Matthew Henson-Arctic Explorer
In 1880，fourteen-year-old Matthew Henson loved to hear sailors tell tales of their exciting 1ives at sea．The travel，the adventure，the danger，and the steady pay were all attracting young Henson．One day，he found a job as a cabin boy off a beautiful ship called the Katie Hinds．For the next five years．Henson sailed around the world．With the help of the ship’s captain and other members of the crew．Henson learned mathematics，navigation，history，geography，and many other subjects．By the time he left the Katie Hinds in 1885，Henson was well educated and had become an excellent seaman．
Unable to find work anywhere else，Henson took a job in a hat shop in Washington，D．C．One day in 1887，a man came in to buy a hat．The man，Robert Peary，asked the owner if he knew anyone with experience at sea．Peary would soon travel to South America for the U．S．government．He needed experienced men to accompany him．The shop owner knew about his young employee’s skills and experience on ocean journeys，so he introduced Peary to Henson．
Using his map-reading and sailing skills，Henson proved himself to be a worthy and smart seaman．Peary soon made Henson his assistant，and they became close friends．One day Peary told Henson about his real dream：to be the first man to stand on“the top of the world"at the North Pole．He asked Henson to help him make his dream come true．Over the next five years，the two explorers made two trips together to the Arctic．However，they were not able to reach the pole either time．The cold，wind，and ice were worse than either of them had ever imagined．
In 1908，Peary and Henson were ready to make their final attempt at reaching the North Pole．Both men were over forty years old．The years of hardship in the arctic cold had made them suffer a lot．This would be their last chance．With four Inuit guides，they made a mad rush straight across the ice toward the po1e．Peary’s feet were injured and he had to be pulled on a dogsled．In April 1909．Henson’s instruments showed they were standing at the North Pole．Together Henson and Peary planted the American flag in the snow．
In later years，Robert Peary and Henson were greatly honored for their achievements．Today，the two friends and fellow explorers lie in heroes’ graves not far apart in the Arlington National Cemetery．
1.In paragraph 1，the author shows how Henson became________．
A．a skilled seaman
B．a highly educated captain
C．employed in a restaurant
D．interested in helping others
2.Paragraph 2 mainly tells us__________．
A．how Matthew Henson met Robert Peary
B．why Matthew Henson went to the hat shop
C．why Matthew Henson stopped working on the Katie Hinds
D．how Robert Peary knew that Matthew Henson had sea experience
3.On their trip to the North Pole，Henson and Peary could best be compared to___________.
A．hunters running after wolves
B．generals seeking power over another country
C．soldiers going to war to fight for their freedom
D．fighters performing a task in an unknown land
4.The information presented in this passage is mainly organized_________．
A．by cause and effect
B．by comparing and contrasting
C．in the order that the events happened
D．with main ideas and supporting examples
It was such an extremely freezing day that I decided to get a cup of hot drinking first after work．As my colleague，Ricky，and I were making our way to a coffee shop，I noticed an old gentleman rather poorly dressed sitting on a bench nearby．Obviously he was frozen，seemingly one of the homeless or someone like that．
We joined the 1ine and waited to be served．Ricky handed the server a twenty-dollar bill， ordered three cups of hot coffee，and gestured the server to give one to the old gentleman outside on the bench as a favour．The server looked at Ricky，a little perplexed，without full comprehension of the request．Afterwards，there was a wonderful exchange between the server and the old man in need of some attention．I only wish I had taken a photo of the smiles on the both faces.
As I was thinking about this event later on，I wondered to myself why Ricky didn’t perform this act of kindness himself．I suspected that deep down in his heart he was hoping that this act of kindness might inspire others to do something for this old man as well．Absolutely beautiful!
There are many ways of thinking when we meet someone as the old man in need of kindness and attention．Perhaps he needs a little helping hand and thank God for my colleague who inspired the others to goodness as well．Oh，by the way，the last words Ricky told the server were，“There go I，but for the Grace of God．”
1.What was the author’s impression of the old gentleman?
A．He was a greedy man．
B．He took on a sign of poor manners.
C．He was in poor health．
D．He needed some kind of human care.
2.Why didn't Ricky give the favour to the old gentleman himself?
A．He didn’t know the old gentleman．
B．He was too shy to speak to strangers．
C．He tried to influence others to be kind．
D．He feared the old man would refuse his help．
3.What the author really thinks absolutely beautiful is that_________.
A．an act of kindness could go widespread
B．a cup of coffee could warm the old man
C．the server was very kind to customers
D．Ricky had created good impressions
They say there are three ways to experience the Grand Canyon；on foot，on mules(骡子)or by air．We chose the first．Waking up early，my husband and I and our three children couldn’t wait to get started．We decided to walk along a lovely path named Bright Angel Trail．
As we set out，I was shocked at how narrow the path was．And I couldn’t help noticing that the other tourists weren’t like us．They had heavy backpacks，water bottles，and hats．But as usual we were dressed．As the sun rose higher．Arizona’s famous heat seemed to roast us．There was no shade and our legs were aching．We decided to go back，with the girl on my back and the boys far behind．By the time we finally got back，our legs were like jelly．
The next day，after we’d had a long rest and a good breakfast，we were ready for another view of the Canyon—by air．After our last walk，this would be the easiest thing in the world．
We called to each other excitedly as the plane took off and circled around the Canyon．But the smiles on our faces disappeared as the pilot tossed(翻转)the plane around，pretending he was going to hit the ground．I shouted，“STOP，TAKE US BACK!”When we finally arrived back on land，once again our legs were like jelly．We hardly spoke as we drove back．
As I said，there are three ways to view the Grand Canyon．We never tried the mules，but personally I'd suggest a fourth buy yourself a good magazine like National Geographic．That way，you can see the Canyon，without fear or tiredness．
1.Which of the following is true according to the second paragraph?
A．They made a careful preparation before the trip．
B．They children were more joyful than their parents．
C．Bright Angel Trail was not as lovely as they expected．
D．The narrow road prevented them from enjoying the view．
2.The underlined expression“Our legs were like jelly”probably means_________.
A．we were weak B．we were unhappy
C．we were dissatisfied D．we were disappointed
3.Which of the following best describes their Canyon trip by air?
A．It proved to be frightening． B．It was more comfortable.
C．It turned out to be exciting． D．It made each of them tired．
4.We can infer from the passage that_________．
A．experiencing the Canyon on mules would be the best way
B．one needs to dress less when visiting the Grand Canyon
C．the writer was not serious when she made the suggestion
D．the whole family narrowly escaped from the air accident
请你根据以下提示，并结合事例，用英语写一篇短文。
Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass．It is about learning to dance in the rain．
注意：①无须写标题；
②除诗歌外，文体不限；
③不能透露个人信息和学校名称；
④字数120左右。
Dear Brad,
I’m very glad to hear from you. In your last letter you ask about the post-80s in China. Actually I am the boy who belongs to this group. Comparing with our parents, life for us is getting much hard. The job market is tough and the house is expensively to afford. Now many girls prefer to marry with a man who owns a house and a car. Therefore, I don’t think love built on house and cars is true love, and I doubt how long it will last.
As a matter of fact, though situations are tough today, a lot of we post-80s are making great efforts live a good life. I believe we will have a nice future.
Li Hua
“Eat local．” It’s one way to reduce human effect on the planet．Eating local means to try to buy and consume foods that are grown in places close to home．However, most of the food sold at supermarkets is not locally grown or produced．Trucks and planes deliver these foods from hundreds or thousands of miles away．During the transportation, greenhouse gases are produced, causing global warming．So the shorter the distance your foods must travel, the less the harm is done to the environment．
But how do you get local food if you live in a large city, hundreds of miles away from farms？Environmental health scientist Dickson Despommier and his students came up with the idea of a “vertical farm”．
A vertical farm is a glass-walled structure that could be built as tall as a skyscraper．Since the garden is built upwards, rather than outwards, it requires much less space than an ordinary farm．The world is quickly running out of room for ordinary farming．Vertical farms could be a key to this situation．Despommier imagines a 30-story building with a greenhouse on every floor．The walls of the building would be clear, to allow crops to get as much sunlight as possible．Depending on a city’s water resources, Despommier thinks hydroponic（水培） farming is another method for the vertical farm which needs no soil to grow plants．
Despommier says the hydroponic greenhouses would use a system that would use a city’s waste water and fill it with nutrition to make the crops grow．If this method works, it would provide food to a city and save millions of tons of water．
The idea of a vertical farm has attracted the attention of government officials around the world．Scott Stringer, a government official from New York City, thinks the city is suitable for the vertical farming．“Obviously we don’t have much land left for us,” Stringer said, “But the sky is the limit in Manhattan．”
Despommier admits that there is still a lot of work to do to make vertical farms a reality．“But I think vertical farming is an idea that can work in a big way．” he says．
1.Why are people advised to eat local?
A．Because it means convenience to people．
B．Because it can help people save a lot of money．
C．Because local food has more nutrition．
D．Because it is environmentally friendly．
2.Which is one of the vertical farm’s benefits when compared with ordinary farming?
A．It produces healthier food．
B．It does less harm to the cities．
C．It consumes more energy of the city．
D．It requires less transport costs．
3.By saying “the sky is the limit in Manhattan”, Stringer means ________．
A．people can make full use of vertical space of Manhattan
B．there is a limit for using empty land in Manhattan
C．the height of buildings in Manhattan is limited
D．Manhattan has a great potential for development
4.What can we learn about the vertical farming in the passage?
A．In a vertical farm, soil may not be needed to grow plants．
B．It has solved the problem of the food shortage in a big way．
C．It is a 30-story building with a greenhouse on every floor．
D．Crops are mainly grown in the rainwater in a vertical farm．
