Tide is the regular rise and fall of the ocean level caused by the movement of the sun, the earth and the moon. It is considered a promising source of green energy to produce electricity in coastal areas.

To make use of tidal energy, we need to build tidal power stations. The bays and the river mouths where the tide is high (the tidal range is more than 10 metres) are usually perfect sites to build tidal power stations. There are many such places in the world. According to the IRENA (the International Renewable Energy Agency), by just using 2% of our coastlines, we can produce 4, 383TWh of ocean power each year, enough to meet 16. 4% of the world's electricity needs.

To build a tidal power station, we need to build a dam. In the dam are many turbines and on each turbine there is an electric generator. When the tide rises, water comes through the dam, the turbines turn and the electric generators work, producing electricity. When the tide fall, water goes out through the dam, the turbines turn again. The electric generators continue to work.

Tidal energy has it advantages. Using tidal energy to produce electricity is much cheaper than using the traditional energy, like coal or gas. For example, the Rance Tidal Power Station in France has been there for over 50 years, producing around 540, 000TWh of electricity each year. The cost is only 1.3 cents/TWh. Tidal energy can be used nearly 24 hours a day. As long as the sun, the earth and the moon exist, we can use it to produce electricity. But without sunshine, here is no solar energy. When there is no wind, electric generators will not work. In addition, with the development of modern technology, tidal energy can be stored and used to produce electricity continuously. However, we still have some problems to solve. It is difficult to build a dam in the sea, and the cost is very high. Moreover, it's expensive to keep a tidal power station in is best condition.

Scientists are working on them.

1.A tidal power station is best built __________.

A.at a river mouth with wind B.along the coast with waves

C.in a bay with tide high enough D.in coastal areas with sunshine

2.The underlined word "turbine" in Paragraph There is a machine to__________.

A.make the tide rise and fall B.make an electric generator work

C.let water go through the dam D.keep the dam in good condition

3.What advantage does tidal energy have?

A.We can use it to get useful tide. B.It can improve the ocean environment.

C.We can use it nearly all the time. D.It meets 16. 4% of the electricity needs.

4.How can we make better use of tidal energy?

A.By digging more bays and river mouths.

B.By building cheaper tidal power stations.

C.By closing traditional electric power.

D.By using tidal energy to replace other energy.

It was 21 years ago, on a very cold morning, Mary opened the library in New York. She heard a cat cry and found a white cat in a pile of books at last.

Mary recalled, “His little feet were frozen, we gave him a bath to warm him up and he purred(咕噜叫)all the time.”

It was a Cinderella story for Garfield in 1988, the cat who has lived happily among the books ever since.

“His story has a life of its own,” Mary says while reading the cat’s fan mail. “We have people drive hundreds of miles out of their way just to see Garfield. We even had a Japanese public television crew come here to make a short film of him.”

Shortly after the cat’s rescue, a photo of the library’s “new employee” sitting on the card catalog appeared in local newspapers. Local people were invited to help name the cat and many cast votes . “We have never had such a big crowd for a contest and there wasn’t even a prize,” Mary says with a laugh.

Garfield grew from a popular local “library employee” to a national star with his pictures on calendars. However, he is not the only cat who lives among books. Library cats greet people in about 100 libraries across America. Most live and “work” in comfortable, small town libraries where they don’t get lost in the books. Library cats used to earn their keep by catching rats, but modern library cats have more “white-collar” duties: to act charming and make the library a pleasant homey place.

“Library cats just create a nice, warm atmosphere,” says Roma, producer of Puss in Books, the film about library cats. “The cats attract children to the library and the elderly who maybe can’t have pets in their apartments,” Roma says. “Books, libraries, and cats just go together.”

1.A contest was held after the cat’s rescue to ________ the cat.

A.win B.name C.film D.feed

2.We probably won’t be able to see the picture of Garfield in ________.

A.a Japanese film B.the calendars

C.the card catalogs D.the local newspaper

3.People keep cats in the libraries because ________.

A.cats don’t like big places B.cats can create a nice and warm atmosphere

C.there are more rats there D.librarians are more friendly

4.Library cats can do many things including ________

1) arranging card catalogs 2) greeting people

3) acting for a film 4) catching rats

5) making people feel at home

A.2;4;5 B.1;3 C.1;4;5 D.2;3;5

5.From the passage we can infer (推断) that ________.

A.library cats only attract children and old people B.Garfield is one of the cats who live among books

C.library cats are not as popular as they used to be D.every library in America has at least one cat

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