阅读表达 （满分10分）

[1]A researcher who helped make crops grow in dry land areas received the World Food Prize last week. Daniel Hillel was recognized for his work in developing what is called “micro-irrigation" or “drip irrigation." It has made farming possible in places where there is little rainfall or water.

[2]Daniel Hillel's farm near his home in Israel shows his ideas at work. “Each tree row is fed by these plastic tubes that drip water at the base of the tree." Watering plants drop by drop has changed agriculture by reducing the amount of water needed to grow crops.

[3]Farmers now depend on drip irrigation in many areas, including vineyards in Spain, onion fields in Africa, and even farms in the United States. Farmers in California grow about fifty percent of the fruits and vegetables of the continental United States. And the reason that is possible is because of these drip and micro-irrigation techniques.

[4]Daniel Hillel was born in California. After his father died, his mother moved the family to Palestine, where her parents lived. The area eventually became part of the state of Israel. Daniel Hillel got his start in dry land farming as a settler in Israel's Negev Desert in the 1950s. “The issue was efficient use of water because land is available and extensive while Water is limited."

[5]Desert farmers were not able to push water through irrigation canals to their crops the way farmers have since ancient times. So Mr. Hillel and others gave plants just what they needed, just where they needed it. The idea was to apply the water little by little. The method worked so well that soon Mr. Hillel was traveling the world, showing others _____.

1.Why did Daniel Hillel win the World Food Prize?   ( no more than15 words)

_____________________________________________________________________

2.How did drip irrigation change agriculture? ( no more than12 words)

_____________________________________________________________________

3.Fill in the blank in Paragraph 5 with proper words. ( no more than 5words)

_____________________________________________________________________

4.What’s the main idea of the text? ( no more than 12 words)

________________________________________

5.What does the underlined word “it” (Line3, Paragraph 1) probably refer to?

(no more than 3 words)

__________________________________________________________________ 

 

Dear Guys,

I’d like to talk to you about the shame you subjected me to last night. Let me first refresh your memory: You, a group of fit, young men, were playing soccer on the field across from my apartment building. I, a better-than-average looking young woman, was walking along the sidewalk with my groceries. That’s when your ball came flying over the fence and landed in front of me.

One of you approached and asked politely if I would throw the ball back to you. Fighting the urge to drop my bags and run screaming down the street, I reluctantly (勉强地) agreed.

Before I continue, let me explain something that I didn’t have a chance to mention last night: I hate sports. More specifically, I hate sports involving balls. This results from my lack of natural ability when it comes to throwing, catching and hitting. I’m bad at aiming too. So you can understand why I’d be nervous at what I’m sure seemed to you like a laughably simple request.

However, wanting to appear agreeable, I put my bags down, picked up the ball and, eyes half-shut, threw it as hard as I could.

It hit the middle of the fence and bounced back to me.

Trying to act casually, I said something about being out of practice, then picked up the ball again. If you’ll remember, at your command, I agreed to try throwing underhand. While outwardly I was smiling, in my head, I was praying, Oh God, oh please oh please oh please. I threw the ball upward with all my strength, terrified by what happened next.

The ball hit slightly higher up on the fence and bounced back to me.

This is the point where I start to take issue with you. Wouldn’t it have been a better use of your time, and mine, if you had just walked around the fence and took the ball then? I was clearly struggling; my smiles were more and more forced. And yet, you all just stood there, motionless.

Seeing that you weren’t going to let me out of the trouble, I became desperate. Memories of middle school softball came flooding back. I tried hard to throw the ball but it only went about eight feet, then I decided to pick it up and dash with ball in hand towards the baseline, while annoyed thirteen-year-old boys screamed at me that I was ruining their lives. Children are cruel.

Being a big girl now, I pushed those memories aside and picked up the soccer ball for the third time. I forced a good-natured laugh while crying inside as you patiently shouted words of support over the fence at me.

“Throw it granny-style!” one of you said.

“Just back up a little and give it all you’ve got!” another offered.

And, most embarrassing of all, “You can do it!”

I know you thought you were being encouraging, but it only served to deepen the shame.

Anyway, I accepted your ball-throwing advice, backed up, rocked back and forth a little, took a deep breath and let it fly.

It hit the edge of the fence and bounced back to me.

I surprised myself-and I’m sure you as well-by letting out a cry, “DAMN IT!!!” I then willed myself to have a heart attack and pass out in front of you just so I’d be put out of my misery.

Alas, the heart attack didn’t happen, and you continued to look at me expectantly, like you were content to do this all night. I had become a sort of exhibition for you. I could feel your collective thoughts drifting through the chain-link: “Can she really not do it? But I mean, really?”

Unfortunately for you, I wasn’t really game to continue your experiment. Three failed attempts at a simple task in front of a group of people in a two-minute period was just enough blow for me for one night. I picked up the ball one last time, approached the fence and grumbled, “Please just come get the damn ball.”

And you did. And thanks to you, I decided at that very moment to never throw anything ever again, except disrespectful glances at people who play sports.

Sincerely, Jen Cordery

1.The writer agreed to throw the ball because ______.

A. she needed to have a relax carrying the heavy groceries

B. she wanted to refresh her childhood memories

C. she could not refuse the polite request from the young man

D. she had fallen in love with the young man at first sight

2.Why did the writer mention her middle school memory?

A. To explain why she failed the attempts to throw the ball back.

B. To complain that she had not mastered the ball throwing skills.

C. To show how cruel those 13-year-old boys were.

D. To express her dislike towards softball.

3. What the boys said before the writer’s third attempt actually made the writer _______.

A. inspired                B. encouraged             C. embarrassed                  D. depressed

4.What happened to the ball at last?

A. The writer managed to throw the ball back.

B. The boy got the ball back by himself.

C. The writer threw the ball away out of anger.

D. The boys got angry and left without the ball.

 

Little Robby, our neighbour’s nephew, carefully drew some water into a bowl and started for the door. How I hated this water rationing (定量供应). We were forced to bathe in the deep little pond we shared with Jessie, our cow. Wells were dry, and crops transformed to dust.

I watched Robby sitting down onto the steps to my house. Bees buzzed circling his hair, and he buzzed with them. I remembered his aunt’s words: I don’t know what I was thinking when I took him in. The crash killed my sister, and he wasn’t hurt, but he can’t talk. He’s in a world of all his own.

Why couldn’t she see the wonderful gifts this boy possessed? He was blessed with a loving nature and a deep admiration for all living things, and I knew he could talk to animals. My heart ached for Robby, who was to stay with us for the summer, and had already been the dearest part of our world, eagerly tending the garden with me and my husband, Tom.

On a string around Robby’s neck hung a whistle, in case he was ever lost or in danger. After all, he could not call out for help. But he knew perfectly well that the whistle was not a toy. Blowing on it would bring us both running. I had told him the story of the boy who cried wolf, and I knew he understood me.

I sighed as I cleared up the last supper dish. Every ounce of recycled water was saved for a tiny vegetable garden Robby had planted. Tom turned to me. “You know, honey, I’ve been thinking about...”

Before he could continue, a scream from the yard made us jump. My God! It’s Robby’s whistle! When we reached him, he was pointing excitedly to the sky. Looking up, we saw the most magnificent sight: Rain Clouds! “Robby! Quick! We need all the pots and pans!”

Robby raced with me to the house. A drop of water fell on my pot and then another. Soon the yard was enveloped in soaking, glorious rain. We all stood with faces held upward to feel the comfort of it. Tom picked up Robby and danced about the pots, shouting and whooping, “Rain for Robby!” Tom swung about to show me Robby’s face: he was laughing right out loud, “W-W-Wobby’s!” “Wobby’s … wain … Mom,” giggling（咯咯地笑）, and stretching out one tiny hand in the shape of a cup to catch the rain.

I hugged them both, tears of joy mixing with the rain.

1.The underlined phrase “the wonderful gifts” in the 3rd paragraph refers to Robby’s ______.

A．love for nature and all living things

B．kindness to help others around

C．independence since his childhood

D．readiness to accept what happened to him

2.It was because ______ that the author and her husband would run on hearing the whistle.

A．it was going to rain

B．Robby often surprised us with his whistle

C．something bad might happen to Robby.

D．Robby might find something special

3.What can we learn from the passage?

A．Robby was old enough, but still couldn’t speak.

B．Robby’s aunt regretted bringing Robby home.

C．Robby didn’t accept the author and Tom as his parents.

D．Robby happened to find the rain cloud and was terrified.

4.It can be concluded from the passage that ______.

A．we should show mercy for the disabled children

B．every child has his own talent however young he is

C．children from poor families take responsibilities earlier

D．children’s sensitive hearts are worthy to be taken care of

 

D

Holding a cell phone against your ear or storing it in your pocket may be dangerous to your health. This explains a warning that cell phone manufacturers include in the small print that is often ignored when a new phone is purchased. Apple, for example, doesn’t want iPhones to come closer to you than 1.5 centimeters; Research In Motion, BlackBerry’s manufacturer, recommends 2.5 centimeters.

If health issues arise from cell phone use, the possible effects are huge. Voice calls - Americans chat on cell phones 2.26 trillion(万亿)minutes annually - earn $109 billion for the wireless carriers.

Devra Davis, an expert who has worked for the University of Pittsburgh, has published a book about cell phone radiation, “Disconnect.” The book surveys scientific research and concludes the question is not settled.

Brain cancer is a concern that Ms. Davis examines. Over all, there has not been an increase in its incidence since cell phones arrived. But the average masks an increase in brain cancer in the 20-to-29 age group and a drop for the older population.

“Most cancers have multiple causes,” she says, but she points to laboratory research that suggests low-energy radiation could damage cells that could possibly lead to cancer.

Children are more vulnerable to radiation than adults, Ms. Davis and other scientists point out. Radiation that penetrates only five centimeters into the brain of an adult will reach much deeper into the brains of children because their skulls are thinner and their brains contain more absorptive fluid（易吸收的液体）. No studies have yet been completed on cell phone radiation and children, she says.

Henry Lai, a research professor in the bioengineering department at the University of Washington, began laboratory radiation studies in 1980 and found that rats exposed to radiation had damaged DNA in their brains.

Ms. Davis recommends using wired headsets or the phone’s speaker. Children should text rather than call, she said, and pregnant women should keep phones away from the abdomen（腹部）.

1.Why is the warning in the small print?

A．They think people will not care about it.

B．There is not enough space for the warning.

C．They don’t want the users to pay attention to it.

D．The warning is not important at all.

2.What does the underlined word in sixth paragraph probably mean?

A．acceptable        B．valuable           C．accessible         D．easily affected

3.What can we conclude from the last paragraph?

A．Pregnant women should keep cell phones away.

B．People should use cell phones in the correct way.

C．If you are a child, you’d better text than make phone calls.

D．When you use a cell phone, use a wired headset or the phone’s speaker.

4.What does the passage mainly talk about?

A．Be careful when using cell phones.

B．Don’t hold your cell phone against your ear.

C．Rats exposed to radiation have damaged DNA in their brains.

D．Low-energy radiation could damage cells that could lead to cancer.

 

New genetic analysis has revealed that many Amazon tree species are likely to survive human-made climate warming in the coming century, contrary to previous findings that temperature increases would cause them to die out. A study,   1  in the latest edition of Ecology and Evolution, reveals the   2  age of some Amazonian tree species -- more than 8 million years -- and   3  shows that they have survived previous periods as warm as many of the global warming imagined periods   4  for the year 2100.

The authors write that, having survived warm periods in the past, the trees will   5  survive future warming, provided there are no other major environmental changes.   6  extreme droughts and forest fires will impact Amazonia as temperatures   7 , the trees will stand the direct impact of higher temperatures. The authors   8  that as well as reducing greenhouse gas emissions to minimize the risk of drought and fire, conservation policy should remain   9  on preventing deforestation（采伐森林）for agriculture and mining.

The study disagrees with other recent researches which predicted tree species’ extinctions   10  relatively small increases in global average air temperatures.

Study co-author Dr Simon Lewis (UCL Geography) said the   11  were good news for Amazon tree species, but warned that drought and over-exploitation of the forest remained major   12  to the Amazon’s future.

Dr Lewis said: “The past cannot be compared directly with the future. while tree species seem likely to   13  higher air temperatures than today, the Amazon forest is being transformed for agriculture and   14 , and what remains is being degraded by logging, and increasingly split up by fields and roads.

“Species will not move as freely in today’s Amazon as they did in previous warm periods, when there was no human   15 . Similarly, today’s climate change is extremely fast, making comparisons with slower changes in the past   16 .”

“With a clearer   17  of the relative risks to the Amazon forest, we   18  that direct human impacts -- such as forest clearances for agriculture or mining -- should remain a key point of conservation policy. We also need more aggressive   19  to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in order to make minimum the risk of drought and fire impacts and   20  the future of most Amazon tree species.”

1.                A．advertised      B．described       C．published D．presented

 

2.                A．frightening      B．surprising       C．exciting   D．interesting

 

3.                A．still            B．nevertheless     C．however  D．therefore

 

4.                A．assess          B．confirm         C．forecast  D．promise

 

5.                A．particularly      B．probably        C．merely   D．possibly

 

6.                A．Since          B．Although        C．When    D．If

 

7.                A．rise            B．change         C．drop D．end

 

8.                A．consider        B．decide         C．guarantee D．recommend

 

9.                A．based          B．built           C．focused  D．made

 

10.               A．in relation to    B．in response to   C．in reply to D．in reference to

 

11.               A．findings        B．thoughts        C．inventions D．writings

 

12.               A．threats         B．disadvantages    C．embarrassments D．instructions

 

13.               A．accept         B．tolerate        C．permit    D．Require

 

14.               A．farming        B．planting        C．catering   D．mining

 

15.               A．power         B．influence       C．desire D．violence

 

16.               A．difficult        B．clear           C．easy  D．important

 

17.               A．belief          B．direction       C．understanding  D．suggestion

 

18.               A．doubt          B．conclude       C．calculate  D．prefer

 

19.               A．thought        B．guidance       C．protection D．action

 

20.               A．secure         B．advance        C．sacrifice   D．evaluate