As you move around your home, take a good look at the things you have. It is likely that your living room will have a television set and a video, and your kitchen a washing machine and a microwave oven. Your bedroom drawers will be filled with almost three times as many clothes as you need. You almost certainly own a car and possibly a home computer, holiday abroad at least once a year and eat out at least once a week.
Now, perhaps, more than ever before, people are wondering what life is all about, and what it is for. Seeking material success is beginning to trouble large numbers of people around the world. They feel that the long hours work culture to make more money is eating up their lives, leaving them very little time or energy for family or pastimes. Many are turning to other ways of living and downshifting is one of them. Six percent of workers in Britain took the decision to downshift last year.
One couple who downshifted is Daniel and Liz. They used to work in central London. He was a newspaper reporter and she used to work for an international bank. They would go to work by train every day from their large house in the suburbs, leaving their two children with a nanny. Most evenings Daniel wouldn’t get home until eight or nine o’clock and nearly twice a month he would have to fly to New York for meetings. They both earned a large amount of money but began to feel that life was passing them by.
Nowadays, they run a farm in the mountains of Wales. “I always wanted to have a farm then,” says Daniel, “and we took almost a year to make the decision to downshift. It’s taken some getting used to, but it’s been worth it. We have to think twice now about spending money on car repairs and we no longer have any holidays. However, I think it’s made us stronger as a family, and the children are a lot happier.
Liz, however, is not quite sure. “I used to enjoy my job, even though it was hard work and long hours. I’m not really a country girl, but I suppose I’m gradually getting used to looking after the animals. One thing I do like, though, is being able to see more of my children. My advice for other people wanting to do the same is not to think about it too much or you might not do it at all.”The passage tells us that .
| A．people seldom work long hours to make money |
| B．people hardly buy more things than necessary |
| C．people are sure everything they own is in the right place |
| D．people realize there is more to life than just making money |
When Daniel was a reporter he ___.
| A．lived in central London | B．disliked his job |
| C．missed his children | D．was well paid |
Daniel and Liz both agree that the move to the farm ____.
| A．was easy to organize | B．has improved family life |
| C．was extremely expensive | D．has been a total success |
What does the author mean by saying"the long hours work culture to make more money is eating up their lives" in the second paragraph ?
| A．People work long hours to earn their living. |
| B．To make more money through hard work is the aim of people's life. |
| C．Long hours of hard work occupy too much of people's life. |
| D．People spent too much time and money eating meals. |
The underlined word "downshifting" in the second paragraph refers to _________.
| A．repairing your car by yourself |
| B．spending money carefully |
| C．moving out to the countryside to live a simpler and better life |
| D．living in a big house in the suburbs and dining out once a week |
A long-awaited final report from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) concludes that foods from healthy cloned animals and their offspring(后代) are as safe as those from ordinary animals, effectively removing the last US regulatory(监管的) barrier to the marketing of meat and milk from cloned cattle, pigs and goats.
The 968-page final report, not yet released but obtained by The Washington Post, finds no evidence to support people’s concerns that food from clones may have hidden risks.
But, recognizing that a majority of consumers are wary of food from clones—and that cloning could damage the good image of American milk and meat—the report includes hundreds of pages of raw(原始的) data so that others can see how it came to its conclusions.
The report also admits that human health concerns are not the only subject raised by the coming-out of cloned farm animals.
“Moral, religious and ethical concerns have been raised,” the agency notes in a document accompanying the report. But the report is “exactly a science-based evaluation.” It reports, because the agency is not authorized by law to consider those subjects.
In practice, it will be years before foods from clones make their way to store shelves in large quantities, in part because the clones themselves are too valuable to kill for meat or milk. Instead, the expensive animals—replicas(复制品) of some of the finest farm animals ever born—will be used firstly as breeding stock to create what supporters say will be a new generation of superior farm animals.
When food from those animals hits the market, the public may yet have its say. FDA officials have said they do not expect to require food from clones to be labeled as such, but they may allow foods from ordinary animals to be labeled as not from clones.
64. What can we infer from the first paragraph?
A. FDA has waited for a long time to get this final report.
B. Products from cloned animals have been put into the market before.
C. People are having the products from cloned animals safely.
D. There have been once opposite opinions against cloned products.
65. What does the underlined word “wary” mean?
A. Disappointed. B. Careful. C. Fond. D. Proud.
66. It will be a few years before foods from clones come into the market, partly because _____.
A. people have little knowledge of the cloned animals
B. supporters can’t give powerful evidence to support that
C. the few cloned animals will first be used to create superior animals
D. they are a new generation for the customers and are too valuable for the customers
67. What can we conclude from the passage?
A. FDA officials encourage people to eat more food from clones.
B. FDA officials think the food from clones will sell better than ordinary food.
C. People only worry about the health problems when it comes to foods from the clones.
D. All the foods will not have detailed labels on them.
You know Australia is a big country, but you may not know how easy it is to get around. The untouched beaches that go for miles and deserts that touch the horizon are just there, waiting to be reached and explored. Following are the different ways you can explore our vast country.
Getting around Australia
Air
Flying is the best way to cover large distances in a short time. You can spend more time on the Australia’s can’t - miss landscapes and relaxing lifestyle. Moreover, competition among airlines makes great flying fees available for you.
Drive
Australia has a vast network of well - maintained roads and some of the most beautiful touring routes in the world. You have no difficulty finding car rental companies at major airports, central city locations, suburbs and attractions.
Bus
Bus travel in Australia is comfortable, easy and economical. Buses generally have air conditioning, reading lights, adjustable seats and videos. Services are frequent, affordable and efficient.
Rail
Train travel is the cheapest and gives you an insight into Australia’s size and variety, all from the comfort of your carriage. Scheduled services are a great way to get quickly between our cities and regional centers.
Ferry(轮渡)
The Spirit of Tasmania runs a passenger and vehicle ferry service between Melbourne and Tasmania nightly. Extra services are running during summer rush hours. Sea - link ferries connect South Australia and Kangaroo Island several times a day. Ferries connect suburbs in our capital cities
Walk
With easy - on - the - feel pedestrian streets, walking is a great way to get around our cities.
Besides all of above, you can also experience some of the longest tracks and trails in the world in central Australia - impressive journeys of a thousand kilometers or more that can take several weeks to complete.
60. The underlined word "untouched" (in the 1st paragraph) means______.
A. secure B. special C. natural D. artificial
61. Which of the following is TRUE about traveling in Australia? ______.
A. More travelers make the flying fees among airlines higher than before
B. You can easily rent a car to explore its most beautiful touring routes
C. Taking a bus tour is the most comfortable, economical and efficient way
D. Train services can offer you more comfort than any other means of transport
62. Ferry service between Melbourne and Tasmania usually runs ______.
A. only at night hours B. only during rush hours
C. several times a day D. between different cities
63. From the passage, we know that ______.
A. pedestrian walking is a great way to travel between cities
B. traveling in Central Australia is time - consuming
C. Central Australia has the world’s longest railway line
D. you have to walk over a thousand kilometers in Australia
第二部分阅读理解（共20小题，每小题2分，满分40分）
Too often we accuse others of not listening, pretending that we ourselves are faultless, yet in our hearts we know that many of the mistakes we make come about because we haven’t listened carefully enough. We get things wrong because we haven’t listened carefully enough. We get things wrong because we haven’t quite understood what someone meant when they were talking to us. Anyone who has ever taken the minutes of a long meeting will know how hard it is to remember-- despite the benefit of notes-- exactly what everyone said. But success depends on getting things right--and that means listening.
Listening is not the same thing as hearing; it is not an effort actively. It demands attention and concentration. It may mean quizzing the speaker for additional information or for clarification------ it is always better to ask than to continue regardless and get things wrong. However, if you allow your mind to wander onto something else, even for a few minutes, you’ll miss what the speaker is saying------ probably at the very moment when he or she is saying something critical. And not having heard, you won’t know you’ve missed anything until it’s too late.
The most common bad habit we have is to start thinking of what we are going to say about the subject long before the other speaker has finished. We then stop listening. Even worse, this often adds rudeness to inattentiveness, as once you have decided what to say there is a fair chance you will interrupt to say it. Good listeners don’t interrupt. In fact it is often worth explaining the main idea of what you have just been told before going on to make your own points. Nobody is offended by this and it shows that you have listened well.
Above all be patient and accept that many people are not very good communicators. It’s helpful to remember that the ways people move and position themselves while they are speaking can reveal a great deal about what they are saying. Equally important you should put yourself in the other person’s place, both intellectually and emotionally; it will help you to understand what they are getting at and form a response. But don’t be too clever. Faced with a know-all, many people keep quiet because they see no point in continuing.
56. Which is the best title for this passage?
A. Don’t be too cleverB. Be a good listener.
C. Don’t miss anything critical D. Think of the speaker
57. In the last paragraph, “…… what they are getting at ……” means________ .
A. what they imply B. what they like
C. what they attack D. what they achieve
58. What is the writer’s opinion?
A. If you want to be a good listener, you should be very clever and emotional.
B. Speakers won’t continue talking when their listeners explain what they’ve heard.
C. If you don’t want to get things wrong, it’s important to be a good listener,
D. It’s hard to be a good listener because listening tests you on your intelligence.
59. What is the lesson we can learn from this passage?
A. Don’t accuse others of not listening while talking with them.
B. Don’t get anything wrong if you miss what the speaker is saying.
C. Listening inattentively may cost you the loss of your success.
D. Think carefully of what you’re going to say before the speaker finishes.
Humanity uses a little less than half the water available world wide. Yet occurrence of shortages and droughts are causing famine and distress in some areas and industrial and agricultural by-products are polluting water supplies. Since the world's population is expected to double in the next 50 years, many experts think we are on the edge of a widespread water crisis.
But that doesn't have to be the outcome. Water shortages do not have to trouble the world if we start valuing water more than we have in the past. Just as we began to appreciate petroleum more after the 1970s oil crises, today we must start looking at water from a fresh economic perspective. We can no longer afford to consider water a virtually free resource of which we can use as much as we like in any way we want.
Instead, for all users except the domestic demand of the poor, governments should price water to reflect its actual value. This means charging a fee for the water itself as well as for the supply costs.
Governments should also protect this resource by providing water in more economically and environmentally sound ways. For example, often the cheapest way to provide irrigation water in the dry tropics is through small-scale projects, such as gathering rainfall in depressions (凹地) and pumping it to nearby cropland.
No matter what steps governments take to provide water efficiently, they must change their institutional and legal approaches to water use. Rather than spread control among hundreds or even thousands of local, regional, and national agencies that watch various aspects of water use, countries should set up central authorities to coordinate water policy.
63. What is the real cause of the potential water crisis?
A. Only half of the world's water can be used.
B. The world population is increasing faster and faster.
C. Half of the world's water resources have been seriously polluted.
D. Humanity has not placed sufficient value on water resources.
64. As indicated in the passage, the water problem _______.
A. is already serious in certain parts of the world
B. has been exaggerated by some experts in the field
C. posed a challenge to the technology of building reservoirs
D. is underestimated by government organizations at different levels
65. The author says that in some hot and dry areas it is advisable to __________.
A. build big lakes to store water
B. Construct big pumping stations
C. build small and cheap irrigation systems
D. channel water from nearby rivers to cropland
66. In order to raise the efficiency of the water supply, measures should be taken to ______.
A. guarantee full protection of the environment
B. centralize the management of water resources
C. increase the sense of responsibility of agencies at all levels
D. encourage local and regional control of water resources
Sport is not only physically challenging, but it can also be mentally challenging. Criticism(批评) from coaches, parents, and other teammates, as well as pressure to win can create an excessive(过多的) amount of anxiety or stress for young athletes. Stress can be physical, emotional, or psychological and research has suggested that it can lead to burnout. Burnout has been described as dropping or quitting of an activity that was at one time enjoyable.
The early years of development are critical(关键的) years for learning about oneself. The sport setting is one where valuable experiences can take place. Young athletes can, for example, learn how to cooperate with others, make friends, and gain other social skills that will be used throughout their lives. Coaches and parents should be aware, at all times, that their feedback(反馈) to youngsters can greatly affect their children. Youngsters may take parents’ and coaches’ criticisms to heart and find a flaw (mistake) in themselves.
Coaches and parents should also be careful that youth sport participation does not become work for children. The outcome of the game should not be more important than the process of learning the sport and other life lessons. In today’s youth sport setting, young athletes may be worrying more about who will win instead of enjoying themselves and the sport. Following a game, many parents and coaches focus on the outcome and find fault with youngster’s performances. Positive reinforcement motivates and has a greater effect on learning than criticism. Again, criticism can create high levels of stress, which can lead to burnout.
59. What is the main idea of the first paragraph?
A. Mental stress should be reduced.
B. Sports should be made less competitive.
C. Stress should be made less.
D. Sport can be mentally challenging.
60. According to the passage, young people like sport because ______.
A. it can help them learn more about society
B. it enables them to criticize themselves
C. it can provide them with valuable experiences
D. it teaches them how to set realistic goals for themselves
61. According to the passage, parents and coaches should ______.
A. enable children to enjoy sport
B. help children to win every game
C. train children to deal with stress
D. understand the meaning of sport
62. The author’s purpose in writing the passage is ______.
A. to teach young athletes how to avoid burnout
B. to persuade young children not to worry about criticism
C. to stress the importance of encouraging children
D. to discuss the skill of combining criticism with encouragement