时文阅读2

高三英语时文阅读002

选题人：刘松审核人：管蓉昭日期:2015-9-7

教师寄语：Reading makes people wise!

Looking to peace

A HUGE military parade (阅兵) rolled through Tian’anmen Square on Sept 3. It involved a total of 12,000 Chinese soldiers, 500 pieces of military equipment and nearly 200 aircraft flying overhead in formation.

The spectacle (壮观景象) was part of the country’s celebrations to honor the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II as well as victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression.

China had not held such an event since the end of World War II. The parade carried many messages, yet all of them came from one basic point: China is pursuing (追求) mankind’s common aspiration (心愿) for peace.

“The experience of war makes people value peace even more,” said President Xi Jinping before the parade kicked off. “China will never seek to expand and will never inflict (强加) the tragedies it suffered in the past upon others.”

China was the first country in the world to fight against fascist (法西斯主义的) forces when Japanese troops began their invasion (侵略) of Northeast China on Sept 18, 1931. Japan began its full-scale (全面的) invasion of China in 1937. In the following years, China paid a heavy price for refusing to give in. By the end of World War II, more than 35 million Chinese people had been killed or wounded.

China learned a bitter (痛苦的) lesson from its 14 years of suffering under Japanese invasion. That lesson was that peace can be secured (确保) only when one is strong enough to defend oneself, according to Xinhua.

In recent years, China has seen rapid growth, including its military. However, that doesn’t mean that the jets and tanks on display were meant to make any other country feel threatened, as some speculation suggested.

“What China aims to demonstrate (展示) through the parade is its determination and capability to safeguard justice and peace,” wrote People’s Daily.

China, together with many other developing nations, has benefited from a largely peaceful international environment, and now the country, determined to build a moderate ( 稳定的) and prosperous (繁荣的) society by 2020, needs a peaceful environment all the more.

Before the parade, Xi also announced that China would cut its number of troops by 300,000. It will be the country’s fourth cut in tro ops since the 1980s.

Therefore, by holding the parade, the country is “telling the world loud and clear that China cherishes (珍惜) peace and its military power serves as an effective guarantee of it”, commented Xinhua. Realistic expenses

THE cost of higher education has risen sharply over the last 30 years. Now experts are warning teenagers about another hidden cost apart from tuition fees (学费) – living expenses.

According to a study by Wisconsin HOPE Lab, a research organization, one-third of colleges in the US advertise (宣传) that families and prospective (预期的) students need to budget at least $3,000 (19,000 yuan) for the cost of attendance. But the bottom line isn’t realistic.

“In the last few years, the total cost of attending college has incre ased at 2 to 3 percent more the rate

of inflation (通货膨胀), which means costs are still rising well above any growth in family income,” said Robert Kelchen, one of the study’s co-authors.

Kelchen and his colleagues studied several factors when analyzing rising costs. From a greater demand (需求) for higher education to an increase in the cost of basic necessities, there are now even more reasons why students simply need to spend more. And they may not even realize some of the hidden costs until they arrive on campus.

Babson College sophomore (高二学生) Angela Leung said she experienced this firsthand when she realized the cost of her commute (通勤) was adding up.

“Living in the suburbs (郊区) of Boston equals thousands of dollars spent on cars to get into the city,” she explained.

While these costs may not be a surprise to some, researchers found that colleges don’t always communicate these price rises to the public.

Braden Hosch, co-author of the HOPE Lab study, said a lot of colleges have come up with widely different amounts of costs. The difference could mislead students.

“Colleges may want to overestimate (高估) living expenses in order for students to get enough government financial aid,” Kelchen said. “Underestimating costs could make college look cheaper. But it also means that students can’t get enough financial aid to pay for college.”

Still, these di scoveries shouldn’t make teenagers shy away from higher education. From getting scholarships (奖学金) to applying for aid, students can use a variety of tools to avoid big surprises.

“The best thing to do is to contact the colleges you’re planning to go t o and see what kind of information they can help you with,” Hosch said. “Always stay informed.”

1. What is the author’s main purpose in writing the article?

A. To inform the reader of the hidden costs of higher education.

B. To report on a study of the rising costs of higher education.

C. To give students tips on how to deal with the rising costs of higher education.

D. To analyze the reasons for a greater demand for higher education in the US.

2. According to a study by Wisconsin HOPE Lab, ______.

A. $3,000 could cover the total cost of attending most colleges in the US

B. living in the suburbs could help US students reduce the cost of attending college

C. students tend to find that they have to spend more when they arrive on campus

D. inflation is the leading cause of rising costs in higher education in the US

3. What is the main reason why colleges may want to overestimate living expenses?

A. To include all possible hidden costs of attending college.

B. To make families set aside enough money for college.

C. To help students get enough government financial aid.

D. To inspire students to work hard to get scholarships.

4. What does Hosch advise students to do before going to college?

A. Do some part-time jobs to pay for college.

B. Choose colleges where living expenses are lower.

C. Stay optimistic despite the rising costs of higher education.

D. Try to get help from the college they’re planning to go to.

My garden fight

EVERY May it happens. I drop to my knees just outside the back door, raise my arms to the sky and shout: “That’s it! I give up! Take my flower beds, you killer weeds! Blackberry vines (藤蔓), this land is yours! Ivy (常春藤), crawl up and kill my trees one by one! I’m done!”

Then I get up, lie down on the swing, and close my eyes. I’m sure I can hear the weeds growing and the vines creeping in (悄悄爬进). I swear they’re all snickering (偷笑), too. They don’t even have the manners to wait until I leave there.

There’s no denying that gardens are battle (战斗) zones in the spring. I blame it on those April and May rains. Once the heat moves in, I can control what gets watered and survives, but those early showers even out (平均分配) the battlefield.

Garden tools alone make it clear that gardening isn’t an easy thing. My old wheelbarrow (独轮手推车) seems to have the personality of a tank, and I’m pretty sure my trowel (小铲子) is second cousin to a dagger (匕首).

I could tell battle exhaustion had set in early last year when my brother and his wife invited us to see their new house being built. A quiet stream ran behind the house. Beside it was a tree with ivy running all the way up the trunk. I was alarmed.

“Steve, you’ve got to get rid of that ivy,” I said, trying to keep the panic out of my voice. “It’ll kill the tree.”

“Well, that’s in a greenbe lt (绿化带) area,” he said. “It’s protected.”

“So go out after dark and deal with it!” I shouted. “All you need is to cut it off at the base.” Secretly, though, I was wondering if I had something in the car that would work. My fingers were itching (痒) like crazy.

He quickly changed the subject, but I decided to bring my tools when we came for the housewarming (乔迁庆祝).

By late June both sides are worn down. I’ve given some of the yard over to the weeds – you just can’t win them all. That’s a battle for next year. There’s been no clear victory for me, but I’ve stood my ground for yet another season.

1. What is the story mainly about?

A. The author’s fight with weeds.

B. How the author loved her yard.

C. The author’s gardening skills.

D. The author’s ga rdening friend.

2. What is the meaning of the third paragraph?

A. Spring is the best time in which to kill weeds.

B. Spring makes it hard for the author to win her battle with weeds.

C. Spring’s heat helps weeds to win some of the battlefield.

D. In the spring, the author tries to help the plants not to suffer from too much rain.

3. Why does the writer say her fingers were itching like crazy in Paragraph 8?

A. The writer was mad at her brother’s response.

B. The writer longed to cut down the ivy.

C. The writer was bitten by some insects in the weeds.

D. The writer left something in her car and wanted to get it back.

4. What can we learn from the text?

A. The author has decided to battle with the weeds next year.

B. The author is exhausted by the battle and has finally given up.

C. The author enjoys the battle with the weeds and expects another fight.

D. The author does not want to kill all the weeds since they are also helpful.