Net Library Is a library that lends out digital books．It treats a digital like a paperback copy．It charges libraries per book per copy and gives publishers a cut of the total income．

       From the consumer's point of view, this means that if more than, say, five people want the latest Danielle Steel romance novel, other people who request that book will get a message saying the title can't be found．

       It's a model many publishers seem to have embraced．More than 350 gave the company rights to hand out their digital works and McGraw-Hill Corporation and Houghton Mifflin Corporation have put money in the company．The California public libraries and about 1,800 others across the US are trying out the Net Library service．

       Some librarians criticize the New Library model．Stanford University librarian Michael Keller argues that the company is creating an unnatural fear of digital woks; which is contrary to the ideas of the Internet．

       Keller and some other librarians argue for the e-book vision set forth by E-Brary．E-Brary is starting a service mat lets us users read books for free．

       But it will charge about 25 cents a page when a person tries to print out material or copy and paste it into a different file or tries to download copy onto a computer．

       Christopher Warnock, chief executive of E-Brary, believes most consumers won't want to buy entire books, only the parts that interest them．

       "There's not really a lot of good m owning an electronic file and having to store it and manage it．It doesn't make sense．" he said．

1.How do publishers get money from the Net Library?

       A．They get money from selling their books to the Net Library.

       B．They share the money with the Net Library.

       C．They get money by cutting the cost of the books.

       D．They get the money from the readers.

2.The underlined word "embraced" in the 3rd paragraph means _    ___.

       A．taken something willingly                 B．held something tightly

       C．disliked something badly                   D．tried out something hard

3.From the 2nd paragraph we can see consumers       .

      A．don’t care if they are charged money

      B．enjoy the service of the Net Library

      C．don’t like other people borrowing books

      D．complain about the limited number of the new books

4.What does the last paragraph mean?

      A．Net Library is not a good way for the consumers.

      B．There is no need for consumers to have a whole book.

      C．E-Brary is not a good library for the consumers.

      D．It’s reasonable to charge the consumers money for copying some pages.

 

Most rain forests lie close to the equator(赤道),where the climate is often mild and there are long hours of sunshine.The warmth of the land heats the air above,causing it to rise and tiny drops of water to fall as rain.The rainfall can reach at least 98 inches a year.This wet,warm world with plenty of sunlight is perfect for plants to grow,so the trees grow fast with green leaves all the year round.The trees themselves also have an effect on the climate.They gather water from the soil and pass it out into the air through their leaves.The wet air then forms clouds,which hang over the treetops like smoke.These clouds protect the forest from the daytime heat and night-time cold of nearby deserts,keeping temperatures fit for plant growth.

Rain forests slightly farther away from the equator remain just as warm,but they have a dry season of three months or more when little rain falls.Tree leaves fall during this dry season and new leaves grow when the wet season or monsoon(雨季) begins.Thus these areas are known as the “monsoon forest”.

Another type of rain forest grows on tropical mountains.It is often called the “cloud forest” because clouds often hang over the trees like fog.

The rain forest is the ideal place for the growth of many different trees.Most of them depend on animals to eat their fruits and spread their seeds.When the fruits are eaten,the seeds inside them go undamaged through animals’ stomachs and are passed out in their droppings.The seeds lying on the forest floor then grow into new trees.

The climate of the rain forests near the equator is _______.

A.mild,wet and windy                                      B.hot,rainy and foggy

C.hot,wet and cloudy                                        D.warm,wet and sunny

We can learn from the passage that _______.

A.tree leaves are green all the time in the monsoon forest

B.there is a dry season in the cloud forest on tropical mountains

C.clouds help the plants in the rain forest near the deserts to grow

D.the formation of climate in the rain forest has little to do with the trees

According to the passage,_______ play the most important role in the spreading of seeds.

A.animals                     B.droppings                  C.fruits                        D.winds

This passage is most likely to be found in _______.

A.a travel guide                                               B.a story book

C.a technical report                                                 D.a geography book

An idea that started in Seattle’s public library has spread throughout America and beyond.The concept is simple:help to build a sense of community in a city by getting everyone to read the same book at the same time.

In addition to encouraging reading as a pursuit(追求) to be enjoyed by all,the program allows strangers to communicate by discussing the book on the bus,as well as promoting reading as an experience to be shared in families and schools.The idea came from Seattle librarian Nancy Pearl who launched the “If All of Seattle Read the Same Book” project in 1998.Her original program used author visits,study guides and book discussion groups to bring people together with a book,but the idea has since expanded to many other American cities,and even to Hong Kong.

In Chicago,the mayor appeared on television to announce the choice of To Kill a Mockingbird as the first book in the “One Book,One Chicago”program.As a result,reading clubs and neighborhood groups sprang up around the city.Across the US,stories emerged of parents and children reading to each other at night and strangers chatting away on the bus about plot and character.

The only problem came up in New York,where local readers could not decide on one book to represent the huge and diverse population.This may show that the idea works best in medium-sized cities or large towns,where a greater sense of unity can be achieved.Or it may show that New Yorkers missed the point,putting all their energy and passion into the choice of the book rather than discussion about a book itself.

Ultimately,as Nancy points out,the level of success is not measured by how many people read a book ,but by how many people are enriched by the process,or have enjoyed speaking to someone with whom they would not otherwise have shared a word.

1.What is the purpose of the project launched by Nancy?

A．To invite authors to guide readers.

B．To encourage people to read and share.

C．To involve people in community service.

D．To promote the friendship between cities.

2.Why was it difficult for New Yorkers to carry out the project?

A．They were too busy to read a book.

B．They came from many different backgrounds.

C．They had little interest in reading.

D．They lacked support from the local government.

3.According to the passage,where would the project be more easily carried out?

A．In large communities with little sense of unity.

B．In large cities where libraries are far from home.

C．In large towns where agreement can be quickly reached.

D．In medium-sized cities with a diverse population.

4.The underlined words “shared a word”in Paragraph 5 probably mean______.

A．discussed the meaning of a word

B．exchanged ideas with each other

C．gained life experience

D．used the same language

5.According to Nancy,the degree of success of the project is judged by____.

A．the number of people who benefit from reading

B．the careful selection of a proper book

C．the growing popularity of the writers

D．the number of books that each person reads

 

A long time ago, there was a seed and because he was only a seed, nobody noticed him. Thus, feeling inferior (低級的), the seed gave no importance to his existence (存在). Then one day, a wind picked him up and threw him on an open field in the sun. Later, he was given rain. Years later he saw a traveler sitting by his side. "Thank you God for this. I really need some rest," he heard the traveler say. "What are you talking about?" the seed quickly asked. He thought the man was making fun of him. No one ever spoke to him like that. "Who just spoke?" the shocked man asked. "It is me. A seed." "A seed?" The man looked at the big tree. "Are you joking? You are not a seed. You are a big tree!" "Really?" "Yes! Why else do you think people come here?" "What do they come here for?" "To feel your shade (樹陰)! Don’t tell me you didn’t know you had grown over time." A moment passed before the traveler’s words brought him pride. The seed thought and smiled for the first time in his life. The years of torture (折磨) by the sun and the rain finally helped him grow up. "Oh! That means I’m not a little seed anymore! I was actually born to make people feel comfortable. Wow! That’s great!"
【小題1】The seed didn’t realize the importance of his existence because __________.

A．nobody looked after him

B．he was thrown into the open air

C．he can’t not grow up

D．he didn’t believe in himself

【小題2】The traveler sat by the seed’s side to _____________.

A．escape from the rain

B．thank God for offering him a tree

C．have a rest and enjoy the shade

D．talk with the big tree

【小題3】How did the seed feel after hearing the traveler’s words at last?

A．Sad.

B．Proud.

C．Funny.

D．Sorry.

【小題4】The author’s purpose of writing the passage is to ________.

A．tell us a very interesting story

B．praise the seed for his strength

C．teach readers a lesson: don’t laugh at others

D．tell us that we should never lose hope

【小題5】Where does the passage most probably come from?

A．A history book.

B．A science book.

C．A story book.

D．A guide book.

These days we hear a lot about how air pollution is changing temperatures on the earth. New evidence from a mountaintop in China now suggests that pollution can also change the amount of rain and snow that falls in some places.

       Usually, more rain falls in mountainous places than in flat areas upwind from the mountains. That’s because air can hold a lot of water. When wind blows wet air up a mountainside, the air gets colder. This temperature change often forces water to fall as rain or snow.

       In recent years, however, many mountainous areas in the western United States have been getting less rain than normal. Mountains that are downwind from cities have experienced the biggest drops.

       Some scientists have theorized（推理）that pollution drifts （趨勢）from the cities into the mountains, affecting rainfall, but proving this link has been difficult.

       Searching for answers, a team led by a scientist from the Hebrew University went to s mountain in China called Mount Hua, which is 2,060 meters tall and lies about 120 kilometers east of the Chinese city Xi’an. Since 1954, scientists have been collecting details about rainfall, humidity（濕度）, and visibility（能見度）in the area.

       Using this data, the scientists compared rainfall on Mount Hua to rainfall in the nearest city, Huayin, on days with different levels of visibility. When the air was clear and people could see as far as 20 km, the scientists found that 65% more rain fell on the mountain than in the city.

       But when the air was smoggy, allowing only 8 km of visibility through the mist, the mountain received just 20% more rain than the city. The new data supports the theory that pollution affects rainfall.

       Some scientists believe that there are other explanations for the numbers. It’s possible, for example, that natural particles（微粒）in the air, rather than particles produced by pollution, are affecting visibility.

According to the 1^st paragraph, air pollution is changing the following EXCEPT ______.

       A．the temperature             B．the amount of rain

C．the habit of eating           D．the amount of snow

According to the passage, what will probably happen when the wet air in the sky gets colder?

       A．It will probably rain or snow  B．It will probably be cloudy.

       C．It will probably wind      D．It will probably become dry.

Why did the team led by a scientist go to Mount Hua?

       A．They wanted to pay a visit to Mount Hua.

       B．They wanted to collect the data for their theory.

       C．They wanted to measure Mount Hua.

       D．They wanted to have a good rest on Mount Hua.

You can most probably read the passage in _______.

       A．a(chǎn) travel guide         

B．a(chǎn) telephone book           

C．a(chǎn) cartoon book       

D．a(chǎn) science book