Everything that humans hear is in the form of waves(波). Just as the eye sees light waves in the form of colors, the ear hears sound waves in the form of noises. The ear and the eye turn these different waves into signals that the brain(大脑) can make sense of.
The ears and brain have an amazing ability to recognize(识别) particular sounds. For example, a mother often can tell when her baby is crying even if there are other crying babies in the same room. This is because the sound of her baby’s cry has special meaning to her and the brain has recorded its importance.
The ability to recognize sounds improves with experiences. As the brain receives information about sounds from day to day, it stores the information in its memory. When the brain hears new sounds, it gives meaning to them based on the information already in the memory. This is why certain words or songs can make a person happy. Often it is not the words or songs themselves that cause this feeling. The sounds are connected to happy memories for that person.
Another hearing process controlled by the brain is to decide where a sound is coming from. One ear is usually closer to the source(来源) of a sound than the other ear is. Sound waves are stronger when they reach the ear that is closer. They also reach the closer ear first. The brain recognizes these differences and uses them to decide the location of the source of the sound.
【小题1】Which of the following shows the normal hearing process of a mother hearing her baby crying?
a. The ears receive the sound waves.
b. The mother recognizes her baby’s cry.
c. The baby’s turn the sound waves into signals.
d. The baby’s cry travels in the form of sound waves.
e. The brain connects the signals to the information in the memory.

A．d-a-c-b-e	B．d-a-c-e-b
C．a-d-c-b-e	D．a-d-c-e-b

【小题2】Certain words or songs can change a person’s moods mainly because of his _____.

A．lifestyle	B．personality
C．experiences	D．hobbies

【小题3】 Why does a person feel happy when they hear some songs?

A．Because certain words or songs can make a person happy.

B．Because a person has the ability to recognize the sounds

C．Because the certain sounds are connected to happy memories for that person.

D．Because the person feel the song is special

【小题4】According to the last paragraph, it will be the most difficult for a person who has lost the hearing in one ear to tell ______.

A．where the source of a sound is

B．how loud a sound is

C．when a sound starts to appear

D．what makes a sound

【小题5】What is the best title for this passage ?

A．Human Brain’s Amazing Facts

B．Human Hearing Characteristics

C．How To Improve Hearing

D．How Do Humans Hear

Mike found a job in a bookstore after he finished middle school. He wouldn’t do anything but wanted to get rich.
It was a cold morning. It snowed and there was thin ice on the streets. Few people went to buy books and the young man had nothing to do. He hated to read, so he watched the traffic. Suddenly he saw a bag fall off a truck and it landed by the other side of the street.
“It is full of expensive things.” Mike said to himself. “I have to get it right now, or others will take it away.”
He went out of the bookstore and ran across the street. A driver saw him and began to whistle (鸣笛), but he didn’t hear it and went on running. The man drove to the side, hit a big tree and hurt himself in the accident. Two weeks later, Mike was taken to the court (法庭). A judge asked if he heard the whistle when he was running across the street. He said that something was wrong with his ears and he could hear nothing.
“But you heard me this time,” said the judge.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Now I can hear with one ear.”
“Cover (盖住) the ear with your hand and listen to me with your deaf (聋的) one. Well, can you hear me?”
“No, I can’t , sir.”
“You told a lie. There is nothing wrong with either of your ears,” the judge said.
【小题1】Mike found a job as a _____________ when he left school.

A．driver

B．judge

C．policeman

D．bookseller

【小题2】One day he saw __________ in the street.

A．an accident

B．a thief

C．a lost bag

D．a lot of money

【小题3】The traffic accident happened because _____________.

A．Mike was running to the street

B．the driver was deaf and couldn’t hear anything

C．the car hit the bag in the middle of the street

D．the driver wanted to pick up the bag

【小题4】Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A．Mike didn’t do well in his work.

B．The judge believed Mike’s words.

C．Mike told a lie.

D．The car hit a tree beside the street.

LISTEN. Do you hear the sound of birds outside, a car going by, your favorite music? (A)Because of  your ears, you can hear it clearly.
March 3 is International Ear Care Day. This year, the theme for the day is “Ear care can avoid hearing loss (丧失)”.
The World Health Organization(WHO) reports that there are 360 million people in the world with disabling (使伤残) hearing loss. At least half of all cases of hearing loss are avoidable through healthy ear care practices.
Protecting yourself from loud noise is a key part of ear care. Nowadays, (B) it is very common for people to listen to music with headphones on while traveling to school or work. Experts suggest a 60:60 rule: listen to your music at 60 percent of the maximum (最大值的) volume for no more than 60 minutes a day.
Cleaning your ears is a basic step to take care of your ears. Do you clean your ears with cotton buds or fingernails? Think again. These things can push earwax (耳垢) deeper into your ear, and hurt your ear canal (耳道). The ear is a self-cleaning organ and does not require active cleaning,(C)        the WHO. If the wax makes you (D)         , you can ask a doctor to deal with it.
Take care of your ears when you are swimming. You can use earplugs.  Dry your ears with a towel afteru(耳塞) to stop water getting into your ears. swimming or having a bath. (E) If you feel there is water inside your ear, shake your head a little bit to help get the water out.
Top things to know about earphones
Here are some helpful tips to guide you to using earphones in the right way.
1. (F) What kind of earphones you wear is important for your hearing. Choose over-the-ear headphones. This type can block out (挡住) background noise and allow you to have the volume lower. In-the-ear headphones are less effective (有效的) at blocking out background noise.
2. Some children like sharing earphones with their friends. But when you have only one earphone, you may naturally turn the volume up. Instead of (G)       earphones, get a splitter (分线器). This lets you connect two sets of earphones. This way, you can protect your own hearing as well as your friend’s.
3. Want to know if your earphones are at a safe volume? Ask people (H)       near you if they can hear your music. If they can, it’s a sign that your hearing is being damaged. Turn the volume down until other people can no longer hear it.
任务一：从方框中选择单词并用适当的形式填入D、G、H处

comfortable   sit   share

【小题1】D            【小题2】G          【小题3】H           
任务二：将文中B、E、F划线句子译成汉语
【小题4】B
【小题5】E
【小题6】F
任务三：用适当的短语替换A处划线短语【小题7】A
在C处填上适当的短语         【小题8】C
任务四：根据短文回答问题
【小题9】 Cleaning your ears isn’t a basic step to take care of your ears，is it？
_____________________________________
【小题10】 What’s the theme of International Ear Care Day?
_____________________________________

One day, when my wife and I were leaving a restaurant, I heard a man's voice from a car in the car-park. After a quick look at the ear, 1 noticed the Pennsylvania license plate (牌照) at once, so I knew they had come from far away. The young man had his head partly out of the window and spoke to me as I moved closer, "Excuse me, my wife and I are trying to find a room for the night and every place in the area seems to be filled up. Do you have any suggestions for us where we might find a room?"
Well, that didn't surprise me. After all, it was the busy time of the year for tourism. As he spoke, I noticed that his wife was pregnant (怀孕的). 1 told them that they should just keep searching (搜寻) and wished them good luck in their search. The young husband didn't say any other word and backed out of the car-park and headed off. We also got into our car and drove home.
After a short drive, I couldn't get this young couple out of my mind. Here they were, traveling in a different state, tired, the wife pregnant. It was at that moment that my wife told me we needed to go back and find that couple. We went back and looked for them. We even went as fat as the mountain. I'm happy that this story had a happy ending. We found them in the end, gave them a room, and now we are close friends.
【小题1】The main problem the young couple had was that they couldn't_______________.
A. find a place for the night              B. find a doctor
C, find their way                         D. afford to stay at a hotel
【小题2】When the writer told him to keep searching, the young husband____________            .

A．was very happy	B．continued to ask other questions
C．thanked him and drove away	D．said nothing and drove away

【小题3】We can reach a conclusion from the passage that______________ .

A．the writer didn't agree with his wife

B．the writer's wife was a kind person as well

C．the writer had no trouble finding the young couple

D．the young couple found a room in a hotel in the end

Mike found a job in a bookstore after he finished middle school. He wouldn’t do anything but wanted to get rich.

It was a cold morning. It snowed and there was thin ice on the streets. Few people went to buy books and the young man had nothing to do. He hated to read, so he watched the traffic. Suddenly he saw a bag fall off a truck and it landed by the other side of the street.

“It is full of expensive things.” Mike said to himself. “I have to get it right now, or others will take it away.”

He went out of the bookstore and ran across the street. A driver saw him and began to whistle (鸣笛), but he didn’t hear it and went on running. The man drove to the side, hit a big tree and hurt himself in the accident. Two weeks later, Mike was taken to the court (法庭). A judge asked if he heard the whistle when he was running across the street. He said that something was wrong with his ears and he could hear nothing.

“But you heard me this time,” said the judge.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Now I can hear with one ear.”

“Cover (盖住) the ear with your hand and listen to me with your deaf (聋的) one. Well, can you hear me?”

“No, I can’t , sir.”

“You told a lie. There is nothing wrong with either of your ears,” the judge said.

1.Mike found a job as a _____________ when he left school.

A．driver

B．judge

C．policeman

D．bookseller

2.One day he saw __________ in the street.

A．an accident

B．a thief

C．a lost bag

D．a lot of money

3.The traffic accident happened because _____________.

A．Mike was running to the street

B．the driver was deaf and couldn’t hear anything

C．the car hit the bag in the middle of the street

D．the driver wanted to pick up the bag

4.Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A．Mike didn’t do well in his work.

B．The judge believed Mike’s words.

C．Mike told a lie.

D．The car hit a tree beside the street.