“One thing I enjoy about my job is that I can work on something that is actually active,” says Game McGimsey, an American volcanologist (火山学家). Part of his job includes keeping an eye on Alaska's many active volcanoes and giving people a heads-up when a volcano might erupt (喷发).
Like most jobs in the sciences, volcanology requires a lot of education. McGimsey received an undergraduate degree in geology at the University of North Carolina, then landed an internship (实习期) with a geologist at the USGS (美国地质勘探局) whose area of expertise was volcanoes. After earning a graduate degree at the University of Colorado, McGimsey accepted a job with the USGS and has been with the Alaska Volcano Observatory for 25 years.
Volcanoes can influence the world in ways we might not think about. For example, on Dec. 15, 1989, a 747 jetliner (a large airplane) flew through a thick ash (灰) cloud produced by Mount Redoubt, an Alaskan volcano that hadn't erupted in 25 years. The ash caused all four engines to die, and the plane's electronics went dead.
“The plane was within several thousand feet of flying into the mountains below when the pilots got a couple of the engines restarted and landed safely in Anchorage,” McGimsey says. It cost nearly $80 million to repair the damage to the plane.
Such situations show just how dangerous volcanoes can be. However, volcanologists know the risks and are prepared to protect themselves.
“There is certainly a higher danger level in volcanology than some other jobs,” McGimsey admits. “We understand how serious the danger is, and we don't like taking unnecessary chances. We avoid getting too close to an erupting volcano, because it's not worth injury or death simply to get a rock or a photograph.”
1.Before working for the USGS, McGimsey _____.
A. had been a pilot for 25 years
B. knew nothing about the organization
C. had taught at the University of North Carolina
D. had studied at the University of Colorado
2.On Dec. 15, 1989, a 747 jetliner _____.
A. had all its engines restarted
B. flew into a volcano in Europe
C. survived an air accident luckily
D. disappeared in a huge ash cloud
3.What McGimsey says in the last paragraph shows his _____.
A. pride B. carefulness
C. loneliness D. doubt
4.What would be the best title for the text?
A. Game McGimsey: a man of his word
B. Game McGimsey: a volcano watcher
C. The eruption of Mount Redoubt
D. Lost land of the volcano
In Britain, many theatres put on shows for children at Christmas and many theatres have a theatre-in-education team working there. This team, made up of actors and teachers, writes plays for children, usually performing them in schools. They do different plays for different age groups and the children often take part in the play in some way.
Pantomime is a special kind of Christmas show for children. It is loved by people and also allows the audience (观众) to join in. “Pantomime” was the name of the Roman actor who performed shows without speaking — this is where the English word “mime” comes from.
A pantomime is always based on a well-known children's story. But there are always certain types of characters in the show and certain situations and events. For example, a pantomime must always include a hero, known as the “principal boy” and this principal boy is always played by a pretty girl wearing a short costume (服装). Then there is the comic older woman, known as the “dame” who is played by a man. There is always a group of men and women who sing and dance and often there is a pantomime horse. The horse is played by two men who form the “front” and “back” ends inside a “horse” costume. It is funny and it usually kicks the dame when she isn't looking.
Members of the audience have to shout a warning to one of the characters and argue with the character (usually the dame) when she does not believe them. When she shouts, “Oh no, it isn't,” the audience always responds with “Oh yes, it is!” The audience also learns and sings a simple song and a few children are sometimes invited to help one of the characters during the show.
1.The theatre-in-education teams _____.
A. are made up of famous local actors
B. write plays for the same age group
C. often give plays in their own theatres
D. usually allow children to join in a play
2.According to the text, a pantomime _____.
A. is designed to make people laugh
B. is made up of three characters
C. is especially popular with grown-ups
D. can be watched all year round in Britain
3.When the dame says, “Yes, it is”, the audience should _____.
A. follow her and sing
B. stand up and dance
C. repeat what she says
D. disagree with her loudly
With a growing number of people in San Francisco choosing not to own a car, German carmaking company BMW has decided to branch out into car-sharing services with 70 cars spread around the city, first in 14 locations, with a further 100 being added gradually.
“This is not an A-to-A service — it is A-to-B,” says Richard Steinberg, chief executive of the DriveNow scheme (方案), pointing out that members can pick up a car downtown for the half-hour drive to the airport for only $12, compared with about $40-50 for a taxi.
Whether that is possible in real life depends on traffic, of course. A midmorning drive from Union Square down Highway 101 to the airport takes just 22 minutes; however, driving back during the rush hour takes twice as long.
Most of the cars that are stuck in San Francisco's traffic jams (交通阻塞) are giving off all sorts of harmful gas. But not DriveNow's BMW ActiveE cars.
“All the cars in San Francisco are electric,” Mr Steinberg says.
In San Francisco, handing back the car to DriveNow is easy — just pick one of its drop-off points, park and walk away. There are no forms to fill in, no time-consuming (耗时的) rules.
Several other carmakers and other players within the motor industry are experimenting with similar schemes, for example Daimler's Car2go scheme, which is operated in many cities around the world.
“We picture a future where car-sharing members outnumber car owners in big cities around the world,” says Car2go spoke
sman Andreas Leo.
Franck Leveque, from company Frost & Sullivan, agrees.
“Car sharing is growing at a pace we have not seen before,” he says. “By 2020 we believe there will be 15 million members of car-sharing schemes in Europe alone, with 140,000 vehicles in operation.”
1.What does the underlined part “branch out into” probably mean?
A. Start offering. B. Stop improving.
C. Make use of. D. Take control of.
2.The DriveNow scheme _____.
A. works better in rush-hour traffic
B. makes city driving less dangerous
C. encourages people to buy a cheap car
D. allows drivers to pay money to use a car
3.What's special about BMW ActiveE cars?
A. They drive much faster than other cars.
B. They never get stuck in heavy traffic.
C. They don't harm the environment.
D. They need less gas to run.
4.What does Franck think of the future of car sharing?
A. Worrying. B. Hopeful.
C. Uncertain. D. Disappointing.
Dear Kate,
It's really good to know you are covering for me while I'm away on the training course. Thanks so much. Knowing that you'll be teaching the kids has made me relaxed. I'm sure you'll get on fine with them. I thought I should leave you some notes on a couple of things that are planned for this week, and other advice that will hopefully see you through to next Friday!
• Tuesday: The class is going to visit the Dinosaur Museum. Make sure they take their notebooks and remind them on Monday to bring a packed lunch and the entrance money.
• Thursday: I've promised them they can watch a Disney DVD as a special treat. It's in my locker. There are some worksheets (活页练习题) to go with it. By the way, don't worry about marking them — I'll do it when I'm back.
• You know, the head teacher is on the warpath about being late, so be warned! If you get to school even a minute past 8:15, she's likely to give you a real telling-off.
Seriously, though, you'll have a great week — the kids are wonderful. Don't let Mark and Jack sit together and you shouldn't have any disciplinary (纪律的) problems! Which reminds me, if you do have any problems, just tell the head. She's very supportive when it comes to discipline. One last thing — could you leave notes on what you do, please?
Best wishes,
Stef
1.Why did Stef write the letter to Kate?
A. To talk about the training course.
B. To invite her to the Dinosaur Museum.
C. To tell her what to do when she's away.
D. To ask if she's ready to teach her students.
2.On Tuesday, students should take the following things EXCEPT _____.
A. a notebook
B. a worksheet
C. a packed lunch
D. the entrance money
3.The underlined part “on the warpath” in Paragraph 4 can best be replaced by “_____”.
A. angry B. easy
C. doubtful D. happy
4.We can infer from the letter that Mark and Jack _____.
A. always sit together
B. might not get along well
C. are very good students
D. don't like Disney movies
假如你是李华，请根据下表内容分，给校长写一封120词左右的建议信。
现状 | 吃饭时人太多，要排很长时间的队(queue)；还有不少的同学占位(occupy)，这使很多同学没有吃饭的座位。 |
措施 | 禁止占位； 各年级轮流吃饭，如可以让高年级的同学晚去十分钟吃饭； 有条件的话，再建一个食堂 |
要求：1. 可适当增加细节，以使文章连贯、通顺；
2.开头和结尾已写好，不计入总词数。
Dear Headmaster,
I am writing to make some suggestions for improving the dinning conditions of our school.
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Yours,
Li Hua
根据高二年级指定背诵的写作篇目，默写第六篇。以下是汉语提示。答在答题卡上！
假如你是李华。你的两位朋友Tom与Peter几天前发生了争吵。3月9日是Peter生日，Tom想送他一个礼物来缓和关系，修复友情，并特地发来邮件寻求你的建议。请你给Tom回一封邮件，要点包括：
1．礼物选择：
2．你的理由；
3．其它和解建议
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