Climate change has caused the disappearance of ice in Antarctic. It will not only do harm to wildlife in the area but also cause levels of oceans and seas around the world to rise. The old city of Venice, Italy has long been threatened by rising sea levels

Climate change has caused the disappearance of ice in Antarctic. It will not only do harm to wildlife in the area but also cause levels of oceans and seas around the world to rise. The old city of Venice, Italy has long been threatened by rising sea levels. Its old buildings, built on a body of water called a lagoon, are slowly "sinking". When the city was founded about one thousand six hundred yours ago, the water level was almost two meters lower than it is today.

    Mount Kilimanjaro in northeastern Tanzania is the highest point in Africa, with five vegetation zones and many kinds of animals. The ice glaciers on the mountain are disappearing very quickly. This will have a bad effect on the mountain's plants and animals and on Tanzania's travel industry. Also, a valuable record of thousands of years of weather history will also be lost if the ice melts. Scientists study pieces of the glacier to know the weather thousands of years ago.

    In the United States, the ice in the Glacier National Park in Montana may soon completely disappear because of climate change. In 1950, there were about 150 glaciers in the park. However there are only 26 glaciers remaining today. Scientists say that the glaciers will be gone by 2030. Many kinds of plants and animals in this mountain park are also disappearing.

   Rising sea temperatures are greatly harming the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. In some areas, healthy yellow, brown and green reefs have turned white. The coral whitens when it becomes breathless because of high temperatures. Its food also becomes less and less because the water is deepening.

   These places are included in the book called "Disappearing Destinations: 37 Places in Peril and What Can Be Done to Help Save Them." It aims to call on the world to protect these places of interest in danger.

“China is expected to complete its first exploration (探索) of the moon in 2010 and will found a moon base just as we did on the North and South Poles,” Ouyang Ziyuan, head of China's moon exploration program, promised during national science and techno

 "China is expected to complete its first exploration (探索) of the moon in 2010 and will found a moon base just as we did on the North and South Poles," Ouyang Ziyuan, head of China's moon exploration program, promised during national science and technology week.

After its first man in space, China plans a space laboratory, a lunar orbiter to look for valuable elements and minerals, robot landings on the moon and then the human touchdown.

The price of space exploration is enormous. Russia and the US, the only two countries to have achieved manned flight, are struggling to keep their new investment, the international space station.

But China, which has a long tradition in physics, mathematics and engineering, finds its doctoral graduates welcomed in the US and Europe for decades. And it has been able to learn from 40 years of pioneering successes and mistakes by the USSR and the USA.

Space flight is a gamble and the stakes (赌注) are high. If successful, China could become a member of the world's most exclusive club, set up a second home on the moon and get a powerful hand at the strategic bargaining table.

Two designers from the Shenzhou III project said that 12 astronauts now are undergoing intensive training. One more unmanned space flight is planned before the first manned launch.

Experts say that the Shenzhou spacecraft already provides China with a space vehicle capable of mounting（发起）a lunar program. Chinese scientists have also predicted that Mars will be the next target after the moon.

During his life Dr James Naismith worked as a doctor, taught PE and wrote severa! books．While he never thought it very important, Dr Naismith is today best known for one thing．He was the inventor of basketball．

During his life Dr James Naismith worked as a doctor, taught PE and wrote severa! books．While he never thought it very important, Dr Naismith is today best known for one thing．He was the inventor of basketball．

Dr Naismith was bom in Canada in 1861 and his first job was at a special sports school in the USA．One day the school headmaster told James he was having a problem with the students．Because it snowed heavily, the students could not go outside．He told James that they needed a sport the boys could play indoors and gave the teacher two weeks to think of something．

It was on the very last day that James came up with his idea．The "birth of basketball' is said to be on December 21, 1891, when two teams from the school played the first game．It was quite different from the basketball games of today．It had 9 players on each team and footballs were used instead of basketballs．Soon after, the game changed to 5 players on each side, using special 'basketballs'．

Although Dr Naismith did not live to see basketball become the worldwide game it is today, in 1936, just three years before his death, basketball became an Olympic sport at the Games in Benin．

 

W：Good morning．May I help you?

W：Good morning．May I help you?

M：Yes．I want to know about the bus service between here and Detroit．I came here last week by train, but I like to try different ways of traveling．

W：Well, I'll try to help you．Here is our timetable．

M：Thank you．It shows that there are eight buses a day that leave Cleveland to Detroit．

W：And the service is cheaper than the train, l

M：Oh, yes．Why is that?

W：The bus trip takes a little longer than the train trip, and we do not have a dining car．

M：Is there a restroom?

W：Yes, we do have a restroom．And the bus is air-conditioned．The trip should be comfortable．

M：How long is the trip?

W：We have express buses that take a little more than three hours．And we have buses that stop at several cities along the way．They're cheaper, but they take more than four hours．

M：Can I use my return ticket for the train to pay for my bus ticket?

W：No, you will have to take that ticket to the train station．They will give you your money back, and then you can buy a bus ticket from here．

M：I see．Thanks for your help．

W：You're welcome．

Text 9

W：Hello Tim．Are you going in for the bike riding competition next week?

M：Sure I am! Can't you see that I'm preparing for it? I'm doing two hours of bike riding a day．

W：Wow! That sounds serious! Although I'm not taking part in the competition I run every day．And I eat a well-balanced diet．

M：Good．I've been eating healthily too and also stopped smoking．I found that I didn't have so much energy when I

smoked．I want to win so I decided to stop it．

W：Well done．That musrve been hard．I know because I stopped smoking last year．It was bad for a time but afteiwards I

felt much better．Much fitter too! I'm sure you did the right thing．

M：I hope so．I sometimes feel quite nervous but I've stuck with it and not smoked for a week．

W：That should help you when you actually get to the competition．Do you do other exercise as well as riding your bike?

M：Well, no．

W：I recommend you run as well．It helps build up your leg muscles and that will help you when you cyde up hills．That can be very tiring, you know!

M：Yes, that's a good idea．Thanks．I hope that my healthy diet, the extra running and my riding practice should help me win．

W：I hope so too．Good luck to you!

 

Text 1

Text 1

M：Do you have any special plans for the holiday?

W：Yes, I'm going to London for a few days．You know, I'm planning to go to The Tower of London．I've always wanted to go there!

Text 2

W：Have you been to the photography exhibition?

M：Yes．It's excellent．I got there at 8：30 and left at about 12 o'clock．I saw all the pictures on show．Now I'm looking foiward to the art exhibition next year．

Text3

W：What a queue' I've been waiting here so long, that my feet hurt．

M：I hope the tickets don't sell out!

W：Me too! I've never heard of this Group, but I think they'll be worth the wait．

Text 4

W：Please be more careful when you cross the street．

M：I don t like to wait for the light to turn green．I'm in a hurry．

W：Waiting for the light is not just for your safety．It is also polite to others．

M：But they have cars, and I do not．So I should cross whenever I like．

W：Don't be so selfish．If everyone obeys the lights, the traffic situation will be getting better．

Text 5

W：Alan, you must not waste your homework time by watching TV．Do all your work first．

M：OK．I know that's the best plan for my study．

W：Ifs also the best plan for your character．It will teach you self-control．

M：That's what my mother says, too!

Text 6

W：You asked Catherine to be here around eight o'clock, didn't you?

M：Yes．What time is it now?

W：It's neariy a quarter to nine．I wonder what happened．

M：Hmm．She might have forgotten the time．Why not call and see if she's on her way?

W：OK．（a few minutes later） I got her answering machine, so I guess she must have left already．

M：I hope she didn't have a problem on the road．

W：I hope she hasn't simply forgotten our invitation．

Text 7

W：Did you watch TV last night?

M：Yes, I did．

W：The football game between Miami Dolphins and Chicago Bears was really wonderful, wasn't it?

M：Oh, I didn't watch the football match．I wanted to, but my wife preferred to watch the old film．

W：What a pity! It was quite exciting．Both teams played very well．

M：How did it finish?

W：It finished in a draw．What was the film like?

M：It was quite good．But I missed the beginning of it because I had to eat first．

W：Did your wife enjoy it?

M：No．After half an hour she stopped watching and started to read a book．

 

Dear Sir or Madam,

Dear Sir or Madam,

It will be a great relief to take a long holiday. You cannot imagine how stressful the school life is to us Senior 3 students. So I have a big plan for this coming winter holiday.

Taking a good sleep, without doubt, will be my first choice. The second thing I would like to do is to have a get-together with my friends who I have not been in touch for quite a long time. Of course, the biggest thing on my agenda is to plan a romantic festival. This Spring Festival is a combination of the traditional Chinese New Year and Valentine's Day. I will make my parents a card in the shape of a heart and arrange a sweet night for the three of us.

Best wishes,

Yours faithfully,

Wang Hao

 

Experts say that agriculture provides fourteen percent of the world's greenhouse gas emissions each year．The gases released include carbon dioxide, a major cause of global warming．

Experts say that agriculture provides fourteen percent of the world's greenhouse gas emissions each year．The gases released include carbon dioxide, a major cause of global warming．

Twenty-one nations around the world recently joined forces to better understand and prevent greenhouse gas emissions from farms．The Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases was launched at the United Nations conference on climate change．The meeting took place in Copenhagen, Denmark last month．

Agricultural experts blame a number of farm activities for producing greenhouse gases．For example, animal waste and cattle digestive systems release methane （甲烷，沼气） gas．Fertilized soil and the burning of crop waste also release harmful gases into the air．Experts say some methods of farming ?turning the soil to prepare for planting ?also release harmful carbon dioxide．

An official of the European Commission's Directorate General for Research says agricultural greenhouse gas emissions can be cut．Maive Rute suggests feeding animals a diet designed to reduce emissions．

The new agricultural research group says protecting against global warming is only part of its purpose．It says the world also needs to develop better farming methods to feed growing populations in poor countries．

United States Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said no one single nation can fight agricultural greenhouse gas emissions and increase food production at the same time．This is why the alliance is important for combining resources and finding new ones．

The United States Department of Agriculture will increase spending on farm emissions research by ninety million dollars over the next four years．The total will reach one hundred thirty million dollars．The U．S．D．A．will share the research with other countries in the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases and support researchers from developing countries that belong to the alliance．Money from the Borlaug Fellowship program will let the researchers study agricultural climate change with American scientists．

Mister Vilsack said that just as climate change has no borders, there should be no borders for research．

72．In Paragraph 4, Maive Rute recommends _____．

    A．increasing food production

    B．changing cattle digestive systems

    C．developing better fanning methods

    D．giving animals the food meant to produce fewer emissions

73．The underlined word "alliance" in Paragraph 6 probably means _____．

    A．Action or state being joined together

    B．An agreement signed between countries

    C．A program or project set up for a research

    D．An organization formed for different goals

74．How much has the U．S．D．A．spent on farm emissions research so far?

    A．130 million dollars．            B．220 million dollars．

    C．40 million dollars．                               D．90 million dollars．

75．The purpose of the passage is to ____．

    A．suggest a total ban on farm activities

    B．introduce Copenhagen conference held last month[

    C．appeal to more countries to cut agricultural emissions[

    D．inform readers of the major cause of global warming

 

Compared to adults, children seem to be moving constantly．So it's no surprise that most parents who are quizzed about their child's physical activity level describe their children as fairly active．But a new study of nearly 2,000 British school children s

Compared to adults, children seem to be moving constantly．So it's no surprise that most parents who are quizzed about their child's physical activity level describe their children as fairly active．But a new study of nearly 2,000 British school children suggests that many parents overestimate the amount of physical activity their children are really getting．

The researchers equipped 1,892 British school children, ages 9 and 10, with accelerometers that measure all physical activity during a given time period．The research, known as the Speedy study collected the exercise data from children at 92 schools in Norfolk, England, between April and July 2007．

A child was regarded inactive if he or she recorded less than an hour a day of physical activity．Although the majority of children studied were getting enough physical activity, a sizable minority of children were not．Overall, 39 percent of girls and 18 percent of boys studied were getting less than an hour of physical activity each day．

But if you asked the parents of the inactive children to describe their child's activity level, the vast majority—80 percent—described their children as fairly or very physically active, according to the findings published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine．Interestingly, the children themselves had more awareness about their lack of physical activity．Overall, 40 percent of children overestimated their physical activity．

But it wasn't the parents of overweight children who were most likely to guess wrong about physical activity levels．The parents who were most out of touch about their child's physical fitness were more likely to have children who were slim．Parents of girls were also more likely to overestimate physical activity．The researchers noted that parents should be educated about the importance of physical activity for children even if the child is not overweight．

"Parents of slim children appear to assume that their children are adequately active," the study authors reported．"Increasing awareness regarding health benefits of physical activity beyond weight control might help have a correct idea of physical activity levels and encourage behavior change．"

69．According to the Speedy study, what kind of children can be judged physically inactive?

    A．Slim children．

    B．Children with less than an hour a day of physical activity．

    C．Overweight children．

    D．Children out of touch with their parents for a long time．

70．What does the writer probably mean by saying "a sizable minority of children were not" in Paragraph 3?

    A．The amount of children's physical activity is far from the writer's satisfaction．

    B．Only a small number of children were not getting enough physical activity．

    C．A small number of children didn't overestimate their physical activity．

    D．The minority of children were not studied at all．

71．The passage is intended to ____．

    A．encourage parents to fairly judge their child's physical activity levels

    B．persuade parents to keep an eye on their children's weight

    C．urge children to wear accelerometers during exercise

    D．advise parents to keep in touch with their children

B

B

For many employers, Facebook, MySpace and other social networking sites are already a threat （威胁） that cut into productivity．Now they have something else to worry about—the games hosted by these sites．

This new type of social gaming is called "asynchronous" gaming and allows people to play with their friends without having to be online at the same time．The low-intensity （低强度） engagement has made games such as FarmVille, Cafe World and Pet Society popular among employees who often log on during office hours．

"What we are seeing is that more and more people and organizations are recognizing the productivity lost so probably more chief information officers are blocking Facebook applications," Rebecca Wettemann of Nucleus Research said．

Boston-based Nucleus Research, which conducted a recent study into the effects of social networking sites on productivity, said nearly half of office employees in the United States access social networking sites at work, which leads to an average loss of 1．5 percent of total office productivity．

Facebook, which has 350 million users, says at least 20 percent of its members play games online．Sebastien de Halleux, CEO and co-founder of online game creator Playfish, said Asia is growing at a faster pace than other regions．"We had no idea that it would spread so fast．．．when we had 100,000 users after one month, we thought it was the biggest success ever．Now with 60 million users we think this is only the beginning of something much bigger," he added．

Zynga's FarmVille, the best known game with over 70 million active users to date, allows players to own a virtual farm where they can grow crops and raise animals．

While companies try to limit access to social networking sites, not everyone sees the games as harmful．

61．We can learn that Pet Society is a game _____．

    A．popular among employers          B．without having to be online

    C．merely played during office hours                  D．that can be played online at a different time

62．It can be inferred from the passage that ____．

    A．Playfish is owned by Sebastien and Rebecca

    B．Playfish has over 70 million active users to date

    C．Asia will be the largest potential market for Playfish

    D．Playing online games loses 1．5 percent of total office productivity

63．The best title of the passage would be ____．

    A．Social Network Gaming                              B．New Threat to Productivity

    C．Social Networking Sites                            D．Latest Survey on Productivity

64．What would most probably be discussed next after the last paragraph?

    A．Opinions in favor of online games．

    B．Measures to limit access to social networking sites．

    C．Suggestions on how to improve productivity．

    D．More examples about the bad effects of online games．

 

Last year was the year of the travel deal, with resorts and

Last year was the year of the travel deal, with resorts and

airlines practically begging for bookings, and many travelers

finding bargain airfares and hotel rooms as a result．Now the

economy looks as if it might be on a slight rebound．So now is

the perfect time to review your booking strategy（策略）．

Here are 4 simple steps you can take to help cut your travel

 costs in 2010．

1．Find the Cheapest Dates to Fly

ITASoftware．com, which provides the technological backbone

for many airfare shopping sites, allows users to scan an

entire month's fares for the least expensive rate．（Log in as a "guest" and click on "month-long search．"） In January, the 28th and 30th were the cheapest dates to fly nonstop to London from New York （$536） for a week's vacation, according to a recent search．The next best was Saturday, Jan．23, at $640．To book the ticket, users must go to another site．Kayak．com has a flexible-dates option （registration is required）and a calendar that shows the best fares found by other Kayak users in the last 48 hours．Bing Travel, the Microsoft search engine, offers a similar option, found under "plan trips," about halfway down the page．

2．Consider Nearby Airports

A recent Web search showed nonstop flights from Los Angeles International Airport to Miami International from $299 round trip on American in early January．But flying into Fort Lauderdale, roughly 30 miles north of Miami, was $219 on Virgin America, an $80 saving．

3．Go Against the Grain

If possible, avoid popular travel dates like holidays and spring break because airlines have begun to charge anywhere from $10 to $30 extra at those times．Farecompare．com offers a handy breakdown of the new fees by date, airline and amount．Early-morning and late-night flights may also be cheaper depending on the route．

4．Make Yourself at Home

For a 6 to 12 percent booking fee, AirBnB/com connects budget travelers with locals who are offering a place to bed down．The Times's Frugal Traveler, Matt Gross, described it as "a cross between CouchSurfing．com and the vacation rentals section of Craigslist．" There were more than 2,000 listings in a recent search for New York including a futon （床垫） in a one-bedroom near Gramercy Park （$65） and a bedroom with private bath and separate entrance in Hell's Kitchen （$150）．

65．According to the first paragraph, ____．

    A．the economy in 2010 is surely getting better

    B．2009 saw a sharp decrease in travel fees

    C．the booking strategies can be put away in 2010

    D．in 2009, airlines begged the travelers to buy more travel guides

66．If you want to book a ticket, you may log on to _____．

    A．ITASoftware．com                B．CouchSurfing．com

    C．AirBnB．com                      D．Kayak．com

67．What does "Go Against the Grain" probably mean in the passage?

    A．Going travelling in the off-season．

    B．Going travelling without taking any grain．

    C．Going travelling during holidays and spring break．

    D．Going travelling without meals served on early-morning and late-night flights．

68．The passage is most probably taken from ____．

    A．a book review                    B．a magazine 

   C．a website                       D．a story book

 

I used to believe in the American dream that meant a job, credit, success．I wanted it and worked toward it like everyone else, all of us separately chasing the same thing．

One year, through a series of unhappy events, it all fell apart．I found myself homeless and alone．I had my truck and $56．I searched the countryside for some place I could rent for the cheapest possible amount．I came upon a deserted cottage in a small remote valley．I hadn't been alone for 25 years．I was scared, but I hoped the hard work would distract and heal me．

I found the owner and rented the place for $50 a month．The locals knew nothing about me．But slowly they started teaching me the art of being a neighbor．They dropped off blankets, tools and canned deer meat and began sticking around to chat．They would ask if I wanted to meet cousin Albie or go fishing．They started to teach me a belief in a different American dream, not the one of individual achievement but of neighborliness．Men would stop by with wild berries, ice cream, truck parts to see if I was up for courting．I wasn't, but they were civil anyway．The women on that mountain worked harder than any I'd ever met．They taught me how to store food in the stream and keep it cold and safe．I learned to keep enough for an extra plate for company．

What I had believed in, all those things I thought were necessary for a civilized life, were non-existent in this place．Up on the mountain, my most valuable possessions were my relationships with my neighbors．

After four years in that valley, I moved back into town．I saw a lot of people were having a really hard time, losing their jobs and homes．With the help of a real estate broker （房地产经纪人） I chatted up at the grocery store, I managed to rent a big enough house to take in a handful of people．It's four of us now, but over time I've had nine come in and move on to other places from here．We'd all be in shelters if we hadn't banded together．

The American dream I believe in now is a shared one．It's not so much about what I can get for myself; it's about how we can all get by together．

56．Before a series of unhappy events happened, the writer ____．

    A．had a well-paid job

    B．worked hard for his American dream

    C．worked hard and liked to share

    D．felt hopeless about his American dream

57．What does the underlined word "it" in the second paragraph refer to?

    A．The house．                                        B．The job．

   C．The company．                   D．The American dream．

58．What does the underlined sentence "I learned to．．．" in Paragraph 3 most probably mean?

    A．The writer learned to run a company．

    B．The writer learned to share with others．

    C．The writer learned to keep enough plates．

    D．The writer learned to save money for his company．

59．Why did the writer rent a big house?

    A．To make some money．             B．To show off his wealth．

    C．To share with those people in need．               D．To make friends with his neighbors．

60．The writer mainly tells us about ____．

    A．his unhappy experiences          B．the friendly people in the valley

    C．the change of his living conditions     D．his new idea of the American dream