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 阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（Ａ、Ｂ、Ｃ、Ｄ）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Joanne was stuck in a traffic jam in central Birmingham at 5: 30．and at 6: 30 she was expected to be chairing a meeting of the tennis club. At last, the traffic was moving. She swung quickly racing to her house. As she opened the door, she nearly fell over Sheba.
“Hey, Sheba,” she said, “I've got no time for you now, but I'll take you out as soon as I get back from tennis club.” Then she noticed Sheba seemed to be coughing or choking obviously, she could hardly breathe. Immediately, Joanne realized she would have to take her to the vet (兽医). When she got there, the vet was just about to close for the day. Seeing the state of Sheba, Dr. Sterne brought her quickly into his office.
“Listen, doctor, I'm really in a rush to get to a meeting, can I leave her with you, and go to get changed? I'll be back in ten minutes to pick her up, and then I'll take her on to the meeting with me. Is that OK?”
“Sure.” said the doctor.
Joanne made the quick trip back to her house in a couple of minutes. As she was once more entering the hallway, the phone by the door began to ring.
“This is Dr. Sterne,” said an anxious voice. “I want you to get out of that house immediately,” said the doctor’s voice. “I'm coming round right away, and the police will be there any time now. Wait outside!”
At that moment, a police car screeched to a stop outside the house. Two policemen got out and ran into the house. Joanne was by now completely confused and very frightened. Then the doctor arrived.
“Where’s Sheba? Is she OK?” shouted Joanne.
“She’s fine, Joanne. I took out the thing which was choking her, and she’s OK now.”
Just then, the two policemen reappeared from the house, half-carrying a white-faced man, who could hardly walk. There was blood all over him.
“My God, ”said Joanne, “how did he get in there? And how did you know he was there?”
“I think he must be a burglar.” said the doctor. “I knew he was there because when I finally removed what was stuck in Sheba’s throat, it turned out to be three human fingers.”
41. What was Joanne supposed to do at 6: 30？
A. To walk her dog.
B. To see her doctor.
C. To attend a club meeting.
D. To play tennis with her friends.
42. Joanne wanted to get back to her home again______.
A. to dress up for the meeting
B. to phone the police station
C. to catch the badly hurt burglar
D. to wait for her dog to be cured
43. From the passage, we can infer that______.
A. Sheba fought against the burglar
B. the police found the burglar had broken in
C. Joanne had planned to take her dog to the meeting
D. the doctor performed a difficult operation on the dog
44. In this passage, the writer intends to tell us that the dog is______.
A. clever B. friendly C. frightening D. devoted
For years scientists have been worried about the effects of air pollution on the earth’s natural conditions. Some believe the air inside many houses may be more dangerous than the air outside. It may be one hundred times worse.
Indoor air pollution can cause a person to feel tired, to suffer eye pain, headache and other problems. Some pollutants can cause breathing disorders, diseases of blood and even cancer. Most scientists agree that every modern house has some kind of indoor pollution.
People have paid more attention to the problem now. It is true that when builders began making houses and offices they did not waste energy. To do this they build buildings that limited the flow of air between inside and outside. They also began using man-made building materials. These materials are now known to let out harmful gases.
As the problem became more serious, scientists began searching for a way to deal with it. They discovered a natural pollution control system for building—green plants. Scientists do not really know how plants control air pollution. They believe that a plant’s leaves absorb or take in the pollutants. In exchange the plant lets out oxygen through its leaves and tiny organizations on its roots. Scientists suggest that all buildings should have one large plant or several small plants inside for every nine square meters of space. Studies of different plants show that each absorbs different chemicals. So the most effective way to clean the air is to use different kinds of plants. Having green plants inside your house can make it a prettier and more healthy place.Generally speaking, indoor air pollution may be more harmful than the air outside because ______.
| A．indoor air pollution can often make people seriously ill |
| B．man-made building materials give off dangerous gases |
| C．there may be more harmful gases outside the buildings |
| D．the air indoors is polluted, which is very harmful |
Some kind of indoor pollution can be found in______．
Ａ．every modern house B．every old house
C．all kinds of houses D．all kinds of officesThe indoor air pollution is caused by ______.
| A．the limit of the flow of air between inside and outside |
| B．the building way that the builders want to save energy |
| C．the building things that are made of man-made materials |
| D．the man-made building materials and the limit of air-flow |
The reason why we should use different kinds of plants to clean the air is that ______.
| A．plants can let out all kinds of pollutants indoors |
| B．plants may take in more oxygen which people need |
| C．plants can absorb all kinds of harmful indoor chemicals |
| D．plants can make our houses prettier and more healthy |
Have you ever suddenly felt that someone you know was in trouble ― and he was? Have you ever dreamed something that came true later? Maybe you have ESP.
ESP stands for Extra Sensory Perception. It may be called a sixth sense. It seems to let people know about events before they happen, or events that are happening some distance away.
Here is an example: A woman was doing washing. Suddenly she shouted, “My father is dead! I saw him sitting in the chair!” Just then, a telephone came. The woman’s father had died of a heart illness. He died sitting in a chair.
There are thousands of stories like this on record. Scientists are studying them to find out what is behind these strange mental messages. Here’s another example —— one of hundreds of dreams that have come true.
A man dreamed he was walking along a road when a horse and carriage came by. The driver said, “There’s room for one more.” The man felt the driver was Death, so he ran away. The next day the man was getting on a crowded bus. The bus driver said, “There’s room for one more”. Then the man saw the driver’s face was the same face he had seen in the dream. He wouldn’t get on the bus. As the bus drove off, it crashed and burst into fires. Everyone was killed!
Some people say stories like these are lies or coincidences. Others say that are ESP in true, from studies of ESP, we may some day learn more about the human mind.ESP lets people know about _________.
| A．their dream | B．events after they happen |
| C．events before they happen | D．heart illness |
The example of the man shows the ability to _______.
| A．avoid traffic accidents |
| B．know the good and bad of a person |
| C．know about the events happening some distance away |
| D．sense a danger that will happen later on |
The best title of this passage is _________.
| A．Sixth Sense | B．The Human Mind |
| C．A Big Lie | D．A Terrible Dream |
How to Order
Ordering from BooksFirst is easy and safe.
Selecting Your Books
When you have found a book you would like to order, just click on Add to Basket and it will be added to your shopping basket. To make it easy to keep track of the books you’ve selected, My Shopping Basket will display your choices wherever you are on the site. When you’re ready to place your order, select View Basket.
View Basket
This is where you select the postal destination for your order, indicate whether you would like Next Day Delivery in the UK and choose gift-wrapping. You can also amend (修改) the contents of your basket by making any changes and then selecting Update Basket.
Overseas customers ordering three or more books can also request reduced airmail charges here. When you’re happy with the contents of your shopping basket, go to the Secure Checkout.
The Order Form
After you’ve completed the order form, you will receive an on-screen acknowledgment. This will be followed by an email confirming the details of your order.
We will then inform you when your order has been sent. If this is your first order, we will also inform you of your personal BooksFirst account number.
Your First Order
We’ll send you a personal account number after you have placed your first order. For following orders all you need to do is enter your personal account number and email address.
Returning Customers
If you have ordered from us before, online, by mail or telephone, you will have already owned a personal account number. You then only need to complete the full order form. Using your account number allows us to find your details from our records (they are not accessible online).
However, you do not need your BooksFirst personal account number to place an order—simply present all the required details on the order form. If you don’t have a note of your account number just Contact us so that we can supply it to you.We can probably read this advertisement ______.
| A．in a newspaper | B．in a magazine | C．on the Internet | D．on TV |
Yours choices will be displayed in order to ______.
| A．To make it easy to keep track of the books. |
| B．To make sure you’ve selected a book. |
| C．To make an advertisement. |
| D．To show this is the postal destination. |
Which of the following is true?
| A．You must put what you choose in a basket as you do in a supermarket. |
| B．You can find your Shopping Basket nowhere but in View Basket. |
| C．You will get your personal account number the third time you order.. |
| D．You can get an account number after you place an order online |
The purpose of this advertisement is______.
| A．to promote the sale of books |
| B．to show the procedure of ordering books online |
| C．to help readers apply for account numbers |
| D．to supply account numbers to readers |
The organization representing British universities has expressed concern about the potential effect of tuition fees（学费）after figures showed a drop of more than 6% in student applications with less than a month to go before the deadline for 2013 applications.
Data from the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (Ucas) showed there were 265,784 university applications by UK-based candidates up to 17 December, 6.3% down on the parallel period in the admissions cycle the year before. While this is less than the 8.4% year-on-urea fall seen in earlier Ucas figures, released in mid-November, the coming January deadline makes it ever more likely that the total 2013 applicant figure will see a second sizeable fall following the introduction of annual fees of up to ￡9,000.
Nicola Dandridge, the chairman of Universities UK, said: “However, we must be concerned about any drops in the numbers applying to university and in particular; we must look closely at how the increase in graduate contributions in England may be affecting the decisions of promising students. However, the December figures show a drop in numbers across the UK, suggesting that it is not only a question of tuition fees in England putting off from applying.”
A report of the Uncas figures to mid-December shows a 6.5% fall for applicants in England and 11.7% for those in Wales, with smaller drops of 3.9% for Scotland and 0.5% for Northern Ireland. Scottish students at home institutions pay on fees, while those from Northern Ireland have fees capped to ￡3,575 for Northern Irish universities.
Dandridge added: “No one should be put off applying to university because of worries about finance.”
“It is important that no one is put off applying to university because they do not have information about the student support available to them. Most new students don’t need to pay directly. There will be more financial support for those from poorer families and everyone will make lower loan repayments than they do now once they are in well paid jobs.”A drop of more than 6% for 2013 applications is probably the effect of .
| A．The increased tuition fees |
| B．The approaching deadline |
| C．The concern from applicants |
| D．The difficulties with applications |
Compared with the previous year, the fall in student applications is.
| A．3.9% | B．2.1% | C．6.3% | D．8.4% |
Why is the fall for application the smallest in Scotland and Northern Ireland?
| A．Because they have more financial support |
| B．Because the tuition is much cheaper for them |
| C．Because the education is better there |
| D．Because the universities are free for them. |
The last paragraph tells us that.
| A．Everyone should apply to university |
| B．Students may get financial supports |
| C．Lower loan repayments is unavailable |
| D．Most new students will not pay fees |
It was your birthday, and you just opened your biggest gift — a smooth silver laptop. You can’t wait to instant-message your friends with the news, but first you have to get rid of your old desktop computer. Do you just throw away the monitor and keyboard in the trash? Not anymore!
Three states, that is, California, Maine, and Maryland, recently passed laws prohibiting people from throwing away electronic waste, or e-waste, includes televisions, computers, and cell phones. Although they don’t make you sick when you use them, they do when they are destroyed, for they contain heavy metals that can be harmful to human bodies. For example, cell phone batteries contain a kind of chemical causing damage to kidneys and deserted computer monitors can damage brains. And flat TV screens may cause injury to the nervous system. Those metals can leak into the ground or give off pollutants when burned.
It is required that e-waste be placed at special sites rather than usual landfills. Several other states are considering similar laws and California is also pushing for a law banning the application of such dangerous substances.
Government officials are not the only people taking aim at e-waste; environmentalists are also urging people to recycle their outdated equipment.
“It is just a waste … to not recycle,” Patrick, an associate professor of occupational and environmental health at university of Iowa, told The Daily Iowan, “Allowing dangerous chemicals to leak into the environment for decades seems irresponsible.”
What Can You Do?
Reduce. Be a responsible shopper, and take care of your electronics so they will last longer.
Re-use. Donate or sell your old high-tech equipment.
Recycle. To find a responsible recycler, contact a local or state environmental group.What’s the best title of this passage?
| A．E-waste is being made good use of. |
| B．E-waste, a big threat to us. |
| C．E-waste is dangerous to us all the while. |
| D．Goodbye, e-waste. |
Why is e-waste harmful and dangerous to human beings?
| A．Because they can go off at times and threaten us. |
| B．Because they can make people sick, as long as people use them. |
| C．Because they contain poisonous chemical substances. |
| D．Because they take too much space when placed in trashes. |
What can we know from Patrick’s words?
| A．Waste can’t be recycled. |
| B．Waste can be made use of by recycling |
| C．We have to recycle e-waste to protect the environment. |
| D．Protecting the environment is important. |
Which of the following is NOT given as a piece of advice to help with e-wastes?
| A．Taking care of your electronics so they will last longer. |
| B．Donating or selling your old high-tech equipment. |
| C．Contacting a local or state environmental group. |
| D．Asking fewer people to use electric products. |