第三部分:阅读理解(共20小题;每小题2分,共40分)
阅读下列短文,从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中,选出最佳选项。
A
There were two things in the world that Ghagra Geeta Bali hated. The first was the way,Rani,the domestic help.combed her hair.The second was,you guessed it,her name. She hated her name so much that she prayed to god every night:Dear god,let me be born again. So I can have a name like Rita or Preeti.A short,smart one-word name.
On Tuesday,Ghagra Geeta Bali and her mother went for their usual shopping. There was a long queue of children just outside the record store.They went loser to look. It was yet another scheme to sell a few audio cassettes.Everyone who bought a cassette qualified for the scheme.
In this case,the artist whose songs were featured on the cassette was a young sensation called Malik Fafidabadi,a great favorite with teenagers. Ghagra Geeta Bali was no exception.
A friendly young man was writing down the names of the people who wanted to participate in the scheme.Out of this long list Malik would pick one name,and the chosen one would get to meet him.plus of course,win many freebies(赠品).
But when her mother asked her to participate,Ghagra Geeta Bali said no. She didn't want to speak out her name in front of so many people and make herself the butt(笑料)of amusement. But mothers being mothers,she just went up to the man and told him in firm tones:“Please enter my daughter's name. It is Ghagra Geeta Bali.”
“It is what?” the man asked,naturally a little taken aback.
“G-h-a-g-r-a G-e-e-t-a B-a-l-i. There she is,”she replied while pointing to her daughter. The crowd standing around also turned to stare. All Ghagra Geeta Bali wanted then was for the earth to open up and swallow her.
That did not happen.But the following week she received a call.It was from the recording company that had announced the scheme. And they told her that she was the chosen one
“It is all because of your name,” said the public relations man who had called.“Mr Faridabadi took one look at it in the list and said that he couldn't wait to meet the brave girl bearing it.”
56.Ghagra Geeta Bali didn't like her name because__________
A.it would bring her a lot of trouble B.it was too long and not beautiful
C.it would make her angry D.it was too ugly and dull
57.When the girl saw the crowd turn to stare at her,she felt_________
A.scared B.shocked C.embarrassed D.disappointed
58. What is the message of the story?
A.Mother's love makes all the difference
B.Children should always trust their parents.
C.One should be brave to meet anything strange
D.Something that one thinks is bad may turn out good
Pierre is a 25-year-old penguin at the California Academy of Sciences. Due to his old age, he was going bald, which made him feel too cold to swim in the pool. Therefore, biologists at the academy had a wetsuit created for this penguin to help him get back in the swimming pool.
Unlike marine mammals, which have a layer of fat to keep them warm, penguins depend on their waterproof feathers. Without them, Pierre was unwilling to jump into the swimming pool and ended up trembling on the side of the pool while his 19 peers played in the water.
"He was cold; he would shake," said Pam Schaller, a senior biologist. Schaller first tried a heat lamp to keep Pierre warm. Then she got another idea: if wetsuits keep humans warm in the cold Pacific, why not make one for Pierre?
Schaller designed the suit, which covered Pierre’s body and had small openings for his flippers.
“I would walk behind him and look at where there were any gaps, and cut and refit and cut and refit until it looked like it was extremely suitable,” she said.
One concern was that the other penguins would reject Pierre in his new suit, but in fact, they accepted his new look. He swam freely and got along with others well, although he was the only penguin with a black stomach.
Schaller couldn’t say for sure whether the wetsuit allowed Pierre to recover his fine feathers, but “certainly we were able to keep him comfortable during a period of time that would have been very difficult for him to stay comfortable”.
Pierre will take off his suit after his new feathers grow back. Pierre felt too cold to swim in the pool because of _____.
A.not ha![]() |
B.having few feathers due to old age |
C.having no wetsuit | D.others penguins rejecting him |
The idea of making a wetsuit for Pierre came from _____.
A.total invention | B.waterproof feathers |
C.the use of wetsuit on humans | D.the use of heat lamp |
Schaller followed Pierre in order to see
_____.
A.whether other penguins would reject him |
B.if anywhere of wetsuit needed to be cut and refit |
C.if the wetsuit kept warm |
D.whether the wetsuit would keep the feathers from recovering |
The best title of the
passage is _____.
A.Wetsuit for![]() |
B.Old Penguin Getting Bald |
C.Unwilling to Swim | D.Strange Look of Pierre |
IS IT TIME TO GET - MP3
Your computer has been playing music for years, one CD at a time.Now hundreds of songs can be stored in your PC if they’re in the MP3 format.
What is it?
MP3 compresses (压缩) music into small computer—friendly files.You access MP3 music several ways: Tunes can be downloaded from websites that have converted (转变) vast music libraries into MP3.Or you can prerecorded CDs into your PC and convert songs in minutes into MP3.Once MP3 music is on your PC’s hard drive, you can play it through your computer’s speakers, “burn” it onto blank CDs or swap (交换) MP3 files with friends using e—mail.
How much?
Software needed to play and convert MP3 music is often free.It is preinstalled (预先安装)on most new computers or can be downloaded from many websites, including MP3, com.Some MP3 sites are free.Just type at around $50 and can hold hundreds of songs.A blank CD on which you can record music costs about a dollar.
Advantages
MP3 turns your home PC into a jukebox (自动唱机).Tiny MP3 players are the size of a deck of cards, making it easy to take hundreds of songs with you.
Disadvantages
You may find that music at many sites is limited.And some only allow you to listen rather than download offerings.Others let you download music that then can’t be copied to MP3 players.And a growing number of new CDs make it impossible to copy songs to a computer.How can you get Mp3 music?
A.By turning your home PC into jukebox. |
B.By taking you own music or songs with you. |
C.By copying songs to a PC through the speakers. |
D.By downloading from websites which have converted music libraries. |
Which is NOT true according to the passage?
A.Software needed to play and convert MP3 music is often free of charge. |
B.MP3 music can be “burned” onto bland CDs or swapped with friends by e-mail. |
C.MP3 music can be taken along while traveling. |
D.A greater number of new CDs make it possible to copy songs to a computer. |
How much will you pay for a MP3 player?
A.Free of charge | B.Free downloading |
C.At least fifty dollars | D.About a dollar |
What is the closest meaning of the underlined word “burn”?
A.Copy | B.Play | C.Store | D.Change |
If you go to Brisbane, Australia, you can easily get a small book called Discover Brisbane free.Here is something about banks on page 49:
ANZ Banking Group
Cnr.Greek & Queen Sts ………………………………………………238 3228
Bank of New Zealand
410 Queen Street…………………………………………………… 221 0411
Bank of Queensland
229 Elizabeth Street ………………………………………………… 229 3122
Commonwealth Banking Group
240 Queen Street …………………………………………………… 237 3111
National Australia Bank Ltd
225 Adelaide Street ………………………………………………… 221 6422
Westpac Banking Corp
260 Queen Street …………………………………………………… 227 2666
Banking hours are Mon.-Thu.9:30 am to 4 pm.Fri.9:30 am to 5 pm.All banks close Sat.Sun.& Public Holidays.You can find ANZ Banking Group on ________________.
A.Queen Street |
B.Elizabeth Street |
C.the corner of Greek Street and Queen Street |
D.the corner of Queen Street and Elizabeth Street |
_____________ seems to be the most important street in Brisbane.
A.Queen Street | B.Elizabeth Street |
C.Greek Street | D.Adelaide Street |
On Saturdays, you can go to _____________ to put your money in or take your money out.
A.ANZ Banking Group |
B.Bank of Queensland |
C.National Australia Bank Ltd |
D.none of the banks |
In Australia, the banks have their longest service hours on _____________.
A.public holidays | B.Fridays |
C.Saturdays | D.Sundays |
The famous movie star Audrey Hepburn has been honored as the most beautiful woman ever.She has natural beauty, character and figure, but there is something about Hepburn’s smile that is specially striking and beautiful.
Audrey Hepburn was born on May 4, 1929 in Brussels, Belgium.After her parents divorced(离婚), Audrey went to London with her mother where she went to a private girl school.After the liberation, Audrey went to a ballet school in London and later began life as a model.She did well as a model until the film producers came calling.Discovered by a producer, she was given a small part in a European film in 1948.Later, she went to America to try her luck there.Audrey became popular in the US with her role in Roman Holiday in 1953.This film turned out to be a success and she won an Oscar for Best Actress.The film was followed by another similarly wonderful performance in the 1957 Funny Face.In 1959, she received yet another nomination(提名) for her role in Nun’s Story.Audrey reached the highest level when she played Holly Golightly in the film Breakfast at Tiffany’s in 1961.For this she received another nomination.One of Audrey’s most wonderful roles was in the fine production of My Fair Lady in 1964.Her co—star Rex Harrison once was asked to name his favorite leading lady.Without hesitation, he replied, “Audrey Hpburn in My Fair Lady”.At the end of the sixties, Audrey decided to stop acting while she was on top.In 1988, Audrey became a special ambassador(大使) of UNICEF(联合国儿童基金会), helping children in Latin America and Africa, a position she kept until 1993.She was named in People magazine as one of the 50 most beautiful people in the world.Her last film was Always in 1989.Audrey Hepburn died on January 20,1993, in Switzerland.
She had made a total of 31 high quality movies.Her style will always be remembered in the film history.What does the underlined word “striking” in paragraph 1 mean?
A.打击的 | B.显著的 | C.罢工的 | D.吸引人的 |
How many film names are mentioned in this passage?
A.four | B.five | C.six | D.seven |
Hepburn used to be a _________.
A.nurse | B.model | C.teacher | D.writer |
Which is the correct order according to Hepburn’s experiences?
a.decided to stop acting
b.given a small part in a European film
c.her parents divorced
d.named in People magazine as one of the 50 most beautiful people in the world
e.went to a ballet school in London
A.e-c-a-d-b | B.c-e-b-a-d |
C.c-b-e-a-d | D.c-e-a-b-d |
We often think of future.We often wonder what the world would be like in a hundred years' time.
Think of space, perhaps a permanent(永久的) station on the moon will have been set up.Perhaps people will be able to visit the moon as tourists.Cheap rockets for space travel will have been developed, permitting long journeys throughout the solar system(太阳系).When that time comes, people will be taking holidays in space and visiting other planets.Great progress will have been discovered for the most terrible of all diseases—cancer.Pollution is a problem we must solve.In a hundred years' time it will have been controlled.
All the world will have been developed—even Antarctica.There will be large cities in Antarctica.We already have supersonic(超音速的) flight, but in a hundred years' time we will have supersonic land travel as well.
We will have used up most of earth's land to build our cities, so floating cities will have been built.The Japanese already have plans for cities of this kind.And there will be cities under the sea.The first of these will have been completed.We will have developed __________ in a hundred years' time, permitting long journeys all over the solar system.
A.cheap rockets for space travel |
B.a plane for space travel |
C.a permanent spaceship |
D.a satellite for tourists |
Man will also have supersonic land travel ____________.
A.in a year's time |
B.about half a century later |
C.in the year 2050 |
D.about a century later |
The last paragraph mainly talks about _____________.
A.new ways of building cities |
B.the building of cities under the sea |
C.the building of floating cities in Japan |
D.the danger which earth's land will face |
The best title for the passage is ______________.
A.Travel in the Future | B.Future Life |
C.Where to Live in the Future | D.Space Travel |