1 . Scientists estimate that over 500 million species have died out throughout evolution. Here is a list of 4 incredible extinct animals.
Pinta Island Tortoise
| The giant tortoise of Pinta lived on the island Pinta of the Galapagos Islands,Ecuador. By the end of the nineteenth century,most of the Pinta Island tortoises had been wiped out due to hunting. The last known individual was a male named Lonesome George who died on 24 June 2012. In his later years,he was considered the rarest animal in the world. |
Falkland Islands Wolf
| The Falkland Islands wolf was the only native land mammal of the Falkland Islands. The animal was hunted for his beautiful fur,and the shepherds(牧羊人），considering it a threat to the sheep,poisoned him. On the islands,there were no forests in which the species could take shelter,and its lack of fear towards man made it easy prey to kill. The last known individual died in the late 19th century on the western island. |
Caucasian Wisent
| The Caucasian wisent which went extinct in 1926 inhabited(栖息）the Caucasus mountains. In 1910 their numbers were estimated in the hundreds. When state authority collapsed after the First World War,the remaining population fell victim to hunters. The decline can also be contributed to an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease that was introduced with cattle. |
Javan Tiger
| The Javan tiger is an extinct subspecies of the tiger that was native to the Indonesian island of Java. Very little data was gathered about their behavior before they were driven to extinction. The reduction of its two main prey species,and the modification of its habitat led to the extinction of the subspecies in the 1980s. |
1. According to the passage,which shows the correct order of the animals' extinction?
① Pinta Island tortoise ② Falkland Islands wolf
③ Caucasian wisent ④Javan tiger
| A．②③①④ | B．②③④① |
| C．③②④① | D．③④②① |
| A．Pollution. | B．Disease. |
| C．Hunting. | D．Habitat loss. |
| A．A travel brochure. | B．A news report. |
| C．A nature magazine. | D．A biology textbook. |
2 . Kristen Sorensen was 55 when she became paralyzed from the neck down. Diagnosed in October 2018 with a rare disorder that affects the body's nervous system, she never expected to walk again.
But earlier that year, the Brooks Treatment Center in Florida became the first center to use a unique technology developed in Japan --- the Hybrid Assistive Limb (HAL). HAL, essentially a wearable machine, helps those with spinal cord (脊髓的)injuries and muscular diseases regain their movements and strengthen their nerves and muscles. Known as exoskeletons, they're a type of lightweight suit, with joints powered by small electric motors, that serve as mechanical muscle. Patients use their brain waves to control them.
When Sorensen heard about the brain wave-controlled exoskeleton, she knew she had to place an order and give it a try. A trained nurse helped her fit HAL over her waist and trousers, connecting her to sensors that help pick up faint bio-electric signals on the surface of the skin, which communicate a patient's intention to move. Once HAL receives these signals, it helps support the person's movements.
After some training and efforts, Sorensen was able to walk at her daughter's wedding a few months later in December. It's a thought that Sorensen shares. "When I used HAL, there were people who came from all over the country to use the equipment," she says. "I would like this kind of technology to be more readily available and more accessible especially to those who learn slowly."
But it's not just those with disabilities or injuries who stand to benefit. By 2050, there will be more than 2 billion people over age 60, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), and exoskeletons could offer a solution to the world's aging population.
In the future, as human bodies wear down with age, an exoskeleton - powered by active minds - could help people stay on their feet. With such huge potential applications available, the global medical exoskeleton market will be worth an estimated $2.8 billion by 2023, according to a research company.
1. What do we know about Kristen?| A．She had much difficulties in walking. |
| B．She was paralyzed due to an accident. |
| C．She volunteered in a science experiment. |
| D．She never gave up the hope to walk again. |
| A．brain wave | B．electrical nerve | C．mechanical muscle | D．spinal cord |
①Persons put on HAL.
②Persons are connected to the sensors.
③HAL helps support the person's motion.
④Persons send out intention to move.
⑤Sensors pick up signals and pass them to HAL.
| A．②①④⑤③ | B．①②③④⑤ | C．②①③④⑤ | D．①②④⑤③ |
| A．HAL can now be used with no difficulty |
| B．HAL may have a large potential market |
| C．HAL has been widely used in the world |
| D．HAL can only help people with disabilities |
3 . The Hodgeheg
By now it was quite late. The rush hour was over. The shops were shut. All was quiet. I'll wait, thought Max, and then when a car or truck comes along, I'll cross in front of it.
Soon he saw something coming. It was a truck. He was halfway across when he suddenly realized that the truck hadn't slowed at all and was almost on top of him, blinding him with its brilliant lights, deafening him with its thunderous roar. It was not going to stop! Trucks stopped only for people-not hedgehogs!
The truck driver had been quite unaware of the tiny pedestrian. With no time to brake, he straddled the little animal. Looking back in his mirror, he saw that it was continuing on its way unhurt, and he grinned and drove on into the night.
The horror of this great monster passing above with its huge wheels on either side of him threw Max into a blind panic, and he made for the end of the crossing as fast as his legs would carry him. He did not see the cyclist and the cyclist, who did not see him until the last moment, caught Max on the bottom and threw him headfirst into the roadside.
The next thing that Max recalled was crawling painfully. Somehow he had managed to come back. He had known nothing of the concern of the cyclist, who had stared at what looked like a small dead hedgehog, sighed, and rode sadly away. He remembered nothing of his journey home, guided only by his sense of smell. All he knew was that he had an awful headache.
The family crowded around him on his return, all talking at once.
“Where have you been all this time?” asked Ma.
“Are you all right, son?” asked Pa.
“Did you cross the road?” they both said, and Peony, Pansy, and Petunia echoed, “Did you? Did you? Did you?”
For a while, Max did not reply. His thoughts were muddled(混乱的), and when he did speak, his words were disordered, too.
“I've got a head on the bump,” he said slowly.
The family looked at one another.
“Something bot me on the hittom,” said Max, “and then I headed my bang. My ache bads headly.”
“But did you cross the road?” cried his sisters.
“Yes,” said Max. “I hound where the humans cross over, but…”
“But the traffic only stops if you're a human?” interrupted Pa.
“Yes,” said Max. “Not if you're a hodgeheg.”
1. What's the correct order of the events that happened?① Max got hit on the bottom and bumped the head.
② Max explained what led him to such a situation.
③ Max was surrounded by the family who were curious and concerned.
④ Max waited for the chance to cross the street.
⑤ Max narrowly escaped being hit by the truck.
⑥ Max managed to return home.
| A．④⑤①⑥②③ | B．④⑤①⑥③② | C．④①⑤⑥②③ | D．④①⑤⑥③② |
| A．Max wanted to find out how to cross the road safely when a vehicle came along. |
| B．Max was seriously injured, so he hurried to the end of the crossing. |
| C．The cyclist sighed sadly because he believed the truck driver had killed Max. |
| D．Peony, Pansy, and Petunia,who echoed “Did you?” were Max's brothers. |
| A．The writer intends to convey some moral ideas to his readers. |
| B．Readers may wonder what is special about the writer's writing techniques. |
| C．It is typical of writers to be creative and try unique ideas. |
| D．Readers' curiosity can be aroused and they will continue reading. |
| A．Serious. | B．Concerned. | C．Casual. | D．Humorous. |
| A．Science fiction. | B．Travel brochure. |
| C．Children's tales. | D．Traffic guidebook. |
4 . Donating blood is a simple thing to do, but it can make a big difference in the lives of others. The donation process from the time you arrive until the time you leave takes about an hour. The donation itself is only about 8—10 minutes on average. The steps in the process are:
Step 1: Registration
1. Our staff and volunteers will sign you in and go over basic eligibility (资格) and donation information.
2. You will read information about donating blood, and will be asked to show a donor card，driver’s license, or other form(s) of ID.
Step 2: Health History & Mini-Physical
1. You will answer some questions during a private and confidential interview about your health history and places you have traveled.
2. We will check your temperature, pulse, blood pressure and hemoglobin (血红蛋白) level present in a sample of blood.
Step 3: The Donation
1. We will clean an area on your arm and insert a brand new clean needle for the blood draw. This feels like a quick pain and is over in seconds.
2. The actual donation takes about 8—10 minutes, during which you will be seated comfortably. Certain donation types, such as platelets (血小板) or red cells can take up to 2 hours.
3. When approximately a pint of blood has been collected, the donation is complete and a staff person will place a bandage on your arm.
Step 4: Refreshments
1. After donating, you should have a snack and something to drink in the refreshments area. You can leave the site after 10—15 minutes and continue with your normal daily activities.
2. Enjoy the feeling of accomplishment knowing that you have helped save lives.
1. Which of the following can be a proper title for the passage?| A．The process of blood donation |
| B．The benefits of blood donation |
| C．The importance of blood donation |
| D．The preparations for blood donation |
| A．go over his basic donation information |
| B．show something to prove his identity |
| C．answer some questions about his health history |
| D．have his temperature and blood pressure checked |
a. clean an area on the donor’s arm
b. let the donor sit comfortably
c. place a bandage on the donor’s arm
d. draw the blood
e. insert a needle
| A．a，b，d，e，c | B．b，a，c，e，d |
| C．c，b，a，e，d | D．b，a，e，d，c |
5 . We're so attached to plastic, but we're careless consumers. Waste plastic is entering our ecosystems and food chains with untold consequences. Cleaning up our polluted world of plastic may seem a noble, but thankless task. However, some people are seeing economic opportunity in the mission.
Plastic Bank, a social enterprise from Canada, is monetizing plastic recycling while empowering those most affected by the waste. It works to prevent waste plastic from entering oceans by encouraging people in developing countries to collect plastic from their communities in exchange for cash, food, clean water or school tuition for their children. After collection, plastic is weighed, sorted, chipped, melted into balls and sold on as“raw material”to be made into everything from bottles for cleaning products to clothing.
“I saw in large quantities; I saw an opportunity,”CEO David Katz told the audience at the Sustainable Brands Oceans conference in Porto, Portugal on November 14.“We reveal the value in this material,”he added.
Plastic Bank was founded in 2013 and launched on the ground operations in 2014 in Haiti, the poorest country in the Western, Hemisphere, where close to 60% of the population live under the poverty line. As result of poor waste disposal and recycling infrastructure (基础设施)，plastic waste enters rivers or is burned and poses the health threats to the local residents.
The company says i has over 2,000 collectors working in the country, with its full- time collectors on average 63% above the poverty line thanks to the income they make from the project. Through its app based payment system, many collectors now have bank accounts for the first time, and are able to ultimately escape ultra poverty.
“Nothing we're doing is against the laws of physics,”said Katz. “All the technology exists for us to solve and save the world. It's only creative thought.”
1. What is Plastic Bank aimed to do?| A．Test out creative ideas. |
| B．Discover new material. |
| C．Promote plastic recycling. |
| D．Stop people using plastic. |
| A．Purchasing- collecting—recycling. |
| B．Exchanging collecting—purchasing. |
| C．Collecting- exchanging—reproducing. |
| D．Persuading consuming—reproducing. |
| A．Haiti attaches great importance to recycling. |
| B．Many locals benefit greatly from the project. |
| C．Collecting is an efficient way to recycle waste. |
| D．The project has solved unemployment in Haiti: |
| A．Companies stand to ban plastic consumption |
| B．Technology finds its way to kick off poverty |
| C．David Katz speaks at the conference in Porto |
| D．Plastic Bank is fighting against plastic waste |
6 . Mr. and Mrs. March lived together with their four daughters. Amy was very shy. Beth loved being at home. Meg looked very pretty. Jo was tall and thin and she was a tomboy(假小子). Their home was always busy and full of noise and people. Next to them lived old Mr. Laurence and his grandson, Laurie. They lived in a very large and comfortable house. But it was a house without life.
One day, Jo saw Laurie standing at an upstairs window in his house and looking down at their garden. Jo's sisters were playing in the snow there. They were throwing snowballs and having a lot of fun. But Laurie's face was very sad
“Poor boy!” Jo thought. “He's all alone. He needs some friends.” She couldn't stop thinking about him. She wanted to go and see him, but how could she go to the house without an invitation?
Then one snowy afternoon, she saw Laurie's grandpa go out. This gave her an idea. She took a broom(扫帚) from the kitchen.
“What are you going to do, Jo?” asked her sister Meg.
“To clear the garden path.” Answered Jo.
When Laurie saw Jo from the window, a big smile changed his pale, sad face.
Jo laughed and shouted, “How are you? Are you ill?”
Laurie opened the window and said, “I'm better now, thank you. I had a bad cold and had to stay inside for a week”.
“I'm sorry,” said Jo. “Are you bored?”
“Yes, very.” he replied.
“Don't your friends come to visit you?”
“No. But I don't want to see anybody. Boys are noisy and they give me a headache.”
“Girls are quiet.”
“I don't know any girls.”
“You know us.”
“That's true! Can you come and visit me?” cried Laurie.
“I'm not quiet, but I'd like to come,” replied Jo. “I must ask Mother first.” She ran back into her house.
A few minutes later, she returned and rang the bell on the door of Laurie's house. A servant took her upstairs.
“Here I am!” she said brightly. “Mother sends her love and my sisters gave me this blancmange(牛奶冻) for you.”
“That looks delicious,” Laurie said. He was very happy to see Jo.
Jo looked around. There were lots of books on the shelves.
“A nice room!” she said. “I can read to you if you like.”
“No, let's talk,” replied Laurie.
“All right,” said Jo, “I can talk for hours. My sisters say I never know when to stop.”
“You have three sisters-Amy, Beth and Meg.” Laurie continued
“How do you know this?” Jo was surprised.
“You call each other's names when you are in the garden. Sometimes I can see you all around the table with your mother. She has a very kind face. I like looking at her. I haven't got a mother.”
Jo felt sad when she heard this
“Why don't you come and visit us?” she said, “It isn't good for you to stay in this house all the time.”
“Thank you. I'd like to come very much.” Said Laurie.
“We know all our neighbours except you.” Jo said, “I'm glad we're friends now.”
She told him about all the interesting things in her life. She said, “Besides(除了……之外) plays, I also love books.” Laurie loved books too, and offered to show her the library in the house. The library was a wonderful room. Jo loved it.
“Wow!” she said, “All those books!”
Laurie said, “A person needs more than books.”
(Adapted from Little Women)
1. From the first paragraph, we know____________.| A．Jo's family had five members | B．Jo and Laurie were neighbors |
| C．Laurie and his grandpa were busy | D．the four sisters had the same hobby |
| A．she wanted to visit his large house | B．Laurie invited her to play with snowballs |
| C．she felt he was lonely and needed friends | D．Laurie was seriously ill and needed her care |
a. Jo saw Laurie standing at an upstairs window in his house.
b. Jo and Laurie were having a talk happily at Laurie's home.
c. Jo went to Laurie's home after telling her mother.
d. Jo couldn't stop thinking about Laurie.
| A．a-b-c-d | B．b-a-c-d |
| C．b-d-a-c | D．a-d-c-b |
| A．Kind and friendly | B．Generous but rude |
| C．Quiet and smart | D．Funny but carless |
| A．People need to stay in their own houses. |
| B．People should learn much more from the books. |
| C．People need love and friendship besides books. |
| D．People should relax themselves besides reading |
| A．Mean and strict | B．Quiet but cold |
| C．Quick and learned | D．Warm and kind |
7 . The Poetry Foundation, recently named American poet Jack Prelutsky as the nation's first children's poet laureate (桂冠诗人). The group created the award as a way to increase children's love of poetry.
As children's poet laureate, Jack Prelutsky will give two public readings in the next two years. He will also advise the Poetry Foundation about children's literature and take part in projects concerning children and poetry.
Jack Prelutsky has been writing poetry for children for almost forty years. He has written more than thirty five books of poems. His first book was called A Gopher in the Garden. It was published in 1967. His latest is called Behold the Bold Umbrellaphant and Other Poems.
Jack Prelutsky is well known for creating new words by combining two words to create a new kind of creature. For example, he combined “radish” with “shark” to get “radishark”. “Lion” and “broccoli” became “broccolion”. He also created “umbrellaphant”, a mixture of the words “umbrella” and “elephant”.
Jack Prelutsky says that children like his poems because he writes about things they care about. Poetry researchers say that Jack Prelutsky's poems recognize children's feelings. An example of this is the poem My Sister Is a Werewolf which is about how it feels to be different.
Jack Prelutsky also writes poems about American holidays. His poem It's Halloween is a very famous one about the holiday celebrated at the end of October.
1. Which of the following can be the BEST title of the passage?| A．Poems with New Words Grow Popular | B．First Children's Poet Laureate Named |
| C．Children's Love for Poetry Increased | D．Jack Prelutsky Awarded Nationwide |
| A．Creating new words in his poems. | B．His productivity. |
| C．His long time of writing. | D．His poems about American holidays. |
| A．It was A Gopher in the Garden that brought him fame. |
| B．The poet will be kept busy over a lot of activities. |
| C．Jack Prelutsky will no longer write about American holidays. |
| D．The poem It's Halloween must have been written for adults. |
a. two public readings
b. A Gopher in the Garden
c. Behold the Bold Umbrellaphant and Other Poems
d. My Sister Is a Werewolf
| A．b—c—d—a | B．d—a—c—b |
| C．b—d—c—a | D．a—b—c—d |
8 . What I am writing is in English.You can read and understand because you are English language learners. But when you say people in England or the English people speak English, you would be wrong, or at least inaccurate in your remark. Ah yes, you might correct yourself, the Americans, Canadians, Australians and New Zealanders speak English too. That is true, but apart from that, what you really have in mind, or should say is people in Britain or the British speak English.
The words England and English are perhaps the two most misused words in the English language. The English themselves一I beg your pardon, I am making the same mistake! The British themselves often say England and English when they really mean Britain and British. The Chinese words“英国”is even more misused than not because the term “不列颠” is hardly ever used. What's the difference, you may ask. To understand the question we have to know something about the history of the country and its people.
Before there was a country there were the people. And before there were people, there was land. So let us start off from here and take the land first.
We all know that Britain(though we often say England by force of habit) is an island country separated from the European continent by the English Channel.
Actually there are two main islands. The larger one is called Britain, or Great Britain, and the smaller one is called Ireland, and these two, together with many small islands make up what is called the British Isles.
The British is a geographical term. It is not the name of any country. At present it is made up of two countries, the larger of which is the one we very often inaccurately call England. The full official name is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, but people call it Britain or Great Britain for that. It consists of England, Scotland, Wales and a small part(about one-sixth) of Ireland, then or the astern part.
People still tend to call Britain England not only because England is the largest in area and the most populous but mostly because England is the strongest and also the most influential country in every respect before it absorbed the other three countries(The whole of Ireland was apart of the United Kingdom at one time) . Call it national chauvinism if you like, but people in England call Britain England out of habit rather than conscious sense of superiority, though it annoys the Welsh and especially the Scots who are proud of their separate national tradition.
1. According to the passage the correct order of the following terms is______.| A．land, people, country | B．land, country, people |
| C．people, land, country | D．country, people, land |
| A．one country | B．two countries |
| C．two and a half countries | D．three countries |
| A．people in England do so out of habit. |
| B．England is the nearest to the European continent. |
| C．England is the largest in area and has the largest population. |
| D．England is the strongest and also the most influential in every respect. |
| A．explain the geographical state of Britain |
| B．express his heartfelt affection for English |
| C．explain a common misunderstanding many may share |
| D．show the advantages of England over the other three countries |
9 . When other nine-year-old kids were playing games, she was working at a petrol station. When other teens were studying or going out, she struggled to find a place to sleep on the street. But she overcame these terrible setbacks (挫折) to win a highly competitive scholarship and gain entry to Harvard University. And her amazing story has inspired a movie, “Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story”, shown in late April.
Liz Murray, a 22-year-old American girl, has been writing a real-life story of willpower and determination. Liz grew up in the shadow of two drug-addicted parents. There was never enough food or warm clothes in the house. Liz was the only member of the family who had a job. Her mother had AIDS and died when Liz was just 15 years old. The effect of that loss became a turning point in her life. Connecting the environment in which she had grown up with how her mother had died, she decided to do something about it.
Liz went back to school. She threw herself into her studies, never telling her teachers that she was homeless. At night, she lived on the streets. “What drove me to live on had something to do with understanding, by understanding that there was a whole other way of being. I had only experienced a small part of the society,” she wrote in her book Breaking Night.
She admitted that she used envy to drive herself on. She used the benefits that come easily to others, such as a safe living environment, to encourage herself that “next to nothing could hold me down”. She finished high school in just two years and won a full scholarship to study at Harvard University. But Liz decided to leave her top university a couple of months earlier this year in order to take care of her father, who has also developed AIDS. “I love my parents so much. They are drug addicts. But I never forget that they love me all the time.”
Liz wants moviegoers to come away with the idea that changing your life is “as simple as making a decision”.
1. The main idea of the passage is ________.| A．how Liz managed to enter Harvard University |
| B．how Liz struggled to change her life |
| C．why Liz loved her parents so much |
| D．the hard time Liz had in her childhood |
a. Her mother died of AIDS.
b. She worked at a petrol station.
c. She got admitted into Harvard.
d. The movie about her life was put on.
e. She had trouble finding a place to sleep.
| A．b, e, a, d, c | B．a, b, c, e, d | C．e, d, b, a, c | D．b, a, e, c, d |
| A．Both Liz’s father and mother are AIDS-infected patients. |
| B．Liz lived a hard time in her childhood. |
| C．Liz’s story is an inspiration to many people. |
| D．Liz hated her father because he got addicted to drugs. |
| A．Envy and encouragement. | B．Willpower and determination. |
| C．Decisions and understanding. | D．Love and respect for her parents. |
10 . Robert Ballard was born in 1942. From an early age, he loved the sea. Baliard grew up in Southern California. He spent his free time at the beach near his home. He enjoyed fishing and swimming. He even learned to dive.
When Ballard wasn't at the ocean, he loved reading about it. At age 10, he read 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, a book which describes the undersea adventures of Captain Nemo. Ballard decided he wanted to be like Captain Nemo when he grew up. His parents helped him follow his dream.
Ballard was a hardworking student. He spent many years learning all he could about the ocean. By the age of 28, he was an expert. In 1970, he took a job as a scientist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute in Massachusetts. There he studied underwater mountains of the Atlantic Ocean. He came up with ways to predict volcanoes under the oceans. Working with other scientists, Ballard also found previously unknown sea animals. These animals lived far below the ocean's surface, where scientists had believed no animals could live.
By the 1980s, Ballard's interests changed. He developed unmanned vehicles to explore the ocean bottom. His first find, the wellknown ship Titanic, made Ballard famous. He was not happy with just one big find, however. He looked for—and found—other wellknown ships. One was the German battleship Bismarck. Another was the U. S.S. Yorktown, an aircraft carrier that sank during World War Ⅱ.
Today Robert Ballard is still an underwater explorer. He also heads an organization that encourages students to learn about science. Ballard hopes that some of the students will follow in his footsteps. After all, the world's huge oceans are mostly unknown. Who knows what remains to be discovered under the sea?
1. When Ballard worked at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, he ________.| A．explored the undersea world by ship |
| B．thought of ideas to predict underwater volcanoes |
| C．found some unknown sea animals alone |
| D．set up an organization to teach students science |
a. He found the German battleship Bismarck.
b. He read a book about Captain Nemo.
c. He found the famous ship Titanic.
d. He became an expert in science.
| A．b—c—d—a | B．d—b—c—a |
| C．d—c—a—b | D．b—d—c—a |
| A．Ballard was greatly influenced by 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. |
| B．Ballard didn't like fishing and swimming in his childhood. |
| C．Ballard's parents felt disappointed at his undersea adventures. |
| D．Human beings have explored more than half of the sea. |
