________ Pacific Ocean is ________ largest of all.
  A.the; a        B./; the        C.the; the        D.a; /

________Pacific Ocean is ________ largest of all.

A. The; a

B. /; the

C. The; the

D. A; /

A. The; a

B. /; the

C. The; the

D. A; /

The Three Gorges (三峡) Dam, the largest dam in the world, is also the largest engineering project on the face of the earth. It aims to make the mother of all floods, the Changjiang River, into a tame river and it will be the largest power source for much of eastern and central China. It will create a huge, deep-water lake, and make it possible for 10 000 ton ocean-going ships to sail 1 500 miles inland from the Pacific to the city of Chongqing with its 30 million people, making it the world's largest river port.

    Construction has already started. The dam will be about 6 860 feet long and 611 feet high, at a spot called Sandouping near Yichang.

    After many years of investigation (调研) experts have drawn a conclusion that this grand project will do a great deal of good. The most important thing is flood control. By building a dam instead of new coal plants to meet its growing demand for electricity, China will give off much less poisonous gases into the air.

    However, some scientists don't agree to the project. They say that Chongqing and dozens of other cities along the river will put much waste into the reservoir (水库) which can do harm to people, fish and other living thing that depend on the river. Sedimentation (沉积) and damage of a breach(决口)are problems, too.

    The Three Gorges Dam could be considered, when it is finished in 2009, a new eighth wonder of the world as to the size alone.

1．Which is not the purpose to build such a huge dam?

    A. To make electricity.

    B. To prevent floods.

    C. To improve navigation (运输).

    D. To make it a wonder.

2．Where does the dam lie?

    A. Near Chongqing.

    B. Near Yichang.

    C. In the Three Gorges.

    D. In Wuhan.

3．Some scientists fear that ________.

    A. when the dam is built, the balance of nature may be destroyed

    B. sedimentation may occur

    C. a breach may cause millions of people to die or to be homeless

    D. electricity will not be as much as expected

4．According to the passage, which of the following statements is NOT right?

    A. When finished, the dam will be one of the main bases of power source of China.

    B. People have different ideas about the setting up of the dam.

    C. It will take many years to build the dam because people want to see whether it will be safe and strong enough.

    D. Chongqing will become the largest river port in the world when the dam is finished.

       The Atlantic Ocean is one of the oceans that separate the Old World from the New．For centuries it kept the Americans from being discovered by the people of Europe．

       Many wrong ideas about the Atlantic made early sailors unwilling to sail far out into it．One idea was that it reached out to “the edge of the world．” Sailors were afraid that they might sail right off the earth．Another idea was that at the equator the ocean would be boiling hot．

       The Atlantic Ocean is only half as big as the Pacific, but it is still very large．It is more than 4,000 miles （6,000km） wide where Columbus crossed it．Even at its narrowest it is about 2,000 miles （3,200km） wide．

       Two things make the Atlantic Ocean rather unusual．For so large an ocean it has very few islands．Also, it is the world’s saltiest ocean．

       There is so much water in the Atlantic that it is hard to imagine how much there is．But suppose no more rain fell into it and no more water was brought to it by rivers．It would take the ocean about 4,000 years to dry up．On the average the water is a little more than two miles （3．2km） deep, but in places it is much deeper．The deepest spot is near Puerto Rico．This “deep” measures 30,246 feet-almost six miles （9．6km）．

       One of the longest mountain ranges of the world rises from the floor of the Atlantic．This mountain range runs north and south down the middle of the ocean．The tops of a few of the mountains reach up above the sea and make islands．

       Several hundred miles eastward from Florida there is a part of the ocean called the Sargasso Sea．Here the water is quiet, for there is little wind．In the days of sailing vessels（船） the crew were afraid they would be becalmed（停滞不前） here．Sometimes they were．

       Today the Atlantic is a great highway．It is not, however, always a smooth and safe one．Storms sweep across it and pile up great waves．Icebergs float down from the Far North across the paths of ships．

       We now have such fast ways of traveling that this big ocean seems to have grown smaller．Columbus sailed for more than two months to cross it．A fast modern steamship can make the trip in less than four days．Airplanes fly from New York to London in only eight hours and from South America to Africa in four!

1．Which world is the Old World?

       A．Africa                 B．Europe                C．Asia                    D．All of above

2．What caused people to be unwilling to explore the Atlantic?

       A．There are no ships big enough to get across the Ocean．

       B．Sailors were afraid of being lost in the Ocean．

       C．The Atlantic Ocean was very unusual because it has few islands and the saltiest water．

       D．Many incorrect ideas such as “the edge of the world”, “the equator with boiling hot water”, made people think the Ocean was full of danger．

3．What is the topic of the fifth paragraph?

       A．How deep the water is

       B．How to measure the water in the Atlantic Ocean

       C．How much water the Ocean holds．

       D．How rain affects the Ocean water．

4．We can learn from the text that ______．

       A．the Atlantic is the largest ocean on earth

       B．one of the longest mountain ranges lies in the Atlantic

       C．the Atlantic has a lot of islands in it

       D．sailing on the Atlantic Ocean is always quiet, smooth and safe