A fierce earthquake struck Haiti onJanuary 12, 2010, causing a crowded hospital to fall down and countless houses and buildings were destroyed.
The earthquake, the worst in the region in more than 200 years, with a magnitude estimated at 7.0, struck just before 5 p.m. about 10 miles southwest of Port-au-Prince, leaving the region nearly in ruins. As night fell in Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital, fires burned near the shoreline downtown, but otherwise the city fell into darkness. The electricity was out, telephones were not working and relief workers struggled to make their way through blocked streets.
In this earthquake, it was not possible for officials to determine how many people had been killed and injured. It was reported that the headquarters of the United Nations mission was seriously damaged and many employees were missing. Part of the national palace had fallen to the ground. A hospital was totally ruined in Pétionville, which is home to many diplomats（外交官） and wealthy Haitians. A New York reporter said that a wall at the front of the Hotel Oloffson had fallen, killing a passer-by. A number of nearby buildings was badly damaged, trapping people. People were screaming, calling for help from every corner.
Haiti sits on a large fault between the much larger North American plate to the north and the Caribbean plate to the south. The earthquake on Tuesday happened when what appears to be part of the southern fault zone broke. With many poor people living in tin-roof shacks(窝棚) and with many of the buildings in Port-au-Prince and elsewhere in the country of questionable quality, it was expected that the quake caused major damage to buildings and great loss of life.What was the damage of the earthquake?
| A．The headquarters of the UN mission was totally destroyed. |
| B．Some of the national palace had fallen to the ground. |
| C．A hospital was partly ruined in Pétionville. |
| D．All the walls of the Hotel Oloffson had fallen. |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the text?
| A．All the hospitals in Haiti were destroyed in the earthquake. |
| B．The earthquake was the worst in Haiti in less than two centuries. |
| C．After dark the city fell into darkness because of the earthquake. |
| D．Communication, electricity and transportation were all affected. |
It can be learned from the text that ________.
| A．fires broke out in the capital city due to the earthquake |
| B．Haiti covers the entire geographic plates of the earth |
| C．the earthquake caused the southern fault zone to break |
| D．a grand hotel was completely ruined in Pétionville |
In Haiti, one way to reduce losses in earthquakes is probably to ________.
| A．repair the Southern fault zone |
| B．move to the seaside |
| C．improve the quality of the buildings |
| D．live in tin-roof buildings |
| Opening week specials at Munchies Food Hall. At the corner of Green and Brown Streets in the city Monday 7th of January until Sunday.13rd of January 2008 Feast until you’re full! Come down to Monetizes time week to enjoy the special dishes on offer at all of our food outlets. Order from the following: ● Succulent chicken rice ● spicy satay beef ● Delicious noodle dishes ● plump pork chips ● seafood specialties ● crunchy vegetables
● sweet tropical fruit Halal food is available at the stall Malay Mood Heaven Win Prizes and Gifts! ● Spend $20.00 or more and win instant prizes from our lucky draw box. ● Collect a free party balloon and whistle for each young diner. ● Enjoy a free meal if you are the first customer of the day at any of our stalls. ● Win a holiday to Western Australia. A free raffle ticket is given with every receipt. Just fill in your information and place your entry in the box provided. Winner to be announced in The strait Times on the 15th of January. Join in the Fun! Between 7:00 pm and 8:00 pm each evening until the 15th of January, your favorite Channel 3 television actors and singers will entertain you: ● May Lee ● Jackie Chen ● Kim Yap ● Kamal Autograph sessions will follow each performance! And who will be our extra special mystery star? Come down on Saturday at noon to find out. |
The prices at Munchies are ______.
| A．lower than usual | B．bargain prices for the opening |
| C．lower for two people | D．lower if you spend $21.00 |
Everyone who eats at Munchies well receive a ______.
| A．free raffle ticket | B．lucky draw coupon |
| C．free meal | D．balloon and whistle |
I will find out who has won the top to Western Australia when I ______.
| A．watch Channel 3 television |
| B．come down to Munchies at moon |
| C．read The Straits Times on the 15th of January |
| D．attend the lucky draw at Munchies Food Hall |
How do you feel after you've stayed up late to finish schoolwork? Or the day after a slumber party? Scientists now say that your answers to these questions may depend on your genes.
Genes are stretches of DNA that work like an instruction manual for our cells. Genes tell our bodies and brains what to do. People have about 40,000 genes, and each gene can have different forms. So, for example, certain forms of some genes make your eyes blue. Other versions of those genes make your eyes brown.
In a similar way, new research suggests that a gene called period3 affects how well you function without sleep. The discovery adds to older evidence that period3 helps determine whether you like to stay up late or get up early.
The period3 gene comes in two forms: short and long. Everyone has two copies of the gene. So, you may have two longs, two shorts, or one of each. Your particular combination depends on what your parents passed on to you.
Scientists from the University of Surrey in England studied 24 people who had either two short or two long copies of period3. Study participants had to stay awake for 40 hours straight. Then, they took tests that measured how quickly they pushed a button when numbers flashed on a screen and how well they could remember lists of numbers.
Results showed that the people with the short form of period3 performed much better on these tests than the people with the long form did. In both groups, people performed worst in the early morning. That's the time when truck drivers and other night-shift workers say they have the most trouble concentrating.
After the first round of experiments, participants were finally allowed to sleep. People in the group that performed well on the tests took about 18 minutes to nod off.
People with the long period3 gene, by contrast, fell asleep in just 8 minutes. They also spent more time in deep sleep. That suggests that people with the long form of the gene need more and deeper sleep to keep their brains working at top form.
We can know from the passage that genes can not ________.
| A．tell our bodies and brains what to do |
| B．make our eyes blue or brown |
| C．decide how well you work without sleep |
| D．ensure whether you’re good at driving |
Which of the following statements about the period3 is wrong?
| A．It affects whether you like to stay up late or get up early. |
B．It comes in two forms: short and long. |
C．One has either two longs or two shorts of it. |
D．Your parents determine what particular combination you have. |
People with the short form of period3__________.
| A．need to go to bed early and get up early |
B．can work better than the people with long form of period3 without sleep |
| C．take less time to fall asleep after they stay up late | |
| D．need more and deeper sleep to keep their brains working at top form |
What’s the best title of the passage?
| A．The Period3 Gene | B．The Function of Genes |
| C．Wake up, Sleepy Gene | D．Stay up Late or Get up Early? |
“I’ve changed my mind. I wanted to have a telescope, but now I want my dad back.” Lucien Lawrence’s letter to Father Christmas, written after his father had been knifed to death outside his school gate, must have touched everyone’s heart. Lucien went on to say that without his father he couldn’t see the stars in the sky. When those we love depart from us, we cannot see the stars for a while.
But Lucien, the stars are still there, and one day, when you are older and your tears have gone, you will see them again. And, in a strange way, I expect that you will find your father there too, either in your mind or heart. I find that my parents, who died years ago, still linger (留连) in many of my dreams and that I think of them perhaps more than I ever did when they were alive. I still live to please them and I’m still surprised by their reactions. I remember that when I became a professor, I was so proud, or rather so pleased with myself that I couldn’t wait to cable my parents. The reply was a long time in coming, but when it did, all my mother said was “I hope this means that now you will have more time for the children!” I haven’t forgotten. The values of my parents still live on.
It makes me pause and think about how I will live on in the hearts and minds of my children and of those for whom I care. Would I have been as ready as Philip Lawrence has been to face the aggressors（入侵者）, and to lay down my life for those in my care? How many people would want me back for Christmas? It’s a serious thought, which gives me pause.
I pray silently, sometimes, in the dead of night, that ancient cry of a poet “Deliver my soul from the sword and my darling from the power of the dog.” Yet I know death comes to us all, and sometimes comes suddenly. We must therefore plan to live together, but live as if we will die tomorrow. We live on, I’m sure, in the lives of those we loved, and therefore we ought to have a care for what they will remember and what they will treasure. If more parents knew this in their hearts to be true, there might be fewer knives on our streets today. According to the whole text we can see that the first paragraph ___________.
| A．puts forward the subject of the text |
| B．shows the author’s pity on the kid |
| C．serves as an introduction to the discussion |
| D．makes a clear statement of the author’s views |
In the second paragraph the author mainly wants to explain to us____________.
| A．how much he misses his parents now |
| B．why his parents often appear in his dream |
| C．when Lucien will get over all his sadness |
| D．how proud he was when he succeeded in life |
What feeling did the author’s mother express in her reply?
| A．Proud. | B．Happy. | C．Disappointed. | D．Worried. |
In the author’s opinion, the value of a person’s life is _____________.
| A．to leave a precious memory to the people related |
| B．to have a high sense of duty to the whole society |
| C．to care what others will remember and treasure |
| D．to share happiness and sadness with his family |
What does the writer mean by the sentence taken from an old poem?
| A．Call on criminals and murderers to lay down their guns. |
| B．Advise parents stay with their children safely at home. |
| C．Spend every day meaningfully in memory of death. |
| D．Try to keep violence and murder far away from society. |
The USA, New York—Whales and dolphins are facing increasing threats from climate change, according to a new report published by WWF and the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society （WDCS）．
The report "Whales in hot water?" draws attention to the growing impacts of climate change on whales．They range from changes in sea temperature and the freshening of the seawater because of the melting of ice and increased rainfalls, to a sea level rise, loss of icy polar habitats and the decline of krill populations in key areas．Krill, a tiny shrimp that is dependent on sea ice, is the main source of food for many of the great whales．
The speeding up of climate change adds greatly to trouble from other human activities, such as chemical and noise pollution, which kills some 1000 whales every day．
"Whales and dolphins have an ability to adapt to their changing environment," said Mark Simmonds, International Director of Science at WDCS．"But the climate is now changing at such a fast pace that it is unclear to what extent whales and dolphins will be able to adjust．"
Climate change impacts are currently greatest in the Arctic and the Antarctic．According to the report, cetaceans that rely on polar, icy waters for their home and food resources are likely to be greatly affected by the reduction of sea ice cover．
WDCS and WWF are urging governments to cut global production of C02 by at least 50 percent by the middle of this century．The latest report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change showed it was possible to stop global warming if the world's emissions start to decline before 2015．Which of the following is the most important for whales and dolphins?
| A．Rainfall | B．Krill | C．Sea ice cover | D．High sea level |
From the passage, we can learn that whales mainly feed on _____．
| A．dolphins | B．krill | C．sea horses | D．sharks |
The underlined word "decline" in Paragraph 2 means _____．
| A．increase | B．control | C．protection | D．fall |
In what place is climate change greatest?
| A．The Pacific Ocean | B．Asia． |
| C．Two polar areas． | D．Equator． |
Which of the following is not right according to the passage?
| A．Climate change will lead to the changes in sea temperature． |
| B．Climate change will result in the freshening of the sea water． |
| C．Climate change will have a bad effect on human activities and whales． |
| D．Human beings will forever have no ability to stop global warming． |
New friends. Fresh lifestyle. Better career opportunities… Those are attractions of overseas study for young people in China. “Start early, finish strong,” some of them say.
More than 300 universities from 27 countries and regions were represented at last weekend’s international education exposition.
|
The US
The US has always been oft the top destination list for Chinese students, with its high education standards and enough scholarships．Good news: It's easier to get a US student visa nowadays．Last year, the refusal rate was only 20 to 30 percent, much lower than a few years before, according to US embassy．
Concerns: There're a lot to prepare The TOFEL, GRE… It's longer time to apply to US universities than schools in the UK or Australia．
Useful link: www．Usemhassy．org．cn
|
Easier access to visas and international environment are the UK's great attractions for Chinese students．
Good news: There are many new scholarships this year, both from the government and universities, such as the Scotland International Scholarship．
Concerns: Money．Money．Money．It's expensive to study in the UK, with an average cost of 200, 000 to 300, 000 yuan a year．
Useful link; www．educationuk．org．en
|
Canada
Canada's multicultural environment is good for students' studies and careers．Good news: Students are allowed to take off-campus part-tim'e job's during their studies from last year．It'll help pay living expenses．
Students can get two-year work permits after graduation．
Concerns: Only a limited number of scholarships are available．
They rarely cover the full cost of a study program．
Useful link; www．studycanada．en
|
Australia
Good climate, high quality education and favorable immigration policy—these make Australia one of the most popular choices among Chinese students．Good news: A new E-visa policy ensures a quick application process （four weeks compared with 12 weeks before）．
Concerns: Tuition fees have risen in past years．The total cost is about 200, 000 yuan to attend a university located in big cities like sydney or Melbourne．
Useful link; www．students, idp．corn
| A．Canada | B．the UK | C．the US | D．Australia |
Many young people go to study in the US because _____．
| A．it is very difficult for them to get a student visa |
| B．it is easier for them to pass the TOFEL or GRE |
| C．they don't spend much time applying to US universities |
| D．they think they can receive good university education |
If you want to go on staying in the country after you finish studying there, you will choose ______．
| A．Australia or the UK | B．Canada or Australia |
| C．the US or the UK | D．Canada or the UK |
In which of the following countries may money be the most concern while studying abroad?
| A．The US &- the UK． | B．The UK &- Canada． |
| C．The UK &- Australia． | D．Canada &- the US． |
The passage is intended to give _____．
| A．information for foreign study |
| B．advice on job seeking |
| C．suggestions on traveling abroad |
| D．tips on getting-visas |
粤公网安备 44130202000953号