阅读理解

　　Do you still get free plastic(塑料的)bags from the supermarkets? Things have changed．

　　China has banned(禁止)free plastic bags at shops and supermarkets, and people have to pay for using plastic bags．The rule started on June 1 last year．It came because our country tried to make litter less．Making super-thin(超薄)plastic bags has also been banned．

　　The Chinese once used about 3,000,000,000 plastic shopping bags a day, and they have caused pollution of the environment．The bags have become a main cause of plastic pollution because they are easy to break and people throw them away here and there．So the Chinese people are encouraged to bring their own bags for shopping．

　　What kind of shopping bag is the best to bring? Some students in Chongqing have a good idea．They make their own shopping bags．They use old clothes to make cloth bags, and send them to their parents as presents．They also ask their parents and friends to use cloth bags instead of plastic ones．They think it is their duty to protect the environment．

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　　Reading is an important activity for many Americans．Today, thousands of men, women and children are members of groups to discuss the books they read．

　　No one knows how many Americans belong to reading groups called book clubs．Yet publishers(发行人)and bookshops report that more and more throughout the United States are joining the clubs．

　　Most of the clubs work the same way．Members read the same book at the same time．Then they meet to talk about the book．Members may be friends or people who live near each other．Or, they may be people who work together．

　　Book clubs may be for only women or only men．Or, they can be for husbands and wives together．Some are family groups where parents attend with their children．Children may belong to book clubs of their own．

　　Some book clubs in the United States are for husbands and wives．One woman says this is a great idea for a book club．She says husbands and wives often talk to each other only about their children, work, or money problems．"Talking about books," she says, "opens a whole new level of communication．"

　　American children belong to book clubs, too．They may be as young as four years old or as old as eighteen．Some children's clubs get help from the Great Book Foundation(基金)．This educational organization provides lists of books to read．It also trains people to lead discussions about the books．

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　　Have you ever been ill? When you are ill，you must be unhappy because your body becomes hot，and there are pains all over your body．You don't want to work，you stay in bed，feeling very sad．

　　What makes us ill? It is germs(细菌)．Germs are everywhere．They are very small and you can't find them with your eyes，but you can see them with a microscope．They are very small and there could be hundreds of them on a very small thing．

　　Germs are always found in dirty water．When we look at dirty water under the microscope，we shall see them in it．So your father and mother will not let you drink dirty water．

　　Germs aren't found only in water．They are found in air and dust．If you cut your finger，if some of the dust from the floor goes into the cut(割开处)，some of the germs　 would go into your finger．Your finger would become big and red，and you will have much pain in it．Sometimes the germs would go into all of your body，and you would have pain everywhere．

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　　“Do you know Sodagreen(苏打绿)?”

　　“No．What's that?”

　　“Oh, come on! You don't know them? You're so out-of-date!”

　　If you don't know Sodagreen either, we are glad to tell you something about them．

　　Sodagreen is a band from Taiwan, China and now one of the most popular bands in Asia．It has five boys and a girl．The band thinks that soda best describes their music, and green is the band's lead singer(主唱)Wu Qingfeng's favorite color, so they named the band “Sodagreen”．

　　Sodagreen became popular in 2004 after they released(发行)their first album．Their music is fresh, cozy(温馨的)and nice．People have never heard of such music before, and they are amazed at Qingfeng's style of singing．Fan numbers grow like mushrooms(蘑菇)after a rain, and Sodagreen's albums and concert tickets sell very well．

　　Sodagreen is blowing a breath of fresh air into the music world．

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　　How do you know if your home is an easy aim for thefts? Around the holidays, many families don't consider taking proper measures to prevent their homes from suffering holiday thefts．With just a few simple steps, you can better make sure of the safety of your home during all of the holiday celebrations．Here are a few tips for making it difficult to tell you are away from home．

　　●Either have a trusted neighbor pick up your mail and newspapers, or tell your mailperson to hold your mail until you return．Nothing says “Hey, we are not home!” like when your postbox is filled with all kinds of mails and you have many different newspapers in your driveway．

　　●Set several different lights in your house on random timers(随机定时器)．Don't leave your outdoor lights on all the time．Instead, put your outside lights on timers to be on during the nights．If an outdoor light remains on for days at a time, it means that nobody is home to turn it off．

　　●If you have pets that you are not taking with you on vacation, leave them with a friend, rather than having someone come into your house every day to take care of them．When thefts see a neighbor or friend entering your house every day, they will know you are not home．

　　●Close all your curtains when you leave town．This is effective to deter possible thefts, as no one can see what is in your house．If they don't know what is inside, then they are less likely to run the risk of breaking in．

　　●This article just has suggested a few tips to help you keep your house safe while you are on holiday．Nothing can truly protect your home unless you have it monitored by a professional home security system．

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　　Mulch(护盖物;护根层)is important to farmers．Mulch is a protective cover of material that is spread on top of soil．It is usually made out of organic material, like crop waste．Farmers may keep the remains of maize or other crops on top of the soil．This creates mulch on the soil surface．The plant remains help protect the soil against wind and water damage．Mulching is one of the best things people can do for their plants．Mulch not only protects the soil against wind and water damage．It also helps keep the soil from getting too dry, and reduces the need for watering plants．It also limits temperature changes in the soil．And it stops unwanted plants, or weeds, from growing．

　　Organic mulch improves the condition of soil．As the mulch breaks down, it provides material which keeps the soil from getting hard．This improves the growth of roots and increases the movement of water through the soil．It also improves the ability of the soil to hold water．Organic mulch contains nutrients for plants．It also provides a good environment for earthworms and other helpful organisms in the soil．

　　The United States Department of Agriculture says it is easy to find organic mulch materials．Cut-up leaves and small pieces of tree bark can be used．Grass cuttings are also a good mulch for plants．Mulch from newspapers works well in controlling weeds．

　　The best time to add mulch depends on your goal．Mulch provides a thick barrier between the soil and the air．This helps to reduce temperature changes in the soil．As a result, mulched soil will be cooler than other soil in the summer．In winter, the mulched soil may not freeze as deeply as other soil．The best time is after the ground has frozen, but before the coldest weather arrives．Spreading mulch before the ground has frozen may attract small animals searching for a warm place to spend the winter．Delaying the spreading should prevent this problem．The animals will probably find another place to live．

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　　In a moment of personal crisis, how much help can you expect from a New York taxi driver? I began studying this question and found the answers interesting．

　　One morning I got into three different taxis and announced, “Well, it's my first day back in New York in seven years．I've been in prison．” Not a single driver replied, so I tried again．“Yeah, I shot a man in Reno．” I explained, hoping the driver would ask me why, but nobody asked．The only response came from a Ghanaian driver, “Reno? That is in Nevada?”

　　Taxi drivers were uniformly sympathetic when I said I'd just been fired．“This is America,” a Haitian driver said．“One door is closed．Another is open．” He argued against my plan to burn down my boss's house．A Pakistani driver even turned down a chance to profit from my loss of hope; he refused to take me to the middle of George Washington Bridge－a ＄20 trip．“Why you want to go there? Go home and relax．Don't worry．Take a new job．”

　　One very hot weekday in July, while wearing a red ski mask and holding a stuffed pillowcase with the word “BANK” on it, I tried calling a taxi five times outside different banks．The driver picked me up every time．My ride with a Haitian driver was typical of the superb assistance I received．

　　“Let's go across the park．” I said．“I just robbed the bank there．I got ＄25,000．”

　　“＄25,000?” he asked．

　　“Yeah, you think it was wrong to take it?”

　　“No, man．I work 8 hours and I don't make almost ＄70．If I can do that, I do it too．”

　　As we approached 86th and Lexington, I pointed to the Chemical Bank．

　　“Hey, there's another bank,” I said, “Could you wait here a minute while I go inside?”

　　“No, I can't wait．Pay me now．” His reluctance may have something to do with money－taxi drivers think the rate for waiting time is too low－but I think he wanted me to learn that even a bank robber can't expect unconditional support．

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　　At a certain time in our lives we consider every place as the possible site for a house．I have thus searched the country within a dozen miles of where I live．In imagination I have bought all the farms, one after another, and I knew their prices．

　　The nearest thing that I came to actual ownership was when I bought the Hollowell place．But before the owner completed the sale with me, his wife changed her mind and wished to keep it, and he offered me additional dollars to return the farm to him．However, I let him keep the additional dollars and sold him the farm for just what I gave for it．

　　The real attraction of the Hollowell farm to me was its position, being about two miles from the village, half a mile from the nearest neighbor, bounded on one side by the river, and separated from the highway by a wide field．The poor condition of the house and fences showed that it hadn't been used for some time．I remembered from my earliest trip up the river that the house used to be hidden behind a forest area, and I was in a hurry to buy it before the owner finished getting out some rocks, cutting down the apple trees, and clearing away some young trees which had grown up in the fields．I wanted to buy it before he made any more of his improvements．But it turned out as I have said．

　　I was not really troubled by the loss．I had always had a garden, but I don't think I was ready for a large farm．I believe that as long as possible it is better to live free and uncommitted(无牵挂的)．It makes but little difference whether you own a farm or not．

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阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。

　　With the popularity of Harry Potter novels, the number of children applying to boarding schools has risen, many of them hoping to find their own version of Hogwarts．However, others have interpreted this trend as a reaction to longer working hours and the break up of more marriages．The boarding schools of fiction are presented as one long midnight feast with pillow fights making firm friendships．However, some people say the reality is children having more homesickness and a lack of individual attention．Modern boarding schools have done much to get rid of the image of the mass dormitories with 40 or more beds in one room, some going as far as providing private rooms with bathrooms．Similarly, they make great announcements for their academic advantage, particularly in light of the increase in exams, homework and university entrance requirements facing children wishing to succeed in the modern world．

　　Alongside these more conventional schools, two types of boarding schools have also become more popular recently．Sports academies and stage schools seek to cater for children with particular interests and talents, while so-called troubled-teens have been able to turn to a range of religious or wilderness schools to solve their problematic behavior．

　　Boarding schools allow children a safe space in which to accomplish greater control and independence over their daily lives．Teachers and staff can look after and support but they are unlikely to be over-protective．This can be a great preparation for university or for working away from home in later life as it provides an intermediate step between childhood and full independence．

　　However, parents are a child's most natural support and best role models to learn from．If they are separated from them for long periods of time, this may damage their relationship and leave the child feeling anxious or alone．Schools are unlikely to be able to copy the detailed knowledge of each individual child that a parent has and therefore cannot be as effective in supporting the child．

　　To sum up, boarding schools have both their advantages and disadvantages, so it is up to you to decide whether to send your children to boarding schools or not．

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阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。

　　Why do men die earlier than women? The latest research makes it known that the reason could be that men's hearts go into rapid decline when they reach middle age．

　　The latest study of the effects of ageing on the heart has found that women's longevity may be linked to the fact that their hearts do not lose their pumping power with age．

　　“We have found that the power of the male heart falls by 20-25 percent between 18 and 70 years of age, ” said the head of the study, David Goldspink of Liverpool John Moores University in the UK．

　　“Within the heart there are millions of cells that enable it to beat．Between the age of 20 and 70, one-third of those cells die and are not replaced in men, ” said Goldspink．“This is part of the ageing process．”

　　What surprises scientists is that the female heart sees very little loss of these cells．A healthy 70-year-old woman's heart could perform almost as well as a 20-year-old one's．

　　“This gender difference might just explain why women live longer than men, ” said Goldspink．They studied more than 250 healthy men and women between the ages of 18 and 80, focusing on healthy persons to remove the confusing influence of disease．“The team has yet to find why ageing takes a greater loss on the male heart, ” said Goldspink．

　　The good news is that men can improve the health of their heart with regular exercise．Goldspink stressed that women also need regular exercise to prevent their leg muscles becoming smaller and weaker as they age．

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