If you are hungry, what will you do? Grab a piece of your favorite meal and stay quiet after that? Just like stomach, even your mind will be hungry. But it never lets you know, because you keep it busy thinking about your dream lover, favorite star and many such absurd things. So it silently begins to hide your needs and never lets itself grow. When mind loses its freedom to grow, creativity gets its full stop. This might be the reason why we all sometimes think “What happens next?”, “Why can’t I think?”, “Why am I always given the difficult problems?” Well, this is the after-effect of using our brain for thinking of not-so-worthy things.
Hunger of the mind can be actually satisfied through extensive reading. But why is it reading but not watching TV? Because reading has been the most educational tool used by us right from the childhood. Just like that to develop other aspects of our life, we have to turn to reading for help. You have a number of books in the world which will answer all your “how-to” questions. Once you read a book, you just don’t run your eyes through the lines, but your mind decodes (译解) it and explains it to you. The interesting part of the book is stored in your mind as a seed. Now this seed is unknowingly used by you in your future to develop new ideas. The same seed, if used many times, can help you link and relate a lot of things, which you would never thought of in your wildest dreams! This is nothing but creativity. The more books you read, the wider your mind will become. Also this improves your oratorical (speech-making) skills to a large extent and also makes a significant contribution to your vocabulary. When you start speaking English or any other language fluently with your friends or other people, you never seem to run out of the right words at the right time.
Actually, I had a problem in speaking English fluently, but as I read, I could improve significantly. So guys, do join me and give food for your thoughts by reading, reading and more reading. Now what are you waiting for? Go, grab a book and let me know! What’s the best title of the passage?
| A．Hunger of the mind |
| B．Stomach and Mind |
| C．Feed your Mind by reading |
| D．Reading or Watching TV |
You don’t know your mind is in hunger because _____.
| A．you are not hungry |
| B．you keep it thinking of silly things |
| C．your creativity gets a full stop |
| D．you always meet with difficult problems |
Which of the following is NOT mentioned as the advantage of reading?
| A．Reading can make your dream come true. |
| B．Reading can contribute to your vocabulary. |
| C．Reading can improve your spoken ability. |
| D．Reading can make people creative. |
The purpose of the author in writing this passage is to _______.
| A．comment and blame | B．introduce and describe |
| C．explain and persuade | D．advise and inform |
.
Every year, it costs British students more and more to attend university. Students are graduating with larger and larger debts. So is a college degree really worth it?
In 2006, the UK government started to allow universities in England and Wales to charge British students tuition fees. As a result, more than 80 percent of students in England and Wales now take out a student loan in order to go to university.
They use the loan to pay for tuition fees and living expenses. Although the interest on student loans is quite low, it begins as soon as the student receives the loan.
The average student in England and Wales now graduates from university with a debt of around ￡12,000 (122,952 yuan). It means graduates have to struggle to pay rent on a flat, because they have to start paying back the student loan when they reach April after graduating. If you start to earn over ￡15,000 (153,630 yuan) a year, the government takes repayments directly from your monthly salary.
You might think that a person with a degree would find it easy to get a well-paid job. However, most people in “white collar jobs” seem to have a degree, so there is a lot of competition. Also, British companies tend to value work experience over a piece of paper.
All of the above is beginning to make British people question whether a university degree is really worth the money. Even before the credit crisis started, the BBC stated: “The number of British students at UK universities has fallen for the first time in recent history, from 1.97 million in 2007 to 1.96 million last year.”
Meanwhile, the British universities offer more and more of the available places to richer international students rather than poorer British students. What does the future hold for British higher education?
63. What can we infer from the second paragraph?
A. Universities’ charging students fees is quite common all over the world.
B. It’s unfair to charge college students fees in England and Wales.
C. Before 2006 the UK universities didn’t charge students tuition fees in England and Wales.
D. The UK universities are unwilling to carry out the government’s policy.
64. What might be the reason that the number of British students at UK universities falls?
A. It’s harder and harder for them to get a degree.
B. The credit crisis has great influnce on their families’ income.
C. College education costs them too much.
D. The competition to become a “white collar” is too fiece.
65. What does the underlined words “a piece of paper” refer to?
A. A written document from the bank. B. A letter of recommendation.
C. A filled application form. D. A diploma.
66. Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
A. More Profits for the Banks B. College Life in the UK
C. Welcome! International Students D. UK Universities Students Become Poorer
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No matter where he lives, 16-year-old Danny Lopez feels like an outsider: he is half-Mexican and half-white.
At his private high school in wealthy northern San Diego, California, US, Lopez is too brown to fit in, whereas for the Mexican side of his family in National City, just a dozen miles from the border, he is too white to belong.
Different from both sides, Lopez is silent in school. He focuses on his passion for baseball and working hard to improve the pitches (球场) that have kept him off the school team.
Mexican Whiteboy, by Matt de la Pena, is about a teenager’s search for identity. It was named as one of the Top Ten Best Books for Young Adults in 2009 by the US Young Adult Library Services Association.
When Lopez’s mother decides to go to live with her wealthy white boyfriend in San Francisco, he chooses to spend the summer with his father’s family in San Diego. It’s a trip to explore roots and self-identity, filled with unexpected friendship.
There he meets Uno, of mixed heritage (遗传) like himself, also with a divorced mom. Uno understands Danny’s split background and helps him improve his baseball skills. Both boys have big league dreams, but they both have to learn to come to terms with their mixed heritages before they can achieve their goals.
Aside from discussions of racism, Mexican Whiteboy takes on other issues, such as the importance of family and the negative influence of hiding the truth. It also shows how sports can draw cultures together.
59. The reason why Lopez feels like an outsider lies in the fact that ___________.
A. he is a Mexican B. he lives in San Diego
C. he is half-white and half-Mexican D. he studies in a private school
60. Most probably “Mexican Whiteboy” is a ____________.
A. book B. club C. newspaper D. organization
61. When Lopez found it is hard for him to fit in, he ____________.
A. starts writing a book about himself
B. begins to look for identity with the help of Mexican Whiteboy
C. loses his interest in baseball
D. works in the fields in which he was kept off the school team
62. Lopez and Uno have a lot in common except that ____________.
A. they both have a divorced mom
B. they both have mixed heritage
C. they were both in the school baseball team
D. both of them have big league dreams
.
第二部分阅读理解（共20小题。第一节每小题2分，第二节每小题1分；满分35分）
第一节阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C、D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
The business executive was deep in debt and could see no way out. Creditors (债主) were closing in on him. Suppliers were demanding payment. He sat on the park bench, head in hands, wondering if anything could save his company from bankruptcy (破产).
Suddenly an old man appeared before him. “I can see that something is troubling you.” he said. After listening to the executive, the old man said: “I believe I can help you.”
He asked the man his name, wrote out a check, and pushed it into his hand saying: “Take this money. Meet me here exactly one year from today, and you can pay me back at that time.” Then he turned and disappeared as quickly as he had come.
The business executive saw in his hand a check for $500,000, signed by John D. Rockefeller, then one of the richest men in the world!
“I can settle all my debts in a moment!” he realized. But instead, the executive decided to put the uncashed check in his safe, just knowing it would give him the strength to work out a way to save his business.
With renewed optimism, he made better deals and extended terms of payment. He closed several big deals. Within a few months, he was out of debt and making money once again.
Exactly one year later, he returned to the park with the uncashed check. At the agreed-upon time, the old man appeared. But just as the executive was about to hand back the check and share his success story, a nurse came running up and grabbed the old man.
“I’m so glad I caught him!” she cried. “I hope he hasn’t been bothering you. He’s always escaping from the rest home and telling people he’s John D. Rockefeller.” And she led the old man away by the arm.
56. What was the executive worried about?
A. He couldn’t produce enough for the suppliers.
B. The creditors wouldn’t lend him any money.
C. His products didn’t sell well.
D. He might run into bankcruptcy.
57. Which of the following statements about the old man is TRUE?
A. The old man had known the executive was in trouble before he came.
B. The old man’s way of helping the executive worked out well.
C. The check he wrote was far from enough for the executive.
D. In fact the old man didn’t want to have his money back.
58. The executive didn’t cash the check because ____________.
A. He was afraid that the bank didn’t have so much money.
B. The check gave him a lot of strength and encouragement.
C. He was uncertain if he could ever pay back the money.
D. He knew the old man wasn’t John D. Rockefeller at all.
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Have you ever wondered why birds sing? Maybe you thought that they were just happy. After all, you probably sing or whistle (口哨) when you are happy.
Some scientists believe that birds do sing some of the time just because they are happy. However, they sing most of the time for a very different reason. Their singing is actually a warning to other birds to stay out of their territory.
Do you know what a “territory” is? A territory is an area that an animal, usually the male, claims (声称) as its own. Only he and his family are welcome there. No other families of the same species are welcome.Your yard and house are your territory where only your family and friends are welcome. If a stranger should enter your territory and threaten you, you might shout. Probably this would be enough to frighten him away.
If so, you have actually frightened the stranger away without having to fight him. A bird does the same thing. But he expects an outsider almost any time, especially at nesting (筑巢) season. So he is screaming all the time, whether he can see an outsider or not. This screaming is what we call a bird’s song, and it is usually enough to keep an outsider away.
Birds sing loudest in the spring when they are trying to attract a mate and warn others not to enter the territory of theirs.
You can see that birds have a language of their own. Most of it has to do with attracting mates and setting up territories.
72. Some scientists believe that most of the time birds’ singing is actually ______.
A. an expression of happiness
B. a way of warning
C. an expression of anger
D. a way of greeting
73. What is a bird’s “territory”?
A. A place where families of other species are not accepted.
B. A place where a bird may shout at the top of its voice.
C. An area for which birds fight against each other.
D. An area which a bird considers to be its own.
74. One reason for birds’ singing at nesting season is that ______.
A. they want to invite more friends.
B. their singing helps frighten outsiders away.
C. they want to find outsiders around.
D. their singing helps get rid of their fears.
75. How does the writer explain birds’ singing?
A. By comparing birds with human beings.
B. By reporting experiment results.
C. By describing birds’ daily life.
D. By telling a bird’s story.
.
For a long time, being happy was considered something that just happened, and there was nothing special about it. Now we know it is something that we can work at.
You are happy if you get along well with others. To make people like you better, you should be unselfish, not wanting everything from your friends. Another way is to look for good points, not bad ones in other people. It is surprising how successful this can be.
You don’t have to be spineless (没有骨气的) in order to be popular. In fact, you will be liked and respected if you are not afraid to stand up for your rights. But do it politely and pleasantly. It is one way to develop a good character if you are friendly and polite to your group, to other people and to strangers and especially to those who do not look important or do not interest you.
Second, you must learn not to be unhappy when you make mistakes. You can not expect to be perfect, and everyone makes mistakes. No one is to be blamed (责备) unless he refuses to learn from them. Many young people become discouraged when they know in themselves qualities that they do not like — selfishness, laziness, and other unpleasant qualities. Just remember that we all have some of these faults and have to fight against them.
At the same time, it is important to remember that, while you are probably no worse than others, the best way to be happy is to think yourself above other people. When something is wrong, it is good sense to try to make it right. Perhaps you don’t like a teacher or a classmate. Try to see why, and look at yourself, too, to be sure that you are not doing anything to make that person dislike you. Some day, things may turn out all right and then you will have to learn to get along the best with the situation, without thinking too much about it. Worrying never helps in a situation you can’t change.
67. Which of the following is suggested in the passage?
A. Draw attention of our friends.
B. Ask for the best share of everything.
C. Look for faults that are shared among people.
D. Pay more attention to other people’s strong points.
68. According to the passage, if we want to be popular, we should ______.
A. be polite and friendly
B. give up some rights
C. never argue with other people
D. be ready to change our character
69. One should be blamed if he or she ______.
A. is not better than others
B. is selfish and lazy
C. does not draw a lesson from his or her mistakes
D. has some unpleasant qualities
70. The writer will possibly agree with the following EXCEPT that ______.
A. no one is perfect
B. every person has their own advantages over others
C. getting worried helps to change the situation for the better
D. self-examination is necessary if something is wrong
71. The author writes the passage in order to ______.
A. teach you how to make yourself perfect
B. show you how to be happy
C. tell you how to act when in trouble
D. teach you how to be popular among your friends