题目内容

B

The Sieferts are the kind of environmentally conscious family who has solar panels atop their home. They use timers on their kids' showers and have planted drought-tolerant landscaping. But they feel kind of guilt. “I haven’t thought about the pool as much as I probably should,” said Annette Siefert.

As California's drought worsens, swimming pools have become a target for those who think the classic backyard greens waste water. Some water districts have banned new pools from being filled and have limited how much water existing pools can use.

But some of those agencies are walking back the rules as they make a surprising discovery: Pools aren't the water wasters some have made them out to be. Analyses by various water districts, along with scientific studies, conclude that pools and their surrounding landscapes use about the same amount of water as a lawn(草坪) of the same size. Over time, pools might even use less water. With pool covers, experts say water evaporation(蒸发)can be cut by almost half, making pools significantly less wasteful than grass and about as efficient as drought-tolerant landscaping.

Facing complaints over a recent ban on filling pools, the Santa Margarita Water District conducted its own water-use analysis. It found that pools require thousands of gallons of water to fill initially, but they use about 8,000 gallons less water than a traditional landscape after that. By the third year, the analysis found, the savings add up, and a pool's cumulative water use falls below that of a lawn.

Water agencies such as the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power have come to similar conclusions. Armed with new information, Santa Margarita Water District officials will reconsider their ban next week.

“We want to respect the people's rights to use their property. There are many families we know that have saved for pools,” said Jonathan Volzke, spokesman for the 155,000-customer district. “But at the same time, the reality around us is that we're in the third year of a serious drought, and we don't know if we're in the third year of a three-year drought or the third year of a 10-year drought.”

1.Annette Siefert feels guilty mainly because of ______.

A. being a typical water waster

B. the water-use of their swimming pool

C. her control over her kids' showers at home

D. the construction of the drought-tolerant landscaping

2.According to analyses and scientific studies, a swimming pool ______.

A. had belter be filled up in the beginning

B. becomes more efficient against drought

C. isn't what people think to be wasteful of water

D. consumes more water than a lawn of the same size

3.What does Jonathan Volzke try to express in the last paragraph?

A. He expects the serious drought to come to an end.

B. He thinks highly of those who have saved for pools.

C. He appeals for reasonable use of the swimming pools.

D. He tries to maintain the right to use the swimming pools.

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

A. Water Crisis In California

B. Strict Ban On Filling Pools

C. The Sieferts—Real Environmentalists?

D. Pools—A Big Factor During Drought?

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E

Energy independence. It has a nice ring to it. Doesn't it? If you think so, you're not alone,because energy independence has been the dream of American president for decades, and never more so than in the past few years, when the most recent oil price shock has been partly responsible for kicking off the great recession(经济衰退).

"Energy independence"and its rhetorical(修辞的) companion"energy security"are, however,slippery concepts that are rarely though through. What is it we want independence from, exactly?

Most people would probably say that they want to be independent from imported oil.But there are reasons that we buy all that old from elsewhere.

The first reason is that we need it to keep our economy running. Yes, there is a trickle(涓涓细流)of biofuel(生物燃料)available, and more may become available, but most biofuels cause economic waste and environmental destruction.

Second, Americans have basically decided that they don't really want to produce all their own oil. They value the environmental quality they preserve over their oil imports from abroad. Vast areas of the United States are off-limits to oil exploration and production in the name of environmental protection. To what extent are Americans really willing to endure the environmental impacts of domestic energy production in order to cut back imports?

Third, there are benefits to trade. It allows for economic efficiency, and when we buy things from places that have lower production costs than we do, we benefit. And although you don't read about this much, the United States is also a large exporter of oil products, selling about 2 million barrels of petroleum products per day to about 90 countries.

There is no question that the United States imports a great deal of energy and, in fact, relies on that steady flow to maintain ite economy. When that flow is interrupted, we feel the pain in short supplies and higher prices. At the same time, we derive massive economic benefits when we buy the most affordable energy on the world market and when we engage in energy trade around the world.

1.From the passage, we know that biofuels

A.keep America's economy running healthily

B.prove to be a good alternative to petroleum

C.do not provide a sustainable energy supply

D.cause serious damage to the environment

2.Why does America rely heavily on oil imports?

A.Its own oil production falls short of demand.

B.Its own oil reserves are quickly running out.

C.It wants to keep Its own environment undamaged.

D.It wants to expand its storage of crude oil.

3.What can we conclude from the last paragraph?

A.America doesn't have enough oil supplies.

B.People can benefit more from importing oil.

C.Energy independence is significant for Americans.

D.Short of energy may cause economic depression.

4.What is the author's purpose in writing the passage?

A.To justify America's dependence on oil imports.

B.To stress the importance of energy conservation.

C.To arouse Americans' awareness of the energy crisis.

D.To explain the increase of international oil trade.

One of those big social networking sites, Facebook, has attracted over 58 million members. Commentator Melody Cramer is no longer one of them. Here is what she shares with us about her story.

I deleted all 1,281 of my co?workers, second?grade classmates and people who I don’t know at all. I shut down my account, completely. I’m 30, and I’ve been on Facebook since March of 2004, which makes me one of the website’s earliest users.

At first, I used it obsessively. If I had a free moment, I’d log on to see whether my friends had updated their profiles. I’d sit alone scrolling through these updates and then run into someone at a coffee shop and have nothing to say because I already knew everything about them, and they knew everything about me.

In November, I went to my ten?year high school reunion and was not pleasantly surprised. Lauren became a model, Josh went to law school, Dina was a teacher. I hadn’t talked to any of them since graduation, but I knew exactly what they were doing, both now and last week. But lately, I’m overwhelmed(应接不暇). Facebook opened up to everyone, not just college students, and my co?workers started to join, which meant they now knew what I was doing when I wasn’t at work.

And as a rule: you can NOT make friends with your coworkers because then they’ll ask you the next day. But I thought we were friends. And you are friends but not the kind of friends who tell each other what they do outside of work. So now the people you work with can see what you did last night, and you’re constantly worrying what people might say about what you did last night instead of actually doing anything tonight. So Iquit. I became a 30?year?old Luddite, a person who is strongly against technology development. I’ve retuned to how the world worked when I was 20, before I knew when my friends and co?workers were counting down the seconds to vacation or entering a complicated relationship. I’m hoping life will be a lot simpler now. People will be more mysterious now that I actually have to talk to them to find out their favorite books or hobbies or neurosis(神经症). I don’t know when my college roommate goes to the supermarket, and I think I’m a better person for not knowing. In fact, you could say getting off a social network was the best thing I’ve done this week.

1.Melody Cramer decided to quit Facebook mainly because ______.

A. she thought it wasted too much time

B. she was afraid of the strangers on her account

C. she was tired of exposing her life to co?workers

D. she thought it made real?world life less interesting

2.We can learn from the passage that Melody Cramer ______.

A. had a 10?year membership of Facebook

B. used to be very objected to Facebook

C. was unpleasant to attend high school reunion

D. was one of the co-founders of Facebook

3.Which of the following about Melody Cramer is TRUE?

A. She owes her communication skills to Facebook.

B. She wishes she could be several years younger.

C. She prefers to face her friends and co-workers in reality.

D. She is no longer curious about anything around her.

4.The best title for this passage can be _____.

A. Addiction to Facebook

B. Farewell to Facebook

C. Friends Online

D. A Simpler Life

阅读下列短文,从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中,选出最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

People all need friends because nobody wants to be lonely and a friend can help you in good and bad times. You’ve made friends since childhood,but you still don’t know who your true friends are. Here are some signs to tell you if your friend is a true friend.

Always honest

Honesty is important to keep a relationship alive. A true friend always tells you the truth. It may be hard sometimes but lying can destroy a friendship. It is important that your friend speaks honestly and never makes up stories.

There are always periods in your life when you have problems or difficulties. A true friend will always have time to listen to your problems and give you advice. It may not be able to offer a solution to your problems but the fact that your friend makes time to listen is a sign he/she cares for you. Your friend is not a true friend if he/she can never make time for you when you are in trouble. You also need to be reasonable and accept that your friend also has other things to do so he/she can’t always listen immediately to your problems.

Always respectful

A true friend will always respect your opinion no matter whether he/she agrees or not. Your true friend may disagree but never insists that he/she is correct.

Always understanding

It is possible that some problems will arise between you and your friend. A true friend will always be forgiving and understanding,even if it isn’t his/her fault. We are all different people and we all make mistakes. A true friend is always forgiving and understanding because he/she doesn’t want to take the risk of losing his/her best friend.

1.What’s the best title for the third paragraph?

A. Keep your secrets B. Always there for you

C. Always happy for you D. Remember your important days

2.According to the passage,a true friend will always ____________.

A. follow your advice

B. offer a solution to your problems

C. respect your opinion even if he/she disagrees with it

D. listen immediately to your problems

3. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?

A. Never tell lies to friends.

B. Making time for friends.

C. Paying attention to a friend’s opinion.

D. Sharing fun with friends.

4.What’s the author’s purpose of writing this passage?

A. To tell us how to find out if a friend is a true friend.

B. To find out how long a friendship can last.

C. To introduce his experience in making friends.

D. To teach us how to make true friends.

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