-
It is hard to imagine that such a small country, the size of Indiana with the population of Alaska, tucked in the Himalaya Mountains, accessible only by two airplanes, is the “Happiest Country’’ in the world and has one of the fastest growing GDP’S in the world. This country is Bhutan, “Land of the Thunder Dragon”, which is located in South Asia and is encompassed by India, China, and Nepal.
Bhutan is the last standing Buddhist Kingdom in the World and, until recently, has preserved much of their culture since the l7th century by avoiding globalization and staying isolated from the world. Internet, television, and western dress were banned from the country up until ten years ago. Over the past ten years globalization has begun to change in Bhutan, but things remain perfectly balanced.
Bhutan is the only country in the world that has a ‘GNH’, which refers to “Gross National Happiness.’’The process of measuring GNH began when Bhutan opened up to globalization. It measures people’s quality of life, and makes sure that “material and spiritual development happen together.”Bhutan has done an amazing job of finding this balance. Bhutan has continually been ranked as the happiest country in all of Asia, and the eighth Happiest Country in the world according to Business Week. In 2007, Bhutan had the second fastest growing GDP in the world, at the same time as maintaining their environment and cultural identity.
In 2008,in Bhutan’s first democratic election,28-year-old Jigme KhesarNamgyel Wang Chuck was elected president of Bhutan. He promises to “maintain a stance (立场)of protection against the worst aspects of globalization, maintaining the ‘Gross National Happiness’.”But Jigme himself is no stranger to globalization. He attended high school at Phillips Academy and university at Wheaton College and then graduated from Oxford.
1.The underlined word “encompassed’’ in the first paragraph most probably means __________ .
A. covered B. surrounded
C. separated D. guarded
2.Why is Bhutan regarded as “the happiest country”?
A. Because it changes its policy and begins to open up.
B. Because it uses “GNH” to measure its achievement.
C. Because it stresses both material and spiritual development.
D. Because it has the second fastest growing GDP in the world.
3.What Can we infer from the last paragraph?
A. The election in Bhutan is far from satisfactory.
B. Globalization has influenced Bhutan’s religion.
C. Jigme’s educational background will cause distrust.
D. People in Bhutan will continue living a happy life.
4.Which of the following shows the structure of the passage?
A. 
B. 
C. 
D. 
-
It is hard for people in the country to believe that the minister could survive in such ________ weather conditions.
A．severe B．obvious C．positive D．sceptical
-
It is amazing to note that the Internet is still such a new device，and yet it is one of the fastest and most powerful media tools. But think about it for a moment. On the Internet, a big online company can be run by only two guys in their garage. So it is only reasonable then, that people shopping online would be a little leery of the security levels.
Internet giants such as Microsoft knew consumer confidence was the key to getting virtual shopping off the ground, and they work hard to make people feel safe to shop online.
Credit card companies, too, quickly saw the potential for online shopping, and have installed things like online shopping insurance for people. If you ever have a problem with your online credit purchases, many credit card companies will happily refund your money and then set their claws on the company that wronged you. Now that’s buying power!
There are other bonuses for online shoppers, of course. No line－ups, for one. No annoying mall shopping carts with broken wheels and kids crying because their parents won’t get them what they want.
When shopping online, consumers can sit down, have a coffee, and wear their slippers, not having to worry about their hair or parking, and just clicking through sale after sale. Comparison shopping couldn’t be any easier. And thanks to courier companies（快递公司）getting in on the act, you never need to wait longer than a day or two to get those all important purchases delivered right to your door.
No wonder so many companies are shaking their heads at traditional advertising and instead looking to the “virtual” world to attract online shoppers.
1.The underlined word leery means _________.
A. distrustful B. confident
C. hopeful D. disappointed
2.Consumer confidence in online shopping mainly relies on _________.
A. shopping freedom B. shopping convenience
C. Internet access D. Shopping security
3.Which groups of words would the writer use to describe current online shopping?
A. Adventurous, enjoyable, fast, unreal
B. Unsafe, cheap, slow, convenient
C. Safe, convenient, fast, comfortable
D. Reliable, popular, convenient, slow
4.The following companies are thought to have made contributions to the popularity of online shopping EXCEPT ________.
A. Internet companies
B. advertising companies
C. courier companies
D. credit card companies
-
Imagine that 7 out of 10 working Americans got fired tomorrow. What would they all do? It’s hard to believe it would happen. But that is what the industrial revolution did to the labor force of the early 19th century.
Two hundred years ago, 70 percent of American workers lived on the farm. Today automation(自动化) has eliminated all but one percent of their jobs, replacing them with machines. But these workers did not sit, doing nothing. Instead, automation created hundreds of millions of jobs in completely new fields. Those who once farmed were then working in factories that produced farm equipment, cars, and other industrial products.
It may be hard to believe, but before the end of this century, 70 percent of today’s jobs will likely be replaced by automation. Yes, dear reader, even you will have your job taken away by machines. In other words, robot replacement is just a matter of time, First, speedy robots being able to lift 150 pounds all day long will carry boxes, sort them, and load them onto trucks. Fruit and vegetable picking will continue to be robotized until no humans pick outside of specialty farms. Next, The work of cleaning in offices and schools will be taken over by late-night robots. The trucks will be driven by robots.
We need to let robots take over. They will do jobs we have been doing, and do them much better than we can. They will do jobs we can’t do at all. They will do jobs we never imagined even needed to be done, and they will help us discover new jobs for ourselves and new tasks that expand who we are. They will let us focus on becoming more human than we were.
1.What happened in the early 19th century?
A. Some working Americans in factories got fired.
B. Jobless workers had no choice but to sit there doing nothing at all.
C. Many American workers had to leave factories to work on the farm.
D. The industrial revolution caused many Americans to lose their jobs.
2.How does the author support the underlined statement in Paragraph 3?
A. By giving advice.
B. By giving examples.
C. By following the order of time.
D. By explaining cause and effect.
3.How does the author feel about robots taking over our jobs?
A. Afraid. B. Happy. C. Puzzled. D. Angry.
4.What does the author want to tell us in the text ?
A. Why robots should take over our jobs.
B. 70% of working Americans will be jobless.
C. The industrial revolution led to the automation.
D. Robots will do more things for us to live better.
-
Imagine that 7 out of 10 working Americans got fired tomorrow. What would they all do? It’s hard to believe it would happen. But that is what the industrial revolution did to the labor force of the early 19th century.
Two hundred years ago, 70 percent of American workers lived on the farm. Today automation(自动化) has eliminated all but one percent of their jobs, replacing them with machines. But these workers did not sit, doing nothing. Instead, automation created hundreds of millions of jobs in completely new fields. Those who once farmed were then working in factories that produced farm equipment, cars, and other industrial products.
It may be hard to believe, but before the end of this century, 70 percent of today’s jobs will likely be replaced by automation. Yes, dear reader, even you will have your job taken away by machines. In other words, robot replacement is just a matter of time, First, speedy robots being able to lift 150 pounds all day long will carry boxes, sort them, and load them onto trucks. Fruit and vegetable picking will continue to be robotized until no humans pick outside of specialty farms. Next, The work of cleaning in offices and schools will be taken over by late-night robots. The trucks will be driven by robots.
We need to let robots take over. They will do jobs we have been doing, and do them much better than we can. They will do jobs we can’t do at all. They will do jobs we never imagined even needed to be done, and they will help us discover new jobs for ourselves and new tasks that expand who we are. They will let us focus on becoming more human than we were.
1.What happened in the early 19th century?
A. Some working Americans in factories got fired.
B. Jobless workers had no choice but to sit there doing nothing at all.
C. Many American workers had to leave factories to work on the farm.
D. The industrial revolution caused many Americans to lose their jobs.
2.How does the author support the underlined statement in Paragraph 3?
A. By giving advice. B. By giving examples.
C. By following the order of time. D. By explaining cause and effect.
3.How does the author feel about robots taking over our jobs?
A. Afraid. B. Happy. C. Puzzled. D. Angry.
4.What does the author want to tell us in the text?
A. Why robots should take over our jobs.
B. 70% of working Americans will be jobless.
C. The industrial revolution led to the automation.
D. Robots will do more things for us to live better.
-
Canada is a multicultural country, with a large size but a small 1.. And it is s2. by water on three sides. Most Canadians live within 320kms of the USA 3.. Many people have the idea that they can cross the 4.(大陆) in less than five days , but they are wrong.
Canada has rich 5.(自然) resources, such as wood, fresh water and minerals. The trees are extremely tall, some 6. over 90meters. When you cross the Rocky Mountain, you may 7. sight of some mountain goats and even a grizzly bear and an eagle. If you're 8. enough to meet the Calgary Stampede, you'll see many wild animals and many cowboys, who have a g9. for working with animals, from all over North America. Of course, if you go to Canada, you can't miss the Lawrence River and the most 10.(富有的) and biggest city, Toronto.
-
In today's Ireland, it seems hard to imagine the grim(令人沮丧的) days of the 19th century when so many of the population starved, or that, in those days, many poor people had no clue how to prepare any food other than boil a potato. 1.
Tourism has made a vast difference to the standards of cooking in Ireland. Until recently there was hardly any tradition of eating out in many districts, except perhaps on very few occasions at a local hotel. Patterns of diet were old-styled, based firmly on 'meat and two vegetables' (somewhat overcooked), potatoes (of course) and large quantities of dairy produce. 2. Tourist demands for predictable, inexpensive fast-food are met, as everywhere, with hamburgers and pizzas - a better bet being fish and chips. But more sophisticated tastes have introduced whole foods and vegetarian restaurants (almost unheard of before), and a vast number of new restaurants, often French in style, have opened in the main tourist centres. Food 'events' such as Kinsale's Gourmet festival or Galway's Oyster Festival attract large numbers of visitors and reflect the new interest in food.
Whatever Irish cooking lacks in finesse（精细）, it nearly always makes up for in plenty, and ingredients(成分) are of a high quality. 3.. One of its great specialities is soda bread. It is made with buttermilk and is served fresh and warm with every meal. Recently there has been a return to simple Irish foods such as stews（炖菜）and potato dishes.
4.A 'traditional Irish breakfast' is a plateful of bacon and eggs with soda and potato breads. Accommodation rates are nearly always quoted(报价) with a full breakfast included. 5.
A. So you might as well eat enough to keep you going all day and get your money's worth!
B. Home-grown produce includes rich dairy foods, beef, lamb and pork, and a great variety of seafood.
C. Eating out at weekends is traditional in most parts of Ireland.
D. Now things are very different.
E. Food produce is fresher.
F. One of the best-value meals in Ireland is breakfast.
G. Nowadays, it is quite possible to eat both well and heartily all over the island.
-
Imagine an area 34 times the size of Manhattan. Now imagine it covered ankle-deep in plastic waste—a total of about 19 billion pounds of garbage. 1..
“We’re being overwhelmed(淹没) by our waste,”said Jenna Jambeck, an environmental engineer who led the 2015 study that determined this astonishing number. 2., unless something is done to stop the tide of garbage.
Plastic—a widely-used material—has in many ways been a benefit to humans but it has also caused a growing problem. Today, plastics are the No.1 type of garbage found in the sea. Ocean Conservancy, a nonprofit that organizes an annual coastal cleanup event worldwide, said plastic waste makes up around 85 percent of the garbage collected from beaches and oceans.
Ocean Conservancy says plastics are believed to threaten(威胁)at least 600 different wildlife species(物种). 3.; a growing body of evidence suggests humans are consuming plastics through the seafood we eat. A research suggests some plastics could be poisonous to humans, and could potentially increase the risk of health problems.
4.. At the Economist World Ocean Summit this week, ten nations announced to reduce plastic sea liter as part of UN Environment's CleanSeas campaign. 5.Corporations also have a role, as do individuals. We can start by thinking twice before using single-use plastic products—and when we do use them, we should take care to properly throw them off or recycle.
A.The following is what we should do
B.And it’s not just wildlife that’s threatened
C.And this figure is likely to double by 2025
D.But it’s not just countries that need to do their part
E.By 2050,that figure is expected to rise to 1000 pieces
F.That’s how much plastic waste ends up in our oceans every year
G.All of us have an important role to play in dealing with the problems
-
The next great land area that man hopes to control is the moon. In size it is nearly equal to the area of North and South America. However, it presents a hostile (不友好的) environment. Temperatures range +120 to -150 degrees Centigrade. There is no air, and no water.
Today there is considerable scientific speculation (思索) about living on the moon. When man will begin life on the moon surface is still not determined. But experts believe that settlement will take place in three steps. First, there will be increasing periods of exploration with temporary shelters. These periods will be followed by longer stays with housing under the surface of the moon and daily necessities brought by the settlers themselves from the earth. Finally, settlements that are self-supporting will be founded.
The main job of the early settlers will be to stay alive. They will have to plant crops under huge domes (圆顶屋) to produce food and oxygen and find water sources. After this is done, the settlers will have time to explore the possibilities of commercial (商业的) development and to make discoveries important to science. The characteristics of the moon that make it bad for human staying alive may make it ideal for certain kinds of manufacturing . Operations requiring a vacuum (真空) or extreme cold are examples. Therefore, industrial diamonds might be produced on the moon.
1.The area of the moon is _________.
A. about the same as that of North and South America
B. larger than that of North and South America
C. hardly equal to that of North and South America
D. far smaller than that of North and South America
2.To stay alive on the moon, first of all the early settlers must be able to ______.
A. get enough food, oxygen and water
B. develop commerce
C. make discoveries important
D. explore the possibilities of industrial development
3.Though the environment on the moon is bad for human staying alive, it is very good for ________.
A. all kinds of manufactured goods
B. commercial development
C. making such things as industrial diamonds
D. medical operations
-
Imagine a mass of floating waste is two times the size of the state of Texas. Texas has a land area of more than 678 000 square kilometers. So it might be difficult to imagine anything twice as big. All together, this mass of waste flowing in the North Pacific Ocean is known as the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch. It weighs about 3 500 000 tons. The waste includes bags，bottles and containers—plastic products of all kinds.
The eastern part of the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch is about l 600 kilometers west of California. The western part is west of the Hawaiian Islands and east of Japan. The area has been described as a kind of oceanic desert，with light winds and slow moving water currents. The water moves so slowly that garbage from all over the world collects there.
In recent years，there have been growing concerns about the floating garbage and its effect on sea creatures and human health. Scientists say thousands of animals get trapped in the floating waste，resulting in death or injury. Even more die from a lack of food or water after swallowing pieces of plastic. The trash can also make animals feel full，lessening their desire to eat or drink.
The floating garbage also can have harmful effects on people. There is an increased threat of infection of disease from polluted waste，and from eating fish that swallowed waste. Divers can also get trapped in the plastic.
Its existence first gained public attention in l997. That was when racing boat captain and oceanographer Charles Moore and his crew sailed into the garbage while returning from a racing event. Five years earlier，another oceanographer learned of the trash after a shipment of rubber duckies got lost at sea. Many of those toys are now part of the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch.
In August，2009，a team from the University of California，San Diego became the latest group to travel to it. They were shocked by the amount of waste they saw. They gathered hundreds of sea creatures and water samples to measure the garbage patch’s effect on ocean environment.
1.How did the writer introduce the topic of the passage?
A. By giving an example. B. By listing the facts.
C. By telling a story. D. By giving a comparison.
2.What do we know about the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch?
A. It is made up of various kinds of plastic products.
B. It is a solid mass of floating waste materials.
C. It lies l60 000 kilometers east of California.
D. It is described as a kind of oceanic land.
3.Why do people pay attention to the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch?
A. Because it may prevent the flow of ocean water.
B. Because the polluted plastic products will affect the food chain.
C. Because it maybe form an island in the pacific.
D. Because ships may be trapped in the floating waste.