2 . Revolutionary Glasses Make It Safe to Drive at Night

Did you know that more than 40 percent of all deadly car accidents occur at night? A recent breakthrough eyeglass technology has made it safe to drive at night. It’s almost like having “X-ray” vision (视力) while driving.

Spend money on your safety and peace of mind behind the wheel with a pair of these cutting-edge night driving glasses. The amount of car accidents that occur at night is mostly the result of poor visibility. Even with 60% less traffic on the road at night, accidents still happen due to blinding light and just overall bad driving visibility.

Imagine being able to clearly see what’s in front of you and what’s approaching, even if it’s very dark and foggy. Once you start wearing ClearView night glasses, you’ll feel much more confident and safe driving when it’s getting dark. With ClearView you will notice an instant reduction in strong light from oncoming traffic and bright street lights.

This is because the special yellow lens tint (镜片色彩) can block strong blue light, and increase contrast (对比). ClearView passes the global traffic light standard for safer sharper vision at night with flying colors.

You can start using ClearView immediately even if you wear glasses. Simply place ClearView on top of your glasses and be amazed by the difference this technology makes!

Is it worth it? Absolutely! Keep a pair in each of your cars to make sure you have your glasses at hand when night comes. If you care about your family’s safety then this is a no-brainer.

1. According to the text, the main cause of unsafe driving at night is________.

A．heavy traffic

B．low visibility

C．poor eyesight

D．bad driving

2. How does ClearView make it safe to drive at night?

A．It cures night blindness.

B．It passes the national standard.

C．It provides “X-ray” vision for drivers.

D．It reduces the brightness of strong light.

3. What is the purpose of the last paragraph?

A．To inform.

B．To explain.

C．To promote.

D．To entertain.

3 . 阅读下面短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项.

Ida Nelson and her sister were relaxing and enjoying themselves in the sauna (桑拿室) when she heard a series of long low sounds from a small airplane _________ the nearby airport.

It was 11:30 at night in the Alaskan village of Igiugig, population 70,and, as she told the reporter, “Any time a plane flies over that _______, you know something is wrong,"

Nelson and, her sister leaped out of the sauna, ran to the window, and saw the problem: The airport’s runway lights were ___________.

Nelson _________ some clothes, jumped into her ATV, and floored it to the airport, where she found a local pilot trying to turn on the _________ manually.

_______ , if someone pushed the button 10 or 15 times, the lights would just light up. Not this time. Meanwhile she and the pilot learned of the plane’s _________mission: It was a medevac (医疗救护直升机), there to _________ a seriously ill local girl to the nearest hospital, 280 miles away in Anchorage.

Nelson had a plan. Driving her ATV to the end of the runway, she _________ her headlights for the plane to follow. Great idea, but it wasn’t enough. __________ light was needed, so a neighbor called nearly every home in the village-32 of them.

Within 20 vehicles arrived at the airport, many of the __________ still in pajamas (睡衣). Following directions from the medevac pilot, the cars lined up on one side of the runway.

The medevac made its final __________ and, guided by the headlights, __________ safely. The young patient was loaded onto the aircraft, and the plane immediately took off again. Her illness was never publicly revealed, but she has since been released from the hospital.

In a world filled with __________, the little community’s positive activism was a __________. Not so much for Nelson. As she told the reporter, in Igiugig, coming together “is kind of a normal deal”.

1.

A．reaching

B．dropping

C．circling

D．crashing

2.

A．late

B．high

C．soon

D．far

3.

A．on red

B．out

C．blinding

D．flashing

4.

A．tried on

B．threw on

C．folded up

D．ironed out

5.

A．alarm

B．radio

C．heating

D．lights

6.

A．Normally

B．Unexpectedly

C．Gradually

D．Irregularly

7.

A．well-meaning

B．wait-and-see

C．time-critical

D．heart-stopping

8.

A．admit

B．operate on

C．transport

D．examine

9.

A．shone

B．shot

C．gave out

D．brought

10.

A．Colorful

B．Traffic

C．Distant

D．More

11.

A．passengers

B．pilots

C．rescue workers

D．drivers

12.

A．preparation

B．performance

C．approach

D．struggle

13.

A．took off

B．sped up

C．escaped

D．landed

14.

A．misery

B．uncertainty

C．wonder

D．hope

15.

A．second thought

B．big deal

C．top priority

D．good example

5 . It was in my first year of work as a doctor. My mouth was dry, my palms sweaty and my voice trembling. The only thing that kept me focused was the thought that things were so much worse for the family I was talking to.

A woman in her early twenties had been brought in after a road traffic accident. She had suffered multiple injuries and had been rushed up to theatre. The surgeons had been unable to save her life and she died on the table. Ashen-faced, the consultant (会诊医生) told the woman's family the news. “Tom, I think it would be nice if it came from you,” my consultant said.

I stared blankly. “What?” I asked.

“About organ donation,” he replied. I swallowed hard. Surely this would be the last thing they'd want to talk about. It felt acutely awkward and ill-timed to be considering this kind of conversation while they were being engulfed in grief. But the problem with organ donation is that every minute counts. The clock is ticking because the sooner organs can be transplanted, the better the chance they will survive in the recipient's (接受者) body.

I began to feel sick. I opened the door and sat opposite them, convinced that I was only going to make things worse for them.

“It's what she'd have wanted,” the mother said before I'd even finished. The father nodded. “She was always so generous,” her father added.

As my consultant and I left them, it occurred to me that I'd been wrong in thinking it would be an awkward conversation. Nothing could take away the pain of having lost their daughter. Yet this last, final act had comforted them and helped them feel that the spirit of their daughter lived on m this act of generosity. Strangely, it is one of the most heart-wanning conversations I have ever had.

1. The first two paragraphs suggest________.

A．the woman died on the scene

B．it was hard for the author to face death

C．the author witnessed the traffic accident

D．the woman's death was told by the consultant

2. Why did the author feel sick?

A．He was caught in a dilemma.	B．He was seriously ill at that time.
C．He failed to transplant the organ.	D．The woman's chance of survival was slim.

3. Why did the couple agree to donate their daughter’s organs?

A．To do the author a favor.	B．To show respect for the doctor.
C．To follow then daughter’s will.	D．To end the awkward conversation.

4. What made the awkward conversation heart-warming?

A．The consultant’s assistance.	B．The author’s consideration.
C．The donor’s kindness.	D．The recipient’s appreciation.

6 . 上周你校举办了第二十九届校运动会，请你为班级的英语园地写一篇短文，介绍运动会的情况。内容包括:
1.运动会概况；
2.你班参赛情况；
3.你的感受。
注意:
1.写作词数应为80左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。

The 29th Sports Meeting in Our School

7 . Although we're surrounded by millions of bricks every day, most of us don't think about them too often. For thousands of years, the humble clay-fired bricks haven't changed.

They're made from natural materials, but there are problems with bricks at every step of their production. Bricks are made from clay—a type of soil found all over the world. Clay mining is harmful to plant growth. In conventional brick production, the clay is shaped and baked in kilns(窑) mostly heated by fossil fuels, which contributes to climate change. Once made, bricks must be transported to construction sites, generating more carbon emissions. With so many bricks produced globally, their impact adds up.

Gabriela Medero, a professor at Scotland's Heriot-Watt University, decided to find solutions to that. With her university's support, Medero set up Kenoteq in 2009. The company's signature product is the K-Briq. Made from more than 90% construction waste, Medero says the K-Briq—which does not need to be fired in a kiln—produces less than a tenth of the carbon emissions of conventional bricks. With the company testing new machinery to start scaling up production, Medero hopes her bricks will help to build a more sustainable world.

The K-Briq will be comparably priced to conventional bricks. Additionally, as a new product, the K-Briq has been subjected to strict assessment and authoritative certification. Reusing old bricks is an expensive process and there is no standardized way to check the strength, safety or durability (耐久性) of recycled bricks. Medero says that K-Briq could solve both these problems. She claims that K-Briq is stronger and more durable than fired clay bricks.

Over the next 18 months, Medero plans to get K-Briq machines on-site at recycling plants. "This will reduce transport-related emissions because trucks can collect K-Briq when they drop off construction waste," says Medero.

1. What inspired Medero to invent the K-Briq?

A．The poor quality of the conventional bricks.

B．The outdated style of the conventional bricks.

C．The high cost of manufacturing conventional bricks.

D．The problems with the conventional brick production.

2. Why is the K-Briq production sustainable?

A．It won't produce waste.

B．It brings no pollution to the air.

C．The plants occupy much less land than before.

D．The K-Briq is mainly made from construction waste.

3. What is the fourth paragraph mainly about?

A．The popularity of the K-Briq.

B．The advantages of K-Briq over traditional bricks.

C．The special materials used in K-Briq.

D．The advanced technology used for K-Briq.

4. Why does Medero decide to put K-Briq machines at recycling factories?

A．To ensure fewer emissions.

B．To speed up the production.

C．To lower the production cost.

D．To collect more construction waste.

8 . It is widely believed that smiling means a person is happy, and it usually occurs when they're meeting another person or a group of people. However, a new study led by the body language expert Dr Harry Witchel shows this isn't always the case.

In his research, he asked 44 participants aged 18—35 to play a geography quiz game consisting of nine difficult questions so that they often got the answer wrong. Participants seated interacted with a computer alone in a room while their faces were video recorded.

After the quiz, the participants were asked to rate their experience using a range of 12 emotions including “bored”, “interested” and “frustrated”. Meanwhile, their facial expressions were then computer analysed frame by frame in order to judge how much they were smiling based on a scale of between 0 to 1.

Dr Witchel said: “According to some researchers, a real smile reflects the inner state of cheerfulness or amusement. However, behavioral ecology theory suggests that all smiles are tools used in social interactions, meaning cheerfulness is neither necessary nor rich for smiling. Our study showed that in these human­computer interaction experiments, smiling isn't driven by happiness; it is associated with subjective involvement(主观参与) , which acts like a social fuel for smiling, even when socialising with a computer on your own.”

Surprisingly, participants didn't tend to smile during the period when they were trying to figure out the answers. However, they did smile right after the computer game informed them if their answer was correct or wrong. Participants smiled more often when they got the answer wrong. Dr Witched added: “During these computerised quizzes, smiling was greatly increased just after answering questions incorrectly.This behaviour could be explained by self­ratings of involvement, rather than by ratings of happiness or frustration.”

1. Why did Dr Witchel use difficult questions in the quiz game?

A．To make it hard for participants to answer them correctly.

B．To make the answer period last as long as possible.

C．To discover the most intelligent participants.

D．To create a stressful situation for participants deliberately.

2. What can we infer from what Dr Witchel said in Paragraph 4?

A．Other researchers' opinion of a real smile is quite right.

B．Smiles aren't necessarily useful tools in social interactions.

C．Subjective involvement doesn't motivate smiling in social interactions.

D．Witchel's study finding is consistent with behavioural ecology theory.

3. What do we know about the text?

A．Participants were asked to interact with each other in the quiz.

B．Participants in the quiz smiled less often when they got the answer wrong.

C．In Dr Witchel's opinion, smiling is connected with subjective involvement.

D．Dr Witchel thinks that a real smile reflects the inner state of cheerfulness.

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

A．What Contributes to Real Happiness?

B．How to Identify Whether a Person Is Really Happy?

C．Smiling Doesn't Necessarily Mean Happiness.

D．People Generally Hold a Wrong View on Happiness.

9 . Earth Hour is organized by the World Wide Fund for Nature. It's a big event usually at the end of March every year. On this evening, people “go dark”.     1    

It's true that turning off lights for just one hour saves only a small amount of power.    2    On one level, joining in Earth Hour makes people think about the problem of climate change and what we can do in everyday life to protect nature.

But on another level, a large number of people’s acting together sends a powerful message to governments and companies.     3     They begin considering green issues when big decisions.

The logo(标识) of Earth Hour is “60+” .The number 60 is for the 60 minutes of Earth Hour.     4     In fact, people who join in Earth Hour say that taking part makes them want to do more for the environment.

    5     Musicians give concerts by playing acoustic(原声的) instruments instead of electric ones, and using candles instead of electric lights. Celebrity chefs have created special recipes for families to prepare and eat by candlelight. Tree-planting sessions, group walks and runs are also among the options.

A．But this is only the beginning.

B．Earth Hour represents every hour of every day.

C．After all, everyone has to answer for what they have done.

D．Besides turning off the lights, people get involved in other events.

E．It pushes them to take urgent measures by making changes to policies.

F．That is, they switch off all unnecessary lights at the same time for one hour.

G．The plus invites people to continue their action even after Earth Hour is finished.

10 . A company called Compass Pools has some good news for height and swimming enthusiasts.Recently，the company announced their novel design—a first of its kind 360­degree pool which is set to be placed on a skyscraper in London.The Infinity London will be the first and only building in the world to include this cutting­edge pool design.The pool will be laid on top of a 55­story skyscraper and will allow people to float over 200 meters above the London skyline with unobstructed(没有障碍的) views of the city.

The entrance to the pool is hidden.People began to raise questions about how anyone would get inside the pool.Compass Pools explains：“Swimmers will access the pool through a rotating spiral(螺旋形的) staircase based on the door of a submarine，rising from the pool floor when someone wants to get in or out.”

But that is not the only unique technology of the pool.The designers found a way to make sure the wind doesn't blow the water down to the streets.They included a built­in anemometer(风力计) to monitor the wind speed.It is linked to a computer­controlled building management system which will also take care of the temperature of the water.

Alex Kemsley promises that this unique pool will surpass everyone's expectations.“It's quite a strange feeling to swim in the SkyPool at The Shard and have helicopters flying past at your level but this pool takes it a step further，”he says.“Putting your goggles(游泳镜) on and with a 360­degree view of London from 220m up，it really will be something else—but it's definitely not one for the acrophobic(恐高的)！”

While the exact date of the construction is not clear yet，if things go well，it may begin in 2022.The location has yet to be confirmed too.

1. What can we learn from the first paragraph?

A．The Infinity London is the only building to swim in.

B．Swimmers can enjoy the views of London in the pool.

C．The pool is located on the first floor of a skyscraper.

D．Compass Pools has built many 360­degree pools in the world.

2. What does the underlined word“that” in Paragraph 3 refer to?

A．How to get a view of London.

B．How to monitor the wind speed.

C．How to get into or out of the pool.

D．How to keep the water in the pool.

3. Who might not be suitable to swim in the SkyPool?

A．People who enjoy flying.

B．People who lose weight.

C．People who fear heights.

D．People who have poor sight.

4. What can we know about the SkyPool at The Shard?

A．It is not certain when people can swim in it.

B．The exact location of the construction is clear.

C．Swimmers can expect its designs easily.

D．It's impossible to monitor the temperature of the water.