New archaeological discoveries suggest that trade between E
urope and Asia along the Silk Road probably began in some form many centuries earlier than once thought. The findings, coupled with a widening range of scientific and historical research could add a fascinating new page to the epic (史诗) of the Silk Road.
The most surprising discovery is pieces of silk found in the hair of an Egyptian mummy from about 1000 BC, long before regular traffic on the Silk Road and at least one thousand years before silk was previously thought to be used in Egypt. Other research may extend human activity along this route back even further, perhaps a million years to the migration of human ancestors into eastern Asia.
The official origin of East-West trade along the road is usually placed in the late 2nd century BC when an agent of the Chinese Emperor Wu-di returned from a dangerous secret mission（使命）across the desert into the remote high country of Central Asia. The agent, Zhang Qian, travelled as far as Afghanistan and brought back knowledge of even more distant lands such as Persia, Syria and a place known as Lijien, perhaps Rome. Historians have called this one of the most important journeys in ancient times. His journey opened the way for what have been thought to be the first indirect contacts between the ancient world’s two superpowers, China and Rome. Chinese silk, first traded to central Asian tribes for war horses and to the Parthian for acrobats and ostrich eggs, was soon finding its way through a network of merchants to the luxury (奢侈品) markets in Rome.
But the new discoveries show that Chinese silk was apparently present in the West long before the Han emperor started organized trade over the Silk Road. The research could change thinking about the early history of world trade and provide insights into the mystery of just how and when Europe and the Mediterranean lands first became aware of the glorious culture at the other end of Eurasia. The word “coupled” in the first paragraph could best be replaced by .
| A．combined | B．contributed | C．doubled | D．produced |
The silk thread found in the hair of an Egyptian mummy suggests that .
| A．Egyptians had probably travelled to China to buy silk |
B．new light can now be thrown on ancient trading pr actices |
| C．historical research often achieves fascinating results |
| D．trade along the Silk Road began earlier than once thought |
Until recently historians mostly believed that trade along the Silk Road .
| A．began a million years ago |
| B．primarily benefited the Egyptians |
| C．originated in the 2nd century BC |
| D．extended human migration into eastern Asia |
Historians have always considered Zhang Qian’s mission important because they believe .
| A．he discovered the Silk Road |
| B．he helped establish East-West trade |
| C．he travelled as far as Afghanistan |
| D．he brought back knowledge of Rome to the emperor |
s I crammed myself onto a crowded train this morning, I noticed there was a very pregnant(怀孕的) woman standing near me, jammed in tightly and hanging on for dear life．I looked at the passengers sitting in the seats that are supposed to be surrendered to the elderly, physically challenged, and other people who need to sit, Not one of them even looked up; everyone was too absorbed in what they were listening to, reading, or watching to even notice the pregnant passenger．
Over the past few years, there have been countless discussions on minding our manners within our new modes of communication．But while we’ve been debating the dos and don’ts of technology etiquette（礼节）, it appears that many of us have forgotten some of the old school manners that have nothing to do with a keyboard or a monitor, but have everything to do with the long-forgotten Golden Rule．Maybe technology has eroded our brains so much that we can never go back to those golden days．
“Giving up your seat to someone is so easy．Even when people don’t accept your offer, I think it’s nice to get up and stay standing so they know you’re sincere． The more that we become the good example, the more it will catch on．” Lizzie Post, says great-great granddaughter of Emily Post ．
Sophisticated technology doesn’t mean that good manners have to be a thing of the past． In fact, Post says she defines good manners using three simple, everyday principles: consideration, respect, and honesty． “Apply those to any situation and toward all the people involved including yourself and the solution will make sense．”
66．No one gave up his seat to the pregnant women because______．
A．The woman doesn’t need a seat at all．
B．It’s not common to give up his seat to others who need it
C．No one noticed her on the such crowed train
D．Everyone is so tired that all want to have a rest．
67．Paragraph 2 suggests that________．
A．We are always having discussions on minding our manners
B．Many of us have forgotten some of the old school manners
C．It’s technology that has eroded our brains so much
D．Students always care about their own business instead of school manners
68．The underlined phrase “ catch on ” in the third paragraph refers to____．
A．being understood B．being popular C．being taken D．being caught
69．What did Lizzie Post say shows that she was ______?
A．honest B．polite C．respectable D．friendly
70． What’
s the best title of the passage?
A．Where Are Our Manners B．The Long-forgotten Golden Rule
C．Give up your Seat D．Sophisticated Technology
Mary Buendia once spent a day in an airplane, looking for a cat．She didn't find it that day．The plane flew around all over the world for three weeks with the cat on board. She finally found it in the cargo hold and sent it home first-class．Another time, she found two suitcases full of birds from Turkey．But her strangest experience was when she pulled a snake out of a man's pants．
Mary Buendia is an animal health inspector at JFK Airport in New York．She takes care of all the animals that pass through the airport and checks that they are healthy．In the Animal Health Center, there are areas for dogs, cats, reptiles, birds, and fish. There is also an area for very big animals．The biggest they ever had was a black rhino．"It was no pro
blem," she says．
At the center, they receive all types of animals—monkeys, wild cats, poisonous spiders．It's impossible for one person to know about all of these, but there are 20 people working with Mary．Between them, they understand how to take care of the animals．She recently had to feed a group of toucans, which are rare birds．"Luckily," she says, "there is a supermarket nearby which is open 24 hours．I had to go at 2 a．m．to buy bananas．"
Mary often works at night． "It's quiet between 1 a．m． and 4 a．m．," she says, "because we don't have night flights． We try to give the animals a quiet night．" Mary clearly loves her job. "You never know what the day will bring," she says, and goes off to feed the birds．
71．The best title of the passage will probably be ____________．
A．JKF Airport in New York． B．Airport Health Inspector．
C．Mary Buendia D．Animal Health Center．
72．From the first paragraph, we can know that ___________．
A．Working as an Airport Health Inspector, Mary Buendia has various experiences．
B．After the cat was found, it was sent home to New York．
C．Mary got frightened when she pulled a snake out of a man’s pants．
D．Mary was tired of dealing with animals at the airport．
73．We can infer from the passage that ______．
A．Mary often works at night during flights．
B．It took Mary a whole day to find a lost cat in an airplane
C．Only healthy animals can be permitted to go aboard the airplane．
D．Mary knows everything about the animals by working with 20 other people．
74．An Airport Health Inspector should do the following Except ___________．
A．inspect whether the animals are healthy．
B．go shopping at night
C．take care of animals
D．work with colleagues and learn from each other
75．What kind of animals is "reptile" (in Para2) _________
A．a kind of large animals B．a kind of wild spiders
C．a kind of rare birds D．The passage doesn't mention
For all the dinner table, a glass of milk seems to be a constant , at least it was when I was growing up．It was widely believed that milk was integral in building strong bones and teeth. There’s no doubt that dairy products(乳制品), and milk in particular, are high in protein and calcium, and most milk products are supplemented with Vitamin D and A．
While it’s well known that our bones need calcium, some studies suggest that high calcium intake doesn’t necessarily lower a person’s risk for fractures（骨折）． A Harvard study found that people who drank two or more glasses of milk had no greater protection from breaking a bone than those who drank a glass or less a week．
There’s no doubt that we need calcium, Some anti-dairy supporters claim that dairy can lead to heart disease． Much of this claim is based on high fat and high dairy products, like cheeses and creams, which may indeed contribute to cardiovascular problems． Some studies have linked high milk intakes with a risk of prostate cancer; this seems to be caused by high-fat dairy products, not dairy in general．
Although milk was always regarded as one of the most important thing we need for our bones, yet least promoted, factors involved in strengthening bones. Perhaps we should think of dairy as less like a nutrient and more like a food. If you like it, eat it．If not, find some others． Because some claims may not be completely true, when I eat a cream, I’m not thinking about calcium, protein, or any such thing. I’m thinking delicious．
61．Which of the following is TRUE on the milk?
A．The more milk you drink, the more risk for fractures you might be．
B．The more milk you drink, the less risk for fractures you might be．
C．The less milk you drink, the less risk for fractures you might be．
D．There is no link between them．
62．Some anti-dairy supporters claim that dairy can lead to except______．
A．cardiovascular problems B．heart disease
C．prostate cancer D．stomach cancer
63．The underlined words “some others” in the last paragraph refer to_____．
A．dairy products B．milk C．food D．cream
64．What’s the author’s attitude towards milk?
A．He doesn’t like milk any more
B．He used to drink milk as a child．
C．He regards milk as a nutrient．
D．He always cares about calcium, protein when he eats something．
65．We can learn from the text that_____
A．All the claims are not completely true ．
B．High milk intakes can lead to cancer．
C．It’s necessary for you to reduce milk intakes．
D．Give up milk for your health．
When I was in high school, I had a recurring(反复的) dream of my teeth falling out. I dreamt about my teeth just about every night for at least three weeks. Sometimes they would fall out one at a time, sometimes all at once. I became terrified that my dreams meant I would actually lose my teeth. Nine years later and about a million trips to the dreams, I still have a full set of teeth, but I’ve learned that when we’re experiencing stress in our lives, it tends to show up in our dreams as well．
Miller says losing teeth indicates burdens that crush your pride. If your teeth are knocked out, you’ll have sudden misfortune． Other explanations for dreams about lost teeth are that the dreamer is feeling powerless in life and may be in a transitional（过度的） period from one situation of life to another. Some experts believe that dreams of l
osing teeth today show we’re just as insecure and uncertain as we were in
childhood．
When I dreamt about my teeth back in high school, I was trying to choose a college— a stressful decision． The dreams resurfaced when college graduation rolled around four years later and I’m sure they’ll start again when I graduate．
A little of stress in our everyday lives is normal. But sometimes it becomes such a regular occurrence in our lives that it influences our dreams and causes us to lose valuable sleep. Understanding our dreams is key to identifying and ending stress in our waking hours and restoring peace to our nighttime hours．
56．We know from the text that those who dreamt about lost his teeth indicates that________．
A．They will have sudden misfortune．
B．They are feeling powerless in life
C．They are as insecure and uncertain as they were in childhood
D．They are experiencing stress in their lives
57．How many different kinds of explanations are mentioned in the text about losing teeth?
A．Two B．Three C．Four D．Five
58．The underlined expression “rolled around” means_______
A．came about B．came down C．came near D．rolled out
59．We can infer from the text that___________．
A．Our dream can reflect what we go through in our real life．
B．Dreams can damage our valuable sleep．
C．We only dream when we are under great pressure．
D．Our dreams can show us what will happen in the future．
60．The author wrote the passage to tell us that______.
A．He wanted to show us his strange dreams．
B．He tried to explain why we dream．
C．Different people have different dreams
D．It is important for us to understand the meaning of our dreams
News (March 6, 2008) that Microsoft was making a $44.6 billion bid to buy Yahoo was greeted with heated discussion by many Internet users on Friday. Here are some responses:
Mark Galeassi of Kansas City, Missouri
This is the best move for both parties. Yahoo has the ideas and Microsoft has the money to finally market these ideas correctly. Microsoft and Yahoo are a perfect fit and the deal will be good for consumers.
Scott G. of New Jersey
I was a Yahoo user for years along with Hotmail from Microsoft. Then Google came along... Google Earth, Google Toolbar and Gmail. Google is so innovative (创新的) with everything they do. Yahoo and Microsoft... same old story... I don’t think the merger(合并) will do anything for either company except improve the Yahoo shareholders’ bank accounts:
Michael Glosser of Estero, Florida
Right now, Yahoo offers a lot of features and tools at no cost for all different levels of Intemet users. Microsoft seeks nothing but profit. Undoubtedly, they’ll do nothing other than find ways to start removing Yahoo’s formerly non-priced features. Microsoft’s greed will ruin the great thing that Yahoo currently is.
Toni Suarez of Hacienda Heights, California
Perhaps it would bring better high technology innovations to e-mail and help in researching and developing a better Internet!
Antonio Simmons of Parkville, Maryland
Microsoft purchasing Yahoo would be nothing more than an attempt from Microsoft to further impose upon the users their poor-quality software and obtain more wealth for the company. In my opinion, they will never be able to compete with Google because Yahoo and Microsoft’s current search engines are too inferior (差的) to compete. Even if combined, they still lack.
77. Who is in favor of the merger of Microsoft and Yahoo?
A. Antonio Simmons. B. Michael Grosser. C. Scott G. D. Mark Galeassi.
78. In the opinion of Scott G.,
A. the merger will contribute to Microsoft
B. Yahoo and Microsoft are lacking in innovation
C. Google is getting short of management experience
D. the merger will allow Microsoft to overtake Google
79. Michael Grosser is afraid that
A. the merger will cost Yahoo’s free features
B. the merger will lead to Microsoft’s monopoly (垄断) of the market
C. the increased competition will force Google out of the game
D. Intemet users will have to buy Microsoft’s costly software
80. What is Antonio Simmons’ attitude towards Google?
A. Doubtful. B. Disapproval. C. Positive. D. Negative.