1 . Antarctica

Weather

Antarctica lies in the most southern part of the world. It is the coldest area on Earth. There isn’t much rain, but there is a lot of snow and wind. The lowest temperature was on 21 July in 1983 at -89.2℃!

Population

Nobody lives in Antarctica all the time! The first people to stay there for a while were fishermen in 1786. Now there are about 5,000 scientists and researchers there in the summer.

History of exploration (探险)

During 1907-1909, British explorer Earnest Shackleton explored Antarctica on foot. In 1911, two explorers — a British man named Scott and a Norwegian named Amundsen — raced 1,400 kilometers to the South Pole (南极). Amundsen arrived first.

Animals and birds

There aren’t any large animals in Antarctica. Polar bears live at the North Pole. But there are a lot of penguins and seabirds. Every spring there are over 100 million seabirds in Antarctica.

1. When did the lowest temperature appear in Antarctica?

A．In 1786.

B．In 1907.

C．In 1911.

D．In 1983.

2. Who first stayed in Antarctica for some time?

A．Fishermen.

B．Scientists.

C．Researchers.

D．Explorers.

3. Where is Earnest Shackleton from?

A．Britain.

B．Norway.

C．The South Pole.

D．The North Pole.

2 . It’s hard to imagine that just 25 years ago, Berlin was a city split (分开) into two by the Berlin Wall. I’ll never forget how people were excited as the Berlin Wall came down in 1989. Since then, Berlin has become one of the coolest cities in Europe. Here are the main reasons why I think Berlin is cool.

It’s affordable. Berlin has cheap hotels and everyday objects. You don’t have to worry about spending too much money when visiting Berlin.

It has fantastic festivals. Berlin knows how to give parties, and there is a festival here every month of the year. Perhaps the most famous is the Berlin International Film Festival.

It has great architecture (建筑设计). Berlin has beautiful architecture of its own. The Brandenburg Gate, built in the 18th century, is one of the city’ s most famous buildings, symbolizing more than 200 years of history. The TV Tower is as good as the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the London Eye.

The art scene is flourishing (繁荣). Berlin is a city of living art. Artists are allowed to create works of art on the sides of buildings.

If you want to visit an affordable European city with culture and lots of colors, Berlin is the place to be. What are you waiting for? Get to Europe’s coolest city before everyone else discovers it.

1. The underlined word “affordable” in Paragraph 2 means “________” in Chinese.

A．可利用的	B．可触及的
C．付得起的	D．用得住的

2. How often is there a festival in Berlin?

A．Once a week.	B．Twice a week.
C．Once a month.	D．Twice a month.

3. What’s the TV Tower famous for according to the passage?

A．Its color.	B．Its history.
C．Its location.	D．Its architecture.

4. What does the writer think of Berlin?

A．He can’t stand it.	B．He thinks it’s boring.
C．He doesn’t mind it.	D．He thinks it’s cool.