Nobody Benefits
NEW YORK—America has been experiencing the longest economic increase in its history.Incomes have risen, unemployment has fallen, and cities such as New York are bursting with new office buildings.
But just a short walk from Manhattan's skyscrapers, George Brown sits on the side-walk, cooking a lunch of rice and bits of fish over a can of cooking fuel.
Brown is homeless — one of the 2.3 million people in the US who end up on the street.
During the day, Brown collects aluminium cans and sells them for five cents a piece.At night, he sleeps on the street.
"I have been on the street about eight or nine years, something like that," said the 62-year-old former construction worker.
Brown admits he's had problems with alcohol and has smoked cocaine.But he said he still wants a more stable housing arrangement.He could afford it just with the money he earns by collecting cans and small pieces of metal, if only truly low-income housing were available.
However, he sees no hope of finding affordable housing in New York.
With the strong economy and unemployment down, beautiful housing is being built to meet demand.
A US report shows rents in New York city rose more than 27 percent between 1984 and 1999, from US $549 to US $700 a month.
One of the side effects of the strong economy is that rents have been going up.
The majority of people who experience homelessness really just need some affordable housing help.
But few housing companies have been built for the poor.Many small apartments in the city now rent for US $1,500 a month or more.
Brown, the homeless New Yorker, said he has a daughter who lives in the city but he rarely sees her.She is angry about his drinking and won't allow it in her house.
Smiling, he said he also has seven grandchildren whom he'd like to see more often.
"All I've got to do is clean up my act," he said.What kind of life does George Brown lead?
A.Homeless and dangerous. |
B.Homeless and childish. |
C.Homeless and miserable (痛苦的). |
D.Homeless and sleepless. |
From George Brown's life we can find that ______.
A.old Americans lead a hard life |
B.old Americans want to live alone |
C.American cities are crowded with poor people |
D.bad habits play a role in some poor people's Life |
It can be inferred from this passage that ______.
A.America is short of housing companies |
B.the poor can't benefit from the increasing economy |
C.poor people in America will become rich |
D.housing companies will build more houses for the poor |
If this passage comes from a paper, on which page would it be?
A.Society. | B.Science. | C.Economy. | D.Business. |
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,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
For Senior 3 students, choosing which college to attend can be the most exciting and thrilling time in their entire school lives. This is also true for an American girl named Melanie in the film, College Road Trip, which was released in the US on March 7.
Melanie’s dad, James Porter, is the chief of police for a Chicago suburb. Incredibly security obsessed(困扰), he wants Melanie to attend nearby Northwestern University, where she’s already been accepted. But Melanie, 17, really wants to go to Georgetown in Washington, D.C., where she’s been wait-listed.
When she gets an unexpected interview, she decides to take a road trip with a few close female friends. Melanie believes it is her first step toward adulthood.
But despite the fact that this trip is “girls only”, James isn’t comfortable with the prospect of his little princess exploring the world without him. He wants to protect her.
James joins the girls and hopes he can convince her to go to Northwestern. While Melanie’s father only has the best of intentions, his presence leads to an endless series of comic encounters.
After following their faulty GPS device deep into the backwoods, James and Melanie discover her little brother and his pet pig have been hiding in the spare tire compartment(隔间). What should be a simple tire change results in the expensive car rolling down a mountain, forcing them to hike to a nearby hotel. There the pig ruins an outdoor wedding reception after eating an entire bag of coffee beans.
All these disasters add spice to their trip while along the way a father and a daughter finally get the chance to really talk to each other.
The film explores the parent-child relationship in a comic way: The discrepancy(不同) between how close James thinks he is to Melanie and how little he actually knows of her plans makes us laugh first and then think.
All parents, whether they have college students or not, can relate to the bittersweet realization that their kids are growing up. Like what Melanie and James have done in the film, we all can find the delicate balance between staying connected and letting go.
51.According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?
A.It’s unclear whether Melanie could be accepted by Northwestern University.
B.Northwestern University isn’t so famous as the university in Washington D.C..
C.There is no hope that Melanie will be accepted by the university in Georgetown.
D.Melanie’s father prefers her to stay not too far away from him.
52.We can infer from the passage that ________.
A.their car rolled down the mountain, ruining the wedding reception
B.a hotel was destroyed by Melanie’s brother and his pet pig
C.Melanie and her father got to understand each other better after so many encounters
D.the girls had to give up their trip because of the incidents on the way
53.What does the underlined word “released” mean?
A. set free B. known C. shown D. developed
54.The main purpose of the passage is to _______.
A.introduce the newly-released film
B.call on parents to learn to balance the relationship with their children
C.tell a story which happened between an American girl and her father
D.explore the differences in parent-child relationship between the west and the east
Unusual incidents are being reported across the Arctic. Inuit(因纽特人)families going off on snowmobiles to prepare their summer hunting camps have found themselves cut off from home by a sea of mud .There are also reports of sea ice breaking up earlier than usual, carrying seals beyond the reach of hunters. Climate change may still be a rather abstract (抽象的) idea to most of us ,but in the Arctic it is already having great effects –if summertime ice continues to shrink at its present rate ,the Arctic Ocean could soon become almost ice-free in summer .The knock –on effects(连锁反应)are likely to include more warming, cloudier skies ,and higher sea levels .Scientists are increasingly eager to find out what’s going on in the Arctic.
For the Inuit the problem is urgent. They live in unsteady balance with one of the toughest environments on earth. Climate change, whatever its causes, is a direct danger to their way of life. Nobody knows the Arctic as well as the locals, which is why they are not content simply to stand back and let outsider experts tell them what’s happening. In Canada, where the Inuit people are trying hard to guard their hard-won autonomy in the country’s newest land, Nunavut, they believe their best hope of survival in this changing environment lies in combining their ancestral knowledge with the best of modern science. This is challenge in itself.
The Canadian Arctic is a vast , treeless polar desert that’s covered with snow for most of the year. Adventure into this area and you get some idea of the hardships facing anyone who calls this home. Farming is out of the question and nature offers few pickings. Humans first settled in the Arctic a mere 4,500 years ago, surviving by taking advantage of sea fish. The environment tested them to the limits: sometimes the settlers were successful, sometimes they failed and disappeared. But around a thousand years ago, one group appeared that was uniquely well adapted to deal with the Arctic environment. These Thule people moved in from Alaska, bringing dogs, iron tools and the like. They are the ancestors of today’s Inuit people.
72.Which of the following is not likely to be the effect of climate change?
A.Shorter and shorter summertime.
B.Ice-free summer around the Arctic.
C.Higher sea levels.
D.More cloudy skies.
73.The Inuit people believe the solution to the climate change problem is _____.
A.to change their way of life
B.to use their ancestral knowledge
C.to make the best of modem science
D.to use their ancestral knowledge and modern science
74.It can be concluded from the last paragraph that__________
A.the first settlers in the Arctic survived by taking advantage of sea fish
B.it’s hard to farm in the Arctic due to the climate change
C.the ancestors of Inuit people stood out among the settlers
D.the Thule people from Alaska invented iron tools
75.Which of the following is the best title of this passage?
A.Climate change and the Inuit
B.Climate change around the Arctic
C.Global warming around the world
D.The Inuit and their ancestors around the world
Dear College Dean
It is my understanding that this college has received a large donation to be used to enhance (improve) the quality of life for students: expand the bookstore or add computers to the computer lab. It is the tradition of this school to promote education and to be in the vanguard of new technology. That is why I strongly argue in favor of the addition of more computers to the computer lab.
Although expanding the campus bookstore to include CDs, gifts, and a snack bar will give a nicer look to the college, we have to think about a greater goal and a more practical way to enhance the quality of life for students. What do we want for our students and our college? Do we want our college to be known as a place with a great bookstore where you can find CDs and gifts, or as a place where the students can explore and research in their field using the best tools provided by technology? In addition, there are already several snack bars on campus, and there are music stores nearby, so students do not depend on the college bookstore for these things.
We live in a highly technological world and computers play an increasingly important role in how we live. As a learning institution, this college has the responsibility to offer its students the best technology to help them prepare for their future. Many students will be expected to be familiar with the latest software and other tools when they go on to work or to graduate school.
While they are in college, students find they are expected to use computers. Many professors expect students to use computers to do homework or to complete projects. Students are asked to create PowerPoint presentations and use spreadsheets and database programs, as well as to research many topics on the Internet. Since students are competing for good grades, those who have limited access to computers are at a great disadvantage. Furthermore, being able to do projects using the computer enhances the process of learning, giving students the opportunity to find information that without a computer would be much more difficult to find.
If there are more computers, students will also be able to complete their work more efficiently. No more will they have to wait in line, paper and disk in hand, while scanning the room for an empty chair and computer. No longer will they have to sit and wait while an outdated computer struggles to follow their commands. Having more new and faster computers available will enable students to finish their work more quickly.
The more computers are used in society the more colleges will depend on them as a tool of teaching and learning. Making computers more available to students facilitates their learning process by making the process easier, more interesting, more engaging, and in the process enhancing their quality of life
68.The purpose of the author in writing the passage is__________
A.to describe the problems caused by lack of computers
B.to explain why students are in great need of computers
C.to tell us what benefits students can gain from computers
D.to persuade the Dean to purchase more advanced computers
69.From the passage we can infer that______
A.present computers in the college cannot meet the demands of the students
B.computers in the college will be updated to meet the student’s demands soon
C.the college has the responsibility to help the students to prepare for their future
D.it is also necessary to expand the college bookstore by using part of the donation
70.In paragraph 4, the author mainly wants to tell us that_______
A.computers are beneficial to students’ academic success
B.computers are helpful to student’s competition for success
C.students find it convenient to do assignments by using computers
D.students wish to use the money to buy more advanced computers71.Which of the following shows the organization of the passage?
CP: Central Point P: Point SP: Sub-point(次要点) C: Conclusion
Every baby born a decade from now will have its genetic code (基因编码) mapped at birth, the head of the worlds’ leading genome sequencing (基因图谱) company has predicted.
A complete DNA read – out for every newborn will be technically possible and affordable in less than five years, promising a revolution in healthcare, says Jay Flatley, the chief executive of Illumina. Only social and legal problems are likely to delay the age of “genome sequences,” or genetic profiles. By 2019 it will have become routine to map infants’ genes when they are born, Dr Flatly told The Times.
This will open a new approach to medicine, by which conditions such as high blood pressure and heart disease can be predicted and prevented and drugs used more safely and effectively.
A baby’s genome can be discovered at birth by a blood test. By examining a person’s genome, it is possible to identify raised risks of developing diseases such as cancers. Those at high risk can then be screened more regularly, or given drugs or dietary advice to lower their chances of becoming ill.
Personal genomes could also be used to ensure that patients get the medicine that is most likely to work for them and least likely to have side – effects.
The development, however, will raise legal concerns about privacy and access to individuals’ genetic records.
“Bad things can be done with the genome. It could predict something about someone – and you could possibly hand the information to their employer or their insurance company.” said Dr Flatley.
“People have to recognize that this horse is out of the barn, and that your genome probably can’t be protected, because everywhere you go you leave your genome behind. Complete genetic privacy, however, is unlikely to be possible”, he added.
As the benefits become clearer, however, he believes that most people will want their genomes read and interpreted. The risk is nothing compared with the gain.
64.In the first two paragraphs, the author mainly wants to tell us about__________.
A.the significant progress in medicine
B.the promise of a leading company
C.the information of babies’ genes
D.the research of medical scientists
65.Which of the following is a problem caused by this approach?
A.The delaying in discovering DNA.
B.The risk of developing diseases at birth.
C.The side – effects of medicine on patients.
D.The letting out of personal genetic information.
66.What does the underlined sentence “… this horse is out of the barn” mean?
A.Genetic mapping technique has been widely used.
B.Genetic mapping technique is too horrible to control.
C.People are eager to improve genetic mapping technique.
D.people can’t stop genetic mapping technique advancing.
67.What’s Dr Flatley’s attitude towards the technology?
A.Tolerant. B.Conservative. C.Positive. D.Doubtful.
A. You and Me, Baby
|
B. Ruff! Ruff! Where's Scruff?
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C. The Giving Tree
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D. Where the Wild Things Are
|
60. Little Tom who likes to read picture books with a hide-and-seek adventure will be likely to buy _____.
A. Ruff! Ruff! Where’s Scruff? B. You and Me, Baby
C. The Giving Tree D. Where the Wild Things Are
61. How much will you pay if you order three books named Where the Wild Things Are?
A. $16.26 B$ 75 C. $ 50.58 D. $34.59
62. Which of the following is not true according to the passage?
A. The language of four kinds of books is English.
B. Four kinds of books are available at present.
C. The cover of four kinds of books is hardcover.
D. The reading level of four kinds of books are the same.
63. Where would this advertisement probably appear?
A. In a children’s story-book B. On the front page of a newspaper.
C. On the Internet. D. In a popular magazine.