People with disabilities make up a large part of the population. It is estimated that over 35 million Americans have physical, mental, or other disabilities. About half of these disabilities are “developmental", i.e., they occur before the individual's twenty-second birthday, often from genetic conditions, and are severe enough to affect three or more areas of development, such as mobility, communication, employment, etc. Most other disabilities are considered “adventitious", i.e., accidental or caused by outside forces.
Prior to the 20th century, only a small percentage of people with disabilities survived for long. Medical treatment for these disabilities was unavailable. Advancements in medicine and social services have created a climate in which people with disabilities can expect to have such basic needs as food, shelter, and medical treatment. Unfortunately, these basics are often not available. Civil liberties such as the right to vote, marry, get an education, and gain employment have historically been denied on the basis of disability.
In recent decades, the disability rights movement has been organized to fight against these infringements（违反；侵犯）of civil rights. Congress responded by passing major legislation recognizing people with disabilities as a protected class under civil rights statutes.
Still today, people with disabilities must fight to live their lives independently. It is estimated that more than half of qualified Americans with disabilities are unemployed, and a majority of those who do work are underemployed. About two-thirds live at or below the official poverty level.
Significant barriers, especially in transportation and public awareness, prevent disabled people from taking part in society. For example, while no longer prohibited by law from marrying, a person with no access to transportation is effectively excluded from community and social activities which might lead to the development of long-term relationships.
Only when public attitudes advance as far as laws have will disabled people be fully able to take their rightful place in society.
36. A “developmental" disability ______.
A. develops very slowly over time
B. is caused by forces
C. occurs in youth and affects development
D. is getting more and more severe
37．Most disabled people used to die early because ______.
A. disabilities destroyed major bodily functions
B. they were not very well looked after
C. medical techniques were not available
D. they were too poor to get proper treatment
38. In the author's opinion, to enable the disabled people to take their rightful place in society, ______.
A．more laws should be passed
B．public attitudes should be changed
C．government should provide more aids
D．more public facilities should be set up
39. Which of the following cannot be inferred（推断）from the passage ?
A．Many disabled people may remain single for their whole life.
B．The public tends to look down upon the disabled people.
C．The disabled people feel inferior to those surrounding them.
D． Discriminatory laws prevent the disabled from mixing with others.
40. The best title for this passage might be ______.
A．Handicaps（不利条件；障碍；）of People with Disabilities
B．The physical difficulties of the Disabled
C．The Causes for Disabilities
D．Medical Treatments for Disabilities

Few laws are so effective that you can see results just days after they take effect. But in the nine days since the federal cigarette tax more than doubled----to $1.01 per pack---smokers have jammed telephone ‘quit lines’ across the country seeking to kick the habit.
This is not a surprise to public health advocates. They’ve studied the effect of state tax increases for years, finding that smokers, especially teens, are price sensitive. Nor is it a shock to the industry, which fiercely fights every tax increase.
The only wonder is that so many states insist on closing their ears to the message. Tobacco taxes improve public health, they raise money and most particularly, they deter people from taking up the habit as teens, which is when nearly all smokers are addicted. Yet the rate of taxation varies widely.
In Manhattan, for instance, which has the highest tax in the nation, a pack of Marlboro Light Kings cost $10.06 at one drugstore Wednesday. In Charleston, S.C., where the 7-cent-a-pack tax is the lowest in the nation, the price was $4.78.
The influence is obvious.
In New York, high school smoking hit a new low in the latest surveys----13.8%, far below the national average. By comparison, 26 % of high school students smoke in Kentucky, Other low-tax states have similarly depressing teen-smoking records.
Hal Rogers, Representative from Kentucky, like those who are against high tobacco taxes, argues that the burden of the tax falls on low-income Americans “who choose to smoke.”
That’s true. But there is more reason in keeping future generations of low-income workers from getting hooked in the first place. As for today’s adults, if the new tax drives them to quit, they will have more to spend on their families, cut their risk of cancer and heart disease and feel better.
31. The text is mainly about___________.
A the price of cigarettes
B the rate of teen smoking
C the effect of tobacco tax increase
D the differences in tobacco tax rate
32. What does the author think is a surprise?
A Teen smokers are price sensitive.
B Some states still keep the tobacco tax low.
C Tobacco taxes improve public health.
D Tobacco industry fiercely fights the tax rise.
33. The underlined word "deter" in Paragraph 3 most probably means .
A. discourage B. remove C. benefit D. free
34. Rogers’ attitude towards the low-income smokers might be that of .
A. tolerance B. unconcern C. doubt D. sympathy
35. What can we learn from the last paragraph?
A. The new tax will be beneficial in the long run.
B. Low-income Americans are more likely to fall ill.
C. Future generations will be hooked on smoking.
D. Adults will depend more on their families.

C

Some people believe that international sport creates goodwill between the nations and that if countries play games together, they will learn to live together. Others say that the opposite is true: international competitions encourage false national pride and lead to misunderstanding and hatred（憎恨）. There is probably some truth in both arguments, but in recent years the Olympic Games have done little to support the view that sport encourages international brotherhood. Not only was there the tragic incident including the murder of athletes, but the Games were also ruined by incidents caused mainly by smaller national contests.
One country received its second-place medals with visible anger after the hockey(曲棍球) final. There had been noisy scenes at the end of the hockey match, the losers objecting to the final decisions. They were sure that one of their goals should not have been disallowed and that their opponents’ victory was unfair. Their manager was in great anger when he said, “This wasn’t hockey. Hockey and the International Hockey Federation are finished.” The president of the Federation said later that such behavior could result in the suspension（停赛） of the team for at least three years.
Incidents of this kind will continue as long as sport is played competitively rather than for the love of the game. The suggestion that athletes should compete as individuals, or in non-national teams, might be too much to hope for. But in the present organization of the Olympics there is far too much that
encourages aggressive patriotism(爱国主义).
36. According to the author, recently the Olympic Games have ______.
A. created goodwill between the nations
B. brought about only false national pride
C. hardly showed any international friendship
D. put an end to misunderstanding and hatred
37. The underlined word “disallowed”(in Paragraph 2) means “______”.
A. permitted to pass
B. considered as reasonable
C. won by the other side
D. refused to accept
38. What did the manager mean by saying, “Hockey and the International Hockey Federation are finished”?
A. His team would no longer take part in international games.
B. Hockey and the Federation are both ruined by the unfair decisions.
C. There should be no more Hockey matches organized by the Federation.
D. The Federation should break up.
39. The author gives the example in paragraph 2 to show ______.
A. how false national pride led to undesirable incidents in international games
B. that sportsmen are often against the final decisions
C. that competitiveness in the games discourages international friendship
D. that unfair decisions are common in the Olympic Games
40. What conclusion can be drawn from the passage?
A. The organization of the Olympic Games must be improved.
B. Athletes should compete as individuals in the Olympic Games.
C. A game should be played competitively rather than for the love of the game.
D. More and more athletes will compete for their own honor.

B

Solar energy for your home is coming. It can help you as a single home owner. It can help the whole country as well. Whether or not solar energy can save your money depends on many things. Where you live is one factor and the type of home you have is another. Things like insulation (绝缘材料), present energy costs, and the type of system you buy are added factors.
Using solar energy can help save our precious fuel. As you know, our supplies of oil and gas are very limited. There is just not enough on hand to meet all our future energy needs. Sooner or later Mother Nature will say that’s all. The only way we can delay hearing those words is by starting to save energy now and by using other sources, like the sun.
We won’t have to worry about the sun’s running out of energy for another several billion years or so. Besides, the sun doesn’t offer as many problems as other energy sources. For example, fossil fuel(矿物燃料) adds to already high pollution levels. With solar energy, we will still need sources of energy, but we won’t need as much. That means we can cut down on our pollution problems.
With all these good points, why don’t we use more solar power? There are many reasons for this. The biggest reason is money. Until now, it was just not practical for a home owner to put in a solar unit. There were cheaper sources of energy.
All that is changing now. Solar costs are starting to equal the costs of oil and electricity. Experts say that gas, oil and electricity prices will continue to rise. The demand for electricity is increasing rapidly. But new power plants will use more gas, oil or coal. Already in some places the supply of electricity is being rationed (限量供应). Solar energy is now in its infancy (初期). It could soon grow to become a major part of our nation’s energy supply.
31. What’s this passage mainly about?
A. Something about solar energy and pollution. B. Solar energy.
C. Energy and pollution. D. Energy and money.
32. Solar energy can help us _____.
A. escape punishment from nature B. become home owners
C. get rid of present energyD. save our precious fuel
33. The sun is an endless source of energy, and it will not run out of energy for _____.
A. several million years B. several hundred years
C. several billion years D. several thousand years
34. Which of the following statements is TRUE?
A. Energy from coal would not pollute our living environment.
B. Energy from natural gas would not pollute our living environment.
C. Energy from the sun would not pollute our living environment.
D. Energy from oil would not pollute our living environment.
35. Solar energy is now in its infancy, _____.
A. but in the future it will become an important part of our nation’s energy supply
B. so we will build more power plants
C. and the supply of electricity will be rationed throughout the country
D. so we don’t need it

II 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，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳答案。

A

We are all called upon to make a speech at some point in life, but most of us don’t do a very good job. This article gives some suggestions on how to give an effective speech.
So, you have to give a speech-- and you’re terrified. You get nervous, you forget what you want to say, you stumble over words, you talk too long, and you bore your audience. Later you think, “Thank goodness, it’s over. I’m just no good at public speaking. I hope I never have to do that again. ”
Cheer up! It doesn’t have to be that bad. Here are some simple steps to take the pain out of speech making. Ask yourself the purpose of your speech. What is the occasion? Why are you speaking? Then, gather as many facts as you can on your subject. Spend plenty of time doing your research. Then spend plenty of time organizing your material so that your speech is clear and easy to follow. Use as many examples as possible, and use pictures, charts, and graphs if they will help you make your points more clearly. Never forget your audience. Don’t talk over their heads, and don’t talk down to them. Treat your audience with respect. They will appreciate your thoughtfulness.
Just remember: be prepared. Know your subject, your audience, and the occasion. Be brief. Say what you have to say and then stop. And be yourself. Let your personality come through so that you make person-to -person contact with your audience.
If you follow these simple steps, you’ll see that you don’t have to be afraid of public speaking. In fact, you may find the experience so enjoyable that you volunteer to make more speeches! You’re not convinced yet? Give it a try and see what happens.
26. The main idea of this article is _________.
A. you can improve your speaking ability B. a poor speaker can never change
C. always make a short speech D. it is hard to make a speech
27. Paragraph 2 implies that ________.
A. many people are afraid of giving a speech B. many people are happy to give a speech
C. many people do not prepare for a speech D. many people talk too long
28. The phrase “talk over their heads” means ________.
A. speak too loudly B. look at the ceiling
C. look down upon them D. use words and ideas that are too difficult
29. All of the following statements are true except that ___________.
A. few people know how to make good speeches
B. a lecturer does not need to organize his speech
C. research is important in preparing a speech
D. there are simple steps you can take to improve your speaking ability
30. The title for this passage may be _______.
A. Do Not Make a Long Speech B. How to Give a Good Speech
C. How to Prepare for a Speech D. Try to Enjoy a Speech