If you need glasses to read this, you are among the majority of Chinese students. That’s because most students in China are short-sighted which means they can only see things close up and distant things will be blurry. Four-fifths of high school students wear glasses and now more and more children in primary school need glasses, too.
This epidemic of poor eyesight has two very simple causes: too much time spent indoors studying and too little time spent outdoors playing. Reading and writing for hours and hours, sometimes in poorly lighted rooms, causes eyesight to weaken. But students have to do this because there is so much pressure on them to succeed in school. And because they spend so much time indoors at school and at home, they have less time to spend outdoors enjoying the sun.
The sun, as a consequence, is important in developing good eyesight. Exposure to daylight releases a chemical in the eyes that prevents, or at least delays, short-sightedness. According to a study by Ian Morgan of Australian National University, Australian children and Chinese children have the same level of eyesight before they start school, but once they enter primary school, Chinese children only spend about an hour a day outside, while Australian children spend three to four hours each day in the sunshine. The result is that while about 40 percent of Chinese primary school students need glasses, only three percent of Australian children do.
Wearing glasses may not seem like a big deal. For some, wearing glasses can even be an opportunity to make a fashion statement. But poor eyesight at a young age can have serious long term consequences. As you get older, your eyesight can worsen and lead to things like macular degeneration(黄斑变性), a condition of the eyes for which there is no cure and which can eventually lead to blindness.
With all that in mind, don’t you think it’s time to give your eyes a break? Try spending a little less time inside and go for a walk in the park, instead. It’s the healthy thing to do and your eyes will thank you for it.What does the underlined word “blurry” mean?
A.unpopular. | B.unpleasant. |
C.unclear. | D.unconscious. |
How should the students protect their eyesight according to the passage?
A.They should study less and less. |
B.They should stay longer outdoors. |
C.They should wear sun-glasses. |
D.They should have a longer rest in bed. |
It can be inferred from the passage that _____ is to blame for the poor eyesight of Chinese children.
A.the ever-worsening bad weather |
B.the ever-increasing burden of study |
C.the ever-decreasing sunny days |
D.the ever-decreasing period of study time |
What is the purpose of this article?
A.To explain why Chinese students are poor-sighted. |
B.To admire Australian children’s good eyesight. |
C.To criticize the present education system. |
D.To call on people to protect Chinese children’s eyesight |
B
When I recall my experiences of feeling heard and deeply understood by someone, I know how much the experiences helped me to cope with whatever I was dealing with at the time. Caring people who I have turned to in difficult times helped me the most by listening and asking about my feelings.
During one of my volunteer jobs at a local HIV and cancer clinic, I found the helpfulness of empathic(感情移入的) listening. As a volunteer I was providing emotional support for people with health related problems. Empathic listening really made a difference on how patients felt about their health problems. By sharing about their pain and suffering and may willingness to listen, they felt less alone.
We can make life easier for each other by becoming a better listener and encouraging each other to share our feelings. We can become a better listener by avoiding giving advice and trying to solve problems unless we are asked to do so. Pressuring others to solve their life problems--"our ways"--is not helpful. Most people intuitively(凭直觉地) know how to solve their own problems. As a listener it's important to be patient and not to interrupt the speaker. Let them know it's OK to talk about their feelings and support them in feeling their feelings.
When one neither shares nor reaches out for support, he or she can remain a lonely mystery. Life can feel lonely when one keeps everything inside. Feeling alone with life problems can be worse than the problem itself. When we let a caring person listen to our life struggle, we will no longer feel alone with our struggle. Don't be afraid to ask your loved ones to take time to hear you out. Sometimes you have to ask for it. People cannot read your mind. Confiding in others can have a positive effect on our mood.
59.What made the author comfortable in difficult times?
A. Persuading B. Sharing C. Apologizing D. Complaining
60.According to the second paragraph, we can know that ____.
A. The patients enjoyed listening to the author
B. The author found empathic listening was helpless
C. The patients didn't get on well with the author
D. The author did a good job at a cancer clinic
61.What does the underlined part "Confiding in others" in the last paragraph mean?
A. Telling others your secrets. B. Reading others' mind
C. Listening to others. D. Leaving others alone.
62.What's the main idea of this passage?
A. Listening and sharing can make you happier.
B. People know how to solve their own problems.
C. It is wrong to give advice to solve problems.
D. You should learn to believe in other people.
第三部分:阅读理解(共两节,满分 40 分)
(共15小题;每小题2分,满分30分)
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。
A
Mike McClure walked into Sarasota Bay for a little fishing on a beautiful day last April. This afternoon, the water was shallow enough at low tide that McClure could easily walk 100 yards offshore and cast(投)his line in any direction.
Near sunset, still without a fish, he decided to turn back. Rather than turn to his earlier course, he chose a more direct path toward shore, thinking the bay wouldn't get deeper along the way. Instead, he was trapped. He tried to walk in different directions, but shallower water eluded(避开)him. Finally, he decided his safest choice was to head straight for land.
"Within about five steps, the water was coming in through the top of the waders(高筒防水胶靴)," says McClure.
He felt the deadweight of the flooding waders pulling him down and knew that if he didn't get out of them, he would drown. But he failed to kick his way out of the waders. Instead, they pulled him completely below the surface.
Back onshore, Eliza Cameron, 19, Loren Niurka Mora, 20, and Caitlin Petro, 20, had been watching McClure fish as they rested on the grass after a long week of classes. They saw McClure go under and then heard him cry, "Help!”
The three friends kicked off their shoes and ran into the bay. They were all good swimmers, but all hid a fear that he might pull them down too because they'd have to dive to save him.
When they reached him, he'd managed to kick himself out the waders, but his eyes had partly rolled back. Cameron and Mora each hooked an arm under his shoulders, while Petro supported his back and held his hand. Then the three friends tried their best to tug him towards shore. Finally, they all returned to shore safely.
56.Mike McClure didn't turn back by his earlier course because _____.
A. He wanted to choose a short course
B. His earlier course was dangerous
C. He just wanted to take a risk
D. He knew where the water was deep
57.What directly trapped Mike McClure in the bay?
A. His wrong decisionB. The coming high tide
C. His waders' being flooded D. The depth of water
58.During the rescue, ____.
A. The three women were afraid of being trapped in the water
B.Cameron and Petro helped catch Mike McClure's arms
C. The three women removed Mike McClure's waders
D. Mike McClure still wore his flooding waders
C
At dawn on Friday, May 19, 1780, farmers in New England stopped to wonder at the pink color of the sun. By noon the sky had darkened to midnight blackness, causing Americans, still in the painful struggle of a prolonged war of independence, to light candles and tremble at thoughts of the Last Judgment. As the birds quieted and no storm accompanied the darkness, men and women crowded into churches, where one minister commented that “The people were very attentive.” John Greenleaf Whittier later wrote that “Men prayed, and women wept; all ears grew sharp . . .”
A recent study of researchers, led by Richard Guyette from the University of Missouri’s Tree Ring Laboratory, has shown that vast forest fires in the Algonquin Highlands of southern Ontario and elsewhere in Canada brought this event upon New England. The scientists have discovered “fire scars” on the rings for that year, left when the heat of a wildfire has killed a part of a tree’s cambium (形成层). Evidence collected also points to a drought that year. An easterly wind and low barometric pressure (低气压) helped force smoke into the upper atmosphere. “The record fits pretty close,” says Guyette. “We had the right fuel, the drought. The conditions were all there.”
Lacking the ability to communicate quickly over long distances, Americans in 1780 remained in the dark about the event, which had disappeared by the next day. Over the next several months, the papers carried heated debates about what brought the darkness. Some were the voices of angry prediction, such as one Massachusetts farmer who wrote, “Oh! Backsliding New-England, attend now to the things which belong to your peace before they are forever hid from your eyes.” Others gave different answers. One stated that a “flaming star” had passed between the earth and the sun. Ash, argued another commentator. The debate, carried on throughout New England, where there were no scientific journals or academies yet, reflected an unfolding culture of scientific enquiry already sweeping the Western world, a revolution nearly as influential as the war for independence from the English.
New Englanders would not soon forget that dark day; it lived on in folklore, poems, and sermons for generations.
66. New Englanders crowded into churches because they were frightened by_____.
A. the pink color of the sunB. the darkened sky at daytime
C. the Last Judgment on FridayD. the American War of Independence
67. What can we infer about the event in New England on May 19, 1780?
A. Prayers remained silent and attentive.B. Night birds no longer came out to sing.
C. People’s ears became sharper than usual. D. Midday meals were served by candlelight.
68. According to the researchers, the origin of the event was_________.
A. an east wind B. a severe drought C. some burning fuel D. low barometric pressure
69. What can we know about the debates after the dark day?
A. They focused on causes of the event.
B. They swept throughout the Western world.
C. They were organized by scientific institutions.
D. They improved Americans’ ability to communicate.
70. What can be the best title for the text?
A. New England’s dark day.B. Voices of angry prediction.
C. There is no smoke without fire. D. Tree rings and scientific discovery.
B
I believe that it is important to be brought up with a firm belief in the good. I was fortunate in this respect. My parents not only gave me a happy home, but they had me study half a dozen foreign languages and made it possible for me to travel in other countries. This made me more tolerant and helped me to bridge many difficulties in later life.
Soon after I got married, my husband and I left our native Czechoslovakia and went to live in Shanghai, China. Here was a really international city. People of all races and beliefs lived and worked together.
In Shanghai, in 1941, when I was only twenty years old, the doctors discovered that I had diabetes. It was a terrible shock, because diabetes is incurable. But it can be controlled by insulin (胰岛素). Although this drug was not manufactured in China, there were enough stocks of imported insulin available. This enabled me to continue a normal, happy life.
Then bombs fell on Pearl Harbor and the Japanese occupied Shanghai. The import of insulin was cut off. Before long, there was not enough for the diabetics. I was on a starvation diet to keep my insulin requirements as low as possible. Many diabetics had already died, and the situation became desperate. In spite of all this, I never stopped believing that with the help of my husband’s love and care, I would survive.
I continued to teach in Chinese schools. My faith and my husband’s never-ending efforts to get the manufacture of insulin started gave me courage. In his small laboratory the production of insulin was attempted. I served as the human guinea pig(实验品)on which it was tested. I’ll never forget the day when my husband gave me the first injection of the new insulin, which had worked on rabbits. It helped! Can you imagine our happiness and relief?
I received the greatest strength from the deep love and complete understanding between my husband and me. And next to that was the kindness and help of many, many friends of many nationalities. To me, the experience of living in Shanghai during the special times was unforgettable.
After the Second World War, my husband and I sailed to the Untied States, which is also known as a melt pot. Wherever we live, I believe, with faith and love, love between families and friends from different nationalities, we can make it our cherished home.
61. What can we know about the author?
A. She visited China before twenty.B. She was given an unhappy home.
C. She got married in Czechoslovakia.D. She could hardly tolerate her parents.
62. As a diabetic, the author could still live normally in 1941 because.
A. she was able to buy enough insulin B. she received good medical treatment
C. she was looked after by her husband D. she was helped by people of different races
63. The underlined word “it” in Paragraph 5 refers to.
A. a small rabbit B. an ever lasting effort C. the new insulin D. the human guinea pig
64. How does the author feel about her stay in China?
A. Unbearable. B. Unbelievable. C. Unfortunate. D. Unforgettable.
65. We can infer from the text that the author’s husband was.
A. a doctor B. a researcher C. a teacher D. a sailor
PART THREE READING COMPREHENSION
Directions: Read the following three passages. Each passage is followed by several questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C, and D. Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage.
A
Prague
Prague is an ancient European city, featuring one of the most magnificent Old Towns in Europe, along with delicious food, inexpensive shopping and friendly people. Prague is also famous as being home to one of the most famous 20th century writers, Franz Kafka. The famous Czech beer is also one of the reasons to visit Prague.
The narrow streets of the older parts of the town are appealing the visitors to take nice long walk and settle in some of the many restaurants, which offer top-quality foods at a low price. The buildings there are mostly tower-shaped,and so Prague is called “city of a hundred spires.”
Mauritius
Also known as the Paradise on Earth, Mauritius lies about 560 miles (900 km) east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. It is a place of magnificent natural beauty coupled with excellent customer service, which makes for an unforgettable romantic experience at the edge of the world’s warmest ocean.
There are lots to see and do in Mauritius: the coral reefs (珊瑚礁)surrounding the island offer stunning beauty and great underwater adventures to those who want to dive into the precious waters. The nature of Mauritius mostly resembles that of Paradise, allowing every couple visiting this island to feel like Adam and Eve. That is an experience nobody would want to miss!
Cyprus
The very name Cyprus, it has been said, glitters with an age-old myth. Today, history and hedonism (快乐论)are comfortably mixed on the island. Some five-star resorts within walking distance of well-preserved Greek and Roman ruins offer the convenience the modern traveler has come to expect.
Cyprus features a romantic history, as it was Anthony’s gift to his beloved Cleopatra during the glorious days of the Roman Empire. Maybe that is why you feel always a little special once you set foot on Cyprus.
For more information about many other most romantic places in the world, just log on at http://www.jurgita.com.
56. The underlined word “spires” in Paragraph 2 means.
A. narrow streets B. inexpensive restaurants
C. top-quality foods D. tower-shaped buildings
57. We learn from the text that Mauritius.
A. is part of Madagascar B. is an ideal destination for couples
C. is in central Indian Ocean D. is most famous for its good service
58. What makes Cyprus different from the other two places?
A. It is located on an island. B. It offers charming resorts.
C. It was given as a present. D. It has a very long history.
59. A common feature of Mauritius and Cyprus is that they are .
A. old B. romanticC. rich D. mysterious
60. What is the main purpose of the author?
A. To attract more visitors. B. To tell traveling experiences.
C. To sell information on line. D. To introduce historical places.