The World Health Organization (WHO) planned to study the relationship between the eating habits of the people and the disease. Two doctors were chosen to make the study. They flew to Africa south of the Sahara and during the next two months visited ten countries. They found that serious diseases of poor eating, often mistaken for other diseases, existed in all parts of Africa. The diseases were similar and could therefore all be named kwashiorkor. The diseased children are usually from one to four years old. As the illness progresses, the child’s stomach becomes swollen by liquid collecting in the body. The skin changes color and may break out in open sores（疼痛）. The hair changes color and starts to fall out. The patient loses all interest in his surroundings and even in food, and becomes so weak that he wants to lie down all the time. Stomach liquids are no longer produced.
The doctors reasoned that kwashiorkor was found in the young children of this age in many parts of Africa because of lack of milk or meat. Their mothers, after stopping their breastfeeding, gave them foods full of starches（淀粉）instead of greatly needed proteins. They found that the addition of milk to the food of the children suffering from kwashiorkor saved many lives.
The unbelievable thing about kwashiorkor is that the very existence of the disease—which has been killing thousands of children for centuries—was not even recognized in Latin America as recently as ten years ago. The deaths of those children were mistakenly listed as due to other diseases. It was the WHO’s work in Africa that led to the discovery of the problem in Central America.From the passage we learn that kwashiorkor is a disease caused by __________ .
| A．poor living conditions | B．lack of proteins in food |
| C．breastfeeding | D．lack of food |
It is difficult to discover kwashiorkor because ____________________ .
| A．it has no symptoms at all |
| B．it is hard to identify signs of it |
| C．it doesn’t last long enough for careful observation |
| D．it is hardly different from other diseases |
What is mentioned as a simple but reasonable way of curing this disease?
| A．Taking a special medicine. |
| B．Avoiding any food containing starch. |
| C．Having more meat or milk. |
| D．Taking medicine full of proteins. |
What’s the best title for the article?
| A．Milk and Meat Are Daily Necessities |
| B．Kwashiorkor and Improper Eating Habits |
| C．A New Form of Illness in Africa and Latin America |
| D．A Case of Eating Habits |
The audience starts to scream and young people all over Britain turn on their TVs. Yes, it’s Top of the Pops!
Top of the Pops is an amazing 34 years old. Pop stars from all over the world appear on this successful TV programme. After 1,800 shows, it’s still the most popular pop music show in Britain. So wha
t’s the secret?
“We get lots of bands to perform live in the studio,” says producer Chris Cowey. “That just doesn’t happen on other shows.”
Chris starts planning the programme over a week before it goes out. His first job is to decide which bands to have on the show. Wh
en the chart of the top twenty songs is produced on Sunday, Chris can start to book the bands.
Monday starts with Chris meeting his sound, lighting and camera workers. They listen to each song and plan the show.
Tuesday is paperwork day. There are bookings to make sure of letters to answer and lots of phone calls to make. The show is on Thursday. 
Bands arrive at the studio from 10 o’clock in the morning and start practising. Tonight’s presenter, Jo Whiley, practices too.
First the bands go to make up. Judy and Issy are the make-up artists. “We see the stars with no make-up on, looking terrible,” says Issy. Then the bands go to the costume department where Marianne dresses the stars.
Back in the studio things are happening. The audience are practicing their dance moves! It takes over two hours to record the whole programme, then Chris edits it all night long. The final version is exactly 29 minutes long.
31. What make(s) Top of the Pops still the most popular in Britain?
A. The live performances in the studio.
B. The jobs carefully done by the workers of the TV station.
C. The great fame of the bands.
D. The large numbers of pop fans in Britain.
32. When the bands receive the invitations to the performance, _________.
A. they must de
cide on the songs
B. they don’t have to decide what songs they will perform
C. the songs that will be performed haven’t been decided on
D. they have no idea what songs they will perform
33．The underlined word “costume”（in Paragraph 7） probably means.
A. makeup B. stage C. studio D. clothesHow is a music programme made at the TV station?
Which is the proper title for the passage?
| A．More Popular, More Successful |
| B．A Stage for Pop Stars |
| C．Go Backstage of Top of the Pops. |
| D．A Popular Live Band. |
It was time for Mr. Rocco to shut up shop when I hurried into the florist’s. “Now, what is it you want?” Mr. Rocco turned to me. “I want the most beautiful flower you have.” I replied. “And just how much do you have to pay for this most beautiful flower?” I held out a wet hand showing a quarter and dime. He nodded, and then showed me a plant on the counter. “I can give you this one for 35 cents.” he said. “Aw, gee,” I protested, “it looks like a weed!” About 18 inches high, the plant was in a small pot covered with faded red paper. “Now trust me, boy—I promise that tomorrow morning when you get up, you will find your most beautiful flower.” said Mr. Rocco. I knew him to be a good honest man, so I agreed to take it.
It was almost midnight when I arrived home. Mom was seriously sick and using the front bedroom. I looked in to see if she was asleep, and then quietly tiptoed in and set the plant on the table beside her bed. I wanted her to be surprised when she woke on Mother’s Day.
The next morning, I dressed and hurried downstairs. The sun was shining through kitchen window as I looked into Mom’s room. She motioned for me to come in, then glanced over at the table where the plant was. Holy mackerel! There were three big yellow trumpet-shaped（喇叭状的）blooms. It was just like Mr. Rocco said—the most beautiful flower I ever saw! When I looked at Mom, she was smiling as tears streamed down her cheeks. She held out her hand for me to come near, then pulled me close and hugged till it hurt. Then, remembering her contagious condition and that she wasn’t supposed to touch me, she quickly let me go.
My dear mom died the next night. The moment she hugged me turned out to be the most wonderful moment of my life. Not only had that beautiful plant helped show just how much I loved her, but I’d always know how much she loved me. The author didn’t like the plant recommended by Mr. Rocco at first because ______.
| A．the packing of the plant was shabby |
| B．the plant was more a weed than a flower |
| C．the plant appeared too ordinary to be the most beautiful |
| D．he thought Mr. Rocco was reluctant to do the deal with him |
Mother’s condition was contagious (Line 6, Para.3) for ______.
| A．she was at the death’s door | B．she suffered from the illness |
| C．others were sick of her appearance | D．virus might spread from her to others |
When mother hugged the author tightly, she was showing that ______.
| A．she liked being given gifts |
| B．she valued what the author had done for her |
| C．she was aware of the approaching of death |
| D．she was touched by the beauty of the flower |
The story is mainly developed by______________.
| A．time | B．logic | C．comparison | D．cause and result |
Which may be the best title of the passage?
| A．Flowers of Love | B．A Son’s Love for Mother |
C．Low Price, High Value |
D．A Special Mother’s Day |
A new walking, talking robot from Japan which has black hair and a woman’s face that can smile will attend a fashion show. It has trimmed down（减少）to 43kg, but it still hasn’t reached the safety standards required to share the catwalk with human models.
Developers at the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, a government-backed organization, said their “cybernetic（全自动控制的）human” wasn’t ready to help with daily housework or work side by side with people—as many hope robots will be able to do in the future.
“In technology, it hasn’t reached that level,” said Hirohisa Hirukawa, one of the robot’s developers. “Even as a fashion model, people in the industry told us she was short and had a rather ordinary figure.”
For now, the 158 cm tall black-haired robot named HRP-4C—whose predecessor（前任）had weighed 58 kg — will mainly serve to draw and entertain crowds. Developers said the robot may be used in amusement parks or to perform human movement, as an exercise instructor, for instance.
HRP-4C was designed to look like an ordinary Japnese woman, although its silver-and-black body reminds people of a space suit. It will appear in a Tokyo fashion show — without any clothes — in a special part just for the robot next week.
The robotic framework（框架）for HRP-4C, without the face and other coverings, will go on sale for about 20 million yen（日元） each. Its programming technology will be made public so other people can come up with fun moves for the robot, the scientists said.
Japan is one of the leading robotics industries in the world, and the government is pushing to develop the industry as a road to growth.What do we know about HRP-4C’s predecessor?
A．It is shorter than HRP-4C . B．It is cleverer than HRP-4C .
C．It is taller than HRP-4C . D．It is heavier than HRP-4C .According to the passage, how many of the following could HRP-4C do?
a． drawing pictures
b. walking and talking
c. doing housework
d. working with people
e.smiling
| A．2 | B．3 | C．4 | D．5 |
Which of the following about HRP-4C is TURE?
| A．It wears a space suit. |
| B．Its price is 20 million dollars. |
| C．It can be used as an exercise instructor. |
| D．As a fashion model, it has a perfect figure. |
HRP-4C’s programming technology will be made public to .
| A．make money | B．make new frameworks |
| C．let other people improve it | D．help make new face and coverings |
What does the passage mainly talk about?
A．The purpose of making HRP-4C. B．Robotics industry in Japan.
C．A new Japanese robot. D．Japanese and robots.
A good night’s sleep in the early years of life could be very important in preventing a child becoming obese, say scientists. Babies and pre-school children who sleep for less than ten hours a night are more likely to be overweight when they are older, research has found. Experts believe that those who do not get enough sleep are more likely to feel hungry and want more calorie-rich food during the day.
Former research has linked sleeping with obesity in adults and teenagers, but this is one of the first to look at very young children. Researchers from the Universities of Washington and California looked at the sleeping habits of almost 1,000 children under the age of five. They found those who had less than ten hours’ sleep were twice as likely to be overweight five years later.
Childhood obesity has doubled over the past 10 years. A quarter of secondary school pupils are now judged to be so overweight that their health is in danger. Experts believe sleep, or lack（缺乏）of it, could be a major cause of this. On average children are sleeping for an hour less than they did 30 years ago. Last year Chinese researchers looked at more than 5,000 youngsters and found that those who were able to catch up on （补充）sleep at the weekend were far less likely to get body weight problems. Scientists have also found a link between lack of sleep and diabetes（糖尿病）. Last year Canadian researchers discovered those who did not get seven or eight hours’ sleep a night were two and a half times more likely to become sick.The underlined word “obese” in the first paragraph may mean .
| A．quite protective | B．very sad |
| C．very fat | D．quite young |
According to Chinese researchers, if a person who lacks sleep can get more sleep during weekends, .
| A．he won’t get hungry easily | B．he will feel tired all the time |
| C．there will be little chance of him becoming fat | |
| D．it will be very hard for him to fall asleep at night |
From the passage we know .
| A．too little sleep will result in illness besides obesity |
| B．in the past people didn’t connect sleep with weight |
| C．fat children must have slept less than 10 hours five years ago |
| D．most children are unhealthy because of little sleep |
What would be the best title of the passage?
| A．A good night’s sleep helps the development of kids’ brain! |
| B．Ten hours’ sleep prevents overweight in kids! |
| C．Children are sleeping much less nowadays! |
| D．More teenagers get weight problems! |
Where can you most probably read this passage?
| A．In the latest news. | B．In a children’s book. |
| C．In a health magazine. | D．In a scientist’s diary. |
Farah was sitting in the kitchen going over the party list with her mother. The exams were over and Farah wanted to invite her friends for a party.
“Farah, aren’t you going to invite Hafsa?” her mother asked. Hafsa had been her best friend since childhood.
“Mother, you know I am now a part of Purple Girls Club and we have some rules about people we can be friends with,” Farah answered.
“Really? And what are the rules?” her mother asked.
“Well, only very pretty girls can be part of our group. And Hafsa is so…you know …dark.”
“I canno
t believe it,”her mother said angrily.
As Farah left the kitchen, her father called her from the living room.
Farah went to her father and paled when she saw the exam report in his hands. “Farah, what has happened to your grades? You have failed in Mathematics,” her father said.
Farah had no answer. The truth was that the activities of Purple Girls Club left her with very little time for studies.
“Farah, it says that you can take part in supplementary exams（补考）. If your grades don’t improve then, I’ll cancel（职消）your trip to Spain.”
Farah went to her room and called Gina, the leader of Purple Girls Club. “Gina, can you help me to complete my notes before the exams?”
Gina laughed. “Exams? Who cares about exams?”
One by one, she called her friends in the club but no one seemed to care or wanted to help.
Farah knew Hafsa would help her. Farah also knew Hafsa had been hurt by her, but Hafsa said, “If you need any help, just let me know. We can study together till your exams.”
Next Monday, as two friends entered the school together, Gina called out.
“Farah, you know our rules. You cannot be friends with those who do not belong to our club.”
“Gina, I have a new rule about friendship,” Farah replied.After Farah became a member of Purple Girls Club, she chose a friend according to a person’s .
| A．looks | B．usual activities | C．grades | D．favorite colors |
Farah became pale after going to her father because.
| A．he didn’t allow her to go to Spain | B．she didn’t do well in her exams |
| C．she had to leave Purple Girls Club | D．he asked her to improve her grades |
．Which word can best describe Hafsa?
| A．Silly | B．Beautiful | C．Rude | D．Kind |
From the passage, we can know that .
| A．Hafsa is a member of Purple Girls Club |
| B．Gina will help Farah with her exams |
| C．Gina doesn’t care about exams |
| D．Farah would like to invite Hafsa to the party |
What lesson can we learn from the passage?
| A．A friend in need is a friend indeed. | B．A perfect friend will never be found. |
| C．Be slow in choosing a friend. | D．Friendship can be developed easily. |