Have you ever heard of Paynes Prairie? It is one of the most important natural and historical areas in Florida. Paynes Prairie is located near Gainesville. It is large, 21,000 acres. This protected land is called a preserve. The Florida Park Service manages the preserve.
The Paynes Prairie basin was formed when limestone dissolved and the ground settled. It is covered by marsh(沼泽)and wet prairie vegetation. There are areas of open water. During brief periods it has flooded enough to be considered a lake. Except for that, the basin has changed little through time.
Man has lived on Paynes Prairie a very long time. He lived there as far back as 10,000 B. C. At one time, the Seminoles lived there. The prairie is thought to have been named after King Payne, a Seminole chief. During the late 1600s, the largest cattle ranch in Florida was on Paynes Prairie. Today, Paynes Prairie is preserved land. It is occupied by visitors and Florida Park Service employees.
Willam Bartram visited Paynes Praire. Bartram was the first person who portrayed (described) nature through personal experience as well as scientific observation. He lived 200 years ago. He visited Paynes Prairie in 1774. At that time he described it. He called Paynes Prairie the “great Alachua Savannah.”
Most of the animal life, which Bartram described, is still here. A large number of sandhill cranes, hawks and waterfowl are here in winter. The animal diversity is increased by the presence of pine flatwoods, hammock, swamps and ponds.
The Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park is open year round. The Florida Park Service works hard so that the park will appear as it did in the past. It offers many opportunities for recreation. At the park you can camp and picnic. You can hike and bike. You can boat and fish. You can ride on horse trails. And you can see lots of nature and wildlife. You can see Florida as it was in the early days.
Paynes Prairie is a part of our Florida history. It is an example of our Florida natural resources. It is a place for recreation. Paynes Prairie is an important experience of the Real Florida.How was the Paynes Prairie basin formed?
| A．By the Seminole Indians. |
| B．By the Florida Park Service. |
| C．From dissolved limestone and the ground settling. |
| D．From lots of flooding and wet prairie vegetation. |
The underlined word “diversity” means “ .”
| A．variety | B．society | C．population | D．area |
All of the following are true EXCEPT that __ .
| A．Paynes Prairie has changed little through time |
| B．Paynes Prairie is covered by wet prairie grasses |
| C．there used to be a big cattle farm on Paynes Prairie |
| D．William Bartram was the first person to visit Paynes Prairie |
The purpose of the passage is to .
| A．call on people to protect widlife |
| B．attract people to this preserved park |
| C．show you the formation of Paynes Prairie |
| D．introduce the recorded history of Paynes Prairie |
任务型阅读（共10小题；每小题1分，满分10分）
It all began with ...
Orlando Bloom was not a “good” student in school. Because of dyslexia, a reading and writing disorder (障碍), he struggled in many courses.
But Bloom says the dyslexia gave him the encouragement to overcome (克服) his difficulties.
In an interview with the Telegraph, the 32-year-old said the condition turned him into an ambitious person. “Because of the dyslexia, I always thought I had to work twice as hard as everyone else just to go the same distance,” he said. “That gave me a real kick as a kid and a lot of encouragement later on. In one sense, I guess that I'm grateful (感激的).”
Bloom is always preparing it thoroughly(充分地) when it comes to an audition (试镜) for a part. Perhaps this is what won him his role in the Lord of the Rings, a highly successful film trilogy (三部曲). “I really prepared it thoroughly for the audition and it's paid off,” he said.
It was the beginning of a fame that led to even greater success as a movie actor. But unlike some young people who aim for fame and fortune, Bloom believed an acting career “has been fulfilling (实现) his childhood fantasies”.
“Aged 9, I had this girlfriend and we used to have running races in the park to see who would be her boyfriend for the day. I wanted to be like Superman and fly in and rescue her. Once I realized Superman was an actor, I thought, ‘That's for me''.”
Bloom has always played special characters, like a knight (骑士) and a prince. It's difficult to picture him in everyman roles.
In October, Bloom was named Goodwill Ambassador (亲善大使) for the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). His first task will be to film a documentary about the importance of clean water supplies.
In fact, Bloom started work for the UNICEF in 2007. On his first visit to Nepal, he was asked by students to take a small part in a play they were performing on local radio.
| Personal record of Orlando Bloom |
|
| When he was nine years old |
He wanted to be like Superman and fly in and _____ (1) his girlfriend. That's why he became an _____ (2). |
| When he was a student at school |
_____ (3) of dyslexia, Bloom _____ (4) in many courses, which _____ (5) him to work twice as hard as everyone else. In a sense, dyslexia _____ (6) him overcome his difficulties. |
| When he chose to be an actor |
Bloom is always well _____ (7) for auditions. Perhaps this is _____ (8) won him his role in the Lord of the Rings. |
| In 2007 |
Bloom started work for the UNICEF. |
| In this October |
Bloom was _____ (9) Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF. His first task will be to _____ (10) a documentary about the importance of clean water supplies. |
By the time a student starts to apply (申请) for a US university, much of his or her record, including grades and after-school activities, has been set in stone. For this reason, the student must in his or her first year of high school start getting ready for college. He or she also has to decide on the non-academic (非学业的) tasks, which are important to improve the student’s chances of getting in.
1. After-school activities
When it comes to high school activities, quality is better than quantity (数量). Admissions (录取) officers do not want to see a student who has joined dozens of organizations (组织) for a short period of time.
Many students try to do this towards the end of their high school. But schools want to see a student who has been with one organization for all or most of high school. A student who can do this shows maturity (成熟). It is the quality that admissions officers look for as it is one of the markers of future success.
2. Leadership
Schools want to see a student who has taken on a leadership role in an organization. A student can show leadership by taking on any role that needs extra commitment (奉献) and responsibility.
If you do not have a great title (头衔) such as president, be sure to explain any leadership roles you have taken. This kind of involvement (参与) in school activities shows you a
re the responsible person that admissions officers look for.
3. Consistency (一致性)
Admissions officers like an application (申请) to be consistent. For example if there is a high school activity you particularly (特别地) love, it would help if that activity matches your future academic and career interest.
Of course not everything needs to be consistent. Otherwise (否则) the student would be narrow and this is not what schools are looking for. However, you cannot have different parts of your application saying conflicting (矛盾的) things.Who was the article written for?
| A．US college students hoping to study in China. |
| B．Chinese college students hoping to study in the US. |
| C．Third year high school students hoping to study in the US. |
| D．Teenagers hoping to study in the US. |
The underlined phrase "set in stone" in Paragraph 1 probably means ______.
| A．made clear | B．something unchangeable |
| C．become obvious | D．at the right level(水平) |
The author’s suggestion is to ______.
| A．try as many different organizations as possible |
| B．start planning for college at the beginning of high school |
| C．make everything in an application consistent |
| D．put non-academic tasks before academic tasks |
According to the article, which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．Students should choose after-school activities they have great interest in. |
| B．It’s already too late for first year students to apply for a US university. |
| C．It is necessary for a student to be a president if he/she is to apply for a US university. |
| D．Students should concentrate on just one activity in high school. |
As many as one in five US teenagers have some degree of hearing loss, according to researchers.
They say the problem is growing.
Teenagers really don’t pay attention to how much noise they are exposed (暴露) to, Josef Shargorodsky of Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston told Reuters. “Often people won’t notice it, but even slight hearing loss may affect language development,” said Shargorodsky, one of the researchers.
The study compared surveys from the early 1990s and the mid-2000s. Each included a few thousand teenagers. In the first survey, about 15 percent of teenagers had some degree of hearing loss. Some 15 years later, that number had risen by a third, to nearly 20 percent.
“This certainly is big news,” said Alison Grimes, an ear doctor. Hearing loss is very common in old people, Grimes said, but she added that it was worrying to see it happen in the younger age group.
In babies and young children, hearing problems are known to slow language development. The science is less clear for teenagers, but it is easy to imagine how being hard of hearing could affect learning, said Grimes,.
The reasons for the rise are still unclear. When researchers asked teenagers about noise exposure – on the job, at school or from activities, for example – the teenagers didn’t report any change. But Shargorodsky said that might not be true. “We knew from before that it is difficult to ask this age group about noise exposure – they underestimate (低估) it.” Few people would call it noise when they listen to music on their MP3 player, for example. “There is a difference between what we think is loud and what is harmful to the ear,” said Grimes.
Although it’s not clear that the MP3 players cause teenagers’ hearing loss, Grimes said it was still a good idea to turn down the sound and take short breaks from listening. According to the researchers, in a US class of 40 students, about ____ students have some degree of hearing loss.
| A．one | B．five | C．six | D．eight |
Which of the following statements is true according to the article?
| A．Slight hearing loss does not influence learning. |
| B．Only a few old people have hearing problems. |
| C．Hearing problems can slow language development. |
| D．Noise exposure is clearly noticed by teenagers. |
About hearing loss, it can be inferred that ________.
| A．the reasons for the rise have been found | B．MP3 players are to blame |
C．listening to loud music may be a cause |
D．noise is the main reason |
The article was written to ______.
| A．warn teenagers that loud music might be harmful |
| B．explain what kinds of noises might affect studies |
| C．suggest that teenagers shouldn’t listen to loud music |
| D．show how important hearing can be for learning |
I received pictures of my daughter floating (漂浮) on a lake in California. Right there under the sun during the hottest time of the day, she has only her swimsuit to cover her.
When I showed it to my students, it was as if I had shown them scenes from a horror (恐怖) movie.
“But she will get dark,” they said.
“That’s what she wants,” I told them. “We think darker skin (肤色) is beautiful.”
They looked at me in disbelief. It was as if I came from the moon.
For years, American girls spend their summer trying to get as tanned (晒黑) as possible. In China, on the other hand, girls use umbrellas all year round.
What in the world is going on?
The pale skin we think looks unattractive (不漂亮) is what Asian women want. Both groups want to meet their culture’s standard (标准) of beauty.
In the US, if you can afford to go on vacation in the summer, you head for a river, a lake or a beach, where you try to get as much sun as possible. If you are rich you take a winter vacation in some sunny spot. Your winter tan shows your wealth.
In China, once upon a time, the few wealthy were the ones who didn’t have to work out in the hot sun. So the whiter the skin, the richer the woman. The folk opera performers who play these ladies wore lots of white makeup (妆容). The tradition survives to this day.
So it comes naturally that none of my students wishes to follow the Western ways in this regard.
But now I am noticing that a new business – the tanning booth (美黑店) – started up in China. I admire those brave enough to define（给…下定义）their own idea of beauty, but I do wonder what their grandmothers would have to say to them about it! The students were shocked at the picture the writer showed them because ______.
| A．they thought it shameful for a girl only to wear a swimsuit |
| B．the writer’s daughter was wearing very little while out in the sun |
| C．it is dangerous for a girl to be out on a lake alone |
| D．with the powerful sunlight the writer’s daughter would have got a suntan |
According to the article, which kind of woman meets the American standard of beauty?
| A．Women with blond hair. | B．Women w ith a slim figure. |
| C．Women with tanned skin. | D．Women with pale skin. |
In the US a winter tan usually means the person _____.
| A．is hard-working | B．doesn’t have to work |
C．has a  lot of money and spare time |
D．is from a very poor family |
The writer ______ the tanning booth started up in China.
| A．is not interested in | B．doesn’t understand |
| C．doesn’t like | D．has mixed feelings about |
My school makes students take one religion (宗教) class every year. But religion is really hard, especially with Mr Frank Smith for a teacher.
Mr Smith is 55 years old, with grey hair and a moustache (胡子). He always wears a blue school T-shirt, shorts and tennis shoes with long white socks. My friends say he looks like a cat.
In his class, we did yoga (瑜珈) and meditation (冥想) (actually most of the children in my class lay on the ground sleeping), tasted some strange tea, had classes outside in the garden, and watched videos and movies about Tibetan Buddhism (藏传佛教), God, and so on.
It was fun sometimes. However, the course (课程) was quite hard when it came to tests. The girls often worked until one or two o'clock in the morning on nights before the tests, but they still got bad scores.
When our test scores were bad, he would give us some makeup assignments (补考作业). Once I got a B, which I thought was bad, so I asked Mr Smith for an assignment to bring up my grades.
As a matter of fact, his assignments were often worse than the tests. The tests were just a lot of multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blanks, or short essays (文章). But his assignments usually included a speech in class.
I was not afraid of public speaking, yet it took me three days to collect the information, two days to write the speech, one day to make a PowerPoint and several hours to prepare. I knew my presentation (课堂展示) was good, because I saw Mr Smith's big smile when he listened to me. He gave me an A at last.
After finishing the course, I may not remember how hard it was or the meaning of som
e vocabulary. But through Mr Smith, I learned a lesson that will be with me my whole life. That is: no matter what we do, we need to put our hearts into it, and then our work will pay off.The religion class is hard because Mr Smith _______.
| A．uses strange ways to teach in his class. |
| B．never gives good scores, however hard you try. |
| C．gives difficult tests and make-up assignments. |
| D．likes students to make good presentations. |
How could students get good scores in Mr. Smith’s class?
| A．Work hard by studying late into the night. |
| B．Remember all of the vocabulary. |
| C．Pay attention and take notes in class. |
| D．Do well on the make-up assignment. |
From the course, the writer learned that ____.
| A．people should always be given a second chance |
| B．people should always put their hearts into their work |
| C．it is good to do yoga and meditation |
| D．it is good to choose strict teacher |
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