_______.
| A．the writer had never met the woman before |
| B．the writer often washed the window |
| C．they both worked as cleaners |
| D．they lived in a small town |
From the passage, we can learn that______.
| A．one shouldn’t criticize others very often |
| B．one should often make his windows clean |
| C．one must judge himself before he judges others |
| D．one must look at others through his dirty windows |
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