In earliest times, men considered lightning （闪电）to be one of the great mysteries（神密） of nature． Some ancient people believed that lightning and thunder were the weapons(武器) of the gods．

    In reality lightning is a flow of electricity （电流）formed high above the earth． A single flash（闪烁） of lightning 1.6 kilometers long has enough electricity to light one million light bulbs．

    The American scientist and statesman, Benjamin Franklin, was the first to show the connection between electricity and lightning in 1752． In the same year he also built the first Lightning Rod (避雷针)． His device（发明物） protects buildings from being damaged by lightning．

     Modern science has discovered that one stroke of lightning contains more than 15 million volts(伏特)． A spark（火花） between a cloud and the earth may be as long as 13 kilometers, and travel at a speed of 30 million meters per second．Scientists estimate (估计) that there are about 2,000 million flashes of lightning per year． Lightning hits the Empire, State Building in New York City 30 to 48 times a year． In the United States alone it kills an average of one person every day．

    The safest place to be in case of an electrical storm is in a closed car． Outside, one should go to low ground and not get under trees． Also, one should stay out of water and away from metal fences． Inside a house, people should avoid open doorways and windows and not touch wires or metal things．

    With lightning, it's better to be safe than sorry.?

Lightning is actually ＿＿＿＿＿．

  A．weapon     B．electricity     C．light     D．mystery

People once thought that lightning came from ＿＿＿＿＿＿．

  A．scientists     B．ground    C．lightning rod     D．gods

Benjamin Franklin ＿＿＿＿＿＿．

  A. made the first lightning rod    B．built the Empire State Building

  C. invented electricity           D．prevented lightning from hitting cars

＿＿＿＿＿＿is the best place to be in during an electricity storm．

  A．Swimming pool   B. A high place   C．Under a tree  D．A car

Ⅲ. 阅读（共两节，满分40分）

第一节　阅读理解（共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分）

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从41—55各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C、D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

Although April did not bring us the rains we all hoped for, and although the Central Valley doesn’t generally experience the sound and lightning that can go with those rains, it’s still important for parents to be able to answer the youthful questions about thunder and lightning.

The reason these two wonders of nature are so difficult for many adults to explain to children is that they are not very well understood by adults themselves. For example, do you know that the lightning we see flashing down to the earth from a cloud is actually flashing up to a cloud from the earth? Our eyes trick us into thinking we see a downward motion when it’s actually the other way round. But then, if we believed only what we think and we see, we’d still insist that the sun rises in the morning and sets at night.

Most lightning flashes take place inside a cloud, and only a relative few can be seen jumping between two clouds or between earth and a cloud. But, with about 2,000 thunderstorms taking place above the earth every minute of the day and night, there’s enough activity to produce about 100 lightning strikes on earth every second.

Parents can use thunder and lightning to help their children learn more about the world around them. When children understand that the light of lightning flashing reaches their eyes almost at the same moment, but the sound of the thunder takes about 5 seconds to travel just one mile, they can begin to time the interval(间隔) between the flash and the crash to learn how close they are to the actual spark(闪光).

1. According to the author, in the area of the Central Valley, ___________.

A. rains usually come without thunder and lightning

B. it is usually dry in April

C. children pay no attention to the two natural wonders

D. parents are not interested in thunder and lightning

2. We believe that lightning is a downward motion because ___________.

A. we were taught so by our parents from our childhood

B. we are taken in by our sense of vision

C. it is a common natural sight

D. it is a truth proved by science

3. What is TRUE about lightning according to the passage?

A. Only a small number of lightning flashes occur on earth.

B. Lightning travels 5 times faster than thunder.

C. Lightning flashes usually jump from one cloud to another.

D. There are far more lightning strikes occurring on earth than we can imagine.

4. The underlined word “activity” is most closely related to the word(s)___________.

A. “cloud”                                       B. “lightning strikes”        

C. “lightning flashes”                              D. “thunderstorms”

5. It can be concluded from the passage that____________.

A. we should not believe what we see or hear

B. things moving downward are more noticeable

C. people often have wrong ideas about ordinary phenomena (现象)

D. adults are not as good as children in observing certain natural phenomena

      

Although April did not bring us the rains we all hoped for, and although the Central Valley doesn’t generally experience the sound and lightning that can go with those rains, it’s still important for parents to be able to answer the youthful questions about thunder and lightning.

The reason these two wonders of nature are so difficult for many adults to explain to children is that they are not very well understood by adults themselves. For example, did you know that the lightning we see flashing down to the earth from a cloud is actually flashing up to a cloud from the earth? Our eyes trick us into thinking we see a downward motion when it’s actually the other way around. But then, if we believed only what we think and we see, we’d still insist that the sun rises in the morning and sets at night.

Most lightning flashes take place inside a cloud, and only a relative few can be seen jumping between two clouds or between earth and a cloud. But, with about 2,000 thunderstorms taking place above the earth every minute of the day and night, there’s enough activity to produce about 100 lightning strikes on earth every second.

Parents can use thunder and lightning to help their children learn more about the world around them. When children understand that the light of the lightning flashing reaches their eyes almost at the same moment, but the sound of the thunder takes about 5 seconds to travel just one mile, they can begin to time the interval (间隔) between the flash and the crash to learn how lose they were to the actual spark (闪光).

1.According to the author, in the area of the Central Valley____.

A．rains usually come without thunder and lightning.

B．it is usually dry in April

C．children pay no attention to the two natural wonders.

D．parents are not interested in thunder and lightning.

2.We believe that lightning is a downward motion because_______.

A．we were taught so by our parents from our childhood.

B．we are taken in by our sense of vision.

C．it is a common natural sight.

D．it is a truth proved by science.

3.What is TRUE about lightning according to the passage?

A．Only a small number of lightning flashes occur on earth.

B．Lightning flashes usually jump from one cloud to another.

C．Lightning travels 5 times faster than thunder.

D．There are far more lightning strikes occurring on earth than we can imagine.

4.The underlined word “activity”  is most closely related to the word (s) _____.

A．cloud

B．lightning strikes

C．lightning flashes

D．thunderstorms

5.It can be concluded from the passage that _______.

A．we should not believe what we see or hear.

B．things moving downward are more noticeable.

C．people sometimes may have wrong ideas about ordinary phenomena.

D．adults are not as good as children in observing certain natural phenomena.

 

In earliest times, men considered lightning （闪电）to be one of the great mysteries（神密） of nature． Some ancient people believed that lightning and thunder were the weapons(武器) of the gods．

    In reality lightning is a flow of electricity （电流）formed high above the earth． A single flash（闪烁） of lightning 1.6 kilometers long has enough electricity to light one million light bulbs．

    The American scientist and statesman, Benjamin Franklin, was the first to show the connection between electricity and lightning in 1752． In the same year he also built the first Lightning Rod (避雷针)． His device（发明物） protects buildings from being damaged by lightning．

     Modern science has discovered that one stroke of lightning contains more than 15 million volts(伏特)． A spark（火花） between a cloud and the earth may be as long as 13 kilometers, and travel at a speed of 30 million meters per second．Scientists estimate (估计) that there are about 2,000 million flashes of lightning per year． Lightning hits the Empire, State Building in New York City 30 to 48 times a year． In the United States alone it kills an average of one person every day．

    The safest place to be in case of an electrical storm is in a closed car． Outside, one should go to low ground and not get under trees． Also, one should stay out of water and away from metal fences． Inside a house, people should avoid open doorways and windows and not touch wires or metal things．

    With lightning, it's better to be safe than sorry.?

Lightning is actually ＿＿＿＿＿．

  A．weapon     B．electricity     C．light     D．mystery

People once thought that lightning came from ＿＿＿＿＿＿．

  A．scientists     B．ground    C．lightning rod     D．gods

Benjamin Franklin ＿＿＿＿＿＿．

  A. made the first lightning rod    B．built the Empire State Building

  C. invented electricity           D．prevented lightning from hitting cars

＿＿＿＿＿＿is the best place to be in during an electricity storm．

  A．Swimming pool   B. A high place   C．Under a tree  D．A car

Although April did not bring us the rains we all hoped for, and although the Central Valley doesn’t generally experience the sound and lightning that can go with those rains, it’s still important for parents to be able to answer the youthful questions about thunder and lightning.
The reason these two wonders of nature are so difficult for many adults to explain to children is that they are not very well understood by adults themselves. For example, did you know that the lightning we see flashing down to the earth from a cloud is actually flashing up to a cloud from the earth? Our eyes trick us into thinking we see a downward motion when it’s actually the other way around. But then, if we believed only what we think and we see, we’d still insist that the sun rises in the morning and sets at night.
Most lightning flashes take place inside a cloud, and only a relative few can be seen jumping between two clouds or between earth and a cloud. But, with about 2,000 thunderstorms taking place above the earth every minute of the day and night, there’s enough activity to produce about 100 lightning strikes on earth every second.
Parents can use thunder and lightning to help their children learn more about the world around them. When children understand that the light of the lightning flashing reaches their eyes almost at the same moment, but the sound of the thunder takes about 5 seconds to travel just one mile, they can begin to time the interval (间隔) between the flash and the crash to learn how lose they were to the actual spark (闪光).
【小题1】According to the author, in the area of the Central Valley____.

A．rains usually come without thunder and lightning.

B．it is usually dry in April

C．children pay no attention to the two natural wonders.

D．parents are not interested in thunder and lightning.

【小题2】We believe that lightning is a downward motion because_______.

A．we were taught so by our parents from our childhood.

B．we are taken in by our sense of vision.

C．it is a common natural sight.

D．it is a truth proved by science.

【小题3】What is TRUE about lightning according to the passage?

A．Only a small number of lightning flashes occur on earth.

B．Lightning flashes usually jump from one cloud to another.

C．Lightning travels 5 times faster than thunder.

D．There are far more lightning strikes occurring on earth than we can imagine.

【小题4】The underlined word “activity”  is most closely related to the word (s) _____.

A．cloud

B．lightning strikes

C．lightning flashes

D．thunderstorms

【小题5】It can be concluded from the passage that _______.

A．we should not believe what we see or hear.

B．things moving downward are more noticeable.

C．people sometimes may have wrong ideas about ordinary phenomena.

D．adults are not as good as children in observing certain natural phenomena.