BNews（March6,2008）thatMicrosof-优题课

IV. 阅读理解（共20 小题，每小题2 分，满分40 分）
I don’t like getting up too early unless I have to. When you’re filming, you’ve got make-up on, which doesn’t happen often. As I’m not filming at present I’ll get up at 8:30.
Work normally means Matt coming over to my house about 10 am. We’re writing at the moment. We’ll chat for a bit before going to my study. One of us will have an idea for a sketch (梗概), we’ll talk about the characters and when we feel we have enough we’ll start writing.
Matt and I met at the National Youth Theatre in 1990 and started doing shows together in ’95, at the Edinburgh Fringe festival. We know we’re onto something if we’ve made each other laugh, and that’s a really special moment. It’s not always like that, but we’re comfortable enough with each other that we can be honest and go. Some days you’re not in the mood to be funny—like writing when my dad was dying of cancer, or when Matt was separating from his partner.
We stop for lunch and sometimes go to Wagamama in Camden, but last time we were followed by paparazzi (狗仔队), which gets you down—who wants to be pictured eating noodles?
When I’m not writing with Matt I work on other projects. My second children’s book comes out later in the year. It’s called Mr. Stink. The first one I dedicated to my three-year-old nephew, Eddie. Both books have been illustrated by Quentin Blake; it’s been a thrill to work with him—like 20 years ago reading a Roald Dahl book and looking at those drawings, then one day that person illustrates your work… magical.
At 5 I go swimming in Soho. My trainer makes me do horrible exercises, but I always feel better after.
Being in all day, I like to go out in the evening and look smart, but not like I’ve come out of the City. I’m a tall, broad guy and well-dressed.
For dinner I’ll meet friends. When you’re a single guy it’s great to have some good female friends. Or I might take my mum to the theatre, as I know she really appreciates it. I like watching TV comedy shows to see what everyone’s doing. When you see something impressive it makes you work harder. I also love Larkin’s poems: they don’t try to transcend (超越) the commonplace; they’re much more straightforward.
Poetry is great to dip into before going to bed, rather than falling asleep reading a novel and being confused over what you’ve read or not. I haven’t had a good night’s sleep in seven years; unfortunately, I rely on pills. I’ve tried everything. If I could wish anything for myself, I’d wish I could sleep better.
1. It can be inferred from the passage that _________.
A. the author spends much time with his friends
B. the author and Matt are both famous in the district
C. the author doesn’t care much about what to wear
D. the author works at home and seldom goes out every day
2. Where does the passage most likely appear?
A. In a travel diary. B. In a news column. C. In an online diary. D. In a research paper.
3. Why does the author read some poetry before going to bed?
A. Because poetry can often bring him some funny ideas.
B. Because poetry is much easier to understand than novels.
C. Because poetry is very abstract and reflects unusual things.
D. Because poetry can be of some help for him to kill time.
4. What might be the best title for the passage?
A. A day’s work with Matt B. A new life-style C. A life in the day D. A good way to write

Romanian-born German writer Herta Mueller won the 2009 Nobel Prize in literature yesterday, honored for work that "with the concentration of poetry and the frankness of prose, describes the landscape of the dispossessed(被流放者)," the Swedish Academy said.
The 56-year-old author, who immigrated to Germany from Romania in 1987, first gained public attention in 1982 with a collection of short stories titled Niederungen, or Lowlands in English, which was promptly censored(审查通过) by her government.
In 1984 an uncensored version was smuggled to Germany where it was published and her work describing life in a small, German-speaking village in Romania was popular with the readers there. That work was followed by Oppressive Tango in Romania.
"The Romanian national press was very critical of these works while, outside of Romania, the German press received them very positively," the Academy said. "Because Mueller had publicly criticized the dictatorship(独裁) in Romania, she was prohibited from publishing in her own country.” In 1987 she immigrated to Germany with her husband two years before dictator Nicolae Ceausescu was toppled from power.
Mueller's parents were members of the German-speaking minority in Romania and father served in the Waffen SS during World War II. After the war ended, many German Romanians were deported(放逐) to the Soviet Union in 1945, including her mother, who spent five years in a work camp in what is now Ukraine.
Most of her works are in German, but some works have been translated into English, French and Spanish, including The Passport, The Land of Green Plums, Traveling on One Leg and The Appointment.
Mueller has given guest lectures at universities, colleges and other venues in Paderborn, Warwick, Hamburg, Swansea, Gainsville (Florida), Kassel, Gottingen, Tubingen and Zurich among other places. She lives in Berlin. Since 1995 she has served as a member of Deutsche Akademie fur Sprache und Dichtung, in Darmstadt."
Mueller is the 12th woman to win the literature prize. Recent female winners include Austria's Elfriede Jelinek in 2004 and British writer Doris Lessing in 2007.
The award includes a $1.4 million prize and will be handed out on December 10
1．Herta Mueller was awarded Nobel Prize in literature because of____________.
A．her public criticism upon the dictatorship in Romania
B．her works with the concentration of poetry and the frankness of prose
C．her works describing the life of the dispossessed in Germany
D．the popularity of her works with the readers in the German-speaking village
2．Which of the following statements is mentioned by the author?
A．German Romanians were treated unfairly in Germany in the 1940s.
B．Her parents were dispossessed to Ukraine after the World War II.
C．Her first work was published in Germany in the early 1980s.
D．Her works were all translated into versions in different languages.
3．It can be inferred from the fourth paragraph that _____.
A．people then in Romania had the right to say whatever was true.
B．Herta Mueller left her home country after the dictatorship was ended.
C．Herta Mueller immigrated to Germany together with her parents.
D．Romanian citizens lived a hard life without democracy in the 1980s.
4．According to the passage, which of the following works has an English version?
A．Lowlands in English B．Oppressive Tango in Romania.
C．Traveling on One Leg D．The Land of Green Plums
5．What is the passage mainly about?
A．Mueller made great contribution to literature through hard work
B．Mueller won the Nobel Prize for her great literature works.
C．Mueller gained great popularity by describing dictatorship.
D．Mueller was treated badly in Romania and immigrated to Germany.

U.S. airlines are seeing a major interruption because of hundreds of flights canceled due to the ash cloud from the Icelandic volcano, but European flight companies will face the biggest losses.
The airline business has been tough: The decline dramatically slowed traffic; February heavy snow forced U.S. airlines to cancel thousands of flights; and now the ashes from the volcano stopped all traffic in and out of northern Europe for days.
"For U.S. flight companies, it'll be a relatively short-term hit," said Michael Boyd, president of Boyd Group International, an aviation (航空学) consulting firm. "We think right now they're down about $80 million in terms of lost income, and they're down domestically about 80,000 passengers that would have been flying domestically but aren't because they can't get here."
Delta announced that volcano-related interruption grounded about 400 flights until Monday at a cost of $20 million in lost revenues. But compare that to the recent snowstorms, when the airline canceled 7,000 flights and lost $65 million in revenue.
The disruption has created uncertainty for customers, but analysts say U.S. airlines won't face as many costs as you might think. They are not flying in extra planes to handle the passengers in trouble because, airline analyst Robert Mann said, companies simply don't have them.
"Airlines run a very lean operation now," Mann said. "So, since there are no spare aircraft or crews, the airlines will attempt to maximize loads on every one of their aircraft that do fly. But it may take days, or in some cases a week or so, to get some of these customers to where they want to go."
1. Which negative consequences mentioned in the passage did the disasters cause?
A. coldness, pollution and airlines’ losses
B. airport damage, pollution and slow traffic
C. passenger delay,coldness and airport damage
D. passenger delay, airlines’ losses and slow traffic
2. Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?
A. The fewest airplanes will fly the trapped passengers to their destinations.
B. All the customers are sure to be sent to their destinations in time.
C. The U.S. and U.K. airlines suffered the same losses in the natural disasters.
D. The volcano eruption reduced the traffic to and from northern Europe.
3. What does the last paragraph mainly tell us?
A. the troubles that the airlines will face after the ash cloud disappears
B. the measures that the airlines will take to maximize their profit
C. the present situation of the airlines and their plan to deliver the passengers
D. the reasons why the airlines run a fine operation
4. Why will it take a long time for airlines to send the passengers to their different destinations?
A. Because the passengers enjoy staying in airports to talk with one another.
B. Because the airlines don’t have spare planes or employees to serve.
C. Because the airlines don't have enough financial support after the disaster.
D. Because the passengers are asking for full refund from the airlines.
5. The passage is most probably from_______.
A．a novelB．a news report C．a magazine D．a thesis

Ⅲ 阅读 (共两节，满分40分)
第一节阅读理解 (共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分)
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
For most pregnant women, exercise is the last thing on their minds. After all, keeping slim while you’re expecting isn’t exactly the top priority— rather, it’s making sure your baby gets enough nutrients to grow. But in a small new study, researchers at the University of Auckland in New Zealand report that a mother’s regular aerobic exercise may be good for a growing fetus’ health — and may even help a baby get a healthier start in life.
The finding is a bit surprising, because exercise is known to lower the risk of insulin resistance（胰岛素抵抗），a condition eventually leading to diabetes（糖尿病）. Although insulin resistance is a detriment in healthy adults, it turns out to be helpful for proper fetal（胎儿）development. In pregnant women, this condition means nutrients get shunted to the growing baby.
The question is: could a mother’s exercise put her developing baby’s food supply at risk? Past studies looking at the effect of exercise on birth weight have been inconclusive, and none have really investigated the influence of exercise on the mother’s sensitivity to insulin. So the University of Auckland’s Dr. Paul Hoffman and his team decided to study 84 first-time mothers, who were of normal weight on average, and track any effects aerobic exercise(有氧运动) might have on their insulin sensitivity and, ultimately, on their babies’ birth weight. Researchers asked some women to exercise on a stationary bicycle for at least 40 minutes per session, up to five times each week, starting in the 20th week of pregnancy; the other women were not specifically asked to exercise. When the two groups and their babies were compared, the team found that women who bicycled regularly gave birth to babies who were on average 150g lighter than those born to the non-exercising mothers. In both groups, however, the babies were of healthy weight, and there was no difference in the mothers’ weights.
Generally speaking, babies on the lower end of the normal weight range are considered healthier and less prone to developing diabetes and obesity than heavier ones, so this was an encouraging result. Even more reassuring was that regular exercise did not seem to affect the flow of nutrients to the growing babies in the womb.
1. According to the new study, a pregnant woman’s regular exercise may _______.
A. bring benefits to a baby’s growth
B. lower the risk of insulin resistance
C. put her baby’s food supply at risk
D. help her keep slim and healthy
2. What does the underlined word “detriment” mean in the second paragraph?
A. Something that brings good.
B. Something that brings damage.
C. Something that brings obstacles.
D. Something that brings development.
3. What is the purpose of the experiment carried out by Dr. Paul Hoffman?
A. To investigate the influence of exercise on pregnant women.
B. To find out what aerobic exercise can benefit a baby’s growth.
C. To make sure of the effects exercise may have on babies’ birth weight
D. To compare the differences between mothers who exercise and who don’t
4. Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?
A. Lighter babies are generally believed to be healthier than heavier ones.
B. Non－exercising mothers will definitely give birth to heavier babies.
C. No studies have looked at the effect of exercise on birth weight before.
D. Some women studied were asked to exercise regularly while some don’t.
5. Which of the following may be the best title for the passage?
A. All mothers should take aerobic exercise.
B. Moms who exercise give birth to lighter babies。
C. Exercise reduces the risk of insulin resistance.
D. Heavier babies are more likely to develop diabetes.

SPECIAL EVENTS THIS WEEKEND
Captain Goodfellow
Do your children enjoy interesting stories, funny games, and exciting dances? Captain Goodfellow will be ready to teach all these things to children of all ages at the City Theatre on Saturday morning at 10:00, free.
Walking Tour of the Town
Forget your worries on Saturday morning. Take a beautiful walk and learn about local history. Meet at the front entrance of City Hall at 9:30. Wear comfortable shoes!
Films at the Museum
Two European films will be shown on Saturday afternoon at the Museum Theatre. See Broken Window at 1:30. The Workers will be at 3:45. For further information, call 4987898.
International Picnic
Are you tired of eating the same food every day? Come to Central Park on Saturday and enjoy food from all over the world. Delicious and not expensive. Noon to 5:00 p.m.
Take Me out to the Ballgame
It’s October, and tonight is your last chance to see the Redbirds this year. Get your tickets at the gate. It might be cold… Don’t forget sweaters and jackets.
Do you want to hear “The Zoo”?
“The Zoo”, a popular group from Australia, will give their first U.S. concert tomorrow night at 8 at Rose Hall, City College.
1. You can probably eat Chinese, Italian, and Arab food ________.
A. at the front entrance of City Hall B. at the Ballgame
C. at 5:00 p.m. D. at Central Park on Saturday
2. If you are going on the Walking Tour, don’t forget ________.
A. your worries B. your beautiful walk
C. your learning about local history D. your comfortable shoes
3. The Redbirds ballgame ________.
A. is in the afternoon B. is outdoor C. is at the gate D. might be cold
4. “The Zoo” is ________.
A. a park with lots of animals there B. U.S. concert
C. a music group D. going to give the concert at 8 a.m. tomorrow
5. You may see this passage in ________.
A. a British newspaper B. an American newspaper
C. a British magazine D. an American magazine