Alexander von Humboldt was born in 1769 in Berlin, Germany. As a young boy, he wanted to learn about the world. Humboldt followed his dream. In 1799, he traveled with a friend to Central and South America.
On their trip, Humboldt and his friend saw and did many things. They sailed down the Amazon River. They watched dolphins play in the ocean. They explored the rain forest and climbed mountains and volcanoes. They were able to make the first maps of the northern part of South America.
Humboldt set a world record for mountain climbing. He also made a discovery. During his climb, Humboldt became very sick. He found out that the higher he climbed, the less oxygen there was in the air. This made it more difficult to breathe. Later, this became known as mountain sickness.
Science was another part of Humboldt’s interests. He wanted to write about all of the new things he saw. He described the new plants, animals, and rocks which had never been seen by scientists before.
Humboldt also studied the way of life of the local people. He learned how the native people along the Amazon River used plants in their daily lives. For example, they used a strong poison from a vine(蔓生植物) to make poisoned arrows. The natives used these arrows for hunting their food.
The Amazon Indians also used a native plant to treat malaria (疟疾), a serious illness. The plant grew wild, but after it was dug up, it was never replanted. Humboldt warned the natives that the plant was in danger of dying out. He looked for ways to preserve the plant and to make it grow strong.
Although Humboldt took many risks during his trip, he lived to be 90 years old. In his lifetime, he made many discoveries and shared them with the world. As a tribute (颂扬) to Humboldt, there are rivers and mountains named after him.
1.We can infer that Humboldt was probably a (n) ________.
A. explorer B. inventor C. doctor D. writer
2.Humboldt and his friend made maps of ________.
A. the central part of South America
B. the northern part of South America
C. the north part of Central America
D. the southern part of Central America
3.What do we know about mountain sickness?
A. It can be treated with a plant.
B. It is a serious illness like malaria.
C. It mainly influences one’s breathing.
D. It was discovered by Humboldt’s friend.
4.We can tell from the text that Humboldt was ________.
A. easy-going B. imaginative C. optimistic D. ambitious
高二英语阅读理解中等难度题
Alexander von Humboldt was born in 1769 in Berlin, Germany. As a young boy, he wanted to learn about the world. Humboldt followed his dream. In 1799, he traveled with a friend to Central and South America.
On their trip, Humboldt and his friend saw and did many things. They sailed down the Amazon River. They watched dolphins play in the ocean. They explored the rain forest and climbed mountains and volcanoes. They were able to make the first maps of the northern part of South America.
Humboldt set a world record for mountain climbing. He also made a discovery. During his climb, Humboldt became very sick. He found out that the higher he climbed, the less oxygen there was in the air. This made it more difficult to breathe. Later, this became known as mountain sickness.
Science was another part of Humboldt’s interests. He wanted to write about all of the new things he saw. He described the new plants, animals, and rocks which had never been seen by scientists before.
Humboldt also studied the way of life of the local people. He learned how the native people along the Amazon River used plants in their daily lives. For example, they used a strong poison from a vine(蔓生植物) to make poisoned arrows. The natives used these arrows for hunting their food.
The Amazon Indians also used a native plant to treat malaria (疟疾), a serious illness. The plant grew wild, but after it was dug up, it was never replanted. Humboldt warned the natives that the plant was in danger of dying out. He looked for ways to preserve the plant and to make it grow strong.
Although Humboldt took many risks during his trip, he lived to be 90 years old. In his lifetime, he made many discoveries and shared them with the world. As a tribute (颂扬) to Humboldt, there are rivers and mountains named after him.
1.We can infer that Humboldt was probably a (n) ________.
A. explorer B. inventor C. doctor D. writer
2.Humboldt and his friend made maps of ________.
A. the central part of South America
B. the northern part of South America
C. the north part of Central America
D. the southern part of Central America
3.What do we know about mountain sickness?
A. It can be treated with a plant.
B. It is a serious illness like malaria.
C. It mainly influences one’s breathing.
D. It was discovered by Humboldt’s friend.
4.We can tell from the text that Humboldt was ________.
A. easy-going B. imaginative C. optimistic D. ambitious
高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
Einstein was born in 1879 in Germany. As a child, he was slow to learn to talk. As a pupil, he was backward. But when he was fourteen years old, he became clever. He taught himself maths from textbooks. He studied hard because he wanted to be a physicist.
In 1901, Einstein began teaching. In 1902 he continued his studies at the University of Zurich. Several years later, he formulated(系统地阐述)his famous Theory of Relativity(相对论).To most people the law of relativity is difficult to explain. But once Einstein explained it to a group of young students. He said,” When you sit with a good girl for two hours, you think it is only a minute. But when you sit on a hot stove for a minute, you think it's two hours. That is relativity."
After Hitler came into power in Germany, Einstein went to America. In 1940 Einstein became an American citizen. In 1955, Einstein's life ended at the age of seventy-six.
36. When Einstein was a pupil of twelve, he _______.
A. was not quick in learning to talk B. was poor in his studies
C. studied very hard D. hardly lagged behind
37. The law of relativity is_______ .
A. very hard for most people to understand
B. too hard for Einstein himself to explain
C. too hard to explain to anybody except Einstein
D. easy to understand only for the young students
38. Which of the following do you think is true?
A. The Germans owed their scientific progress to Einstein.
B. The Americans owed all their economic development to Einstein.
C. Einstein owed a great deal to the modern world.
D. Einstein made a very great contribution to modern science.
39. The title for this passage should be " _______ ".
A. Theory of Relativity B. An American Citizen
C. Albert Einstein D. Einstein's Contribution
高二英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析
Though _____ in Germany, Henry was brought up in Jinhua by his aunt.
A.to be born B.having been born
C.being born D.born
高二英语单项填空困难题查看答案及解析
BERLIN — With the crisis in Japan raising fears about nuclear power, Germany and Switzerland said on Monday that they would reassess(再次评估) the safety of their own reactors([核] 反应堆).
Doris Leuthard, the Swiss energy minister, said Switzerland would put off plans to build nuclear plants. She said no new ones would be permitted until experts had reviewed safety standards.
Germany will put off “the recently decided extension of the running time of German nuclear plants,” Chancellor Angela Merkel told reporters. “This moratorium(延缓)will run for three months and it will allow for a thorough examination of the safety standards of the county’s 17 nuclear power plants.
The European Union called for a meeting on Tuesday of nuclear safety authorities to assess Europe’s preparedness.
Germany’s foreign minister, Guido Westerwelle, called for a new risk analysis of the country’s nuclear plants, particularly regarding their cooling systems. He is the leader of the Free Democratic Party, which strongly supports nuclear power.
A previous government, led by the Social Democrats, passed a law in 2001 to close all the country’s nuclear plants by 2021. But Mrs. Merkel’s government changed that decision last year to extend the lives of the plants by an average of 12 years.
In Switzerland, Doris Leuthard said she had already asked to analyze the exact cause of the problems in Japan and draw up new or tougher safety standards “particularly in terms of seismic(地震的,与地震相关的) safety and cooling.”
In Russia, the Prime Minister said his government would “draw conclusions from what’s going on in Japan.”
1. Where can you most likely read this passage?
A.In a newspaper. | B.In a magazine. | C.In a science report. | D.In a diary. |
2.How will Germany react to Japan’s nuclear crisis?
A.Germany will close all the country’s nuclear plants. |
B.Germany will hold a meeting of nuclear safety authorities. |
C.Germany will change the decision made last year. |
D.Germany will delay the extension of nuclear plants running time. |
3.The author mentions all the following EXCEPT ______.
A.The moratorium in Germany will give time to examine the nuclear plants safety standards. |
B.Switzerland will not build new nuclear plants unless they meet the experts’ safety standards. |
C.The Social Democrats in Germany shares the same view with the Free Democratic Party. |
D.Russia will try to learn something from the nuclear power crisis in Japan. |
4.What is the best title of the passage?
A.Watch Out for the Danger of Nuclear Power |
B.Europe Is against Building Nuclear Plants |
C.Nuclear Plants in Europe Are Delayed |
D.Opinions on Nuclear Power Are Opposite |
高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
BERLIN (Reuters)—Germany’s postal service has announced plans to explore improved service and help protect the environment by getting “fetch friends”—ordinary people traveling across cities—to deliver parcels on their way.
It is hoped that the move, which will be tested in the coming months, might lessen traffic in inner cities and reduce CO2 emissions(排放). This should help DHL, a division of the German postal service, reach its target of improving the company’s carbon efficiency by 30 percent before 2020.
“As the world’s biggest logistics(物流) provider, we recognize a special responsibility to reduce the impact on the environment as much as possible,” said Frank Appel, Chief Executive Officer of Deutsche Post DHL, in a statement referring to a variety of measures being considered.
The “fetch friends” find out online about parcels that need delivering to people who live or work along the way that they are planning to travel through the city. They then select the ones that they want to take.
Codes(编码) sent to their mobile phones tell the volunteers where to pick the packages up. Parcels can be taken part of the way or passed on to another volunteer but all volunteers need to have the right code on their mobile phone so the track and trace system can be updated.
Logistics companies will be responsible for looking after the operation to make sure that the privacy of post is respected.
It’s hoped that this could be done using mobile phones but DHL says it recognizes that some security issues remain to be worked out.
1.According to the passage, the “fetch friend” program ________.
A. has been tested for months
B. aims to reduce the cost of the service
C. employs environmentalists to help with deliveries
D. encourages ordinary people to help cut the carbon footprint
2.Which of the following statements is TRUE of DHL?
A. It belongs to the Germany’s postal service.
B. It has the most up-to-date tracking system in Germany.
C. It has succeeded in improving its carbon efficiency by 30%.
D. It has designed many measures to improve its service speed.
3.What may be a problem with the new service according to the article?
A. Volunteers’ not allowing to select parcels.
B. The wrong codes in the mobile phones.
C. The possibility that parcels could be opened on the way.
D. Parcels’ being taken to the destination by a single volunteer.
4.What might be the best Title for the best passage?
A. New Challenges for the Postal Service
B. A Greener Way to Deliver Parcels
C. Solutions for Global Warming
D. Statements from DHL
高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
This month, Germany’s transport minister, Alexander Dobrindt, proposed the first set of rules for autonomous vehicles. They would define the driver’s role in such cars and govern how such cars perform in crashes where lives might be lost.
The proposal attempts to deal with what some call the “death valley” of autonomous vehicles: the grey area between semi-autonomous and fully driverless cars that could delay the driverless future.
Dobrindt wants three things: that a car always chooses property damage over personal injury; that it never distinguishes between humans based on age or race; and that if a human removes his or her hands from the driving wheel — to check email, say — the car’s maker is responsible if there is a crash.
“The change to the road traffic law will permit fully automatic driving,” says Dobrindt. It will put fully driverless cars on an equal legal footing to human drivers, he says.
Who is responsible for the operation of such vehicles is not clear among car makers, consumers and lawyers. “The liability issue is the biggest one of them all,” says Natasha Merat at the University of Leeds, UK.
An assumption behind UK insurance for driverless cars, introduced earlier this year, insists that a human “be watchful and monitoring the road” at every moment.
But that is not what many people have in mind when thinking of driverless cars. “When you say ‘driverless cars’, people expect driverless cars.” Merat says. “You know — no driver.”
Because of the confusion, Merat thinks some car makers will wait until vehicles can be fully automated without operation.
Driverless cars may end up being a form of public transport rather than vehicles you own, says Ryan Calo at Stanford University, California. That is happening in the UK and Singapore, where government-provided driverless vehicles are being launched.
That would go down poorly in the US, however. “The idea that the government would take over driverless cars and treat them as a public good would get absolutely nowhere here,” says Calo.
1.What does the phrase “death valley” in Paragraph 2 refer to?
A.A place where cars often break down.
B.A case where passing a law is impossible.
C.An area where no driving is permitted.
D.A situation where drivers’ role is not clear.
2.The proposal put forward by Dobrindt aims to _____ .
A.stop people from breaking traffic rules
B.help promote fully automatic driving
C.protect drivers of all ages and races
D.prevent serious property damage
3.What do consumers think of the operation of driverless cars?
A.It should get the attention of insurance companies.
B.It should be the main concern of law makers.
C.It should not cause deadly traffic accidents.
D.It should involve no human responsibility.
4.What could be the best title for the passage?
A.Autonomous Driving: Whose Liability?
B.Fully Automatic Cars: A New Breakthrough
C.Autonomous Vehicles: Driver Removed!
D.Driverless Cars: Root of Road Accidents
高二英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析
It was the summer of 1936. The Olympic Games were being held in Berlin. I had trained, sweated and disciplined myself for 6 years on the running broad jump. A year before, as a college student at the Ohio State, I'd set the world's record of 26 feet 8 1/4 inches. Nearly everyone expected me to win.
I was in for a surprise. When the time came for the broad-jump trials (选拔赛), I was shocked to see a tall boy hitting the pit (坑) at almost 26 feet on his practice leaps. He turned out to be a German named Luz Long. He had easily qualified for the finals on his first attempt.
A nervous athlete is an athlete who will make mistakes. I fouled (犯规) twice on my qualifying jumps. Walking a few yards from the pit, I kicked at the dirt disgustedly. Suddenly I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned to look into the friendly blue eyes of Luz Long. "Hi, I'm Luz Long. I don't think we've met." "Glad to meet you," I said. Then, trying to hide my nervousness, I added, "How are you?" "I'm fine. Something must be eating you. You should be able to qualify with your eyes closed." He said.
He seemed to understand my nervousness, and took pains to reassure me. Finally, seeing that I had calmed down somewhat, he said, "What does it matter if you're not the first in the trials? Tomorrow is what counts." All the tension left my body as the truth of what he said hit me. Confidently I qualified with almost a foot to spare.
Luz broke his own record and pushed me on to a peak performance. The instant I landed from my final jump — the one which set the Olympic record of 26 feet 5 1/16 inches — he was at my side, congratulating me.
1.The author said "I was in for a surprise" because he _____.
A.beat Luz Long B.met a great competitor
C.qualified for the final D.joined in the Olympic Games
2.What can we learn about the author from the passage?
A.He remained confident in the Olympic Games.
B.He had qualified for the finals on his first attempt.
C.He broke the world record of the running broad jump.
D.He had prepared for Berlin Olympics in Ohio State.
3.What is the passage mainly about?
A.A memorable experience in the Olympics.
B.A reliable man in the Olympic Games.
C.A surprising result in the Olympic Games.
D.A good suggestion on how to win in the Olympics
高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
It was the summer of 1936.The Olympic Games were being held in Berlin.I had trained, sweated and disciplined myself for 6 years on the running broad jump.A year before, as a college student at the Ohio State, I'd set the world's record of 26 feet 8 1/4 inches.Nearly everyone expected me to win.
I was in for a surprise.When the time came for the broad-jump trials(选拔赛), I was shocked to see a tall boy hitting the pit (坑) at almost 26 feet on his practice leaps.He turned out to be a German named Luz Long.He had easily qualified for the finals on his first attempt.
A nervous athlete is an athlete who will make mistakes.I fouled (犯规)twice on my qualifying jumps.Walking a few yards from the pit, I kicked at the dirt disgustedly.Suddenly I felt a hand on my shoulder.I turned to look into the friendly blue eyes of Luz Long."Hi, I'm Luz Long.I don't think we've met." "Glad to meet you," I said.Then, trying to hide my nervousness, I added, "How are you?" "I'm fine.Something must be eating you.You should be able to qualify with your eyes closed." He said.
He seemed to understand my nervousness, and took pains to reassure me.Finally, seeing that I had calmed down somewhat, he said, "What does it matter if you're not the first in the trials? Tomorrow is what counts." All the tension left my body as the truth of what he said hit me.Confidently I qualified with almost a foot to spare.
Luz broke his own record and pushed me on to a peak performance.The instant I landed from my final jump—the one which set the Olympic record of 26 feet 5 1/16 inches—he was at my side, congratulating me.
1.The author said "I was in for a surprise" because he _____.
A.beat Luz Long B.met a great competitor
C.qualified for the final D.joined in the Olympic Games
2.What can we learn about the author from the passage?
A.He remained confident in the Olympic Games.
B.He had qualified for the finals on his first attempt.
C.He broke the world record of the running broad jump.
D.He had prepared for Berlin Olympics in Ohio State.
3.What is the passage mainly about?
A.A memorable experience in the Olympics.
B.A reliable man in the Olympic Games.
C.A surprising result in the Olympic Games.
D.A good suggestion on how to win in the Olympics
高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
The printing press has a long history. It was invented in Germany by Joannes Gutenberg around 1440, and brought to England by William Caxton in the 1470s.Yet the basic technology of printing remained the same up to the end of the 18th century, requiring two men to operate a wooden screw press by hand, producing about 200 impressions an hour. The 19th century was the period in which this process was mechanised, automated, and made many times faster.
A key moment in the development of mass newspapers was the development of the steam-powered printing press, adopted by the times in 1814. The new presses were able to print per hour around five times the number produced by the machines. The editor, John Walter, had the machines fixed secretly at night, so that when his printers reported for duty the next morning the majority of them found that they were out of work. The Times went from a circulation of 5,000 a day in 1815 to around 50,000 in the middle of the century. This was not caused by the steam press, but neither could it have happened without it.
Later developments improved this effect: the Applegath machine achieved 5,000 impressions per hour, and the Hoe press, an import from the United States, reached to 20,000 impressions per hour. Increase in the speed of papermaking in this period brought down the cost of printed materials both for the producer and the customer. In 1896, the Daily Mail was sold at the cost of only half a penny, and by 1900 it was selling nearly 1,000,000 copies a day.
If print production was completely changed in those years, then so was its distribution. The appearance of the steam railway meant that for the first time newspapers could be distributed across the country on a daily basis.
1.What can we learn about the basic technology of printing?
A. It was invented first in the middle of the 15th century.
B. It was brought into England by Joannes Gutenberg.
C. It took over 400 years to change after invention.
D. It took two hours to produce about 200 impressions.
2.How many impressions did the new press produce an hour in 1814?
A. About 20,000. B. About 1,000.
C. About 2,000. D. About 5,000.
3.Increase in the speed of papermaking led to ____.
A. the invention of steam printing press B. the development of the steam railway
C. the appearance of the Daily Mail D. the decline of printing expenses
4.The passage is developed mainly by ____.
A. providing examples B. making comparisons
C. following the order of time D. following the order of space
高二英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析
书面表达
Right after the Second World War, Germany was in ruins. Almost all the houses, factories and schools were destroyed. Plenty of people were homeless as well as jobless. Worse still, the supply of water and electricity was often cut off in the city. Two American journalists interviewed a German family living in the basement. The husband was disabled from the war and the wife was just dismissed from a clothing company. Worse still, there were bills for them to pay—four children to care for and food to buy. Life was hard for them at that time.
After the interview, the journalists chatted with each other on the way back to the company.
“Do you think the Germans could rebuild their homeland?”
“Absolutely.”
“But I can’t see any hope for the country at all. How can you be so certain about that?”
“Have you noticed what they put on the table in the basement? There was a vase of flowers. A nation, suffering at such moment, hasn’t forgotten about flowers. It shows that hopes are not lost. They are still able to dream. A nation with hope can create miracles. They are sure to be able to rebuild their homeland.”
写作内容:
1. 以约30个词概括上文的主要内容;
2. 以约120个词就梦想改变命运的话题谈谈你的想法,内容包括:
(1) 你赞同文中的观点吗?
(2) 举例证明你赞同或不赞同的原因;
(3) 谈谈你对梦想的看法以及你如何为实现梦想而努力。
写作要求:
1. 作文中可以使用亲身经历或虚构的故事,也可以参照阅读材料的内容,但不得直接引用原文中的句子;
2. 作文中不能出现真实姓名和学校名称。
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高二英语书面表达中等难度题查看答案及解析