The most frightening words in the English language are, “Our computer is down” . You hear it more and more when you are on business. The other day I was at the airport waiting for a ticket to Washington and the girl in the ticket office said, “I’m sorry, I can’t sell you a ticket. Our computer is down.”
“If your computer is down, just write me out a ticket.”
“I can’t write you out a ticket. The computer is the only one allowed to do so.”
I noticed every passenger was just standing there drinking coffee and staring at the black screen. Then I looked down on the computer and asked her, “What do all you people do?”
“We give the computer the information about your trip, and then it tells us whether you can fly with us or not.”
“So when it goes down, you go down with it.”
“That’s good, sir.”
“How long will the computer be down?” I wanted to know.
“I have no idea. Sometimes it’s down for 10 minutes, sometimes for two hours. There’s no way we can find out without asking the computer, and since it’s down it won’t answer us.”
After the girl told me they had no backup(备用) computer, I said. “Let’s forget the computer. What about your planes? They’re still flying, aren’t they?”
“I couldn’t tell without asking the computer.”
“Maybe I could just go to the gate and ask the pilot if he’s flying to Washington, ” I suggested.
“I wouldn’t know what gate to send you to. Even if the pilot was going to Washington, he couldn’t take you if you didn’t have a ticket.”
“Is there any other airline flying to Washington within the next few hours?”
“I wouldn’t know, ” she said, pointing at the dark screen. “Only ‘IT’ knows. ‘It can’t tell me.”
By this time there were quite a few people standing in lines. The word soon spread to other travelers that the computer was down. Some people went white, some people started to cry and still others kicked their luggage.
56. Where do you often hear these frightening words “Our computer is down”?
A. At the airport. B. At the gate. C. On business. D. In the ticket office.
57. What could the girl in the ticket office do without asking the computer?
A. She could do nothing.
B. She could sell a ticket.
C. She could write out a ticket.
D. She could answer the passengers’ questions.
58. What does the underlined word “down” in Paragraph 1 mean?
A. White. B. Broken. C. Black. D. Dark.
59. We can learn from the last paragraph that _______.
A. a modern computer won’t be down
B. computers can take the place of human
C. there will be great changes in computers
D. sometimes a computer may bring suffering to people
60. The best title for the article is _______.
A. Asking the Computer B. When the Computer Is Down
C. The Computer of the Airport D. The Most Frightening Words
D
An “apple-polisher” is one who gives gifts to win friendship or special treatment. It is not exactly a bribe（贿赂）, but is close to it.
“Apple-polishing” is as old as human society, but the phrase itself is recent, about 50 years old. It comes from the schoolroom. For a long time, some schoolboys would leave a shiny（有光泽的，发光的） apple on the teacher’s desk. They would rub and polish the apple to give it a bright shine, so as to make it look more tasty. Such a gift, the students hoped, might make the teacher shut her eyes to their poor work and give them a good mark.
All sorts of people are apple-polishers, including politicians and people in high offices—almost everybody.
There are other phrases meaning the same thing as “apple-polishing”— “soft-soaping” or “buttering-up”. A gift is just one way to “soft-soap” somebody, or to “butter him up”.
Another way that is just as effective as apple-polishing is flattery, giving someone high praise — telling him how good he looks, or how well he speaks, or how wise he is. Flattery, of course, is the cheapest kind of “apple polishing”.
To flatter another costs you nothing and you can give it as freely as you want. And you can always find somebody eagerly looking for it.
53. An “apple-polisher” is one who ________.
A. tries to please someone to get favor
B. bribes with money to get something
C. is really friendly to everyone around him
D. plants apple trees and polishes his apples every day
54. Why did the students polish the apple for their teacher?
A. They hoped that she would not pay attention to them.
B. They didn’t want her to wash the apple by herself.
C. They wished to draw her attention.
D. They longed for her giving them a good mark.
55. According to the passage, the cheapest way to please someone is ________.
A. to flatter him B. to bribe him
C. to talk freely with himD. to play jokes on him
56. The author seems to suggest that ________.
A. nobody likes to be flattered B. very few people apple-polish others
C. apple-polishing is a kind of bribe D. many people like to be soft-soaped
C
“The pen is more powerful than the sword.” There have been many writers who used their pens to fight things that were wrong. Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe was one of them.
She was born in the U.S.A. in 1811.One of her books not only made her famous but has been described as one that excited the world，and was helpful in causing a civil war and freeing the enslaved race. The civil war was the American Civil War of 1861，in which the Northern States fought the Southern States and finally won.
This book that shook the world was called "Uncle Tom's Cabin". Begun as a serial for the Washington anti-slavery weekly, the National Era, it focused public interest on the problem of slavery, and was deeply controversial(争议的). In writing the book, Stowe drew on her personal experience: she was familiar with slavery, the anti-slavery movement, and the underground railroad, because Kentucky, across the Ohio River from Cincinnati, Ohio, where Stowe had lived, was a slave state.
There was a time when every English-speaking man, woman, and child has read this novel that did so much to stop slavery. Not many people read it today, but it is still very interesting. The book has shown us how a warm-hearted writer can arouse（唤起）people's sympathies（同情）. The author herself had neither been to the Southern States nor been a slave. The Southern Americans were very angry at the book, which they said did not at all represent（描述）true state of affairs, but the Northern Americans were wildly excited over it, and were so inspired by it that they were ready to go to war to set the slaves free.
Following publication of the book, she became well- known, speaking against slavery both in America and Europe.
In 1862, when she visited President Lincoln, it was said that he greeted her as “the little lady who made this big war”: the war between the states.
49. Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe was________when her world famous book was published.
A. about sixty years old B. around fifty years old
C. in her forties D. around twenty years old
50. What do we learn about Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe from the text?
A. she had been living in a state where slaves were kept.
B. she herself encouraged the Northern Americans to go to war to set the slaves free.
C. she was better at writing than at swinging a sword.
D. she had once been a slave.
51. Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe’s book caused the civil war because________.
A. she wrote so well that Americans loved her very much.
B. she disclosed the terrible wrongs that had been done to the slaves in the Southern States.
C. the Southern Americans hated the book, while the Northern Americans liked it.
D. the book had been read by many Americans.
52. What can we learn from the text?
A. it isn’t necessary to use weapons to fight things that were wrong.
B. A writer is more helpful in a war than a soldier.
C. We must understand the importance of literature and art.
D. No war can be won without such a book as Uncle Tom's Cabin
B
Every year 2. 2 million tons of oil are put into the ocean and this oil has terrible effects on ocean life, including the coastlines where the off washes up onto shore. Some of the largest spills(溢出) in history were caused by oil tankers(油轮) running into each other or by an oil tanker sailing into shallow water and hitting the bottom of the ocean. 
After these spills, officials try to discover who or what was at fault to help prevent similar accidents in the future.
One of the worst oil spills in history happened along the Alaskan（阿拉斯加） coastline in 1989. In this accident, 42,000 tons of oil spilled from a tanker which resulted in terrible damage to this sensitive natural area. In this spill, the tanker's captain, who was tired from overwork and drinking alcohol, had gone to take a rest. He gave control of the ship to the third mate. The third mate was unfamiliar with the path the ship took, and he ran the ship onto a natural underwater rock wall near the Alaskan coast. Damaged by the rock, the ship leaked(泄漏) oil out into the ocean. More than 1,600 kilometers of coastline were affected by the oil spill. Some scientists who studied nature in the area guessed that 580,000 birds and 5,500 others died when the oil covered their skin. As well, smaller shellfish and other sea creatures were later eaten by seals, whales, and other animals.
The most oil ever spilled was in 1990. As part of the Iraq war plan, 900,000 tons of oil were let out into the Persian(波斯的) Gulf by Iraq. The oil also damaged 650 kilometers of the coastline of both Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. In some places, oil on the water was 43 centimeters thick. Water birds, water plants, and baby fish were all seriously affected. The long-term effects of this act on the food chain in the area are bound to（肯定会） cause problems far into the future.
45. Oil spills have terrible effect on________.
A. ocean life B. the coastline
C. both ocean life and the coastline D. the bottom of the ocean
46. Why did the third mate run the tanker aground(搁浅地) in this accident?
A. He was tired. B. He did not know the area well.
C. He was drunk. D. He was talking on the phone.
47. According to the writer, ________.
A. the accident along the Alaskan coastline was the worst oil spill in history
B. Iraq poured oil into the the Persian Gulf on purpose
C. the effects of Iraq’s act in the Persian Gulf War have been seen fully
D. oil put into the sea by Iraq in the war was the worst accident in history
48. Which of the following is the best title for this text?
A. The Worst Oil Spill B. Pollution
C. The Persian Gulf War D. Oil Spill
第二部分：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和D)中,选出最佳选项。
A
Three lawyers and three engineers are traveling by train to a conference. At the station, the three lawyers each buy tickets and watch as the three engineers buy only a single ticket.
"How are three people going to travel on only one ticket?" asked one of the three lawyers.
"Watch and you'll see," answers one of the engineers.
They all board the train. The lawyers take their seats, but all three engineers cram into a restroom and close the door behind them. Shortly after the train has departed, the conductor comes around collecting tickets. He knocks on the restroom door and says, "Ticket, please" The door opens just a crack and a single arm emerges with a ticket in hand. The conductor takes it and moves on. The lawyers saw this and agreed it was quite a clever idea.
So after the conference, the lawyers decide to copy the engineers on the return trip and save some money. When they get to the station, they buy a single ticket for the return trip. To their astonishment, the engineers don't buy a ticket at all.
"How are you going to travel without a ticket," asks one perplexed lawyer.
"Watch and you'll see," says one of the engineers.
When they board the train the three lawyers cram into a restroom and the three engineers cram into another one nearby. The train departs. Shortly afterward, one of the engineers leaves his restroom and walks over to the restroom where the lawyers are hiding .He knocks on the door and says, "Ticket, please." By copying the engineers, one lawyer put out a single arm with a ticket in his hand. The engineer came back to his restroom with the ticket. Then the conductor was coming this way...
41. The engineers and the lawyers travel together________.
A. to attend a meeting B. to test who are clever
C. to see how clever the engineers are D. to save money
42. How many tickets do they buy on the two-way trip? .
A. 4 B. 5 C. 7 D. 8
43. The underlined word “perplexed” can be replaced by ________.
A. excited B. surprised C. puzzled D. touched
44. Which of the following would be the best title for the joke?
A. Three Lawyers and Three Engineers B. Train Tickets
C. In the RestroomD. Tickets, Please
附加题：阅读理解（共5小题；每小题3分，满分15分。把答案涂到答题卡上）
The pen is more powerful than the sword（利剑）. There have been many writers who use their pens to write things that were wrong. Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe was one of them.
She was born in the U. S. A. in 1811. One of her books not only made her famous but has been described as one that excited the world, and was helpful in causing a civil war and freeing the enslaved race. The civil war was the American Civil War of 1861, in which the Northern States fought the Southern States and finally won.
This book that shook the world was called Uncle Tom's Cabin. There was a time when every English-speaking man, woman, and child had read this novel that did so much to stop slavery. Not many people read it today, but it is still very interesting, if only to show how a warm-hearted writer can arouse people's sympathies. The author herself had neither been to the Southern States nor seen a slave. The Southern Americans were very angry at the book, which they said did not at all represent the true state of affairs, but the Northern Americans were widely excited over it, and were so inspired by it that they were ready to go to war to set the slaves free.
61. Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe became famous for__________.
A. one of her books B. she was a very heartedly person
C. she was a kind wife D. she worked for the war
62. How old was Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe when her world famous book was published?
A. About sixty years old. B. Over fifty years old.
C. In her forties. D. Around twenty years old.
63. What do we learn about Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe from the passage?
A. Before the civil war she had been a slave.
B. Before the civil war she had lived in the north of America.
C. She had a good school education.
D. She was better at writing than swinging a sword.
64. Why could Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stowe's book cause a civil war in America? Because_______.
A. she disclosed(揭露) the terrible wrongs done to the slaves in the Southern States
B. she wrote so well that the Americans loved her very much
C. the Americans were too excited when they reads the book
D. the Southern Americans hated the book, while the Northern Americans liked it
65. What can we learn from the passage?
A. No war can be won without such a book as Uncle Tom's Cabin.
B. We must understand the importance of literature and art.
C. We needn't use weapons to fight things that are wrong.
D. A writer is more helpful in war than a soldier.