(B)
Throughout this long, tense election, everyone has focused on the presidential candidates and how they’ll change America. Rightly so. But selfishly, I’m more fascinated by Michelle
Obama and what she might be able to do, not just for this country, but for me as an African-American woman. As the potential First Lady, she would have the world’s attention. And that means that for the first time people will have a chance to get up close and personal with the type of African-American woman they so rarely see.
Usually, the lives of black women go largely unexamined. The prevailing theory seems to be that we’re all hot-tempered single mothers who can’t keep a man. Even in the world of make-believe, black women still can’t escape the stereotype of being neck-swirling, eye-rolling, oversexed females raised by our never-married, alcoholic mothers.
These images have helped define the way all black women are viewed, including Michelle Obama. Before she ever gets the chance to commit to a cause, charity or foundations as First Lady, her most urgent and perhaps most complicated duty may be simply to be herself.
It won’t be easy. Because few mainstream publications have done in-depth features on regular African American women, little is known about who we are, what we think and what we face on a regular basis. For better or worse, Michelle will become a stand-in for us all.
Just as she will have her critics, she will also have millions of adoring fans who usually have little interest in the First Lady. African-American blogs have all written about what they’d like to see Michelle bring to the White House---mainly showing the world that a black woman can support her man and raise a strong black family. Michelle will have to work to please everyone---an impossible task. But for many African-American women like me, just a little of her poise, confidence and intellect will go a long way in changing an image that’s been around for far too long.
69. Why does Michelle Obama hold a strong fascination for the author?
A. She serves as a role model for African-American women.
B. She possesses many admirable qualities becoming a First Lady.
C. She will present to the world a new image of African-American women.
D. She will pay closer attention to the interests of African-American women
70. What is the common stereotype of African-American women according to the author?
A. They are victims of family violence.
B. They are of an inferior social group.
C. They use quite a lot of body language.
D. They live on charity and social welfare.
71. What does the author say about Michelle Obama as a First Lady?
A. However many fans she has, she should remain modest.
B. She shouldn’t disappoint the African-American community.
C. However hard she tries, she can’t expect to please everybody.
D. She will give priority to African-American women’s concern.
B
While still in its early stages, welfare reform has already been judged a great success in many states — at least in getting people off welfare. It’s estimated that more than 2 million people have left the rolls（名册） since 1994.
In the past four years, welfare rolls in Athens Country have been cut in half. But 70 percent of the people who left in the past two years took jobs that paid less than $6 an hour. The result: The Athens Country poverty rate still remains at more than 30 percent — twice the national average.
For advocates（代言人）for the poor, that’s an indication much more needs to be done.
“More people are getting jobs, but it’s not making their lives any better,” says Kathy Lairn, a policy analyst at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities in Washington.
A center analysis of US Census data nationwide found that between 1995 and 1996, a greater percentage of single, female-headed households were earning money on their own, but that average income for these households actually went down.
But for many, the fact that poor people are able to support themselves almost as well without government aid as they did with it is in itself a huge victory.
“Welfare was a poison. It was a toxin（毒素）that was poisoning the family,” says
Robert Rector, a welfare-reform policy analyst. “The reform is changing the moral climate in low-income communities. It’s beginning to rebuild the work ethic（道德观）, which is much more important.”
Mr. Rector and others argued that once “the habit of dependency is cracked,” then the country can make other policy changes aimed at improving living standards.
45. From the passage, it can be seen that the author _______.
A. believes the reform has reduced the government’s burden
B. insists that welfare reform is doing little good for the poor
C. is overenthusiastic about the success of welfare reform
D. considers welfare reform to be basically successful
46. Why aren’t people enjoying better lives when they have jobs?
A. Because many families are divorced.
B. Because government aid is now rare.
C. Because their wages are low.
D. Because the cost of living is rising.
47. From the passage we know that welfare reform aims at _______.
A. saving welfare funds
B. rebuilding the work ethic
C. providing more jobs
D. cutting government expenses
48. According to the passage before the welfare reform was carried out, _______.
A. the poverty rate was lower
B. average living standards were higher
C. the average worker was paid higher wages
D. the poor used to rely on government aid
第二部分阅读理解（共20小题。每小题2分；满分40分）
第一节阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（ABC和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黒。
A
Long after the 1998 World Cup was won, disappointed fans were still cursing thedisputed refereeing (裁判) decisions that denied victory to their team. A researcher was appointed to study the performance of some top referees.
The researcher organized an experimental tournament (锦标赛) involving four youth teams. Each match lasted an hour, divided into three periods of 20 minutes during which different referees were in charge.
Observers noted down the referees' errors, of which there were 61 over the tournament. Converted to a standard match of 90 minutes, each referee made almost 23mistakes, a remarkably high number.
The researcher then studied the videotapes to analyze the matches in detail. Surprisingly, he found that errors were more likely when the referees were close to the incident. When the officials got it right, they were, on average, 17 meters away from the action. The average distance in the case of errors was 12 meters. The research shows the optimum (最佳的) distance is about 20 meters.
There also seemed to be an optimum speed. Correct decisions came when the referees were moving at a speed of about 2 meters per second. The average speed for errors was 4 meters per second.
If FIFA, football's international ruling body, wants to improve the standard ofrefereeing at the next World Cup, it should encourage referees to keep their eyes on the action from a distance, rather than rushing to keep up with the ball, the researcher argues.
He also says that FIFA's insistence that referees should retire at age 45 may be misguided. If keeping up with the action is not so important, their physical condition is less critical.
41. The number of refereeing errors in the experimental matches was _______.
A. slightly above average B. higher than in the 1998 World Cup
C. quite unexpected D. as high as in a standard match
42. The findings of the experiment show that _______.
A. errors are more likely when a referee keeps close to the ball
B. the farther the referee is from the incident, the fewer the errors
C. the more slowly the referee runs, the more likely will errors occur
D. errors are less likely when a referee stays in one spot
43. The word "officials" (Line 2, Para. 4) most probably refers to _______.
A. the researchers involved in the experiment
B. the inspectors of the football tournament
C. the referees of the football tournament
D. the observers at the site of the experiment
44. What is one of the possible conclusions of the experiment?
A. The ideal retirement age for an experienced football referee is 45.
B. Age should not be the chief consideration in choosing a football referee.
C. A football referee should be as young and energetic as possible.
D. An experienced football referee can do well even when in poor physical condition.
根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有多余选项。
Have you ever seen any students whose trousers hang so low you can see their underwear? What do you think of that? Fashionable? Some of today’s teenagers are big fans of such a look. 71. __________
The headmaster of a school in central Italy has asked students to stop wearing low-rise jeans that expose underwear and parts of the body. His request came after a class trip. One day, he saw one boy’s baggy trousers slide to his feet. 72. ____________
But in Italy, a nation that takes fashion very seriously, the suggestion caused a debate among parents, teachers and students. The issue is whether the headmaster's request will limit students' freedom— or whether dress in Italian schools is too casual.
73. _________ “We do not want to kick fashion out,” the headmaster explained, “but extremes (极端) of fashion like this are not right in school.” Many other schools have now requested that their students also stop wearing such trousers.
74._________ Ludovica Gaudio, 14, wore extremely low trousers exposing orange underwear in class. It was cold, so she wore a matching orange scarf. 75._______________ “I don't really feel comfortable in those sort of jeans,” said Sarah Lattanzi, “in winter, when dressed like that, it's quite cold and I am afraid my stomach will ache.”
| A．But recently this trend has been at the center of an argument in Italian middle schools. |
| B．A parents’ group praised the move in favor of good taste, while others advised schools to stop worrying about fashion and fix up old school buildings. |
| C．He pointed out that this way of dressing is not suitable for school. |
| D．Most students have simply ignored the request. |
E. Another 14-year-old said she would probably respect the request, simply for practical reasons.
F. Let us see that Italian students react differently to schools’ requests.
G. Schools should pay attention to things more important than students’ clothes.
B
While still in its early stages, welfare reform has already been judged a great success in many states — at least in getting people off welfare. It’s estimated that more than 2 million people have left the rolls（名册） since 1994.
In the past four years, welfare rolls in Athens Country have been cut in half. But 70 percent of the people who left in the past two years took jobs that paid less than $6 an hour. The result: The Athens Country poverty rate still remains at more than 30 percent — twice the national average.
For advocates（代言人）for the poor, that’s an indication much more needs to be done.
“More people are getting jobs, but it’s not making their lives any better,” says Kathy Lairn, a policy analyst at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities in Washington.
A center analysis of US Census data nationwide found that between 1995 and 1996, a greater percentage of single, female-headed households were earning money on their own, but that average income for these households actually went down.
But for many, the fact that poor people are able to support themselves almost as well without government aid as they did with it is in itself a huge victory.
“Welfare was a poison. It was a toxin（毒素）that was poisoning the family,” says
Robert Rector, a welfare-reform policy analyst. “The reform is changing the moral climate in low-income communities. It’s beginning to rebuild the work ethic（道德观）, which is much more important.”
Mr. Rector and others argued that once “the habit of dependency is cracked,” then the country can make other policy changes aimed at improving living standards.
45. From the passage, it can be seen that the author _______.
A. believes the reform has reduced the government’s burden
B. insists that welfare reform is doing little good for the poor
C. is overenthusiastic about the success of welfare reform
D. considers welfare reform to be basically successful
46. Why aren’t people enjoying better lives when they have jobs?
A. Because many families are divorced.
B. Because government aid is now rare.
C. Because their wages are low.
D. Because the cost of living is rising.
47. From the passage we know that welfare reform aims at _______.
A. saving welfare funds
B. rebuilding the work ethic
C. providing more jobs
D. cutting government expenses
48. According to the passage before the welfare reform was carried out, _______.
A. the poverty rate was lower
B. average living standards were higher
C. the average worker was paid higher wages
D. the poor used to rely on government aid
E
Looking for a low-cost path to self-knowledge? A way to mine your subconscious (潜意识的) for clues to your motivations, desires and fears? No need to have years of treatments or analyses. Just look to your dreams.
“You can ignore your dreams, but you are really doing harm to yourself,” says Lauri Quinn Loewenberg. “If so, you're letting red flags pass you by, letting great ideas pass you by.”
Some sleep researchers believe dreams are more directly related to our moods and emotions and can serve as tools to self-understanding. Dreams occur during the REM (rapid eye movements) cycles of sleep each night. For adults, that means about every 90 minutes. The first period of REM sleep may be short, 5 to 10 minutes, followed by longer periods, finally reaching an hour or more in the fourth or fifth period.
When people are dreaming, brain scans show a lot of activities. The brain is online during dreams. The experiences you have during the day are connected during dream sleep. People we know or experiences we've had at different times in our lives may be different in the same dream.
AmyBeth Gilstrap has had the same recurring(再次发生;循环) dream that annoyed her since Hurricane Katrina drove her and her daughter and friends out of New Orleans. Mrs. Gilstrap says, “It is always spies. My job is to get people to some place.” She's certain the dream is related to her efforts in the hurricane to help several families leave. Sometimes her cats also are part of that dream. That's because she went back into New Orleans, before it was allowed, to rescue her cats.
Today, through brain scans scientists have known that the parts of the brain that control emotions and long-term memories are active during the REM sleep.
57. The passage is mainly to tell readers .
A. dreams are mainly caused by hard work B. dreams can offer us key to self-knowledge
C. dreams are only activities of our brains D. how dreams help us solve our problems
58. According to the words from Lauri Quinn Loewenberg, .
A. dreams can make you feel badly ill B. you often have red flags in your dreams
C. dreams will make your life colorful D. you may get great help from your dreams
59. According to the passage, the underlined word “It” in Paragraph 5 refers to .
A. Mrs. Gilstrap's dream B. Mrs. Gilstrap's job
C. Hurricane Katrina D. New Orleans
60. According to the passage, when you are dreaming at night, .
A. your dream is connected with your work in the day
B. the dream will generally last about 5 to 10 minutes
C. the longer dream should be in the later part of the sleep
D. your eyes will not move during the time