1 . Maybe ten-year-old Elizabeth put it best when she said to her father. “But, Dad, you can’t be healthy if you’re dead.”
Dad, in a hurry to get home before dark so he could go for a run, had forgotten to wear his safety belt — a mistake 11.5% of the US population make every day, according to a survey in 2015.
The percentage doesn’t seem so bad, but the big question is why still so many people ignore it when every day there are reports about car accidents and casualties (a death toll of 37461 in 2016 ).
There have been many myths about safety belts ever since their first appearance in cars some forty years ago. The following are three of the most common.
Myth Number One: It’s best to be “thrown clear”of a serious accident.
Truth: Sorry, but any accident serious enough to “throw you clear”is also going to be serious enough to give you a very bad landing. And chances are you’ll have traveled through a windshield (挡风玻璃) or door to do it. Studies show that chances of dying after a car accident are twenty-five times greater in cases where people are “thrown clear.”
Myth Number Two: Safety belts “trap”people in cars that are burning or sinking in water.
Truth: Sorry again. but studies show that people knocked unconscious (昏迷) due to not wearing safety belts have a greater chance of dying in these accidents People wearing safety belts are usually protected to the point of having a clear head to free themselves from such dangerous situations, not to be trapped in them.
Myth Number Three: Safety belts aren’t needed at speeds of less than 30 miles an hour (mph).
Truth: When two cars traveling at 30 mpb hit each other, an unbelted driver would meet the windshield with a force equal to diving headfirst into the ground from a height of 10 meters.
1. Why did Elizabeth say to her father “But, Dad, you can’t be healthy if you’re dead”?A.He was driving at great speed. |
B.He was running across the street. |
C.He didn’t have his safety belt on. |
D.He didn’t take his medicine on time. |
A.wasn’t feeling very well |
B.hated to drive in the dark |
C.wanted to take some exercise |
D.didn’t want to be caught by the police |
A.may be knocked down by other cars |
B.may get seriously hurt being thrown out of the car |
C.may find it impossible to get away from the seat |
D.may get caught in the car door |
A.the belt prevents them escaping in an accident |
B.they will be unable to think clearly in an accident |
C.they will be caught when help comes |
D.cars catch fire easily |
A.Never drive faster than 30 mile an hour. |
B.Try your best to save yourself in a car accident. |
C.Never forget to wear the safety belt while driving. |
D.Drive slowly while you’re not wearing a safety belt. |
I felt superior about this matter until the other day I took my car to mail a small parcel. The journey is a matter of 281 steps. But I used the car. And I wasn’t in ay hurry, either, I had merely become one more victim of a national sickness: motorosis.
It is an illness to which I had thought myself immune(), for I was bred in the tradition of going to places on my own two legs. At that time, we regarded 25 miles as good day’s walk and the ability to cover such a distance in ten hours as sign of strength and skill. It did not occur to us that walking was a hardship. And the effect was lasting. When I was 45 years old I raced — and beat — a teenage football player the 168 steps up the Stature of Liberty.
Such enterprises today are regarded by many middle-aged persons as bad for the heart. But a well-known British physician, Sir Adolphe Abrhams, pointed out recently that hearts and bodies need proper...is more likely to have illnesses than one who exercises regularly. And wlaking is an ideal form of exercise — the most familiar and natural of all.
It was Henry Thoreau who showed mankind the richness of going on foot. The man walking can learn the trees, flower, insects, birds and animals, the significance of seasons, the very feel of himself as a living creature in a living world, He cannot learn in a car.
The car is a convenient means of transport, but we have made it our way of life. Many people don’t dare to approach Nature any more; to them the world they were born to enjoy is all threat. To them security is a steel river thundering on a concrete road. And much of their thinking takes place while waiting for the traffic light to turn green.
I say that the green of forests is the mind’s best light. And none but the man on foot can evaluate what is basic and everlasting.
1. What is the national sickness?
A.Walking too much |
B.Traveling too much |
C.Driving cars too much |
D.Climbing stairs too much. |
A.People usually went around on foot. |
B.people often walked 25 miles a day |
C.People used to climb the Statue of Liberty. |
D.people considered a ten-hour walk as a hardship. |
A.middle-aged people like getting back to nature |
B.walking in nature helps enrich one’s mind |
C.people need regular exercise to keep fit |
D.going on foot prevents heart disease |
A.A queue of cars. |
B.A ray of traffic light. |
C.A flash of lightning. |
D.A stream of people. |
A.To tell people to reflect more non life. |
B.To recommend people to give up driving. |
C.To advise people to do outdoor activities. |
D.To encourage people to return to walking. |
In 1839, Kirkpatrick Macmillan, a Scottish blacksmith, invented a much better bicycle. Macmillan’s machine had iron-covered wheels to keep them from getting worn down. He also used foot-operated levers, similar to pedals, so his bicycle could be ridden at a quick pace. It didn’t look much like the modem bicycle, though, because its back wheel was substantially larger than its front wheel. Although Macmillan’s bicycles could be ridden easily, they were never produced in large numbers.
In 1861, Frenchman Pierre Michaux and his brother Ernest invented a bicycle with an improved pedal mechanism. They called their bicycle a velocipede,but most people called it a “bone shaker” because of the effect of the wood and iron frame. Despite the impolite nickname, the velocipede was a hit. After a few years, the Michaux family was making hundreds of the machines annually, mostly for fun-seeking young people.
Ten years later, James Starley , an English inventor, made several innovations that revolutionized bicycle design. He made the front wheel many times larger than the back wheel, put a gear on the pedals to make the bicycle more efficient,and lightened the wheels by using wire spokes. Although this bicycle was much lighter and less tiring to ride, it was still clumsy, extremely top-heavy,and ridden mostly for entertainment.
It wasn’t until 1874 that the first truly modern bicycle appeared on the scene. Invented by another Englishman, H. J. Lawson, the safety bicycle would look familiar to today’s cyclists. The safety bicycle had equal-sized wheels, which made it easier to ride. Lawson also attached a chain to the pedals to drive the back wheel. By 1893,the safety bicycle had been further improved with air-filled rubber tires, a diamond-shaped frame, and easy braking. With the improvements provided by Lawson;bicycles became extremely popular and useful for transportation. Today, they are built, used, and enjoyed all over the world.
1. This passage was most likely written in order to _____.
A.compare bicycles used for different purposes |
B.describe the problems early bicycle makers experienced |
C.persuade readers to use bicycles for transportation |
D.tell readers about the early history of the bicycle |
A.add weight to the bicycle |
B.make the bicycle easier to ride |
C.allow the wheels to last longer |
D.let the bicycle be more comfortable |
A. | B. |
C. | D. |
A.Two hundred years ago,bicycles did not exist. |
B.The first bicycle could be ridden at a very quick pace. |
C.The Michaux brothers called their bicycle a “bone shaker”. |
D.Macmillan’s machine had wheels with rubber tires. |
A.importance | B.time | C.place | D.Interest |
But the reason may be more complex: hitchhiking happens where people don’t have cars and transport services are poor. Plenty of people still hitchhike in Poland and Romania. Perhaps the rising level of car ownership in the UK means the few people lift hitchhiking are usually considered strange. Why can’t they afford cars? Why can’t they take the coach or the train?
Three-quarters of the UK population have access to a car; many of the remainder will be quite old. The potential hitchhiking population is therefore small. Yet my trip proves it’s still possible to hitchhike. The people who picked me up were very interesting-lawyer, retired surgeon, tank commander, carpenter, man who live in an isolated farmhouse and a couple living up in the mountains. My conclusion is that only really interesting people are mad enough to pick up fat blokes in red, spotted scarves. Most just wanted to do someone a good turn; a few said they were so surprised to see a hitchhiker that they couldn’t help stopping.
The future of hitchhiking most likely lies with car-sharing organized over the Internet, via sites such as hitchhikers. org. But for now, you can still stick your thumb out(actually, I didn’t do much of that, preferring just to hold up my destination sign) and people-wonderful, caring, sharing, unafraid people-will stop.
In the UK, with its cheap coaches and reasonable rail service, I don’t think I’ll make a habit of it. But having enjoyed it so much, I’m ready now to do a big trip across Europe and beyond. In the 1970s a female friend of my wife’s hitchhiked to India. How wonderful it would be to have another go, though Afghanistan might be a challenge. I wish I’d got that tank commander’s mobile number.
1. The author tried to hitchhike but was rejected by single women drivers because_____________ .
A.they were not heading towards Manchester |
B.they thought most hitchhikers were dangerous |
C.hitchhiking had been forbidden and they didn’t want to break the law |
D.he was a strong man in strange clothes who seemed dangerous |
A.That some people refuse hitchhikers may reflect the safety fear. |
B.Car ownership levels are lower in Romania than in the UK. |
C.40% of UK people don’t have access to cars. |
D.Increased car ownership has reduced the need for hitchhiking. |
A.murderous hitchhikers |
B.friendly and talkative hitchhikers |
C.typical hitchhikers |
D.strange hitchhikers like the author |
A.visit websites and find people to share cars with |
B.stand by roads with their thumbs sticking out |
C.stick out signs with their destinations written on |
D.wait for some kind people to pick them up |
A.frequently hitchhikes in Britain |
B.plans to hitchhike across Europe |
C.thinks public transport is safer for travel |
D.is going to contact the tank commander |
But is traffic jam a sign of failure? Long queues at restaurants or theater box offices are seen as signs of success. Should transportation systems be viewed any differently? I think we should recognize that traffic jam is an unpreventable by-product of successful cities, and view the “traffic problem” in a different light.
Cities exist because they promote social interactions and economic transactions.
Traffic jam occurs where there are lots of people but limited spaces. Culturally and economically successful cities have the worst traffic problems, while decaying cities don’t have much traffic. New York and Los Angeles are America’s most crowded cities. But if you want access to major brokerage houses (经纪行), you will find them easier to reach in crowded New York than in any other large cities. And if your firm needs access to post-production film editors or satellite-guidance engineers, you will reach them more quickly through the crowded freeways of LA than through less crowded roads elsewhere.
Despite traffic jam, a larger number and wider variety of social interactions and economic transactions can be made perfect in large, crowded cities than elsewhere. Seen in this light, traffic jam is an unfortunate consequence of prosperity, not a cause of economic decline and urban decay.
So while we can consider traffic jam as increasing costs on the areas of big cities, the costs of inaccessibility (交通不便) in uncrowded places are almost certainly greater.
There is no doubt that traffic jam brings the terrible economic and environmental damage in places like Bangkok, Jakarta, and Lagos. But mobility is far higher and traffic jam levels are far lower here in the US, even in our most crowded cities. That’s why, for now, we don’t see people and capital streaming out of San Francisco and Chicago, heading for cities like California, and Illinois.
1. We can conclude from the first paragraph that_______.
A.traffic jam and weather are the two factors preventing the development of the big city |
B.traffic jam seems to be very difficult to deal with |
C.if traffic engineers try their best, traffic jam can be solved |
D.public officials are always criticized for misusing their power |
A.In cities, traffic jam is unavoidable. |
B.Traffic jam is both a sign of failure and a sign of success. |
C.Traffic jam is the consequence of successful cities. |
D.For a successful city, traffic jam is not unpreventable. |
A.declining | B.developing |
C.rich and successful | D.strong and healthy |
A.The traffic jam in the two cities has been worsened. |
B.New York and Los Angeles are the most successful cities in the USA. |
C.It is easier to reach major brokerage houses in the two cities than in other cities. |
D.Despite the traffic jam in LA, you’ll find a satellite-guidance engineer more quickly there. |
A.California is as crowded and successful as San Francisco. |
B.The traffic jam in San Francisco has resulted in the capital becoming empty. |
C.The traffic jam level in Jakarta is lower than that in the US. |
D.Traffic jam has caused terrible bad effects in cities such as Bangkok and Lagos. |