Across the planet there are millions of people who engage in some type of meditation, the practice of concentrating and clearing the mind to bring the body into a state of peace, at least a semi-regular basis. For some, particularly among practitioners of Eastern religions such as Buddhism and Hinduism, this is part and parcel of their religious practice.
For others, particularly in Western cultures, meditation tends to be a response to stress. With the world economy approaching meltdown and people worried about their job or their ability to keep their home, it’s a way for people to attain a state of peace of mind and well-being.
For those interested in taking up the practice, instruction in meditation for beginners can be found in literally thousands of sources.
One of the most popular styles of mediation in the West, with classes offered in most major cities, is called Transcendental Meditation. TM, as it is known among its practitioners, first came to worldwide attention when the Beatles began practicing it in 1967. For direct, guided, personal instruction in meditation for the beginner, TM may be the hallmark.
Part of the confusion about how to practice meditation effectively is due to the fact that there are literally hundreds of techniques championed by various groups and individuals. As a general principle, it might be said that all meditation techniques seek to have the practitioner attain a state of consciousness that is different to our ordinary state of awareness. They attempt to train people to clear their minds and achieve a sense of inner peace. It sounds simple enough, but of the huge number of people experiment with meditation, very few are able to maintain its practice over the long haul. In most cases, this is due to frustration over the inability to experience any dramatic, instantly recognizable effects.
This is quite a sad state of affairs, that so few these days are willing or equipped to persist in something that doesn’t provide immediate life-changing results. It reflects a culture in which demands for discipline and sustained effort are considered unnecessary or even unfair. It is no surprise therefore that many people abandon their efforts at meditation before they have a chance to bear fruit.
But for anyone who does decide to take up this worthwhile practice, please remember. You must clear your mind, relax and “take it as it comes”. Maintain the practice with a sense of discipline and devotion, and eventually benefits of inner peace and calm will be yours. The underlined part “part and parcel of” in paragraph 1 is nearest in meaning to ________.
| A．closely associated with | B．very different to |
| C．usually sent from | D．an important element of |
The goal of meditation is ________.
| A．to clear the mind | B．to practice a religion |
| C．to develop a technique | D．to carry out an experiment |
What can we infer about meditation from the passage?
| A．It has two main types. |
| B．It is practiced by many famous artists. |
| C．Its benefits are not immediately obvious. |
| D．Most people find it a very good way to relax. |
According to the writer, what has attracted many Western people to meditation practices in recent years?
| A．Their improved understanding of foreign culture. |
| B．The need to fill in their growing free time. |
| C．Increasing employment instability. |
| D．Migration from countries in which meditation is traditional. |
Who is the probable audience for this article?
| A．Experienced meditation practitioners. |
| B．People interested in starting to learn meditation. |
| C．Buddhists and Hindus. |
| D．People who are very religious. |
C
Planting trees around poultry farms can improve air and water quality -- and relations with neighbors. Research has shown that just three rows of trees near poultry houses can reduce the release of dust and ammonia(氨). They can also reduce the strong smell of ammonia gas.
The trees take dust, ammonia and odors in their leaves. They also provide shade from the sun, so they reduce cooling costs in summer. And they act as a windbreak, so they reduce heating costs in winter. Trees can also improve water quality around farms by removing pollutions from soil and groundwater.
Several years ago, people were objecting to the odor of poultry farms on the Delmarva Peninsula in the eastern United States. Delmarva is where the states of Delaware, Maryland and Virginia come together. Two thousand farms there can each house an average of seventy-five thousand chickens.
Traditionally the farms used windows to provide fresh air in the chicken houses. Farmers rarely planted trees or tall crops around the buildings, so there would be no barrier to the airflow. But then farms began to use new ventilation systems. Instead of windows, the new systems used tunnel fans to circulate air. The fans directed airflow from the poultry houses toward the homes of neighbors.
Researchers began dealing with the problem in two thousand. They found that over a period of six years, planting three rows of trees reduced total dust and ammonia by more than half. And they found that smells were reduced by eighteen percent.
Farmers may think trees will take too long to grow and be effective. But some trees can grow quickly. At least one-third of the Delmarva farms have planted trees, technically known as vegetative environmental buffers. The idea offers a way to cut pollution, save money and energy, and make the neighbors happy.
49. The second paragraph mainly tells us ______.
A. planting trees as much as possible
B. the advantages of trees
C. how to reduce heating costs
D. why trees are received
50. The word “odor” in paragraph 3 means ______.
A. plant B. smell C. height D. water
51. The farms on the Delmarva Peninsula used to use ______ in chicken houses to provide fresh air.
A. trees B. tunnel fans C. windows D. poles
52. It can be learned from the last two paragraphs that ______.
A. three rows of trees are really good to the environment
B. researches began to realize the problem in 2000
C. most farmers show interest in planting trees
D. the trees growing quickly can be cut off in a few years
B
Our listener question this week comes from Abdullahi Farah, who wants to know about the life and work of Doctor Benjamin Carson.
Doctor Carson is an internationally recognized doctor at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland. He has been the director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at the hospital for twenty-five years. At the age of thirty-three, he became one of the youngest doctors in the United States to hold that position. And he was the first African-American to have that position at Johns Hopkins Hospital.
Ben Carson is known for his work as a brain surgeon for children. For example, in nineteen eighty-seven, he led a team of seventy doctors and nurses in an operation to separate two babies joined at the head. Earlier attempts by other surgeons on other babies had failed. Doctor Carson successfully performed the operation. Both babies were able to survive independently.
Doctor Carson has written four books. His first book, "Gifted Hands," tells the story of his life. Benjamin Carson was born in nineteen fifty-one in Detroit, Michigan.
As a boy, Ben was not a good student. In fact, he was the worst in his class. When his mother learned of his failing grades she asked her sons to read two library books every week. She limited the amount of time they watched television. And she told them to respect every person.
Ben Carson soon became the top student in his class. He went on to study at Yale University, one of the best universities in the country, and later to medical school at the University of Michigan.
Doctor Carson has received many awards and honors. Last year he received the nation's highest civilian honor. Former President George W. Bush presented Benjamin Carson with the Presidential Medal of Freedom at a ceremony at the White House.
45. The passage is probably taken from _____.
A. a radio B. a magazine C. TV D. a paper
46. What does the word “surgeons” in paragraph 3 mean?
A. nurses B. doctors C. hospitals D. points
47. Benjamin Carson’s change in study was largely because of ______
A. his hard work B. his teacher
C. his mother D. his father
48. What’s the aim to write the passage?
A. To call on us to learn from Benjamin Carson.
B. To praise Benjamin Carson for his achievements.
C. To show us how Benjamin Carson succeeded
D. To introduce Benjamin Carson’s life and work
第二部分阅读理解（共25小题；第一节每小题 2 分，第二节每小题1分；满分45分）
第一节阅读下列短文，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。
A
Diane Arbus is known for creating intense black and white photographs of very unusual people. She used a special camera that produced square shaped images. One art expert said Diane Arbus turned photography inside out. Instead of looking at her subjects, she made them look at her.
Diane Arbus was born in 1923 to a wealthy family in New York City. After finishing high school at the age of 18, Diane married Allan Arbus. Mr. Arbus worked in the advertising department of her father’s store.
It was Mr. Arbus who gave Diane her first camera. Diane soon decided to take a class with the famous photographer Berenice Abbott. The Arbuses eventually started taking photographs of clothing. These images were used as advertisements for Diane’s father’s store. After the birth of their daughter, Doon, the Arbuses started a business together. Their purpose was to photograph clothing fashions. Diane Arbus was the stylist. She would prepare the hair and faces of the fashion models who wore the clothing being photographed. Allan Arbus took the pictures.
The couple soon had jobs from important fashion magazines such as “Vogue” and “Harper’s Bazaar”. Their work was very successful during the 1950s. They became part of a group of artists that were helping to redefine visual culture. They were breaking with past traditions to create a new look for a new decade, the sixties.
But Diane was not satisfied with her secondary role. She wanted a more active part in making photographs. She wanted to explore her own artistic expression and freedom. To do this, she stopped working with her husband. Then she started taking photography classes at the New School in New York City.
Arbus’ teacher, Lisette Model, influenced her in many ways. She showed Diane how to use a camera like an expert. She also taught Diane to use her art to face her doubts and fears. Miss Model once said that Diane soon started “not listening to me but suddenly listening to herself.”
41. Diane Arbus got her first camera ______.
A. from her father B. from her husband
C. in a shop D. in the advertising department
42. Why did the Arbuses start a business together?
A. To film clothing fashions. B. To make their daughter happy.
C. To prove themselves. D. To make friends with more people.
43. The Arbuses ______ in the 1950s according to the passage.
A. were in charge of “Vogue” B. earned more than other artists
C. were recognized as great artists D. were proud of their achievements
44. We can learn from the last two paragraphs that ______.
A. Diane was hard to dealt with
B. Diane care more for freedom
C. Diane was tired of working with husband
D. Diane learned more from Lisette Model
E
About ten years ago, a young and very successful businessman named Josh was traveling down a Chicago neighborhood street. He was going a bit too fast in his shiny, black, 12 cylinder Jaguar XKE, which was only two months old.
He was watching for kids rushing out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something. As his car passed, no child came out, but a brick sailed out and-WHUMP!-it hit the Jag’s shiny black side door! SCREECH…!!!! Immediately Josh stopped the car, jumped out, seized the kid and pushed him up against a parked car. He shouted at the kid, “What was that all about and who are you? Just what the heck are you doing?!” Building up a head of steam, he went on. “That’s my new Jag, that brick you threw is going to cost you a lot of money. Why did you throw it?”
“Please, mister, please… I’m sorry! I didn’t know what else to do!” begged the youngster. “I threw the brick because no one else would stop!” tears were streaming down the boy’s face as he pointed around the parked car. “It’s my brother, mister,” he said. “He rolled of the curb(路沿) and fell out of his wheelchair and I can’t lift him up.” Sobbing, the boy asked the businessman, “Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He’s hurt and he’s too heavy for me.”
Moved beyond words, the young businessman tried hard to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. Straining, he lifted the young man back into the wheelchair and took out his handkerchief and wiped the scrapers and cuts, checking to see that everything was going to be OK. He then watched the younger brother push him down the sidewalk toward their home.
It was a long walk back to the black, shining 12 cylinder Jaguar XKE-a long and slow walk. Josh never did fix the side door of his Jaguar. He kept the dent(凹痕) to remind him not to go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at him to get his attention. Feel for the bricks of life coming at you.
67．The boy threw a brick at the businessman’s car because ________.
A．he wanted to ask for some money
B．he envied the brand-new car very much
C．the businessman drove at a high speed
D．he wanted to get help from the driver
68．Which of the following is the right order of the story?
a．The younger brother threw a brick at Josh’s car.
b．The elder brother fell out of his wheelchair.
c．The younger brother begged Josh for help.
d．Josh lifted the elder brother back into his wheelchair.
e．Josh shouted at the younger brother.
A．b，a，c，e，d B．a，c，d，b，e
C．b，a，e，c，d D．a，c，b，e，d
69．What can we learn from the passage?
A．Josh was a kind-hearted man.
B．The two kids were Josh’s neighbors.
C．Josh would accept the money from the kids.
D．Josh’s new car broke down easily.
70．According to the passage, we must ________.
A．try to be more understanding seeing others in trouble
B．drive fast in a neighborhood street that is dangerous
C．try to get ready for the trouble in your future life
D．protect oneself from being hurt
D
Stonehenge（巨石阵）may have been a prehistoric health center rather than a site for observing stars or a temple in honor of the dead, scientists said yesterday. New evidence unearthed at the World Heritage Site in more than 40 years suggests that the monument was a place where the diseased and injured went in groups, seeking cures.
After a two-week dig, scientists have concluded that Stonehenge was “the ancient healthcare centre of southern England” because of the existence of “bluestones”---the smaller columns of dolerite（辉绿岩）that formed an earlier stone structure.
By dating pieces of remains to around 7330BC, Tim Darvill, of Bournemouth University, and Goff Wainwright, of the Society of Amtiquaries have found that hunter-gatherers were at the site on Salisbury Plain 4,000 years earlier than thought. The first stage of Stonehenge, a round earthwork structure, was built around 3000BC. Professor Wainwright added: “I did not expect the degree of complexity we discovered. We’re able to say so much more about when Stonehenge was built and why---all of which changes our previous understanding of the monument.”
The research reveals the importance of the henge’s famous bluestones. Hundreds of bluestone chips gathered at the site have led the team to conclude that the bluestones were valued for their curing effects---the key reason that about 80 of them, each weighing up to 4 tons and a half, were dragged more than 150 miles from the Preseli Hills to Wiltshire. After years of research, Professors Darvill and Wainwright have concluded that, for thousands of years, the Preseli mountain range was home to magical health centers and holy wells.
Even today there are those who believe in the curing powers of the springs for coughs and heart disease, and people who use crystals and bluestones for self-curing. Radiocarbon tests have also revealed that the construction of the original bluestone circle took place around 2300BC, three centuries later than originally thought. Interestingly, on the same day died the “Amesbury Archer”---a sick traveler from the Swiss or German Alps who had an infected knee---whose remains were discovered about five miles from Stonehenge. The professors believe that he was a devoted religious person who was hoping to benefit from the curing powers of the monument.
63．Stonehenge is recently believed to be a place for people .
A．to recover from poor health B．to observe star movements
C．to hold religious ceremonies D．to gather huge bluestones
64．What can be inferred about Stonehenge from the passage?
A．The springs could cure coughs and heart disease best.
B．The new discovery was the same as what had been expected.
C．Some huge bluestones were not produced at Stonehenge.
D．The original bluestone circle was thought to be constructed around 2000BC.
65．The sick traveler in the passage is supposed to be .
A．a devoted religious person from Stonehenge
B．one of the earliest discoverers of Stonehenge
C．the first explorer to test the magical power of bluestones
D．a patient trying to cure his infection at Stonehenge
66．Which of the following might be the best title for the passage?
A．Stonehenge: A New Place of Interest B．Stonehenge: Still Making News
C．Stonehenge: Heaven for Adventurers D．Stonehenge: Still Curing Patients