第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题，每小题2题，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。
Who says Americans worship the almighty dollar? It’s not true．Having enough free time is more important to most Americans than being rich, according to a new poll．
Only 13 percent of more than 2,400 people questioned in the telephone poll ranked being wealthy as most important to them, while 67 percent ranked free time as their top priority, higher than having a successful career, getting married, and having children．"Everyone wants free time to do the things they want to do, young, middle-aged or old," said Richard Morin, of the Pew Social & Demographic Trends Project, which conducted the survey．"So our desire to play unites us．"
The poll also showed that people who were university educated valued career success over wealth, as middle-aged people did．Not surprisingly, those who didn't have money, ranked wealth very highly．This included minorities, first generation Americans and less educated people．The survey also revealed that a disproportionate （不成比例的） number of people under the age of 30 and retirees in the group made $ 20,000 or less a year．But the emphasis on wealth lessens with age, with younger people putting value on it but hardly any seniors．"It just diminishes with time as the reality sets in that you would never be rich," Morin said．"But also, the reality sets in that you don't have to be rich to lead a very comfortable and fulfilling life．"
While wealth was not at the top of people' s list of priorities, 43 percent still said it was somewhat important．
56．The poll showed that the majority of American people ranked ____ as the most important．
A．wealth B．a successful career
C．marriage D．free time
57．Who cares least for wealth, according to the passage?
A．Young people． B．Middle-aged people．
C．Old people． D．Well-educated people．
58．The underlined word "diminishes" in the third paragraph probably means "____"．
A．to increase B．to decrease C．to change D．to stay
The National Gallery
Description：
The National Gallery is the British national art museum built on the north side of Trafalgar Square in London.It houses a diverse collection of more than 2,300 examples of European art ranging from 13thcentury religious paintings to more modern ones by Renoir and Van Gogh.The older collections of the gallery are reached through the main entrance while the more modern works in the East Wing are most easily reached from Trafalgar Square by a ground floor entrance
Layout：
The modern Sainsbury Wing on the western side of the building houses 13thto 15thcentury paintings，and artists include Duccio，Uccello，Van Eyck，Lippi，Mantegna，Botticelli and Memling.
The main West Wing houses 16thcentury paintings，and artists include Leonardo da Vinci，Cranach，Michelangelo，Raphael，Bruegel，Bronzino，Titian and Veronese.
The North Wing houses 17thcentury paintings，and artists include Caravaggio，Rubens，Poussin，Van Dyck，Veláazquez，Claude and Vermeer.
The East Wing houses 18thto early 20thcentury paintings，and artists include Canaletto，Goya，Turner，Constable，Renoir and Van Gogh.
Opening Hours：
The Gallery is open every day from 10am to 6pm (Fridays 10am to 9pm) and is free，but charges apply to some special exhibitions.
Getting There：
Nearest underground stations：Charing Cross (2minute walk)，Leicester Square (3minute walk)，Embankment (7minute walk)，and Piccadilly Circus (8minute walk)．In which century’s collection can you see religious paintings?
| A．The 13th. | B．The 17th. |
| C．The 18th. | D．The 20th. |
Where are Leonardo da Vinci’s works shown?
| A．In the East Wing. |
| B．In the main West Wing. |
| C．In the Sainsbury Wing. |
| D．In the North Wing. |
Which underground station is closest to the National Gallery?
| A．Embankment. | B．Leicester Square. |
| C．Piccadilly Circus. | D．Charing Cross. |
About 30 years ago，I left Cuba for the United States with my son.After getting settled finally in Brunswick，New Jersey，I enrolled(注册) my son in kindergarten.Several weeks later，my son’s teacher asked me to meet him at his office.
In the teacher’s office，and exchange of greetings was followed by his questions：“Is your son mentally retarded(弱智的)？Does he suffer from any kind of mental disability？”
Was he talking about my wonderful Scola? NO，no，it can’t be.What a helpless，lonely moment！I told him that Scola was a quiet，sweet little boy，instead.I asked him why he was asking me all these questions.
My son could not follow the teacher’s directions，he told me，and thus，Scola was disrupting the class，Didn’t he know my son did not speak English yet?
He was angry；“Why hasn’t your son been taught to speak English? Don’t you speak English at home？”
No，I didn’t speak English at home，I replied.I was sure my son would learn English in a couple of months，and I didn’t want him to forget his native language.Well，wrong answer！What kind of person would not speak in English to her son at home and at all times? “Are you one of those people who come to this country to save dollars and send them back to their country，never wanting to be a part of this society？”
Needless to say，I tried to tell him I was not one of “those people”．Then he told me the meeting was over，and I left.
As I had expected，my son learned to speak English fluently before the school year was over.He went on to graduate from college and got a job，earning close to six figures.He travels widely and leads a welladjusted，contented life.And he has benefited from being bilingual(双语的)。
Speaking more than one language allows people to communicate with others；it teaches people about other cultures and other places—something very basic and obviously lacking in the“educator”I met in New Jersey.The teacher asked the author to his office________.
| A．to discuss Scola’s inclass performance |
| B．to get Scola enrolled in kindergarten |
| C．to find a language partner for Scola |
| D．to work out a study plan for Scola |
What does the underlined word“disrupting” in Paragraph 4 probably mean?
| A．Breaking | B．Following |
| C．Attending | D．Disturbing |
The author’s attitude towards being bilingual may best be described as________.
A．critical B．casual
C．positive D passiveThis text is likely to be selected from a book of________.
A．medicine B．education
C．geography D history
The light from the campfire brightened the darkness，but it could not prevent the damp cold of Dennis’s Swamp (沼泽地) creeping into their bones.It was a strange place.Martin and Tom wished that they had not accepted Jack’s dare.They liked camping，but not near this swamp.
“So，”Martin asked as they sat watching the hot coals.“How did this place get its name? ”
“Are you sure you want to hear it ? It’s a scary story，”warned Jack.
“Of course！”cried out Tom.“If there were anything to be scared of，you wouldn’t have chosen this place！”
“Ok，but don’t say I didn’t warn you，” said Jack，and he began his tale.
“Way back in time，a man called Dennis tried to start a farm here.He built that cottage over there to live in.In those days，the area looked quite different—it was covered with tall trees and the swamp was a crystalclear river.After three hard years，Dennis had cleared several fields and planted crops.He was so proud of his success that he refused to listen to advice.
“‘You are clearing too much land，’warned one old man.‘The land is a living thing.It will hit back at you if you abuse it.’”
“‘Silly fool，’said Dennis to himself.‘If I clear more land，I can grow more crops.I’ll become wealthier.He’s just jealous！’”
“Dennis continued to chop down trees.Small animals that relied on them for food and shelter were destroyed.He was so eager to expand his farm that he did not notice the river flowing slowly towards his door.He did not notice salt seeping to the surface of the land.He did not notice swamp plants choking all the native plants.”
“What happened？”Martin asked.It was growing colder.He trembled，twisting his body closer to the fire.
“The land hit back—just as the old man warned，”Jack shrugged.“Dennis disappeared.Old folks around here believe that swamp plants moved up from the river and dragged him underwater.His body was never found.”
“What a stupid story，”laughed Tom.“Plants can’t...”Before he had finished speaking，he screamed and fainted(晕倒)．The other two boys jumped up with fright，staring at Tom.Suddenly，they burst out laughing.Some green swamp ivy (常春藤) had covered Tom’s face.It was a while before Tom could appreciate the joke.The underlined word “dare”in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to________.
| A．courage | B．assistance |
| C．instruction | D．challenge |
Why did Jack tell Tom and Martin the story?
| A．To frighten them. |
| B．To satisfy their curiosity. |
| C．To warn them of the danger of the place. |
| D．To persuade them to camp in the swamp. |
Why did Dennis ignore the warning of the old man?
| A．The old man envied him. |
| B．The old man was foolish |
| C．He was too busy to listen to others. |
| D．He was greedy for more crops. |
Why did Tom scream and faint?
| A．He saw Dennis’s shadow. |
| B．He was scared by a plant. |
| C．His friends played a joke on him. |
| D．The weather became extremely cold. |
What lesson can we learn from the story of Dennis?
| A．Grasp all，lose all. |
| B．No sweat，no sweet. |
| C．It is no use crying over spilt milk. |
| D．He who makes no mistakes makes nothing. |
Fear may be felt in the heart as well as in the head，according to a study that has found a link between the cycles of a beating heart and the chance of someone feeling fear.
Tests on healthy volunteers found that they were more likely to feel a sense of fear at the moment when their hearts are contracting(收缩) and pumping blood around their bodies，compared with the point when the heartbeat is relaxed.Scientists say the results suggest that the heart is able to influence how the brain responds to a fearful event，depending on which point it is at in its regular cycle of contraction and relaxation.
Sarah Garfinkel at the Brighton and Sussex Medical School said：“Our study shows for the first time that the way in which we deal with fear is different depending on when we see fearful pictures in relation to our heart.”
The study tested 20 healthy volunteers on their reactions to fear as they were shown pictures of fearful faces.Dr Garfinkel said，“The study showed that fearful faces are better noticed when the heart is pumping than when it is relaxed.Thus our hearts can also affect what we see and what we don’t see－and guide whether we see fear.”
To further understand this relationship，the scientists also used a brain scanner(扫描仪) to show how the brain influences the way the heart changes a person’s feeling of fear.
“We have found an important mechanism by which the heart and brain ‘speak’to each other to change our feelings and reduce fear，”Dr Garfinkel said.
“We hope that by increasing our understanding about how fear is dealt with and ways that it could be reduced，we may be able to develop more successful treatments for anxiety disorders，and also for those who may be suffering from serious stress disorder.”What is the finding of the study?
| A．One’s heart affects how he feels fear. |
| B．Fear is a result of one’s relaxed heartbeat. |
| C．Fear has something to do with one’s health. |
| D．One’s fast heartbeats are likely to cause fear. |
The study was carried out by analyzing________.
| A．volunteers’ heartbeats when they saw terrible pictures |
| B．the time volunteers saw fearful pictures and their health conditions |
| C．volunteers’ reactions to horrible pictures and data from their brain scans |
| D．different pictures shown to volunteers and their heartbrain communication |
Which of the following is closest in meaning to“mechanism” in Paragraph 6?
| A．Order. | B．System. |
| C．Machine. | D．Treatment. |
This study may contribute to________.
| A．treating anxiety and stress better |
| B．explaining the cycle of fear and anxiety |
| C．finding the key to the heartbrain communication |
| D．understanding different fears in our hearts and heads |
On a sunny day last August，Tim heard some shouting.Looking out to the sea carefully，he saw a couple of kids in a rowboat were being pulled out to sea.
Two 12yearold boys，Christian and Jack，rowed out a boat to search for a football.Once they’d rowed beyond the calm waters，a beach umbrella tied to the boat caught the wind and pulled the boat into open water.The pair panicked and tried to row back to shore.But they were no match for it and the boat was out of control.
Tim knew it would soon be swallowed by the waves.
“Everything went quiet in my head，”Tim recalls(回忆)．“I was trying to figure out how to swim to the boys in a straight line.”
Tim took off his clothes and jumped into the water.Every 500 yards or so，he raised his head to judge his progress.“At one point，I considered turning back，” he says.“I wondered if I was putting my life at risk.”After 30 minutes of struggling，he was close enough to yell to the boys，“Take down the umbrella！”
Christian made much effort to take down the umbrella.Then Tim was able to catch up and climb aboard the boat.He took over rowing，but the waves were almost too strong for him.
“Let’s aim for the pier(码头)，”Jack said.Tim turned the boat toward it.Soon afterward，waves crashed over the boat，and it began to sink.“Can you guys swim？”he cried.“A little bit，”the boys said.
Once they were in the water，Tim decided it would be safer and faster for him to pull the boys toward the pier.Christian and Jack were wearing life jackets and floated on their backs.Tim swam toward land as water washed over the boys’faces.
“Are we almost there？”they asked again and again.“Yes，”Tim told them each time.
After 30 minutes，they reached the pier.Why did the two boys go to the sea?
| A．To go boat rowing. |
| B．To get back their football. |
| C．To swim in the open water. |
| D．To test the umbrella as a sail. |
What does “it” in Paragraph 2 refer to?
| A．The beach. | B．The water. |
| C．The boat. | D．The wind. |
Why did Tim raise his head regularly?
| A．To take in enough fresh air. |
| B．To consider turning back or not. |
| C．To check his distance from the boys. |
| D．To ask the boys to take down the umbrella. |
How did the two boys finally reach the pier?
| A．They were dragged to the pier by Tim. |
| B．They swam to the pier all by themselves. |
| C．They were washed to the pier by the waves. |
| D．They were carried to the pier by Tim on his back. |