As a youngster, there was nothing I liked better than Sunday afternoons at my grandfather’s farm in western Pennsylvania. Surrounded by miles of winding stone walls, the house and field provided endless hours of fun for a city kid like me. I was used to tidy living rooms that seemed to whisper, "Not to be touched!"
I can still remember one afternoon when I was eight years old. Since my first visit to the farm, I had wanted more than anything to be allowed to climb the stone walls surrounding the houses. My parents would never approve. The walls were old; some stones were missing, others loose and falling. Still, my idea to climb across those walls grew so strong that finally, one spring afternoon, I had all my courage to enter the living room, where the adults had gathered after Sunday dinner.
"I, uh-I want to climb the stone walls," I said. Everyone looked up. "Can I climb the stone walls? "Immediately voices of disagreement went up from the women in the room. "Heavens, no!" You'll hurt yourself!" I wasn't too disappointed; the response was just as I'd expected. But before I could leave the room, I was stopped by my grandfather's loud voice. "Now hold on just a minute," I heard him say. "Let the boy climb the stone walls. He has to learn to do things for himself."
Many years have passed since then, and today I host the television program Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, seen by millions of children throughout America. There have been changes over the years, but one thing remains the same: my message to children at the end of almost every visit. "There's only one person in this whole world like you," the kids can count on hearing me say, "and people can like you exactly as you are.”When the writer was small, he lived .
A.in the city | B.on the farm |
C.with his grandparents | D.away from his parents |
The writer enjoyed his visits to the farm because .
A.there were old stone walls. | B.it was an exciting place for him. |
C.he liked his grandfather. | D.the living room there was clean |
The underlined word “approve” in paragraph 2 means .
A.prove | B.suppose | C.allow | D.mind |
We can learn from the passage that the writer was .
A.adventurous | B.funny | C.smart | D.talkative |
We don’t know how different our life will be in the future . We can only try to imagine it .
At first we think about human relationship . In the year 2050 , we will use computers almost every day . We will be making new friends through the Internet—even our husbands or wives will be met in this way . It will be much faster and easier for us . On the other hand , our relationships with people won’t be as important as they are today—we will feel a little lonely .
Computers will also help us in many other activities in 2050 . For example , they will be used by the children at school to make their learning easier . In addition , there will be much more other machines which will play a similar role as computers , like robots which will do the housework for us .
Spending holidays will also be completely different . Traveling to other planets or to the moon will be available for everyone . Means of transport will , of course , change , too . we will be using solar-powered cars , which will be much more environmentally friendly .
We could expect that the faster technological progress would lead to a more polluted environment . But it isn’t true .We will pay more attention to protecting the environment . And , scientists will probably find cures for many dangerous diseases , like cancer or AIDS . Therefore , our surroundings as well as health will be in a better condition .
Although we can’t predict the exact changes which will be made in the world , we often think about them . We worry about our and our children’s future ; we have expectations , hopes as well as fears . But I think we should be rather sanguine about our future . We should be happy and believe good things will happen .
1. Why will people probably feel a little lonely in 2050 ?
A. Because the number of people will become much smaller .
B. Because there will be less face-to-face communication .
C. Because people won’t like making friends with each other .
D. Because people won’t communicate with each other much often .
2. The third paragraph mainly tells us_________.
A. that computers will do all the things for human beings
B. how people will use computers to communicate with each other
C. that machines like computers and robots will help people a lot
D. how people will use robot to do the housework
3. According to the passage , which of the following will happen in 2050 ?
A. The relationship between people will be more important than that of today .
B. The way of spending holidays will be the same as that of today .
C. It won’t be difficult for people to travel to other planets .
D. Our environment will be much more polluted with a growing number of cars .
4. What does the passage mainly talk about ?
A. How peoplewill communicate in the year 2050 .
B. What our life will be like in the year 2050 .
C. How people will travel and spend their holidays in the year 2050 .
D. What high technology will appear in the year 2050 .
It was late Wednesday night when the dreadful phone call reached our home . I rememeber laying in my bed trying to fall asleep when I heard the phone ring . Interested in who would be calling so late I sat up, so I could hear the phone call better . To my surprise , I heard my mom burst into tears , “ Get the car , dear ! Andrea has been in a car accident .”
We ran every red light on the way to the hospital and our tires screeched(发出刺耳声) around every corner . We got to the hospital , but were not allowed to see Andrea . The next morning , after wearing masks , we were allowed to go to the ICU to see Andrea . Well , the least I could say was that everything was injured in her body and she lost all of her memories . It was a fatal car accident .
Over the next two months , I lived more at the hospital than I did at my house . I watched as Andrea worked so hard to gain back everyday motor skills . She never once complained or pitied herself , and her determined spirit was shining through . After two weeks in the ICU and two months of regular hospital treatment , Andrea came home . She missed several months of school , so it was hard for her to catch up . Andrea had many tasks to accomplish , and no matter how hard it was , she stuck to it until the job was done . Though she was busy dealing with the pain and the therapy , she always found time to love and play with me .
I’ll never forget the impact that this incident made on my life . I admire my sister for her strong-willed personality and her determined spirit . Today she is perfectly normal , despite the scars and the pins holding her leg in place . I couldn’t ask for a better sister or a hero in my life .
1. The writer wanted to hear the call better , because_______.
A. he sensed that something terrible had happened
B. he might be curious about who would phone so late
C. he wanted to scold the person who phoned so late
D. he wasn’t sure whether the telephone concerned him
2. From the underlined sentence in the second paragraph , we can learn that________.
A. the family didn’t obey the traffic rules
B. the writer’s father wasn’t good at driving
C. the whole family were anxious to see Andrea
D. their house was very far from the hosptial
3. It was mainly________that made the author’s sister recover from the car accident .
A. the family’s encouragement B. Andrea’s strong will
C. the treatment D. the eagerness to study
4. What would be the best title for the passage ?
A. A Miracle Happening to My Sister B. My Sister—the Hero in My Life
C. An Accident Changed My Sister D. An Incident Which Influenced Me Much
Teenagers in England do many of the same things as children in America do . They enjoy sending messages on their mobile phones and they also like swimming , listening to the latest music , watching TV and surfing the Internet .
How do teenagers in England spend their free time and holidays ? Let’s follow Sally , a British teenager , and spend five days with her during her school holiday .
Day One |
After breakfast , Sally’s mother went out and left her alone at home . She checked her mobile phone during lunch—one of her friends sent her a message early in the morning . Dinner was ready at 6:30 p.m. After that , she finished her English homework . Then she surfed the Internet . |
Day Two |
Sally and her mother paid a visit to their friend![]() |
Day Three |
She went to the supermarket with her mother to buy fish and chips for lunch as well as some pens . After she got back home , she spent the next few hours surfing the Internet and watching TV . |
Day Four |
She surfed the Internet . Her mother took her out for lunch before going to work . She then read storybooks after lunch . |
Day Five |
She woke up at 2 p. m. , and so did her mother . They went to a park . Her mother met some friends there . When they got home , it was already time for dinner . Aterwards , she did her homework until 10 p. m. |
1. When did Sally do her homework ?
A. In the morning . B. In the afternoon . C. At lunch time . D. In the evening .
2. Which of the following things did Sally do on Day Four ?
A. She went swimming . B. She went out for breakfast .
C. She read books . D. She went shopping .
3. How many times did Sally and her mother meet their friends during the five days ?
A. Once . B. Twice . C. Three times . D. Four times .
4. According to the passage , it can be inferred that__________.
A. a park is the best place to meet a friend
B. parents shouln’t leave teenagers alone at home
C. teenagers don’t usually do their homework during their school holidays
D. surfing the Internet has become an important part of teenagers’ lives
第三部分:阅读理解(共20小题;每小题2分,满分40分)
阅读下面短文,从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C、D)中,选出最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
We used to go into different chat rooms on different websites . If you wanted to meet someone on the net , you had to go into the same chat room . But now regular net surfers chat on OICQ .
OICQ is an online chat software which is invented by Tencent Computer System Company of Shenzhen in February , 1999 . Since then it has swept the country . Its symbol is a penguin wearing a red scarf .
Net friends can be divided into a buddy list (for good friends ) , a stranger list ( for people you want to avoid on the Net ) . You can also build family lists , co-worker lists , etc .
You can know whether listed friends are online as long as you use it . The cartoon portrait(肖像,画像) of the person turns bright if he is online . And the portrait turns dim(灰暗的) if he is not there .
Traditional public chat rooms are chaotic . It is difficult to focus on a conversation . OICQ can conduct a focused talk without interruptions by other chatters . OICQ has become a regular daily communication tool . “What is your OICQ number ? ” has become a modern topic .
1. OICQ is________.
A. a special chat room for all the cyber citizens(网民)
B. a cartoon portrait to make friends on the Internet
C. an online chat software that helps you talk on the Internet more freely
D. a modern phone number used by more and more people
2. If you don’t want to chat with someone , you can put him in_______with the help of OICQ .
A. a buddy list B. a stranger list
C. family lists D. co-worker lists
3. The passage mainly tells us____________.
A. how to chat with people on the Internet
B. how to use OICQ
C. how to choose a regular daily communication tool
D. some advantages about OICQ
The twentieth century saw greater changes than any century before : changes for the better , changes for the worse ; changes that brought a lot of benefits to human beings , changes that put man in danger . Many things caused the changes , but , in my opinion , the most important was the progress in science .
Scientific research in physics and biology has vastly broadened our views . It has given us a deeper knowledge of the structure of matter and of the universe ; it has brought us a better understanding of the nature of life and of its continuous development . Technology in the application of science has made big advances that have benefited us in nearly every part of life .
The continuation of such activitites in the twenty-first century will result in even greater advantages to human beings : in pure science―a wider and deeper knowledge in all fields of learning ; in applied science―a more reasonable sharing of material benefits , and better protection of the environment .
Sadly , however , there is another side to the picture . The creativity of science has been employed in doing damage to mankind . The application of science and technology to the development and production of weapons of mass destruction has created a real danger to the continued existence of the human race on this planet . We have seen this happen in the case of nuclear weapons . Although their actual use has so far occurred only in the Second World War , the number of nuclear weapons that were produced and made ready for use was so large that if the weapons had actually been used , the result could have been the ruin of the human race , as well as of many kinds of animals .
William Shakespeare said , “ The web of our life is of a mingled yarn(纱线), good and ill together .” The above brief review of the application of only one part of human activities—science seems to prove what Shakespeare said . But does it have to be so ? Must the ill always go together with the good ? Are we biologically programmed for war ?
1. Which of the following best shows the stucture of the passage ?
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(①="Paragraph1" , ②=" Paragraph" 2,③=" Paragraph" 3,④=" Paragraph" 4,⑤=" Paragraph" 5)
2. From the fourth paragraph , we can infer that __________.
A. a great many nuclear weapons were actually used for war
B. a large number of nuclear weapons should have been used for war
C. the author is doubtful about the ruin of human beings by nuclear weapons
D. the author is anxious about the huge number of unclear weapons on the earth
3. The underlined word “ mingled ” in the last paragraph most probably means__________.
A. simple B. mixed C. sad D. happy
4. What do you think the author is most likely to suggest if he continues to write ?
A. Further application of science to war .
B. More reading of William Shakespeare .
C. Proper use of science in the new century .
D. Effective ways to separate the good from the ill .