Downing the last drop of an expensive famous brand H2O as well as remembering to throw the empty bottle in the recycling bin, makes you feel pretty good about yourself, right? It shouldn’t. Even when the bottles are recycled, there are all kinds of other consequences of swallowing bottled water, says Melissa Peffers, the air-quality program manager for Environmental Defense.
The containers are often filled in faraway lands, then shipped from abroad, and stored in refrigerators at your local store. Compare that with the influence on environment of turning on your tap, filling a glass, and drinking up!
Anyone who is choosing bottled water for health reasons is misguided, says Peffers, “Most bottled water is just tap water.” And what comes out of your tap is carefully monitored to follow the strict rules. Consider another fact that bottled water is surprisingly expensive, especially when compared with the alternative, which is almost free, and it is astonishing that America’s desire for bottled water seems impossible to satisfy, reaching nearly 30 billion bottles a year.
“My parents’ generation never had bottled water,” says Isabelle Silverman, an Environmental Defense legal adviser. She has made a commitment to going bottle free. “You don’t need to fetch it home from the store, and it’s cheaper,” she adds.
Bottled water’s role as a status symbol needs to change, Peffers points out. So when a waiter at an expensive restaurant offers “And what’s your drink?” that’s no reason to forget your conviction(信念). “Don’t be afraid to say, ‘I’ll have tap.’ Say it loud enough that the other tables nearby can hear you,” Peffers says. “And then spend that money on a dessert.”
小题1:In the first paragraph, the underlined sentence “It shouldn’t.” suggest that people _______.| A．shouldn’t feel pleased with finishing the water in the bottle. | | B．shouldn’t feel good about drinking an expensive brand H2O. | | C．shouldn’t be pleased with just recycling empty bottles. | | D．shouldn’t be satisfied with drinking only bottled water. |
小题2:According to the author, tap water is _______.| A．as safe as bottled water | B．morel likely to be polluted | | C．healthier than bottle water | D．less convenient than bottled water |
小题3:The underlined part “going bottle free” (in Para. 4) means “_______”.| A．making bottled water free | B．giving up bottled water | | C．recycling use water bottles | D．providing free water containers |
小题4:Why does Peffers ask people to say “I’ll have tap.” Loudly?| A．To encourage them to set an example for others to follow. | | B．To advise them to save the money for one more dessert. | | C．To remind them to be aware of their social status. | | D．To persuade them to speak confidently in public. |
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小题1:C
小题2:A
小题3:B
小题4:A |
试题分析：文章介绍瓶装水对环境的影响，和人们一贯的想法不同的是自来水和瓶装水一样的安全，而且便宜，所以作者建议人们放弃瓶装水。
小题1:细节题：从第一段的句子：It shouldn"t. Even when the bottles are recycled，there are all kinds of other consequences of swallowing bottled water可知我们不应该就是满足于回收塑料瓶，选C
小题2:细节题：从第三段的句子：“Most bottled water is just tap water.” And what comes out of your tap is carefully monitored to follow the strict rules.可知自来水和瓶装水一样的安全，选A
小题3:猜词题：从全文和第四段的句子： “You don’t need to fetch it home from the store, and it’s cheaper,” she adds. 可知作者不主张引用拼装水，“going bottle free” 就是放弃瓶装水，选B
小题4:推理题：从最后一段的句子：Say it loud enough that the other tables nearby can hear you,”可知 Peffers让人们大声说出来是鼓励别人也这么做。选A。 |
核心考点
试题【Downing the last drop of an expensive famous brand H2O as well as remembering to】；主要考察你对
题材分类等知识点的理解。
[详细]举一反三
At the beginning of this century, medical scientists made an interesting discovery; we are built not just of flesh and blood but also of time. They were to show that we all have “a body clock” us, which controls the and fall of our body energies, us different from one day to the next.
The of “a body clock” should not be too since the lives of most living things are controlled the 24 hour night-and-day cycle. We feel and fall asleep at night and become and energetic during the day. If the 24 hour-cycle is , most people experience unpleasant . For example, people who are not to working at night can find that of sleep causes them to badly at work.
the daily cycle of sleeping and , we also have other cycles which longer than one day. Most of us would that we feel good on some days and not so good on ; sometimes our ideas seem to flow and at other times, they do not exist.
| 小题1: | | A．anxious | B．able | C．careful | D．proud |
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| 小题2: | | A．inside | B．around | C．between | D．on |
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| 小题3: | | A．movement | B．supply | C．use | D．rise |
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| 小题4: | | A．showing | B．treating | C．making | D．changing |
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| 小题5: | | A．invention | B．opinion | C．story | D．idea |
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| 小题6: | | A．difficult | B．exciting | C．surprising | D．interesting |
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| 小题7: | | A．from | B．by | C．over | D．during |
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| 小题8: | | A．dull | B．tired | C．dreamy | D．peaceful |
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| 小题9: | | A．regular | B．excited | C．lively | D．clear |
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| 小题10: | | A．disturbed | B．shortened | C．reset | D．troubled |
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| 小题11: | | A．moments | B．feelings | C．senses | D．effects |
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| 小题12: | | A．prevented | B．allowed | C．expected | D．used |
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| 小题13: | | A．miss | B．none | C．lack | D．need |
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| 小题14: | | A．perform | B．show | C．manage | D．control |
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| 小题15: | | A．With | B．As well as | C．Except | D．Rather than |
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| 小题16: | | A．working | B．moving | C．living | D．waking |
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| 小题17: | | A．repeat | B．remain | C．last | D．happen |
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| 小题18: | | A．agree | B．believe | C．realize | D．allow |
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| 小题19: | | A．other | B．the other | C．all other | D．others |
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The year is 2094. It has been announced that a comet is heading towards the Earth. Most of it will miss our planet, but two pieces will probably hit the southern half of the Earth.
On 17 July, a piece four kilometers wide enters the Earth’s atmosphere with a massive explosion. About half of the piece is destroyed, but the remaining part hits the South Atlantic at 200 times the speed of sound. The sea boils and a huge hole is made in the sea bed. Huge waves are created and spread outwards from the hole. The wall of water, a kilometer high, rushes towards southern Africa at 800 kilometers an hour. Cities on the African coast are totally destroyed and millions of people drowned.
Before the waves reach South America, the second piece of the comet lands in Argentina. Earthquakes and volcanoes are set off in the Andes Mountains. The shock waves move north into California and all around the Pacific Ocean. The cities of Los Angeles, San Francisco and Tokyo are completely destroyed by earthquakes. Millions of people in the southern half of the Earth are already dead, but the north won’t escape for long. Because of the explosions, the sun is hidden by clouds of dust, temperatures around the world fall to almost zero. Crops are ruined. The sun won’t be seen again for many years. Wars break out as countries fight for food. A year later, no more than 10 million people remain alive.
Could it really happen? In fact, it has already happened more than once in the history of the Earth. The dinosaurs were on the Earth for over 160 million years. Then 65 million years ago they suddenly disappeared. Many scientists believe that the Earth was hit by a piece of object in space. The dinosaurs couldn’t live through the cold climate that followed and they died out. Will we meet the same end?
小题1:What is mainly described in the passage?| A．A historic discovery. | B．An event of imagination. | | C．A research on space. | D．A scientific adventure. |
小题2:When the first piece hits the South Atlantic, it causes .| A．an earthquake | B．damages to cities | | C．an Earth explosion | D．huge waves |
小题3:Why can’t the northern half of the earth escape for long?| A．Because the land is covered with water. | | B．Because the light and heat from the sun can not reach the Earth. | | C．Because people there can not live at the temperature of zero. | | D．Because wars break out among countries. |
小题4:By giving the example of dinosaurs, the author tries to prove .| A．animals could not live in the cold climate | | B．what happened 65 million years ago was an invented story | | C．the human beings will die out in 2094 | | D．the Earth could be hit by other objects in space |
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There is no doubt that Apple is well aware of the increased competition in the market and could be in a hurry to put another product out there, said Ramon Llamas, senior research analyst at IDC Mobile Devices Technology and Trends. Given its history with product launches and business policy, though, Apple probably isn’t going to rush an iPhone release simply to put it on shelves, he said.
“If you’re Tim Cook (CEO of Apple), you’re thinking if you want to pay more attention to how to keep growing that bottom line and keep investors(投资人) happy, or continue with the same approach from Apple, which is do what we can do and manage products and releases in the best way they can work for us. Apple usually does things in their own time, and I’m having a hard time buying this May or June timeline.” Llamas told Mac News World.
While it’s probable that Apple is surely in a testing stage for its next smartphone, consumers likely have a standard wait for the finished product, said Colin Gibbs, analyst at GigaOm Pro.
“It typically takes a year or longer to create a state-of-the-art smartphone, so no one should be surprised Apple is in the testing stages with the next iPhone. And while it’s possible that Apple could launch the next iPhone this spring or summer, I’m not expecting to see it until a little later in the year,” he told Mac News World.
When it does launch, though, it could be in a variety of colors, said Gibbs. “Apple has already tested the waters with releasing colored products when it revamped (更新，翻新）its iPod line last fall, so it is understood that it would want the new change with its smartphone, as well”.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if the new iPhone becomes available in some new colors,’’ he said. “That could be done pretty cheaply, and it would give Apple a new marketing angle.”
小题1:According to Ramon Llamas, Apple always ______.| A．tries to please its investors | | B．rushes to put new products to market | | C．ignores the fierce market competition | | D．does things as planned |
小题2:As for the next iPhone, Colin Gibbs didn’t mention ______.| A．the stage of its being tested | | B．the rough time of its being released | | C．the function to be improved | | D．the wide variety of its color |
小题3:What’s Colin Gibbs’ attitude towards the next iPhone?| A．Disapproving. | B．Indifferent (漠不关心的). | C．Doubtful. | D．Objective. |
小题4:This passage is presented in the form of ______.| A．stories | B．comments | C．advertisements | D．debates |
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The World"s Largest Insect .This giant insect can be used as a toy.
A child ties one end of a string to a stick and the other end around the "neck" of an insect. Holding the stick, the child lets the insect go. With a loud whirring sound, the insect takes off, pulling the string in a large curve over the child"s head. The child laughs as the stick jumps around. The child is African, and the toy is the African Goliath beetle, the largest insect in the world.
The Goliath is a true insect because it has six legs and a body that is divided into three parts. Like all beetles, it has two pairs of wings. The front pair are thick and stiff and protect the back pair, which are soft. It is these soft back wings that make the beetle fly forward. They also cause the loud whirring sound the beetle makes when it flies. To steer, the beetle twists and turns its legs the same way you steer a bike by turning its front wheel.
African children often use the Goliath beetle as a toy. Although it is over 15 centimeters long, it is quite harmless.
小题1: The African Goliath beetle is _______. | A．the world"s largest insect | | B．a toy used in many parts of the world | | C．the only insect found in Africa | | D．the world"s smallest insect |
小题2:What do African children often use the Goliath beetle as?| A．a tool. | B．a toy. | C．harmfull insects. | D．Good animals. |
小题3:We know the Goliath beetle is a true insect because it _______. | A．makes a whirring sound when it flies | B．has both soft and hard wings | | C．has six legs and a body with three parts | D．can fly |
小题4:When flying, the Goliath steers by_______. | A．turning its soft back wings | | B．twisting and turning its hard front wings | | C．twisting and turning its legs | | D．twisting and turning its whole body |
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This winter, the air quality over the north China plain was so bad that it was actually off the standard scale. The air pollution reached levels that the World Health Organization describes as dangerous. On Thursday, heavy smog blanketed most of northern and eastern China again.
It is reasonable to ask why the air pollution is so bad this winter. Weather conditions and topographic(地形学的) factors have been given as reasons, but, although contributing factors, these are not to blame. The worsening air pollution is linked to an energy mix that relies heavily on coal and to motor vehicle emissions(排放). But despite the astonishing growth of motor vehicles in our cities, it is the burning of coal that is the biggest cause of air pollution. More than half of the country"s power plants are located in the eastern region and China"s coal consumption has more than doubled in the past decade, reaching 3.8 billion tons last year, accounting for almost half the world"s total coal consumption. And with coal occupying nearly 70 percent of the country"s primary energy consumption, it has become critical to reduce the use of coal if we are to solve the nation"s overall air pollution problem.
In the face of the poisonous air recently, one citizen said, "we have nothing but hot air to purify the skies". In fact, the government plans to have 350 billion yuan ($55.67 billion) investment in improving coal-fired facilities and limiting the use of yellow-label cars that do not meet the Euro I emissions standard and so on.
However, it would be far more effective to reduce emissions at the source, which means that the biggest challenge currently facing government departments is saying "no" to the country"s air polluting offenders. According to the Joint Prevention and Control Plan on Air Pollution in Key Regions released recently by the State Council, the amount of coal the nation consumes is set to rise by 30 percent during the period of the 12th Five-Year Plan. This is not going to let anyone breathe easier.
This highlights a key problem when it comes to environmental issues in this country - economic development comes first. The fundamental cause of the worsening air pollution is the idea of economic growth at any cost, which has resulted in ever-worsening pollution. And the priority(优先权)given to economic growth presents another problem, namely the failure of existing environmental protection policies and regulations to control pollution. For instance, the current weak regulations covering emissions would suggest there has been a significant reduction in emissions when clearly this is not the case. Also those enterprises found breaking the regulations are still far lower than the cost of treating the pollution they produce. This means even if many large-scale enterprises with lagging production capacity(能力) fail to meet the requirements for environmental protection, the environmental protection department is incapable of shutting these enterprises down or forcing their relocation.
Dealing with air pollution requires taking action at the local level to reduce vehicle emissions and at the regional level to reduce industrial emissions. But it also requires giving more priority to environmental issues in policymaking. Our hope is that the environmental protection department will be truly capable of saying "no" to pollution, and it will raise standards and effectively enforce them, and that governments at all levels will prioritize quality of life not just economic growth.
小题1:The writer mentions the heavy smog in parts of China in Paragraph1 in order to_____.| A．remind people to stay in doors because of the bad air quality | | B．show people’s concern about the priority to economic growth | | C．introduce the issue about the serious air pollution | | D．highlight the importance of government’s policies and regulations |
小题2:Why is it a big challenge for the government to say “no” to the air polluting offenders in China?| A．Because enterprises are encouraged to develop economy at the cost of the environment. | | B．Because much emphasis has been laid on economic growth regardless of the cost. | | C．Because it’s impossible to relocate the enterprises for lack of money. | | D．Because the production capacity of enterprises falls behind the required speed. |
小题3:It can be learned from the passage that the essential reason for the worsening air conditions in China is_______.| A．the sharp growth of coal consumption in recent years | | B．the rapid increase of motor vehicles in cities | | C．the building of power plants in northern China | | D．the poor weather conditions caused by complex geographical factors |
小题4:According to the writer, which of the following is the key to solving the air pollution problem?| A．Giving priority to economic development in policymaking. | | B．Making environment-friendly policies and carrying them out effectively. | | C．Increasing investment in the construction of coal-fired facilities. | | D．Limiting the use of cars not meeting the required emission standard |
小题5:Which best describes the writer’s tone in the passage?| A．Pessimistic. | B．Convincing. | C．Doubtful. | D．Concerned. |
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