It is hardly surprising that clothing manufacturers （生产商）follow certain uniform standards for various features（特征）of clothes. What seems strange, however, is that the standard adopted for women is the opposite of the one for men. Take a look at the way your clothes button. Men’s clothes tend to button from the right, and women’s from the left. Considering most of the world’s population-men and women-are right-handed, the men’s standard would appear to make more sense for women. So why do women’s clothes button from the left?
History really seems to matter here. Button first appeared only on the clothes of the rich in the 17th century, when rich women were dressed by servants. For the mostly right-handed servants, having women’s shirts button from the left would be easier. On the other hand, having men’s shirts button from the right made sense, too. Most men dressed themselves, and a sword drawn from the left with the right hand would be less likely to get caught in the shirt.
Today women are seldom dressed by servants, but buttoning from the left is still the standard for them. Is it interesting? Actually, a standard, once set, resists change. At a time when all women’s shirts buttoned from the left, it would have been risky for any single manufacture to offer women’s shirts that buttoned the right. After all, women had grown so used to shirts which buttoned from the left and would have to develop new habits and skills to switch. Besides from the right, since anyone who noticed that would believe they were wearing men’s shirts.What is surprising about the standard of the clothing industry?
| A．It has been followed by the industry for over 400 years. |
| B．It is different for men’s clothing and women’s. |
| C．It woks better with men than with women. |
| D．It fails to consider right-handed people. |
What do we know about the rich men in the 17th century?
| A．They tended to wear clothes without buttons. |
| B．They were interested in the historical matters. |
| C．They were mostly dressed by servants. |
| D．They drew their swords from the left. |
Women’s clothes still button from the left today because .
| A．adopting men’s style is improper for women |
| B．manufacturers should follow standards |
| C．modern women dress themselves |
| D．customs are hard to change |
The passage is mainly developed by .
| A．analyzing cause |
| B．making comparisons |
| C．examining differences |
| D．following the time order |
If you are lost in the mountains, stay calm in the face of darkness, loneliness, and the unknown. It will greatly increase your chances of survival(生存). Many people think that preparing necessary equipment and knowing how to use it are very important, but actually eighty percent of mountain survival is your reaction to fear.
Find a hiding place.
Unnecessary labor will make you sweat and make you cold. Find a hiding place around you before trying to start your own construction. If you are in a snow-covered area, you may be able to dig a cave in deep snow for protection from the wind. You should try to hide yourself in the middle of the mountain if possible. Stay out of the valleys ---cold air falls, and the valley floor can be the coldest area on the mountain.
Signal rescuers for help.
The best time to signal rescuers is during the day. Signal for help from the highest point possible--- it will be easier for rescuers to see you, and any sound you make will travel farther. If you take a box of matches and a space blanket (a special blanket for traveling), build three smoky fires and put your blanket --- gold side facing out--- on the ground.
Do not walk away.
It will make finding you more difficult, as search teams will be trying to follow your path and may miss you if you have gone off in a different direction. Searchers often end up finding a car with no one in it.
If you get frostbite(冻伤), do not rewarm the affected area until you’re out of danger.
You can walk on frostbitten feet, but once you warm the area and can feel the pain, you will not want to walk anywhere. Try to protect the frostbitten area and keep it dry until you are rescued.
1. When lost in the mountains, you can increase your chances of survival if you .
A. take a space blanket with you
B. do more physical labor
C. try to find a car immediately
D. walk as far as possible to find help
2. According to the passage, people most probably fail to survive if they _________.
A. do not take enough equipment
B. stay in the middle of the mountain
C. do not keep themselves warm
D. stay in a snow-covered area
3. What can we infer from the passage?
A. Don’t travel by yourself
B. Mountain traveling is dangerous
C. Don’t get frightened in danger.
D. Avoid going to unfamiliar place
第三部分阅读理解（共两节，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，并在答题卡项涂黑。
There are many ways to find a job. It can be as easy as walking into a neighborhood store to look at its announcement board. Local stores often have areas where people can put small signs telling what kind of service they need or can provide. Such services include caring for children or cleaning houses .Or, job searchers can look in the newspaper. Local newspapers have employment announcements placed by companies seeking workers.
Another popular tool for finding jobs is the Internet. For example, people in four hundred and fifty cities around the world can use the Craigslist Web site to buy objects, meet people or find a job. Craigslist says that it receives two million new job listings each month.
Another useful way to find a job is through a college or university. For example, students at the University of Texas in Austin can go to the Career Exploration Center to get help in finding a job. Of course, looking for a job requires knowing what kind of work you want to do. For example, there is a book called “What Color is Your Parachute (降落伞)?” by Richard Bolles. This book has been helping people choose a career (职业) since it was first published in nineteen seventy.
Some experts also help people find jobs. Susan W. Miller owns a company called California Career Services in Los Angeles. She says her company helps people find jobs by first helping them understand their strengths, goals and interests. Then she provides them with methods and resources to help them find the right job.
1. What is the passage mainly about?
A. Finding a job.
B. College students’ part-time jobs.
C. Craigslist Web site.
D. The relation between study and work.
2. By logging on the Craigslist Web site, you can ______.
A. sell your old things
B. do some shopping online
C. create your own announcement board
D. get useful information about 450 cities.
3. It can be learned from the passage that ______.
A. companies often put job information in local shops
B. the Internet is the most popular tool for job hunters in the USA
C. Susan W. Miller’s company is helping people choose careers
D. California Career Services mainly serves university students
Last week my youngest son and I visited my father at his new home in Tucson, Arizona. He moved there a few years ago, and I was eager to see his new place and meet his friends.
My earliest memories of my father are of a tall, handsome, successful man devoted to his work and family, but uncomfortable with his children. As a child I loved him; as a school girl and young adult I feared him and felt bitter about him. He seemed unhappy with me unless I got straight A’s and unhappy with my boyfriends if their fathers were not as “successful” as he was. Whenever I went out with him on weekends, I used to struggle to think up things to say, feeling on guard.
On the first day of my visit, we went out with one of my father’s friends for lunch at an outdoor café. We walked along that afternoon, did some shopping, ate on the street table, and laughed over my son’s funny facial expressions. Gone was my father’s critical(挑剔的) air and strict rules. Who was this person I knew as my father, who seemed so friendly and interesting to be around? What had held him back before?
The next day my dad pulled out his childhood pictures and told me quite a few stories about his own childhood. Although our times together became easier over the years, I never felt closer to him at that moment. After so many years, I’m at last seeing another side of my father. And in so doing, I’m delighted with my new friend. My dad, in his new home in Arizona, is back to me from where he was.
1.Why did the author feel bitter about her father when she was a young adult?
A. He was silent most of the time. B. He was too proud of himself.
C. He did not love his children. D. He expected too much of her.
2.When the author went out with her father on weekends, she would feel ______.
A. nervous B. sorry C. tired D. safe
3.What does the author think of her father after her visit to Tucson?
A. More critical. B. More talkative.
C. Gentle and friendly.. D.Strict and hard-working
4.The underlined words “my new friend” in the last paragraph refer to ______.
A. the author’s son B. the author’s father
B. the friend of the author’s father D. the café owner
Ms Lo could hardly bear her sorrow when she received the call that her husband had died in a car accident. Her pain quickly turn to shock---- the car involved in the accident was driven by a friend. That friend, Henry Lee, had chosen to remain silent on the accident details in court. Her shock soon turned to extreme anger when Lee decided not to let out what had happened.
Her husband, Mr. Tan, was 21 when he died after an accident outside Las Vegas KTV at Havelock Road. That night, he was discussing supper plans with a group of friends, which included Lee. Later, Mr. Tan was found unconscious on the ground, next to the car driven by Lee. Mr. Tan died in the hospital a few hours later. Due to drinking driving, Lee was fined $3,000 and banned from driving for two years last month.
Lee, Ms Lo and her husband were colleagues at Asia Pacific-Breweries(APB).
She only heard of the accident and her husband’s death the next morning after the accident as she had switched off her band-phone that night. She told The New Paper, “Receiving the call, I thought it was a joke. I thought he had got his friend to call me to ask me out.” Ms Lo had moved out to live alone for three weeks because of a disagreement with her husband. “The next time I saw him was at the mortuary.(太平间)” She said that Lee went to visit her some days ago but didn’t apologize to her. “He looked sorry but he didn’t speak to me. I wanted to forgive him, but now I have no chance to tell him.” she said.
Ms Lo, who was a human resource manager in APB, left the company after the accident. She is now working in a photo studio.
1.Why Ms Lo was made pretty angry?
A. Her husband was knocked down by his friend
B. Henry Lee drove their car in the car accident
C. She was informed only after the accident occurred
D. The person involved did not tell the truth in court
2.Ms Lo hadn’t seen her husband for three weeks because______.
A. they did not sign a contract
B.she began working in a photo studio
C.there was a quarrel between them
D.she was busy writing a paper
3.Why did Ms Lo leave APB for another job?
A. To escape the pain caused by the accident.
B. To find out facts related to the accident.
C. To force Henry Lee to let out the truth.
D. To avoid meeting the dishonest man.
Apply to an American College
Earlier, we explained how to begin a search for schools by going to one of the American educational advising centers around the world. We also discussed the rules for entering the United States. And we talked about programs that can be completed online.
But if your goal is to come to the United States to study, then it is time to make a list of colleges or universities that interest you. Be sure to choose more than one. Directors of foreign student admissions say students should apply to at least three schools.
Some students want to attend a small college. Others want to go to a big university. If a really big university appeals to you, then there are ones like Ohio State. That university in Columbus, Ohio, in the Midwest, has almost fifty-two thousand students. There are students this year from around one hundred fifty countries.
Ohio State provides international students with an application on its Website. You can pay the application charge online with a credit card. Or you can print the forms and mail them with the payment.
Many colleges and universities have their applications and also their catalogs online. You should start on your applications at least two years before you want to begin studies.
Completing a college application can take some time. But answering all the questions is not enough. Another important step is taking admissions tests. The SAT is the college entry test that American high school students most commonly take.
Colleges and universities also require international students to take the TOEFL — the Test of English as a Foreign Language.
If you have a general question for our Foreign Student Series, write to special @ voanews. com.
1.What purpose does Paragraph One serve in the passage ?
A. To provide background information of the topic.
B. To attract readers’ attention to the topic.
C. To remind the readers of some related aspects of the topic.
D. To offer basic knowledge of the topic.
2.According to this passage, “Ohio State” is ________.
A. one of the states in America
B. the name of a Website
C. another name for “Columbus, Ohio”
D. a university in America
3.Besides a college application, you are required to take ________test(s) if you’ re not an American.
A. one B. two C. three D. four
4.The passage mainly deals with _________.
A. how to pay the application charge
B. the rules for entering for American colleges and universities
C. some information on applications for American colleges and universities
D. when to start one’s applications for American colleges and universities