Everyday rubbish could provide a valuable source of energy thanks to a clever new invention. Smelly methane（沼气）gas expelled from landfill sites containing tones of rotting household waste could be used to produce a valuable energy resource. In Europe alone land fill tips produce 94 billion cubic meters of methane per year but currently only one percent of what could be a valuable source of energy is used, the rest is burnt off to prevent an explosive build up of gas.

Methane gas forms when organic matter breaks down and is drawn off from large rubbish tips by pipes sunk into the middle of the waste. Until now this process wasn’t possible on small sites because the pipe allowed oxygen to seep in and that stop the breakdown process.

Viktor Popov of the Wessex Institute of Technology has now developed a system to modify existing landfill sites by making them airtight while the methane is extracted from sunken wells. The site is covered by a special three-layered skin whose two outer layers are made of clay with a pressurized（加压的）layer of carbon dioxide gas in the middle. As the methane is sucked out through a central well it is replaced by carbon dioxide from the middle layer rather than oxygen, allowing the breakdown process to continue.

Unfortunately there are no plans to use the power of methane even though Popov claims his invention could provide a valuable source of energy over the next 20 years.

The passage mainly introduces ______ to us.

A．how to make methane     B．a new way to make use of rubbish 

C．the valuable things in rubbish  D．the amount of rubbish beig reused

From the passage we can see that _____.

A．in Europe 94 billion cubic meters of methane is produced every year

B．some of the waste will explode if it is not burnt off

C．99% of the rubbish has been burnt off in Europe

D．only a very small part of this kind of energy is used in Europe

In the passage the underlined word “that” refers to ______.

A．methane gas     B．the long pipe    C．oxygen     D．the rubbish

Which of the following statement is NOT true according to the passage?

A．Oxygen can cause the breakdown process to stop.

B．When the methane is sucked out, oxygen will enter from the middle layer.

C．Carbon dioxide doesn’t affect the breakdown process.

D．The new invention has not been put into use.

Tom Becker has won the 2007 Waterstone's children's book prize with his first novel, Darkside, receiving a cheque for ??1,000 and the promise of display in branches of the book store across the country.

The 25-year-old author described winning as an "unbelievable feeling". "I didn't think my book would be on the shortlist and stood a chance of winning, and it's amazing to receive such an important award at the beginning of my writing career. Needless to say I am absolutely made up." he said.

The novel, inspired by film noir（黑色电影）, fantasy（幻想）and a fascination（迷恋）with the dark side of the 19th century, is for children between the ages of nine and 12. It tells the story of a boy, Jonathan Stirling, who discovers a similar world filled with vampires（吸血鬼）and werewolves（狼人）. This alternative reality has a clearly Victorian air, and is ruled by a descendant（后裔）of Jack the Ripper. Soon hunters from the other side begin searching for Jonathan, who finds himself driven into their world.

Waterstone's head children's buyer, Wayne Winstone, thought highly of Becker's "huge" achievement. He said: "Tom Becker's writing style attracts you in the same way that Darren Shan's does with his mix of adventure and the supernatural. 

"I have a feeling that Tom has real potential（潜能）and could be one of the big names in children's writing in the future."

This year's shortlist also included Michael Broad's Jake Cake, Philip Caveney's Sebastian Darke and Siobhan Dowd's A Swift Pure Cry. Last year's prize was won by Julia Golding with The Diamond of Drury Lane.

How did Tom Becker feel at the news that he had won the prize? 

A. He was proud of his ability of making up stories.        

B. He was shocked and didn’t believe it was true. 

C. He was very surprised and delighted. 

D. He had expected he would win the prize.

Why was Tom Becker’s novel successful according to Wayne Winstone? 

A. Because his novel was inspired by film noir, fantasy and a fascination.

B. Because the novel was about the dark side of the 19th century.

C. Because his novel was intended for teenagers between the ages of nine and 12.

D. Because his writing style is attracting with the mix of adventure and the supernatural

Which of the following is WRONG according to passage?

A. The novel Darkside is Tom Becker’s first novel.

B. The novel Darkside will be on display all over the country.

C. Philip Caveney also won the prize in 2007.

D. Jonathan is a major character in the novel Darkside.

What can we infer from the passage?

A. Tom Becker is likely to be a most promising novelist in children’s writing in the future.

B. Darren Shan’s novels are all very popular with children between the ages of 9 and 12.

C. The Waterstone’s children’s book prize is an important prize for young novelists.

D. The novels of Michael Broad, Philip Caveney and Siobhan Dowd will be on the shortlist next year.  

The best title for the passage is probably_______.

  A. Tom Becker— a great writer for children

B. First-time author wins children’s fiction prize

C. An imaginary big prize

D. Tom Becker's writing style

Less educated and less poised（沉着的）than his brother William, Britain’s Prince Harry has occasionally found himself on the front pages of some tabloid (小报) for the wrong reason. Harry has admitted drinking underage and smoking marijuana（大麻）in the past. In January 2006, he apologized after being pictured at a costume party dressed as a Nazi. But one thing he has been serious about is going to Iraq to fight with his fellow soldiers. After completing training last year, he demanded a chance to serve.

As a child he collected military toys and his bedroom walls were covered with posters of helicopters and tanks. Despite his youth, the army has always held a special place in his heart.

 “There’s no way I am going to sit back home while my boys are out fighting for their country,” he said in an interview to mark his 21st birthday. “That may sound patriotic（爱国的）, but it’s true.” Perhaps this shows new strength in him.

Britain’s Defense Ministry announced last week that the 22-year-old Harry would serve a six-month tour of duty in southern Iraq.

Harry said he was “over the moon” and has insisted he wants to be treated the same as any ordinary soldiers.

In Britain, British Prime Minister Tony Blair described Harry’s decision as in keeping with his character. But in Baghdad, Iraqis described it as a public relations move.

Harry has been the focus of attention in the past few years probably because of________.

A. the identity as a prince of the UK

B. his bad habits and wrong behavior

C. his devotion to his country

D. his preference to the army

By saying “Perhaps this shows new strength in him.”, the author means that Prince Harry changed his image by_______.

A. taking an interest in military   

B. apologizing for a Nazi uniform  

C. being willing to serve in the army in Iraq 

D. defending Britain against attack

The underlined word “over the moon” in the Paragraph 5 means_____.

A. very pleased   B. very sad    C. very frightened   D. very calm

Which of the followings is NOT the reason why he insisted on serving in Iraq?

A. He was more or less affected by his childhood’s interest

B. He has grown up and felt a sense of duty to his country

C. His strong character contributes to his decision

D. He wants to make up for his wrong actions

In Iraqis’ eyes, Harry’s decision to serve in Iraq is_______.

A. patriotic     B. political          C. friendly          D. personal

Several years ago, a well- known writer and editor Norman Cousins became very ill. His body ached and he felt constantly tired. It was difficult for him to even   1  around. His doctors told him that he would lose the ability to move and eventually   2   from the disease. He was told he had only a 1 in 60   3   of survival.

  4   the diagnosis( 诊断) , Cousins was determined to overcome the disease and survive. He had always been interested in   5   and had read a book, which discussed the idea of how body chemistry and health can be damaged by emotional stress and negative( 消极的)  6  . The book made Cousins think about the possible   7  _ of positive attitudes and emotions. He thought, “Is it possible that love, hope, faith, laughter, confidence, and the will to live have positive treatment value?”

He decided to focused all his   8   on positive emotions as a way to treat some of the symptoms of his disease. In addition to his traditional medical treatment, he tried to put himself in situations that would bring about positive emotions. “Laugh therapy” became part of his treatment. He   9   time each day for watching comedy films, reading humorous books, and doing other activities that would draw out positive emotions. Within eight days of starting his “Laugh therapy” program his pain began to  10   and he was able to sleep more easily. He was able to return to work in a few months’ time and actually achieved complete recovery after a few years.

1. A. run             B. pass                   C. move                        D. travel

A. suffer               B. die                  C. separate                    D. recover

A. time              B. value                 C. chance                      D. opportunity

A. A part from             B. In spite of     C. Instead of      D. Rather than

A. medicine      B. sports              C. books                       D. chemistry

A. attitude             B. beliefs             C. goals                        D. positions

A. shortcomings       B. harm        C. benefits                    D. interests

A. money              B. time                C. hobbies                     D. attention

A. afforded           B. appointed         C. offered                     D. arranged

A. escape        B. decrease            C. increase                    D. end

Buckminster Fuller once said, “The minute you choose to do what you really want to do, it’s a different kind of life.” If you want to live abundantly, decide what you really want and figure out a way to do it. Be clear and live with intent (意向).

You may have heard of Fred Lebow. He complained to his doctor that he lacked energy. His doctor advised him to take up running. He fell in love with it! He was 39 years old when he entered his first race.

Fred joined the New York Road Runners Club and organized New York City’s first marathon race. But what Fred truly wanted to do was to bring people together. He believes that anybody should be able to run — people of all ages and of any country.

Not everyone in New York was excited about people running through their neighborhood. A youth gang warned him that nobody had better run through their turf. “That’s great,” Fred said. “I need someone to protect the runners in your area, and you look like just the fellows to do it.”

 He gave them each a hat, shirt and jacket and that year, when the marathon went through their neighborhood, these young men proudly guarded the runners along their way.

Fred decided what was truly important to him and he found a way to do it. He lived with intent. That single decision made his life remarkably different.

As one sports writer said, “Fate handed him a short race. With his goal, with his love of life, Fred turned it into a marathon.” Fred would say that it’s not about how long you live, but how you run the race of life.

The purpose that Fred Lebow organized New York City’s first marathon race was _____.

A. to be popular with people

B. to display his true love for sports development

C. to drive away his loneliness in the running

D. to get more people together

Which word in the passage is the closest in meaning to the underlined word “turf”?

A. Neighborhood.     B. Way.      C. Decision.     D. Race.

What’s the best title for this passage?

A. Determination guarantees you a success.

B. The race of life with intent.

C. Nothing is impossible in one’s life race.

D. The benefits of taking up running.

Ocean Park Hong Kong is a theme park in the Southern District of Hong Kong Island. The park was built with donations from the Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club (now Hong Kong Jockey Club) and opened on 10 January 1977. The park is operated by Ocean Park Corporation, which is a statutory（法定的）department. It offers affordable marine animal education and entertainment and is a private organization for commercial purposes.

    In the early operation of the park, the main sources of income for the park were the ticket prices and the funding from the Jockey Club. Since the ticket price was low, most of the time Ocean Park was operating under deficit（财政赤字）. In 1 July 1987, the government established a 200 million trust from the funding of Jockey Club, under the Ocean Park Corporation Ordinance. This separated Ocean Park from Jockey Club and became a non-profit organization; it needs to be responsible for its own income and was allowed to use commercial means to operate the park.

    Since it was permitted to use commercial means to operate, it gradually raised its ticket price and the deficit turned into profit. In 1992, 3 million visitors visited the park. Since 1998, the East Asian financial crisis（经济危机）, aging attractions, and the passing away of the killer whale; the park recorded a deficit for a couple years. Although it was allowed to host 2 pandas in 1999, the number of visitors did not go up and Ocean Park was forced to close its water attractions and the "Old Village" attraction and turned to bring in more rides in an attempt to capture the youth demand. Together with the opening up of mainland visitors under the Individual Visit Scheme, Ocean Park recorded an astonishing 4 million visitors in the year 2004-2005, the highest since the park opened.

   In March 2005, Ocean Park made its redevelopment plan. On 23 November 2006, Ocean Park held a groundbreaking ceremony for its redevelopment

6. At the beginning, Ocean Park Hong Kong _________.

was built with the money from the government

was operated by Ocean Park Corporation

was a great success once it was opened

mainly got income from the ticket prices and donations

7. According to the passage, Ocean Park Corporation _________.

belongs to Hong Kong Jockey Club

is an official organization

is a non-profit organization

can not use commercial means to operate

8. How many deficits the Ocean Park experienced so far?

A. 1       B.2        C. 3         D. 4

9. Ocean Park Corporation took all of the measures to overcome the deficits except _________.

A. raise ticket price                   B. close some attractions

C. try to attract young customers        D. host 2 pandas

10. Which of the following statements is Wrong?

Ocean Park Hong Kong is a theme park.

Ocean Park Hong Kong has taken on a new look since 2005.

The East Asian financial crisis didn’t have any influence on Ocean Park.

At present, Ocean Park Hong Kong also attracts many mainland customers.

Biomass energy (生物能).often forgotten as a promising alternative (替代物) to oil, received its day in the sun with the gathering of the Bio-Energy World Congress and Exposition in Atlanta, Georgia, late in April, 1990. Nearly 1, 700 scien??tists, businessmen, and policy-makers, one-quarter from the foreign nations, gathered for a week to discuss various means of squeezing usable energy out of trees, crops, manure, sea??weed, algae, and urban waste. Biomass in the United States contributes 2. 5 percent of the total supply, but this amount can be doubled by 2000 and then doubled again by the year 2010.

Eight percent of Sweden’s energy supply, for example, is presently coming from wood bark and pulp remainings, Sweden intends to raise this percentage by more intensive harvesting of waste food lying around in forests, and through the planting of so-called energy forests of fast-growing trees such as willow and birch.

Brazil is frequently pointed to as a nation with a major successful investment (投资)in energy coming from grains: it presently runs 330,000 automobiles on a water and alcohol (酒精) mixture, replacing 10 percent of its previous oil sup??ply. Brazilian representatives (代表) at the conference said they wish to double this in five years, with a final goal of total replacement. Most of the cars are built at the factory to use the mixture, while older models are changed through low-cost gov??ernment programs.

4. In Line 2, the phrase received its day in the sun most probably means ________.

A. came to the public mind                     B. had its turn in the sunlight

C. was regarded as a solar energy                   D. came from the energy of the sun

5. Which of the following statements is supported by the passage?

A. 1, 700 scientists attended the conference.

B. A quarter of American businessmen were present at the conference.

C. Foreign policy-makers accounted for a quarter.

D. Three-quarters of the representatives were from the U. S.

6. Of the total supply in 2010, biomass in the U. S. will be________.

A. 5%               B.20%               C.10%               D.15%

7. Which of the following is not regarded as biomass energy?

A. Willow and seaweed.                      B. Wood and grains.

C. Water and alcohol mixture.              D. Crops and oil mixture.

8. A suitable title for this passage would be ________.

A. An Energy Conference                    B. Approval of Biomass Energy

C. Bio-Energy for Automobiles        D. Keys to Energy Crisis

British scientists are breeding a new generation of rice plants that will be able to grow. in soil con??taining salt water. Their work may enable abandoned farms to become productive farms once more.

Tim Flowers and Tony Yeo, from Sussex University’s School of Biological Sciences,. have spent several years researching how crops, such as rice, could be made to grow in water that has become salty. The pairs have recently begun a three-year programme, funded by the Biotechnology and Bio??logical Sciences Research Council, to establish which genes enable some plants to survive salty condi??tions. The aim is to breed this capability into crops, starting with rice.

It is estimated that each year more than 10 million hectares (公顷) of agricultural land are lost because salt gets into the soil and stunts(防碍生长) plants. The problem is caused by several factors. In the tropics, mangroves that create swamps (沼泽) and traditionally formed barriers to sea water have been cut down. In the Mediterranean, a series of droughts have caused the water table to drop, allowing sea water to seep (渗透) in. In Latin America, irrigation often causes problems when water is evaporated by the heat, leaving, salt deposits behind.

Excess salt then enters the plants and prevents them functioning normally. Heavy concentrations of minerals in the plants stop them drawing up the water they need to survive.

To overcome these problems. Flowers and Yeo decided to breed rice plants that take in very little salt and store what they do absorb in cells that do not affect the plants’ growth. They have started to breed these characteristics into a new rice crop, but it will take about eight harvests before the resul??ting seeds are ready to be considered for commercial use.

Once the characteristics for surviving salty soil are known, Flowers and Yeo will try to breed the appropriate genes into all manners of crops and plants. Land that has been abandoned to nature will then be able to bloom again, providing much needed food for the poorer countries of the world.

4. Which of the following statements about Flowers and Yeo is true?

A. They are students at Sussex University.  B. They are rice breeders.

5. Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a cause of the problem discussed in the passage?

A. Natural barriers to sea water have been destroyed.

B. The water table has gone down after droughts.

C. Sea level has been continuously rising.

D. Evaporation of water leaves salt behind.

6. The word "affect" in Paragraph 5 could be best replaced by________.

A. influence                B. effect                 C. stop                     D. present

7. The attitude of the author towards the research project is________.

A. positive                 B. negative             C. suspicious             D. indifferent

Together. 31 years.

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater

They make you sway. With a dance form all their own. Originating as an intimate, innovative dance company, it has evolved into an international force. Taking the spirit of African—American culture and translating it into dance and community programs for more than 31 years. A heritage of bringing together a repertoire of Ailey classics and great dance masterpieces along with exciting new works by emerging artists. Modern Vibrant. Athletic. Colorful. Involving. Because it is dance in step with the people. Part of the neighborhood, their pulse beats—beats—beats of life. Lifting spirits. Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. Pirouetting the globe. Soaring, moving as one, moving dance into the future. Join Philip Morris in its 8th year of supporting Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. And celebrate the achievement of the Ailey past as they boldly step forward.

5. What does the advertisement ask people to do?

A. To see a play.     B. To watch a match.  C. To ball there.                     D. To see Philip Morris.

6. How is the company?

A. Modern and involving.   B. Intimate and innovative. 

C. Athletic and colorful    D. Vibrant and innovative.

7. What does Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater hold this activity for?

A. To develop the spirit of African—American culture.  

B. To leap tall buildings in a single bound.

C. To pirouette the globe.             

D. To celebrate the achievement of the Ailey past.