A boy and his father were walking in the mountains. Suddenly the boy fell, hurt himself, and cried, “AAAhhhhhhhh!!!” To his surprise, he heard the voice repeating, somewhere in the mountain, “AAAhhhhhhhh!!!” Then the boy cried again, “Who are you?” He received the answer “Who are you?” He thought someone else in the mountain was making fun of him, so he got angry and shouted “Foolish!” He received the answer “Foolish!”
He looked at his father and asked, “What’s going on?” The father smiled and said, “My son, listen.” And then he shouted to the mountain, “I love you!” The voice answered, “I love you!” Again the man cried, “You’re the best!” The voice answered, “You’re the best!”
The boy was surprised, but did not understand. Then the father explained, “People call this ‘Echo’, but really this is life. It gives you back everything you say or do. Our life is just a reflection(反映)of what we have done. If you want more love in the world, have more love in your heart. If you want to be successful, work hard. This can be used in everything in life. Life will give you back everything you have given to it.”
1. At first the boy cried because __________.
A. he fell and hurt himself B. he wanted to give himself a surprise
C. he got angry with his father D. he hoped his father would help him
2. When the boy heard the voice repeating, he thought __________.
A. it was foolish to hear other’s voice
B. someone else in the mountain liked his voice
C. he was laughed at by someone else in the mountain
D. there were many people in the mountain
3. The word “Echo” means __________.
A. life itself B. repeating voice C. love in the world D. everything in life
4. We can infer from the story that __________.
A. the boy didn’t like his father at all B. the boy did not understand what his father said
C. people will get everything back D. the father had his own way to teach his son
The quality of drinking water in Shanghai will meet European Union standard by 2010 and, a decade later, citizens in Shanghai will drink the best water in the world.
These were the goals set out by the Shanghai Water Authority. With the city’s population expected to increase only slightly and the economy to boom by 2020, Chen Yin, and official with the water authority, said Shanghai’s water consumption will not increase from its present amount.
Zhang Yue, director of the Urban Construction Division under the Ministry of Construction, said, “Shanghai is the first city in the country to publicize these ambitions. They will not be easy to achieve.”
He said water saving will help keep the sustainable development of China’s economy.
Saving one cubic meter of water means saving the city’s infrastructure(基础设施)costs by 10,000 Yuan. Last year, Shanghai saved 300 million cubic meters of water either from readjustment of industrial structure or the employment of new technology.
“The aim is to arouse public awareness of the seriousness of water shortages,” Chen said. “The abundant surface water and amount of rain of the city are so misleading that they result in improper use of water.”
Shanghai lacks drinkable water. The Huangpu River, which supplies 80 percent of the city’s drinkable water, is nearing exhaustion.
The city, therefore, has been exploring new sources from the Yangtze River and growing forests along it to conserve quality water.
Besides penning regulations, the authority is popularizing technology among the public to efficiently cut the amount of water used.
At present, the city has 600,000 family toilets, each using 13 liters of water per flush. These are to be renovated(整修)to use only 9 liters of water per flush.
The authority is renovating the first 200 toilets for households – at a cost of 40 Yuan each.
In three years, all the toilets will be renovated, which saves the city nearly 15 million Yuan every year in water conservation.
Another task the city is engaged in is the treatment of sewage(污水)to improve the water environment.
At present the city can only treat 44 percent of its daily 5.04 million tons of waste water. To meet the total demand, 27 more sewage treatment factories are to be established with an estimated investment of 18 billion Yuan.
1.People in Shanghai get their daily water mainly from _______now.
A.the underground B.the rain
C.the Yangtze River D.the Huangpu River
2.According to the passage, some people have the wrong opinion of using water because .
A.the renovating of family toilets will save plenty of water
B.about half of waste water has been treated already
C.advanced technology makes people use water as much as possible
D.there is plenty surface water and large amount of rain at present
3.The authority is renovating the first 200 toilets for households to.
A.make people’s living more convenient
B.improve people’s living standards
C.ease employment pressure
D.meet the total demand of water
4.Which group of measures are all mentioned in the passage to save water?
a.improve drinking water quality
b.change some industrial structure
c.introduce or use some new technology
d.speed the economic development of Shanghai
e.renovate some family toilets
f.build more sewage treatment factories
A.a, b, c, d B.b, c, e, f
C.b, c, d, e D.a, b, e, f
5.We can infer from the passage that .
A.the boom of economy will need a larger amount of water in the future
B.citizens today in Shanghai drink the best quality of water in the world
C.not everyone today in Shanghai is aware of water shortage
D.all the family toilets will be renovated to save water within 3 years
People with disabilities make up a large part of the population. It is estimated that over 35 million Americans have physical, mental, or other disabilities. About half of these disabilities are “developmental", i.e., they occur before the individual's twenty-second birthday, often from genetic conditions, and are severe enough to affect three or more areas of development, such as mobility, communication, employment, etc. Most other disabilities are considered “adventitious", i.e., accidental or caused by outside forces.
Prior to the 20th century, only a small percentage of people with disabilities survived for long. Medical treatment for these disabilities was unavailable. Advancements in medicine and social services have created a climate in which people with disabilities can expect to have such basic needs as food, shelter, and medical treatment. Unfortunately, these basics are often not available. Civil liberties such as the right to vote, marry, get an education, and gain employment have historically been denied on the basis of disability.
In recent decades, the disability rights movement has been organized to fight against these infringements(违反;侵犯)of civil rights. Congress responded by passing major legislation recognizing people with disabilities as a protected class under civil rights statutes.
Still today, people with disabilities must fight to live their lives independently. It is estimated that more than half of qualified Americans with disabilities are unemployed, and a majority of those who do work are underemployed. About two-thirds live at or below the official poverty level.
Significant barriers, especially in transportation and public awareness, prevent disabled people from taking part in society. For example, while no longer prohibited by law from marrying, a person with no access to transportation is effectively excluded from community and social activities which might lead to the development of long-term relationships.
Only when public attitudes advance as far as laws have will disabled people be fully able to take their rightful place in society.
36. A “developmental" disability ______.
A. develops very slowly over time
B. is caused by forces
C. occurs in youth and affects development
D. is getting more and more severe
37.Most disabled people used to die early because ______.
A. disabilities destroyed major bodily functions
B. they were not very well looked after
C. medical techniques were not available
D. they were too poor to get proper treatment
38. In the author's opinion, to enable the disabled people to take their rightful place in society, ______.
A.more laws should be passed
B.public attitudes should be changed
C.government should provide more aids
D.more public facilities should be set up
39. Which of the following cannot be inferred(推断)from the passage ?
A.Many disabled people may remain single for their whole life.
B.The public tends to look down upon the disabled people.
C.The disabled people feel inferior to those surrounding them.
D. Discriminatory laws prevent the disabled from mixing with others.
40. The best title for this passage might be ______.
A.Handicaps(不利条件;障碍;)of People with Disabilities
B.The physical difficulties of the Disabled
C.The Causes for Disabilities
D.Medical Treatments for Disabilities
III. 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A、B、C和D项中,选出最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Few laws are so effective that you can see results just days after they take effect. But in the nine days since the federal cigarette tax more than doubled----to $1.01 per pack---smokers have jammed telephone ‘quit lines’ across the country seeking to kick the habit.
This is not a surprise to public health advocates. They’ve studied the effect of state tax increases for years, finding that smokers, especially teens, are price sensitive. Nor is it a shock to the industry, which fiercely fights every tax increase.
The only wonder is that so many states insist on closing their ears to the message. Tobacco taxes improve public health, they raise money and most particularly, they deter people from taking up the habit as teens, which is when nearly all smokers are addicted. Yet the rate of taxation varies widely.
In Manhattan, for instance, which has the highest tax in the nation, a pack of Marlboro Light Kings cost $10.06 at one drugstore Wednesday. In Charleston, S.C., where the 7-cent-a-pack tax is the lowest in the nation, the price was $4.78.
The influence is obvious.
In New York, high school smoking hit a new low in the latest surveys----13.8%, far below the national average. By comparison, 26 % of high school students smoke in Kentucky, Other low-tax states have similarly depressing teen-smoking records.
Hal Rogers, Representative from Kentucky, like those who are against high tobacco taxes, argues that the burden of the tax falls on low-income Americans “who choose to smoke.”
That’s true. But there is more reason in keeping future generations of low-income workers from getting hooked in the first place. As for today’s adults, if the new tax drives them to quit, they will have more to spend on their families, cut their risk of cancer and heart disease and feel better.
1. The text is mainly about___________.
A the price of cigarettes
B the rate of teen smoking
C the effect of tobacco tax increase
D the differences in tobacco tax rate
2. What does the author think is a surprise?
A Teen smokers are price sensitive.
B Some states still keep the tobacco tax low.
C Tobacco taxes improve public health.
D Tobacco industry fiercely fights the tax rise.
3. The underlined word "deter" in Paragraph 3 most probably means .
A. discourage B. remove C. benefit D. free
4. Rogers’ attitude towards the low-income smokers might be that of .
A. tolerance B. unconcern C. doubt D. sympathy
5. What can we learn from the last paragraph?
A. The new tax will be beneficial in the long run.
B. Low-income Americans are more likely to fall ill.
C. Future generations will be hooked on smoking.
D. Adults will depend more on their families.
第三部分阅读理解(共15小题;每小题2分,满分30分)
阅读下面短文,从每题所给的A、B、C和D项中,选出最佳选项。
August has always been difficult for me. It is the time when I realize that the books my English teacher assigned to me are not going to read themselves and that I have a difficult month in front of me.
You might think that I don’t want to spend my summer reading, but that’s not the problem: I love reading. On the first day of my summer holidays this year, I went to the library and got “A Gathering of Old Men” by African-American writer Ernest Gaines. I enjoyed it very much. I read all the magazines that my parents subscribe to and spend about 30 minutes every day with the morning paper. So why do I hate summer reading for school? Because the books on summer reading lists are often slow-going and just uninviting. Teachers and librarians don’t understand that summer reading can be entertaining as well as educational. They choose books that a friend of my mother’s calls “spinach books”: good for you, but not much fun to take in. Every summer, I read them, hate them and get bitter about the experience.
This bitterness started three years ago when I was about to begin high school. As preparation, my English teacher told me to read “The Age of Innocence” by American author Edith Wharton. I’m sure there are many people who enjoyed “The Age of Innocence”—some might even say it’s their favorite book.
But I don’t think any of these people read it as a 14-year-old boy on his summer vacation.
“The Age of Innocence” is the story of a forbidden romance in New York 100 years ago. At 14, my only experience with romance was my love for baseball. I couldn’t imagine being in love, much less being in love in 1900. “The Age of Innocence” was totally different to my life.
Most of my required summer reading has been like that—books written in a style that plays up the adjectives and plays down the verbs. I guess teachers don’t think exciting plots make for “good literature”. To me, though, a good writer describes events and characters in a way that makes the reader want to know what happens next.
If I were making up a summer reading list, it would include “The Friends of Eddie Coyle” by George V. Higgins, “The Right Stuff” by Tom Wolfe, and “Into Thin Air” by Jon Krakauer. These are all books that have literary value but, just as important, can also entertain kids on vacation. If the teachers could stand a little fun in the books they assign, my Augusts would be a lot more enjoyable.
46. The author thinks he will have a difficult August because _______.
A. he doesn’t like reading in summer vacation
B. he hates the English teacher assigning homework
C. he is to read the books boring and not right for kids
D. he hates August
47. What can make students interested in August reading ought to be ______.
A. romantic B. out of date C. pure D. entertaining and educational
48. The author listed such books as “The Friends of Eddie Coyle” because he thinks ______.
A. they can change his opinion B. he can learn a lot more from them
C. they are of literary value, and enjoyable D. he has to do as teachers tell him to
49. In the opinion of the author of this passage, a good writer should be one who _______.
A. uses a way of describing that makes the reader wish to know what to happen next
B. describes events and characters in different ways
C. is learned
D. is full of imagination
50. Which of the following could be the best title of this passage?
A. I Don’t Like Reading on the Vacation
B. Why Can’t Teachers Set Us Fun Books?
C. Teachers, Don’t Set Us Any Reading Assignments
D. Teachers, Set Us Free
Economics has long been known as an unpleasant science. But is any economist so dull as to criticize Christmas? At first glance, the holiday season in western economies seems a treat for those who are concerned with such things as GDP growth. After all, everyone is spending; in America, sellers make 25 % of their yearly sales and 60 % of their profits between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Even so, economists find something to worry about in the nature of the purchases being made.
Much of the holiday spending is on gifts for others. At the simplest level, giving gifts involves the giver's thinking of something that the receiver would like — he tries to guess her preferences, as economists say — and then buying the gift and delivering it. Yet this guessing of preferences is often done badly. Every year, ties go unworn and books unread. And even if a gift is enjoyed, it may not be what the receiver would have bought if they had spent the money themselves.
Interested in this mismatch between wants and gifts, in 1993 Joel Waldfogel, then an economist at Yale University, attempted to estimate the disparity(差距) in dollar terms. He asked students two questions at the end of a holiday season: first, estimate the total amount paid (by the givers) for all the holiday gifts you received; second, apart from the emotional value of the items, if you did not have them, how much would you be willing to pay to get them? His results were unpleasant: on average, a gift was valued by the receiver well below the price paid by the giver.
The most conservative(保守的) estimate put the average receiver’s valuation at 90% of the buying price. The missing 10% is what economists call a deadweight loss; a waste of resources that could be avoided without making anyone poorer. In other words, if the giver gave the cash value of the purchase instead of the gift itself, the receiver could then buy what she really wants and be better off for no extra cost. It suggests that in America, where givers spend $40 billion on Christmas gifts, $ 4 billion is being lost annually in the process of gift giving. Add in birthdays, weddings and non Christian occasions, and the figure would balloon. So should economists call for an end to gift giving, or at least press for money to become the gift of choice?
56. Why do some people regard the holiday season in western economies a treat?
A. Because the economic situation in US has been depressing.
B. Because American sellers make a quarter of their yearly sales through holiday season.
C. Because holiday spending can speed up GDP growth.
D. Because sellers can make as much profit as 60 % over holiday season.
57. What's the main idea for the second paragraph?
A. In many cases the gifts cannot meet the receivers’ needs.
B. The purchases made over holiday season are actually a waste of money.
C. It's really not easy to guess the others’ preferences.
D. Much of the holiday spending is on gifts for others.
58. The purpose of Joel Waldfogel's study is to _____.
A. prove the mismatch between wants and gifts
B. estimate the disparity between wants and gifts in economic terms
C. spark new ideas of economic studies on holiday spending
D. discover the exact cost of holiday spending on gift giving
59. Economists think of the misusing 10% of holiday spending as a deadweight loss because
_______.
A. the cash value of the purchase is lower than the buying price
B. it is actually a waste of resources in economic terms
C. with the money the receivers can be better off for no extra cost
D. it makes many people even poorer for spending more on unwanted gifts
60. According to the passage altogether how much money is wasted every year on gift giving?
A. About $4 billion. B. About 10% of the total value.
C. About $40 billion. D. Much more than $4 billion.