These days it’s cheaper to throw that broken DVD player, cell-phone or TV out and buy a new one. This “ replace-rather-than-repair” mentality is polluting the planet with electronic waste. According to the UN Environment Program, we are throwing away an estimated 50 million metric tonnes of electronics waste (e-waste) per year. But this is not ordinary garbage. Our electronics leak harmful heavy metals — such as mercury and arsenic — along with equally poisonous chemicals that end up in our soil and eventually our water.
You’ve probably participated in a community recycling event and left feeling good about shipping off that old computer to be recycled. Chances are it was shipped overseas where it’s polluting someone else’community.
Guiyu city in Southeastern China has become known as the e-waste city where low-paid workers use whatever means available to remove electronics in hopes of recovering the copper, microchips, aluminum, gold and silver and plastic that can be resold. Any leftover waste is simply thrown into the nearby river or piled up high in the streets, poisoning the children growing up here.
So what can you do with your e-waste? Robert Houghton, President and founder of Redemtech, an asset management and recovery firm, recommends you vote with your dollar. Buy from companies who have a take-back program that guarantees your discarde electronics are handled proper.
“ Consumers want to do business with companies who are demonstrably good with corporate responsibility and dealing with e-waste, ” said Houghton.
There are plenty of charitable organizations that will take your used electronics and donate them for charitable causes:
? Electronic Recycling Association (Canada) (ERA) collects old computers for donation to libraries and other organizations across Canada.
? eBay’s Rethink Initiative pairs up consumers with businesses that refurbish (再磨光)old computers for donation.
? TechSoup has a thorough listing of resources for those who would like to donate or recycle hardware,buy recycled hardware or find a refurbisher.
? The Charitable Recycling Program accepts all cell-phones and has a listing of charities it helps with its program.
? Call2 Recycle has set up drop off points across Canada in a number of stores. You can drop off your cell-phone and also your rechargeable batteries from handheld electronic products.
【小题1】When there is something wrong with electronics, what is a popular trend among people nowadays?
A.To keep a DIY way. | B.To put them away themselves. |
C.To purchase what they like. | D.To donate them to charities. |
A.there is an ideal place in the world for e-waste |
B.there is a good example in the world for recycling |
C.the recycling events in Canada benefit people overseas |
D.people should find a scientific and thorough way to recycle |
A.The UN Environment Program. |
B.Consumers who buy electronics. |
C.President and founder of Redemtech. |
D.Guiyu city in Southeastern China. |
A.Call2 Recycle. | B.TechSoup. |
C.eBay’s Rethink Initiative. | D.Electronic Recycling Association. |
【小题1】C
【小题2】D
【小题3】B
【小题4】B
解析试题分析: 随着科技越来越发达,我们更倾向于更换而不是维修,在不知不觉之间我们污染了地球也浪费了许多资源。
【小题1】细节理解题。由“These days it’s cheaper to throw that broken DVD player, cell-phone or TV out and buy a new one.”可知人们会选择买一个新的。故选C。
【小题2】细节理解题。由“Any leftover waste is simply thrown into the nearby river or piled up high in the streets, poisoning the children growing up here.”可知贵屿城的做法破坏了当地的环境,并危及了当地人尤其是孩子们的生活和成长,这不是一个有效回收的做法。故选D。
【小题3】推理判断题。文章讲了我们滥用、随意丢弃电子垃圾已经严重污染破坏了我们的环境。我们未来的生活污染有很大一部分来自这里。故选B.
【小题4】细节理解题。由“TechSoup has a thorough listing of resources for those who would like to donate or recycle hardware,buy recycled hardware or find a refurbisher.”可知TechSoup愿意出钱回收你不想要的电子器件。故选B。
考点:科普类阅读。
科目:高中英语 来源: 题型:阅读理解
The $11 billion self-help industry is built on the idea that you should turn negative thoughts like “I never do anything right” into positive ones like “I can succeed”. But was positive thinking advocate Norman Vincent Peale right? Is there power in positive thinking?
Researchers in Canada just published a study in the journal Psychological Science that says trying to get people to think more positively can actually have the opposite effect: it can simply highlight how unhappy they are.
The study's authors, Joanne Wood and John Lee of the University of Waterloo and Elaine Perunovic of the University of New Brunswick, begin by citing (引证) older research showing that when people get feedback which they believe is overly positive, they actually feel worse, not better. If you tell your friend who is slow to learn that he has the potential of an Einstein, you’re just underlining his faults. In one 1990s experiment, a team including psychologist Joel Cooper of Princeton asked participants to write essays against funding for the disabled. When the essayists were later praised for their sympathy, they felt even worse about what they had written.
In this experiment, Wood, Lee and Perunovic measured 68 students’ self-esteem (自尊). The participants were then asked to write down their thoughts and feelings for four minutes. Every 15 seconds, one group of students heard a bell. When it rang, they were supposed to tell themselves, “I am lovable.”
Those with low self-esteem didn’t feel better after the forced self-affirmation (自我肯定). In fact, their moods turned significantly darker than those of members of the control group, who weren’t urged to think of positive thoughts.
The paper provides support for newer forms of psychotherapy (心理治疗) that urge people to accept their negative thoughts and feelings rather than fight them. In the fighting, we not only often fail but can make things worse. Meditation (静思) techniques, in contrast, can teach people to put their shortcomings into a larger, more realistic viewpoint. Call it the power of negative thinking.
【小题1】The first paragraph is written _________.
A.to raise an argument about positive thinking |
B.to introduce the power of positive thinking |
C.to encourage people to have positive thoughts |
D.to introduce the $11 billion self-help industry |
A.positive thinking is not as powerful as negative thinking |
B.encouraging positive thinking may actually discourage people |
C.happy people can think positively while unhappy people can’t |
D.getting people to think positively can strengthen their confidence |
A.You are pointing out the mistakes he has made. |
B.You are reminding him that he is not intelligent. |
C.You are not taking his mistakes seriously enough. |
D.You are showing he has great potential in spite of faults. |
A.negative feelings must be got rid of |
B.there’s no point in thinking positively |
C.it doesn’t make sense to think negatively |
D.negative thinking is not always negative |
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科目:高中英语 来源: 题型:阅读理解
Men have always believed that they are smarter than women. Now, a study has found that while this is certainly true, men also have to deal with the fact that they are also more stupid than the fairer sex.
In the study, scientists measured the IQ of 2500 brothers and sisters and they found an uneven number of men not only in the top two percent, but also in the bottom two percent.
The study's participants were tested on science, maths, English and mechanical abilities.
Though there were twice as many men as women in the smartest group, there were also twice as many men among the dolts.
The aggregate scores of men and women were similar.
One of the study's authors, psychology professor Timothy Bates, said that the phenomenon may be because men have always been expected to be high achievers and women have been restricted to spend more time taking care of their home.
"The female developmental program may be tilted more towards ensuring survival and the safety of the middle ground.," the Daily Mail quoted Professor Bates, of Edinburgh University, as saying.
The research tallies with past results that men were more likely than women to receive first class University degrees or thirds and women secured the seconds.
It has been said that men are more ready to take risk when it comes to academics. Women have always found to be steadier in their learning.
A past study has shown that women are securing more firsts and seconds, while men are continuing to receive more thirds.
The argument for the change is that the increase of coursework at the cost of exams favors women's steady approach.
【小题1】The purpose of the passage is to tell us that ________.
A.man are smarter then women |
B.man are more stupid the women |
C.a new fact about the IQ of men and women has been found |
D.men are more likely to receive first class university degrees |
A.they are born stupid |
B.they have to spend more time to tale care of their home than men |
C.they don’t like to take risk |
D.they are not expected to be high achievers |
A.agree with | B.deal with | C.go against | D.go with |
A.Women are steadier in their learning. |
B.men are more ready to take risk in everything |
C.women are securing more firsts and seconds |
D.women are doing much better in academy |
A.Why are men smarter than women? |
B.Why are men more stupid than women? |
C.How does the result go along with the past research? |
D.How can we help the men in the bottom? |
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科目:高中英语 来源: 题型:阅读理解
When author Nicholas Carr began researching his book on whether the Internet is ruining our minds,he restricted his online access and email.His new book argues the latest technology renders us less capable of deep thinking.Carr found himself so distracted(分心的) that he couldn’t work on the book while staying as connected.After first feeling confused by his sudden lack of online connection,he was able to stay focused on one task for a long period within several weeks.
Reading on the Internet has changed how we use our brains.Facing a lot of texts,video,music and links to other web pages and blogs,our minds have become used to skimming and scanning information.As a result,we have developed sharper skills at making fast decisions,particularly visual ones,Carr wrote.
But now most of us seldom read books or long articles that would help us focus.We are becoming more like librarians—able to find information quickly and see clearly the best nuggets(有价值的资料).That lack of focus hinders(阻碍) our longterm memory,leading many of us to feel distracted,he wrote.
“What we are losing is a whole other set of mental skills,which require not the shifting of our focus but the maintaining of our focus,” Carr said,adding that for centuries books protected our brains from distraction and focused our minds on one topic at a time.
But with devices such as Apple’s iPad becoming common,Carr predicts books also will change.“New forms of reading always require new forms of writing,” he said.Carr has a suggestion for those who feel web surfing has left them incapable of concentration—slow down,turn off the Internet and practice the skills of contemplation(沉思) and reflection.“It is pretty clear from the brain science that if you don’t exercise particular cognitive skills,you are going to lose them,” he said.“If you are constantly distracted,you are not going to think in the same way that you would think if you paid attention.”
【小题1】What topic is Nicholas Carr’s new book mainly concentrating on?
A.Whether there is any need for us to surf the Internet. |
B.How the Internet changes our way of thinking. |
C.What we should do when we are surfing the Internet. |
D.Whether our minds are being influenced by the Internet. |
A.Anxious. | B.Relaxed. |
C.Concentrated. | D.Puzzled. |
A.prevents | B.causes |
C.protects | D.sharpens |
A.They should read more books besides surfing the Internet. |
B.They should often slow down their pace of modern living. |
C.They should often get away from the disturbing of the Internet. |
D.They should spend more time thinking while surfing the Internet. |
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科目:高中英语 来源: 题型:阅读理解
Inside their one-store, metal-roofed house on Vancouver Island’s west coast,Janet Schwartz and her domesticated(驯养的) deer, Bimbo, are returning to their normal lives. The law-represented by men and women dressed in black uniforms and carrying guns — is no longer threatening to forcibly separate Schwartz and Bimbo,freeing the l0-year-old deer to the fates (命运) of the surrounding rainforest and its hungry wolves and black bears.
“We love each other,”said Schwartz who turned 70 on Saturday. “she’ll come up to me and she’ll kiss me right on the lips,like a man kisses a woman’’
For four days last week,Schwartz’ life turned as rocky as the rough logging road that connected her life to the outside world. Conservation officers had arrived with orders to loose Bimbo. Schwartz was told she wasn’t allowed to touch Bimbo any more. It seemed somebody had complained,said Environment Minister Terry Lake earlier in the week, noting it’s illegal to keep wild animals as pets.
During those tense days,sleepless nights were made even more restless by nightmares,said Schwartz. There were news stories and Facebook pages which supported Schwartz and by Friday,the government had changed its mind. Schwartz could keep her pet with the help of a veterinarian and conservation officers.
“It makes me feel good,”said Schwartz of the announcement.“She is my life.and I’ve had her since the day she’s been born.”
The relationship began when a friend found the orphaned fawn (幼鹿) along a nearby logging road,more than a kilometer away from her current home,said Schwartz. The friend brought the fawn over because she knew Schwartz had raised a deer before.
Schwartz named the fawn(小鹿) Bimbo,based on a Gene Autry song that was playing inside her home at the time,and began feeding the animal goat’s milk. Days turned into months and years, and now Bimbo is a part of the family.
【小题1】According to Paragraph 1 , Janet Schwartz’s life is returning to normal because
A.no one disturbs her life again | B.she can continue to keep the deer |
C.she has married again | D.Bimbo has returned to the forest |
A.It was the only companion in her house |
B.She wanted to study the lifestyle of the deer. |
C.The deer had become part of her life. |
D.She had a veterinarian to help her. |
A.the deer was not properly taken care of |
B.the deer brought harm to the neighborhood |
C.it was against the law to keep the deer as a pet |
D.the deer made too much noise |
A.Schwartz’s love for the deer. |
B.The threat to the deer in the wild. |
C.The change of the law. |
D.The influence from the press and the Web. |
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科目:高中英语 来源: 题型:阅读理解
Fish species are expected to shrink in size by up to 24% because of global warming, say scientists.
The scientists argue that failure to control greenhouse gas emissions will have a greater effect on marine ecosystems than previously thought. Previous research has suggested that changing ocean temperatures would affect both the distribution and the reproductive abilities of many species of fish. This new work suggests that fish size would also be heavily affected.
The researchers built a model to see how fish would react to lower levels of oxygen in the water. As ocean temperatures increase, so do the body temperatures of fish. But, according to lead author, Dr William Cheung, from the University of British Columbia, the lower level of oxygen in the water is key. Warmer waters could decrease ocean oxygen levels and greatly reduce fish body weight. On the other hand, rising temperatures directly increase the metabolic rate of the fish's body function. This leads to an increase in oxygen demand for normal body activities. So the fish will run out of oxygen for growth at a smaller body size.
The research team also used its model to predict fish movements as a result of warming waters. The group believes that most fish populations will move towards the Earth's poles at a rate of up to 35km per decade. "So in, say, the North Sea," says Dr Cheung," one would expect to see more smaller-body fish from tropical waters in the future."
Taking these factors into consideration, the research team concludes that fish body size will shrink between 14% and 24%, with the largest decreases in the Indian and Atlantic oceans.
When compared with actual observations of fish sizes, the model seems to underestimate what's actually happening in the seas. The researchers looked at two case studies involving North Atlantic cod and haddock. They found that recorded data on these fish showed greater decreases in body size than the models had predicted.
Dr Alan Baudron, from the University of Aberdeen, UK, believes smaller-sized fish could seriously affect the ability of fish to reproduce. "Smaller fish produce fewer and smaller eggs which could affect the reproductive potential of fish stocks," he said.
【小题1】What's the main idea of the passage?
A.Global warming makes fish smaller. |
B.Global warming makes fish decrease in numbers. |
C.Global warming affects the fish distribution. |
D.Global warming affects the ability of fish to reproduce. |
A.The rising body temperatures. |
B.The lower level of oxygen in the water. |
C.The increasing metabolic rate. |
D.The normal body activities. |
A.more big fish will be born in the sea |
B.fish tend to swim towards the shore |
C.fish tend to move towards the warm areas |
D.fish tend to move towards the colder areas |
A.make an exact prediction of | B.make too low an estimate of |
C.make too high an estimate of | D.make a careful study of |
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科目:高中英语 来源: 题型:阅读理解
The art of reading fiction is largely a matter of inferring meanings. To infer means to understand facts which are not directly stated---only suggested. Inference is one of the commonest ways of knowing things: a child holds his knee and cries; this action implies his feeling; an observer infers that the child is hurt. To infer accurately in everyday life requires caution in observing; to infer skillfully in fiction requires caution in reading; both require disciplined imagination.
The short-story reader can expect to find certain basic elements in any story. For example, all stories involve a person or persons, in a particular setting, faced with a demand for a response. The response called for may be a physical action, such as defeating an adversary(对手) or escaping from a danger; or it may be a mental action, such as adjusting to others or within oneself. In either case, the short story is a description in two ways: first, it shows the motives for a given human action; second, it makes a point about the general human situation. Such descriptions, however, rather than being stated directly, usually are implied by the elements of the story.
When the reader of a story understands all the facts and their interrelationships, he is ready to infer the significance of the story as a whole---its comment on the human situation. This comment, or theme, is the seed from which the story grew. It is also the idea by which all the separate elements of the story are governed, while these in turn further shape and modify the theme. In addition to action, character, and setting, these elements include structure, mood, tone, and point of view.
Fiction reading requires an awareness of all the ways in which a story communicates. It also requires attention to detail. What the author provides is a network of points which serve as clues to his meaning. He invites the reader to develop the meaning by inference, actually to create much of the story himself and so make it part of his own experience.
【小题1】According to the author, "infer" means ________ .
A.knowingfactsbeyondthestatement |
B.lookingformoreevidencesforthestatement |
C.findingoutadifferentmeaningfromthestatement |
D.addingsomefactstothestatement |
A.Readers’guessing. |
B.Thebasicelementsofthestory. |
C.Thesettingofthestory. |
D.Theinterrelationshipsbetweenpeopleinthestory. |
A.Inferringcanreallyhelpthereaderdevelopimaginationandenrichhimself. |
B.Inferringcanhelpthereaderwriteastoryofhisown. |
C.Thereadershouldlookforanexperiencedescribedinthestoryhereads. |
D.Theexperiencedescribedinthestorywillleaveagreatimpactonitsreader. |
A.Inferringisanartofwriting. |
B.Inferringisaneedinfictionwriting. |
C.Inferringisthebasicskillinreadingfiction. |
D.Inferringiscommoninreading. |
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科目:高中英语 来源: 题型:阅读理解
Have you ever wondered why birds sing? Maybe you thought that they were just happy.After all,you probably sing or whistle when you are happy.
Some scientists believe that birds do sing some of the time just because they are happy.However,they sing most of the time for a very different reason.Their singing is actually a warning to other birds to stay out of their territory
Do you know what a“territory”is? A territory is an area that an animal,usually the male,claims(声称)as its own.Only he and his family are welcome there.No other families of the same species(物种)are welcome.Your yard and house are your territory where only your family and friends are welcome.If a stranger should enter your territory and threaten you,you might shout.Probably this would be enough to frighten him away.
If so,you have actually scared the stranger away without having to fight him.A bird does the same thing.But he expects an outsider almost any time,especially at nesting(筑巢) season.So he is screaming all the time,whether he can see an outsider or not . This screaming is what we call a bird’s song,and it is usually enough to keep an outsider away.
Birds sing loudest in the spring when they are trying to attract a mate and warn others not to enter the territory of theirs.
You can see that birds have a language all their own.Most of it has something to do with attracting mates and setting up territories.
【小题1】Some scientists believe that most of the time birds’singing is actually .
A.a way of warning | B.an expression of happiness |
C.an expression of anger | D.a way of greeting |
A.A place where families of other species are not accepted. |
B.An area which a bird considers to be its own. |
C.An area for which birds fight against each other. |
D.A place where a bird may shout at the top of its Voice. |
A.Because they want to invite more friends |
B.Because they want to find outsiders around. |
C.Because their singing helps frighten outsiders away. |
D.Because their singing helps get rid of their fears. |
A.By comparing birds with human beings. |
B.By reporting experiment results. |
C.By describing birds’ daily fife. |
D.By telling a bird's story. |
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科目:高中英语 来源: 题型:阅读理解
Twothirds of the world's major rivers have now been disrupted with more than 50,000 dams in an attempt to store water and provide power.In the US,there are more than 85,000 dams,disrupting large and small rivers,and in most cases transforming natural flow.The most famous of these,the Hoover Dam,constructed in the 1930s,is mainly responsible for the fact that the Colorado River no longer reaches the ocean.
Dams,besides all their attractive benefits,also have negative impacts.Creating a reservoir means a large area must be flooded.Communities may lose their land,houses and culturally important sites.
Environmentally,the new reservoir can be a paradise for wildlife,especially birds;however,it can cause greenhouse gas emissions and poison the water.Also,the dramatic rise and fall of water levels during dam releases is too extreme for plants and animals to cope with,resulting in dead zones around the shores of reservoirs.Fish that lay their eggs in the shallows,for example,may find a few hours later that those sites are high and dry.
Downstream(在下游方向)of a dam,the flow may be reduced so that farmers cannot irrigate their fields.Many rivers run through national borders,which may cause conflict over precious water.Disputes have been continuing between India and Pakistan,and Turkey,Syria and Iraq,for example.
Dams don't just block the flow of water.They also prevent fish migrations,and dams are a barrier to sediment(沉淀物)flows.Instead of rushing downriver,sediments get backed up against the dam wall,which causes the reservoir level to increase over time.However,sediments which are rich in nutrients have become a problem.The fertility of the entire system can be influenced,with soils lost during seasonal rains not being replaced.
Perhaps the biggest problem can be seen in deltas,which are sinking into the oceans.Groundwater is being extracted to feed the city,causing the city to sink,and sediments washed away by the ocean are no longer being replaced.The result is that sea level rises in cities from Shanghai to Alexandria.
【小题1】The Hoover Dam is mentioned in the passage in order to show________.
A.dams play an important role in our life |
B.dams have impacted the flow of the rivers |
C.dams make people lose their land and houses |
D.dams have many benefits as well as side effects |
A.a,c | B.c,e |
C.b,e | D.b,c |
A.will find more places to lay their eggs |
B.will face a dangerous habitat |
C.will be fed on more sediments rich in nutrients |
D.will find it easier to deal with the rise of water |
A.Their entire system will be influenced. |
B.The rainy season will last longer. |
C.They will lie below sea level in future. |
D.Rich soils will be washed away. |
A.Environmental loss of dams. |
B.Cultural loss of dams. |
C.Economic gain of dams. |
D.Environmental benefits of dams. |
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