You thought the Dark Ages are well behind us? Think again. As we speak, the world is getting darker. Without sunlight, oxygen (氧气) levels will drop, and there won’t be enough food. In the end, we’ll die a horrible death. Probably, we will have forgotten what kind of a sunny planet Earth once was.

It is the thick clouds that are causing all the trouble. They bounce back (弹回) the sunlight into space, preventing it from reaching the Earth’s surface and its people. The result: darkness, and cold. So, who put those clouds up there in the first place? Well, blame (归咎于) yourself: you did. You guessed it: it’s those humans and their pollution again.

Already, the Earth is a bit darker than it should have been. An agricultural biologist (农业生物学家), Gerald Stanhill, first discovered Global (全球的) Dimming in Israel in the 1980s. The sun shines about 22 percent less in Israel than it did in the 1950s. It is as if someone is slowly turning off the lights! In fact, global dimming may have made its first victims (受害者) already. In the 1980s, about a million Africans in the Sahel died during a massive drought (大面积干旱). It was global dimming’s doing: the sun simply didn’t shine hard enough to ‘power up’ the system that should have given the Sahel its rainy season.

But isn’t the world getting warmer, instead of colder? How about global warming? Many facts show that the world is indeed getting warmer. But it’s also getting darker. In fact, many scientists believe that global dimming puts the brakes on the warming of our planet. Without global dimming, global warming would be much, much worse! And there’s no telling which will win in the end, heat or cold.

So, what do you prefer? Would you like to get roasted, or would you rather die in the dark? Hmm...Perhaps it’s a better idea to cut down a little on both pollution and greenhouse gases, after all.　

54. Why is the world getting darker?

A. Because oxygen levels on the earth are dropping quickly.

B. Because the thick clouds stop the sunlight reaching the earth.

C. Because the thick clouds are covering a large area of the earth.

D. Because the earth is becoming colder and colder.

55. What does the phrase “puts the brakes on” in Para. 4 probably mean?

A. puts out　　　 　　　　　　 B. breaks down　　 C. slows down　　 D. catches up with　　

56. According to the passage, which of the following statements is true?

A. The earth used to be sunnier and warmer.

B. We are responsible for global dimming.

C. Africa suffers most from global dimming.

D. Global warming is better than global dimming.

A Russian, a Cuban, an American businessman and an American lawyer were on a train traveling across England. The Russian took out a large bottle of vodka, gave each of the men a drink and then threw the rest half bottle of vodka out of the window. “Why did you do that?” asked the American businessman. “There’s too much vodka in my country,” said the Russian, “And really we have more than we will ever use.” A little later, the Cuban passed around fine Havana Cigars. Then he threw his out of the window. “I thought Cuba is not a rich country,” the businessman said. “But you threw that very good cigars out of the window!” “Cigars,” the Cuban answered, “are the cheapest in my country. We have more of them than we know what to do with.” The American businessman sat quietly for a moment. Then he got up, caught the lawyer by the arm and threw him of the window.

1.The people in the story are from ______ countries.

   A. one             B. two           C. three          D. four

2.The four people are traveling by _______.

   A. bus             B. air            C. train          D. sea

3.Vodka is a kind of _______.

   A. treasure(珍宝)    B. wine          C. food          D. medicine

4.The Russian and the Cuban both wanted to _______.

   A. tell the businessman that their countries are rich

   B. prove(证明) that they were rich

   C. ask the two Americans to visit their countries

   D. make the businessman happy

5.What did the businessman want to say by throwing the lawyer out of the window?

A. I want to buy some vodka.                

B. We have too many lawyers in my country.

C. I’ll go to Cuba and do some business of cigars.

D. If you need lawyers, come to America.

 

Cats are the most popular pets among Americans. So it is not surprising there are many expressions about cats. Do you know any of them? Now let me introduce some to you.
Some cats like to catch small birds, like canaries. If someone looks very proud or satisfied with himself, we say he looks like the cat that ate the canary.
Sometimes, a cat likes to play with a small animal it catches. So if you play cat and mouse with someone, you change between different kinds of behavior when dealing with another person. For example, a child might offer something sweet to her little brother, and then take it away when reaches for it.
A cat will often catch a small animal and present it to its owner. The saying that looks like something the cat dragged in describes something in bad condition.
A fat cat is a person with a lot of money.
There are many other expressions about cats in America. How interesting! Which kind of cat are you, or which kind would you like to be?
【小题1】Americans like ________ best as pets.

A．dogs

B．pigs

C．cats

D．mice

【小题2】The canary is a kind of ________.

A．dog

B．cat

C．bird

D．fish

【小题3】 If you have much money, we can call you ________.

A．a fat cat

B．a happy cat

C．a thin cat

D．a sad cat

【小题4】If someone always thinks highly of himself, we can say _________.

A．he plays cat and mouse with someone

B．he looks like the cat that ate the canary

C．he is a lazy cat

D．he has dragged in something

【小题5】The passage introduces us ________ expressions about cat.

A．one

B．two

C．three

D．four

When we talk of plants, most of us will think of things that grow from the ground and have green leaves, but there are plants that do not look or act like other plants. Some of these belong to a special class of plants called fungi.

Fungi may appear almost everywhere. They commonly grow in wet places where they call get food and water easily. Because fungi do not have green leaves to make their own food, but fungi must take their food from animals, other plants or water. Some fungi live on dead or rotting（腐烂的）wood, while others grow on living trees or in dirt or moss（苔藓）. Mushrooms（蘑茹）are the best-known fungi.

There are many kinds of mushrooms appearing in all shapes and sizes. For example, cauliflower（菜花）mushrooms are found in forests from July to October．They can grow to be as heavy as fifty pounds! They grow at the foot of trees Squirrel’s（松鼠）bread is another kind of wild mushroom Its appearance and use Call explain its name. These fungi look like small golden cakes Squirrels can easily eat them or carry them off to their hole to eat later.

The mushrooms found in food stores are carefully grown by people who know they are safe to eat. People are warned never to touch of taste wild mushrooms because some of them are deadly. Even less dangerous ones cart still make a person very sick..

1.Where does Fungi not grow?             .

A. On dry wood                     

B. In places full of water

C. On living trees                     

D. Behind houses

2.Where can Fungi take food?             .

A. From their green leaves             

B. From water

C. From rotting wood                   

D. From people

3.Squirrel's bread is a kind of             .

A. tree         B. animal           C. food             D. medicine

4.People are advised not to eat wild fungi because             .

A. it is unfit for main food               

B. it may be dangerous to people

C. it doesn't taste so good            

D. it's strange smell may do harm to people

5.The word "fungi" in this passage means

A. 草本植物    B. 菌类植物    C. 食用蘑菇     D. 无叶植物