Americans are more socially isolated than they were 20 years ago, and nearly a quarter of people said they had “zero”close friends with whom to discuss personal matters. More than 50 percent named two or fewer confidants (密友), most often immediate family members, the researchers said.

　 “This is a big social change, and it shows something that’s not good for our society，” said Duke University Professor Lynn Smith. She said that it showed there was a surprising drop in the number of close friends people had since 1985. At that time, Americans most commonly said they had three close friends whom they had known for a long time, saw often, and with whom they shared a number of interests. They were almost likely to name four or five friends and the relationships often sprang from their neighborhoods or communities (社區(qū)).

　 Ties to a close network of friends create a social safety net that is good for society, and for the individual. People were not asked why they had fewer intimate (親密的) ties, but Smith said that part of the causes could be that Americans are working more, marrying later, having fewer children, and commuting (往返上班) longer distances. “It’s one thing to know someone and exchange e-mails with him. It’s another thing to say, ‘Will you give me a ride out of town with all of my possessions and pets?’ and ‘Can I stay with you for a couple or three months?’” Smith said. “Worrying about social isolation is not a matter of nostalgia (懷舊之情) for a warm and comfortable past. Real things are strongly connected with that，” added Harvard University Professor Robert Putnam, author of Bowling Alone, a book on the decline of American communities. He suggested flexible work schedules would allow Americans to tend both personal and professional lives.

1. What’s the passage mainly talking about?

　　 A. American social isolation.

　　 B. Americans have “zero” close friends.

　　 C. Ties to a close network of friends are good for society.

　　 D. Flexible work schedules change Americans’ lifestyle.

2. From the second paragraph we can learn that people tend to ____.

　　 A. be closer than before

　　 B. be less close than before

　　 C. have more friends than before

　　 D. have more family members than before

3. Which of the following is the possible cause of American social isolation?

　　 A. They work more.

　　 B. They don’t marry.

　　 C. They have more children.

　　 D. They spend too much time on relaxation.

4. According to Professor Robert, ____.

　 A. there could be four possible causes for American social isolation

　　 B. worrying about social isolation is not a matter of nostalgia

　　 C. flexible work schedules don’t affect (影響) Americans’ way of life

　　 D. American social isolation is only a small social problem

 

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科目：高中英語 來源：學(xué)習(xí)高手必修二英語北師版 北師版 題型：050

閱讀理解

　　The first Europeans came to America in 1492 with Christopher Columbus．Since that time people have come to America from all over the world, from Europe, Africa, and Asia, and they have brought their music with them．This mixing of people and music has created American music．

　　Music is a very important part of our lives．Music is for dancing, drinking, eating, loving and thinking．Some songs remind us of our childhood or youth．Others remind of the people we love．Many important occasions, like weddings and funerals have special music．Every nation has a national song like the American “The Star-Spangled Banner”．In the US, high schools and colleges have school songs, too．

　　Music is a part of the history of America．It expresses the problems and feelings of its people．As the years pass, the music grows and changes．

　　Modern science has also changed music．Inventions like records, radios, movies, electric instruments, tape recorders, and videos have changed the way we play and listen to music．They have helped to make music an important form of international communication．

　　American music, from the earliest folk songs to modern“pop”, is known around the world．Music is one of America’s most important exports．It brings the people of the world together．Even when people cannot understand the same language, they can share the same music．Many people learn and practice English by singing songs, understanding American music can help you understand American people．“Put a dime(10 cents)in the juke box(自動點唱機), baby．” Let’s listen to the music!

(1)

The article mainly tells us about ________．

[　　]

A．

how American music developed

B．

when American music developed

C．

what American music is

D．

why American music is so popular

(2)

From the text we know that ________．

[　　]

A．

American music has spread all over the world

B．

American music began in the 1550s

C．

American music is special

D．

American music has changed modern science in the US

(3)

The last paragraph probably means that ________．

[　　]

A．

American music is very popular

B．

American music is not known by people all over the world

C．

Ameican music can help us understand American people, their history and culture

D．

American music is important in our lives

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科目：高中英語 來源：英語外研必修五設(shè)計 外研版 題型：050

閱讀理解

　　American and British people both speak English of course．But sometimes it does not seem like the same language．In fact, there are some important differences between British English and American English．

　　First of all, they sound very different．Often, Americans don’t say each word separately．They say several words together．Americans may say “I dunno” instead of “I don’t know”．Or they may say “Whaddya say?” instead of “What did you say?” However, the British are more careful in their speech．They usually say all the words and keep them separate．

　　Sound is not only the difference between British English and American English．Words sometimes have different meanings too．Some American words are never used in England．The same thing is true of some British words in America．For example, the vocabulary for cars and driving is very different．Americans drive trucks, but in England people drive lorries．

　　Many expressions are also different in the two countries．In England, if you are going to telephone your friends, you “phone them up”．In America, you “give them a call”．When you are saying goodbye in England you might say “Cheerio!” In America you might say “See you later．”

　　There’re also some differences in grammar．For example, Americans usually use the helping verb “do” when they ask a question．They say “Do you have a storybook?” But the British often leave out the helping verb．They say “Have you a storybook?”

　　All these differences can be confusing if you are learning English．But most languages are like this．Languages change over time．When people live in separate places, the languages change in different ways．This is what has happened to English．It can also happen to other languages, such as French．Many people in Canada speak French but their French is very different from the French of France．

(1)

What does the author think of the differences between American and British English?

[　　]

A．

American and British English are the same languages．

B．

American and British English are quite different．

C．

Although American English came from the British English，there are still some differences．

D．

American and British people don’t both speak English of course．

(2)

What does the underlined word “separately” mean?

[　　]

A．

together

B．

one by one

C．

in common

D．

in different ways

(3)

What does the underlined sentence “The same thing is true of some British words in America．” mean?

[　　]

A．

The words of American and British English are the same．

B．

The spelling of American and British English are the same．

C．

Although they don’t sound the same，the words are the same．

D．

Some British English words are not used in American English．

(4)

How many ways are used to talk about the differences between American and British English?

[　　]

A．

One．

B．

Two．

C．

Three．

D．

Four．

(5)

Why has English changed over time?

[　　]

A．

Geography plays an important role in the changing．

B．

Different people have different living habits．

C．

Different people have different jobs．

D．

The income of the native English speakers is different．

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科目：高中英語 來源：安徽省屯溪一中2011－2012學(xué)年高二下學(xué)期期中考試英語試題 題型：053

閱讀下面短文，根據(jù)所讀內(nèi)容在表格中的空白處填入恰當?shù)膯卧~

注意：每個空格只填一個單詞

　　Farmers might think the idea of growing food for fun sounds strange．But there are some people who do it all the time．

　　They grow some vegetables because their natural color or shape is pleasing to see．They grow others because scientists have developed new colors or different size for traditional vegetables．

　　One example is the bell pepper(胡椒)．Seed companies sell seeds for several different kinds of bell peppers．One pepper is a weak yellow color when it begins to grow．Then its color changes to white．As it grows, it changes color two more times-to orange, then red．

　　Another unusual plant is known as the yard-long bean or snake bean．It grows up to one meter in length．It is an important part of the food supply in areas of Asia．

　　American farmers like it because it is different, yet tastes very much like the green beans they traditionally grow．Each bean has from ten to twenty seeds．The outside or pod can be eaten．Some of the very long beans are green outside but have black-and –white or red seed．

　　Gourds(葫蘆)are plants that people like to grow because of the many different shapes．They also have many uses．Some round gourds are dried, painted and made into containers．Others have long necks and big bodies．These are dried, cut and made into pour drinking water．

　　Another kind of gourd is used to make sponges(海綿)．When it is fully grown, it is removed from the vine and permitted to dry for a few weeks．Then it is placed in water for a few hours．The outer shell is then removed．The gourd is placed in the sun to dry．When it is fully dry, it is cut into pieces for use as sponges．They have a rough surface．They can be used to clean away dead skin cells, which makes them a popular skin-care product．

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科目：高中英語 來源：2011-2012學(xué)年河南省鄭州盛同學(xué)校高三上學(xué)期第一次月考英語試卷 題型：閱讀理解

PALO ALTO, California------"Switching off the television may help prevent children from getting fatter------ even if they do not change their diet or increase the amount they exercise," US researchers said last week.
　　A study of 192 third and fourth graders, generally aged eight and nine, found that children who cut the number of hours spent watching television gained nearly two pounds(0.9kg) less over a one-year period than those who did not change their television diet.
　　"The findings are important because they show that weight loss can only be the result of a reduction in television viewing and not any other activity," said Thomas Robinson, a pediatrician(兒科專家) at Stanford University.
　　"American children spend an average of more than four hours per day watching television and videos or playing video games, and rates of childhood being very fat have doubled over the past 20 years," Robinson said.
　　In the study, presented this week to the Pediatric Academic Societies‘ annual meeting in San Francisco, the researchers persuaded about 100 of the students to reduce their television viewing by one-quarter to one-third.
　　Children watching fewer hours of television showed a significantly smaller increase in waist size and had less body fat than other students who continued their normal television viewing, even though neither group ate a special diet or took part in any extra exercise.
　　"One explanation for the weight loss could be the children unstuck to the television may simply have been moving around more and burning off calories," Robinson said.
　　"Another reason might be due to eating fewer meals in front of the television. Some studies have suggested that eating in front of the TV encourages people to eat more," Robinson said.
【小題1】The author tries to tell us in the first two paragraphs that ________.

A．children will get fatter if they eat too much
B．children will get thinner if they eat less
C．children will get fatter if they spend less time watching TV
D．children will get fatter if they spend more time watching TV
【小題2】According to the passage, the time American children usually spend on watching TV_____.
A．is more than four hours a dayB．is less than four hours a day
C．doubled in the last twenty yearsD．is more than on any other activities
【小題3】 The time children spend on TV viewing every day is suggested to be about ________.
A．six hoursB．eight hoursC．three hoursD．one hour
【小題4】Which one of the following is right?
A．Children usually eat fewer while watching TV.
B．Children usually eat more while watching TV.
C．Children eat the same amount of meals while watching TV.
D．Children usually eat nothing while watching TV.
【小題5】Why can watching TV increase kids’ weight according to the passage?
　　A. They usually eat more while watching TV.
　　B. They burn off fewer calories.
　　C. They change their diet while watching TV.
D. Both A and B.

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科目：高中英語 來源：2009年全國各省市高考命題動態(tài)信息卷（遼寧專用）英語（五） 題型：閱讀理解

C

　　The curtain on the 2008 US presidential election finally rose last month as Requblican Senator(參議員) John McCain and Democratic Senator Barack Obama were formally selected as candidates of the two major parties.This may be one of the hardest decisions voters have to make between two appealing candidates.The big question for voters,as they face both an economic downturn and international threats,is :who will they elect? A young first - term senator promising change and new ideas,or a longtime senator with strong military experience and a reputation as a maverick(特立獨行的人)？

　　American voters have never seen a candidate quite like Obama.He has a white mother from the US and a black fater from Kenya who left the family when Obama was very young.He spent part of his youth in Indonesia.

　　However,McCain has a very different life story.

　　He grew up in a Navy family and was a daring pilot during the Vietnam War in the 1960s. When Obama was in kindergarten in Indonesia,McCain's plane was shot down over Ietenam and he became a prisoner of war.McCain could have been set free if he disowned America but he refused and so was held for five years.

　　"We need a president who is very,very old,"McCain joked at his age as many others do.If elected,he would be 72 when he takes office and the oldest man to step in.

　　So in the end,the election may depend on several factors that are hard to judge:Will Obama's race matter to a significant number of voters ? Will workingclass whites who tended to support his primary (黨內(nèi)初選) oponent,Hillary Clinton,vote for Obama? And perhaps most important of all,will uncertain voters be more attracted to Obama's vision or to McCain's experience?

　　Whatever happens,one thing is clear,however:Whoever walks into the White House on January 20,2009,will find huge challenges waiting for him in the Oval Office,both at home and abroad.

　　64.______makes the result of the election hard to predict.

　　　A.Whether working class whites care about Obama's inexperience

　　　B.The economic trouble the country now faces

　　　C.Who uncertain voters will finally decide to vote for

　　　D.McCain being too old to govern the country

　　65.The appeal in Obama as a presidential candidate lies in _________

　　　A.his multi - cultural background

　　　B.his belife in tradition

　　　C.his inexperience in politics

　　　D.his fantastic promises

　　66.The word "disown" in Paragraph 6 means closest to ______.

　　　A.flee from

　　　B.turn his back on

　　　C.not keep it private

　　　D.expose secrets about

　　67.The challenges that will face the new preident______.

　　　A.are not mentioned in the text

　　　B.include buklding a strong party and a friendly image

　　　C.refer to the problems of immigrants and economy

　　　D.refer to the problems of economy amd international relations

 

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