People around the world are superstitious about numbers; even those ancient Greeks believed that all numbers and their multiples had some mystical significance.

Those numbers between 1 and 13 were in particular to have a powerful influence over the affairs of men.

For example, it is commonly said that luck, good or bad, comes in threes; if an accident happens, two more of the same kind may be expected soon afterwards. The arrival of a letter will be followed by two others within a certain period.

Another belief involving the number three has it that it is unlucky to light three cigarettes from the one match. If this happens, the bad luck that goes with the deed falls upon the person whose cigarette was the last to be lit. The ill-men linked to the lighting of three things from one match or candle goes back to at least the 17th century and probably earlier. It was believed that three candles alight at the same time would be sure to bring bad luck; one, two, or four, were permissible, but never just three.

Seven was another significant number, usually regarded as a bringer of good luck. The ancient astrologers believed that the universe was governed by seven planets; students of Shakespeare will recall that the life of man was divided into seven ages. Seven horseshoes nailed to a house will protect it from all evil.

Nine is usually thought of as a lucky number because it is the product of three times three. It was much used by the Anglo Saxons in their charms for healing.

Another belief was that great changes occurred every 7th and 9th of a man's life. Consequently, the age of 63 (the product of nine and seven) was thought to be a very perilous time for him. If he survived his 63rd year he might hope to live to a ripe old age.

Thirteen, as we well know, is regarded with great awe and fear. The common belief is that this derives from the fact that there were 13 people at Christ's Last Supper. This being the eve of his betrayal, it is not difficult to understand the significance given to the number by the early Christians.

In more modern times 13 is an especially unlucky number of a dinner party, for example. Hotels will avoid numbering a floor the 13th; the progression is from 12 to 14, and no room is given the number 13. Many home owners will use 12 1/2 instead of 13 as their house number.

Yet oddly enough, to be born on the 13th of the month is not regarded with any fear at all, which just shows how irrational we are in our superstitious beliefs.

1.What does the underlined sentence mean?

A. If one good thing happens, two bad things will follow it.

B. If one bad thing happens, two good things will follow it.

C. If one good thing happens, two more good things will follow it.

D. Three good things and three bad things always come together.

2.According to the passage, which of the following groups of numbers will certainly bring good luck to people?

A. 3 and 7.B. 7 and 9.C. 3 and 9.D. 3 and 13.

3.What does the underlined word perilous in paragraph 7 mean ________.

A. dangerousB. instableC. unluckyD. unhealthy

4.The ill luck associated with 13 is supposed to have its origin in ________.

A. legendB. popular beliefC. religionD. certain customs

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Researchers at Stanford University have developed a new material that can move heat out of buildings and into space. The researchers say the material can cool buildings even on hot days. The cooling material is a very thin sheet with many layers that could be placed on a roof like solar panels(板). However, instead of turning sunlight into energy as solar panels do, the material turns heat into radiation.

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A. living on hot days is no longer a big problem now

B. a new material is created to cool the buildings

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3.The new material is especially useful in areas that ________.

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B. Some people got benefits from producing the panels.

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1.What does the underlined part in Paragraph 1 mean?

A. Be free from diseases.

B. Take some diet pills.

C. Improve their figure.

D. Keep physically active.

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A. Jane, who decides to lose weight.

B. David, who exercises for future health.

C. Mary, who enjoys exercising with her son..

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3.According to Paragraph 4, which group of people tends to exercise for friendship?

A. Men. B. Women. C. The elderly. D. College students.

4.What is the author mainly arguing in the passage?

A. Immediate rewards of exercise should be emphasized.

B. Distant benefits should be the motivators for exercise.

C. Feeling relaxed is more important than future health.

D. Men and women take exercise for different purposes.

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How the Grand Canyon (大峽谷) was created remains one of the geology’s greatest mysteries. Some evidence suggests that the process was a gradual one in which the Colorado River (which runs through the canyon) slowly cut deeper and deeper into the ground over millions of years. But volcanic rock samples taken from the canyon now suggest that the canyon was down-cut instead.

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Robert Webb, a research geologist, says natural dams seem to have formed and broken across the Colorado River several times during the last million years. The dams were built when lava(熔巖) from the eruptions of nearby volcanoes flowed into the river. The lava hardened into hard rocks and blocked the river, causing it to back up and form a lake. Each time the lake grew so huge that it broke the rock dam, releasing a flash flood that furthered the down-cutting process and deepened the canyon.

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The photos, taken by the Mars Global Surveyor, indicate that an enormous lake existed on Mars 3.5 billion years ago. The lake spilled into a large nearby hole. One edge of the hole broke, releasing a flash flood that quickly carved out a grand canyon.

The existence of down-cutting on Mars is just one more piece of evidence that the cold, dry planet was once warm and wet.

1.In the past, deep canyons were believed to have formed _______.

A. as a result of a sudden break of volcanoes

B. due to river flows over millions of years

C. owing to the burst of artificial dams

D. thanks to our ancestors’ creative work

2.According to the passage, which of the following statements is TURE?

A. Several volcanoes broke out on Mars directly creating grand canyons.

B. Several great lakes existed on the upper parts of the Colorado River.

C. People built high dams on the upper parts of the Colorado River.

D. The Colorado River crossed the Grand Canyon to form down-cutting.

3.From the last three paragraphs we learn that _______.

A. there are great lakes on Mars

B. there are active volcanoes on Mars

C. there might be cities on Mars

D. there might be life on Mars

4.The passage can be titled as _______.

A. Lakes on Earth and Mars

B. The Cause of Lake Formation

C. The Force of Dam Breaking

D. Canyons—Results of Flood Cutting

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科目：高中英語(yǔ) 來(lái)源：2017屆內(nèi)蒙古高三上期中考英語(yǔ)卷（解析版） 題型：閱讀理解

This year, Facebook, the social media website, announced that it would cooperate with several news organizations —including The New York Times, The Guardian, and the BBC —to place news stories directly into users’ personal Facebook webpage. Stories published using Facebook Instant will load more quickly and keep the style of the original publisher, who will keep all the advertising income the stories earn —at least for now. The deal shows how important social media has become to news organizations, and it is a clear sign of how the world of news is changing —and has been for a while.

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I think we should be concerned about such developments. One concern is that Facebook, Google and other social media websites see journalism as a sideline(副業(yè)), a way of putting people in front of advertisements. It isn’t their primary function —so if it stops making them lots of money, they're likely to stop doing it.

There’s another concern that computer-written articles are not actually journalism at all, because what a human news team produces is actually quite complex. A well-written news story puts information in context, offers a voice to each side of an argument and brings the public new knowledge.

Though economics and speed of delivery mean readers will probably choose a computer-written story over a carefully shaped article — at least for daily news —I don’t think the computers will be writing any in-depth articles for a while yet.

1.What is the main purpose of the article?

A. To report on a new computer service offered by Facebook.

B. To advise readers against reading computer-written news.

C. To express concern about recent trends in online news.

D. To describe the process of online news reporting.

2.Computer-written news reports have so far focused on sports and finance because ________.

A. these are the most popular topics for online readers

B. writing style is less important than accuracy in these areas

C. information on these topics is more easily available

D. there are fewer journalists specializing in these areas

3.What does the underlined word “It” in Paragraph 3 refer to?

A. Journalism.B. Advertising.C. Facebook.D. Business.

4.In Paragraph 4, which of the following is mentioned as a characteristic of a well-written news article?

A. The information presented is up-to-date.

B. The author's opinion is clear

C. The language used is vivid.

D. Different views on the topic are presented.

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