I travel a lot in my work, and what I dislike about
my job is eating alone. It always makes me feel lonely to see others laughing and talking. So, room service for several nights was a better choice for me.
After having room service three nights at a hotel in Houston, however, I needed to get out of my room. Although the restaurant opened at 6:30, I arrived at 6:25. The waiter at the front desk made a comment(评论) about my “being there really early”. I explained my dislike of eating alone in restaurants. He then seated me at a lovely table and asked me whether I would mind if he sat down with me for a while.
I was glad! He sat and talked with me about his career goals and the difficulty of being at work on nights, weekends and holidays. He said he hadn’t enough time to be with his family. After 15 minutes, he saw some customers at the front desk and excused himself. I noticed that before he went to the fron
t desk, he stopped in the kitchen for a moment.
Then another waiter came out of the kitchen and had a wonderful chat with me. Before I left that night, some other waiters, even the cook, had come out of the kitchen and sat with me! When I asked for my bill about one hour later, all the people who had sat down with me came over in a big group to my table, and presented me with a red rose. And I cried! What had begun as a lonely night ended as a beautif
ul experience.
The author asked for room service because _______.
| A．a lot of money would be saved in this way |
| B．he didn’t like to eat with other people around |
| C．he didn’t wanted to be recognized by the waiters |
| D．seeing people laughing and talking made him feel bad |
How did the waiter feel when he saw the author come in at 6:25?
| A．Dissatisfied. | B．Pleased. | C．Surprised. | D．Angry. |
From the third paragraph, we can learn that the waiter at the front desk ______.
| A．knew how to attract more customers to his restaurant |
| B．found it hard to balance his work and his family |
| C．was getting tired of his present job |
| D．had never had such a chance to talk about his worries |
The author wants to tell us that ______.
| A．people are actually all lonely in their own way |
| B．restaurants should put the need of customers first |
| C．the kindness of strangers can make you less lonely |
| D．restaurants are full of surprises for lonely people |
IV. 阅读理解：（共20题，每小题2分，共40分）
My father had returned from his business visit to London when I came in, rather late, to supper. I could tell at once that he and my mother had been discussing something. In that half-playful, half-serious way I knew so well, he said, "How would you like to go to Eton?"
"You bet," I cried quickly catching the joke. Everyone knew it was the most expensive, the most famous of schools. You had to be entered at birth, if not before. Besides, even at 12 or 13, I understood my father. He disliked any form of showing off. He always knew his proper station in life, which was in the middle of the middle class, our house was medium-sized; he had avoided joining Royal Liverpool Golf Club and went to a smaller one instead; though once he had got a second-hand Rolls-Royce at a remarkably low price, he felt embarrassed driving it, and quickly changed it for an Austin 1100.
This could only be his delightful way of telling me that the whole boarding school idea was to be dropped. Alas! I should also have remembered that he had a liking for being different from everyone else, if it did not conflict(冲突) with his fear of drawing attention to himself.
It seem
ed that he had happened to be talking to Graham Brown of the London office, a very nice fellow, and Graham had a friend who had just entered his boy at the school, and while he was in that part of the world he thought he might just as well phone them. I remember my eyes stinging(刺痛) and my hands shaking with the puzzlement of my feelings. There was excitement, at the heart of great sadness.
"Oh, he doesn't want to go away," said my mother, "You shouldn't go on like this.” “It's up to him," said my father. "He can make up his own mind."
36. The house the writer's family lived in was ________.
A. the best they could afford B. right for their social position
C. for showing off D. rather small
37. His father sold his Roils-Royce because ________.
A. it made him feel uneasyB. it was too old to work well
C. it was too expensive to possess D. it was too cheap
38. The writer's father enjoyed being in the middle class because ________.
A. it drew attention to himB. it didn't bring him in arguments
C. it was understood as a jokeD. he disliked showing off
39. What was the writer's reaction to the idea of going to Eton?
A. He was very unhappy. B. He didn't believe it.
C. He was delighted. D. He had mixed feelings.
40. We can know from the passage that ________.
A. Children who can go to Eton are very famous
B. Children can go to Eton if they will
C. It is very difficult for a child to get a chance to go to Eton
D. Children don't have the right to decide whether they will go to Eton
In today's world, we rely on computers as never before. They are used for everything from ordering a pizza to running hospitals and military defense systems. Banking and credit card information is stored and accessed by computers. So what happens when a computer gets infected with a virus? One effect is that people's access to their e-mail accounts is cut off. A more serious possible consequence is that billions of dollars could be lost.
A virus is a computer program that copies itself onto other programs and infects them. Similar to an easily spread disease, a computer virus goes from computer to computer, either adding to or changing the tasks a program is designed to do.
The first computer viruses were created in the mid '80s and had varying effects. Some caused files to be deleted, or made the letters on the screen appear to fall off. Others displayed a specific message once the computer was turned on.
Viruses today are much more widespread and dangerous than ever before. Perhaps the most damaging to date has been the "I Love You" virus. "I Love You" appeared in May 2000 and has possibly been the most destructive virus in terms of monetary loss.
The virus is released when an attachment to a fake e-mail message is opened. By changing the names of files on computers, "I Love You" makes them difficult to access. It also searches for important personal information, including passwords, which it sends to a web site for others to see.
It is estimated that more than 45 million people in 20 countries have had their computers infected by the "I Love You" virus. Some say the cost of repair and lost business has been more than US$10 billion.
If you own a computer, it is important to keep it in good health by installing an anti-virus program. If updated frequently, it will protect your e-mail access--not to mention your wallet.
51.What does "virus" mean in the article?
A. An easily spread disease.
B. A contagious (传染的) computer program.
C. An extremely small organism (生物) which causes disease.
D. A parasite (寄生虫) in computer.
52. How does "I Love You" virus spread?
A. It is spread when an e-mail account is opened.
B. It is spread through on-line chatting.
C. It is spread through e-mail.
D. It spreads from web site to web site.
53. Which of the following is one of the damages brought by "I Love You" virus?
A. It deletes files. B. It automatically turns on computers.
C. It automatically turns off computers. D. It makes it difficult to access files.
54. Which of the following is the best way to guard against virus?
A. To load an up-to-date anti-virus program into our computer
B. Not to use an e-mail account.
C. To upgrade our computer. D. Not to use the Internet.
55. What is the purpose of the article?
A. To warn us against virus.
B. To remind us the importance of being healthy.
C. To stress the importance of computer.
D. To alert us to economic loss.
Several different stories are told about the origin of Saint Valentine’s Day. One legend(story) dates as far back as the days of Roman Empire. According to the story. Claudius, the Emperor of Rome, wanted to increase the size of the army. He knew that it would be easier to get young men who were not married to join the army; therefore, he made a rule that no young men could marry until he had served in the army for a number of years.
A priest(man working in church) named Valentine broke the rule and secretly married a great number of young people. Finally, Claudius found out about Valentine and put the priest in prison, where he remained until his death on February 14.
After his death, Valentine was made a saint(perfect man in public opinion) and the day of his death was named Saint Valentine’s Day----which is a time for people to send one another their greeting of many kinds.
February 14, Valentine’s Day, is sweetheart’s day, on which people in love with each other express their tender emotions(soft feelings).
People sometimes put their
love message in a heart shaped box of chocolate or a bunch of flowers tied with red ribbons(silk). Words of letters may be written on the flower covered card, or something else. Whatever the form may be, the message is almost the same “Will you be my Valentine?”
46. According to the rule_______.
A. no young men could get married unless they were old enough.
B. Young men could get married if they had served the army for a number of years.
no one could get married without the emperor’s permission
young men could get married only in the army.
47.The passage mainly tells us about_______.
A. How Valentine died B. The emperor of Rome
C. How Valentine’s Day is celebrated D. The origin of Valentine’s Day
48. February 14 is chosen as Valentine’s Day because_______.
A. people want to remember Valentine
lovers express their tender emotions on this day
people send one another greeting of many kinds on this day
people want to fix a date for lovers to express their emotion
49. Valentine was put in prison for ________.
A. he helped the couples who were not supposed to get married B. he got married C. he fell in love with more than one woman.
D. he broke the emperor’s rule on purpose
50. When a boy asks a neighbor girl to be his Valentine, he is probably asking her to _________.
A. spend the festival with him B. be his date
C. forgive him D. not to break his heart
三．阅读 (共两节，满分40分)
第一节阅读理解 (共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分)
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项，并填写在答题卡上。
Linda often asked Luke to dinner. Linda loved Luke, but Luke loved Linda’s cooking, not Linda herself. Linda accepted that for the time being. But she felt that, with enough meals and enough time, she would get her man.
Luke rarely stayed more than ten minutes past the last bite of dessert. Linda would ask luke if he wanted to watch TV, or play cards or chess, or take a walk around the neighborhood, but Luke always declined. He always said, “ I’ve got to go.” They both knew that Luke didn’t have to go anywhere. All he ever did was to go back to his apartment and read books or go online.
Tonight was probably going to be more of the same. But Linda was a patient woman. She loved to cook, and she loved to watch people eat her cooking. Tonight she prepared shrimp, fresh green beans, mashed potatoes, and asparagus(芦笋). Luke ate everything. Then she brought out her homemade cheesecake with vanilla ice cream for dessert.
Luke asked, “ Are you trying to fatten me up for something? Every time I come over here, I have to eat celery(芹菜) and lettuce for a week to get back down to my normal weight. Or maybe I should start going to the gym more often. Nah, I’m too lazy for that.”
“Oh, stop exaggerating(夸张).” Linda replied. “ You enoy every mouthful. And besides, I don’t think you lazy at all.”
“ You’re right. I apologise. I love your cooking, and if you didn’t invite me over here, I’d be hurt and hungry.”
Linda watched contentedly(满足地) as Luke devoured the cheesecake and ice cream. Someday, she thought, I will be his dessert.
41. Which of the following were included in the meal Linda made for Luke.
A. Shrimp, tomatoes and ice cream.
B. Mashed potatoes, ice cream and cheesecake.
C. Bean, fried potaties and asparagus.
D. Shrimp, green peas and cheesecake.
42. What can be inferred from this passage?
A. Linda will eventually capture Luke’s heart.
B. Luke is often a very busy man.
C. Linda prefers fat men.
D. Both Luke and Linda are single.
43. According to the passage which of the following is NOT true about Luke?
A. He owns a computer.
B. He enjoys reading.
C. He prefers ice cream to cheesecake.
D. He has had dinner with Linda before.
44. What would be the best title for this passage?
A. My Foolish Heart.
B. The Way to a Man’s Heart is Through his Stomach.
C. The Fatter the Better.
D. The Food of Life.
45. Why did Luke always decline Linda’s invitations to do other things besides eating?
A. He was often busy at work.
B. He only liked Linda’s cooking.
C. He preferred being alone most of the time.
D. He was very shy.
In Western countries people have been using the installment plan since the first half of the twentieth century. Today, a large number of families in Great Britain buy furniture, household goods and cars by installments. In the U. S., the figure is much higher than in Great Britain, and people there spend over 10 percent of their income on the installment plan.
The price of an article bought on installments is always higher than the price that would be paid by cash. There is a charge for interest. The buyer pays one quarter or one third of the price as a down payment when the goods are delivered to him. He then makes regular payments, weekly or monthly, until the full price is paid up. The legal ownership of the goods remains with the seller until the final payment has been made.
Installment buying has advantages and disadvantages. It can help couples with small incomes to furnish their homes and start housekeeping. It increases the demand for goods, and in this way helps business and employment. There is, however, the danger that when business is bad, installment buying may end suddenly, making business much worse. This may result in a great increase in unemployment. If the people on the installment plan lose their jobs, they will probably not be able to make their payments. If great numbers of people are not able to pay their installment debts there is a possibility that businessmen cannot collect their debts and will therefore lose money. If businessmen lose money or fail to make a satisfactory profit, it becomes more likely to have a depression. This is why, in some countries, the government controls the installment plan by fixing the amount of the down payment and installments to discourage people from buying more than they can pay for on the installment plan.
56. Which of the following is NOT true about the installment plan?
A. A lot of British families use the installment plan.
B. More than 10 percent American families buy things on installments.
C. Americans depend more on installment than British people do.
D. Americans spend one tenth of their income on installment buying.
57. Goods bought on installments are more expensive than goods bought by cash because ______.
A. the buyer has to pay extra money as interest
B. the delivery of the goods charges extra money
C. the buyer has to pay a down payment
D. the service offered by installment plan charged extra money
58. What will happen to a buyer if he fails to make the full payment for an item bought on installments?
A. He might lose his job.
B. He will stop owning the item he has bought.
C. He will have to sell what he has bought.
D. He will go into debt.
59. The advantage of installment buying might include all the following EXCEPT that ________.
A. purchasing power is strengthened
B. employment might be increased
C. people develop a good habit of saving money
D. young couples are able to furnish their homes
60. In some countries, the governments control the installment plan to ________.
A. increase employment
B. avoid depressions
C. ensure that businesses make good profits
D. ensure that people can pay for what hey buy