2013届高三英语星级阶梯阅读练习 三星级 3Ottawa is the capital of Canada. It is the second largest city in Ontario and the fourth largest city in the country.The Centre Block is the main building on Parliament Hill (国会山). It is also the location of several ceremonial spaces, such as the Hall of Honor and the Memorial Chamber. The present Centre Block is the second iteration of the building，after the first was destroyed by fire in 1916，and it is one of the most recognizable buildings in Canada.Downtown Ottawa is the commercial and economic centre of the city. Most of the buildings are office towers. While most of Ottawas high tech industry is based elsewhere, it has a significant presence in the downtown core. The downtown also contains a number of apartments, hotels, and the older single family homes and townhouses along its edges.The National Gallery of Canada is one of Canada，s premier art galleries. The Gallery has a large and varied collection of paintings, drawings, sculpture and photographs. Although its focus is on Canadian art, it also holds works by some noted American and European artists.The Rideau Canal is the oldest continuously operated canal system in North America. At the very beginning，the purpose of the Rideau Canal was military, as it was intended to provide a secure supply and communication route between Montreal and the British naval base in Kingston. It remains in use today primarily for pleasure boating, with most of its original structures remained. The locks on the system open for navigation in mid-May and close in mid-October.56. What does iteration probably mean in the 2nd paragraph? _.A. Repair B. Design C. Copy D. Landmark57. In the core of Downtown Ottawa, we could see _.A. a large number of tall towersB. head offices of Ottawa s high tech industryC. a number of apartments and hotelsD. the older single family homes and townhouses58. Collections in the National Gallery of Canada are mainly _.A. paintings and drawings B. sculpture and photographsC. works by Canadian artists D. artwork by Americans and European59. Which of the following is true about the Rideau Canal? _.A. It is the oldest canal system in North AmericaB. It was originally for the military purposeC. The original structures remain never changedD. People can only go boating from May to OctoberBMy grandma whom we all called Nanny was a solid, first-generation, Italian immigrant. She came to this country with her family on a tiny ship during World War I when she was only 8 years old. During the trip she survived stormy seas，little food, and an attack by a German U-boat. After getting here，her large family worked hard to build a new life in America. They never had much money but were rich in love.One day，when I was about 5 or 6 years old, my parents and brothers went on a trip. It was just me and Nanny in the house for the weekend. Nanny seemed so happy to be taking care of me all by herself. She made me a special breakfast that first morning. However, all I could do was to complain about how the food was not how Mom always made it. Nanny quietly put down the plate and went into the living room. I followed a minute later and saw that she had tears in her eyes. It was the first time I had ever seen my strong and proud grandmother cry and I was the one who had caused it. I walked over to Nanny, climbed on her lap, and for the first time in my short life I did something else too. I apologized without being told to and asked Nanny to forgive me. She smiled, rubbed my head, and told me I was a good boy even though I didnt feel like one then.That memory just like my Nannys love will stay in my heart forever. It is a sign of both strength and wisdom. Asking for forgiveness helps us to learn, to grow, and to love.60. Nanny，s family immigrated to America mainly because _.A. they suffered starvation in their homelandB. they wanted to start a rich life in the new landC. they tried to get away from the terrible climateD. their country was in war and they needed peace61. The boy complained to Nanny that the food _.A. wasnt cooked the way his mom didB. was served a bit later than usualC. was prepared in a special wayD. was just to his parents，taste62. When seeing Nanny crying in the living room, the author felt _.A. surprised B. ashamed C. shocked D. annoyed63. The author mainly wants to tell us that _.A. forgiveness can be beneficial to people asking for itB. hardships can make children more indifferentC. grandparents are more tolerant than their grandchildrenD. family ties can sometimes be misusedCIt may seem to be a hard task to trace back the history of rap music, though you often see the informal music associated with highly informal dance style. As far as the origin of rap music is concerned, most people agree that it is from Afro-American and Latino Street culture of New York City. Not only in