One evening last summer, when I asked my 17-year-old son, Ray, for help with dinner, his response surprised me, “What’s a colander (漏勺)?” he asked.
I could only blame myself. Nobody’s hands went in the sauce except my own. But that night, as I explained with a touch of panic that a colander is the thing with holes in it, I wondered what else I hadn’t prepared Ray for.
As parents, while we focus on our child’s confidence and character, we perhaps don’t always consider that we are also raising someone’s future roommate, boyfriend, husband, or father. I wanted to know that I’d raised a boy who would never ask the woman in his life, “What’s for dinner?” So I came up with a plan: I would offer Ray a private home economics course. I was delighted to find that he didn’t say no.
For two hours, three days a week, Ray was all mine. One day, as his tomato sauce reduced on the stove, he washed and seasoned a chicken for roasting. Then he rolled out the piecrust (馅饼) and filled it with apples, all while listening to my explanation on the importance of preheating an oven.
I knew that he would rather have been shooting hoops I the driveway than learning to mend socks with his mother — he tried to beg off sewing lessons, even though I insisted that one day, someone would find the sight of him fixing his own shirt very attractive — but it couldn’t be denied that he was learning, and more than just housekeeping. “I appreciate more what you do as a mom,” he told me one day.
Ray now understands the finer points of cooking, and more important, he realizes there’s nothing masculine (男子气的) about being helpless. Not only can he make his own dinner, he can make it for his family, too. That’s what I call a man.Hearing her son’s question, the author felt _______.
| A．shocked | B．angry |
| C．disappointed | D．calm |
We can learn from the text that Ray ________.
| A．preferred sewing to cooking |
| B．made great progress in cooking |
| C．was unwilling to take the course at first |
| D．always thought it attractive to do housework |
The underlined part “more than just housekeeping” shows that Ray ______.
| A．fell in love with house work |
| B．did other work in the house |
| C．began to be more important |
| D．acknowledged the author’s efforts |
What would be the best title for the text?
| A．Should boys be involved in housework? |
| B．Present for my future daughter-in-law. |
| C．I’m proud I’ve raised a curious son. |
| D．Dependent or independent. |
On August 27, 1783, the people of the village of Gomesse, in France, looked up into the sky and saw a strange and terrible animal. It was huge and round, flying down from the sky. It landed in the field just outside the village. It was clear to the people of Gomesse that they had to defend themselves. The animal was clearly some kind of terrible “spirit”. They were afraid of the spirit but they were also very brave. They rushed out into the field and fought the animal with knives and sticks and farming tools. The “spirit” made terrible noises, like an animal that can breathe only with great difficulty.
But that was not the worst thing. When the villagers cut into the spirit's skin, it gave off a horrible smell, and even after the villagers had cut the thing open, it still moved. Finally the villagers tied it to a horse. The horse ran through the fields and the “Spirit” was torn to pieces. What was the terrible spirit? The answer is that it was one of the first “hot air balloons”. Its skin was made of silk and a kind of rubber. The terrible smell was the hot air inside the balloon. When the air got out through the cuts in the skin, it also caused the horrible noises.
60. The terrible noises were made because ______.
A. the spirit could hardly breathe
B. the spirit wanted to frighten the villagers
C. the spirit was afraid of the villagers
D. hot air got out through the skin
61. The terrible smell was ______.
A. the smell of silk and rubber
B. the hot air inside the balloon.
C. the smell of burnt house
D. the smell of burnt crops
62. The spirit didn't stop moving until ______.
A. the hot air in it ran out completely
B. the villagers cut into its skin
C. the villagers cut it open
D. it gave off a horrible smell
63. The villagers tied the spirit to a horse ______.
A. shortly after they caught sight of the spirit
B. because it didn't stop moving though it was cut open.
C. after it was torn to pieces
D. because the villagers wanted to take it away
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，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
On October 16th 1987, southern Britain was hit by a hurricane, the worst storm to hit Britain since 1703.
Twenty years later, Britain is remembering the disaster known as The Great Storm. 15 million trees across the area were uprooted by the wind, and a wet autumn had made the ground very muddy (泥泞的).
The falling trees caused damage to buildings and vehicles, and blocked roads and railway lines, forcing everyone, from adults to schoolchildren to stay at home.
There were also blackouts across the area, as power lines were damaged by falling trees and flying debris (残骸). People used candles and flashlights (手电) for light, and gas stoves and open fires to cook food.
The storm lasted for 4 hours, and killed 18 lives. The bad weather caused so much damage mostly because of the fact that most people were completely unprepared, and be-cause many weather forecasters didn’t think it could cause a problem.
Earlier that week, weather forecasts had predicted severe (严重的) weather, but forecasters thought it would miss Britain and only affect the English Channel. A well-known weatherman, Michael Fish, ever said that the storm wouldn’t happen, though in fact he was talking about a hurricane in Florida at that time.
The unusual storm caused more than ￡1billion in dam-age, and hundreds of people were injured.
Could the same thing happen today in Britain? Well, as a result of climate change many people think that sudden and severe weather changes are more likely. However, technology has improved, and satellites give us a much more accurate(精确的)picture of future weather. If another Great Storm comes along, the British public will probably be warned earlier and have more time to prepare!
56. The bad weather in 1987 in Britain caused a lot of damage because ______.
A. it caused a great flood B. most people were not prepared
C. it happened in the summer D. there was no weather forecast
57. Which of the following was NOT one of the effects of The Great Storm?
A. There were a number of deaths and injuries. B. The electricity went out.
C. It hit Florida first. D. Roads and railway lines were blocked.
58. One week before The Great Storm, weather forecasts ______.
A. could not predict severe weather at all
B. had predicted the severe weather, but some weather forecasters thought it would miss Britain
C. showed that the terrible storm would not hit the English Channel
D. showed that The Great Storm would affect both England and Florida
59. We learn from the last paragraph that ______.
A. this kind of bad weather will not happen in Britain again
B. bad weather will happen more frequently in Britain now
C. people will be better prepared if there is bad weather in Britain now
D. bad weather may be stopped with the development of technology
Luggage
We ask you to keep a medium-sized suitcase per person, but a small holdall(手提箱) can also be taken onto the coach
Seats
Requests for particular seats can be made on most coach breaks(巴士旅游)when booking, but since seats are booked on a front come, first serve basic，early booking is advisable．When bookings are made with us，you will be offered the best seats that are available on the coach at that time．
Travel Documents
When you have paid your deposit(订金), we will send you all the necessary documents, so that you receive them in good time before the coach break leaving date Certain documents，for example，air or boat tickets, may have to be reserved保存 and your guide will then give them to you during the break．
Special Diets
If you require a special diet，you must inform us at the time of booking with a copy of the diet. This will be told to the hotels on your coach break. The hotels for certain coach breaks are tourist class and they may not have the equipment to deal with special diets. Any extra costs must be paid by yourself before leaving the hotel．
Accommodation(住宿)
On any coach break there are only a limited number of single rooms．When a single room is available，it may be subject to an extra charge and this will be shown on the brochure(小册子) page．
Entertainment
Some of our hotels arrange extra entertainment which could include music，dancing，films, etc. The nature and frequency (频率)of the entertainment presented is decided by the hotel and therefore not guaranteed and could be withdrawn (撤销)if there is a lack of demand or insufficient不足的 numbers in the hotel．
57. If you want to choose certain seats of the coach, you should
A. take little luggage B. avoid traveling in holidays
C. book your seats web in advance D. arrive early on the leaving date
58. What should you do if you need a special diet?
A. Bring your own food with you． B. Tell the organizer while booking．
C. Inform the hotel when you arrive． D. Pay extra money with the booking．
59. It may be necessary to pay extra for．
A. single rooms B. particular seats C. entertainment D. hand luggage
60. Where is the passage mostly taken from?
A. A fashion magazine． B. A business report．
C. A legal document． D. A travel brochure．
“Yes, I'll be ready at nine in the morning. Goodbye, dear, and thanks again. ”It had not been an easy telephone call for Mrs. Robson to make．Her daughter had been very kind，of course，and had immediately agreed to pick her up and drive her to the station，but Mrs. Robson hated to admit that she needed help．Since her husband had died ten years before，she had prided herself on her independence．She had continued to live in their little house, alone．
On the evening, however，she was standing at her living-room window，staring out at the SOLD notice in the small front garden . Her feelings were mixed．Of course，she was sad at the thought of leaving the house，as it was full of many memories．But at the same time she was looking forward to spending her last years near the sea，back in the little seaside town where she had been born. With the money from the sale of the house，she had bought a little flat there. She turned from the living room window，and looked mindedly at the walls. There was a small fish tank，with two goldfish in it. When asked why，her husband used to say，“It’s nice to have something alive in the room．’’Since he had passed away，she had always kept some goldfish，had always had “something alive in the room”．
The next morning，as her train was pulling out of the station，Mrs. Robson called to her daughter．“Kate，you won’t forget to collect the goldfish，will you? The children will love them. It’s…”，
“I know.” Kate interrupted gently. “It s nice to have something alive in the room.”
53. According to the passage，we know that Mrs. Robson____
A. was tired of living alone
B. was not liked by her daughter
C. did not like asking people for help
D. did not want to be visited by her daughter
54. Mrs. Robson was going to．
A. be in hospital B. 1ive with her daughter
C. travel abroad alone D. move to her hometown
55. The feelings of Mrs. Robson on her last night in the house were
A. sad and hopeful B. regretful and excited
C. sad and regretful D. excited and hopeful
56. From the last two paragraphs，we can know that Mrs. Robson．
A．enjoyed keeping pets at home
B．missed her husband very much
C．had the same hobby with her husband
D．was worried about her daughter’s bad memory
A breathtaking trick potentially left over from our ancestors might be found in us — the ability to sense oxygen through our skin.
Amphibians, animals such as frogs that can live both on land and in water, have long been known to be capable of breathing through their skin. In fact, the first known lungless frog that breathes only through its skin was discovered recently in the rivers of Borneo.
Now the same oxygen sensors found in frog skins and in the lungs of mammals (哺乳动物) have unexpectedly been discovered in the skin of mice.
“No one had ever looked,” explained Randall Johnson, a biologist researcher.
Mice and frogs are quite distant relatives, so the fact they have these molecules (分子) in common in their skin suggests they might well be found in the skin of other mammals, such as humans.
“We have no reason to think that they are not in the skin of people too,” Johnson said. These molecules not only detect oxygen, but help increase levels of vital red blood cells, which carry oxygen around the body. Normal mice breathing in air that is 10 percent oxygen—a dangerously low level similar to conditions at the top of Mount Everest, and about half that of air at sea level. However, mice that had the oxygen sensor HIF-1a genetically removed from their skin failed to produce this hormone (荷尔蒙) even after hours of such low oxygen.
These findings, if they hold true in humans, suggest one could raise the level of oxygen circulating inside the body. This could help treat lung diseases and disorders such as anemia (贫血症) without injecting drugs, which make up a multibillion-dollar market, Johnson said.
Athletes also often try to get more oxygen delivered to their muscles in order to improve their performance. They often do this by training at high altitudes or in low-oxygen tents. The new study suggests they might want to expose their skin as well as breathing in low-oxygen air to improve their performance. “It’s hard to say what exactly might be done, however—there’s a lot we don’t know yet,” Johnson explained.
The scientists detailed their findings in the April 18 issue of the journal Cell.
49. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A. Johnson believes that Oxygen sensors also exist in human skin.
B. People have to surf the Internet to read detailed findings.
C. It has been proved that these findings help treat lung diseases.
D. It has long been expected oxygen sensors exist in mice’s skin.
50. One of the functions of the molecules mentioned above is _______.
A. carrying oxygen around the body B. improving athletes’ performance
C. detecting oxygen D. increasing level of oxygen
51. What is Johnson’s attitude to the application of the findings to the athletes’ training?
A. Negative B. Doubting C. Positive D. Hesitating
52. The best title of the passage may be _______.
A. Great Findings Benefits Athletes A Lot
B. Frogs And Mice Are Distant Relatives
C. First Known Animal Breathes Through Skin
D. Humans Might Sense Oxygen Through Skin