Summer Rain
The worst days of any summer are the rainy ones. We spend all year looking forward to nice weather and long, hot days. All of winter, with its cloudy days and bitter cold, we dream of those endless days at the beach, lying on the sand and enjoying the bright and burning sun. And then, summer comes, and it rains.
As a child, I would wake up to rainy summer days and come close to crying. It wasn’t fair. We suffered through months of school and experienced bad weather for those short ten weeks of freedom and pleasant weather.
On those rainy summer days, I had nothing fun to do and could only sit inside, staring out at the rain like a bird in a cage. I was an only child, so there was no one else to play with. My father worked from home, so I was not truly alone, but he could not actively play with me since he was at work. It was those days that I would watch whatever was on television or read any books that I could find lying around. I’d drag through the day and pray each night that the rain would not be there the next day.
As an adult, though, my opinion of summer rain has changed. When you have to work every day, summer is not as exciting. Everything seems dull. Such a mindset makes you cheer for anything new or different. I spend the winter dreaming of summer and the summer dreaming of winter. When summer comes, I hate how hot it is. And then I look forward to the rain, because the rain brings with it a cold front, which makes me comfortable. Rainy days are still the worst days of the summer, but summer rain today means positively beautiful — and considerably cooler — weather tomorrow.When the author was a child, he ______.
| A．hated rainy days |
| B．liked staying indoors |
| C．preferred cooler weather |
| D．dreamed on summer days |
We can learn from the passage that the author ______.
| A．was often left alone at home |
| B．had no brothers or sisters |
| C．preferred reading to playing outside |
| D．could enjoy the brilliant sun in winter |
As an adult, the author views summer rain differently because ______.
| A．he knows it won’t last long |
| B．his summer holiday is very short |
| C．rain makes the weather cooler |
| D．he can better deal with his holiday |
Inland waters may be grouped into two general classes: standing waters and flowing waters. As is often the case, the boundary between these two classes is not sharp and clear. A pond is an example of standing water. But most ponds are fed by springs or brooks and most have an outlet. Thus some current of changing water flows through them. On the other hand, a river is an example of flowing water. In some places, however, a river may have such a slow current that it is very difficult to detect.
Standing inland waters differ in size, in age, and in many abiotic environmental characteristics. They range in size from roadside puddles to the Caspian Sea. Puddles may last for only a few days or weeks; ponds, for a few hundred to a thousand years. In general, lakes are older, though the waters of some tropical “lakes” disappear completely during each dry season. Standing waters vary from very shallow to very deep, from clear to muddy, from fresh to salty.
In flowing waters we roughly distinguish between brooks, creeks, and rivers. The size and age of flowing waters are unimportant. Speed of flow, clearness, oxygen content, and other chemical characteristics are used by scientists in studying flowing-water ecosystems.According to the passage, which of the following characteristics of flowing waters is unimportant?
| A．Clarity. | B．Size. | C．Speed of flow. | D．Oxygen content. |
The word “abiotic” in paragraph 2 can best be replaced by ______.
| A．nonliving | B．living | C．coastal | D．inland |
Which of the following statements is true?
| A．Usually the water in a river flows into a pond. |
| B．Scientists only study flowing-water ecosystems. |
| C．Usually ponds last much longer than puddles. |
| D．The Caspian Sea is considered as an example of flowing water. |
From this passage we may know that the distinction between standing waters and flowing waters ______.
| A．depends on how people name the waters |
| B．is clear |
| C．depends on the seasons |
| D．is hard to make |
This passage mainly tells us that ______.
| A．there are two major classes of inland waters |
| B．lakes and rivers are flowing waters |
| C．age and size of flowing waters are important |
| D．ponds and brooks are standing waters |
During the 1800s, African Americans worked long days in the fields of the American South．To ease their labor, they sang "field hollers" that they had brought from Africa．One person sang a line．Then a group of workers repeated it．The songs' words told of the hardships that people suffered．African Americans sang "shout spirituals", or joyous religious songs．They clapped their hands and stomped their feet to the music．
After the Civil War, the music changed dramatically．African American music, from ballads to church music, took new forms．It also adapted dance music, called "jump-ups"．which had great rhythm． Banjos became popular．A blues singer usually played a call and response with the banjo．By the early 1900s, the guitar had replaced the banjo as the main blues instrument．
Northern Mississippi - called the Delta - was the center of the blues tradition．By the 1920s, the Delta had many clubs, so-called juke joints．African Americans listened and danced to music in these clubs．Some of the greatest blues men and women performed there．
Blues have a soulful sound that is easy to recognize．The musical notes are often "bent"．That is, they are changed slightly to give a song more strength．Whatever their origin, these bent notes most often define the blues．
Lyrics are the words of a song．Blues lyrics describe everyday life．The lyrics, often about relationships between men and women, are often very intense and personal．They tell about sorrow and overwork．They tell about finding or losing love, having money or being broke, being happy or sad and lonely．The lyrics may use humor to describe life's trials and joys．They almost always use the rhythms of everyday speech．A typical blues stanza, or group of lyrics, has three lines．The second line repeats the first line．The third line has different words．
By the 1940s, large numbers of African Americans had left the Delta and moved north to work． Many settled in Chicago．There, a new kind of "electric", or "Chicago" blues began．Many of its themes were the same, but these blues had "wailing" electric guitars and harmonicas．The music had a steady, strong drumbeat．The loud, driving Chicago blues was excellent dance music．Chicago blues led to the birth of a new music style-rock and roll．The "field holler" is a kind of music that came from ___．
| A．the American South． | B．Africa． |
| C．Chicago． | D．Asia． |
"Shout spirituals" and "field hollers" are similar in that both_____．
| A．used banjos． | B．were sung in church． |
| C．included call and response singing． | D．expressed sadness． |
A typical blues Stanza is made up of____．
| A．three lines． | B．a harmonica． |
| C．a driving beat． | D．four lines． |
One can conclude from the passage that the blues ___．
| A．would have widespread without the juke joints of the Mississippi． |
| B．served as a form of communication and self-expression． |
| C．was successful only in the American South． |
| D．there were only greatest blues man performed in these clubs． |
African Americans probably moved to Chicago because ____．
| A．the South was too hot in summer． |
| B．they liked the Chicago blues． |
| C．there were more jobs there． |
| D．they wanted to create a new music style． |
Cloud seeding is a method of artificially causing clouds to produce precipitation （降水） in the form of rain or snow．Cloud seeding has also been used in attempts to modify the severity of hail storms and hurricanes．The effectiveness of cloud seeding remains controversial （有争议的）．but it continues to be used in some regions to try to increase rainfall for agriculture and to build snow packs for water supplies and power production．
Cloud seeding was developed by American scientists Irving Langmuir and Vincent Joseph Schaefer during and after World War II．Their work began as an effort to learn more about the buildup of ice on airplane wings, and eventually led them to attempt to create rainfall by releasing several pounds of crushed frozen carbon dioxide into a cloud from an airplane．In this form, the carbon dioxide is called dry ice．On November 13, 1946, the technique appeared to produce snow directly under the cloud; the snow then turned to rain as it fell to the ground．
For their experiment, Langmuir and Schaefer selected a supercooled cloud, one in which the water droplets remain liquid in subfreezing temperatures．Their theory was that small grains of dry ice falling through the cloud would cause tiny droplets of water vapor in the cloud to freeze into crystals that attracted more water vapor．Their theory proved to be correct and eventually the crystals became heavy enough to fall from the cloud as snow．As the snow reached the warmer temperatures closer to the ground, it melted and became rain．
Another scientist, Bernard Vonnegut, produced a method of cloud seeding using silver iodide （碘化银）．He used particles of silver iodide because its crystal structure resembled that of ice in clouds．Silver
iodide also had practical advantages over frozen carbon dioxide It could be stored at room temperature
and did not require an airplane as a delivery mechanism．Instead, silver iodide crystals could be fired by
cannons （大炮） high into the air, where wind carried them into the clouds．According to the text, Langmuir and Schaefer had intended to deal with__
A．how to freeze carbon dioxide
B．how to remove ice on plane wings
C．how to make weather forecast for the war
D how to hide planes in clouds at warWhat is the CORRECT order of the course for cloud seeding with dry ice?
a．snow becoming rain in wanner temperatures b．crystals attracting more water vapor
c．crystals falling in the form of snow d．crystals becoming very heavy
e．freezing tiny droplets of water vapor into crystals
f．putting small grains of dry ice in the cloud
| A．a-c-f-d-b-e | B．b-f-e-a-c-d |
| C．f-e-b-d-c-a | D．e-a-d-c-b-f |
Bernard chose silver iodide as a method of cloud seeding because___．
| A．it is much cheaper than dry ice | B．it can be stored at any rooms |
| C．it can be sent into clouds by wind | D．it is similar |
The best title for the passage may be "____"．
| A．Cloud Seeding |
| B．Artificial Raining |
| C．Weather Changing |
| D．Cloud Gathering |
How many methods of cloud seeding are mentioned in the passage?
| A．three | B．two | C．one | D．four |
A study suggests that although most students at UK universities are happy with their courses, dissatisfaction has grown as fees rise．The study highlights a big variation in teaching time, and lists different ideas about the value of getting university degrees．
Katharine Collins, a second-year college student
The course has been very interesting, but I was expecting a little more one-to-one time with my teacher．
We do about four assignments （作业） each term, each of which is about 3,000 words．However, sometimes they are not that helpful．We hope to be given the right to write feedback （反馈） after every assignment, but we had no feedback at all throughout the first year．We are given grades about three weeks after we hand the assignments in．There is no feedback on where we have gone wrong or how we might improve．
Lee Millington, a creative-writing student
I choose the courses because of its reputation．There is a lack of one-to-one teaching．I would like personalized feedback from an expert in my field of writing．Some of the lectures have been quite helpful but they try to use too many different styles of writing．For example, if you want to be a poet, you might find that the lectures focus too much on novels．
I think there is too much attention paid to sharing our work in workshops and giving each other feedback．I think there should be more time given to actual teaching, rather than to feedback from people who are at a similar level to me．
Reporters from Hounsdown Secondary School, Ella, 16
When I work independently, I feel I have more freedom to develop my ideas and come up with more original viewpoints．The price of university will still be worth it to get the qualifications （资格证书）necessary for better jobs．
Tyier, 16
Although the cost of university is very high now, I think university is required for gaining a good and well-paid job．
AgenciesWe can learn from the beginning of the article that .
| A．Most of the university students at UK are dissatisfied with their courses. |
| B．The higher and higher pay for their courses accounts for the rise of the UK students’ dissatisfaction. |
| C．All the students at UK universities hold a similar attitude towards the value of getting university degrees. |
| D．The student’s purpose is to highlight the importance of gaining a university diploma. |
According to Katharine Collins in Paragraph 2, we can infer that .
| A．She is content with the assignments given in each term. |
| B．She has never been given one-to-one time with her teacher before. |
| C．She didn’t think highly of the value of the assignments at the university. |
| D．She benefits from the assignments a lot because they are helpful. |
Why does Lee Millington choose the course-- writing?
| A．Because he wants to be a great writer in the future. |
| B．Because he is interested in it from his heart. |
| C．Because he hope to make a better living before long． |
| D．Because the course has a high reputation in society． |
Who will most tend to be a professional novelist among the students mentioned in the passage?
| A．Ella． | B．Tyler． | C．Lee． | D．Katharine． |
What does the author mainly tell us at UK in this passage?
| A．The value for university degrees． |
| B．The higher pay for courses at university． |
| C．The terrible assignments at university． |
| D．The puzzle of the students at university． |
While going to the office, I found an old man lying by the side of the bus stop．He seemed very sick and poor．Instinctively．I gave him some money．After a few minutes, I realized that he was probably too sick to get up and buy something with that money．I was thinking about how to help him when my bus arrived, halting my brainstorm．I quickly got on and rode off．
However, that night I couldn't sleep．I felt very angry at my own heartless and selfish behavior．How could I just walk away from that man without a thought for his suffering? I felt restless and very upset． The next morning, while waiting at the bus stop, I hoped to run into him again．But he wasn't there．I thought he may have gone to the sidewalk to sleep for the night．I looked around for him, but he had disappeared．Disappointed, I decided to check for him again on my way back．
While returning from work that day, I came back to the bus stop and resumed my search for him． Thankfully, he was there．I quickly went to a nearby store and got him a blanket, some bread, and biscuits． When I handed them to him, he seemed very grateful．"Now I will be safe from the cold," he smiled． I also gave him some more money and told him to keep it safely．After being able to help him, I felt very at peace．What does the underlined word "Instinctively" in Paragraph 1 mean?
| A．Immediately． | B．Constantly． |
| C．Naturally． | D．Generally． |
Why did the author feel restless and upset that night?
| A．He was regretful that didn't give the old man any money． |
| B．He was exhausted while he was working at his office． |
| C．He felt guilty in his mind for not helping the old man out |
| D．He suffered being restless and upset at night for a long period． |
According to the story, which of the statements below is NOT true?
| A．The author left the old man in a hurry as he didn't want to be late for work． |
| B．The next morning the author did meet the old man and give him a warm hand． |
| C．The old man was pleased with the author's offer because he wouldn't be exposed to the cold at night |
| D．The author eventually achieved his resolution to help the old man out． |
What can we possibly conclude from the moving story?
| A．The fragrance always stays in the hand that gives the rose． |
| B．If at first you don't succeed, try, try again． |
| C．God helps those who help themselves． |
| D．Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do today． |
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Giving money to strangers is rather happy． |
| B．How can you help a stranger? |
| C．Don't be sony failing in helping others． |
| D．A moving story happening at a bus stop． |
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