The hole in the Earth's ozone layer (臭氧层) has until now protected Antarctica from the worst effects of global warming. But scientists have warned that as the hole closes up in the next few decades, temperatures on the continent could rise by around 3°C on average, with melting ice contributing to a global sea level increase of up to 1.4 meters.

In the past decades the western Antarctic has seen rapid ice loss as the world has warmed, but the other parts of the continent have, paradoxically, been cooling, resulting in a 10% increase in ice in the seas around the region. This is because the hole in the ozone layer has increased cold winds in Antarctica, making much of the continent surface colder than usual.

    But now that the gasses that cause the ozone hole have been banned, scientists expect the hole to repair itself within the next 50 to 60 years. By then the cooling effect will have faded out and the Antarctic will face the full impact of global warming. This means an increase in average air temperatures of around 3°C and a reduction in sea ice by around a third.

    The biggest threat to the continent comes from warming seas. Robert Johnson, a scientist who monitors Antarctica ice sheets, said, "The ice sheets in Antarctica are hundreds of metres thick. But once warm ocean waters start flowing underneath, the ice will begin thinning and could break up very quickly. "Thinning ice sheets cause ice to break away from the continent and to melt even faster. Escaping ice from western Antarctica has already resulted in a 10% rise in global sea level in recent decades.

    Johnson believes that international action to reduce global warming is required immediately or it may be too late. "Everything is connected —Antarctica may be a long way away but it is an important part of the Earth's system," said Johnson. "It contains 90% of the world's ice, 70% of the world's fresh water and that is enough, if it melts completely, to raise sea levels by 63 meters."

    Even in a worse-case situation scientists don't expect the ice to entirely disappear, but predict that, because of the melting ice sheets, average sea level rise will be around 1.4 meters higher by the end of the century.

The underlined word "paradoxically" (in Paragraph 2) most probably means "__".

A. rapidly     B. approximately       C. contradictorily    D. apparently

What is the effect of the hole in the ozone layer on Antarctica?

A. It is causing the ice to melt faster.

B. It is making much of the continent colder.

C. It is making the effects of global warming in the region worse.

D. It is reducing the amount of water in Antarctica.

What do scientists think is the biggest danger facing Antarctica?

A. Rising sea levels.           B. Warming sea water temperature.

C. Water pollution.            D. Growing ice sheets.

Which of the following is true according to the passage?

A. Antarctica is currently experiencing the full effects of global warming.

B. The average temperature has increased by3°C in recent decades.

C. Antarctica contains most of the world's fresh water.

D. Ten percent of Antarctica's ice has already been lost.

The best title for the passage is ______.

A. Our planet in danger                    B. Antarctica melting away

C. Action plan to save Antarctica            D. Let's save the ozone layer

How did a ban on smoking in public places come into place?

    In 1998 the Smoking Kills White Paper set out a national strategy (策略) to reduce smoking prevalence (流行) and passive smoking, including in public places. The measures were voluntary and poorly carried out. After a public conference in England in 2004, the Government decided to choose for lawmaking. Scotland went first, with a ban in 2006, followed by the other nations a year later.

What is the current law?

    Any person who smokes in enclosed (封闭的) public places, including pubs, offices, on public transport and work vehicles, is breaking the law. It does not extend to private houses. It is also an offence for people in charge of premises (营业场所) to permit others to smoke in them.

How was it received?

    It was welcomed by most organizations except for some pub owners and restaurateurs. Many workplaces in the UK had already introduced smoke-free policies consistent with the legislation (法律，法规) before it was carried out, while others have gone beyond its basic requirements.

    All railway facilities, including platforms, footbridges and other areas--whether or not fitting the definition of an enclosed public space--are covered, as are all football grounds and some cricket and athletics stadiums. School grounds are not required to be smoke-free under the legislation, but the majority now are.

How has it been forced?

    Compliance (服从) in public premises has been high, with inspections suggesting that 99 per cent of places were sticking to the rules. The number of people charged for smoking in cars has been very low, which was due to the problems defining and identifying "work" vehicles. They said that a total ban on smoking in vehicles would end this confusion.

Has it improved health?

    Studies in early adopters of the law, including in Scotland, suggest a reduction in hospital admissions for heart disease, which has been shown to be linked to passive smoking. There is also strong evidence of improved rates of smoking end and a drop in the number of cigarettes consumed by those who continue to smoke.

1.When did the first law come out to ban smoking in public places?

A. 1987     B. 1998     C. 2004     D. 2006

2.Which of the following behaviors may NOT be against the law?

A. Jack often smokes in the office when he is alone.

B. A taxi driver is smoking with a lady in his car.

C. Tom smokes while thinking of his future at home.

D. Max smokes for relaxation during time-out in the stadium.

3.Who might feel unhappy about the law according to the article?

A. A restaurant owner.      B. A company manager.

C. A car owner.         D. A policy maker.

4.What can you infer from the article?

A. Most heart diseases have been proved to be linked to passive smoking.

B. A new law will soon come out with a total ban on smoking in vehicles

C. Cigarette-making factories will disappear soon.

D. Most of the school grounds are not smoke-free, as it is not banned in the law.

The hole in the Earth's ozone layer (臭氧层) has until now protected Antarctica from the worst effects of global warming. But scientists have warned that as the hole closes up in the next few decades, temperatures on the continent could rise by around 3^oC on average, with melting ice contributing to a global sea level increase of up to 1.4 metres.
In the past decades the western Antarctic has seen rapid ice loss as the world has warmed, but the other parts of the continent have, paradoxically, been cooling, resulting in a 10% increase in ice in the seas around the region. This is because the hole in the ozone layer has increased cold winds in Antarctica, making much of the continent surface colder than usual.
But now that the gasses that cause the ozone hole have been banned, scientists expect the hole to repair itself within the next 50 to 60 years. By then the cooling effect will have faded out and the Antarctic will face the full impact of global warming. This means an increase in average air temperatures of around 3^OC and a reduction in sea ice by around a third.
The biggest threat to the continent comes from warming seas. Robert Johnson, a scientist who monitors Antarctica ice sheets, said, "The ice sheets in Antarctica are hundreds of metres thick. But once warm ocean waters start flowing underneath, the ice will begin thinning and could break up very quickly. "Thinning ice sheets cause ice to break away from the continent and to melt even faster. Escaping ice from western Antarctica has already resulted in a 10% rise in global sea level in recent decades.
Johnson believes that international action to reduce global warming is required immediately or it may be too late. "Everything is connected - Antarctica may be a long way away but it is an important part of the Earth's system," said Johnson. "It contains 90% of the world's ice, 70% of the world's fresh water and that is enough, if it melts completely, to raise sea levels by 63 metres."
Even in a worse-case situation scientists don't expect the ice to entirely disappear, but predict that, because of the melting ice sheets, average sea level rise will be around 1.4 metres higher by the end of the century.
【小题1】The underlined word "paradoxically" (in Paragraph 2) most probably means "_       _".

Paloalto, California— “Turning off the television may help prevent children from getting fatter—even if they do not change their diet,” US researchers said last week.

A study of 192 third and fourth graders, generally aged eight and nine found that children who cut the number of hours spent watching television increased nearly two pounds (0.91kg) less over a one-year period than those who did not change their television diet.

“The findings are important because they show that weight loss can only be the result of a reduction in television viewing and not any other activity,” said Thomas Robinson, a pediatrician (儿科专家) at Stanford University. “American children spend an average of more than four hours per day watching television and videos or playing video games. And rates of childhood being very fat have doubled over the past 20 years,” Robinsin said.

In the study presented this week to the Pediatric Academic Societies annual meeting in San Francisco, the researchers persuaded about 100 of the students to reduce their television viewing by one-quarter to one-third. Children watching fewer hours of television showed a much smaller increase in waist (腰) size and had less body fat than other students who continued their normal television viewing, even though neither group ate a special diet nor took part in any extra exercise.

“One explanation for the weight loss could be the children unstuck to the television may simply have been moving around more and burning off calories,” Robinson said. “Another reason might be eating fewer meals in front of the television. Some studies have suggested that eating in front of the TV encourages people to eat more,” Robinson said.

The report tells us that children will get fatter if they ________.

A. eat in front of the TV              B. change their diet

      C. do special exercises               D. spend much time watching TV

According to the report, the time American children usually spend on watching TV and videos or playing video games ________.

A. is four hours a day or more         B. is less than four hours a day

      C. has doubled in the last 20 years      D. has been reduced to one-quarter

The time some children were persuaded to spend on TV viewing every day was less than ____.

A. one hour    B. two hours    C. three hours     D. four hours

Watching TV will increase kid’s weight because ________.

A. they usually eat more and move less

B. they no longer take part in outdoor activities

C. they will not burn off calories

D. they will enjoy having meals in front of the television

A few days ago, I bought some ink for my printer at my favorite $1 Supermarket, which sold everything from fresh produce to birthday cards at one dollar. Then l found a better         at a computer store. So I went back to the supermarket to        it for some other products. With        telling me exactly what to do, I put the ink into a plastic bag, tied it up, placed the bag into a push-cart and started      .

      I was midway         when a clerk suddenly stopped me. "You are not allowed to        a bag around in this store. Open it and show me the      !" she yelled coldly.

        , I opened the bag and       the ink to her. "I'm returning it. " I said.

      "You should have left the bag with the clerk upon       . Let me see your receipt!" she demanded I did as told, looking around, embarrassed        everyone was laughing at me. "Perhaps in the future you'll learn how to follow the store        . " she added.

      By the time I finished shopping, I was angry. How dare she treat me as a       ? I went looking for her and asked for her      . She mumbled (嘀咕) something. I asked her again, and this time I heard "Ursula. "

     "Ursula what?" I asked. She yelled at me,  "Ursula! " and stormed away.

      "This employee is about to become unemployed, " I         when I got home. 1       their headquarters (总部). I described my unpleasant experience to a representative. She was sympathetic, "Our employees are taught to be      . Give me your phone number and I will ring you back. "

     She did two days later. "I'm sorry," she said, "but there's no Ursula at that supermarket. Can you         her so that I can find out who she is? I assure you, we do not tolerate rude behavior, nor do we tolerate       to our customers. "

      By this time, I had calmed down. l didn't really want the employee to lose her      . So I told the representative to forget about it.

1.A. reduction     B. choice                 C. introduction           D. price

2.A. change        B. return                 C. receive               D. replace

3.A. somebody     B. nobody                C. everybody            D. anybody

4.A. bargaining     B. storing                C. loading               D. shopping

5.A. across        B. up                   C. through               D. down

6.A. carry          B. show                 C. move                 D. push

7.A. identity        B. contents              C. belongings            D. ink

8.A. Depressed     B. Shocked              C. Amused               D. Stressed

9.A. poured        B. mixed                C. showed               D. fell

10.A. exit           B. admission            C. entry                  D. departure

11.A. even though    B. as if                 C. so that                 D. in case

12.A. lines          B. borders               C. regulations            D. permissions

13.A. criminal       B. blue-collar             C. beggar                D. colleague

14.A. number       B. career                 C. explanation            D. name

15.A. calmed down  B. thought aloud           C. found out            D. got through

16.A. rang          B. visited                 C. questioned            D. blamed

17.A. patient        B. clever                 C. polite                D. hardworking

18.A. recognize      B. inform                C. describe              D. forgive

19.A. yelling        B. pointing               C. talking               D. lying

20.A. job         B. way                    C. chance               D. business