Sarah Ineson of the UK Met Office told the reporters in an email.
Her team focused on the data from the recent minimum solar radiation period during 2008-10, which was a(n) ___44___ calm period for the sun but at the same time, ___45___ winters in the U.S and Europe were recorded which brought troubles to many businesses and made people’s lives difficult.
The researchers found that a reduction in radiation from the sun can affect wind patterns , ___46___ cold winters.
\exciting ___47___ of improved prediction for winter conditions for months and even years ahead. These predictions play an important role in long-term weather planning,\
Ineson's team used the data in a complex computer to ___48___ long-term weather patterns. It successfully reproduced what scientists had observed happening in the upper atmosphere during changes in solar radiation. More study was needed, though. The key ___49___ in the experiment lay in the satellite data used, because it spans(跨度) only a few years. \concerning whether the current research results are accurate and whether they can be ___50___ to other solar cycles,\
III. Reading Comprehension Section A
Directions: For each blank in the following passage there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with the word or phrase that best fits the context.
Recently, Pew Research Center announced that over a quarter of Americans have shared a selfie online. Unsurprisingly, the practice of photographing oneself and sharing that image via social media has ___51___ among all age groups. Evidence of its mainstream nature is seen in other aspects of our culture too. Last year, \was not only added to the Oxford English Dictionary, but also named Word of the Year.
Yet, despite the huge number of people practicing it, ___52___ is also surrounding selfie. An assumption that sharing selfies is embarrassing runs throughout the journalistic and scholarly coverage on the topic. Negative words like \and \have inevitably become a part of any conversation about selfies among scholars.
But, over a quarter of all Americans are relying on it. Why? The usual reasons given by scholars—self-center and fame-seeking—seem too ___54___ to explain such a crowd acting. There is always more to a social cultural practice than what ___55___.
Simply put, physical and digital technology make it possible. The idea that technology ___56___ the social world and our lives has been recognized by people. To some extent, world is shaped by technological revolutions. The selfie is not a(n) ___57___ form of expression. Artists have created self-portraits for centuries, from cave to oil paintings, to early photography and modern art. People are ___58___ their feelings and thoughts through certain media. What's original about today's selfie is its public popularity. Technological advancement ___59___ the self-portrait used to be restricted to the art world and gave it to the masses. Those digital front-facing cameras, social media platforms, and wireless communications conveniently available make selfie a job ___60___ any time anywhere.
Besides, We are not ___61___ beings living by ourselves. We are social beings who live in social communities, and as such, our lives are fundamentally formed by social relations with other people. As photos meant to be ___62___, selfies are not individual acts; they are social gestures. Selfies, as well as our presence on social media generally, are a part of “identity work\--the work that we do on a daily basis to ___63___ that we are seen by others as we wish to be seen. In fact, the crafting and display of identity has long been understood as a social process. The selfies we take and show are to present a ___64___ image of us so as to become a part of our identity formation and ___65___. 51. A. flowered 52. A. negotiation 53. A. self-contained 54. A. necessary 55. A. meets the eye 56. A. operates
B. returned B. criticism B. self-evident B. smart B. takes the lead B. produces
C. imposed C. regret C. self-absorbed C. certain C. raises the alarm C. structures
D. functioned D. punishment D. self-financed D. shallow D. makes the point D. ruins
57. A. advanced 58. A. offering 59. A. liberated 60. A. at length 61. A. isolated 62. A. saved 63. A. claim 64. A. fashionable 65. A. summary Section B
B. new B. revising B. tagged B. with ease B. courageous B. shared B. suppose B. skillful B. evaluation
C. intelligent C. inspiring C. honoured C. at large C. traditional C. updated C. ensure C. mysterious C. monitoring
D. available D. conveying D. maintained D. with regards D. civilized D. deleted D. signal D. particular
D. exhibition
Directions: Read the following three passages. Each passage is followed by several questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage you have just read.
(A)
Jack looked up and saw in the distance red and green navigation lights coming towards them and knew it must be a naval patrol(巡逻) boat because of its speed. As the humming of the boat’s powerful engines drew closer, Jack bent down.
Jack then let out a frightened cry as the brilliant beam of a searchlight broke the darkness and swept the fishing boat from head to tail. By its reflected light, Jack could clearly see the similar looks on the faces of other bent ones.
Jack knew that if the patrol boat came close enough, its men would surely see the people hidden in the fishing boat. To collect himself, he leaned his head a little so that he could see Derek standing in the head of the boat, holding the tiller(舵柄). Derek managed to wave back at the patrol boat as if he had not a care in the world. How imperturbable he was! Someone on board the patrol boat switched on a loud speaker and a voice, made harsh and thin by its horn, demanded,” Where are you bound?”
Derek shrugged and shouted back, “Tell me where the fish run and I’ll tell you where I am bound.” The noise of idling engines drowned his voice.
“Say again!” barked the speaker.
“Anywhere where there’s fish!” Derek shouted back. There was a pause. The boats drifted closer to each other.
“Why aren’t you showing navigation lights?”
Jack watched as Derek pretended to look puzzled and leant out over the side as if to see what
they said were true. “They must have blown out,” he apologized with a shrug. “I’ll light them again as soon as you stop rocking me about like this.”
Aboard the patrol boat, the captain was wondering if it would be worthwhile searching this
old fishing boat for stowaways as how many breathing souls could such a shabby boat hide? The radio suddenly cackled. Abruptly, without another word being exchanged, the light went out and the patrol boat started its engines, speeding off into the dark, leaving the fishing boat floating about in the water.
66. Jack let out a scared cry because he ______.
A. saw something in the sea B. was afraid of being discovered C. was blinded by the bright lights D. was scared by the faces of companions.
67. The patrol boat captain did not search the fishing boat as he ______.
A. didn’t find it worthwhile
B. looked down upon the shabby old fishing boat C. trusted Derek very much.
D. was called to another place via the radio
68. The underlined word “imperturbable” in the passage is closest in meaning to ______.
A. anxious B. nervous C. calm D. sociable
69. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A. Derek didn’t realize that Jack and others hid in the fishing boat. B. The captain was suspicious of what Derek told him.
C. The patrol boat approached the fishing boat to inspect illegal goods. D. Derek succeeded in covering up for the Jack and others on the boat.
(B)
You may read the questions first：
Our booklet is bringing to you the world’s top sceneries: Grenada Known as the Island of Spice for its abundance of spicy plants and leaves, Grenada is one of the southernmost Windward Islands in the Caribbean Sea. Many of its spices have been destroyed by hurricanes in the last decade, though its spicy relics(遗迹) are still the inspirations of many master chefs worldwide. The central mountainous land’s cooler air and waterfalls produce a near-constant cloud cover of freeze. Tucson, Arizona A seeming paradise that claims to have 350 sunny days a year, Tucson boasts geological beauty and hiking so fantastic that visitors can be tempted into a false sense of security. Be warned: Get prepared for the heat as it isn’t unusual for temperatures to rise higher than 110oF (43oC) in summer months, when the rocks can hold that heat well into the evening hours. Even your hunting dog will get sunburned Southern Belize With flash rainstorms that instantly fill the dirt roads and the wet that makes it one of the greenest places on Earth, this Maya wonderland is home to the longest barrier reef(堡礁) in the Western globe, the unique uropygialis birds and the deepest diving—the Blue Hole. Nonetheless it is the back roads of the Toledo district, where rain forest meets the jungle, that truly inspire awe and joy.
上海市闸北区2015届高三下学期第二次模拟英语试题 Word版含答案
