The town has changed a lot what it was before. A. compared to B. comparing to C. compared for D. comparing with 题目和参考答案——青夏教育精英家教网—

Accidents happen, but when they destroy the delicate balance of nature and cause the whole world to suffer, they become disasters, and we should do all we can to prevent them from happening again.

Bhopal chemical leak, December 1984, Bhopal, India

An explosion in the Union Carbide chemical plant in Bhopal, India, released a deadly gas called methyl (甲基) isocyanate(异氰盐酸), which is used to make pesticides. The gas formed a cloud that killed 2500 people; another 50000- 100000 people became ill. Trees and plants in the area became yellow and brittle. The explosion was caused by a mechanical failure that was not noticed in time to stop it.

Exxon Valdez oil spill, March 1989, Alaska, U.S.

On March 24, 1989, 11 million gallons of crude oil spilled into Prince William Sound from the tanker Exxon Valdez when its hull hit a reef and tore open. The oil, which is not yet cleaned up after billions of dollars have been spent and the millions of birds, fish, and other wildlife have died, was caused by human error and could have been avoided.

Chernobyl, April 1986, USSR

At 1:23 A.M. on Saturday, April 26, 1986, the reactor blew at nuclear power plant in Chernobyl, ripping open the core, blowing the roof off the building, starting more than 30 fires, and allowing radioactive material to leak into the air. Some 31 people were killed and 200 people were treated for radiation poisoning. Still at risk are 135000 people from the 179 villages within 20 miles, of the plant who were exposed to the radiation before being evacuated. Glaring violations of safety rules were at the bottom of this tragic event.

Love Canal, 1953, New York, U.S.

Love Canal, a small town in upstate New York near Niagara Falls, was destroyed by waste from chemical plants. Beginning in 1947, chemical companies could legally dump their waste products into the canal. The area developed a foul smell, trees lost their bark, and leaves fell throughout the year. A health survey found that the drinking water contained excessive levels of 82 industrial chemicals, 7 of which were thought to cause cancer. The people of Love Canal had an unusually high rate of cancer and birth defects. Eventually, many of the houses had to be abandoned. Today, the town has been partly cleaned up and some families have moved back to the area.

Three Mile Island, 1979, Pennsylvania, U.S.

On March 28, 1979, the worst accident in U.S. nuclear reactor history occurred at the Three Mile Island power station, near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. No one was killed, and very little radioactivity was released into the air when coolant (the fluid that keeps a machine cool) escaped from the reactor core due to a combination of mechanical failure and human error. After 10 years and $ 1 billion in cleanup costs, the lower extremes of the reactor are still so radioactive that workers must use remote - control equipment to remove the remaining fragment of fuel core.

1.This passage mainly discusses_______.

A．accidents that affected many living things

B．air pollution

C．water pollution

D．what people are doing to prevent environmental disasters

2.You can infer from the passage that the Bhopal Chemical leak_______.

A．happen at night	B．was the worst accident in the history of India
C．caused more deaths than sicknesses	D．could have been avoided

3. It can be inferred from the passage that the people in Love Canal_______.

A．didn’t know that chemical companies were dumping waste products into the canal

B．didn’t know that their water was becoming dangerous to drink

C．tried to stop companies from dumping their waste products into the canal

D．didn’t mind that chemical companies were dumping waste products into the canal

4.The best title for the article is ________. A. Accidents in Some Countries B. Disasters in Some Countries

C. Our Earth Is Out of Control D How to Prevent Accidents from Happening Again

Comera is the only place in the world which has a whistle language. We do not know how and why it began because we do not know the complete history of the island. But we can certainly imagine the reasons for the beginning of the whistle language. There are many deep valleys on the island. A person on one side of valley can not easily shout to a person on the other side. But he can whistle and be heard from four miles away, and the record is seven miles. The people who live on the island usually have good teeth, and this helps them to whistle well. They must also have good ears so that they can hear other whistlers.

We can understand why the whistle language continues. It is very useful on the island, and quite easy to learn. When somebody is hurt or ill, the whistle language takes the place of telephone. If the sick person is a long way from the town, boys and men pass the news from one to another. A boy guarding cattle on a hillside whistles to a man fishing from his boat. The last one is able to describe the trouble fully and exactly to the doctor in town. People help each other in the same way when a car breaks or a cow is lost.

The whistle language is hundreds of years old, and probably it will continue to live for hundreds of years more. Radio and TV often kill the special ways of speaking in the different parts of a country. But on Comera you are nobody if you cannot whistle. Perhaps soon after TV arrives on the island, the people there will be whistling the news and other facts and opinions.

49. If a person on Comera island is ill, .

A. others will phone the doctor in town

B. whistle language will pass the news to the doctor

C. his family will take him to the doctor

D. people will take him to the hospital

50. From the passage we know radio and TV at that time.

A. killed the special way of speaking

B. whistled all the news and opinions

C. helped Comera people to communicate

D. did not appear on Comera island yet

51. Comera island is special in that .

A. it attracts visitors every year

B. no visitors have ever been there

C. people there have special ears to hear whistles

D. people there use the whistle language to communicate with each other

52. Which of the following is not true according to the passage?

A. It is not easy for a person to live on Comera island if he cannot whistle.

B. The whistle language can only be found in Comera.

C. The whistle language has been used for hundreds of years on the island, but will not be used any longer.

D. The record shows that one best whistler can be heard by others seven miles away.

There was one shop in the town of Mufulira which was widely known for its racial discrimination. It was a drugstore .While Europeans were served at the counter ,a long line of Africans queued at the window and often not only were kept waiting but were treated rudely by the shop assistants .One day I was determined to make a public protest （抗议）against this kind of thing ,and many of the schoolboys in my class followed me to the store.

I simply went into the shop and asked the manager politely for some medicine. As soon as he saw me standing in the place where only European customers were allowed to stand ,he shouted at me in a bastard （怪声怪气的）language which is only used by a boss when speaking to his servants .I stood at the counter and politely requested in proper English that I should be served .The manager became angry and said , “Even if you stand till Christmas ,I will never serve you .”

I went to the District Commissioner’s office .Fortunately ,he was out ,for he was one of the old school; however ,I saw a young District Officer who was a friend of mine .He was very concerned to hear my story and told me that all I had to do was come to him personally and he would buy my medicine for me .I protested that that was not good enough .I asked him to accompany me back to the store and to make a protest to the manager .This he did ,and I well remember him saying to the manager , “Here is Mr. Kaunda who is a responsible member of the Urban Advisory Council, and you treat him like a common servant .” The manager of the drugstore apologized and said , “If only he had introduced himself and explained who he was ,then ,of course ,I should have given him proper service.”

I had to explain once again that he had missed my point .Why should I have to introduce myself every time I went into a store…any more than I should have to buy my medicine by going to a European friend ? I want to prove that any man of any color ,whatever his position ,should have the right to go into any shop and buy what he wanted .After all, the money which I paid across the counter was exactly the same money as was paid by a European customer.

1.The writer was ,at the time of the story , .

A．a European officer	B．an African servant
C．a drugstore assistant	D．a black school teacher

2.The manager of the drugstore shouted at the writer in dirty words because .

A．he could not speak English in a polite way

B．he thought the writer couldn’t understand English

C．that was the language he used when speaking to Africans

D．that was the only language he could speak when he was angry

3.In paragraph 3, the underlined sentence “he was one of the old school” means .

A．he stuck to those old racial ideas

B．he graduated from an old white school

C．he was in charge of an old black school

4.Why didn’t the writer wait at the window of the drugstore like other Africans?

A．He believed his white friends would help him out .

B．He wanted to fight for equal rights of all black people.

C．He thought he was educated and should be treated differently.

D．He thought ,being an important person ,he should not be kept waiting.

完形填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）

Years ago, in a small fishing village in Holland, a young boy taught the world about the

rewards of unselfish service.

Because the entire village lived on fishing, a volunteer rescue team was needed in case of emergency. One night, the winds 31 , the clouds burst and a strong storm overturned a fishing boat at sea. The crew in trouble 32 the SOS. The captain of the rescue rowboat team 33 the alarm and the villagers 34 in the town square overlooking the sea. When the team started their rowboat fought their way through the wild waves, the villagers waited 35 on the beach, holding lamps to 36 the way back.

An hour later, the rescue boat reappeared through the fog and the 37 villagers ran to greet them. Falling 38 on the sand, the volunteers reported that the rescue boat could not hold any more 39 and they had to leave one man behind. Even one more passenger would have surely 40 the rescue boat and all would have been lost.

41 , the captain called for another volunteer team to 42 the survivor. Sixteen

-year-old Hans stepped forward. His mother grabbed his arm, crying, "please don't go. Your father 43 in a shipwreck (船只失事) 10 years ago and your elder brother, Paul, has been lost　　44 for three weeks. Hans, you are all I have left."

Hans replied, "Mother, I have to go. 45 everyone said I can't go, let someone else do it? Mother, this time I have to do my duty. When the call for service 46 , we all need to take our turn and do our part. Hans kissed his mother, joined the team and 47 into the night. "

Another hour passed, which seemed to Hans' mother like a century. 48 the rescue boat dashed through the fog with Hans standing up in the bow. 49 his hands, the captain called, "did you find the lost man?" 50 able to control himself, Hans excitedly cried back, "Yes, we found him. Tell my mother it's my elder brother, Paul!"

31. A. stilled B. screamed C. stopped D. calmed

32. A. set about B. sent out C. came up with D. took over

33. A. sounded B. set C. took D. made

34. A. gathered B. followed C. fought D. struggled

35. A. nervously B. angrily C. fearfully D. happily

36. A. hope B. light C. expect D. try

37. A. promising B. hoping C. cheering D. standing

38. A. uncomfortable B. exhausted C. disturbed D. painful

39. A. villagers B. sailors C. captains D. passengers

40. A. pushed B. pulled C. overturned D. settled

41. A. Anxiously B. Strangely C. Unexpectedly D. Doubtfully

42. A. look after B. look for C. lookout D. look on

43. A. died B. pulled C. went D. interrupted

44. A. in the fire B. at sea C. on strike D. in the war

45. A. How about B. What for C. What if D. What with

46. A. comes B. goes C. flies D. climbs

47. A. appeared B. disappeared C. came D. went

48. A. Therefore B. Firstly C. when D. Finally

49. A. Making B. Keeping C. Showing D. Cupping

50. A. Hardly B. Only C. Seldom D. Always

When Charles Strattion was five, he stopped growing. His mother took him to see the famous showman, P.T.Barnum, and thought a small person would be the perfect addition to his show. He hired Charles’ parents along with him, and they traveled around the world together.

He gave the two-foot-tall Charles a new name, general Tom Thumb. He taught Tom how to sing, dance, act, and tell jokes. When he felt Tom was ready to perform on stage, he made up ads. To stir up great interest, he said that Tom was eleven years old and had come from England.

During the show, Tom fought battles pretendedly with tall people. He also danced upon a wooden plate held by a person who was eight feet tall.

Tom’s act was very popular and brought in a lot of money. By the time Tom was an adult, he had grown very rich. He had become a billionaire at the age of twenty-five.

Fortunately for Tom, Mr. Barnum added more little people to his show, and Tom became lucky in love as well. One of the little people was Lavinia Warren, a school teacher. Tom was able to win her love, and they married.

The ceremony and reception were the talk of the town. They were attended by many rich and famous people and by about two thousand guests. Crowds filled the streets of New York to have a look at their tiny wedding carriage. The couple even met with President Abraham Lincoln on their honeymoon, just before going to live in Tom’s house in Connecticut.

Their wedding, which took place during the Civil War, provided a welcome escape from the sad problems of war. Not willing to let this bit of sunshine fade, communities throughout the country sponsored “Tom Thumb” weddings. In these weddings, small boys and girls, all dressed up, went through marriage ceremony for fun.

1.“the talk of the town” means _________ .

A．they were in the newspaper

B．people spread mean rumors about them

C．they were the most popular things happening

D．they were discussed in a city meeting

2.What does the author think about Tom Thumb’s wedding?

A．People gave it too much of their attention.

B．It helped people cheer up in a dark time.

C．It was funny and ridiculous.

D．Tom and Lavinia were stupid.

3. Which of the following is the best clue to the fact that Tom was smart?

A．He became a billionaire at twenty-five.

B．He learned how to sing, dance, and act at a very young age.

C．He met with President Lincoln during his honeymoon.

D．He married a school teacher.

4. It was very funny when Tom danced on a wooden plate held by a person who was eight feet tall because ________ .

A．the wooden plate would make it sound as if Tom were tap dancing

B．it made Tom feel taller

C．the eight-foot-tall man was the only tall person Tom trusted

D．the difference between them would make Tom look even smaller

5. What does the author imply in the last paragraph?

A．Weddings always make people feel full of sunshine.

B．People are always disappointed during wartime.

C．Entertainment can serve an important purpose.

D．People should be married even if they are small.

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