A desert is a very dry land where there is hardly any rain. In the day, it can be so hot that you could fry an egg on the ground. But during the night it is sometimes so could that water would turn into ice.






Many desserts are covered in sand. But some have mountains, rocks, or lakes that have dried up in the heat. The Great American Dessert has cliffs(懸崖) that have been made into amazing and beautiful shapes by the wind. The Sahara Desert in Africa is mostly sand. The Australian Desert has red sand.
Sometimes it does not rain for a whole year in the desert. But there is water deep under the ground and some plants have roots that go very deep to find it. Other plants have roots that spread out(延伸) a long way so they can suck up the rain as soon as it falls.
One desert plant is the cactus, which has long, spreading roots. The cactus stores water inside its hard skin. This skin protects it from heat and cold.
Camels are a bit like cactus plants! They store water too—inside their bodies. They have special fur which protects them from the sun during the day and keeps them warm at night.
Some other animals live in deserts, too. They have to be very good at seeing and hearing because most of them only come out at night. This is why many desert animals have extra big eyes or ears.
A desert fox has bigger ears than a normal for. A gerbil has huge eye, so that it can see at night. It stays cool in the day by staying underground, like most desert animals.
Some people live in the desert but they always make their homes near an oasis. An oasis is where water comes from an underground river. Near an oasis, people can grow lots of plants and keep animals.
Life is hard in the desert, for people, animals and plants. But desert people like to live there.
【小題1】A desert is very dry because__________.

A desert is a very dry land where there is hardly any rain. In the day, it can be so hot that you could fry an egg on the ground. But during the night it is sometimes so could that water would turn into ice.

Many desserts are covered in sand. But some have mountains, rocks, or lakes that have dried up in the heat. The Great American Dessert has cliffs(懸崖) that have been made into amazing and beautiful shapes by the wind. The Sahara Desert in Africa is mostly sand. The Australian Desert has red sand.

Sometimes it does not rain for a whole year in the desert. But there is water deep under the ground and some plants have roots that go very deep to find it. Other plants have roots that spread out(延伸) a long way so they can suck up the rain as soon as it falls.

One desert plant is the cactus, which has long, spreading roots. The cactus stores water inside its hard skin. This skin protects it from heat and cold.

Camels are a bit like cactus plants! They store water too—inside their bodies. They have special fur which protects them from the sun during the day and keeps them warm at night.

Some other animals live in deserts, too. They have to be very good at seeing and hearing because most of them only come out at night. This is why many desert animals have extra big eyes or ears.

A desert fox has bigger ears than a normal for. A gerbil has huge eye, so that it can see at night. It stays cool in the day by staying underground, like most desert animals.

Some people live in the desert but they always make their homes near an oasis. An oasis is where water comes from an underground river. Near an oasis, people can grow lots of plants and keep animals.

Life is hard in the desert, for people, animals and plants. But desert people like to live there.

46.A desert is very dry because__________.

A. it is sandy　　　　　　　 B. there is so little rain

C. the wind is strong　 D. there is no water deep under the ground

47.What does the underlined phrase"suck up"in paragraph 3 mean_________?

A.圍堵　　 　 B.討好　　 C. 釋放　 D.吸收

48.Some desert animals have extra big eyes or ears because__________.

A.the sunlight is too strong in the day　 B.they need to see and hear well at night

C.it is very cold at nigh　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D.they store water in them.

49.Most desert animals stay cool in the day by_________.

A.storing water in side their bodies　　　 B.drinking water as much as they can

C.staying underground　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D.growing lots of plants

50.Which of the following is true?

A.Desert people like to live in the desert though life is hard.

B.People in the desert usually fry eggs on the ground.

C.Camels have special fur to store water.

D.All the deserts are covered in sand.

Do you think there is too much noise in our city? If you live near an airport，you will be unhappy because of a plane often make a loud noise．The sound of planes or heavy vehicles is likely to cause deafness if heard continuously（不斷地）．

However, most people in our city do not seem to mind noise. They like to enjoy music when they are doing uninteresting jobs．It is a new danger because pop music，when played through powerful amplifiers（放大器），can reach 120 decibels（120分貝的）at a distance of five feet．A continuous noise of over 85 decibels can cause deafness．It was discovered that many young people in America could hear no better than 65-year-old people．

In the past we used to think that only workers in very noisy places would become deaf．For example，when newspapers and books are being printed，the noise level is over 85 decibels，and some of the workers become deaf．Today，however，scientists believe that 10 percent of the workers in Britain are being deafened by the noise．

Sometimes noise of less than 85 decibels can make some people tired and stressed．We all know that too much noise makes life difficult and unpleasant．It can do great harm to people's health and prevent people from working well．Workers in noisy offices are not as efficient（效率高的）as those in quiet offices．Noise makes people less efficient．Can anything be done to reduce or control noise?

In Britain the government has made several laws to reduce noise．Though the government has spent a lot of money in making airports and main roads quieter，many people think that there are still not enough laws．For example，there are no laws to control the noise of machines．In Japan，America and Norway there are such laws．As a result，workers can be given compensation（賠償）if they become deaf．

1.Some workers become deaf because of ________．

A．hard work              B．a(chǎn) continuous noise of over 85 decibels

C. powerful amplifiers    D．uninteresting jobs

2.In Britain there are laws to ________．

A．stop workers from becoming deaf       B．control the noise of machines

C．keep down noise                       D．help deaf workers in need

3.Who can be given compensation if they become deaf?

A．American workers．

B．British workers．

C．Both American workers and British workers．

D．None of the above answers．