two of the safest U.S. cities for children.
Both urban areas scored high marks in a study that assessed 50 of the largest U.S. cities on 25 safety
criteria such as proximity (接近) of hospitals, bike helmet laws and how quickly local fire departments
respond to determine the safest cities for children.
"It"s clear that most cities are doing great things to improve safety at home and in the community," said Gus Schaefer of Underwriters Laboratories (UL), an independent safety certification provider that conducted the research.
New York firefighters were the quickest to respond to emergencies, while Louisville pedestrians(行人) were among the least likely to be in a traffic accident, according to the study.
Boston parents can breathe easy knowing they live in the city with the most hospitals per capita(人
均) and Portland, Oregon got honors for its low drowning rates and air quality.
Virginia Beach scored high marks because car passengers under the age of 18 have to wear seatbelts, even if they are riding in the back seat.
Columbus, Minneapolis, San Francisco, Seattle and Tampa were also among the safest cities.
Although the study did not rank the cities, it showed that the vast majority have anti-smoking laws and
all have smoke alarm laws.
One area where there might still be room for improvement is bike helmet laws. Only 39 of the largest
urban areas have bike helmet laws.
But 47 out of 50 cities had some non-smoking laws and an equal number required CO alarms. And all
the cities insisted on inspections after construction or remodeling projects.
In addition to local and state laws to keep their children safe, UL said families can also take measures
to improve the safety of their children, including making sure television stands are well fixed and having a
fire escape plan.
B. the most popular U.S. cities
C. the safest U.S. cities for kids
D. the various laws in the U.S. cities
B. The air quality in New York remains stable.
C. Car passengers in New York have to wear seatbelts.
D. New York firefighters react quickly in emergencies.
B. Enjoy better health.
C. Do their jobs happily.
D. Breathe without difficulty.
B. bike helmet laws
C. traffic rules
D. families" fire escape plans
B. They all required factories to fix CO alarms.
C. Their hospitals provided high-quality service.
D. They had careful examinations of newly completed buildings.
阅读下面的短文,并根据短文后的要求答题(请注意问题后的字数要求).
[1]You may be wondering what scientists are like. The aim of this article is to explore the characteristics that are common for scientists. You might even be considering becoming one yourself.
[2]So now let"s get to the topic. What type of person should a scientist be? Don"t lose heart if you don"t possess(拥有) all of these qualities, but having a few of them will be helpful.
[3]A scientist should be someone who enjoys research and studying. This makes up a large part of a
scientist"s work. Carrying out studies that will improve people"s everyday life is an exciting challenge.
Moreover, making the next scientific discovery is highly rewarding but it takes a lot of work and
preparation.
[4]If you come into contact with a scientist, one of the things you might notice is that they have an open mind. They are flexible and open to new possibilities and there is a very good chance that they might live
their life in this way.
[5]Perseverance(毅力) is also a quality that is required for a scientist. Experiments don"t always go to
plan. Each experiment needs to be adapted slightly to try and encourage more favourable outcomes. A
scientist cannot give up at the first difficulty.
[6] , most scientists seem to show curiosity. They seek answers to many mind-puzzling life
questions. Their job is usually to ask how, what and why things happen and to provide theories that
demonstrate this.
2. Complete the following statement with words from Paragraph 2. (no more than 5 words)
It doesn"t matter that you don"t have all the qualities because having only is beneficial.
3. How do scientists do their jobs? (no more than 15 words)
4. Please fill in the blank in Paragraph 6 with proper words. (no more than 3 words)
5. What does the word "This" (Line 1, Paragraph 3) probably refers to? (no more than 5 words)
定的) things you want. There is a limitation to this type of approach though. If you find the lowest price
on the best hotel in Honolulu at the height of the season, you will save money, but still have a very
expensive vacation. Trying to get exactly what you want will generally be an expensive proposition(提议),
in travel and in life.
The other approach is to be a true opportunist. This will be difficult for some of you, and entirely
unacceptable to others. Nonetheless (尽管如此), the travelers who get to travel the most, go to the
widest variety of places, learn the most and do the most, are the opportunists. This will be true until you
are so wealthy that you have no monetary (货币的；钱的) limits.
The first time I went to Ecuador, I went there because it was cheap. If it wasn"t, I would have had a
great time-somewhere else. The trip lasted a month, and cost $1045, which included air fare and even
the $130 fee for a guide to take me to the top or glacier (冰川) covered Mount Chimborazo.
I cut the cost by taking a bus from my home in Michigan to Miami, and back again when I returned
from Ecuador. The round-trip (双程) ticket cost $158. The round-trip flight to Quito from Miami was
only $256, because it was a courier (信使, 通讯员) flight, which meant I signed for some luggage(car
parts), and could only take carry-on luggage.
Never did I feel deprived, or bored. I had a great time, eating wherever it was cheap and clean, doing
all sorts of inexpensive, but interesting things, and traveling across the country to climb Chimborazo. I also met and fell in love with my wife Ana.
Being an opportunist means you"ll have just as much variety, and probably almost everything you
want-eventually. You just have to stop trying to get exactly what you want exactly when you want it. If
the guide that took me up Chimborazo hadn"t dropped his price from $200 to $130, I would have spent $2 for a bus and gone hiki
ng on EI Altar, another great Andean mountain. That would have left me with enough money for several other minor adventures.
B. the lowest price
C. the cheapest goods
D. the best approaches
B. cut down traveling costs.
C. deal with different situations
D. become opportunist travelers
B. traveled with his wife in Ecuador
C. is an opportunist traveler
D. likes traveling around the world
B. Travel Secrets
C. A Travel Opportunist
D. Travel Tips
If you are having trouble falling asleep, you are in good company. About 65% of Americans said they
have sleeping problems a few nights each week, according to a recent study by the National Sleep
Foundation. Sleeping too little can lead to a higher risk of becoming fat and getting depressed(沮丧的).
But before you go to a doctor for advice, it is worth examining your sleeping habits one more time. Some
of your favorite evening habits may have something to do with the sleeping problems.
1.Setting a Bright Alarm Clock.
The light of your bright alarm clock can prevent you from falling asleep. You can make your room as
dark as possible. Cover the bright numbers with a book or consider buying a small travel clock. Your
cellphone alarm may also do the trick.
2.Counting Sheep
When you just can"t fall asleep, it"s useless to stay in bed to count sheep. If you"ve been trying to fall
asleep for more than 30 minutes, the National Sleep Foundation suggests you get up to do some reading
or watch TV for a while. Such activities will make you sleepy. Before you know it, you"ll be going back
to bed really tired.
3. Exercising Late at Night
Daytime workouts(锻炼) will keep you full of energy for hours. That"s why you don"t want to exercise within three hours of hitting the sack. Fierce(剧烈的)physical activity raise your body temperature and
pumps your energy level-both are bad for a good night"s sleep.
B. People in a good company often have sleeping problems.
C. There are many people who have sleeping problems.
D. You should find someone to talk to if you can"t fall asleep.
B. going to bed
C. going to the gym
D. falling asleep
B. Why the bright alarm clock keeps you awake.
C. What to do if you can"t fall asleep after 30 minutes.
D. Why watching TV and reading books make people sleepy.
B. how to enjoy a good night"s sleep
C. that sleeping problems are troubling more and more people
D. that people may solve their sleeping problems by changing some habits
The film "Avatar" has received great popularity around the world. It turned out to be a great success.
The film got ＄1 billion in ticket sales in a very short time. The story in the film happens on an alien(外星人) planet called Pandora where many strange species live. Among the planet"s inhabitants(居民,栖息动物),the one that has the most similarities with humans is the Na"vi, and it is the struggle between the Ma"vi
and human invaders (入侵者) that forms the story of the film.
As to the factors (因素) leading to the film"s success, many think that the entertaining feast(盛宴) for
the eyes and the wonderful story shouldn"t be forgotten, but the new language invented especially for the
film which provides audiences with a new experience also plays an important part.
In order to increase the truthfulness of an alien race(外星人), the film"s director James Cameron asked an expert in languages from the University of Southern California to invent a language for the Na"vi. Professor Paul Frommer combined the languages spoken among Indians, Africans and mid-Asians and worked
with James Caneron for four years to create the Na"vi language based on the original 30 words that the
director had already come up with.
According to Professor Frommer, the most important characteristic(特征)of the Na"vi language is that
it could be pronounced. "This is an alien language but obviously it has to be spoken by human actors and
actresses," Professor Frommer told the BBC, "it has to sound natural and it should make human beings
comfortable when using it."
The language has a vocabulary of around 1000 words but Progessor Formmer hopes to enlarge the
vocabulary in possible follow-ups to the film and in video games. The professor hopes that one day his
creation will be as successful as the Klingon alien language from the "Star Trek"films. "There"s a
translation of Hamlet into Klingon and it has received great popularity among the audiences," says
Professor Frommer,"if anything like this happens to the Na"vi language, I"d be very happy."
B. It brings the producer ＄1 billion in total.
C. The story in it happens on an alien planet.
D. It talks about humans and aliens" friendship.
B. make the Na"vi more believable
C. make the Na"vi different from humans
D. make the film have specific characteristics
B. An Indian.
C. James Cameron
D. Hamlet.
B. it has just 30 original words
C. it has a vocabulary of 1000 words.
D. it is like the Klingon alien language
B. the Na"vi language is another kind of the Klingon language
C. the director believes the Na"vi language will be popular
D. Paul Frommer hopes to add new words to the Na"vi language
the Pacific Ocean. In spite of its location beside the sea, several studies have shown that this region is the
driest place in the world. In the Antofagasta Region of the desert, the average annual rainfall is just 1 mm
and some weather stations have never received rain at all. Atacama is so arid that the surrounding mountains that reach up to 6885 m, have absolutely no glaciers! In the region, the river beds have been dry for over 120,000 years.
However, unlike the Sahara Desert,Atacama is surprisingly not that hot. It has an average daily
temperature between 0"C and 25?! If you find that surprising, you"d be shocked to find out that this desert has lakes!
When there was rainfall in the region (many year ago), this accumulated water created what we now
know as the Salt Lakes. The name of these lakes was given as a result of the effect of the Atacama
environment: the long dry period makes the water evaporate (蒸发),resulting in the higher concentrations of salt in the remaining water.
This region has been tested by scientists to see if life is present in the Atacama soil with the same instruments that would be used to detect life in the soil on Mars! As a result of the soil"s similarites to that of
Mars,the Atacama land is used to test instruments for future Mars missions. In addition, the region has
been used in movies as a set for filming Mars scenes, most famously in the television show Space Odyssey: Voyage to the Planets.
The Atacama Desert is truly a unique place, due to its lack of rain as well as its similarities to Mars
.You would think that this place would be a bare ghost town (鬼域), but think again! Many people have
lived here for centuries, giving this desert its own culture and economic significance.
B. Dry.
C. Hot.
D. Long.
B. wetter
C. less famous
D. less hot
B. rainfall in the Atacama Desert.
C. the weather in the Atacama Desert.
D. The current situation of the Salt Lakes.
B. focuses on the soil of Mars
C. explores life in Atacama
D. was filmed in Atacama
B. is as mysterious as Mars
C. is somehow livable
D. has many poor towns
- 1如图所示，在一个内壁光滑的圆锥桶内，两个质量分别为2m和m的小球A与B，紧贴着桶的内壁分别在不同高度的水平面做匀速圆周运
- 2如图2，在△ABC中，BD为AC的垂直平分线,若AB=8，AC=10，则△ABC周长等于A．24B．26C．28D．36
- 3下列直线中，可以判定为圆的切线的是（ ）A．与圆仅有一个公共点的直线B．垂直于圆的半径的直线C．与圆心的距离等于直径的
- 4对光以后，从目镜中看到的视野应该是（ ）A．白亮的B．有直射阳光的C．灰暗的D．黑暗的
- 5下列关于地球形状的描述，正确的是 [ ]A、天圆地方 B、两极稍扁，赤道略鼓 C、正圆形 D、天如斗笠，地如覆盘
- 6阅读理解 With every Olympic song, I found an excitement grow
- 7从等边三角形的三个顶点及三边中点中随机的选择4个，则4个点构成平行四边形的概率等于（ ）A．115B．215C．15D
- 8读世界泥石流分布图，回答下列问题。（11分）（1）描述欧洲泥石流的空间分布特征并分析其原因。（2）非洲与亚欧两洲相比，泥
- 9阅读文言文《三峡》，完成问题。 自三峡七百里中，两岸连山，略无阙处；重岩叠嶂，隐天蔽日，自非亭午夜分不见曦月。至于夏水
- 10某市根据国家发改委《关于提高2013年小麦最低收购价格的通知》精神并结合当地市场情况，对小麦市场收购价格进行最低限价。图
- 1My pen pal Molly ______ to Xi’an to visit me next Thursday.A
- 2正常男性体细胞中性染色体组成是 [ ]A．XX B．XY C．X D．Y
- 3—Mary, how about visiting the newly-built park this weekend?
- 4将0.1mol下列物质置于1L水中充分搅拌后，溶液中阳离子数最多的是（ ）A．KClB．Ag2SC．AlCl3D．C
- 5对于近日越演越烈的钓鱼岛事件，网友众说纷纭，有人主张打一仗，用“拳头”维护主权最干脆，有人认为不可打，要和平谈判解决。你
- 6一位同学说：“春秋的楚辞，吸收了南方民歌精华，采用楚国方言，句式以四言体为主。”他的话违背历史事实的有（ ）A．1处B．
- 7人们在工农业生产和生活中会产生大量污水，这些污水直接排人河流和湖泊后会产生严重的污染．那么该如何来处理这些污水呢？图是某
- 8Liu Xu is a student from a middle school in Guangxi. Once he
- 9【题文】君主专制中央集权是中国古代政治制度的重要特点。阅读材料，回答问题。材料一 本朝鉴五代藩镇之弊，遂尽夺藩
- 10“风来疏竹，风过而竹不留声；雁渡寒潭，雁去而潭不留影。故君子事来而心始现，事去而心随空。”这一古语蕴涵的哲理有