阅读理解。
     The Couch Surfing network is an online community stretching across the globe with over one and a
half million members. The basic concept is to provide a platform for travelers to contact people who are
willing to put them up free of charge. Travelers connect with potential hosts online and, if they like each
other, exchange details to make further arrangements.
     Basil is one traveler from Switzerland who is currently couch surfing with a Chinese host in Beijing.
"I thought staying in hostel is nice but you mostly meet foreigners and speak English. If you use Couch.
Surfing
you have chance to meet people living here and really get a chance to know the life of the place
you visit." Basil was speaking during a regular meeting of the Beijing network of Couch Surfing with a
membership of almost 2 000.
     Although some people may have concerns about meeting complete strangers and giving them full access
to your house, Beijing group member Fred Sharp from California says that the Couch Surfing community
is one that generally attracts trustworthy people.
     "I have never had a problem with guests. I'd say that this Couch Surfing community worldwide is a fairly
trustworthy community. Like I say, always be cautious, make sure that you read everyone's profile that you
re considering hosting, and if it doesn't feel right just say 'no', it's ok."
     Originally launched in the US as a non-profit organization in 2004, Couch Surfing is growing fast across
the world. China is no exception with around 30 000 members and hundreds more signing up each week.
One of them is Beijing resident Hai Yan who joined in November 2009. She says the first time she hosted a
guest was a very positive experience. "My first guest was from Italy. He was very kind and helpful. He
bought me a present from Italy, a handbag. It's a famous brand!"
     As the organization grows from strength to strength, hotel owners across the world will be watching
very closely and possibly thinking twice about raising their prices too high.
1. The Couch Surfing network is intended to _____.
[     ]
A. give reliable information about hotels
B. provide people with a platform to contact each other
C. find potential hosts who want to supply travelers with couches
D. offer travclers convenience to find suitable hosts for free accommodations
2. According to Fred Sharp, _____.
[     ]
A. couch surfers can fully rely on Couch Sur fing community
B. Couch Surf ing community enables you to meet different people
C. Couch Surfing community is trusted by all couch surfers
D. couch suffers may form a judgment on hosts and make a final decision
3. We can infer from the passage that _____.
[     ]
A. Couch Surfing has a long history
B. Hai Yan is satisfied with her host
C. Couch Surfing is getting popular in China
D. Basil works at the Beijing Network
4. The last paragraph suggests that hotels will _____.
[     ]
A. be replaced by the organization
B. probably not charge too much
C. not consider raising their prices
D. show no concern about the organization

   
SPIRIT LAKE, Iowa -- Towering more than 12 stories above a school playground, a pair of wind turbines(涡轮机) transform the usts blowing over the lakes and ridges sur-rounding this northern Iowa town into power that provides about half of the school district' s electrical needs.

     Students here can "look right out the back door" to see the giant turbines capture the wind and learn how they can produce power. More than 80 schools across the USA have installed some type of wind turbine, says Ian Baring - Could, senior engineer in a wind technology center at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colo.

      Now, a program called Wind for Schools is aiming to bring smaller turbines to six states:Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska and South Dakota. The program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy' s Wind Powering America program at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, is the first program to use smaller turbines with a mission of educating students and the cmmnunity about wind power.

      In Faith, S. D. , home to one of the schools hoping to build a small wind turbine in the next couple of years, a fierce wind blows across the plains most days. Angela King, who teaches science in grades 7 to 12 in Faith, believes a turbine wiI1 give students learning about wind energy the chance to "see it happening, rather than just reading it in a book. "

      Much of the first year of the three - year program has been spent identifying schools hoping to join the program. South Dakota, for instance, announced its eight school districts over the summer. About five schools in Kansas have the turbines, and schools in Montana, Idaho and South Dakota are now preparing sites and will have them installed during this school year.Now, the goal is to add wind turbines at about five schools per year in each state, for a total of about 30 per year overall, Baring - Gould says.

 

61. According to the first paragraph, we know wind turbines are installed __  

      A. to produce wind                              B. to generate electricity

      C. for students to play with                   D. to attract visitors

62. What' s the real purpose of the program?   

      A. To sell smaller wind turbines to six states.

      B. To warn the school of the danger from wind.

      C. To teach the students to learn about wind power.

      D. To encourage the students to operate wind turbines.

63. According to Angela King, __  

     A. it is better to learn from one' s experience

     B. it is a waste of money to install wind turbines

     C. students should not learn from reading books

     D. students should be given the chance to play

64. We can conclude from the passage __  

     A. the program will last five years altogether

     B. more and more schools will resist the program

     C. some schools are forced to install wind turbines

     D. more and more schools will join the program

65. This passage talks about the program in order to tell us __  

     A. watching turbines can make students clever

     B. watching turbines at school can help build bodies

     C. programs like this can help schools educate students

     D. installing wind turbines can improve our environment

Until the 1960's, almost everyone in the U. S. followed tradition and gave all the children in the same family the same last name or surname, as it is called. But during the 60's, young parents began giving their children strange names—names like Moonglow, Eternal Peace, and Sunshine. Some states passed laws controlling the names that parents could use. But after a court case in 1981, a federal judge ruled that parents are free to give any surnames they wish to their children.

So , for the last few decades , more parents are not giving their children the fam­ily 's sur- names .Some insist that while it ' s OK for a boy to have the father ' s family name, a girl should have the mother' s family name . Thus, Philip Gaylord and Pan Zimmitti could be brother and sister. Some parents think that using family surname is old —fashioned and boring. One couple gave their son the last name Sue because they like the Johnny Cash song," A Boy Named Sue." And finally, some parents think that giving their children different surnames is just a "neat thing to do". So the first son of a New York family has the last name Washington —Lincoln, after the two fa­mous presidents. The daughter has the last name Anthony—Tubman after two women who fought for women's rights.

This change in naming customs presents two problems. First, if each person in the family has a different last name, family records will be very confusable. It will be hard to track a person's family, and record keeping will be difficult .Second, some physiologists are afraid that different surnames will threaten family unity. Since names have  an important effect on one's identify (身份) , they think brothers and sisters will not feel connected if they have different last names.

So this problem of names will get worse as new and different last names increase. Get ready to meet Welcome Baby Darling , sister of Aren't We Glad , You ' re Here and It ' s About Time.

1.In America, ________to give children different surnames these days.

    A.it is allowed by the law                  B.it breaks the law

    C.it is one of the customs                  D.it is unusual

2.In the second paragraph of the passage a "neat thing to do" means________.

    A.a good thing to do                                                  B.a terrible thing to do

    C.a dirty filing to do                   D.a clean thing to do

3.According to some psychologists, the different last names will let brothers and sisters feel they

are________.

    A.enemies                          B.as close as before

    C.good fiends                       D.separated

4.From the last paragraph, we can see the author _____this change in naming customs.

       A.is for        B.is against          C.doesn't care         D.doesn't notice

Her name may be 501, but she’s more than just a number. The lovely sea otter(水獭) is the star of Otter 501, a new film from Sea Studios Foundation.

Otter 501 was just a few days old when she lost her parents in June 2010. Washed onto a beach along California’s Big Sur coast, the pup(幼崽) could have died. Instead, she got a second chance at life after being taken to an aquarium(水族馆). There she learned from an adoptive otter mom how to be an otter. In the film, it’s Katie Pofahl who finds the troubled pup on the shore. Through the young volunteer’s eyes, we follow 501’s journey from the day of her rescue to her release into the wild in Elkhorn Slough. But while the fluffy star’s story has a happy ending, the film reminds us of the threats that remain against California’s sea otters.

Mark Shelley is the executive director of Sea Studios and producer of Otter 501. He hopes the movie will encourage more young people to get involved in protecting the otter’s ocean habitat. Time For Kids (TFK) spoke with Shelley and Pofahl about sharing the otter’s tale.

TFK:      How much of the film is fact, and how much is fiction?

Shelley:   The story of 501 and the explanation of the natural history of the sea otter are fact. But we needed a good storyteller to tell the story. That’s where Katie Pofahl’s character came in. Katie’s story in the film is partly fictionalized. She is a trained biologist from the Midwest who moved out here, like her character, so all that is true. She wasn’t really a volunteer at the aquarium, but she did go through the training for the film.

Pofahl:    I was one of the last people to get involved in the project. Mark and Sea Studios put out a casting call for a marine biologist. I responded with a little video, and the team liked it. So, I was brought on to help tell 501’s story.

TFK:       What did you learn about otters during filming that you didn’t know before?

Pofahl:    I’m a zoologist, and I love studying animals. I came onto this project thinking that I knew almost everything there was to know about otters. But I learned some things. Otters keep busy because they live in such cold waters. Unlike other marine mammals, they do not have blubber(鲸油,鲸脂) to keep warm. So, they are constantly moving and eating. And they are a keystone(基本的) species, which means they help to structure the environment they live in. There are endless things to learn. That’s what I love about this job.

TFK:       What do you hope people will take away from the film?

Pofahl:    We have an amazing opportunity to help people become aware of how they impact the world. People will watch the movie to see this lovely otter, but it can also be an entry point into conservation. We want to show people that these animals are amazing and that they are at risk and that they are worth protecting. We also want to show people, especially young women, anyone can get involved in science. It’s been an amazing experience for me.

59. We can conclude from the text that sea otters ________.

A. prefer to live in warm ocean waters

B. stay quiet most of the time and don’t eat much

C. are a dangerous species faced with extinction(灭绝)

D. are a key element in the marine life environment

60. Which of the following statements about the film Otter 501 is TRUE according to the text?

A. The film is about the tragic story of an otter that lost its parents.

B. The character of Katie Pofahl is based completely on a real life person.

C. The director of the film is worried about the trouble faced by California’s sea otters.

D. The movie was shot to raise awareness about the natural history of otters.

61. Which of the following is the right order of events?

a. Otter 501 got an adoptive otter mom at the aquarium.

b. Otter 501 was rescued at the Big Sur coast.

c. Otter 501 lost its parents.

d. Katie Pofahl got involved in the project of Otter 501.

e. Otter 501 was released into the wild in Elkhorn Slough.

A. c-d-b-a-e                 B. b-c-a-e-d                  C. c-b-a-d-e                D. b-a-c-e-d

Picnicking in special places throughout the US has become a choice for many people. We’ve come up with 5 of the top picnicking areas across the US.

Cumberland Islands, Georgia

This national shore(海岸) is a perfect picnicking place. It’s an undamaged place in the Deep South with over 50 miles of hiking trails(小径) and beaches. The trails are lined with trees covered in Spanish moss.

Grant Park, Chicago

If you are looking for delicious food in Chicago, go for taste of a 20-day, lake-front foodie festival that happens each year. Grab a spot near the fountain to enjoy your picnic, appreciate the city scenery and lake views and relax. If you are there on July 4th, be sure to plan the day to include the firework display at the Navy Pier.

Cranberry Islands, Maine

Here, you’ll find natural picnicking with island views. The islands are a delightful group of islands about 20minutes by private boat or ferry service. Bring a picnic basket along for the ride as it’s a romantic picnic area to take your friends or go for a family outing to visit the islands. You can visit the Islands by private boat or ferry service.

Red Rock Canyon, Nevada

If you happen to be in Las Vegas, Red Rock Canyon and the nearby Spring Mountain Ranch State Park offer a welcome rest. Situated just 19 miles west of Vegas, it’s a trip worth taking. There are plenty of picnic areas along the drive and in nearby Spring Mountain Ranch State Park which also offers outdoor theaters and concerts in summer months.

Big Sur, California

The Point Lobos State Reserve has often been called “ the crown(皇冠) jewel of the State Park System”. Besides the coastal wildlife, there are rare plant communities and unique geological formations(地质构造)。It’s good for you to have a picnic in the reserve. We recommend bringing a telescope, because much of the wildlife can be seen only at a distance.

56. In which state will there be the firework display on the National Day?

A. Georgia.  B. Chicago   C. Maine   D. California

57. We can infer from this passage that___.

A. you can see wild animals in the cages in Red Rock Canyon.

B. there is a half-a- month foodie festival every year in Grant Park.

C. the Point Lobos State Reserve is often considered as the best in the park.

D. the national park has something to do with strawberries.

58. What’s the author’s purpose in writing the passage?

A. To introduce some picnicking areas.

B. To attract more people to visit these places.

C. To tell readers how to appreciate the parks.

D. To show the pleasure in these attractions.

违法和不良信息举报电话:027-86699610 举报邮箱:58377363@163.com

精英家教网