However, the worsening living environment caused partly by horrible grab of the waters of the Colorado River has beaten all the other reasons.
It’s easy to blame farmers along the Colorado for drawing waters from its channel to water their crops or quench the thirst of their cows. They are immediate consumers of water from the Colorado, but the truth is that we, ordinary American consumers, are all at least partially responsible. Many of us have bought products that come from the region, whether in the form of paper, hamburgers, or electronics. We live in an increasingly connected world, in which we take up “virtual water” in the form of products and even services. In the U.S., we use twice as much water per person as the global average.
Though it may seem to work in the short term, we can barely fix the Colorado by piping water from another place. But change is urgent. Use a water calculator to see how much water you use every day. Pay special attention to saving every drop of water hidden in your diet and wardrobe. And keep away from life styles that might waste water. In all, try to form a water-efficient habit.
Besides, technology improvement will also be explored to make change happen in the rescue efforts. These technologies include methods to increase farming efficiency, and ways to replace invasive, water-sucking plants with native species.
Anyway, it’s time we humans rose up and repaid the mother river that has long been nurturing us.
(Note: Answer the questions or complete the statements in NO MORE THAN TEN WORDS.) 78. What is the biggest factor to damage the Colorado nature? 79. The major reason of the Delta culture disappearance is _____.
80. Who are the two groups of people to blame for Colorado water shortage? 81. Two ways to turn around the Colorado situation are to ______.
第II卷 （共47分）
I. Translation（22分）
Directions: Translate the following sentences into English, using the words given in the brackets. 1．现在，很多年青人热衷于在网上征求游伴。（keen）
2. 起先观众们听不清台词，但最终还是被演员们的表演打动了。（finally）
3. 玛丽在报纸上了解到相关信息，这才意识到粮食浪费的问题有多严重。（Not until…） 4. 为了能陪伴孩子度过珍贵的童年时期，许多妈妈放弃了前景良好的职业生涯。（give up） 5. 尽管回报丰厚且风险不大，市场对银行最近推出的金融产品仍反应冷淡。（in spite of）
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II Guided Writing（25分）
Directions: Write an English composition in 120-150 words according to the instructions. 简要描述图片内容，并就图片反映的现象，谈谈你的看法。
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（注：文中不得出现真实的个人信息）12 / 12
闸北区2013学年第二学期高三英语质量调研试卷听力材料和答案
Tapescripts:
I. Listening Comprehension（30分） Section A
Directions: In Section A, you will hear ten short conversations between two speakers. At the end of each conversation, a question will be asked about what was said. The conversation and the question will be spoken only once. After you hear a conversation and the question about it, read the four possible answers on your paper, and decide which one is the best answer to the question you have heard.
1. W: Hi sir. We have two types of TV sets in the store that suit your taste. One with 47 inch
screen and one with high definition technology. Which one do you prefer? M: Well, I would rather have the big screen one as our room is big. Q: Where does this conversation most probably take place?
2. M: Should I pick you up at 8:00 a.m.?
W: I think I can manage to get to the conference hall before the meeting begins. But thank you all the same.
Q: What are the speakers going to do?
3. W: Are you busy at work?
M: Considering the workload I have to handle, I guess busy is the mildest word to describe my work.
Q: What does the man mean?
4. W: It’s so cold this winter and I have spent 30 dollars on the electricity bill this month.
M: We have two heaters in the house and your bill is a quarter of my heating expense this month.
Q: How much does the man pay for heating this month?
5. W: I am afraid I have put on some weight again this month.
M: Just look at all the snacks you have swallowed in the evening. It’s not at all surprising to me.
Q: What does the man imply?
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6. M: Of the two cars we have seen today, which one do you prefer?
W: Well, the red one is more fashionable with the streamline appearance while the white one saves on oil. As a nature lover, I am surely choosing the latter one. Q: What does the woman mean?
7. W: How would you like to do your hair, any particular style?
M: Well, I am going to a party tomorrow so I’d dye it a bright color covering the white hairs. Q: What’s the possible relationship between the two speakers?
8. W: So have you got the ticket for me?
M: The tickets sold off just before I got there. I would have got one if I hadn’t stopped for a drink on the way.
Q: What does the man mean?
9. W: My computer teacher announced that we would have to complete 2 papers and take 2
exams this term. I wonder how I can survive when another two courses have similar requirements.
M: Well, why not drop one course and pick it up the next term? Q: What does the man advise the woman to do?
10. W: Congratulations! I heard that your chess team has reached the final of the district
championship.
M: Yeah, and now we are all busy preparing for it. Q: What is the man probably doing?
Section B
Directions: In section B, you will hear two short passages, and you will be asked three questions on each of the passages. The passages will be read twice, but the questions will be spoken only once. When you hear a question, read the four possible answers on your paper and decide which one would be the best answer to the question you have heard. Questions 11 through 13 are based on the following passage.
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This is the hourly news at 10 P.M. An angry viewer is accusing Japan's national broadcaster for mental suffering caused by too much use of words borrowed from English.
According to Mr. Takahashi, the basis of his concern is that Japan is being too Americanised. English became popular in Japan after World War II when almost all US companies in Japan hired English speakers.
The situation was followed by a growing interest in American pop culture.
The country's modern vocabulary is full of borrowed words, many of which are changed in pronunciation to fit the Japanese speaking habits.
Mr. Takahashi, accused NHK of irresponsibility by refusing to use certain native Japanese words instead of certain English words in the program.
He believed that with Japanese society increasingly Americanized, NHK, as Japan's national broadcaster, shouldn't go with the trend, but should remain determined to stick with the use of Japanese, which he thinks would go a long way toward protecting Japanese culture.
However many people think Mr. Takahashi’s concern is unreasonable as use of English doesn’t mean the loss of domestic culture but on the other hand helps Japan to get informed of the advanced technology and international affairs, which will eventually give Japan more advantages in the world community.
11. Why did English become popular in Japan after World War II? 12. What did Mr. Takahashi charge NHK with? 13. What is the opinion of some other people?
Questions 14 through 16 are based on the following passage.
Listeners, have you ever camped on the roof of a high building, dressed up like a beggar or put on masks to fight against Batman. Sounds interesting, doesn’t it? Today we are introducing to you Jimmy Wang and Jason Liu who are best friends. Their company is offering to you these fun activities.
The pair were both bored with their work after graduation from University in 2008 and decided to do something exciting. And there weren’t many fun activities for adults then so they set up a company that offers young people a platform to socialize and have fun. They are organizing activities and getting sponsored to make money.
But ideas are always a step away from success. Although the pair had many interesting ideas no clients picked up on them. In the first two years, the company didn’t win any sponsors and lost money on nearly every event.
Fortunately they never gave up. Instead, they found out that the problem lied in lack of publicity for their company. So they advertised on famous social websites and handed out advertisement sheets on the streets. The measures did work out.
An idea for a fun Halloween party finally paid off. They got a call from Coca-Cola, that agreed to sponsor the event, and for the first time they made money.
From then on more and more companies started asking them to organize activities and money poured in. Last week, the pair bought a BMW car and they think it’s now time to expand the business. Good luck to them!
14. How does the pair’s company earn money? 15. Why did they fail at beginning?
16. What will the company probably do next?
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上海市闸北区2014届高三英语二模试卷（含答案及听力文字）
