1 . Ireland has had a very difficult history. The problems started in the 16th century when English rulers tried to conquer (征服) Ireland. For hundreds of years, the Irish people fought against the English. Finally, in 1921, the British government was forced to give independence to the south of Ireland. The result is that today there are two “Irelands”. Northern Ireland, in the north, is part of the United Kingdom. The Republic of Ireland, in the south, is an independent country.

In the 1840s the main crop, potatoes, was affected by disease and about 750,000 people died of hunger. This, and a shortage (短缺) of work, forced many people to leave Ireland and live in the USA, the UK, Australia and Canada. As a result of these problems, the population fell from 8.2 million in 1841 to 6.6 million in 1851.

For many years, the majority of Irish people earned their living as farmers. Today, many people still work on the land but more and more people are moving to the cities to work in factories and offices. Life in the cities is very different from life in the countryside, where things move at a quieter and slower pace.

The Irish are famous for being warm－hearted and friendly. Oscar Wilde, a famous Irish writer, once said that the Irish were “the greatest talkers since the Greeks”. Since independence, Ireland has revived (复兴) its own culture of music, language, literature and singing. Different areas have different styles of old Irish songs which are sung without instruments. Other kinds of Irish music use many different instruments such as the violin, whistles, etc.

1. What does the author tell us in Paragraph 1?

A．How the Irish fought against the English.

B．How Ireland gained independence.

C．How English rulers tried to conquer Ireland.

D．How two “Irelands” came into being.

2. We learn from the text that in Ireland ________.

A．food shortages and a lack of work in the 1840s led to a decline in population

B．people are moving to the cities for lack of work in the countryside

C．it is harder to make a living as a farmer than as a factory worker

D．different kinds of old Irish songs are all sung with instruments

3. The last paragraph is mainly about ________.

A．the Irish character	B．the Irish culture
C．Irish musical instruments	D．a famous Irish writer

4. What can be the best title for the text?

A．Life in Ireland	B．A Very Difficult History
C．Ireland, Past and Present	D．The Independence of Ireland

3 . I was never very neat while my roommate Kate was extremely organized. Each of her objects had its place, but my always hid somewhere. She even labeled (贴标签) everything. I always looked for everything. Overtime, Kate got neater and I got my merriser. She moved to push my dirty clothing over and I would lay my books on her tidy desk. We both got tired of each other.

Who broke out one evening. Kate came into the room. Soon, I heard her screaming, “Take your shoes away! why under my bed!” Suddenly I saw my shoes flying at me. I jumped to my feet and started yelling. She yelled back louder.

The room was filled with anger. We could not have stayed together for a single minute but for a phone call. Kate answered it. From her end of the conversation, I could tell right away her grandma was seriously ill. When she hung up. She quickly crawled (爬) under her covers, crying. Obviously. that was something she could not go through alone. All of a sudden, a warm feeling of sympathy (同情) rose up in my heart.

Slowly, I collected the pencils, took back the books, made my bad. Cleaned the suckers and swept the floor even on her side. I got so absorbed into my work that I even didn’t notice Kate had sat up. She was watching. Her tears dried and her expression was such disbelief. Then, she reached out her hands to grasp mine. I looked up into her eyes. She smiled at me. “Thanks.”

Kate and I stayed roommates for the rest of the year. We didn’t always agree, but we learned the key to living together: giving in, cleaning up and holding on.

1. What made Kate so angry one evening?

A．She couldn’t find her books.

B．She heard the writer shouting loud.

C．She got the news that her grandma was ill.

D．She saw the writer’s shoes beneath her bed.

2. Why did the writer tidy up the room?

A．Because she was scared by Kate’s anger.

B．Because she hated herself for being so messy.

C．Because she wanted to show her care.

D．Because she was asked by Kate to do so.

3. How is paragraph 1 mainly developed?

A．By analyzing courses.

B．By showing differences.

C．By describing a process.

D．By following time order.

4. What might be the best title for the story?

A．My Friend Kate.

B．Hard Work Pays off.

C．How to Be Organized?

D．Learning to Be Roommates.

4 . Transport has a lot to answer for when it comes to harming the planet. While cars and trains are moving towards greener, electric power, emissions（排放）from air travel are expected to increase massively by 2050. If we want big green sky solutions, we need blue sky thinking. Fortunately, there's plenty of that happening right now, particularly the short - haul flights powered by batteries.

Harbour Air is the largest seaplane airline in North America, flying 30,000 commercial flights in 40 seaplanes each year. Significantly, all Harbour Air routes last less than 30 minutes, making it perfectly fit for electric engines. "As an airline, we're currently in the process of turning all our planes into electric airplanes. says CEO Greg McDougall. To make this happen, the airline has partnered up with MagniX to create the world's first commercial flight with an electric engine.

Making the skies electric isn't just good for the environment, it also makes sound financial sense： a small aircraft uses $ 400 on conventional fuel for a 100 - mile flight, while an electric one costs $ 8 12 for the same distance, and that's before you factor in the higher maintenance costs of a traditional engine. There's also the added bonus that electric planes are just much more pleasant to fly in. No loud engine noise, no smell of fuel, just environmentally friendly peace and quiet.

While there has been real progress in the e-plane industry, the technical challenges that remain are keeping everyone's feet firmly on the ground. A battery, even a lithium one, only provides 250 watt-hours per kilogram； compare this to liquid fuel, which has a specific energy of IL 890 watt-hours per kilogram. Carrying adequate batteries, however, would make the plane too heavy to get off the ground. In aircraft, where every bit of weight counts, this can't just be ignored.

The transition （过渡 ） from gas to electric in the automobile industry has been made easier by hybrids - vehicles powered by both fuel and electricity. Many believe the same pattern could be followed in the air. Fuel consumption could be reduced as the electric component is switched on at key parts of the journey, especially on take-off and landing.

It's certainly an exciting time for electric flying. With companies like Harbour Air taking the lead, battery-powered planes, especially on short-haul journeys, are set to become a reality in the next few years.

1. According to Para l, what is happening in air transport?

A．New explorations of the sky are being launched.

B．Pollution caused by batteries is being controlled.

C．Efforts are being made to make air travel greener.

D．Demand for short-haul flights is increasing massively.

2. Why is Harbour Air fit for electric flights?

A．It runs short routes.	B．It has a strong partner.
C．Its planes can land on the sea.	D．It has planes with powerful engines.

3. What might be the biggest challenge of electric flying?

A．To improve the ground service for e-planes.

B．To find qualified technicians for e-plane industry.

C．To calculate the energy needed to power e-planes.

D．To balance power and weight of batteries in e-planes.

4. What could be done during the transition from gas to electric in air flight?

A．To produce new electric components.	B．To increase battery consumption.
C．To use mixed - power technology.	D．To expand the landing field.

5. What is the author's attitude towards the prospect of electric flying?

A．Short-sighted

B．Wait-and-see

C．Optimistic

D．Skeptical

5 . Desperate to protect his farmland from a group of monkeys that were always destroying his crops, a farmer in Karnatakas India decided to paint his dog to look like a tiger in the hope that it would scare the monkeys away.

Srikant Gowda, a farmer from Karnatakas Shivamogga region, recently made interactional news headlines after it was reported that he used hair dye to paint his watchdog in the characteristic stripes of a tiger. The dog already had a reddish hair color, so all he had to do was add the black stripes and some white to give it the tiger look. It wasn't that Gowda had always wanted to own a tiger, but that he hoped the disguise(乔装) would help the dog drive away the monkeys destroying his crops.

The Indian farmer told reporters that he got the idea four years ago when he visited Uttara Kannada and came across a farmer in Bhatkal who was using a fake tiger doll to scare away monkeys. It seemed silly, but he tried the idea himself and was surprised to see that it actually worked. However, he was convinced that the toy tiger wouldn't fool the monkeys for long, so he decided to try something else as well.

The trick, strange as it might seem, has worked well and the dog has been able to actually scare off the monkeys.

This year Gowda not only used hair dye to make his watchdog look like a small tiger, but he also placed large posters of real tigers and his own fake tiger all over his farmland, hoping that they would keep the monkeys at bay. The paint job actually doesn't harm the dog. It’s actually hair dye(染发剂) and lasts up to a month before fading away.

1. What did the fanner decide to do to protect his crops?

A．Raise some tigers	B．Draw a dog like tiger
C．Set traps for the monkeys	D．Make up his dog as a tiger.

2. Where did Srikant Gowda get his inspiration?

A．From a trip.	B．From a friend
C．From a toy.	D．From the Internet

3. What can be inferred from the last paragraph?

A．The dye can do harm to dogs.

B．The “paint job” will last for only a month.

C．More dogs are likely to be painted like tigers.

D．Monkeys will never stop destroying crops.

4. What can be a suitable title for the text?

A．Farmer Is Friendly to Animals

B．Farmer Is Good at Drawing Tigers

C．Farmer Protects His Crops from Animals

D．Farmer Paints His Dog as a Tiger to Scare Away Monkeys

6 . I left England for Sydney in September. It was a career move for my husband, and our 20-year-old daughter was feeling adventurous and decided to come, too. However, just before leaving England, my 79-year-old mother suffered a stroke(中风).Being strong and independent, she continued to live at home with the help of social services. But she couldn’t look after the garden. I thought how wonderful it would be if there was an organization offering volunteer help. Friends asked me what I planned to do in Australia, and I told them I would be looking for a volunteer position with a gardening charitable organization. Imagine my surprise when I found just the organization I had been looking for——Easy Care Gardening (ECG)!

There are several reasons why I volunteer for ECG. Firstly, as a newcomer to Australia I meet many great people who, like me, volunteer some of their time. We cover a large age range, but all love gardens and helping others.

Secondly,through working with ECG I have been lucky enough to explore Sydney’s North Shore that I might not have had the chance to visit otherwise.

Finally, there are all those wonderful people we call “clients (客户) ”,but are more like friends when we visit them often and tend their gardens. What great people I have met, and the stories they have to tell—the family histories, where they come from and the reasons for immigrating to Australia! I find it a privilege to have access to private gardens which, in many cases, have been the joy of their owners for many years. Each one is individual and reflects the character, needs and the history of each family. Indeed, the gardens reflect the multicultural and historical background of Sydney.

1. Why did the author move to Sydney?

A．Her husband would work there.	B．She planned to volunteer there.
C．She was very keen on adventures.	D．She had to look after her sick mother.

2. What made the author choose to be a gardening volunteer?

A．The popularity of ECG   .	B．The tips of her friends.
C．Her own experience.	D．Her gardening skills.

3. What do the volunteers at ECG have in common?

A．They make friends with their clients.

B．They like to explore Sydney’s North Shore.

C．They are of similar ages and back grounds.

D．They are kind-hearted with the same interest.

7 . The fitness center offers a variety of activities for members of all ages throughout the week.

Activities for Monday 12 July, 2017:

Learn to swim. Classes for preschool children aged five and under start at 10 am. Classes last 30 minutes and parents must attend with their children. Don't forget to book in advance, as places are limited, and to pack some warm clothes for after the lesson.

Woman's aerobics（有氧运动）. Sessions are for one hour and begin at 10:45 am, led by Melissa. Come along and join us every Monday for an exhilarating hour of exercise and fun. Leave your kids at the nursery and take time out for yourself. Wear a tracksuit or something similar.

Lunch time yoga. Take a break at lunchtime （1:00-2:00 pm） for an hour of meditation and yoga. Enjoy the peace and quiet of our meditation room, and relaxing sessions designed for active people with busy lives. Use your own mat（垫子）for floor work or huy one from us with some money.

Family Shootaround. 10:00-5:30 pm. Family Shootaround is open for members and guests to bring the family out for basketball. Half court games are only during this time. There are no full court games during Family Shootaround hours. All participants must sign in at the front desk and wear a wistband during the play.

1. When will Melissa be working?

A．From 10:00 am to 10:30 am

B．From 10:45 am to 11:45 am.

C．From 1:00 pm to 2:00 pm.

D．From 10:00 am to 5:30 pm.

2. Which activity may need extra fees?

A．Lunchtime yoga.	B．Women's aerobics.
C．Learn to swim	D．Family Shootaround.

3. What is the common requirement of the activities?

A．The need to sign in

B．The need to book in advance.

C．The need to bring something.

D．The need to become a member.

8 . Deciding to get her money's worth out of the wedding dress on which she spent over $1,000, an Australian woman has been wearing her wedding dress, a year after her wedding.

43-year-old Tammy Hall adopted a new lifestyle-anti-consumerism （反消费主义） lifestyle in 2016, after a trip to India opened her eyes to how much we as a society consumed. She decided not to buy any new clothes or footwear for a whole year after she returned home to Adelaide, in Southern Australia, and she made it.

But last year, as her wedding day approached, she faced a dilemma. She wanted to look good on the most important day of her life, but how could she spend a small fortune on the wedding dress she would only wear on that day?

"In the end I decided to get a wedding dress, and I could get my money's worth," Hall tells PA Real Life. The first time I wore it after the wedding was to vote in the Australian election in early 2019," the 43-year-old adds. "Since then, it's been to all sorts of places. Wearing it on a crowded train was especially funny, but I've worn it to do housework, to football games and to the gym."

Hall says that she has gotten some strange looks from people, but no annoying comments. Anyway, she doesn't really care, because she knows she has to hit the goal she has set and wearing the dress multiple times is the most reasonable way she could think of to make the most of her wedding dress.

Hall now plans to wear her wedding dress on a trip to Iceland that she and her partner will take next summer.

1. Why did Tammy Hall adopt a new lifestyle?

A．To adapt herself to Indian life.	B．To cut down her consumption.
C．To save money for her next trip.	D．To get prepared for her wedding.

2. What did Tammy Hall do to get her money's worth out of her wedding dress?

A．She brought fun to people with it.	B．She tried to wear it to earn money.
C．She wore it repeatedly in daily life.	D．She got it exchanged again and again.

3. What can we infer about Tammy Hall?

A．She is determined to turn her ideas into practice,	B．She values her wedding dress less than her trips
C．She has been struggling to make the ends meet.	D．She has influenced people's lifestyle widely.

9 . Today, people all over the world are moving out of small villages in the country to go and live in big, noisy cities. They are moving from the peaceful hills, mountains, fields, rivers and streams of the countryside to the busy world of streets, buildings, traffic and crowds. This movement from rural areas to urban areas has been going on for over two hundred years.

In many countries, the main reason people come to live in towns and cities is work. After one or two large factories have been built in or near a town, people come to find work, and soon an industrial area begins to grow. There is usually a residential area nearby, too. The families of these workers need schools, hospitals and shops, so many people come to live in the area to provide these services and a city grows.

In every major city in the world, there is a business district where the big companies have their main offices. In the United States, this area is usually in the city center downtown. It is here that you can see many huge skyscrapers(摩天大楼)and office blocks. The people who work here often travel a long way to work each day. Many of them live in the suburbs of the city, far away from the industrial area and the city center. Some suburbs are very pleasant, with nice houses and big gardens. There are usually parks for children to play in and large department stores where you can buy all you need.

But what is the future of the big cities? Will they continue to get bigger and bigger? Perhaps not. Some major cities have actually become smaller in the last ten years, and it is quite possible that one day we will see people moving out of the major cities and back into smaller towns and villages.

1. Why do people move to live in cities or towns?

A．Because they can live more comfortably there.

B．Because they like noisy life better than peaceful life.

C．Because they mainly want to find work there.

D．Because they are sure of having a better life there.

2. Which of the following statement is NOT true about the business district?

A．Big companies usually have their main offices in the business district.

B．People usually work and live in the business district.

C．A business district usually lies in the city center downtown.

D．Nearly every major city has its own business district.

3. In the United States, many people work in the center of a big city________.

A．and live there

B．but live in the suburbs of the city

C．and live in another city

D．but live in rural areas

4. We can infer that this movement from rural to urban areas ________.

A．has been going on for more than 2,000 years

B．will surely continue in the future

C．may not continue in the future

D．has now stopped already

10 . Time and how we experience it have always puzzled us. Physicists have created fascinating theories, but their time is measured by a pendulum (钟摆) and is not psychological time, which leaps with little regard to the clock or calendar. As someone who understood the distinction observed, ''When you sit with a nice girl for two hours it seems like a minute, but when you sit on a hot stove, a minute seems like two hours. ''

Psychologists have long noticed that larger units of time, such as months and years, fly on swifter wings as we age. They also note that the more time is structured with schedules and appointments, the more rapidly it seems to pass. For example, a day at the office flies compared with a day at the beach.

Expectation and familiarity also make time seem to flow more rapidly. Almost all of us have had the experience of driving somewhere we've never been before. Surrounded by unfamiliar scenery, with no real idea of when we’ll arrive, we experience the trip as lasing a long time. But the return trip, although exactly as long, seems to take far less time. The novelty of the outward journey has become routine.

When days become as identical as beads (小珠子)on a string, they mix together, and even months become a single day. To counter this, try to find ways to interrupt the structure of your day-- to stop time, so to speak.

Learning something new is one of the ways to slow the passage of time. One of the reasons the days of our youth seems to be full and long is that these are the days of learning and discovery. For many of us, learning ends when we leave school, but this doesn't have to be.

1. What is the underlined sentence in paragraph 1 used to show?

A．Psychological time is quite puzzling.

B．Time should not be measured by a pendulum.

C．Physical time is different from psychological time

D．Physical theory has nothing to do with the true sense of time

2. Why do units of time fly faster as we grow older?

A．Our sense of time changes.

B．We spend less time at the beach

C．More time is structured and scheduled

D．Time is structured with too many appointments.

3. What does ''Novelty'' in paragraph 3 probably mean?

A．excitement

B．unfamiliarity

C．imagination

D．amusement

4. What is the purpose of the passage?

A．To give various explanations about time

B．To describe how we experience time physically

C．To show the differences of two kinds of time

D．To explain why time flies and how to slow it down