The 2012 London Olympics had enough problems to worry about. But one more has just been added -- a communications blackout caused by solar storms.

　　After a period of calm within the Sun, scientists have detected the signs of a flesh cycle of sunspots that could peak in 2012, just in time for the arrival of the Olympic torch in London.

　　Now scientists believe that this peak could result in vast solar explosions that could throw billions of tons of charged matter towards the Earth, causing strong solar storms that could jam the telecommunications satellites and interact links sending five Olympic broadcast from London.

　　"The Sun's activity has a strong influence on the Earth. The Olympics could be in the middle of the next solar maximum which could affect the functions of communications satellites," said Professor Richard Harrison, head of space physics at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxfordshire.

　　At the peak of the cycle, violent outbursts called coronal mass ejections (日冕物质抛射) occur in the Sun's atmosphere, throwing out great quantities of electrically-charged matter. "A coronal mass ejection can carry a billion tons of solar material into space at over a million kilometres per hour. Such events can expose astronauts to a deadly amount, can disable satellites, cause power failures on Earth and disturb communications," Professor Harrison added. The risk is the greatest during a solar maximum when there is the greatest number of sunspots.

　　Next week in America, NASA is scheduled to launch a satellite for monitoring solar activity called the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), which will take images of the Sun that are 10 times clearer than the most advanced televisions available.

　　The Rutherford Appleton Laboratory helped to make the high-tech cameras that will capture images of the solar flares (太阳耀斑) and explosions as they occur.

　　Professor Richard Harrison, the lab's director, said that the SDO should be able to provide early warning of a solar flare or explosion big enough to affect satellite communications on Earth "If we have advanced warning, we'll be able to reduce the damage. What you don't want is things switching off for a week with no idea of what's caused the problem," he said.

1.The phrase "communications blackout" in paragraph 1 most probably refers to____________ during the 2012 Olympics.

A．the extinguishing of the Olympic torch

B．the collapse of broadcasting systems

C．the transportation breakdown in London

D．the destruction of weather satellites

2.According to the passage, scientists are convinced that __________.

A．the sun’s activities have little to do with the earth

B．the London Olympic broadcasting will be possibly influenced by the 2012 peak of sunspots

C．the 2012 Olympic Games are during the solar maximum of throwing out greatest number of sunspots

D．solar explosion will cause strong storms on the earth

3.What can be inferred about the solar activity described in the passage?

A．The most fatal matter from the corona falls onto Earth.

B．The solar storm peak occurs in the middle of each cycle.

C．It takes several seconds for the charged matter to reach Earth.

D．The number of sunspots declines after coronal mass ejections.

4.According to the passage, NASA will launch a satellite to _________.

A．take images of the solar system

B．provide early warning of thunderstorms

C．keep track of solar activities

D．improve the communications on Earth

5.Which of the following might be the best title of the passage?

A．Solar Storms: An Invisible Killer

B．Solar Storms: Earth Environment in Danger

C．Solar Storms: Threatening the Human Race

D．Solar Storms: Human Activities to Be Troubled

 

I suddenly heard an elephant crying as though frightened. Looking down，I immediately recognized that something was wrong，and ran down to the edge of the near bank. There I saw Ma Shwe with her three­month­old calf struggling in the fast-rising water，and it was a life­and­death struggle. Her calf was floating(漂浮) and screaming with fear.Ma Shwe was as near to the far bank as she could get，holding her whole body against the rushing water，and keeping the calf pressed against her huge body.Every now and then the rushing water would sweep the calf away.

There was a sudden rise in the water and the calf was washed clean over the mother's body and was gone. Ma Shwe turned quickly to reach it and pressed the calf with her head and trunk (象鼻) against the rocky bank. Then with a huge effort，she picked it up in her trunk and tried until she was able to place it on a narrow shelf of rock.

Just at this moment，she fell back into the river. If she were carried down，it would be certain death. I knew，as well as she did，that there was one spot (地点) where she could get up the bank，but it was on the other side from where she had put her calf.

While I was wondering what I could do next，I heard the sound of a mother's love. Ma Shwe had crossed the river and got up the bank and was making her way back as fast as she could，roaring (吼叫) all the time，but to her calf it was music.

1.The moment the author got down to the river bank he saw　　　　.

A. the calf was about to fall into the river

B. Ma Shwe was placing the calf on the rock

C. the calf was washed away by the rising water

D. Ma Shwe was holding the calf against the rushing water

2.How did Ma Shwe manage to save her calf from the fast flowing water？

A. By putting it on a safe spot.      B. By pressing it against her body.

C. By taking it away with her.       D. By carrying it on her back.

3.How did the calf feel about the mother elephant's roaring？

A. It was a great comfort.       B. It was a sign of danger.

C. It was a call for help.        D. It was a musical note.

4.What can be the best title for the text？

A.A Mother's Love         B.A Brave Act

C.A Deadly River           D.A Matter of Life and Death

 

The 2012 London Olympics had enough problems to worry about. But one more has just been added -- a communications blackout caused by solar storms.
　　After a period of calm within the Sun, scientists have detected the signs of a flesh cycle of sunspots that could peak in 2012, just in time for the arrival of the Olympic torch in London.
　　Now scientists believe that this peak could result in vast solar explosions that could throw billions of tons of charged matter towards the Earth, causing strong solar storms that could jam the telecommunications satellites and interact links sending five Olympic broadcast from London.
　　"The Sun's activity has a strong influence on the Earth. The Olympics could be in the middle of the next solar maximum which could affect the functions of communications satellites," said Professor Richard Harrison, head of space physics at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxfordshire.
　　At the peak of the cycle, violent outbursts called coronal mass ejections (日冕物质抛射) occur in the Sun's atmosphere, throwing out great quantities of electrically-charged matter. "A coronal mass ejection can carry a billion tons of solar material into space at over a million kilometres per hour. Such events can expose astronauts to a deadly amount, can disable satellites, cause power failures on Earth and disturb communications," Professor Harrison added. The risk is the greatest during a solar maximum when there is the greatest number of sunspots.
　　Next week in America, NASA is scheduled to launch a satellite for monitoring solar activity called the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), which will take images of the Sun that are 10 times clearer than the most advanced televisions available.
　　The Rutherford Appleton Laboratory helped to make the high-tech cameras that will capture images of the solar flares (太阳耀斑) and explosions as they occur.
　　Professor Richard Harrison, the lab's director, said that the SDO should be able to provide early warning of a solar flare or explosion big enough to affect satellite communications on Earth "If we have advanced warning, we'll be able to reduce the damage. What you don't want is things switching off for a week with no idea of what's caused the problem," he said.
【小题1】The phrase "communications blackout" in paragraph 1 most probably refers to____________ during the 2012 Olympics.

A．the extinguishing of the Olympic torch

B．the collapse of broadcasting systems

C．the transportation breakdown in London

D．the destruction of weather satellites

【小题2】According to the passage, scientists are convinced that __________.

A．the sun’s activities have little to do with the earth

B．the London Olympic broadcasting will be possibly influenced by the 2012 peak of sunspots

C．the 2012 Olympic Games are during the solar maximum of throwing out greatest number of sunspots

D．solar explosion will cause strong storms on the earth

【小题3】What can be inferred about the solar activity described in the passage?

A．The most fatal matter from the corona falls onto Earth.

B．The solar storm peak occurs in the middle of each cycle.

C．It takes several seconds for the charged matter to reach Earth.

D．The number of sunspots declines after coronal mass ejections.

【小题4】According to the passage, NASA will launch a satellite to _________.

A．take images of the solar system

B．provide early warning of thunderstorms

C．keep track of solar activities

D．improve the communications on Earth

【小题5】Which of the following might be the best title of the passage?

A．Solar Storms: An Invisible Killer

B．Solar Storms: Earth Environment in Danger

C．Solar Storms: Threatening the Human Race

D．Solar Storms: Human Activities to Be Troubled

The government-run command post in Tunis is staffed around the clock by military personnel, meteorologists and civilians. On the wall are maps, crisscrossed with brightly colors arrows that painstakingly track the fearsome path of the enemy.

　　What kind of invader gives rise to such high-level monitoring? Not man, not beast, but the lowly desert locust(蝗虫). In recent months, billions of the 3-inch-long winged warriors have descended on Algeria, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia, blackening the sky and eating up crops and vegetation. The insect invasion, the worst in 30 years, is already creating great destruction in the Middle East and is now treating southern Europe. The current crisis began in late 1985 near the Red Sea. Unusually rainy weather moistened the sands of the Sudan, making them ideal seedbed for the locust, which lays its eggs in the earth. The insect onslaught threatens to create yet another African famine. Each locust can eat its weight (not quite a tenth of an ounce) in vegetation every 24 hours. A good-size swarm of 50 billion insects eats up 100,000 tons of grass, trees and crops in a single night.

　　All ﹩150 million may be needed this year. The U.S. has provided two spraying planes and about 50,000 gal. of pesticide. The European Community has donated ﹩3.8 million in aid and the Soviet Union, Canada, Japan and China have provided chemical-spraying aircraft to help wipe out the pests. But relief efforts are hampered by the relative mildness of approved pesticides, which quickly lose their deadly punch and require frequent replications. The most effective locust killer dieldrin has been linked to cancer and is banned by many Western countries and some of the affected African nations. More than 5 million acres have been dusted with locust-killing chemicals; another 5 million will be treated by the end of June.

　　On May 30, representatives of Tunisia, Algeria, Libya, Morocco and Mauritania will meet in Algiers to discuss tactics to wipe out the ravenous swarms. The move is an important step, but whatever plan is devised, the locust plague promised to get worse before the insects can be brought under control.

1.The main idea of the first sentence in the passage is that ______.

　 A. the command post is stationed with people all the time.

　 B. the command post is crowded with people all the time.

　 C. there are clocks around the command post.

　 D. the clock in the command post is taken care of by the staff.

2.The favorable breeding ground for the locust is ______.

　 A. rich soil.                               B. wet land

　 C. paces covered crops and vegetation        D. the Red Sea

3.People are alert at the threat of the locust because ______.

　 A. the insects are likely to create another African famine.

　 B. the insects may blacken the sky.

　 C. the number of the insects increases drastically.

　 D. the insects are gathering and moving in great speed.

4.Which of the following is true?

　 A. Once the pesticides are used, locust will die immediately.

　 B. Relief efforts are proved most fruitful due to the effectiveness of certain pesticides.

　 C. Dieldrin, the most effective locust killer, has been widely accepted in many countries.

　 D. Over 10 million acres of affected area will have been treated with locust-killing chemicals by the end of June.

5. The purpose for affected nations to meet in Algiers on May 30 is ______.

　 A. to devise anti-locust plans.

　 B. to wipe out the swarms in two years.

　 C. to call out for additional financial aid from other nations.

D. to bring the insects under control before the plague gets worse.

 

The government-run command post in Tunis is staffed around the clock by military personnel, meteorologists and civilians. On the wall are maps, crisscrossed with brightly colors arrows that painstakingly track the fearsome path of the enemy.

　　What kind of invader gives rise to such high-level monitoring? Not man, not beast, but the lowly desert locust(蝗虫). In recent months, billions of the 3-inch-long winged warriors have descended on Algeria, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia, blackening the sky and eating up crops and vegetation. The insect invasion, the worst in 30 years, is already creating great destruction in the Middle East and is now treating southern Europe. The current crisis began in late 1985 near the Red Sea. Unusually rainy weather moistened the sands of the Sudan, making them ideal seedbed for the locust, which lays its eggs in the earth. The insect onslaught threatens to create yet another African famine. Each locust can eat its weight (not quite a tenth of an ounce) in vegetation every 24 hours. A good-size swarm of 50 billion insects eats up 100,000 tons of grass, trees and crops in a single night.

　　All ﹩150 million may be needed this year. The U.S. has provided two spraying planes and about 50,000 gal. of pesticide. The European Community has donated ﹩3.8 million in aid and the Soviet Union, Canada, Japan and China have provided chemical-spraying aircraft to help wipe out the pests. But relief efforts are hampered by the relative mildness of approved pesticides, which quickly lose their deadly punch and require frequent replications. The most effective locust killer dieldrin has been linked to cancer and is banned by many Western countries and some of the affected African nations. More than 5 million acres have been dusted with locust-killing chemicals; another 5 million will be treated by the end of June.

　　On May 30, representatives of Tunisia, Algeria, Libya, Morocco and Mauritania will meet in Algiers to discuss tactics to wipe out the ravenous swarms. The move is an important step, but whatever plan is devised, the locust plague promised to get worse before the insects can be brought under control.[来源:Zxxk.Com]

1.The main idea of the first sentence in the passage is that ______.

　 A. the command post is stationed with people all the time.

　 B. the command post is crowded with people all the time.

　 C. there are clocks around the command post.

　 D. the clock in the command post is taken care of by the staff.

2. The favorable breeding ground for the locust is ______.

　 A. rich soil.                               B. wet land

　 C. paces covered crops and vegetation        D. the Red Sea

3. People are alert at the threat of the locust because ______.

　 A. the insects are likely to create another African famine.

　 B. the insects may blacken the sky.

　 C. the number of the insects increases drastically.

　 D. the insects are gathering and moving in great speed.

4.Which of the following is true?

　 A. Once the pesticides are used, locust will die immediately.

　 B. Relief efforts are proved most fruitful due to the effectiveness of certain pesticides.

　 C. Dieldrin, the most effective locust killer, has been widely accepted in many countries.

　 D. Over 10 million acres of affected area will have been treated with locust-killing chemicals by the end of June.

5. The purpose for affected nations to meet in Algiers on May 30 is ______.

　 A. to devise anti-locust plans.

　 B. to wipe out the swarms in two years.

　 C. to call out for additional financial aid from other nations.

D. to bring the insects under control before the plague gets worse.