It is easy for us to tell who our family members are, but do plants recognize(识别) their own family? Some do, scientists say, according to a report by Science News in early 2010.

Guillermo P. Murphy and Susan Dudley are two plant scientists from McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada. They did a few experiments with Jewelweeds, a kind of flower that grows in wet, shady spots. They found that the flowers seem to know their own flower family. In their experiments, Murphy and Dudley planted jewelweeds in pots with either siblings or strangers.

When jewelweeds were planted in pots with strangers, the plants started to grow more leaves than if they had been planted alone. This response(反应)suggests that plants are competing with strangers for sunlight, since a plant with more leaves can receive more light and make more food. Jewelweeds usually grow in the shade, where sunlight is not enough.

When jewelweed seedlings(幼苗)were planted with siblings, they grew a few more branches than they usually would if they were alone – but they did not start growing lots of extra leaves. This behavior suggests the plants are more likely to share resources, rather than compete.

According to the Science News report, Jewelweeds are not the first plants that plant scientists have studied for family recognition. In 2007, Dudley and her team studied the Great Lakes sea rocket, a plant that grows on the beach – where it may be hard to get fresh water. In that experiment, the scientists found that when sea rockets were planted with siblings, they tolerated each other. But when they were planted with strangers, the sea rockets reacted by working extra hard to grow lots of roots.

Dudley says this just because sea rockets, on the beach, get plenty of sun but struggle for water – so when they’re threatened, they compete for water. Jewelweeds have plenty of water but have to compete for sunshine, so they grow more leaves.

1. What does the underlined word siblings mean?

A．Flowers come from foreign countries.

B．Plants growing in different environments.

C．Flowers planted with lots of strangers.

D．Plants that are the same kind.

2. In the text, the writer mentioned the experiments of Jewelweeds to         .

A．make a comparison                      B．introduce a topic

C．describe a pretty flower                  D．build a new theory

3. According to the passage, flowers planted alone will         .

A．grow more leaves than those planted in groups

B．become taller than those with more branches

C．grow fewer leaves than those planted with strangers

D．become ill easily because they can’t get enough shade

4. What can be the best title for the passage?

A．New Discoveries about Plants

B．How Plants Compete with Each Other

C．Family Recognition among Plants

D．Jewelweeds and the Great Lakes Sea Rockets

 

On the fifth day of the fifth month of the Chinese lunar calendar（农历）, which is Wednesday this year, all Chinese celebrate one of their traditional festivals, the Dagon Boat Festival, or Dragon Boat Festival. Their celebrations include eating zongzi, rice wrapped in bamboo leaves in the shape of a pyramid, racing dragon boats and sticking mugwort leaves on their doors.  

In 2007, the central government decided to add the Dragon Boat Festival, together with two other traditional festivals - Tomb Sweeping Day (清明节) and Mid Autumn Festival - to the list of public holidays

According to tradition, our ancestors（长辈） believed the hot weather in midsummer might cause different kinds of diseases (疾病). So, to keep off diseases and drive out evil were the main purposes of the Dragon Boat Festival. Parents used colorful threads to make necklaces and bracelets （手镯） for children, gave them beautiful embroidered bags（荷包）, painted the Chinese character for "king" (wang) on their foreheads to drive away bad luck. The Dragon Boat Festival was also called "kids festival" in some places. Spending such happy hours with parents, young children began to understand the festival as well as the traditions and culture behind it. Repeating the customs year by year makes it possible for kids to learn the traditions, accept it and pass it on when they become adults.

1.How do people celebrate the Dragon Boat Festival?

A．People celebrate this festival by eating eggs.

B．People celebrate this festival by eating zongzi, racing dragon boats.

C．People celebrate this festival by sending cards.

D．People celebrate this festival by singing and dancing.

2.What is the Chinese meaning of “mugwort leaves” in the second paragraph?

A．粽叶             B．红叶             C．艾叶             D．松叶

3.How many public holidays added by the central government in 2007?

A．2                B．3                C．4                D．only one

4.What is the main purpose of the Dragon Boat Festival according to tradition?

A．To keep off diseases and drive out evil and bad luck.

B．To spend happy time with parents.

C．To make necklaces and bracelets for children.

D．To have a long holiday with family members.

 

用方框内所给单词的适当形式填空，使短文正确、通顺。每词限用一次，每空一词。

outdoor  print   show   young    smoke   rule   how   each  attention  in

  China has the largest number of smokers in the world. _【小题1】_year,  about one million Chinese die from smoking-related illness. Official statistics(统计) in 2007 ___【小题2】_China has 300 million smokers, with another 540 million people forced to breathe in.
China began taking part _【小题3】_the world Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control(《烟草控制框架公约》）in 2006. Governments at different levels have paid more _【小题4】__to tobacco control in the last few years. Beijing , Shanghai and Hangzhou have tobacco-control___【小题5】__. Half of China’s public health institutions have been non-smoking spaces since2010. Smoking in some indoor public spaces and special __【小题6】___work spaces has not been allowed since January 2011.
Selling to tobacco to anyone _【小题7】__than 18 is not allowed. The seller should ask the buyer to show his or her ID card if the seller can not see _【小题8】__old the buyer is .
Now at least 23 countries use pictures on the packages to warn more people of the dangerous of __【小题9】__. The picture warnings now are __【小题10】___in bigger characters, and the use of colors of makes the warning clearer.
For others and for yourself, please give up smoking.

In 1984, US toy maker Hasbro turned the intelligent（智能的）robots into toys and TV stars. They appeared in China three years later. They are been popular for a long time. Now they are back on screen.

Are you a fan of cool machine toys? Do you like cars and trucks that can change into giant robots? If so, you won’t want to miss the US film Transformer（《变形金刚》）.
The story happens millions of years ago. On a planet there are intelligent robots that can think and feel. They are called Autobots(博派) and Decepticons(狂派).
The Autobots are the peace-loving and kind machines. However, the Decepticons are cruel. They have only one goal: to rule the planet themselves. They set out to kill the Sutobots.
A war between the groups of good and evil begins. The Deceptions destroy almost everything and the Autobots have to fight bravely to survive.
Things get worse. Both types of robots travel through time to get energy. Then they find Earth has what they want. So the transformers begin a secret war to control Earth’s energy.
Can humans save Earth? Watch the movie and find out!
【小题1】When did the intelligent robots first appear in China?

A．In 1984.

B．In 1987.

C．In 1997.

D．In 2007.

【小题2】The writer thinks that people who like ______ will enjoy the film Transformers.

A．comedies

B．machine toys

C．wild animals

D．computer games

【小题3】What is the goal of the Decepticons?

A．To keep the world peace.	B．To kill the Autobots.
C．To rule their planet.	D．To destroy everything.

【小题4】What does the underlined word “evil” mean?

A．善良

B．正义

C．凶狠

D．邪恶

【小题5】Why do the robots move their battlefield(战场) to Earth?

A．Because they want to get energy.

B．Because they want to fight against each other.

C．Because they love Earth.

D．Because humans put them in danger.

 

 

 

Even though she’s quite young, Drew Barrymore can be a Hollywood legend (传奇). She was born on February 22, 1975, in California. Being from a family that produced great actors, she quickly found her way into the spotlight (聚光灯).

When she was 11 months old, she made her first advertisement on TV. She made her first movie at the age of 2. Five years later, she acted Gertie in Steven Spielberg’s famous film E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial(1982).

However, it wasn’t all roses and sunshine when Barrymore was growing up. She was drinking wine by the time she was 9, smoking marijuana (大麻) at 10.

Most kid stars in Hollywood fail to become stars as adults. And most of the time, once they’re out of the spotlight, they stay out. But Drew Barrymore doesn’t.

As she was growing older, Barrymore started to realize that life is more meaningful than dangerous actions in the films. She started to build a career in 1997. She has made a series of successful films since then, including Charlie’s Angels (2000) and 50 First Dates (2004).

“In my life, there is darkness and drama, and I have yet to explore some of that in my work life. I just want to challenge (挑战) myself and prove that I can do more.”

Actually, anyone who’s not familiar with her disordered childhood might find it hard to believe she’s such a sweet person now. Like many of the characters she plays in her comedy, Drew is easy-going and laughs a lot. In 2007, she was on the cover of People magazine’s 100 Most Beautiful People issue.

“Life is very interesting … in the end, some of your greatest pains, become your greatest strengths,” Drew said.

1.Drew Barrymore made her first movie in          .

A. 1975                       B. 1977              C. 1979              D. 1982

2.Drew Barrymore can be a Hollywood legend mainly because           .

A. she was born form a family that produced great actors

B. she used to be a famous kid star in Hollywood

C. she always has roses and sunshine in her life

D. she didn’t give up even when she met difficulties

3.Which is the correct order of Drew Barrymore’s life?

①She made the film Charlie’s Angels.

②She is on the cover of People magazine’s 100 Most Beautiful People issue.

③ She started to drink wine and smoke marifuana.

④ She acted Gertie in Steven Spielberg’s famous film E.T. the Extra- Terrestrial.

A.①④②③                B.④②①                     ③C.④③②①                      D.①③②④

4.Which of the following chart can best describe Drew Barrymore’s career (till 2007) ?