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中(A、B、C和 D)中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Many Chinese students who have learnt English for more than ten years are still unable to speak English very well when they meet a foreigner. They seem to have mastered the basic language structure (结构), but a conversation in English will make them feel uneasy. They are afraid that other people might find out their mistakes.
It’s uncommon that many students who are bad speakers of English can write English perfectly. This proves that they are unable to organize their idea in English. The center of the problem is that they lack practice and confidence.
Why should you be afraid? Do you fear those foreigners with whom you are speaking? Don’t be shy. They will not laugh at you just for a little mistake you make. The best way to get rid of trouble is to learn to speak by speaking more. I am sure that constant practice will help you succeed.
56. What’s the best topic for the passage?
A. How to Speak to Foreigners
B. How to Study English Well
C. How to Organize the Idea in English
D. Practise Speaking English All the Time
57. Many Chinese students can write English very well, but they cannot speak English fluently because ______.
A. they seldom meet foreigners
B. they seldom practise speaking English
C. they had no chance to speak English
D. they think it’s enough to master the basic language structure only
58. So many Chinese students are afraid to speak to foreigners because______.
A. they are afraid they can’t understand foreigners
B. they don’t think their English is poor
C. they worry about making mistakes in their speaking
D. they didn’t like speaking to foreigners
59. According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true?
A. We can speak English fluently by doing more speaking.
B. If you can write English perfectly, you are able to organize your idea in English.
C. If you can write good English composition, you can speak English very well.
D. Many Chinese students can’t speak English fluently because they are afraid of making mistakes.
60. In the last paragraph, the expression “get rid of” means _______.
A. throw away B. free oneself from
C. give up D. do with
Surtsey was born in 1963.Scientists saw the birth of this island. It began at 7.30 a.m. on 14th November. A fishing boat was near Iceland. The boat moved under the captain's（船长）feet. He noti
ced a strange smell. He saw some black smoke. A volcano（火山）was breaking out. Red-hot rocks, fire and smoke were rushing up from the bottom（底部）of the sea. The island grew quickly. It was 10 meters high the next day and 60 meters high on 18th November.
Scientists flew there to watch. It was exciting. Smoke and fire were still rushing up. Pieces of red-hot rock were flying into the air and falling into the sea. The sea was boiling and there was a strange light in the sky. Surtsey grew and grew. Then it stopped in June 1967.It was 175 meters high and 2 kilometers long. And life was already coming to Surtsey. Plants grew. Birds came. Some scientists built a house. They want to learn about this young island. A new island is like a new world.Surtsey is ______.
| A．an island not far from Iceland | B．a new volcano |
| C．a fishing boat | D．a place in Iceland |
When did scientist fly there to watch?
| A．Before the volcano broke out. | B．As soon as the volcano broke out. |
| C．About four days after the volcano broke out. | |
| D．After the volcano stopped rushing up. |
Put the following sentences in correct order.
a. The captain found the boat was moving. b. A new island appeared in the sea.
c. Fire, smoke and rocks were seen rushing up. d. A fishing boat was near Iceland.
e. The island grew quickly.
| A．d-a-c-b-e | B．a-b-c-d-e | C．a-b-e-c-d | D．b-e-d-a-c |
When was Surtsey born?
| A．1964 | B．1963 | C．1962 | D．1965 |
Scientists are trying to make the deserts into good land again. They want to bring water to the deserts， so people can live and grow food. They are learning a lot about the deserts. But more and more of the earth is becoming desert all the time. Scientists may not be able to change the desert in time.
Why is more and more land becoming desert？ Scientists think that people make deserts. People are doing bad things to the earth.
Some places on the earth don’t get much rain. But they still don’t become deserts. This is because some green plants are growing there. Small green plants and grass are very important to dry places. Plants don’t let the sun make the earth even drier. Plants do not let the wind blow(吹) the dirt away. When a bit of rain falls， the plants hold the water. Without plants， the land can become desert more easily. Deserts ________.
| A．never have any plants or animals in them |
| B．can all be turned into good land before long |
| C．are becoming smaller and smaller |
| D．get very little rain |
Smallgreenplantsareveryimportanttodryplaces because __________.
| A．they don’t let the sun make the earth even drier |
| B．they don’t let the wind blow the soil away |
| C．they hold water |
| D．All of the above. |
After reading this passage, we learn that __________.
| A．plants can keep dry land from becoming desert |
| B．it is good to get rid of the grass in the deserts |
| C．all places without much rain will become deserts |
| D．it is better to grow crops on dry land than to cut them |
Bill Javis took over our village news-agency at a time of life when most of us only want to relax. He just thought he would like something but not too much to do, and the news-agency was ready-made. The business produced little enough for him, but Bill was a man who only wanted the simplicity (简单)and order (秩序) and regularity (规律) of the job. He had been a long-serving sailor, and all his life had done everything by the clock.
Every day he opened his shop at six a.m. to catch the early trade (买卖); the papers arrived on his door-step before that. Many of Bill’s customers were city workers, and the shop was convenient for the station（邮局）. Business was tailing off by 10 o’clock, so at eleven sharp Bill closed for lunch. It was hard luck on anybody who wanted a paper or magazine in the afternoon, for most likely Bill would be down on the river bank, fishing, and his nearest competitor was five kilometers away. Sometime in the afternoon, the evening paper landed on the doormat, and at 4 o’clock Bill reopened. The evening rush lasted till seven, and it was worthwhile.
He lived in a flat above the shop, alone. Except in the very bad weather, you always knew where to find him in the afternoon, as I have said. Once, on a sunny afternoon, I walked home along the river bank from a shopping trip to the village. By my watch it was three minutes past four, so I was astonished to see Bill sitting there on his little chair with a line in the water. He had had no luck, I could see, but he was making no effort to move.
“What’s wrong, Bill?” I called out from the path.
For answer, he put a hand in his jacket and took out a big, golden object. For a moment I had no ide
a what it could be, and then it suddenly went off with a noise like a fire engine. Stopping the bell, Bill held the thing up and called back, “Ten to four, you see, and this is dead right.” I had never known anyone carrying a brass alarm clock (闹表) round with him before.Bill opened the shop so early in the day because _______．
| A．he liked to do as much as possible before he went to work |
| B．the shop had to be open when the morning papers came |
C．he was never sure of  the time |
| D．it was then that he did a lot of business |
You might say “hard luck” to someone who _______．
| A．has just heard some very good news |
| B．is less fortunate than he or she ought to be |
| C．puts great effort into whatever he or she tries |
| D．fails through his or her own fault entirely |
On that sunny afternoon, the writer was surprised when he saw Bill because _______．
| A．he thought it was late for Bill to be still fishing |
| B．he thought Bill was ill, since he was not moving at all |
| C．Bill had not caught anything, and that seemed strange |
| D．Bill stayed in his flat |
From the information given in the passage, who or what do you think was wrong?
| A．The bell was; it must have gone off at the wrong time. |
| B．Bill was; he had dropped off to sleep. |
| C．The writer’s watch was fast. |
D．Bill’s clock was wrong; it was very old. |
Animals seem to have the sense (本能) to eat when they are hungry and they do not eat more than their bodies need．It has been demonstrated that rats will, when given a choice over a period of time, prefer water with vitamins to water without vitamins even though there is no difference in taste or smell between the two water bottles. When a fragrant（香的） flavor (味道) was added to the vitamin-enriched water, the rats did seem to prefer it and kept drinking it ,even after the vitamins were switched to the clear water．In time, however, they broke the habit and went back to where the necessary vitamins were．
In a classic experiment, babies of 6 to 12 months old were placed in a cafeteria（自助） feeding arrangement, with a wide selection of baby food before them．They were given whatever food they pointed to or appeared interested in．We are told that at first they showed some unusual eating patterns, but that over a period of time they managed to select well-balanced diet．
So, in selecting food, rats and babies do seem to know and act on what's best for them．Apparently, there is a kind of “body wisdom”, which humans soon lose. Most of us do not eat as wisely as we could．Many of our food preferences are culturally determined and influenced by long-established（长期养成的）habits．Some people eat foxes, dogs and blackbirds, while we eat cows and pigs．So what people eat and how much they eat seems to be greatly influenced by what is going on around them．
53．The expression “the habit” in paragraph 1 refers to drinking water which _______．
A. has no smell B. is tasteless C. has vitamins D. is flavored (有味道的) According to the passage, adults eating habits differ from those of babies because _______．
| A．adults know better than babies what kind of food are good for their health |
| B．adults usually cannot resist (抵制) the temptation (诱惑) of various delicious foods |
| C．adults' eating habits are closely related to the social and cultural customs |
| D．adults have more choices of food than babies in eating patterns |
The author implied in the passage that most of us _______．
| A．eat a balanced diet |
| B．choose the food that is of nutrition |
| C．have the habits influenced by the surroundings |
| D．like to eat the food with a fragrant flavor． |
As far as their eating habits are concerned, babies and rats are similar in that _______．
| A．both have the wisdom to choose a balanced diet |
| B．both prefer flavored food and drink |
| C．both have the same eating patterns |
| D．both develop a taste for the same kinds of flavors |
Over many years, there has been an increase in the population of towns in many countries, as millions of people have moved from the villages in search of better jobs and facilities (设施), in the hope of getting a higher standard of living. This development has led to huge expansions of towns both upwards into the sky and outwards into the surrounding countryside. In spite of all the efforts of governments and private businesses, many areas still suffer from a serious shortage of housing.
Now, a new idea has been put forward which will utilize (利用 vt.) areas which have no other obvious commercial potential (商业潜能). These are the ponds, small lakes, disused docks (码头), and other areas of water, many of which can be found near, or even in the suburbs (郊区) of big towns.
A new style of construction has been designed which will provide a house for less than half the cost of the normal building. The main saving is, of course, the land, because the new houses will float on water. There will be no need for foundations; instead the house will be built on a frame (框架) made of steel which is expected to cost about ￡5,000. Above this the builders will make a house with two, three, or four bedrooms and all the usual modern conveniences, as well as a roof garden. Each house will be joined to the main services supplying water, g
as, and electricity and they will have a vacuum sewage disposal (真空污水处理) system. All the servic
e links will have enough flexibility (灵活性) to allow for small differences in the water level caused by wet a
nd dry periods of weather.
The first houses to be built are expected to cost between ￡20,000 and ￡30,000 according to size and it is already clear that there is a very good potential market for the new system. As the cost is comparatively low, young people and common citizens would like to buy. So many people have moved into towns because _______．
| A．they enjoy the facilities |
| B．they expect to live a better life |
| C．they expect to get better jobs |
| D．there is a shortage of jobs in villages |
What is the main advantage of the new idea?
| A．It will help relieve（缓解）the housing shortage. |
| B．It will utilize disused areas of water. |
| C．It will provide jobs. |
| D．It will help the suburbs. |
The new houses will be built on_______．
| A．waterside areas | B．a stone foundation |
| C．lakes and rivers | D．a steel frame |
The price of the new houses will _______．
| A．encourage private and government builders |
| B．attract ordinary people in the towns to buy |
| C．vary in different areas according to the policy |
| D．help the housing market in the countryside |