The Red Panda isn’t much bigger than an average size house cat. At first you may think it’s a bear because of its name. They’re actually a member of the raccoon(浣熊) family which you can tell if you look at their appearance. The Red Panda has a long bushy tail that is useful in two ways. It helps them stay balanced when they are high up in the trees and it keeps them warm in cold weather. Their fur is thick and reddish brown, which may be why they’re known as the fire fox.
The Red Panda can be found in forested mountains. They’re originally from the forested mountain in the Himalayas in India, Nepal and Southern China. Bamboo is the most important part of their diet. They only eat the young leaves and shoots (嫩芽) of a bamboo plant. Red Pandas have a very low metabolic(新陈代谢的) rate in order to deal with their low energy diet and cool environmental temperatures.
They’re very shy and gentle and don’t hang around the wild too much during the day. If they feel endangered, they’ll stand on their back legs and make a hissing(嘶嘶) sound. Red Pandas are good climbers and spend most of their time living mainly in trees. Their claws are very strong and help them hold onto the branches. They sleep in an unusual way by curling up tightly and wrapping their tails around their heads while sitting on a branch. Sometimes they’ll sleep with their head beneath their chest and behind their back feet. This is the same position as an American raccoon sleeps.
【小题1】You can tell that the Red Panda is a member of the raccoon family from ____.

A．its name

B．its appearance

C．its diet

D．its living place

【小题2】Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．The Red Panda can only be found in India, Nepal and Southern China.

B．The Red Panda’s tail can help it stay balanced when it is high up in the trees.

C．The Red Panda eats the whole of the bamboo.

D．The Red Panda has high metabolic rate when the temperature is low.

【小题3】What will Red Pandas do when they are in trouble?

A．They will hang around the wild during the day.

B．They will climb into the trees.

C．They will wrap their tails around their heads.

D．They will stand on their back legs and make a hissing sound.

【小题4】The Red Panda holds onto the branches with its ____.

A．tail

B．fur

C．back legs

D．claws

Well, when the huge wave hit the boat, my safety belt broke and I was swept overboard. I don’t really understand how it happened, but it did. I heard someone yell out, but then my boat, Wild One, went off into the darkness and I was alone in a very rough sea. I then spent five and a half hours in the water. The place where it happened was, oh, about 50 kilometers from shore. It was likely that I wouldn’t see another day, but I always thought I’d overcome the difficulties. At first I was watching out for Wild One. The rest of the crew knew I was gone, so they were sure to come back and look for me. After a while, I saw the boat’s lights when it came looking for me. They were within about 300 meters of me, but the spotlight just missed me. The reason why they didn’t see me was because of the huge waves. You know, I started sailing when I was seven, and started ocean racing when I was about eighteen, but I’d never been overboard before. I believed I was going to survive, but it was very cold, and as the hours passed I started to get desperate——and frozen! It was around 5 am when I saw the lights of a tanker coming towards me. I figured it was probably my last chance. At first, I thought they were going to miss me, and then they made a slight turn and I yelled out “Help!” and they heard me. Then another yacht appeared. These guys were terrific. They gave me dry clothes, and then one jumped into the bunk and hung onto me. They covered us with as much dry clothing as they could, and the guy in with me stayed to transfer his body heat to me.

1.The author of the passage was alone in the sea NOT because ______.

A．the wind was too strong	B．the wave hit the boat
C．the safety belt was broken	D．his boat was in the darkness

2.He was not saved by his crew because ______.

A．he didn’t yell out “Help!”	B．300 meters was long distance
C．he was not found	D．he didn’t see the spotlight

3.It was inferred from the passage that ______.

A．he was swept overboard at about midnight

B．Wild One was the name of a crew member

C．he started ocean racing at about seven

D．he was too hopeless to take the last chance

4. One of the guys who saved him jumped into the bunk in order to ______.

A．cover him with more dry clothes

B．warm him with his body heat

C．comfort him

D．congratulate him

 

The Red Panda isn’t much bigger than an average size house cat. At first you may think it’s a bear because of its name. They’re actually a member of the raccoon(浣熊) family which you can tell if you look at their appearance. The Red Panda has a long bushy tail that is useful in two ways. It helps them stay balanced when they are high up in the trees and it keeps them warm in cold weather. Their fur is thick and reddish brown, which may be why they’re known as the fire fox.

The Red Panda can be found in forested mountains. They’re originally from the forested mountain in the Himalayas in India, Nepal and Southern China. Bamboo is the most important part of their diet. They only eat the young leaves and shoots (嫩芽) of a bamboo plant. Red Pandas have a very low metabolic(新陈代谢的) rate in order to deal with their low energy diet and cool environmental temperatures.

They’re very shy and gentle and don’t hang around the wild too much during the day. If they feel endangered, they’ll stand on their back legs and make a hissing(嘶嘶) sound. Red Pandas are good climbers and spend most of their time living mainly in trees. Their claws are very strong and help them hold onto the branches. They sleep in an unusual way by curling up tightly and wrapping their tails around their heads while sitting on a branch. Sometimes they’ll sleep with their head beneath their chest and behind their back feet. This is the same position as an American raccoon sleeps.

1.You can tell that the Red Panda is a member of the raccoon family from ____.

A．its name

B．its appearance

C．its diet

D．its living place

2.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．The Red Panda can only be found in India, Nepal and Southern China.

B．The Red Panda’s tail can help it stay balanced when it is high up in the trees.

C．The Red Panda eats the whole of the bamboo.

D．The Red Panda has high metabolic rate when the temperature is low.

3.What will Red Pandas do when they are in trouble?

A．They will hang around the wild during the day.

B．They will climb into the trees.

C．They will wrap their tails around their heads.

D．They will stand on their back legs and make a hissing sound.

4.The Red Panda holds onto the branches with its ____.

A．tail

B．fur

C．back legs

D．claws

 

Snow falls in the Earth’s extreme North and South throughout the year. However， the heaviest snowfalls have been reported in the mountains of other areas during winter. Snow is even known to fall near the Equator (赤道)，but only on the highest mountains.

Snow contains much less water than rain, but much of the water the world uses comes from snow. Melting snow provides water for rivers, electric power stations and agricultural crops. In the western United States, mountain snow provides up to seventy-five percent of all surface water supplies.

Snowfall helps to protect plants and some wild animals from winter weather. Fresh snow is made largely of air trapped among the snow crystals (晶体). Because the air has trouble moving, the movement of heat is limited. Snow also influences the movement of sound waves. The surface of the snow takes in, or absorbs, sound waves. As snow grows older or if there have been strong winds, it can become hard and flat. Then, the snow，s surface will help to send back sound waves.

Snow may be beautiful, but it can be deadly. It is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of people. Many people die in traffic accidents on roads covered with snow and ice or from being seriously stuck in the winter storm. Others die from heart attacks caused by too much physical activity out in the cold.

People may not be able to avoid living in areas where it snows often. However, they can avoid becoming victims of snowstorms. People should stop driving and stay at home until the storm has passed. People living in these areas should carry emergency supplies in their vehicle. These include food，emergency medical supplies，and extra clothing to stay warm and dry.

1.Mountain snowfall _____.

A．is heavier than that in the South and the North Poles

B．has never occurred near the Equator of the earth

C．brings less of the water the world uses than rain does

D．provides up to seventy—five percent of water supplies worldwide

2.Snow protects plants and wild animals from cold weather by _____.

A．supplying much more air                  B．limiting heat movement

C．absorbing strong winds                   D．sending back sound waves

3.Snow can be deadly mainly because it can _____.

A．cause road accidents

B．make people stuck in winter storms

C．lead to heart attacks

D．make people victims of snowstorms

4.What will the text probably tell us following the last paragraph? _.

A．How to drive during snowstorms

B．Where we can get emergency supplies

C．How to prevent heart attacks out in cold

D．Why we should stay warm and dry in winter