Sometime early in the next century, human beings will move to Mars. They will live there for about a year, and then will be replaced with another group of pioneers. Building the base on Mars will advance our knowledge of the solar system and aid in our understanding of the earth.

We already know that Mars resembles the earth in many aspects: general size, presence of water, length of day, range of temperatures. These resemblances have caused many people to consider a centuries-long project: to terraform Mars. Terraforming means altering a planet’s surface so that Earth’s life forms can survive there. This concept, previously found only in science fiction is now being seriously considered by scientists.

Terraforming Mars is theoretically simple: add nitrogen and oxygen to the atmosphere; pump water to the surface; and add the earth’s plants and animals in the order in which they developed on Earth. But it will take at least 300 years.

Some people think that such a project is too huge for humans to undertake, but there are very good reasons to make the attempt. The earth now contains some 6 billion people, and no one has any idea of how many humans the earth can support. Our very existence and numbers are threatening many other species. We also have had some experience with terraforming our own planet: altering the landscape, the atmosphere and the climate. Currently terraforming earth has become a wiser activity as we try to control global warming, air and water pollution, and preserve some natural living places.

While the possibility of such a project is small, it is not impossible .Even if earth –bound societies come and go in the next 300 years, the project can continue through the work of the Mars settlers without the need for constant backing from the earth.

 The future existence of all the people in our world may very well depend upon our ability to terraform Mars.

1.What would be the best title for this passage?

A.Terraforming Mars.               B.Saving the Earth

C.Travelling to Mars.                 D.A Newly-found Place

2.What does the underlined word “altering” mean in the second paragraph?

A.Warming.    B.Changing.    C.Planting.      D.Building

3.According to the passage the main purpose of terraforming Mars is to ________.

A.do some scientific research work

B.find out its similarity to earth

C.avoid the dying away of many other species

D.find on Mars living place for the increasing human beings

4.The main reason for causing many people to consider terraforming Mars is that _______.

A.there are some resemblances between Earth and Mars.

B.terraforming Mars is theoretically simple

C.we have had some experience with terraforming our own planet: Earth

D.the development of science and technology is very rapid

5.What’s the author’s attitude towards the project?

A.Optimistic.  B.Negative

C.Sceptical(怀疑的)  D.Objective.

 

The blockbuster film Titanic has brought millions of dollars and thousands of people to the theaters and continues to touch people today in their homes. Why is this film so successful? It is a combination of many different things. Among these are many different elements. Looking at some of these elements will show how the director and others involved were able to create an emotionally charged movie that appealed to millions.

The film uses one thematic(主题的) element called - The Truth of Human Nature. The two main characters seem to represent noble people. Most of the other characters in the film are shown as non-tolerant, rude and cold-hearted people. The element of focusing on the two main characters' love and emotion seems symbolic of an ideal state.

There are also social problems addressed. This is done in a few different ways. The most noticeable way is that the lower class people remain locked in the basement as the ship goes down. Throughout Titanic, the lighting is very important. The poor, lower class people are always shown in very warm-coloured light that gives them a sense of life and happiness. On the other hand, the rich, upper class are always shown in a flat light portraying the feeling of hardness and coldness. By using these techniques, they show the issue of class segregation(种族隔离), and they create stereotypes. The main characters are able to break free of these stereotypes and be together. This is the solution to the segregation problem.

As you can see, Titanic took a lot of thinking and preparation to film in a manner that would create emotion and bring to the surface the issues and story of the great ship.

1.The underlined word “blockbuster” in the first paragraph probably means “________”.

A.something very successful

B.a highly explosive bomb

C.something worth a lot of money

D.a touching story

2.In Titanic, the scene of the lower class people remaining locked in the basement as the ship goes down is used to ________.

A.criticize non-tolerant and cold-hearted rich people

B.enlarge the scene of the film

C.make the film more attractive

D.emphasize the condition of the poor at that time

3.Why were different colours of light used in the film Titanic? ________

A.They were used to show the difference between the rich and the poor.

B.The director was determined to achieve good visual effect.

C.The social status was represented by the color of light in the past.

D.The use of light was the main technique the director made use of.

4.What can we infer from the passage? _________

A.The segregation problem in the society can be solved by using the light.

B.Though love is the main theme of Titanic, it also reflects some social problems.

C.Because of the director's talents, the film Titanic achieved great success.

D.In the film Titanic there are two characters altogether.

5.The writer mainly talks about ________ in this passage.

A.the process of shooting Titanic

B.the leading actor and actress in Titanic

C.the reasons why Titanic became a blockbuster film

D.the outline of Titanic

 

根据短文内容,从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。

Most drinks stating that they are fruit­ flavored (水果味道的) contain no fruit at all, while most of the rest contain only a small quantity of fruit, according to a study carried by the British Food Commission.

“Shoppers need to check the labels (标签) before buying drinks, though sometimes the actual content can be non­existent,” said Food Commission spokesperson Ian Tokelove. “Food production is highly competitive. __76__ It will increase profits, and consumers won't always realize they are being tricked.”

Flavorings are focused on the flavors of natural food products such as fruits, meats and vegetables, or creating flavor for food products that do not have the desired flavors. Researchers analyzed the contents of 28 strawberry­ flavored products sold in stores.    __77__  Of the 11 products that did contain strawberries, five of them contained less than one percent real fruit. In addition, each juice box contained nearly eight teaspoons of sugar.

__78__ Let's take jam as an example. Some strawberry­ flavored jam was labeled as containing no artificial colors, flavors, or sweeteners, but it contained absolutely no strawberries at all.

__79__ Consumers have the rights to know clearly about what they have bought. Under current UK law, food packages do not have to distinguish between natural and artificial flavoring. “Describing a product as strawberry flavor and covering the surface of the packet with pictures of strawberries is misleading.   __80__ Unfortunately, it is also legal and widespread,” Tokelove said. “It's time to take measures to protect the consumers' rights.”

A.The products which contain real fruit are popular with people.

B.Even products advertised as more natural often contained no fruit.

C.They found that about 60 percent of them didn't contain any fruit at all.

D.If companies can cut their costs by using flavoring, they are likely to do so.

E. It is important and necessary to demand a small amount of flavoring in the products.

F. Actually the product contains just a tiny percentage of strawberry or even no fruit at all.

G. The Food Commission suggested all flavors used in a product should be listed on the packaging.

 

All Eskimos live most of their lives close to sea or fresh water. They may follow game inland for several hundred miles, but they always return to the shores of rivers, lakes, or seas. Eskimo land has a bare look. Large rocks, pebbles, and sand cover much of the surface. Plants called lichen (地衣) grow on the rocks, and where there is enough soil, grass, flowers, and even small bushes manage to live. No trees can grow on Eskimo land, so geographers sometimes call it the Arctic plains. There are some animals in Eskimo land, such as rabbits, which eat the plants. Other animals, like the white fox and the gray wolf, eat the rabbits. The Eskimo is a meat-eater, too, and may even eat a wolf when food is scarce.

The Eskimo year has two main parts: a long, cold winter and a short, cool summer. Spring and fall are almost too short to be noticed. Summer is the best time, as food is usually plentiful. But it is also the time when Eskimos are very busy. Winter is never far away, and the men must bring home extra meat for the women to prepare and store, for seldom can enough animals be killed in winter to feed a family.

The Far North is sometimes called the land of the midnight sun. This is true in the middle of summer, for between April 21st and August 21st the sun never sets in Northern Greenland. But in midwinter the Far North is a land with no sunshine at all. Around Oct. 21st the Eskimos of Northern Greenland see the sun set directly south of them, and they don’t see it again until February 22nd. All places on earth get about the same amount of daylight during a year. As a result, if summer is lighter, winter has to be darker.

Winter nights in the Far North are seldom pitch-black. As in the rest of the world, the stars and moon provide a little light. The northern lights also help the Eskimo to see. And with the ground covered with snow, even a little light is reflected back to the Eskimo’s eyes.

1.Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A.Eskimos do not usually eat wolves.

B.Eskimos like to chase one another.

C.Eskimos depend heavily on water.

D.Eskimos are meat-eaters.

2.What’s the meaning of the underlined words “pitch-black” in Paragraph 4?

A.Dark with a little light.

B.A little dark.

C.Not dark at all.

D.Extremely dark.

3.From the passage, we can infer all of the following EXCEPT that_______.

A.Eskimos are more likely to eat wolves in summer

B.Eskimo women are responsible for housework

C.meat is the main source of food for the Eskimo

D.hunting is an important part of Eskimo life

 

 

    Against the assumption that forest fires in Alaska, Canada and Siberia warm the climate, scientists have discovered that cooling may occur in areas where burnt trees allow more snow to mirror more sunlight into space.

         This finding suggests that taking steps to prevent northern forest fires to limit the release of greenhouse gases may warm the climate in northern regions. Usually large fires destroyed forests in these areas over the past decade. Scientists predict that with climate warming, fires may occur more frequently over next several centuries as a result of a longer fire season. Sunlight taken in by the earth tends to cause warming, while heat mirrored back into space tends to cause cooling.

         This is the first study to analyze all aspects of how northern fires influence climate. Earlier studies by other scientists have suggested that fire in northern regions speed up climate warming because greenhouse gases from burning trees and plants are released into the atmosphere and thus trap heat.

         Scientists found that right after the fire, large amounts of greenhouse gases entered the atmosphere and caused warming. Ozone(臭氧)levels increased, and ash from the fire fell on far-off sea ice, darkening the surface and causing more radiation from the sun to be taken in. The following spring, however, the land within the area of the fire was brighter than before the fire, because fewer trees covered the ground. Snow on the ground mirrored more sunlight back into space, leading to cooling.

         “We need to find out all possible ways to reduce the growth of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.” Scientists tracked the change in amount of radiation entering and leaving the climate system as a result of the fire, and found a measurement closely related to the global air temperature. Typically, fire in northern regions occurs in the same area every 80 to 150 years. Scientists, however, found that when fire occurs more frequently, more radiation is lost from the earth and cooling results. Specifically, they determined when fire returns 20 years earlier than predicated, 0.5 watts per square meter of area burned are soaked up by the earth from greenhouse gases, but 0.9 watts per square meter will be sent back into space. The net effect is cooling. Watts are used to measure the rate at which energy is gained or lost from the earth.

1. According to the new findings, taking steps to prevent northern forest fires may _______.

   A. result in a warming climate                   B. cause the forest fires to occur more frequently

   C. lead to a longer fire season                     D. protect the forests and the environment there

2. Earlier studies about northern forest fires ________.

   A. analyze all aspects of how northern fires influence climate

   B. indicate that forest fires will pollute the atmosphere

   C. suggest that people should take measures to protect environment

   D. suggest that the fires will speed up climate warming

3. The underlined phrase “soaked up” in the last paragraph most probably means ________.

         A. released          B. absorbed            C. created               D. disturbed

4. From the text we can draw a conclusion that forest fires in Alaska, Canada and Siberia may ______.

         A. warm the climate as the assumption goes

         B. allow more snow to reflect more sunlight into space and thus cool the climate

         C. destroy large areas of forests and pollute the far-off sea ice

         D. help to gain more energy rather than release more energy

 

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