Most city parks are places where you can escape from big, ugly structures of metal and stone. The Manhattan High Line is different. Raised 25 feet above the ground, this massive metal structure once supported a rail line. The line opened in 1934 to bring trains directly into factories and warehouses. It was hardly used after the 1960s, and much of it was torn down. However, one section remained in an area of Manhattan called Chelsea. Chelsea was becoming more and more valuable as restaurants, art galleries and apartments were built, but the ugly railway structure remained as a dead weight. Everyone knew that at some time, it would have to be removed.

But the High Line was not destroyed. In fact, now the old rail line serves as one of the most peaceful places in the city. It holds an elevated park, with beautiful gardens, a sidewalk and great views of the city. The idea to change the rail line into a park came from Joshua David and Robert Hammond. In 1999, they attended a community meeting to decide the fate(命运) of the High Line. David and Hammond were the only people at the meeting interested in saving the structure for its historical significance. Later on, when they asked railway officials to take them up to look at the High Line, they saw a mile and a half of wild flowers growing in the middle of the city, and they realized that the High Line had potential to become a park. There was growing interest in improving urban centers, and so the project quickly won support and funds for construction were easily obtained.

The first section of the High Line opened in 2009 and immediately became popular with tourists and locals alike. Each part of the park has a different atmosphere. Some areas are like balconies (阳台)with wonderful city views. Where the rail line goes between buildings, trees are thickly planted. Other sections have wide walkways planted with wild flowers. Only the final section remains the way it has been for the last fifty years – a railway line overgrown with weeds.

1.The underlined phrase “a dead weight” in Paragraph 1 means_____.

A. something with potential to be better.

B. something with historical interest.

C. something which is a danger to people.

D. something useless which slows progress.

2.According to Paragraph 2, David and Hammond wanted to save the High Line because they_____.

A. thought it had historical value

B. wanted to reopen the train line

C. thought it would bring them money

D. were interested in improving the city

3.From the last paragraph, we can learn that the park ______.

A. is different in its design

B. is covered with trees

C. didn’t change at all

D. became a natural countryside

4.Which of the following is NOT true about the High Line?

A. It is situated above ground level.

B. Only part of the line remains.

C. It is now a popular park.

D. Trains still use the line.

 

Larry was on another of his underwater expeditions(探险)but this time, it was different. He decided to take his daughter along with him. She was only ten years old. This would be her first trip with her father on what he had always been famous for.
Larry first began diving when he was his daughter’s age. Similarly, his father had taken him along on one of his expeditions. Since then, he had never looked back. Larry started out by renting diving suits from the small diving shop just along the shore. He had hated them. They were either too big or too small. Then, there was the instructor. He gave him a short lesson before allowing him into the water with his father. He had made an exception. Larry would never have been able to go down without at least five hours of theory and another similar number of hours on practical lessons with a guide. Children his age were not even allowed to dive.
After the first expedition, Larry’s later diving adventures only got better and better. There was never a dull moment. In his black and blue suit and with an oxygen tank fastened on his back, Larry dived from boats into the middle of the ocean. Dangerous areas did not prevent him from continuing his search. Sometimes, his was limited  to a cage underwater but that did not bother him. At least, he was still able to take photographs of the underwater creatures.
Larry’s first expedition without his father was in the Cayman Islands. There were numerous diving spots in the area and Larry was determined to visit all of them .Fortunately for him, a man offered to take him around the different
Spots for free. Larry didn’t even know what the time was how many spots he dived into or how many photographs he had taken. The diving spots afforded such a wide array of fish and sea creatures that Larry saw more than thirty varieties of creatures.
Larry looked at his daughter. She looked as excited as he had been when he was her age. He hoped she would be able to continue the family tradition. Already, she looked like she was much braver than had been then. This was the key to a successful underwater expedition.
【小题1】In what way was this expedition different for Larry?

A.His daughter had grown up.
B.He had become a famous diver.
C.His father would dive with him.
D.His daughter would dive with him.
【小题2】What can be inferred from Paragraph2?
A.Larry had some privileges.
B.Larry liked the rented diving suits.
C.Divers had to buy diving equipment.
D.Ten-year-old children were permitted to dive.
【小题3】What can be learned from the underlined sentence?
A.Larry didn’t wear a watch.
B.Larry was not good at math.
C.Larry had a poor memory.
D.Larry enjoyed the adventure.

Joe Bloggs always had a cigarette on his lips. He smoked while he read, while he watched TV, and while he drank a cup of coffee. He smoked forty cigarettes a day, but he was happy.

Joe’s friend, Fred Brown, said to him, “It is very bad to smoke”. When Joe heard this , he started to worry and became so thin that he went to Fred for help.

Fred said , “You must eat more”. O Joe did not smoke , but he ate chocolate , and he became very fat. Again he went to Fred for help.

Fred said , “ You must not eat chocolate”. So Joe stopped eating chocolate , but he went back to smoking cigarettes. He became thin again but he was not happy, because he still smoked.

Sometimes Joe Bloggs wished Fred Brown was not his friend!

1.When Joe became thin the first time it was because_____.

A. he smoked too much B. he worried too much

C. he stopped smoking D. he ate too little

2. The following sentences tell what happened to Joe.Which is the right order of the events?

a.He did not smoke , he ate chocolate , he was fat, he was unhappy.

b.He smoked , he did not eat chocolate, he was thin , he was unhappy.

c.He smoked , he did not eat chocolate , he was not fat , he was happy

A. a, b, c B. c, b, a

C. b, a, c D. c, a, b

3.In the end Joe was unhappy about his friendship with Fred because___

A. Fred had given him the wrong advice on purpose.

B. he never liked being told what to do

C. he in fact had never really understood what Fred meant

D. Fred’s advice had brought him much trouble

4.What is the writer trying to tell us with this story?

A. Chocolate is bad for one’s health.

B. One should ask friends for help and advice

C. Smoking is bad for one’s health

D. One should think and decide for oneself

 

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