For some people, music is no fun at all. About four percent of the population is what scientists call “amusic.” People who are amusic are born without the ability to recognize or reproduce musical notes(音调). Amusic people often cannot tell the difference between two songs. Amusics can only hear the difference between two notes if they are very far apart on the musical scale.
As a result, songs sound like noise to an amusic. Many amusics compare the sound of music to pieces of metal hitting each other. Life can be hard for amusics. Their inability to enjoy music set them apart from others. It can be difficult for other people to identify(识别) with their condition. In fact, most people cannot begin to grasp what it feels like to be amusic. Just going to a restaurant or a shopping mall can be uncomfortable or even painful. That is why many amusics have to stay away from places where there is music. However, this can result in withdrawal and social loneliness. “I used to hate parties,” says Margaret, a seventy-year-old woman who only recently discovered that she was amusic. By studying people like Margaret, scientists are finally learning how to identify this unusual condition.
Scientists say that the brains of amusics are different from the brains of people who can appreciate music. The difference is complex, and it is not connected with defective hearing. Amusics can understand other nonmusical sounds well. They also have no problems understanding ordinary speech. Scientists compare amusics to people who just can’t see certain colors.
Many amusics are happy when their condition is finally diagnosed (诊断). For years, Margaret felt embarrassed about her problem with music. Now she knows that she is not alone. There is a name for her condition. That makes it easier for her to explain. “When people invite me to a concert, I just say, ‘No thanks, I’m amusic,’” says Margaret. “I just wish I had learned to say that when I was seventeen and not seventy.”Which of the following is true of amusics?
| A．Listening to music is far from enjoyable for them. |
| B．They love places where they are likely to hear music. |
| C．They can easily tell two different songs apart. |
| D．Their situation is well understood by musicians. |
How did scientists learn to identify amusics?
| A．By studying different kinds of music. |
| B．By going to parties regularly. |
| C．By studying amusic people. |
| D．By comparing music to color. |
According to paragraph 3, a person with “defective hearing” is probably one who ______.
| A．dislikes listening to speeches |
| B．can hear anything nonmusical |
| C．has a hearing problem |
| D．lacks a complex hearing system |
In the last paragraph, Margaret expressed her wish that ______.
| A．her problem with music had been diagnosed earlier |
| B．she were seventeen years old rather than seventy |
| C．her problem could be easily explained |
| D．she were able to meet other amusics |
What is the passage mainly concerned with?
| A．Amusics’ strange behaviours. |
| B．Some people’s inability to enjoy music. |
| C．Musical talent and brain structure. |
| D．Identification and treatment of amusic |
阅读理解（每小题2分，满分10分）
Instead of hitting the beach, fourteen high school students traded swimming suits for lab coats last summer and turned their attention to scientific experiments.
The High School Research Program offers high school students guidance with researchers in Texas A＆M’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences．Jennifer Funkhouser, academic adviser for the Department of Rangeland Ecology and Management, directs this four-week summer program designed to increase understanding of research and its career potential (潜能).
Several considerations go into selecting students, including grades, school involvement and interest in science and agriculture．And many students come from poorer school districts, Funkhouser says．“This is their chance to learn techniques and do experiments they never would have a chance to do in high school.”
War
ner Ervin of Houston is interested in animal science and learned how to tell male from female mosquitoes (蚊子)．His adviser, Craig Coates, studies the genes（基因） of mosquitoes that allow them to fight against malaria and yellow fever．Coates thought this experience would be fun and helpful to the high school students.
The agricultural research at A＆M differs from stereotypes（模式化，老一套）．It’s “molecular (分子) science on the cutting edge,” Funkhouser says．The program broadened students’ knowledge．Victor Garcia of Rio Grande City hopes to become a biology teacher and says he learned a lot about chemistry from the program.
At the end of the program, the students presented papers on their research．They’re also paid ＄ 600 for their work—another way this program differs from others, which often charge a fee.
Fourteen students got paid to learn that science is fun, that agriculture is a lot more than milking and plowing and that research can open many doors.．The research program is mainly designed for ______.
| A．high school advisers from Houston |
B．college studen ts majoring in agriculture |
| C．high school students from different places |
| D．researchers at the College of Agriculture and Life Science |
．It can be inferred from the text that the students in poorer areas ____.
| A．had little chance to go to college |
| B．could often take part in the program |
| C．found the program useful to their future |
| D．showed much interest in their high school experiments |
．When the program was over, the students ______.
| A．entered that college |
| B．wrote research reports |
| C．paid for their research |
| D．found way to make money |
．The underlined expression “on the cutting edge” in paragraph 5 means “on the most _____ position.”
| A．important | B．favourable | C．astonishing | D．advanced |
．What would be the best title for the text?
| A．A Program for Agricultural Science Students |
| B．A Program for Animal Science Students |
| C．A Program for Medical Science Lovers |
| D．A Program for Future Science Lovers |
An old gentleman came to see the doctor. The man was very ill. He told the doctor about his weakness, memory loss and serious problems with his heart and lungs. The doctor examined him and said there was no medicine for his disease.
He told his patient to go to a quiet place for a month and have a good rest. He also advised him to eat a lot of meat, drink two glasses of red wine every day and take long walks. In other words, the doctor advised him to follow the rule: “Eat at pleasure, drink with measure and enjoy life as it is.” The doctor also said that if the man wanted to be well again, he shouldn’t smoke more than one cigarette a day.
A month later the gentleman came into the doctor’s office. He looked cheerful and happy. He thanked the doctor and said that he had never felt a healthier man.
“But you know, doctor,” he said, “it’s not easy to begin smoking at my age.”. The writer thinks that .
| A．health is more important than wealth |
| B．work is as important as studies |
| C．medicine is more important than pleasure |
| D．nothing is more important than money |
. The doctor usually tells his patient what to do .
| A．without examining the patient |
| B．after he has examined the patient |
| C．if the patient doesn’t take medicine |
| D．unless the patient feels pain |
. The underlined part means “ ”.
A.he was feeling better than everB. he wasn’t a healthy man
B.C. he was feeling worse than beforeD. he will be well again
A car needs gas to run and your body also needs food to work for you. Eating the right kind of food is very important. It can help your body grow strong to take care of what you eat.
There are four main food groups altogether. The dairy group
has food like milk, cheese and sour milk. The other three groups are the meat and fish group, the fruit and vegetable group, and the bread and rice group. Each meal should have at least one food from all four main groups. With all these food together, you will be given enough energy during the day.
It is easy to get into bad eating habits. You may eat your breakfast in a hurry to get to school on time. Or you may not have time for a good lunch. It may seem easy to finish your supper with fish and chips all the time. B
ut you will find yourself tired in these days and you can not think quickly.
Watching what you eat will help keep your body healthy and strong. It is also good to take some exercise. It will help you eat more if you take a walk or play games in the open air. Having a good eating habit with some exercise is the key to your health.. Which of the following diets do you think is the best one?
| A．Eggs, tomatoes and chicken. |
| B．Milk, bread, cabbages and beef. |
| C．Corn, fish, cream and pork. |
| D．Rice, beancurd（豆腐）, apples, fish and chicken. |
. In this passage the writer mainly tells us that _____.
A. every person needs food to grow well
B taking exercise can keep your body strong
C. the right kind of food with exercise will keep you healthy
D. enough energy helps people think more quickly. The underlined word “dairy” in the second passage means _____.
| A．the food made out of cows such as milk and butter |
| B．she shop that sells milk and butter |
| C．a farm where cows are kept |
| D．a place where milk products are made. |
. The best title for this passage is _____.
| A．The Four Food Groups | B．A Healthy Diet |
| C．Your Body And Food | D．Food And Your Health |
You have heard of Webster Toys. Websters have made good safe and interesting toys for more than a hundred years. Now we sell them, and children play with them, in countries from New Zealand to Norway(挪威), and from Japan to Brazil(巴西). We are looking for someone to sell our toys in the Far East. He(She) will be between the ages of thirty and forty. He will already have some years of selling in world markets behind him. He will speak good English and at least one other language of the Far East.
The person we are looking for will live in Singapore, and work in our office there but he will travel for up to six months in other countries in one year. He will know the Far East well. He should know how to sell in established(建立) markets and where to find new ones. He will know to make more money than ever, for himself and for Webster Toys.
Websters want someone who can stand on his own feet. If you think you are the person we are looking for, write to Mr.J.Sloman at our office. Webster Toys Company Church Mill Watford.. What are Webster Toys?
| A．An old kind of toys. |
| B．Factories where good, safe and interesting toys are made. |
| C．People who are famous for making toys for children. |
| D．A company that has been making and selling toys. |
. We can most probably read the text _______.
| A．in a book | B．in a dictionary | C．in a novel | D．in a newspaper |
. Which of the fol
lowing statements is TRUE?
| A．If you are thirty years old, you can apply for the position. |
| B．If you live in Singaore, you can get the position. |
| C．If you speak good English , you can get the position. |
| D．The company is looking for some salesmen or saleswomen. |
Announcers on China Central Television (CCTV) will need to do some fast talking to replace the popular English acronyms(首字母缩略词) they’re now forbidden to use. Shanghai Daily reports that “anchors at China Central Television [CCTV] have been banned from saying the English acronyms NBA, CBA, GDP, and the like in their programs
.”
The replacement for those handy acronyms? Chinese presenters must use the full Chinese name, standardized by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television.
Although CCTV (oops, we mean China Central Television)presenters must already have a score of at least 94 in their government-rated oral Mandarin proficiency exam（普通话等级考试）, saying the full name of organizations like the CBA or WTO ― 10 and 6 charac
ter’s long separately ― is sure to challenge even the most skillful anchors. CCTV sports anchor Sun Zhengping tells Shanghai Daily, “A full Chinese explanation of the English acronyms must be followed if my tongue slips. It is a little trouble but a necessary one because not every audience member can understand the acronyms.”
Although the government isn’t giving any official explanation for the shift, it is believed to have to do with a proposal (提案) by Huang Youyi, director of the China International Publishing Group, at March’s NPC meeting. In his sp
eech, Huang said, “With more and more publications mixing Chinese with English, measures and regulations should be adopted to avoid English invading Chinese. If we don’t pay attention and don’t take measures to stop the expansion of mixing Chinese with English, Chinese won’t be a pure language in a couple of years.”
Although China is far from the first country to take measures to protect local languages (the French and Québécois beat them to it by a long way), acronyms are more about saving time than they are about corrupting a language, we would think. Good luck to the CCTV anchors.
1. CCTV anchors have to “do some fast talking” because they can no longer ______.
| A．speak as slowly as they like | B．mix English into Chinese |
| C．use shortened Chinese expressions | D．have so much time for their program |
