E

Imagine a house that keeps itself warm in the wintertime. Think of the savings in terms of fuel bills and unfriendly emissions. Such houses in fact exist, called “passive houses”. The concept of these highly energy-efficient buildings took root in the 1990s, before slowly consolidating as a niche construction (生态位构建) concept in the 2000s. Are passive houses now actively moving into the mainstream as sustainable buildings?

For Brian McGarry, an economics lecturer who built a family house based on passive housing criteria in the Pyrenees this year, the arguments look convincing. As his first full winter in the low energy house draws in, we asked him to keep us informed. Do passive houses work?

I had never heard of a passive house in February 2012, when I purchased a plot of land. Nor did I expect that I would be persuaded to build a pre-constructed, custom-designed house based on energy-efficient passive house criteria. It promised to be easier and quicker to build, cheaper to run, and more comfortable to live in. The objective was to incorporate the fundamental concepts of passive energy management into my project: an airtight and highly insulated building envelope; large southfacing double or triple-glazed windows (if possible, filled with argon gas) that passively capture the energy of the sun; a heat recovery ventilation system to provide fresh air; and a simple, low-cost heating system consisting of a modern wood-burning stove, a bathroom heater and a portable radiator backup for when the sun doesn’t shine and temperatures decline. No significant

limitations were placed on the design, and it had excellent environmental credentials. Moreover, the cost was no more than a conventional build.

After six months in use, the house is proving to be both cheap to run and remarkably comfortable–staying cool in the hot summer was effortless, as long as the windows were shuttered or shaded from the sun. Nowstaying warm in the cold, high-altitude December climate also seems easy, so far.

Winter arrived in force in the Pyrenees in November, with abundant snowfalls and temperatures as low as minus 8° Celsius. Though early days, the house has responded well: the stove is lit during cold evenings but the portable radiator has not yet been needed. This type of construction seems not only to make economic andenvironmental sense, but to enhance our quality of life, too.

1.We can learn from Paragraph one that passive houses __________.

A. consume extra energy to keep warm in winter and cool in summer

B. had been introduced for a decade before the birth of the theory

C. appeal to both the self-builders and those constructors

D. refer to a certain house comfortable, costly and also pleasing

2.Regarding the passive energy management, the houses have characteristics EXCEPT _______

A. using south-facing windows to take in solar energy

B. Providing energy for taking a shower when it’s rainy

C. supplying fresh air with a special heat recovery system

D. placing more demands and restrictions on the design

3.How did Brian McGarry find his self-built passive house?

A. very unaffordable

B. Energy-consuming

C. comfortable to live in

D. Awkward to use

4.What is the writer’s attitude towards the passive housing?

A. supportive B. critical

C. oppositive D. doubtful

Alibaba started taking the lead in China by connecting big Chinese manufacturers(制造商) with big buyers across the world. Its business-to-business site, Alibaba.com allowed business to buy almost everything. Alibaba’s advantage wasn’t hard to judge: size. Alibaba is just big, even by Chinese standards. Its market attracts 231 million active buyers, 8 million sellers, 11.3 billion orders a year — and Alibaba is just the middleman. It encourages people to use its markets — not charging small sellers a percentage of the sale.

If you want a quick look into the influence of Alibaba on daily Chinese life, take my experience. I moved to Beijing a year ago and quickly got tired of visiting small stores across the crowded, polluted city of 20 million people in search of new electronics, bathroom furnishings, and anything else my wife wanted. “You’re looking for what exactly? Why not try it? ” my Chinese teacher asked me one day. With that, my wonderful new relationship with Alibaba began.

Alibaba’s original business-to-business model now is second to consumer buying. Chinese retail(零售) buying makes up 80% of Alibaba’s profit, and leading that group is Taobao, with 800 million items for sale and the most unbelievable selection of things you’ll ever find. TMall.com is Alibaba’s other big site, where you can find brand name goods from Nike and Unilever near the lowest prices.

What I have a hard time explaining to friends and family back in the U.S. is how China has gone beyond traditional shopping — big-box retailers especially —in favor of online purchases on Taobao and a few other sites. In smaller towns than Beijing, where big retailers have not yet traveled, shopping online is shopping, and shopping is Taobao.

I have a list of some of my recent purchases on Taobao for a sense of how wide the marketplace is. Almost everything arrived a day or two after ordering with free shipping. I’m not even a big buyer, because I need friends to help me search the Chinese-language site. When I was searching my purchase history on my Chinese teacher’s iPad, which helps me buy goods, I looked through with great difficulty about 10 of her purchases for every one of mine.

1.Alibaba’s advantage mainly lies in .

A. its low price

B. its big size

C. its not charging small sellers

D. its business-to-business service

2.What can we learn from the underlined sentence in the passage?

A. Alibaba will continue to develop.

B. Alibaba stands out as the best online site.

C. Alibaba acts as a bridge between the buyers and sellers.

D. Alibaba is of middle size among all the online sites.

3.What can be inferred from the passage?

A. TMall.com provides more profit than Taobao.

B.The author’s Chinese teacher is also an online purchase lover.

C. Taobao has no obvious advantage over other similar online sites.

D. Alibaba’s business-to-business service earns more money than retail.

4.What is the passage mainly about?

A. Shopping online in China is TaoBao.

B. How the author purchases online in China.

C. Shopping online goes beyond traditional shopping.

D. Alibaba influences people’s daily purchase in China.

My high school life has been filled with many ups and downs, whether it was social or academic. Even though my current high school was not my first choice, I never regretted attending Southside High School. “Since you have chosen it, then it is the best for you,” said my parents.

Up until the junior year I did not realize my capabilities (能力) as a student. Being in the IB Program, I was told that my junior year would be the toughest in all the years of high school. With this “little” piece of information, I walked into my junior year, scared of my grades. As weeks went by, I started to believe that the junior year was not as hard as everyone had said, but I was wrong. My grades were rapidly declining(下降) and by the end of the first term I had had five Cs in seven of my classes! I could not believe it --- I did not want to believe it. I tried my best to get my grades up myself without any help from anyone, but my pride just made my grades worse. And I had to miss out on one of the most important speech and debate competitions all year: States. I was heartbroken. I realized that I could not survive my junior year on my own, so I had to get help fast.

Once I got a tutor, my grades went from Cs, Ds, and even some Fs, to nothing but As and Bs. I slowly started to gain my confidence back in all of my classes and even myself. By the time the third and fourth quarter came around, I had been on the honor roll twice, and I was receiving awards from speeches and debates, tennis and school.

Southside has taught me to always keep my head up and never give up on myself no matter what life throws at me. I am proud to be a Southside Tiger.

1.From the first paragraph, we can learn that ______.

A. the writer always thought Southside High School was the best

B. the writer’s parents persuaded her into attending Southside High School

C. the writer has met many challenges since she attended high school

D. life has become easier since the writer came to Southside High School

2.How did the writer feel when she walked into her junior year?

A. Confident. B. Worried

C. Curious. D. Uninterested.

3.Why was the writer’s study worse and worse?

A. She didn’t work hard enough.

B. She didn’t ask others for help because of pride.

B. She missed many important speeches.

D. No one would like to help her.

4.What is mainly talked about in Para 3?

A. The writer’s appreciation for her tutor.

B. The writer’s various hobbies.

C. The writer’s new discovery at school.

D. The writer’s achievements at school.

5.What important lesson has the writer learned at Southside High School?

A. Students should face challenges bravely.

B. Students should be careful in choosing school.

C. Students should be proud of their school.

D. Students should better learn about life.

完形填空

This is the story of two lovers, who finally got married. Both of them were romantic at first, ________ on the walk of life, problems, quarrels, profession came into their life.

One day, she finally decided “I want to break up”. “Why?” he asked.

“I am ________ .” She answered.

He kept silent the whole night, seemingly in deep ________ . Finally he asked, “What can I do to ________ your mind?”

Looking into his eyes, she said, “Answer my question. If you can ________ my heart, I will change my mind. Let’s say, I want a flower ________ on the face of a mountain cliff(悬崖), we are both sure that picking the flower will cause your ________ . Will you do it for me?”

He said, “I will give you my ________ tomorrow.”

She woke up the next morning, found him gone, and saw a piece of paper on her bed, which ________ , “My dear, I would not pick that flower for you . The ________are ...”

“When you use the computer you always ________ the software ,and you cry in front of the screen. I have to save my fingers so that I can help to ________ the programs(程序). You always leave the house keys behind, so I have to save my ________to rush home to open the door for you. You love traveling but always lose your way in a ________ city. I have to save my eyes to show you the way. You always ________at the computer, and that will do nothing good for your eyes. I have to save my eyes______ when we grow old, I can help to cut your nails and help to remove those________ white hairs.”

“Thus, my dear, ________ I am sure that there is someone who loves you more than I do, I can not pick that flower yet, and die...”

That’s life, and ________ . Flowers, and romantic moments are only used and appear on the ________of the relationship.

Under all this, the pillar (柱子) of true love stands.

1.A. but B. and C. while D. so

2.A. lonely B. worn out C. dead D. alone

3.A. sorrow B. anger C. shade D. thought

4.A. speak B. keep C. blow D. change

5.A. represent B. expand C. convince D. warm

6.A. grown B. growing C. living D. planted

7.A. death B. hurt C. wound D. injury

8.A. decision B. choice C. opinion D. answer

9.A. wrote B. informed C. read D. printed

10.A. answers B. messages C. purposes D. reasons

11.A. run out B. put up C. mess up D. use up

12.A. restore B. repair C. fix D. mend

13.A. strength B. life C. energy D. legs

14.A. big B. strange C. modern D. crowded

15.A. glance B. stare C. glare D. look

16.A. as if B. now that C. in case D. so that

17.A. inspiring B. annoying C. rough D. refreshing

18.A. unless B. even if C. although D. if

19.A. warmth B. couple C. love D. power

20.A. nature B. way C. course D. surface

When I was young, my father had one of the first telephones in our neighborhood. I remember the shiny box on the wall. But I was too little to reach it, I could only listen to my mother talk on it.

I discovered that inside the wonderful box lived an amazing person whose name was Information Please. There was nothing she did not know.

One day my mother went out. I accidentally hurt my finger when I was playing with a hammer. I walked around the house sucking my hurting finger, finally seeing the telephone. Quickly I dragged a chair over and climbed up.

“Information Please,” I spoke into the receiver. A click or two and a small clear voice spoke into my ear, “Information.”

“I hurt my finger…” I cried into the phone.

“Isn’t your mother home?” came the question.

“Nobody’s home but me.” I sobbed.

“Are you bleeding?” the voice asked.

“No,” I replied. “I hit my finger with the hammer and it hurts.”

“Can you open your icebox?” she asked. I said I could.

“Then take a little piece of ice and hold it to your finger.” Said the voice.

After that, I called “Information Please” for everything. I asked her for help with my geography and she told me where Philadelphia was. She helped me with my math. She told me her name was Sally.

Then there was the time my pet canary (金丝雀) died. I called “Information Please” and told Sally the sad story. “Why is it that birds sing so beautifully and bring joy to all families, only to end up as a pile of feathers?” She listened, then said quietly, “Paul, always remember that there are other worlds to sing in.” Somehow I felt better.

One day when I called “Information Please” again, a different voice answered “Information.”

I asked for Sally. “Are you a friend?” she said.

“Yes.” I answered

“I’m sorry to have to tell you this,” she said. “She died five days ago.” Before I could hang up she said, “Wait a minute. Did you say your name was Paul?”

“Yes!”

“Well, Sally left a message for you. The note said, “Tell him I still say there are other worlds to sing in. He’ll know what I mean.” I thanked her and hung up. I knew what Sally meant.

1.When the author hurt his finger, he rang because______.

A. he believed that the telephone knew everything.

B. the telephone could tell him a doctor’s number

C. his mother was on the other end of the telephone

D. he was once told to ask for help in this way

2. Through the help from Sally, it can be inferred that______.

A. Sally was a geography teacher

B. Sally was the author’s friend

C. Sally was a considerate person

D. Sally was an imaginary person

3.What did Sally really mean by her message?

A. She was sure that she could sing in other worlds.

B. She didn’t want Paul to be sad about her death.

C. Singing helped Paul to face death more easily.

D. There was no need for Paul to call her anymore.

4.What is the best title for this passage?

A. My Pet’s Death B. An Amazing Woman

C. A Healing Message D. My Magic Box

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