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My daughter is a single parent, whose life is very hard because she has three young sons. She plans her money carefully and manages to get something expensive that many people can buy easily.
When her eldest son, David wanted a bicycle so that he could do an after-school job, the family saved up and soon he was the proud owner of a good second-hand bicycle. One afternoon my daughter asked David to go shopping. He rode his bicycle, but carelessly left it outside the shop without putting on the lock. When David came out of the shop, it was gone. He walked home in tears and then, together with his angry mother, went to the local police station to report the theft.
Imagine their joy when they arrived at the station, a car parked out front had David’s bike in the boot (后备箱). The driver told my daughter how he’d seen a group of kids go for the bike once my grandson had gone inside the shop. The driver had called out to them to leave the bike alone. Instead, one of the kids in the group had jumped on the bicycle and ridden it away while the others followed.
The driver got in his car, drove after them and brought the stolen bike back. He was happy to be able to return it to my grandson together with a lesson about the mistake of failing to use the bike lock. Then, in all the excitement, he drove away without even giving his name or telephone number.
1.How is the writer’s daughter’s life?
A.Very busy. B.Very hard. C.Very simple. D.Very hopeless.
2.David lost his bike because ________.
A.many people stole things B.the lock was broken
C.bikes were needed by all D.he was too careless
3.Who helped David find his lost bike?
A.His mother. B.A driver. C.His grandmother. D.A policeman.
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Geography is the study of Earth and its climates. Scientists use it to study global warming and track the weather. Governments use it to learn where people live and work and to plan what to do with the land. It is now easier than ever to use geography because of a science called space technology.
The United States launched its first satellite in 1958. Some space missions that followed were geographical studies. In fact, earth science is a big part of the work of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
Astronauts looked out of the space shuttle. They decided to take photographs of Earth from their vantage point. Over the years, picture quality improved. Shuttle photography now shows land features, such as rivers. It can even show the streets of large cities. Photos of the same places at different times show how the land is changing.
NASA does not use just photographs, though. In 1958 it launched TIROS (the Television Infrared Observation Satellite). This first use of a satellite to study Earth was effective in giving weather forecasts. It led to the creation of new space tools to use in geography.
The Landsat Program began in 1972. This satellite sent detailed views of Earth from space. The pictures were so precise that scientists could count the number and kinds of crops in a field. Landsat showed where Earth’s surface had faults along which earthquakes might happen. This information helped in the planning of new cities and factories. Landsat also made discoveries. In Antarctica it located ranges of unknown mountains. It pinpointed small lakes in Virginia that were no ton maps. Landsat, now more advanced, still flies today.
Another space tool is Earth Observing-1 (EO-1). This spacecraft flies right behind Landsat. It takes pictures of the same sites. The two sets of pictures, viewed together, show how cities grow and how other places, such as rain forests, become smaller over time. This helps scientists learn how people affect geography.
One of the newest space tools is the Geographical Information Systems (GIS). GIS is computer software that helps scientists to study Earth. GIS is different from earlier space tools. Businesses, schools, and even average people — not just the government —can use it to show them how changes in the planet might affect them.
1.Why do governments study geography according to the passage?
A.To improve the environment. B.To make the land use plan.
C.To make new discoveries. D.To count the crops in a field.
2.Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A.The U.S. satellite program began in 1972. B.Landsat was able to take pictures of other planets.
C.TIROS was successful in giving weather forecasts. D.GIS can only be used by the government.
3.From the passage, we can infer that ________.
A.GIS is the newest computer to study Earth
B.NASA only depends on photos to study Earth
C.satellite pictures can give more detailed information
D.recent U.S. satellites are as advanced as the old ones
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For me, Facebook is about staying in touch with friends, whether that means writing on someone’s ‘wall’or sending them a private message. It’s a useful website for finding long-lost friends, arranging parties and sharing photos. But that’s not all: Facebook is now being used by all kinds of people for all kinds of reasons!
Do you want to play computer games? Log on to Facebook. There are now thousands of entertaining games and puzzles to help you pass the time. Do you want to find cafés, cinemas and bowling alleys in your area? Log on to Facebook pages that you can join and ‘like’, which makes it very easy to search for fun things to do near you. I think it’s brilliant to have all the information that you want on just one website!
People are now joining Facebook to make professional connections too, either with people who do the same kind of work, or with businesses that are looking for new people to work for them.
It’s a pretty good idea since so many people use Facebook these days, especially young people! Even students log on to Facebook to look for summer or part-time jobs.
And that’s not all! Now there are hundreds of pages about sports teams, TV programmes and pop stars to look at on Facebook. However, I believe the main reason most young people use Facebook is because it’s so easy to let the world know what you think about different things or people, whether it’s about a new film at the cinema or whether you prefer Rihanna with long or short hair. You can even write comments directly on other people’s Facebook pages including some stars’ pages. But you have to be careful because giving your opinion online can be dangerous.
We mustn’t forget that Facebook is meant to be fun and shouldn’t be used for saying bad things about people around us. I recently read a news article about a student who had to leave school because she made rude and unfair comments about a teacher on her Facebook wall. Several other school students have been in trouble for similar comments and opinions. In fact, it really annoys me when I see somebody has written nasty things about another person!
It’s true that Facebook is becoming more and more part of our daily lives for many different reasons, and it can be really helpful as well as being a lot of fun. But, as with all websites, we must be careful about how we use it.
1.What does the writer think of the Facebook?
A.It is easy for finding a long-lost friend
B.It is dangerous for giving one’s opinion
C.It is mainly used for business reasons these days.
D.It is useful for finding entertainment information.
2.Why does the writer think young people like Facebook so much?
A.It’s a good place to read TV programmes reviews.
B.They can have conversations about their interests.
C.It’s the best place to find information about sports.
D.They like having the chance to give their opinions.
3.The underlined word “nasty” in Paragraph 6 probably means “________”.
A.critical B.private C.unpleasant D.impolite
4.What is the best title of the passage?
A.The use of Facebook B.The information on Facebook
C.The reasons of using Facebook D.The suggestions for using Facebook
