Some scientists warn that ice near the Earth’s Poles may indeed be melting. This “polar meltdown” may be the first sign that the Earth is heating up. We could be in very serious trouble if this trend continues. It is estimated that a meltdown of as little as 10 percent of Antarctica’s ice would raise sea levels around the globe by 4 to 9 meters. Floods would cover low-lying regions and turn coastal cities like New York and New Orleans into real life underwater world.
Scientists first predicted in the 1970s that heat trapped in the Earth’s atmosphere could cause a polar meltdown. Many now believe that human activities are turning up the heat. When we burn fossil fuels like coal and oil, we add carbon dioxide(CO2) gas to the Earth’s atmosphere. Cutting down trees also makes CO2 levels raise because trees normally soak up CO2 to make food. Scientists say higher CO2 levels strengthen the “greenhouse effect” and could increase the Earth’s temperature. In fact, CO2 levels have risen by 30 percent since the Industrial Revolution of the 18th and 19th centuries.
Over the past three years, satellite measurements have shown a sea level rise of about a quarter inch worldwide. “If nothing is done to reduce fossil-fuel pollution and global warming, sea levels will rise even more.” says geologist Richard Alley.
But even Alley admits that a polar meltdown would take time. The ice in Antarctica and Arctic locks up nearly nine times the volume of water contained in all the world’s rivers and lakes. These are such big “ice cubes” and it would probably take thousands of years to melt them.
Another scientist Charles Bentley doesn’t think a meltdown will happen at all. “Even if warmer temperatures begin to melt polar-ice,” he says, “the excess moisture would most likely be redeposit as snow.” In other words, the melted ice would evaporate into the atmosphere, refreeze, and fall as rain and snow over the Poles.What consequence of global warming is mentioned in the passage?
| A．More tropical storms. | B．More tropical diseases. |
| C．Changes in farm productivity. | D．Coastal flooding. |
Which of the following statements does the second paragraph support?
| A．CO2 in the atmosphere cannot keep the heat from escaping into space. |
| B．The increase of CO2 gas may warm the planet and help to melt polar ice. |
| C．Cutting down trees helps to greatly reduce CO2 levels. |
| D．The end of the short-lived age of fossil fuels is already in sight. |
Geologist Richard Alley most likely agrees that _______.
| A．the sea-level rise can be prevented by cutting back on energy-consuming activities |
| B．the recent breaking off of ice blocks from Antarctica is just a natural part of a long-term cycle |
| C．Antarctica temperatures have significantly changed since the Industrial Revolution |
| D．the polar meltdown may be an accidental change of climate rather than a sign of global warming |
Charles Bentley believes that a polar meltdown will not occur because _______.
| A．governments around the world are beginning to reduce CO2 levels in the air |
| B．a melting of the polar ice cannot be achieved with the present technologies |
| C．the melted ice in the polar areas would change into snow and rain over the Poles |
| D．the sun’s heat would have no chance of being absorbed by the polar ice |
In which paragraph does the author mention the immense quantities of polar ice?
| A．In the second paragraph. | B．In the third paragraph. |
| C．In the fourth paragraph. | D．In the fifth paragraph. |
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The African elephant, the largest land animal remaining on earth, is of great importance to African eco-system. Unlike other animals, the African elephant is to a great degree the builder of its environment. As a big plant-eater, it largely shapes the forest-and-savanna（大草原）surroundings in which it lives, therefore setting the terms of existence for millions of other animals and live in its habitat.
It is the elephant’s great desire for food that makes it a disturber of the environment and an important builder of its habitat. In its continuous search for the 300 pounds of plants it must have every day, it kills small trees and under-bushes, and pulls branches off big trees. This results in numerous open spaces in both deep tropical forests and in the woodlands that cover part of the African savannas. In these open spaces are numerous plants in various stages of growth that attract a variety of other plant-eaters.
Take the rain forests for example. In their natural state, the spreading branches overhead shut out sunlight and prevent the growth of plants on the forest floor. By pulling down trees and eating plants, elephants make open spaces, allowing new plants to grow on the forest floor. In such situations, the forests become suitable for large hoofed（有蹄的）plant-eaters to move around and for small plant-eaters to get their food as well.
What worries scientists now is that the African elephant has become an endangered species. If the elephant disappears, scientists say, many other animals will also disappear from vast areas of forest and savanna, greatly changing and worsening the whole eco-system.
66. What’s the passage mainly about?
A. Disappearance of African elephants.
B. Forests and savannas as habitats for African elephants.
C. The effect of African elephants’ search for food.
D. The eating habit of African elephants.
67. What does the underlined phrase “setting the terms” in the first paragraph most probably mean?
A. fixing the time. B. worsening the situation.
C. Improving the quality. D. Deciding the conditions.
68. What do we know about the open spaces in the passage?
A. They result from the destruction of rain forests.
B. They provide food mainly for African elephants.
C. They are home to many endangered animals.
D. They are attractive to plant-eating animals of different kinds.
69. According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?
A. The African elephant has become extinct.
B. African elephants have 300 pounds of plants every day, including small trees and under-bushes.
C. The African elephant is in a way the builder of the environment like other land animals.
D. If the African elephant disappears, the whole eco-system won’t be affected.
70. The passage is developed mainly by _________.
A. presenting figures
B. pointing out similarities and differences
C. describing the changes in the order of space
D. giving examples
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It's time you started eating sensibly. Experts at the first Chinese Students Nutrition and Health Festival in Kunming last week listed eight bad eating habits.
●Watching television while having meals or snacks.
Doing this means you don't pay attention to your food, forget how full you are, and so overeat. It can also cause digestion (消化) diseases. One way to avoid this is only to eat in certain areas of your home.
● Replacing meals with snacks.
Many students think that eating small snacks can help them diet. But it often results in overeating and health problems related to a lack of vegetables, carbohydrates (碳水化合物),proteins and vitamins. Snacking only works if it is well planned and includes healthy foods such as nuts, vegetables, fruit and yogurt.
●Having drinks rather than water.
Fizzy (有气泡的) drinks and fruit juice are usually high in calories and sugar, which can
cause weight problems. Water is important in making your brain cells and every organ in your body work properly. For your body to burn fat, it needs at least eight glasses of pure water a day. Liquids like soda and coffee actually take water away from your body.
●Refusing to drink milk.
Milk is the best natural food—it provides you with protein, which makes your bones strong and teeth healthy.
● Choosing meat and certain vegetables over others.
Different foods provide different kinds of nutrition. If you don't have a balanced diet, this can result in malnutrition (营养失调) and a weaker body.
●Eating in front of the computer and staying there after meals.
Take a walk after eating and it helps your stomach digest the meal.
●Buying from roadside snack bars.
If you shop at these places, be careful—many are not clean enough.
● Eating throat tablets as if they were sweets.
If you eat throat tablets when you have no throat disease, they may affect the bacteria in your mouth and cause real throat problems.
63.______ can possibly cause digestion problem.
A. Eating while sitting in front of TV or computer
B. Eating throat tablets as if they were sweets.
C. Choosing certain kinds of food over others.
D. Buying from roadside snack bars.
64.Why can't soft drinks be drunk in place of water when you feel thirsty?
A. They help brain cells work properly. B. They make your body sick.
C. They take water away from your body. D. They supply energy for your body.
65.Which of the following is NOT the habit that will possibly result in a lack of nutrition?
A. Often eating small snacks. B. Never drinking milk.
C. Always eating the same kinds of food. D. Staying in front of a computer after the meal.
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We can achieve knowledge either actively or passively（被动地）. We achieve it actively by direct experience, by testing and proving an idea, or by reasoning.
We achieve knowledge passively by being told by someone else. Most of the learning that takes place in the classroom and the kind that happens when we watch TV or read newspapers or magazines is passive. Although we are used to passive learning, it’s not surprising that we depend on it in our everyday communication with friends and co-workers.
Unfortunately, passive learning has a serious problem. It makes us tend to accept what we are told even when it is rumor (谣言).
Did you ever play the game Rumor? It begins when one person writes down a message but doesn’t show it to anyone. Then the person whispers it, word for word, to another person. That person, in turn, whispers it to still another, and so on. Then the last person writes down the message word for word as he or she hears it. Then the two written statements are compared. Typically, the original message has changed.
That’s what happens in daily life. The simple fact that people repeat a story in their own words changes the story. Then, too, most people listen imperfectly. And many enjoy adding their own feelings to a story, trying to improve it, marking it with their own personal style. Yet those who hear it think they know.
This process is also found among scholars and authors: A statement of opinion by one writer may be re-stated as fact by another, who may in turn be quoted by yet another; and this process may continue, unless it occurs to someone to question the facts on which the original writer based his opinion or to challenge the interpretation he placed upon those facts.
59. According to the passage, passive learning may occur when a person is _______.
A. doing a medical experiment B. solving a math problem
C. watching news on TV D. doing scientific reasoning
60. The underlined word “it” in Paragraph 2 refers to _____.
A. active learning B. knowledge C. communication D. passive learning
61. The author mentions the game Rumor to show that _____.
A. a message may be changed when being passed on
B. a message should be delivered in different ways
C. people may have problems with their sense of hearing
D. people tend not to believe in what they know as rumor
62. What can we infer from the passage?
A. Active learning is less important.
B. Passive learning may not be dependable.
C. Active learning occurs more frequently.
D. Passive learning is not found among scholars.
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第三节阅读理解(共20小题；每小题2分。满分40分)
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项，并在
答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Twenty years ago, I drove a taxi for a living. One night I went to pick up a passenger at 2:30 AM. When I arrived to collect, I found the building was dark except for a single light in a ground floor window.
I walked to the door and knocked, "Just a minute," answered a weak, elderly voice.
After a long pause, the door opened. A small woman in her eighties stood before me. By her side was a small suitcase.
I took the suitcase to the car, and then returned to help the woman. She took my arm and we walked slowly toward the car.
She kept thanking me for my kindness. "It's nothing," I told her. "I just try to treat my passengers the way I would want my mother treated."
"Oh, you're such a good man." She said. When we got into the taxi, she gave me an address, and then asked, "Could you drive through downtown?"
"It's not the shortest way," I answered quickly.
"Oh, I'm in no hurry," she said. "I'm on my way to a hospice(临终医院). I don't have any family left. The doctor says I don't have very long."
I quietly reached over and shut off the meter(计价器).
For the next two hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the building where she had once worked, the neighborhood where she had lived, and the furniture shop that had once been a ballroom where she had gone dancing as a girl.
Sometimes she'd ask me to slow down in front of a particular building and would sit staring into the darkness, saying nothing.
At dawn, she suddenly said, "I'm tired. Let's go now."
We drove in silence to the address she had given me.
"How much do I owe you?" she asked.
"Nothing." I said.
"You have to make a living," she answered. "Oh, there are other passengers," I answered.
Almost without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug. She held onto earth tightly. Our hug ended with her remark, "You gave an old woman a little moment of joy."
56. The old woman chose to ride through the city in order to ______.
A. show she was familiar with the city B. let the driver earn more money
C. see some places for the last time D. reach the destination on time
57. The taxi driver did not charge the old woman because he ______.
A. shut off the meter by mistake B. had received her payment in advance
C. was in a hurry to take other passengers D. wanted to do her a favor
58. What can we learn from the story?
A. Giving is always a pleasure. B. An act of kindness can bring people great joy.
C. People should respect each other. D. People should learn to appreciate others' concern.
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Annual holidays have become a luxury and are no longer a staple of family life, according to government research．
A getaway of a week or more is no longer considered essential by many families and is often beyond their reach, said the analysis of what parents and children say they really need．Fashionable clothes for the children, expensive birthday parties and lots of toys are also on the list of luxuries families don’t have to have．Instead, recession-hit parents are thinking of the future, and the things they want for their children centre around learning to behave properly, good education and good health．
Their picture of what a family ought to have includes a space to eat together away from the television, plenty of fruit and vegetables, and bicycles so children can get exercise．
The breakdown of necessities and luxuries was prepared by researchers from the Department for Work and Pensions(DWP) who were trying to establish an up-to-date picture of what parents say they really need．
Their findings show how families have scaled down their expectations in the face of economic difficulties — how parents are now concentrating their attention and money firmly on the long-term interests of their children．Many believe that while it is vital for a family to do things together, day trips or weekend breaks are enough．
Spending on furniture or decorating the house was also considered luxurious, unless the state of the home was so bad it became difficult to invite visitors in.
Instead, researchers said: A family home should have an area where the family can eat together, not on their laps in front of a television．Families should be able to go on outings, overnight trips and possibly short holiday: the fact of being able to share these experiences is more important than the precise activity and its cost．
71．It can be inferred that ______________.
A．a week or more holiday is considered beyond many families’ reach
B．children hardly ever need fashionable clothes and lots of toys
C．what a family should have is basic things that they must have
D．annual holidays were once considered necessary and vital
72．In the opinion of most parents, _____________.
A．families can watch TV together in order to keep up their relationship
B．day trips or weekend breaks are enough for families to share experiences
C．their expectations should be increased in the face of economic difficulties
D．a week’s holiday is an essential minimum during the financial crisis
73．Which of the following is TRUE of the researchers from the DWP?
A．They confirm many families still need at least a week away on holiday each year.
B．They learn it is insignificant for a family to do things with each other regularly.
C．They want to know what parents really need in the face of economic difficulties.
D．They found spending on furniture or decorating the house was thought valuable.
74．We can conclude from the last paragraph____________.
A．being able to share experiences is important for families
B．a family needs at least a week away on holiday each year
C．a family home should have a comfortable area to watch TV
D．going on outings and overnight trips is wasting time for families
75．What does the author mainly discuss in the text?
A．Cycling is very important for children’s health.
B．Family holidays once a year have become a luxury.
C．It is vital for parents to eat together with children.
D．Parents are concerned with children’s future.