A
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis(ALS) （肌萎缩性侧索硬化症） is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. Motor neurons reach from the brain to the spinal cord and from the spinal cord to the muscles throughout the body. The progressive degeneration of the motor neurons in ALS eventually leads to their death. When the motor neurons die, the ability of the brain to initiate and control muscle movement is lost. With voluntary(随意的) muscle action progressively affected, patients in the later stages of the disease may become totally paralyzed.
A-myo-trophic comes from the Greek language. "A" means no or negative. "Myo" refers to muscle, and "Trophic" means nourishment--"No muscle nourishment." When a muscle has no nourishment, it "atrophies" or wastes away. "Lateral" identifies the areas in a person's spinal cord where portions of the nerve cells that signal and control the muscles are located. As this area degenerates it leads to scarring or hardening ("sclerosis") in the region.
As motor neurons degenerate, they can no longer send impulses to the muscle fibers that normally result in muscle movement. Early symptoms of ALS often include increasing muscle weakness, especially involving the arms and legs, speech, swallowing or breathing. When muscles no longer receive the messages from the motor neurons that they require to function, the muscles begin to atrophy (become smaller). Limbs begin to look "thinner" as muscle tissue atrophies.
What Types of Nerves Make Your Body Work Properly?
The body has many kinds of nerves. There are those involved in the process of thinking, memory, and of detecting sensations (such as hot/cold, sharp/dull), and others for vision, hearing, and other bodily functions. The nerves that are affected when you have ALS are the motor neurons that provide voluntary movements and muscle power. Examples of voluntary movements are your making the effort to reach for the phone or step off a curb; these actions are controlled by the muscles in the arms and legs.
The heart and the digestive system are also made of muscle but a different kind, and their movements are not under voluntary control. When your heart beats or a meal is digested, it all happens automatically. Therefore, the heart and digestive system are not involved in ALS. Breathing also may seem to be involuntary. Remember, though, while you cannot stop your heart, you can hold your breath-so be aware that ALS may eventually have an impact on breathing.
Although the cause of ALS is not completely understood, the recent years have brought a wealth of new scientific understanding regarding the physiology of this disease.
While there is not a cure or treatment today that halts or reverses ALS, there is one FDA approved drug, riluzole, that modestly slows the progression of ALS as well as several other drugs in clinical trials that hold promise.
Importantly, there are significant devices and therapies that can manage the symptoms of ALS that help people maintain as much independence as possible and prolong survival. It is important to remember that ALS is a quite variable disease; no two people will have the same journey or experiences. There are medically documented cases of people in whom ALS ‘burns out,’ stops progressing or progresses at a very slow rate.What does the underlined word “their” in Paragraph 1 refer to___________?
| A．ALS patients | B．nerve cells |
| C．motor neurons | D．muscle action |
What’s the main idea of Paragraph 2___________?
| A．introduce the meaning of ALS |
| B．why does a muscle have no nourishment |
| C．where portions of the nerve cells are located |
| D．what leads to scarring or hardening |
Which is NOT involved in the early symptoms of ALS__________?
| A．arms | B．speech | C．breathing | D．heart |
What can we learn from the passage__________?
| A．As motor neurons degenerate, they can no longer send impulses to the muscle fibers. |
| B．If muscles can’t receive the messages sent by motor neurons, limbs begin to look "thinner". |
| C．The heart and the digestive system are also affected by ALS. |
| D．the cause of ALS has been completely understood. |
The passage most probably comes from____________.
| A．Health Magazine | B．News report |
| C．Travel Guide | D．English textbook |
第二部分阅读理解(共25小题，每一节每小题2分，第二节每小题1分，共45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。并将选项的字母标号填入题前的答题表内。
A
It was at least two months before Christmas when nine-year-old Almie Rose told her father and me that she wanted a new bicycle．As Christmas drew nearer，her desire for a bicycle seemed to fade，or so we thought．We bought the latest rages，Baby-Sitter’s Club dolls，and a doll house．Then，much to our surprise。on December 23rd，she said that she“really wanted a bike more than anything else”．
It was just too late，what with all the details of preparing Christmas dinner and buying last-minute gifts，to take the time to select the“right bike”for our little girl．So here we were---Christmas Eve around 9：00 P．M，with Almie and her six-year-old brother，Dylan，nested snug in their beds．Now we could only think of the bicycle and the disappointment of our child．“What if I make a little bicycle out of clay(a kind of earth)and write a note that she could trade the clay model in for a real bike?” her dad asked．“This is an expensive item and she is‘such a big girl’，and it would be much better for her to pick it out．”So he spent the next four hours painstakingly working with clay to make a tiny bike．
On Christmas morning，we were excited for Almie to open the little heart-shaped package with the beautiful red and white clay bike and the note．Finally，she opened it and read the note aloud．“Does this mean that I trade in this bike that Daddy made me for a real one?”Beaming，I said，“Yes．”Almie had tears in her eyes when she replied．“I could never trade in this beautiful bicycle that Daddy made me．I’d rather keep this than get a real bike．”At that moment，we would have moved heaven and earth to buy her every bicycle on the planet!
41.．Which is the right time order of the following events?
a．The girl asked for a new bike．
b．The girl opened the little heart-shaped package．
c．The parents bought the girl a modern and popular doll．
d．The father made the girl a bike with clay．
e．The girl would rather keep the clay bike than get a real one．
A a, b, c ,e d B a, c, d, b, e C．a，c，b，d，e D．a，b，d，e，e
42.．Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A．The parents wanted the girl to have the clay bike forever．
B．Tears were in the girl’s eyes because she didn’t like the present at all．
C．The girl never lost her desire for a bike．
D．The parents paid little attention to the daughter’s desire for a bike．
43.．Why did Dad make the clay bicycle?
A．Because he wanted to buy a real one，but he had no money．
B．Because he didn’t want to disappoint his daughter．
C．Because he thought his daughter would like it．
D．Because he wanted to give his daughter a surprise．
44.．What can be inferred from the last sentence of the text?
A．The parents were happy and encouraged．
B．The parents felt comfortable and relaxed．
C．The parents were moved and felt proud of the girl．
D．The parents felt disappointed and sorry for the girl．
D
During the twentieth century there has been a great change in the lives of women. A woman marrying at the end of the nineteenth century would probably have seven or eight children, of whom four or five lived till they were five years old and up. By the time the youngest was fifteen, the mother would have been in her early fifties and would expect to live a further twenty years, during which chance and health made it unusual for her to get paid work. Today women marry younger and have fewer children. Usually a woman’s youngest child will be fifteen when she is forty-five and can be expected to live another thirty-five years and is likely to take paid work until sixty.
This important change in women’s life has only recently begun to have its full effect on women economic (经济的) position. Even a few years ago most girls left school and took a full-time job. However, when they married their school-leaving age is sixteen. Many girls stay at school after that age, and though women marry younger, more married women stay at work at least until shortly before their first child is born. Very many more afterwards return to fuller part-time work. Such changes have led to a new relationship in marriage (婚姻), with the husband accepting a greater share of the duties and satisfactions of family life.
71.We are told that in a family about 1900________.
A.few children died before they were five
B.seven or eight children lived to be more than five
C.the youngest child would be fifteen
D.four or five children died when they were five
72.One reason why the woman of today may take a job is that she______.
A.is younger when her children are old enough to look after themselves
B.does not like children herself
C.needn’t worry about food for her children
D.can be free from family duties when she reaches sixty
73.Many girls are now likely to_______.
A.give up their jobs for good after they are married
B.leave school as soon as they can
C.marry so that they can get a job
D.continue working until they are going to have a baby
74.According to the passage, it is now quite usual for women to _______.
A.stay at home after leaving school
B.marry men younger than themselves
C.start working again in life
D.marry while still at school
75.Now a husband probably_________.
A.plays a greater part in looking after children
B.helps his wife by doing much of the housework
C.feels dissatisfied with his part in the family
D.takes a part-time job so that he can help in the home
C
Most Americans don’t like to get advice from members of their family. When they need advice, they don’t usually ask people they know. Instead, many Americans write letters to newspapers and magazines which advice give on many subjects, including family problems, the use of language, health, cooking, child care, clothes, how to buy a house or a car, and so on.
Most newspapers regularly print letters from readers with problems. Along with the letters are answers written by people who are supposed to solve (解决) such problems. Some of these writers are doctors; others are lawyers or educators. But two of the most famous writers of advice are women without special training for this kind of work. One of them answers letters addressed to “Dear Abby”. The other is addressed as “Dear Ann Landers”. Experience is their preparation for giving advice.
There is one writer who has not lived long enough to have much experience. She is a girl named Angel Caveliere, who started writing advice for newspaper readers at the age of ten. Her advice to young readers, now appears regularly in the Philadelphia Bulletin in a column called DEAR ANGEL.
66.For advice Americans usually write to _________.
A.their family members B.there friends
C.Angel Caveliere D.newspapers or magazines
67.“Abby ”and “Ann Landers” are probably________.
A.real names of two women B.two experienced doctors
C.two famous lawyers D.pen names of women
68.Which of the following is likely true according to the passage?
A.Angel Caveliere is loved by many American young readers
B.Angel died young
C.Angel has much more experience than the other writers with special
training
D.Angel is famous for her good knowledge of all the subjects
69.The Philadelphia Bulletin seems to be________.
A.a city in America B.a kind of publication
C.a publishing house D.a school or university
70.The best title for the passage is________.
A.Two Famous Women Writer B.Angel Caveliere and Her Advice
C.Getting Advice from Strangers D.The Strange Americans
B
Mrs Turner’s telephone number was 3463, and the number of the cinema in town was 3464. People often made mistakes and telephoned her when they actually wanted the cinema.
One evening the telephone rang and Mrs Turner answered it. A tired man’s voice came over the phone, “At what time does your last film begin?”
“I’m sorry,” said Mrs Turner, “but you have the wrong number. This is not the cinema.” “Oh, it began twenty minutes ago?” said the man. “I’m sorry about that. Well, good-bye.” Mrs Turner was very surprised, so she told her husband. He laughed and said, “No, that wasn’t a mistake. The man’s wife wanted to go to the cinema, but he was feeling tired, so he telephoned the cinema. His wife heard him, but she didn’t hear you. Now they will stay at home this evening, and the husband will be happy.”
61.When the tired man telephoned Mrs Turner by mistake, she was _______.
A.angry B.not at all surprised C.pleased D.surprised
62.Mrs Turner was surprised because the tired man _______.
A.wanted the cinema but called a wrong number.
B.said something that had nothing to do with her answer.
C.asked her silly questions that she didn’t know how to answer.
D.was angry with himself for having made the mistake.
63.Which of the following is TRUE?
A.The Turners lived near the cinema.
B.Both of the Turners didn’t want to go to the cinema.
C.The man didn’t want to go to the cinema with his wife that night.
D.The man’s wife was angry for what her husband had done.
64.The husband would be happy because he_________.
A.made fun of his wife
B.could enjoy himself alone that night
C.could relax (使休息) himself at home
D.could have a good time at home with his wife
65.By this story the writer intends to tell us_______.
A.that it’s tiresome to answer a wrong phone call
B.that wives are easier to be fooled by their husbands
C.nothing but a joke
D.that it’s wrong for husband and wife to fool each other
第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题：每小题2分，满分40分）
A
Have you ever heard your own voice? “Of course,” you say.
Has anyone else ever heard your voice? Again you say, “Of course.”
But that’s not quite true. Nobody else has ever heard your voice-the way you hear it. When you talk, you set up sound waves The air outside your head carries the sound waves to your outer ears. But, of course, the sound of your voice begins inside your head. The bones of your head pick up the sound waves, too. They carry the sound waves straight to your inner ears. You get the sound from the outside and the inside too. Other people get just the sound waves from the outside. That is why they don’t hear your voice the way you do.
56.You ______hear your voice the same way others hear it.
A.can’t B.seldom C.sometimes D.always
57.Sound travels in the form of ______.
A.bones B.air C.waves D.voice
58.When you talk, sound waves are set up inside _______.
A.your inner ears B.your outer ears
C.your head D.your head bones
59.The underlined phrase “pick up ”here means _______.
A.to raise B.to gain C.to select D.to pull
60.The passage is mainly about________.
A.waves in the air B.the way you hear your own voice
C.voice spreading far and wide
D.the different way people hear their voices