In the second half of each year, many powerful storms are born in the tropical(热带的)Atlantic and Caribbean seas. Of these, only about half a dozen becomes the strong, circling winds of 75 miles per hour or more that are called hurricanes, and several usually make their way to the coast. There they cause millions of dollars of damage, and bring death to large numbers of people.
The great storms that hit the coast start as soft circling wind hundreds — even thousands — of miles out to sea. As they travel aimlessly over water warmed by the summer sun, they are carried westward by the southeast winds. When conditions are just right, warm, moist(潮湿) air flows in at the bottom of such a wind, moves upward through it and comes out at the top. In the process(过程), the moisture in this warm air produces rain, and with it the heat is changed to energy in the form of strong winds. As the heat increases, the young hurricane begins to move in a counter-clockwise motion(逆时针运动).
The life of a hurricane is only about nine days, but it contains almost more power than we can imagine. The energy in the heat released(释放) by a hurricane’s rainfall in a single day would satisfy the entire electrical needs of the United States for more than six months. Water, not wind, is the main source of death and destruction(毁灭) in a hurricane. A typical hurricane brings 6 to 12 inch downpours, causing sudden floods. Worst of all is the powerful movement of the sea — the mountains of water moving toward the hurricane center. The water level rises as much as 15 feet above normal as it moves toward shore.
When is an ordinary tropical storm called a hurricane?
A.When it begins in the Atlantic and Caribbean seas. |
B.When it hits the coastline. |
C.When it is more than 75 miles wide. |
D.When its winds reach 75 miles per hour. |
What is the worst thing about hurricanes?
A.The terrible effects of water. | B.The heat they give off. |
C.That they last about nine days. | D.Their strong winds. |
Here the word “downpour” means ______.
A.heavy rainfall |
B.dangerous waves |
C.the progress of water to the hurricane center |
D.the increasing heat |
Which statement about a hurricane is wrong?
A.It travels more than 75 miles per hour. |
B.It usually stays about 9 days. |
C.It usually causes 6 to 12 inch downpours. |
D.It sometimes brings the sea water level to the height of 15 feet. |
New findings suggest that brainy card games such as contract bridge may temporarily(临时地) raise production of a key blood cell including in fighting off illness. After 90 minutes of play, bridge players had increased levels of immune(免疫) cells, according to the research reported last week.
A researcher, Diamond, studied bridge players from a women’s bridge club. She chose bridge players because the game includes skills stimulating(刺激) a part of the brain called the dorsolateral cortex. Earlier animal research suggests that this part of the brain may play a role in the immune system.
The findings are based on blood samples drawn from 12 women players. Their blood samples showed a rise in levels of white blood cells called T cells after they played bridge for 90 minutes. T cells are produced by the thymus gland(胸腺) and used by the immune system against diseases.
The T cell count jumped significantly in eight of the bridge players, and slightly in the other four. The findings contribute to the field of neuroimmunology(神经免疫学), whose name reflects the fact that the nervous system and the immune system are not considered separate and isolated(独立的) systems. What isn’t clear is whether the help to the immune system from an activity like contract bridge is lasting or temporary. It is also not clear whether the increase in T cells could finally be targeted against special illnesses.
Playing bridge can help one to fight off diseases because it can _______.
A.raise production of a key blood cell | B.make people joyful |
C.aid digestion | D.make break away from the bad habits |
Diamond chose to study bridge players for the research because _______.
A.the players are good friends of hers |
B.she loves playing bridge |
C.this game stimulates a part of the brain that has something to do with immune system |
D.she is a clever manager, who operates her bridge club well |
A T cell is _______ cell.
A.a brain | B.a white blood |
C.a red blood | D.a kind of dangerous blood |
Which of the following is true according to this article?
A.The immune system and the brain system used to be considered separate and isolated systems. |
B.The help to the immune system that is brought about by playing bridge can last for a long time. |
C.Cortex is a kind of blood cell. |
D.The new findings are impossible. |
Parents whose children show a special interest in a sport feel very difficult to make a decision about their children's careers. Should they allow their children to train to become top sportsmen and sportswomen? For many children it means starting schoolwork very young, and going out with friends and other interests have to take a second place. It's very difficult to explain to a young child why he or she has to train five hours a day, even at the weekend, when most of his or her friends are playing.
Another problem is of course money. In many countries money for training is available from government for the very best young sportsmen and sportswomen. If this help can not be given, it means that it is the parents who have to find the time and the money to support their child's development and sports clothes, transport to competitions, special equipment, etc. All can be very expensive.
Many parents are worried that it is dangerous to start serious training in a sport at an early age. Some doctors agree that young muscles may he damaged by training before they are properly developed. Professional trainers, however, believe that it is only by training when young that you can reach the top as a successful sports person. It is clear that very few people do reach the top, and both parents and children should be prepared for failure even after many years of training.
This passage is most probably taken from _______.
A.a letter | B.an advertisement | C.a personal diary | D.a newspaper |
According to the passage, parents whose children show a special interest in a sport ____.
A.feel uncertain if they should let their children train to be sportsmen or sportswomen |
B.try to get financial support from the government for their children's training |
C.have to get medical advice from doctors about training methods |
D.prefer their children to be trained as young as possible |
Which of the following statements is NOT true?
A.By starting young, you won't have much time for your schoolwork. |
B.Early training may damage your muscles. |
C.Most children may become top sportsmen after a long period of training. |
D.It' s very expensive for parents to support their child's development in sports. |
The phrase "to take a second place" underlined in first paragraph means "_______".
A.to repeat the activities some other day |
B.to become less important |
C.of all the things, they are the most important |
D.to happen again |
_____ can become the best players after many years of training.
A.Most people | B.Many people | C.merely a few people | D.No people |
Many years ago, when I was fresh out of school and working in Denver, I was driving to my parents' home in Missouri for Christmas. I stopped at a gas station(加油站)about 50 miles from Oklahoma City, where I was planning to stop and visit a friend. While I was standing in line at the cash register(收款台), I said hello to an older couple who were also paying for gas.
I took off, but had gone only a few miles when black smoke poured from the back of my car. I stopped and wondered what I should do. A car pulled up behind me. It was the couple I had spoken to at the gas station. They said they would take me to my friend's We chatted on the way into the city, and when I got out of the car, the husband gave me his business card.
I wrote him and his wife a thank-you note for helping me. Soon afterward, I received a Christmas present from them. Their note that came with it said that helping me had made their holidays meaningful.
Years later, I drove to a meeting in a nearby town in the morning. In late afternoon I returned to my car and found that I'd left the lights on all day, and the battery(电池)was dead. Then I noticed that the Friendly Ford dealership - a shop selling cars - was right next door. I walked over and found two salesmen in the showroom.
"Just how friendly is Friendly Ford?" I asked and explained my trouble. They quickly drove a pickup truck to my car and started it. They would accept no payment, so when I got home, I wrote them a note to say thanks. I received a letter back from one of the salesmen. No one had ever taken the time to write him and say thank you, and it meant a lot, he said.
"Thank you" - two powerful words. They're easy to say and mean so much.
The author planned to stop at Oklahoma City_________.
A.to visit a friend |
B.to see his parents |
C.to pay at the cash register |
D.to have more gas for his car |
What happened when the author found smoke coming out of his car?
A.He had it pulled back to the gas station. |
B.The couple sent him a business card. |
C.The couple offered to help him. |
D.He called his friend for help. |
The battery of the author’s car was dead because_______.
A.something went wrong with the lights |
B.the meeting lasted a whole day |
C.he forgot to turn off the lights |
D.he drove too long a distance |
By telling his own experiences, the author tries to show______.
A.how to write a thank-you letter |
B.how to deal with car problems |
C.the kind-heartedness of older people |
D.the importance of expressing thanks |
What is Kelly Chan going to do?
A.To hold a concert. | B.To go on a diet. | C.To watch a game. | D.To make a dress. |
According to the news the player from ________ won the tennis match on Saturday.
A.Russia | B.Japan | C.South Korea | D.America |
The medical group from America said last week that _________.
A.America has too many good athletes |
B.children shouldn’t have too many soft drink |
C.schools should organize more picnics |
D.most parents in America have health problem |
From the news we know that __________.
A.Kelly Chan has been dancing with 40 people |
B.Maria Sharapova has won the Japan Open 17 times |
C.soft drinks and fast food are really good for children’s health |
D.many American children have too much fast food and too little exercise |
Few students would dream of getting a job as a shoe shiner working along the street. College students, in their own eyes and in the eyes of the public, are expected to get at least a proper job, if not working in a high-income or white-collar position.
Cai Yong’s decision to work as a shoe shiner shocked not only his parents, who had high hopes for him, but also his girlfriend.
“It is right for young graduates to be ambitious (有抱负的). But they have to start in a solid and down-to-earth way,” Cai said. Cai is not alone in making such a choice. The company has got 12 college students in all.
“I come for the 800 yuan monthly pay,” said Xiao Ji, who is a student from Nanjing University. “I have grown up and no longer live on my parents,” he said.
“Working as shoe shiners can mean a bright future,” Cai said.
Not everyone can accept this job choice. Cai’s girlfriend left him because she felt ashamed to be with a shoe shiner, and Cai accepted the fact. “This is the price to be paid for a job,” he said.
A former shoe shiner, Zhong Haibo, from a medical college, believes it was a good training for the rest of his life. “There is nothing I can’t do after working as a shoe shiner,” Zhong said, meaning that such kind of experience in early life is helpful in a future job.
Cai Yong decided to work as .
A.a college teacher | B.a company manager | C.a shoe shiner | D.a medicine maker |
Why did Cai’s girlfriend leave him?
A.They didn’t get along well with each other. |
B.Her parents didn’t like him. |
C.She found it a shame to marry a shoe shiner. |
D.Cai had got a new girlfriend. |
Most people think Cai’s choice .
A.unbelievable | B.nice | C.enjoyable | D.wonderful |
From the passage we know Zhong Haibo .
A.doesn’t like college life |
B.thinks highly of working as shoe shiners |
C.is a middle school student |
D.is still a shoe shiner at the moment |
A man was driving at 70 miles in a 40-mile-zone, when a police car came behind him with the light on. __1__. As the policeman came to him, he said,” Hi, officer, I guess you caught me a little bit over the limit. I was in a rush to get home, to be with my wife and kids, you know my younger son wasn’t feeling well when I left home this morning.”
The policeman said, “Well, I guess so,” and started writing something in his notebook.__2__. A few moments later, the policeman came to his window and handed him a paper, and returned to his car without saying a single word. The man started to wonder, how much this ticket was going to be as he began to look at the paper.__3___ But something which read: “I had a daughter who was killed by a speeding car at the age of six, by a speeding driver like you. He got a fine, a few months in prison, and was free, free to hug two other daughters.__4__ I have tried to forgive that man a thousands times, and I thought I had. Maybe I really forgive him, but I have to do it again, even right now.__5__.”
The man was very surprised and could not move for the next few minutes. When finally he did, he drove slowly, even a few miles under the speed limit, praying for forgiveness.
A. So pray for you, and be careful when you drive again, your daughter is all you have left. B. I only had one, and now I had to wait I go to heaven before I can hug her again. C. Right away the man started thinking of excuse to give. D. He was surprised it was not a ticket. E. So pray for me, and be careful when you drive again, my son is all I have left. F. As minutes went by, he hadn’t asked for his driver’s license. G. He was surprised it was not a ticket as he began to read. |
Here is a story told about an American general who was a very important figure in the American army during the First World War. Everybody in the United States knew him and many people wished to have a picture or something of his in their homes.
Soon after the war the general returned to Washington. One day he went to a dentist and had six teeth pulled out. A week later the general heard that his teeth were being sold in curiosity shops as $ 5 each. On each of the teeth there was a label with the name of the general and words: “Buy these teeth and show them to your friends at home.” The general got angry. He rushed to his office and ordered six officers to go around the city and buy all his teeth.
The officers went out and visited every curiosity shop in the capital. They were away from the office all day. In the evening they returned and put on the table in front of the general the teeth they had bought. They had collected 175 teeth.
The general returned to Washington ______.
A.during the war | B.after civil war |
C.after 1945 | D.after 1918 |
The general’s teeth were sold in ______.
A.the museum |
B.the special shops selling some rare and interesting things |
C.the department store |
D.the hospital |
The general ordered his men to ______.
A.look for his teeth and buy all of them |
B.arrest the dentist at once |
C.make all the shops stop selling teeth |
D.buy all the teeth in all the shops |
In the evening, the officers went back with all the teeth which cost ______.
A.$ 785 | B.$ 1,050 | C.$ 157 | D.$ 875 |
More American people take their troubles with them on holiday, according to a new survey. Although 40 percent said that the main reason for going away is to escape pressure from work, almost all said they worry more than they do at home. Only four in every 100 said that they are happy and free of care.
The most common worry is burglary(入室盗窃), with four out of 10 worrying about their homes being broken into while they’re abroad. More than a quarter fear they will feel crazy with some other noisy and rough holiday-makers and 22 percent worry they may be attacked or their possessions will be missing. One in five think the car may break down, and the same number worry about the chances of bad weather.
The survey also showed that the stay-at-home Americans are no more. Three out of every five want to have a holiday abroad, a great increase from the figures only three years ago. The hotel holiday is still a winner, with about one third of all Americans preferring to go on a self-catering(自助) holiday.
The underlined word “survey” in the first paragraph most probably means _______.
A.research | B.review | C.exhibition | D.examination |
according to the text, about _____ of people worry more on holiday than when they are at home.
A.25% | B.40% | C.80% | D.95% |
The third most common worry of American holiday-makers is that they may______.
A.be attacked or lose their possessions |
B.have problems with their cars on the road |
C.have bad weather on holiday |
D.get mixed with some rough fellow holiday-makers |
Where do American holiday-makers like to stay most?
A.At a hotel. | B.In a quiet place. |
C.At a friend’s house. | D.Where they can cook for themselves. |
There are two kinds of physical activity which require special training. The first demands exact careful movements of the muscles. This kind of activity must be strictly controlled because even a slight movement in the wrong direction will lead a mistake. To type quickly, for example, a person needs training; the slightest movement of a finger in the wrong direction may cause a spelling mistake. A dancer who has to dance on the point of her shoes or turn around on one foot must be trained for a long period of time before she can sense her own center and balance herself. You may have seen a girl walking on a rope across an empty space, which, too, requires a lot of practice.
The second kind of physical activity needs greater strength or extra effort. Most of us get tired if we try to run half a mile without stopping, but a specially-trained person can do this without much effort. Three years ago, some scientists carried out experiments, which produced meaningful and unexpected results. They wanted to find out whether a certain amount of physical exercise would injure those suffering from heart problems. They selected some male patients and trained them in continuous bicycle riding. They were surprised to find that the harmful effect of given amount of physical effort was actually less on the hearts of these trained patients than on those of the patients who were not similarly trained. This is important because it shows that regular physical exercise enables us to make better use of the oxygen we breathe in and that this training, in fact, reduces the amount of work our hearts do. Many tasks which are hard for untrained people are not hard at all for trained people.
The first kind of physical activity must be strictly controlled because _________.
A.a mistake in the wrong direction is dangerous to the fingers |
B.a wrong movement in a direction will cause no mistakes |
C.a movement in the wrong direction will cause a mistake |
D.a slight movement of a finger will lead to a mistake |
What must a dancer do before she can balance herself?
A.She must dance on the point of her shoes. |
B.She must receive long-time training. |
C.She must turn around on one foot. |
D.She must perform again and again. |
The experiments done by some scientists showed that ________.
A.some male patients were asked to ride bicycles regularly in the experiments |
B.the physical exercise had more harmful effect on the hearts of the untrained patients |
C.the physical exercise was harmless to the male patients with heart trouble |
D.the physical exercise could be helpful for the patients to take in more oxygen |
What would be the best title for this text?
A.Training Our Bodies | B.Physical Activities |
C.Movement Training | D.Extra Body Effort |
You might think that “global warming” means nothing more than a rise in the world’s temperature But rising sea levels caused by it have resulted in the first evacuation(撤离)of an island nation—the citizens of Tuvalu will have to leave their homeland.
During the 20th century , sea level rose 8—12 inches. As a result ,Tuvalu has experienced lowland flooding of salt water which has polluted the country’s drinking water.
Paani Laupepa , a Tuvaluan government official ,reported to the Earth Policy Institute that the nation suffered an unusually high number of fierce storms in the past ten years .Many scientists connect higher surface water temperatures resulting from global warming to greater and more damaging storms.
Laupepa expressed dissatisfaction with the United States for refusing to sign the Kyoto Protocol, an international agreement calling for industrialized nations to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions(导致温室效应的气体排放),which are a main cause of global warming . “By refusing to sign the agreement ,the US has effectively taken away the freedom of future generations of Tuvaluans to live where their forefathers have lived for thousands of years,” Laupepa told the BBC.
Tuvalu has asked Australia and New Zealand to allow the gradual move of its people to both countries .
Tuvalu is not the only country that is vulnerable (易受影响的)to rising sea levels .Maumoon Gayoon ,president of the Maldives ,told the United Nations that global warming has made his country of 311,000 an “endangered nation”.
The text is mainly about .
A.rapid changes in earth’s temperature |
B.bad effects of global warming |
C.moving of a country to a new place |
D.reasons for lowland flooding |
According to scientists ,the direct cause of more and fiercer storms is .
A.greenhouse gas emissions in industrialized nations |
B.higher surface water temperatures of the sea |
C.continuous global warming |
D.rising sea levels |
Laupepa was not satisfied with the United States because it did not .
A.agree to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions |
B.sign an agreement with Tuvalu |
C.allow Tuvaluans to move to the US |
D.believe the problems facing Tuvalu were real |
The country whose situation is similar to that of Tuvalu is .
A.Australia | B.New Zealand | C.the Maldives | D.the United States |
Have you ever suddenly felt that someone you knew was in trouble—and was he? Have you ever dreamed something that came true later? Maybe you have ESP (超感觉知觉).
ESP stands for Extra Sensory Perception. It may be called a sixth sense. It seems to let people know about events before they happen, or events that are happening some distance away.
Here's an example. A woman was ironing clothes. Suddenly she screamed, "My father is dead! I saw him sitting in the chair!" Just then, a telegram came. The woman's father died of a heart attack. He died sitting in a chair.
There are thousands of stories like this one on record. Scientists are studying them to find out what's behind these strange mental messages. Here's another example—one of hundreds of dreams that have come true:
A man dreamed he was walking along a road when a horse and carriage came by. The driver said, "There's room for one more." The man felt the driver seemed dead, so he ran away. The next day, when the man was getting on a crowded bus, the bus driver said, "There's room for one more."
Then the man saw that the driver's face was the same face he had seen in the dream. He wouldn't get on the bus. As the bus drove off, it crashed and burst into flames. Everyone was killed!
Some people say stories like these are coincidences. Others, including some scientists, say that ESP is real. From studies of ESP, we may someday learn more about the human mind.
According to the passage, the author believes that the sixth sense is_________.
A.in existence | B.imaginative | C.not real | D.impossible |
By studying ESP, scientists may get to_________.
A.learn how people tell lies |
B.know more about human dreams |
C.know more about human mind |
D.learn how strange things happen |
In the last paragraph the underlined word "coincidences" probably means ____.
A.things that may not happen |
B.things that happen in a dream |
C.things that must happen |
D.things that happen by accident |
This article is mainly about_________.
A.the human dream | B.the sixth sense |
C.the human mind | D.a crowded bus |
Loneliness is all about feeling isolated, but it's actually quite common. In general, there are three different types of loneliness.
The first kind of loneliness is temporary. It is the most common type but usually disappears quickly and does not require any special attention. The second kind, situational loneliness, is a natural result of a particular situation, such as, family problem, the death of a loved one, or moving to a new place. Although this kind of loneliness can cause physical problems, it usually does not last for more than a year. The third kind of loneliness is chronic (the opposite of “temporary”). Being the most severe, it usually lasts for more than two years and is often connected with serious illnesses.
An important factor in loneliness is a person’s social contacts. Through social contacts, we get emotional support and guidance from our parents and teachers and share similar interests and activities with our friends. However, some lonely people almost make no contacts with people around them and feel apart from those who they supposedly know well. They just see themselves as outsiders. On the other hand, some lonely people may have enough social contacts, but they rarely enjoy the contacts and question their popularity, thinking of themselves as someone powerless. So loneliness is closely related to the quality of those social relationship in addition to the quantity.
Loneliness is tough, but something can be done to cope with it. First, take time to accept that you are suffering from loneliness. Then, contact your old friends or visit relatives to spend quality time with others. Besides, pick up a hobby to reduce your feelings of loneliness, such as taking up needle work, joining craft classes, or attending lectures. You can also beat loneliness by volunteering at a nursing home, hospital, church or pet rescue organization. This not only helps you get in touch with people from all walks of life, but also makes you feel good about yourself. In a word, if you take a correct attitude towards loneliness and get involved with people around you, you are sure to get over it.
Loneliness Loneliness is quite common. Ⅰ. 1 ●Temporary loneliness: disappearing quickly and requiring 2 ●Situational loneliness: resulting from some particular situation, 3 and lasting not more than one year ● 4 : lasting more than two years and being connected with serious illnesses Ⅱ. An important factor in loneliness: 5 ●Lack social relationship quantity: feeling disconnected with others treating themselves as 6 ●Lack 7 : questioning their popularity treating themselves as powerless people Ⅲ. 8 for lonely people ●Face the problem and accept it ●Contact 9 for quality time ●Pick up hobbies ● 10 Taking a correct attitude and getting involved with others, people are sure to get over loneliness. |
In James Cameron’s fantasy films, such as Avatar and The Abyss, the unexplored is decorated in color and filled with alien danger. But on his dive to the deepest place on Earth, which took place on a Sunday last month, reality proved far different: white, deserted, and dull.
“I felt like I literally had gone to another planet and come back,” Cameron said after returning from the cold, dark place in the western Pacific Ocean, nearly 7 miles (11km) below the surface. “It was a very fantastic day.” Cameron is the first person to explore the deepest valley in the ocean since two men made a 20-minute trip there in 1960.
He spent about three hours gliding through the icy darkness, brightened only by lights on the one-man sub(潜水艇). This deepest section of the Mariana Trench is so untouched that at first it appeared dull. But there’s something strangely interesting about the first pieces of video that Cameron shot — a sense of aloneness.
“It’s really the sense of isolation, realizing how tiny you are down in this big, black and unexplored place,” the Titanic director said. The wordless minute-long video, released by sponsor National Geographic, shows Cameron’s sub gliding across what he calls “the very soft, almost gelatinous(胶状的) flat plain.”
To Cameron, the main thing was to appreciate being there. “There had to be a moment where I just stopped, and took it in, and said, ‘This is where I am; I’m at the bottom of the ocean, the deepest place on Earth. What does that mean?’” Cameron told reporters during a conference call. The trip was only about half as long as planned because Cameron’s battery ran low. He said he would return and film it in 3D for later viewing.
“I see this as the beginning,” Cameron said. “It’s not a one-time deal and then moving on. This is the beginning of opening up this new frontier.”
Why did Cameron dive to the deepest place on Earth?
A.To study ocean creatures in the deepest valley. |
B.To prove his strong will and perseverance. |
C.To get support from National Geographic. |
D.To open up a new frontier. |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A.Cameron’s fantasy film, Avatar was inspired by his dive to the deepest place on Earth. |
B.Cameron glided through the icy darkness alone by lights of the one-man sub. |
C.Cameron didn’t stay at the bottom of the ocean as planned because he was worn out. |
D.Cameron felt bored when he went to the deepest valley in the ocean. |
The underlined sentence in the passage means that ______.
A.he appreciated and took pride in being at the bottom of the ocean |
B.he was disappointed because the trip was only about half as long as planned |
C.Cameron wanted to show the public he had been to the deepest place on Earth |
D.he wouldn’t stop exploring the deepest place in the future |
According to the passage, which of the following words best describes Cameron?
A.Generous. | B.Diligent. |
C.Self-centered. | D.Adventurous. |
What’s the best title of the passage?
A.James Cameron’s Fantasy Films. |
B.The First to Explore the Deepest Place on Earth. |
C.A Dive to the Deepest Place on Earth. |
D.Crazy Cameron. |
Located along California’s San Andreas Fault, the city of San Francisco is likely to take precautions(预防,防备) in the event of the next big earthquake.
According to a New York Times report, emergency planners in San Francisco are not only thinking of human evacuation(撤离,疏散) plans in the event of an earthquake, but also of how to care for pets during a natural disaster. Ideally, the planners will be able to train pet-disaster responders who work to evacuate dogs, cats and other household pets from the disaster site to one of the 125 temporary animal shelters that will be set up or, if the pet is injured, it will be brought to an emergency animal medical unit where there will be people on hand to tend to the pet’s injury. The city’s “no-pets-left-behind” policy results from the great number of pet deaths during the destruction of Hurricane Katrina.
As emergency responders arrived to rescue people isolated in their homes during Katrina, hurricane victims were told that they could not take their pets along with them when evacuating; thus, many pet owners were forced to make the heart-breaking decision to save themselves while leaving their pets behind to perhaps meet their deaths.
Since then, the U.S. has passed the Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act of 2006, allocating federal funds for animal disaster planning projects. Yet, not all counties are as progressive as San Francisco has been in the effort to protect pets in the event of a natural disaster. Pets are after all, a large part of San Francisco’s population — overnumbering the number of school age children in the city.
Over the last three years, San Francisco has received $350,000 in federal funds designated to animal disaster preparedness efforts in order to protect animals in the case of a disaster such as an earthquake. The city is still working on obtaining $300,000 to pay for an emergency animal unit. Until then, animal lovers in San Francisco will continue to work to ensure that pets are never an afterthought when it comes to rescues during earthquakes or other life threatening situations.
We learn from the second paragraph that ______.
A.emergency planners in San Fransico only consider human evacuation plans in a disaster |
B.emergency planners in San Fransico only think about pet evacuation plans during a disaster |
C.the safety of both humans and pets in a disaster is taken seriously |
D.emergency medical units will be used only for humans |
What do we know about Hurricane Katrina?
A.A great number of pets died during Hurricane Katrina. |
B.San Francisco’s “no-pets-left-behind” policy had been made before Hurricane Katrina. |
C.The pet owners chose to sacrifice themselves in order to save their pets. |
D.Emergency responders failed to rescue the hurricane victims. |
Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE according to the passage?
A.San Fransisco has made great effort to protect pets in a natural disaster. |
B.The number of school age children in San Fransisco is smaller than that of pets. |
C.The U.S. government has spent money on animal disaster planning projects. |
D.All the countries are in the effort to protect pets in a natural disaster. |
The underlined word “designated” in the last paragraph most probably means ______.
A.loaned | B.allocated | C.replaced | D.obtained |
What’s the main idea of this passage?
A.How to take precautions in the earthquake. |
B.Human evacuation plans in the earthquake. |
C.Taking steps to care for pets during a natural disaster. |
D.How to train pets to escape from a disaster. |