We can’t stop an earthquake(地震), but we can do things to make sure they don’t destroy(毁坏) whole cities. First, it is not a 1 .________ idea to build houses along lines where 2. ________ of the earth’s plates(板块) join together. Second, if you think there 3. ________ be an earthquake, it is better to build houses on rocks , not on 4. ________. Third, you must make the houses as 5. ________ as possible. Weak buildings will fall down in an earthquake, but strong ones may 6. ________ . .

Scientists are 7. ________ that one day an even bigger earthquake will hit the part around San Francisco(旧金山) . They call it “ The Big One ”. However, people today are still building more 8. ________ . The population in and around San Francisco is 9. ________ ten times more than it was in 1906. This means that 10.

________ there is another earthquake, a great many houses and buildings will be destroyed.

二

Mr. Brown had an umbrella shop in a small town. People sometimes 1 ________ him broken umbrellas, and then he took them to a big shop in London. They were 2 ________ there.

One day Mr. Brown went to London by train. He 3 ________ to take an umbrella with him that day. Sitting in front of him was a man with an umbrella standing 4 _______ the seat. When the train arrived in London, Mr. Brown 5 ________ up the umbrella as he often did during his journey by train. Just as he was getting off, he was 6 ________ by the man. He said angrily, “That’s 7________ !” Mr. Brown’ s face turned red and he gave it back to the man at once.

When Mr Brown got to the big shop, the shopkeeper had got his six umbrellas ready. After a good look at 8 ________ of them, he said, “You’ve mended them very well.”

In the afternoon he got into the train again. The 9 ________ man was in the same seat. He looked at Mr Brown and his six umbrellas, “You’ve had a 10 ________ day,” he said.

三

Light travels at a speed(速度) which is about a million times 1 . ________ than that of sound. 2.

________ one second, light travels about 300,000 kilometers, but sound travels only 340 meters. You can get some idea of this difference by 3. ________ the start of a running match. If you stand far away from the starter(发令员), you can see smoke 4.________ from his gun 5.________ the sound reaches your ears.

The fast speed of light produces some strange facts. The nearest star is 6. ________ far away that light

which you can see from it tonight started to travel to you four years 7. ________ at a speed of nearly two million kilometers every minute. The light from some of tonight’s started on 8. ________ journey towards you even before you were born.

So, if we want to be honest(诚实), we 9. ________ say , “ The stars are shining brightly tonight.”

We have to say, “ The stars look nice. They were 10. ________ four years ago but their light has just reached our earth. ”

四