The United States is a sports-loving nation. Sports in America take a variety of forms; organized competitive struggles, which draw huge crowds to cheer their favorite team to victory, athletic games, played for recreation anywhere sufficient space is found; and hunting and fishing. Most sports are seasonal, so that what is happening in sports depends upon the time of year. Some sports are called spectator sports, as the number of spectators really exceeds the number playing in the game. Baseball is the most popular sport in the US. It is played throughout the spring and summer, and professional baseball teams play well into the fall. Although no other game is exactly like baseball, perhaps the one most nearly like it is the English game of cricket (板球). Football is the most popular sport in the fall. The game originated as a college sport more than 75 years ago. It is still played by almost every college and university in the country, and the football stadiums of some of the largest universities seat as many as 80,000 people. The game is not the same as European football or soccer. In American football there are 11 players on each team, and they are dressed in padded uniforms and helmets because the game is rough and injuries are likely to occur. Basketball is the winter sport in American schools and colleges. Like football,basketball originated in the US and is not popular in other countries. Many Americans prefer it to football because it is played indoors throughout the winter and because it is a faster game. It is a very popular game with high schools,and in more than 20 states, state-wide high school matches are held yearly. Other spectator sports include wrestling, boxing, and horse racing. Although horse-racing fans call themselves sportsmen, the accuracy of the term is questionable, as only the jockeys (骑师) who ride the horses in the races can be considered athletes. The so-called sportsmen are the spectators, who do not "assemble" (聚集) primarily to see the horses race, but to bet upon the outcome of each race. Gambling is the attraction of horse racing.
1. Hunting and fishing are mainly favored by men, young and old, in the US. ______
A.True
B.False
C.Not Given
A B C
C
[解析] 喜欢打猎和钓鱼的人群在原文未提及。
2. The professional baseball teams play baseball from spring to fall. ______
A.True
B.False
C.Not Given
A B C
A
[解析] 根据原文第二段第二句话,职业棒球比赛会从春季持续到秋季。
3. Baseball shares many features with the English game of cricket. ______
The modern age is an age of electricity. People are so used to electric lights, radio, televisions, and telephones that it is hard to imagine what life would be like without them. When there is a power failure, people grope about in flickering candlelight, cars hesitate in the streets because there are no traffic lights to guide them, and food spoils in silent refrigerators. Yet, people began to understand how electricity works only a little more than two centuries ago. Nature has apparently been experimenting in this field for millions of years. Scientists are discovering more and more that the living world may hold many interesting secrets of electricity that could benefit humanity. All living cells send out tiny pulses of electricity. As the heart beats, it sends out pulses of record; they form an electrocardiogram, which a doctor can study to determine how well the heart is working. The brain, too, sends out brain waves of electricity, which can be recorded in an electroencephalogram. The electric currents generated by most living cells are extremely small—often so small that sensitive instruments are needed to record them. But in some animals, certain muscle cells have become so specialized as electrical generators that they do not work as muscle cells at all. When large numbers of these cells are linked together, the effects can be astonishing. The electric eel is an amazing storage battery. It can send a jolt of as much as eight hundred volts of electricity through the water in which it lives. (An electric house current is only one hundred twenty volts. ) As many as four fifths of all the cells in the electric eel's body are specialized for generating electricity, and the strength of the shock it can deliver corresponds roughly to the length of its body.
1. What is the main idea of the passage? ______
A.Electric eels are potentially dangerous.
B.Biology and electricity appear to be closely related.
C.People would be at a loss without electricity.
D.Scientists still have much to discover about electricity.
①Lightning has caused awe and wonder since old times. Although Benjamin Franklin demonstrated lightning as enormous electrical discharge more than 200 years ago, many puzzles still surround this powerful phenomenon. ②Lightning is generated when electrical charges separate in rain clouds, though processes are still not fully understood. Typically, positive charges build at the cloud top, while the bottom becomes negatively charged. In most instances of cloud-to-ground lightning, the negatively charged lower portion of the cloud repels negatively charged particles on the ground's surfaces, making it become positively charged. The positive charge on the ground gathers at elevated points. A flow of electrons begins between the cloud and earth. When the voltage charge becomes large enough, it breaks through the insulating barrier of air, and electrons zigzag earthward. We see the discharge as lightning. ③ Lightning can occur within a cloud, between clouds, or between clouds and the ground. The first variety, intra-cloud lightning, is the most frequent but is often hidden from our view. Cloud-to-ground lightning, making up about 20 percent of lightning discharges, is what we usually see. Lightning comes in several forms, including sheet, ribbon, and ball. Intra-cloud lightning can illuminate a cloud so it looks like a white sheet, hence its name. When cloud-to-ground lightning occurs during strong winds, they can shift the lightning channel sideways, so it looks like a ribbon. The average lightning strike is more than 3 miles long and can travel at a tenth of the speed of light. Ball lightning, the rarest and most mysterious form, derives its name from the small luminous ball that appears near the impact point, moves horizontally, and lasts for several seconds. ④Thunder is generated by the tremendous heat released in a lightning discharge. Temperatures near the discharge can reach as high as 50,000 °F within thousandths of a second. This sudden heating acts as an explosion, generating shock waves we hear as thunder. ⑤About 2,000 thunderstorms are occurring in the world at any tie, generating about 100 lighting strikes every second, or 8 million daily. Within the United States, lightning strikes are estimated at 20 million a year, or about 22,000 per day. You have a 1-in-600,000 chance of being struck by lightning during your lifetime. Lightning can strike twice or more in the same spot. The Empire State Building in New York is struck by lightning about two dozen times annually.
1. Paragraph ①______ A. Lightening Causes Puzzles to People B. Types of Lightning C. Causes of Lightning D. Differences Between Thunder and Thunderstorm E. Frequencies of Thunderstorms Occuriing in the World and the U. S. F. Shock Waves as Thunder
6. In most cases of cloud-to-ground lightning, the ground's surface ______. A. occurs most infrequently B. is shifted sideways by strong winds C. strike twice or more in the same spot D. is equipped with a good knowledge of various forms of lightning E. is estimated at 20 million a year F. is positively charged
Endangered Species Reading: Polar Bear Makes the List
In Spring 2008, the polar bear was placed on the endangered species list. According to the Endangered Species Act, an endangered species is an animal that is likely to face extinction in its natural habitat. 1 The ESA defines a threatened species as one that is likely to become "endangered" in the foreseeable future. The polar bear is the first animal that has been classified as endangered due primarily to global warming. 2 Heating homes, driving cars, and burning garbage all require fossil fuels that lead to global warming. The polar bear's habitat is more vulnerable to global warming than many other species. Polar bears live mainly on the sea ice in the Arctic. 3 When the ice melts many polar bears move to land and live off their stored fat. In the Arctic, global warming is causing the ice to melt slightly earlier and form slightly later. This results in a shorter feeding season for the polar bear. Some risk their lives to find ice. If they have to swim too far they will drown from exhaustion and hunger. 4 Every species of plant, animal, and insect there is threatened by global warming. Nevertheless, environmentalist groups such as the World Wildlife Fund often study large carnivores in order to assess the health of an ecosystem (生态系统). 5 In addition, donations are more commonly offered for the protection of large animals such as bears or elephants. People in general are less interested in conservation efforts that protect small wildlife, such as plants or insects. However, by using donor money to protect the habitat of the larger animals (ex. reforestation programs), entire ecosystems can be protected. It is important that animals such as the polar bear make it onto the endangered species list. Once they are on the list there are laws that protect these animals from being hunted for food or sport. Agencies also receive money and tools to protect the habitat and recover the species. The goal of removing the animal from the list is often achievable. In fact, it is rare for a species to go extinct after they make the list. Sadly many species do go extinct while waiting for consideration. A. But adding polar bears to the nation's list of endangered species, as some are now proposing, should not be part of those efforts. B. Global warming is caused by carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that become trapped in the atmosphere. C. The Arctic food chain relies on the polar bear. D. It is not only the polar bear that is at risk in the Arctic. E. This is where they hunt for fish and build up fat reserves. F. Polar bears have been categorized as a "threatened" species.
[解析] 根据空格前“The polar bear is the first animal that has been classified as endangered due primarily to global warming.(北极熊是第一种主要由于全球气候变暖而被列为濒危物种的动物)”以及空格后“Heating homes, driving cars, and burning garbage all require fossil fuels that lead to global warming.(家庭供暖、驾驶汽车和焚烧垃圾都需要导致全球变暖的化石燃料)”,可知选项B最符合逻辑。
3.
E
[解析] 根据空格前“Polar bears live mainly on the sea ice in the Arctic.(北极熊主要生活在北极地区的海冰上)”以及空格后“When the ice melts many polar bears move to land and live off their stored fat.(当冰雪融化,许多北极熊爬上陆地,依靠其储存的脂肪为生)”,可知选项E最符合逻辑。
4.
D
[解析] 空格位于首句,根据空格后“Every species of plant, animal, and insect there is threatened by global warming.(那儿的植物,动物和昆虫,每一个物种都受到全球变暖的威胁)”,得知选项D最符合逻辑。
5.
C
[解析] 根据空格前“Nevertheless, environmentalist groups such as the World Wildlife Fund often study large carnivores in order to assess the health of an ecosystem.(然而,世界野生动物基金会等环保团体经常研究大型食肉动物,以评估生态系统的健康)”,得知选项C最符合逻辑。
Demands for stronger protection for wildlife in Britain sometimes hide the fact that similar needs are felt in the rest of Europe. Studies by the Council of Europe have 1 that 45 per cent of reptile (爬行动物) species and 24 per cent of butterflies (蝴蝶) are in 2 of dying out. European concern for wildlife was outlined by Dr. Peter Baum, an expert in the environment and natural resources division of the council, when he spoke at a conference arranged by the administrators of a British national park. The 3 is one of the few areas in Europe to hold the council's diploma (证书) for nature reserves (自然保护区), he was 4 that public opinion was turning against national parks, and that those set up in the 1960s and 1970s could not be 5 up today. "No area could be expected to survive both as a true 6 reserve and as a tourist attraction. "he went on. The short-sighted view that reserves had to serve 7 human demands for outdoor recreation should be 8 by full acceptance of their importance as places to preserve nature for the future. "We forget that they are the guarantee of life systems, on which any built-up area ultimately depends. "Dr. Baum went on. "We could manage without most 9 products, but we could not manage without nature. However, our natural environment areas, which are the original parts of our countryside, have shrunk (缩小) to mere islands in a spoiled and 10 polluted landmass.” A. nature B. heavily C. immediate D. set E. shown F. said G. afraid H. industrial I. replaced J. park K. danger L. risk
1.
E
[解析] 此句为现在完成时,此处应填动词的过去分词二备选选项中有四个动词的过去分词:replaced意思是“代替,替代”,放在此处句意不通,said和set属于干扰项,shown意思是“表明”,此处应填shown。studies have shown that也属于常见用法,意思是“研究表明”,因此此题应选E。
Long hours at the screen can cause 1 (ache) eyes, 2 (blur) vision and headaches, experts say. In fact, eyestrain surpasses even wrist pain as the top physical 3 (complain) among heavy computer users. When peering into the computer screen, the eye's focusing muscle is at constant tension. Like any muscle, it feels sore when 4 (overload). And when someone spends a lot of time looking at something close, the eye muscle can get 5 (stick) on the near-focus setting and have difficulty relaxing, leaving the person 6 (temporary) nearsighted, a condition called accommodative spasm (痉挛) that can last seconds or hours. The letters on the screen are not as clearly 7 (define) as on a printed page. Take a magnifying glass to your momtor and you'll see the letters, each made up of pinpoint sources of light, have no sharp edges. But those liquid crystal display (LCD) monitors, like those found on laptop computers, are 8 (easy) on the eyes because they display sharper images. And studies have shown that when people are working on a computer, their rate of 9 (blink) goes down by two-thirds, which can result in dry, stinging eyes. This is especially a problem for contact-lenses 10 (wear).
[解析] 观察本句不难发现本句的时间状语从句省略了成分,补充完整时应是“Like any muscle, it feels sore when it is ______”,it在句中指代muscle,名词muscle和提示词动词overload(超载;超负荷)属被动关系,因此,此状语从句中应使用被动语态,即it feels sore when it is overloaded。原文正是省略了it is,因此,将动词overload改成过去分词overloaded填入空白处,符合语法和语境要求。
1. 假如你是Jerry,你的好朋友John考上了耶鲁大学,请根据以下内容要点给他写一封150词左右的英文祝贺信。 Main content: 1) congratulations; 2) the differences between college life and high school life; 3) your suggestions on a good college life.
Dear John,
I'm very glad to hear that you have passed the entrance examination and been accepted by Yale University.I feel very proud of you and I believe you really deserve the honor since you have been working so hard.As you have mentioned in the letter, there are both some similarities and differences between the college life and the life in high school. On the one hand, you have to go on working hard as there are a lot of subjects for you to learn. On the other hand, in high school,teachers will probably tell you what to learn and how to learn in details and will also monitor your learning performance,while in college, teachers work like tour guides and you have to find out your own way to acquire knowledge and solve problems. If you hope to adapt yourself to the new environment, you'd better be positive no matter what difficulties you will experience in your college life. May you a good college life!