Michael Jackson, the American pop legend, died of a cardiac arrest(心脏骤停) in a Los Angeles hospital last night, just weeks before he hoped to resurrect(复活) his four-decade long career with a series of sold-out shows in London. The pop superstar was taken to the University of California at Los Angeles medical centre last night, and doctors tried resuscitation（使苏醒，使复活） in the ambulance. He did not regain consciousness and was reported dead about three hours later.
"My brother, the legendary King of Pop, passed away on Thursday 25 June at 2.26pm," his brother Jermaine said, "We believe he suffered a cardiac arrest at his home, however the cause of his death is unknown until the results of the autopsy(验尸) are known. The personal physician who was with him at the time attempted to resuscitated him."
A spokesman for the UCLA medical centre said, "When he arrived at hospital at approximately 1.14pm, a team of doctors attempted to resuscitate him for a period of more than one hour, they were unsuccessful." Police said they were investigating, which is standard procedure in such cases.
Jackson's death brought a tragic end to a long decline from his peak in the 1980s when he was music's greatest all-around performer, a uniter of black and white music who shattered the race barrier on MTV. His 1982 album Thriller, which included the blockbuster hits Beat It, Billie Jean and Thriller is still the best-selling album of all time, with an estimated 50m copies sold worldwide.
The world famous entertainer had planned a series of 50 concerts in London from 12 July. Although in the last two decades his reputation was destroyed by charges of child molestation(骚扰) and his fantastic public behavior, all tickets were sold within hours, proving the King of Pop had enduring appeal.
49. Where did Michael Jackson die?
A. At home in Los Angeles. B. In a Los Angeles hospital.
C. On the stage in London. D. In an ambulance to hospital.
50. What caused Michael Jackson to die according to Jermaine?
A. Heart disease. B. It’s unknown before the results of the autopsy.
C. Working too hard. D. His personal physician’s improper treatment.
51. Why were the police involved in investigating the death of Michael Jackson?
A. Because they believed he was murdered.
B. Because it was standard procedure in such cases.
C. Because Michael Jackson died suddenly.
D. Because his brother was suspicious of the truth of his death.
52. It can be inferred that Michael Jackson was ___________.
A. a King of Pop with good reputation.
B. a King of Pop still playing on the stage before death.
C. indeed a bad man with fantastic public behavior.
D. a popular King of Pop in spite of ill fame.
Free and secure accommodation, no bills and even the odd home-cooked meal. It sounds like the perfect living arrangement for cash-strapped students.
Two mothers believe they have devised（提出） a way for struggling students to save on accommodation costs when they leave home to study at university.
Kate Barnham and Amanda Flude have launched Student Swaps, an online accommodation forum（论坛） for parents and students, in advance of the introduction in September of ￡3,000 higher education top-up fees.
Their website says, “The principle behind Student Swaps is to enable students to literally swap (交换) family homes.” The website will hold a database of students who would like to swap and link them with suitable matches. So those from one town / city could swap with those from a different town / city.
The site describes itself as offering a “cost-free accommodation alternative… at a time of growing student debt”. There is no charge for the service at the moment but Ms Barnham and Ms Flude intend to introduce a ￡10 annual fee if it becomes established.
However, the National Union of Students (NUS) has warned that, while the scheme may sound appealing to struggling freshers, it lacks any formal regulation.
Veronica King, NUS vice-president of welfare, said, “The fact that this scheme has even been suggested is evidence to the high levels of debt students now face on graduation.” Recent research has shown that students are more likely to live at home in coming years, in a bid to cut down on the cost of a degree.
“This is worrying, as it may mean that students choose their university on the basis of where it is, rather than because it offers the best course for them. It also means students will miss out on what is for some a key part of the student experience-living away from home.”
1. A “cash-strapped” student means one who __________.
A. lacks money B. prefers to stay at home
C. is careful with money D. wants to change cash
2. What is Kate Barnham and Amanda Flude’s purpose of launching Student Swaps?
A. To provide cheaper accommodation for students.
B. To let students stay close to their universities.
C. To help students spend less on accommodation costs.
D. To let students exchange ideas freely online.
3. What can students do on Student Swaps?
A. They can find students to exchange homes with.
B. They can make friends with students from a different city.
C. They can borrow money to pay for their higher education.
D. They can voice their opinions against the rising cost of a degree.
4. Now many students would prefer a university _________.
A. which can give them free accommodation B. which is not far away from their homes
C. which offers the best courses D. which can offer home-cooked meals45. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. High Cost Troubles University Students in UK.
B. Students Swaps is Welcomed by Students in UK.
C. Two Mothers’ Good Intention to Help Students in UK.
D. Website Helps Students Live at Someone Else’s Home.
第三部分阅读 (共两节，满分40分)
第一节：阅读理解(共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分)
Since weeks ago, China has been involved a worldwide A／H 1 N 1 flu that has already killed more than 80 people in the middle of May, 2009 in Mexico and has turned into a global pandemic．
The central government has asked people entering China from the virus-hit countries to report flu-like symptoms to the authorities. In an emergency notice issued on Saturday night，the country’s top quality watchdog ordered the Customs to check passengers’ temperature, too．
A Beijing airport official Li said Customs officers are on a high alert level.
“Three temperature detectors are now in operation. We’re ready with protection garments and equipment, too. Passengers flying in from Mexico and other A／H1N1 flu-hit countries are being monitored closely, ”he said．
The Ministry of Health, however, said yesterday there was no evidence to suggest that a person would contract the disease by eating pork．
Hong Kong, too, has raised its alert level against the flu to “serious”. Secretary for Food &Health，Mr.York Chow urged people to avoid visiting places from where A／H1N1 flu cases have been reported, and said the virus would be added to Hong Kong’s list of the diseases which have been noticed．
The terrible A／H1 N1 flu has been contracted by about 4000 people in Mexico, and most of the killed were aged between 25 and 45．
The virus has also infected about 5000 people in the US．The US Center for Disease Control said this kind of virus is spreading from human to human，raising fears of a global pandemic．
1．What is the passage mainly about?
A．A／H1N1 flu killed more than 80 people．
B．A／H1N1 flu is spreading from human to human．
C．China has begun to take steps to prevent A／H1N1 flu．
D．All the people are strongly affected by A／H1 N1 flu．
2．The underlined word “pandemic” in the first paragraph probably means
A．death B．panic C．enemy D．disease
3．Why does the flu cause global fears?
A．Because most people in the world eat pork．
B．Because it’s spreading from human to human．
C．Because we still don’t know the cause of it．
D．Because it has infected about 5000 people．
4．According to the passage，which of the following is TRUE?
A．People would contract the A／H1N1 flu if they often eat pork．
B．The virus of the A／H1N1 flu has infected people all over the world．
C．People from A／H1N1 flu—hit countries are all forbidden to enter China．
D．People should avoid visiting places where A／H1N1 flu cases have been reported．
5. We can infer from the passage that .
A. College students are most likely infected by A/H1N1 flu.
B. A person would be infected by the virus by eating pork.
C. Passengers from the United States are being monitored closely.
D. Mr. York Chow said that the virus had been added to Hong Kong’s list of the diseases.
Would you eat a ready meal from the fridge rather than cook? Have you been doing internet shopping rather than going to the stores? What can’t you be bothered to do?
A study into how lazy British people are has found more than half of adults are so idle（闲散的）they’d catch the lift rather than climb two flights of stairs.
Just over 2,000 people were quizzed by independent researchers at Nuffield Health, Britain’s largest health charity. The results were shocking. About one in six people surveyed said if their remote control (遥控器)was broken, they would continue watching the same channel rather than get up. More than one third of those questioned said they would not run to catch a bus. Worryingly, of the 654 questioned people with children, 64% said they were often too tired to play with them. This led the report to conclude that it’s no wonder that one in six children in the UK are classifted as obese（肥胖）before they start school.
Dr Sarah Dauncey, medical director of Nuffield Health, said: “People need to get fitter, not just for their own sake, but for the sake of their families， too. If we don’t start to take control of this problem, a whole generation will become too unfit to perform even the simplest tasks.”
And Scotland’s largest city, Glasgow, was shamed as the laziest city in the UK, with 75% surveyed admitting they do not get enough exercise, followed closely by Birmingham and Southampton, both with 67%.
The results pose serious challenges for the National Health Service, where obesity-related illnesses such as heart disease and cancer have been on a steady increase for the past 40 years and are costing billions of pounds every year.
1. According to the researchers at Nuffield Health, about ________ people who were surveyed would not run to catch a bus.
A. 10 B. 150 C. 330 D. 660
2. One in six children in the UK are classified as obese before they start school because ________.
A. they stay too long a time with their pets
B. they spend too much time watching TV
C. their parents don’t play with them much
D. they suffer from obesity-related illnesses
3. ________ is the second laziest city in the UK.
A. Scotland B. Glasgow C. Birmingham D. Nuffield
4. What’s the writer trying to tell us?
A. Parents have much to do with their children’s obesity-related illnesses.
B. British people are getting lazier, which can cause serious social problems.
C. The National Health Service has to face a lot of serious challenges every year.
D. A study into how lazy British people are has been carried out at Nuffield Health.
As I was reading a recent story in Slate on 20-somethings complaining about how the economy was ruining their life plans, I couldn’t help but think the 20-somethings sounded like a bunch of spoiled children who grew up expecting everything to be easy for them. As a 20-something myself, I certainly share their disappointment: my husband and I probably won’t be able to buy a house until we’re in our 40s, and we too are burdened by student loans(贷款). But why should it be any different? Being young persons in America, shouldn’t they take up all of the challenges and opportunities that this country offers?
Consider some of these views shared in the Slate story: Jennifer, 29, owner of a two-bedroom apartment with her husband, worries that she won’t be able to have children for at least a decade because they can’t afford to buy a house yet.
I read that, and I thought, what planet is she living on where you need to own a house in order to have kids? Has she ever visited a developing country? Home ownership is a luxury(奢华), not a fertility requirement.
A 26-year-old in the story despairs(绝望) that he can’t afford to get a Ph.D. in literature. Well, that sounds a bit like expressing disappointment that no one will pay you to write poetry on the beach in Thailand for five years.
Yes, it’s sad that these young people feel so lost. But I think the problem is their extremely high expectations, not economic reality. Beth Kobliner, author of Get a Financial Life: Personal Finance in Your Twenties and Thirties, says that she thinks people’s expectations are slowly adjusting, but today’s 20-somethings grew up at a time when everyone’s wealth appeared to be expanding.
It seems a lot better for our mental health to focus on being grateful－for our one-bedroom apartments, for living in modern cities, or perhaps just for being able to eat three meals a day－than on longing for some kind of luxury life.
1．What makes the author think the 20-somethings sound like a bunch of spoiled children?
A．They expect everything to be easy for them.
B．They complain that the economy is spoiling their life plans.
C．They are reluctant（不情愿的） to face all of the challenges.
D．They are burdened by student loans.
2．The underlined word “fertility” in Paragraph 3 probably means .
A．baby production B．pleasant
C．baby comfort D．essential
3．Which of the following is NOT one of the complaints of the 20-somethings?
A．They can’t have children for at least a decade to buy a house.
B．They have only one-bedroom apartment to live in.
C．They can’t buy a house until 40 because of student loans.
D．They despair at not being able to afford a Ph.D. in literature.
4．What is the author’s purpose of writing this passage?
A．To tell us what the author’s attitude towards the 20 – somethings.
B．To explain why young people can’t afford to buy a house.
C．To suggest what we should do when young people’s high hopes create despair.
D．To explain what the 20 – something’s high expectations are.
Every day, life is made and lost. Every day, life goes on. Every day we experience some of the most important parts of life and may not even realize it: love, generosity, and perseverance. These values aren’t just important to us; they make the world what it is.
Scientists say that gravitaional(重力的)force makes the world turn, but some people say that love makes it go round. Love can be found anywhere: in families, friends, even complete strangers. Even if you can’t see it, you know it’s there.
Love may connect people all over the world, but what would the world be without generosity? Whether after a national disaster, or a school fund-raiser, one thing is certain----it is better to give than to receive. Generosity is found everywhere and whether it’s a large or small act, it makes a difference. Sometimes, though, it takes effort to be generous, which leads us to perseverance.
Founding a country, riding a bike, or finishing an essay, these are all finished with perseverance. Perseverance is the one thing that can help us achieve whatever we want. It is what helps scientists to discover cures for diseases, and athletes to become champions.
There is an infinite(无穷的) number of things we value, but without love, generosity and perseverance, we just don’t think that our life or the world would be the way it is.
1. The underlined word “it” in the second paragraph refers to “________”.
A. the world B. gravitational force
C. value D. experience
2. To be generous, the author thinks________.
A. you needn’t make efforts B. you should be qualified
C. you should give all you have D. you will find it good to give
3. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A. Perseverance is the only thing that can halp us to achieve success.
B. People don’t understand the life they are experiencing at all.
C. We can find love in complete strangers sometimes.
D. What the world is like depends on gravity and love.
4. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. Success and Failure B. Three Values
C. Endless Love D. Life Full of Hope