Do you know what the White House is? Perhaps some of you do，while others don't.

　The White House is a house in Washington. The president of the U.S.A. lives in it. It's really white. But do you know why the White House is white? The story happened in 1812. That year England was at war with America. The British army got to Washington and set the president's house on fire. In 1814，in order to hide the marks of the fire，the stone walls of the president's house were painted white and it has been the “White House”ever since.

1. White House is a house for ___________.

　　  A. the American people.　　  B. the soldiers of U.S.A.   C. the presidents of U.S.A.　 

2.England fought with America in ____________.

　　  A. 1810　　　　　　       B. 1812　　　 C. 1814　　　  　　 

3. The house is called “White House” because ____________.

　　  A. it's covered with snow      B. the house is very clean

 C. the stone walls of the house were painted white

4.The White House was painted white because ____________.

　　  A. the house is old　　  B. the house is new  C. it was once on fire and was with marks

5. “ever since” means ___________.

　　  A. never　　               B. once　　   C. from then on　　

 

Venice(威尼斯) is the "Queen" of the Adriatic Sea(亚得里亚海). Every year thousands of people from all over the world travel to Italy to visit the city. Do you know why they like to go there for a visit?
Venice is a very beautiful city. It is quite different from other cities in the world. There aren't any roads or streets in the city, so there aren't any cars or buses. There are many canals（运河）in the city. There is one big canal and one hundred and seventy-seven small canals. People move up and down the canals in boats to go to work, go shopping or visit their friends.
But Venice is sinking(下沉）It is going down and the water is going up. In 2040 Venice will be under water. The Adriatic Sea will cover (覆盖) the city. The Venetians(威尼斯人） love their city and want to stay there. So they want to save(拯救)Venice form the sea. They do not want to leave. How can they save Venice? They can build some strong huge walls and gates in the sea. The gates will close to keep too much water out. In this way Venice will not sink.
【小题1】People from all parts of the world go to visit Venice because________.

A．it is beautiful and quite different from other cities

B．there are a lot of kinds of boats on the canals

C．there are 177 canals in the city

D．it is the most important city in Italy

【小题2】 The Venetians usually go to work or visit their friends________.                                                 

A．by bus

B．in boats

C．in cars

D．on foot

【小题3】 Year by year the Adriatic Sea ________ and Venice________.                                                       

A．is rising; is sinking

B．is going down; is going up

C．is going up; is going up

D．is sinking; is rising

— Do you know why he left so early?
—_______for the English test, I guess.

A．To study

B．Study

C．Studied

D．Studying

Do you know why different animals or pests (昆虫) have their special colors? Colors in them seem to be used mainly to protect themselves.

　　Some birds like eating locusts (蝗虫), but birds cannot easily catch them. Why? It is because locusts change their colors together with the change of the colors of crops(庄稼). When crops are green, locusts look green. But as the harvest time comes, locusts change to the same brown color as crops have. Some other pests with different colors from plants are easily found and eaten by others. So they have to hide themselves for lives and appear only at night.

If you study the animal life, you’ll find the main use of coloring is to protect themselves. Bears, lions and other animals move quietly through forests. They cannot be easily seen by hunters (猎人). This is because they have the colors much like the trees.

Have you ever noticed an even stranger act? A kind of fish in the sea can send out a kind of very black liquid (液体)when it faces danger. While the liquid spreads over (散开), its enemies (敌人)cannot find it. And it immediately swims away. So it has lived up to now though it is not strong at all.

1.From the passage we learn that locusts________.

A．are small animals	B．are easily found by birds
C．are dangerous to their enemies	D．change their colors to protect themselves

2.How can pests with different colors from plants keep out of danger?

A．They run away quickly.	B．They have the colors much like their enemies.
C．They hide themselves by day and appear at night.	D．They have to move quietly.

3.Bears and lions can keep safe because _________.

A．they have the colors much like the trees	B．they move quietly
C．they like brown and gray colors	D．they live in forests

4.Why can the kind of fish live up to now?

A．Because it is very and strong.

B．Because the liquid it sends out can help it escape from its enemies.

C．Because the liquid it sends out can kill its enemies.

D．Because it swims faster than any other fish.

5.Which is the best title for this passage?

A．The Change of Colors for Animals and Pests	B．Colors of Different Animals and Pests
C．The Main Use of Colors for Animals and Pests	D．Some Animals and Pests