第二部分:阅读理解(共25小题。第一节每小题2分,第二节每小题1分;满分45分)
第一节:阅读下列短文,从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中,选出最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
A
Many people wonder why the United States has been a hotspot for Chinese students for years, despite its extremely strict visa policy. On the other hand, China’s rise as an economic powerhouse is resulting in a rapid expansion of its higher education system, making it the faster-growing destination for American foreign exchange students.
Recently, according to a study by the Institute of International Education, a research organization based in New York, the number of American students seeking higher education in China has never been greater, increasing by 90 percent from 2002 to 2004. Alan Goodman, president of the institute, believes that the phenomenon lies in the pace of change in China, which is spending billions of dollars to expend and transform its higher educational facilities into world-class institutions.
“China is a job market,” said Professor Chou, professor of East Asian Studies at Princeton University. “Twenty years ago, only those interested in Chinese literature would study Chinese language. Now all professors have opened up.”
China now ranks 9th as a host destination for American students, advancing from the No.12 spot it held a year earlier. The study revealed that Britain continues to be the leading destination, attracting 16.8 percent of all American students who study abroad. On the other hand, in the 2004-2005 academic year, China sent more than 62,000 students to the United States, nearly 60 percent more than a decade earlier. According to the study, the Chinese now make up 11 percent of foreign students in the United States, the second-largest group behind students from India.
41.From the first paragraph, we know that for many years Chinese students want to go to the US but _____.
A. Chinese government refuses to give a visa B. it is extremely difficult to get a visa
C. it results in a rapid expansion D. China becomes a fast-growing country
42.According to the text, “the phenomenon” in the second paragraph refers to _____.
A. more American students’ seeking higher education in China
B. the pace of change in China during the past few years
C. founding a research organization based in New York
D. expending and transforming its higher educational facilities
43.What is the main idea of this text?
A. American Students are looking for destination.
B. American students are interested in Chinese culture.
C. Britain continues to be the leading destination.
D. China grows as study hotspot for U.S. students.
Neatness and personal cleanness have been around for ages and have become an important part of everyone’s daily routine. You might think that all modern societies would have the same neatness and personal cleanness practices. After all, doesn’t everybody take baths? Most people do recognize the need for cleanness, which is the basis for health. Neatness practices include all the little things people do to make themselves look their best, such as combing their hair and putting on makeup. However, while most modern people agree that these things are important, people in different cultures take care of themselves in different ways.
There used to be an old joke in America that people should take a bath once a week, whether they need one or not. In fact, though, Americans generally take a bath or more commonly, a shower every day. But in contrast to some cultures, most Americans get their shower in the morning so that they can start the day fresh. Americans are known for having very sensitive noses. In America, body smell is socially unacceptable. For that reason, Americans consider it a must to use special lotion (浴液) to prevent the smell. Ladies often add a touch of perfume. Men may spray on after – shave cream or manly – smelling perfume.
Some of the cultural varieties in neatness practices result from physical differences between races. Whereas many Asian men have little facial hair, Westerners have a lot. As a result, most American men spend some time each day shaving or tidying their facial hair to keep it nice. American women, on the other hand, generally prefer not to be hairy at all.
Americans put great value on both neatness and personal cleanness. For some people, taking care of themselves has become almost a religion. As the old saying goes, “Cleanness is next to godliness.” Whether or not being clean and neat – looking brings one closer to God, it certainly at least brings one closer to others. Americans look down on people who don’t take care of themselves, or who “let themselves go.”
68.We can infer from the first paragraph that .
A.everyone takes baths daily to get a nice look.
B.people have the same neatness practices today.
C.neatness practices may be affected by cultures.
D.neatness means combing hair and doing makeup.
69.Americans have a bath in the morning to .
A.begin an energetic day B.refresh their sensitive noses
C.prevent their body smell D.style their hair at home
70.According to the author, physical differences between races can cause differences in .
A.cultures B.locations C.religions D.neatness practice
71.The underlined phrase in the last paragraph means “”.
A.care much about themselves B.give loose to themselves
C.stay away from other people D.stay closer to other people
As AH1N1 flu continues to spread, experts from the World Health
Organization are calling for everyone to practice smart flu prevention
techniques. Besides washing your hands and getting enough sleep,
here are the other 7 ways to keep your body strong and your immune
(免疫) system ready to fight infection.
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64.Which of the following pictures is talked about in the passage?
Homebuyers nationwide are watching housing prices going up, up, and up. “How high can they go?” is the question on everyone’s lips? “As long as interest rates stay around 5 percent, there’s no telling,” remarked one realtor in Santa Monica, California.
“It’s crazy,” said Tim, who is looking for a house near the beach. “In 1993, I bought my first place, a two-bedroom condominium in Venice, for $70,000. My friends thought then that I was overpaying. Five years later, I had to move. I sold it for $230,000, which was a nice profit. Last year, while visiting friends here, I saw in the local paper that the exact same condo was for sale for $510,000!”
It is a seller’s market. Homebuyers feel like they have to offer at least 10 percent more than the asking price. Donna, a new owner of a one-bedroom condo in Venice Beach, said, “That’s what I did. I told the owner that whatever anyone offers you, I’ll give you $20,000 more, under the table, so you don’t have to pay your realtor any of it. I was tired of looking.”
Tim says he hopes he doesn’t get that desperate. “Whether you decide to buy or decide not to buy, you still feel like you made the wrong decision. If you buy, you feel like you overpaid. If you don’t buy, you want to kick yourself for passing up a great opportunity.”
Everyone says the bubble(泡沫) has to burst sometime, but everyone hopes it will burst the day after they sell their house. Even government officials have no idea what the future will bring. “All we can say is that, inevitably, these things go in cycles,” said the state director of housing. “What goes up must come down. But, as we all know, housing prices always stay up a little higher than they go down. So you can’t lose over the long run. Twenty years down the road, your house is always worth more than you paid for it.”
60.If Tim had sold his flat last year, he could have earned .
A.$ 510,000 B.$ 440,000 C.$ 280,000 D.$ 160,000
61.Donna paid another $ 20,000 to the owner secretly because .
A.she felt like offering 10% more B.secret money made low price
C.the owner asked for the money D.she was bored with bargaining
62.We can infer from Tim’s words in paragraph 4 that .
A.homebuyers feel hesitate facing rising house prices
B.buying a house is always a great opportunity
C.homebuyers never make the right decision
D.both sellers and buyers become desperate
63.What is the author’s opinion about the housing bubble?
A.It is something everyone hates to see
B.Only experts know when it will burst
C.It is unavoidable in the regular circles
D.It usually stays for about twenty years
A boy was born to a couple after eleven years of marriage. They were a loving couple and loved the boy very much. When the boy was around two years old, one morning the husband saw a medicine bottle open. He was late for work so he asked the wife to cap the bottle and keep it in the cupboard. The mother, preoccupied in the kitchen, totally forgot the matter.
The boy saw the bottle and playfully went to the bottle and, fascinated with its color, drank it all. It happened to be a poisonous medicine meant for adults in small dosages. When the child collapsed, the mother hurried him to the hospital, where he died. The mother was stunned. She was terrified how to face her husband.
When the distraught father came to the hospital and saw the dead child, he looked at his wife and uttered just four words. The husband just said ‘I am with you, Darling’. The husband's totally unexpected reaction is proactive behavior. The child is dead. He can never be brought back to life. There is no point in finding fault with the mother. Besides, if only he have taken time to keep the bottle away, this will not have happened. No point in attaching blame. She had also lost her only child. What she needed at that moment was consolation and sympathy from the husband. That is what he gave her.
If everyone can look at life with this kind of viewpoint, there would be much fewer problems in the world. Take off all your envies, jealousies, unforgiveness, selfishness, and fears and you will find things are actually not as difficult as you think. Sometimes we spend time asking who is responsible or whom to blame, whether in a relationship, in a job or with the people we know. By this way we miss out some warmth in human relationship.
56.The uncapped medical bottle was not put back into the cupboard because .
A.the husband was careless B.the husband was busy
C.the wife wasn’t informed of the matter D.the wife ignored the matter
57.What do we know about the bottle? .
A.It contained poison only for adults B.It appeared like a nice drink
C.It was broken by the child D.It was kept in the kitchen
58.The husband’s attitude towards his wife can be described as .
A.optimistic B.confident C.considerate D.generous
59.What did the writer intend to tell us about life? .
A.Let go the negative side and we can enjoy life.
B.It is always useless finding who is responsible
C.Think of nothing and life will be easy
D.Life should give way to responsibility
The Lantern Festival first evolved along the banks of the Yellow River during the peak of freezing winter conditions. The celebration held on the night of the first full noon of the lunar new year is often referred to as the “Little New Year”.
The festival’s origin has been argued by historians. Some say the festival was set up in relation to New Year Buddhist ceremonies. Lanterns were used to praise Buddha and request his protection for the coming year. However, Taoists insist that the Martial Emperor Wu Ti (141 B.C.~86 B.C.) began the festival a century earlier in an effort to gain eternal life.
In the huge courtyard of his palace, he ordered lanterns to be hung on the night of the first full moon until the entire courtyard was lit as bright as the day.
After a Chinese eunuch (太监) invented paper in 105 A.D., people of all classes began to enjoy the beauty of inexpensive paper lanterns. Today, the lantern has experienced further revolution and paper has been replaced by plastic animated characters lit by battery operated light bulbs. In Taiwan, this development has extended to the creation of extravagant, enormous and highly technical lanterns representing the zodiac animals. Even still, many of the old ways remain mixed with the new.
73. According to the article, which of the following statement is true?
A. Historians are troubled by different opinions.
B. Wu Ti ordered an eunuch to make lanterns using inexpensive paper.
C. The weather conditions under which the first lantern festival was held were extreme.
D. Buddhists believe that Wu Ti began the Lantern Festival.
74. Wu Ti is believed to have established the Lantern Festival in his vain effort to ______.
A. change night into day. B. live forever.
C. make the greatest of offering to Buddha. D. celebrate the “Little New Year”.
75. The invention of paper in 105 A.D. ______.
A. helped to invent paper lanterns.
B. replaced paper lanterns with plastic animated characters.
C. lit up the sky.
D. increased the popularity of lanterns.