Astronauts’ meals have come a long way from the free-dried powders and semi—liquid pastes of decades ago，now US scientists want to grow vegetables in mini—greenhouses on the moon．
Scientists say they are looking forward to a time when residents of future lunar or even Martian outsteps will be able to dine on fresh vegetables．Paragon Space Development Corporation has unveiled what it called the first step toward growing flowers——and eventually food on the moon．
This is a sealed greenhouse that looks like a bell jar encased in a 46-cm triangular aluminiumframe．It is designed to safely land a laboratory plant on the lunar surface，and protect it while it grows．
The miniature greenhouse is to be launched into space by Odyssey Moon Ltd, a participant in the Google Lunar X Prize. This competition offers $21 million to any entrant who can launch, land and operate a rover on the lunar surface.
Paragon officials say future testing of the “Lunar Oasis” will be driven by Odyssey’s flight Schedule, which will not happen until 2012 at the earliest．
When it does lift off the greenhouse will contain the seeds of Brassica, a hardy plant related to Brussels sprouts and cabbage. Because Brassica goes from seed to flower in just 14 days, it can complete its life cycle in a single lunar night.
“Colonizing the Moon or Mars seems so far away，but it is important that we do this research now. ”Paragon president Jane Poynter said．
“It takes a long time to get a lot of research, and to get integrated, reliable efficient systems before colonists move in. ”she said．The article is written mainly to__________．
| A．predict the astronauts’ meals in the future |
| B．introduce an experiment “Lunar Oasis’’ |
| C．tell us the future development of astronomy |
| D．focus on the human’s great progress |
The article implies that__________．
| A．astronauts can grow flowers in space at present | |
| B．Paragon and NASA will carry out the test separately | |
C．Lunar Oasis is a series of experiments carried out in space |
D．the earliest testing of the Lunar Oasis may be in 2012 |
The underlined word “colonists” in the last paragraph probably has the meaning of______．
| A．plants | B．wild beasts | C．human beings | D．scientists |
The seeds of Brassica will be contained in the greenhouse mainly because _________.
| A．their life cycle is much shorter |
| B．they are more nutritious than other food |
| C．they are related to Brussels sprouts and cabbage |
| D．they are very delicious |
.
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中(A、B、C和¨D)中．选出佳选项。并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
As computers become all the more popular in China, Chinese people are increasingly relying on computer keyboards to input Chinese characters. But if they use the computer too much, they may end up forgetting the exact strokes（笔画）of each Chinese character when writing on paper. Experts suggest people, especially students, write by hand more.
Do you write by hand more or type more? In Beijing, students start using a computer as early as primary school. And computer dependence is more wide-spread among university students. Almost all their assignments and essays are typed on a computer.
All the students interviewed say they usually use a computer.
It's faster and easier to correct if using a computer. And that's why computers are being applied more and more often to modern education. But when people are taking stock in computers increasingly, problems appear.
"When I'm writing with a pen, I find I often can't remember how to write a character, though I feel I’m familiar with it."
"I'm not in the mood to write when faced with a pen and paper."
Many students don't feel this is something to worry about. Now that it's more convenient and efficient to write on a computer, why bother to handwrite?
Many educators think differently. Shi Liwei , the headmaster of a famous primary school in the capital said "Chinese characters enjoy both practical and aesthetic(审美的) value. But those characters typed with computer keyboards only maintain their practical value. All the artistic beauty of the characters is lost. And handwriting contains the writer's emotion. Through one's handwriting, people can get to know one's thinking and personality. Beautiful writing will give people a better first impression of them"
To encourage students to handwrite more, many primary schools in Beijing have made writing classes compulsory(必修的)and in universities, some professors are asking students to turn in their homework and essays written by hand.
56. Which of the following can best serve as the title of the passage?
A. The Importance of Handwriting and Typing.
B. To Type or To Hand Write
C. Writing By Computer Will Replace Writing By Hand
D. Practical and Aesthetic Value of Chinese Characters.
57.The students interviewed prefer to write using a computer mainly because______.
A. they are usually asked to e-mail their Homework and Essays
B. they can correct the mistakes they make quickly and conveniently
C .they find it not easy to remember how to write a character
D. computers have become a trend and fashion in China.
58. Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE of the advantages of handwriting?
A. Handwriting contains the writer's emotion .
B. The writer’s thinking and personality are shown in his or her handwriting,
C. Handwriting can impress people well and build one’s self-confidence
D. Chinese characters enjoy both practical and aesthetic value.
59. The underlined expression “taking stock in”(Paragraph 4) probably means_____.
A. getting bored with B. getting dependent on
C. becoming crazy about D. getting curious about
60. We can draw the conclusion from the passage that_______.
A. more and more students will give up writing on a computer
B. writing by hand will give way to typing by computer one day
C. more and more students will pay attention to handwriting
D. the typing article better expresses one’s emotion and quality
.
In spite of ill health and a physical incapacity（伤残）that threatened her career, Carson McCullers completed a novel in the summer of 1961 that made the best-seller list before its official publication; date by virtue of（由于）prepublication sales.
In an interview at her home, the noted novelist looked back on some of her problems of recent years and spoke without emotion of her latest book, Clock without Hands, her first in fifteen years, "For many years I had been thinking of the novel and finally wrote it this passed year. ""The tall, frail novelist, forty-three years old in 1961, suffered a series of strokes in her twenties that left her partially incapacitated, and she also admitted that a mental block kept her away from writing for many years after the strokes.
Mrs McCullers once wrote that "writing is a wandering, dreaming occupation. " But beyond the admission that she works" very hard" at her writing, she is shy about discussing her work. She is remote from literary fashions, and she has never learned to intellectualize her art, but she reads her critics and takes them seriously.
Clock Without Hands depicts （叙述） Mrs McCullers' native South and the slow passing of the old way of life through the lives of a dying pharmacist （药剂师）, a white judge and former congressman, his rebellious grandson, and two Negroes. Among her earlier noted works are Member of the Wedding, The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, and Ballad of Sad Cafe.
71. The novel made the best-seller list ______.
A. one month after publication B. immediately upon publication
C. before publication D. before completion
72. Mrs McCullers' comments about Clock without Hands were______.
A. enthusiastic B. defensive
C. shy and self-conscious D. unemotional
73. Clock without Hands was the product of ______.
A. many years of work B. one year of work C. many years of thought D. both B and C
74. Mrs McCullers did not write for many years because ______.
A. strokes left her partially incapacitated B. she had a mental block
C. she had no ideas D. both A and B
75. According to the selection, Mrs McCullers_____.
A. follows literary fashions B. intellectualizes her art
C. discusses her work avidly（热心的） D. takes her critics seriously
.
We can make mistakes at any age. Some mistakes we make are about money. But most mistakes are about people. "Did Jerry really care when I broke up with Helen?" "When I got that great job, did Jim really feel good about it, as a friend? Or did he envy my luck? “And Paul, why didn't pick up that he was friendly just because I had a car?" When we look back, doubts like these can make us feel bad. But when we look back, it's too late.
Why do we go wrong about our friends—or our enemies? Sometimes what people say hides their real meaning. And if we don't really listen we miss the feeling behind the words. Suppose someone tells you, "You're a lucky dog, "and that's being friendly. But "lucky dog"? There's a bit of envy in those words. Maybe he doesn't see it himself. But bringing in the "dog" bit puts you down a little, what he may be saying is that he doesn't think you deserve your luck.
"Just think of all the things you have to be thankful for" is another noise that says one thing and means another. It could mean that the speaker is trying to get you to see your problem as part of your life as a whole. But is he? Wrapped up in this phrase is the thought that your problem isn't important. It's telling you to think of all the starving people in the world when you haven't got a date for Saturday night.
How can you tell the real meaning behind someone’s words? One way is to take a good look at the person talking. Do his words fit the way he looks? Does what he says agree with the tone of voice? His posture? The look in his eyes? Stop and think. The minute you spend thinking about the real meaning of what people say to you may save another mistake.
66. This passage is mainly about ______.
A. how to interpret what people say
B. what to do when you listen to others talking
C. why we go wrong with people and how to avoid these mistakes
D. why we go wrong with people sometimes
67. According to the author, the reason why we go wrong about our friends is that .
A. we fail to listen carefully when they talk
B. people tend to be annoyed when we check what they say
C. people usually state one thing but mean another
D. we tend to doubt what our friends say
68. The underlined word "it" in the second paragraph refers to______.
A. being friendly B. a bit of envy
C. lucky dog D. your luck
69. When we listen to a person talking, the most important thing for us to do is __.
A. notice the way the person is talking
B. take a good look at the person talking
C. mind his tone, his posture and the look in his eyes
D. examine the real meaning of what he says based on his manner, his tone and his posture
70. The author is most probably a ______.
A. teacher B. psychologist C. philosopher D. doctor
.
The International Olympic Committee named a short list of five cities as possible hosts for the 2012 Olympics.
|
The five—London, Madrid, Moscow, New York and Paris—became official candidates, beginning a 14-month race that ended with the selection of a winning bid by the IOC's assembly in Singapore in July 2005.
Havana, Leipzig, Rio de Janeiro and Istanbul were the victims in 2004, as the field was cut down from nine applicants..
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，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。In this age of Internet chat, videogames and reality television, there is no shortage of mindless activities to keep a child occupied. Yet, despite the competition, my 8-year-old daughter Rebecca wants to spend her leisure time writing short stories. She wants to enter one of her stories into a writing contest, a competition she won last year.
As a writer I know about winning contest, and about losing them. I know what it is like to work hard on a story only to receive a rejection slip from the publisher. I also know the pressures of trying to live up to a reputation created by previous victories. What if she doesn’t win the contest again? That’s the strange thing about being a parent. So many of our own past scars and dashed hopes can surface.
A revelation（启示）came last week when I asked her, “Don’t you want to win again?” “No,” she replied, “I just want to tell the story of an angel going to first grade.”
I had just spent weeks correcting her stories as she spontaneously（自发地）told them. Telling myself that I was merely an experienced writer guiding the young writer across the hall, I offered suggestions for characters, conflicts and endings for her tales. The story about a fearful angel starting first trade was quickly “guided” by me into the tale of a little girl with a wild imagination taking her fist music lesson. I had turned her contest into my contest without even realizing it.
Staying back and giving kids space to grow is not as easy as it looks. Because I know very little about farm animals who use tools or angels who go to first grade, I had to accept the fact that I was co-opting（借用）my daughter’s experience.
While stepping back was difficult for me, it was certainly a good first step that I will quickly follow with more steps, putting myself far enough away to give her room but close enough to help if asked. All the while I will be reminding myself that children need room to experiment, grow and find their own voices.
56. What do we learn from the first paragraph?
A. Many children find lots of fun in mindless activities.
B. Rebecca is much too occupied to enjoy her leisure time.
C. Rebecca collects online materials for her writing.
D. Rebecca is different from any other child of her age.
57. What was the author's writing experience?
A. She did not quite live up to her reputation as a writer.
B. Her way to success was full of pains and frustrations.
C. She was constantly under pressure of writing more.
D. Most of her stories had been rejected by publishers.
58. Why did Rebecca want to enter this year's writing contest?
A. She possessed real talent for writing.
B. She wanted to win.
C. She wanted to share her stories with readers.
D. She had won a prize already.
59. The author took great pains to refine her daughter's stories because ______.
A. she believed she had the knowledge and experience to offer guidance
B. she did not want to disappoint Rebecca who wanted to win the contest
C. she wanted to help Rebecca win in the contest
D. she was afraid Rebecca's imagination might run wild while writing
60. What's the author's advice for parents?
A. A writing career, though attractive, is not for every child to pursue.
B. Children should be given freedom to grow through experience.
C. Parents should keep an eye on their kids' activities.
D. Children should be given every chance to voice their opinions.