C

At dawn on Friday, May 19, 1780, farmers in New England stopped to wonder at the pink color of the sun. By noon the sky had darkened to midnight blackness, causing Americans, still in the painful struggle of a prolonged war of independence, to light candles and tremble at thoughts of the Last Judgment. As the birds quieted and no storm accompanied the darkness, men and women crowded into churches, where one minister commented that “The people were very attentive.” John Greenleaf Whittier later wrote that “Men prayed, and women wept; all ears grew sharp . . .”

A recent study of researchers, led by Richard Guyette from the University of Missouri’s Tree Ring Laboratory, has shown that vast forest fires in the Algonquin Highlands of southern Ontario and elsewhere in Canada brought this event upon New England. The scientists have discovered “fire scars” on the rings for that year, left when the heat of a wildfire has killed a part of a tree’s cambium (形成层). Evidence collected also points to a drought that year. An easterly wind and low barometric pressure (低气压) helped force smoke into the upper atmosphere. “The record fits pretty close,” says Guyette. “We had the right fuel, the drought. The conditions were all there.”

Lacking the ability to communicate quickly over long distances, Americans in 1780 remained in the dark about the event, which had disappeared by the next day. Over the next several months, the papers carried heated debates about what brought the darkness. Some were the voices of angry prediction, such as one Massachusetts farmer who wrote, “Oh! Backsliding New-England, attend now to the things which belong to your peace before they are forever hid from your eyes.” Others gave different answers. One stated that a “flaming star” had passed between the earth and the sun. Ash, argued another commentator. The debate, carried on throughout New England, where there were no scientific journals or academies yet, reflected an unfolding culture of scientific enquiry already sweeping the Western world, a revolution nearly as influential as the war for independence from the English.

New Englanders would not soon forget that dark day; it lived on in folklore, poems, and sermons for generations.

66. New Englanders crowded into churches because they were frightened by_____.

   A. the pink color of the sun        B. the darkened sky at daytime

   C. the Last Judgment on Friday     D. the American War of Independence

67. What can we infer about the event in New England on May 19, 1780?

   A. Prayers remained silent and attentive.     B. Night birds no longer came out to sing.

   C. People’s ears became sharper than usual.  D. Midday meals were served by candlelight.

68. According to the researchers, the origin of the event was_________.

   A. an east wind    B. a severe drought   C. some burning fuel   D. low barometric pressure

69. What can we know about the debates after the dark day?

   A. They focused on causes of the event.

   B. They swept throughout the Western world.

   C. They were organized by scientific institutions.

   D. They improved Americans’ ability to communicate.

70. What can be the best title for the text?

   A. New England’s dark day.       B. Voices of angry prediction.

   C. There is no smoke without fire.  D. Tree rings and scientific discovery.

Nowadays, a cellphone service is available to everyone, everywhere. Probably thousands of people have already been using it, but I just discovered it, so I'm going to claim it and also name it: Fake Foning.
The technology has been working well for me at the office, but there are infinite(无限的） applications. Virtually in any public space.
Say you work at a big university with lots of talky faculty members buzzing about. Now, say you need to use the restroom. The trip down the hall will take approximately one hour, because a person can't walk into those talky people without getting pulled aside for a question, a bit of gossip, a new read on a certain line of Paradise Lost.
So, a cellphone. Any cellphone. Just pick it up. Don't dial. Just hold that phone to your face and start talking. Walk confidently down the hall engaged in fake conversation, making sure to tailor both the topic and content to the person standing before you whom you are trying to avoid.
For standard colleague avoidance, I suggest fake chatting about fake business:
"Yes, I'm glad you called, because we really need to hammer out the details. What's that? Yes, I read Page 12, but if you look at the bottom of 4, I think you can see the problem begins right there."
Be engaged in your fake fone conversation. Make eye contact with the people passing, nod to them, gesture keen interest in talking to them at a later time, point to your phone, shrug and move on.
Shoppers should consider fake foning anytime they spot a talky neighbor in the produce department pinching (用手捏) unripe peaches. Without your phone at your face, you'd be in for a 20-minute speech on how terrible the world is.
One important caution about fake foning. The other day I was fake foning my way past a colleague, and he was actually following me to get my attention. I knew he wanted to ask about a project I had not yet finished. I was trying to buy myself some time, so I continued fake foning with my doctor. "So I don't need the operation? Oh, doctor, that is the best news."
And then: Brrrrrrng! Brrrrrmg! Brrrrrmg! My phone started ringing, right there while it was planted on my face. My colleague looked at me, and I at him, and naturally I gasped. "What is the matter with this thing?" I said, pulling the phone away to look at it, and then putting it back to my ear.
"Hello? Are you still there?"  Oops.
【小题1】According to the passage Fake Foning is _______________________.

Man, a land animal. But he is also closely tied to the sea. Throughout history the sea has served the needs of man. The sea has provided man with food and a convenient way to travel to many parts of the world. Today, nearly two-thirds of the world’s population live within 80 kilometers of the sea coast.

In the modern technological world, the sea offers many resources to help mankind survive. Resources on land are beginning to be used up. The sea, however, still can be hoped to supply many of man’s needs.

The list of riches of the sea yet to be developed by man’s technology is big. Oil and gas explorations have been carried out for nearly 30 years. Valuable amounts of minerals exist on the ocean floor ready to be mined.

Fish farming promises to be a good way to produce large quantities of food. The culture of fish and shellfish (贝类动物) is an ancient skill practised in the past mainly by Oriental people, including people in China.

Besides oil and gas, the sea may offer new sources of energy. Experts believe that the warm temperature of the ocean can be used in a way similar to the steam in a steamship. Ocean currents and waves offer possible use as a source of energy.

Technology is enabling man to explore ever more deeply under the sea. The development of strong, new materials has made this possible.

The technology to harvest the sea continues to improve. Experts believe that by the year 2020 the problems that prevent us from exploiting（开发） fully the food, minerals, and energy sources of the sea will be largely solved.

1.Valuable amounts of minerals are ______.

A. in the ocean water                     B. in the warm ocean water

C. on the sea coast                             D. on the ocean floor

2.We can conclude from this passage that ______.

A. the sea resources have largely been used up

B. the sea, in the broad sense, has not yet been developed

C. the problems that prevent us from using the food, minerals, and energy sources of the sea have already been solved.

D. by the year 2020 , the technology will be good enough to exploit all the sea resources

3.The underlined words “Oriental people” in the fourth paragraph probably mean ______.

A. the people in Asia                    B. African people

C. European people                   D. American people

4.The best title for this passage is ______.

A. Sea Harvest                          B. Sea Food

C. Technology for Exploiting the Sea     D. Man and the Sea

Man, a land animal. But he is also closely tied to the sea. Throughout history the sea has served the needs of man. The sea has provided man with food and a convenient way to travel to many parts of the world. Today, nearly two-thirds of the world’s population live within 80 kilometers of the sea coast.

    In the modern technological world, the sea offers many resources to help mankind survive. Resources on land are beginning to be used up. The sea, however, still can be hoped to supply many of man’s needs.

    The list of riches of the sea yet to be developed by man’s technology is big. Oil and gas explorations have been carried out for nearly 30 years. Valuable amounts of minerals exist on the ocean floor ready to be mined.

    Fish farming promises to be a good way to produce large quantities of food. The culture of fish and shellfish (贝类动物) is an ancient skill practised in the past mainly by Oriental people, including people in China.

    Besides oil and gas, the sea may offer new sources of energy. Experts believe that the warm temperature of the ocean can be used in a way similar to the steam in a steamship. Ocean currents and waves offer possible use as a source of energy.

    Technology is enabling man to explore ever more deeply under the sea. The development of strong, new materials has made this possible.

    The technology to harvest the sea continues to improve. Experts believe that by the year 2020 the problems that prevent us from exploiting（开发） fully the food, minerals, and energy sources of the sea will be largely solved.

1.The major things that the sea offers man are ______.

A. fish and oil                        

B. minerals and oil

    C. warm temperature and ocean currents   

D. the food, energy sources, and minerals

2.We can conclude from this passage that ______.

    A. the sea resources have largely been used up

    B. the sea, in the broad sense, has not yet been developed

    C. the problems that prevent us from using the food, minerals, and energy sources of the sea have already been solved.

    D. by the year 2020, the technology will be good enough to exploit all the sea resources

3.The underlined words “Oriental people” in the fourth paragraph probably mean ______.

    A. the people in Asia                       B. African people

    C. European people                          D. American people

4.The best title for this passage is ______.

    A. Sea Harvest                              B. Sea Food

    C. Technology for Exploiting the Sea            D. Man and the Sea

Greece declared a national state of emergency on Saturday as scores of forest fires that have killed at least 46 people continued to burn out of control, leaving some villages trapped within walls of flames, cut off from firefighters.

Although most of the fires have been on the Peloponnesian Peninsula, some broke out on the outskirts of Athens on Saturday, forcing the evacuation of homes and closing a major road linking the capital to the main airport for several hours. The national fire brigade said that by evening it had brought those blazes under control, including one that came within about six miles of the city.

The country has been vulnerable to fire this summer because of drought and three consecutive heat waves that sent temperatures soaring over 100 degrees. More than 3,000 forest fires have destroyed thousands of acres of wooded areas since June; the earlier fires killed nine people. The latest spate of fires on the peninsula started Friday. Strong, hot winds have spread the flames.

Firefighters expect the death toll to rise, because they have not yet been able to search some areas that had been overrun by flames.

Hardest hit by the fires were a dozen small villages t around the town of Zaharo in the western peninsula, where at least 12 people, including some who may have been trying to flee by car, were killed. Scores of other residents, including elderly and disabled people, remained trapped in their homes, phoning in to local television and radio stations, crying for help.

Late Saturday, Mr. Karamanlis, Prime Minister of Greece appeared on national television and declared that he was mobilizing all of the country’s resources to control the fire. Mr. Karamanlis also suggested that the recent fires might have been purposely set. “So many fires sparked simultaneously in so many regions is no coincidence,” he said, “We will get to the bottom of this and punish those responsible.”

The overstretched national fire services are being helped by an estimated 6,000 soldiers mobilized for the operation. A fleet of water-dumping aircraft was expected from France, Germany and Norway, after Greece appealed to the European Union for “urgent assistance.”

51.The writer mainly wants to tell us that ______ in the passage.

A. firefighters battles fearlessly in Greece to control the fire

B. constant fires in Greece have caused great life and wealth lose

C. Greece is facing great danger as forest fires continue to break out

D. Greek government is investigating the cause of recent forest fires

52. We can know from the passage that ______.

A. Athens, capital of Greece was not threatened in the fire

B. Greek government did not take effective measures to control the fire

C. many people had to leave their homes to avoid fire

D. all people endangered by the fire have already got immediate and proper help

53. According to the passage, which of the following might not contribute to the recent forest fires in Greek?

A. Storm thunders in summer

B. Lack of rainfall

C. Extremely hot weather this summer

D. Hot and strong wind

54. We can learn from the passage that ______.

A. now the fire crisis in Greece has come to an end

B. assistance from EU members is expected to come to help Greece

C. firefighters in Greece so far can still manage the situation

D. the number of people who die in the fire is expected not to rise any more

55. Mr. Karamanlis believes the forest fires in Greece _______.

A. is a happening by chance                              B. is a natural disaster

C. might be caused by human       on purpose             D. is a punishment of nature