Tales From Animal Hospital
David Grant
David Grant has become a familiar face to millions of fans of Animal Hospital . Here Dr Grant tells us the very best of his personal stories about the animals he has treated ,including familiar patients such as the dogs Snowy and Duchess , the delightful cat Marigold Serendipity Diamond . He also takes the reader behind the scenes at Harmsworth Memorial Animal Hospital as he describes his day , from ordinary medical check-ups to surgery (外科手术). Tales From Animal Hospital will delight all fans of the program and anyone who has a lively interest in their pet, whether it be cat , dog or snake I ! $ 14.99 Hardback 272 pp Simon Schuster
ISBN 0751304417
Isaac Newton: The Last Sorcerer
Michael White
Form the author of Stephen Hawking : A Life in Science , comes this colorful description of the life of the world’s first modern scientist . Interesting yet based on fact , Michael White’s learned yet readable new book offers a true picture of Newton completely different from what people commonly know about him . Newton is shown as a gifted scientist with very human weaknesses who stood at the point in history where magic ended and science began.
£8.99 Hardback 320 pp Fourth Estate
ISBN 1857024168
Fermat’s Last Theorem
Simon Singh
In 1963 a schoolboy called Andrew Wiles reading in his school library came across the world’s greatest mathematical problem : Fermat’s Last Theorem (定理). First put forward by the French mathematician Pierre de Fermat in the seventeenth century, the theorem had baffled and beaten the finest mathematical minds , including a French woman scientist who made a major advance in working out the problem , and who had to dress like a man in order to be able to study at the Ecole Polytechnique . Through unbelievable determination Andrew Wiles finally worked out the problem in 1995 . An unusual story of human effort over three centuries , Fermat’s Last Theorem will delight specialists and general readers alike .
£12.99 Hardback 384 pp Fourth Estate
ISBN 1857025210
What is Animal Hospital ?
| A.A news story. | B.A popular book. |
| C.A research report. | D.A TV program. |
In Michael White’s book , Newton is described as
| A.a person who did not look the same as in many pictures |
| B.a person who lived a colorful and meaningful life |
| C.a great but not perfect man |
| D.an old-time magician |
Which of the following best explains the meaning of the word “baffle” as it is used in the text ?
| A.To encourage people to raise questions |
| B.To cause difficulty in understanding. |
| C.To provide a person with an explanation |
| D.To limit people’s imagination. |
What is the purpose of writing these three texts ?
| A.To make the books easier to read |
| B.To show the importance of science |
| C.To introduce new authors |
| D.To sell the books. |
Most shops in Britain open at 9:00 am, and close at 5:00 or 5:30 in the evening. Small shops usually close for an hour at lunchtime. On one or two days a week—usually Thursday and/or Friday—some large food shops stay open until about 8:00 pm for late night shopping.
Many shops are closed in the afternoon on one day a week. The day is usually Wednesday or Thursday and it is a different day in different towns.
Nearly all shops are closed on Sundays. Newspaper shops are open in the morning, and sell sweets and cigarettes as well. But not all the things can be sold on Sundays.
Usually it is not difficult for foreign visitors to find where to buy things. Most shops sell the things that you want to buy. One problem is stamps. In Britain you can only buy these at post offices. Many large food shops are self-service. When you go into one of these shops, you take a basket and you put the things you wish to buy into this. You pay for everything just before you leave. If anyone tries to take things from a shop without paying they are almost certain to be caught, because most shops have detectives.
When you are waiting to be served in a shop, it is important not try to be served before people who arrive before you. Many foreign people are surprised at the British way of queuing (排队).
46. Most shops in Britain stay open for about ______ a day.
A. eight hours B. five hours C. ten hours D. six hours
47. According to the passage, which of the following statements is NOT true?
A. Some large food shops open for about 11 hours on Thursday or Friday.
B. Many shops are closed in the afternoon once a week on Tuesday.
C. Only a few things can be bought on Sundays.
D. It is not difficult for foreign visitors to buy things in Britain.
48. You can not buy ______ in shops.
A. cigarette B. sweets C. stamps D. clothes
49. Which of the following statements is TRUE?
A. Most shops usually close for an hour at lunchtime.
B. Many large shops are self-service.
C. Most shops have detectives.
D. People do not have to queue to be served.
50. Which of the following statements can be the best title of this passage?
A. Shops in Britain
B. How to buy things in Britain?
C. The British Way of Queuing
D. How long are the British shops?
第三部分阅读(共20小题;每小题2分,满分40分)
第一节阅读理解(共15小题;每小题2分,满分30分)
阅读下面短文,从每题所给的A、B、C和D项中,选出最佳选项。
A well-dressed man entered a famous jewelry shop. He explained that he wished to buy a pearl for his wife’s birthday. The price didn’t matter. Since business had been very good for him that year. After examining a nice black one that cost $5000, he paid for the pearl in cash, shook hands with the jeweler, and left.
A few days later the man returned and said that his wife liked the pearl so much that she wanted another one just like it. It had to be exactly the same size and quality, as she wanted a pair of earrings made, “Can you give me any advice on how to get such a pearl?” said the man. The jeweler regretfully replied, “I would say it’s exactly impossible to find one exactly like that pearl.”
The rich man insisted that the jeweler advertise in the newspapers, offering $ 25,000 for the matching pearl. Many people answered the advertisement but nobody had a pearl that was just right.
Just when the jeweler had given up hope, a little old lady came into his store. To his great surprise, she pulled the perfect pearl from her purse. “I don’t like to part with it,” she said sadly, “I inherited it from my mother, and my mother inherited it from hers. But I really need the money.”
The jeweler was quick to pay her before she changed her mind. Then he called the rich man’s hotel to tell him the good news. The man, however, was nowhere to be found.
1. The man said he wanted to buy a pearl for ______.
A. his wife B. his mother-in–law C. his own mother D. no one
2. He paid $ 5,000 for the black pearl without bargaining because ______.
A. he was very rich B. he wanted to make the jeweler believe him
C. he was anxious to get it D. his business had been successful
3. He told the jeweler to get him another pearl that must be ______.
A. exactly the same size as the black on
B. exactly the same quality as the black one
C. worth no more than $ 25,000
D. exactly as big and nice as the black one
4. Many people answered the advertisement because they wanted _______.
A. to see the perfect pearl
B. to buy some beautiful pearls too
C. to get in touch with the rich man
D. to sell their own pearl at a high price
5. The jeweler couldn’t find the man anywhere because ______.
A. he died suddenly.
B. He happened to be out
C. He got $ 20,000 by cheating and had run away with the money.
D. He wouldn’t show up until the jeweler called him a second time.
A sunflower is a sunflower. A mobile phone is a mobile phone. But can you combine the two to do something for your local environment? As early as next year it may well be possible. When you have finished with your mobile phone you will be able to bury it in a garden or a plant pot and wait for it to flower.
A biodegradable (生物所能分解的) mobile phone was, this month, introduced by scientists. It is hoped that the new type of phone will encourage consumers to recycle.
Scientists have come up with a new material over the last five years. It looks like any other plastic and can be hard or soft, and is able to change shape. Over time it can also break down into the soil without giving out any poisonous chemicals. British researchers used the new material to develop a phone cover that contains a sunflower seed. When this new type of cover turns into waste, it forms fertilizers. These feed the seed and help the flower grow.
Engineers have designed a small transparent (透明的) window to hold the seed. They have made sure it only grows when the phone is thrown away. “We’ve only put sunflower seeds into the covers so far. But we are working with plant experts to find out which flowers would perform best. Maybe we could put roses in next time,” said one scientist.
As phone technology is developing so quickly, people are constantly throwing their mobiles away. This means manufacturers are under pressure to find ways of recycling them. Some 650 million mobile phones have been sold this year. Most of them will be thrown away within two years, adding plastic, heavy metal and chemical waste to the environment. A biodegradable cover can offer some relief (缓解) for nature , according to the scientists.
“The seed comes out and the flower grows in the pot so you don’t have to concern yourself with the phone when you have finished using it,” said Kerry Kirwan. She leads the research team, which is based at the University of Warwick in Britain.
What is the purpose of this passage?
A. To tell the popularity of biodegradable cell phones.
B. To persuade the reader to buy the biodegradable cell phone.
C. To discuss the development of phone technology.
D. To introduce an environmentally-friendly cell phone to readers.
People throw away their cell phones most probably because _______.
A.there is something wrong with them
B.no sunflowers can grow out of them
C.they are out of fashion
D.they are becoming cheaper and cheaper
It could be learned from the passage that _________.
A.developing the new type of phone is mainly to protect the environment
B.phone-makers will benefit much more from the new type of phone
C.the new type of phone will certainly be popular with users all over the world
D.the phones that can be recycled are available only in Britain now
What might be the best title for this passage?
A.Sunflower and Phone. B.Plant Your Phone.
C.Protect Our Environment. D.No Worry about Phone.
Where can we probably find the passage above?
A. In a novel. B. In a magazine. C. In a textbook. D. In a diary
III. 阅读(共两节,满分30分)
第一节阅读理解(共10小题;每小题2分,满分20分)
阅读下列短文,从每题所给的A、B、C和D项中,选出最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Charles Dickens (1812-1870), the great nineteenth century English novelist, was born near Portsmouth. His father ran heavily into debt and when he was twelve, he had to go and work in a factory for making boot polish. The only formal education he received was a two-year schooling at a school for poor children. In fact, he had to teach himself all he knew. He worked for a time as a junior clerk in a lawyer’s office. After that, he worked as a reporter in the law courts, and later in Parliament, for London newspapers.
His career as a writer of fiction began in 1833 with short stories and essays in periodicals(期刊), and in 1837 his comic novel The Pickwick Papers made him the most popular author at his time in England.
He was a great observer of people and their places because he was attracted by life and conditions in mid-nineteenth century London. He wrote 19 novels all his life and in many of them, Dickens gave a realistic picture of all classes of England society, showing deep sympathy for the poor and unfortunate, exposing the injustice and inhumanity of the middle class. Many of his novels like Oliver Twist, David Copperfield, Nicholas Nickleby, Great Expectations, A Tale of Two Cities and so on drew attention to the unsatisfactory social conditions that existed in England over a hundred years ago. Dickens criticized capitalist society from the point of view of bourgeois humanism. He wished to see improvement in the living conditions of the poor, but failed to find any effective means to achieve that end.
46. Dickens only received a little formal education because______.
A. he wanted to teach himself
B. he wanted to work and made a lot of money
C. he was too poor to afford any more formal education
D. he wanted some working experiences to be a novelist
47. According to Dickens, society at his time in England was________.
A. just B. poor C. comfortable D. unsatisfying
48. Which of the following novel made Dickens the most popular writer at his time in England?
A. Oliver Twist B. The Pickwick Papers
C. A Tale of Two Cities D. Great Expectations
49. According to the passage, which of the following about Dickens is true?
A. He didn’t go to school at all.
B. He only wrote about poor people and showed deep sympathy for them.
C. He began to write fictions when he was 21 years old.
D. He found some effective ways to improve the living conditions of the poor.
50. It can be inferred from the passage that________.
A. Dickens had a miserable(悲惨的;可怜的)childhood
B. His career as a writer of fiction began in 1833
C. Dickens wrote many novels but only some of them are popular
D. Dickens criticized capitalist society and helped to improve the living conditions of the poor
Time out, extra chores and taking away privileges are more useful forms of disciplining (惩戒)naughty children than spanking or hitting, according to a study on Wednesday.
About 94 percent of parents use some form of physical punishment to teach their two-year-olds right from wrong, according to research studies. But psychologists say it could lead to later emotional and behavioral problems.
Even children who were only spanked some of the time are more likely to show signs of sadness or have less confidence.
“The key is to be fair and do the same thing each time. Doing something like hitting a child that seems cruel at best doesn’t help and can put a child at risk for problems,” said Dr Paul Frick, of the University of New Orleans in Louisians.
“It is better to use other punishments,” he added.
The use of physical punishment to teach children has long been debated. In countries such as Austria, Finland, Germany and Sweden, it is illegal to use physical punishment at home or in schools.
Frick and his team, who studied the effects of physical punishment on 98 children, said they couldn’t find any positive effects. Some children learned more from the hitting than what the parent was trying to teach them.
“The key is to have a lot of different forms of punishment depending on the age of the child,” said Frick, who reported his findings in the Journal of Applied Child Psychology.
He recommended time out for younger children and taking away television and electronic toys for older children. Giving extra chores can also get the message across.
Other measures are at least as effective as physical punishment and have less harmful potential consequences.
The researchers kept children whom they thought were at risk of later conduct problems out of the test and an equal number of other children who acted as a control group, to study what measures would be most helpful.
They questioned the parents and the children about positive and negative parenting behavior including the use of physical punishment.
“We got it from both viewpoints,” said Frick.
He added that children on the receiving end of a hit can learn that when they are upset and angry they hit, rather than understanding their behavior was wrong and that they need to do better.
67. What’s the purpose of the writer to write this article?
A.To debate if physical punishment is illegal.
B.To introduce how to deal with young kids.
C.To talk about how to discipline young kids.
D.To order parents not to spank young kids.
68. Which of the following punishments is NOT recommended by Frick and his team?
A. Taking away toys B. Not allowing watching TV
C. Doing more housework. D. Switching TV channels
69. What should be kept in mind when disciplining a kid?
A. How he or she usually behaves.
B.Tell them why they are punished.
C.Use different forms of punishment each time.
D.Be fair and stick to the same principle.
70. According to the passage, why did Dr Frick advise against physical punishment?
A. Because the children may hit people as a solution to problems.
B. Because the children will learn their behavior is wrong in time.
C. Because it is illegal to use physical punishment in certain countries.
D. Because parents think it’s the easiest way to teach kids right from wrong.