C

Reading poems is not exactly an everyday activity for most people. In fact, many people never read a poem once they get out of high school.

It is worth reminding ourselves that this has not always been the case in America. In the nineteenth century, a usual American activity was to sit around the fireside in the evening and read poems aloud. It is true that there was no television at the time, nor movie theaters, nor World Wide Web, to provide diversion. However, poems were a source of pleasure, of self-education, of connection to other people or to the world beyond one’s own community. Reading them was a social act as well as an individual one, and perhaps even more social than individual. Writing poems to share with friends and relations was, like reading poems by the fireside, another way in which poetry has a place in everyday life.

How did things change? Why are most Americans no longer comfortable with poetry, and why do most people today think that a poem has nothing to tell them and that they can do well without poems?

There are, I believe, three culprits(肇事者)：poets, teachers, and we ourselves. Of these, the least important is the third: the world surrounding the poem has betrayed us more than we have betrayed the poem. Early in the twentieth century, poetry in English headed into directions unfavorable to the reading of poetry. Readers decided that poems were not for the fireside or the easy chair at night, that they belonged where other difficult-to-read things belonged.

Poets failed the reader, so did teachers. They want their students to know something about the skills of a poem, they want their students to see that poems mean something. Yet what usually occurs when teachers push these concerns on their high school students is that young people decide poems are unpleasant crossword puzzles.

9. Reading poems is thought to be a social act in the nineteenth century because ______________.

A. it built a link among people B. it helped unite a community

C. it was a source of self-education D. it was a source of pleasure

10. The underlined word “diversion”(in Paragraph 2) most probably means “_________”.

A. concentration B. change C. amusements D. stories

11. According to the passage, what is the main cause of the great gap between readers and poetry?

A. Students are becoming less interested in poetry.

B. Students are poorly educated in high school.

C. TV and the Internet are more attractive than poetry.

D. Poems have become difficult to understand.

12. In the last paragraph, the writer questions ____________.

A. the difficulty in studying poems B. the way poems are taught in school

C. students’ wrong ideas about poetry D. the techniques used in writing poems

D

How can a creature weighing over 5 tons and normally taking 150 kilograms of food and 120 liters of water per day survive in a desert environment?

In the southwest African country of Namibia, and the Sahara lands of Mali further north, the desert elephant does just that.

Although not regarded as a separate species from the African elephant, the desert cousin differs in many ways. Their bodies are smaller, to absorb less heat, and their feet are larger for easier walking across sandy surfaces, They are taller, to reach higher branches. They have shorter tusks(象牙), and most importantly, longer trunks to dig for water in riverbeds.

Desert elephants can travel over 70 kilometers in search for feeding grounds and waterholes, and have a larger group of families. They drink only every 3 –4 days, and can store water in a “bag” at the back of their throat, which is only used when badly needed. Desert elephants are careful feeders – they seldom root up trees and break fewer branches, and thus maintain what little food sources are available. Young elephants may even eat the dung(粪便)of the female leader of a group when facing food shortage.

During drought they are unlikely to give birth to their young but with good rains the birthrate will increase greatly. Desert elephants have sand baths, sometimes adding their own urine(尿液)to make them muddy!

As we continue to overheat our weak planet, it can only be hoped that other animal species will adapt as extraordinarily well to change as the desert elephant.

13.The underlined part in Paragraph 2 means “ ”.

A.remains in the African countries

B.drinks 120 liters of water a day

C.manages to live in desert areas

D.eats 150 kilograms of food daily

14.Desert elephants are called careful feeders because they _________.

A.rarely ruin trees

B.drink only every 3-4 days

C.search for food in large groups

D.protect food sources for their young

15.What can be inferred from the last sentence in the passage?

A.Overheating the earth can be stopped.

B.Not all animal species are so adaptable.

C.The planet will become hotter and hotter.

D.Not all animals are as smart as desert elephants.