Dubai is a city of big business, expensive hotels, skyscrapers (摩天楼), and shopping malls. In the early 20th century, Dubai was a successful trading port. People from the world stopped in Dubai to do business. But it was still a small city, and most people lived as fishermen and businessmen. Then in 1966, oil was discovered. This brought a lot of money into the area, and soon Dubai began to change.
Today Dubai is one of the world’s most important business centers. In fact, each year the city gels its money mainly from business, not oil.
Recently Dubai has attracted more and more visitors from abroad. They come to relax on its beaches, and every year, millions visit just to go shopping!
Dubai is also one of the world’s fastest growing cities. Many tall buildings are built in months. The city also has many man-made islands. One of these, the Palm Jumeirah, is like a palm tree (棕桐树) and is very beautiful.
The city is still an amazing mix (混合体) of people from different countries. The people from 150 countries live and work in Dubai, and foreigners now outnumber Dubai natives ( 本地人) by eight to one!
Many people welcome the city’s growth. But an increasing number of Dubai natives worry about the speed of change. As a Dubai native says, “We must always remember where we came from. Our kids must know we worked very, very hard to get where we are now, and there’s a lot more work to do.”
小题1:Why did people stop in Dubai in the early 20th century?
A．To relax
B．To buy oil.
C．To go shopping.
D．To do business.小题2:Which of the following is NOT true?
A. Dubai has created many man-made islands.
B. There are many foreigners working in Dubai.
C Many international visitors come to Dubai every year
D. Dubai now gets money mainly from selling oil.
小题3:What does the underlined word “outnumber” mean?
A．To be smaller in size than another group.
B．To be more in number than another group.
C．To be bigger in area than another group.
D．To be smaller in area than another group.小题4:In the last paragraph, what does the underlined part mean?
A．We should always visit Dubai,
B．We should learn from foreigners.
C．We must always remember our past.
D．We must only think about the future.小题5:What’s the main idea of the passage?
A．Dubai is growing very fast.
B．Dubai was a big city before 1966.
C．Many tall buildings are built in months.
D．Many tourists come to relax on Dubai’s beaches.
