How can we get rid of garbage? Do we have enough energy sources to meet our future energy needs?
These are two important questions that many people are asking today. Some people think that men might be able to solve both problems at the same time. They suggest using garbage as an energy source.
For a long time people buried garbage or dumped it on empty land. Now, empty land is scarce. But more and more garbage is produced each year. But garbage can be a good fuel to use. The things in garbage do not look like coal, petroleum, or natural gas; but they are chemically similar to these fossil fuels. As we use up our fossil-fuel supplies, we might be able to use garbage as an energy source.
Burning garbage is not a new idea. Some cities in Europe and the United States have been burning garbage for years. The heat that is produced by burning garbage is used to boil water. The steam that is produced is used to make electricity or to heat nearby buildings. In Paris, France, some power plants burn almost 2 million metric tons of the city's garbage each year. The amount of energy produced is about the same as the world produced by burning almost a half million barrels of oil!
But there are problems in using garbage as a fuel. Garbage that burns easily, such as food scraps and paper, must be separated from metals, glass, and other materials that do not burn easily. This separation process is normally costly. Another problem is that burning garbage can pollute the air.
Our fossil fuel supplies are limited. Burning garbage might be one kind of energy source that we can use to help meet our energy needs. This method could also reduce the amount of garbage piling up on the earth.
53. What two problems can be solved by burning garbage?
A. The shortage of energy; Air pollution.
B. The shortage of energy; the shortage of empty land for holding garbage.
C. Air pollution; the shortage of empty land for holding garbage.
D. Air pollution; the shortage of fossil fuel.
54.Which of the following is NOT a result of burning garbage?
A. The heat produced is used to boil water.
B. The steam produced is used to make electricity.
C. The garbage burned is turned into fossil fuels.
D. The steam produced is used to heat buildings.
55.According to the passage. Which of the following four groups of garbage is ready for burning?
A. food scraps and metals B. paper and glass
C. metals and glass D. food scraps and paper
56.What is the general tone of the passage?
A. optimistic B. indifferent C. advocating D. anxious
For more than twenty years scientists have been searching for signs of life on other planets. Most of these searches have been done over the radio. The hope is that someone in outer space may be trying to get in touch with us. Scientists also have sent radio and television messages on spaceships travelling through space, on the chance that someone may be receptive to such message.
Scientists are using powerful radio telescopes to listen to signals from about 1,000 stars, all within 100 light years of Earth. In addition, they will scan the entire sky to "listen" for radio messages from more distant stars. Using a computer, they will be able to monitor more than eight channels at one time. Scientists are looking for any signal that stands out from the background noise.
Of the 200 billion stars in the Milky Way galaxy, scientists find that five percent are like our sun. Perhaps half of them have a planet like Earth. Such a planet would be a reasonable distance from the star for temperatures to be right for the evolution (进化) of life. Based on the inhabitable (that can be lived in) planets in our galaxy, most scientists agree that chances are likely that one or more of these planets support some life.
However, many scientists wonder whether intelligent life exists on other planets. Some believe that twenty years of searching without any intelligible messages shows that no one is out there. They say that the evolution of intelligence comparable to ours is unlikely.
Other scientists believe that our search hasn’t been long enough to rule out the possibility that intelligent life exists in our galaxy. Although our sun family is only about five billion years old, our galaxy is about 20 billion years old. In that time, some scientists think it is likely that civilization much more advanced than ours have developed. Perhaps these civilizations send us no signals; perhaps we have not recognized the signals they have sent us. If we hope to find intelligent life, these scientists believe that we have to keep looking.
64. According to the passage, how many planets in our galaxy might be inhabitable?
A. 5 billion B. 10 billion C. 15 billion D. 200 billion
65.. The first paragraph in this passage is mainly about _____.
A. how scientists are looking for signs of life on other planets
B. why scientists are looking for signs of life on other planets
C. where scientists are looking for signs of life on other planets
D. When scientists are looking for signs of life on other planets
66.. The underlined word “ monitor” in Paragraph 2 means “_______”.
A. findB. followC. check D. form
67.. Which of the following is TRUE based on the information in the passage?
A. The earth is the oldest planet in our galaxy.
B. All scientists believe that there is intelligent life on other planets.
C. Scientists are trying different ways to find signs of life on other planets.
D. Scientists will give up the search for signs of life on other planets.
A simple piece of clothesline hangs between some environmentally friendly Americans
and their neighbors．
On one side stand those who see clothes dryers(干衣机)as a waste oi energy and a
major polluter of the environment．As a result，they are turning to clotheslines as part of the
“what—l—can—do environmentalism(环境保护主义)．”On the Other side a．re people who
are against drying clothes outside，arguing that clotheslines are unpleasant tn look at。They
have Dersuaded Homeowners Associations (HOAs) access the U．S．to ban outdoor
clotheslines，because clothesline drying also tends 10 lower home value in the neighborhood．
This has led to a’Right—to--Dry Movement that is calling for laws to be passed to protect
people’s right tO use clotheslines．So far，only three states have laws to protect clotheslines．
Right—Lo—Dry supporters argue that there should be more．
Matt Reck，37，is the kind of eco—conscious(有生态意识的)person who feeds his trees
with halhwal er and reuses water drops from his air conditloners to water plants．His family
also uses a clothesline．But on July 9，2007，the itOA in Wake Forest，Norlh Ca rolina．told
him that a dissatisfied neighbour had telephoned them about hi
s clothesline．The Recks paid
no attention tO the warning and still dri'ed their clothes on a
line in the yard．“Many people
say they are environmentally friendly but they don’t take matters in their own hands。”says
Reck．The local HoA has decided not tO take any action，unless more neighbors co~le 10
them．
North Carolina lawmakers are saying that banning clotheslines is not the right thing to
do．But HO
As and housing businesses believe that clothesline drying reminds people o
f poor
neighborhoods．They worry that if buyers think their future neighbors can’t even afford
dryers，housing prices will fall．
Environmentalists say such worries are not necessary，and in view of global warming，
that idea needs to change．As they say，“The clothesline is beautiful”．Hanging clothes
outside should be encouraged．We a11 have to do at least something to slow down the process
of glohal warming．
60．One of the reasons why supporters of clothes dryers are trying to ban clothesline drying
iSthat
A．clothes dryers are more efficient
B．clothesline drying reduces home value
C．clothes dryers are energy--saving
D．clothesline drying is not allowed in nlost U．S．slates
61．Which of the following best describes Matt Reck?
A．He is a kind～hearted man．B．He is an impolite man．
C．He is an experienced gardener． D．He is a man of social responsibility
62．Who are in favor of clothesline drying?
A．Housing busmesses．B．Environmentalists．
C．Homeowners Associations．D．Reck’8 dissatisfied neighbors．
63．What is mainly discussed in the text?
A．Clothesline drying：a way to save energy and fnnRey
B．Clot hesline drying：a lost art rediscovered．
C．Opposite opinions on clothesline drying．
D．Different varieties of clotheslines．
第三部分：阅读理解(共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分)
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。
Hsieh．a never--say--die young man，has mastered the technique of painting hy holding the paintbrush in his mouth．When he was sixteen，Hsieh had a terrible electrical accident． Both of his arms and the lower part of his right leg were cut off．He also lost sight in his rigllt eye．But Hsieh didn’t lose heart．He decided to learn art，and took the first difficult step toward changing his life． “At first．I tried to hoht a pen in my mouth．But I couldn’t control it，”Hsieh said，“Fi—nally，after trying over and over again，I learned tO write my OWn name．”Learning to paint was even more difficuh．At first，every brushstroke he made causeddeep cuts in his mouth．It was ext remely painful．But Hsieh didn’t let the pain discourage him．“lnstead，I held the painlbrusb even tighter，”Hsieh explained in a firm voice．“lknew if I gave up．it would not only be the end of my painting，hut also the end of mystruggle for a better life．”No matter what the obstacle(障碍)is，Hsieh always manages tofind the bright side of the situation． Hsieh works hard tO inspire others．He is a tireless lecturer，giving about four hundredformal speeches a year!“If a person like me can lead a happy life，”Hsieh explained，“whywould regular people feel unhappy?It doesn’t always take tWO arms tO achieve your dreams．A11 it lakes is a warm heart．”56．What happened tO Hsieh when he was young? A．He was struck by electricity． B．His left leg was hurt． C．He lost heart because of failure． D．He was ill for two months．57．Which of the following is his character? A．Realistic thought． B．Impressive works． C．Unexpected news． D．Belief in SUCCESS．58．Which is right? A．Hsieh once got the help from the government． B．Only such a person like Hsieh can succeed． C．He touched himself before he began to paint． D．It doesn’t always take tWO arms to realize one’S dream．59．Which is the best title of the passage? A．How to learn painting． B．A painter without hands．
C．A man who was hurt． D．How to make oneself well—known．
Disposing(处理) of waste has been a problem since humans started producing it. As more and more people choose to live close together in cities, the waste-disposal problem becomes increasingly difficult.
During the eighteenth century, it was usual for several neighboring towns to get together to select a faraway spot as a dumpsite. Residents or trash haulers(垃圾托运者) would transport household rubbish, rotted wood, and old possessions to the site. Periodically(定期的) some of the trash was burned and the rest was buried. The unpleasant sights and smells caused no problem because nobody lived close by.
Factories, mills, and other industrial sites also had waste to be disposed of. Those located on rivers often just dumped the unwanted remains into the water. Others built huge burners with chimneys to deal with the problem.
Several facts make these choices unacceptable to modern society. The first problem is space. Dumps, which are now called landfills, are most needed in heavily populated areas. Such areas rarely have empty land suitable for this purpose. Property is either too expensive or too close to residential(住宅区的)neighborhoods. Long-distance trash hauling has been a common practice, but once farm areas are refusing to accept rubbish from elsewhere, cheap land within trucking distance of major city areas is almost nonexistent.
Awareness of pollution dangers has resulted in more strict rules of waste disposal. Pollution of rivers, ground water, land and air is a price people can no longer pay to get rid of waste. The amount of waste, however, continues to grow.
Recycling efforts have become commonplace, and many towns require their people to take part. Even the most efficient recycling programs, however, can hope to deal with only about 50 percent of a city's reusable waste.
72. The most suitable title for this passage would be ______.
A. Places for Disposing Waste B. Waste Pollution Dangers
C. Ways of Getting Rid of Waste D. Waste Disposal Problem
73. During the 18th century, people disposed their waste in many ways EXCEPT for ______.
A. burying it B. recycling it
C. burning it D. throwing it into rivers
74. What can be inferred from the fourth paragraph?
A. Farm areas accept waste from the city in modern society.
B. There is cheap land to bury waste in modem society.
C. It is difficult to find space to bury waste in modem society.
D. Ways to deal with waste in modem society stay the same.
75. The main purpose of writing this article is to ________.
A. draw people's attention to waste management
B. warn people of the pollution dangers we are facing
C. call on people to take part in recycling programs
D. tell people a better way to get rid of the waste
Sheep, like turkeys and ostriches, are not considered the cleverest animals. British scientists said last Wednesday human may have underestimated(低估) the woolly creatures. They could be much smarter than we think.
Researchers at the Babraham Institute in Cambridge, southern. England, have shown that animals have a good memory system and are extremely good 
at recognizing faces--which they think is a sure sign of intelligence.
Behavioral scientist Keith Kendrick and his friends trained 20 sheep to recognize and distinguish(区别) 25 pairs of sheep faces and used electrodes(电极) to measure their brain activity, which showed they could remember 50 faces for up to two years.
"If they can do that with faces, the fact is that they have to have reasonable intelligence, otherwise, what is the point of having a system for remembering anything else," Kendrick said in an interview.
So hours of seemingly mindless eating grass may not be so mindless after all.
Kendrick believes sheep got their reputation as dumb animals because they live in large groups and do not appear to have much individuality and are frightened of just about everything.
"All animals, including humans, once they are frightened don't tend to show signs of intelligent action," he explained.
In re
search reported in the science journal Nature, Kendrick and his team showed that sheep, like humans, have a specialized system in the brain, which allows them to distinguish between many different faces that look extremely similar.
"The most important findings of the study is that they are able, both from a behavioral point of view and from looking at the way the brain is organized, to remember a large number of faces of individuals for a very long time," said Kendrick. "It is a very strange system. They are showing similar abilities in many ways to humans. "
68. From the first paragraph we can find that ______.
A. people used to think sheep are smarter than the other animals
B. people used to raise sheep in a wrong way
C. people don't consider sheep as clever animals
D. people have done a lot of research on sheep
69. From what Kendrick said in the interview we learn that ________.
A. scientists have learned a lot about sheep's intelligence
B. scientists have learned little about sheep's intelligence
C. scientists can't do anything more about sheep's memory
D. scientists don't have to research animals' memory
70. As is shown in the passage _________.
A. sheep are among the weak animals
B. it is not right for people to raise sheep in groups
C. when sheep eat grass in the fields their minds may be active
D. if people feel frightened, they may become more brave
71. When scientists found that sheep show similar abilities in many ways to humans they may think it _____.
A. worrying B. moving C. frightening D. interesting