“If you talk to the plants, they will grow faster and the effect is even better if you’re a woman.” Researchers at Royal Horticultural Society carried out an experiment to find that the voice of a woman gardener makes plants grow faster.
The experiment lasted a month and by the end of the study scientists managed to discover that tomato plants grew up two inches taller when women gardeners talked to them instead of male.
Sarah Darwin was the one making the plants the best growth. Her voice was the most “inspiring” for plants than those of nine other gardeners when reading a passage from The Origin of Species. The great-great-granddaughter of the famous botanist （植物學(xué)家）Charles Darwin found that her plant grew about two inches taller than the plant of the best male gardener.
Colin Crosbie, Garden Superintendent at RHS, said that the finding cannot yet be explained.He says that women have a greater range of pitch and tone（音高和音色）which might have a certain effect on the sound waves that reach the plant. “Sound waves are an environmental effect just like rain or light ,”said Mr Grosbie.
The study began in April at RHS Garden Wisley in Survey. Scientists started with open auditions(聽(tīng)力) for the people who were asked to record passages from John Wyndham's The Day of the Triffids, Shakespeare’s A Midsummer's Night Dream and Darwin's The Origin of Species.
Afterwards researchers selected a number of different voices and played them to 10 tomato plants during a period of a month. Each plant had headphones connected to it. Through the headphones the sound waves could hit the plants. It was discovered that plants that “l(fā)istened” to female voices grew taller by an inch in comparison to plants that heard male voices.
【小題1】What does the passage talk about?

A．Plants enjoy men’s voices than women’s.
B．A science experiment in a museum.
C．Voice’s influence on plant growing.
D．Strange findings at Royal Horticultural Society.
【小題2】What does the underlined sentence in paragraph 4 mean?
A．Plants need sound as well as rain and light.
B．Sound is basic for the plant to grow.
C．Sound has a good effect as rain or light does.
D．Plants can’t live without sound, rain or light.
【小題3】What can we learn from the passage?
A．The experiment ended in May.
B．Scientist can explain the findings clearly.
C．Plants enjoy listening to the passages from famous works.
D．The findings are of great importance to human beings.


【小題1】C
【小題2】C
【小題3】A

解析【小題1】主旨大意題。與植物交談能夠促進(jìn)植物的生長(zhǎng)。而且植物更喜歡女聲。
【小題2】句意理解題。句意：就像雨或光一樣，聲波也是環(huán)境效應(yīng)。而只有C選項(xiàng)的比較接近，波和雨，光一樣都有好的影響。
【小題3】推理判斷題。結(jié)合  Colin Crosbie, Garden Superintendent at RHS, said that the finding cannot yet be explained可知B錯(cuò)誤。結(jié)合the voice of a woman gardener makes plants grow faster可知C錯(cuò)誤。D文章沒(méi)有提。

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科目：高中英語(yǔ) 來(lái)源：2013屆山西省山大附中高三1月月考英語(yǔ)試卷（帶解析） 題型：閱讀理解

Saying “thank you” is probably the first thing most of us learn to do in a foreign language. After all, we’re brought up to be polite, and it is important to make a good impression upon other people — especially across national divides.
So, what exactly are you supposed to say when “thank you” is only the 20th most popular way to express gratitude? According to a recent survey, 19 other ways of expressing appreciation finished ahead of “thank you” in a poll of 3,000 people.
Pollsters(民測(cè)調(diào)查員) found almost half of those asked preferred the more informal “cheers”, while others liked to use such expressions as “ta”, “great” and “nice one”.
So, just what is the appropriate form of words to express your thanks?
Fortunately, the clue is in the language itself. “Cheers”, despite its popularity, is considered an informal way to say thank you — and this is a definite clue as to when you can best use it.
For instance, when going for a drink with friends, a smile and a “cheers” by way of thanks is not only appropriate to the situation, it is also culturally accurate.
“Ta”, originated from the Danish word “tak”, was the second-most popular expression of thanks, and is also commonly used in informal situations, along with phrases such as “nice one”, and “brilliant”. Interestingly, one word that didn’t make it into the top 20 was “thanks”, Thank you is shorter, more informal cousin.
“Thanks” can be useful, as it is able to bridge the divide between the formality of “thank you” and the downright relaxed “cheers”.
Certain words can double as an expression of thanks as well as delight. Again, the words themselves offer the clue as to when best to use them.
For example, words like “awesome”, “brilliant” and “you star” featured highly in the new poll and they can hint at both your pleasure at someone’s action, as well as serving to express your thanks. If you are on the receiving end of a “new” thank you, you can respond with a simple “no problem”, or “sure”.
Of course, in certain circumstances, a simple wave, nod or smile may be appropriate. For instance, if a car driver slows down to let you cross the road, simply raising your hand in acknowledgement is enough to show that you appreciate the driver’s consideration.
Sometimes, formality is necessary, and “thank you” is still the best choice in such situations. But students should not worry about when exactly to use certain expressions.
Many people in Western countries are worried that good manners are in decline. People are tired of seeing their acts of kindness and service pass without comment. So don’t think your “thank you” is clumsy or awkwardly formal. The chances are, if you said “thank you”, you made someone’s day. You star.
【小題1】We can tell from the results of the poll that __________.

A．people are unconcerned about politeness nowadays.
B．“thank you” remains the best expression of gratitude.
C．there is a variety of expressions of appreciation.
D．there are more formal expressions than informal ones.
【小題2】According to the passage, which is an appropriate response to “awesome” or “brilliant”?
A．Thanks.B．Sure. C．Nice one.D．Cheers. .
【小題3】In the last paragraph the author encourages people to          .
A．show their gratitude to others.B．behave themselves well.
C．continue their acts of kindness.D．stop worrying about bad manners.
【小題4】Which of the following can serve as the best title of this passage?
A．How to Appear More Polite .B．Ways to Show Gratitude.
C．Never hesitate to Say “Thank You”.D．Good Manners in Decline!

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Ta Zan, capsule inn Manager, said, “Capsule inns are similar to Internet cafes. When they first appeared more than 10 years ago, people thought they might not succeed. But now it’s a common thing in our lives.” He believes that more capsule inns will open around the nation very soon. He is sure about the future of his business.

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A. 88 yuan               B. 76 yuan               C. 28 yuan               D. 4 yuan.

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3.For whom, a capsule inn is a good choice while traveling around?

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B. A young student who likes watching TV or surfing on the Internet.

C. An old man who would like to stay in a big house with his wife.

D. A business man who wants to have a meeting with others.

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The very first capsule hotel to be opened in Shanghai has attracted many budget travelers with its prices, even though it is not fully operational yet.

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A. 28                            B. 60                  C.68                D.88

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D. it has no snoring zones

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Pollsters(民測(cè)調(diào)查員) found almost half of those asked preferred the more informal “cheers”, while others liked to use such expressions as “ta”, “great” and “nice one”.

So, just what is the appropriate form of words to express your thanks?

Fortunately, the clue is in the language itself. “Cheers”, despite its popularity, is considered an informal way to say thank you — and this is a definite clue as to when you can best use it.

For instance, when going for a drink with friends, a smile and a “cheers” by way of thanks is not only appropriate to the situation, it is also culturally accurate.

“Ta”, originated from the Danish word “tak”, was the second-most popular expression of thanks, and is also commonly used in informal situations, along with phrases such as “nice one”, and “brilliant”. Interestingly, one word that didn’t make it into the top 20 was “thanks”, Thank you is shorter, more informal cousin.

“Thanks” can be useful, as it is able to bridge the divide between the formality of “thank you” and the downright relaxed “cheers”.

Certain words can double as an expression of thanks as well as delight. Again, the words themselves offer the clue as to when best to use them.

For example, words like “awesome”, “brilliant” and “you star” featured highly in the new poll and they can hint at both your pleasure at someone’s action, as well as serving to express your thanks. If you are on the receiving end of a “new” thank you, you can respond with a simple “no problem”, or “sure”.

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Sometimes, formality is necessary, and “thank you” is still the best choice in such situations. But students should not worry about when exactly to use certain expressions.

Many people in Western countries are worried that good manners are in decline. People are tired of seeing their acts of kindness and service pass without comment. So don’t think your “thank you” is clumsy or awkwardly formal. The chances are, if you said “thank you”, you made someone’s day. You star.

1.We can tell from the results of the poll that __________.

A．people are unconcerned about politeness nowadays.

B．“thank you” remains the best expression of gratitude.

C．there is a variety of expressions of appreciation.

D．there are more formal expressions than informal ones.

2.According to the passage, which is an appropriate response to “awesome” or “brilliant”?

A．Thanks.           B．Sure.             C．Nice one.          D．Cheers. .

3.In the last paragraph the author encourages people to          .

A．show their gratitude to others.             B．behave themselves well.

C．continue their acts of kindness.             D．stop worrying about bad manners.

4.Which of the following can serve as the best title of this passage?

A．How to Appear More Polite .               B．Ways to Show Gratitude.

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As small as the capsules are, they provide more than enough daily necessities(必需品) for visitors. They do have plenty of functions. Each includes independent power sockets, clocks, lights, and flat screen televisions. People can also enjoy wireless Internet service. The basic fee(費(fèi)用) for each capsule is 28 yuan, and guests will be asked to pay an extra 4 yuan every hour. The highest cost could reach 88 yuan per day.

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A. 價(jià)格                  B. 功能                       C. 方法                       D. 需求

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A. A family who like to cook by themselves.

B. A young student who likes watching TV or surfing on the Internet.

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D. A business man who wants to have a meeting with others.

41. Why does the manager compare(比較) his inn to Internet cafes?

A. Because he thinks they are similar in shape.

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C. Because he thinks capsule inns are a common thing in our lives.

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