Imagine，one day，getting out of bed in Beijing and being at your office in Shanghai in only a couple of hours，and then，after a full day of work，going back home to Beijing and having dinner there．
Sounds unusual，doesn't it? But it's not that unrealistic，with the development of China’s high—speed railway system．And that’s not a11．China has an even greater high—speed railway plan—to connect the country with Southeast Asia，and eventually Eastern Europe．
China is negotiating to extend its own high·-speed railway network to up to 17 countries in 1 0 to 15 years，eventually reaching London and Singapore．
China has proposed three such projects．The first would possibly connect Kunming with
Singapore via Vietnam and Malaysia．Another could start in Urumqi and go through Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan，and possibly to Germany．The third would start in the northeast and go north through Russia and then into Western Europe．
If China’s plan for the high-speed railway goes forward，people could zip over from London to Beijing in under two days．
The new system would still follow China’s high—speed railway standard．And the trains would be able to go 346 kilometers an hour，almost as fast as some airplanes．
China’s bullet train(高速客车)，the one connecting Wuhan to Guangzhou，already has the
World’s fastest average speed．It covers 1,069 kilometers in about three hours．
Of course，there are some technical challenges to overcome．There are so many issues that need to be settled，such as safety，rail gauge(轨距)，maintenance of railway tracks．So，it’s important to pay attention to every detail．
But the key issue is really money．China is already spending hundreds of billions of yuan on
domestic railway expansion．
China prefers that the other countries pay in natural resources rather than with capital
investment．Resources from those countries could stream into China to sustain development．
It’11 be a win-win project. For other countries，the railway network will definitely create more opportunities for business，tourism and so on，not to mention the better communication among those countries．
For China，such a project would not only connect it with the rest of Asia and bring some much-needed resources，but would also help develop China’s far west．We foresee that in the coming decades，millions of people will migrate to the western regions，where the land is empty and resources unused．With high-speed trains，people will set up factories and business centers in the west once and for a11．And they’11 trade with Central Asian and Eastern European countries．China’s new high-speed railway plan will be a win-win project because ．
| A．China will get much-needed resources and develop its western regions |
| B．China and the countries involved will benefit from the project in various ways |
| C．China will develop its railway system and communication with other countries |
| D．the foreign countries involved will develop their railway transportation，business and tourism |
According to the passage，the greatest challenge to the new high-speed railway plan is ．
| A．technical issues |
| B．safety of the system |
| C．financial problems |
| D．maintenance of railway tracks |
Which of the following words best describes the author’s attitude towards China’s high-speed
railway plan?
| A．Critical． | B．Reserved． | C．Doubtful | D．Positive． |
Which of the following might be the best title for the passage?
| A．New Railway Standards |
| B．Big Railway Dreams |
| C．High—speed Bullet Trains |
| D．International Railway Network |
Scientists from the Max Plank Institute for Biological Cybernetics in Tubingen, Germany, have presented the first experimental evidence that people do end up walking in circles if lost in unfamiliar areas．The study, published in the journal Current Biology, examined the tracks of people who walked for several hours in the Sahara desert in Tunisia and in the Bienwald forest in Germany．Researchers Jan Souman and Marc Ernst said the scientists used the global positioning system （GPS） to record these paths．The results showed that the walkers were only able to keep a straight line when the sun or moon was visible．As soon as the sun disappeared behind some clouds, people started to walk in circles without even noticing it．
Souman said one explanation offered in the past for people walking in circles was that most people have one leg longer or stronger than the other, which would produce a systematic bias（偏差） in one direction．To test this．the researchers asked people to walk straight while blindfolded which removed the effects of vision．They found that these circles were rarely in a systematic direction, with the same person sometimes switching to the left and sometimes to the right．
"Most of the participants in the study walked in circles, sometimes in extremely small ones．Walking in circles is therefore not caused by differences in leg length or strength, but more likely the result of increasing uncertainty about where straight ahead is," said Souman, "Small random errors （随机性误差） in the various sensory signals that provide information about walking direction add up over time, making what a person perceives to be straight ahead drift away from the true straight ahead direction．"The underlined word "this" in Paragraph 2 refers to _____．
| A．the effects of vision | B．a systematic bias |
| C．the leg length differences | D．one explanation offered in the past |
What is the probable reason for people's walking in circles?
| A．The invisible sun or moon． |
| B．The increasing uncertainty about directions． |
| C．Differences in leg length or strength． |
| D．Wrong signals providing information about areas． |
Why are the subjects required to be blindfolded?
| A．To encourage them to walk straight． | B．To stop them from seeing each other． |
| C．To dismiss the effects of vision． | D．To keep the test a top secret． |
Which of the following statements is true?
| A．People walk straight in the day． |
| B．The farther people walk, the greater the direction bias grows． |
| C．People walk only in large circles． |
| D．Researchers use the global positioning system to record their tracks． |
The findings of a new survey have American professors talking about the good old days—when A's were a lot tougher to earn．
Sites like Rate My Professors．com make it easy for students to find a class taught by a professor who is known as an "easy grader"．A recent survey by Kaplan Test Prep found that 46 percent of the more than 1,200 students polled admitted to using the site for just such a purpose．
"Our research shows that many of today's college students are looking at multiple factors when picking out courses: overall teacher quality that will result in a good learning experience, but also instructors who don't like to award a lot of C's and D's," said Jeff Olson, vice president of research at Kaplan Test Prep．
"While it makes sense that students would choose kinder graders, it also helps explain the recent popularity of grade inflation（膨胀）．"
Grade inflation is seen by many professors as poisoning the learning environment．Some, like former Duke University professor Stuart Rojstaczer, are righting it head-on．
On his website, Gradelnflation．com, he releases an annual list of schools where grade inflation is the worst．
This year, he decided to name the schools where grades were inflated the least．He praised, for example, Princeton University, as well as Purdue University, where the average GPA has remained around 2．8 for over 30 years．
"Purdue doesn't even seem to know that grade inflation exists in the US," Rojstaczer says．"Ignorance is bliss（极大的幸福）．"Grade inflation is spreading because _____．
| A．it's poisoning the learning environment |
| B．instructors intend to improve their overall teaching quality |
| C．many instructors adapt to the students' expectations |
| D．students get easy access to sites like RateMyProfessors．com |
The passage suggests that _____．
| A．universities will employ hard graders |
| B．if we want to be happy, we should be ignorant |
| C．A's are becoming easy to earn at most US universities |
| D．professors and instructors should give students higher grades |
The writer tends to _____．
| A．favor easy graders | B．see grade inflation as unavoidable |
| C．oppose Kaplan Test Prep | D．miss the days when A's were hard to earn |
I am sure that everybody in his／her life has used computers．Nowadays you can feel their presence everywhere—at home，at school，at work and they certainly make life easier．On the other hand，there are people who can work without them．
Anyway, I believe their presence is a good thing．Life with them seems less difficult and more comfortable．You can use them to choose your meal，to withdraw your money，and also to save your time，because these operations are all controlled by computers．Therefore，you can hardly imagine the modern world without them；the whole planet seems to be one big computer society．
Nevertheless，problems can often appear in this area，too．To have a computer means you have to be quite rich and have the necessary skills to use it．However, think about questions like，“Are computers available for everyone, for rich and poor people，for people from villages and people from cities? Aren’t they too expensive? Is everyone able to learn how to use them and does everyone have the chance to access and work with them? How could everything in the future be dependent on them?” Therefore，I think our society will be divided into two parts．One part will work with them and enjoy the benefits that computers can bring and the other part will be pushed out of society and will actually be left far behind the other group．
Another question that bothers me is，computers are important and they’re good things in our life, but they aren’t everything. They are good as a help at school, quite often as entertainment, especially for young people, as an necessary tool to help in research etc. , but I think we shouldn’t be so dependent on them, because computers are only machines and machines can’t feel anything, can’t be human and sympathetic, and every action performed by computer can be interfered(干涉) with could cause these machines to crash or work badly.
In conclusion, I would like to say I am not against computers. I use computers too, but people should be wary all the time.Which of the following best shows the structure of the passage?
①="Paragraph" ②="Paragraph2" ③="Paragraph" 3 ④Paragraph4 ⑤=Paragraph5By saying“wary”(in the last paragraph)，the author is trying to say,“People should”.
| A．be strongly for the use of computers because of its convenience |
| B．be careful with computers that will also cause problems |
| C．master more necessary computer skills |
| D．not do something that causes computers to work badly |
In the third paragraph，the author presents his idea by．
| A．asking questions for people to think about |
| B．giving examples to support his argument |
| C．raising questions and answering them |
| D．expressing his opinion directly |
The author’s main purpose in writing the passage is to．
| A．encourage us to use computers in our society |
| B．advise us to say no to computers from now on |
| C．remind us to care about the problems that computers bring |
| D．inform us that computers has become a necessary part of our life |
I used to believe in the American dream that meant a job, credit, success．I wanted it and worked toward it like everyone else, all of us separately chasing the same thing．
One year, through a series of unhappy events, it all fell apart．I found myself homeless and alone．I had my truck and $56．I searched the countryside for some place I could rent for the cheapest possible amount．I came upon a deserted cottage in a small remote valley．I hadn't been alone for 25 years．I was scared, but I hoped the hard work would distract and heal me．
I found the owner and rented the place for $50 a month．The locals knew nothing about me．But slowly they started teaching me the art of being a neighbor．They dropped off blankets, tools and canned deer meat and began sticking around to chat．They would ask if I wanted to meet cousin Albie or go fishing．They started to teach me a belief in a different American dream, not the one of individual achievement but of neighborliness．Men would stop by with wild berries, ice cream, truck parts to see if I was up for courting．I wasn't, but they were civil anyway．The women on that mountain worked harder than any I'd ever met．They taught me how to store food in the stream and keep it cold and safe．I learned to keep enough for an extra plate for company．
What I had believed in, all those things I thought were necessary for a civilized life, were non-existent in this place．Up on the mountain, my most valuable possessions were my relationships with my neighbors．
After four years in that valley, I moved back into town．I saw a lot of people were having a really hard time, losing their jobs and homes．With the help of a real estate broker （房地产经纪人） I chatted up at the grocery store, I managed to rent a big enough house to take in a handful of people．It's four of us now, but over time I've had nine come in and move on to other places from here．We'd all be in shelters if we hadn't banded together．
The American dream I believe in now is a shared one．It's not so much about what I can get for myself; it's about how we can all get by together．Before a series of unhappy events happened, the writer ____．
| A．had a well-paid job |
| B．worked hard for his American dream |
| C．worked hard and liked to share |
| D．felt hopeless about his American dream |
What does the underlined sentence "I learned to．．．" in Paragraph 3 most probably mean?
| A．The writer learned to run a company． |
| B．The writer learned to share with others． |
| C．The writer learned to keep enough plates． |
| D．The writer learned to save money for his company． |
Why did the writer rent a big house?
| A．To make some money． | B．To show off his wealth． |
| C．To share with those people in need． | D．To make friends with his neighbors． |
The writer mainly tells us about ____．
| A．his unhappy experiences | B．the friendly people in the valley |
| C．the change of his living conditions | D．his new idea of the American dream |
阅读下列短文并按要求回答问题（共3小题，满分7分）
In China, more and more middle school students are getting shorter sleeping time than before. Most students sleep less than nine hours every night, because they have much homework to do. Some homework is given by their teachers, and some by their parents. Also, some students don’t know how to save time. They are not careful enough while they do their homework, so it takes them a lot of time. Some students spend too much time watching TV or playing computer games. They stay up(熬夜) very late. Some students have to get up early every morning on weekdays to get to school on time by bus or by bike. It can be a long way from home to school. It will probably make them sleepy(困的) during school hours.
Schools and parents should cut down some of the homework so that our children can enjoy more than nine hours of sleep every night for their health. For children, they should make the most (best use ) of their time. When they have enough time for sleeping , they will find it much better for both their study and health.According to the passage, who else gives children some homework to do besides their teachers? (no more than 2 words)
________________________________________________________________How many hours of sleep is good for students’ health? (no more than 4 words)
_____________________________________________________________What is most likely to happen to a student who often goes to bed late and gets up early? （no more than 7 words）
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