My mother loves flowers. As soon as warm weather comes around, you will find her planting, watering, and weeding over everything. For a number of years we lived next door to each other, and she spent as much time in my garden as she did her own. After the flowers became plentiful each summer, she would cut colorful bouquets(花束) to enjoy inside the house -- both hers and mine. I would often come home from work and find a beautiful arrangement of fresh flowers on my coffee table.
Shortly before Christmas one year, a local flower shop offered a bouquet-a-month special. It seemed to be a made-to-order gift for Mom, a great way to thank her for all of the flowers she had given me through the years.
After the holidays, in early January, I drove her to the flower shop to pick up her first month's bouquet. The small fresh colorful bouquet would hardly fill a small vase.
I was so embarrassed. However, after we returned home, she began to arrange the flowers she had received. "Mom, I'm sorry," I told her. "I can't believe how skimpy that bouquet is." She looked at me and smiled. "It's okay," she said. "It allows me to better enjoy the beauty of each one."
Mom's words helped me to realize something bigger and more important --when we have too many good things, we often fail to enjoy the beauty of each one.
Thanks, Mom, for helping me understand that less is sometimes more.
The author bought her mother flowers to ____.
A.celebrate the coming Christmas |
B.express thanks for all her mother has done |
C.bring more flowers to her mother's garden |
D.arrange her mother's new house |
What can you infer from the passage?
A.The author couldn't afford a big bouquet. |
B.The mother was not happy when receiving the bouquet. |
C.The author would pick up another bouquet the next month. |
D.The mother would send back the bouquet to the flower shop. |
The underlined word "skimpy" in Para. 4 means ____.
A.beautiful | B.colorful | C.cheap | D.small |
What did the author learn from her mother?
A.How to grow flowers. | B.How to arrange flowers. |
C.Enjoying life if possible. | D.Considering things in other ways. |
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Why People Get Tattoos
Jack lay, quiet and unmoving, for thirty minutes while a stranger repeatedly stabbed (刺) him with sharp needles, causing blood to pour steadily out of his leg. Jack was getting a tattoo. His friend Tony had recently gotten a tattoo, and Jack was so impressed by it that he decidedto get one too. Peer pressure, media influence, and personal expression are some of the common reasons for wearing tattoos today.
The desire to be accepted by one’s friends or peers can have a great influence on what a person does. Sometimes, wearing a tattoo can be a sign that you belong to a certain group. Gangs often use special clothes and tattoos to identify their particular group. Some of these groups wear only brand–name clothes. Others wear tattoos. When a person’s friends are all doing something, that person is more likely to do the same thing.
The media is another big influence behind the popularity of tattoos in North America. A wide variety of media images (人物,图像) show tattoos-people appearing in commercials selling expensive cars, famous sports heroes with tattoos in magazines, fashion models wearing designer clothes that show their bodies tattooed with detailed and colorful patterns. These media images link tattoos to ideas of wealth, success, and status. As a result, many people decide to get a tattoo for its fashion and status value.
Many people decide to wear tattoos in order to express their artistic nature, their beliefs, or their feelings-in other words, to show their individuality (个性). A musician in a rock band may get a tattoo of a guitar on the arm. Some environmentalists may tattoo pictures of endangered animals on their shoulders. A tattoo can be a public sign to show what is important in a person's life.
As you can see, there are many reasons why young North Americans get tattoos. A tattoo can be part of a group's uniform, a sign of fashion or an expression of individuality. The decision to get a tattoo is most often a result of the influence of friends or media or the desire to express oneself. For Jack, it was a mixture of all three.
45. Jack has got tattoos in order to ______.
A. show his great bravery B. gain a special experience
C. make himself more healthy D. be different from others
46. According to the passage, media images are linked to ______.
A. traditional lifestyle B. social position C. cultural background D. public interest
47. We can infer from the passage that ______.
A. some people get tattoos out of pressure
B. tattoo is related to religious belief
C. getting tattoos costs a lot of money
D. most people with tattoos are artists
48. Which of the following shows the structure of the passage?
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CP: Central Point P: Point Sp: Sub – point (次要点) C: Conclusion
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)
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. cleverB. friendlyC. frightening D. devoted
Baths and bathing have been considered of an important medical therapy to man. In Greece there are the ruins of a bath tub and water system built over 3 000 years ago. The Romans had warm public baths. In some public baths as many 3 000 persons could bathe at the same time.
Treating diseases by bathing has been popular for centuries. Modern medical bathing, or hydrotherapy, first became popular in Europe and by the late 1 700’s also became popular in the United States.
For many years frequent bathing was believed to be bad for one’s health. Ordinary bathing just to be clean was avoided, and perfume(香水) was used to cover up body and smell.
By the 1 700’s doctors began to say that soap and water were good for health. They believed that it was good for people to be clean. Slowly, people began to bathe more frequently.
In the United States ordinary bathing was slow to become popular. During the 18th and early 19th centuries, many Americans were known as “the great unwashed”. In one American city, for example, a person could only take a bath every 30 days! That was a law.
Frequency of bathing today is partly a matter of habit. People know that bathing for cleanliness is important to health. Doctors know that dirty bodies increase that chance of disease.
Therefore in the United States people generally bathe often.
71.What does the word “hydrotherapy” underlined in the second paragraph refer to?
A.A bathing tub. B.Medical bathing.
C.Ordinary bathing. D.Warm public baths.
72.Until when did doctors believe that ordinary bathing was good for health?
A.Until the 16th century B.Until the 17th century.
C.Until the 18th century. D.Until the 19th century.
73.Where did the ordinary bathing first become popular according to the passage?
A.In Africa. B.In Europe.
C.In the USA. D.The passage doesn’t tell us.
74.Which of the following statements is not true?
A.Bathing was important to Greeks and Romans.
B.The Greek built water systems.
C.The Greek had warm public baths.
D.The Greek used bath tubs.
75.The passage is mainly about ______.
A.bathing in the USA
B.the good points and bad points of bathing
C.the history of bathing
D.the modern medical bathing
Now, it’s time for some brief news items.
Teens Go Online
Some 13 million European children under 18 use the Internet for schoolwork, games and music according to research done by Nielsen’s “Net-rating”. The study covered Britain, Germany, France, Italy and Spain. Experts advesed parents to limit the time their kids on line and keep them away from chat rooms.
Chat to the magic Mum
British author J.K.Rowling, mother of magic boy Harry Potter, will do an Internet interview about her new bool”Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince”on June 26. Before the event, children are invited to send their questions about Harry to the website. The book will hit stores in the US and UK on June 21 and will arrive in China in August.
School Soldiers
Russian school students will have to do basic military training in their final year of school, the government has decided.The lesson will include learning to fire guns, marching drills and how to deal with a chemical, nuclear or biological attack. The activity is seen as part of a drive toward the education of their love for their country.
Is it hard for you to get up early and get ready for classes? Some students at Winter Park High School just roll our of bed in their pajamas(睡衣) and go to class in their own bedrooms. Of course, their teachers and classmates do not see them because all their class work is on the computer. The Florida High School, the state’s only online school, had 250 students who are taking classed at home by computer. Students in this first online program take classed in algebra(代数), American government , chemistry, computer, economics, and web-page design. They also have to go to regular school to attend other classes.
66.In the first news item, which country is NOT covered in the research?
A.Britain. B.France. C.Sweden. D.Spain.
67.Why will Russian school students have basic military training?
A.To get ready for a milirary parade. B.To learn to protect themselves.
C.To gain some military knowledge. D.To develop their love for the country.
68.About Florida High School, which of these facts is true?
A.Some of the students have to attend classed at home instead of in the school.
B.There are altogether 250 students who take classes in the classrooms.
C.As the state’s only online school, it has 250 students who take classes by computer.
D.Students can’t take classes in algebra, American government, chemistry, computer and so on.
69.The news from Florida can be given a title” ” .
A.Get up Lage B.Online School
C.Magical Computers D.No Teachers
70.What is the second news item mainly about?
A.J.K.Rowling will have an Internet interview.
B.Children will meet Harry Potter’s mother.
C.The Harry Potter book will be available on the Internet.
D.The Harry Potter book will arrive in China in early June.
New York State has passed the USA’s first state law banning motorists talking on hand-held cell phones. The ban will begin November 1, although drivers caught using hand-held cell phones will be given only warnings during the first month.
First-time violators(违法者) will face a $100 fine. A second time call for a $200 fine and every violation after that will cost$500.
At least a dozen localities(地方) have established bans, starting in 1999; and 40 states have had bans proposed but not passed.At least 23 countries, including the Great Britain, Italy, Israel and Japan, ban drivers from using hand-held cell phones.
There are about 115 million cell phones in use in the United States and more than 6 million in New York State.
“To think that I’m not going to use cell phone when at the same time I can still use my laptop, I still can read a paper, I can still change my pants(裤子) while driving 65 mph. I think there’s just something wrong,” an official said.
Other critics noted that other things like eating, drinking coffee and applying make-up while driving posed(造成) at least as much of a concern. They suggested that the ban include a broader range of things.
61.How much fine will a hand-held cell phone user receive if he has been caught using it four times while driving after November?
A.$500. B.$1000. C.$1200. D.$1300.
62.We can see from this passage that _______.
A.the ban has been put into effect in most states in the U. S.
B.many of the developed countries forbid drivers using hand-held cell phones
C.over fifty localities or states ban drivers from using hand-held cell phones
D.more people in the U. S. are against the ban than for it
63.The official mentioned in this passage _______.
A.does not agree with this ban
B.doesn’t believe using hand-held cell phones while driving will cause any danger
C.doesn’t understand why hand-held cell phones alone should be banned among many others
D.believes changing pants while driving will cause greater danger
64.The writer intends to tell us in the last paragraph that _______.
A.it is not fair to have this ban passed
B.the ban will never be passed in the whole country
C.more activities of the same kind should also be banned
D.the ban will meet with more criticism
65.This article is most probably taken from_______.
A.a newspaper article B.an advertisement
C.a personal diary D.a letter