If you look for a book as a present for a child，you will be spoiled for choice even in a year there is no new Harry Patten．J．K Rowling’s wizard is not alone ．The past decade has been a harvest for good children’s books ,which has set off a large quantity of films and an increased sales of classics such as The lard of the Rings．Yet despite that, reading is increasingly unpopular among children ．According to statistics in 1997, 23% said they didn’t like reading at all．In 2003, 35% didn’t．And around 6% of the children leave primary school each year unable to read properly．Maybe the decline is caused by the increasing availability of computes games．Maybe the books boom has affected only the top of the educational pile．Either way, Chancellor Cordon Brown plans to change things for the bottom of the class ．In his pre-budget report, he announced the national project of Reading Recovery to help the children struggling most．Reading Recovery is aimed at six year olds, who receive four months of individual daily half-hour classes with a specially trained teacher．An evaluation this year reported that children on the school made 20 months’ progress in just one year, whereas similarly weak readers without special help made just five months’ progress ,and so ended the year even further below the level expected for their age．International research tends to find that when British children leave primary school, they read well ,but read text often for fun than those elsewhere ．Reading for fun matters because children who are keen on reading can report lifelong pleasure and loving books is an excellent indicator of future educational success ．According to the OECD, being a regular and enthusiastic reader is of great advantage．51．Which of the following is true of Paragraph 1?A．Many children’s books have been adapted from films．B．Many high-quality children’s books have been published．C．The sales of classics have led to the popularity of films．D．The sales of presents for children have increased．52．Statistics suggested that ．A．the number of top students increased with the use of computersB．a decreasing number of children showed interest in readingC．a minority of primary school children read properlyD．a huge percentage of children read regularly53．What do we know about Reading Recovery?A．An evaluation of it will be made sometime this year．
B．Weak readers on the project were the most hardworking．
C．It aims to train special teachers to help children with reading．
D．Children on the project showed noticeable progress in reading．
54．Reading for fun is important because book-loving children _________．
A．take greater advantage of the project
B．show the potential to enjoy a long life
C．are likely to succeed in their education．
D．would make excellent future researchers
55．The aim of this text would probably be _________．
A．to overcome primary school pupils reading difficulty．
B．to encourage the publication of more children’s books
C．to remind children of the importance of reading for fun
D．to introduce a way to improve early children reading
Why is pink or purple a color for girls and blue or brown for boys?
The answer depends largely on cultural values as well as personal experiences. To the Egyptians, green was a color that represented the hope and joy of spring, while for Muslims, it means heaven. Red is a symbol of good luck in many cultures. In China, children are given money in a red envelope to bring good fortune in the New Year. For many nations, blue is a symbol of protection and religious beliefs. Greek people often wear a blue necklace hoping to protect themselves against evils（灾祸）.People’s choice of colors is also influenced by their bodies’ reactions （反应）toward them. Green is said to be the most restful color. It has the ability to reduce pain and relax people both mentally and physically. People who work in green environment have been found to have fewer stomach aches.
Red can cause a person’s blood pressure to rise and increase people’s appetites（食欲）. Many decorators will include different shades of red in the restaurant. Similarly, many commercial websites will have a red “Buy Now” button because red is a color that easily catches a person’s eye.
Blue is another calming color. Unlike red, blue can cause people to lose appetite. So if you want to eat less, some suggest that eating from blue plates can help.
The next time you are deciding on what to wear or what color to decorate your room, think about the color carefully.Muslims regard green as a symbol of heaven mainly because of their .
| A．cultural values | B．commercial purposes |
| C．personal experiences | D．physical reactions to the color |
Why will many commercial websites have a red “Buy Now” button?
| A．To relax people physically. |
| B．To increase people’s appetites. |
| C．To encourage people to buy their products. |
| D．To cause a person’s blood pressure to rise. |
What color might help lose weight according to the text?
| A．Red | B．Green. | C．Blue. | D．Purple. |
Which of the following would be the most proper title for the text?
| A．Colors and Human Beings |
| B．The Cultural Meaning of Color |
| C．Colors and Personal Experiences |
| D．The Meaning and Function of Color |
Every day we experience one of the wonders of the world around us without even realizing it. It is not the amazing complexity of television, nor the impressive technology of transport. The universal wonder we share and experience is our ability to make noise with our mouths, and so transmit ideas and thoughts to each other’s minds. This ability comes so naturally that we tend to forget what a miracle it is.
Obviously, the ability to talk is something that marks humans off from animal. Of course, some animals have powers just as amazing, Birds can fly thousands miles by observing positions of the stars in the sky in relation to the time of day and year. In Nature’s talent show, humans are a species of animal that have developed their own special act. If we reduce it to basic terms, it’s an ability for communicating information to others, by varying sounds we make as we breathe out.
Not that we don’t have other powers of communication. Our facial expressions convey our emotions, such as anger, or joy, or disappointment. The way we hold our heads can indicate to others whether we are happy or sad. This is so-called “body language”. Bristling(直立的) fur is an unmistakable warning of attack among many animals. Similarly, the bowed head or drooping tail shows a readiness to take second place in any animal gathering.
Such a means of communication is a basic mechanism that animals, including human beings, instinctively acquire and display. Is the ability to speak just another sort of instinct? If so, how did human beings acquire this amazing skill? Biologist can readily indicate that particular area of our brain where speech mechanisms function, but this doesn’t tell us how that part of our bodies originated in our biological history.According to the passage, the wonder we take for granted(认为理所当然) is________.
| A．our ability to use language |
| B．the miracle of technology |
| C．the amazing power of nature |
| D．our ability to make noises with mouth |
What feature of “body language” mentioned in the passage is common to both human and animals?
| A．Lifting heads when sad. |
| B．Keeping long faces when angry. |
| C．Bristling hair when ready to attack. |
| D．Bowing heads when willing to obey. |
What can be inferred from Paragraph 3?
| A．Body language is unique to humans. |
| B．Animals express emotions just as humans do. |
| C．Humans have other powers of communication. |
| D．Humans are no different from animals to some degree. |
This passage is mainly about _______.
| A．the development of body language. |
| B．the special role humans play in nature |
| C．the power to convey information to others |
| D．the difference between humans and animals in language use |
Elderly adults who regularly drink green tea may stay more agile (敏捷的) and independent than their peers over time, according to a Japanese study that covered thousands of people.
Green tea contains antioxidant chemicals (抗氧化物) that may help stop the cell damage that can lead to disease. Researchers have been studying green tea’s effect on everything from cholesterol (胆固醇) to the risk of certain cancers, with mixed results so far.
They found those who drank the most green tea were the least likely to develop “functional disability”, or problems with daily activities or basic needs, such as dressing or bathing.
Specifically, almost 13 percent of adults who drank less than a cup of green tea per day became functionally disabled, compared with just over 7 percent of people who drank at least five cups a day.
The study did not prove that green tea alone kept people agile as they grew older. Green-tea lovers generally had healthier diets, including more fish, vegetables and fruit, as well as more education, lower smoking rates, fewer heart attacks and strokes, and greater mental sharpness. They also tended to be more socially active and have more friends and family to rely on. But even with those factors accounted for, green tea itself was tied to a lower disability risk, the researchers said.
People who drank at least five cups a day were one-third less likely to develop disabilities than those who had less than a cup per day. Those people who averaged three or four cups a day had a 25 percent lower risk.
Although it’s not clear how green tea might offer a buffer (缓冲) against disability, Tomata’s team did note that one recent study found green tea extracts (提取物) seem to increase leg muscle strength in older women.
While green tea and its extracts are considered safe in small amounts, they do contain caffeine and small amounts of vitamin K, which means it could affect drugs that prevent blood clotting (凝固).What can be learned from the passage?
| A．Antioxidant chemicals can lead to disease. |
| B．Those who often drank green tea can’t develop “functional disability”. |
| C．“Functional disability” is related to problems with daily activities or basic needs. |
| D．People who drank at least five cups a day are not likely to become functionally disabled. |
What does the fifth paragraph mainly tell us?
| A．How the study was proved. | B．Why green tea-lovers can keep agile. |
| C．What healthier diets include. | D．How to lower disability risk. |
What have the Researchers discovered?
| A．Those who drank green tea can't develop “functional disability”. |
| B．Green tea alone kept people agile as they grew older. |
| C．How green tea might offer a buffer against disability. |
| D．Green tea extracts (提取物) seem to increase leg muscle strength in older women. |
In the United States, friends can be close, constant and real. But if they move live far away from each other, little by little, they will not be as close as before. But neither side feels hurt by this. Both may exchange Christmas greetings for a year or two, perhaps a few letters for a while, then no more. If two people meet again by chance, even years later, they will be delighted and pick up the friendship again.
In America, you can feel free to visit people's homes, share their holidays and enjoy their delicious food. If you are invited to a party, just accept their hospitality(款待) for various reasons, such as crowded space, language difficulties or family customs. It is often considered more friendly to invite a person to one's home than to go to a public place. So, if your host or hostess brings you home, do not feel that you aren’t treated well. You know, strangers are not invited into the home.
Don't feel neglected if you do not find flowers awaiting you in your hotel room either. Flowers are very expensive there, hotel delivery is not certain, and arrival times are often delayed, so flowers are not often sent as a welcoming touch. Please do not feel unwanted! In fact, signs outside change in different lands, but the welcome in the heart is real and valuable. You will find friendships _______ in America if they are not near each other.
| A．die suddenly | B．come back | C．disappear gradually | D．last forever |
The underlined part in the last paragraph can be replaced by “______”.
| A． Don’t feel you are paid little attention |
| B．Don’t accept an invitation quickly |
| C． Don’t feel you should be treated well |
| D．Don’t pay much attention to the flowers |
Which of the following is the best title for this passage?
| A．American Hospitality | B．American Friendships |
| C．American Invitation | D．American Welcome |
Do you want to live another 100 years or more? Do you want to live never to die? Some experts say, it will be not a dream one day. Modern technology will make it come true. Man will live more years beyond what is now seen as the natural limit of the human life.
“ I think we are knocking at the door of immortality,” said Michael, a professor and author of two books on human life expectancy. “I think by 2075 we will see it and it’s no longer a dream. Human’s life expectancy may have not limit.”
At the meeting in San Francisco, Donald Louria, a professor at New Jersey Medical School said advances in using genes as well as other technology make it likely that humans will live in the future beyond what has been possible in the past. “There is a great push so that people can live from 120 to 180 years,” he said. “Some have suggested that there is no limit and that people could live to 300 or 500 years.”
However, many scientists are doubtful about it and say the human body is just not designed to last more than about 120 years. Even with healthier lifestyles and less disease, they say failure of the brain and other parts of the body will finally lead all humans to death.
Scientists also hold different opinions on what kind of life man might live. “If you pass 120, you know; could you be healthy enough to have good quality of life? It’s a big question.” said Leonard Poon, director of the university center. “At present people who could get to that point are not in good health at all.” The underlined word in the second paragraph probably means _____.
| A．dying slowly | B．living longer | C．living forever | D．dying quickly |
Donald’s attitude is that______.
| A．human beings may never die in the future |
| B．it is not certain how long humans can live |
| C．the human body can last about 120 years |
| D．it is possible for man to live longer in the future |
What would be the best title for this text?
| A．Living longer or not | B．Science and long living |
| C．No limit for human life | D．Healthy lifestyle and living |
In the last sentence “get to that point” means ____.
| A．get that idea | B．get to 120 years old |
| C．know how to live forever | D．have good quality of life |