What would life be like without rich, creamy,...

What would life be like without rich, creamy, mouthwatering, melt-in-your-mouth chocolate?

Life would be bitter for most Americans. They spend about $13 billion a year buying all sorts of chocolate treats.

However, for the African children who toil under slavelike conditions on cacao plantations, life is not sweet. The cacao bean is the main ingredient in the chocolate. According to a 2002 survey by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture and the US Agency for International Development, about 284,000 children work in dangerous conditions on cacao farms in western Africa.

More than half those children are younger than 14. Many were sold into forced labor to work 12 hours or more a day on the cacao plantations.

A number of international organizations, including several African governments, recently began a program to eliminate(消除) child labor on cacao plantations. Under the program, government officials will remove children from abusive working situations while teaching farmers about child labor issues.

The program will also make borrowing money easier for cacao farmers. Officials hope farmers will use the money to invest in their farms and hire paid laborers.

1.The cacao bean is the main ingredient in _______.

2.How many children under 14 work on cacao farms in western Africa?

3.From the passage, you can reasonably conclude that _______.

高二英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析

Six volunteers are about to find out what it would be like to live on Mars without ever leaving the Earth. Three men and three women will spend eight months living in a special place on the side of a volcano in Hawaii. They are part of an experiment that is designed to mimic（模仿）life on Mars. Their mission began on October 15, 2014. NASA says it could send astronauts to Mars as early as the 2030s. The mission would take more than two years, so NASA needs to know how people would react to living in a small group, isolated from the rest of the world, for such a long time. Some people may become depressed or bored living under those conditions. By studying people living in similar conditions here on Eares NASA hopes to learn how to choose the most suitable people for a space mission, and how to help them get along.

They will live in a two-story building. The ground floor is about 86 square meters, roughly the size of a small two-bedroom apartment. It includes shared areas like kitchen, dining room, bathroom, laboratory and an exercise room. The upstairs is less than half the size of the downstairs. It contains another bathroom and six small bedrooms. The building is located in an abandoned quarry（采石场）about 2,400 meters up the side of Mauna Loa, the second biggest volcano in the world. It is constantly monitored for signs of volcanic activity. NASA chose the location because the appearance looks very similar to Mars.

To make it more like being on Mars in the future, they are only able to communicate by email during the experiment. Meanwhile, there will be a 20-minute delay between the time when a message is sent and that when it is received. When they go outside, they will have to suit up in full spacesuits, just as if they were on Mars.

The commander is Martha Lenio, a 34-year-old Canadian. During the mission, she will run experiments on growing food. The other members have backgrounds in physics and so on. None of them are astronauts.

1.When will the six volunteers end their mission about mimicking life on Mars?

A. On June 15, 2015.　　　 　　 　 B. On October 15, 2015.

C. On October 15, 2030.　　　　 　 D. On June 15, 2032.

2.What’s the main purpose of the experiment?

A. To monitor signs of volcanic activity.　

B. To prepare for a space mission to Mars.

C. To train the six people to become astronauts.

D. To study the difference between men and women.

3.Mauna Loa was chosen as the experimental site because ___________.

A. it is located near a rocket base　　　　

B. other people can hardly find the location

C. its landscape is so much like that of Mars

D. it is a safe place to conduct the experiment

4. What can be inferred from the passage?

A. Martha is a famous expert on agriculture.

B. The six volunteers will be sent to Mars in 2030.

C. All the experimental activities are done in doors.

D. It takes about 40 minutes to get a reply to an email.

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Close your eyes for a minute and imagine what life would be like if you had a hundred dollars less. Also imagine what it would be like spending the rest of your life with your eyes closed. Imagine having to read this page, not with your eyes but with your finger-tips.

With existing medical knowledge and skills, two-thirds of the world's 42 million, blind should not have to suffer. Unfortunately, rich countries possess most of this knowledge, while developing countries do not.

ORBIS is an international non-profit organization which operates the world's only flying teaching eye hospital. ORBIS intends to help fight blindness worldwide. Inside a DC-8 aircraft, there is a fully-equipped teaching hospital with television studio and classroom. Doctors are taught the latest techniques of bringing sight back to people there. Project ORBIS also aims at promoting peaceful cooperation among countries.

ORBIS tries to help developing countries by providing training during three-week medical programs. ORBIS has taught sight-saving techniques to over 3,000 doctors and nurses, who continue to cure tens of thousands of blind people every year. ORBIS has conducted 17 plan programs in China so far. For the seven to ten million blind in China ORBIS is planning to do more for them. At the moment an ORBIS is working on a long-term plan to develop a training center and to provide eye care service to Shanxi Province. ORBIS needs your help to continue their work and free people from blindness.

For just US$38, you can help one person see; for $380 you can bring sight to 10 people; $1,300 helps teach a doctor new skills; and for $13,000 you can provide a training program for a group of doctors who can make thousands of blind people see again. Your money can open their eyes to the world. Please help ORBIS improve the quality of life for so many people less fortunate than ourselves.

1.The first paragraph is intended to ________.

A.direct the public's attention to the blind

B.advise the public to lead a simple life

C.introduce a new way of reading

D.encourage the public to use imagination

2.What do we learn about existing medical knowledge and skills in the world?

A.They are adequate.

B.They have not been updated.

C.They are not equally distributed.

D.They have benefited most of the blind.

3.ORBIS aims to help the blind by _______.

A.teaching medical students

B.training doctors and nurses

C.running flying hospitals globally

D.setting up non-profit organization

4.What can be the best title for the passage?

A.ORBIS Flying Hospital B.Fighting Blindness

C.ORBIS in China D.Sight-seeing Techniques

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Close your eyes for a minute and imagine what life would be like if you had a hundred dollars less. Also imagine what it would be like spending the rest of your life with you eyes closed. Imagine having to read this page, not with your eyes but with your finger-tips.

With existing medical knowledge and skills, two-thirds of the world’s 42 million blind should not have to suffer. Unfortunately, rich countries posses most of this knowledge, while developing countries do not.

ORBIS is an international non-profit organization which operates the world’s only flying teaching eye hospital. ORBIS intends to help fight blindness worldwide. Inside a DC-8 aircraft, there is a fully-equipped teaching hospital with television studio and classroom. Doctors are taught the latest techniques of bringing sight back to people there. Project ORBIS also aims at promoting peaceful cooperation(合作) among countries.

ORBIS tries to help developing countries by providing training during three-week medical programs. ORBIS has taught sight-saving techniques to over 35,000 doctors and nurses, who continue to cure tens of thousands of blind people every year. ORBIS has conducted 17 plane programs in China so far. For the seven to ten million blind in China, ORBIS is planning to do more for them. At the moment an ORBIS is working on a long-term plan to develop a training center and to provide eye care service to Shanxi Province. ORBIS needs your help to continue their work and free people from blindness.

For just US$38,you can help one person see; for $380 you can bring sight to 10 people; $1,300 helps teach a doctor new skills; and for $13,000 you can provide a training program for a group of doctors who can make thousands of blind people see again. Your money can open their eyes to the world. Please help ORBIS improve the quality of life for so many people less fortunate than ourselves.

1.The first paragraph is intended to ______.

A.introduce a new way of reading

B. advise the public to lead a simple life

C. direct the public’s attention to the blind

D. encourage the public to use imagination

2.What do we learn about existing medical knowledge and skills in the world?

A.They are adequate

B. They are not equally distributed

C. They have not been updated.

D. They have benefited most of the blind

3.ORRIS aims to help the blind by ______.

A.teaching medical students

B. training doctors and nurses

C. running flying hospitals globally

D. setting up non-profit organization

4.What can be the best title for the passage?

A. ORRIS in China　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. Fighting Blindness

C. Sight-seeing Techniques　　　　　　　　　　 D. ORRIS Flying Hospital

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Imagine what today’s life would be like if Alexander Bell _____ the telephone more than 130 years ago!

A. didn’t invent                  B. wouldn’t invent

C. hadn’t invented                D. wouldn’t have invented

高二英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

Your House Will Take Care of You In Old Age

Have you ever thought what your life would be like in old age?

Everyone talks about the “aging” society with large numbers of elderly people needing home care. Now German researchers have set up a “smart” house, programmed to help the elderly live at home with dignity. Scientists at Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute say the house combines existing technology with future-oriented technology.

For example, the “smart” bathroom has a touch screen mirror that can remind people to take their medicine, wash their hands or brush their teeth. The hardware behind Fraunhofer’s electronic bathroom is not new, and the software runs on a regular personal computer.

When the medicine cabinet is opened, a display in the middle of the mirror tells the person how many pills to take. The mirror is linked to a care provider, who can remotely check whether a patient at home is actually taking medicine and brushing his or her teeth. As many elderly people have arthritic(关节炎的) conditions that make it difficult to operate water taps, the mirror also has displays that turn the water tap on or off or control the water temperature.

The bathroom is only the start. Kitchens, bedrooms and all other parts of the “intelligent” home will become “user-friendly” to meet all kinds of individual needs. Sensors in doors, toilets, taps, light switches and carpets detect every activity and record them electronically. Doctors or care staff can see from the computer records what personal hygiene tasks have been completed, how often the elderly person visits the bathroom or uses the toilet. In case of an emergency, the computer automatically alerts the chosen contact person or calls the care center.

1.The ‘smart” bathroom has a touch screen mirror ____.

A. that can remind people to do many things

B. which is linked to a nursing house

C. behind which is a medicine cabinet

D. that can help the elderly brush their teeth

2.The underlined word “them” in the last paragraph refers to ___.

A. sensors

B. doors, toilets, taps, light switches and carpets

C. individual needs

D. every activity

3.How is the passage mainly developed?

A. By inferring.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. By comparing.

C. By listing examples. 　　　　　　　　　　 D. By introducing a practical method.

4. The author of the text mainly ___.

A. calls on people to care for the old

B. introduces a new house

C. promotes a new house

D. encourages the old to live with dignity

高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

Without electricity, human life　　　　 quite difficult today.

A. would be　　 B. will be

C. would have been　　 D. is

高二英语单项填空困难题查看答案及解析

Without electricity human life _____ quite different today.

高二英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

书面表达（满分25分）

假设你是李华，你校英语报将举行“What would happen without computers in the life?”为主题的英语征文比赛。请发挥你的想象写一篇120—150词的英语短文参赛。开头已给出，不计入总词数。

高二英语书面表达困难题查看答案及解析

Without electricity human life __________ quite different today.

高二英语单项填空简单题查看答案及解析