You might have noticed that the cost of food has gone up.In fact the price of wheat and rice has nearly doubled in the past few years.It’s thought that right now，850 million people—that’s more than 10 times the population of the UK—are short of food because it’s too expensive or there’s not enough of it.
The price of basic food such as wheat and corn has stayed the same for quite a long time，about 30 years.But as the world’s population is getting bigger，there’s more pressure to feed more people，plus there’s less land and water to go round.
Another reason is climate（气候）change.Droughts and floods make it hard to grow crops like rice and grain.The price of oil has gone up and that makes it more expensive for farmers to run their tractors and to transport the food they make.And lots of fields are being used to grow crops to make other things that can’t be eaten—which is bad news for hungry people.
The main losers are poor people who live in cities in poor countries，who are facing higher prices for food.Some people are doing well out of the food crisis（危机） though.Farmers in rich countries like the US，Canada and Australia are getting record prices for their harvests.
World leaders are meeting in the Italian capital Rome to talk about the problem of rising food prices.Some countries are helping out with the cost of foods and international aid agencies have called for more money for food production in poor countries.
【小题1】The price of food goes up because all of the following EXCEPT _____.

A．there are more and more people in the world.

B．American farmers are getting richer and richer.

C．many farm lands are used to make other things rather than food.

D．climate change makes it harder to grow food.

【小题2】Who lose the most because of the food crisis?

A．Farmers in rich countries.

B．Farmers in developed countries.

C．Poor people in cities in poor countries.

D．Poor people in cities in developed countries.

【小题3】What does the food crisis mean to farmers in Canada?

A．They can get a lot of money from the government.

B．They have to save a lot of money.

C．They can make more money from the high price.

D．They are losing a lot of money.

【小题4】What is the best title for this passage?

A．Why is the Price of Food Going Up？

B．How Many People are Short of Food?

C．What Can We Learn from the Food Crisis?

D．Who Can Benefit（受益） from the Food Crisis?

The Guidance Department （教导处）at Berryville High School has a staff of eleven teachers. Most of their work is done with the students. But the staff sees a lot of parents, too.
“Parents meetings make clear monthly diagram（图表）.”says Mildred Freman, head of the Guidance. “This diagram stays much the same from year to year. The busy months are October, March and May. ”
September, the beginning of a new school year, starts rather slowly. Few parents come in. Most of these want to talk about the schedules. October brings many problems caused by some students. Some parents are called in. Others come by themselves. Things quiet down in November. December is a quiet month. “It’s the holiday. ”Ms Foreman says, “People want to come in, I know, but they decide to wait until after New Year’s Day.”
Report cards go home just before Christmas holidays. Bad marks bring parents in as school opens again. This happens again in March, another report card month. May is always the year’s busiest month. That’s when parents begin to think that their children may be asked to stay in the same grade again. They come in to see if anything can be done before things are decided in June.
【小题1】The teachers in the Guidance Department usually ______.

A．do most of their work for the students

B．answer all the questions from parents

C．help other teachers get along with students and parents

D．only bring report cards to students and parents

【小题2】In December parents usually ______.

A．stay at home with their children for their holidays

B．wait for the teachers to bring report cards to their children

C．wouldn’t like to visit the teachers in the Guidance Department

D．let teachers have a good rest during their holidays

【小题3】Why do some parents come to school in March? Because ______.

A．they want to see their children’s teachers after Christmas holidays

B．they are called by the teachers of Guidance Department

C．bad marks have them do it

D．it’s the beginning of a new school year

【小题4】Which of the following is Right?

A．In June the school decides who will stay in the same grade again.

B．Almost all the parents come to meet Mildred Foreman every month.

C．April is also the second busiest month for the staff.

D．The parents help to do most of the work for the staff.

My work keeps me in Hong Kong most of the year，but I try to get away for a month in summer，usually in July．Now as you probably know，that’s the main　1　season in Europe．The favorite places for vacations and the famous cities are usually very　2　． But I’m not seeking(寻求) the sun—I can get lots of 　3　in Hong Kong—and I’m certainly not seeking the crowds！So　4　I go on vacation，I buy a Train Pass(a kind of train ticket) that allows me first-class travel on most of the railways of Western Europe．First-class compartments(车厢) are　5　crowded and they are very comfortable．If you’re going on　6　trip, you can take a sleeping train for an extra charge．There are usually dining cars(餐车) in the train．

I find that train travel is restful and　7　．There’s always　8　to see．I particularly(特别地) enjoy　9　through Switzerland and Italy．You can get a very good　10　of what a country is like from a train because you don’t go too fast and you stop quite often．Also train travel is very safe，and I am never sick on a train　11　I am on a ship. Then there are always people to　12　to if you feel like a chat.

The reason that I seldom(很少) travel by plane is quite　13　: because train stations are usually built in the centre．I don’t have to　14　transport(运输工具), transport can be a problem when arriving by　15　．

1.                A．vacation        B．visiting         C．cloudy   D．windy

 

2.                A．quiet          B．useful          C．exciting   D．crowded

 

3.                A．pleasure        B．daylight         C．sunshine  D．money

 

4.                A．when          B．where          C．what D．which

 

5.                A．always         B．hardly          C．certainly  D．nearly

 

6.                A．summer        B．overnight       C．day-time  D．vacation

 

7.                A．cheap          B．expensive       C．interesting D．lonely

 

8.                A．something      B．nothing         C．anything  D．everything

 

9.                A．running        B．walking         C．driving   D．travelling

 

10.               A．view           B．idea           C．seat  D．trip

 

11.               A．rather than      B．or             C．as    D．even though

 

12.               A．talk            B．speak          C．tell   D．say

 

13.               A．easy           B．wrong          C．right  D．simple

 

14.               A．find out        B．worry about     C．wait for   D．take away

 

15.               A．ship           B．train           C．air   D．car

 

 

BEING an astronaut sounds cool, doesn't it? In space, they get to do some pretty amazing things, like floating in zero gravity(重力).

However, there are also plenty of things that astronauts can't do because of their weightless environment, and that's very sad. What's worse, they can't even let their sadness show, because it's impossible to cry in zero gravity.

Of course, astronauts can still produce tears. But crying is much more difficult in space, according to The Atlantic(大西洋月刊) in January. Without gravity, tears don't flow(流动) down out of the eyes like they do here on Earth. This means that when you cry in space, your tears have nowhere to go-they just stick(粘) to your eyes.

In May 2011, astronaut Andrew Feustel experienced this during one of his spacewalks. "Tears," he said, "don't fall off of your eyes...They just kind of stay there."

Besides making your vision(视线)unclear, this can also cause physical pain. Back on Earth, tears are supposed to bring comfort to the eyes. But that's not the case in space. The space environment dries out astronauts' eyes, and when tears suddenly wet the eyes, it can cause pain rather than comfort. "My right eye is stinging(刺痛) like crazy," Feustel told his teammate during the walk.

Since gravity doesn't work in space, astronauts need some extra help to get rid of（除去） the tears. Feustel chose to rub his eyes against his helmet to wipe(擦) the tears away. Another choice is to just wait-"When the tears get big enough they simply break free of the eyes and float around," astronaut Ron Parise told The Atlantic.

There are lots of small things-things like crying-that we are so used to on Earth. We usually take them for granted until they become a problem in a totally different environment, like space.  There, astronauts can't talk to each other directly. They also can't eat or drink in normal ways. They can't even burp (打嗝), because there is no gravity to hold the food down in their stomach. If they do burp, they just end up throwing up（呕吐）everything in their stomach, according to the UK National Space Center.

Therefore, perhaps it's only space explorers who can honestly say: "Gravity, you're the best."

1.From Paragraphs 2 and 3 , we can know that_______.

A．astronauts are unable to feel sad in space

B．astronauts produce fewer tears in space

C．tears produced in space flow down more slowly

D．tears produced in space don't flow downward

2.What effect do tears have on astronauts?

A．They cause physical pain.

B．They bring comfort to them.

C．They make their vision clearer.

D．They float around and cause trouble.

3.The underlined phrase "take them for granted" in paragraph 7 means _______.

A．find them important

B．consider them useless

C．need them during an emergency

D．fail to notice their presence(存在)

4.The second-to-last paragraph (paragraph 7) is mainly about_______.

A．suggestions of how astronauts can stay comfortable in space

B．other basic things that are difficult to do in space

C．why burping is impossible in space

D．things human can't do without gravity

 

Have successful people ever felt sad? Do they have any “secrets” to success? The answers to these questions can be found in US president Barack Obama’s “back to school” speech. Here is an excerpt(摘录) from his speech.

I know that sometimes, you get the sense that you can be rich and successful without any hard work—that your ticket to success is through pop music or basketball or being a TV star, when chances are, you’re not going to be any of those things.

But the truth is, being successful is hard. You won’t love every subject you study. Not all the homework will seem rather important to your life right this minute. And you may not succeed at everything the first time you try.

That’s OK. Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who’ve had the most failures (the opposite of success). JK Rowling’s first Harry Potter book was turned down 12 times before it finally came out. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, and he lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots (投篮) during his career. But he once said, “I have failed over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”

These people succeeded because they understand that you can’t let your failures beat(打败) you—you have to let them teach you. You have to let them show you what to do differently next time.

No one’s born being good at things. You become good at things through hard work.

Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. I do that every day. Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness; it’s a sign of strength. It shows you have the courage to tell when you don’t know something, and to learn something new.

And even when you’re struggling(奋斗), even when you’re discouraged (泄气), and you feel other people have given up on you—don’t ever give up on yourself. Because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.

1.Why does Barack Obama mention (提到) JK Rowling and Michael Jordan in the third paragraph?

A．To compare these two famous persons.

B．To explain that the more failures he has, the more successful he is.

C．If you want to be successful, you should fail first.

D．To show that failure is the mother of success.

2.Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A．No one can be successful without working hard.

B．Failure can be good if you treat it in a right way.

C．Those who believe in themselves shouldn’t ask others for help.

D．One should try his best to make his dream come true.

3.Which of the following has the closest meaning to the underlined sentence?

A．One shouldn’t ask questions because it is a sign of strength.

B．One should believe in himself though he will face much difficulty.

C．One doesn’t have to work hard when he has failed several times.

D．One doesn’t have to ask for help because it is a sign of weakness.