1 . Mama and I spend mornings cleaning up the dirt that blows into our house. Mama says all the dust is due to the drought. The dirt sifts into everything. It covers our clothes. We have to wash the dishes before each meal. We rarely drive the truck because Papa fears the dust from the road will ruin the motor.
When my sister, Faye, and I walk to school, we wear kerchiefs over our mouths so we don’t breathe in the dirt. On days when the air is so bad that they close the school, we stay home and help Mama put wet sheets over the windows. But the dirt always finds a way in.
Last Sunday, there was no dirt in the air, only bright spring sunshine and a clear blue sky. After lunch, Papa headed out to the field to check on the cattle while I played with Faye in the yard. The temperature suddenly dropped. I looked to the west and saw a huge black cloud of dust.
All the birds flew away. “I must warn Papa,” I thought to myself. To avoid her panicking, I gently told Faye to go back inside where she would be safe, and then headed off to the field.
The storm hit so fast, and in an instant the day turned into night. By the time I entered the cow field the fine sand was whipping across my face. I screamed for Papa, hoping my voice would lead him back.
The dirt and sand stung my skin like a thousand bees. Although I was terrified, I refused to turn back. My dad was stranded and needed my help. Covering my face with one hand, I groped my way toward the truck and opened the door. First I tried turning the truck’s lights on and off, hoping that Papa would see them flashing, but the sandstorm let no light escape. Then I pushed the horn again and again, so Papa would hear it. I pushed until I had no more strength in my arms.
Suddenly, Papa’s face appeared at the window. My heart leaped with surprise and relief. He opened the door and climbed onto the seat next to me. He then pulled me into his arms and said, “Oh, Iris, you saved me!”
Finally, the wind subsided and the dust began to settle. Dirt was piled up to the window on one side of the truck and halfway up the door on the other. Papa kicked against the door, opening it far enough to let us out.
Sand and soil drifts were everywhere, but we were safe.
1. What is the main function of the first two paragraphs?| A．It describes a problem the characters must solve. |
| B．It establishes the setting where the story takes place. |
| C．It introduces the characters that will follow in the story. |
| D．It explains the motivations for the characters’ later actions. |
| A．He was trying to get to his truck. |
| B．He needed to prepare the field for harvest. |
| C．He wanted to make sure the animals were fine. |
| D．He planned to bring in the cattle before the storm. |
| A．By warning him to run away. | B．By turning on the truck’s lights. |
| C．By guiding him towards the shelter. | D．By screaming his name at the top of her voice. |
| A．Brave and calm. | B．Experienced and confident. |
| C．Adventurous and careful. | D．Fearless and sympathetic |
2 . Occasions like anniversaries, weddings and reunions call for special event venues （场地）.The following places may have a way out. There's no need to spend money creating atmosphere at special event venues. It's built right in!
Hard Rock Cafe Anchorage
415 E. STREET, ANCHORAGE, ALASKA 99501
Events, like great music are born of inspiration. Featuring a 13,600-square-foot facility that will seat 275 guests with private event space, we pride ourselves on delivering an exceptional experience with a rock and roll twist for each of our guests.
Business Expo Center
1960 S. ANAHEIM WAY, ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA 92805
The Business Expo Center is Orange County's premier event venue in Anaheim, California. Our flexible 36,000-square-foot expo center is home to space for conferences, trade shows and celebrations. We pride ourselves on providing a memorable experience with excellent flexibility, services, and cost savings. We won't charge customers for on-site parking and provide high-speed Wi-Fi.
Automobile Driving Museum
610 LAIRPORT STREET, EL SEGUNDO, CALIFORNIA 90245
Centrally located in the South Bay beach community of El Segundo, California, the ADM offers a wonderful venue for private parties and corporate events. Conveniently located 5 minutes south of LAX, right off the 405 and 105 Freeways, the 610 Lairport space has a vintage feel surrounded by our primary automobile collection. We offer several different venues inside and outside our facility for diverse events. To better our service, reservations are needed.
Yamashiro Hollywood
1999 N. SYCAMORE AVE., LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 90068
Yamashiro Hollywood is a restaurant and therefore, all food and beverages must be handled in house. However, guests are allowed to bring in outside wine and champagne for a corkage fee.
1. What can you do in Business Expo Center?| A．Enjoy free parking. |
| B．Bring in outside wine. |
| C．Experience a rock and roll twist. |
| D．See some automobile collections. |
| A．Business Expo Center. |
| B．Yamashiro Hollywood. |
| C．Hard Rock Cafe Anchorage. |
| D．Automobile Driving Museum. |
| A．They offer optional places. |
| B．They are open to special events. |
| C．They are located in the same state. |
| D．They enjoy convenient transportation. |
3 . Take a walk through Washington and you’ll find plenty of marble memorials(纪念碑). But is that what the future of the memorial-rich city holds? If the winners of a new design competition have their way, probably not.
The Memorials for the Future design competition invited submissions (意见书) from teams throughout the world. Though, the memorials selected won’t actually be built in the city, they were intended to start a discussion about how to think of memorials in a very different future.
Climate Chronograph, the winning project by Team Azimuth Land Craft, greatly departs from memorials as we know them. The project memorializes the harmful effects of climate change by suggesting a memorial at Hains Point, a spot between the Potomac River and Washington Channel. Just 100 years ago, the man-made island was part of the river. It came into existence after the National Park Service decided to turn the confluence(合流点) of the waters into a tidal basin to protect the nearby National Mall from floods.
Those floods are expected to come more and more often as the climate changes. Climate Chronograph will memorialize those changes by planting cherry trees as a kind of tidal gauge(潮位计) that can be used by future visitors to determine just how much water levels have risen.
The other winning projects include a project that frees mechanical parrots that fly over the Jefferson Memorial and collect and retell stories about monuments，a podcast (播客) platform that puts immigrant stories on public transportation, and an interactive memorial that brings national parks to the D. C. Metro. The competition also produced a report that points to ways America can better memorialize the things that matter—strategies that could help cities save money and space.
That’s good news, especially given that D.C.’s iconic Mall has been closed to new construction. The memorials of the future won’t just turn collective memories toward the stories of new phenomena and groups like climate change and immigrants. Rather, it seems that they’ll make use of space in new creative ways—no marble needed.
1. What is the purpose of the design competition?| A．To select the best design team. |
| B．To find new uses for old memorials. |
| C．To design new memorials for Washington. |
| D．To explore new ways of experiencing memorials. |
| A．Differs | B．Benefits |
| C．Suffers | D．Learns |
| A．It will be located in a park. |
| B．It will be built after the competition. |
| C．It clearly shows the effects of climate change. |
| D．It uses high-tech equipment to measure climate change. |
| A．A memorial to a sad future. |
| B．Marble memorials are out of date. |
| C．Climate Chronograph, memorial for our future. |
| D．What will the memorials of the future look like? |
4 . FOUR BEST BOOKSHOPS IN LONDON
Looking for something to read while in London? If so, you’re in luck: the British capital happens to have an incredible collection of bookshops.
Daunt Books
Are you going on a trip and want to read a novel or nonfiction book set in the place you’re headed? This bookshop arranges books by country, so it’s easy to find anything by place. (83 Marylebone High Street. Monday-Saturday: 09:00-19:30; Sunday: 11:00-18:00.)
Foyles Books
Dig, if you will, the picture: four miles of shelves holding up to 200,000 books. This legendary (传奇的) bookshop is impossible to leave empty-handed. It was once listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the biggest bookshop on the planet. (107 Charing Cross Road. Monday-Saturday: 9:00-21:00; Sunday: 11:30-18:00.) Hatchards
In the year 1797, this London bookshop—the oldest in the city today—first flicked on its lights. It stocks an excellent selection of fiction, nonfiction, history and other genres. (187 Piccadilly Street. Monday-Saturday: 09:30-20:00; Sunday: 12:00-18:30.)
London Review Bookshop
There’s an excellent selection of history, philosophy, politics, new fiction and many other genres here. Plus, there’s a nice cafe in which you can crack open that tome (巨著) for the first time and start reading. (14 Bury Place. Monday-Saturday 10:00-18:30; Sunday 12:00-18:00.)
1. Which bookstore was listed in the Guinness Book of World Records?| A．Daunt Books. | B．Foyles Books. |
| C．Hatchards. | D．London Review Bookshop. |
| A．It has a long history. | B．It has 200,000 books. |
| C．It has a cafe. | D．It has both fiction and nonfiction books. |
| A．83 Marylebone High Street. | B．107 Charing Cross Road. |
| C．187 Piccadilly Street. | D．14 Bury Place. |
5 . The African elephant, the largest land animal remaining on earth, is of great importance to African ecosystem (生态系统). Unlike other animals, the African elephant is to a great extent the builder of its environment. As a big plant-eater, it largely shapes the forest-and-savanna (大草原) surroundings in which it lives, therefore setting the terms of existence for millions of other animals that live in its habitat (栖息地).
It is the elephant’s great desire for food that makes it a disturber of the environment and an important builder of its habitat. In its continuous search for the 300 pounds of plants it must have every day, it kills small trees and underbushes, and pulls branches off big trees. This results in numerous open spaces in both deep tropical forests and in the woodlands that cover part of the African savannas. In these open spaces are numerous plants in various stages of growth that attract a variety of other plant-eaters.
Take the rain forests for example. In their natural state, the spreading branches overhead shut out sunlight and prevent the growth of plants on the forest floor. By pulling down trees and eating plants, elephants make open spaces, allowing new plants to grow on the forest floor. In such situations, the forests become suitable for large hoofed plant-eaters to move around and for small plant-eaters to get their food as well.
What worries scientists now is that the African elephant has become an endangered species. If the elephant disappears, scientists say, many other animals will also disappear from vast areas of forest and savanna, greatly changing and worsening the whole ecosystem.
1. What is the passage mainly about?| A．Disappearance of African elephants. |
| B．Forests and savannas as habitats for African elephants. |
| C．The effect of African elephants’ search for food. |
| D．The eating habit of African elephants. |
| A．Fixing the time. |
| B．Worsening the state. |
| C．Improving the quality. |
| D．Deciding the conditions. |
| A．They result from the destruction of rain forests. |
| B．They provide food mainly for African elephants. |
| C．They are home to many endangered animals. |
| D．They are attractive to plant-eating animals of different kinds. |
| A．showing the effect and then explaining the causes |
| B．pointing out similarities and differences |
| C．describing the changes in spare order |
| D．giving examples |
6 . If you are taking vitamin supplements to reduce your risk of heart disease or cancer, a group of health experts want you to know that those vitamins may actually increase your risk of cancer.
The US Preventive Services Task Force came to this conclusion after reviewing dozens of studies.
Nearly half of adults in the US take at least one vitamin or mineral supplement on a regular basis. These pills are advertised as a way to promote general health. In some cases, manufacturers promote them as cancer fighters and heart protectors.
Studies in animals and in laboratory dishes suggest that oxidative (氧化性的) stress contributes to diseases like cancer and heart disease. If so, there is a reason to believe that antioxidants — including beta-carotene, vitamins A, C, and E — could be useful as preventive medicines.
But when the Task Force examined the medical evidence on vitamins, it found “inadequate (不充分的) evidence” to support the claims that vitamin and mineral supplements benefit healthy adults.
“Cardiovascular (心血管的) disease and cancer have a significant health impact in America, and we all want to find ways to prevent these diseases,” Dr. Virginia Moyer, who heads the Task Force, said in a statement. But so far, she added, the medical evidence does not show that taking vitamins is helpful in this regard.
However, the Task Force did find “adequate evidence” that people with a raised risk for lung cancer actually increase their risk further by taking beta-carotene, a precursor of vitamin A.
The Task Force recommendations of taking vitamins regularly apply to healthy adults aged 50 and older who don’t have “special nutritional needs”. The advice does not apply to children, women who are pregnant or may become pregnant, people with chronic illnesses, or people who have to take supplements because they can’t get all their essential nutrients from their diet.
1. Studies in animals and in laboratory dishes find out________.| A．ample evidence that taking vitamins are helpful for treating lung cancer |
| B．cardiovascular disease spreads very fast in America |
| C．oxidative stress can lead to heart disease and cancer |
| D．people must take vitamins on a regular basis |
| A．Scientists want to control cardiovascular disease. |
| B．In some regard, taking vitamins is not useful. |
| C．Manufacturers cannot produce medical-use vitamins. |
| D．Vitamins must be useful to prevent cancer and heart disease. |
| A．A 60-year-old healthy worker. |
| B．A 15-year-old boy with short-sightedness. |
| C．A 34-year-old pregnant lady. |
| D．A 40-year-old man who never eats vegetables or fruits. |
| A．An Inside Look at Vitamins |
| B．Task Force: Ending to Vitamins |
| C．Vitamins: To Live or to Kill |
| D．Taking Vitamins to Prevent Cancer May Fail |
7 . Over a hundred years ago in 1911, something strange was found in the glaciers of Antarctica. Grilffith Taylor—an Australian geologist, had discovered a blood red steam pouring out of the ice cascades（瀑布）of Talor Glacier! Popularly known as the Blood Falls, scientists had not been able to find the reason behind the blood red liquid flowing through the ice---until recently. The mystery of the Blood Falls had finally been solved.
When these falls were first discovered, scientists had believed that the red colour came from a large amount of red algae（海藻）concentrated in the water. Red algae contain a pigment（色素）which reflects red light, making the algae appear red.
This theory made sense, until it was later found that algae do not play a part in the red color of the flowing liquid at all. What really causes Talor Glacier’s waters appear blood red, is the presence of iron oxide in the liquid. The waters of the blood falls are rich in salt and iron content, and when this water comes in contact with the air, it turns red—just like rust! The water in these falls is often referred to as “brine” by scientists because of the high salt content in the water.
This reasoning behind the red colors of the falls was found back in 2003. However, the entire mystery had not yet been solved. How is it then, that the Blood Falls are not frozen?
Researchers at the University of Colorado and University of Alaska found that inside the glacier, there was a network of channels and reservoirs that move the water around. Salt water has a lower freezing temperature. In addition, when any substance undergoes a change in state, it gives off heat. Therefore, the brine actually warm itself up while it’s freezing! How this works, is that when the brine is flowing through the Talor Glacier, some of it does freeze. As a result of changing state from liquid to ice, the brine gives off heat. This heat is enough to keep the rest of the rest of the brine in liquid form, which is why it flows out of the glacier.
Incredible new chemistry facts found, any mystery solved!
1. According to the text, the red algae theory was once considered ________.| A．ridiculous | B．reasonable |
| C．impractical | D．complex |
| A．Because there is too much salt and iron in its water. |
| B．Because its liquid is rich in red algae. |
| C．Because the following liquid reflects and sunlight |
| D．Because the air is thin and rare in Antarctica. |
| A．The water continued flowing constantly. |
| B．There is too much salt in the water. |
| C．The brine gives off heat while freezing |
| D．Temperatures aren’t high enough for flowing water. |
| A．The discovery of the blood glacier. |
| B．The birth of the Talor Glacier. |
| C．The flowing red water in Antarctica. |
| D．The mystery of the Blood Falls. |
8 . Measles(麻疹), which once killed 450 children each year and disabled even more, was nearly wiped out in the United States 14 years ago by the universal use of the MMR vaccine(疫苗). But the disease is making a comeback, caused by a growing anti-vaccine movement and misinformation that is spreading quickly. Already this year, 115 measles cases have been reported in the USA, compared with 189 for all of last year.
The numbers might sound small, but they are the leading edge of a dangerous trend. When vaccination rates are very high, as they still are in the nation as a whole, everyone is protected. This is called “herd immunity”, which protects the people who get hurt easily, including those who can’t be vaccinated for medical reasons, babies too young to get vaccinated and people on whom the vaccine doesn’t work.
But herd immunity works only when nearly the whole herd joins in. When some refuse vaccination and seek a free ride, immunity breaks down and everyone is in even bigger danger.
That’s exactly what is happening in small neighborhoods around the country from Orange County, California, where 22 measles cases were reported this month, to Brooklyn, N.Y., where a 17-year-old caused an outbreak last year.
The resistance to vaccine has continued for decades, and it is driven by a real but very small risk. Those who refuse to take that risk selfishly make others suffer.
Making things worse are state laws that make it too easy to opt out(决定不参加) of what are supposed to be required vaccines for all children entering kindergarten. Seventeen states allow parents to get an exemption（豁免), sometimes just by signing a paper saying they personally object to a vaccine.
Now, several states are moving to tighten laws by adding new regulations for opting out. But no one does enough to limit exemptions.
Parents ought to be able to opt out only for limited medical or religious reasons. But personal opinions? Not good enough. Everyone enjoys the life-saving benefits vaccines provide, but they’ll exist only as long as everyone shares in the risks.
1. The first two paragraphs suggest that ____________.| A．a small number of measles cases can start a dangerous trend |
| B．the outbreak of measles attracts the public attention |
| C．anti-vaccine movement has its medical reasons |
| D．information about measles spreads quickly |
| A．exemptions are allowed |
| B．several vaccines are used together |
| C．the whole neighborhood is involved in |
| D．new regulations are added to the state laws |
| A．The overuse of vaccine. |
| B．The lack of medical care. |
| C．The features of measles itself. |
| D．The vaccine opt-outs of some people. |
| A．To introduce the idea of exemption. |
| B．To discuss methods to cure measles. |
| C．To stress the importance of vaccination. |
| D．To appeal for equal rights in medical treatment. |
This tension between what we feel we can have and "what were seemingly able to have is the niggling suffering, the anxiety we feel. This is where we usually think it's easier to just give up. But we're never meant to let go of the part of us that knows we can have more. The intelligence behind that knowing is us—the real us. It's the part that believes in life and its possibilities. If you drop that, you begin to feel a little "dead" inside because you're dropping "you".
So, if we have this capability but somehow life seems to keep us stuck, how do we break these patterns?
Decide on a new course and make one decision at a time. This is good advice for a new adventure or just getting through today's challenges.
While, deep down, we know we can do it, our mind—or the minds of those close to us—usually says we can't.
That isn't a reason to stop, it's just the mind, that little man or woman on your shoulder, trying to talk you out of something again. It has done it many times before. It's all about starting simple and doing it now.
Decide and act before overthinking. When you do this you may feel a little, or large, release from the jail of your mind and you'll be on your way.
1. It can be inferred from the first two paragraphs that we should .
| A．slow down and live a simple life |
| B．be careful when we choose to change |
| C．stick to our dreams under any circumstances |
| D．be content with what we already have |
| A．To focus on every detail. |
| B．To decide and take immediate action. |
| C．To listen to those close to us. |
| D．To think twice before we act. |
| A．Escape from your punishment |
| B．Realization of your dreams. |
| C．Freedom from your tension. |
| D．Reduction of your expectations. |
| A．It's easier than we think to get what we want. |
| B．It's important to learn to accept sufferings in life. |
| C．It's impractical to change our way of thinking. |
| D．It's harder than we expect to follow a new course. |
