We might not be alone in the universe. Actually, it may be confirmed as a very crowded place by new computer models developed to help identify habitable planets.
Estimates of places where life can exist have been based on the possibility of them having surface water. But software recently developed by the Aberdeen University allows researchers to identify planets with underground water kept liquid by heat from planets.
Water is fundamental for life and planets too close to the sun lose water to the atmosphere through evaporation. On the other hand, planets located in distant reaches from their star have their surface water locked away as ice.
Sean McMahon, who is carrying out the work, explained: "Traditionally people have said that if a planet is in this Goldilocks zone—not too hot and not too cold—then it can have liquid water on its surface and be habitable."
But this concept might change when considering that planets can receive two sources of heat—heat direct from the star and heat generated deep inside the planet.
It is easy to observe it in our own planet. As you go down through the crust (殼) of the Earth, the temperature gets higher and higher. Even when the surface is frozen, water can exist below ground.
There could be immense quantities of water in fact—full of primitive life.
Professor John Parnell, also from Aberdeen University said: "There is a significant habitat for microorganisms below the surface of the Earth, extending down several kilometres".
"And some believe that the majority of life on Earth could even reside in this deep biosphere."
So the Aberdeen team are developing models to predict which distant planets might harbour underground reservoirs of liquid water with the possibility of alien life.
小題1:What is considered as the symbol of life existence traditionally?
A．Solid water on its surface.B．Solid water below ground.
C．Liquid water below ground.D．Liquid water on its surface.
小題2:Why did John Parnell mention the fact about Earth?
A．To prove that there is majority of life on Earth.
B．To prove that life may also exist in other planets.
C．To prove that there is primitive life down through Earth.
D．To prove that there is a habitat for microorganisms below Earth.
小題3:What theory is the Aberdeen team’s study based on?
A．Planets can lose water through evaporation.
B．Planets can receive heat direct from the star.
C．Planets can have their surface water locked away as ice.
D．Planets can receive heat generated deep inside the planet.
小題4:What can we know about the computer models?
A．They will help identify planets where there is life.
B．They will help researchers find Goldilocks zones.
C．They have helped find some significant discoveries.
D．They have already located some habitats for life.

小題1:D
小題2:B
小題3:D
小題4:A

試題分析：文章報(bào)道了在其他星球可能會(huì)存在生命。
小題1:細(xì)節(jié)題：根據(jù)Water is fundamental for life and planets too close to the sun lose water to the atmosphere through evaporation.故選D。
小題2:細(xì)節(jié)題：根據(jù)Professor John Parnell, also from Aberdeen University said: "There is a significant habitat for microorganisms below the surface of the Earth, extending down several kilometres"."And some believe that the majority of life on Earth could even reside in this deep biosphere."可知John Parnel提到地球的這個(gè)事實(shí)是為了證明在其他星球可能會(huì)存在生命。故選B。
小題3:細(xì)節(jié)題：根據(jù)But this concept might change when considering that planets can receive two sources of heat—heat direct from the star and heat generated deep inside the planet.[故選D。
小題4:推理題：根據(jù)We might not be alone in the universe. Actually, it may be confirmed as a very crowded place by new computer models developed to help identify habitable planets.以及So the Aberdeen team are developing models to predict which distant planets might harbour underground reservoirs of liquid water with the possibility of alien life.。故選A。
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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

 “Here is the Eight O’ Clock News.”
“Chinese people spent about 120 billion yuan during the first three days of the May Golden Week last year. This year it has increased to 140 billion yuan.”
“The children of Beijing No.2 Middle School sang with students from Toronto in Canada to celebrate the 20thanniversary. They had been sister schools since 1986. They spent about two weeks together in Beijing. They visited the Great Wall and the Summer Palace. They took a lot of photos in Beihai Park.”
“Have you ever got tired of heavy shopping bags? A new shopping assistant robot which was invented by Japanese company could be the answer. The helpful robot can follow you around and carry several bags. The robot was tested at a shopping center in February 2006. ”
“About 500 people from different countries were in the 2006 “Rock Paper Scissors(剪刀)” World Match in Canada. This event was founded in 1842. It is said playing this game is fun, and also a good way to solve problems among people.”
“And now it’s time for Morning Music.”
小題1:The students from Canada and Beijing No. 2 Middle School didn’t ________.
A．take photosB．visit places of interest
C．sing songsD．have a football match
小題2: This year during the first three days of the May Golden Week, it cost Chinese people ___________ yuan more than that of last year.
A．260,000,000,000B．120,000,000,000
C．140,000,000,000D．20,000,000,000
小題3:Which of the following is not talked about in the news?
A．The robot can help with shopping bags.
B．A Japanese company invented the robot.
C．The robot was tested at a shopping centre.
D．There are such robots in people’s homes now.
小題4:The underlined word “anniversary” means           .
A．birthdayB．yearly return of the date of an event
C．universityD．the new beginning of something important
小題5: Which of the following is a game?
A．Rock Paper ScissorsB．May Golden Week
C．Shopping assistant robotD．A visit to the school

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

Three “Great Walls” built around the United States’ Tornado Alley could reduce tornadoes from destroying billions of dollars in property and endangering millions of lives, a physicist has claimed.
Professor Rongjia Tao of Temple University, Philadelphia unveiled a proposal this week calling for the construction of three 1,000-foot barriers up to 100 miles long, which would act like hill ranges and soften winds before tornadoes could form, the BBC reports.
The $16.9 billion plan would call for the faux hill ranges in North Dakota, along the border between Kansas and Oklahoma, and in Texas and Louisiana, ostensibly saving billions of dollars in damage every year, Tao said. The walls would not shelter towns, he said, but instead would soften the streams of hot southern and cold northern air that form tornadoes when they clash in the first place.
But critics laughed at Tao’s proposals. Leading tornado experts pointed to areas that are already protected by hill ranges the size of the barriers Tao is proposing, yet still have plenty of tornados, like parts of Oklahoma, Arkansas and Missouri. And even if the plan did work, it would create more problems than it would solve, scientists said, by creating catastrophic weather side effects.
“Everybody I know is of 100% agreement – this is a poorly conceived idea,” Professor Joshua Wurman of the Center for Severe Weather Research. “From what I can gather his concept of how tornadoes form is fundamentally flawed（有缺陷的）. Meteorologists（氣象學(xué)家） cringe（尷尬） when they hear about ‘clashing（交鋒） hot and cold air’. It’s a lot more complicated than that.”
小題1:What does the underlined word “unveiled”mean in the fourth paragraph？
A．remindedB．came up withC．referredD．a(chǎn)pplied
小題2:What’s the main idea of the passage?
A．The different opinions on the proposal that the walls will reduce the loss caused by tornadoes.
B．How to solve the problems that are caused by tornadoes.
C．The proposal mentioned in the paragragh is totally wrong.
D．The proposal to reduce tornadoes is effective.
小題3: From the passage, we can infer that__________.
A．the tornadoes form by clashing（交鋒） hot and cold air.
B．if the walls are built, they will work well.
C．if the plan is carried out, we will have more problems than expected.
D．The walls not only soften the winds but also shelter the towns.
小題4:Which of following statements is true according to the passage？
A．Leading tornado experts think that would soften the streams of hot southern and cold northern air that form tornadoes.
B．Professor Joshua Wurman pointed out that the plan will be expensive.
C．Professor Rongjia Tao is against the construction of walls to prevent the tornadoes.
D．the plan will not be carried out because it will creating serious weather side effects.

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

A team of British surgeons has carried out Gaza’s（加沙）first organ transplants for a long-term plan to train local medical staff to perform the operations.
Two patients underwent kidney（腎臟）transplants at the Shifa, Gaza’s biggest public hospital. The operations were conducted a fortnight ago by a volunteer medical team from the Royal Liverpool hospital.
Ziad Matouk, 42, was born with one kidney and was diagnosed with renal failure（腎衰竭）several years ago. Matouk, whose wife donated one of her kidneys, hopes to return to his job within six months. The couple had sought a transplant in Cairo, but were rejected as unsuitable at a state hospital and could not afford the fee at a private hospital. “We were desperate,” said Matouk.
The UK-Gaza link-up began about a year ago after Abdelkader Hammad, a doctor at the Royal Liverpool hospital, was contacted by an anaesthetist（麻醉師）at the Shifa, who outlined the difficulties the Gaza hospital was facing with dialysis（透析）. The Shifa is forced to rely on generators because of power cuts; spare parts for its ageing dialysis machines have been difficult to import; and supplies of consumables are often scarce. After an exploratory trip last April, Hammad---whose family is Palestinian---and three colleagues from Liverpool arrived in Gaza via Egypt last month, bringing specialist equipment. Two patients were selected for surgery. The first, Mohammed Duhair, 42, received a kidney donated by his younger brother in a six-hour operation. Two days later, Matouk received a transplant after his wife, Nadia, 36, was found to be a good match. The surgeon was carried out by the British team, assisted by doctors and nurses from the Shifa. “We are very satisfied with the results,” said Sobbi Skaik, head of surgery at the Gaza hospital.
Skaik hopes that Gaza medical teams will eventually carry out kidney transplants independently, and that other organ transplants may follow. The Shifa is working with the Gaza ministry of health on a plan to train its doctors, surgeons, nursing staff and laboratory technicians in transplant surgery at the Royal Liverpool. “Funding is a problem,” said Hammad. “In the meantime we’ll go back as volunteers to Gaza for the next couple of years to do more transplants.” The Liverpool team’s next visit is scheduled for May.
小題1:What effect does Gaza’s first organ transplants hopes to get?
A．Helping poor Gaza people to regain health to make more money.
B．Releasing Gaza hospitals’ pressure of lack of professional doctors.
C．Assisting the Royal Liverpool hospital in perfecting their operations.
D．Calling for international attention at Gaza’s poor medical service.
小題2:Why did the state hospital refuse to practice surgeon for Ziad Matouk?
A．Because he couldn’t afford the fee at a public hospital.
B．Because the hospital didn’t accept dangerous patients.
C．Because they couldn’t find a matched organ.
D．Because his condition was untreatable.
小題3:What is the beginning of the cooperation between the Royal Liverpool hospital and Gaza?
A．A UK doctor contacted Gaza hospital.
B．The Shifa imported medical machines from UK.
C．Ziad Matouk’s condition seemed to get worse.
D．A Shifa doctor turned to Royal Liverpool hospital for help.
小題4:What did Dr. Hammad and his team do recently?
A．They had an exploratory trip in Egypt last April.
B．They carried out surgeries to test Gaza’s medical equipment.
C．They carried out two transplant surgeries in Gaza.
D．They sought assistance from the hospital of the Shifa.

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

Few laws are so effective that you can see results just days after they take effect.But in the nine days since the federal cigarette tax more than doubled－to $1.01 per pack－smokers have jammed telephone “quit lines” across the country seeking to kick the habit.
This is not a surprise to public health advocates.They've studied the effect of state tax increases for years，finding that smokers，especially teens，are price sensitive.Nor is it a shock to the industry，which fiercely fights every tax increase.
The only wonder is that so many states insist on closing their ears to the message.Tobacco taxes improve public health，they raise money and most particularly，they deter people from taking up the habit as teens，which is when nearly all smokers are addicted.Yet the rate of taxation varies widely.
In Manhattan，for instance，which has the highest tax in the nation，a pack of Marlboro Light Kings，cost $10.06 at one drugstore Wednesday.In Charleston，S.C.，where the 7 cent a pack tax is the lowest in the nation，the price was $4.78.
The influence is obvious.

In New York，high school smoking hit a new low in the latest surveys－13.8%，far below the national average.By comparison,26% of high school students smoke in Kentucky.Other low tax states have similarly depressing teen smoking records.
Hal Rogers，Representative from Kentucky，like those who are against high tobacco taxes，argues that the burden of the tax falls on low?income Americans “who choose to smoke.”
That's true.But there is more reason in keeping future generations of low?income workers from getting hooked in the first place.As for today's adults，if the new tax drives them to quit，they will have more to spend on their families，cut their risk of cancer and heart disease and feel better.
小題1:The text is mainly about ________.
A．the price of cigarettes
B．the rate of teen smoking
C．the effect of tobacco tax increase
D．the differences in tobacco tax rate
小題2:What can we learn from the last paragraph?
A．The new tax will be beneficial in the long run.
B．Low?income Americans are more likely to fall ill.
C．Future generations will be hooked on smoking.
D．Adults will depend more on their families.
小題3:Rogers' attitude towards the low?income smokers might be that of ________.
A．toleranceB．unconcern
C．doubtD．sympathy
小題4:What does the author think is a surprise?
A．Teen smokers are price sensitive.
B．Some states still keep the tobacco tax low.
C．Tobacco taxes improve public health.
D．Tobacco industry fiercely fights the tax rise.

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

SYDNEY 2005-01-01 08:30—Mother of two, Jillian Searle, had to choose between her children when she made a life—or—death decision.
Swept up by mountainous tsunami waves at a Thai resort, she could not hold on to both her young sons and survive. Fighting to stay above the waters, she had to choose which one would have to take his chances in the swirling torrent.
“I knew I had to let go of one of them and I just thought I’d better let go of the one that’s the older,” she told Sky News television in a report broadcast on Thursday. She said she was accompanied by the two, Lachie, 5, and two—year—old Blake, and their father, Brad, who had watched the drama helplessly from their first-floor hotel room, when the waves struck.” And I was screaming, trying to find him, and we thought he was dead.”she told reporters on arrival back in Australia.
Lachie was found alive about 2 hours later clinging to a door and looked uninjured as his mother spoke to reporters.
British surfer Martin Markwell is also a lucky man. He had always dreamed of catching that perfect wave—but when it finally came along, it was a nightmare. He was on his surfboard when he was swept up by a tsunami wave.
“It was really terrible because I was surfing, I was really surfing on a wave I wasn’t supposed to be on,”he said. “As an experienced surfer, when I saw the wave come I realized something was wrong, but I couldn’t escape because my surfboard was tied to my ankle.”
His wife, Vicki and son Jake looked on in horror from a hotel balcony as he crashed towards the shore. Luckily, he stayed atop his board until he reached the hotel, jumped off and got to safety as the ocean rolled back to feed a much larger tsunami wave on its way. The family regrouped and ran to safety just minute before a giant tsunami wave 10 meters high.
小題1:When the waves struck ,the father Brad________.
A．reported the disaster to Sky News television
B．was watching a drama on TV in the hotel
C．tried to find his son lost in the waters
D．watched things going on, unable to do anything
小題2:The underlined word”him” refers to ______
A．a(chǎn)n old manB．LachieC．BradD．Blake
小題3:Which is not true about Lachie and Martin?
A．They and their family were at the resort when the disaster happened.
B．They both survived from the high waves when tsunami struck.
C．They were both travelers from Europe on holiday in Thailand.
D．They were both alive owing to their proper judgment and determination.
小題4:Which of the following is the best title?
A．Narrow EscapeB．Disaster Caused by Tsunami
C．Exciting Surfing ExperienceD．Struggle Against Tsunami

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

He’s not just a pretty face! Famous actor Josh Duhamel leads a group of youngsters in a two-mile charity beach run. He may be an attractive movie star, but there’s more to Josh Duhamel than a pretty face. The 40-year-old actor led a youth charity fun run for the third year running on Sunday, in aid of the Red Cross giving a hand to countries and places suffering natural disasters.
Josh sported the charity’s T-shirt and black baseball cap with black jogging bottoms as he joined a group of youngsters in the two-mile effort on Santa Monica Beach. Josh was clearly enjoying himself today, sprinting across the finish line raising both arms in a victory salute.
In March last year and January of 2010, Josh led thousands of runners and raised over $200,000 for both Japanese and Haitian earthquake relief efforts. And donations collected at this year’s Youth Run will go towards the American Red Cross PrepareSoCal campaign which helps Southern Californians get ready for disasters.
“I do the youth run because I feel that younger people may not be able to donate a lot of money but that doesn’t mean that they can’t contribute and make a difference,” Josh told the Red Cross website. “Bringing students of L. A. together for these events not only raises a lot of money, but also raises the spirits of those affected by any disaster and helps everyone young and old.”
Duhamel had won the title of Male Model of the Year in an International Modeling and Talent Association competition in 1997. Duhamel began his acting career as an extra in the music videos for Donna Summer’s song, “I Will Go With You” in 1998. Later that year, he won the role of Leo Pres on the ABC soap opera “All My Children”. He then began appearing in films, and his acting in the film “Transformers” as well as its sequels was so successful that he became a pop film star.
小題1:Josh Duhamel led the beach run to help the Red Cross ________.
A．raise money for places suffering from disasters
B．raise money for people suffering from diseases
C．find more young volunteers especially teenagers
D．build up a fame of having the spirit of entertainment
小題2:How did Josh Duhamel feel about his joining in the beach run?
A．He felt it the best way to kill time especially on weekends.
B．He disliked it when there were reporters coming here.
C．He thought it a best chance to make himself famous.
D．He found it enjoyable and exciting to be a member.
小題3:What will the received donations of this year be used for?
A．Helping Japanese and Haitian defeat earthquakes.
B．Helping Southern Californians get ready for disasters.
C．Helping Northern Californians get ready for disasters.
D．Helping relieve Southern Californians defeat earthquakes.
小題4:What is the aim of the youth run of L. A.?
A. To persuade more young people to keep the earth green.
B. To make the young realize the influence of famous people.
C. To inspire those affected by disasters and give them a hand.
D. To raise as much money as possible to help the old and young.
小題5:What is the main idea of the last paragraph?
A．The importance of the youth run started by the Red Cross.
B．The methods to join in the youth run led by Josh Duhamel.
C．The reason why Josh Duhamel leads the youth run.
D．The experiences and achievements of Josh Duhamel.

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

According to Hunan Daily, in Yongxing County of Hunan Province, retired teacher Chen and his wife are living in a natural cave (山洞), and they quite enjoy such life.
Chen’s cave is 20 meters wide and 8 meters deep. Lichens (青苔)can be seen everywhere in it. Chen says that the place is free of pollution.
Because of being poor, they moved into the cave, Chen said. In 1975, the houses of his families and his neighbors were all burned to the ground in the fire. Chen was then already married and badly needed a house to live in. But he had no money to build a house, so he had to live in his relatives’ houses as long as 5 years.
In 1980, he happened to discover this cave, immediately he and his family members decided to live in there. Chen thought the cave could be a temporary（臨時(shí)的）living place, but it never occurred to him that it could be his home in the next 28 years. Chen recalled that the first couple of days were the most difficult period, “I put up some wooden boards for a gate, but they were all blown away by wind that same night.”
Chen has two sons and a daughter, and they all left the cave after they got married. Now Chen’s old friends once in a while visit him in his cave drinking and playing Chinese chess. For Chen, the most enjoyable thing is to raise bees and grow kinds of plants.
小題1:From the passage we know what Chen likes to do most is ____.
A．drinking and playing chess with his friends
B．raising bees and growing plants
C．doing farm work in the fields
D．recalling his past life
小題2:What had happened to his house before he moved into the cave?
A．His house was blown away by wind.
B．His house was washed away by floods.
C．His house was destroyed by fire.
D．The text doesn’t mention it.
小題3:Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A．All of Chen’s children are studying in the university.
B．Chen’s friends hardly come to the cave to see him.
C．Chen and his children still live together in the cave.
D．Chen found the cave quite by accident.
小題4:The purpose of the passage is to ____.          
A．introduce a natural cave to people
B．tell us something about a teacher living in the cave for 28 years
C．explain how the Chens suffered during the 28 years
D．expect more people to visit Chen’s cave

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

The environmental group 350.org has launched a new campaign called Climate Name Change that proposes to revise to how hurricanes are named: call them after policymakers who say that humans are not to blame for global warming.
This will save the Katrinas and Sandys of the world from the injustice of having their names attached to major disaster, the group says. And, as a bonus, it will produce some peculiar weather reports.
“Rick Perry leaves trail of death,” appears under a broadcast titled “Rick Perry: The Tragedy.”
“Michelle Bachman is incredibly dangerous. If you value your life, please seek shelter from Michelle Bachman,” says an official while addressing a news conference.
The campaign is unlikely to influence the World Meteorological Organization, which has since 1954 named Atlantic tropical storms from an official list.
But the campaign’s goal seems less to actually name a hurricane after the speaker of the house, and more to call attention to an issue that this month has reached an alarming level of seriousness. The campaign comes just a month before the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change will release its most recent report on the state of global warming and a week after a draft（草稿）of the report was given away to Reuters.
In the draft, scientists concluded with near certainty – about 95 percent sure – that humans are to blame for the worldwide temperature hikes over the last few decades. That was a revision from the 2007 report, which put scientific certainty that human activities were driving global climate change at about 90 percent.
And global warming, the report said, is not slowing down – it, actually, is accelerating. That means that sea levels could balloon upward as much as three feet by the end of the century, if emissions(排放量) continue at their current pace.
Still, as the Washington Post Climate notes, hurricanes are not the best sign of global warming. Though current data suggests that global warming will in the future stir up terrible super storms, there is still not enough evidence to support the idea that climate change strengthens the recent hurricanes that have torn at the US’s eastern coastline.
小題1:It can be inferred that__________ is one of the policymakers who believe that humans are not to blame for global warming.
A．KatrinaB．Rick PerryC．FlossieD．Sandy
小題2:350.org has launched the campaign with the real purpose of _________________.
A．changing the ways of naming hurricanes
B．introducing the methods of naming hurricanes
C．reminding policymakers to change their attitudes
D．calling attention to the coming report on global warming
小題3:The draft of the global warming report tells us that _____________.
A．global warming is speeding up at the same rate
B．it is human beings that have caused global warming
C．the new report has a more accurate data than the one in 2007
D．human beings are not the only one to blame for global warming
小題4:The writer of the passage seems to believe that______________.
A．policymakers should be blamed for the global warming
B．the campaign will cause the change of naming hurricanes
C．global warming has no necessary relation to terrible hurricanes
D．global warming will surely cause terrible super storms in the future

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