Never in the history of Sierra Leone’s elections have women so actively engaged in politics or competed for parliamentary seats. In the past, women did the dancing and cooking for elections campaigning. In the May 14th elections, we saw over 168 women candidates competitive for President, Vice President and Parliamentary seats.
One would think that about 60% of these women would have emerged as winners. But it was not so, because of our cultural perception of women. We need to change our culture. Women could be active politicians. The Christians in their own way encouraged women to be preachers(传教士) but the Muslim leaders say women should not head for officiating(主持) prayers.
The same happens in certain parts of the country where women are not part of decision taken in male secret societies. This prevents them from achieving some of their goals. A senior head in one of the ministries told me that she was getting problems with some of her staff members especially the male staff. Most women that come from the Northern part of country experience such problems. Some men are saying that a woman cannot be their leader.
Some women are also prejudiced against their women folks. In the last elections, most woman did not support their colleagues. In some parts of the country, because they are not members of secret societies they were not allowed to contest for chieftaincies (酋长或首领的位置). However, Sierra Leones not withstanding the cultural prejudice against women has witnessed women occupying high public offices. They have been appointed to head certain areas.
Sierra Leone is moving from its past culture. We need a change in our culture. Women all over the world are recognized one way or the other as they are now involved in the use of technology. We now see women as air pilots, and they even attempt to go to travel in space.
In the past, women in Sierra Leone _______.
| A．took active part in politics | B．contested for parliamentary seats |
| C．danced and cooked for the election campaigning | D．shared the equal rights with men |
About 60% of the women engaged in election would have succeeded if . .
| A．there were less prejudice against women | B．less Muslim leaders had objected |
| C．more women had been engaged in the election | D．more preachers had supported them |
The author concludes that the women candidates can’t win the competitive vote because .
| A．women is more suitable for the dancing and cooking job |
| B．women candidates can’t get the support of their folks |
| C．women prejudice still exists in today’s society |
| D．women are not capable enough to be a chieftain |
The main idea of the passage is .
| A．the prejudice against women in various fields |
| B．women in Sierra Leone, striving for their political rights |
| C．women in Sierra Leone, challenge for men’s status |
| D．women in Sierra Leone, being involved in politics |
C
In the 1920s demand for American farm products fell, as European countries began to recover from World War I and started austerity （紧缩） programs to reduce their imports．The result was a sharp drop in farm prices．This period was more disastrous for farmers than earlier times had been, because farmers were no longer self-sufficient．They were paying for machinery, seed, and fertilizer, and they were also buying consumer goods．The prices of the items farmers bought remained constant, while prices they received for their products fell．These developments were made worse by the Great Depression, which began in 1929 and extended throughout the 1939s．
In 1929, under President Herbert Hoover, the Federal Farm Board was organized．It established the principle of direct interference （干预） with supply and demand, and it represented the first national commitment to provide greater economic stability for farmers．
President Hoover's successor attached even more importance to this problem．One of the first measures proposed by President FranklinD．Roosevelt when he took office in 1933 was the Agricultural Adjustment Act, which was later passed by Congress．This law gave the Secretary of Agriculture the power to reduce production through voluntary agreements with farmers who were paid to take their land out of use．A deliberate shortage of farm products was planned in an effort to raise prices．This law was declared unconstitutional （违背宪法的） by the Supreme Court on the grounds that general taxes were being collected to pay one special group of people．However, new laws were passed immediately that achieved the same result of resting soil and providing flood-control measures, but which were based on the principle of soil conservation．The Roosevelt Administration believed that rebuilding the nation’s soil was in the national interest and was not simply a plan to help farmers at the expense of other citizens．Later the government guaranteed loans to farmers so that they could buy farm machinery, hybrid （杂交） grain, and fertilizers．
53．What caused the problem in the demand for American farm products?
A．The effect of the Great Depression．
B．The shrinking of overseas markets．
C．The destruction caused by the First World War．
D．The increased exports of European countries．
54．The word “successor” refers to ______．
A．President Hoover B．US Secretary of State
C．President Franklin D．US Secretary of Agriculture
55．The Agricultural Adjustment Act encouraged American farmers to ______．
A．reduce their scale of production B．make full use of their land
C．adjust the prices of their farm products D．be self-sufficient in agricultural production
56．The Supreme Court rejected the Agricultural Adjustment Act because it believed that the Act ______．
A．might cause greater shortage of farm products
B．didn't give the Secretary of Agriculture enough power
C．would benefit neither the government nor the farmers
D．benefited one group of citizens at the expense of others
B
The world is not coming to an end on December 21, 2012, the US space agency insisted Monday in a rare campaign to dispel widespread rumors fueled by the Internet and a new Hollywood movie．
The latest big screen offering from Sony Picture, 2012, arrives in theaters on Friday, with a 200-million-dollar production about the end of the world supposedly based on myths backed by the Mayan calendar．It is claimed that the end of time will come as a Planet X---or Nibiru---heads toward or collides with the Earth．
Some websites accuse NASA of hiding the truth on the planet’s existence, but the US space agency condemned such stories as an “Internet hoax”．“There is no factual basis for these claims,” NASA said in a question-and-anwser posting on this website．“If such a collision were real, astronomers would have been tracking it for at least the past decade, and it would be visible by now to the naked eye．Obviously, it does not exist．Credible scientists worldwide know of no threat associated with 2012,” it insisted．“After all, our planet has been getting along just well for more than four billion years,” added NASA．
There is another planet, Eris, floating in space．But the small planet similar to Pluto will remain safely fixed in the outer solar system and it can come no closer than four billion miles to the Earth, according to NASA．
Earlier theories set the disaster for May 2003, but when nothing happened the date was moved forward to the winter in 2012 to coincide with the end of a cycle of the ancient Mayan calendar．
NASA insisted the Mayan calendar in fact does not end on December 21, 2012, as another period begins immediately afterward．
And even if the planets were to line up as some have forecast, the effect on our planet would be “negligible（unimportant）”, NASA said．
“And while comets and asteroids （小行星） have always hit the Earth, big hits are very rare,” NASA noted．The last major impact was believed to be 65 million years ago, resulting in the end of dinosaurs．
“We have already determined that there are no threatening asteroids as large as the one that killed the dinosaurs,” the space agency said．
49．______ played a key role in the spread of the rumors．
A．A new book B．The Internet and a new Hollywood movie
C．NASAD．An Indian calendar
50．We can infer that ______．
A．people didn’t take the rumor seriously
B．Planet X --- or Nibiru does exist
C．astronomers have been tracking Planet X for over ten years
D．the rumor caused a panic among some people
51．NASA thinks that Eris ______．
A．might have a threat to the Earth B．doesn’t have any threat to the Earth
C．is too far away to be visible D．is similar to our planet, where life might exist
52．Which of the following is the best title?
A．New Hollywood movie 2012
B．December 21, 2012, Not the end of the world
C．End of the ancient Mayan calendar
D．How rumors came into being
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
Fun-loving Paul Johnson earned the title of the Scarborough Evening News Teacher of the Year 2008．Mr Johnson, of Hinderwell School, was presented with the award after four of his pupils nominated（recommended） him for the prestigious title．
Evening News editor Ed Asquith presented Mr Johnson with his certificate — and a cheque for £100．His class is also set to enjoy a free trip to the Sea Life Centre which includes being picked up by a complimentary Shoreline Suncruisers open-top bus．
The 30-year-old, who lives in Hunmanby, said: “I am just so shocked．I have been nominated for this award for a few years and I never thought I would win it．It is fantastic．It is completely out of the blue．”
Mr Johnson has worked as a Year 5 teacher at the school for seven years．He also works as an advanced teacher, which involves visiting other schools in the county once a week to offer cross-curricular teaching．
He was chosen as the winner because of his dynamic but educationally engaging approach to teaching, and based on the real way he has demonstrated that every child matters．Each term he picks a theme for his class and the curriculum is based around it．This term they are studying medieval times — and his classroom has a castle in one corner．He also treated his class to a three-day trip to London earlier this year．
His nominators were Lucy and Emily Desborough, Rachel Laverick and Rebecca Miller．Classmate Callum Macdonald, 10, said: “He is the best teacher in the world and he deserves this．He is brilliant with us and he is just so funny．He tells lots of jokes which always make us laugh．” Beth Lawty, nine, added: “Our classroom is the best ever．We have really enjoyed being in his class and I will miss him next year．”
46．Paul Johnson visits other schools in the county to ______．
A．show his teaching experience B．learn from other teachers
C．improve his teaching skills D．offer a different course
47．Why is there a castle in one corner of Paul Johnson’s classroom?
A．It is used to train the students’ imagination．
B．It is a prize from the Scarborough Evening News
C．The students can play in it after class．
D．It is probably a symbol of medieval times．
48．The underlined part “out of the blue” probably means ______．
A．of surpriseB．frustrating
C．of great fame D．within easy reach
E
The earth is getting warmer．The planet is suffering．But what can you do about it? Reduce the amount of waste you generate．Use cleaner energy sources and go greener today, starting with these steps:
1．Get a reusable water bottle
Americans buy about 25 billion single-serving plastic water bottles each year．That's an average of 83 bottles per person per year．Plastic bottles take plenty of resources to produce, including fuel for transportation and petroleum to make the plastic．Even recycling bottles uses energy．
2．Eat less meat
You don't need to become a vegetarian to help save the planet．Eating meat just one day less a week can reduce your negative impact on the environment．More water, energy and land are required to produce meat than to produce grain．
3．Switch to energy-efficient light bulbs
Most households use standard incandescent （白炽的） bulbs．But compact fluorescent （荧光的） light bulbs, or CFLs, use 66 percent less energy than standard bulbs, produce just as much light, last up to 10 times longer and don't need to be replaced as often．If every household in the United States replaced just one incandescent light bulb with a CFL bulb, it would equal removing one million cars from the road．
4．Buy organic and local food
Did you know that only 1 percent of pesticides （杀虫剂） applied to crops reach the pests they target? The rest enter the environment．Organic food is grown without the use of pesticides．Organic farming can use 50 percent less energy than traditional farming methods．Buying local food saves on the fuel used to transport food grown elsewhere, thousands of miles across the country or around the world．
5．Recycle your electronics
Everyone knows the importance of recycling glass and plastic, but what about cell phones, computers, CDs and batteries? Electronics are responsible for about 40 percent of toxic （有毒的） heavy metals such as lead and mercury．Check with your city's recycling facilities to see if they take electronics．
72．The readers of this passage are called on to ______．
A．help reduce global warming B．use water in a wise way
C．donate money for charity D．keep a balanced diet
73．What is an advantage of CFLs according to the passage?
A．They use more energy but produce more light．
B．They can last longer so don't need to be replaced often．
C．They cost less than standard incandescent bulbs．
D．They are as energy-efficient as incandescent bulbs．
74．Which of the following figures is correct according to the passage?
A．Every year an American buys 63 plastic water bottles on average．
B．Eating meat one day less a week helps cut environment costs．
C．99% of the pesticides used on crops is effective in practice．
D．Electronics account for half of poisonous heavy metals on the earth．
75．Which can be the best title for this passage?
A．Why is the earth getting warmer?
B．What can we do about pollution?
C．How can you lead a greener life?
D．Who is to blame for global warming?
D
A curriculum vitae （CV） provides an overview of a person's life and qualifications．You know that you're a star but without a knock-out CV, no-one else will believe you．Here's how to impress and write yourself into a better job．
First, be concise （简洁的）．"It's not War and Peace．" says Steven Kirkpatrick, the managing director of Adecco Staffing．Recruiters （考官） who have to plough through hundreds of CVs don't enjoy flowery long articles．Use active verbs and ensure that every sentence counts．
Second, tell the truth．"The most important thing is not to lie," Kirkpatrick says．"People decorate their CV by adding things to make themselves more attractive," he says, only to embarrass themselves later．"If your first impression is a lie, it's not a great basis for moving forward．"
Then, focus on your skills．A CV is a selling tool and how you break down what you have learnt and what you can do is me most important．"It's OK to simplify job titles to make them clearer," Sharman says．"Just outline your achievements and experience to back that up, and say more about your recent roles．"
Also, personalize it．"There's nothing as bad as getting an automatically created CV from a website," Kirkpatrick says．"What they are buying is you, so sell them you．It's always nice to have personal information that makes you a human being," Sharman says．But do try to stand out from the crowd．
Finished? So you've written the perfect CV．That's the job half done．Last but not least, check out how to write the perfect covering letter．
68．For what purpose does the author write this passage?
A．To teach readers how to behave in job interviews．
B．To tell readers how to improve their writing skills．
C．To instruct readers on how to apply for a job．
D．To advise readers on how to write a CV．
69．What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 2 probably mean?
A．It doesn't have to be too long． B．It should be true．
C．It needs to be fun to read．D．It ought to be polite．
70．Which of the following would the author recommend?
A．Tell lies about your education and experience．
B．Focus on what work you are able to do．
C．Download sample CVs from websites．
D．Provide a nice photo of yourself．
71．How many tips are given in this passage?
A．Five． B．Four． C．Three． D．Two．