On countless mornings over the past year, I stood with my son, James, in our driveway, watching our neighbor hurry off to kindergarten. My wife and I wanted to give James the best education, but that meant we’d have to change our jobs and spend less time with our kid. I asked myself, “Would this trade-off be worth it?” When I look at the research on child development, I think it might not. Where our kids go to school might matter less than most American parents think.
Social scientists have long tried to determine why some children grow up to be successful. In a 2001 study, Greg Duncan, a professor of education at the University of California, measured the influence that the people in a child’s life have on how well the child does in school. Duncan and his team found almost no relationship between how students did on the test and whom they sat beside in class, whom they hung out with after school and who lived in their block. The only meaningful link they found was between siblings（兄弟姐妹）and twins in particular.
For a long time, scholars thought that a family’s income heavily affected how well kids did in life. But that might not be the case. When Susan Mayer at the University of Chicago looked at the relationship between family income and lifetime achievement, she ran a series of experiments to measure it, finding such outcomes weren’t caused by income. She argued that the things that make a difference are relatively inexpensive: the number of books a kid has or how often his family goes to museums.
Lareau, another scholar began one of the most in-depth observations of American parenting. He concluded that success is much more related to the amount of time parents spend with their children. He said “Many parents I interviewed are anxious about their children’s futures．But they have exaggerated（夸大）the sense of the risks involved if they don't give their children the best of everything..”
So at last, we decided to leave things as it were. More time with our kid is the best we can provide.The first paragraph is intended to __________.
| A．introduce the topic of the passage |
| B．confirm the result of a research |
| C．stress the importance of good education |
| D．support a research on child development |
From the passage we know that most American parents _________.
| A．spend a lot of time with their children |
| B．like to buy a variety of books for their children |
| C．think children's achievement largely depends on schools |
| D．believe their income cannot afford children's education |
Who believes children's brothers and sisters may influence their academic performance?
| A．Lareau． | B．Greg Duncan． |
| C．Susan Mayer． | D．James． |
Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
| A．Parents' time matters to children's future． |
| B．School education determines children's future． |
| C．Family income counts to children's achievements． |
| D．Less education means more risks for children's success． |
Climate change connected with the reduction of wetlands at the source of the country's two longest rivers， the Yangtze and the Yellow， has reduced the volume of water flowing into them， scientists said.
Scientists studied changes over past 40 years to the wetlands on the cold QinghaiTibet Plateau in west China where the two rivers have their sources.
They found the wetlands on the plateau have shrunk (减少) more than 10 percent over the past four years. The wetlands at the source of the Yangtze have suffered the most， decreasing by 29 percent.
About 17.5 percent of the small lakes at the source of the Yangtze have dried up， the scientists said.
“The wetland plays a key role in holding water and changing the water volume of the rivers，” Wang Xugen， a researcher， said.
“The reduction of the wetland on the plateau is closely connected with global warming，” Wang said， adding that even though rainfall has increased in the area， the reduction of the wetland has reduced the flow of the Yangtze and the Yellow.
Records by the weather station at the head of the Yangtze showed yearly rainfall at its source increased from 260 mm during 1991—2000 to 323 mm in the period 2001—2006.
“But the increased rainfall didn't lead to more water's flowing into the rivers because the evaporation (蒸发) was so fast as a result of global warming，” Li Shijie， a researcher， said.
Another study showed global warming had caused glaciers to get smaller， frozen earth to melt， grasslands to turn yellow and rivers to dry up.
The QinghaiTibet Plateau used to have 36 000 glaciers covering an area of 50 000 sq km. In the past 100 years， their area has been reduced by 30 percent.
60.According to the passage， the true statement of the following is that .
A.the wetlands at the source of the Yellow have decreased by 29 percent
B.there's no more water in about 17.5 percent of the small lakes at the source of the Yangtze
C.the reduction of the wetland on the plateau has nothing to do with global warming
D.yearly rainfall has increased from 260 mm to 323 mm in the past 15 years
61.Which of the following is NOT the result of global warming？
A.Frozen earth melts. B.Evaporation becomes faster.
C.Sea level rises. D.Plants grow better in greenhouses.
62.The area that the glaciers of the QinghaiTibet Plateau cover is now about sq km.
A.35 000 B.12 000 C.15 000 D.17 000
63.In the passage， plays a most important part in holding water and changing the volume of the rivers.
A.yearly rainfall B.the evaporation C.the wetland D.climate change
第三部分 阅读理解(共20小题；每小题2分，满分40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。
On the first day of school we were challenged to get to know a new classmate. I was looking around， when a gentle hand touched my shoulder. I found a little old lady with a warm smile.
She said， “Hi， handsome！ I'm Rose. I'm 87 years old. Can I give you a hug(拥抱)？” I laughed and heartily responded， “Of course！”
“Why are you in college at such a young， innocent(天真的)age？” I asked.
She jokingly replied，“I'm here to meet a rich husband， get married， have children， and then travel around.”
“No， seriously，” I asked. I was curious why she took on this challenge at this age.
“I always dreamed of having a college education and now I'm getting one！” She told me. We became instant friends.
Over the year， Rose became a campus icon(偶像)and she easily made friends wherever she went. She loved to dress up and she enjoyed the attention from the other students. She was living it up.
At the end of the term we invited Rose to speak at our football banquet. I'll never forget what she taught us.
“We do not stop playing because we are old； we grow old because we stop playing. Here are the secrets to staying young. You have to laugh and find humor every day. You've got to have a dream. When you lose your dreams， you die. We have many people walking around who are dead， and they don't even know it！” she said.
“There is a huge difference between growing older and growing up. Anybody can grow older. That doesn't take any talent or ability，” she added. “But growing up requires finding the opportunity in change. The elderly usually don't have regrets for what they did， but rather for things they did not do.”
One week after graduation that year， Rose died peacefully in her sleep. She taught us by example that it's never too late to be all you can possibly be.
56.Rose started college at the age of 87 in order to .
A.marry a rich man B.travel around the world
C.make more friends D.realize her dream
57.Which of the following best explains “she was living it up” in the seventh paragraph？
A.She was living a long life. B.She was enjoying herself.
C.She was spending a lot of money. D.She was killing time.
58.When you lose your dreams， you die because .
A.there's no sense in living without your aim
B.you can't sleep well every night
C.you are too old and have to stop playing
D.something is terribly wrong with your brain
59.What would be the best title for the passage？
A.Meet the ChallengeB.Never Waste Time
C.Grow Up or Grow Old？ D.Have You Got Ready？
A popular saying goes， “Sticks and stones may break my bones， but words will never hurt me.” However， that's not really true. Words have the power to build us up or tear us down. It doesn't matter if the words come from someone else or ourselves—the positive and negative effects are just as lasting.
We all talk to ourselves sometimes. We're usually too embarrassed to admit it， though. In fact， we really shouldn't be because more and more experts believe talking to ourselves out loud is a healthy habit.
This “selftalk” helps us motivate ourselves， remember things， solve problems， and calm ourselves down. Be aware， though， that as much as 77% of selftalk tends to be negative. So in order to stay positive， we should only speak words of encouragement to ourselves. We should also be quick to give ourselves a pat on the back. The next time you finish a project， do well in a test， or finally clean your room， join me in saying “Good job！”
Often， words come out of our mouths without us thinking about the effect they will have. But we should be aware that our words cause certain responses in others. For example， when returning an item to a store， we might use warm， friendly language during the exchange. And the clerk will probably respond in a similar manner. Or harsh (刻薄的) and critical language will most likely cause the clerk to be defensive.
Words possess power because of their lasting effect. Many of us regret something we once said. And we remember unkind words said to us！ Before speaking， we should always ask ourselves： Is it true？ Is it loving？ Is it needed？ If what we want to say doesn't pass this test， then it's better left unsaid.
Words possess power： both positive and negative. Those around us receive encouragement when we speak positively. We can offer hope， build selfesteem(自尊) and motivate others to do their best. Negative words destroy all those things. Will we use our words to hurt or to heal？ The choice is ours.
72.The main idea of the first paragraph is that .
A.words have a lasting effect on us
B.inspiring words give us confidence
C.negative words may let us down
D.not sticks and stones but words will hurt us
73.There is no sense for us to feel embarrassed when we talk to ourselves because .
A.almost everybody has the habit of talking to themselves
B.talking to ourselves always gives us courage
C.we can benefit from talking to ourselves
D.it does no harm to have “selftalk” when we are alone.
74.The underlined part in the third paragraph means that we should also timely .
A.remind ourselves B.praise ourselves
C.make ourselves relaxed D.give ourselves amusement
75.The author would probably hold the view that .
A.encouraging words are sure to lead to kind offers
B.negative words may motivate us to make more progress
C.people tend to remember friendly words
D.it is better to think twice before talking to others
NOT all memories are sweet. Some people spend all their lives trying to forget
bad experiences. Violence and traffic accidents can leave people with terrible physical and emotional scars. Often they relive these experiences in nightmares.
Now American researchers think they are close to developing a pill, which will help people forget bad memories. The pill is designed to be taken immediately after a frightening experience. They hope it might reduce ,or possibly erase(抹去),the effect of painful memories.
In November, experts tested a drug on people in the US and France. The drug stops the body releasing chemicals that fix memories in the brain. So far the research has suggested that only the emotional effects of memories may be reduced, not that the memories are erased.
The research has caused a great deal of argument. Some think it is a bad idea, while others support it.
Supporters say it could lead to pills that prevent or treat soldiers' troubling memories after war. They say that there are many people who suffer from terrible memories.
“Some memories can ruin people's lives . They come back to you when you don't want to have them in a daydream or nightmare. They usually come with very painful emotions,” said Roger Pitman, a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. "This could relieve a lot of that suffering."
But those who are against the research say that changing memories is very dangerous because memories give us our identity (特质). They also help us all avoid the mistakes of the past.
"All of us can think of bad events in our lives that were horrible at the time but make us who we are. I'm not sure we want to wipe those memories out, "said Rebecca Dresser, a medical ethicist.
47. The passage is mainly about _________.
A. a new medical invention
B. a new research on the pill
C. a way of erasing painful memories
D. an argument about the research on the pill
48. The drug tested on people can __________.
A. cause the brain to fix memories
B. stop people remembering bad experiences
C. prevent body producing certain chemicals
D. Wipe out the emotional effects of memories
49. We can infer from the passage that ___________.
A. people doubt the effects of the pills
B. the pill will stop people's bad experiences
C. taking the pill will do harm to people's health
D. the pill has probably been produced in America
50. Which of the following does Rebecca Dresser agree with?
A. Some memories can ruin people's lives.
B. People want to get rid of bad memories.
C. Experiencing bad events makes us different from others.
D. The pill will reduce people's sufferings from bad memories.
Speeding off in a stolen car, the thief thinks he has got a great catch. But he is in for an unwelcome surprise. The car is fitted with a remote immobilizer, and a radio signal from a control centre miles away will ensure that once the thief switches the engine off, he will not be able to start it again.
The idea goes like this. A control box fitted to the car contains a mini-cellphone, a micro-processor and memory, and a GPS (全球定位系统) satellite positioning receiver. If the car is stolen, a coded (编码的) cellphone signal will tell the control centre to block the vehicle’s engine management system and prevent the engine being restarted.
In the UK, a set of technical fixes is already making life harder for car thieves. “The pattern of vehicle crime has changed,” says Martyn Randall, a security expert. He says it would only take him a few minutes to teach a person how to steal a car, using a bare minimum of tools，but if only the car is more than 10 years old.
Modern cars are far tougher to steal, as their engine management computer won’t allow them to start unless they receive a unique ID code sent out by the ignition (点火) key. In the UK, technologies like this have helped achieve a 31% drop in vehicle-related crime since 1997.
But determined criminals are still managing to find other ways to steal cars, often by getting hold of the owner’s keys. And key theft is responsible for 40% of the thefts of vehicles fitted with a tracking system.
If the car travels 100 metres without the driver confirming their ID, the system will send a signal to an operations centre that it has been stolen. The hundred metres minimum avoids false alarms due to inaccuracies in the GPS signal.
Staff at the centre will then contact the owner to confirm that the car really is missing, and keep police informed of the vehicle’s movements via the car’s GPS unit.
43. The remote immobilizer is fitted to a car to ________.
A. prevent car theft by sending a radio signal to the car owner
B. help the police make a surprise attack on the car thief
C. prevent the car thief from restarting it once it stops
D. allow the car to lock automatically when stolen
44. By saying “The pattern of vehicle crime has changed”, Martyn Randall suggests that ________.
A. it takes a longer time for the car thief to do the stealing
B. self-prepared tools are no longer enough for car theft
C. the thief has to make use of computer technology
D. the thief has lost interest in stealing cars over 10 years old
45. ________ is necessary in making a modern car tougher to steal.
A. A coded ignition key B.A unique ID card
C. A special cellphone signalD. A GPS satellite positioning receiver
46. The operations centre will first ________ after receiving an alarm
A. start the tracking systemB. contact the car owner
C. block the car engine D. locate the missing car