The world consumes hundreds of billions of single-use plastic bags each year. They are difficult to recycle, wasteful and damage the nature. Environmental activists want to ban plastic bags or---as many communities have done ---charge a fee for them. But the plastic bag industry defends their use, saying people reuse plastic bags, and industry officials argue recycling is a matter of personal responsibility and should not be forced.
City officials say New Yorkers use 5.2 billion plastic bags each year. They are offered free with nearly every supermarket, or convenience store purchase. Many people like them, even if they sometimes feel guilty about using them. But what happens to those bags after they’ve been used in a huge environmental problem. They are found on beaches. They are caught in trees. They are swallowed by marine life.
Plastic bags are made of petroleum products and natural gas, and do not biodegrade (分解). And they are difficult to recycle. So New York City spends nearly $ 10 million dollars a year to send 100---thousand tons of plastic bags to landfills out of state.
In Washington, D.C., a five percent charge on all single-use bags led to about a 60 percent reduction and in Los Angeles County in California , a 10 cent charge on single-use bags led to a 95 percent reduction. With a 10 cent charge on bags, customers are much more likely to stop and think about whether they need a bag or not. And that’s really all that these laws are doing.
1.Who object to the limit of using plastic bags?
A. Plastic bag makers. B. Government officials.
C. Stores and supermarkets. D. Most of the consumers.
2.Paragraph 2 mainly tells us _____.
A. the difficulty about dealing with plastic bags
B. the popularity of plastic bags in New York
C. the great convenience brought by using plastic bags
D. the usage and problems of plastic bags in New York
3.What measure does the writer introduce to reduce the use of plastic bags?
A. Reducing the production of plastic bags.
B. Charging for the use of plastic bags.
C. Offering paper bags instead of plastic bags.
D. Making people realize the harm of plastic bags.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Fascinated with images from the Mars Rover? It turns out you don’t have to go to space. The following spots may look like they are on another planet, but they are right here on earth.
* Socotra Island, Indian Ocean
The largest of the four-island Socotra Archipelago, the island has about 250 species of plants that are not found anywhere else in the world. This includes the canopy-topped dragon’s blood tree, which has blood-red resin(树脂）that runs down if the trunk is cut deep. It can grow to 10 feet with a bulbous(球根的）trunk that swells with water absorbed in case of dry weather.
See it for yourself: There are regular flights from the Yemen capital of Sanaa on(Felix Airways) ($ 180 each way)
* Vermilion Cliffs National Monument, Arizona
This wilderness in Northern Arizona/southern Utah is home to some of the most striking landscapes in the American Southwest. The nearly 300,000-acre site is known for its abundance of colorful shale（页岩）and Navajo sandstone that has been eroded(侵蚀）by the elements to create cliffs that rise as high as 3,000 feet. In the northwest of the park is the Coyote Buttes, where you’ll find The Wave, a wall of red sandstone that twists and turns in a way that just doesn’t look natural ---but is.
See it for yourself: Permits are required to hike in Vermilion Cliffs. Paria Canyon and Buckskin Gulch permits are available at on-site pay stations or in advance ($5 per person).
*Perito Moreno Glacier, Argentina
The huge size of the Perito Moreno Glacier is unbelievable---it is more than 50 miles in length and 500 feet deep. The terminus(终点）of the glacier is Lago Argetino, where a 50-foot blue-hued ice wall rises from the lake. The Perito Moreno is also one of the only glaciers left on earth that is still growing.
See it for yourself: Many tour companies offer day trips to Perito Moreno from El Calafte. Viator’s full-day tour includes transportation from a local hotel and a guided tour for $ 106 per person.
1.Which is true about the canopy-topped dragon’s blood tree?
A. It grows where there is little rain.
B. It has blood-red skin.
C. It is shaped like a dragon.
D. It stores water for dry season.
2.What do we know about The Wave?
A. It is created in a natural way.
B. It is created by waves.
C. It is as high as 3,000 feet.
D. It looks quite natural.
3.How much does a couple pay for a trip to Perito Moreno Glacier, Argentina?
A. $106 B.$ 212 C.$ 360 D. $ 420
4.Where does the text probably come from?
A. A geography book. B. A tourist guidebook.
C. A news report. D. A TV program.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
When the evening is coming, my dear son and I are preparing for the tape time. “Shoes on,” I remind 9-year-old Sam. “Snakes are always waiting for the chance to kiss you. But with our feet stepped into my car, we are safe.” We take blankets and cups of milk and head out to the shelter that serves as our garage. This has become our bedtime habit.
I press “play.” A motherly voice fills the car. My mother and my aunt send us books on tape obtained from secondhand shops or rescued from the back of drawer. Maybe no one in England lays cassettes anymore, but I still love them.
Sam rests on his seat. He’s sitting in the front seat. I am listening to the cassette. But I am also thinking. In a month’s time, my boy will be 10. Next year, he will be 11. And so it will go on, until he leaves me and his father and his sister to live out his own stories---as it is only right and proper he should.
Will he think back to the times when he sat in the dark in a car in Africa, listening to tales of Wales in World War Ⅱ, the finest lady detective of Botswana, or a country he has visited, and tells me he finds them “very interesting”? Will he think , when he is grown-up, the poor mum always makes the ancient tape player which is out of date work?
I like to believe that he will recall those wonderful moments. By then, perhaps, my child will realize a deep love of sharing and understanding by listening to the old tape player. I hope Sam will think that these evenings we spend in the car are a story themselves. It is his own first chapter. In time my boy will ease off the hand brake and roll out into the world. Until then, I’ll keep pressing “play”.
1.What habit did the writer and her son develop?
A. To play outside in the evening
B. To listen to tapes in a car
C. To drive in the evening
D. To read books together at night
2.How does the author think about Sam’s leaving the family in the future?
A. Interesting. B. Common and natural.
C. Absurd. D. Unbearable.
3. In paragraph4, the two questions can prove that ________.
A. playing with children is fun for parents
B. listening to stories is a good way to enjoy life
C. children need to ask questions in reading
D. Listening experiences will be part of Sam’s life
4.The best title for the passage may be “_______”.
A. A gift of a story player
B. A childhood full of love and story
C. Deep love for the tape player
D. The future life of our children
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
The Asian elephant has been respected for centuries and is still used today for ceremonies and religious purposes. It is respected, not only because it plays a role in Asian culture and religion, but also because it is a key biological species in the tropical forests of Asia.
The Asian elephant is the largest land mammal in Asian. It is smaller than the African elephant, with relatively smaller ears. Asian elephants have a single “finger” on the upper lip of the long trunk, while African elephants have a second on the lower tip. A number of adult male Asian elephants have no tooth, and the percentage of males carrying ivory(象牙）is different from only about 5% in Sri Lanka to 90% in south India. Asian elephants keep their ears in constant motion in order to free the heat they produce. The species is reported to have well-developed hearing, vision, and smell , and they are also fine swimmers.
Asian elephants prefer to convey something to form groups surrounding 6 to 7 related females that are led by the oldest female. Like African elephants, these groups occasionally join others to form herds, although these associations are relatively temporary.
More than two thirds of the day may be spent feeding on grasses, but large amounts of tree bark, roots, leaves and small stems are also eaten. Crops such as bananas, rice and sugar plants are favored foods. Besides, they need to drink at least twice a day so the source of water is quite important.
The Asian elephant used to live from modern Irap and Syria to the Yellow River in China at first, but it is now found only from India to Vietnam, with a tiny population in the extreme southwest of China’s Yunnan Province. More than 100,000 Asian elephants may have existed at the start of the 20th century. The population is estimated to have fallen by at least 50% over the last 60-75 years.
1.What can we learn from Paragraph2?
A.The Asian male elephant is the largest animal in the world.
B.The population of Asian male elephants with ivory varies by district.
C.The Asian elephant has two “fingers” on the lips of the long trunk.
D.Asian elephants continuously move their ears to warm themselves.
2.The Asian elephants are most likely to fed themselves______.
A. in a very large forest
B. in the field with leaves and stems
C. close to a river with grasses and leaves
D. on the hillsides with grasses and trees
3.What makes the author worried in the last paragraph?
A. That there are fewer and fewer Asian elephants.
B. That Asian elephants originally ranged more widely.
C. That Asian elephants may suffer some diseases.
D. That there was too much killing in the last century.
4.The passage introduces Asian elephants mainly in the aspects of ______.
a.the diet habit
b. the social structure
c. the life circle
d. the physical description
e. the skin color
f. the population and distribution
g. the cultural status
A. b-c-d-e-f B. c-d-e-f-g
C. a-b-c-d-f D. g-d-b-a-f
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。
It is impossible to know when you might find yourself lost in a forest. If you know what to do, you can survive in a forest without much trouble; but if you are not prepared, survival can be much less likely.
Keep fear at bay
It is completely natural to be afraid when you are faced with a survival situation. 1. The more your fear overcomes you, the lower your chances are of survival, as your mind is going to become clouded and panic may set in.
Stay warm
Obviously, the low body temperature is one of the primary dangers you face when you must survive in the forest2. Never stop to sleep or quit moving around unless you have appropriate shelter.
Know how to make a fire
Obviously , if you have a lighter or matches, this is not a problem. But if not, you can attempt to use a dry narrow pointed stick and a dry flat piece of wood. 3. This requires a great deal of work, but if done correctly, you will succeed.
Make some shelter
4. The easiest way to provide protection is to find a fallen tree and cover it with other branches and brush so that you can stay in the natural pit underneath the tree trunk.This is a very important aspect of being able to survive in the forest.
Stay put unless you know exactly where you are
If you can build a stable shelter and start a fire, you can survive in the forest for several days. 5. If you know where you are, travel as far as possible during the day while making sure you stop long enough before dark so that you can build another shelter.
A. Soon you will find that it’s not that difficult to survive in the forest.
B. However, if you are going to survive in the forest, you must keep your thoughts clear.
C. Make as much friction(摩擦) as possible by rubbing the pointed stick along the flat piece.
D. It is better to stay and wait for rescue.
E. Under no circumstances should we fight with the wild animals.
F. Caves and overhangs are perfect, but most likely you must build your own.
G. It is crucial that you do all you can to stay dry and keep your body temperature up.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
完形填空
阅读下面短文, 从短文后各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。
A white-bearded ancient man was walking over the hills and valleys of the world. On his back he carried a bag which moved uneasily as if something was trying to escape from it, but he ________ it between his shoulders and walked on.
He was Father Time, travelling forever, and the bag he ________ was filled with Tomorrows, all struggling to get out.
Each ________ at twelve o’clock, he opened the bag and ________outa Tomorrow, just one, with its wings of________ , and its shining feathers rose with hope. All the rest were kept ________ by Time’s strong hands and pushed________ in the bag.
Down flew the Tomorrow ________ its lovely feathers, but as it touched the ________ , off fell its blue wings and it changed to a(n) ________ white bird which could not fly. It had become a Today. Everyone knows that Today isn’t as ________ as Tomorrow , for Today can be held in one’s________ , accepted, unloved, but Tomorrow is full of mystery and beauty. It is ________ by all the world. Even those with ________ hope sigh, “Tomorrow may bring a(n) ________ . Tomorrow’s life will be different.”
Everybody tried to ________ the Tomorrow before it fell to the ground. They thought if they ________ beforehand what the Tomorrow carries, they could ________ for it. So they put great nets on the trees, seeking to catch one ________ it changed his feather. Yet although they tried every means, the birds ________ and flew to the ground as Todays.
1.A. settled B. relaxed C. excited D. worried
2.A. laid B. lifted C. placed D. bore
3.A. night B. morning C. afternoon D. dawn
4.A. fetched B. got C. flew D. took
5.A. pink B. white C. black D. blue
6.A. off B. back C. out D. away
7.A. deep B. far C. over D. along
8.A. striking B. beating C. moving D. shaking
9.A. grass B. tree C. earth D. floor
10.A. especial B. beautiful C. lovely D. ordinary
11.A. familiar B. common C. wonderful D. bad
12.A. heart B. head C. mind D. hands
13.A. desired B. forgotten C. noticed D. seen
14.A. much B. little C. few D. some
15.A. change B. advice C. shock D. suggestion
16.A. hold B. keep C. catch D. protect
17.A. watched B. guessed C. knew D. expected
18.A. look B. prepare C. wait D. long
19.A. after B. before C. when D. as
20.A. struggled B. refused C. fought D. escaped
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容（不多于3个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。
Well, today is the day. Microsoft is officially pulling the life support plug on Windows XP. And while the majority of PC user have 1. (obvious) moved on to newer operating systems(OS）, some people stuck 2. Windows XP over the last 12 years. As is reported by The Washington Post, 3. enormous number of government machines are still running the old OS, 4. could probably create a security problem.
Clearly, over 13 percent of PCs in the United States are still running Windows Xp, 5. Microsoft announced the end for support over two years ago. As many as 10 percent of US government computers, thousands of PCs holding sensitive information 6.(include), will now be without 7. (far) security updates.
Yesterday, the Guardian reported the UK government has paid Microsoft 5.5 million pounds for a one-year 8. (extend) of support. And if you think the problem is only at the desktop and notebook level, you can be quite wrong; don’t forget as many as 60 percent of ATM machines in the US 9. (be) still running XP.
So, what’s the solution? These business, government agencies and consumers will have to upgrade. And whether they choose Windows 7 10. Windows 8, either is probably better than a security breach(漏洞）.
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
短文改错
文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。错误涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号(∧)，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线( \)划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词 2.只允许修改10处，多者(从11处起)不计分
Ladies and gentlemen,
Thank you for hold such a wonderful party for me before the day of your returning to Australia. I really can’t thank you enough for that you’ve done for me during my visit.
I remembered vividly the day I arrive here. I was deeply impressed by your kindness or the beautiful scenery of your city. Everything was more awesome than visiting the splendid Mount Huang on third day. And the memory will surely last a lifetime. I’m also glad to have made many friends here, to whom I hope to see again in the future.
I believe this visit will promote the friendship and understanding between the Australian and Chinese student. Once again , I want to extend my most sincerely gratitude to all of you.
Thank you.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
书面表达
一年以后你将成为一名大学生，请以“我的大学生活”为主题写一篇短文。内容应包括对理想的大学的描述以及你在大学里的学习和课余活动等。
注意: 1. 次数100左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3. 开头语已经为你写好，不计入总次数。
One year later, I will be a freshman in an ideal university, __________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
难度: 中等查看答案及解析