To us it seems so natural to put up an umbrella to keep the water off when it rains. But actually the umbrella was not invented as protection against rain. Its first use was as a shade against the sun

第1题

It is possible that the weather of the world may be changing. Some scientists imagine that

this could even mean the beginning of another ice age. The effects of such a change in weather on human population of the world would be frightening.

Recent research suggests that the warming trend (倾向) of the past hundred years or so may be coming to an end. During the past ten years, scientists tell us that the temperature of the world has dropped a little. This would have effects on wind and rain in the weather picture.

Scientists believe clouds may be an important factor (因素) in changing the amount of heat on the earth. Another possibility is that man's agriculture and industry ways may affect the natural weather.

The weather of the world seems to be getting ______.

A．hotter

B．colder

C．warmer

D．freezing

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第2题

One of the most authoritative voices speaking to us today is, of course, the voice of the

advertisers. It shouts at us from the television screen and the radio loudspeakers; waves to us from every page of the newspaper; signals to us from the roadside bill-boards all day and flashes messages to us in colored lights all night.

Advertising has been among England's biggest growth industries since the war. Perhaps the reason is that advertising saves the manufacturers from having to think about the customer.

At the stage of designing and developing a product, there is quite enough to think about without worrying over whether anybody will want to buy it. The designer is busy enough without adding customer-appeal to all his other problems of man-hours and machine tolerance and stress factors. So they just go ahead and make the thing and leave it to the advertiser to find clever ways of making it appeal to purchasers after they have finished it, by pretending that it confers(赋予) status, or attracts love, or signifies manliness.

Other manufacturers find advertising saves them from changing their product. And manufacturers hate change. The ideal product is one that goes on unchanged forever. If, therefore, for one reason or another, some alteration seems called for—how much better to change the image, the packet or the pitch made by the product, rather than go to all the inconvenience of changing the product itself.

Which of the following can best describe the author's attitude toward modern advertising？

A．Indifferent.

B．Shocked.

C．Disappearing.

D．Approving.

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第3题

Our environment is getting worse and worse with the increase of the world population, whic

h affects the environment in two ways. Firstly, the limited energy resources will be used up much faster. Secondly, the increasing population creates more pollution, another severe problem that needs to be solved: Both problems are long-term ones because actions taken now show their results slowly over many years. They are also urgent because delays in action can lead to great suffering and social problems. The question seems to be difficult to handle for most people. However, a person can be a protector of environment in everyday life if he takes actions to save the environment right now. With the development of technology, cars make transportation easier and quicker than before, but we can't ignore the disadvantages brought to us by more and more cars in use. For example, we are consuming gasoline(汽油), which is a non-renewable (无法更新的)resource, and will soon be gone. Moreover, the exhausted gas from cars pollutes our air, and our health is therefore threatened by air pollution, which has a big potential effect on our daily life. So we can consider walking, taking buses, carpooling(合用汽车) instead of driving cars alone. This seems to be a very slow process that can't be so effective if it's taken by a single person. But when more and more people become aware of the importance and positively take it as their personal responsibilities, the condition of the air will be improved to a great extent.

According to the writer, the main problem to our environment today is______.

A．the increase of population

B．the limited energy resources

C．the more serious air pollution

D．the development of technology

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第4题

Everyone seems to be in favor of progress. But " progress" is a funny word. It doesn't nec

essarily mean that something has become stronger, wiser, or better. It simply means changing it from being one thing to another and sometimes it turns out to be worse than before.

Consider medicine, for instance. No one can deny that medical progress has enriched our lives tremendously. Because of medical advances, we eat better, live easier and are able to take care of ourselves more efficiently. We can cure disease with no more than one injection or a pill. If we have a serious accident, surgeons can put us back together again. If we are born with something defective, they can repair it. They can make us happy, restore our normality, ease our pain, replace worn parts and give us children. They can even bring us back from the dead. These are wonderful achievements, but there is a price we have to pay.

Because medicine has reduced infant mortality and natural death so significantly, the population has been rising steadily, in spite of serious efforts to reduce the rate of population growth. Less than a century ago in the United Stales, infant mortality claimed more than half of the newborn within the first year of life. Medical advances, however, have now reduced that rate to nearly zero. A child born in the United States today has better than a 90% chance of survival. Furthermore, medical advances have ensured that most of these infants will live to be seventy years of age or more, and even that life expectancy increases every year. The result of this progress is an enormous population increase that threatens the quality of life, brought about by progress in the medical profession.

According to this passage, " progress" doesn't always mean that______.

A．something has become stronger and better

B．something has been changed from being one thing to another

C．something has become funny

D．something turns out to be worse than before

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第5题

To us it seems so natural to put up an umbrella to keep the water off when it rains. But a

ctually the umbrella was not invented as protection against rain. Its first use was as a shade against the sun!

Nobody knows who first invented it, but the umbrella was used in very ancient times. Probably the first to use it were the Chinese, as early as the eleventh century B. C.

We know that the umbrella was used in ancient Egypt and Babylon as a sunshade. And there was a strange thing connected with its use: it became a symbol of honour and authority. In the Far East in ancient times the umbrella was allowed to be used only by royalty or by those in high office.

In Europe, the Greeks were the first to use the umbrella as a sunshade. And the umbrella was in common use in ancient Greece. But it is believed that the first persons in Europe to use the umbrella as protection against the rain were the ancient Romans.

During the Middle Ages, the use of the umbrella practically disappeared. Then it appeared a gain in Italy in the late sixteenth century. And again it was considered a symbol of power and authority. By 1680, the umbrella appeared in France, and later on in England.

By the eighteenth century, the umbrella was used against rain throughout most of Europe. Umbrellas have not changed much in style. during all this time, though they have become much lighter in weight. It wasn' t until the twentieth century that women' s umbrellas began to be made, in a whole variety of colours.

According to this passage, the umbrella was probably first invented ______.

A．in ancient China

B．in ancient Egypt

C．in ancient Greece

D．in ancient Rome

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第6题

To us it seems so natural to put up an umbrella to keep the water off when it rains, but a

ctually the umbrella was not invented as protection against rain. Its first use was as a shade against the sun.

Nobody knows who first invented it, but the umbrella was used in very ancient times. Probably the Chinese were the first to use it in the eleventh century B. C.

We know that the umbrella was used in ancient Egypt and Babylon as a sunshade. And there was a strange thing connected with its use: it became a symbol of honor and authority. In the Far East in ancient times, the umbrella was allowed to be used only by the king or by those in high office.

In Europe, the Greeks were the first to use the umbrella as a sunshade. And the umbrella was in common use in ancient Greece. But it is believed that the first persons in Europe to use the umbrella as protection against the rain were the ancient Romans. During the Middle Ages, the use of the umbrella practically disappeared, Then it appeared again in Italy in the late sixteenth century. And a gain it was considered a symbol of power and authority. By 1680, the umbrella appeared in France, and later on in England.

By the 18th century the umbrella was used against rain throughout most of Europe. Umbrella have not changed much in style. during all this time, though they have become much lighter in weight. It wasn't until the twentieth century that women's umbrellas were made, in a whole variety of colors.

According to this passage, the umbrella was probably first invented ______.

A．in ancient China

B．in ancient Europe

C．in ancient Greece

D．in ancient Rome

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第7题

I've been going home for lunch ever since I started school. I never liked eating in the ca

feteria(自助食堂) although in tile seventh grade, because all the other boys were doing it and thought it was cool. I washed dishes in the junior high school lunchroom once in a while in exchange for a free lunch. But I like going back to my own house at once.

Mom is always there; she had soup ready in the breakfast room by the time that Ann and Jim and I get home. Ann and Jim have never gone in for the cafeteria, either. Our house in only about a ten-minute walk from the school building, so we can make it back in plenty of time.

There's something about eating in the cafeteria--and not leaving the high school from morning until afternoon -- that feels a little like being in prison. By the end of the morning, I've got to get out of the building. And Mom never seems to mind fixing lunch for us; she never suggests that we eat in the cafeteria.

It's really the only time we have to be alone with her. In the morning Dad's there, and by the time I get home after messing around(混时间) after school, he's usually at home from work. So the time that Mom and I talk together is usually at lunch.

I feel sorry for the students who eat in the cafeteria every day. It would drive me mad, I don't know if their moms just don't like to cook for them in the middle of the day, or if they actually like the cafeteria and the cafeteria food.

When the author was in junior high school, ______.

A．he never ate in the cafeteria

B．he ate in the cafeteria sometimes but not often

C．he always went back for lunch

D．he often ate in the cafeteria

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第8题

so valuable to us _18_ written history isA.asB.thatC.suchD.so

so valuable to us _18_ written history is

A.as

B.that

C.such

D.so

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第9题

We are interested in the weather because it______ us so directly.A．benefitsB．affectsC．guid

We are interested in the weather because it______ us so directly.

A．benefits

B．affects

C．guides

D．effects

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