If you want to see climate change, head north and keep going until you run out of globe. That is easier said than done. The Arctic (北极) is home to few people and covered in ice much of the year. But those who make their way to the icy seas of the Arctic Ocean will see a part of the planet that is warming and changing faster than anywhere else.
In September, scientists announced at the National Snow and Ice Data (数据) Center that Arctic summer sea ice had fallen to its second lowest level since 1979, and probably long before that. The Arctic has lost an area of ice greater than the area of all U.S. states east of the Mississippi River. And what ice remains appears to be getting thinner and weaker.
Nick Toberg and Till Wagner are polar ice scientists who are doing sea ice fieldwork. “There is plenty of data to suggest that the ice is becoming thinner as well as smaller in area,” they say.
The changes happening in the Arctic are a warning for the entire world . As polar expert Walt
Meier puts it, “What happens in the Arctic doesn’t stay in the Arctic.”
Some scientists worry that Arctic sea ice may be going from a downward spiral (螺旋线) to a “death spiral”, one from which there is no escape. As more ice melts (融化), more dark open water appears. The darkness absorbs (吸收) more heat, which speeds up the pace of melting.
Until recently, many scientists thought it might take until the end of the century for the North Pole to become completely ice free during the summer. Now some believe it could happen by 2030 or even earlier. “The melting is happening faster in the real world than it has in the models,” says Nick Toberg. The purpose of the first paragraph is to tell readers __________.
| A．it’s difficult to arrive at the Arctic |
| B．it is too cold for people to live in the Arctic |
| C．what caused the climate change in the Arctic |
| D．we can see the most obvious climate change in the Arctic |
From the second paragraph we can learn Arctic summer sea ice __________.
| A．is still decreasing |
| B．began reducing in 1979 |
| C．fell to its lowest level in September |
| D．is equal to the Mississippi River |
What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 3 mean?
| A．The changes don’t affect the Arctic at all. |
| B．The changes will only happen in the Arctic. |
| C．The changes happening in the Arctic will stop. |
| D．The changes will also affect other parts of the world. |
Nick Toberg may agree that __________.
| A．the ice in the North Pole will stop melting |
| B．the ice in the North Pole is melting faster than expected |
| C．the ice in the North Pole will melt before 2030 or even earlier |
| D．the ice in the North Pole will not disappear until the end of the century |
In 2004，the World Health Organization，WHO，warned of a possible out
break of another serious disease which may be even more deadly than SARS．The WHO believes that it is likely that bird flu will spread to human beings in the next few years．If it does，up to seven millions people could die from the disease．
Diseases like bird flu are caused by viruses，that is，tiny things which change and be come more dangerous over time．When a new type of a common virus changes，it may be able to get past the body’s immune system．If that happens，humans are in great danger until a cure or treatment becomes available．
There have always been viruses and people always get sick，of course，but as we saw with SARS，the situation is more difficult today．People travel more than ever before，which means that disease can spread qu
ickly and across large areas——in fact the whole world．
Scientists are already working on drugs that will prevent or limit the effect of a new virus，but the process takes time．It is just as important to make sure that countries，especially poor countries，are prepared to deal with the disease。New disease usually affect poor areas the most，so we must help develop health care in all countries．
64．The situation is more serious today because．
A．people travel more B．people don’t eat health food
C．there aren’t enough hospitals D．scientists can’t find a cure
65．From this passage we know．
A．bird flu will surely spread to human beings in the next few years．
B．a virus changes and become less dangerous over time．
C．SARS is 1ikely to come again in some years．
D．poor areas usually suffers more from new diseases than rich areas．
66．The possible title of this passage is
A．The Work of WHO
B．Scientists Are Working Hard on Drugs for Diseases
C．What Is a Virus
D．Virus Changes and Causes New Diseases Over Time
Pop star Britney Spears tied the knot with a childhood friend，but their two-day-old marriage was dissolved Monday shortly after Britney filed for an annulment（废除契约／婚约）．She described the marriage as “ a joke that went too far，” said one source closed to Spears．“I don’t even kn
ow if she loves him，”the source said．
The 22-year-old diva（most important singer）walked down the aisle at a Las Vegas wedding chapel early Saturday，the reports said，marrying Jason Alexander，also 22，a childhood friend from her hometown of Kentwood，Louisiana whom she had recently begun dating．
Spears wore jeans and a baseball cap，and w
as escorted（护送）down the aisle by a hot
el bellman，according to the People．com．
The two apparently decided to marry while partying at the Palms Casino Hotel Friday night，and did so at the Little White Wedding Chapel in Las Vegas．The honeymoon was spent at the Palms，but the next night Spears was seen dining with a group that did not include the groom at a hotel steakhouse．
Raised in the US south，the pop diva started her career at a television program The Mickey Mouse Club at age 11，becoming a famous teen singer．
All four of her CDs, including most recently November’s “In the Zone，”debuted at number one on the charts．
60．The underlined phrase at the b
eginning of the passage mean．
A．begin to quarrel B．get married C．fall in love D．get divorced
61．The news about Spears’s clothes was most probably taken from a（a n）．
A．newspaper B．broadcast station C．internet D．magazine
62．People would have guessed their marriage wouldn’t last long because．
A．Spears was seen to have fun without her newly-married groom
B．Spears was a person forever changing her mind
C．Spears had an odd character
D．Spears had such a kind of history before
63．What made Spears most famous in the world is that．
A．she got married to a man who she just dated for two days．
B．she got divorced two days after her new marriage．
C．she began to appear on the stage as a teen singer．
D．she made great achievements in singing．
第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题，每小题2分，满分40分）
What if you arrived home to find a delicious hot meal waiting for you，prepared by your very own kitchen robot? It might sound like science fiction，but professors at the university of Tokyo have taken the first steps toward making that scenario a reality．The team rece
ntly introduced a humanoid kitchen robot that can pour tea and other drinks into cups and serve them to guests．When teatime is over，the robot can also wash the dishes and put them away．
In California，another interesting kitchen robot has been developed．Called the Ready-bot，it can pick up objects and either store them in cabinets or put them in the trash．It also carries a separate floor-cleaning robot that can operate by itself．Unlike the Japanese robot，Readybot is not humanoid．Instead，it looks more like a large box with arms and wheels．
Readybot was created by engineers and designers who established a club called the Readybot Challenge．They believe that in the future millions of robots will be needed in homes to perform ordinary household tasks．Readybot is just the first step in their plan to create a robot that can tackle jobs not only in kitchens but in other rooms of homes and in offices as well．
Clearly there are technological hurdles to overcome before robots can cook a complete dinner，and there are also many safety concerns．Not everyone（especially parents）would be comfortable with the idea of robots in their house，manipulating hot pans and sharp knives．The European Commission recently funded a project to study these concerns．
56．What does the writer imply about the Japanese robot?
A．It performs fewer functions than readybot can．
B．it looks more like a person than Readybot does．
C．It speaks more languages than Readybot does．
D．It costs 1ess to manufacture than Readybot does．
57．Where do the engineers and designers hope that Readybot will operate in the future?
A．On spacecraft B．In automobiles
C．On playgrounds D．At companies
58．What does the writer imply about parents?
A．They have shown tremendous interest in kitchen robots．
B．They don’t have strong opinions about kitchen robots．
C．They might think that kitchen robots could be dangerous．
D．They can’t wait to buy kitchen robots for their homes．
59．According to the writer，what has the European Commission done for the project?
A．It has built factories B．It has printed manuals
C．It has hired workers D．It has provided money
C
Yellowstone Weather
Yellowstone National Park is at high altitude. Most of the park is above 7500 feet (2275 meters).
Yellowstone’s weather is unpredictable. In summer, it may be warm and sunny with temperatures in the high 70s. At night in any given month, the temperature may drop close to freezing. So it is best to come prepared for cold evenings and mornings, especially if you are camping or hiking. When you leave your campsite, please leave it prepared for possible thundershowers and wind.
A sunny warm day may become fiercely stormy with wind, rain, sleet and sometimes snow. Without enough clothing, an easy day hike or boat trip can turn into a battle for survival.
Seasonal Weather Information
Spring
Cold and snow continue into May, although
temperatures gradually climb. Early in spring, daytime temperatures average in the 40s to 50s; by late May and June, they may reach the 60s and 70s. Nighttime lows fall below freezing. Summer
Daytime temperatures are usually in the 70s, occasionally reaching the 80s in the lower area. Nights are cool, temperatures may drop in the 40s and 30s，sometimes even the 20s. June can be cool and rainy; July and August tend to be somewhat drier, although afternoon thundershowers are common.
Fall
Weather can be pleasant, although temperatures average 10~20 degrees lower than summer readings. Nighttime lows can fall into the teens and even lower. Snowstorms increase in frequency as the weeks go by or towards the end of the fall season. Winter
Temperatures often stay near zero throughout the day, occasionally reaching high in the 20s. Subzero nighttime lows are common. Annual snowfall averages nearly 150 inches in most of the park. At higher places, 200~400 inches of snow have been recorded.
64、The theme（主题）of this passage is in Yellowstone National Park.
A、the special weather B、the beautiful scenery
C、campsites for free D、terrible thunderstorms
65、This passage is mainly written for those who plan to in Yellowstone National
Park.
A、do research work B、take a business trip
C、have sports games D、spend their holidays or take a tour
66、Which of the following best describes Yellowstone’s weather?
A、The weather is generally changeable and it snows most of the year.
B、The lowest nighttime temperature often stays about zero in winter.
C、Weather in fall is pleasant and temperatures never fall below freezing.
D、It’s pretty warm in the day and very cold at night throughout the year.
67、If you are planning to spend your holiday in Yellowstone National Park in summer, what should you take with you?
A、Just some light clothing such as T-shirts or skirts.
B、Just some warm clothing such as sweaters or coats.
C、Both light clothing and warm clothing.
D、Either light clothing or warm clothing.
Getting paid to talk about the World Cup is a great job. I’m not a football commentator（评论员）,but just an English teacher in Japan.
I came to Japan two years ago, and didn’t think I would stay, but Japan has that effect on you. People often end up living here longer than they planned. I think it’s better to teach in a bigger city where there are other foreigners to mix with, rather than a small town where English teachers often complain of feeling like a goldfish in a bowl. Many people choose to live in Tokyo, of course, which is good for the nightlife factor. But I’d say that for general quality of living, cities of neither too large nor too small, like Sapporo where I live, are better choices.
I teach English privately, which means I’m my own boss. If you want to devote yourself to private teaching, it’s well worth doing a TEFL course first, because your lessons will be much better for it. The problem with private teaching is finding students; it took me a year to build up a full schedule（日程表）of private lessons, so I started out teaching in schools part time.
Most of my foreign friends here work full-time for big English conversation schools. The salary is fine to live on. But whether you can save money depends on how much going out and traveling you do here.
The schools are reluctant to take time off-even teachers with tickets for the England-Argentina game had trouble getting the day off.
60、From the passage we know in Japan the writer likes to live in .
A、Tokyo B、a small town C、a city of middle size D、a big city
6
1、According to the writer, one had better first to do private teaching better.
A、take a TEFL course B、decide his or her own lessons
C、find students D、build up a full schedule
62、The underlined sentence in the second paragraph implies （暗示）that .
A、there are many foreigners in Japan
B、Japan is good for nightlife
C、they can teach English privately in Japan
D、Japan has something more attractive than expected
63、The u
nderlined word “reluctant” in the passage may probably means .
A、kind B、unwilling C、free D、careless