D
11-year-old Courtney Thompson was so passionate about gymnastics that she would practice five hours a day until her arms were sore and her elbows swollen．She rarely complained about her tough schedule，and for good reason．Courtney was ranked the best gymnast in the State for her age，and she dreamed of going to the Olympics．But on January 12th，2005，while practicing a routine exercise，she felt an unbearable pain in the left elbow．The medical examination then revealed a severe injury，resulting in an immediate surgery and a slow，painful recovery．
What happened to Courtney Thompson is a red flag in America's growing epidemic of youth sports injuries．Across the country，younger and younger athletes are injuring themselves in the pursuit of sports achievement．The U．S．Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that 2.8 million Americans aged 5 through 24 received medical treatment for a sports-related or recreation-related injury in 2003．Severe injuries that used to be limited to professionals are now showing up in high school and even junior high athletes．
There are many reasons behind the outbreak in sports injuries，hut most experts agree on one：the extreme culture of organized youth sports．Gone are the days when children played a variety of games on playgrounds．Child kidnapping and street crime have ended casual neighborhood athletics in many places，leading parents to enroll their children in organized sports under the watchful， though demanding，eyes of adult volunteers and coaches．And movies like Friday Night Lights glorify the thrill of victory for young athletes with single-minded dedication to athletic achievement.
From high school gyms to county hall fields，41 million children younger than 19 participated in organized youth sports in 2005，according to the latest research by the National Council of Youth Sports. The figure represents a 25 percent increase since 1997．
Parental involvement 1”youth sports has also made childhood games less about having fun and more about training and competing for the top spot．1anding a college scholarship or launching a promising career Hoping to nurture the next Michelle Kwan or Apolo Ohno，some parents guide their children into specializing in one sport But the repetitive training required to master a sport places enormous stresses on hones and muscles that are still developing.
67．The passage is mainly about_________
A．children’s participation in organized sports
B．the main causes of the youth sports injuries
C．the way to train children in organized sports
D．the common occurrence of youth sports injuries
68．The underlined part “Fed flag” in the second paragraph most probably means“_______”．
A．warning B．problem C. symbol D．mark
69．Why is the number of sports injuries among children in America growing?
A．Because of their increasing fondness for sports．
B．Because children are not professional enough fur sports
C．Because more children are seeking for sports achievements．
D．Because of the involvement of the parents and more organized sports
70． We can learn from the passage that __________
A．about 10.25 million youngsters participated in organized sports in 1997
B．parents give limited chances for children to choose their sports
C．serious injuries often happened to young students in the past
D．courtney Thompson will never become a famous gymnast
When friends come to visit us in the evening, they spend their time telling us they are in a hurry and looking at their watches. It isn’t that our friends are all very busy, it is just that we haven’t got a television. People think that we are very strange. “But what do you do in the evening?”，they are always asking. The answer is very simple. Both my wife and I have hobbies. We certainly don’t spend our evenings staring at the walls. My wife enjoys cooking and painting and often attends evening classes in foreign languages. This is particularly useful as we often go abroad for our holidays. I collect stamps and I’m always busy with my collection. Both of us enjoy listening to the music and playing chess together.
Sometimes there are power cuts and we have no electricity in the house. This does not worry us, we just light candles and carry on with what we were doing before. Our friends, however, are lost---no television!---So they don’t know what to do. On such evenings our house is very full ---they all come to us. They all have a good time. Instead of sitting in silence in front of the television, everybody talks and plays games. The couple have not got a television, because .
| A．they are not rich enough |
| B．they are strange people |
| C．they enjoy spending evenings in their own ways |
| D．they don’t know what to do when there are power cuts |
Both of them are interested in.
| A．learning languages | B．traveling |
| C．staying home alone | D．watching people play games |
At night when there is no electricity, the couple.
| A．have to stare at the walls | B．can do nothing but sit in silence |
| C．will have many visitors | D．have to go out for candles |
The best title for this passage is _____.
| A．Why Do We Need a Television? | B．Candle! But No Electricity! |
| C．Different Friends, Different Hobbies. | D．We Go Without Televisions! |
I have a rule for travel: Never carry a map. I prefer to ask for directions
Foreign visitors are often puzzled in Japan because most streets there don’t have names. In Japan, people use landmarks in their directions instead of street names. For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, “Go straight down to the corner. Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market. The post office is across from the bus stop.” In the countryside of the American Midwest, usually there are not many landmarks. There are no mountains, so the land is very flat. In many places there are no towns or buildings within miles. Instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distances. In Kansas or Iowa, for example, people will say, “Go north two miles. Turn east, and then go another mile.”
People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map: they measure distance by means of time, not miles. “ How far away is the post office?”
You ask. “Oh,” they answer, “ It’s about five minutes from here.” You say, “Yes, but how many miles away is it?” They don’t know.
People in Greece sometimes do not even try to give directions because visitors seldom understand the Greek language. Instead of gibing you the direction, a Greek will often say, “ follow me.” Then he’ll lead you through the streets of the city to the post office.
Sometimes a person doesn’t know the answer to your question. What happens in this situation? A New Yorker might say, “Sorry, I have no idea.” But in Yucatan, Mexico, no one answers, “I don’t know.” People in Yucatan think that “ I don’t know” is impolite. They usually give an answer, often a wrong one. A visitor can get very, very lost in Yucatan!
One thing will help you everywhere ---- in Japan, in the United States, in Greece, in Mexico, or in any other place. You might not understand a person’s words, but maybe you can understand his body language. He or she will usually turn and then point in the correct direction. Go in that direction, and you may find the post office!The passage mainly tells us that ______________.
A there are not many landmarks in the American Midwest
B never carry a map for travel
C there are different ways to give directions in different parts of the world
D New Yorkers often say, “I have no idea,” but people in Yucatan, Mexico, Never say thisThe passage says, “ In Japan, people use landmarks in their directions.” The word “landmark” means _______.
A street names
B building names
C hotels, markets and bus stops
D buildings or places are easily recognizedIn which place do people tell distance by means of time?
A Japan B American Midwest
C Los Angeles, California.D GreeceWhich of the following is wrong?
A Travelers can learn about people’s customs by asking questions about directions.
B People in some places give directions in miles, but people in other places give directions by means of time.
C A person’s body language can help you understand directions.
D People in different places always give directions in the same way: They use street names.
April Fool’s Day（愚人节）, was a day of laughing and jokes. This day is kept in many countries, not only in Britain and the USA. This is a day to play jokes and make people laugh. Nobody knows when was the beginning of this custom. Some people connect it with the end of winter and the return of spring which make people merry and ready to play jokes.
In Scotland young people were sent for hen’s teeth or bird’s milk and everybody laughed when they could find such things. In the USA and Britain some people could place a sign on a person’s back with the words “push me!” Children often tell a grown-up that his sock is torn or he has something black on his face, and then shout “April Fool!” There is also the old purse（钱包） trick. A purse is left lying in the street, but when someone wants to take it, it is quickly pulled back by a string which the hidden joker holds in his hand. Or the purse may be filled with stones. Sometimes invitations are sent to people, asking them to come and visit somebody, but when they come they see that nobody expects them. Some people like to telephone to the zoo on the day and ask for Mr. Fish, Miss Fox or Mrs. Cat. All these jokes are very old but still they make people laugh. ____________knows when the custom of April Fool’s Day started．
| A．One | B．Anyone | C．Nobody | D．Someone |
Many tricks are played on April Fool’s day except ____ ．
| A．phoning the zoo | B．placing a sign on someone’s back |
| C．playing cards | D．leaving a purse in the street |
The purpose of playing jokes is to _____ ．
| A．for fun | B．make people laugh |
| C．make fool of oneself | D．fool someone |
The best title of the passage is ____ ．
| A．How people in the west spend their April Fool’s Day |
| B．Customs are different |
| C．How British people celebrate their holidays |
| D．How April Fool’s Day comes about |
Many famous painters worked in Antwerp during the city’s period of greatest power but Peter Paul Rubens is undoubtedly the most famous one of them. Known as Rubens House, the palace-like residence(大宅) and studio where Rubens worked and lived from 1616 until his death in 1640 is now one of Antwerp’s most visited museums.
Almost all of the works Rubens and his students created in the Rubens House have been dispersed (分散) over major museums across the whole world, but there is still an impressive collection well worth the visit. Besides paintings form the master himself you will find other works of art and furniture of the 17th century as well as paintings from his students, including works by Jacob Jordaens and Anthony Van Dyck.
The Rubens House was not only a studio but also a meeting place for the rich and famous. His clients(委托人) included wealthy merchants, diplomats, and there were also many noblemen who often visited his studio to see how work progressed. The Rubens House even had a special viewing area which allowed visitors to see the artists at work.
Ruben bought the house at the beginning of the 17th century after his eight-year-long stay in Italy. Influenced by Italian architecture, he rebuilt the building into an Italian-styled palace with a beautiful garden and moved in the house in1616.
After his death the building was sold. New owners modified the building greatly and by 1937, when the building was purchased by the city of Antwerp, it hardly resembled the original structure.
The impressive entrance hall, which connected the studio and the residence, is one of the few parts that survived. Other parts have been carefully restored and reconstructed after original plans and paintings of the house.As a museum, the Rubens House is popular because _______.
| A．it lies in the famous city of Antwerp |
| B．it holds all the works by Rubens and his students |
| C．there are many people who enjoy visiting it |
| D．Rubens, a great artist, lived and worked there |
We can learn from the third paragraph that _______.
| A．the Rubens House was popular with upper-class people |
| B．the Rubens House was the best studio in its time |
| C．Rubens’s students included noblemen and diplomats |
| D．people were not allowed to view the artists working |
What can be inferred from the text?
| A．Thanks to its great painters, Antwerp became a rich city. |
| B．Ruben possibly showed strong interest in Italian buildings. |
| C．Antwerp must be a historical city in Italy. |
| D．The Rubens House was completely rebuilt before 1937. |
Which of the following is TRUE, according to the text?
| A．Rubens created his works by working with his students. |
| B．A beautiful garden was added to the Rubens House by new owners. |
| C．The Rubens House is decorated with furniture of the 17th century. |
| D．Today’s Rubens House looks like its original structure. |
The motor vehicle has killed and disabled more people in its brief history than any bomb or weapon ever invented. Much of the blood on the street flows essentially from uncivil behavior of drivers who refuse to respect the legal and moral rights of others. So the massacre (大屠杀) on the road may be regarded as a social problem .
In fact, the enemies of society on wheels are rather harmless people just ordinary people acting carelessly, you might say. But it is a principle both of law and common morality that carelessness is no excuse when one’s actions could bring death or damage to others. A minority of the killers go even beyond carelessness to total negligence (疏忽).
Researchers have pointed out that as many as 80 percent of all automobile accidents can result from the psychological condition of the driver. Emotional upsets can affect drivers’ reactions, slow their judgment, and blind them to dangers that might otherwise be clear. The experts warn that it is important for every driver to make a conscious effort to keep one’s emotion under control.
Yet the irresponsibility that accounts for much of the problem is not only caused by drivers. Street walkers regularly go against traffic rules, they are to blame in most vehicle walker accidents , and many cyclists even believe that they don’t obey the basic rules of the road.
Significant legal advances have been made towards safer driving in the past few years. Safety standards for vehicle have been raised both at the point of manufacture (制造业) and through regular road-worthiness inspections (车辆上路安检). In addition, speed limits have been lowered. Due to these measures, the accident rate has decreased. But the accident experts still worry because there has been little or no improvement in the way drivers behave. The only real and lasting solution, say the experts, is to convince people that driving is a skilled task requiring constant care and concentration. Those who fail to do all these things present a threat to those with whom they share the road.The following is mentioned as being responsible for the road accidents except .
| A．careless bicycle riders | B．people walking in the street |
| C．irresponsible drivers | D．irresponsible manufacturers of automobiles |
Why does the author mention the psychological condition of the driver in Paragraph 3?
| A．To give an example of the various reasons for road accidents. |
| B．To show how important it is for drivers to be emotionally healthy. |
| C．To show some of the inaccurate statements by researchers. |
| D．To show the hidden tensions in the course of driving |
What is the author’s main purpose in writing this passage?
| A．To show that the motor vehicle is a very dangerous invention. |
| B．To promote understanding between careless drivers and street walkers. |
| C．To discuss traffic problems and suggest possible solutions. |
| D．To warn drivers of the importance of safe driving. |
Which of the following best reflects the author’s attitude toward a future without traffic accident problems?
| A．Doubtful yet still longing for. | B．Happy and rather confident. |
| C．Surprised and very pleased. | D．Disappointed and not concerned. |