Language is always changing. In a society where life continues year after ye

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Language is always changing. In a society where life continues year after year with few changes, the language does not change either. The earliest known languages had difficult grammar but a small, limited vocabulary. Over the century, the grammar changed, and the vocabulary grew. For example, the English and Spanish people who came to America during the sixteenth century gave names to all the new plants and animals they found. In this way, hundreds of new words were introduced into English and Spanish vocabularies. Today life is changing very fast, and language is changing fast too.
There are several major language families in the world. Some scientists say there are nine main families, but other scientists divide them differently. The languages in each family are connected, and scientists think that they came from the same parent language. About 3 percent of the people in the world speak languages that are not in these major families. （词数155）
小题1:The early language had ________.

A．a lot of problems	B．words and easy grammar
C．words but no grammar	D．grammar but not many words

小题2: In the next few hundred years we can expect language to _____.

A．stay exactly the same	B．change a great deal
C．change only a little	D．ask more words and drop some grammar

小题3:What this article shows is that _____.

A．languages change fast	B．languages really don"t want to change
C．language really with changes in society	D．Spanish and English change

答案

小题1:D
小题2:B
小题3:C

解析

略

举一反三

How do you feel after you"ve stayed up late to finish schoolwork? Or the day after a slumber party? Scientists now say that your answers to these questions may depend on your genes.
Genes are stretches of DNA that work like an instruction manual for our cells. Genes tell our bodies and brains what to do. People have about 40,000 genes, and each gene can have different forms. So, for example, certain forms of some genes make your eyes blue. Other versions of those genes make your eyes brown.
In a similar way, new research suggests that a gene called period3 affects how well you function without sleep. The discovery adds to older evidence that period3 helps determine whether you like to stay up late or get up early.
The period3 gene comes in two forms: short and long. Everyone has two copies of the gene. So, you may have two longs, two shorts, or one of each. Your particular combination depends on what your parents passed on to you.
Scientists from the University of Surrey in England studied 24 people who had either two short or two long copies of period3. Study participants had to stay awake for 40 hours straight. Then, they took tests that measured how quickly they pushed a button when numbers flashed on a screen and how well they could remember lists of numbers.
Results showed that the people with the short form of period3 performed much better on these tests than the people with the long form did. In both groups, people performed worst in the early morning. That"s the time when truck drivers and other night-shift workers say they have the most trouble concentrating.
After the first round of experiments, participants were finally allowed to sleep. People in the group that performed well on the tests took about 18 minutes to nod off.
People with the long period3 gene, by contrast, fell asleep in just 8 minutes. They also spent more time in deep sleep. That suggests that people with the long form of the gene need more and deeper sleep to keep their brains working at top form.
小题1:We can know from the passage that genes can not ________.

A．tell our bodies and brains what to do

B．make our eyes blue or brown

C．decide how well you work without sleep

D．ensure whether you’re good at driving

小题2:Which of the following statements about the period3 is wrong?

A．It affects whether you like to stay up late or get up early.
B．It comes in two forms: short and long.
C．One has either two longs or two shorts of it.
D．Your parents determine what particular combination you have.
小题3: People with the short form of period3__________.

A．need to go to bed early and get up early
B．can work better than the people with long form of period3 without sleep
C．take less time to fall asleep after they stay up late
D．need more and deeper sleep to keep their brains working at top form
小题4:What’s the best title of the passage?
A．The Period3 Gene B．The Function of Genes
C．Wake up, Sleepy Gene D．Stay up Late or Get up Early?

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Review by Rose at midwestbookreview.com
Written by Johannah Biuedorm, My Mommy ,My Teacher is an enjoyable, full-color, children’s picture book about a little girl who learns from her family how to work on a farm..
Review by Dena wood at timestales.com
My Mommy ,My Teacher is a delighrful story of a little girl who shares the events(事情) of her daily life as she works, learns and plays with her family. the beautiful country life of this home-schooling family offers a feeling of peace, safety and meaning to both children and grown-ups. Love, respect, responsibility(责任) and joy are very easy to find as we follow this littile girl through her day.
Review by Britta McColl at morningstarlearning.com
I just read it to my daughters last night, and we all enjoyed it so much. My 13-year-old son who was listening said, “We should have home-school like that !”There are several things that appealed to him:
The farm (chickens and strawberries),the parrot, the love and joy .This is really a wonderful book for both parents and children.
Review by Rebekan Wilson at hopechestlegacy.com
If you have ever had a hard home—schooling day, and if you are ever unhappy and ready to cry ,take out this simple little book and allow the story and picture to wash your heart clean, think again why you are doing what you do, and open your heart to your children once more. Surely you will feel much better.
小题1:According to Rose ,all of the following about My Mommy ,My Teacher is true EXCEPT that

A．it is an enjoyable book	B．it is a full—color book
C．it is mainly about a mother	D．it’s a story that happens on a farm

小题2:Which of the following was probably NOT found by Dena Wood in the little girl’s day?

A．Love

B．Respect

C．Responsibility

D．danger

小题3:What does the underlined phrase “appealed to” in the passage mean?

A．Attracted

B．Surprised

C．Scared

D．Danger

小题4:We can learn from the passage that____.

A．Johannah Blurdorn spent her chidhood in a big city

B．Britta McColl has two daughters and one son

C．the little

girl in the book lives a very happy life

D．Rebekah Wilson has never cried since she read the book

小题5:Where are the reviews most probably taken from?

A．Newspaper.

B．Magazine.

C．Radio program.

D．Website.

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Many different tribes live in the Ituri rain forest of Africa, but the Pygmies are the most unusual. Most of the men are

not much more than four feet tall. They weigh only about eighty pounds. The women are even smaller and thinner. But in spite of the fact that they are small, these people are perfectly formed men and women.
It is an exciting experience to visit a Pygmy encampment for the first time. Before you go, you must send word ahead that you are coming. Some friendly native or trader must take the message to the Tiki-Tikis. Otherwise the whole tribe will disappear into the depths of the jungle long before you have come close enough to be welcomed.
The great Ituri rain forest seems cut off from the rest of the earth. There are living, dead, and dying trees on every side. Except where a clearing has been burned and chopped out, a man may live his whole life in the Ituri and never see farther than twenty yards.
It takes sharp eyes to discover the almost hidden path to the Pygmy camp. The path is no wider than a small man’s foot. No sound breaks the silence in this part of the forest. There are no signs of people.
The stranger must walk carefully. What appears to be a bent branch may prove to be a deadly snake. A spotted gold patch of sunlight may be a crouching leopard(豹).
Even the Pygmy camp comes as a surprise. The leafy shelters in which the little people live are hardly three feet high. They look so much like the surrounding undergrowth that they might easily be passed by. These houses contain no furniture of any sort. The beds are merely plantain leaves spread out on the earth floor. There are no cooking pots: food is eaten raw or smoked over a fire. Spears, bows and arrows are the only possessions of these people. When the tribe moves to a new camp there is nothing to carry except these weapons and babies too small to walk.
小题1:According to the passage, we can conclude _____.

A．the Pygmies are the shortest tribe worldwide

B．the Pygmies are short but normal in mentality

C．most of the Pygmy men are more than four feet

D．the Pygmies live in the forest of America

小题2:Paragraph 2 mainly suggests that the Pygmies ______.

A．are unwilling to communicate with people outside

B．are very cruel and they will

kill you with the spears

C．are friendly to the tourists visiting them for the first time

D．move so fast and often that can’t be caught up with easily

小题3: Which of the following w

ord can describe the life of Pygmy?

A．Quiet.

B．Active.

C．Hard.

D．Busy.

小题4:Which of the following is TRUE of the Pygmy?

A．Their houses can’t be easily found in the hurt rain forest.

B．Their houses, which are three feet high, are made of wood.

C．Weapons and cooking pots are their most valuable possessions.

D．They are living in harmony with dangerous animals around.

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Sometime early in the next century, human beings will move to Mars．They will live there for about a year, and then will be replaced with another group of pioneers．Building the base on Mars will advance our knowledge of the solar system and aid in our understanding of the earth．
We already know that Mars resembles the earth in many aspects: general size, presence of water, length of day, range of temperatures．These resemblanc

es have caused many people to consider a centuries-long project: to terraform Ma

rs．Terraforming means altering a planet’s surface so that Earth’s life forms can survive there．This concept, previously found only in science fiction is now being seriously considered b

y scientists．
Terraforming Mars is theoretically simple: add nitrogen and oxygen to the atmosphere; pump water to the surface; and add the earth’s plants and animals in the order in which they developed on Earth．But it will take at least 300 years．
Some people think that such a project is too huge for humans to undertake, but there are very good reasons t

o make the attempt．The earth now contains some 6 billion people, and no one has any idea of how many humans the earth can support．Our very existence and numbers are threatening many other species．We also have had some experience with terraforming our own planet: altering the landscape, the atmosphere and the climate．Currently terraforming Earth has become a wiser activity as we try to control global warming, air and water pollution, and preserve some natural living places．
Small as the possibility of such a project is, it is not impossible．Even if earth-bound societies come and go in the next 300 years, the project can continue through the work of the Mars settlers without the need for constant backing from the earth．
The future existence of all the people in our world may very well depend upon our ability to terraform Mars．
小题1:What would be the best title for this passage?

A．Terraforming Mars．	B．Saving the Earth．
C．Travelling to Mars．	D．A Newly-found Place．

小题2:What does the underlined word “altering” mean in the second paragraph?

A．Warming．

B．Changing．

C．Planting．

D．Building．

小题3:According to the passage the main purpose of terraforming Mars is to _____．

A．do some scientific research work

B．find out its similarity to Earth

C．avoid the dying away of many other species

D．find on Mars living place for the increasing human beings

小题4:The main reason for causing many people to consider terraforming Mars is that _____．

A．there are some resemblances between Earth and Mars

B．terraforming Mars is theoretically simple

C．we have had some experience with terraforming our own planet: Earth

D．the development of science and technology is very rapid

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Besides calling 911, here is what to do in some life-threatening emergencies when no oneis

around to help. Lost in the wilderness
First, you’ve got to acknowledge you’re in trouble. Stay where
you can be seen clearly and remember to rest. Keeping a sense
of humor helps too—it reduces stress and helps creative thinking.
In a wide open area, make a colorful cross out of rocks to show
your present position.

Choking Aim to hit the top of the chair against your stomach, in the soft part
below the bony upside-down V of the ribs（肋骨）. Make a sudden
push against the chair. If you still can’t breathe after six tries, call 911,
even if you can’t talk. Write the word choking somewhere nearby, and
leave the line open until help arrives.

Severe bleedingUse your hand or clean cotton, or paper towels, or a scarf,
or any cloth you can find, and push down on the wound
until the bleeding stops. But if you put a band around
your leg tightly, you’re going to close the vessels（血管）
to the entire leg. In this way, you could lose your foot.
Bear attack

If you surprise a bear, don’t run away. That invites an attack. Instead, stand up and back away slowly, without looking the
bear in the eyes. If it does charge at you, stick out your chest,
raise your arms, and spread your legs. Shout at the bear, to
frighten it. If it’s going to attack, lie facedown, with your hands
held firmly behind your neck. Play dead until you’re sure the bear
is gone.
小题1:When you see a colorful cross made of rocks in the wilderness, you know .

A．someone is bleeding	B．someone is choking
C．someone is lost	D．someone is attacked by a bear

小题2:If you are still choking after six tries, you should .

A．keep a sense of humor	B．call 911 and leave the line open
C．use your hand our clean cotton	D．lie down with your hands behind your neck

小题3:Don’t tie around your bleeding leg tightly, or you could .

A．stop bleeding	B．reduce stress
C．lose your foot	D．cause breathlessness

小题4:The passage is mainly teaching us how to .

A．survive the emergencies	B．avoid a bear attack
C．deal with a choke	D．find our way

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A．need to go to bed early and get up early	B．can work better than the people with long form of period3 without sleep
C．take less time to fall asleep after they stay up late
D．need more and deeper sleep to keep their brains working at top form

A．The Period3 Gene	B．The Function of Genes
C．Wake up, Sleepy Gene	D．Stay up Late or Get up Early?