When 18th-century scientists first came across Australia’s platypus(鸭嘴兽), they thought it was a trick. It is not surprising that the platypus made people confused. This funny-looking animal has feet and is a kind of warm-blooded mammal.
While other mammals usually keep their blood at around 37 degrees, the platypus has a lower body temperature of 32 degrees. As to its appearance, the platypus’mouth is not really like ducks’at all; its mouth actually looks a bit soft. The platypus closes its eyes when swimming. It uses its mouth to pick up outside information made by the creatures underwater.
Strangest of all, the platypus is a mammal that can lay eggs. And there is only one other kind of mammal that can lay eggs, the echidna (针鼹鼠) of Australia. Both the platy-pus and the echidna lay soft-shelled eggs, and both feed their young with their own milk that comes out of their skin. These animals also walk in a way that is similar to crocodiles(鳄鱼), with legs on the sides of their bodies rather than under them.
Though pretty, in a special way, the platypus is actually one of the few mammals that are poisonous. A male platypus has knife-like bones on its back legs which have enough poison to kill a dog.
The platypus has the honor of being one of the oldest mammals in the world. Until the early 20th century, it was hunted for its fur, but the situation has changed. Although the platypus is easily affected by pollution, it is not under any immediate threat.
【小题1】 What can we learn about the platypus according to the text?
| A．It has a lower body temperature than other mammals. |
| B．It only closes its eyes when underwater. |
| C．It’s the only poisonous mammal in the world. |
| D．It feeds its young on wild animal meat. |
| A．The crocodile. | B．The echidna. | C．The duck. | D．The dog. |
| A．its natural enemy | B．its appearance |
| C．its walking pose | D．its daily diet |
| A．is hunted for its meat | B．is in danger of extinction |
| C．is endangered by air pollution | D．is well-protected now |
| A．Platypus, a Trick? |
| B．Platypus, the Only Warm-Blooded Mammal |
| C．The Characteristics of Platypus |
| D．The Strange Mammal —Platypus。 |
【小题1】A
【小题2】D
【小题3】A
【小题4】D
【小题5】D
解析试题分析：这篇介绍了世界上最古老的哺乳动物鸭嘴兽的外貌，饮食和走路姿势等等信息，也介绍了鸭嘴兽现在正在受到保护。
【小题1】细节题：从文章第二段的句子：While other mammals usually keep their blood at around 37 degrees, the platypus has a lower body temperature of 32 degrees.可知鸭嘴兽的体温比正常的哺乳动物要低，选A
【小题2】细节题：从文章第二段的句子：As to its appearance, the platypus’mouth is not really like ducks’at all;可知是将鸭嘴兽和鸭子对比，从文章第三段的句子：可知将鸭嘴兽和鳄鱼和鼹鼠对比，倒数第二段的句子：A male platypus has knife-like bones on its back legs which have enough poison to kill a dog.提到狗，但是并不是和狗做对比。选D
【小题3】细节题：从文章第二段的句子：As to its appearance, the platypus’mouth is not really like ducks’at all;可知介绍了鸭嘴兽的外貌，从文章第三段的句子：and both feed their young with their own milk that comes out of their skin. These animals also walk in a way that is similar to crocodiles(鳄鱼), with legs on the sides of their bodies rather than under them.可知提到鸭嘴兽的饮食和走路姿势，没有提到鸭嘴兽的天敌，选A。
【小题4】推理题：从最后一段的句子：Until the early 20th century, it was hunted for its fur, but the situation has changed. Although the platypus is easily affected by pollution, it is not under any immediate threat.可以推断出鸭嘴兽现在被保护的很好，选D
【小题5】标题确定题：这篇介绍了世界上最古老的哺乳动物鸭嘴兽的外貌，饮食和走路姿势，从第一段的句子：It is not surprising that the platypus made people confused. This funny-looking animal has feet and is a kind of warm-blooded mammal.可知 D是最好的标题。
考点：考查知识类短文
科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
EVERYONE has those nights – you lie in your bed for hours, tossing and turning, totally unable to fall asleep. You wish you could just turn your brain off as if it were a light. That would make things much easier, wouldn’t it?
Now it looks like you are one step closer to this wild dream of yours – scientists from Oxford University, UK have just discovered the “switch” that tells the brain to go to sleep, reported Forbes.
To understand the study, you first need to know that there are two mechanisms (机能) that regulate sleep. There’s one that we’re already familiar with – our body clock, which works in a 24-hour cycle based on the light changes throughout the day.
The other one is what scientists call the sleep “homeostat (动态平衡系统)”. This mechanism has nothing to do with daylight. Instead, it keeps track of the brain’s waking hours and urges it to rest if it has been awake for a long time. “It is similar to the thermostat (自动调温器) in your home. A thermostat measures temperature and switches on the heating if it’s too cold,” Professor Gero Miesenböck, who led the study, told The Telegraph.
Our bodies use both of the mechanisms to regulate sleep. “The body clock says it’s the right time, and the sleep thermostat has built up pressure during a long waking day,” explained Miesenböck.
There is no way that scientists can trick the body clock. But with the sleep homeostat, there might be something they can do.
The researchers found that the sleep homeostat works by activating a specific group of nerve cells, or neurons, in the brain. They tested their theory on fruit flies by removing the neurons from the insects’ brains. And as expected, they found that the flies without the homeostat neurons did not keep a regular sleep pattern anymore.
Now that scientists have pinpointed (定位) the exact place in the brain – or, the “switch” – that regulates sleep, they can begin investigating (研究) how to activate these cells at any given time so that people can be sent to sleep instantly.
More importantly, figuring out how sleep mechanisms work may also help us to one day unravel one of the oldest mysteries of all: why do we need to sleep in the first place?
【小题1】What is the article mainly about?
| A．A new way to treat sleep disorders. |
| B．The discovery of the sleep “homeostat”. |
| C．Advice on what to do when you fail to fall asleep. |
| D．A comparison of the two mechanisms that regulate sleep. |
| A．Through examples. |
| B．With comparisons. |
| C．Through cause and effect analysis. |
| D．By presenting research findings. |
| A．Generally, the sleep homeostat has less effect on people during the day than at night. |
| B．There is little scientists can do to affect the way the sleep homeostat works. |
| C．What makes us go to sleep at night is probably a combination of the two mechanisms. |
| D．The more homeostat neurons there are in one’s brain, the more easily one can fall asleep. |
| A．put up with | B．figure out | C．keep track of | D．take notice of |
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科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
Microsoft has a problem：It desperately wants the remaining Windows XP users to upgrade to a newer version of the operating system but a good many of them still haven’t started．The latest numbers from NetMarket show that Windows XP still accounts for around 29．5％of all desktops in use even though Microsoft is due to end support for the l3-Year-old platform on April 8th．ZDNet reports that Microsoft plans to force remaining XP users to start next week by sending them notices reminding them again that it will end XP support within a month．
However, as Computerworld reports，Microsoft may have a tough time convincing some Windows XP users to upgrade because it's trying to sell them on Windows 8，the newest operating system that has angered many longtime PC users by removing the traditional Start menu and by adding the interface(界面)a special feature．Computerworld writes that many Windows users expressed anger last month when Microsoft asked them to help switch as many people as they could from Windows XP to Windows 8 partly because Microsoft hasn’t offered any sort of discount for Windows XP users making the switch．
This is particularly tiresome, these users said，because switching from XP to Windows 8 won’t just require a software upgrade but will instead likely force them to buy new machines capable(能够)of running Microsoft’s new operating system．Some users were also annoyed that Microsoft only mentioned Windows 8 and not Windows 7 as upgrade possibilities．
In the end，it looks like when Microsoft ends support for Windows XP next month there will still be a large part of the desktop PC world using the platform．Hackers who have been saving up all their best new malware(恶意软件)for the day when Windows XP support ends are about to have a field day．
【小题1】What problem does Microsoft have now?
| A．Windows XP is out of date and needs improvement． |
| B．Windows 8 runs worse than Windows XP． |
| C．No people like to upgrade their operating system． |
| D．Lots of users refuse to switch from XP to Windows 8． |
| A．By sending them notices． |
| B．By sending them daily emails． |
| C．By adding the interface a special feature． |
| D．By removing the traditional Start menu． |
| A．Microsoft hasn’t offered any discount for it． |
| B．They like Window 7 more than Window 8． |
| C．Microsoft refuses to offer them a new machine． |
| D．It’s impossible for them to use the new operating system． |
| A．Show up without warning． |
| B．Make rapid progress． |
| C．Make full use of the opportunity． |
| D．Come to an end completely． |
| A．Windows XP will completely be out of use in a month． |
| B．Windows XP will still be in use for a period of time． |
| C．Windows 8 will have a longer history than Windows XP． |
| D．Windows 7 will easily be attacked by Hackers． |
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科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
Dogs wag(摇摆) their tails in different directions depending on whether they are excited and wanting to move forward or threatened and thinking of moving back, a study has found.
Researchers in Italy examined the tail wagging behaviour of 30 dogs, catching their responses to a range of stimuli(刺激物) with video camems. To conduct the study, they chose 15 male dogs and 15 female ones aged between one and six years. The dogs were all family pets whose owners had allowed them to take part in the experiment at Bari University. The dogs were placed in a large wooden box with an opening at the front to allow for them to view various stimuli. They were tested one at a time.
The researchers led by Professor Giorgio Vallortigara of the University of Trieste found that when the dogs were shown their owners —a positive experience— their tails wagged energetically to the right side. When they were shown an unfamiliar human they wagged to the right, but with somewhat less enthusiasm. The appearance of a cat again caused a right-hand side wag, although with less intensity again. The appearance of a large unfamiliar dog, similar to a German shepherd, changed the direction of tail wagging to the left. Researchers supposed the dog was thinking of moving back. When the dogs were not shown any stimuli, they tended to wag their tails to the left, suggesting they preferred company. While the changes in the tail wagging were not easily noticed without the aid of video, it was thought that the findings could help people judge the mood (心情) of dogs. Computer and video systems, for example, could be used by professional dog trainers to determine the mood of dogs that they were required to approach.
【小题1】The video cameras were used to catch the dogs’ response because______.
| A．The dogs wagged their tails in different directions when they were in different moods |
| B．they enabled the dogs’ owners to know about their dogs’ habit |
| C．It was easier to catch the dogs’ response change in tail wagging |
| D．The dog were put in the wooden boxes and tested one at a time |
| A．surprise | B．worry | C．excitment | D．interest |
| A．the dogs | B．the trainers | C．the systems | D．the researchers |
| A．to train dogs for their owners |
| B．to help dogs find company |
| C．to help people judge the mood of dogs |
| D．to help people choose their pet dogs |
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科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
Boiler rooms are often dirty and steamy, but this one is clean and cool. Fox Point is a very new47-unit living building in South Bronx, one of the city’s poorest areas. Two-thirds of the people living there are formerly (以前) homeless people, whose rent is paid by the government. The rest are low-income families. The boiler room has special equipment, which produces energy for electricity and heat. It reuses heat that would otherwise be lost to the air, reducing carbon emissions(碳排放)while also cutting costs.
Fox Point is operated by Palladian, a group that specializes in providing housing and services to needy, people. Palladian received support from Enterprise Community Partners (ECP), which helps build affordable housing by providing support to housing developers.
ECP has created national standards for healthy, environmentally (环境方面) clever and affordable homes which are called, the Green Communities Standards. These standards include water keeping, energy saving and the use of environmentally friendly building materials. Meeting the standards increases housing construction costs by 2%, which is rapidly paid back by lower running costs. Even the positioning of a window to get most daylight can help save energy.
Michael. Bloomberg, New York's mayor, plans to create 165,000 affordable housing units for500,000 New Yorkers. Almost 80% of New York City’s greenhouse-gas emissions come from buildings, and 40% of those are caused, by housing. So he recently announced that the city’s Department of Housing and Preservation and Development (DHPD) , whose duty is to develop and keep the city’s supply of affordable housing, will require all its new projects to follow ECP’s green standards.
Similar measures have been taken by other cities such as Cleveland and Denver, but New York’s DHPD is the largest city developer of affordable housing in the country.
【小题1】 What is the purpose of describing the boiler room in the first paragraph? 
| A．To explain the measures the city takes to care for poor people. |
| B．To suggest that affordable housing is possible in all areas. |
| C．To show how the environment-friendly building works. |
| D．To compare old and new boiler rooms. |
| A．Lower running costs. |
| B．Costing less in construction. |
| C．Less air to be lost in hot days. |
| D．Better prices for homeless people. |
| A．New York City is seriously polluted |
| B．people’s daily life causes many carbon emissions in New York City |
| C．a great number of people in New York City don't have houses to live in |
| D．some other cities have developed more affordable housing than New York City |
| A．To call on people to pay more attention to housing problems. |
| B．To prove that some standards are needed for affordable housing. |
| C．To ask society to help homeless people and low-income families. |
| D．To introduce healthy, environmentally clever-and affordable housing. |
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科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
Boiler rooms are often dirty and steamy，but this one is clean and cool.Fox Point is a very new 47unit living building in South Bronx，one of the city’s poorest areas.Twothirds of the people living there are formerly (以前) homeless people，whose rent is paid by the government.The rest are lowincome families.The boiler room has special equipment，which produces energy for electricity and heat.It reuses heat that would otherwise be lost to the air，reducing carbon emissions(碳排放)while also cutting costs.
Fox Point is operated by Palladia，a group that specializes in providing housing and services to needy people.Palladia received support from Enterprise Community Partners (ECP)，which helps build affordable housing by providing support to housing developers.
ECP has created national standards for healthy，environmentally (环境方面) clever and affordable homes which are called the Green Communities Standards.These standards include water keeping，energy saving and the use of environmentally friendly building materials.Meeting the standards increases housing construction costs by 2%，which is rapidly paid back by lower running costs.Even the positioning of a window to get most daylight can help save energy.
Michael Bloomberg，New York’s mayor，plans to create 165,000 affordable housing units for 500,000 New Yorkers.Almost 80% of New York City’s greenhouse gas emissions come from buildings，and 40% of those are caused by housing.So he recently announced that the city’s Department of Housing and Preservation and Development (DHPD)，whose duty is to develop and keep the city’s supply of affordable housing，will require all its new projects to follow ECP’s green standards.
Similar measures have been taken by other cities，such as Cleveland and Denver，but New York’s DHPD is the largest city developer of affordable housing in the country.(2010·四川，B)
【小题1】What is the purpose of describing the boiler rooms in the first paragraph?
| A．To explain the measures the city takes to care for poor people. |
| B．To suggest that affordable housing is possible in all areas. |
| C．To show how the environmentfriendly building works. |
| D．To compare old and new boiler rooms. |
| A．Lower running costs. |
| B．Costing less in construction. |
| C．Less air to be lost in hot days. |
| D．Better prices for homeless people. |
| A．New York City is seriously polluted |
| B．people’s daily life causes many carbon emissions in New York City |
| C．a great number of people in New York City don’t have houses to live in |
| D．some other cities have developed more affordable housing than New York City |
| A．To call on people to pay more attention to housing problems. |
| B．To prove that some standards are needed for affordable housing. |
| C．To ask society to help homeless people and lowincome families. |
| D．To introduce healthy，environmentally clever and affordable housing. |
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科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
Disposing(处理)of waste has been a problem since humans started producing it.As more and more people choose to live close together in cities,the waste-disposal problem becomes Increasingly difficult.
During the eighteenth century,it was usual for several neighboring towns to get together to select a faraway spot as a dump site.Residents or trash haulers(垃圾拖运者)would transport household rubbish,rotted wood,and old possessions to the site.Periodically(定期的)some of the trash was burned and the rest was buried.The unpleasant sights and smells caused no problem because nobody lived close by.
Factories,mills,and other industrial sites also had waste to be disposed of.Those located on rivers often just dumped the unwanted remains into the water.Others built huge burners with chimneys to deal with the problem.
Several facts make these choices unacceptable to modern society.The first problem is space Dumps,which are now called landfills,are most needed in heavily populated areas.Such areas rarely have empty land suitable for this purpose.Property is either too expensive or too close to residential(住宅区的) neighborhoods.Long-distance trash hauling has been a common practice but once farm areas are refusing to accept rubbish from elsewhere,cheap land within trucking distance of major city areas is almost nonexistent.
Awareness(意识) of pollution dangers has resulted in more strict rules of waste disposal. Pollution of rivers,ground water,land and air is a price people can no longer pay to get rid of waste. The amount of waste,however,continues to grow.
Recycling efforts have become commonplace,and many towns require their people to take part.Even he most efficient recycling programs,however,can hope to deal with only about 50 Percent of a city’s reusable waste.
【小题1】The most suitable title for this passage would be _______.
| A．Places for Disposing Waste | B．Waste Pollution Dangers |
| C．Ways of Getting Rid of Waste | D．Waste Disposal Problem |
| A．burying it | B．recycling it |
| C．burning it | D．throwing it into rivers |
| A．Farm areas accept waste from the city in modern society. |
| B．There is cheap land to bury waste in modern society. |
| C．It is difficult to find space to bury waste in modern society. |
| D．Ways to deal with waste in modern society stay the same. |
| A．draw people’s attention to waste management |
| B．warn people of the pollution dangers we are facing |
| C．call on people to take part in recycling programs |
| D．tell people a better way to get rid of the waste |
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科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
Founded in 1966，Seacamp，the first program dedicated to the education of youth in marine(海洋的) sciences，is the result of a cooperative effort of parents，scientists，businessmen and camp leaders.Preservation practices and a respect for the marine environment are the philosophy of the Seacamp.
Seacamp’s tropical marine location in the lower Florida Keys enables it to offer a truly unique marine science program.This program is the heart of Seacamp.Young scientists participate in a variety of courses under the guidance of academically trained marine science instructors and biologists.All science activities include studies in both the field and the laboratory.Each session,140 to 160 campers come to Seacamp，mostly from the US，but also from across the world.There are about 30 international campers each summer from an average of twelve countries.Many Seacamp program graduates have gone on to careers as environmental educators and marine scientists.
One of Seacamp’s unique aspects is that campers create their schedules.In addition to science classes，campers choose from a variety of programs to ensure that there is something interesting and exciting for everyone.Campers interested in journalism may work on the camp newspaper，SEASCOPE，which is published periodically during camp sessions.Arts activities are also included.Photography allows campers to take home memories of friends，wildlife，and underwater experiences.
Seacamp teaches the fun and skills of sailing.It’s an excellent way for future marine scientists to become familiar with the winds，tides and currents that are of primary concern in oceanography.Basic Red Cross certification is offered to beginners in sailing.The Red Cross course in advanced lifesaving is taught at Seacamp.The course is designed to increase the campers’ ability to recognize and avoid dangerous water conditions and practices and to use selfrescue skills to get out of dangerous situations.
Parents may bring campers by car to Big Pine Key.Counselors(辅导员) also meet participants at the Miami International Airport on the opening day of camp and accompany them to Big Pine Key on a bus.The fee for roundtrip service is $90.To join the Seacamp adventure，interested campers should contact Seacamp for an application.
We love to talk about camp！For more information or to ask any questions you might have，please give our friendly staff a call and we’ll be glad to help!
【小题1】According to the text，Seacamp is designed to help campers ________.
| A．have a good time at the seaside |
| B．develop a sense of marine protection |
| C．make a further study about sea life |
| D．complete a course about marine wildlife |
| A．Seacamp offers many programs apart from science classes |
| B．Seacamp is responsible for training marine scientists |
| C．beginners in sailing should learn the advanced Red Cross course |
| D．Seacamp provides traditional camp activities such as arts and crafts |
| A．attract the young to Seacamp |
| B．present Seacampers’ experiences |
| C．introduce the programs of Seacamp |
| D．explain the aim of Seacamp |
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科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
It is generally believed that we are getting cleaned when we step under a shower. We are, but we’re also giving a home to lots of tiny little creatures we didn’t even know about. A showerhead carries thousands of bacteria called Mycobacterium．These can cause problems like coughs and tiredness, and a general feeling of poorliness (身体不舒服). When you turn on the water, the bacteria go from the showerhead onto and into your body.
This is a finding of Norman R. Pace and his team at the University of Colorado, in the US. The scientists investigated bacteria in all kinds of human environment, including showers．Pace's team looked at 45 showerheads in nine American cities. They discovered that 30 percent of them had large amounts of flying Mycobacterium.
But Pace said that they pose few threats to the health．Only those with a weak immune system might need to worry．He told the New York Times that the bacteria are not as unpleasant as might be thought．He said that having a shower is no more dangerous than anything else we do in the morning．
But for those who feel sick about the idea of all those microorganisms (微生物), he had some advice. Let the water run for 30 seconds before getting into the shower. Why? The number of bacteria is smaller than that when the water is just turned on. If that seems like a waste of water, he added that you could also change your showerhead every few months.
However, Pace had good news too. He has also been testing the air in US subways. Apart from iron particles (粒子), which are ground off the track by the wheels of trains, subway air is fresh. The reason is that a train’s movement pumps fresh outdoor air into the tunnels.
Pace explained that he wanted to understand the natural microbial environments of public places. This kind of knowledge might help discover the microbes to be used in a bioterrorist (生物恐怖分子) attack.
【小题1】From the finding of Norman R. Pace, after taking a shower, we might cough or feel tired because .
| A．it’s easy to get a cold when taking a bath |
| B．the showerhead carries many bacteria causing illness |
| C．we don’t get cleaned while showering |
| D．we don’t get a weak immune system |
| A．Hot water could kill most of bacteria in showerheads. |
| B．Of 45 showerheads surveyed in nine cities, 30 carried large amounts of Mycobacterium. |
| C．Changing showerheads is the only way to avoid microorganisms. |
| D．Shower water contains much less bacteria after being left to run for 30 seconds. |
| A．having a shower in the morning is more dangerous than at other time |
| B．the bacteria always threat people’s health |
| C．there is no reason to fear microorganisms for people with strong immune system |
| D．it is better to do some exercise in the morning than have a shower |
| A．cause | B．avoid | C．describe | D．promise |
| A．The train’s movement. | B．Iron particles． |
| C．Train wheels. | D．Air conditioners on the trains． |
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