In 1886 explorer Robert Peary traveled to Greenland for the U.S. Navy. Before his journey, no one knew Greenland’s size or shape. On Peary’s first trips, he explored Greenland, mapping parts of it.
When Peary returned to the United States, he went to a businessman to sell some furs. There he met Matthew Henson, an African American mechanic, builder and navigator. When Peary went to Nicaragua on a Navy mission(任务),Henson went with him. When that job was over, the two headed to the Arctic.
Henson and Peary set sail for Greenland. When they landed, Henson built a house for their base camp. Peary and his men set out to explore the land by dog sledge(雪橇). Henson was injured and had to stay at the base. While there, he made friends with the Inuit, the native people.
In 1895 Henson, Peary and Hugh Lee went out on another dog sledge journey. This time, they found Greenland’s northernmost point. They now knew that the North Pole lay under the frozen Arctic Ocean. Peary had hoped to cross the ice. but the group ran out of food and returned to base camp. In the years that followed, Peary and Henson tried several times to reach the North Pole, but each time they failed. On one trip, Peary’s feet froze, and he lost his toes（脚趾）.
Peary and Henson planned last trip when Peary was 53 years old. They started across the sea ice from Ellesmere Island, which is located（位于） north of Canada. The temperature dropped as low as—51 degrees Celsius. The explores’ cheeks froze , and they suffered snow blindness from the sun’s glare. They experienced high winds and storms, and they also faced a hidden danger. Under the frozen ocean were powerful currents（潮流）. The ice moved and broke apart leaving open water, called leads. Twice Peary fell into leads. But eventually he and Henson became the first persons to reach the North Pole. What did Peary and Henson find in 1895?
| A．Greenland is near the Artic Ocean. |
| B．Ellesmere Island is located north of Canada. |
| C．The North Pole is located in the Artic Ocean. |
| D．Greenland’s northernmost point is the North Pole. |
Which of the following words can be used to describe Peary?
| A．Determined. | B．Modest. | C．Generous. | D．Honest. |
What was the potential danger that Peary and Henson faced on their last trip?
| A．Snow blindness. | B．High winds. | C．Storms. | D．Leads. |
The best title for the passage might be “____”.
| A．The mapping of the Arctic Ocean. |
| B．Peary and Henson: Arctic explorers |
| C．Early explorers’ trips to the South Pole |
| D．Henson and Peary: discoverers of Greenland |
B
Thanksgiving Day is special holiday in the United States and Canada. Families and friends gather to eat and give thanks for their blessing.
Thanksgiving Day is really a harvest festival. This is why it is celebrated in late fall, after the crops are in. But one of the first thanksgivings in America had nothing to do with a good harvest. On December 4, 1619, the Pilgrims from England landed near what is now Charles City, Virginia. They knelt down and thanked God for their safe journey across the Atlantic.
The first New England Thanksgiving did celebrate a rich harvest. The Pilgrims landed at what is now Plymouth, Massachusetts, in 1620. They had a difficult time and the first winter was cruel. Many of the Pilgrims died. But the next year, they had a good harvest. So Governor Bradford declared a three-day feast（盛宴）. The Pilgrims invited Indian friends to join them for their special feast. Everyone brought food.
In time, other colonies（殖民地）began to celebrate a day of thanksgiving. But it took years before there was a national Thanksgiving Day. During the Civil War, Sarah Josepha Hale persuaded Abraham Lincoln to do something about it. He proclaimed（宣布）the last Thursday of November 1863 as a day of thanksgiving. Today, Americans celebrate this happy harvest festival on the fourth Thursday in November. Canadians celebrate Thanksgiving Day in much the same way as their American neighbours. But the Canadian thanks-giving Day falls on the second Monday in October.
45 The first to celebrate thanksgiving were .
A. some people from EnglandB. the American Indians
C. Sarah Josepha HaleD. Governor Bradford
46. We can infer from the passage that New England must be .
A. in the U. S. A.B. in Great Britain
C. in Canada D. on some island off the Atlantic
47. Which of the following is NOT true?
A. Thanksgiving Day used to be a holiday to celebrate a good harvest.
B. Abraham Lincoln was not the first to decide on thanksgiving celebrations.
C. Thanksgiving Day is celebrated to express the American and Indian people’s thanks to God.
D. There’s little difference between the American way and the Canadian way to celebrate Thanksgiving Day.
48. The passage mainly tells us .
A. how Thanksgiving Day is celebrated in the U. S. A.
B. how Thanksgiving Day came into being and the different ways it is celebrated
C. that Thanksgiving Day is in fact a harvest holiday
D. how the way to celebrate Thanksgiving Day changed with the time and places
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，从媒体所给的四个选项（A,B,C,D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）
A
A beggar followed a lady and asked her for some money. She refused, so he turned away sadly and said he must do what he had made up his mind to do.
At this word, the lady was greatly frightened for she was afraid for his life. So she called him back and gave him a dollar. The beggar took the money, put it into his pocket, and thanked her a great deal. “You have saved me from a terrible fate,” he said. The lady asked him what he meant. The beggar replied, “Madame, I have been begging all day, but only you have taken pity on me. Without this dollar you gave to me, I should have had to go to work now.
41. Before meeting the lady, the beggar ________.
A. had already received some dollars already
B. had been thinking of taking his own life
C. had received no money for that day
D. had acted as if he was looking for a job
42. If the woman had understood the beggar’s words correctly, she would probably _____.
A. have given him one more dollar
B. have persuaded him to give up begging
C. have gone away without giving him any money
D. have offered him some work
43. In the story, “a terrible fate” means _______
A. to beg B. to go to work C. to die D. to live a hard life
44. The best headline(标题) for the story is ______.
A. How to Beg B. Money before Everything
C. Anything except WorkD. Work for Money
D
Prague is not strange to the tourism world. It is a great tourist attraction with many historic tourist spots such as the Prague Castle, which was built in the early 9th century. In addition to the Prague Castle, some of the other historic spots are the Old Town churches, the Jewish Quarter and the Estates Theater. Surveys indicate that Prague is ranked the sixth main attraction in the whole of Europe. Though there are large numbers of places of tourist interest, there are a few spots which are the most appealing. The Old Town is one such spot of great tourist interest. The Astronomical Clock, which is popularly known as the “Prague Orloj”, is installed(安装) on the Old town city hall’s south wall, which is a historic construction. So if you are heading to Prague for a vacation, you should never miss seeing this astronomical clock.
The excitement in Prague doesn’t stop here. Next is the Lennon Wall. The Lennon Wall became a tourist spot as people of the 1980s started to fill it with John Lennon-inspired graffiti(涂鸦). You can also find the graffiti of pieces of lyrics from Beatles songs on this wall. There are many fun activities that you can do in Prague. There are many local theaters and entertainment facilities which are very inexpensive.
If you are well aware of the different places of tourist interest, you can really enjoy a great weekend in Prague. Thankfully there are several online tourist guides out there which can help you to make your weekend in Prague much more joyous than ever before. There are many sources out there online where you can find all the information about the best tourist spots in Prague. Once you have all the information about the best tourist attractions in Prague, you can plan your weekend trip effectively.
67.Prague is a city _______
A.where there are many historic attractions
B.which is a new tourist city to the world
C.where there are many famous singers
D.which is the sixth largest city in Europe
68.According to the passage, Prague Orloj refers to _______.
A. the Estates TheaterB. the Old Town city hall
C. the Astronomical Clock D. the Prague Castle
69. The Lennon Wall is most famous for______.
A. Beatles songsB. the graffiti
C. famous Lyrics D. cheap entertainment facilities
70. To have a pleasant weekend in Prague, you’re advised in advance to ask for help from______.
A. the historians B. the local people C. the travel agency D. the Internet
C
Little Brother
By Cory Doctorow, 382 pages, $19.95
In the very near future, Marcus Yallow is walking with his friends in San Francisco when a 9/11-sized terrorist attack occurs blocks away. Everyone around is secretly taken away by the Department of Homeland Security to see whether they're terrorists. However, during the investigation, one of his friends dies mysteriously. The friends try to find out the truth. If you read only one science-fiction novel this year, make it this one.
The Flying Troutmans
By Miriam Toews, 274 pages, $32
The heart of the book is a road journey in Canada made by Hattie, Thebes and Logan to find Cherkis, the kids' dad. It's rich in dialogue, sometimes funny, sometimes surprisingly sad, always character-true. Toews is an extraordinarily gifted writer, with tough-minded compassion（同情） for her characters.
Reading By Lightning
By Joan Thomas, 388 pages, $22.95
We're in 1930s Canada, where Lily's father arrived three decades earlier to be promised fertile agricultural land. But they had been cheated and thrown in the middle of Manitoba. Now William Piper and his wife farm their land and place little hope in this life.
What They Wanted
By Donna Morrissey, 325 pages,$32
A father has a heart attack; a brother and a sister leave Newfoundland and go to Alberta, Canada to work; a tragedy brings reconciliation（和解）, but also terrible loss. Primarily a novel of character, it’s also a novel of Canada, of two very specific and vividly drawn places. Donna Morrissey's characters are troubled, sensitive, quick to be moved to anger or pain, and just as quick to laughter and affection.
63.If Jim only has 20 dollars, which book could he buy?
A. The Flying Troutmans B. What They Wanted
C. Little Brother D. Reading By Lightning
64.According to the text, we know that The Flying Troutmans is_____.
A. Full of dialogueB. A sad storyC. About tourismD. A real story
65.In Reading By Lightning, why did William Piper arrive in Canada?
A. To carry out his promise.B. To work in a big city.
C. To get work experience. D. To seek his fortune.
66.If you want to know about two different places of Canada, whose novel is the best choice?
A. Cory Doctorow's B. Miriam Toews's
C. Joan Thomas's D. Donna Morrissey's
B
When I recall my experiences of feeling heard and deeply understood by someone, I know how much the experiences helped me to cope with whatever I was dealing with at the time. Caring people who I have turned to in difficult times helped me the most by listening and asking about my feelings.
During one of my volunteer jobs at a local HIV and cancer clinic, I found the helpfulness of empathic（感情移入的） listening. As a volunteer I was providing emotional support for people with health related problems. Empathic listening really made a difference on how patients felt about their health problems. By sharing about their pain and suffering and may willingness to listen, they felt less alone.
We can make life easier for each other by becoming a better listener and encouraging each other to share our feelings. We can become a better listener by avoiding giving advice and trying to solve problems unless we are asked to do so. Pressuring others to solve their life problems--"our ways"--is not helpful. Most people intuitively(凭直觉地） know how to solve their own problems. As a listener it's important to be patient and not to interrupt the speaker. Let them know it's OK to talk about their feelings and support them in feeling their feelings.
When one neither shares nor reaches out for support, he or she can remain a lonely mystery. Life can feel lonely when one keeps everything inside. Feeling alone with life problems can be worse than the problem itself. When we let a caring person listen to our life struggle, we will no longer feel alone with our struggle. Don't be afraid to ask your loved ones to take time to hear you out. Sometimes you have to ask for it. People cannot read your mind. Confiding in others can have a positive effect on our mood.
59.What made the author comfortable in difficult times?
A. Persuading B. Sharing C. Apologizing D. Complaining
60.According to the second paragraph, we can know that ____.
A. The patients enjoyed listening to the author
B. The author found empathic listening was helpless
C. The patients didn't get on well with the author
D. The author did a good job at a cancer clinic
61.What does the underlined part "Confiding in others" in the last paragraph mean?
A. Telling others your secrets. B. Reading others' mind
C. Listening to others. D. Leaving others alone.
62.What's the main idea of this passage?
A. Listening and sharing can make you happier.
B. People 
know how to solve their own problems.
C. It is wrong to give advice to solve problems.
D. You should learn to believe in other people.