由于现代交通和现代通讯设备的应用世界变得越来越小，今日的生活比数百年前要方便得多，但也由之带来新的问题，其中之一便是污染．本文围绕带来的危害而展开议论，并呼吁要立法，以净化自然，保护环境，保护人类生存的家园－－地球．

　　The world itself is becoming much smaller by using modern traffic and modern communication means(通讯设备). Life today is much easier than it was hundreds of years ago, but it has brought new problems. One of the biggest is pollution(污染). To pollute means to make things dirty. Pollution comes in many ways. We see it, sell it, drink it and even hear it.

　　Man has been polluting the earth. The more people, the more pollution. Many years ago, the problem was not so serious because there were not so many people. When the land was used up or the river was dirty in a place, men moved to another place. But this is not longer true. Man is now slowly polluting the whole world.

　　Air pollution is still the most serious. It's bad to all living things in the world, but it is not only one kind of pollution. Water pollution kills our fish and pollutes our drinking water. Noise pollution makes us become angry more easily.

　　Many countries are making rules(法规) to fight pollution. They stop the people from burning coal(煤) in houses and factories in the city, and from blowing dirty smoke into the air.

　　The pollution of SO₂ is now the most dangerous problem of air pollution. It is caused(引起) by heavy traffic. It is sure that if there are fewer people driving, there will be less air pollution.

　　The earth is our home. We must take care of it. That means keeping the land, water and air clean. And we must keep careful of the rise in population at the same time.

1．Our world is becoming much smaller ________.

[　　]

A．because the earth is being polluted day and night

B．thanks to science developing

C．because of the rise in population

D．because the earth is blown away by the wind every year

2．Thousands of years ago, life was ________ it is today.

[　　]

3．Pollution comes in many ways. We can even hear it. Here “it” means ________.

[　　]

4．Air pollution is the most serious kind of pollution because ________.

[　　]

A．it's bad to all living things in the world

B．it makes much noise

C．it has made our rivers and lakes dirty

D．it makes us become angry more easily

5．Which of the following is not true?

[　　]

A．Many countries are making rules to fight pollution.

B．The pollution of the earth grows as fast as the world's population does.

C．From now on, maybe people try to go to work by bus or bike instead of car or motorbike. It is helpful to fight against the problem of SO₂.

D．The problem of pollution is not so serious because there are not so many people.

What do you have that others use far more often than you do?什么东西属于你，而别人用的次数却比你多得多？

本文介绍了美国邮政业的发展现状，是属于文化背景知识方面的选材．在高考试卷阅读理解题中有介绍美国飞机、地铁业发展现状的背景材料，这是极力提倡的选材，平时应多看这方面的原文材料，以扩展自己的知识水平．

　　Every town in the United Sates has a post office. Some are very small, and you may also find them in the corner of a shop. Others are large buildings. They are open five days a week and Saturday mornings. From Monday through Friday they are usually open from 8:30 to 4:30.

　　If you know how much the postage(邮资) is for your letter, you can buy stamps at any window. In some post offices you can buy stamps from machines. Stamps are sold at many different prices, from one cent(美分) to many dollars. 1f you are not sure how much postage is for your letter, you may ask the man or the woman in the post office for help. He or she will give you the stamps you need. If you are sending your letters far away, you should use airmail envelopes(航空信封). Remember that postage will be more expensive for a letter to be sent outside the country.

　　At a post office you can also buy postcards. A postcard is cheaper than a letter. Usually the price of postage for a postcard is about half that of a letter. The postcards that you buy at a post office do not have pictures. However, also they are not to be sent outside the country.

　　Letters are an easy and cheap way to keep in touch with people in many different countries.

1．The passage tells us that we can find ________ easily in the United States of America.

[　　]

2．The post offices in the United States are open ________.

[　　]

3．If you are not sure how much postage is for your letter, you can ________.

[　　]

A．go and buy stamps from the machine in the post office

B．send a cheap postcard instead of your letter

C．get in touch with somebody you know in the post office

D．ask the man or the woman in the post office for help

4．The price of postage for ________ is more expensive.

[　　]

A．a beautiful postcard

B．a letter written on envelope

C．a letter by airmail

D．a postcard with pictures

5．The passage tells us something about ________ in the USA.

[　　]