题目内容
Wild weather, unexpected coral reefs and dangerous sea creatures… these are the nightmares (噩梦) you can imagine a teenager on a solo voyage (独自旅行) around the world might suffer from. But for Laura Dekker, sailing around the globe seems less a price to be paid than a prize to be treasured.
As the 19-year-old Dutch sailor said in Maidentrip, a documentary released last year about her experience of becoming the youngest person to sail around the world alone in 2012, “I was born on a boat. I lived my first five years at sea. And ever since, all I have wanted is to return to that life.”
With her yacht Guppy, Dekker began her journey at 14 and sailed 50,004 kilometers in 519 days.
The flying fish keeping her company, the dolphins following in her wake and the warm days spent on deck playing the flute as she watched another unforgettable sunset were enough to make others jealous.
But these didn’t always go well. There were terrible moments in which Dekker feared death. On one occasion, a whale almost turned Guppy over. Another time, she battled extreme winds and Guppy surfed down 8-meter-high waves.
Out on the open sea alone, she also got used to living without a fridge, a flushing toilet, and a hot shower.
“As a human being you don’t need much,” she told Stuff.co.nz. “ They might make life more comfortable, but you really don’t need them to be happy.”
In fact, her outlook on life was shaped by the trip. “I wanted the storms. I wanted the calms. I wanted to feel loneliness,” she told The New York Times. “And now I know all these things. It’s the end of the dream I had as a child, and it’s the beginning of my life as a sailor.”
1.According to the text, in which year did Dekker begin her journey of 50,004 kilometers at sea?
A. In 2012 B. In 2010
C. In 2009 D. In 2011
2.The method the author uses to develop Paragraph 5 is ________.
A. offering analyses B. providing explanations
C. giving examples D. making comparisons
3.Which of the following can best describe the girl Laura Dekker? _________.
A. Modest and optimistic B. Patient and strong
C. Brave and generous D. Brave and determined
4. How did Laura Dekker think of her life on the sea?
A. It was so dangerous and almost ruined her.
B. It made her experience happiness and better understand life.
C. It is the sailing on the sea that made her well known.
D. It brought her great happiness and much comfort.
Here are some of the world’s most impressive subways.
The Tokyo Metro and Toei Lines | Features: The Tokyo Metro and Toei lines that compose Tokyo’s massive subway system carry almost 8 million people each day, making it the busiest system in the world. The system is famous for its oshiya--- literally, “pusher”--- who shove passengers into crowded subway cars so the doors can close. And you think your commute is hell. |
The Moscow Metro | Features: The Moscow Metro has some of the most beautiful stations in the world. The best of them were built during the Stalinist era and feature chandeliers, marble moldings and elaborate murals. With more than 7 million riders a day, keeping all that marble clean has got to be a burden. |
The Hong Kong Metro | Features: The Hong Kong MTR has the distinction of being one of the few subway systems in the world that actually turns a profit. It’s privately owned and uses real estate development along its tracks to increase income and ridership. It also introduced “Octopus cards” that allow people to not only pay their fares electronically, but buy stuff at convenience stores, supermarkets, restaurants and even parking meters. It’s estimated that 95 % of all adults in Hong Kong own an Octopus card. |
Shanghai Metro | Features: Shanghai is the third city in China to build a metro system, and it has become the country’s largest in the 12 years since it opened. Shanghai Metro has 142 miles of track and plans to add another 180 miles within five years. By that point, it would be three times larger than Chicago “L”. The system carries about 2.18 million people a day. |
The London Metro | Features: Londoners call their subway the Underground, even though 55 percent of it lies above ground.No matter when you’ve got the oldest mass-transit system in the world, you can call it anything you like. Trains started in1863 and they’ve been running ever since. Some 3 million people ride each day, every one of them remembering to “Mind the gap”. |
1. Which one can provide the riders some wonderful decorations at the stations?
A. The Tokyo Metro and Toei Lines B. The Moscow Metro
C. The London Metro D. The Hong Kong MTR
2.We can learn from the passage that Shanghai Metro ________.
A. carries the most people each day
B. is the world’s largest
C. may be larger than the Chicago “L” in the future
D. is the busiest in the world
3.How many subways carry more than 5 million people per day?
A. 2 B. 3 C. 4 D. 5