A meteorite (陨石) flew fast across the sky and exploded over central Russia on Friday, raining fireballs over a vast area and causing a shock wave that smashed windows, damaged buildings and injured l,200 people.
People heading to work in Chelyabinsk heard what sounded like an explosion, saw a bright light and then felt the shock wave.
According to Russian space agency Roscosmos, the fireball, travelling at a speed of 30km per second, had burnt very brightly across the horizon, leaving a long white trail that could be seen as far as 200km away. Car alarms went off, thousands of windows shattered and mobile phone networks were disrupted.
“I was driving to work, it was quite dark, but it suddenly became as bright as if it were day,” said Viktor Prokofiev, 36, a resident of Yekaterinburg in the Urals Mountains. “I felt like I was blinded by headlights.”
The meteorite, which weighed about 20 tons and may have been made of iron, entered Earth’s atmosphere and broke apart 30-50km above ground, according to Russia’s Academy of Sciences.
The energy released when it entered the Earth’s atmosphere was about several thousand tons, the academy said, the power of a small atomic weapon exploding.
No deaths were reported, but the Emergencies Ministry said 20,000 rescue and clean-up workers were sent to the region after President Vladimir Putin told Emergencies Minister Vladimir Puchkov to ease the disruption and help the victims.
The Interior Ministry said about l,200 people had been injured, at least 200 of them children, and most from broken pieces of glass.“While events this big are rare, an impact that could cause damage and death could happen every century or so. Unfortunately there is absolutely nothing we can do to stop impacts.”When did the meteorite incident happen?
| A．At midnight. |
B．In the early morning. |
| C．In the late morning. |
D．In the evening. |
According to the text, the meteorite explosion caused _________.
| A．some deaths |
B．road accidents |
| C．communication problems |
D．building collapse |
The Russian government’s response to the incident was ________.
| A．a little slow but effective |
B．quick and serious |
| C．cold and slow |
D．quick but ineffective |
It can be inferred that the loss caused by meteorites _________.
| A．is nearly unavoidable |
B．happens every few years |
| C．can be avoided |
D．is hard to estimate |
B
Many people say that the United States is a paradise for the children, a struggling field for the youth and a tomb for the aged. However, the situation is quite different in Australia. Different people have their own ways for enjoyment and their own worlds of pastime.
Most children often work hard in school since they have to face various exams. After school they do not want to confine themselves to books any more. Instead, they put aside their schoolbags at home and sneak quickly to some quiet street comers for their games. Bigger children like to shoulder their large kites to some steep cliffs, and jump to fly in the sky with their kites.
Some old people often get up early in the morning and go to parks to do newspaper reading. After breakfast, they come to horse races, dog races and sometimes car races for betting. If he wins, he will feed himself a good dinner. In the evening, they stay at home, watching TV sometimes with grandchildren. Some of the aged also enjoy fishing and gardening.
Young people prefer to go outing for holidays. At the weekends, they go to the seashore for swimming or to the forest for hunting and camping, or mountainous areas for picnicking. Then in the evenings on Sundays, they start their long bumper-to-bumper drive back on the highways. Nobody seems in a hurry.
The Australian government also encourages its people to have more relaxation after work. Sometimes, certain kind of financial help is distributed to people going on holidays and public holidays are purposely set on Monday or Friday so that Australians may have a longer weekend for enjoyment. They think people can word better only after they get a full relaxation. And it grows out of this idea that relaxation comes the top priority(优先权)for enjoyment in Australia.
60．According to many people’s opinion, which of the following is NOT true?
A．All people in the US live a desirable life.
B．The competition among American young people is fierce.
C．The life of the American old people is very terrible.
D．Children in America are extremely happy.
61．Australia is different from America because Australia_______.
A．is not a paradise for children
B．is not a struggling field for the youth
C．is not a tomb for the aged
D．has different worlds for different people
62．There is an idea of enjoyment priority in Australia because____.
A．enjoyment is more important than other aspects of life
B．a full relaxation will make people work better
C．enjoyment can make people happy
D．Australian people are lazy
63.The underlined part can be replaced by “ ______．
A.adjust themselves to B．prevent themselves form
C．limit themselves to D．satisfy themselves with
第三部分阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）
第一节（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，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
A
Jordan Makes Basketball Hall of Fame
Last Monday, the former Chicago Bulls great was elected to the 2009 Basketball Hall of Fame class, adding another honor to his long list of accomplishments. With incredible acrobatic (特技的) moves and slam dunks(灌篮), Jordan was a 14-time NBA All-Star, a five-time NBA finals Most Valuable Player and the key figure on the 1992 US Olympic gold medal “Dream” Team.
Jordan retired twice during his 15-year career, and finished with 32,392 points, the third-highest total in NBA history behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone. His career average of 30.12 points per game is the best in the league’s history.
Although his career boasts(拥有)many glories, Jordan said entering the hall was what he never imagined. “I don’t like being up here for the Hall of Fame, because at that time, your basketball career is completely over.” Jordan said during a news conference. “I was hoping this day was coming in 20 more years, or that I’d actually go in when I’m dead and done.”
According to the Chicago Tribune, as Jordan accepted a Hall of Fame Jersey(运动衣), he turned to his former competitors David Robinson and John Stockton, who were also among the class of 2009, and threatened another comeback.
“Every time I see these guys, I want to put my shorts on,” said Jordan, 46, whose age has decreased everything but his desire.
His father once said that passion was what made his son special. From the moment he started playing games, Michael had to win. Once, Jordan traveled everywhere and anywhere to feed that competitive urge.
“He doesn’t have a gambling problem.” His father said, “What he does have is a competition problem. He was born with that. The person he tries to outdo(超过)most of the time is himself.”
56．This passage is mainly about__________.
A．everything Jordan has achieved in his life
B．the contribution Jordan has made to basketball
C．how Jordan grew to be a popular basketball player
D．why Jordan deserves to be in the Hall of Fame and his reaction
57．From what Jordan said during the news conference, we know that he_______.
A．dislikes the honor because it makes him feel old
B．hates the new honor because it’s not worth much
C．thinks the honor has been given to him too early
D．is planning a comeback to show his basketball career is not over
58．Paragraphs 1 and 2 are written to__________.
A．analyze what basketball skills Jordan is famous for
B．show how popular Jordan used to be in America
C．introduce what contributions Jordan made to Chicago Bulls
D．explain why Jordan is considered a great basketball player
59．What can we conclude from the passage?
A．Michael Jordan’s continuous efforts to outdo himself made him great.
B．Michael Jordan thinks playing basketball is like gambling.
C．Michael Jordan has gradually lost his desire to play, as he has grown older.
D．However great a player is, there is an end to his best time.
E
Should struggling students be banned from clubs and sports?
Getting a bad grade in Rockingham, Vt. could get you kicked off the team! School officials there are considering new guidelines that would prevent students with bad grades from participating in extracurricular activities, such as sports and clubs. The proposal would affect students in eighth grade and below.
School board member Mike says the policy would motivate students to work harder in school. He drafted a letter to coaches, parents, and after-school program leaders to encourage them to allow only kids who are meeting certain academic standards into their program.
Not everyone gives such policy an A+. Some people argue that no student should be excluded from after-school activities. They say taking part in extracurricular activities can help kids do better in class by improving their participation and concentration skills. They say a 2009 study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that time spent in extracurricular physical activities does not take away from students’ ability to do well in the classroom . In fact, it may even help boost girls’ academic performance.
Students themselves have different opinions.
SCHOOL COMES FIRST
Why not require good grades to participate in those activities?
Kids need to understand that grades are important. School comes first, period. Getting good grades help you with life, help you go to college, get a job, and so on. Banning underachieving students from extracurricular activities not only gives them motivation to get their grades up, but allows more time to study or get help from a tutor.
DON’T BAN STUDENTS
Every student should be able to participate in extracurricular activities, no matter what his or her grades are. Extracurricular activities can help kids concentrate more on doing homework. They can help kids develop mentally and physically.
A school policy that tells kids with bad grades that they can’t be in sports or the school play is like judging a book by its cover. Every student is unique. A kid may have a learning disability, an attention issue, or a difficult time studying in his or her home environment. His or her teachers should find why the student is struggling. Together they should find out a solution that will keep the student in the activity.
72. Which of the following is the closest in meaning to the underlined word “excluded”?
A. protected B. approvedC. blamedD. banned
73. What’s the author’s attitude to the policy that prevents students with bad grades from participating in extracurricular activities?
A. supportiveB. critical C . neutralD. indifferent
74. In the second paragraph “a 2009 study…”is used by the critics to_______.
A. To indicate the author is against the policy.
B. To emphasize there is no need to ban the students with bad grades to take part in extracurricular activities.
C. To suggest girls can benefit from extracurricular activities.
D. To prove grades have nothing to do with extracurricular activities.
75. Some don’t think the policy is reasonable for the following reasons EXCEPT______.
A. Every kid is unique.
B. Extracurricular activities will benefit students mentally and physically.
C. Grades will help students get a job.
D. One can learn more that can’t be learned in class.
C
Organic food has no nutritional or health benefits over ordinary food，according to a major study．
Researchers from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine said consumers were paying higher prices for organic food because of its imagined health benefits，creating a global organic market worth an estimated $48 billion in 2007．
A systematic review of 162 scientific papers published in the scientific literature over the last 50 years，however，found there was no significant difference．
“A small number of differences in nutrient content were found to exist between organically and conventionally(通常)produced foodstuffs，but these have nothing to do with public health，” said Alan Dangour ，one of the report's authors．
“Our review indicates that there is currently no evidence to support the selection of organically over conventionally produced foods on the basis of nutritional superiority ．”
The results of research，which was commissioned by the British government’s Food Standards Agency，were published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition．
Sales of organic food have fallen in some markets，including Britain，as a slowdown in economic growth has led consumers to cut back on purchases．
The Soil Association said that growth in sales of organic products in Britain slowed to just 1.7percent，well below the average annual growth rate of 26 percent over the last decade．
64. Why does organic food cost more than conventionally produced food?
A. Because people think they are much healthier. B. Because they are more delicious.
C. Because people prefer organic food. D. Because they sell better.
65. According to the study，organic food is_________than conventionally produced food.
A. much healthierB. better C. no healthierD. less healthier
66. Sales of organic food have fallen because of___________.
A. high price B. economic decline C. bad service D. poor quality
67. Where can you find this passage in a newspaper?
A. Economy B. Science． C. Food & Nutrition D. Fashion
B
Don't believe all of the stereotypes (模式化的形象) you may have heard about Americans．Even the ones that are true in general may not be true about specific individuals or a large part of the population．For example，although Americans tend to be louder than people from other cultures(especially at athletic events)，many of the people you meet will be quiet and polite．Some people may be intolerant，but most will be pleasant and welcoming．Remember that American films and television exaggerate(夸张)in order to generate excitement，and so present a rather false picture of what 1ife in the United States is really like．Therefore，tourists in the US are not always on their best behavior．
Americans do tend to be more informal than people from other countries．It is common for Americans to wear casual clothing to school and to greet professors by first name．However，good manners and politeness are always appreciated．If you are polite，and dress a little more formally than your American friends，it will not be poorly thought of.
However，some businesses require their employees to wear a uniform or a suit．It would be improper to wear a T-shirt and blue jeans to a job interview．Some of the more prestigious restaurants require a coat and tie．Americans tend to dress up for cultural events(the opera，theater and ballet)and to dress down for athletic events．Formal wear is required at weddings and funerals，or any other event with religious event．If you rely on the stereotypes，you will likely put yourself into an embarrassing situation
60. The underlined sentence probably means__________.
A. Some of the stereotypes you may have heard about Americans are not true
B. You should not believe the stereotypes you may have heard about Americans
C. None of the stereotypes you may have heard about Americans should be believed
D. None of the stereotypes you may have heard about Americans should not be believed
61. The passage is probably written for____________.
A. Businessmen B. visitors to America
C. American students D. American film--makers
62. The second paragraph suggests that__________.
A. most Americans are polite
B. people who are polite are welcome
C. casual clothing makes others uncomfortable
D. American students are impolite to their teachers
63. We can learn from the passage that________.
A. American films are mostly poor comedies
B. it is good manners to wear blue jeans to a wedding
C. Americans usually wear formal clothes in a theater
D. to dress formally makes others feel you are not easy to get on with