The greatest artistic creative geniuses I've ever seen, have been those who can turn garbage into art. Not just gluing together junk, but really making waste into something unique, cool, and well, something you, d put into your home for instance. There's something to be said about recycling of those items we commonly throw away.
The ability to take trash and garbage and turn it into art, or something intriguing that is fascinating to look at is a skill all of its own. I have often said that the true geniuses of our time, that is to say the creative genius artists of our era, are those who can do this-creating art that can command a high price tag from junk. 0ver the years while traveling through the United States I had stopped into museums in many parts of the country.
Some of the best art I've ever seen in my life has come from garbage, trash, or junk that has been reworked and recycled into something spectacular. Best of all the artists don't spend much on material costs, therefore it is mostly profitable. In fact they are using their minds to do a lot with very little. Just think if we all used our minds to do this, how little we might actually throw away, and how more efficiently we could run our factories, production, and even households.
After all, anything that is not used is waste, and it is thrown away. It ends up in a landfill, or a dump somewhere, and eventually it decays in the soil, causing perhaps ground water pollution. However, if we can rework these items for a couple of more rounds, and waste less, then we are providing efficiency for our civilization, and that's a good thing. Any artist who can do this is not only one caring the environment, but also one with humanity, and using his brain power and creative genius to make us all better. What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Garbage in art out |
| B．Recycle garbage in a new way |
| C．A new kind of art |
| D．A new way to protect the environment |
The author believes the art work created from junk __________.
| A．is not suitable to be put in our home |
| B．is of little value |
| C．can be of great value |
| D．will end up in landfills |
What do we know from the third paragraph?
| A．The author can't afford good art from garbage. |
| B．Art made from garbage doesn't cost much in material. |
| C．The author collects a lot of art from garbage. |
| D．The author thinks it's easy to make art from garbage. |
We learn from the last paragraph that __________.
| A．real artists are those with humanity |
| B．creating art from garbage can also help the environment |
| C．there is no good way to deal with waste today |
| D．a great amount of waste has been reused by artists |
What's the author's attitude towards the artists who turn garbage into art?
| A．Neutral. | B．Pitiful. |
| C．Doubtful. | D．Supportive. |
Mr. Brown was going away for a week. Before he left, he said to his son, "if anyone asks for me, you can tell him that your father has been out for doing something, and will be back in a week, then be sure to ask him to sit down for a cup of tea." "OK, Dad," said his son. But he was afraid his son couldn't remember this, he wrote these words down on a piece of paper and gave it to him. His son put it into his small pocket, took it out and looked at it every now and then.
Four days passed, but no one came to see his father. The boy thought that there was no man to come and that the piece of paper was of no more use for him, so he burnt it that evening.
The next afternoon, someone knocked at the door. The boy opened it. A man was standing at the door and said, "Where is your father?" The boy put his hand into his pocket at once and looked for the piece of paper. He could not find it. He suddenly remembered he had burnt it, so he shouted, "No more." The man was very surprised. He asked, "No more? I met your father last week. When did it happen?" "Burnt yesterday evening."Mr. Brown told his son that _____.
| A．he would be away from home for four days |
| B．he would be back in seven days |
| C．he would be back in a month |
| D．he liked a cup of tea |
Mr. Brown wrote the words down on ________.
| A．the wall | B．the door |
| C．a piece of paper | D．his son's pocket |
A man came to visit the boy's father on ________.
| A．the second day | B．the third day |
| C．the fourth day | D．the fifth day |
The man was very surprised because _________.
| A．he thought the child's father was dead |
| B．the child didn't ask him to sit down |
| C．the child gave him a cup of tea |
| D．he couldn't find that piece of paper |
What was burnt? ___________.
| A．The piece of paper | B．Mr. Smith |
| C．The visitor | D．The boy |
On April 1st, Mike decided to fool(愚弄) his friends.
At lunch time he said to Tom, “I think we’re going to have a test this afternoon.” “Test?” said Tom, “Really?”
“Yes, it’s quite true,” said Mike. “When I was passing by Mr. Green’s room, he was talking with another teacher about the test. Tell John, Rose and Joan about it.”
Later Tom told them about the test. Soon almost all the students knew about it. “How foolish they are!” he thought.
When class began, Mr. Green said, “Class, we’re going to have a test today.” Mike was surprised. The test was too hard for him. After class, all his classmates thanked him very much. But he could only smile. “How foolish I was !”he thought.
It really was April Fools’ Day for Mike.Mike decided to fool his friends because ________ .
| A．they were talking about the test |
| B．they began to prepare (准备) their lessons |
| C．it was April Fools’ Day |
| D．they were foolish |
________ his classmates believe (相信) him before class.
| A．Almost all | B．None of |
| C．Only a few | D．Some of |
Mike didn’t prepare his lessons because _______
| A．he didn’t like to |
| B．it was his holiday |
| C．he thought the test was easy for him |
| D．he believed there wasn’t going to be a test |
Mike was surprised to see ________ .
| A．the test was too hard for him |
| B．the teacher really gave them a test |
| C．Tom didn’t believe him |
| D．his classmates were so foolish |
Which of the following is wrong?
| A．Mike thought he himself was foolish. |
| B．All his classmates thanked him. |
| C．Mr. Green was talking with another teacher about the test. |
| D．Nearly everyone knew the test before long(不久). |
Tom was going home at five yesterday. He got on a bus. A mother with her little boy was sitting nearby. Suddenly the boy cried. His mother tried her best to make the boy stop crying. But the boy would not do so. At last Tom said angrily, “Oh, how that boy cried! Why don’t you give him what he wanted?” “I would if I could." answered the mother quietly,“But he wanted your cap.”What time was Tom going home yesterday?
| A．At four | B．At five |
| C．At six | D．At seven |
Who was sitting near Tom on the bus?
| A．An old man with his little girl |
| B．A young woman |
| C．A woman with her little boy |
| D．A young man |
The mother tried her best to make the boy ______.
| A．wake up | B．go to sleep |
| C．not talk much | D．stop crying |
When the boy cried, Tom ______.
| A．was very angry | B．was very hungry |
| C．was very happy | D．did not hear this |
Why was the boy crying?
| A．Because he wanted something to eat. |
| B．Because he wanted to get off the bus. |
| C．Because he wanted to go home. |
| D．Because he wanted Tom's cap |
阅读理解（共20小题：每小题2分，满分40分）
On New Year’s Eve, people in Italy throw out all the old things. So there are chairs, beds, clothes and plates in the trees. In Spain, the New Year comes in more quietly. In the evening people come together to the streets. Each holds a bag of grapes. When twelve o’clock comes, people start eating the grapes. In Japan, people eat noodles on New Year’s Eve. This food is said to bring long life. Early the next morning, some families climb Mount Fuji(富士山). There they watch the first sunrise(日出) of the New Year.This story is about New Year’s Eve in_______.
| A．Italy | B．Spain |
| C．Japan | D．All of the above |
People in Spain welcome New Year by _______after twelve.
| A．eating grapes | B．eating noodles |
| C．throwing the old things | D．watching the sunrise. |
People in both Spain and Japan _______ to bring in the New Year.
| A．throw things away | B．get together |
| C．eat some food | D．climb a mountain |
Japanese climb Mount Fuji to _______.
| A．look at the stars |
| B．look for New Year’s wishes |
| C．see the sun coming up |
| D．have a rest |
The people in _______ hope to get long life from their New Year’s food.
| A．Japan | B．China | C．Spain | D．Italy |
（This selection was originally published in 1992. Pluto （冥王星） is no longer classified as a planet.）
Pluto is in many ways the strangest of the planets. It is small and has a large moon（called Charon）. Its orbit（轨道） is unusual, which may cause it to have seasons in the sense that when it is close to the sun, the liquid （液体）methane（甲烷）on its surface boils to form a kind of atmospheric haze（烟雾）. When the planet moves farther away from the sun, it starts to snow solid（固体） methane.
Pluto is not dark. Despite its great distance from the sun, the surface of Pluto is probably as bright as a moonlit night on Earth. The reason is all that methane, which is as white as newly fallen snow.
The discovery of Pluto was more accident than design. The American astronomer Percival Lowell had predicted the existence of a ninth planet（he called it Planet X）based on what he took to be irregularities in the orbit of Neptune. Today astronomers argue that these "irregularities" weren't real, but the result of instrumental error. Nevertheless, Lowell produced predictions about where Planet X ought to be（although, to be honest, the predictions changed occasionally when he redid the calculations）.In any case, in 1930 Clyde Tombaugh, doing a systemic sky survey that would have found the planet no matter where it was, discovered the planet we now call Pluto. By coincidence, its position was pretty close to where Lowell's last prediction said it should be. Was it just luck? We'll never know．On Pluto's surface, liquid methane boils to form an atmospheric haze, which would be most similar to ____.
| A．light | B． darkness |
| C．liquid | D．steam（水蒸气） |
What effect is produced by including the question "Was it just luck?" at the end of the text?
| A．The question encourages the reader to think about why Pluto is a strange planet． |
| B．The question encourages the reader to think about how planets are discovered． |
| C．The question suggests that all discoveries are luck, not just design． |
| D．The question suggests that other planets were found in different ways． |
What contributes to the brightness of Pluto?
| A．Methane on its surface. | B．Its great distance from the sun. |
| C．Light from its moon, Charon. | D．Its closeness to the sun. |
The text mainly wants to ____．
| A．give a brief introduction of Pluto |
| B．talk about the discovery of Pluto |
| C．prove the exact position of Pluto |
| D．describe the strangeness of Pluto |