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,阅读下面短文,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。
Colorful Drinking Customs in Scandinavia
The peoples of the Scandinavian countries share a lot in common for geographical reasons. But there are more of differences than similarities between them in all ways,including their drinking customs.
A superficial(表面上的)observer might think that no one in Norway drinks wine. Meals eaten in restaurants or at home are usually washed down with tea, coffee or milk. Occasionally however,pale or dark ale(麦牙酒)is drunk. It can be ordered only in restaurants, where it is served only with food.
Excellent quality beers are made in Jutland and consumption is high. After beer, brandy is the favorite drink. Aalborg schnapps made from corn and potatoes, is famous for its high alcoholic content. For the Danes, brandy is also an aperitif(开胃酒) and is often drunk before meals. For a foreigner, the practice of surrounding toasts here can be uncomfortable. If he accepts one toast then he will have to accept all others, and it is difficult to drink six or seven glasses of brandy unless one is used to it. Ladies are fortunately excluded from these rounds and they drink only a grape juice with almost no alcoholic content.
It is milk instead of liquor that is the principal(主要的) Finnish table drink. More milk is drunk by the Finnish people than in any other nation. In Finland the sale of alcohol is a state behavior and a check is kept on consumption by recording purchases on special card issued to all customers.
As there is a difference between Swedish cooking in the south and that in the north because of the difference in soil and climate, their drinking habits are also different. In the north alcoholic beverages(烈酒).
are considered a necessity because they keep out the cold. While in the south people have milder drinks. But generally speaking, too much drinking is rare in Sweden, partly because it is against the law.
Sale of spirits is controlled; the Swedes drink much coffee and tea. Many people still prefer the old-fashioned coffee served in large cups with cakes. Tea is so popular in Sweden that it has been called the Swedish national drink.
41. The passage mentions the following subjects EXCEPT ______.
A. drinking habits B. table manners
C. sales of spirits D. drinking time
42. According to the passage, which of the following is the Swedish national drink?
A. Tea. B. Brandy. C. Aperitif. D. Grape juice.
43. Which of the following people like milk more than other drinks?
A. The German people. B. The American people.
C. The Finish people. D. The French people.
44. It can be inferred that if a foreigner isn’t good at drinking brandy, he ______.
A. would like to invite ladies to have a party
B. is unwilling to have a surrounding toast
C. would like to accept others’ toasts
D. will often drink milk instead of brandy
There are two types of people in the world. Although they have equal degree of health and wealth and other comforts of life, one becomes happy and the other becomes unhappy. This arises from the different ways in which they consider things, persons, events and the resulting effects upon their minds.
People who are to be happy fix their attention on the convenience of things: the pleasant parts of conversation, the well prepared dishes, the goodness of the wine and the fine weather. They enjoy all the cheerful things. Those who are to be unhappy think and speak only of the opposite things. Therefore, they are continually dissatisfied. By their remarks, they sour the pleasure of society, offend(hurt) many people, and make themselves disagreeable everywhere. If this turn of mind was founded in nature, such unhappy persons would be the more to be pitied. The intention of criticizing(批评) and being disliked is perhaps taken up by imitation(模仿). It grows into a habit, unknown to its possessors. The habit may be strong, but it may be cured when those who have it realize its bad effects on their interests and tastes. I hope this little warning may be of service to them, and help them change this habit.
Although in fact it is chiefly an act of the imagination, it has serious results in life since it brings on deep sorrow and bad luck. Those people offend many others; nobody loves them, and no one treats them with more than the most common politeness and respect. This frequently puts them in bad temper and draws them into arguments. If they aim at getting some advantages in social position or fortune, nobody wishes them success. Nor will anyone start a step or speak a word to favor their hopes. If they bring on themselves public objections, no one will defend or excuse them, and many will join to criticize their wrongdoings. These should change this bad habit and be pleased with what is pleasing, without worrying needlessly about themselves and others. If they do not, it will be good for others to avoid any contact(接触) with them. Otherwise, it can be disagreeable and sometimes very inconvenient, especially when one becomes mixed up in their quarrels.
46. People who are unhappy _______.
A. always consider things differently from others
B. usually are affected by the results of certain things
C. usually misunderstand what others think or say
D. always discover the unpleasant side of certain things
47. The phrase “sour the pleasure of society” most nearly means “_______”.
A. have a good taste with social life B. make others unhappy
C. tend so scold others openly D. enjoy the pleasure of life
48. We can conclude from the passage that _______.
A. we should pity all such unhappy people
B. such unhappy people are dangerous to social life
C. people can get rid of the habit of unhappiness
D. unhappy people can not understand happy persons
49. If such unhappy persons insist on keeping the habit, the author suggests that people should _______.
A. prevent any communication with them
B. show no respect and politeness to them
C. persuade them to recognize the bad effects
D. quarrel with them until they realize the mistakes
50. In this passage, the writer mainly _______.
A. describes two types of people
B. laughs at the unhappy people
C. suggests the unhappy people should get rid of the habits of unhappiness
D. tells people how to be happy in life
In the atmosphere, carbon dioxide acts rather like a one-way mirror or the glass in the roof of a greenhouse which allows the sun's rays to enter but prevents the heat from escaping.
According to a weather expert' s prediction, the atmosphere will be 3℃ warmer in the year 2050 than it is today, if man continues to burn fuels at the present rate. If this warming up took place, the ice caps in the poles would begin to melt, thus raising sea level several metres and severely flooding coastal cities. Also, the increase in atmospheric temperature would lead to great changes in the climate of the northern hemisphere (北半球), possibly resulting in an alteration of the earth's chief food growing zones.
In the past, concern about a man-made warming of the earth has concentrated on the Arctic because the Antarctic is much colder and has a much thicker ice sheet. But the weather experts are now paying more attention to West Antarctic, which may be affected by only a few degrees of warming, in other words, by a warming on the scale that will possibly take place in the next fifty years from the burning of fuels.
Satellite pictures show that large areas of Antarctic ice are already disappearing. The evidence available suggests that a warming has taken place. This fits the theory that carbon dioxide warms the earth.
However, most of the fuel is burnt in the northern hemisphere, where temperatures seem to be falling. Scientists conclude , therefore, that up to now natural influences on the weather have gone beyond those caused by man. The question is: Which natural cause has most effect on the weather?
One possibility is the variable behavior of the sun. Astronomers at one research station have studied the hot spots and "cold" spots (that is, the relatively less hot spots) on the sun. As the sun rotates (使旋转), every 27. 5 days, it presents hotter or "colder" faces to the earth, and different aspects to different parts of the earth. This seems to have a considerable effect on the distribution of the earth's atmospheric pressure, and consequently on wind circulation. The sun is also changeable over a long term: its heat output goes up and down in cycles, the latest trend being downward.
Scientists are now finding shared relations between models of solar weather interactions and the actual climate over many thousands of years, including the last Ice Age. The problem is that the models are predicting that the world should be entering a new Ice Age and it is not. One way of solving this theoretical difficulty is to assume a delay of thousands of years while the solar effects overcome the inertia (惯性) of the earth's climate. If this is right, the warming effect of carbon dioxide might thus be serving as a useful opposed balance to the sun's fading heat .
66. It can be concluded that a concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere would_________.
A. mean a warming-up in the Antarctic
B. raise the temperature of the earth' s surface
C. prevent the sun's rays from reaching the earth's surface
D. explain the cause of great changes in the climate in the northern hemisphere
67.The article was written to explain ___________.
A. the greenhouse effect
B. the solar effects on the earth
C. the causes affecting weather
D. the models of solar-weather interactions
68. Although the fuel consumption is greater in the northern hemisphere, temperatures there seem to be falling. This is__________.
A. mainly because the levels of carbon dioxide are rising
B. partly due to changes in the output of solar energy
C. possibly because the ice caps in the poles are melting
D. only due to the effect of the inertia of the earth' s climate
69. On the basis of their models, scientists believe the opinion that__________.
A. the climate of the world should be becoming cooler
B. the new Ice Age will be delayed by the greenhouse effect
C. the man-made warming effect helps to increase the solar effects
D. it will take thousands of years for the inertia of the earth's climate to take effect
70. If the assumption about the delay of a new Ice age is correct, ____________.
A. ice would soon cover the northern hemisphere
B. the greenhouse effect could work in favor of the earth
C. the best way to overcome the cooling effect would be to burn more fuels
D. the increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere could warm up the earth even more quickly
Remember how great exercise was when you were a little kid? Back then, racing around the playground or skipping rope for hours, you weren’t thinking fitness, you were thinking entertainment. But in this age of high-tech home equipment and underused gym memberships, the simple joy of jumping rope has been forgotten, Rediscovering it will give you a total-body exercise you can find.
Although considered an excellent form of exercise, jumping rope has never gained widespread acceptance because of two fundamental reasons. First, most people recognize jumping rope as an excellent form of cardiovascular(心血管的)exercise, but they also believe that it is simply too difficult. In other words, they don’t think they’ll be able to continue jumping for the near 20 minutes that it takes to achieve a beneficial physical outcome. Second, many view it as somewhat boring and overly repetitive not as something fun or enjoyable.
As a matter of fact, jumping rope can be great fun if you find a proper way to practice it. Instead of doing the usual two-foot bounce over and over again, people good at rope-jumping often change their pattern every 10 or 20 jumps. A single bounce, a double-bounce, a skip, a knee-up, side swings, as well as a variety of other easy-to-learn free-style rope-jumping.
Now researchers are learning that jumping rope also prepares the brain for learning. It is an exercise allowing both brain hemispheres to perform in parallel to each other. In short, jumping rope can be a life-long activity requiring little equipment, time and space, yet leading to a much healthier life.
61. From the first paragraph we learn that_________.
A. jumping rope has faded from people’s memories
B. people now have more advanced equipment
C. racing around the playground was preferred
D. people now like to have exercise in a gym
62.Rope jumping has not spread widely because_________.
A. it benefits the cardiovascular system
B. it is neither easy nor enjoyable
C. it is considered boring and repetitive
D. it requires little equipment, time and space
63.The first sentence in the 3rd paragraph implies_________.
A. there is only one proper way to follow
B. the usual way should not be used
C. the easiest way is always the best
D. there are many ways to follow
64.According to the researchers, jumping rope_________.
A. only prepares the brain for learning
B. is suitable for students only
C. helps both brain hemispheres work together
D. can be dangerous for old people
65.What is the author’s attitude towards rope jumping?
A. He is arguing against it
B. He is in favor of it
C. He is sitting on the fence of it
D. He is not clear about it
Since we are social beings, the quality of our lives depends in large measure on our interpersonal relationships .One strength of the human condition is our possibility to give and receive support from one another under stressful conditions .Social support makes up of the exchange of resources among people based on their interpersonal ties .Those of us with strong support systems appear better able to cope with major life changes and daily hassles(困难). People with strong social ties live longer and have better health than those without such ties. Studies over types of illnesses, from depression to heart disease, show that the presence of social support helps people fend off(挡开) illness, and the absence of such support makes poor health more likely.
Social support cushions stress in a number of ways .First, friends, relatives and co-workers may let us know that they value us .Our self-respect is strengthened when we feel accepted by others in spite of our faults and difficulties. Second, other people often provide us with informational support .They help us to define and understand our problems and find solutions to them. Third, we typically find social companionship supportive. Taking part in free-time activities with others helps us to meet our social needs while at the same time distracting (转移注意力)us from our worries and troubles. Finally, other people may give us instrumental support—money aid ,material resources, and needed services—that reduces stress by helping us resolve and cope with our problems.
56. Interpersonal relationships are important because _______.
A. they are indispensable(不可缺少的)to people’s social well-being
B. they awaken people’s desire to exchange resources
C. they help people to cope with life in the information era
D. they can cure a range of illnesses such as heart disease, etc
57. Research shows that people's physical and mental health _______.
A. relies on the social medical care systems which support them
B. has much to do with the amount of support they get from others
C. depends on their ability to deal with daily worries and troubles
D. is closely related to their strength for coping with major changes in their lives
58. Which of the following is closest in meaning to the underlined word “cushions”?
(Line 1, Para 2)
A. adds up to B. does away with
C. lessens the effect of D. lays the foundation for
59. Helping a sick neighbor with some repair work is an example of _______.
A. instrumental support B. informational support
C. social companionship D. the strengthening of self-respect
60. Social companionship is beneficial in that__________.
A. it helps strengthen our ties with relatives
B. it enables us to eliminate our faults and mistakes
C. it makes our leisure-time activities more enjoyable
D. it draws our attention away from our worries and troubles
What caused this strange occurrence? This is a question that had long puzzled people who study fish. The answer turned out to be a combination of wind and storm.
When it is spring in the northern part of the world, it is fall in Australia. Throughout the autumn season, terrible storms arise and rains flood the land. The strong winds sweep over Australia like huge vacuum cleaners, collecting seaweed, pieces of wood, and even schools of fish. Strong winds may carry these bits of nature for many miles before dropping them on fields, houses, and astonished people.
Although they seem unusual, fish-falls occur quite frequently in Australia. When Bill Tapp was asked to describe the scene of fish, he remarked, “They look like millions of dead birds falling down.” His statement is not surprising. The wonders of the natural world are as common as rain. Nature, with its infinite wonders, can create waterfalls that flow upward and fish that fall out of the sky.
56. What is this passage about?
A. A sad story. B. A rain of fish.
C. Australia’s northern part. D. The damage done by floods.
57. Fish-falls occur in Australia_________ .
A. quite often B. on large farms
C. only in winter D. when the air is calm
58. It is a known fact that ________.
A. one should watch where one steps
B. Bill Tapp is a scientist who studies farming
C. the natural world can never create waterfalls that fall upward
D. the seasons in the southern part are different from those in the northern part
59. The word “infinite” is closest in meaning to _________.
A. easy B. difficult C. countless D. dangerous