Ihavetoadmit:Idon’tflush(冲)the-优题课

第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题，每题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。
Do you know who invented the slide – fastener, or rather, the zipper (拉链)? No one thought of anything like the zipper until Whitcomb Judson came along. Judson’s slide-fastener was an out-of-blue invention. No one knows what gave him the idea．No one even knows much about him, except that he was a mechanical engineer living in Chicago and that he patented other inventions to do with a street railway system and motorcars.
Judson invented the first zipper in 1891. This ingenious little device looks very simple, and the principle behind it is simple, too; yet it took a lot of years, together with another inventor to make the zipper really practical.
The zipper had to be produced cheaply, because no one would pay a lot of money for it．Judson invented a machine to mass-produce his slide-fastener．But the machine was terribly complicated and kept on breaking down. So in 1905 Judson invented a new fastener, the C-curity, which was easier to manufacture. Clothing manufacturers, however, were not the least bit interested in trying out the fasteners, so the only way Judson could get them on to the market was by letting pedlars（小贩）sell them from door to door．Moreover, the C-curity fastener was clumsy and had a bad habit of bursting open at inconvenient times.
Then a young Swedish engineer called Sundback came to work for Judson’s struggling company. He thought hard and decided that the interlocking parts needed to be much smaller to give the fastener greater flexibility and to stop it bursting open．After several attempts, Sundback invented a really practical fastener in 1913. It is in all important ways the same as the one we use today.
Clothing manufacturers still refused to use the fastener. But in 1918 an inventor showed the American army a flying suit he had invented．It happened to use the slide-fastener．The army put the suit through such tough tests that it disintegrated(分裂)---all except the fastener! A Navy officer happened to see the tests, and Judson’s unknown little company got an order for ten thousand fasteners．Later, Judson’s invention was used in the manufacture of rubber galoshes（橡胶套鞋） by a big company. They called the galoshes `Zippers´. This is how the slide-fastener got it s popular name.
56．What does the sentence “Whitcomb Judson’s slide-fastener was an out-of-blue invention” in the first paragraph mean?
A．That it was blue in color. B．That it was totally unexpected.
C．That it was excellent in quality. D．That it was not practical.
57．How many years did it take for a really practical zipper to be invented?
A．22 B．18 C．19 D．13
58．What do we know about Whitcomb Judson according to the passage?
A．It took Judson a lot of years to invent the first zippers.
B．Judson, together with Sundback invented a really practical fastener in 1913.
C．Judson invented a lot of things, not only including zippers but also a street railway system and motorcars.
D．People know little about Whitcomb Judson except a few facts.
59．What is the writer’s purpose of writing the passage?
A．To tell us how the zipper works.
B．To give a brief introduction about the inventors of the zipper.
C．To give us information about the invention of the zipper.
D．To argue who the real inventor of the zipper was.

All plant cells are capable of taking up water. Even dead ones do to a certain degree. Absorption（吸收）of water by dead cell walls makes wood become larger. In common land plants, the living cells of roots take up most of the water. Land plants without roots do exist, however. Those greenish-yellow lichens（苔藓）you see on rocks in the high mountains have no roots. Half a billion years ago, when water plants started to enter the land, the first land plants did not have roots.
Even among the flowering plants, one finds rootless forms. These flowering plants are “the higher plants” because they evolved（进化）recently and are thus considered higher on the evolutionary scale（进化度）. In the Peruvian desert, there grows one of these rootless higher plants, a bromeliad. It is a relative of the pineapple. Even if this plant had roots, they would be of no use, because where the plant grows, it never rains. The plant gets its water only from the dew（露水）it collects at night, when its leaves cool off. Such rootless plants, of course, can be moved with ease, but they will only grow when they are placed out in the open. If they are placed too near a house, the radiation from the heat of the house prevents the leaves from cooling and so prevents dew from forming, and the plant dies. In the southern United States and in Puerto Rico, one sees bromeliads growing high above the streets on the insulation（绝缘物）of electric wires. These plants get their water from rain, and the only soil they ever come in contact with is the dust that may blow on their leaves.
72．Wood becomes larger because of .
A．dead cell walls B．water entering dead cells
C．the growth of cells D．the death of cells
73．From the passage we know that the evolutionary scale is graded according to .
A．evolutionary cycles B．heights and depths C．time D．kinds
74．The “bromeliad” is a plant that .
A．has useless roots B．is a pineapple
C．can grow anywhere D．takes up water through its leaves
75．The most suitable title for this passage is “ ”.
A．Absorption of water by plants B．Rootless plants
C．Plants in the desert D．Higher plants

A serious problem for today’s society is who should be responsible for our elderly and how to improve their lives. It is not only a financial problem but also a question of the system we want for our society. I would like to suggest several possible solutions to this problem.
First, employers should take the responsibility for their retired employees. To make this possible, a percentage of profits should be set aside for this purpose. But when a company must take life-long responsibility for its employees, it may suffer from a commercial disadvantage due to higher employee costs.
Another way of solving the problem is to return the responsibility to the individual. This means each person must save during his working years to pay for his years of retirement. This does not seem a very fair model since some people have enough trouble paying for their daily life without trying to earn extra to cover their retirement years. This means the government might have to step in to care for the poor.
In addition, the government could take responsibility for the care of the elderly. This could be financed through government taxes to increase the level of pensions（养老金）. Furthermore, some in-situation should be created for senior citizens, which can help provide a comfortable life for them. Unfortunately, as the present situation in our country shows, this is not a truly viable answer. The government can seldom afford to care for the elderly, particularly when it is busy trying to care for the young.
One further solution is that the government or social organizations establish some working places especially for the elderly where they are independent.
To sum up, all these options（选择）have advantages and disadvantages. Therefore, it is reasonable to expect that some combination of these options may be needed to provide the care we hope to give to our elderly generations.
67. What is the passage mainly about?
A. The problems faced by the old in society.
B. Why we should take responsibility for the old.
C. How we can improve the lives of the old.
D. Where the old can go to get their pensions.
68. According to the passage, how can the government help to improve the lives of retired people?
A. Set aside some profits to help people with problems after they retire.
B. Increase savings levels of people during their working years.
C. Increase the discounts for food and transport for the old.
D. Make available pensions for those who have retired.
69. The underlined word “viable” most probably means “__________”.
A. impossible B. practical C. useful D. successful
70. What can be concluded from the passage?
A. Taking care of the old is mainly an issue of money.
B. Employers should allow their workers to retire at a later age.
C. Becoming independent should be the goal of most old people.
D. There is no single solution to the problems of the old.
71. What is the writer’s main purpose in writing this article?
A. To point out the need for government support for old people.
B. To make general readers aware of the problems of retired people.
C. To discuss some possible solutions to an important social problem.
D. To instruct retired people on how they can have a happier life.

Although many Chinese students say that their knowledge of English grammar is good, most would admit that their spoken English is poor. Whenever I speak to a Chinese student they always say, “My spoken English is poor.” However, their spoken English does not have to remain “poor”! I would like to suggest that there may be some reasons for their problems with spoken English.
First, they fail to find suitable words to express themselves due to a limited vocabulary. Obviously the better answer is to expand their vocabulary. However, you can speak with a limited vocabulary, if your attitude is positive. Others will follow you as long as you use the words that you know.
Second, they are afraid of making mistakes. Sometimes they make mistakes when they are speaking because they are shy and nervous. Yet students should remember that their goal should be FLUENCY NOT ACCURACY（准确性）. Your aim in writing is to be accurate following the rules for grammar and using the right words and spelling them correctly. However, in speaking your aim is fluency. You want to get your message across ,to talk to someone in English ,as quickly and as well as you can ,even though sometimes you may use a wrong word or tense ,but it doesn’t matter because the person you are speaking to will understand you and make allowances for any mistakes he hears.
The third reason is that not enough attention is paid to listening. You have one mouth but two ears! All that hearing was necessary for you to start speaking.
Forth, most Chinese students are reactive rather than proactive language learners. Instead of actively seeking out opportunities to improve their spoken English they passively wait for speaking opportunities to come to them and wonder why their English always remains poor. If you have this proactive outlook, then you will see English opportunities wherever you go.
If you do not use your English beyond the classroom you will forget what English you know. Remember: USE IT OR LOSE IT! You can learn how to speak English better by speaking English more.
63．What is most probably the writer’s purpose in writing the passage?
A．To improve your reading. B．To improve your listening.
C．To improve your spoken English. D．To improve your vocabulary.
64．It can be inferred from the third paragraph that .
A．don’t be fluency . Just be accuracy
B．don’t be nervous ,don’t be shy . Just write!
C．don’t be afraid of making mistakes . Just speak!
D．don’t be shy ,don’t be fluency. Just listen and write!
65．The last paragraph is possibly close to the meaning of “ ”.
A．more hurry, less speed B．better late than never
C．silence is gold D．practice makes perfect
66．The text is most probably taken from a .
A．teacher’s diary B．report on study C．sports newspaper D．movie magazine

Student Puts School President On eBay
An Ohio State University student has put their school president on the online auction（拍卖）site eBay. Bidding started at a penny and the seven-day auction had 64 bids from 19. bidders topping out at almost $ 100 million.
Skydiver, 96, Hurt In Attempt To Set Record
In Washington, a 96-year-old man aiming to become the oldest person to make a solo skydiver had a rough landing and suffered a dislocated shoulder, but otherwise safe.
Pets Fight In Car, Cause Wreck
An American Lovell man was moving to his new home with all his belongings packed into his car when his pet cat got loose, found his pet snake and started fighting inside the car, causing him to lose control and crash into a narrow ditch（沟）.
Thieves Steal Built-In Swimming Pool
When a Norwegian family visited their mountain cabin over the weekend, they discovered a big hole in the yard in place of the built-in swimming pool that had been installed 20 years ago.
Man Burns Down Home Over No Gifts
In Southampton, Long Island, Wednesday. A man, angry that he got no presents for
Christmas, burned down his parents' home early Christmas morning.
60．According to this passage, which of the events happened at the weekend?
A．A man’s pets fought in the car and caused a car crash.
B．An old man aiming to set a record got hurt.
C．A man burned down his parents' home over no gifts.
D．A family found their swimming pool stolen.
61．Which of the following events happened to the Lovell man?
A．He was put on the online auction site eBay. B．His car crashed into a narrow ditch.
C．His built-in swimming pool was stolen. D．He burnt down his parents' home.
62．The passage is most probably taken from _______.
A．a science magazine B．a research paper C．a personal diary D．a newspaper