第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题，每小题2分，满分40分）
My family couldn’t afford to send me to school when I was 16. When my mother took me out of school, I really lost heart about my life and didn’t know what I was going to do.
I worked to help my mother sell newspapers and that was all I could do at the time. When I was 18 years old, my mother started telling me that I would have to live on my own. I felt very frightened of the future. One night while I 
was watching television, a piece of news about joining the army caught my eyes. I had admired soldiers since I was very young. Now the chance came and I felt pleased. The next day I called the number on the news and set up an appointment to meet the recruiter(征兵人员), an elderly officer. When he heard that I didn’t graduate from high school, he told me that I had a slim(微小的) chance. I explained to him that I would study to improve myself and work hard. At last, he agreed to try to help me.
About a month later he asked me to go to his office and explained to me that he would get me in the service（服役） but I had to promise him that I would make the best of this chance he was trying to create for me and I did. He was able to help me join the army and I kept my promise by doing eight years and receiving an Honorable Discharge (光荣退伍证) from the service. After that, I have worked as a guard with good pay.
56. Why did the author drop out of high school?
A. Because he wanted to help his mother.
B. Because his mother wanted him to work.
C. Because he lost interest in study.
D. Because his family was too poor.
57. When the author got out of school, he felt _______.
A. relaxed B. hopeless C. bored D. frightened
58. How did the author succeed in joining th
e army?
A. Through his mother’s encouragement and his luck.
B. Through his great performance before the recruiter.
C. Through his sincere(真诚的) request and an officer’s help.
D. Through his optimistic attitude and serious promise.
59. We can infer from the text that _________.
A. people can achieve success if they don’t give up
B. a person’s achievements depend mainly on other’s help
C. failure in one field doesn’t mean failure in another
D. people should be confident in the face of difficulties
Trouve sat up on its back legs and growled(吼叫) the words, “How are you, Grandmamma?” The audience roared with laughter and clapped. Twenty-year-old Aleck gave the dog a morsel(一口) of food. His hard work had paid off. His dog could talk!
Aleck was fascinated with the different sounds of people’s speech. His father taught students who had a speech problem to improve their speech. Aleck paid close attention. Could an animal form sounds into words, too? He decided to experiment with Trouve, the family dog.
The easy part was teaching Trouve to growl whenever Aleck wanted. The little dog growled for a morsel of food.
Next Aleck moved the dog’s “lips” as it growled. It sounded like “ma mama”. Trouve learned quickly to stop the growling just as Aleck’s hand moved away. They practiced and practiced until the dog said “mama” perfectly.
Soon Aleck discovered more. If he pushed gently under the dog’s jawbone(下颌骨), it made the “ga” sound. If he pushed once and moved the dog’s lips twice, he could make the dog say, “ga mama.” With even more practice, it sounded like “grandmamma”. Whenever Trouve said “grandmamma”, Aleck gave the dog two treats, so Trouve loved the lessons.
Aleck tried to teach his dog to move its tongue so that Trouve could say more words. That didn’t work, but Aleck didn’t give up.
After many hours of practice, Trouve could say, “Ow ah oo ga-ma-ma?” This sounded just like “How are you, Grandmamma?”
Friends and neighbors traveled to see young Aleck and his amazing talking dog. Rumors spread that the dog could speak by itself, which wasn’t true. No matter how much Aleck tried, the dog was never able to move its lips without help.
Aleck’s full name was Alexander Graham Bell. He wanted to know more about the world all his life. He had many ideas. Some worked; others didn’t. But he kept trying—always learning. One of his inventions was something called the telephone. Which of the following is TRUE of Aleck?
| A．His father had an influence on him. |
| B．He had a talent for giving speeches. |
| C．He taught Trouve to talk in honor of his grandmother. |
| D．He carried out many experiments to improve people’s speech. |
Trouve grew fond of practicing talking because _____.
| A．it liked being together with Aleck |
| B．it was given some food for that |
| C．it would like to develop its potential（潜能） |
| D．Aleck treated it like one of the family |
Which of the following words can best describe Aleck?
| A．Humorous. | B．Naughty. |
| C．Knowledgeable. | D．Curious. |
What contributes most to Aleck’s success in teaching the dog to talk?
| A．His own hard work. | B．His neighbor’s help. |
| C．His father’s encouragement. | D．The dog’s smartness. |
According to the passage, how many statements are true?
a. The audience was very excited to hear the dog growling the sound “ma”.
b. The dog could understand Aleck’s sign.
c. The dog could move its tongue successfully by itself.
d. Aleck kept trying his ideas all the while.
e. The only intention of Aleck’s is telephone.
| A．2 | B．3 | C．4 | D．5 |
Fair Way
The Westborough High School golf team had taken the official photos with the state prize. The other teams, disappointed, were on the bus heading home. And then Westborough instructor Greg Rota noticed something wrong on one of the score cards. A 9 had been recorded as A 7. They were not the state prize winner; Woburn High had won. “No one would have known,” said Woburn’s instructor, Bob Doran. For Rota, it wasn’t a difficult decision: “The prize wasn’t ours to take.”
Coin Stars
“College students are lazy, but they also want to help,” says University of Pennsylvania graduate Dana Hork. So she made it easy, placing cups in rooms where students could leave their spare coins, and handing out cups to first-year students to keep in their homes. Her “Change for Change” effort has collected $40,000 for charities, which were decided upon by students.
Never Forgotten
A school in Massachusetts received a $9.5 million check from Jacques LeBermuth. But it took officials several days of digging to discover his connection to the school. Records showed the LeBermuth came from Belgium and studied in the school in the 1920s. When his family fell on hard times, he was offered free room and board. LeBermuth became a trader, owned shares of AT&T and lived off the earnings until he died, at age 89. What did Greg Rota probably do in the end?
| A．Took photos of Doran. | B．Had a meeting with Doran. |
| C．Returned the prize to the organizer. | D．Apologized to Woburn High School. |
Greg Rota’s decision shows that he was _____.
| A．honest | B．polite | C．careful | D．friendly |
The underlined word “Change” in the second paragraph means _____.
| A．Idea | B．Decision | C．Cups | D．Coins |
What did the school officials do after receiving the check from Mr. LeBermuth?
| A．They tried to find out why he gave them the money. |
| B．They went to Belgium to pay their respects to him. |
| C．They dug out the records that were buried underground. |
| D．They decided to offer their students free room and board. |
Jacques LeBermuth gave the money to the school because ____.
| A．the school asked for it |
| B．he had no need for that much money |
| C．the school had helped him in the past |
| D．he wanted to be remembered by the students |
In bringing up children, every parent watches eagerly the child's acquisition （学会）of each new skill in the first spoken words, the first independent steps, or the beginning of reading and writing．It is often tempting to hurry the child beyond his natural learning rate, but this can set up dangerous feelings of failure and states of worry in the child．This might happen at any stage．A baby might be forced to use a toilet too early, a young child might be encouraged to learn to read before he knows the meaning of the words he reads．On the other hand, though, if a child, is left alone too much, or without any learning opportunities, he loses his natural enthusiasm for life and his desire to find out new things for himself．
Parents vary greatly in their degree of strictness towards their children．Some may be especially strict in money matters; Others are severe （严格的） over time of coming home at night or punctuality for meals．In general, the controls represent the needs of the parents and the values of the community as much as the child's own happiness．
As regards the development of moral standards in the growing child, consistency is very important in parental teaching．To forbid a thing one day and excuse it the next is no foundation for morality （道德）．Also, parents should realize that "example is better than precept"．If they are not sincere and do not practice what they preach （说教）, their children may grow confused when they grow old enough to think for themselves, and realize they have been to some extent fooled．
A sudden awareness of a marked difference between their parents’ principles and their morals can be a dangerous disappointment.Eagerly watching the child’s acquisition of new skills.
| A．will make the child lose interest in learning new things |
| B．sets up dangerous states of worry in the child |
| C．is universal among parents |
| D．should be avoided |
In the process of children’s learning new skills, parents.
| A．should encourage them to read before they know the meaning of the words they read |
| B．should achieve a balance between pushing them too hard and leaving them on their own |
| C．should expect a lot from the children |
| D．should create as many learning opportunities as possible |
In terms of moral matters, parents should.
| A．follow the rules themselves |
| B．be aware of the huge difference between adults and children |
| C．always ensure the security of their children |
| D．forbid their children to follow hook teachings |
●Putting Movies on Mobiles
Movies in the theater get their recognition at awards ceremonies such as the Oscars．But how about movies for phones? They are getting their turn at MoFilm —the first mobile film festival.
The first MoFilm competition, received 250 entries from more than 100 countries．Entries were restricted to films that were five minutes or less in length－ideal for viewing and sharing on mobile phones．An independent jury then selected a shortlist of five film-makers．The winner was chosen from the shortlist by an audience voting using their phones．
●New Platforms
The awards highlight the increasing impact that mobile phones are making in the entertainment industry．Many grassroots filmmakers start out with short films．They are thwarted by the lack of opportunities to screen their work．Therefore, mobile phones are increasingly being seen as a new platform for these short works．
It is a good place for anyone who wants to express themselves and find a way to have that expression seen by a wide audience．Just think about how many people have mobile phones in the world!
●New Technology Advances
MoFilm is pioneering content for mobile and online services that is a world away from Hollywood．The majority of films made for mobiles are now short in length, taking into account the screen size．However this could be overcome as technology advances．
In the near future, longer films will likely oe seen on the mobile phone．And there are mobile companies creating phones where users can watch movies at higher quality．
Wherever you see movies, one thing is certain: the qualify of work, the simple ability at story telling, and the thing that inspires someone to tell a story can really come from anywhere．At the first MoFilm, _____．
| A．movies in the theater got their recognition |
| B．more than 100 countries took part in the competition |
| C．ideal films were five minutes or less in length |
| D．the winner was chosen by experts' voting |
"They are thwarted by the lack of opportunities to screen their work．" The underlined word means "_____"．
| A．discouraged | B．encouraged |
| C．frightened | D．surprised |
Nowadays the majority of films made for mobiles are short in length because of_____．
| A．online services | B．the mobile phone |
| C．technology advances | D．the screen size |
What's certain about the future of MoFilm according to the passage?
| A．The number of mobile phone users may contribute to the popularity of MoFilm． |
| B．Audience is not likely to watch longer films on mobile phones in the near future． |
| C．Some mobile companies are on the way to producing mobile films of higher quality． |
| D．Grassroots filmmakers can achieve their career success more easily starting from MoFlim． |
You're in a department store and you see a couple of attractive young women looking at a sweater. You listen to their conversation:
"I can't believe it-a Lorenzo Bertolla! They are almost impossible to find. Isn't it beautiful? And it's a lot cheaper than the one Sara bought in Rome．
They leave and you go over to see this incredible sweater; It's-nice and the price is right．You've never heard of Lorenzo Bertolla, but those girls look really stylish. They must know. So, you buy it. You never realize that those young women are employees of an advertising agency．They are actually paid to go from store to store, talking loudly about Lorenzo BertoHa clothes．
Every day we notice what people are wearing, driving and eating．If the person looks cool, the product seems cool, too．This is the secret of undercover marketing．Companies from Ford to Nike are starting to use it.
Undercover marketing is important because it reaches people that don't pay attention to traditional advertising．This is particularly true of the MTV generation－consumers between the age of 18 and 34．It is a golden group. They have a lot of money to spend, but they don't trust ads．
So advertising agencies hire young actors to "perform" in bars and other places where young adults go．Some people might call this practice misleading, but marketing executive Jonathan Ressler calls it creative．"Look at traditional advertising．Its effectiveness is decreasing．"
However, one might ask what exactly is "real" about young women pretending to be enthusiastic about a sweater? Advertising executives would say it's no less real than an ad．The difference is that you know an ad is trying to persuade you to buy something．You don't know when a conversation you overhear is just a performance．T'he two attractive young women were talking so that they could_____．
| A．get the sweater at a lower price | B．be heard by people around |
| C．be admired by other shoppers | D．decide on buying the sweater |
Lorenzo Bertolla is ______．
| A．a very popular male singer | B．an advertising agency |
| C．a clothing company in Rome | D．the brand name of a sweater |
Which of the following can be inferred from the passage?
| A．The two girls are in fact employed by the Lorenzo Bertolla Company． |
| B．The MTV generation tends to be more easily influenced by ads． |
| C．Traditional advertising is becoming less effective because it's too direct． |
| D．Undercover marketing will surely be banned soon by the government． |
Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
| A．Two Attractive Shoppers | B．Lorenzo Bertolla Sweaters |
| C．Ways of Advertising | D．Undercover Marketing |