1.Which of the following can be used as the best title of the passage?

A.　　 Astronauts Picked up in the Ocean.

B.　　 Radio Waves Sent by Satellites.

C.　　 Satellites in the Sky.

D.　　 Early Bird Flies High.

8.The word guarantees in the last paragraph means ____ in Chinese.

　 A. 禁止　　　　　　　　 B. 允许　　　　　　　　　　 C. 商量　　　　　　　　　　 D. 保证

Words per minute ______

　 %Comprehension _______

Passage 10　

A Satellite

In 1965, two American astronauts (宇航员) landed in the Atlantic Ocean. For the first time, people at home in America and Europe could watch on television as astronauts were picked up. A satellite called Early Bird made this program possible.

　　　 Radio waves go out from the sending station in a straight line. Layers (层) in the atmosphere (大气层) act like a mirror for some of these waves. They bounce (弹起)down from the layers and come back to earth.

　　　 Television programs are carried on a different kind of radio wave. These waves do not bounce of the “mirror.” They go straight through the layers into space. To send television programs around the world, they must be picked up by a satellite high in space and sent back.

　　　 Early Bird is in an orbit 22,300 miles high. Because it travels with the earth, it seems to be standing still. It is always over the same place in the Atlantic Ocean. Television programs are sent up to Early Bird. It sends them into one-third of the earth.

　　　 Two other satellites like Early Bird are now in orbit. The three satellites can send television programs around the world.

　　　　　　　　　　　　 Length 200

Total Reading Time ___

_____________________________________________________________________

Answer the following questions without referring to the reading:

7.It is thought a park would harm agricultural interests.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 T　　 F

6. The Lehman Caves are connected with each other.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 T　　 F

5.The mountains there are quite high above sea level there.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 T　　 F

4.The park is about one square kilometer.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 T　　 F

3.We can conclude from the passage that the highest mountains are

in the middle of the park.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 T　　 F

2. No national park was built in the Great Basin for a long time

because some considered it harmful in some ways.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 T　　 F

1. The best title for this passage should be ___.

1. How the Great Basin Was Named
2. How the Great Basin was found
3. A National Park Coming into Being
4. Great Basin National Park

8.The word igloo in this passage means ___.

A.　　 a kind of house made of wood

B.　　 a kind of house with round roof made of snow

C.　　 a stone house　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

D.　　 a trap used to catch animals

Words per minute ______

%Comprehension _______

Passage 9　

A New Park

The United States has a new national park called Great Basin. It is the first national park in the western state of Nevada. The new park is in the eastern part of Nevada, near the border with Utah. It is far from any city.

In the early 1800s, an American explorer (探险者) traveled through the area. He found the land shaped like a bowl. So he named it the Great Basin. It is a land of unusual beauty and sharp differences.

For example, you can climb a mountain covered with green forest, then cool yourself in a field of snow when you arrive at the top. Here and there, sharp rocks push out through the snow. Among the rocks you might see nest (巢) of the golden eagle, a bird that was once in danger of dying out.

You can climb in a campground on the edge of Lehman Caves. The caves are a group of large underground rooms made of limestone (石灰石). You can walk through them for about a kilometer.

The state of Nevada has wanted a national park for more than sixty years. There has always been opposition (反对) from people who believe that a park would harm mining and agricultural interests.

The bill that set up the park, however, guarantees that mines will remain open, and that sheep and cows will continue to feed on the mountainsides.

　　　　　　　　　　　　 Length 238

Total Reading Time ___

_____________________________________________________________________

Answer the following questions without referring to the reading: