高二期中阅读专项练习
本文作者： 21ST
A Every year, it costs British students more and more to attend university. Students are graduating with larger and larger debts. So is a college degree really worth it? In 2006, the UK government started to allow universities in England and Wales to charge British students tuition fees (学费). As a result, more than 80 percent of students in England and Wales now take out a student loan in order to go to university. They use the loan to pay for tuition fees and living expenses. Although the interest on student loans is quite low, it begins as soon as the student receives the loan. The average student in England and Wales now graduates from university with a debt of around ￡12,000 (122,952 yuan). It means graduates have to struggle to pay rent on a flat, because they have to start paying back the student loan when they reach the April after graduating. If you start to earn over ￡15,000 (153,630 yuan) a year, the government takes repayments directly from your monthly salary. You might think that a person with a degree would find it easy to get a well-paid job. However, most people in “white collar jobs” seem to have a degree, so there is a lot of competition. Also, British companies tend to value work experience over a piece of paper. All of the above is beginning to make British people question whether a university degree is really worth the money. Even before the credit crisis started, the BBC stated: “The number of British students at UK universities has fallen for the first time in recent history, from 1.97 million in 2007 to 1.96 million last year [2008].” “Student poverty” is now considered a real problem. Meanwhile, the British universities offer more and more of the available places to richer international students rather than poorer British students. What does the future hold for British higher education? 1. What makes British students question the worth of a university degree? A. Higher university expenses. B. Lower education quality. C. A higher interest rate on student loans. D. Greater difficulty obtaining student loans. 2. According to the article, which of the following statements is TRUE? A. University tuition fees in all parts of Britain have been on the rise since 2006. B. Interest on a student loan starts as soon as the student receives it. C. Britons have always questioned the worth of a university degree. D. University graduates need to pay off their loans right upon graduation. 3. Which of the following is NOT a factor that concerns a British university graduate? A. Fierce competition in the job market. B. The burden of a large debt. C. Lack of experience. D. Fewer job openings. B In kindergarten, my class was asked, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” Crayons (蜡笔) danced across sheets of paper to illustrate our dream occupations. Our drawings were hung in the hallway for our parents to see at Back to School Night. I remember looking down the line and seeing pictures of ballerinas (芭蕾舞女) dancing, firefighters putting out a blaze, and astronauts leaping (跳跃) across the moon–careers that were seen as typical dreams of five–year–olds. My picture showed a stick figure with brown hair holding a carton (纸板箱) of orange juice over a large rectangle (矩形) that was supposed to be a counter. Underneath was my barely legible (清晰的) handwriting: “When I grow up, I want to work at the Market Basket because it would be fun to swipe orange juice across the scanner.” To this day my parents won’t let me forget that out of everything I could have aspired (渴望) to be, my five–year–old self wished to work at the local grocery store. When we are young, questions of what we want to be when we grow up are common. Yet we are not expected to respond with an answer that is likely to come true. However, when we become teens, we are asked the very same question twice as often. The difference is, now we are supposed to answer with confidence. Teens are expected to know exactly what we want to be and how we are going to achieve that goal. Not all of us can be so sure. Even though I am in high school, I cannot answer convincingly. But I don’t consider that a bad thing. How am I supposed to know what I will want to spend my time doing at age 40? When I think about the future, I definitely don’t see myself working at the Market Basket, but in reality, if that was what would make me happy, I would do it. So, the next time someone asks me what I want to be when I grow up, I will simply say “happy”. Happiness is a destination for everyone. We may want to walk different paths in life, but we all want to be happy wherever we end up. Choose your path, but don’t worry too much about choosing wisely. Make a mistake or two and try new things. But always remember, if you’re not happy, you’re not at the end of your journey yet. By Sara D., Wyckoff, NJ 1. What did the author want to be when she was in kindergarten? A. A dancer. B. A firefighter. C. An astronaut. D. A cashier (收银员) in a grocery store. 2. According to the author, when asked what they want to be, teenagers _____. A. are sure about what they want to be B. are expected not to have the kind of ideas children have C. might not be able to give a convincing answer D. becomes more confident about his or her abilities 3. What does the last paragraph suggest? A. We should stick to what we set out to do. B. Everyone deserves to be happy in the end. C. We are happy as long as we make only a few mistakes D. Never stop trying to find happiness. 4. The point of the article is to ______. A. tell an unusual childhood story B. share thoughts about careers and happiness C. explain how to achieve happiness D. draw attention to childhood dreams C You have heard of firefighters getting people out of fires, beach guards pulling drowning people from the sea, soldiers rescuing earthquake survivors from the rubble (碎石), and strangers helping strangers in danger. Many heroic acts occur every day in life. Did you know that they may not be just limited to humans? Scientists have discovered that dolphins, monkeys, fruit bats and even ants are capable of rescuing their fellow creatures when they are in danger. Elise Nowbahari, from the University of Paris, said rescue behaviors in wildlife are far more common than previously thought, reported The Telegraph. She said there is mounting evidence that willingness to go to the aid of others at personal risk is common in a range of species (物种) and far from a solely human trait (特征). Dolphins endanger themselves to rescue trapped (被困的) dolphins, lifting an injured dolphin to the water’s surface to help it breathe, she said. Monkeys will drive away an attacker from a vulnerable (易受伤害的) female or baby monkey. Female fruit bats help other fruit bats in labor to ease the birth. Ants frequently help other ants from the same colony (群体) if they are caught in traps or by a predator (捕食者) – though their heroism does not extend to helping ants from other colonies whose actual cries for help are ignored. “We may be underestimating (低估) the extent of rescue behavior in the wild,” the Telegraph quoted Nowbahari as saying. “Reports of rescue behavior in non-human animals are rare but is far more common than thought,” she added. In her work, published in the latest issue of Communicative and Integrative Biology, Nowbahari drew up a four-point heroism model that could be applied to the behavior of any creature, including humans, to identify heroic acts. First, the individual being helped is in distress (处于困境) and unless it escapes on its own it will suffer severe physical harm. Second, the rescuers risk themselves of harm by helping. Third, the rescuer’s behavior is suitable to the situation of the victim’s distress. And last, rescuing is not done for any inherent (固有的) reward. Nowbahari said that human acts of heroism are often rewarded with medals and praise, for example. But one needs to distinguish between the reward inherent in rescuing someone and the reward that may or may not be given if the act is recognized. She and her colleagues now plan to apply the four-point model to a range of non-human animal situations to determine if the rescuer’s behavior is indeed heroic. She expects to be able to document (记录) an enormous range of animal behaviors. 1. What is the first part of the article mainly about? A. That rescue behavior in wildlife is more common than previously thought. B. Ways to identify rescue behaviors in wildlife. C. That different animals show different rescue behaviors. D. Comparison of heroic behaviors between man and animals. 2. According to Nowbahari’s four-point heroism model, ______. A. the rescue behavior must be successful B. a heroic act is false when the rescuer is rewarded C. rescuers must be willing to save victims in distress at personal risk D. acts of heroism should be rewarded 3. According to the text, which of the following statements is TRUE? A. Rescue behaviors in human beings and other animals have been underestimated. B. Ants from different colonies help each other when in trouble. C. Dolphins, monkeys, fruit bats and ants are the only animals capable of heroic acts. D. Nowbahari’s four-point heroism model is designed to determine rescue behaviors in man and animals. D First the ground shook in Haiti, then Chile and Turkey. The earthquakes keep coming hard and fast this year, causing people to wonder if something evil is happening underfoot. It’s not. While it may seem as if there are more earthquakes occurring, there really aren’t. The problem is what’s happening above ground, not underground, experts say. More people are moving into big cities that happen to be built in quake zones, and they’re rapidly putting up buildings that can’t withstand (经受) earthquakes, scientists believe. And around-the-clock news coverage and better earthquake monitoring make it seem as if earthquakes are ever-present. “I can definitely tell you that the world is not coming to an end," said Bob Holdsworth, an expert in tectonics (筑造学) at Durham University in the UK. A 7.0 magnitude quake in January killed more than 230,000 people in Haiti. Last month, an 8.8 magnitude quake — the fifth-strongest since 1900 — killed more than 900 people in Chile. And two weeks ago, a 6.0 magnitude quake struck rural eastern Turkey, killing at least 57 people. On average, there are 134 earthquakes a year that have a magnitude between 6.0 and 6.9, according to the US Geological Survey. This year is off to a fast start with 40 so far — more than in most years for that time period. But that’s because the 8.8 quake in Chile generated a large number of strong aftershocks, and so many quakes this early in the year skews (扭曲) the picture, said Paul Earle, a US seismologist (地震学家) . Also, it’s not the number of quakes, but their devastating (破坏性的) impacts that gain attention, with the death tolls (死亡人数) largely due to construction standards and crowding, Earle added. “The standard mantra (咒语) is earthquakes don’t kill people, buildings do,” he said. There have been more deaths over the past decade from earthquakes, said University of Colorado geologist Roger Bilham. In an opinion column last month in the journal Nature, Bilham called for better construction standards in the world’s big cities. Of the 130 cities worldwide with populations of more than 1 million, more than half are prone (倾向于) to earthquakes, Bilham said. Developing nations, where populations are booming, don’t pay attention to earthquake preparedness, Bilham said. “If you have a problem feeding yourself, you’re not really going to worry about earthquakes.” Another reason quakes seem worse is that we’re paying attention more. The Haiti earthquake quickly followed by the 8.8 in Chile made everyone start to think. But it won’t last, said US disaster researcher Dennis Mileti. “People are paying attention to the violent planet we’ve always lived on,” Mileti said. “Come back in another six months if there has been no earthquakes, most people will have forgotten it again.” 1. What is the main idea of the article? A. The number of earthquakes is increasing this year. B. The reasons why earthquakes are so devastating. C. The reasons why recent earthquakes have struck large cities. D. Why earthquakes seem to be more serious this year. 2. Which of the following is NOT a reason for the seeming increase in earthquakes this year, according to the article? A. Greater underground activity. B. A larger number of buildings prone to damage during earthquakes. C. Around-the-clock news coverage. D. Better earthquake monitoring. 3. According to the article, it is safe to say that ______. A. there is an evil force beneath the world’s surface B. large cities are always built in quake zones C. not enough attention has been paid to reducing the impact of earthquakes D. the big earthquake in Chile caused aftershocks in Turkey 4. According to the article, the greater damage of earthquakes over the last decade can be mainly contributed to ______. A. the occurrence of larger earthquakes B. insufficient warnings about earthquakes C. poor construction standards and overcrowding D. an increase in large cities E Transport Guide The Brisbane City Council (BCC) is responsible for bus and ferry services within the city limits and suburbs. Most buses will either arrive at the city or an interchange where connecting buses can be caught. BCC buses operate from 5:30 am to 11:00 pm Monday to Thursday and 5:30 am to 12:00 am on Fridays. On weekends and public holidays buses operate less frequently. Pre-paid bus tickets can be purchased from the QUT (Queensland University of Technology) bookshop, the campus newsagency, most other newsagencies and general stores, and any BCC Customer Service Centre. Short-term students at QUT cannot use their ID cards to gain a discount fare on BCC public transport. You will need to buy an adult ticket to travel. Bus fares are dependent on the number of zones you have to travel. There are several types of tickets: Single: one way ticket to reach your destination, including transfers within 2 hours. Daily: unlimited travel within the zones. Off-peak Daily: discounted unlimited travel between 9: 00 am and 3: 30 pm and after 7: 00 pm Monday to Friday, and all day on weekends and public holidays. Weekly: unlimited travel within the zones for one week from the date of issue. Monthly: unlimited travel within the zones for one calendar month from the date of issue. Ten-trip Saver: 10 trips at any time within the zones on buses and ferries only. Transport routes, timetables and fare information are available from: Public Transport Information Centre 69 Ann Street (corner of George St) Brisbane City Phone l3 12 30 (Transport Information Service) 1. The transport guide above is most likely provided by ______. A. Public Transport Information Centre B. the Brisbane City Council C. Queensland University of Technology D. BCC Customer Service Centre 2.We can learn from the passage that ______. A. buses are scheduled as usual on weekends and public holidays B. regular students at QUT need to buy adult tickets C. pre-paid tickets can be bought from the Public Transport Information Centre D. Ten-trip Savers can be used at off-peak time 3. An exchange student staying at QUT for five days has to travel between zones every day. What type of ticket would he probably buy? A. Single. B. Weekly. C. Off-peak Daily. D. Ten-trip Saver. (答案见下期) |  |
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