E
“The Lord of the Rings”, one of the best sellers in the new millennium (千年), was made up of three parts —— “The Fellowship of the Ring”, “Two Towers”, and “The Return of the King”. Millions upon millions of people have read it in over 25 different languages, but fewer know about the author and the history of the composition of the creative masterwork.
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien was born in South Africa in 1892. His parents died when he was a child. Living in England with his aunt, Tolkien and his cousins made up play languages, a hobby that led to Tolkien’s becoming skilled in Welsh, Greek, Gothic, Old Norse and Anglo-Saxon.
After graduating from Oxford, Tolkien served in World War I. In 1917, while recovering from trench fever, he began composing the mythology (神话) for The Rings. As a professor of Anglo-Saxon in 1930s at Oxford, Tolkien was part of an informal discussion group called the Inklings, which included several writers. The group was soon listening to chapters of Tolkien’s imaginative work “The Hobbit”.
Hobbit was a name Tolkien created for a local people that could best be described as half-sized members of the English rural (乡村的) class. Hobbits live in hillside holes. One of them, Bilbo Baggins, looks for treasures with a group of dwarves (侏儒). On the way, he meets the twisted, pitiful creature Gollum, from whom he sees a golden ring that makes the holder invisible.
One of Tolkien’s students persuaded her employer, publisher Allen & Unwin, to look at a draft (草稿). The chairman of the firm, Stanley Unwin, thought that the best judge for a children’s book would be his ten-year-old son. The boy earned a shilling for reporting back that the adventure was exciting, and “The Hobbit” was published in 1937.
It sold so well that Unwin asked for a continuation. Over a dozen years later, in 1954, Tolkien produced “The Lord of the Rings”, a series of books so creative that they hold readers — new and old — after their publication.
57. What can we learn from the text?
A. “The Lord of the Rings” didn’t sell well in the last millennium.
B. People know better about Tolkien himself than about his works.
C. Tolkien was quite familiar with Old English.
D. Tolkien knew very well about different kinds of local languages in Africa.
58. Which of the following helped most in making “The Hobbit” published?
A. One of Tolkien’s students. B. Stanley Unwin’s son.
C. Allen & Unwin. D. Bilbo Baggins.
59. What is mainly discussed in the text?
A. “The Lord of the Rings” and its writer.
B. A completely new masterwork in the new millennium.
C. A famous professor at Oxford University. D. The power of the magic ring.
60. Which of the following shows the right order of Mr. J.R.R.Tolkien’s life experience?
a. He had his “The Hobbit” published. b. He became a member of the Inklings.
c. He served in World WarⅠ d. He became an undergraduate at Oxford.
e. His work “The Lord of the Rings” came to the world.
f. He moved to England to live with his aunt.
A. f-d-b-c-a-e B. f-d-c-b-a-e C. f-c-d-b-e-a D. d-f-c-a-b-e
第三部分：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。
| Family activities School’s out and it’s time to get the family active. |
| Diving This is a great way to make swimming even more fun. Highboard diving needs muscle control. Lessons begin at the poolside, where you will learn some basic skills before moving on to the boards . Try a saltwater pool, on warmer days, and enjoy the fresh air, high boards and water games. Suitable for: 13+ Cost: The first lesson, which lasts one hour, is usually free if you decide to carry on. £10/£20 an hour. Contact: Find your local swimming pool at www. britishswimming.org; 015 096 18700 |
| Sailing Sailing is great for building confidence and provides a mental and physical challenge from the beginning. It can be done alone, and picking up the basics is easy. Suitable for: 8+ Cost: Free Contact: Royal Yachting Association; 084 534 50400; www.rya.org.uk |
| Surfing Balance, coordination (协调) and patience are required to learn the art of surfing, but the excitement of jumping to your feet on the board for the first time and riding a wave into the shore is an excellent experience. Suitable for: 8+ Cost: £30 an hour Contact: www.nationalsurfingcentre.com, 016 378 50737 |
| Gymnastics Gymnastics improves flexibility(灵活性), strength, and teaches self-discipline. Although Olympic-level gymnastics take years of practice to master (掌握), more simple moves are easy to learn in a day and can be practiced at home. Suitable for: 4+ Cost: £6 an hour Contact: British Gymnastics; 084 512 97129; www.british-gymnastics.org |
1. If you are a child of seven, you should choose .
A. Diving B. Sailing C. Surfing D. Gymnastics
2. If you have a 10-hour course in diving, you should pay at least .
A. £100 B. £200 C. £90 D. £30
3. If you want to increase your confidence, you can call .
A. 084 512 97129 B. 015 096 18700
C. 016 378 50737 D. 084 534 50400
4. According to the passage, we know that .
A. it is very difficult to learn sailing
B. it is impossible to practice gymnastics at home
C. strength is needed to do highboard diving
D. surfing offers you the excitement of riding a wave
The energy crisis (危机) has made people aware of how the careless use of the earth’s energy has brought the whole world to the edge of disaster. The over – development of motor transport, with its increase of more cars, more traveling, has contributed to the near – destruction of our cities and the pollution not only of local air but also of the earth’s atmosphere.
Our present situation is unlike natural disasters of the past. Worldwide energy use has brought us to a state where long – range planning is vital. What we need is not a continuation of our present serious state, which endangers the future of our country, our children, and our earth, but a movement forward in order to work rapidly and effectively on planetary problems.
This country has been falling back under the continuing exposures of loss of morality and the revelation (揭露) that lawbreaking has reached into the highest place in the land. There is a strong demand for morality to turn for the better and for some devotion that is vast enough and yet personal enough to enlist the devotion of all. In the past it has been only in a way in defense of their own country and their own benefits that people have been able to devote themselves wholeheartedly.
This is the first time that we have been asked to defend ourselves and what we hold dear in cooperation with all the other people of this planet, who share with us the same endangered air and the same endangered oceans. There is a common need to reassess our present course, to change that course and to employ new methods through which the world can survive. This is a priceless opportunity.
To grasp it, we need a widespread understanding of nature if the crisis we and the world are facing is no passing inconvenience, no byproduct of the ambitions of the oil – producing countries, no environmentalists’ only fears, no byproduct of any present system of government. What we face is the result of the invention of the last four hundred years. What we need is transformed life style. This new life style can flow directly from science and technology, but its acceptance depends on a sincere devotion to finding a higher quality of life for the world’s children and future generation.
1．Which of the following has nearly destroyed our cities?
A．The loss of beliefs and ideas. B．More of law – breaking.
C．Natural disasters in many areas. D．The rapid growth of motors.
2．By comparing past problems with present ones, the author draws our attention to the______.
A．seriousness of this crisis B．ineffectiveness of laws
C．similarity of the past to the present D．hopelessness of the situation
3．Which of the following is used as an example to show the loss of morality?
A．Disregard for law. B．Lack of devotion.
C．Lack of understanding. D．Destruction of cities.
4．The author wrote the passage in order to______.
A．make a recommendation for a transformed life style
B．limit ambitions of the people of the whole world
C．demand devotion to nature and future generation
D．encourage awareness of the decline of morality
Every baby born a decade from now will have its genetic code (基因编码) mapped at birth, the head of the worlds’ leading genome sequencing (基因图谱) company has predicted.
A complete DNA read – out for every newborn will be technically possible and affordable in less than five years, promising a revolution in healthcare, says Jay Flatley, the chief executive of Illumina. Only social and legal problems are likely to delay the age of “genome sequences,” or genetic profiles. By 2019 it will have become routine to map infants’ genes when they are born, Dr Flatly told The Times.
This will open a new approach to medicine, by which conditions such as high blood pressure and heart disease can be predicted and prevented and drugs used more safely and effectively.
A baby’s genome can be discovered at birth by a blood test. By examining a person’s genome, it is possible to identify raised risks of developing diseases such as cancers. Those at high risk can then he screened more regularly, or given drugs or dietary advice to lower their chances of becoming ill.
Personal genomes could also he used to ensure that patients get the medicine that is most likely to work for them and least likely to have side – effects.
The development, however, will raise legal concerns about privacy and access to individuals’ genetic records.
“Bad things can be done with the genome. It could predict something about someone – and you could possibly hand the information to their employer or their insurance company.” said Dr Flatley.
“People have to recognize that this horse is out of the barn, and that your genome probably can’t be protected, because everywhere you go you leave your genome behind. Complete genetic privacy, however, is unlikely to be possible”, he added.
As the benefits become clearer, however, he believes that most people will want their genomes read and interpreted. The risk is nothing compared with the gain.
1．In the first two paragraphs, the author mainly wants to tell us about______.
A．the significant progress in medicine
B．the promise of a leading company
C．the information of babies’ genes
D．the research of medical scientists
2．Which of the following is a problem caused by this approach?
A．The delaying in discovering DNA.
B．The risk of developing diseases at birth.
C．The side – effects of medicine on patients.
D．The letting out of personal genetic information.
3．What does the underlined sentence “… this horse is out of the barn” mean?
A．Genetic mapping technique has been widely used.
B．Genetic mapping technique is too horrible to control.
C．People are eager to improve genetic mapping technique.
D．people can’t stop genetic mapping technique advancing.
4．What’s Dr Flatley’s attitude towards the technology?
A．Tolerant. B．Conservative. C．Positive. D．Doubtful.
The Touchstone
When the great library of Alexandria burned, the story goes, one book was saved. But it was not a valuable book; and so a poor man, who could read little, bought it for very little money.
The book wasn't very interesting, but between its pages there was something very interesting indeed. It was a thin strip of vellum on which was written the secret of the "Touchstone"! The touchstone was a small pebble that could turn any common metal into pure gold.
The writing explained that it was lying among thousands and thousands of other pebbles that looked exactly like it. But the secret was this: The real stone would feel warm, while ordinary pebbles are cold.
So the man sold his few belongings, bought some simple supplies, camped on the seashore, and began testing pebbles. He knew that if he picked up ordinary pebbles and threw them down again because they were cold, he might pick up the same pebble hundreds of times. So, when he felt one that was cold, he threw it into the sea. He spent a whole day doing this but none of them was the touchstone. Yet he went on and on this way. Pick up a pebble. Cold - throw it into the sea. Pick up another. Throw it into the sea. Pick up another. Throw it into the sea. The days continued over a long period if time.
One day, however, about mid-afternoon, he picked up a pebble and it was warm. He threw it into the sea before he realized what he had done. He had formed such a strong habit of throwing each pebble into the sea that when the one he wanted came along he still threw it away.
So it is with opportunity. Unless we are cautious, it’s easy to fail to recognize an opportunity when it is in hand and it’s just as easy to throw it away.
1．The man bought the book because______.
A．he wanted to read it B．it was very interesting
C．there was a secret in the book D．he wanted to find the touchstone
2．We can learn from the passage that the touchstone is______.
A．pure B．cold C．magic D．big
3．Why did the man throw the pebbles into the sea?
A．Because he didn’t want to get the same pebbles.
B．Because he didn’t want others to pick them up.
C．Because he didn’t like their ordinary looks.
D．Because he didn’t like the cold feelings.
4．What does the author want to tell us in the passage?
A．We about orate opportunities in our life.
B．We should seek for opportunities in the world.
C．We may seize opportunities when we are watchful
D．We may discover opportunities when forming habits.
第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题，每题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，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Eight – year – old Jesse Abrogate was playing in the sea late one evening in July 2001 when a 7 – foot bull shark attacked him and tore off his arm. Jesse’s uncle jumped into the sea and dragged the boy to shore. The boy was not breathing. His aunt gave him mouth – to – mouth resuscitation (人工呼吸) while his uncle rang the emergency services. Pretty soon, a helicopter arrived and flew the boy to hospital. It was a much quicker journey than the journey by road.
Jesse’s uncle, Vance Folsenzier, ran back into to the sea and found the shark that had attacked his nephew. He picked the shark up and threw it onto the beach. A coastguard shot the fish four times and although this did not kill it, the shark’s jaws relaxed so that they could open them, and reach down into its stomach, and pull out the boy’s arm.
At the Baptist Hospital in Pensacola, Dr Ian Rogers spent eleven hours reattaching Jesse’s arm. “It was a complicated operation,” he said, “but we were lucky. If the arm hadn’t been recovered in time, we wouldn’t have been able to do the operation at all. What I mean is that if they hadn’t found the shark, well then we wouldn’t have had a chance.’
According to local park ranger Jack Tomosvic, shark attacks are not that common. “Jesse was just unlucky,” he says, “evening is the shark’s feeding time. And Jesse was in area without lifeguards. This would never have happened if he had been in area where swimming is allowed.’
When reporters asked Jesse’s uncle how he had had the courage to fight a shark, he replied, “I was mad and you do some strange things when you’re mad.”
1．What was the boy doing when the accident happened?
A．Feeding a hungry shark. B．Jumping into the rough sea.
C．Dragging a boy to the shore. D．Swimming in a dangerous area.
2．In which way did the boy’s uncle help with the operation?
A．By finding his lost arm. B．By shooting the fish.
C．By flying him to hospital. D．By blowing into his mouth.
3．How was his uncle in time of danger?
A．Careful. B．Brave. C．Optimistic. D．Patient.