For thousands of years, the most important two buildings in any British village have been the church and the pub. Traditionally, the church and the pub are at the heart of any village or town, where the people gather together to socialize and exchange news.

As a result, British pubs are often old and well preserved. Many of them have become historic sites. The most famous example is the pub in the city of Nottingham called “The Old Trip to Jerusalem”, which dates back to the year 1189 AD and is probably the oldest pub in England.

However, British pubs are not just for kings and queens; they welcome people from all classes and parts of society. On a cold night, the pub’s landlord or landlady can always find a warm place for you by the fire. There is always honest and hearty food and plenty of drink available at an affordable price.

That’s how things used to be. Things are beginning to change. It is said that the credit crunch(信贷紧缩) is causing 39 British pubs a week to go out of business. People do not have enough spare money to spend on beer. Recently, the UK government banned smoking in all pubs, and that may also have affected the number of customers going to pubs.

This decline is happening despite the fact that in 2005 the UK government started to allow pubs to stay open after 1l pm. Previously, with 1l pm as closing time, customers would have to drink quite quickly, meaning they sometimes got more drunk than they would if allowed to drink slowly. The British habit of drinking a lot very quickly is known as “binge drinking”, and it causes long-term health problems for people and problems with violent crime for communities.

In order to save their businesses, pubs are trying to change with the market. British pubs now offer something for everyone. A lot of pubs used to be “Working Men's Clubs”, meaning that women could not usually enter. Today, however, women can freely enter 99% of pubs without experiencing any problems. Perhaps things are changing for the better after all.

1. The passage mainly tells us something about ______.

A. the past and present of British pubs         B. the decline of British pubs

C. the long history of British pubs             D. the importance of British pubs

2.Which may not be the cause of the decline of British pubs?

A. The credit crunch.                   B. The present closing time.

C. The ban of smoking.                  D. Having no spare money.

 

3.We can infer from the passage that ______.      

A. British people used to like drinking slowly

B. closing the pubs early will reduce social problems

C. binge drinking means drinking less beer

D. British government aims to discourage people from binge drinking

4.We can see from the last paragraph that the author _______.

  A. is against the admission of too many women to the pubs

  B. holds an optimistic attitude towards the British pubs

  C. thinks that women in the pubs will cause less social problems

  D. thinks that British pubs should offer everything you need

 

 

Have you ever noticed the colour of the water in a river or stream after a heavy rainfall? What do you think caused this change in colour? It is soil that has been washed into the river from the riverbank or from t}le nearby fields.

Components of Soft

Soil is made up of a number of layers(层),each having its own distinctive colour and texture.The upper layer is known as the litter.It acts like a blanket.limiting temperature changes and reducing water loss.The topsoil layer is made up of small particles of rock mixed with rotten plant and animal matter called humus(腐殖质),which is black and gives the topsoil its dark colour.This layer is usually rich in nutrients,oxygen,and water.Below the topsoil is the subsoil,a layer that contains more stones mixed with only small amounts of organic matter.This layer is lighter in colour because of the lack of humus.Beneath the soil lies a layer of bedrock.

Soil forms from the bottom up.Over time bedrock is attacked by rain, wind,frost, and snow.It is gradually broken down into smaller particles in a process called weathering.Plants begin to grow,and rotten materials enrich the topsoil.Most of the soil in Eastern Canada.for example.Was formed from weathered rock that was exposed when the ice disappeared l2.000 years ag0.

Water Beneath the Soil

Surface water collects and flows above the ground in lakes.ponds.and rivers.Once in the soil or rock,it is called groundwater.Gravity pulls groundwater through the soil in a process called percolation(渗透).Eventually the water reaches a layer called the water table.Under this is bedrock through which water cannot percolate.

As water percolates downward,it dissolves organic matter and minerals from the soil and carries them to deeper layers.This causes a serious problem because plants require these nutrients for growth.

Soil pH

Soil can be acidic.neutral.or basic.The pH of the soil is determined by the nature of the rock

from which it was formed.and by the nature of t}le plants that grow and rot in it.

The acidity of rain and snow can lower the pH of the groundwater that enters the soil.By burning fossil fuels such as coal,oil and gasoline,humans have been contributing to higher levels of acidity in many soils.When fossil fuels are burned.gases are released into the air and then fall back to earth as acid rain.Acid soil increases出e problem of carrying nutrients to lower soil levels.As nutrients are removed,soil is less fertile.Plants grow more slowly in acidic soil,and also become easily attacked by diseases.

1.The layer of soil that provides necessary nutrients for plant growth is called.

A.1itter    B.topsoil    C.humus D.subsoil

2.According to the text.which of the following is NOT true?

A.Soil forms from weathered rock on the earth surface.

B.The deeper layer of soil is darker in colour than t}le surface soil.

C.Air pollution is partially responsible for acid soil.

D.Groundwater tends to carry away nutrients for plant growth.

3.We can infer from the passage that the water table lies      

A.between the topsoil layer and the subsoil layer

B.in the subsoil layer above bedrock

C.between the subsoil layer and bedrock

D.in the bedrock layer beneath the subsoil

4.The underlined word “dissolve” is used to express the idea that organic matter and minerals from soil are          

A.rushed away into the river

B.cleaned and purified by water

C.destroyed and carried away by water

D.mixed with water and become part of it

 

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