I was a freshman in college when I met the Whites. They were completely different from my own family, yet I felt at home with them immediately. Jane White and I became friends at school, and her family welcomed me like a long-lost cousin.
In my family, it was always important to place blame when anything had happened.
“Who did this?” my mother would scream about a dirty kitchen.
“This is your entire fault, Katherine,” my father would insist when the cat got out or the dishwasher broke.
From the time we were little, my sister, brothers and I told to each other. We set a place for blame at the dinner table.
But the Whites didn’t worry about who had done what. They picked up the pieces and moved on with their lives. The beauty of this was driven home to me the summer Jane died.
In July, the Whites sisters and I decided to take a car trip from their home in Florida to New York. The two older sisters, Sarah and Jane, were college students, and the youngest, Amy, had recently turned sixteen. Proud of having a new drivers license, Amy was excited about practicing her driving on the trip. She showed off her license to everyone she met.
The big sisters shared the driving of Sarah’s new car during the first part of the trip, but when they reached less crowded areas, they let Amy take over. Somewhere in South Carolina, we pulled off the highway to eat. After lunch, Amy got behind the wheel. She came to a crossroads with a stop sign. Whether she was nervous or just didn’t see the sign no one would ever know, but Amy continued into the crossroads without stopping. The driver of a large truck, unable to stop in time, ran into our car.
Jane was killed immediately.
I was slightly injured. The most difficult thing that I had ever done was to call the Whites to tell them about the accident and that Jane had died. Painful as it was for me to lose a good friend, I knew that it was far worse for them to lose a child.
When Mr. and Mrs. White arrived at the hospital, they found their two daughters sharing a room. Sarah had a few cuts on the head; Amy’s leg was broken. They hugged us all and cried tears of sadness and of joy at seeing their daughters. They wiped away the girl’s tears and made a few jokes at Amy as she learned to use her crutches(拐杖).
To both of their daughters, and especially to Amy, over and over they simply said, “We are so glad that you are alive.”
I was astonished. No blame. No accusations.
Later, I asked the Whites why they never talked about the fact that Amy was driving and had run a stop sign.
Mrs. White said, “Jane is gone, and we miss her terribly. Nothing we say or do will bring her back. But Amy has her whole life ahead of her. How can she lead a full and happy life if she feels we blame her for her sister’s death?”
They were right. Amy graduated from the University of California and got married several years ago. She works as a teacher of learning-disabled students. She’s also a mother of two little girls of her own, the oldest named Jane. How did the author’s parents differ from the Whites?
| A．The author’s parents were less caring. | B．The author’s parents were less loving. |
| C．The author’s parents were less friendly | D．The author’s parents were less understanding |
How did the accident happen?
| A．Amy didn’t stop at a crossroad and a truck hit their car. |
| B．Amy didn’t know what to do when she saw the stop sign. |
| C．Amy didn’t slow down so their car ran into a truck. |
| D．Amy didn’t get off the highway at a crossroad. |
The accident took place in _____.
| A．Florida | B．California | C．South Carolina | D．New York |
The Whites did not blame Amy for Jane’s death because _____.
| A．they didn’t want Amy to feel ashamed and sorry for the rest of her life |
| B．Amy was badly injured herself and they didn’t want to add to her pain |
| C．They didn’t want to blame their children in front of others |
| D．Amy was their youngest daughter and they loved her best |
From the passage we can learn that _____.
| A．Amy has never recovered from the shock | B．Amy changed her job after the accident |
| C．Amy lost her memory after the accident | D．Amy has lived quite a normal life |
B
I’ve just done my first jump since the accident that nearly killed me just a year ago. As I was lying in hospital, thinking that I would never skydive again, I wasn’t feeling glad to be alive. Instead I was wondering how I could possibly live without it.
It all started one evening after another nine-to-five day. I was sitting at home thinking, “There has to be more to life than this,” when an advertisement came on the television: “Try skydiving!”
The next day, I called the nearest skydiving centre and booked my first jump.
I will never forget my first jump. It was a beautiful, cloudless day and the sun was just going down. As I pushed myself away from the plane at 11,000 feet, my mind went blank.
Words cannot describe the excitement I experienced while I was free-falling. That was the most amazing four minutes of my life.
From the first jump, I was hooked. I started spending every free moment I had skydiving. At work, I sat in front of my computer and imagined ways of making more money so that I could jump more often.
The accident happened on my 1,040th jump. Another skydiver collided (碰撞) with my parachute (降落伞) at 80 feet. I fell and hit the ground at about 30 mph, face down. I broke my legs, my right arm and my nose. I lost 6 litres of blood, 19 teeth and 25 pounds of fat. I was lucky to be alive.
People who have never experienced skydiving will find it hard to understand that my only motivation to get better was that I could do it again. All I can say is that for me, skydiving is life and life is skydiving.
50. What can we learn about the author’s first skydiving from the text?
A. The author planned it for a long time.
B. The author was too excited to enjoy it.
C. It turned out to be fairly successful.
D. It took place a year before the accident.
51. The underlined part “I was hooked” most probably means “__________”.
A. I was attracted by skydiving B. I was shocked by skydiving
C. I became familiar with skydiving D. I became curious about skydiving
52. Which of the following shows the author’s strong will for skydiving?
A. The author spent almost every nine-to-five day skydiving.
B. The author worked hard to make more money for skydiving.
C. The author imagined himself skydiving while at the hospital.
D. The author expected to recover only to continue skydiving.
第二部分阅读理解（共两节，满分40分）
第一节（共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分）
阅读下列四篇短文，从每小题后所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该选项涂黑。
A
The Greenbelt, a wide belt of open land around the cities and towns of the San Francisco Bay Area, includes about 3.75 million of the Bay Area’s 4.5 million acres. The Bay Area Greenbelt is one of the largest areas of open land in any U.S. urban area. Open land is land that has few buildings and lots of natural areas. The Greenbelt’s open land includes parks, forests, beaches, and more than 8,500 farms.
What are the advantages of the Greenbelt?
The Greenbelt has many advantages for people in the Bay Area, which include:
walking and biking areas close to the cities and towns;
places for wild plants and animals;
cleaner air and water; and
income from farms.
Is the Greenbelt in danger?
Five hundred seventy thousand acres of the Greenbelt are in danger. There are builders who want to build suburbs on them. If those acres become suburbs, many things will change:
the urban and suburban area will almost double;
many farms will disappear;
traffic will become worse; and
the air will become dirtier.
What is Greenbelt Alliance (联盟)?
Greenbelt Alliance, an organization that saves land in the San Francisco Bay Area, works alone and with other groups to save the Greenbelt in four ways:
Try to persuade people to build new buildings on land that is already urban, not on open land.
Make sure that the city and town governments are all making plans to save the Greenbelt.
Help Bay Area towns and cities to buy pieces of open land to make into natural areas.
Teach people in the Bay Area why the Greenbelt is important and what they can do to help save it.
46. What can we learn about the Greenbelt from the first paragraph?
A. The Greenbelt is the largest open land in the United States.
B. The Greenbelt covers much more than half of the Bay Area.
C. There are few farms on the open land of the Greenbelt.
D. There are more than 8,500 natural areas on the Greenbelt.
47. One of the advantages of the Greenbelt for people in the Bay Area is __________.
A. convenience for exercise B. income from sightseeing
C. cleaner city streets D. more plants and animals
48. The Greenbelt is in danger because __________.
A. traffic is getting worse B. some plan to build suburbs on it
C. the suburban area has doubled D. pollution is becoming serious
49. Which of the following is TRUE about Greenbelt Alliance?
A. It builds new buildings on open land.
B. It buys large open land for the Bay Area.
C. It educates people how to save the Greenbelt.
D. It helps the city governments make plans.
D
Sometimes you may have a strong desire to do something strange or terrible. However, chances are that you don’t act on your impulse (冲动), but let it pass instead. You know that to take the action is wrong in some way and that other people will not accept your behavior.
Perhaps the most interesting thing about the phenomenon of taboo behavior is how it can change over the years, how certain behavior and attitudes once considered taboo can become perfectly acceptable and natural at another point in time. Topics such as death, for example, were once considered so upsetting that it was a taboo to even talk about them. Now with the publication of important books such as On Death and Dying and Learning to Say Goodbye, people have become more aware of the importance of expressing feelings about death and, as a result, are more willing to talk about this taboo subject.
One of the newest taboos is the topic of fat. Unlike many other taboos, fat is a topic that people talk about constantly. It’s not taboo to talk about fat; it’s taboo to be fat. The “in” look is thin, not fat. In the work world, most companies prefer youthful-looking, slim manager to sell their image as well as their products to the public. The thin look is associated with youth, vigor, and success. The fat person, on the other hand, is thought of as lazy and lacking in energy, self-discipline and self-respect. After all, how can people permit themselves to become fat? In an image-conscious society, thin is “in”, fat is “out”.
It’s not surprising that millions of people have become obsessed (着迷) with staying slim and “in shape”. The pursuit of a youthful physical appearance is not, however, the only reason for people’s obsession with diet and exercise. Recent research has shown the importance of diet and exercise for personal health. As in most technologically developed nations, the life-style of people has changed since last century. Modern machines do all the physical labor. Cars and buses transport us quickly from point to point. As a result of inactivity and disuse, people’s bodies can easily become weak. In an effort to avoid such a fate (命运), millions of people are spending more of their time exercising. Parks are filled with joggers and bicyclists, and many companies are providing special exercise equipment for their employees to use during the work day.
67. What does the word “taboo” refer to in the passage?
A. A crime committed on impulse.
B. An unfavorable impression left on other people.
C. A strong desire to do something strange or terrible.
D. Behavior considered unacceptable to the society.
68. What does the underlined phrase “in”look probably mean?
A. The fashionable look. B. The hidden look.
C. The usual look. D. The inside look.
69. According to the passage, the common belief is that ______.
A. fat people are full of energy
B. thin people are more successful
C. fat people prefer to have fat bosses
D. thin people are less image-conscious
70. People pay more attention to diet and exercise because of ______.
A. their need to kill time B. their love for sports
C. their concern for health D. their belief in hard work
C
For many businessmen online education has been a dream. Now it has come true. The investment (投资) in higher education, whether financial or in terms of time, has long been impossible for many of them. But well-known educational institutions have chosen to deliver an internet-based program, and these barriers have been lifted.
That is good news for people eager to improve themselves and is more attractive to employers. It is also a benefit to industry with better qualified candidates applying for jobs at every level.
Having the benefits of a higher qualification without going to the university campus is attractive to many students. Campus study means greater cost, while online programs are flexible and save time, whether at home or at work. Students can achieve their degrees without causing too much disruption to their career or home life.
In addition to affordable, flexible classes and greater convenience, students also have access to the online learning resources of many of the world’s top educational institutions. They can also communicate with their tutors no matter what time it is or whether either party is away for any reason.
This has opened up the possibility of getting a qualification from a university or college that many students could only have dreamed of in the past. It also allows specialists to get the precise qualifications and focus on their studies. As well as seeing the increase of applicants from lower-incomes and housewives, studying online in the US is even becoming popular with younger people of college age.
Employers have become increasingly welcome and positive to online qualifications as more candidates earn them, especially if they’re properly approved by the US Department of Education.
US institutions have led the way in online education provision. Many top US colleges and universities offer a range of online programs that are highly respected and in every way perfectly fit for adults who need to combine their studies with a working life.
63. According to Paragraph 1, many US colleges and universities ______.
A. have begun to lift the barriers to financial investment
B. have begun to run an internet-based program
C. have had a dream of offering online education
D. have gained financial investment
64. Why do people choose online education?
A. They can find jobs more easily than on-campus graduates.
B. They can get qualifications from US Department of Education.
C. They can save money and arrange their time and courses freely.
D. They can invest money in different courses provided online.
65. The underlined word “disruption” in the third paragraph probably mean ______.
A. dissatisfaction B. attention C. attraction D. interruption
66. Which would be a good title for the passage?
A. Adult Education Online
B. The Best of USA’s Online Education
C. Top US Universities Offering Online Education
D. Online Education Taking the Place of Campus Education
B
My House
My mother moved a lot when she was growing up on account of Grandpa being in the army. She hated having to adjust to new schools and make new friends. That’s why I thought she was joking when she put forward the idea of moving. But she was completely serious. “For just the two of us,” my mother said, “an apartment in the city will suit our needs much better.” Personally, I think she’s lost her mind. I guess I can understand why she would want to move, but what about me and what this house means to me?
I suppose if you looked at my house, you might think it was just another country house. But to me it is anything but standard. I moved into this house with my parents ten years ago. I can still remember that first day like it was yesterday. The first thing I noticed was the big front yard. To me it seemed like an ocean of grass—I couldn’t wait to dive in. The backyard was full of gnarled (扭曲的, 粗糙的) and scary trees that talk on windy nights. But I grew to like them and the shadows they cast in my room. My father and I even built a small tree house, where I often go to remember all the wonderful times we had before Father’s death.
This house is special—maybe only to me—but special nevertheless. It’s the little seemingly insignificant things that make this house so special to me: the ice-cold tile floors that make me tremble on midnight snack runs; the smell of my father’s pipe that still exists; the towering bookcases of my mother; the view outside my bedroom window.
This house holds too many memories, memories which would be lost if we gave it up.
59. Why did the author’s mother decide to move?
A. Because she hated the countryside.
B. Because Grandpa was on constant move.
C. Because Dad’s death made her lose her mind.
D. Because she thought a city flat more fit for them.
60. What impressed the author when she first moved into the house?
A. The tree house. B. The big trees.
C. The cold floors. D. The green grass.
61. How did the author let us feel that the house was special to her?
A. By arguing whether the house was standard.
B. By explaining why the house suited their needs.
C. By describing the small things related to her house.
D. By comparing the differences between country and city life.
62. The author describes the house with ______.
A. affectionB. responsibility C. commitment D. enthusiasm