阅读理解

TaIL Spin

　　Two dolphins race around in a big pool in the Ocean Park．The smaller dolphin Grace, shown off a few of her tricks, turning around and waving hello to the crowd．The most amazing thing about her, however, is that she's even swimming at all．She doesn't have a tail．

　　Grace lost her tail as a baby when she got caught up in a fish trap．

　　When the dolphin arrived at the Ocean Park in December 2005, she was fighting for her life．“Is she going to make it?” Her trainer, Abbey Stone, feared the worst．Grace did make it－but her tail didn't．She ended up losing her flukes and the lower part of her peduncle．

　　Over the past six years, she has learned to swim without her tail．Dolphins swim by moving their flukes and peduncle up and down．Grace taught herself to move another way－like a fish! She pushed herself forward through the water by moving her peduncles from side to side．

　　The movement put harmful pressure on Grace's backbone．So a company offered to create a man-made tail for her．The tail had to be strong enough to stay on Grace as she swam but soft enough that it wouldn't hurt her．

　　The first time Grace wore the artificial tail．She soon shook it off and let it sink in the bottom of the pool．Now, she is still learning to use the tail．Some days she wears it for an hour at a time, others not at all．“The tail isn't necessary for her to feel comfortable,” says Stone, “but it helps to keep that range of motion(动作)and build muscles(肌肉)．”

　　Now, the dolphin is about to get an even happier ending．This month, Grace will star in Dolphin Tale, a film that focus on her rescue and recovery．Her progress has inspired more than just a new movie．Many people travel from near and far to meet her．Seeing Grace swim with her man-made tail gives people so much courage．

(1)

(2)

(3)

阅读理解

EP Portable Heater

　　We all know that the cost of heating our homes will continue to be a significant burden on the family budget．Now millions of people are saving on their heating bills with the EP Portable Heater．With over one million satisfied customers around the world, the new EP heats better and faster, saves more on heating bills, and runs almost silent．

　　The EP has no exposed heating parts that can cause a fire．The outside of EP only gets warm to the touch so that it will not burn children or pets．

　　The EP will not reduce oxygen in the room．With other heaters, you'll notice that you get sleepy when the heat comes on because they are burning up oxygen．

　　The advanced EP also heats the room evenly, wall to wall and floor to ceiling．it comfortably covers an area up to 350 square feet．Other heaters heat rooms unevenly with most of the heat concentrated to the center of the room．And they only heat an area a few feet around the heater．With the EP, the temperature will not vary in any part of the room．

　　The EP comes with a 3-year warranty(保修)and a 60-day．no questions asked．Satisfaction guarantee．If you are not totally satisfied, return it to our expertise and your money will be given back to you．

　　Now, we have a special offer for 10 days, during which you can enjoy a half price discount and a free delivery．if you order that, we reserve the right to either accept or reject order requests at the discounted price．

　　Take action right now!

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

阅读理解

　　The oldest and most common source(来源)of renewable energy known to man, biomass is one of the most important forms energy production in the United States and elsewhere．Since such a wide variety of biomass materials is everywhere－from trees and grasses to agricultural and city－life wastes－biomass promises to play a continuing role in providing power and heat for millions of people around the world．

　　According to the Union of Concerned Scientists(UCS), biomass is a kind of renewable energy source that produces no carbon dioxide(二氧化碳), because the energy it contains comes from the sun．When plant matter is burned, it gives off the sun's energy．In this way, biomass serves as a sort of natural battery(电池)for storing the sun's energy．As long as biomass is produced continuously－with only as much grown as is used－the “battery” lasts forever．

　　According to the Energy Information Administration, biomass has been one of the leading renewable energy sources in the United States for several years running through 2007, making up between 0.5 and 0.9 percent of the nation's total electricity supply．In 2008－although the numbers aren't all in yet－wind power probably took over first place because of the rapid development of wind farms across the country．

　　Producing power from biomass helps reduce some 11 million tons of carbon dioxide each year．Some homeowners also try to make their own heat by using biomass materials．Such practice may save homeowner's money, but it also produces a lot of pollution．So, the best way is to encourage power plants to use it．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

阅读理解

Low-Cost Gifts for Mother's Day

Gift No．1

　　Offer to be your mother's health friend．Promise to be there for any and all doctor's visits whether a disease or a regular medical check-up．Most mothers always say "no need," another set of eyes and ears is always a good idea at a doctor's visit．The best part ? This one is free．

Gift No．2

　　Help your mother organize all of her medical records, which include the test results and medical information．Put them all in one place．Be sure to make a list of all of her medicines and what times she takes them．"Having all this information in one place could end up saving your mother's life," Dr．Marie Savard said．

Gift No．3

　　Enough sleep is connected to general health conditions．"Buy your mother cotton sheets and comfortable pillows to encourage better sleep," Savard said．"We know that good sleep is very important to our health．"

Gift No．4

　　Some gift companies such as Presents for Purpose allow you to pay it forward this Mother's Day by picking gifts in which 10 percent of the price you pay goes to a charity(慈善机构)Gift givers can choose from a wide variety of useful but inexpensive things -many of which are "green" - and then choose a meaningful charity from a list．When your mother gets the gift, she will be told that she has helped the chosen charity．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

阅读理解

　　Given that many people's moods(情绪)are regulated by the chemical action of chocolate, it was probably only a matter of time before somebody made the chocolate shop similar to a drugstore of Chinese medicine．Looking like a setting from the film Charlie&the Chocolate Factory, Singapore's Chocolate Research Facility(CRF)has over 100 varieties of chocolates．its founder is Chris Lee who grew up at his parents' comer store with one hand almost always in the jar of sweets．

　　If the CRF seems to be a smart idea, that's because Lee is not merely a seasoned salesperson but also head of a marketing department that has business relations with big names such as Levi's and Sony．That idea surely results in the imagination at work when it comes to making different flavored(味道)chocolates．

　　The CRF's produce is "green"．made within the country and divided into 10 lines, with the Alcohol Series being the most popular．The Exotic Series－with Sichuan pepper, red bean(豆)．cheese and other flavors－also does well and is fun to taste．And for chocolate snobs，who think that they have a better knowledge of chocolate than others, the Connoisseur Series uses cocoa beans from Togo, Cuba, Venezuela , and Ghana, among others．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

阅读理解

　　In 1947 a group of famous people from the art world headed by an Austrian conductor decided to hold an international festival(节日)of music, dance and theatre in Edinburgh．The idea was to reunite Europe after the Second World War．

　　It quickly attracted famous names such as Alec Guinness, Richard Burton, Dame Margot Fonteyn and Marlene Dietrich as well as the big symphony orchestras(交响乐团)．It became a fixed event every August and now attracts 400,000 people yearly．

　　At the same time, the “Fringe”appeared as a challenge(挑战)to the official festival．Eight theatre groups turned up uninvited in 1947, in the belief that everyone should have the right to perform, and they did so in a public house disused for years．

　　Soon, groups of students firstly from Edinburgh University, and later from the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, Durham and Birmingham were making the journey to the Scottish capital each summer to perform theatre by little-known writers of plays in small church halls to the people of Edinburgh．

　　Today the “Fringe”, once less recognized, has far outgrown the festival with around 1,500 performances of theatre, music and dance on every one of the 21 days it lasts．And yet as early as 1959, with only 19 theatre groups performing, some said it was getting too big．

　　A paid administrator(行政人员)was first employed only in 1971, and today there are eight administrators working all year round and the number rises to 150 during August itself．In 2004 there were 200 places housing 1,695 shows by over 600 different groups from 50 different countries, More than 1.25 million tickets were sold．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

阅读理解

　　Doctor are known to be terrible pilots．They don't listen because they already know it all．I was lucky：] became a pilot in 1970, almost ten years before I graduated from medical school．I didn't realize then, but becoming a pilot makes me a better surgeon．I loved flying．As I flew bigger, faster planes, and in worse weather．I learned about crew resource management(机组资源管理), or CRM, a new idea to make flying safer．It means that crew members should listen and speak up for a good result, regardless of positions．

　　I first read about CRM in 1980．Not long after that, an attending doctor and I were flying in bad weather．The controller had us turn too late to get our landing ready．The attending doctor was flying; I was safety pilot He was so busy because of the bad turn, he had forgotten to put the landing gear(起落架)down．He was a better pilot - and my boss - so it felt unusual to speak up．But I had to：Our lives were in danger．I put aside my uneasiness and said, "We need to put the landing gear down now!" That was my first real lesson in the power of CRM, and I've used it in the operating room ever since．

　　CRM requires that the pilot/surgeon encourage others to speak up．It further requires that when opinions are from the opposite, the doctor doesn't overreact, which might prevent fellow doctors from voicing opinions again．So when I'm in the operating room, I ask for ideas and help from others．Sometimes they're not willing to speak up．But I hope that if I continue to encourage them , someday someone will keep me from ”landing gear up”．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

阅读理解

Description：

　　The National Gallery is the British national art museum built on the north side of Trafalgar Square in London．It houses a diverse collection of more than 2,300 examples of European art ranging from 13th-century religious paintings to more modern ones by Renoir and Van Gogh．The older collections of the gallery are reached through the main entrance while the more modern works in the East Wing are most easily reached from Trafalgar Square by a ground floor entrance

Layout：

　　The modern Sainsbury Wing on the western side of the building houses 13th- to 15th-century paintings, and artists include Duccio, Uccello, Van Eyck, Lippi, Mantegna, Botticelli and Memling．

　　The main West Wing houses 16th-century paintings, and artists include Leonardo da Vinci, Cranach, Michelangelo, Raphael, Bruegel, Bronzino, Titan and Veronese．

　　The North Wing houses 17th-century paintings, and artists include Caravaggio, Rubens, Poussin, Van Dyck, Velazquez, Claude and Vermeer．

　　The East Wing houses 18th- to early 20th-century paintings, and artists include Canaletto, Goya, Turner, Constable, Renoir and Van Gogh．

Opening Hours：

　　The Gallery is open every day from 10am to 6pm(Fridays 10am to 9pm)and is free, but charges apply to some special exhibitions．

Getting There：

　　Nearest underground stations：Charing Cross(2-minute walk), Leicester Square(3-minute walk), Embankment(7-minute walk), and Piccadilly Circus(8-minute walk)．

(1)

(2)

(3)

阅读理解

　　It happened to me recently．I was telling someone how much I had enjoyed reading Barack Obama's Dreams From My Father and how it had changed my views of our President．A friend I was talking to agreed with me that it was, in his words, “a brilliantly(精彩地)written book”．However, he then went on to talk about Mr．Obama in a way which suggested he had no idea of his background at all．I sensed that I was talking to a book liar．

　　And it seems that my friend is not the only one．Approximately two thirds of people have lied about reading a book which they haven't．In the World Book Day's “Report on Guilty Secrets”, Dreams From My Father is at number 9．The report lists ten books, and various authors, which people have lied about reading, and as I'm not one to lie too often(I'd hate to be caught out), I'll admit here and now that I haven't read the entire top ten．But I am pleased to say that, unlike 42 percent of people, I have read the book at number one, George Orwell's 1984．I think it's really brilliant．

　　The World Book Day report also has some other interesting information in it．It says that many people lie about having read Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Fyodor Dostoevsky(I haven't read him, but haven't lied about it either)and Herman Melville．

　　Asked why they lied, the most common reason was to “impress” someone they were speaking to．This could be tricky if the conversation became more in–depth!

　　But when asked which authors they actually enjoy, people named J．K．Rowling, John Grisham, Sophie Kinsella(ah, the big sellers, in other words)．Forty-two percent of people asked admitted they turned to the back of the book to read the end before finishing the story(I'll come clean：I do this and am astonished that 58 percent said they had never done so)．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

阅读理解

　　They baby is just one day old and has not yet left hospital．She is quiet but alert(警觉)．Twenty centimeters from her face researchers have placed a white card with two black spots on it．She stares at it carefully．A researcher removes the card and replaces it by another, this time with the spots differently spaced．As the cards change from one to the other, her gaze(凝视)starts to lose its focus － until a third, with three black spots, is presented．Her gaze returns：she looks at it for twice as long as she did at the previous card．Can she tell that the number two is different from three, just 24 hours after coming into the world?

　　Or do newborns simply prefer more to fewer? The same experiment, but with three spots shown before two, shows the same return of interest when the number of spots changes．Perhaps it is just the newness? When slightly older babies were shown cards with pictures of objects(a comb, a key, an orange and so on), changing the number of objects had an effect separate from changing the objects themselves．Could it be the pattern that two things make, as opposed to three? No again．Babies paid more attention to squares moving randomly on a screen when their number changed from two to three, or three to two．The effect even crosses between senses．Babies who were repeatedly shown two spots became more excited when they then heard three drumbeats than when they heard just two; likewise(同样地)when the researchers started with drumbeats and moved to spots．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)