A black hole is a place in space where gravity pulls so much that even light cannot get out. The gravity is so strong because matter has been squeezed into a tiny space. This can happen when a star is dying.

Because no light can get out, people can’t see black holes. Space telescopes with special tools can help find black holes. The special tools can see how stars that are very close to black holes act differently from other ones.

Black holes can be big or small. Scientists think the smallest black holes are as small as just one atom. These black holes are very tiny but have the mass of a large mountain. Mass is the amount of matter, or “staff”, in an object.

Another kind of black hole is called “stellar”(星球黑洞). Its mass can be up to 20 times more than the mass of the sun. There may be many stellar mass black holes in Earth’s galaxy. Earth’s galaxy is called the Milky Way.

The largest black holes are called “supermassive”(超大质量黑洞). These black holes have masses that are more than one million suns together. Scientists have found proof that every large galaxy contains a supermassive black hole at its center. The supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way galaxy has a mass equal to about four million suns and would fit inside a very large ball that could hold a few million Earths.

Scientists think the smallest black holes formed when the universe began. Stellar black holes are made when the center of a very big star falls in upon itself, or falls apart. When this happens, it exploded part of the star into space. Scientists think supermassive black holes were made at the same time as the galaxy they are in.

A black hole can not be seen because strong gravity pulls all of the light into the middle of the black hole. But scientists can see how the strong gravity affects the stars and gas around the black hole. Scientists can study stars to find out if they are flying around, or orbiting a black hole.

When a black hole and a star are close together, high-energy light is made. This kind of light cannot be seen with human eyes. Scientists use satellites and telescopes in space to see the high-energy light.

1.The gravity of a black hole may become so strong that light cannot get out when ____________.

A. the star is going to die          

B. special tools are used on it

C. other stars come close to it      

D. it is seen from the space telescopes

2.According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true?

A. A black hole can be very tiny but extremely heavy.

B. The gravity of a black hole holds all light in its center.

C. Scientists observe high-energy light through their own eyes.

D. Some small black holes came into being as early as the universe.

3.The underlined word “galaxy” in Paragraph 5 means __________.

A. a black hole                       B. the Milky Way

C. a series of stars                    D. a planet near the earth

4.What does the last sentence in Paragraph 5 suggest?

A. Neither the sun nor the earth is as heavy as a black hole.

B. There is a supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way.

C. The supermassive black hole had existed before the Milky Way was formed.

D. There is a reason why the large black holes are called “supermassive”.

5.The last two paragraph mainly focus on the question of _________.

A. what a black hole is        

B. how black holes form

C. how big black holes are    

D. how scientists know about black holes

 

School uniforms（制服）are becoming more and more popular across the U.S.A. That’s no surprise，because they offer many benefits. They immediately end the powerful social sorting and labeling （标记）that come from clothing. If all students are dressed in the same way，they will not pay too much attention to their clothing，and some of them will not be laughed at for wearing the “wrong” clothes.

Some people are against the strict rule of school uniforms，but they do not realize that students already accept a kind of rule — wanting to look just like their friends. The difference is that the clothing students choose for themselves creates social barriers（障碍）; school uniforms tear those barriers down.

As in other places，uniforms remind the wearers of their purposes and duties. For example，when a man or woman puts on a police uniform，he or she becomes，for a time，the symbol（象征）of law and order. The uniform means to the wearer his or her special duties and sends the same message to everyone the wearer meets. People with different jobs wear uniforms of one kind or another. For students，the school uniform reminds them that their task for the six or seven hours they are in school is to get an education.

Some parents are unhappy about uniforms，saying that school uniforms will affect their children’s “creativity”. First，as noted above，the clothes students choose to wear do not necessarily express their individuality （个性）. They just copy their classmates. Second，students have the rest of the day to be as creative as they like. While they’re in school，their job is to master reading，writing，and maths; this should take up all the creativity they have. Mastery of those skills will be good for the students to build up their creativity in every way.

1.In Paragraph 1，the word “benefits” probably means       .

A. tasks        B. messages       C. differences      D. advantages

2.From the passage we learn that uniforms in general       .

A. prevent the wearers from being laughed at 

B. help the wearers keep their duties in mind

C. are seen as a symbol of power

D. help to create social barriers

3.Some people are against school uniforms because       .

A. they fail to realize that students have accepted the uniforms

B. they believe that uniforms will make students less creative

C. they don’t agree that uniforms can remove social barriers

D. they think that school uniforms are too popular

4.The author would probably agree that       .

A. it makes no difference whether to wear school uniforms or not

B. students’ individuality may not come from school education

C. students’ creativity is related to the clothes they choose

D. school uniforms help to create equality among students

5.School uniforms are becoming more and more popular and important because _____

  A. they can stop the powerful social sorting and labeling.

  B. if all students are dressed in the same way，they will not pay too much attention to their clothing.

  C. uniforms can remind the wearers of their purposes and duties

  D. school uniforms will affect their children’s creativity.

 

A four-year study of 200 college students found that those who drink heavily and started drinking at an early age demonstrate poor decision-making skills, just like long-term, chronic(长期的) alcoholics. Researchers at the University of Missouri-Columbia believe early onset binge drinking negatively affects psychological development.

The researches examined college students between the ages of 18 and 22. After three years, they tested them using the Iowa Gambling Test, which measures the tendency to make immediate (disadvantageous) or long-term (advantageous) choices.

Based on the students’ reported drinking habits, they were grouped into four categories: low binge drinkers, moderate binge drinkers, increasing binge drinkers and stable or high binge drinkers.

“Students in the stable or high alcohol use category, who had longer histories of binge drinking, made riskier and less advantageous choices, which reflect problems associated with planning for the future,” the researchers reported.

The study also found that only students who started binge drinking when they were younger showed impairment on the task.

“There is reason to think that heavy binge drinking during adolescence, when the brain is still rapidly developing, may have some negative legacy (遗传) on psychological development,” said Kenneth J. Sher of MU’s Midwest Alcoholism Research Center in a news release. “The interesting thing is that if we were to just look at binge drinkers and how impaired they are in the decision-making process as juniors, we’d really be obscuring(使模糊) the important issue, which is how long they’ve been binge drinkers and / or how early they started.”

1.What does the passage mainly tell us?

A．Four categories of heavy drinkers.

B．Heavy drinking affects college students.

C．Early onset binge drinkers are poor at decision-making.

D．People drinking at an early age will develop into binge drinkers.

2.Which category would make the most disadvantageous choice?

A．Low binge drinkers                      B．moderate binge drinkers

C．Increasing binge drinkers                 D．Stable binge drinkers

3.Early onset binge drinking negatively affects psychological development because _______.

A．adolescent students were not suitable for drinking

B．drinking too much will slow the growth of the brain

C．the brain has not fully developed during adolescence

D．drinking will make the students make dangerous choices

4.What Kenneth J. Sher says suggests that _______.

A．he is quite clear about what the important issue is

B．if binger drinkers started late, there would be no bad effect

C．the important issue is how impaired the students are in decision-making

D．only early binge drinkers will have their decision-making ability affected

 

 

Dear College Dean

It is my understanding that this college has received a large donation to be used to enhance (improve) the quality of life for students: expand the bookstore or add computers to the computer lab. It is the tradition of this school to promote education and to be at the vanguard of new technology. That is why I strongly argue in favor of the addition of more computers to the computer lab.

Although expanding the campus bookstore to include CDs, gifts, and a snack bar will give a nicer look to the college, we have to think about a greater goal and a more practical way to enhance the quality of life for students. What do we want for our students and our college? Do we want our college to be known as a place with a great bookstore where you can find CDs and gifts, or as a place where the students can explore and research in their field using the best tools provided by technology? In addition, there are already several snack bars on campus, and there are music stores nearby, so students do not depend on the college bookstore for these things.

We live in a highly technological world and computers play an increasingly important role in how we live. As a learning institution, this college has the responsibility to offer its students the best technology to help them prepare for their future. Many students will be expected to be familiar with the latest software and other tools when they go on to work or to graduate school.

While they are in college, students find they are expected to use computers. Many professors expect students to use computers to do homework or to complete projects. Students are asked to create PowerPoint presentations and use spreadsheets and database programs, as well as to research many topics on the Internet. Since students are competing for good grades, those who have limited access to computers are at a great disadvantage. Furthermore, being able to do projects using the computer enhances the process of learning, giving students the opportunity to find information that without a computer would be much more difficult to find.

If there are more computers, students will also be able to complete their work more efficiently. No more will they have to wait in line, paper and disk in hand, while scanning the room for an empty chair and computer. No longer will they have to sit and wait while an outdated computer struggles to follow their commands. Having more new and faster computers available will enable students to finish their work more quickly.

The more computers are used in society the more colleges will depend on them as a tool of teaching and learning. Making computers more available to students facilitates their learning process by making the process easier, more interesting, more engaging, and in the process enhancing their quality of life

1．The purpose of the author in writing the passage is____________.

         A．to describe the problems caused by lack of computers

         B．to explain why students are in great need of computers

         C．to tell us what benefits students can gain from computers

         D．to persuade the Dean to purchase more advanced computers

2．From the passage we can infer that_______________.

         A．present computers in the college cannot meet the demands of the students

         B．computers in the college will be updated to meet the student’s demands soon

         C．the college has the responsibility to help the students to prepare for their future

         D．it is also necessary to expand the college bookstore by using part of the donation

3．In paragraph 4, the author mainly wants to tell us that____________.

         A．computers are beneficial to students’ academic success

         B．computers are helpful to student’s competition for success

         C．students find it convenient to do assignments by using computers

         D．students wish to use the money to buy more advanced computers

4．Which of the following shows the organization of the passage?

 

 

You are walking down the street, minding your own business when you see a snowball. No big deal, right? Except the snowball is as tall as you are. And weighs about a ton. Did we mention that it is June?

   That’s the experience thousand of Londoners had when they crossed paths with “ Snowball in Summer,” Goldsworthy makes sculpture （雕塑）from all sorts of things he finds outside – leaves, earth, and rocks, as well as ice and snow. He wanted to find out how busy people would react to an unexpected snowball melting in their midst.

   During the winter of 2008, he rolled 13 giant snowballs near his home in Scotland. He filled each one with a surprise in the center – such as berries, feathers, little stones or sheep’s wool – which would appear as the snow melted. The finished snowballs were stored in a deep freeze until summer, then transported to London in refrigerated trucks. At midnight on June 21, 2008, while the city slept, Goldsworthy and his helpers rolled their snowballs into place.

  People walking to work or school must have thought the sky was falling when they stumbled across snowballs the size of baby elephants. Some of them had never even seen snow in real life, and they couldn’t help touching them in great surprise. As the snow started to melt, things got even more interesting. The perfectly round snowballs took on different shapes as the stuff inside began to poke through. Two days later, most of Goldsworthy’s snowballs were gone, and their fillings scattered. But Londoners were left with a really good story about that odd summer day when the snowball came.

1.What is really special about the snowballs is that ______________________.

A. they lie in the street

B. they are in the shape of baby elephants.

C. they have berries, feathers, little stones and feathers in them.

D. they appear in June.

2. What was the purpose of Goldsworthy in making the snowballs?

A. To find out people’s reactions to them

B. To call up people’s memory of the cold winter.

C. To show off his skills in sculpture.

D. To let people experience the cold winter.

3. Why did Goldsworthy and his helpers roll their snowballs into place at mid-night?

A. They didn’t want to disturb other people.

B. It was quite at that time.

C. They wanted to avoid the traffic jam.

D, They wanted to give people a surprise.