It’s going to be a busy day at Betsy Ross house in Philadelphia on Thursday. She won’t be there, since she died in 1836, but hundreds of tourists will be going through her house.

You see, Thursday is Flag Day in the United States. The unofficial holiday commemorates the adoption of the stars-and-stripes design of the American flag by the Continental Congress 235 years ago, on June 14, 1777. According to lore, the Ross House is the birthplace of the nation’s flag. That’s open to debate, but it’s a story that schoolbooks still tell. Betsy Ross was a seamstress, busy  sewing cushions for chairs in Philadelphia, which was the focus place of the American revolution against British rule. The Declaration of Independence by the colonists was signed there, and so was the new nation’s Constitution after independence was won.

Widowed when her husband, a member of the local militia, was killed in a gunpowder explosion, Betsy Ross often mended the clothes of the rebels’ leader and future U.S. president, George Washington.  According to what some say in history and others a stretch of what really happened, Washington asked Ross to design and sew the new nation’s flag. The story was promoted by Ross grandson, who wrote that Betsy Ross had “made with her hands the first flag.” She became a role model for girls - a shining example of women’s contributions to the nation’s history. Most research indicates that Ross did sew the first flag. She’s credited with substituting artful five-point white stars for six-pointed ones in the upper-left blue field. But many other accounts indicate George Washington brought the design to Ross and simply asked her to stitch it together.  

In a letter, Washington wrote: “We take the stars from Heaven, the red from our mother country, separating it by white stripes, thus showing that we have separated from her.  And the white stripes shall go down to posterity as representing liberty.”  

1.People would like to go to Ross’s house in Philadelphia to _____.

A. ask Betsy Ross who created the first American flag

B. meet her grandson who wrote a book about flags

C. debate over who designed the first American flag

D. remember her as the creator of the first American flag

2.Which statement is true according to the passage?

A. Betsy Ross was one of the people who signed The Declaration of Independence

B. All are in agreement that Ross designed the first American flag

C. It is almost certain that Ross did sew the first American flag

D. It is George Washington who designed the stars and stripes flag 

3.The underlined the word “seamstress” in Paragraph 2 probably means_____.

A. a person who designs flags        B. a person who makes a living by sewing

C. a person who takes part in revolution D. a person who creates chairs

4.What does the last paragraph imply according to the passage?

A. It implies that the U.S. is independent from Britain

B. It implies that Washington liked Ross’s design of the flag

C. It implies that Washington might be the designer of the flag

D. It implies that Ross did have helped with the design of the flag

 

A town in Oxfordshire has become the first in the UK to have biomethane(生物甲烷)gas from human waste piped to their homes for gas central heating and cooking．

    Up to 200 families in Didcot now receive the gas via the national gas power system. Head of energy and technology at British Gas，Martin Orrill，said customers wouldn’t notice any difference as the gas is purified to the highest standard and has no smell．The gas is produced at a sewage(污物) treatment works in Didcot．

   The entire process takes only less than three weeks, with the sewage being collected and sent first to settlement tanks．The solid waste material is then fed into digesters, where anaerobic bacteria(厌氧菌)digest the sewage，with the aid of enzymes(酶)to speed up the process．The digestion process produces methane，which can be burned to drive machines(甲烷)to produce electricity，or can be purified and fed into the gas network and piped to homes and businesses. British Gas says supplying the gas rather than electricity is far more efficient since around two-thirds of the energy is lost in producing electricity.

   Partners in the Didcot project，British Gas，Scotia Gas Network，and Thames Water，all hope to expand the process to other towns，and other companies such as Ecotricity and United Utilities have also announced biomethane projects being planned．One of these projects in Manchester could be supplying 500 homes with biomethane by mid next year. Another British Gas project in Suffolk will provide gas from digestion of brewery(啤酒厂)waste to around 235 families．

   The Didcot project cost￡25 million and was influenced by promises of government aids aimed at encouraging companies to develop renewable technologies．An EU directive means the UK must ensure at least 15 percent of its energy is from renewable sources by 2020．

   The UK produces about 1.73 million tons of sewage annually．If all sewage treatment works in the UK were fitted with the technology，they could supply gas for up to 350, 000 families.

1..   Which of the following is TRUE of the biomethane gas?

   A. it’s mainly made from rotting plants      B. It’s an environmentally friendly gas

   C. Its production process is too long        D. It’s easily recognized by customers

2..   What is the function of the enzymes?   

A. To digest the solid waste material        B. To help get rid of anaerobic bacteria

   C. To help purify the biomethane．         D. To speed up the digestion process．

3..   According to the passage，the biomethane gas had better be used         .

A. as the power for vehicles         B. for heating and cooking

   C. to produce electricity            D. to drive a variety of machines

4..   The last three paragraphs mainly show that        .

A. the UK government supports the biomethane projects

B. the biomethane projects are very costly   

   C. the biomethane projects still face many barriers

   D. the biomethane projects are promising

5..  . What should the text belong to?

A .Computer science    B. Engineering    C. Energy             D. Business

 

In Greek mythology(神话), fire is a gift form God, stolen from Zeus(宙斯) by Prometheus and handed over to humans suffering from cold. What could be more natural than sitting around a beautiful fire on a winter night, at a campsite in the Berkshires?

Hard as it may be to believe, the fireplace—long considered a trophy(奖杯), particularly in a city like New York—is acquiring a social shame. Among those who desire to be environmentally responsible, it is joining the ranks of bottled water and big houses.

Sally Treadwell, a 51-year-old public relations executive in Boone, N.C., said nothing makes her happier than building a fire on a cold winter night. But most of the time she doesn’t, because she feels too guilty about the damage it may do to the environment. Every time she builds a fire, it causes “inner conflict,” she said. “It’s a guilty pleasure”.

“The smoke from a fire smells very nice,” said Diane Bailey, a senior scientist with the Natural Resources Defense Council in San Francisco. “But it can cause a lot of harm. The tiny particles(颗粒) can cause illness, and can cross into the bloodstream, causing heart attacks as well as worsening other conditions.”

Growing concerns about the air pollution and health problems caused by smoke from wood fires are urging a number of areas across the country to pass laws regulating them. Idaho offers a tax cut to people who replace uncertified(不合格的)wood stoves with “greener” ones; San Joaquin County in California forbids selling a home unless its wood stove is replaced with an E.P.A. certified one；and Palo Alto and other governments in California forbid wood-burning fireplaces in new construction.

Certainly, many think otherwise. In any case, most fireplaces are used far too infrequently to cause any real damage to the environment, said Stephen Sears, the vice president of the Brick Industry Association, voicing an opinion shared by some.

Perhaps not coincidentally, sales of wood-burning equipment dropped to 235,000 in 2009 from 800,000 in 1999, according to the Brick Industry Association. It also reports that approximately 35,000 fireplaces were installed in the United States in 2009, compared to 80,000 in 2005. Certainly those numbers reflect the economic slowdown, but the may also be affected by growing mixed feelings to wood fries.

1.We can infer from the 2nd paragraph that ________.

A. big houses are not considered environmentally friendly

B. bottle water is a good companion for a fire place

C. a fireplace is viewed as a sign of success

D. people in New York are laughed at for their tradition

2.Sally’s “inner conflict” in the 3rd paragraph resulted from ________.

A. her love for the fireplace

B. the damage to the environment

C. the concern about her health

D. her mixed emotion fro the fireplace

3. In terms of the regulations about wood fires we can learn from the passage that_______.

A. uncertified fireplaces are forbidden in Idaho

B. some people are against the woodfire controlling regulations 

C. only energy-efficient wood stoves can be used in the US

D. all the people support measures taken to control the use of fireplaces

4.What is the author’s purpose in writing the passage?

A. To urge people to burn less wood

B. To discuss wood-burning’s impact

C. To throw light on the causes of the fireplace’s decline

D. To indicate the cooling love for the fireplace

 

A town in Oxfordshire has become the first in the UK to have biomethane（生物甲烷）gas from human waste piped to their homes for gas central heating and cooking.

Up to 200 families in Didcot now receive the gas via the national gas power system. Head of energy and technology at British Gas, Martin Orrill, said customers wouldn’t notice any difference as the gas is purified（提炼）to the highest standard and has no smell. The gas is produced at a sewage（污物）treatment works plant in Didcot.

The entire process takes only less than three weeks, with the sewage being collected and sent first to settlement tanks. The solid waste material is then fed into digesters, where anaerobic bacteria（厌氧菌）digest the sewage, with the aid of enzymes（酶）to speed up the process. The digestion process produces methane, which can be burned to drive machines to produce electricity, or can be purified and fed into the gas network and piped to homes and businesses. British Gas says supplying the gas rather than electricity is far more efficient since around two-thirds of the energy is lost in producing electricity.

Partners in the Didcot project, British Gas, Scotia Gas Networks, and Thames Water, all hope to expand the process to other towns, and other companies such as Ecotricity and United Utilities have also announced biomethane projects being planned. One of these projects, in Manchester, could be supplying 500 homes with biomethane by mid next year. Another British Gas project in Suffolk will provide gas from digestion of brewery wastes to around 235 families.

The Didcot project cost ￡2.5m and was influenced by promises of government aids aimed at encouraging companies to develop renewable technologies. An EU directive means the UK must ensure at least 15 percent of its energy is from renewable sources by 2020.

    The UK produces about 1.73 million tons of sewage annually. If all sewage treatment works in the UK were fitted with the technology, they could supply gas for up to 350,000 families.

1.Which of the following is true of the biomethane gas?

   A. It’s mainly made from rotting plants.

   B. It’s an environmentally friendly gas.

   C. Its production process is too long.

   D. It’s easily recognized by the customers.

2.What is the function of the enzymes?

   A. To digest the solid waste material.

   B. To help get rid of anaerobic bacteria.

   C. To help purify the biomethane.

   D. To speed up the digestion process.

3.According to British Gas, the biomethane gas had better be used _____.

   A. as the power for the vehicles                                   

   B. for the heating and cooking

   C. to produce the electricity                                          

   D. to drive a variety of machines

4.The last three paragraphs mainly show that _____.

   A. UK government supports the biome thane projects

   B. the biome thane projects are very costly

   C. the biome thane projects still face many barriers

   D. the biome thane projects are promising

5.What should the text belong to?

   A. Computer science.                  B. Engineering.         C. Energy.                  D. Business.

 

A town in Oxfordshire has become the first in the UK to have biomethane（生物甲烷）gas from human waste piped to their homes for gas central heating and cooking.

Up to 200 families in Didcot now receive the gas via the national gas power system. Head of energy and technology at British Gas, Martin Orrill, said customers wouldn’t notice any difference as the gas is purified（提炼）to the highest standard and has no smell. The gas is produced at a sewage（污物）treatment works plant in Didcot.

The entire process takes only less than three weeks, with the sewage being collected and sent first to settlement tanks. The solid waste material is then fed into digesters, where anaerobic bacteria（厌氧菌）digest the sewage, with the aid of enzymes（酶）to speed up the process. The digestion process produces methane, which can be burned to drive machines to produce electricity, or can be purified and fed into the gas network and piped to homes and businesses. British Gas says supplying the gas rather than electricity is far more efficient since around two-thirds of the energy is lost in producing electricity.

Partners in the Didcot project, British Gas, Scotia Gas Networks, and Thames Water, all hope to expand the process to other towns, and other companies such as Ecotricity and United Utilities have also announced biomethane projects being planned. One of these projects, in Manchester, could be supplying 500 homes with biomethane by mid next year. Another British Gas project in Suffolk will provide gas from digestion of brewery wastes to around 235 families.

The Didcot project cost ￡2.5m and was influenced by promises of government aids aimed at encouraging companies to develop renewable technologies. An EU directive means the UK must ensure at least 15 percent of its energy is from renewable sources by 2020.

    The UK produces about 1.73 million tons of sewage annually. If all sewage treatment works in the UK were fitted with the technology, they could supply gas for up to 350,000 families.

Which of the following is true of the biomethane gas?

   A. It’s mainly made from rotting plants.

   B. It’s an environmentally friendly gas.

   C. Its production process is too long.

   D. It’s easily recognized by the customers.

What is the function of the enzymes?

   A. To digest the solid waste material.

   B. To help get rid of anaerobic bacteria.

   C. To help purify the biomethane.

   D. To speed up the digestion process.

According to British Gas, the biomethane gas had better be used _____.

   A. as the power for the vehicles                          

   B. for the heating and cooking

   C. to produce the electricity                               

   D. to drive a variety of machines

The last three paragraphs mainly show that _____.

   A. UK government supports the biome thane projects

   B. the biome thane projects are very costly

   C. the biome thane projects still face many barriers

   D. the biome thane projects are promising

What should the text belong to?

   A. Computer science.             B. Engineering.      C. Energy.             D. Business.