第三部分：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、D）中选出最佳选项。
A
Mr. Brozina is a single father and an elementary school librarian who reads aloud for a living. When his daughter, Kristen, hit fourth grade, he proposed The Streak: to see if they could read together for 100 straight bedtimes without missing once.
When The Streak reached 100, they celebrated with a pancake breakfast, and Kristen whispered, "I think we should try for 1,000 nights."
Mr. Brozina was delighted, but what he was thinking was, a thousand nights?! "I thought, we'll never do it," he recalled. "And then we got to 1,000, and we said, 'How can we stop?' "
For 3,218 nights (and some mornings, if Mr. Brozina was coming home too late to read). The Streak went on. It progressed from picture books to middle-school classics to Harry Potter, Agatha Christie, Dickens and Shakespeare, continuing on, until Kristen's first day of college.
In those nine-plus years, they survived many close calls. When Kristen was still in elementary school, her father went to Washington. "The phone rang at 10:45 at the hotel and it was Kristen," Mr. Brozina recalled. "She said, 'Dad, we forgot The Streak!' Fortunately, I always traveled with several books and we read right then and there."
This spring, Kristen graduated from Rowan' University. She has performed as you'd expect for a product of The Streak, an English major with a 3.94 average. She also won two national writing contests, was an editor of the humor arid literary publications and won the annual English department award.
56. According to the passage, Mr. Brozina and his daughter read together for .
A. 100 bedtimes B. 1000 nights C. over nine years D. nearly 3000 nights and some mornings
57. In the passage, the underlined phrase in Paragraph 1 probably means _____.
A. the period of time for reading together B. me children's book C. the special night C. the school work
58. How has Kristen benefited from reading with her father?
A. She has grown closer to her father.
B. She has become a school librarian herself.
C. She has performed well at university.
D. She has won many reading awards.
59. This passage is about a father who _____.
A. is very strict in his work B. enjoys reading when travelling
C. makes his daughter love reading D. has a hard time bringing up his daughter
O. Henry was a pen name used by an American writer of short stories. His real name was William Sydney Porter. He was born on September 11, 1862, in Greensboro, North Carolina.
As a young boy he lived an exciting life. He did not go to school for very long, but he managed to teach himself everything he needed to know. When he was about 20 years old, O. Henry went to Texas, where he tried different jobs. He first worked on a newspaper, and then had a job in a bank, when some money went missing from the bank, O. Henry was believed to have stolen it. Because of that, he was sent to prison. During the three years in prison, he learned to write short stories.
After he got out of prison, he went to New York in 1902 when Porter's most prolific(多产的)writing period started. While there, he wrote 381 short stories. He wrote a story a week for over a year for the New York World Sunday Magazine. He wrote mostly about New York and the life of the poor there. People liked his stories, because simple as the tales were, they would finish with a sudden change at the end, to the reader’s surprise.
Porter traveled with Richard to Austin in 1884, where he met Athol Estes, then seventeen years old and from a wealthy family. On July 1, 1887, Porter married Athol. Athol Estes Porter died on July 25, 1897, from tuberculosis. Porter married again in 1907, to childhood sweetheart Sarah (Sallie) Lindsey Coleman, whom he met again after revisiting his native state of North Carolina.
Porter was a heavy drinker, and his health deteriorated(恶化) markedly in 1908, which affected his writing. In 1909, Sarah left him, and he died on June 5, 1910, of cirrhosis of the liver, complications of diabetes, and an enlarged heart. After funeral services in New York City, he was buried in the Riverside Cemetery in Asheville, North Carolina.In which order did O. Henry do the following things?
a. Lived in New York. b. Worked in a bank.
c. Travelled to Texas. d. Was put in prison.
e. Had a newspaper Job.f. Learned to write stories.
| A．e. c. f. b. d. a | B．c. e. b. d. f. a |
| C．e. b. d. c. a. f. | D．c. b. e. d. a f. |
People enjoyed reading O. Henry’s stories because.
| A．they had surprise endings. |
| B．they were easy to understand. |
| C．they showed his love for the poor. |
| D．they were about New York City. |
O. Henry went to prison because.
| A．people thought he had stolen money from the newspaper. |
| B．he broke the law by not using his own name. |
| C．he wanted to write stories about prisoners. |
| D．people thought he had taken money that was not his. |
What do we know about O. Henry before he began writing?
| A．He was well-educated. |
| B．He was not serious about his work. |
| C．He was devoted to the poor. |
| D．He was very good at learning. |
The pomegranate is one of the oldest known fruits. Pomegranates are found in ancient writings and pictured in the ancient art of many cultures and religions. The pomegranate is also a symbol of health, fertility and long life.
Experts think the pomegranate is native to northern India, Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan. Today it also grows in Southeast Asia, the western U.S., Armenia and parts of Africa, among other places.
The skin of a pomegranate is strong. It can be red, purple or orange-yellow. The inside is filled with beautiful dark red seeds that shine like rubies. It is not easy to get them out. But the reward is great.
Health benefits
The pomegranate grows on trees. Parts of the pomegranate tree and fruit are used to make medicine.
The pomegranate is used for many conditions. However, the U.S National Institutes of Health says there is not enough scientific evidence to rate pomegranates as effective for any of them.
Still, in traditional medicine, the pomegranate is used for conditions of the heart and blood vessels, including high blood pressure and "hardening of the arteries."
The jewel-like seeds of the pomegranate are loaded with many nutrients and chemicals called antioxidants(抗氧化剂). These antioxidants remove poisons from the body.
The antioxidants found in pomegranates may help remove build-up of damage in blood vessels. So, it is a very heart-healthy fruit.
Antioxidants slow the progression of age-related sickness and may slow the growth of cancer cells. Men who have prostate cancer may benefit from a daily serving of pomegranate juice.
Pomegranates are used for weight loss and used as a treatment for sore throat. Pomegranates are also high in vitamin K, phosphorus, magnesium, calcium, zinc and iron.
Let's just say pomegranates are loaded with great things for the inside of your body.
Beauty benefits
But let's not forget the outside, too!
Pomegranates are great for the skin. They protect the skin by encouraging new skin growth, healing wounds and repairing tissue. Pomegranates protect the skin against sun damage as well. They may help skin look younger by providing moisture and elasticity.
Recipes for pomegranates
But how does one eat a pomegranate?
Pomegranates seeds are both sweet and tart. A thick liquid, or syrup, from the pomegranate tastes great with lamb, pork or chicken dishes.
Pomegranate seeds provide extra flavor to salads and other vegetable dishes. The seeds are also delicious in rice and grain dishes. And, of course pomegranates make great desserts. In the U.S., pomegranate juice is often added to sparkling drinks, drinks called smoothies and alcoholic drinks.
Fresh pomegranates are only available in the United States from September to January. They can keep, or remain good to eat, in the refrigerator for about two months if kept in a plastic bag.Where does the pomegranate not grow?
| A． Pakistan | B． The northern Asia |
| C． Afghanistan | D． The western U.S. |
According to Health benefits, we can learn _____.
| A．The pomegranate tree and fruit are used to make medicine. |
| B．It is very effective to use pomegranates for many conditions. |
| C．Eating pomegranates may help remove build-up of damage in blood vessels. |
| D．You can’t grow cancer cells if you eat pomegranates. |
The pomegranate is beneficial to the following body parts EXCEPT .
| A．Heart | B． Blood vessels | C． Skin | D．Head |
The best title of this article is _______.
| A． Pomegranate: Best Fruit |
| B． Pomegranates’ health benefits |
| C． Pomegranate: Good Recipes |
| D． Pomegranate: Still Healthy at 5,000 Years Old |
Every year on April 1, April Fools’ Day is celebrated in many countries around the world. In France, it’s called Poisson d’Avril or “Fish of April.” In Scotland, the holiday is often called “Gowkie Day.” In Iraq, the holiday is called Kithbet Neesan or “April Lie.”
History experts say people have celebrated April Fools’ Day for a long time. Some believe the tradition comes from the ancient Romans more than two thousand years ago. It was a day of playing games and pretending to be someone else.
Others say the day for fooling began in France in 1564, when King Charles changed the yearly calendar（日历）. He moved New Year’s Day from April 1 to January 1. Many people did not know about the change because of communication problems back then. Some people continued to celebrate New Year’s Day on April 1. Other people called them April Fools and played jokes on them.
In the United States, April Fools’ Day is just a day of joking and playing tricks on friends. These kinds of jokes are also called pranks. These jokes typically end in the prankster shouting “April Fools’!”
Simple pranks, like telling a friend a funny lie or making prank phone calls, are still common. But, major companies also get in on April Fools’ Day fun in a much bigger way. A few years ago, on April 1, Starbucks announced it was introducing new coffee cup sizes -- Plenta and Micra. The very large cups, bigger than a human head, remained useful for customers even after finishing all that coffee. According to Starbucks, the cups could be used as a rain hat, a pot for plants, or a lampshade（灯罩）.
It did not take long for customers to catch on to the prank!
More and more, people use social media or smart phone apps（应用程序）to play pranks on their friends on April Fools’ Day. One very annoying smart phone app, Cat Facts, sends funny facts about cats to your friends’ phones, every day.What is not true about “April Fools’ Day”?
| A． It has been celebrated for a long time. |
| B． Its tradition comes from the ancient Romans. |
| C． French people celebrated it because of not knowing that King Charles changed the yearly calendar. |
| D． Different countries have different names for it. |
In the United States, April Fools’ Day is.
| A． a day of joking and playing tricks on friends. |
| B． a day when you can play jokes on any people. |
| C． a day when people can’t shout “April Fools’!” |
| D． a day when Starbucks introduced new coffee. |
What’s the meaning of the underlined word “pranks”(para4)?
| A． friends | B． methods |
| C． jokes | D． jokers |
New York — Wednesday, October fifteenth, is the first Global Hand Washing Day. Activities are planned in more than twenty countries to get millions of people in the developing world to wash their hands with soap.
Experts say people around the world wash their hands but very few use soap at so-called critical moments. These include after using the toilet, after cleaning a baby and before touching food.
Global Hand Washing Day is the idea of the Public-Private Partnership for Hand Washing with Soap. The goal, they say, is to create a culture of hand washing with soap. The organizers say all soaps are equally effective at removing disease-causing germs (病菌). They say the correct way to wash hands is to wet your hands with a small amount of water and cover them with soap. Rub it into all areas, including under the fingernails. Then, rinse well under running water. Finally, dry your hands with a clean cloth.
The Partnership says soap is important because it increases the time that people spend washing. Soap also helps to break up the dirt that holds most of the germs. And it usually leaves a pleasant smell, which increases the likelihood that people will wash again.
It also says washing with soap before eating and after using the toilet could save more lives than any medicine. It could help reduce cases of diarrhea (痢疾), which is the second leading cause of child deaths, killing more than one and a half million children a year, by almost half.The Partnership creates Global Hand Washing Day to _____.
| A．call on people to wash hands |
| B．help the developing countries |
| C．make a culture of hand washing in the third world |
| D．promote the importance of soap in hand washing |
The following facts can explain why soap is important EXCEPT that _____.
| A．soap gets people into the habit of washing hands |
| B．soap helps to get rid of more germs off hands |
| C．soap attracts people to do more hand washing |
| D．soap gives people a longer hand washing time |
According to the last paragraph, diarrhea is a disease that _____.
| A．kills half of the kids in developing countries |
| B．can be prevented by washing hands with soap |
| C．causes the greatest number of child deaths |
| D．makes soap stand out in hand washing |
University of Maryland student Ben Simon and his friends couldn’t stand to see good food thrown out on their campus. “We basically noticed that some of the extra food from the dining hall was going to waste at the end of the day. And we met with the dining services and asked them whether it would be okay if instead of throwing out the food we could donate it. And they were on board.” he said.
So 18 months ago, the students began what they call the Food Recovery Network. Each night, volunteers would show up at a campus dining hall to pick up leftovers and deliver them to area shelters and food banks. So far, they have donated more than 23,000 kilos of food that would otherwise have been thrown out.
Nationwide, $165 billion worth of food is wasted each year, according to the National Resources Defense Council. Spokesman Bob Keefe says that is about 40% of the country’s entire food production. “If we can reduce our waste in this country by 15%, we can feed 25 million hungry Americans. That is a huge benefit. That is what programs like this Food Recovery Network are doing. ” he said.
Christian Life Center is one of the beneficiaries of the students’ efforts. Ben Slye, the senior pastor（牧师）, said, “It has been just amazing to see these students take their own time, their own vehicles and own gas money and be able to make an effort like this. Each week we are able with this food probably to feed over hundred people.”
The University of Maryland’s Food Recovery Network now has 200 volunteers and the program has expanded to 18 schools across the country. “I want to grow 18 chapters to a thousand chapters within five years. And once we get to the Food Recovery Nation being at every college campus in America, we want to expand to restaurants and farms.” Said Simon.
The volunteers are committed to making that happen.The dining services in University of Maryland _______.
| A．wasted large amounts of fresh food on the campus |
| B．directly donated the leftovers to the poor |
| C．delivered the leftovers to area shelters and food banks |
| D．enjoyed the talk with the students and gave support |
Volunteers from the Food Recovery of Maryland _______.
| A．started to set up the organization two years ago |
| B．just donated their own leftovers to avoid waste |
| C．collected the leftovers and then delivered them |
| D．managed to solve the hunger issues in America |
Ben Slye’s attitude toward the volunteers’ effort was that of _______.
| A．unconcern | B．appreciation |
| C．doubt | D．opposition |
We can learn from the text that _______.
| A．Simon aims to expand the program to restaurants and farms |
| B．altogether 25 million Americans suffer from hunger nowadays |
| C．every college has started the Food Recovery Network |
| D．over 40% of the country’s entire food is wasted each year |
What can be the best title of the article?
| A．Battles Against the Problem of Hunger |
| B．College Students Rescue Leftover Food |
| C．How to Pick up Leftovers on College Campus |
| D．Waste Problems in University of Maryland |