You are walking down the street, minding your own business when you see a snowball. No big deal, right? Except the snowball is as tall as you are. And weighs about a ton. Did we mention that it is June?
That’s the experience thousand of Londoners had when they crossed paths with “ Snowball in Summer,” Goldsworthy makes sculpture (雕塑)from all sorts of things he finds outside – leaves, earth, and rocks, as well as ice and snow. He wanted to find out how busy people would react to an unexpected snowball melting in their midst.
During the winter of 2008, he rolled 13 giant snowballs near his home in Scotland. He filled each one with a surprise in the center – such as berries, feathers, little stones or sheep’s wool – which would appear as the snow melted. The finished snowballs were stored in a deep freeze until summer, then transported to London in refrigerated trucks. At midnight on June 21, 2008, while the city slept, Goldsworthy and his helpers rolled their snowballs into place.
People walking to work or school must have thought the sky was falling when they stumbled across snowballs the size of baby elephants. Some of them had never even seen snow in real life, and they couldn’t help touching them in great surprise. As the snow started to melt, things got even more interesting. The perfectly round snowballs took on different shapes as the stuff inside began to poke through. Two days later, most of Goldsworthy’s snowballs were gone, and their fillings scattered. But Londoners were left with a really good story about that odd summer day when the snowball came. What is really special about the snowballs is that ______________________.
A.they lie in the street |
B.they are in the shape of baby elephants. |
C.they have berries, feathers, little stones and feathers in them. |
D.they appear in June. |
What was the purpose of Goldsworthy in making the snowballs?
A.To find out people’s reactions to them |
B.To call up people’s memory of the cold winter. |
C.To show off his skills in sculpture. |
D.To let people experience the cold winter. |
Why did Gold
sworthy and his helpers roll their snowballs into place at mid-night?
A. They didn’t want to disturb other people.
B. It was quite at that time.
C. They wanted to avoid the traffic jam.
D, They wanted to give people a surprise.
.
Do you want to live another 100 years or more? Some experts say that scientific advances will
one day enable humans to last tens of years beyond what is now seen as the natural limit of the human life span.
“ I think we are knocking at the door of immortality (永生),” said Michael Zey, a Montclair State University business professor and author of two books on the future. “ I think by 2075 we will see it and that’s a conservative estimate.”
At the conference in San Francisco, Donald Louria, a professor at New Jersey Medical School in Newark said advances in using genes as well as nanotechnology(纳米技术) make it likely that humans will live in the future beyond what has been possible in the past. “ There is a great push so that people can live from 120 to 180 years,” he said. “ Some have suggested that there is no limit and that people could live to 200 or 300 or 500 years.”
However, many scientists who specialize in aging are doubtful about it and say the human body is just not designed to last about 120 years. Even with healthier lifestyles and less disease, they say failure of the brain and organs will finally lead all humans to death.
Scientists also differ on what kind of life the super aged might live. “ It remains to be seen if you pass 120, you know; could you be healthy enough to have good quality of life?” said Leonard Poon, director of the University of Georgia Gerontology Center. “ At present people who could get to that point are not in good health at all.”
67. By saying “ we are knocking at the door immortality”, Michael Zey means_____.
A. they believe that there is no limit of living
B. they are sure to find the truth about long living
C. they have got some ideas about living forever
D. they are able to make people live past the present life span
68. Donald Louria’s attitude toward long living is that_____.
A. people can live from 120 to 180
B. it is still doubtful how long humans can live
C. the human body is designed to last about 120 years
D. it is possible for humans to live longer in the future
69. The underlined “ it” (Para. 4) refers to_____.
A. a great push
B. the idea of living beyond the present life span
C. the idea of living from 200 to 300
D. the conservative estimate
70. What would be the best title for this text?
A. Living longer or not
B. Science, technology and long living
C. No limit for human life
D. Healthy lifestyle and long living
.
Facing the threat of the Internet, the traditional newspaper is thinking about what it can do to meet the challenge. To make teens get into the habit of reading, the French government is considering what kind of efforts it should pursue. It seems that the two questions have nothing to do with each other, but a recent announcement made by French President Nicolas Sarkozy has connected these two issues together. The announcement gives an answer to both of them.
. President Nicolas Sarkozy announced a rescue plan for France' s ailing print media, including measures to save printing and distribution costs. The plan also gives French teenagers a surprise as their 18-year-old birthday gift: France will offer all 18-year-olds a free daily copy of the newspaper of their choice.
"The habit of reading the press should start at a very young age," Sarkozy said, presenting the conclusion after talking to a group of journalists and officials in Paris. The President said the newspapers themselves would provide free copies for 18-year-olds, while the state would cover the cost of delivering them to many thousands of homes.
The plan is an attempt to introduce teenagers, who frequently only get their news online, to the delights of the printed world. A similar idea has been tested by L'Ouest-France (法兰西部报) over the past few years. It offered some 18 to 24-year-olds a free paper once a week for a year. L' Ouest-France reported that 15% of young people wanted to continue with a paid subscription after the year was over.
People in France welcomed the plan which should get more kids interested in current affairs and make reading be a pastime, as well as rescue the newspaper industry.
63. What does the underlined word " ailing" (in Paragraph 2) probably mean?
A. newly establishedB. in difficult situations
C. most popular D. warm-hearted
64. It can be inferred from the passage that .
A. the government will pay for the delivery of newspapers to 18 -year-olds
B. the government will buy newspapers for 18-year-olds for one day
C. some of the government officials are against the plan
D. President Nicolas Sarkozy would like to help the government
65. What is people' s reaction to the plan in France?
A, They think it a waste of money.
B. They will buy newspapers themselves for 18-year-olds.
C. They think highly of it and support it:.
D. They are worried the young will leave the Internet.
66. Which of the following can serve as the best for the passage?
A. A surprising plan from the President
B. Help rescue the newspaper industry
C. Form the reading habit for the young
D. Free newspapers fly to teens
.
I am a good mother to three children. I have tried never to let my profession stand in the way of being a good parent.
I no longer consider myself the center of the universe. I show up. I listen. I try to laugh. I am a good friend to my husband. I have tried to make marriage vows mean what they say. I am a good friend to my friends, and they to me. Without them, there would be nothing to say to you today.
So here’s what I wanted to tell you today: Get a life. A real life, not a desire of the next promotion, the bigger pay-check….
Get a life in which you are not alone. Find people you love, and who love you. And remember that love is not leisure, it is work. Pick up the phone. Send an e-mail. Write a letter. And realize that life is the best thing and that you have no business taking it for granted.
It is so easy to waste our lives, our days, our hours, and our minutes. It is so easy to exist instead of to live. I learned to live many years ago. Something really, really bad happened to me, something that changed my life in ways that, if I had my choice, it would never have been changed at all. And what I learned from it is what , today, seems to be the hardest lesson of all.
I learned to love the journey, not the destination. I learned to look at all the good in the world and try to give some of it back because I believed in it, completely and totally. And I tried to do that, in part, by telling others what I had learned.
By telling them this: Read in the backyard with the sun on your face. Learn to be happy. And think of life as a deadly illness, because if you do, you will live it with joy and passion as it ought to be lived.
59. It can be inferred from the passage that_____.
A. the author is a success in personal life
B. the author didn’t try her best to work well
C. the author spent all her time caring for her children
D. the author likes traveling very much
60. How did the author form her view of life?
A. Through social experience. B. By learning from her friends.
C. Through an unfortunate experience D. From her children and husband.
61. By the underlined sentence “ It is so easy to exist instead of to live” in the fifth paragraph, the author really means that people tend to_____.
A. make a living rather than live a real life
B. work rather than enjoy life
C. waste a lot in life
D. forget the most important lessons in life
62. What’s the author’s attitude towards work?
A. Do it well to serve others.
B. Earn enough money to make life better.
C. Try your best to get higher position and pay.
D. Don’t let it affect your real life.
.
第三部分:阅读理解(共15小题,每题2分,满分30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。Australian scientists are trying to give kangaroo-style stomachs to cattle and sheep in a bid
to cut the emission of greenhouse gases blamed for global warming.Thanks to special bacteria in their stomachs, kangaroo farts contain no methane(甲烷)and scientists want to transfer that bacteria to cattle and sheep who emit large quantities of the harmful gas.
While the usual image of greenhouse gas pollution is a billowing smokestack pushing out carbon dioxide, livestock passing wind contribute a surprisingly high percentage of total emissions in some countries.
"Fourteen percent of emissions from all sources in Australia is from enteric methane from cattle and sheep," said Athol Klieve, a senior research scientist with the Queensland state government.
"And if you look at another country such as New Zealand, which has got a much higher agricultural base, they're actually up around 50 percent," he said.
Researchers say the bacteria also makes the digestive process much more efficient and could potentially save millions of dollars in feed costs for farmers.
But it will take researchers at least three years to isolate the bacteria, before they can even start to develop a way of transferring it to cattle and sheep.
Another group of scientists, meanwhile, has suggested Australians should farm fewer cattle and sheep and just eat more kangaroos.
The idea is controversial(争议), but about 20 percent of health conscious Australians are believed to eat the national symbol already.
"It's low in fat, it's got high protein levels and it's very clean in the sense that basically it's the ultimate free range animal(散养动物)," said Peter Ampt of the University of New South Wales's institute of environmental studies.
56. According to the passage, global warming is now mainly caused by _____ .
A. methane B. carbon dioxide C. livestock passing wind D. not mention in this passage
57. What does the underlined phrase “the idea”(paragraph 9)refer to?A. Australians should give kangaroo-style stomachs to cattle and sheep.
B. The bacteria could make the digestive process much more efficient.
C. Australians should farm fewer cattle and sheep and just eat more kangaroos.
D. The bacteria could potentially save millions of dollars in feed costs for farmers.
58. How will Australian scientists solve the problem of global warming?
A. Eating more kangaroos.
B. Killing more cattle and sheep.C. Letting cattle and sheep pass less wind.
D. Transferring the special bacteria in kangaroos’ stomachs to cattle and sheep.
.
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57. What is the best way to save money?
A. Four adults book one day tour.
B. Three adults book on the same tour.
C. Four adults book two day tours.
D. Three adults book at least two day tours.
58. According to the passage, The John Muir Trust is probably a group which .
A. helps you save money B. is ready to save tourists from danger
C. helps you make a tour plan D. works on environmental protection
59. Which of the following is NOT the characteristic of the tour of Scotland?
A. No insurance. B. Small group.
C. Sustainable tourism. D. Local guide.
60. In which part of a newspaper will you most possibly see this advertisement?
A. Editorial & Opinion B. Fashion & Style
C. Business Today D. Leisure Time