Traffic lights are red, yellow and green. They are very important signals (信号). Traffic lights are usually placed at busy street corners to help control traffic. Sometimes, they are on streets near schools and shops, too. Most young children are taught what each of the colored lights means, so everybody can stay safe.
The first traffic signals were used for trains. The signals were put alongside railway tracks (轨道). The color red was used to mean “stop” because it warned people of danger. A red light was also the easiest color to see from a distance. Train drivers could see the red “stop” light ahead and had enough time to slow down and stop their trains. A green light was used to mean “take care” and a white light meant “go”.
However, there were many dangerous accidents on the train tracks. Some train drivers thought a star shining in the night sky was a white light that meant “go”. So the signals were swapped. The “go” light was changed to green and the “take care” light was changed to white.
During these times, people travelled by train or in carts pulled by horses. Years later, when cars were built, people began to drive them because they could travel much faster than horses. However, the road rules for drivers were not very clear and many people were hurt crossing the roads. Yellow warning signs had to be placed beside the roads to remind drivers to take care and allow people to cross safely.
Today, towns and cities all over the world have traffic lights. Red and green lights match the signals used on the railways. Yellow lights are easy to see, so they are used to warn drivers that they should slow down and prepare to stop.
1. Why was the color red used to mean “stop”?| A．It gave people a warning of danger. |
| B．It was the first color people thought of. |
| C．It reminded people of traffic rules. |
| D．It helped trains run smoothly. |
| A．Designed. | B．Suggested. | C．Compared. | D．Exchanged. |
a. A white light. b. A green light. c. A yellow light.
| A．a—b—c | B．b—c—a |
| C．b—a—c | D．a—c—b |
| A．The importance of traffic lights. | B．The meanings of traffic lights. |
| C．The advantages of traffic lights. | D．The history of traffic lights. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】Traveling is often done by plane or by car, but don’t forget about trains! Taking a trip by railway is a great way to get a first-hand view of a place.
Trans-Siberian Railway, Russia
The Trans-Siberian Railway is 5,772 miles long, making it one of the world’s longest train routes—it goes across Russia! You start in Moscow, cross the Ural Mountains and then the Siberian forest. Over the course of eight days, you’ll witness Lake Baikal, the world’s largest freshwater lake by volume.
Glacier Express, Sw itzerland
The Glacier Express connects two breathaking mountain resorts: Zermatt and St. Moritz. Along the way, you’ll enjoy the astonishing beauty of the Swiss Alps and ride past great grassland, mountain lakes and across the Oberalp Pass at 6,706 feet high. This day-long journey also features 91 tunnels and 291 bridges.
Jacobite Steam Train, Scotland
Despite its short 84-mile round trip, you’ll see a lot on the Jacobite Steam Train. Your journey begins in the Scottish Highlands near Great Britain’s highest mountain, Ben, Nevis. While in transit (途中), you’ll see green hills, small towns, and cross over the famous Glenfinnan bridge over a valley.
Belmond Hiram Bingham, Peru
Named after the American explorer who rediscovered the Inca site in 1911, Belmond Hiram Bingham absolutely looks the part. The route itself is 57 miles and lasts about three and a half hours in each direction. This trip begins at the ancient capital city of Cusco, goes through the Sacred Valley of the Incas, and ends at the World Heritage Site in the Andes Mountains.
1. Which train goes through the Siberian forest?| A．Glacier Express. | B．Trans-Siberian Railway. |
| C．Jacobite Steam Train. | D．Belmond Hiram Bingham. |
| A．5,772 miles. | B．84 miles. | C．58 miles. | D．42 miles. |
| A．It was in honor of an American explorer. | B．It ends in the Sacred Valley. |
| C．It was built in 1911. | D．It has about three hours’ round trip. |
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| A．in London. | B．around the UK. |
| C．all over Europe. | D．around the world. |
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| B．Send them to the company. |
| C．Get them back by yourself. |
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【推荐3】HONG KONG-Cross-border buses operated by Hong Kong companies on Friday started trial runs on the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB) in preparation for the bridge’s upcoming opening.
“The trial runs, arranged by the governments of the Chinese mainland, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) and the Macao SAR, would last for three days and aimed at testing the readiness of boundary crossing facilities (设施) of the three places,” the Hong Kong SAR government’s Transport and Housing Bureau told Xinhua.
Two major cross-boundary coach trade associations in Hong Kong were invited to send buses and members to participate in the trial runs.
Freeman Cheung, secretary of Hong Kong Guangdong Boundary Crossing Bus Association, said his association would run one bus with about 10 passengers on Friday and Saturday respectively as part of the trial runs.
“Our bus started at noon from the Hong Kong Boundary Crossing Facilities and ran all the way to Zhuhai in about 40 minutes,” he said, adding that “the journey was smooth.”
Alan Chan, secretary of another trade association who participated in the trial runs as a passenger, said the clearance procedures at boundary crossing facilities of the three places all went on well and smoothly.
“The boundary crossing facilities of Zhuhai and Macao, in particular, are operated in a collaborative (合作的) way, which helps remarkably shorten the time needed for the clearance procedures,” he said.
The HZMB, situated at the waters of Lingdingyang of Pearl River Estuary, is a mega-size sea crossing linking the Hong Kong SAR, Zhuhai city of Guangdong Province and the Macao SAR.
The 55-km bridge is the longest bridge-and-tunnel (隧道) sea crossing in the world.
The bridge is meant to meet the demand of passenger and freight land transport among Hong Kong, the Chinese mainland and Macao, and to establish a new land transport link between the east and west banks of the Pearl River.
1. We learn from the passage that ________.| A．Alan Chan participated in the trial runs as a driver |
| B．two coach trade associations in Zhuhai took part in the trial runs |
| C．the HZMB is located at the waters of Lingdingyang of Pearl River Estuary |
| D．the 55-km bridge is the second longest bridge-and-tunnel sea crossing in the world |
| A．The route of the trial runs. |
| B．The effect of the trial runs. |
| C．The purpose of the trial runs. |
| D．The evaluation of the trial runs. |
| A．Goods that are transported by trucks, trains, ships, or planes. |
| B．Lines of raised water that moves across the surface of the sea. |
| C．Parts of the sea where fish are caught in large numbers. |
| D．The regular rising and falling of the level of the sea. |
| A．HZMB Is to Establish New Land Transport Link |
| B．Cross-border Buses Start Trial Runs on Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge |
| C．Mega-size Sea Crossing Linking Hong Kong SAR, Zhuhai and Macao SAR |
| D．Boundary Crossing Facilities of Zhuhai and Macao Operated Collaboratively |
Coming in a close second–and often wrongly mentioned as the most distant land–is Easter Island, which lies 1,260 miles east of its nearest neighbor, Pitcairn Island, and 2,300 miles west of South America.
The mountainous 64–square–mile island was settled around the 5th century, supposedly by people who were lost at sea. They had no connection with the outside world for more than a thousand years, giving them plenty of time to build more than 1,000 huge stone figures, called moai, for which the island is most famous.
On Easter Sunday, 1722, however, settlers from Holland moved in and gave the island its name. Today, 2,000 people live on the Chilean territory (智利领土). They share one street, a small airport, and a few hours of television per day.
1. It can be learned from the text that the island of Tristan da Cunha ________.
| A．was named after its discoverer |
| B．got its name from Holland settlers |
| C．was named by the British government |
| D．got its name from the Guinness Book of Records |
| A．Tristan da Cuha. | B．Pitcairn Island. |
| C．Easter Island. | D．St. Helena. |
| A．Britain. | B．Holland. | C．Portugal. | D．Chile. |
【推荐2】Henderson Island is a coral island raised above the South Pacific Ocean. No people live on it. The island is 9.6 kilometers long and 5.1 kilometers wide. It has an area of 37.3 km2. Henderson Island became a World Heritage Site in 1988 because of its bird life.
All the four kinds of special land birds (Henderson Crake, Henderson Fruit Dove, Henderson Lorikeet and Henderson Reed-warbler) can only be seen on Henderson Island. There are also fifteen non-local seabirds. Other local things include nine kinds of plants (of the sixty-three kinds on the island), four kinds of land snails (蜗牛) (of the sixteen kinds), and one butterfly (the only kind on the island).
Although no people live on Henderson Island, archaeological evidence suggests that a small Polynesian (波利尼西亚) group lived here between the twelfth and fifteenth centuries until it disappeared. The reasons for its disappearance are unknown, but are probably related to the similar disappearance of the Polynesians on Pitcairn Island. The Hendersonians would have depended on them for many of the basics of life.
On January 29, 1606, Henderson Island was discovered by Portuguese sailor Pedro Fernandes de Queiros, who named it San Joao Baptista. On January 17, 1819, the island was rediscovered by British Captain Henderson of the British Fast India Company, and named Henderson Island. On March 2, 1819, Captain Henry King, sailing on the Elizabeth, landed on the island to find the Union flag already flying. His crew scratched the name of their ship on a tree, and for some years the name of the island was Elizabeth or Henderson.
In the early 1980’s, American businessman Arthur M. Ratliff expressed interest in buying Hendersons Island, and establishing a small settlement with an airstrip, farm and large houses. But the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office refused it at last, after environmentalist groups persuaded them to protect the natural ecology and environment of the island.
1. What contributes to Henderson Island becoming a World Heritage Site?| A．Its unique land birds. |
| B．Its special wildlife. |
| C．Its beautiful coral. |
| D．No living people on it. |
| A．British Captain Henderson. |
| B．British Captain Henny King. |
| C．A small Polynesian group. |
| D．Portuguese sailor Pedro Fernandes de Queiros. |
| A．after it was first discovered on January 29, 1606 |
| B．after it was rediscovered on January 17, 1819 |
| C．until Henry King sailed on Elizabeth and landed on it |
| D．until in 1988 it became a World Heritage Site |
| A．the British Commonwenlth office disagreed |
| B．his small settlement caused damage to it |
| C．he wanted to buy it at a lower price |
| D．environmentalists convinced officers to take it as reserve |
【推荐3】A study of art history might be a good way to learn more about a culture than is possible to learn in general history classes. Most typical history courses concentrate on politics, economics, and war. But art history focuses on much more than this because art reflects not only the political values of a people, but also religious beliefs, emotions, and psychology. In addition, information about the daily activities of our ancestors — or of people very different from our own — can be provided by art. In short, art expresses the essential qualities of a time and a place, and a study of it clearly offers us a deeper understanding than can be found in most history books.
In history books, objective information about the political life of a country is presented; that is, facts about politics are given, but opinions are not expressed. Art, on the other hand, is subjective; it reflects emotions and opinions. The great Spanish painter Francisco Goya was perhaps the first truly “political” artist. In his well known painting The Third of May, 1808, he criticized the Spanish government for its misuse of power over people. Over a hundred years later, symbolic images were used in Pablo Picasso’s Guernica to express the horror of war. Meanwhile, on another continent, the powerful paintings of Diego Rivera, and David Alfaro Siqueiros — as well as the works of Alfredo Ramos Martines — depicted these Mexican artists’ deep anger and sadness about social problems.
In the same way, art can reflect a culture’s religious beliefs. For hundreds of years in Europe, religious art was almost the only type of art that existed. Churches and other religious buildings were filled with paintings that depicted people and stories from the Bible. Although most people couldn’t read, they could still understand biblical stories in the pictures on church walls. By contrast, one of the main characteristics of art in the Middle East was and still is its absence of human and animal images. This reflects the Islamic belief that statues are unholy.
1. From Paragraph one, we know that _____.| A．art history reveals a people’s religious and emotional life as well as its political views and psychology |
| B．general history provides us with information about everyday life of ancient people |
| C．general history gives us an insight into the basic situations of a time and a place |
| D．art history regards politics as an unworthy topic |
| A．records what people felt and thought at a particular time |
| B．expresses the essential qualities of a time and a place |
| C．often gives us a better understanding of our history |
| D．often presents the subjective message about the political life of a country |
| A．Islamic artists painted images on church walls as a way of teaching |
| B．war was not one of the topics art history address |
| C．Europeans respected images of biblical figures |
| D．for some time in Europe, art was the only way to understand religion |
| A．His criticism to the religious beliefs of his country. |
| B．His explanation about the political values of his country. |
| C．His dissatisfaction to the war, his government or the social problems. |
| D．His concern about the daily life of the poor in his country. |
| A．the difference between general history and art history |
| B．the value of art history in understanding history |
| C．the importance of artists in art history |
| D．the importance of art in religion |
【推荐1】Homes are usually warmed with radiators (暖气片). Some homes are warmed by floor heating. Now, a new way of heating is being developed by using the “wallpaper” on your walls. This wallpaper is not decorative. It actually goes under and not over the wall — electrically heats a room. And this type of heating technology heats objects, even people, instead of the air and this helps you feel warmer.
The electric heating panels which are hidden in the wall are connected to the main electrical panels of your home. Each room can be used independently through an app so you do not have to heat unused rooms. It takes around 20 minutes to heat a room.
With rising prices for home heating, the panels seemed like the right way to go. “It makes me happy that I don’t rely on gas.” Kris Bilski, an early user, said. An estimated 23 million homes in the UK are connected to the gas grid (网) but the government wants to phase out gas-fired boilers by 2035. Home heating is responsible for 17 percent of greenhouse gas emissions so removing fossil fuel-based heating will help the environment.
The new electric heating systems are available for private homes and the company is currently testing the new technology in public housing in some cities. The versions being tested can be installed (安装) while people are still living in the apartment so it makes installation a lot easier.
Heating your home with this type of technology does not heat your water so an additional heating system is required but an energy efficient heater can be used.
While the wallpaper is greener, electricity in the UK is very costly so it is not an economic way to heat homes unless there is a renewable energy source like solar panels used. Still, reducing the dependance on fossil fuels will go a long way to green the UK and help the country meet its climate targets.
1. What is special about the wallpaper compared with radiators?| A．It is decorative. | B．It is traditional. |
| C．It is unseen. | D．It is more efficient. |
| A．Stop using. | B．Improve greatly. |
| C．Restore gradually. | D．Finish developing. |
| A．It looks beautiful. | B．It’s easy to be fitted. |
| C．It heats up instantly. | D．It fits all buildings. |
| A．Skeptical. | B．Optimistic. |
| C．Enthusiastic. | D．Disapproving. |
【推荐2】A man enters a store to buy milk. He walks out of the store with milk. That is all—milk. At the same time, a woman enters the same grocery store also to buy milk. She buys it. But, she also buys chicken and lemons to make dinner that night. Then she remembers to buy food for her son to eat at the school. She also gets a bottle of wine for drinks with friends and a birthday card for her husband’s niece. Then she gets coffee for breakfast, ice cream for dessert and remembers stamps to mail the bills.
And that is the difference between the female and male brains. It can be simply explained in a grocery store. Generally speaking, men do one thing at a time. Women do many. Doing many things at a time is often called “multi-tasking”, a very popular word these days.
Now scientific research supports this theory about male and female brains. They found that male brains have more connections on one side of the brain, or hemisphere (脑半球). In the female brain, they found more activities and connections between the right and left sides of the brain. The left side of the brain is known as the side of “reason”. The right hemisphere is known as the “creative” side.
Regina Verma is a professor at the University of Pennsylvania. She says when women are asked to do something difficult they use different parts of the brain. Men, she adds, generally use just one side of the brain. As a result, men generally deal directly with a problem. Women, however, might include other parts of the brain, like the part connected with reason and the part connected with sensitivity (理智) when solving a problem.
1. A woman with the purpose of buying milk will go to the store and buy _______.| A．nothing but milk | B．more things than planned |
| C．a lot of things except milk | D．all the things that she likes |
| A．Male brains develop better than female brains. |
| B．It’s necessary for women to use different parts of the brain. |
| C．Men should use two sides of the brain to solve a problem. |
| D．Women may think more when finding a solution to the problem. |
| A．Sport Report. | B．Farming Report. | C．Health Report. | D．Education Report. |
| A．Do one thing or do many a time. |
| B．A man’s brain. |
| C．The male and female interest in shopping. |
| D．The study on the behavior of men and women. |
【推荐3】Chocolates, syrup（糖浆）, cream on top, many of the hot drinks we consume even more at this time of year certainly sound sugary, but just how much sugar they contain might come as a shock.
The health campaign group Action on Sugar has found that Starbucks hot chocolate made with milk has almost 94 grams of sugar. That equals 23 teaspoons. At Caffe Nero, the salted hot chocolate packs in almost 60 grams of sugar, about 15 leaspoons. And Casta’s cream latte（拿铁）has 32 grams of sugar, that’s 8 teaspoons.
The drink makers won’t have those details listed next to the price. If known, it would be quite alarming. That’s how capitalism works. The capitalists have to get people addicted to certain things to keep selling it more. If told the amount of sugar contained，many would take hot drinks just as a treat not on a daily basis. Some drinks have actually reduced in sugar over the past few years，but many more haven’t. The most sugary seasonal drink was from Starbucks with more than 14 teaspoons of sugar. Other companies like breakfast cereal manufacturers and yogurt manufacturers are reducing sugar. And so is soft drinks，yet the milk based drinks, milk shakes，hot chocolates and lattes just don’t seem to have changed in the same way.
And while some companies are actually being really responsible reducing their sugar, some have actually increased that in the last two years which just seems ridiculous. Coffee chains do offer low-calorie alternatives. But Action on Sugar are still calling for more tax on hot coffee drinks. Not much of a Christmas present for the coffee chains, but maybe a gift in the long term for our health.
1. What does the first two paragraphs mainly talk about?| A．Consumers favor sugar contained hot drinks. |
| B．The amount of sugar in some hot drinks is frightening. |
| C．Famous hot drink makers prefer hot chocolate series. |
| D．Cream latte is the signature hot drink for Starbucks. |
| A．Most of them are trying to reduce sugar in certain drinks. |
| B．Chocolate and syrup are irreplaceable part of their products. |
| C．They won’t show the consumer how much sugar a drink contains. |
| D．Four of them have been investigated by the health campaign group. |
| A．Supportive. | B．Doubtful. |
| C．Objective. | D．Reserved. |
| A．Taxes can be raised on hot drink makers like coffee chains. |
| B．More official groups like Action on Sugar could be founded. |
| C．Sugar content can be labeled in place of the price for hot drinks. |
| D．Warnings can be given to those enjoying weekly hot drinks. |
