A
Christmas is still a few weeks away. But in Holland, Germany and other parts of central Europe, a man dressed in red with a big white beard will already be flying from house to house with a big sack (袋子) and presents for children. “Sinterklaas komt! ”as Dutch children say—Saint Nicholas is coming!
It’s obvious from the name that “Santa Claus” comes from “Sinterklaas”. Saint Nicholas’ Day is celebrated on December 6, but there are many things about the saint and his festival that are similar to Christmas. Just as Santa has reindeer (驯鹿), Sinterklaas has a white horse. Dutch and German children put their shoes out in front of the chimney just like children hang up their stockings on Christmas Eve, hoping that in the morning they will be full of presents. With Sinterklaas, however, you’re also expected to put a carrot in your shoe as a present to his horse.
Like Santa, Sinterklaas also judges whether children have been “naughty or nice” in the past year to help him decide whether they deserve presents. But while good children get sweets, the consequences of being bad are far worse than they are with Father Christmas. Naughty children are given a stick so their parents can beat them. If you are
really, really bad, Sinterklaas will put you into a sack and take you away.
In parts of Germany and Austria, people also celebrate December 5—but it is a celebration of naughtiness rather than niceness. On “Krampus Day”, bizarre, horned demons (长着角的怪物) (or rather boys dressed in costumes) run around causing havoc and hitting girls with sticks. Authorities have struggled for years to ban the tradition, but have not been successful. Luckily Saint Nicholas always comes next day to put things right.
9. What is the main focus of the article? A. The history of Christmas Day.
B. The traditions of Saint Nicholas’ Day.
C. The similarities between Christmas Day and Saint Nicholas’ Day. D. The connection between Saint Nicholas’ Day and Krampus Day. 10. Which of the following statements about Saint Nicholas is TRUE? A. The festival falls on December 5 in most European countries. B. On the eve of Saint Nicholas’ Day, people usually eat carrots. C. In Germany, children expect to get gifts in their shoes on Saint Nicholas’ Day.
D. Like Santa, Sinterklaas is believed to ride his reindeer from house to house to give gifts to children.
11. What can we conclude from Paragraph 3?
A. Naughty children don’t get anything from Sinterklaas.
B. As well as children, Sinterklaas also brings gifts for adults. C. Sinterklaas is more generous than Father Christmas.
D. Sinterklaas treats good children better than naughty children. 12. What is the attitude of authorities towards Krampus Day traditions according to the article?
A. They have tried in vain to get rid of some of the traditions. B. They organize various activities to entertain people. C. They respect the way people celebrate it.
D. They regard it as an important tradition and try to promote it.
【文章大意】文章主要讲述了在欧一些国家流行的Saint Nicholas’ Day（圣尼古拉斯日）的风俗习惯。
9.【解析】选B。主旨大意题。本文主要讲述了在欧一些国家流行的Saint Nicholas’ Day的风俗习惯，所以答案为B。
10.【解析】选C。细节理解题。由第二段“Dutch and German children put their shoes out in front of the chimney just like children hang up their stockings on Christmas Eve, hoping that in the morning they will be full of presents. ”可知C正确。由第一、二段可知主要是荷兰、德国以及中欧一些国家过Saint Nicholas’ Day，节日日期是December 6，所以A不对；由第二段最后一句可知B不对；由第二段“Sinterklaas has a white horse”可知D不对。
11.【解析】选D。推理判断题。由第三段可知，Sinterklaas对待乖孩子和顽
皮孩子态度不同，乖孩子给礼物，顽皮孩子可能就是棍子或者放在麻袋里带走，所以D项正确。
12.【解析】选A。推理判断题。由最后一段中 “Authorities have struggled for years to ban the tradition, but have not been successful. ”可知A正确。 【拓展提升】
1.冻疮 出发；引起；引爆 奇异的 祸患 而不是 2. 方式状语从句 虚拟语气 语从句 主语
这位登山先锋谈起这些山脉时，好像它们就是需要尊重的生灵一样。
American Watersports Tuesday—Saturday
Located on the beach of the Sea Gardens Beach Resort, there are fun things to rent for the whole family. They offer rentals for kayaks, jetskis and even parasails! Enjoy the water upclose or from a bird’s eye view! No matter what activity you’re enjoying, be sure to protect yourself and your family from the sun’s powerful rays and apply plenty of sun block!
15th Street Boat Company Monday—Saturday
15th Street Boat Company offers rental boats of all kinds. They’re sure to have what you are looking for, whether it’s a small boat for a quick and simple outing or an extravagant boat with comfortable seats
with a stereo(立体声) and high-tech navigation(导航). You can rent a boat for half a day, a couple days, or even weeks at a time. If you want it, they’ve got it. It’s fun for everyone!
Coconuts’ Watersports
9 a. m. —5 p. m. Monday through Sunday
Coconuts’ Watersports is open 7 days a week for your convenience and offers tons of water fun for the whole family. Jet ski activities last 30 minutes or 1 hour and can make stops along the way. You must be at least 14 years of age to ride alone and can be as young as 3 to ride along with an adult. Everybody is required to wear a life jacket and a license is required to operate the jet ski. Bathing suits and shorts are recommended.
Jet Ski Tours of Miami
Thursday—Sunday 10 a. m. —7 p. m.
Jet Ski Tours of Miami includes onsite parking, indoor restrooms, lockers and life jackets for participants. You may choose a one or two-hour tour and each jet ski can hold up to 3 people. You must be at least 18 years old in order to ride. As long as you are accompanied by an adult, there is no age limitation for any passenger. There is a restaurant nearby to eat at. The tour visits 6 different islands and passes by Bayside and Hard Rock. You may even catch a glimpse of dolphins playing or a manatee resting in these fabulous Florida waters.
9. What activity is convenient for the visitors to have lunch? A. Jet Ski Tours of Miami B. Coconut’s Watersports C. 15th Street Boat Company D. American Watersports
10. To satisfy your son’s curiosity about marine animals, you _______. A. will rent a boat to ride with him
B. prefer an extravagant boat with comfortable seats with a stereo C. would like to prefer American Watersports to Florida waters D. can choose the tour to Bayside and Hard Rock 11. If you like to sail a boat, you can _______. A. go to the Sea Gardens Beach Resort B. visit 15th Street Boat Company C. choose Jet Ski Tours of Miami D. go to Coconut’s Watersports
12. To ride alone in the jet ski activities, _______. A. you have to be at least 14 years old
B. you can choose to wear a life jacket or not C. you must be over 18 years old D. you have to be with parents
【文章大意】本文为介绍旅游活动的四则广告。
9.【解析】选A。细节理解题。在第四中的There is a restaurant nearby to
eat at. 说明游客可以用餐。
10.【解析】选D。细节理解题。在第四最后一个提到海豚、海牛，他们属于海洋动物，和题干中的marine animals相符。因此参考答案从这里找出。 11.【解析】选B。细节理解题。根据文章第二中的You can rent a boat for half a day, a couple days, or even weeks at a time. 可知，只有在15th Street Boat Company能租到船。文章并没有提到租船者的年龄限制，所以排除D。
12.【解析】选A。细节理解题。根据文章第三中的第三个句子可得出参考答案。该题极易误选C。注意在第四中谈到的是你至少18岁，而不是over。
FAT camp—for some, the prison of aerobics (有氧运动), health food and hunger pains is a reality.
Whenever I bring up that I’ve been to fat camp, people laugh and say, “Are you serious? Is it like that movie? Tell me more! ” People are usually really curious about fat camp. They wonder what it’s like there. “Is food snuck (偷偷拿) in? Is chocolate black market (黑市) material? . . . ” The answer to all of these questions is yes.
You are woken at 7 am to trek down the hill, still in your pajamas. You enter the canteen and wait in a seemingly endless line, still starved from an unsatisfying dinner. You finally get food—then wish you hadn’t. But you eat it because otherwise you starve. You eat every little bit of powdered egg, every crumb of soggy (没烤透的) diet toast and tasteless sugarfree jelly.
After breakfast you hike back up the hill. The hill is meant to physically, spiritually (精神上地), and emotionally break you. You must climb it three times a day for equally delicious meals. Every time, you see someone stop in despair midway up. There is always one who pretends to be hurt in the hope that someone will carry them up.
Throughout the day you rotate through periods of swimming, three sports, and one or two aerobics classes. It’s not officially called “fat” camp; it’s called “fun and fitness camp”. But when I think of fun, I don’t think of fitness.
However, there were good parts to camp—parts like the friendships. Everyone seemed to bond over starvation (饥饿) and the need for food. It became a game to see how much food you could acquire in one stay. Many campers would bring supplies, but they would of course be taken away. My technique was to befriend the counselors. Through my connections I received candy, soda and fried chicken. Also, as soon as one camper left, they would send other things from home.
The struggles of fat camp really do give you an appreciation of life. Whether you have realized the value of taste, gained friends, or lost weight, no one will ever forget their experiences at fat camp. Fat camp is no joke—it’s a whole world of drama, hardships and revelations. 1. Which of the following is TRUE about the people who have heard that the author has been to fat camp?
A. They think the author is joking and don’t believe her. B. They look down upon the author and make fun of her.
C. They pretend to be very interested in the topic so as to seem polite. D. They don’t hide their interest in the camp and ask the author all kinds of questions.
2. Which of the following is TRUE about the fat camp the author attended according to the article?
a. Chocolate is forbidden in the camp. b. The camp provides fun fitness courses.
c. The food there tastes terrible and is never enough.
d. A person who can’t finish the hike up the hill will be carried up. A. ac B. bc C. abc D. bcd
3. What does the underlined phrase “rotate through” in Para. 5 mean? A. select from B. benefit from C. enjoy yourself in D. switch between
4. What does the author think about her fat camp experience? A. She thinks it helped her lose weight.
B. She thinks it was the best place to make friends. C. She thinks she gained from her struggles there. D. She can’t stand remembering her experiences there.
【文章大意】减肥营不仅可以使你减轻体重，还可以让你对生活感恩。 1.【解析】选D。细节理解题。从第二段的“People are usually really curious
about fat camp. They wonder what it’s like there. ”以及人们提的一连串问题得知，人们对减肥营很感兴趣，总是问作者一堆问题。
2.【解析】选A。细节理解题。从第二段的最后两句可知，巧克力是禁止带入的食物，a正确。倒数第三段的“But when I think of fun, I don’t think of fitness”说明，减肥营的课程在作者看来并不有趣，b不对。第三段里的描述中我们看到营中的食物味道不好，也不管饱，c正确。文中没有提到爬不上山的人会被背上去，d不对。所以正确答案该为A项。
3.【解析】选D。从上文中的“Throughout the day”可知，这是个贯穿全天的动作，从下文看这些课程并不让作者快乐，所以综合来看该是D，意为“轮流去做”。
4.【解析】选C。A和B的the best place在文中没有提到，排除。从最后一段的“The struggles of fat camp really do give you an appreciation of life. Whether you have realized the value of taste, gained friends, or lost weight, no one will ever forget the experiences at fat camp. ”可知，减肥营让人对生活感恩，没有人会忘记在里面的经历，所以C项正确，D项不对。
Rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are a major cause of climate change, and now a new study has confirmed that atmospheric CO2 is also affecting the ocean chemistry and potentially harming sea life.
Montana State University scientist Robert Dore has been researching the water in the Pacific Ocean for almost two decades.
“We’ve been going to the same spot in the Pacific Ocean, and we try to characterize long-term change in the open ocean environment. And one of the key things that we measure is CO2 levels. And we’ve been able to record this increasing quantity of atmospheric CO2 into the ocean. ”
Scientists expected that as atmospheric CO2 increased, more and more of the carbon dioxide would be absorbed into the ocean, affecting the chemical balance of the sea water, with a potentially harmful impact on shellfish and coral in particular.
“As carbon dioxide dissolves in the water or sea water in this case, it forms a weak acid, carbonic acid, ” Dore explains, “And therefore, as the concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere goes up and that exchanges with the surface sea water, it drives the pH down, and makes it more acidic. ”
The sea water Dore and his colleagues have analyzed confirms what the theory predicts.
The effect was particularly striking at about 250 meters down, and again at 500 meters. Dore and his colleagues came up with two possible explanations. It could be that surface water picked up CO2 and then moved to those depths. Or there could be a biological explanation.
“It’s important to realize that the oceans are really becoming acidic. And it could have negative impacts on a whole variety of sea life from fish to coral. It’s potentially catastrophic. ”
5. What can be the best title of the passage? A. Sea Life Facing Danger
B. Scientist Researching Sea Water C. Oceans Becoming More Acidic
D. Climate Change Affecting Sea Water
6. With the increase of atmospheric CO2, _______. A. more corals will appear in the sea B. the surface water is becoming warmer
C. the chemical balance of the sea water is affected D. the pH of the ocean out here has been increasing
7. Scientist Robert Dore came to the conclusion based on _______. A. his research and analysis
B. the expectation of other scientists C. some former theory
D. a major cause of climate change
8. What does the passage want to tell us most? A. It takes time to make a scientific study. B. Atmospheric CO2 is doing harm to sea life.
C. Robert Dore is a committed and serious scientist.
D. Measures should be taken to prevent the potential catastrophe.
【文章大意】文章介绍了二氧化碳的增多可能对海洋环境以及海洋生物带来的影响。
5.【解析】选A。主旨大意题。文章主要介绍了二氧化碳量的增加对海洋及海洋生物的负面影响，故A项最贴近。
6.【解析】选C。细节理解题。由文章第四段的more and more of the carbon dioxide would be absorbed into the ocean, affecting the chemical balance of the sea water可知选C。
7.【解析】选A。细节理解题。根据第二段的Montana State University scientist Robert Dore has been researching the water. . . 和倒数第三段的The sea water Dore and his colleagues have analyzed confirms what the theory predicts. 可知。
8.【解析】选D。写作意图题。文章通过描述二氧化碳量的增加对海洋环境的影响，意在呼吁人们采取措施保护海洋环境，以预防灾难的发生。
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