2013届高三英语星级阶梯阅读练习 三星级 12
A
Villa Nicoletta, Genuine Relaxation
Somewhere in the world, there’s a place where stress isn’t allowed and peace and genuine relaxation are the only demands of the day. If you could go there, you would thoroughly enjoy yourself. There are not too many places in the world like this, but this is one of them. It’s luxurious. It’s ultra-private.
Welcome to Villa Nicoletta
Villa Nicoletta is a 4-bedroom luxury villa and an oasis(绿洲) of rest and rejuvenation（恢复活力）in a land of unspoiled peace. Located on a 70-foot cliff overlooking the north shore of the island of St. Thomas and the pretty waters of Caret Bay, Villa Nicoletta offers the finest accommodations in the Caribbean for those seeking a vacation of elegance, peace and privacy. You’ll see how the sun blankets the landscape and water in shimmering brilliance by day and how the sky twinkles like billions of bright diamonds at night.
Completed in 2000, the 3,300-square-foot Villa Nicoletta is fully equipped with state-of-the-art electronics.
When you book Villa Nicoletta, you shall book the entire villa.
Off Season: April 16 to December 14
★4 bedrooms — ＄5,700/week (8 people max)
Sleep sofa can add additional 2 people ＄200/night
Peak Season: December 15 to April 15
★4 bedrooms — ＄6,300/week (8 people max)
Sleep sofa can add additional 2 people ＄200/night
56. The villa can be rented to a maximum of _______ people at a time.
A. five B. eight C. thirteen D. ten
57. If a family with 6 people spends a fortnight’s Christmas holiday in the villa, how much will they pay?
A. ＄12,600. B. ＄15,400. C. ＄11,400. D. ＄13,200.
58. Villa Nicoletta is most likely to be popular with tourists who _______.
A. like adventure
B. want to escape the noisy life of the city
C. enjoy the winter sports
D. seek excitement in the sea
59. We can infer that _______.
A. you can share the villa with other tourists
B. the island of St. Thomas is famous for the ocean theme amusement park
C. fewer tourists stay in Villa Nicoletta in autumn than in spring
D. you can go in for extreme sports in Villa Nicoletta
B
How would you like to sleep with one half your brain asleep and the other half awake? Dolphins sleep this way. Recently, scientists at Indiana State University have discovered that ducks sleep this way too. They found that ducks sleep half awake so they can rest and watch for danger at the same time.
After putting their ducks in a row and videotaping them, some researchers found ducks on the end of each row spent more time asleep with one eye open, apparently looking for predators.
“The more the ducks felt threatened, the more they slept with one eye open,” said lead author Niels C. Rattenborg, a graduate student at Indiana State University,Terre Haute.”the unique aspect is not that they do it,but that they control it. When they sleep at the edge of a group,they tend to realize greater danger, so they spend more time sleeping with one half of their brain.” Ducks with one eye open were still awake enough to detect predators, said the authors of the study, which appears today in the journal Nature.
The researchers studied four groups of four ducks held in plastic boxes, which were arranged in a row. Ducks on the end were found to sleep with one eye open 31.8 per cent of the time, compared to 12.4 percent of the time for ducks in the central position.
Also, ducks in the central position did not open one eye more than the others, while ducks on each end kept the eye facing away from the group open 86.2 per cent of the time. Brain wave readings of the ducks showed that the half of the brain receiving signals from the closed eye indicated that half of the brain was sleeping. Signals from the half of the brain receiving signals from the open eye showed a state between fully awake and asleep.
60. It was discovered that .
A. most people would like to be half asleep
B. ducks can sleep half awake
C. dolphins sleep on their way
D. ducks have different sleeping habits from each other
61. A predator is most likely to be .
A. an animal that hunts,kills and eats other animals
B. a human being who looks after and feeds ducks
C. a scientist who does research work on animals
D. an animal that is likely to be friends with ducks
62. Ducks at the end of each row sleep with one eye open because .
A. they are looking for food
B. they want to enjoy the scenery
C. they are watching out for danger
D. they are unique in their sleeping habit
63. Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A. Ducks on the northern end of a row would keep their eye facing the south open.
B. Ducks with less sense of duty usually choose to stay in the center of a row.
C. Ducks with one eye open at the edge can still enjoy a certain degree of sleep.
D. A video tape recorder was the only electronic device used in the experiment.
C
Letter to My Grandson
Change is difficult for all of us. The older we get, the more change we face. All change involves loss, and whenever we lose something, we try hard to have it back. So because we know that all change is loss and all loss is change, your mom and dad worried about how you would react when it was time to take away your beloved pacifier (奶嘴) — your “binky”.
Now that you’re four, you no longer have your binky; you have nothing to protect you from your anxiety. That’s why transitions (转变) are hard. Those transitional objects give us the illusion (幻觉) of security. When they are gone, we are left with the insecurity that’s been there all along.
Sam, almost everything we become attached to we’ll eventually lose: our possessions, our loved ones, and even our youth and health. Yes, each loss is a blow (打击). But it’s also an opportunity. There’s an old saying: “When the heart weeps for what it’s lost, the soul rejoices (感到高兴) for what it’s gained.”
So when you feel the pain of loss, please don’t try to grab (抓住) at something to take away the pain. Just have faith that pain, like everything else, is transitional. Through it, you will learn about your ability to deal with adversity (逆境). You will learn how to manage stress. On the other side of pain, you will learn something about who you are.
A friend of mine recently told me she had so many difficulties in her life that she felt like she was living in a nightmare (恶梦) and didn’t know what to do. I told her to find the bus station and wait for the bus! She looked at me as if I was crazy. I explained that all emotions (情绪) are temporary, and we can wait for them to pass as though we were waiting for a bus. We can wait with disappointment, anger or feelings of victimhood, but that won’t make the bus come any faster. We could wait with patience and relaxation, but that wouldn’t make the bus come faster either! We just have to have faith that it’s coming.
64. It can be inferred that the pacifier mentioned in the first paragraph .
A. was just an opportunity to Sam B. stills means a lot to Sam
C. was a transitional object D. is an object Sam has already forgotten
65. According to the author, when we lose something, _____.
A. we will lose protection from insecurity
B. we can have it back in a different way
C. we should be thankful for what is lost
D. we can still expect something positive
66 What does the last paragraph indicate?
A. We can do nothing about difficulties in life.
B. Waiting for the bus is a good way to reduce one’s stress.
C. We should be confident that all pains will be over in time.
D. We can do nothing except wait to make the bus come faster.
67. What does the author mainly want to tell Sam in the letter?
A. We can avoid losses in our life by controlling our emotions.
B. Keeping optimistic matters a lot in the face of hardship.
C. Growing up is more than a process of losing and gaining.
D. One should value what he owns before it’s eventually lost.
D
If you have a chance to go to Finland, you will probably be surprised to find how “foolish” the Finnish people are.
Take the taxi drivers for example. Taxis in Finland are mostly high-class Benz with a fare of two US dollars a kilometer. You can go anywhere in one, tell the driver to drop you at any place, say that you have some business to attend to, and then walk off without paying your fare. The driver would not show the least sign of anxiety.
The dining rooms in all big hotels not only serve their guests, but also serve outside diners. Hotel guests have their meals free, so they naturally go to the free dining rooms to have their meals. The most they would do to show their good faith is to wave their registration card to the waiter. With such a loose check, you can easily use any old registration card to take a couple of friends to dine free of charge.
The Finnish workers are paid by the hour. They are very much on their own as soon as they have agreed with the boss on the rate. From then on they just say how many hours they have worked and they will be paid accordingly.
With so many loopholes(漏洞) in everyday life, surely Finland must be a heaven to those who love to take “petty advantages”. But the strange thing is, all the taxi passengers would always come back to pay their fare after they have attended to their business; not a single outsider has ever been found in the free hotel dining rooms. And workers always give an honest account of the exact hours they put in. As the Finns always act on good faith in everything they do, living in such a society has turned everyone into a real “gentleman”.
In a society of such high moral practice, what need is there for people to be on guard against others?
68. While taking a taxi in Finland, a passenger_______.
A. can go anywhere without having to pay the driver
B. only pays two US dollars for a taxi ride
C. can never be turned down by the taxi driver wherever he wants to go
D. needs to provide good faith demonstration before leaving without paying
69. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A. Generally, in Finland, workers can get more pay by working long hours.
B. The bosses are too busy to check the working hours of their employees.
C. The workers are always honest with their working hours.
D. The workers and their bosses will make an agreement in advance about the pay.
70. The underlined word “those” in Para.5 probably refers to people _______.
A. who are on guard against others B. who are dishonest
C. who often have meals in big hotels D. who often take taxis
71. It can be concluded that _______.
A. Finnish people are really foolish in daily life
B. the Finnish society is of very high moral level
C. Finland has been a good place for cheats
D. all the Finns are rich and therefore honest
E
Whether you were the shy one at high school or the most popular person on campus, starting university is a clean paper for everyone. It’s the best time to develop your skills with different people, such as teachers, classmates, and roommates. Your social skills and relationships with people in college will have an influence long after you graduate.
Here are some tips on developing your people skills at college. Put yourself out there and meet new people
You’re very likely to make some lifelong friendships at college. But before you get there you have to start by making friends.
Upperclassmen and the college itself will organize events to introduce you and your peers to each other and the new college environment. For the purpose of improving your social skills early on, attend every single one.
Join clubs that fit your interests. You can meet many people there and it’s a safe bet that you will have something in common.
Being active on social networks, such as Renren and micro blogs, is also a good way to meet people, especially if you’re not so good at face-to-face conversation.
Always open yourself to conversation
Your chances of making new friends depends on your ability to get a friendly atmosphere across.
Simple gestures, such as moving your things from a chair when someone is looking for a place in the canteen, can make you seem more open to conversation. You can also take out your earphones when someone asks to share a table with you in the common room while you’re studying.
Try to get along with roommates
Getting along with roommates is a challenge you’d be wise to overcome. You live together, so you will often spend time together without even trying to. It’s important to make sure that dorm life doesn’t make you unhappy.
You should be cautious about facing your roommates over any problems, especially if you have only just met. Remember, be polite but firm.
The key is to set expectations and clear boundaries from the beginning. Let your roommates know your life habits, but also observe and respect theirs. Sleeping times and studying schedules, visiting friends and cleaning duties are just some of the topics you should discuss.
Avoid drama and gossip (流言蜚语)
As you already know from high school, your social life will be much more pleasant if you avoid causing and getting caught up in drama, no matter whether in class, dorm, or elsewhere.
When it comes to gossip, learn to keep your mouth shut and you’ll avoid trouble. This is especially important if you live in a dorm, where staying away from someone you’ve offended is difficult.
72. The passage is written specially for ___________________.
A. the senior students at college B. the college students and teachers
C. the freshmen of universities. D. the parents of college students
73. The main purpose of this passage is to ____________________.
A. present some information about the campus life
B. help improve students’ social skills before entering college
C. prepare students for the upcoming college life
D. explain what is college life
74. From the passage, we can NOT infer that _______________________.
A. don’t talk about gossip in public unless the listeners are your close friends.
B. if you are a shy boy/girl, you’d better choose social networks as an efficient way to make friends.
C. dining in the canteen provides you with a good chance to start a conversation or make friends with others.
D. in general, you will find it hard to get along with your roommates or cope with the relationships with them.
75. What’s the best title of this passage?
A. Tips on spending your college life B. What is college life like?
C. A new world is waiting for you D. Prepare your social skills for college life
56-60 D A B C B 61-65 A C C C D 66-70 C B C B B 71-75 B C B A D
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