Only about half of this year’s high school graduates have the reading skills they need to succeed in college, and even fewer are prepared for college-level science and math courses, according to a yearly report from ACT, which produces one of the nation’s leading college admissions tests.
The report, based on scores of the 2005 high school graduates who took the exam, some 1.2 million students in all, also found that fewer than one in four met the college-readiness benchmarks①in all four subjects tested: reading comprehension, English, math and science.
ACT sets its college-readiness benchmarks — including the reading comprehension benchmark, which is new this year—by correlating②earlier students’ ACT scores with grades they actually received as college freshmen. Based on that data, the benchmarks indicate the skill level at which a student has a 70 percent likelihood③ of earning a C or better, and a 50 percent chance of earning a B or better.
Among those who took the 2005 test, only 51 percent achieved the benchmark in reading, 26 percent in science, and 41 percent in math; the figure for English was 68 percent. Results from the new optional ACT writing test, which was not widely taken this year, were not included in the report.
About 40 percent of the nation’s 2005 high school graduates took the ACT, and the average overall score was unchanged from the year before. Minority students make up 27 percent of all ACT test takers. Besides, there are also other worrying trends in the ACT report as well, including a continuing decline in the percentage of students planning to major in engineering, computer science and education.
Notes:
① benchmark n. 基准
② correlate v. 联系
③ likelihood n. 可能性
1. The report from ACT mainly tells readers the problem that ______.
A. few minority students graduates took ACT
B. many who intend to go to college are not ready
C. the college-readiness benchmarks is high this year
D. the tests for some subjects are too difficult
2. According to the benchmarks in 2005, about how many students will not earn C?
A. 30 percent. B. 70 percent. C. 50 percent. D. 26 percent.
3. Which of the following pictures can correctly show the numbers of the students who achieve the benchmark in different subjects?
A. 
B.
C.
D. 
4. Which of the followings can be found in the report from ACT in 2005?
A. The report about the writing test is very objective.
B. More boy students are not good at science and math.
C. The percentage of students majoring science declined.
D. The average score of 2005 ACT participants changed greatly.
For the last couple of weeks, I had been stuck in front of my computer working on a project that was very important to me. My every waking hour was consumed by the project and although I imagined that I would feel happy after completing parts of the project, I was confused to find that instead, I was feeling rather depressed. I tried a range of methods to help cheer myself up. I had a relaxing bath, cooked a delicious meal to enjoy with my family and even watched a lighthearted movie, but to no avail. It was only when I turned to meditation(沉思)for a solution that the answer came to me: turn to nature!
The very next day, I grabbed my camera and a bottle of water and set off to spend a few hours walking in a nature reserve, even though it was pouring with rain. Within a couple of minutes I felt alive again. To be honest, I felt like a young school girl again and had to stop myself from hopping along the path singing, "I'm singing in the rain", a song I used to sing when I was a child. I think as adults we often try too hard to control our inner children and as a result we restrain(限制) our own spirits, which only leads to depression and stress.
Interestingly, it has been shown that people who spend 40 minutes walking in a nature reserve have a drop in their blood pressure levels, but this does not happen when they spend a similar amount of time walking in a busy city centre.
If you feel a little low in spirit and know that you have spent too much time indoors, relax completely, remove your shoes and let your inner child come out and play. The author felt depressed because she __________.
| A．couldn't consume her waking hour |
| B．had not seen a film for a long time. |
| C．had not finished her work on time |
| D．had worked on a hard job for too long |
The author walked in a nature reserve in the rain in order to__________.
| A．take photos |
| B．find a solution to the project |
| C．hop along the path |
| D．cheer herself up |
The underlined part "to no avail" in Paragraph 1 probably means " __________.".
| A．unsuccessful | B．unrelated |
| C．uninteresting | D．unexpected |
In the author's opinion, __________.
| A．a bath can make people relaxed |
| B．depression is usually caused by hard work |
| C．walking in a busy city centre harms people's health |
| D．adults should express their inner feelings freely |
The last paragraph mainly serves as a(n) __________.
| A．explanation | B．suggestion |
| C．introduction | D．reminder |
Wherever she goes, Molly leaves her mark. Without saying a word, she speaks to people with her kind eyes. Even when she walks away, she leaves an impression．Molly's mark is a smile, stamped into the ground by the horseshoe at the bottom of her false leg．
A few years ago, Molly was badly attacked by a dog．The dog bit all four or Molly’s legs and left large cuts in her face. Molly's owner, Kate Harris, took her to an animal hospital．Doctors there were able to save Molly’s life, but soon one of her legs became very infected(感染).
At first, doctors thought Molly would have to be put to sleep．But Molly changed their minds. This pony, doctors noticed, shifted her weight, and rested her good leg from time to time. Doctors knew t hat Molly had amazing intelligence, and that she wanted to live.
Several doctors operated on Molly, and removed her infected leg. A false leg was made for her. The leg was a hollow cast with a pole at the bottom for balance. Doctors gave Molly a special horseshoe at the bottom of the leg. This horseshoe she had had a stamp of a smile face in it!
After the operation, Molly walked around on all four legs, as if nothing had ever happened to her! Now, with every step she takes, she stamps a smile in the dirt．But she leaves her m ark in other ways, too.
Kaye Harris took Molly to the false leg center. There were children there who, like Molly, had artificial arms or legs. They were amazed to see a pony with a false leg. Molly made them smile and gave them hope. Soon, Molly began to visit schools, nursing homes, army bases and hospitals. A book was even written about Molly!Molly is the name of a__________.
| A．dog | B．horse | C．parent | D．child |
Which of the following is true according to the text?
| A．Molly can speak to people in kind words. |
| B．Kay Harris took Molly to a children’s hospital after the attack. |
| C．In the beginning, doctors had planned to end Molly’s life. |
| D．Molly sometimes leaves smiling marks on people’s faces. |
What is unique about Molly?
| A．Molly has a false leg with a horseshoe shaped like a smiling face. |
| B．Molly ran a race and won the first prize. |
| C．Molly often visits places such as schools and parks. |
| D．Molly has become a symbol of hope for people of all ages. |
The Spanish poet Juan Ram said, “If they give you ruled paper, write the other way.” Turning the paper sideways is like looking at situations from different angles.
Henry L. Mencken said it first: “For every complex problem, there is a solution that is simple, neat and wrong.” And how often I am determined to keep pounding on that simple and neat solution until I make it work, or else I finally give up altogether. But success will surprisingly come when I decide to look at the thing from a wholly different perspective (视角).
Several all night convenience stores in New York City had a problem with teenagers hanging out in their parking lots late into the night. Not that they didn’t like kids; but customers complained (抱怨) that they were afraid to approach them in the dark and push through them to enter the store. Neighbors complained that they couldn’t sleep with the noise.
Managers tried various methods to solve the problem. They asked the kids to move away from the doors so customers didn’t have to push through them. They asked them to throw their cigarette butts and trash (垃圾) in outdoor dustbins and not litter the parking lot. Each solution was simple, neat and completely ineffective. It seemed that any of them should have worked. But none of them did.
Finally, one man came up with an unusual idea. Finding that asking the teens to change their behavior didn’t work, he tried something different. He just piped easy-listening music into the parking lot especially suited for mature listeners.
No more loitering (闲逛).What might be the author’s purpose in writing the text?
| A．To give advice. | B．To make us laugh. |
| C．To analyze a problem. | D．To tell us an interesting story. |
The managers failed to solve the problem because _____.
| A．the kids didn’t like them |
| B．their solutions were too complex |
| C．they were not polite enough to the kids |
| D．they asked the kids to change their behavior |
Why did the kids leave the parking lots?
| A．They didn’t like the music. |
| B．They got bored of playing there. |
| C．They came to know it was unsafe. |
| D．They were moved by the manager. |
By telling the story, the author intends to tell us _____.
| A．kids today are tough to deal with |
| B．a simple solution is usually better |
| C．it’s better to calm down teenagers |
| D．we should look at a problem in different perspectives |
Hurricane Irene caused a frightening landscape in West Hartford, Vermont. The White River jumped its banks and shipping containers, gas bottles, and even entire trucks were spotted being washed down the river near Patriots’ Bridge.
Patti and Scott Holmes had a special connection to the flood zone. Their son, Jeffery Holmes, was one of three soldiers honored on a monument in a memorial garden next to the bridge. Jeffery died on Thanksgiving Day 2004 during a war. Patti took some comfort knowing that her son had died instantly, serving the military (军队) he wanted to join since he was nine years old.
The August hurricane spared Patti and Scott’s home. Patti didn’t realize how bad the situation had been at the monument site until one of Jeff’s friends sent a photo the next day. “When I opened it, I just started crying,” she said. All the flowers that volunteers lovingly tended were gone. The monument had toppled (倒塌) off its concrete base and was likely ruined. Alone at her desk, Patti wept for the fun-loving blue-eyed son who didn’t live to see his 21st birthday, the boy she still wrote on Christmas and birthdays. Now another piece of him had slipped away.
Scott drove to the bridge that night to see exactly what had happened but was forced to turn back because the flooding had destroyed roads and the bridge. Who knows how the angry waters had damaged the monument?
But when Patti and Scott were finally able to get there later in the week, they were greeted with an extraordinary sight. Local residents had returned the monument to its proper place, unharmed. “I didn’t see a scratch, not even on top of it,” Patti said in joy and relief.The monument was set up ______.
| A．to honor three dead soldiers |
| B．to respect the local residents |
| C．to protect the bridge |
| D．to decorate the garden |
Why did Patti cry when she opened the photo?
| A．Her home was ruined in the flood. |
| B．The memorial garden was destroyed. |
| C．She couldn’t visit the monument anymore. |
| D．She couldn’t celebrate her son’s birthday. |
What does the part “another piece” in Paragraph 3 refer to?
| A．The photo. | B．The birthday. |
| C．The base. | D．The monument. |
From the last paragraph, we can learn that the couple felt ______.
| A．moved | B．ashamed |
| C．encouraged | D．embarrassed |
We all know that global warming is caused by greenhouse gases, largely carbon dioxide, which is given out by everything ranging from home appliances(电器) and cars to the heating and lighting systems of office buildings. But since we don’t see the gas, most of us simply shake our heads and then continue with our bad habits. Now, researchers at Arizona State University are trying to change that.
Directed by associate professor Kevin Gurney, the Hestia Project’s main goal is to make something that is currently intangible (无形的) into something a little more tangible, by allowing all of us to visually see how much each and every one of us is “contributing” to global warming.
In order to obtain a complete picture of the city’s environment, the team begins by collecting data from all different sources. Then, using special software they divide the emissions (排放) into three categories — commercial entities (实体) (office buildings and industrial plants), households and vehicles. This is the stage where things start to get really interesting. That’s because instead of showing all this information using graphs that we all instantly lose interest in, they create a visual “film” that shows not only the carbon emitted by each entity, but also the exact location it is coming from and the amount, which varies depending on the time of day or season. For example, the car emissions during rush hour are the highest, as is the case for commercial buildings during the day, especially during winter months when the heating is on.
Kevin knows that some of the data shown may start a blame game among the residents (居民) of the city. However, he is hoping that the people will go beyond that and instead use it to make changes in their daily lives. According to the text, most people ignore the problem of greenhouse gases mainly because _____.
| A．the problem is not very serious |
| B．bad living habits are hard to change |
| C．greenhouse gases can’t be seen |
| D．they think they have done nothing wrong |
With the efforts of Kevin’s team, people can _____.
| A．see a film about the effects of greenhouse gases |
| B．study methods of cutting greenhouse gases |
| C．know a certain place’s emission at different times |
| D．get information on emissions with various graphs |
By saying “some of the data shown may start a blame game among the residents of the city”, the author means that _____.
| A．Kevin’s team may get criticized |
| B．the Hestia Project may be treated as a game |
| C．residents may feel guilty of their bad behavior |
| D．people may accuse each other of carbon emissions |
What’s the purpose of the text?
| A．To introduce a research project. |
| B．To give advice on cutting emissions. |
| C．To show the harm of carbon emissions. |
| D．To call on people to protect the environment. |