题目内容
Every year 2.2 million tons of oil are spilled into the ocean. Actually, this only amounts to a small percentage of the total 1.6 billion tons of oil shipped around the world each year. However, this spilled oil has terrible effects on ocean life, including the coastlines where the oil washes up onto shore. Some of the largest spills in history were caused by oil tankers running into each other or by an oil tanker sailing into shallow water and hitting the bottom of the ocean. After these spills, officials try to discover who or what was at fault to help prevent similar accidents in the future.
One of the worst oil spills in history occurred along the Alaskan coastline in 1989. In this accident, 42,000 tons of oil spilled from a tanker which resulted in terrible damage to this sensitive natural area. In this spill, the tanker’s captain, who was tired from overwork and drinking alcohol, had gone to take a rest. He gave control of the ship to the third mate. The third mate was unfamiliar with the path the ship took, and he ran the ship onto Blighe Reef. Blighe Reef is a natural underwater rock wall near the Alaskan coast. Damaged by the reef, the ship leaked oil out into the ocean. More than 1,600 kilometers of coastline were affected by the oil spill. Some scientists who studied nature in the area guessed that 580,000 birds and 5,500 otters died when the oil from the spill covered their skin. As well, smaller shellfish and other sea creatures were later eaten by seals, whales, and other animals.
The most oil ever spilled was actually dumped on purpose as an act of ecological warfare. The term ecological warfare means to fight by doing harm to nature in the area under attack. In 1990,
55. Which cause of oil spills is described in the second paragraph?
A. Dumping. B. War.
C. Accidents. D. Throwing about carelessly.
56. The creatures affected by the oil spill near
A. birds and otters B. shellfish
C. seals and whales D. all of the above
57. The third mate ran the tanker aground (触礁) in this accident because .
A. he was tired B. he was drunk
C. he was talking on the phone D. he did not know the area
58. was responsible for dumping oil into the Persian Gulf.
A. The
Everyday, 340 million people speak it. One billion people are learning it and it is said that by 2050, half of the world’s population will be using it. What are we talking about? That is the global language—English.
The English language started in Britain in the 5th century. It is a mixed language. It was built up when German. Scandinavian and French invaders settled in England and created a common language for communication.
Today it is the official language of the UK, the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa and Ireland as well as many islands in the Caribbean. Many other countries and regions use it for politics and business, for
example, India. Pakistan, Nigeria and the Philippines. English is also one of the official languages of Hong Kong.
But global advertising and pop music mean that in most countries, you will see or hear some English. Thanks to McDonalds, we all know about “burgers”. “fries” and “milkshakes”. Songs by Madonna, Britney Spears and Celine Dion are in English. We can sing along, even if we do not understand what we are singing!
English is a messy (杂乱的) language. Every year, dictionaries include new word
s that talk about popular culture, for example, computer-related words such as "blogging", "download" and "chartroom". Also included are words that teenagers use. Who does not know “cool”, “OK” and “hello”?
Other languages also influence
English. Many English words come from French. Words like “café” and expressions like “c'est la vie” (that is life) are all part of the English language. On the other hand, the French language includes English words like "le weekend" and "le camping". German words are also part of English
. Words like "kindergarten" come from the German language.
Recently, British peo
ple have become interested in “yoga”. But the word comes from an ancient Hindu language in India.
【小题1】The English language has a history of ______.
| A.over 2000 years | B.over 500 years |
| C.over 1500 years | D.over 1000 years |
| A.because of | B.in order to | C.as usual | D.as if. |
| A.It has been changing all the time. |
| B.It has borrowed words from all the other |
| C.French words are used by the En |
| D.Singers and film stars have the greatest influence on language. |
| A.One billion people | B.340 million |
| C.almost all the people in the world. | |
| D.not mentioned above, but the number is growing rapidly. |
| A.the USA | B.Nigeria | C.the Philippines | D.Norway |