Car Hire

Hiring a self-drive car really adds to the enjoyment of your holiday.There are so many places of interest to visit, and if you enjoy seeing more than just the city center there’s no better way to explore than by car.

Hire Charges:

What’s included

a) Unlimited mileage（英里数）.

b) Expenses on oil,maintenance and repairs,which will be repaid on production of invoices.

c) Full insurance except personal accident (see below).

What’s not included

a) Personal accident insurance.

b) Garaging, petrol, parking and traffic fines.

Conditions of Hire:

★The shortest rental period at these special low prices is three days.For prices for periods of one or two days you only see our representative at the hotel.

★Car hire must be booked six weeks or more before arrival in London to guarantee a car.But if you have been unable to make a booking in advance please see our representative at the hotel who may still be able to help you.

★The car types on the sheet are examples of the types of cars in each price range,but particular car cannot be guaranteed.

★Upon delivery the driver (s) will be asked to sigh the car hire company’s Condition of Hire.

★If you decide to hire a car,just fill in the Booking Form and return it to us.A booking fee of £ 12 as part of the car hire cost is required.

Should you be forced to cancel your car hire booking after payment in full (two weeks before date of hire),a cancellation charge of £ 12 will be made.

1. From the advertisement, if an accident happens, a car hirer will pay        .

A．insurance against damage to the car

B．the cost of maintenance of the car

C．insurance against injury to the driver

D．the cost of repairs to the car

2. If car hirers change their minds after paying the whole cost of hiring,the £ 12 booking fee is        .

A．not returned	B．doubly paid
C．partly returned	D．returned within six weeks

3. The prices for car hire are especially low when         .

A．it is booked two weeks in advance	B．it is booked for at least three days
C．it is booked for two days	D．the booking is made in London

The full moon climbs over the eastern horizon (地平线) and hangs like a huge orange globe in the sky. A few hours later, the moon is overhead but seems to have changed. The huge orange globe has become a small silver disk. What has happened? Why has the orange color disappeared? Why does the moon seem so much smaller and farther away now that it is overhead?

The moon appears orange on the horizon because we view it through the dust of the atmosphere. The overhead moon does not really shrink (缩小) as it moves away from the horizon. Our eyes inform us that the overhead moon is farther away. But in this position the moon is actually closer to our eyes than when it is near the horizon.

The change in size is a trick our eyes and minds play on us. When the moon is low in the sky, we can compare its size with familiar objects. It is easy to see that the moon is much larger than trees or buildings, for example. When the moon is high in the sky, however, it is hard to compare it with objects on earth. Compared to the vastness of the sky, the moon seems small.

There is another reason why the moon seems to shrink. We are used to staring at objects straight ahead of us. When an object is difficult to see, our eyes have to try to focus on it. When we move our heads back to look up, we will try hard again. Looking at something from an unaccustomed position can fool you into believing an object is smaller or farther away than it is. However, scientists do not yet understand completely why the moon seems to shrink as it rises in the sky.

4. What makes us puzzled when the moon is high in the sky?

A．It becomes large.

B．It looks different.

C．Its color disappears.

D．Its shape changes.

5. What really happens when the moon floats farther away from the horizon?

A．It comes nearer.

B．It turns orange.

C．It goes farther.

D．It gets through dust.

6. What does the author intend to suggest by mentioning trees and buildings in Para. 3?

A．They can affect our judgment.

B．They are low on earth.

C．They can attract our attention.

D．They are large objects.

7. What can we infer from the text?

A．The size of the moon often changes.

B．The moon is in fact a huge orange globe.

C．The moon is beginning to shrink much.

D．We do not see the moon as it really is.

Would it surprise you to learn that, like animals, trees communicate with each other and pass on their wealth to the next generation?

UBC Professor Simard explains how trees are much more complex than most of us ever imagined.

Although Charles Darwin thought that trees are competing for survival of the fittest, Simard shows just how wrong he was. In fact, the opposite is true: trees survive through their co-operation and support, passing around necessary nutrition “depending on who needs it”.

Nitrogen (氮) and carbon are shared through miles of underground fungi (真菌) networks, making sure that all trees in the forest ecological system give and receive just the right amount to keep them all healthy. This hidden system works in a very similar way to the networks of neurons (神经元) in our brains, and when one tree is destroyed, it affects all.

Simard talks about “mother trees”, usually the largest and oldest plants on which all other trees depend. She explains how dying trees pass on the wealth to the next generation, transporting important minerals to young trees so they may continue to grow. When humans cut down “mother trees” with no awareness of these highly complex “tree societies” or the networks on which they feed, we are reducing the chances of survival for the entire forest.

“We didn’t take any notice of it,” Simard says sadly. “Dying trees move nutrition into the young trees before dying, but we never give them chance.” If we could put across the message to the forestry industry, we could make a huge difference towards our environmental protection efforts for the future.

8. The underlined sentence “the opposite is true” in Paragraph 3 probably means that trees ________.

A．depend on each other	B．protect their own wealth
C．compete for survival	D．provide support for dying trees

9. “Mother trees” are extremely important because they________．

A．know more about the complex “tree societies”

B．seem more likely to be cut down by humans

C．look the largest in size in the forest

D．pass on nutrition to young trees

10. The underlined word “it” in the last paragraph refers to ________.

A．how young trees survive	B．how “tree societies” work
C．how forestry industry develops	D．how trees grow old

11. What would be the best title for the passage?

A．Old Trees Communicate Like Humans

B．Young Trees Are in Need of Protection

C．Trees Are More Fantastic Than You Think

D．Trees Contribute to Our Society

A few years ago, I took a sightseeing trip to Washington, D.C standing outside the Ronald Reagan Center, I heard a voice, “Can you help me?” When I turned around, I saw an elderly blind woman with her hand extended. I reached into my pocket, pulled out all of my loose change and placed it on her hand without even looking at her. I was annoyed at being bothered by a beggar. But the blind woman smiled and said, “I don’t want your money. I just want you to help me find the post office.”

In a moment, I realized what I had done. I judged another person simply for what I guessed she had to be. I hated what I saw in myself. This incident reawakened my belief in humility（谦恭）,even though I’d lost it for a moment.

The thing I had forgotten about myself is that I am an immigrant. I left Honduras and arrived in the US at the age of 15. I started my new life with two suitcases, my brother and sister, and a strong, serious-minded mother. Through the years, I have been a dishwasher, mechanic and pizza delivery driver among many other humble jobs, and finally I became a network engineer.

In my own life, I have experienced many open acts of prejudice（偏见）. I remember a time, at the age of 17, I worked as a waiter, and I heard a father tell his little boy that if he did not do well in school, he would end up like me. I have also witnessed the same treatment of my family and friends, so I know what it’s like, and I should have known better.

But now, living in my American middle-class lifestyle, it is too easy to forget my past, to forget who I am and where I have been, and to lose sight of where I want to be going. That blind woman on the street of Washington, D.C. cured me of my blindness. She reminded me of my belief in humility to always keep my eyes and heart open. By the way, I helped that lady to the post office. And in writing this article, I hope to thank her for the priceless lesson.

12. What can we learn from the first two paragraphs?

A．The author was as poor as the blind woman.

B．The blind woman needed the money badly.

C．The author regretted his act of prejudice.

D．The author was a native American

13. According to Paragraph 4, hearing the father’s words, the author was probably        .

A．rather hurt	B．deeply moved
C．greatly inspired	D．very excited

14. Which opinion does the author probably agree with?

A．One should try to experience different kinds of life.

B．One should think about one’s past as often as possible.

C．One should treat others equally with love and respect

D．One should be nice to the elderly and the disabled.

15. What can be the best title of the passage?

A．How my dream comes true	B．A priceless lesson on the street
C．A belief that will never change	D．Learn from your past