阅读下面短文，根据短文内容回答问题。

　　Can a person make it rain? Many people believed that Charles Hatfiled could． In the early 1900s, Mr． Hatfield traveled through the United States, Canada, and Mexico bringing rain to farms and cities that suffered from drought． For 30 years, people considered him the greatest rainmaker in North America． In order to make it rain, he used a secret mixture of chemicals that be placed high on wooden towers in special trays． As the chemicals evaporated, they attracted rain clouds to the area． Over his career, Mr． Hatfield even offered to help clear the fog from London and to water the Sahara Desert．

　　One of Mr． Hatfiled's most amazing rainmaking accomplishments happened in southern California in 1916． Because he knew that the city of San Diego did not have enough water, Mr． Hatfield offered to give the city a hand with its water problem． He planned to create enough rain to fill the lake behind Morena Dam near the city． Since the time the dam was built, the lake had never been more than half full, but the lake could hold 57 billion liters (15 billion gallons) of water if it were full． Filling the lake would help the city of San Diego with its constant water problems． Mr． Hatfield suggested that if he succeeded in filling the lake with rain water, the city would pay him $10, 000．If no rain fell, the city would pay nothing． The city agreed because they had nothing to lose from the business deal, and only paying $ 10, 000 for that much water seemed to be a steal．

　　On January 1, 1916, Mr． Hatfield began his rainmaking procedure． It began to rain four days later． The rain continued for the next five days． On January 10, it began to rain more heavily, and the rain continued for the next 10 days The city of San Diego was flooded． Fifty people died． More than 200 bridges were washed away,． and many miles of train tracks were destroyed． However, Mr． Hatfield did succeed in filling the lake． The water was within 12 centimeters of the top of the dam． Mr． Hatfield thought that he had completed his job, so he went to collect his money from the city． However, the city of San Diego backed out of the deal． They said that the rain was an “act of God” and not the work of the rainmaker． Mr． Hatfield tried to sue the city, but he never collected any money for his work．

阅读下面短文，根据短文内容，回答问题。

　　In most American cities, the rent for a one-bedroom apartment was $ 250 or more per month in recent years． In some smaller cities such as Louisville, Kentucky or Jacksonville, Florida the rent was less, but in larger cities it was more． For example, if you lived in Los Angeles, you had to pay $400 or more to rent a one-bedroom apartment, and the same apartment rented for $ 626 and up in Chicago． The most expensive rents in the US were in New York City, where you had to pay at least $ 700 a month to rent a one-bedroom apartment in most parts of the city．

　　Renters and city planners are worried about the high cost of renting apartments． Many cities now have rent-control laws to keep the cost of renting now． These laws help low-income families who cannot pay high rents．

　　Rent control in the United States began in 1943 when the government imposed (课税) rent controls on all American cities to help workers and the families of soldiers during World War II． After the war, only one city－-New York－-continued these World War II controls． Recently, more and more cities have returned to rent controls． At the beginning of the 1980s, nearly one fifth of the people in the United States lived in cities with rent-control laws．

　　Many cities have rent-control laws, but why are rents so high? Builders and landlords blame rent controls for the high rents． Rents are high because there are not enough apartments to rent and they blame rent control for the shortage of apartments． Builders want more money to build more apartment buildings, and landlords want more money to repair their old apartment buildings． But they cannot increase rents to get this money because of the rent control laws． As a result, landlords are not repairing their old apartments and builders are not building new apartment buildings to replace the ole apartment buildings． Builders are building apartments for high-income families, not low-income families, so low-income families must live in old apartments that are in disrepair． Builders and landlords claim that rent-control laws really hurt low-income families．

　　Many renters disagree with them． They say that rent control is not the problems． Even without rent controls, builders and landlords will continue to ignore low-income housing because they can make more money from high-income housing． The only answer, they claim, is more rent control and government help for low-income housing．

1．Which city had the highest rent for a one-bedroom apartment in America?

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2．When did the rent control begin in the United States?

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3．Why did the American government impose rent controls on all American cities in 1943 ?

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4．According to many renters, why do builders and landlords ignore low-income housing?

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5．In the opinion of builders and landlords, what is the real reason for the high rents?

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阅读下面文章，回答问题。

(A)

  The Taj Mahal is considered to be one of the most beautiful buildings in the world and the finest example of the late style of Indian architecture (建筑). It is at Agra in northern India. It lies beside the River Jumna in the middle of gardens with quiet pools.

　 　The Taj Mahal was built by the Mogul emperor (皇帝) Shah Jehan, who ruled India in the seventeenth century. It is in memory of his favorite wife, Arjumand Banu Bagam, known as Mumtaz Mahal, who died in 1631. The building, which was completed between 1632 and 1638, was designed by a local Muslim architect (建筑师), Ustad Ahmad Lahori. The whole building, with gardens and gateway structures, was completed in 1643. The Taj Mahal stands at one end of the garden tomb with marble (大理石) path. The room is softly lighted by the light that passes through double screens of carved marble set high in the walls. The building now is kept in good condition.

　 　The Taj Mahal took 22 years to build. Shah Jehan planned a similar building, but in black instead of white, to lie on the other side of the river. But before it could be built, Shah Jehan was imprisoned (监禁) by his son and buried next to his wife in the Taj Mahal. 

1. The Taj Mahal was built for____ .

A. Mumtaz                     　B. Shah

C. Either Mumtaz or Shah        　D. Both Mumtaz and Shah

2. The passage mainly tells us____ .

A. why the Taj Mahal was built

B. the love story between Shah and Mumtaz

C. some information about the Taj Mahal

D. the Taj Mahal—the pride of Indians

3. Form the passage we can learn that____ .

A. the Taj Mahal looks more beautiful than before.

B. the Taj Mahal doesn't exist now.

C. the Taj Mahal has completely changed.

D. the Taj Mahal has become a place of interest.

(B)

Winter-swimming has become popular in Beijing. Three years ago, few people would go swimming in the icy waters. But now there is a Winter-swimming Enthusiasts’ Club（冬泳爱好者协会）and it has more than 2 000 members. The oldest is 84 years old and the youngest is only 7. The members are from all walks of life. They may be workers, peasants, soldiers, teachers, students…

Though it is now the coldest part of the season and the water temperature in the city’s lakes is around 0℃, many winter-swimmers still swim in the icy waters, even when it is snowing. They enjoy themselves in the lake, while the people by the side of the lake are wearing heavy clothes.

Why are so many people interested in winter-swimming? Because winter-swimming can be good for one’s health.

Bei Sha is a good example. He is 69, and he once suffered from heart trouble for 26 years. After ten years of winter-swimming he is now in good health. Scientists are now studying the effects of winter-swimming on health.

4. What does the underlined sentence “The members are from all walks of life” mean?  

A. The members do different jobs at different places.

B. They come from all parts of Beijing.

C. They are persons of different ages.

  D. They are men and women, old and young.

5. The winter-swimmers are able to swim in the icy waters, even on snowy days because       .

  A. they are not afraid of coldness

  B. they often swim in the icy waters

  C. they know that they can benefit（得益）from it

  D. winter-swimming can make people healthy

6. Winter-swimming has become popular in Beijing because       .

  A. more and more people like to swim in Beijing

  B. it is more interesting than swimming in summer

  C. winter-swimmers are brave men

  D. winter-swimming does a lot of good to one’s health

7. What’s the best title for this passage?

  A. People in Beijing Like Swimming in Winter

  B. Winter-swimming—A Craze（狂热）in Beijing

  C. People Benefit from Winter-swimming

  D. Winter-swimmers Are Brave Men