A rainforest is an area covered by tall trees with the total high rainfall spreading quite equally through the year and the temperature rarely dipping below 16℃.Rainforests have a great effect on the world environment because they can take in heat from the sun and adjust the climate.Without the forest cover，these areas would reflect more heat into the atmosphere，warming the rest of the world.Losing the rainforests may also influence wind and rainfall patterns，potentially causing certain natural disasters all over the world.
In the past hundred years，humans have begun destroying rainforests in search of three major resources(资源)：land for crops，wood for paper and other products，land for raising farm animals.This action affects the environment as a whole.For example，a lot of carbon dioxide(二氧化碳)in the air comes from burning the rainforests.People obviously have a need for the resources we gain from cutting trees but we will suffer much more than we will benefit.
There are two main reasons for this.Firstly，when people cut down trees，generally they can only use the land for a year or two.Secondly，cutting large sections of rainforests may provide a good supply of wood right now，but in the long run it actually reduces the world's wood supply.
Rainforests are often called the world's drug store.More than 25% of the medicines we use today come from plants in rainforests.However，fewer than 1%of rainforest plants have been examined for their medical value.It is extremely likely that our best chance to cure diseases lies somewhere in the world's shrinking rainforests.Rainforests can help to adjust the climate because they ______.
| A．reflect more heat into the atmosphere |
| B．reduce the effect of heat from the sun on the earth |
| C．bring about high rainfall throughout the world |
| D．rarely cause the temperature to drop lower than 16℃ |
What does the word“this”underlined in the third paragraph refer to?
| A．Humans have begun destroying rainforests. |
| B．People have a strong desire for resources. |
| C．We will lose much more than we can gain. |
| D．Much carbon dioxide comes from burning rainforests. |
It can be inferred from the text that ______.
| A．we can get enough resources without rainforests |
| B．we will grow fewer kinds of crops in the gained land |
| C．the level of annual rainfall affects wind patterns |
| D．there is great medicine potential in rainforests |
What might be the best title for the text?
| A．Rainforests and the Environment |
| B．How to Save Rainforests |
| C．How to Protect Nature |
| D．Rainforests and Medical Development |
A blind baby is doubly handicapped. Not only is it unable to see, but because it cannot receive the visual stimulus（刺激）from its environment that a sighted child does, it is likely to be slow in intellectual development. Now the ten-month old son of Dr. and Mrs. Dennis Daughters is the subject of an unusual psychological experiment designed to prevent a lag（滞后）in the learning process. With the aid of a sonar-type electronic that he wears on his head, infant(婴儿) Dennis is learning to identify the people and objects in the world around him by means of echoes(回声).
The device is an improvement of the “Sonicguide”, an instrument produced by Telesensory Systems,
Inc., of Palo Alto, Calif, and used by blind adults in addition to a smart or guide dog. As adapted for Dennis, it consists of a battery-powered system about the size of a half dollar that is on a headgear. A transmitter sends out an ultrasonic(超声的) pulse that creates an 80 degree cone of sound at 6 feet. Echoes from objects within the cone are perceived (felt) as sounds that vary in pitch(音调) and volume(音量) with the size and distance of the object.
The closer an object is, the lower the pitch, and the larger the object, the louder the signal. Hard surfaces produce a sharp ping, while soft ones send back signals with a slightly fuzzy quality. An object slightly to the right of Denny’s sends back a louder sound to his right ear than to the left. Thus , by simply moving his head right and left and up and down, he can not only locate an object but also get some notion of its shape and size, thanks to the varying qualities of sounds reaching his ears as the cone of ultrasound(超声波) passes its edges. Dennis likes to use the device to play a kind of peek-a-boo with his mother. Standing on her knee and facing her directly, he receives a strong signal in both ears. By turning his head away, he makes her seem to disappear. “From the first time he wore it,” says Mrs. Daughters, “it was like a light going on in his head.”
What remains to be determined is how well the device will help Dennis cope with his surroundings as he begins to walk and venture further into his environment.
Meanwhile, Telesensory, Inc, is working on the development of sonar(声纳) device with somewhat the same sensitivity as Dennis’s for use by school-age children.Dr. and Mrs. Daughters’ research is directed to ________.
| A．helping the blind to see and learn as well as others |
| B．benefiting the learning process of blind children |
| C．solving blind children’s psychological problems |
| D．finding out how children develop intellectually |
Infant Dennis becomes the subject of the experiment most probably because ________.
| A．he already lags behind the sighted children |
| B．he leads a life as normal as any other children |
| C．he is at the early stage of the learning process |
| D．he has the aid of a sonar-type electronic device |
What can we learn about infant Dennis’ device?
| A．Its first design was designed for blind adults. |
| B．Its battery is as small as a half-dollar coin. |
| C．It is functionally similar to a sane and guide dog. |
| D．It has been improved by Telesensory Systems, Inc. |
In the third paragraph, “its edges” refers to ___________ .
| A．the edge of an object |
| B．the edge of the device |
| C．the boundary of Dennis’ movement |
| D．the boundary of the sound pitch. |
Even when you’re extremely busy, you aren’t using your time with 100% efficiency. There are gaps in everyone’s schedule where they aren’t doing anything important. Even if your schedule has no gaps, there is probably lots of time when you aren’t working as fast or as effectively as you possibly could.
Why aren’t you completely efficient? It’s because time isn’t the limiting factor. If it were the limiting factor, people could work non-stop without breaks or any unproductive distractions(消遣). Instead, people, even those who are highly productive, need to take breaks, occasionally procrastinate (拖延) and slow down on tasks throughout the day.
The real and most important limiting factor for productivity is your energy levels to pay attention. Energy levels limit your productivity because when you’re tired, you can have enough time and still not get everything done. Your attention ability is also limited, because even if there are a million things that need to be done, you can only focus on one or two at a time.
You might not be able to insert another 4-5 hours into your schedule without making some sacrifices（牺牲）. But even extremely busy people can add an hour or two into their schedule without cancelling anything. The reason why it’s hard to “find time” isn’t a lack of time. It’s because you don’t have enough energy left to focus on something else that needs to fit into your day.
I first suspected time wasn’t the real problem during an extremely busy period in my life over a year ago. I was extremely busy, but at that time I still exercised regularly. I had daily to-do lists with over twenty items, and I still found time to exercise. However, after a few weeks off, because of illness, I stopped exercising. I was not busy by any standards, in fact, my schedule was very light. Despite this free time, I found it hard to find time to exercise. It seemed to get pushed later and later into my schedule until it was gone. How can I explain this strange experience? I believe you have known it.If someone can’t work with 100% efficiency, the most important limiting factor is ________.
| A．a schedule without gaps |
| B．breaks and distractions |
| C．the limited time |
| D．the limited energy |
According to Paragraph 4, everyone, including the extremely busy people, can ________.
| A．work without any rest |
| B．focus on many things at a time |
| C．find some more time in a day |
| D．do some exercise regularly |
The writer gives the example of himself in the last paragraph in order to ________.
| A．prove what the real limiting factor is |
| B．show us how busily he needs to work |
| C．explain how important a healthy body is |
| D．tell us what a strange experience he has |
What is the best title of the passage?
| A．Do You Really Lack Time? |
| B．How Can You Work Efficiently? |
| C．What Makes Your Energy Limited? |
| D．When Should You Do Exercise? |
In the US, people prefer waiting for a table to sitting with people they don’t know. This means a hostess may not seat a small group until a small table is available, even if a large one is. If you are sitting at a table with people you don’t know, it is impolite to light up a cigarette without first asking if it will disturb them.
At American restaurants and coffee shops you are usually served tap (水龙头)water before you order. You may find the bread and butter is free, and if you order coffee, you may get a free refill(重续).
Most cities and towns have no rules about opening and closing time for stores or restaurants, though they usually do make rules for bars. Especially in large cities, stores may be open 24 hours a day.
Serving in restaurants is often large; too large for many people. If you can’t finish your meal but would like to enjoy the food later, ask your waitress or waiter for a “doggie bag”. It may have a picture of a dog on it, but everybody knows you’re taking the food for yourself.
Tips are not usually added to the check. They are not included in the price of the meal, either. A tip of about 15% is expected and you should leave it on the table when you leave. In some restaurants, a check is brought on a plate and you put your money there. Then the waiter or waitress brings you your change.Which statement is TRUE?
| A．American people like sitting with people they don’t know. |
| B．Hostess always seats a small group at a large table. |
| C．American people never sit with people they don’t know. |
| D．American people would not light a cigarette if the people who sit at the same table mind their smoking. |
What is served before you order?
| A．Cold water. | B．Butter. |
| C．Coffee. | D． Bread. |
What do American people always do when servings are too large for them?
| A．They take the food home with a doggie bag for their dogs. |
| B．They leave the food on the table and go away. |
| C．They take the food home with a doggie bag and enjoy the food later. |
| D．They ask the waitress or waiter to keep the food for them. |
English is the most widely used language in the history of our planet. One in every seven human beings can speak it. More than half of the world’s books and three quarters of international mail are in English. Of all languages, English has the largest vocabulary-perhaps as many as two million words.
However, let’s face it: English is a crazy language. There is no egg in an eggplant, neither pine nor apple in a pineapple and no ham in a hamburger. Sweet-meats are candy, while sweetbreads, which aren’t sweet, are meat.
We take English for granted. But when we explore its paradoxes (探讨它的矛盾), we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square, public bathrooms have no baths in them.
And why is it that a writer writes, but fingers don’t fing, grocers don’t groce, and hammers don’t ham? If the plural of tooth is teeth, shouldn’t the plural of booth be beeth? One goose, two geese — so one moose, two meese?
How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites? How can overlook and oversee be opposites, while quite a lot and quite a few are alike? How can the weather be hot as hell one day and cold as hell the next?
English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects (反映) the creativity of human beings. That’s why, when stars are out, they are visible (能看见的); but when the lights are out, they are invisible. And why, when I wind up my watch, I start it; but when I wind up this essay, I end it.According to the passage ______.
| A．sweet-meats and sweetbreads are different things |
| B．there should be egg in an eggplant |
| C．pineapples are the apples on the pine tree |
| D．boxing rings should be round |
Which of the following is the correct plural?
| A．Beeth. | B．Geese. |
| C．Meese. | D．Tooth. |
Which of the following includes two items which have the similar meaning?
| A．A wise man and a wise guy. |
| B．Overlook and oversee. |
| C．Quite a lot and quite a few. |
| D．Hot as hell and cold as hell. |
The underlined words “wind up” in the last paragraph probably mean “______”.
| A．blow | B．roll up |
| C．get hurt | D．finish |
Through the many paradoxes in the English language, the writer wants to show that human beings are ______.
| A．clever | B．crazy | C．lazy | D．Dull |
There was once a captain who loved money so much that he cheated his sailors at the end of every voyage and took their wages.
On the last day of one voyage, the ship was in a small port. It was winter time, and the sea was very cold, so the captain said to his sailors, "If one of you stays in the water during the whole night, I will give him my ship. But if he comes out before the sun appears, I shall get his wages."
The sailors had heard about the captain's cheating, so they didn't trust him. But then one of them, who thought that he was cleverer than the captain, said that he would do it. He got into the water, and, though it was very cold, he stayed in it. When it was nearly morning, some fishermen lit a fire on the shore about half a mile away.
"You are cheating," the captain said to the sailor. "The fire's warming you."
"But it's half a mile away!" said the sailor.
"A fire's fire," answered the captain. "I have won."
The sailor came out of the water, and said, "Perhaps you think that you are clever because you have won my wages, but you can't cook a chicken."
"I can," answered the captain.
"If you cook this chicken," said the sailor, "I shall work for you without wages for seven years, but if you can't, you will give me your ship."
The captain agreed, took the chicken and said, "Where's the fire?"
"There it is," answered the sailor. "On the shore."
"But it's half a mile away," said the captain angrily.
"A fire's fire,' you said," answered the sailor. "If it is enough to warm me in the water, it is enough to cook your chicken."The captain got the sailors' wages ________.
| A．to buy a chicken for himself |
| B．and kept the money for future use |
| C．by cheating him |
| D．and said he would return the money soon |
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．All the sailors refused to get into the water because it was too cold. |
| B．The captain knew that the fire the fishermen made was enough to warm the sailor in the water. |
| C．The captain succeeded in cheating the sailor. |
| D．It was the sailor who was cleverer. |
The captain insisted that the fire was warming the sailor because he ________.
| A．didn't want to lose the bet |
| B．didn't believe the sailor's success |
| C．wanted to keep his promise |
| D．wanted to show his cleverness |
Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE?
| A．The sailors didn't trust the captain. |
| B．In order to help the sailor in the water, the fishermen made a fire. |
| C．The captain failed to cheat the sailor this time. |
| D．The sailor didn't get out of the water before the sun appeared. |
What is the title of the story?
| A．How a Captain Cheated His Sailor |
| B．How a Sailor Got a Ship |
| C．A Brave Sailor |
| D．A Fire Is Fire |
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