William Herschel was born on November 15th, 1738 in Hanover in a family of musicians. In 1757,he fled to England and began earning a living as an organist and later composer and conductor. In 1772, he convinced his sister Caroline to join him as a singer. In their spare time the brother-sister team became occupied in astronomy. William died at his home in Slough, near Windsor on August 25th,1822,and Caroline on September 1st,1848.
Herschel’s first major discoveries were to show that Mars and Jupiter exhibit axial rotation(绕轴自转). Herschel struck fame in 1781,when on March 13th he discovered the planet Uranus(天王星) while engaged in work aimed at determining stellar parallax(恒星视差).This being the first new planet discovered since ancient times, Herschel, until then a mere amateur astronomer relatively unknown even in England, became world-famous. Adopting a historically proven strategy, Herschel named the new planet Georgium Sidum,in honor of the then ruling English king GeorgeⅢ. The trick worked once again, as King GeorgeⅢ gave William and Caroline the titles of“The King’s Astronomer”and“Assistant to the King’s Astronomer”, an honor which came with a life’s pension for both. In 1782 they moved to Bath, and shortly thereafter to Slough, and from this point on William and Caroline could devote themselves entirely to astronomy. The Herschels went on to discover two moons of Uranus in 1787.
While Caroline became increasingly occupied with the search for comets at which she was quite successful, William became for a time interested in the Sun. Inspired by Wilson’s 1774 work, he put forth the theory of sunspots(太阳黑子),an opinion that continued to exist well into the nineteenth century. In 1800,he became interested in the solar spectrum(太阳光谱),and uncovered the first evidence for solar energy output outside of the visible spectrum, in what is now known as the infrared(红外线).In 1801, he published two papers that effectively started the field of solar influences on Earth’s weather.Herschel made himself known to the world mainly by .
| A．discovering the planet Uranus |
| B．determining stellar parallax |
| C．discovering two moons of Uranus |
| D．uncovering the evidence for the infrared |
It can be inferred from the passage that George Ⅲ .
| A．liked science and technology |
| B．liked Herschel’s naming of the new planet |
| C．was interested in astronomy |
| D．gave Herschel a lot of useful suggestions |
What do we know about Caroline from the passage?
| A．She was successful in music. |
| B．She was given the title of“The King’s Astronomer”. |
| C．She died later than her brother. |
| D．She published two papers. |
This passage mainly tells readers .
| A．some information about Herschel and his sister |
| B．how Herschel and his sister discovered the planet Uranus |
| C．Herschel and Caroline got along well with each other |
| D．Herschel and Caroline’s major scientific publications |
A Charlotte, N.C., man was charged with first-degree murder of a 79-year-old woman whom police said he scared to death. In an attempt to evade policemen after a bank robbery, the Associated Press reports that 20-year-old Larry Whitfield broke into the home of Mary Parnell. Police say he didn’t touch Parnell but that she died after suffering a heart attack that was caused by terror. Can the guy be held responsible for the woman’s death? Prosecutors(公诉人) said that he can under the state’s murder rule, which allows someone to be charged with murder if he or she causes another person’s death while committing or fleeing from a severe crime like robbery—even if he or she doesn’t kill someone on purpose.
But, medically speaking, can someone actually be frightened to death? We asked Martin Samuels, chairman of the neurology department at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.
Absolutely, no question about it.
The body has a natural protective method called the fight-or-flight response(战或逃反应), which was originally described by Walter Cannon，the chairman of Harvard University’s physiology department from 1906 to 1942. If, in the wild, an animal is faced with a life-threatening situation, the autonomic nervous system responds by increasing heart rate, increasing blood flow to the muscles, and slowing digestion, among other things. All of this increases the chances of succeeding in a fight or running away from an aggressive beast. This process certainly would be of help to primitive humans. However, in the modern world there is obvious decline of the fight-or-flight response.
The autonomic nervous system uses the chemical messenger to send signals to various parts of the body to activate the fight-or-flight response. This chemical is toxic in large amounts; it damages the organs such as the heart, lungs, liver and kidneys. It is believed that almost all sudden deaths are caused by damage to the heart. There is almost no other organ that would fail so fast as to cause sudden death. Kidney failure, liver failure, those things don’t kill you suddenly.
By the way, any strong positive or negative emotions such as happiness or sadness can cause the same result. There are people who have died in intercourse or in religious passion. There was a case of a golfer who hit a hole in one, turned to his partner and said, “I can die now”, and then he dropped dead. For about seven days after the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon there was an increase of sudden cardiac death among New Yorkers. Why the Charlotte, N.C., man was charged?
A. Because he threatened the policemen to kill an old woman.
B. Because he caused an old woman’s terror and she died.
C. Because he beat an old woman and caused her heart attack
D. Because he murdered an old woman while robbing a bank. What is Martin Samuels’ attitude to the possibility of being frightened to death?
| A．Approval. | B．Disapproval. | C．Doubtful. | D．Indifferent. |
Which of the following about the fight-or-flight response is true?
A. The fight-or-flight response was raised and proved by Martin A. Samuels.
B. It is a natural protective method that can’t be found in all creatures but humans.
C. The ancient humans had a superior fight-or-flight response than modern ones.
D. The fight-or-flight response is beneficial to both our actions and organs. What activity can we infer is less
likely to damage the organs?
| A．Winning a big lottery. | B．Missing a dead family. |
| C．Watching a horror movie. | D．Listening to a sweet song. |
The purpose of the passage is_________.
| A．to explain why people will die of a heart attack |
| B．to offer some advice on protecting us from heart failure |
| C．to compare different kinds of feelings to cause a death |
| D．to show strong emotions can cause a sudden death |
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标号涂黑。
A
| HIGHFIELD COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL SCHOOL REPORT Form Teac  her:G. Baker Pupil’s Name: Simon WatkinsTerm:Summer 2010 Form:Ⅳ B
FORM TEACHER’S REMARKS HEADMASTER |
According to the comments of the Physical Education teacher, Simon .
| A．is too talkative in the class |
| B．likes to work with his classmates |
| C．doesn’t exercise his body at the right time |
| D．becomes weak because he doesn’t exercise at all |
Which of Simon’s subjects will attract the headmaster’s attention in future?
| A．Biology and Maths. | B．History and French. |
| C．English and Chemistry. | D．Physics and Physical Education. |
Which of the following statements best describes Simon?
| A．He has made great progress in language classes. |
| B．His potential has been fully reflected in science classes. |
| C．His grade in maths makes him a born scientist. |
| D．He needs to improve his attitude on certain subjects. |
Based on the school report, which of the following statements is true?
| A．Simon didn’t bother his teacher to revise French. |
| B．Basically, Simon did a good job in science. |
| C．Simon is a determined learner in English. |
| D．Simon is able to pay attention to history for long. |
Astronauts’ meals have come a long way from the free-dried powders and semi—liquid pastes of decades ago，now US scientists want to grow vegetables in mini—greenhouses on the moon．
Scientists say they are looking forward to a time when residents of future lunar or even Martian outsteps will be able to dine on fresh vegetables．Paragon Space Development Corporation has unveiled what it called the first step toward growing flowers——and eventually food on the moon．
This is a sealed greenhouse that looks like a bell jar encased in a 46-cm triangular aluminiumframe．It is designed to safely land a laboratory plant on the lunar surface，and protect it while it grows．
The miniature greenhouse is to be launched into space by Odyssey Moon Ltd, a participant in the Google Lunar X Prize. This competition offers $21 million to any entrant who can launch, land and operate a rover on the lunar surface.
Paragon officials say future testing of the “Lunar Oasis” will be driven by Odyssey’s flight Schedule, which will not happen until 2012 at the earliest．
When it does lift off the greenhouse will contain the seeds of Brassica, a hardy plant related to Brussels sprouts and cabbage. Because Brassica goes from seed to flower in just 14 days, it can complete its life cycle in a single lunar night.
“Colonizing the Moon or Mars seems so far away，but it is important that we do this research now. ”Paragon president Jane Poynter said．
“It takes a long time to get a lot of research, and to get integrated, reliable efficient systems before colonists move in. ”she said．The article is written mainly to__________．
| A．predict the astronauts’ meals in the future |
| B．introduce an experiment “Lunar Oasis’’ |
| C．tell us the future development of astronomy |
| D．focus on the human’s great progress |
The article implies that__________．
| A．astronauts can grow flowers in space at present | |
| B．Paragon and NASA will carry out the test separately | |
C．Lunar Oasis is a series of experiments carried out in space |
D．the earliest testing of the Lunar Oasis may be in 2012 |
The underlined word “colonists” in the last paragraph probably has the meaning of______．
| A．plants | B．wild beasts | C．human beings | D．scientists |
The seeds of Brassica will be contained in the greenhouse mainly because _________.
| A．their life cycle is much shorter |
| B．they are more nutritious than other food |
| C．they are related to Brussels sprouts and cabbage |
| D．they are very delicious |
The Harvard Student—led Walking Tour
Let a student show you Harvard···on a free walking tour．
We welcome our neighbours to stop by the Harvard University Events＆Information Centre,
located in the Holyoke Centre Arcade at 1350 Massachusetts Avenue in the heart of Harvard Square in Cambridge．
Let a student take you and your family, school，or organization on an engaging，hour-long free historical tour of the Harvard Campus. The tours leave from the Events＆Information Centre．Not only will you discover the location of fascinating exhibition and programmers on campus，you will also see Harvard’s rich sampling of American history and architecture from the Colonial period to the present.
Schedule of Tours
Tours leave the Events＆Information Centre at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday through Friday, and at 2 p.m. on Saturday through the academic year 
(February4 through May 2；September 23 through December 16).Summer tours(June 24 through August 15)are offered at 10 a.m.,11：15 a. m．，2p.m．，and 3：15 p.m. Monday through Saturday．Reser—vacations for special tours of 20 or more people may be made by calling the Events＆Information Centre at (617)495-1573 or emailing icenter@ camail Harvard, edu. Tours are suspended March23 through April2 for Spring Break．May3 through June23 for Spring intercession(祷告),and August16 through September 22 for Summer intercession．
NOTE：Prospective(未来的)students may take tours originating at the Harvard Admission Office, located at Byerly Hall on 8 Garden Street in Cambridge．From April through August，the Admissions staff conducts an information session at l0a.m. followed by an 11 a.m. tour．Monday through Friday On Saturdays．there is no information session but the 11 a．m．tour is still scheduled．Another session is held year-round at 2 p.m. with a 3 p.m. tour following. For more information on tours for prospective students，please call at(617)495-1551．
Harvard University Events＆Information Centre
Location：Holyoke Centre Arcade．1350 Massachusetts Avenue，Cambridge MA 02138
Phone：(617)495-1573A person can join in a tour at ________on Saturday through the academic year．
| A．10 a.m. | B．2 p.m. | C．11：15 a.m. | D．3：15 p.m. |
If you want to go for an information session, you can go on __________.
| A．May 2 | B．June 23 | C．August 20 | D．September 1 |
A student who wants an information session may _________for more information．
| A．call (617)495-1573 | B．call (617)495-1551 |
| C．email icenter@ camail. Harvard.edu. | D．go to the Events＆Information Centre |
The above ad．is mainly intended for________．
| A．foreign visitors | B．freshmen |
| C．high school students | D．those living near Harvard University |
Depression(抑郁症)is a serious problem today．Depression causes workers to be unproductive，causing companies and countries to lose billion of dollars．One expert says that depression is like cancer because it is “widespread, costly and deadly”．Depression hits one person in five around the world．
Although people have believed depression to be a problem among the rich and educated，studies show that depression is a problem among everyone．Over any six-month period, between five to seven percent of the world’s population will be suffering from a serious depression．
Suicide(自杀)rates among people suffering from the disease in its extreme, or clinical form were 80 percent higher than in the population at large, and sufferers were four times more likely to have heart attacks．People who suffer from depression often have problems sleeping，getting up on time，and doing work productively.
Depression, which researchers agree has its origin in the genes(基因)，brings loss of confidence and ability to concentrate, making it possible for employees and managers to work efficiently．
Depression is made more serious in China by Chinese’s inability to face it．Many people believe that depressed people are either weak or lazy．Besides，there is no good treatment，with few specialists available．
“Most patients in China just don’t get help,” a Chinese doctor says．“In my hospital，I have
to see 30 or 40 patients in a morning，and just have time to say ‘Hello，how do you feel ?…’”
In Western countries，people are not afraid to admit that they have depression，but most do not tell it to their boss，because they fear that their boss would fire them．
“In my e
xperience，aging bosses are the most willing to admit they have it, because they feel
the most secure about themselves, ” an American doctor says．
Hopefully，in the near future，people around the world will be able to admit that they have depression so that they can get the right treatment.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．It is widely believed that everyone may suffer from depression． |
| B．Depression brings great problems to its sufferers in their life and work． |
C．Depression is a commonly- existing problem only in rich countries． |
| D．The poorer and the less educated a person is，the less he will suffer from depression． |
Compared to normal people，depressed people are likely to be________．
| A．very unconfident and often absent-minded | B．easy to avoid being hit by heart attacks |
| C．working efficiently and productively | D．either weak or lazy |
Depression becomes more serious in China because of_________．
| A．the understanding of the problem | B．the lack of treatment and doctors |
| C．their unwillingness to tell it to their boss | D．the doctors’ careless work |
What can we infer from the passage?
| A．People are suffering from depression because of the shortage of specialists． |
| B．The aging bosses around the world dare to say they are depressed． |
| C．More and mote patients will turn to specialists for help |
| D．Western people are braver than Chinese people |