A Tennessee couple helplessly watched their home bum to the ground, along with all of their possessions, because they did not pay a＄75 annual fee to the local fire department．
Vicky Bell told the NBC affiliate WPSD－TV that she called 911 when her mobile home in Obion County caught fire．Firefighters arrived on the．scene but as the fire spread, they simply stood by and did nothing．“In all emergency, the first thing you think of,‘Call 9－1＝l', ”homeowner Bell said．However, Bell and her husband were forced to walk into the burning home in an attempt to retrieve(抢回)their own belongings．"You could look out my mom's Wailer(拖车)and湖the trucks sitting at a distance, ”Bell said．“We just wished we could have gotten more out．”
South Fulton Mayor David Crocker defended the fire department, saying that if firefighters responded to non＝subscribers, no one would have an intention to pay the fee．Residents in the city of South Fulton receive the service automatically, but it is not extended to those living in the greater county-wide area．
“There's no way to go to every fife and keep．up the manpower, me equipment, and just the funding for the fire department, ”Crocker said．
The South Fulton policy produced precisely the same nightmare last year, when homeowner Gene Cranick－who had similarly failed to pay the＄75 annual fee for rural Obion County residents－saw his house swallowed by flames as South Fulton firefighter watched close by．That incident sparked a debate among conservative experts over the limits of fee－for-service approaches to government．
For his part, Mayor Crocker stressed that the city's firefighters will help people in danger, even those who haven't paid the fee．“After the last situation．1 would hope that everybody would be well aware of the rural fire fees, this time。”Crocker said．
(1)
The firefighters did nothing to the fire because _________．
[ ]
A．
they had no money to buy the equipment
B．
they were short of manpower
C．
the house owner hadn't paid them
D．
there was nothing precious in the house
(2)
We can infer from the second paragraph that _________．
[ ]
A．
only little of their belongings were retrieved from the fire
B．
the firefighters forced Bell and her husband to get things from the burning house
C．
Bell and her husband asked the NBC affiliate WPSD．TV to cover the event
D．
Bell and her husband didn't call 911 the moment the house caught fire
(3)
The underlined word“sparked''in the fifth paragraph most probably means _________．
[ ]
A．
put out
B．
set off
C．
took off
D．
kept out
(4)
The writer writes the passage to _________．
[ ]
A．
urge all the residents to pay the annual fee
B．
make everyone aware of the rural fire fees
C．
warn people of fires
D．
report the incident objectively
(5)
What will probably be discussed in the paragraph that follows?
[ ]
A．
The punishment the firefighters are faced with．
B．
The measures to be taken to overcome the funding problem．
C．
The reason why the government has changed its policy．
D．
The result of the debate among the conservative experts．
So far, scientists have named about 1.8 million living species(物种), and that’s just a small part of what probably exists on Earth．With so many plants, animals, fungi, and other organisms covering the planet, it can be tough to figure out what type of spider is crawling up your leg or what kind of bird just flew by．
A soon-to-be-launched Website might help．An international team of researchers has announced the creation of a Web－based Encyclopedia of Life(EOL)．The project aims to catalogue every species on Earth in a single, easy-to-use reference guide．
To get the encyclopedia started, the creators will use information from scientific databases that already exist．And eventually, in special sections of the site, nonscientists with specialized knowledge will join．Gardeners, for example, will be able to record the dates that their flowers first bloom each year．Bird-watchers will be able to input which birds they’ve seen and where．The technology for this kind of tool has only recently become available．
As the EOL develops, you might find it useful for school projects．The site will have special pages for kids who are studying ecosystems in their neighborhoods．To make sure the encyclopedia is accurate, scientists will review much of the information added to it．People who visit the site will be able to choose to skip pages that haven’t been reviewed．
Another convenient characteristic of the EOL is that you’ll be able to pick the level of detail you see to match your interests, age, and current knowledge．If you wanted to learn about polar bears for a science class report, for example, you could use the“novice”setting to get basic information about the animals．On the“expert”setting, on the other hand．you could get much more detailed information about the history, literature, and exploration of polar bears．
It now takes years for scientists to collect all the data they need to describe and analyze species．The creators of the Encyclopedia of Life hope that their new tool will speed that process．
Keep an eye on www.eol.org．Pages will begin to go up sometime next year, and you might find them useful for your school reports．The EOL team might have the basics for all 1.8 million entries online as early as 2017．Someday, you might add your own notes．
(1)
What is implied in the last sentence of Paragraph 1?
[ ]
A．
No one can become an expert on spiders and birds．
B．
So many spiders have crawled up your leg
C．
There are far more than 1.8 million living species．
D．
Scientists have named a lot of living species
(2)
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
[ ]
A．
You can find information of all living species online in 2017．
B．
Nonscientists will be able to add their own notes to the website．
C．
The kids preparing school reports can not have access to the informat’0 n’
D．
You are not free to choose the amount of detailed information．
(3)
What does the underlined word“novice”probably mean in Paragraph 5?
[ ]
A．
Beginner．
B．
Specialist．
C．
Scientist．
D．
Pupil．
(4)
Who are the intended readers of this passage?
[ ]
A．
Students．
B．
Researchers．
C．
Bird watchers or Gardeners．
D．
People in general
(5)
What is the best title for the passage?
[ ]
A．
Exploring Polar Bears
B．
Visit Our Website Now
C．
How to Do School Projects
D．
E-book of Life．
阅读理解
Watching 3D films such as Avatar could give some viewers headaches, experts have warned．
The success of James Cameron's science-fiction blockbuster(卖座的大片), which has already taken more than ＄1 billion(￡600 million)at the box office, is fuelling a surge in popularity for three-dimensional movies and new 3D television sets．
But prolonged viewing may result in an aching head, according to Dr Michael Rosenberg, an ophthalmology(眼科学)professor at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago．
He said："There are a lot of people walking around with very minor eye problems, for example a minor muscle imbalance, which under normal circumstances the brain deals with naturally．"
Watching a 3D movie confronts viewers with an entirely new sensory experience．"That translates into greater mental effort, making it easier to get a headache," he said．
Dr Deborah Friedman, a professor of ophthalmology and neurology(神经学)at the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York, said："If your eyes are a little off to begin with then it's really throwing a whole degree of effort that your brain now needs to exert．This disparity for some people will give them a headache．"
Experts say there are no studies tracking how common it is to get a headache after watching a 3D film．
Rick Heineman, a spokesman for RealD, which provides 3D equipment to cinemas, said headaches and nausea were the main reasons 3D technology never took off before．
But he said new digital technology addresses many of the problems that had previously caused sore heads．
(1)
What can we learn from what Dr Michael Rosenberg said?
[ ]
A．
A lot of people prefer walking around with very minor eye problems to sitting silently watching 3D films．
B．
The brain can deal with very minor eye problems under normal circumstances naturally．
C．
A lot of people haven’t got very minor eye problems when viewing films under normal circumstances．
D．
People come into very minor eye problems and a minor muscle imbalance when watching 3D films．
(2)
What does the underlined word “prolonged” in the 3rd paragraph mean?
[ ]
A．
continuous
B．
constant
C．
regular
D．
long-time
(3)
According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?
[ ]
A．
It has taken less than ＄1 billion to make the popularity of three-dimensional movies and new 3D television sets．
B．
Watching a 3D movie leaves viewers confronted with an entirely new sensory experience．
C．
There are studies tracking how common it is to get a headache after watching a 3D film．
D．
Rick Heineman said that 3D technology would never take off headaches and nausea in future．
(4)
What’s the main idea of the passage?
[ ]
A．
The expert warns the readers not to watch 3D films because of resulting in an aching head．
B．
New digital technology gives viewers headaches and eye problems．
C．
The experts are studying how to get rid of many of the problems that have previously caused sore heads．
D．
Viewing 3D films may result in some side-effect problems such as headaches．
阅读理解
Once upon a time the colors of the world started to quarrel．Green said,“Clearly I am the most important．I am the sign of life and hope．I was chosen for grass, trees and leaves．Without me, all animals would 1 ．”
Blue interrupted,“You only think about the 2 , but consider the sky and the sea． 3 the water that is the basis of life and drawn up by the clouds from the deep sea．Without my peace, you would all be 4 ．”
Yellow chuckled(笑道),“You are all so serious．I bring laughter, fun, and 5 into the world．”
Orange started next to blow her trumpet,“I am the color of health and strength．I may be 6 , but I am precious for I serve the needs of human life．When I fill the sky 7 , my beauty is so striking that no one gives another 8 to any of you．”
Red could stand it 9 and he shouted out,“I am the ruler of all of you．I am the color of danger and of bravery．I am willing to 10 truth．I am also the color of passion and of love．”
Then came Purple and Indigo(深蓝)…．
The colors went on boasting, each convinced of his or her own 11 ．Their quarreling became louder and louder．Suddenly there was a startling flash of bright lightening thunder．Rain started to pour down 12 ．The colors crouched(蜷缩)down 13 , drawing close to one another for comfort．
In the midst of the clamor(叫嚷), rain began to speak,“You foolish colors, fighting 14 yourselves, each trying to dominate 15 ．Don't you know that you were each made for a special purpose, 16 ?Join hands with 17 and come to me．”
Doing as they were told, the colors 18 and joined hands．They formed a colorful rainbow．From then on, whenever a good rain 19 the world, a rainbow appears in the sky．They remember to 20 one another．
