1 . Plants are flowering faster than scientists predicted (预测) in reaction to climate change, which could have long damaging effects on food chains and ecosystems.

Global warming is having a great effect on hundreds of plant and animal species around the world, changing some living patterns, scientists say.

Increased carbon dioxide (CO₂) in the air from burning coal and oil can have an effect on how plants produce oxygen, while higher temperatures and changeable rainfall patterns can change their patterns of growth.

“Predicting species, reaction to climate change is a major challenge in ecology,” said the researchers of several U.S. universities. They said plants had been the key object of study because their reaction to climate change could have an effect on food chains and ecosystem services.

The study, published on the Nature website, uses the findings from plant life cycle studies and experiments across four continents and 1,634 species. It found that some experiments had underestimated(低估) the speed of flowering by 8.5 times and leafing by 4 times.

“Across all species, the experiments under-predicted the speed of the advance—for both leafing and flowering— that results from temperature increase,” the study said.

The design of future experiments may need to be improved to better predict how plants will react to climate change, it said.

Plants are necessary for life on the Earth. They are the base of the food chain, using photosynthesis (光合作用) to produce sugar from carbon dioxide and water. They let out oxygen which is needed by nearly every organism on the planet.

Scientists believe the world’s average temperature has risen by about 0.8℃ since 1900, and nearly 0.2℃ every ten years since 1979.

So far, efforts to cut emissions (排放) of planet-warming greenhouse gases are not seen as enough to prevent the Earth heating up beyond 2℃ this century—a point scientists say will bring the danger of a changeable climate in which weather extremes are common, leading to drought, floods, crop failures and rising sea levels.

1. What is the main idea of Paragraph 1?

A．Plants’ reaction to weather could have damaging effects on ecosystems.

B．The increasing speed of flowering is beyond scientists’ expectation.

C．Climate change leads to the change of food production patterns.

D．Food chains have been seriously damaged because of weather.

2. We can learn from the study published on the Nature website that       .

A．plants’ flowering is 8.5 times faster than leafing

B．there are 1,634 plant species on the four continents

C．scientists should improve the design of the experiments

D．the experiments failed to predict how plants react to climate change

3. Scientists pay special attention to the study of plants because       .

A．they can prove the climate change clearly

B．they are very important in the food chains

C．they play a leading role in reducing global warming

D．they are growing and flowering much faster than before

4. What can be inferred from the last two paragraphs about the world’s temperature?

A．It needs to be controlled within 2℃ in this century.

B．Its change will lead to weather extremes.

C．It is 0.8℃ higher in 1979 than that of 1900.

D．It has risen nearly 0.2℃ since 1979.

2 . Once upon a time, there lived many doves(鸽子) in the jungle. One day they went out in search of food. They flew long distances ____did not get anything to eat. All of them were____
A young dove asked the King Dove, “Your Majesty(陛下),please ____ us to take some rest.” The King replied, “Have ____ , my dear young fellow. We shall ____ get something to eat very soon.”
The young dove started flapping(拍打) his wings(翅膀) with ____ and soon left everyone else behind. After some time, he____ and spoke to others, “Hey, I see lots of ____ down there.”
Hearing this, all the doves started ____ the grains(谷物) under a banyan tree. ____ The King Dove said, “It’s too good to be true. There is something wrong. Don’t rush towards the grains. It might be a ____.Some hunter must have laid a trap(下了陷阱).”
But the doves were very hungry. The ____ of the grains was too tempting(诱惑人的).Without giving a(n) ____ to the king’s advice, they flew down and started eating the grains. After having a big ____ , they tried to fly away, only to ____ that they were caught in a net.
The King Dove said, “ I told you before that it is a trick(骗局) of some hunter.
All of them felt ashamed and ____. One of them said to the King Dove. “Oh Your Majesty, please save us.”
So the King Dove said, “All of you must try to fly with the ____ at the same time and in the same ____ , all of you.”
Just then they saw a(n) ____ show up. The King Dove said, “ Now all of you, fly together.”
So all the doves flapped their wings together and flew with the net. The hunter stood dazed(眩晕). He couldn’t ____55___ what he had just seen.
1. ..

A．but

B．and

C．so

D．or

2. ..

A．excited

B．surprised

C．tired

D．angry

3. .

A．help

B．teach

C．allow

D．accept

4. ..

A．rest

B．courage

C．luck

D．interest

5. ..

A．slowly

B．happily

C．possibly

D．surely

6. ..

A．surprise

B．pleasure

C．force(用力)

D．anger

7. ..

A．turned down

B．turned back

C．broke out

D．watched out

8. ..

A．persons

B．doves

C．plants

D．grains

9. .

A．rushing towards

B．looking for

C．picking up

D．dropping down

10. .

A．Gladly

B．Amazedly

C．Hardly

D．Suddenly

11. ..

A．magic

B．trick

C．dream

D．mistake

12. ..

A．color

B．smell

C．view

D．sight

13. ..

A．sound

B．thought

C．idea

D．care

14. ..

A．meeting

B．discussion

C．meal

D．break

15. ..

A．appreciate

B．understand

C．realize

D．worry

16. ..

A．pleased

B．scared(害怕)

C．full

D．sick

17. ..

A．food

B．king

C．net

D．wing

18. ..

A．way

B．place

C．circle

D．direction

19. ..

A．hunter

B．guide

C．adult

D．child

20. ..

A．believe

B．remember

C．tell

D．catch

3 . If man’s best friend is a dog, then who is a dog’s best friend? That would be Rover, Glow, Ivan or Raina. They recently donated (捐赠) blood to other dogs. And they did it without having to travel far from home: they visited an animal bloodmobile.
Like the Red Cross vehicles for humans, the University of Pennsylvania’s traveling vet lab goes to where the donors are to make it easier to give. The bloodmobile makes weekly rounds through Philadelphia and New Jersey.
Like humans, not every dog is qualified(合格的) to donate blood. The dogs are examined for health first. Dogs must have the correct blood type, weigh at least 55 pounds and be under 8 year old. About 150 dogs take part in the program. Each donates three or four pints(品脱) a year, which can help animals suffering from illness like cancer or an accident like being hit by a car.
Sandy Lucas brought her 7-year-old dog, Raina, to the bloodmobile last week. She said she wouldn’t have taken the dog to Penn Vet’s animal hospital in downtown Philadelphia, which is twice as far from her home. “I was very, very excited that she had the right blood that was needed to help another dog out,” said Lucas. “We’ll surely do it again.”
Just like people, the donors get a snack and a heart-shaped sticker immediately after giving. What’s more, they receive dog food to take home.
If dogs are doing what they can to save other dogs, why can’t we do it to save other people? Next time you hesitate(犹豫) over whether to donate blood or not, think of the dogs.
1. The writer mentions Rover, Glow, Ivan and Raina in Para. 1 mainly because _________.

A．they are man’s best friends.

B．they are common names for dogs.

C．they get along well with other dogs.

D．they have donated blood to other dogs.

2. What do we know about the traveling vet lab?

A．It is a Red Cross vehicle.

B．It collects dogs’ blood for other dogs.

C．It travels through Philadelphia every day.

D．It was donated by the University of Pennsylvania.

3. What can we learn from Para.4?

A．Sandy Lucas is unwilling to let her dog donate blood.

B．The bloodmobile welcomes dogs from anywhere in the city.

C．Penn Vet’s animal hospital in downtown Philadelphia is popular.

D．The animal bloodmobile has made it easier for dogs to donate blood.

4. By writing the last paragraph, the author wants to ________.

A．ask us to help dogs.

B．show the importance of dogs.

C．encourage us to donate blood.

D．compare humans with dogs.

4 . A rainforest is an area covered by tall trees with the total high rainfall spreading quite equally through the year and the temperature rarely dipping below l6℃. Rainforests have a great effect on the world environment because they can take in heat from the sun and adjust the climate. Without the forest cover，these areas would reflect more heat into the atmosphere，warming the rest of the world. Losing the rainforests may also influence wind and rainfall patterns，potentially causing certain natural disasters all over the world.
In the past hundred years，humans have begun destroying rainforests in search of three major resources（资源）：land for crops，wood for paper and other products，land for raising farm animals. This action affects the environment as a whole. For example，a lot of carbon dioxide（二氧化碳）in the air comes from burning the rainforests. People obviously have a need for the resources we gain from cutting trees but we will suffer much more than we will benefit.There are two main reasons for this. Firstly，when people cut down trees，generally they can only use the land for a year or two. Secondly，cutting large sections of rainforests may provide a good supply of wood right now，but in the long run it actually reduces the world’s wood supply.
Rainforests are often called the world’s drug store. More than 25％ of the medicines we use today come from plants in rainforests. However，fewer than l％of rainforest plants have been examined for their medical value. It is extremely likely that our best chance to cure diseases lies somewhere in the world’s shrinking rainforests.
1. Rainforests can help to adjust the climate because they      

A．reflect more heat into the atmosphere

B．bring about high rainfall throughout the world

C．rarely cause the temperature to drop lower than l6℃

D．reduce the effect of heat from the sun on the earth

2. What does the word “this” underlined in the third paragraph refer to?

A．We will lose much more than we can gain.

B．Humans have begun destroying rainforests.

C．People have a strong desire for resources.

D．Much carbon dioxide comes from burning rainforests.

3. It can be inferred from the text that

A．we can get enough resources without rainforests

B．there is great medicine potential in rainforests

C．we will grow fewer kinds of crops in the gained land

D．the level of annual rainfall affects wind patterns

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

A．How to Save Rainforests

B．How to Protect Nature

C．Rainforests and the Environment

D．Rainforests and Medical Development

5 . Last Friday a storm swept through two villages in the south China, destroying fourteen homes. Seven others were so badly damaged that their owners had to leave them, and fifteen others had broken windows or broken roofs. One people was killed, several were badly hurt and taken to hospital, and a number of other people received smaller hurt. Altogether over two hundred people were homeless after the storm.
A farmer, Mr. Tan, said that the storm began early in the morning and lasted for over an hour. “I was eating with my wife and children,” he said, “When we heard a loud noise. A few minutes later our house fell down on top of us. We tried our best to climb out but then I saw that one of my children was missing. I went back inside and found him, safe but very frightened.”
Mrs. Woo Mei Fong said that her husband had just left for work when she felt that her house was moving. She ran outside at once with her children. “There was no time to take anything,” she said, “A few minutes later, the roof came down.”
Soldiers helped to take people out of the flooded area and the welfare department (福利机构) brought them food, clothes and shelter.
1. How many homes altogether were damaged in the storm?

A．Fourteen	B．Twenty-one
C．Twenty-nine.	D．Thirty-six

2. Mrs. Woo and her family didn’t get hut because            .

A．her husband knew there would be a storm

B．they were all outside the house when the storm became worse

C．she felt the house was moving

D．the welfare department helped her

3. The underlined word “shelter” in the last paragraph in this passage means            .

A．something to eat	B．something to wear
C．somewhere to study	D．somewhere to stay

4. Which of the followings may be the best title for this passage?

A．A Terrible Storm	B．A Lucky Woman
C．Good Soldiers	D．Clever People

6 . Each year there is an increasing number of cars on roads and streets as millions of new cars and trucks are produced. One out of every six Americans works at putting together the parts of cars, driving trucks, building roads or filling cars and trucks with gas.    1    
Most Americans would find it hard to imagine what life would look like without cars.    2    . The polluted air becomes poisonous and dangerous to health.
    3    . That’s what several of the large car factories have been trying to do. But to build a clean car is easier said than done. Progress in this field has been slow.
Another way is to take the place of the car engine by something else.    4    . Many makers believe that it will take years to develop a practical model that pleases man.
To prevent the world from being polluted by cars, we’ll have to make some changes in the way many of us live. Americans, for example, have to cut down on the number of their total cars. They are encouraged to travel and go to work by bicycle. Bicycling is thought to help the air clean. But this change does not come easily. A large number of workers may find themselves without jobs if a car factory closes down.    5    .
Although cars have led us to a better life, they have also brought us new problems.

A．Thus the problem of air pollution would become less important than that of unemployment.

B．Americans know cars very well.

C．However, some have realized the serious problems of the air pollution that is caused by cars.

D．One way to get rid of the polluted air is to build a car that does not pollute.

E．However, the number of vehicles has continued to increase in recent years.

F．Americans won’t live without cars!

G．Inventors are now working on steam cars as well as electric cars.

7 . Have you ever wondered why birds sing? Maybe you thought that they were just happy. After all, you probably sing or whistle when you are happy.
Some scientists believe that birds do sing some of the time just because they are happy. However they sing most of the time for a very different reason. Their singing is actually a warning to other birds to stay out of their territory.
Do you know what a territory is? A territory is an area that an animal, usually the male, claims as its own. Only he and his family are welcome there. No other families of the same species are welcome. Your yard and house are your territory where only your family and friends are welcome. If a stranger should enter your territory and threaten you, you might shout. Probably this would be enough to frighten him away.
If so, you have actually scared the stranger away without having to fight him. A bird does the same thing. But he expects an outsider almost any time, especially at nesting(筑巢) season. So he is screaming all the time, whether he can see an outsider or not. This screaming is what we call a bird’s song, and it is usually enough to keep an outsider away.
Birds sing loudest in the spring when they are trying to attract a mate and warn others not to enter the territory of theirs.
You can see that birds have a language of their own. Most of it has to do with attracting mates and setting up territories.
1. Some scientists believe that most of the time bird’s singing is actually ________.

A．an expression of happiness	B．a way of warning
C．an expression of anger	D．a way of greeting

2. What does the underlined word “territory’’ mean?

A．A place where families of other species are not accepted.

B．A place where a bird may shout at the top of its voice.

C．An area for which birds fight against each other.

D．An area which a bird considers to be its own.

3. Why do birds keep on singing at nesting season?

A．Because they want to invite more friends.

B．Because their singing helps frighten outsiders away.

C．Because they want to find outsiders around.

D．Because their singing helps get rid of their fears.

4. How does the writer explain bird’s singing?

A．By comparing birds with human beings.

B．By reporting experiment results.

C．By describing birds’ daily life.

D．By telling a bird’s story.