【推荐1】

We are dragonflies. We fly around in the morning or evening of summer, but how much do you know about us?

Why are dragonflies in a hurry (匆忙)?

Most of us live for only a few months as grown-up (成虫), so we fly around looking for food and a mate (伴侣). The largest dragonflies can fly 40 to 60 kilometers every hour, making us the fastest flying insects (昆虫).

Important facts

1.We have the biggest eyes of any insect. They take up (占据) most of our head and make us see ahead, below and behind, all at the same time. Each compound eye (复眼) has 5,000 very small eyes.

2.There are more than 5,000 different kinds of dragonflies.

3. You can find us in almost every country of the world.

4.We catch other insects and eat them as we fly.

5. We have been for about 300 million (百万) years.

6.We do not hurt (伤害) people.

Life cycle

We drop our eggs (卵) in the water. Our young babies live underwater for many years.

Skilled (熟练的) fliers

Our wings (翅膀) are very powerful (强大的). Each wing can move on its own or together as a pair. Like helicopters (直升机), we can hover (盘旋). That keeps us the same place in the air. We can hover in the air for about one minute.

1. Dragonflies are ________ flying insects.

A．the fastest

B．the largest

C．the most powerful

D．the busiest

2. Why are dragonflies in a hurry?

A．Because they only live for a few months.	B．Because they can fly 40 to 60 kilometers every hour.
C．Because they are the fastest flying insects.	D．Because they are busy looking for food and a mate.

3. What does the underlined word “catch” in Chinese?

A．吸引

B．接住

C．陷入

D．捕捉

4. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

A．A dragonfly can live about 300 million years.	B．Some of dragonflies may hurt people sometimes.
C．People can see dragonflies in summer.	D．There are 500 kinds of dragonflies in the world.

5. What can we know from the passage?

A．Dragonflies have a good eyesight (视力).

B．People can see dragonflies everywhere at any time.

C．Dragonflies can fly in the air for only one minute.

D．Young baby dragonflies can live out of water.

【推荐2】Kangaroos aren’t the only animals that carry their babies in body pouches (袋子). Check out some that keep their unborn babies or newborns safe in a pouch.

1. How long will a kangaroo baby stay in his mother’s pouch?

A．For half a year.

B．For over a year.

C．For about a year.

2. Except ________, other three animals’ mums carry their babies in body pouches.

A．koalas

B．seahorses

C．kangaroos

3. A newborn koala has the senses of ________.
① hearing              ② taste                     ③ smell              ④ touch

A．③④

B．①③

C．②④

4. The text is most probably taken from ________.

A．a tour guide

B．a movie poster

C．a science magazine

【推荐3】Migratory (迁徙的) birds fly to different places during different seasons. This is bird migration. Birds in migration may fly day and night for months at a time. During this long journey, when and how do they sleep?

Some scientists once studied a group of frigate birds (军舰鸟) during a ten-day flight. They recorded these birds’ brain activities. Their findings made headlines-frigate birds can sleep while they are flying!

According to this study, these birds take two types of in-flight naps. The first is called Rapid Eye Movement(REM快速动眼) sleep. It is the deepest stage of sleep. For humans, REM sleep can last for several minutes. For flying birds, however, REM sleep lasts for only a few seconds. Even so, REM sleep is still very important for proper brain functioning.

The other type of nap frigate birds take is Non-Rapid Eye Movement (NREM) sleep. During NREM sleep, the birds put only half of their brain to sleep, while the other half stays awake. The eyes of these birds are connected to the waking part of their brain. In other words, they sleep with their eyes open. They do this to stay away from dangers, and many birds do this even when they aren’t migrating.

Even though frigate birds sleep during the flight, they prefer to stay awake most of the time, spending less than 3% of their time sleeping. Once they reach land, they recover their lost sleep, spending almost half their time dozing.

However, not all migratory birds sleep in this way. Many make occasional pit stops on their way to get a good rest before the next leg of their journey. Some stay completely awake during the whole journey. The Alpine Swift (高山雨燕), for example, can fly for almost 200 days continuously. There is still little evidence of these birds sleeping during their long journeys.

The sleeping habits of birds differ from species (物种) to species. This makes the study of migratory birds very exciting for scientists. In the future, we may learn more amazing things about these animals.

1. How does the writer lead into the topic?

A．By telling a story.	B．By asking a question.
C．By making a comparison (对比).	D．By listing some numbers.

2. What happens to frigate birds if they get NREM sleep?

A．They close their eyes.	B．They fly much more slowly.
C．Half of their brain stays awake.	D．They sleep most deeply during the period.

3. After the study of migratory birds, the scientists have found ________.

A．the sleeping habits of birds are different from species to species

B．why migratory birds fly to different places during different seasons

C．all migratory birds spend a little time sleeping during a long journey

D．the Alpine Swift spends 3% of its time sleeping in the sky

4. What’s the best title for the passage?

A．The bird migration	B．Sleeping in the sky
C．Different stages of sleep	D．Frigate birds, a species of large seabirds

【推荐2】根据材料内容，从方框中选择恰当的句子填入文中空缺处，使短文意思通顺、内容完整。

Many animals hide to stay alive. They hide in many ways. Some animals hide in trees;     1     Usually their colors help them to stay alive. Chameleons can hide by changing colors.     2     Some chameleons can change colors in five minutes. Wild rabbits always have the same color as the things around them, so it’s hard to find them. Other animals can’t eat them easily.

           3     Some animals can make other animals think they are very big. If they look very big, other animals will stay away from them. Lions look very, very big and scary.     4    

Some animals try to stay around other animals.     5     Some birds stay in a circle, each toward a different direction. In this way, they can also help each other stay alive.

A．Lots of animals try to look big to stay alive.

B．some animals hide in snow.

C．Some animals will run away from them.

D．This helps them stay alive.

E．Their body can change into the same color as what is around them.

【推荐3】Do sugary drinks cause overweight? While we know that sugary drinks have calories (卡路里), which are believed to cause overweight, many questions remain. For example, is soda any better? Do you need a sports drink after going to the gym? Here are the facts to some common misunderstandings.

Misunderstanding 1: Clear soda (无色汽水) is healthier than dark soda.

The truth: The dark color of teeth has something to do with the coloring (着色剂) in soda. Lisa R. Young, a professor of Nutrition at New York University said. But the big difference between clear and dark sodas is the caffeine content (咖啡因含量). Since a bottle of soda, whether Coca-Cola or Sprite (雪碧), has less caffeine than that in a cup of coffee, most soda drinkers probably don’t need to worry about what to choose.

Misunderstanding 2: If you need caffeine to cheer you up, you should choose an energy drink rather than coffee.

The truth: There are more sugar than caffeine in energy drinks such as Red Bull (红牛). Energy drinks may be easier to drink. But a cup of coffee has between 95 and 200 milligrams (毫克) of caffeine while Red Bull has about 80 mg per the same amount, according to US medical research group Mayo Clinic.

Misunderstanding 3: If you go to the gym, you need a sports drink.

The truth: It would be easy to think that you need a sports drink any time you sweat (出汗). But the truth is that the energy in your body won't be used up until you've done more than an hour of training. So you only need to drink some water after a 45-minute exercise on the running machine.

1. There are ________ misunderstandings discussed in the passage.

A．one

B．two

C．three

D．four

2. The underlined word “that” means ________ in the passage.

A．Coca-Cola

B．Sprite

C．coloring

D．caffeine

3. The following statements are true EXCEPT ________.

A．The coloring in soda is responsible for the dark colors of people’s teeth

B．Soda drinkers don't need to make a hard decision according to the caffeine content

C．Compared with coffee, Red bull is a better choice if people need a lot of energy

D．With the energy in the body, people can do at least 60-mintue training

4. The passage would be probably taken from ________ in the newspaper.

A．technology

B．sports

C．health

D．advertisement

【推荐1】The FDA is the common name for the Food and Drug Administration (食品药品监督管理局). It is a government agency that makes food and drugs safe. It regulates (调节) food and the food supply. It also controls diet supplement ( 补充物). The FDA also makes sure that drugs and medical instruments are safe and effective.

For drugs and medical machines to be accepted, they must go through a certain process. There are many strict tests. First anything that humans use must be tested on animals. This may take up to 6 years. Then, it must be tested with a few people. Testing on 15 to 20 people can last up to a year and a half. Third, a mid-sized group (100 to 500 people) is used. This often takes two years. Then a large group is tested over 3 years. Of 5,000 drugs discovered, only 5 go to the final test. Of that, only one passes on to the market Food supplements like ginseng ( 人 参 ) follow a different path. The FDA does not test them as they do for drugs. The agency only controls these products if they are unsafe but are already being sold. Two exceptions are baby and medical food. Because those consumers who use them are not strong, the FDA is more careful with these products.

Labeling ( 标 签 ) is a major focus. A label must show what a product is for. For drugs,labels should say the name of the drug and what it is used for. It should also detail who should take it and list any side effects (副作用). It needs to detail directions for pregnant (怀孕的) women, children, or old people. It also needs to detail safety information.

The FDA protects the public from harm. It achieves this through controls and labeling. It has standards for effectiveness in medical products. It also has standards for how information is shared.

1. According to the passage, how many drugs make it to the market?

A．Nearly five thousand.	B．One of five thousand.
C．Five of five thousand.	D．Over five thousand.

2. “Food supplements” is used as an example to show_________.

A．things the FDA avoids	B．things the FDA controls
C．things the FDA buys	D．things the FDA refuses

3. Which of the following best shows the structure of the passage?

A．	B．
C．	D．

4. Which of the following is Not True?

A．The FDA is a government agency that is responsible for the safety of food and drugs.

B．It takes a long time for a drug to enter the market,

C．All the food supplements are not tested in the same way as drugs.

D．The FDA protects the public through controls and labeling.

【推荐2】When we think of food farming, we usually think of green fields in the country outside the city. Sam Chee works on a very different type of farm, in the center of the Canadian city of Toronto. “We grow fruits, vegetables and herbs,” says Sam. “But not many people know the farm is here. You can’t see it from the street. We’re on top of an office building, 50 meters above the ground.”

Rooftop farming is becoming popular in cities like Toronto, New York and London. The roofs of buildings are often just wasted space, but this space can be used for growing good fresh food right in the middle of the city. Sam explains how it works. “We grow everything in big pots and boxes—there are hundreds of them. We catch rainwater to water the plants when the weather is dry.”

The rooftop farm where Sam works belongs to a restaurant called Green Garden, on the ground floor of the building. The farm produces about half the restaurant’s fruits and vegetables. Sam believes that the rooftop farm is what makes Green Garden special. “We help to keep food production local. We don’t need to transport this food from anywhere, and that saves energy. It’s better for the environment.”

The food from the rooftop is fresher too. “When the fruit and vegetables are ripe (成熟), we can pick them and use them right away. They taste better when they’re really fresh,” says Sam.

“I hope that there will be more rooftop farms in the city soon. It could be the farming of the future.”

1. Green Garden’s rooftop farm is _________.

A．in the countryside	B．in the middle of a small town
C．in the city center of Toronto	D．near the city of New York

2. The fruit and vegetables Sam grows are _________.

A．used in a restaurant in the same building	B．sold to other restaurants nearby
C．taken home by the people working there	D．offered to people working in the building

3. The underlined word “this space” in paragraph 2 refers to _________.

A．the roof of the building where Sam works	B．different types of open space in cities
C．the roofs of city buildings	D．green fields in the countryside

4. According to Sam, the food from the rooftop is better than the food bought from other places because _________.

A．it’s cheaper and tastes better	B．it is fresher and better for the environment
C．it uses wasted space in the city	D．it can’t be bought in the local supermarket

5. The best title of the passage should be _________.

A．The City of Toronto	B．Fresh Fruits, Vegetables and Herbs
C．Better Environment	D．Rooftop Farming