A volcanic eruption in Iceland has sent ash across northern Europe. Airlines have stopped or changed the flights across the Atlantic Ocean, leaving hundreds of passengers stuck in airports.

Grirmsvom is one of the largest and most active volcanoes in Europe. What makes Grimsvom different is that it lies under a huge glacier（冰川） of ice up to 12 maters thick. The hot volcano heats up the ice above it, which then forms a layer（层）of water between the glacier and the volcano This layer of water puts pressure on the volcano, keeping it stable, As the water flows out from under the glacier, the pressure lifts. The lava（岩浆） from the volcano then comes up to the surface. This is exactly what happened today.  

Now, airlines have to make changes to their flights so as not to fly through the clouds of volcanic ash. According to KLM. one of Europe’s biggest airlines, airplanes cannot go under the cloud or over it. Going through the cloud can result in ash getting stuck in the airplane’s engines, causing damage to the plane.  

The eruption has also caused problems for animals in Iceland. The volcano left ash and sharp. Glass-like rocks all over the countryside. Farmers are keeping their animals inside to stop them from eating ash- covered grass to the sharp object.  

What keeps Grimsvom still? 

A. The slow flow of water       B. The low water temperature 

C. The thick glacier            D. The water pressure 

Which of the following is true? 

A. People stop traveling in Europe   

B. Airlines suffer from the loss of planes 

C. It becomes dangerous for animals to eat outside 

D. Farmers have lost many of their animals 

This text is most probably taken from_______________.

A. a research paper            B. a newspaper report 

C. a class presentation          D. a geography textbook.  

A volcanic eruption in Iceland has sent ash across northern Europe. Airlines have stopped or changed the flights across the Atlantic Ocean, leaving hundreds of passengers stuck in airports.  

Grirmsvom is one of the largest and most active volcanoes in Europe. What makes Grimsvom different is that it lies under a huge glacier（冰川） of ice up to 12 maters thick. The hot volcano heats up the ice above it, which then forms a layer（层）of water between the glacier and the volcano This layer of water puts pressure on the volcano, keeping it stable, As the water flows out from under the glacier, the pressure lifts. The lava（岩浆） from the volcano then comes up to the surface. This is exactly what happened today.  

Now, airlines have to make changes to their flights so as not to fly through the clouds of volcanic ash. According to KLM. one of Europe’s biggest airlines, airplanes cannot go under the cloud or over it. Going through the cloud can result in ash getting stuck in the airplane’s engines, causing damage to the plane.  

The eruption has also caused problems for animals in Iceland. The volcano left ash and sharp. Glass-like rocks all over the countryside. Farmers are keeping their animals inside to stop them from eating ash- covered grass to the sharp object.  

What makes Grimsvom different from other volcanoes? 

A. It is below ice.  

B. It lies under the sea 

C. It is the largest volcano 

D. It is lava affects the airlines 

What keeps Grimsvotn still? 

A. The slow flow of water 

B. The low water temperature 

C. The thick glacier 

D. The water pressure 

Which of the following is the result of the volcanic eruption? 

A. People stop traveling in Europe 

B. Airlines suffer from the loss of planes 

C. It becomes dangerous for animals to eat outside 

D. Farmers have lost many of their animals 

This text is most probably taken from_ 

A. a research paper 

B. a newspaper report 

C. a class presentation 

D. a geography textbook.

Even Intelligent People Can Fail

_________

The unusual things about the innovators (创新者) who succeeded in making our modern world is how often they failed. Turn on a light, take a photograph, watch TV, search the web, jet across the Pacific Ocean, talk on a cell-phone. The innovators who left us these things had to find the way to success through a maze (错综复杂) of wrong turns.

_________

We have just celebrated the 125th anniversary of American innovator Thomas Edison’s success in heating a thin line to white, hot heat for 14 hours in his lab in New Jersey, US. He did that on October 22, 1879, and followed up a month later by keeping a thread of common cardboard alight (点亮着的) in an airless space for 45 hours. Three years later he went on to light up half a square mile of downtown Manhattan, even though only one of the six power plants in his design worked when he turned it on, on September 4, 1882.

________

“Many of life’s failures,” Edison said, “are because that people did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.” Before that magical moment in October 1879, Edison had worked out no fewer than 3,000 theories about electric light. But in only two cases did his experiments work.

________

No one likes failure, but the smart innovators learn from it. Mark Gumz, the head of a camera maker, attributes some of the company’s successes in technology to understanding failure. His popular phrase is：“You only fail when you quit.”

_________

Over two centuries, the most common quality of the innovators has been persistence (坚忍不拔). That is another way of saying they had the emotional ability to keep on with what they were doing. Walt Disney, the founder of Disneyland, was so penniless after a series of financial failures that he was left shoeless in his office because he could not afford the $1.50 to get his shoes from the repair shop. Pioneering car maker Henry Ford failed with one company and was forced out of another before he developed the Model T Car.

In summer, millions of people will head for the beach. And while the ocean can be a great place to swim and play, it may also be useful in another way. Some scientists think that waves could help make electricity.
“Have you ever been on a surfboard or boat and felt yourself being lifted up by a wave? Or have you jumped in the water and felt the energy as waves crashed over you?” asked Jamie Taylor of the Wave Energy Group at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland．“There is certainly a lot of energy in waves．”
Scientists are working on using that energy to make electricity．
Most waves are created when winds blow across the ocean．“The winds start out by making little ripples (波纹) in the water, but if they keep on blowing , those ripples get bigger and bigger and turn into waves, ”Taylor said．“Waves are one of nature’s ways of picking up energy and then sending it off on a journey．”
When waves come towards the shore, people can set up dams or other barricades to block the water and send it through a large wheel called a turbine (涡轮) ．The turbine can then power an electrical generator (发电机) ．
The United States and a few other countries have started doing research on wave energy , and it is already being used in Scotland．
The resource is huge．We will never run out of wave power, besides, wave energy does not create the same pollution as other energy sources, such as oil and coal．
Oceans cover three quarters of the earth’s surface．That would make wave power seem perfect for creating energy around the world．There are some drawbacks, however．
Jamie Taylor said that wave power still cost too much money．He said that its effects on animals in the sea were still unknown．Plus, wave power would get in the way of fishing and boat traffic．
With more research, however, “many of these problems might be overcome,” Taylor said．“Demand for energy to power our TVs and computers, drive our cars, and heat and cool our homes is growing quickly throughout the world．Finding more energy sources is very important, for traditional sources of energy like oil and gas may run out some day．”
In the future, when you turn on a light switch, an ocean wave could be providing the electricity!
68．Which of the following is NOT true?
A．Wave power costs too much money．
B．Wave energy creates the same amount of pollution as other energy sources．
C．Wave power affects fishing and boat traffic．
D．Wave power may affect marine animals．
69．We can infer from the passage that ______．
A．finding more new energy sources is not necessary because of wave energy
B．wave energy is a resource that will never run out and is used all over the world
C．wave power is perfect for creating energy around the world
D．wave power doesn’t create any pollution
70．The underlined word “drawbacks” probably means ______．
A．regrets      B．adventures       C．disadvantages          D．difficulties
71．What can be the best title for the passage? 
A．How to Get Electricity by Waves．       B．The Advantages of Wave Energy.
C．Can Waves Make Electricity?  D．The Disadvantages of Wave Energy．

A husband-and-wife team from California reached the Pacific Ocean after a 4,900- mile-cross
-country walk, becoming the first to backpack the American Discovery Trail in one continuous
walk. 
Marcia and Ken powers, of Pleasanton, started the travel across 13 states, through 14 national parks and 16 national forests on Feb. 27 from Cape Henlopen in Delaware. Nearly eight months later, the excited couple walked through water into the Pacific Ocean at Point Reyes, a day ahead of time. 
“We are a little sad that a great adventure is over. It was a fantastic adventure. And now we go home and just do housework. It's really sad.” Marcia, who said she's in her 50s, and her 60-year-old husband traversed cities, desert, mountains and farmland before reaching the Pacifics alone with arms around each other' s backpacks.
They overcame deep snow in the East, a quicksand in Utah, close lightning strikes in the Mid- west and strong desert sandstorms in the West while averaging 22 miles a day and taking only four days off. But they enjoyed the French history of St. Louis' the beauty of the Colorado Rockies and the kindness of strangers they met along the way. They particularly remember two brothers ---- a
doctor and dentist-------who put them up in their homes, after terrible days, and a motorcyclist who gave them water after they failed to find any on Utah's lonely Wah Wah Desert.
“Americans are truly warm-hearted and wonderful people.” Marcia Powers said. “We got to meet people that we would never meet in our daily living at home. We got to touch it with our feet and hands and smell all its scents and hear its wildlife. It' s an amazing country,” she added.
【小题1】Which of the following about couple's walk is TRUE?