Module 6 Unexplained Mysterious of the Natural World

1. attack vt. 袭击；攻击；（用语言或文字）猛烈抨

击，侵袭；进攻

They attacked this village during the night.

他们在夜间袭击了这个村庄。

My friend was attacked by a young man while walking home alone.

我的朋友独自回家时遭到了一个年轻人的攻击。

She has been attacked for ignoring her son.

她因漠视自己的儿子而受到责难。

Scientists find a new disease that will attack mans brain.

科学家发现了一种会侵袭人类大脑的新的疾病。

Spain attacked more in the second half.

西班牙队在下半场加强了攻势。

attack n. 袭击；攻击；辱骂；抨击；（疾病的）突然发作

The planes began their attack on the city.

飞机开始攻击这个城市。

The city came under attack during the night.

这座城市在夜间遭到了袭击。

He is recovering from an attack of flu.

他的流行性感冒快好了。

attacker n. 进攻者；袭击者

I didnt really see the attacker.

我没有看清楚袭击我的人。

2. frightening adj. 吓人的；引起恐惧的

Its frightening to think that this kind of thing will happen again.

想到这类事情可能再发生就让人不寒而栗。

frighten v. 使惊吓；使恐吓

frightened adj. 惊吓的；受惊的

注意：frightening和frightened的区别

frightening表示某物使人产生害怕的情绪，主语是物；frightened表示某人处于害怕的状态，主语是人。

The idea of death is frightening to most people.

死的想法对于大多数人来说都是可怕的。

He was frightened to look down from the top of the tall building.

他害怕从高楼顶部往下看。

3. exist vi. 存在

Does life exist in other planet？

其他行星上有生命吗？

exist on 靠……生活/生存

It was impossible for them to exist on such a small income.

他们要靠这一点收入生活是不可能的。

existence n. 存在；实有

came into existence 存在

existent n. & adj. 存在（或实有）的事物；存在的；实有的

existing adj. 现存的；现行的

4. calm adj. 平静的

Although she was shocked by this news， her voice was surprisingly calm.

虽然这个消息让她很震惊，但她的声音却出人意料的平静。

You must try to be calm.

你必须设法冷静下来。

calm v. 使平静；使镇静

They did what they could to calm her.

他们尽力使她平静下来。

calm down （使）平静；镇静；安静

He took a few deep breaths to calm himself down.

他深深吸了幾口气，让自己冷静下来。

calmness n. 平静；冷静；镇静

It would be wise to deal with these problems with calmness.

冷静地处理这些问题才是明智的。

calm n. 平静的时期；宁静的状态

I like the calm of the summer evening.

我喜欢夏日夜晚的宁静。

the calm before the storm 暴风雨前的平静

calmly adv. 平静地；冷静地；镇静地

She recovered from her surprise， and answered calmly.

她从惊慌中恢复过来，并且镇静地给予了回答。

5. cover vt. 占地（多大面积）；包括；

覆盖，遮盖

The city covered ten square miles.

这座城市占地五平方英里。

The discussion covered a wide range of subjects.

这个讨论涵盖了广泛的内容。

Dust covered all the furniture.

所有的家具都覆盖了灰尘。

cover n. 封面；盖子，套子；遮盖物，隐蔽处

read form cover to cover 从头看到底

take cover 藏身；躲藏

under cover 保密；秘密地

6. disappear vi. 不见；消失

When spring comes， the snow disappears.

春天来临时，积雪全都不见了。

Lets hope that our difficulties will soon disappear.

希望我们的苦难很快就会消失。

disappearance n. 消失；失踪；不见

We were puzzled by the sudden disappearance of the guide.

对于导游的突然消失，我们感到很疑惑。

7. fortune n. 运气；命运；财富；巨款

Fortune smiled on me.

我交了好运。

You dont have to spend a fortune to give your family tasty and healthy meals.

让家里人吃味道好又健康的餐食并不需要花多少钱。

fortunate adj. 幸运的

fortunately adv. 幸好/幸运地

8. die out 灭绝；不复存在；熄灭

Tribes and tribal customs died out centuries ago.

部落和部落文化在几个世纪前就消亡了。

The fire died out.

火熄灭了。

注意：die out/die for/die off/die away/die down的区别

die out意为“灭绝，不复存在”；die for意为“迫切想要某物或做某事”；die off意为“一个接一个死去；相继死去”；die away意为“逐渐减弱；逐渐消失”；die down意为“逐渐变弱；逐渐平息”。

The practice of children working in factories has nearly dies out.

工厂中使用童工的做法几乎绝迹。

He is dying for the book.

他很想要这本书。

As she got older and older， her relatives all died off.

随着她的年纪越来越大，她的亲属都相继去世了。

The sound of the music died away.

音乐声渐渐消失了。

When the applause had died down， she began her speech.

掌声平息后她便开始演讲了。

9. due to 由于；因……造成；归功于

Her absence was due to heavy traffic.

由于交通堵塞她缺席了。

This situation was in part due to financial difficulties.

這种情况部分是由经济困难造成的。

due to sb 应支付/应给予/归功于某人

due （for） sth 应有/应得到某物

due to do sth 预定/预期/预计做某事

10. go for 挑选，选择；试图得到，努力争取；批评；

喜欢；适用于

When you offer him apples he always goes for the biggest one.

你给他苹果时，他总是挑选最大的。

I hear that you are going to go for that job.

我听说你准备去争取那份工作。

My mother went for me when she knew that I told a lie.

我妈妈在得知我说谎后狠狠地骂了我一顿。

Do you go for Chinese food？

你喜欢中国食物吗？

What I said about Peter goes for you， too.

我说的有关彼得的话也适用于你。

go about 着手；从事

go after 追逐；追求

go against 违背；反对

go along 继续；进行

go along with 赞成；支持

go around 传播

go on 发生；进行；继续

go through 遭受；经历；仔细检查；审查；（法律等）

被通過

跟踪导练（一）

阅读理解

A

One large dinosaur hid in the thick jungle （热带雨林）. With small， hungry eyes he watched a larger dinosaur， about 90 feet long！ It was eating grass by a lake.

The one in the jungle stood 20 feet tall on his powerful back legs. His two front legs were short， with sharp claws on the feet. His teeth were like long knives.

There was only one hope for the grass-eating dinosaur. Even though he was three times as large as his enemy， he was not a fighter. He could only try to get away， into deep water， where he could be safe.

The grass-eater tried to move fast. But the enemy was faster. His three-toed footprints show that he came closer and closer.

We cant be sure how the fight ended. We can only tell by the animals footprints that the fight did take place. The mud where the two dinosaurs walked has turned into stone.

Footprints are not all that tell us about dinosaurs. Their bones and teeth have also been found. We even have some of their eggs in museums.

Scientists know how to fit a dinosaurs bones together. Then they can tell how the animal may have looked. From its teeth they know whether it ate meat or grass.

Dinosaurs were of many sizes and shapes. Some were as small as chickens. But all of them had very small brains.

Millions of years ago， the dinosaurs ruled the earth. Since then， there have been no dinosaurs. What happened to them？

We know they did not all die at once. It may have taken a few million years for all of them to die.

In the days of the dinosaurs， the whole earth was warm and wet. There were many green jungles. But the earth changes slowly. When parts of the earth became cold and dry， the jungles were becoming less and less. Then dinosaurs could not find enough to eat. This must be one reason why the dinosaurs died out.

1. According to the passage， the grass-eating dinosaurs ___ .

A. had three-toed feet

B. were much smaller than the meat-eaters

C. were three times as large as the meat-eaters

D. had two short front legs with sharp claws on the feet

2. Which of the following is TRUE about dinosaurs？

A. They had very big brains.

B. All of them were meat-eaters.

C. Most of them were the same size.

D. Some of them tore their enemy with long knife-like teeth.

3. The appearance of dinosaurs would be repaired if ___ .

A. scientists have found their teeth

B. a full-size picture was kept in our mind

C. their footprints were taken from the stone for research

D. their bones were well fitted together with scientific method

4. The dinosaurs all died out maybe because of ___ .

A. the reduction of jungles

B. the fights among the dinosaurs

C. the occurence of some diseases

D. the appearance of the global warming

B

One way of preventing floods may be by making rain. This may sound rather strange. As we know， heavy rain is the cause of floods， and in Malaysia most of the floods are caused by the annual monsoon （季風）， which brings heavy rain to the east coast. If， however， the rain could be made to fall in the China Sea， there would be no more folds since the rain clouds would not reach the east coast.

Is it possible to make clouds give up their rain？ Yes， it is， the National Institute of Scientific and Industrial Research （NISIR） suggested that it would be tried. The institute knew of course that it was not possible to make all clouds give up all their rain. It calculated， however， that if the frequency of rainfall could be reduced by 10%， and the amount of rain that fell each time could be reduced by 15%， the total amount of flood damage would be reduced by 40%—50%.

As you probably know， clouds are caused by air containing water-vapor （水蒸气）. The air rises and， since water-vapor becomes water when it cools， very tiny drops of water are formed. Since these drops are very small， they float in the air， and form a cloud. When the cloud rises， however， the drops become colder. Because of this， they join together and become big drops. The big drops are no longer able to float because of their weight， and they fall. As they fall， they pick up more drops and become bigger. This is the cause of rain.

5. According to the passage， one way of preventing flood is ___ .

A. to bring heavy rain

B. to make the rain clouds

C. to cause monsoon in the sea

D. to make the rain fall in the sea before it reaches the coast

6. What does the underlined word “it” in the last paragraph refer to？

A. Air. B. Water.

C. Cloud. D. Water-vapor.

7. What does the third paragraph talk about？

A. How rain is formed.

B. How clouds cause rain.

C. How clouds are formed.

D. How water-vapor becomes water.

8. What can we learn from the last passage？

A. The rain is caused by water-vapor.

B. The clouds rise， and the water drops become smaller.

C. The higher the air rises， the lower the temperature gets.

D. The air cools， and the drops of water become water-vapor.

跟踪导练（二）

完形填空

Mary and Peter were having a picnic with some friends near a river when Mary 1 an object overhead. “Look！” she shouted to her friends， “Thats a spaceship up there and its going to 2 here.”

3 by the strange silver-coloured spaceship， most of the young people got in their cars and 4 away quickly. However， Mary and Peter， more 5 than frightened， watched the spaceship land and saw a door open. When nobody 6 ， they went to the spaceship and entered inside. Peter 7 Mary into the spaceship and didnt hear the door being closed behind him. The temperature fell rapidly and the two young people 8 consciousness.

When they 9 up， they were surprised to see that they were back by the 10 again. The spaceship had gone. Their car was nearby. “What happened？” asked Mary.

Peter scratched （搔） his head saying 11 ， “Dont ask me. Perhaps we had a（n） 12 . Did you...Did you see a spaceship？” “Yes，” said Mary， “and we both went into it. Then...” She looked at her wrist. Thats funny， my watch has 13 . “Oh， well， come on. Its time to go home.”

Having driven about fifty meters， they found their way 14 by a thick 15 made of something like glass. They got out of the car and tried to find their way around the wall but 16 that they were inside a circular （環形） wall. It was like a mirror and prevented them from 17 through it.

On the other side of the wall， strange 18 walked past slowly. A few stopped to stare through the wall and 19 a new notice which， translated into English， said， “New 20 at the zoo： a pair of earthlings in their natural surroundings.”

1. A. looked B. touched C. noticed D. caught

2. A. land B. leave C. attack D. reach

3. A. Surprised B. Frightened C. Delighted D. Threatened

4. A. turned B. rode C. kept D. drove

5. A. brave B. anxious C. curious D. disappointed

6. A. broke in B. got back C. came out D. went through

7. A. followed B. took C. carried D. sent

8. A. lost B. raised C. fell D. hold

9. A. got B. stood C. came D. woke

10. A. river B. home C. spaceship D. street

11. A. slowly B. angrily C. clearly D. briefly

12. A. accident B. dream C. trouble D. sleep

13. A. worked B. broken C. stopped D. disappeared

14. A. blocked B. surrounded C. covered D. connected

15. A. door B. space C. room D. wall

16. A. remembered B. discovered C. understood D. heard

17. A. carrying B. putting C. stepping D. going

18. A. animals B. people C. creatures D. scientists

19. A. read B. write C. watch D. find

20. A. groups B. arrivals C. explorers D. victims

语法填空

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。

One morning， I was waiting at the bus stop， worried about being late for school. There were many people who 1 （wait） at the bus stop， 2 some of them looked very anxious and 3

（disappoint）. When the bus finally came， we all hurried on board. I got a place next 4 the window， so I had a good view of the sidewalk. A boy on a bike 5 （catch） my attention. He was riding beside the bus and waving his arms. I heard a passenger behind me shouting to the driver， but he refused 6 （stop） until we reached the next stop. Still， the boy kept 7 （ride）. He was carrying something over his shoulder and shouting. Finally， when we came to the next stop， the boy came up to the door of the bus， I heard an

8 （excite） conversation. Then the driver stood up and asked， “Did anyone lose a suitcase at the last stop？” A woman on the bus shouted， “Oh dear！ Its mine.” She pushed her way to the driver and took the suitcase thankfully. Everyone on the bus began talking about 9 the boy had done， and the crowd of 10 （strange） suddenly became friendly to one another.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

跟蹤导练（三）

阅读理解

A

More than one slippery （狡猾的） creatures are said to be living in the Loch Ness. In many cases，people have reported seeing a humped （背部隆起的） “what?is?it” for over 30 years.

For a long time the mysterious monster was considered just a joke. But things changed in 1966. Then， some photo experts of the Royal Air Force （the RAF） reported on their study of a film of the “monster”. They said that there really was some huge object in the Loch Ness and its probably alive！

The man who “caught” Nessie on film was Tim Dinsdale. One day in 1960， he was driving slowly along a road above the black water of the Loch Ness. Suddenly， he spotted a reddish?brown， hump?backed object floating about 1，600 yards away.

He hurriedly stopped his car and grabbed his camera. The thing began moving toward the far shore. Dinsdale filmed what he was sure was the back of a huge animal. It was half in and half out of the water. The creature swam away in a slow zigzag course. Soon it disappeared in a giant splash of foam （泡沫）. But Tim Dinsdale had Nessies picture on 40 feet of film！

The film was shown on TV programs all over the world. Unfortunately， scientists who study animals still laughed about Nessie. But a small group of interested people decided to investigate further. They set up the Loch Ness Phenomena Investigation Bureau. In 1964， the group gave Dinsdales film to the photo experts of the Royal Air Force. “Heres a film，” said the group. “Tell us whats on it.”

The 1966 report of the RAF made “Nessie” respectable.

1. Who made Nessie believable？

A. A small group of interested people.

B. Some photo experts of RAF.

C. Some zoologists.

D. Tim Dinsdale.

2. Which of the following statements is TRUE？

A. Tim Dinsdale once caught Nessie.

B. Zoologists studied Dinsdales photo at first.

C. The RAF studied Nessie carefully for six years.

D. Before 1966， few believed there was a monster in the Loch Ness.

3. What does the word “investigate” mean in Paragraph 5？

A. track down B. look into

C. film D. spot

B

I was heading home after a long day at work， and I was tired and looking forward to getting home to my baby. Coming down the stairs into the station， I happened upon a lady， who was trying to talk to people. As she was speaking another language， and it was evening rush hour， no one stopped for her. I could see she was near to tears.

I said “Can I help you”. She turned to me. Besides English， all I really know is “Do you speak French”， “Do you speak German”， and a few other words in both languages. She tried to comprehend， and then shook her head. She kept saying and I finally caught a phrase I only recognized， thanks to Hollywood movies. She was a Russian. I named a few cities of Russia， and she nodded. Then I took her to the map and started going through stations. Luckily for both of us， I started with my own line. I went through the stations slowly， came to mine and she started nodding eagerly. I realized what she had been saying earlier.

When we got off the train， it was dark. She looked around， not sure where to go. So I tried going through major street names to see if it would help as I dealt with the station names. She recognized the name of a major street. As she got closer to the street， she got excited， recognizing the neighborhood.

When we got to the house， she wanted me to come in for a drink. I tried to explain I had to go home to my baby. She asked me to wait， went into her house and then came out with a teddy bear. She acted out showing it was for my baby. I thanked her， got a big hug， and then went home.

4. Nobody stopped to help the lady because people were ___ .

A. not willing to help strangers

B. all very tired and didnt notice her

C. in a hurry and didnt understand her

D. afraid of her and didnt want to get into any trouble

5. How did the author learn that the lady was a Russian？

A. She heard some Russian cities.

B. The lady looked like a Russian.

C. The lady told her she was a Russian.

D. She understood the phrase she once had heard in movies.

6. Why did the author feel they were lucky？

A. The lady understood what she was talking.

B. She understood the address the lady mentioned at last.

C. She and the lady happened to get off at the same station.

D. The lady understood the map and pointed out her address.

7. What can we learn about the author from this passage？

A. She is new in the city.

B. She could speak three languages.

C. Her home was far from the Russian ladys.

D. The Russian lady was very thankful for her help.

跟蹤导练（四）

阅读理解

Although it has never been seen， almost everyone is familiar with the legendary unicorn （独角兽）. Descriptions of unicorns have been found dating from ancient times.

According to the legend， anyone attempting to catch a unicorn had to be extremely careful as it has a reputation for being very fierce. A clever trick suggested by unicorn-trappers， in order to catch a unicorn without being hurt by its horn， was for the hunter to stand in front of a tree and then to move quickly behind it as the unicorn rushed forward and attacked them. Hopefully， the creature could then be caught when its horn was stuck in the tree.

When used as a drinking-cup， the unicorns horn was said to have the power to offer protection against poison. It was believed that nobody could be harmed by drinking the thing that is contained in a unicorns horn. In 1789， the French court was said to have used cups made of unicorn horn in order to protect the king. In addition， the horn was said to have medicinal value， so that it could be sold for more than ten times the price of the same weight of gold. What， then， was unicorn horn？ We know at times the rhino （犀牛） was confused with this legendary creature. A drinking-cup supposedly made of unicorn horn was discovered to be made of the horn of a rhino.

1. To catch unicorns， the trappers had to try to ___ .

A. fight with them in the woods

B. hide quickly behind the unicorns

C. shoot the unicorns with their guns

D. make use of the tree as a protection

2. Which of the following is TRUE of the unicorn？

A. It was not historically recorded.

B. Its horn was first used in France.

C. Its just of the same size as a rhino.

D. It was fierce and would attack people.

3. Whats the last paragraph mainly about？

A. The users of the unicorn horn.

B. The value of the unicorn horn.

C. The weight of the unicorn horn.

D. The comparison between the unicorn horn and the rhino horn.

4. What can we learn about the unicorn from the passage？

A. Nobody has ever see it.

B. It is the rarest animal in the world.

C. The drinking-cup made of its horn is designed only for a royal family.

D. People will be healthier after drinking the thing that is contained in its horn.

閱读七选五

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。选项中有两项为多余选项。

Finding a new and fun hobby can make you a happier person. Hobbies can be a great way to relieve stress and bring more joy into your life. 1 When you get older， you should not have fewer hobbies. Otherwise youll develop more stress and gray hairs. You might be looking for a new hobby， but youre not sure what. A new hobby requires you to find new interests， which means experimenting to find those interests.

Try new things. To find a new hobby， it will require trying new things. New hobbies wont usually just find you. Dont put things off. You might think to yourself， “I dont like that.” If youve never done it， or given it a chance， how can you know？

2

Learn new things. Youre never too young or old to learn more in life. If you take the time to learn new things， youll develop new interests. Let your curiosity run wild， and develop more knowledge over the things you dont know or are familiar with. 3 Reading the same sports newspaper every day doesnt count as a new and fun hobby.

Collect things. 4 Start collecting them. Maybe you have an interest in coins， or specific jewelry. Think about certain interests that pertain to what you can collect. If youre a sports fan， then collect sport cards， or jerseys. Simple hobbies arent always a bad thing. You can collect just about anything.

5 Everyone has a creative side. Some people find different ways of expressing that side to them. It can be writing， drawing， painting， playing a music instrument， photography， dancing， or singing. These can be fun and relaxing hobbies to have that be a positive way of expressing your emotions.

A. Interact with others.

B. Learning is not such a bad thing.

C. Hobbies are for everyone at any age.

D. Think of the things that you do like.

E. Find and express the creative side in you.

F. Have an open mind and give things a chance.

G. Write down a list of the leisure activities you enjoy.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

跟踪导练（五）

选词填空

用方框里单词的正确形式填空，使其句意完整。每空一词，有两个词是多余的。

calm likely destroy predict claim creature

hair cover exist frighten fortune disappear

1. The strange ____ spend their lives below the ground.

2. The sound of the river moving downstream was ____ .

3. He sat down ____ ， reading a newspaper.

4. It is known to all of us that the dinosaurs ____ long ago.

5. This forest ____ an area of some 1，140 square kilometers.

6. You never know how shell react—shes so ____ .

7. The building was completely ____ by fire.

8. The mountain range shown by this method can look like a ____ worm.

9. It is most ____ that shell arrive before seven. The traffic is heavy now.

10. ____ ， I like writing because it is an important part of my job.

句子翻译

1. 我们需要做些什么去帮助这种濒临灭绝的鸟类。（die out）

2. 在我看来，这个计划的失败在于管理不善。（due to）

3. 最近的研究使人们了解了那些他们从未见过的生物。（throw light on）

4. 安静下来吧，没什么值得焦虑的。（calm down）

5. 你给他糖果，他总是挑最小的。（go for）

短文改错

On my first school day this term， my new English teacher enters the classroom. I soon found that she was the beautiful girl with a big smile on her face. First， she introduced her. Then she asked us introduce ourselves in turn with English. When it was my turn， I felt very shy that I dared not to say a word. She came up to me and told me not to be afraid. “Just have a try！” she encouraged. Hear this I slowly calmed down. Finally I managed to speak， but did it quite well. She praised me for my progresses. How happy I was then！

書面表达

假设你是星光中学的张夏，每年的9月22日是“世界无车日”，请根据以下要点提示用英语写一份题为“Lets Ride Bicycles”的演讲稿，在班会上发言。

要点提示：

1. 目前汽车带来的空气污染和交通堵塞等问题；

2. 骑自行车的益处（节能环保、有利健康等）。

参考词汇：

低碳生活low-carbon life；节能energy saving

注意：

1. 词数100左右；

2. 演讲稿开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数；

3. 可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。

Good morning， everyone！

Im Zhang Xia from Xingguang Middle School. The topic of my speech is “Lets Ride Bicycles”.

Come on and join us！ Thank you！