（C）ADifferentRoastEveryDayAlan-优题课

The announcements by the NASA，in the form of several Web site postings and a video posted on YouTube，were in response to worries that the world will end on Dec．21，2012．
The doomsday(末日) rumour reached a high point with the release of the new movie “2012”，directed by Roland Emmerich．In the movie，Yellowstone blows up, showering the continent with black ash．Tidal waves wash over the Himalayas，where the governments of the planet have secretly built a ship which a select 400，000 people can ride out the storm．There are hundreds of hooks devoted to 2012，and millions of Web sites，depending on what combination of“2012”and“doomsday”you type into Google．All of it，astronomers say, is nonsense．“Most of what's claimed for 2012 relies on wishful thinking and ignorance of astronomy．”Ed Krupp， an expert on ancient astronomy，wrote in an article in the November issue of Sky＆Telescope．
“I get angry at the way people are being influenced and frightened to make money,” Morrison said．“There is no right to frighten children to make a buck．”suggested David Morrison，an astronomer at the NASA Ames Research Center in Moffett Field，Calif．He said he had been getting about 20 letters and e—mail messages a day from people as far away as India scared out of their wits．Morrison said he did not blame the movie for all this，as much as many other supporters of the Mayan prediction．But then，he said，“my doctorate is in astronomy，not psychology．”
In an e—mail exchange, Krupp said：“We are always uncertain about the future，and we always consume representations of it．We are always attracted by the romance of the ancient past．”A NASA spokesman，Dwayne Brown，said the agency did not comment on movies，leaving that to movie critics．But when it comes to science, Brown said, “we felt it was careful to provide a resource．”
If you want to worry，most scientists say，you should think about global climate change or nuclear war．But if ancient prophecies(预言)get you going，here are some things Morrison and the others think you should know．
64．Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A．Dr．Morrison blamed the Movie“2011”for the panic it aroused in the public around the world．
B．People who watched the movie were seared and firmly believed that the end of the world was coming．
C．In terms of science it was better to provide evidence and theory at the same time．
D．Dr．Morrison thought it was not right to make money by frightening people．
65．It can be inferred from the text that．
A．astronomers think that doomsday is likely to happen in the near future
B．the reason why the NASA posted web site postings was to make people interested in astronomy
C．scientists think we shouldn't worry about doomsday but show concern about environment protection
D．most astronomers agree that the world is not ending—at least anytime soon
66．Which of the following would be the best title?
A．A New Movie“2012”B．Is Doomsday Coming?
C．End-of-the-World Stories D．Astronomers Comment on Movies
67．What would the author probably discuss in the paragraph that follows?
A．Evidence that the Mayans thought something special would happen in 2012．
B．What will really happen in 2012．
C．The reason why there is no need to worry about doomsday．
D．Ancient stories about the end of the world．

A popular saying goes，“Sticks and stones may break my bones，but words will never hurt me．”However，that's not really true．Words have the power to build us up or tear us down．It doesn't matter whether the words come from someone else or ourselves—the positive and negative effects are just as lasting．
We all talk to ourselves sometimes．We're usually too embarrassed to admit it，though．In fact，we really shouldn't be because more and more experts believe talking to ourselves out loud is a healthy habit．
This“self—talk”helps us motivate ourselves，remember things，solve problems，and calm ourselves down．Be aware, though，that as much as 77％of self—talk tends to be negative．So in order to stay positive，we should only speak words of encouragement to ourselves．We should also be quick to give ourselves a pat on the back ．The next time you finish a project，do well in a test，or finally clean your room，join me in saying“Good job!”
Often，words come out of our mouths without us thinking about the effect they will have．But we should be aware that our words cause certain responses in others．For example，when returning an item to a store，we might use warm，friendly language during the exchange．And the clerk will probably respond in a similar manner．Or unkind and critical language will most likely cause the clerk to be defensive．
Words possess power because of their lasting effect．Many of us regret something we once said．And we remember unkind words said to us! Before speaking，we should always ask ourselves：Is it true? Is it loving? Is it needed? If what we want to say doesn't pass this test，then it's better left unsaid．
Words possess power：both positive and negative．Those around us receive encouragement when we speak positively．We can offer hope，build self—esteem（自尊） and motivate others to do their best. Negative words destroy all those things．Will we use our words to hurt or to heal? The choice is ours．
60．The main idea of the first paragraph is that________．
A．words have a lasting effect on us
B．inspiring words give us confidence
C．negative words may let us down
D．not sticks and stones but words will hurt us
61．It is unnecessary to feel embarrassed when we talk to ourselves because______．
A．almost everybody has the habit of talking to themselves
B．talking to ourselves always gives us courage
C．we can benefit from talking to ourselves
D．it does no harm to have“self—talk”when we are alone
62．The underlined part in the third paragraph means that we should also occasionally_____．
A．remind ourselves B．make ourselves relaxed
C．praise ourselves D．give ourselves amusement
63．The author would probably hold the view that_______．
A．encouraging words are sure to lead to kind offers
B．negative words may motivate us to make more progress
C．people tend to remember friendly words
D．it is better to think twice before talking to others

第三部分：阅读理解(共两节，满分40分)
第一节：选择题(共15小题，每小题2分，共30分)
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳答案，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
I was born an albino．No one in my family had ever known what an albino was，what it meant to be an albino，and what had to be done differently because I was an albino.
My parents treated me just like they treated everybody else. That was just about the best thing they could have done. It helped me trust myself，so when the annoyances came along，I could deal with them.
Actually，my photo always looked like a snowball with two pieces of coal for eyes. Kids would tease me，asking if I was joining the circus and calling me “Whitey”. Like most albinos，I had terrible eyesight，and my grades suffered until eventually I overcame my feeling ashamed of myself and realized it was okay to ask to sit in the front of the classroom so I could see the blackboard better. People stared at me when I held reading material right at the tip of my nose so I could see it well enough to read. Even when I was eight or nine. movie-theater clerks started asking me to pay adult prices because I “looked older”.
The worst part for me was that because my eyesight was so bad，I couldn't play sports very well. I didn't give up trying，though. And I studied harder. Eventually，I got better at school and loved it. By the time I got to college I was double majoring，going to summer school and devoting myself to every kind of extracurricular activity I could find. I had learned to be proud of being an albino. I did my best to make “albino” a positive word. And I decided to make my living with my eyes.
I couldn't see well enough to play spots，but with a solid education and the drive to do it，I could make a living involved in the field I loved. I've done it now for more than thirty years in print and in video，and now in cyberspace. People make jokes about how I'm the only “blind editor” they know，but most of the time the jokes are signs of respect. And I make jokes about being an albino.
I was just a proud albino kid from the coal country of Pennsylvania. I now realize that being born an albino helped me to overcome difficulties，gain confidence，and be proud of my personal achievement and humble about my professional accomplishments.
56．According to the passage，an albino refers to a person__________．
A．who has bad eyesight B．who is born with white skin and hair
C．who looks older than his age D．who joins the circus
57．What does the underlined word “It” in Paragraph 2 refer to?
A．The fact that the author was born an albino．
B．The way that the author's parents treated him．
C．What had to be done differently to the author．
D．The fact that the author had no idea what an albino was．
58．Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A．Despite his bad eyesight，the author played sports well．
B．The author paid adult prices for movies when he was still young．
C．The author's study was affected by his eyesight at first．
D．“Albino” has already become a positive word now．
59．In the passage，the author intends to tell us___________．
A．actually being an albino helped him achieve success
B．how an albino studied well
C．what it is like to be an albino
D．how people should treat an albino

Speakers of different languages not only describe the world differently but think about it differently too, according to a new study.
Researchers used a cartoon cat Sylvester to study how language was reflected (反映) in the gestures people made. Dr. Sotaro Kita of the University of Bristol’s Department of Experimental Psychology (心理学), showed the cartoon to a group of native English, Japanese and Turkish speakers and then watched their gestures as they described the actions they had seen. He found speakers of the three different languages used different gestures to describe the same event, which appeared to reflect the way the structure of their languages expressed that event. For example, when describing a scene where the cat swings on a rope, the English speakers used gestures showing an arc trajectory (弧形轨迹) and the Japanese and Turkish speakers tended to use straight gestures showing the motion but not the arc.
Dr. Kita suggests this is because Japanese and Turkish have no proper verb to express the English meaning “to swing”. While English speakers use the arc gesture as their language can readily express the change of location and the arc-shaped trajectory, Japanese and Turkish speakers cannot as easily express the idea of movement with an arc trajectory so they use the straight gesture.
Dr. Kita said, “My research suggests that speakers of different languages cause different spatial (空间的) images of the same event in a way that matches the expressive possibilities of their own languages. In other words, language influences (影响) spatial thinking at the moment of speaking.”
68. Researchers watched the gestures the people made because they wanted to know _____.
A. how language was reflected
B. whether they could express the same idea
C. whether they could describe what they had seen
D. how the structure of language changed
69. After watching the gestures of speakers of the three different languages, Dr. Kita concluded that _____.
A. Japanese and Turkish people couldn’t express the meaning of “swing”
B. English was obviously better than Japanese and Turkish
C.no word in Japanese and Turkish could express some ideas of English
D. every language had its own special way to describe things
70. What is mainly discussed in the text?
A. Differences between languages.
B. Differences between gestures.
C. How people use different gestures to express the same event.
D. That language influences the way people think.

Think back to this time last year. What was on your mind?
Most likely, you were thinking about finals or the holidays, although in this city I’ve noticed that thinking about the holiday is a fancy way of saying how much stuff will I get.
Now reflect on your thoughts for this holiday season. Most people are still thinking about the holidays, but I say that with a grain of salt. Everybody with a functioning brain and the ability to communicate knows that this holioday season comes with a pretty large price tag: the debt of all the hardships, both domestic and foreign, that we’ve faced over the past 12months.
Let’s face it: some of us will get everything we want over the holidays. But there are others whose parents have lost their jobs or who have lost jobs themselves because of the current economic situation. As much as we try to ignore it, there is still economic unrest in the blue and gold suburb.
In this situation, we have three options. One: We ignore the situation, like we seem to do for every bad thing that happens around us, because by God, it’s the American Way! Two: We recognize that our economy is shot, feel bad about it and spend our time wishing for the good old days. Three: We recognize that our economy is shot, but instead of moping, reflect on every good thing that we have going for us. Now, which option sounds best to you?
I spent a week this summer working in and around New York City with the city’s homeless population. Or so I thought. Although a lot of the people I served were in fact homeless, a significant number of them had a job or a home or both. The truth of the importance of this situation is that they and thousands of others across the country can’t afford even the most basic things of life, even while working two jobs. Yet no one that I met complained about their hardships. Instead, they took whatever I happened to give them(which was, more often than enough, not enough) and were genuinely grateful for what they had.
Wrap your heads around that statement for a second. These people worked their butts off to stay alive with minimal results, yet were overjoyed by a flimsy(脆弱的) paper plate with donated green beans on it. Although I am ashamed to admit it( both as a girthy figure and an affluent citizen), I have taken for granted most of my meals, let alone green beans, and I know for a fact that I am not alone.
64. According to the passage when people think about holidays they care much for ____.
A. where to spend their holidays B. how to spend their holidays
C. what they can get for their holidays D. who they should go to visit
65. When the author wrote the article, the economic situation in his country ____.
A. began to go bad. B. began to improve C. was still serious D. was favorable for middle class.
66. The author wrote the article mainly to advise people____.
A.to be thankful in time of hardship. B. to spend their holidays in a wise way
C. to think little about their holidays D. to help the country to sail through the crisis
67. It can be inferred from the passage that the writer is most probably ______.
A. a homeless child B. an old professor C. a famous scientist D. a young student

A．on a farm	B．at a school
C．in a restaurant	D．in an office in a city

A．by the seaside	B．in the country
C．in the mountains	D．on an island