2018-2019学年河北省武邑中学高二上学期第三次月考英语试题 Word版

2018-2019学年河北省武邑中学高二上学期第三次月考英语试题 Word版

河北武邑中学2018-2019学年上学期高二年级第三次月考 英语试题 ‎ ‎ 第一部分：听力（共两节，满分30分)‎ 第一节 听下面5段对话。每段对话后有一个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项，并标在试卷的相应位置。听完每段对话后，你都有10秒钟的时间来回答有关小题和阅读下一小题。每段对话仅读一遍。‎ ‎1.What does the boy still need to do?‎ A. Hang up his clothes. B. Put away his toys. C. Sweep the floor. ‎ ‎2. What is the woman doing?‎ A. Making the bed. B. Fixing the chair. C. Driving to school.‎ ‎3. Why is the woman sad?‎ A. She lost her homework. ‎ B. The man deleted her essay.‎ C. She forgot to send some emails.‎ ‎4. What does the man want to know?‎ A. What time it is. ‎ B. When his train is supposed to leave.‎ C. Where he can find the boarding hall.‎ ‎5. Who might Freddy be? ‎ A. The speakers’ son. B. The speakers’ pet. C. The speakers’ landlord.‎ 第二节 听下面5段对话或独白。每段对话或独白后有几个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项，并标在试卷的相应位置。听每段对话或独白前，你将有时间阅读各个小题，每小题5秒钟；听完后，各个小题将给出5秒钟的作答时间。每段对话或独白读两遍。‎ 听第6段材料，回答第6、7题。‎ ‎6. Why does Rusty think the new student is poor? ‎ A. She’s not fashionable. ‎ B. Her jeans have holes in them.‎ C. Her mom gave her old clothes.‎ ‎7. What does Sally think of Rusty?‎ A. He is helpful.‎ B. He is too curious. ‎ C. He is a little behind the times.‎ 听第7段材料，回答第8、9题。‎ ‎8. How did Harriet know the time?‎ A. From her iPhone. B. From her watch. C. From the sun.‎ ‎9. What does Don think about Harriet’s explanation?‎ A. It’s wrong. B. It’s funny. C. It’s too scientific.‎ 听第8段材料，回答第10至12题。‎ ‎10. What is the conversation mainly about? ‎ A. How Alexa killed her plants.‎ B. Where Alexa planted her plants.‎ C. Why Alexa kept her house green.‎ ‎11. What did Alexa do with her yellow plant? ‎ ‎ A. She put it in the sunlight.‎ ‎ B. She returned it to the shop.‎ ‎ C. She gave it too much water. ‎ ‎12. What does the man suggest Alexa do? ‎ A. Find out more about plants online.‎ B. Move all her plants out of the sun.‎ C. Throw all her plants away.‎ 听第9段材料，回答第13至16题。‎ ‎13. Why doesn’t Sue have the cake?‎ A. She dislikes it. ‎ B. She’s trying to lose weight.‎ C. She’s trying to control a medical problem.‎ ‎14. Who brought the sandwiches?‎ A. Jill. B. Tom. C. Sharon.‎ ‎15. What does Sue really want?‎ A. A salad. B. Some seafood. C. Some hot soup. ‎ ‎16. What will Bill do in a few hours?‎ A. See a doctor. B. Go to a restaurant. C. Talk with the guests.‎ 听第10段材料，回答第17至20题。‎ ‎17. What is the main purpose of the loud noises? ‎ A. To warn people outdoors to get inside.‎ B. To get people’s attention inside their homes.‎ C. To inform people without radios about danger.‎ ‎18. Who decides to turn on the warning system?‎ A. Local media. B. Local officials. C. The national weather service.‎ ‎19. Where should people go when they hear a warning?‎ A. To a window. B. To a public shelter. C. To the middle of a building.‎ ‎20. What is the main topic of the talk?‎ A. A weather report. B. A warning system. C. The safety steps in bad weather.‎ 第二部分 阅读理解（每小题2分共40分）‎ A Below are some best special interesting holidays─all are new for 2017 and have high quality guides or tutors and strong programmes.‎ ‎1. Holland in bloom river cruise (巡游) with Alan Titchmarsh Alan Titchmarsh is the star attraction on this river cruise. Alan joins you for a visit to the magnificent Keukenhof Gardens─home to 800 varieties of tulips (郁金香).The Telegraph’s gardening expert will talk about the best new varieties and the garden’s history. ‎ April 19, £1,495 including flights from the UK and some meals. Telegraph Tours (0161 236 2444; telegraph.co.uk/titchmarshtour).‎ ‎2. Morocco Sketchbook Led by artist Maxine Relton, this tour takes in Marrakesh helping you develop your drawing skills. Rapid line and figure drawing and colour mixing are all covered and the eight-day holiday ‎ is based in Kasbah du Toubkal.‎ May 8, £2,495 including some meals. Steppes Travel (01285 601 495; steppestravel.co.uk).‎ ‎3. Ballroom and Latin American dancing in ‎Tenerife This travel provides daily dance tuition with David Bowie who’ll be on hand to teach dancing techniques. It is aimed both at the beginners and more experienced dancers looking to improve their skills. There’ll also be time to explore the island on foot or play a round of golf.‎ April 26, £769 full-board. Saga (0800 096 0084; travel.saga.co.uk).‎ ‎4. Fishing in ‎Northern Argentina This nine-day fly fishing and conservation tour takes in the Iberá Marshlands, the world’s second largest wetlands. Here expert fisherman, Charles Jardine, is the guide as you fish. Based in Estancia Rincon del Socorro, the holiday also includes opportunities for horse riding and bird-watching.‎ October 15, £5,095 full-board. Cazenove + Loyd (02038135082; cazloyd.com).‎ ‎21. Who might be interested in the Morocco Sketchbook holiday trip?‎ ‎ A. Amateur painters. B. Bird watchers. ‎ ‎ C. Sports lovers. D. Photographic amateurs.‎ ‎22. Which number should you call if you want to improve your dancing skills on the trip?‎ ‎ A. 0161 236 2444 B. 01285 601 495 ‎ ‎ C. 0800 096 0084 D. 02038135082‎ ‎23. On which trip can people ride horses?‎ ‎ A. Morocco Sketchbook. ‎ ‎ B. Fishing in Northern Argentina.‎ ‎ C. Ballroom and Latin American dancing in Tenerife. ‎ ‎ D. Holland in bloom river cruise with Alan Titchmarsh. ‎ ‎24. What can we know from the passage?‎ ‎ A. Fishing in Northern Argentina costs least.‎ B. Maxine Relton is an expert fisherman.‎ ‎ C. Morocco Sketchbook lasts the longest.‎ ‎ D. Two holidays take place in April.‎ B One of the qualities that most people admire in others is the willingness to admit one's mistakes. It is extremely hard sometimes to say a simple thing like“I was wrong about that,” and it is even harder to say,“I was wrong, and you were right about that.”‎ I had an experience recently with someone admitting to me that he had made a mistake fifteen years ago. He told me he had been the manager of a certain store in the neighborhood where I grew up, and he asked me if I remembered the egg cartons (in many countries, eggs are sold by the dozen and are put in cartons.) Then he related an incident (event, matter) and I began to remember unclearly the incident he was describing.‎ I was about eight years old at the time. I went into the store with my mother to do some shopping. On that particular day, I must have found my way to the food department where the incident took place.‎ There must have been a special sale on eggs that day because there were lots of eggs in dozen and half-dozen cartons. The cartons were put three or four feet high. I must have stopped in front of the piles of egg cartons. Just then a woman came by pushing her shopping cart and knocked off the cartons. For some reason, I decided it was up to me to put the eggs back together, so I went to work.‎ The manager heard the noise and came rushing over to see what had happened. When he appeared, I was on my knees looking at some of the cartons to see if any of the eggs were broken, but to him it looked as though I was the one who just did it. He severely reprimanded me and wanted me to pay for any broken eggs. I tried to explain, but it did no good. Even though I quickly forgot all about the incident, it is plain that the manager did not.‎ ‎25. Which is the correct order of the following?‎ a. I forgot all about the incident. ‎ b. I went into the store.‎ c. A woman knocked off the egg cartons. ‎ d. I stood in front of the egg cartons.‎ e. The manager reminded me of the incident. ‎ f. The manager didn't believe my explanation.‎ g. I picked up the unbroken eggs.‎ A. b; d; g; c; a; f; e B. b; d; c; g; f; e; a C. b; c; d ;g; e; f; a D. b; d; c; g; f; a; e ‎26. The word “reprimanded” in the last paragraph most exactly means “_________ ”.‎ A. frightened B. scolded C. warned D. comforted ‎27. The best title for this passage should be________ .‎ A. A Case of Mistake B. The Manager I Never Forget C. The Manager and I D. An Incident 15 Years Ago C The discussion on renewable energy has been going on for at least a decade and people have relied on fossil fuels almost entirely for more than a century. However, the situation when fossil fuels were the most efficient and the cheapest source of energy has been left far in the past. Many countries such as Germany and Sweden have already made significant efforts to fix this situation, employing numerous power plants working on the renewable resources of energy. The most effective among these resources is geothermal（地热的）energy.‎ Geothermal energy does not depend on the world’s economic and political situation as strongly as fossil fuels do. Besides, extracting（提炼）fossil fuels adds to the price of energy produced from them. Therefore, geothermal energy is much cheaper than traditional ones, saving up to 80% of the costs over fossil fuels.‎ Being a renewable resource, geothermal energy produces less waste and pollution than traditional energy sources. In geothermal systems, carbon dioxide makes up about 10% of air produced. Overall, in order to produce the electricity that can be used for one hour, the geothermal systems produce 0.1 pound of carbon dioxide and other harmful gases. For a comparison, a power plant producing from gas produces up to 2 pounds of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, and those power plants that work on coal（煤）produce an astonishing 3.6 pounds of greenhouse gases.‎ Low costs is another reason why using geothermal power plants should be the first choice for many countries. Geothermal heat systems require 25% to 50% less energy for work compared with the traditional systems for heating or cooling. Besides, geothermal equipment is less big: due to the very nature of geothermal energy, geothermal power plants have only a few moving parts, all of which can be easily sheltered inside a relatively small building. What’s more, the life span of geothermal equipment is rather long. All these make geothermal power stations easy to build and keep.‎ ‎28. Fossil fuels are more expensive than geothermal energy partly because _______.‎ A. it is free to use geothermal energy B. the production of fossil fuels costs a lot C. fossil fuels are nearly used up D. geothermal energy doesn’t depend on political situation ‎29. According to Paragraph 3, what can be concluded from the comparison?‎ A. Geothermal energy is environmentally friendly.‎ B. Gas and coal are often used to produce electricity.‎ C. Coal is much more efficient than gas.‎ D. The geothermal systems don’t produce harmful gases.‎ ‎30. Geothermal equipment is usually not as big as that of traditional energy because of______.‎ A. the life span of geothermal equipment B. geothermal power plants C. the nature of geothermal energy D. the small buildings ‎31. What is the main idea of this passage?‎ A. Many countries have benefited from geothermal energy.‎ B. Geothermal energy is well accepted.‎ C. Fossil fuels are being run out of.‎ D. Geothermal energy has many advantages.‎ D London (CNN) There is no God -- that's the conclusion of the celebrated physicist Stephen Hawking, whose final book is published Tuesday. The book Brief Answers to the Big Questions, which was completed by his family after his death, presents answers to the questions that Hawking said he received most during his time on Earth.‎ Other bombshells the British scientist left his readers with include the belief that alien life is out there, artificial intelligence could outsmart humans and time travel can't be ruled out.‎ ‎"There is no God. No one directs the universe," he writes in the book."For centuries, it was believed that disabled people like me were living under a curse by God," he adds. "I prefer to think that everything can be explained another way, by the laws of nature."‎ While Hawking spoke of his lack of belief in God during his life, several of his other answers are more surprising."There are forms of intelligent life out there," he writes. "We need to be ‎ cautious about answering back until we have developed a bit further." ‎ ‎"Travel back in time can't be ruled out according to our present understanding," he says. He also predicts that "within the next hundred years we will be able to travel to anywhere in the Solar System."‎ In remarks prepared by Hawking and played at the launch of the book in London on Monday, the scientist also turned his attention to the world he was leaving behind. His greatest concern, his daughter said, "is how divided we've become," adding ,"He makes this comment about how we seem to have lost the ability to look outward, and we are increasingly looking inward to ourselves."‎ Hawking's final message to readers, though, is a hopeful one. Attempting to answer the question "How do we shape the future?", the scientist writes, "Remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet."‎ ‎32. Which question is NOT probably included in the book Brief Answers to the Big Questions,?‎ ‎ A. Is there Alien life? B. Does the solar system exist?‎ ‎ C. Is time travel possible? D. Does anyone direct the universe?‎ ‎33. Hawking mentioned his disability in his book to________.‎ ‎ A. show his confidence. B. complain of God.‎ ‎ C. tell readers about his hardship. D. support his disbelief in God.‎ ‎34. What was Hawking most concerned about?‎ ‎ A. Artificial intelligence will outsmart humans. B. Allen life will come to the earth some day.‎ ‎ C. Technology will destroy the world. D. Human beings are not united.‎ ‎35. What did Hawking suggest human beings do? ‎ ‎ A. Contact alien life. B. Explore the universe.‎ ‎ C. Develop the earth. D. Respect artificial intelligence.‎ 第二节 (共5小题；每小题2分，满分10分)‎ 根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。‎ What will you do if you can’t eat everything bought in the canteen? _____36_____ According to a survey, what students waste every year could feed over 10 million people.‎ ‎_____37_____ According to Xinhua News Agency, the food wasted by Chinese people is ‎ about 50 million tons of grain every year, which could feed 200 million people.‎ Food waste, which has become a global issue, serves as a mirror that reflects various cultural and social issues in different countries. In the West, for instance, consumerism, the belief that it’s a good thing to use a lot of goods and services, is often to blame for food waste. _____38_____ Chinese people are well known for being hospitable and generous. Many even feel that they lose face if their guests have eaten all the food. On campus, a generation of single children is less aware of the food waste issue. Students nowadays are well protected by their families and hardly have any concept of how much toil others go through in order to provide them with the food they eat. ‎ ‎____39_____ There are over 925 million hungry people in the world, most of whom live in underdeveloped countries and areas. They don’t have enough food to eat. Many children die for lack of nutrition each year in some African countries. And farmers work very hard to grow the crops. ____40_____ It’s also important that everyone should think about how they can do their bit to reduce food waste.‎ A. Students’ waste is extremely serious.‎ B. China, in turn, features its own eating culture.‎ C. But canteen waste is extremely the tip of the iceberg.‎ D. Students can never realize the serious food crisis.‎ E. Compared with them, some live in a different world.‎ F. So there’s no excuse that we should waste our food.‎ G. Most of us would simply throw away any leftover food.‎ 第三部分：完形填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。‎ Reading is of great importance. That's why World Book Day came into being. World Book Day __41__ on April 23rd every year, which __42__ to encourage people, particularly teenagers, to discover the __43__ of reading so that they can fall in love with books. It's also the day to __44__ honor to those great writers who produced remarkable works of literature and made great __45__ to human civilization.‎ Many countries celebrate World Book Day and the __46__ is yearly held in different ways. On that day, millions of school children can buy books at a much __47__ price than usual in any ‎ bookstore in England, __48__ attracts a number of students to flood into bookstores for they can pay less money to buy the __49__ books. World Book Day is also __50__ in China. More and more people __51__ into the libraries and bookstores to read __52__ books. Most of them do more reading on that day, __53__ they can change the world by changing themselves __54__ reading.‎ Reading makes us __55__ and learned. Reading helps us to follow the __56__ development of science and technology. Reading enables us to have a good __57__ of and have a better understanding of foreign cultures and __58__. Reading also is one of the most important ways to learn foreign languages. We all know it's difficult and almost __59__ to learn everything in the classroom, yet the ways English people are living and working today can be __60__ by reading.‎ ‎41. A. appears B. approaches C. falls D. forms ‎42. A. aims B. fails C. remains D. prepares ‎43. A. laughter B. pleasure C. secrets D. skills ‎44. A. receive B. enjoy C. feel D. express ‎45. A. contributions B. progress C. trouble D. benefits ‎46. A. performance B. celebration C. activity D. design ‎47. A. higher B. cheaper C. lower D. dearer ‎48. A. that B. which C. where D. when ‎49. A. different B. same C. colorful D. interesting ‎50. A. shared B. expressed C. carried D. celebrated ‎51. A. crowd B. gather C. accompany D. return ‎52. A. simple B. rare C. various D. expensive ‎53. A. demanding B. pretending C. believing D. doubting ‎54. A. through B. with C. to D. on ‎55. A. hard-working B. skilled C. serious D. wise ‎56. A. fullest B. greatest C. latest D. slightest ‎57. A. collection B. introduction C. sense D. knowledge ‎58. A. exhibitions B. experiences C. habits D. customs ‎59. A. unfit B. impossible C. complicated D. forgetful ‎60. A. learned B. suggested C. accepted D. informed ‎ 二卷部分 第一节：单词正确形式填空（每个1分共10分）‎ 1. Unfortunately, she _________ (bleed) to death.‎ 2. ‎________ (poison) smoke had got into the water supply.‎ 3. They had faced one difficulty after another with _______(brave).‎ 4. My eyes were so ________ (swell) that I could hardly see.‎ 5. The company needs __________ (apply) who have work experience.‎ 6. They are ___________ (appeal) to local companies for money.‎ 7. Police say they're treating it as a case of _______ (attempt) murder.‎ 8. The picture is _________ (典型的；有代表性的) of its kind.‎ 9. You have to learn to take care of your ___________.(财产).‎ 10. He has served the farm _________ (faith) for 20 years. ‎ 第二节（共10小题；每小题1分，满分10分）‎ 阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容（1个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。‎ There was once a small boy who would never get dressed when his parents told him to, _____1_____ would he wear what they wanted him to. He preferred unusual clothes, but above all, he liked taking his time. His parents were always in a rush, and wanted him to be much ______2______ (quick), but the boy didn’t like this, and he would slow down even more.‎ One day, his parents got so angry when he refused to dress that they told him to go out without any clothes at all. _____3_____ (surprise), the boy followed his parents out of the door. He held a belief ____4_____ nobody could do anything to him.‎ As the boy stood outside his house with nothing on, ____5_____(wait) for his parents’ car, along came the local pig farmer. The farmer, _____6_____ was almost deaf, had very poor eyesight. Not only that, but also he _____7_____(forget) his glasses that day. When he saw the boy’s pink skin, he thought it was one of his pigs. Shouting and pushing, the farmer forced _____8_____(he) into a pig cage. The boy begged him to stop but the deaf farmer couldn’t hear.‎ When found by his parents, the terrified boy never again wanted to be mistaken _____9_____ anything other than a human being. Now he’s the first _____10_____ (get) dressed, and always looks neat.‎ 第三节：短文改错（共 10 小题；每小题 1 分，满分 10 分）‎ 假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中 共 有 10 处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。 增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。 删除：把多余的词用（＼）划掉。 修改：在错的词下画一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。‎ 注意：1. 每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；‎ 2. ‎ 只允许修改 10 处，多者（从第 11 处起）不计分。‎ ‎ Dear Jack,‎ ‎ I am extremely happy to know you are coming to our school next semester as the exchange student. I even can’t wait to meet you.‎ ‎ When it comes to learn traditional Chinese painting, you are very lucky. Our school had established various optional courses, Chinese painting including. The students meet on every Wednesday afternoon from 3pm. to 5pm. With a professional teacher’s help, not only you improve your skill, but also you will make many friends. That you have to do is to register on our website. Besides, tools like Chinese brush, ink and paper is also necessary.‎ ‎ If there is something else I can help, don’t hesitate to let me know. Looking forward to your arrival. ‎ 第四节 书面表达 （ 满分 20 分 ）‎ 假如你是学生会主席李华，为了让外国人了解中国传统文化，学生会将进行“唐诗吟诵大赛”(Tang Poetry Recitation Contest)，特邀请学校国际部学生参加，请你根据提示写一则通知。主要内容包括：‎ ‎1．大赛的目的和意义；‎ ‎2．主办方：校学生会。时间：‎2017年12月30日。地点：校报告厅(assembly hall)；‎ ‎3．范围：唐诗三百首(Three Hundred Tang Poems)。‎ 注意：1．词数100左右；‎ ‎2．可以适当增加细节，以使行文流畅。‎ Notice Do you want to have a further knowledge of Chinese culture?_______________________‎ ‎_______________________________________________________________________________‎ 答案 第一部分 听力（共两节，满分 30 分）‎ ‎1-5CBAAB 6-10 BCABA 11-15 CACAC 16-20BABCB A篇 ACBD B篇 DBA C篇BACD D篇 BDDB 七选五GCBEF 完型填空：41-45 CABDA 46-50 BCBBD 51-55ACCAD 56-60 CDDBA 语法填空：‎ ‎41. neither / nor 42. quicker 43. Surprisingly 44. that 45. waiting ‎ ‎46. who 47. forgot 48. him 49. for 50. to get 改错：71.The 改为an 72.learn改为 learning 73.had改为 has 74.including改为 included ‎ ‎75.去掉on 76.will/can you 77.That 改为What 78.brush 改为brushes ‎ ‎79.is改为 are 80. something 改为anything ‎ ‎【答案】Notice Do you want to have a further knowledge of Chinese culture? Here comes your opportunity the Student Union will organize a Tang Poetry Recitation Contest.I’d like to share with you some details.‎ As scheduled,the contest is to be held on Dec.30th.2017.You are supposed to get prepared before the contest. Above all, it’s recommended that you should read There Hundred Tang Poems,and learn to appreciate the beauty of ancient Chinese culture,please sign up for the contest as soon as possible.If you want to attend,please come to the school assembly hall.Don’t miss the chance of being a winner, and some appealing prize is eagerly waiting for you.‎ Don’t hesitate to take part! I’m sure you will benefit a lot and you will gain much progress in Chinese learning.‎ 听力材料 Text 1‎ W: I thought you were going to clean up in here!‎ M: I did! My toys are in the toy box, and all my clothes are in the closet.‎ W: But what about the dirt on the floor?‎ Text 2‎ M: What are you doing now? I told you to get to bed early so you’d be on time for your first day of school.‎ W: This loud chair is driving me crazy. I’m just trying to fix it.‎ Text 3 ‎ W: I can’t find my research essay file anywhere on here. Did you delete it?‎ M: Of course not. I don’t even know your password. Have you saved a copy anywhere?‎ W: No. I wish I had emailed it to myself. Argh! I did my work on time, but the teacher will never believe that.‎ Text 4 ‎ M: Do you have a watch, by any chance? My phone battery is dead and I think I’ve missed my train.‎ W: Sorry, I don’t. But I think there’s a big clock by the boarding hall.‎ Text 5 ‎ M: Oh, no! Where’s little Freddy? ‎ W: Johnny forgot to feed him while we were at work. I think he chewed a hole through his box and ran around.‎ M: Don’t tell the landlord we’ve got a mouse in our apartment! Let’s catch him now.‎ Text 6 ‎ M: Did you see the new student in Miss Foley’s class, Sally? I think she’s from a poor family.‎ W: Poor? Why would you think that? ‎ M: She had pieces of cloth on her jeans. I’ll bet she has holes in them, and she can’t afford to buy new ones. Her mom had to sew on the pieces of cloth to fix her old jeans.‎ W: Rusty, you’re a little behind the times. That’s the fashion nowadays. Half of our class has pieces sewn on their jeans. If her parents are really poor, we certainly will help her.‎ M: That’s great. Anytime we should help the poor. ‎ Text 7 ‎ M: What time is it, Harriet? I’m starving, but I guess it’s not time for lunch yet.‎ W: Let’s see…according to my iPhone, it’s just a few minutes past noon.‎ M: What? I thought my watch was wrong. Shouldn’t the sun be overhead if it’s noon?‎ W: Oh, Don. I can tell you weren’t listening in science class last week. The sun is only overhead at noon for two days a year.‎ M: Ha-ha. Very funny.‎ W: No, really. Mrs. Sorenson explained it. The earth goes around the sun at an angle, and that changes where the sun is at noon.‎ M: But…then those old clocks that measured time by the sun’s shadow are all wrong?‎ W: Um, not exactly. They’re just not the same as the time we keep on our computers.‎ M: I wish I were sitting at a computer right now instead of out here. I’m starting to hate nature.‎ Text 8 ‎ M: Oh, no. What happened in here, Alexa? Why are there some dead plants?‎ W: I know. Every plant comes in alive and ends up dead. I definitely do not have a green thumb.‎ M: People always say that, but it’s not that hard to keep house plants. What did you do to care for this one?‎ W: That one had a big flower on it, so I put it in the sunlight.‎ M: This is a winter plant from north China. It doesn’t do well in direct sunlight. Just move it here. Didn’t you look up how to care for it when you got it?‎ W: No. I just thought it was pretty, and it was doing OK in the shop.‎ M: And this one here is all yellow. That means you gave it too much water.‎ W: Too much water? I think if it doesn’t need the water, it doesn’t have to drink it.‎ M: That’s not how plants work. I’m afraid the root system under the dirt of this one is destroyed. You’ll have to throw this one away. Look, here’s an app with plant information. ‎ Text 9‎ M: Why don’t you have some of my cake, Sue? I made it just for this party.‎ W: Sorry, Bill. I’m not into cake at the moment. I thought you knew about my diet.‎ M: On your birthday? Surely you can eat whatever you want on your birthday. You can start your diet tomorrow. And anyway, you look great.‎ W: Well, thanks, Bill. I am not on a diet to lose weight, actually. My doctor told me to stop eating certain foods. I’m trying to avoid being allergic to something.‎ M: I didn’t know food could help with that. I also noticed you didn’t eat any of the sandwiches Jill brought.‎ W: Yeah. And you and Tom and Sharon all brought different cakes. I’m dying to try them!‎ M: Why don’t I go get you a salad? I’m sure you’ll feel better if you eat something.‎ W: All right. It’s the only thing here I can eat. What I really want is some hot soup.‎ M: Why don’t I go and get some soup from the restaurant across the street for you?‎ W: That’s awfully nice of you, but I’m enjoying my party. Maybe we could go afterwards. ‎ M: OK. You go back in the house and chat with the guests, and I’ll call the restaurant and tell them we’ll be there in a few hours.‎ Text 10 ‎ Thank you for attending this public hearing on our new Severe Weather Warning System. I’m Mayor Dunley. First, I’d like to remind everyone that the main purpose of a weather warning system is to tell people outdoors to move inside. Now, it’s important to remember that we will test the system every Saturday at noon, so don’t worry about the noise at that time. It’s a good idea to go outside and listen when we test the system and make sure you can hear them in your neighborhood. Remember that the loud noise is only one part of the warning system. The loud noises are activated by city officials after we receive alerts from the national weather service. In other words, you might hear an alert on the national news before you hear the warning here. If you do hear one, what should you do? First, take cover. Our city doesn’t have public shelters, so go to the inside of any building, away from windows. Second, wait for reports on local media. Finally, stay indoors until you hear the all-clear signal.‎