Singles' Day ---- the Chinese opposite of Valentine’s Day has turned into a massive online shopping event. It is a day when single people are supposed to buy themselves presents. But there are sociological reasons behind China's “celebration” of single life. And the imbalance could have big consequences for the country.
There were 34 million more men than women in China in 2011. Part of that is natural – usually there are 105 boys born for every 100 girls. But the Chinese gender ratio (性别比例) at birth is much more obvious. It was 116 boys to 100 girls in 2012. The one child policy is largely to blame. Brought in to limit population expansion, the policy allows only one child per family. But because male children are seen as more valuable, as well as more likely to support their parents in old age, some parents choose to have a son over a daughter. The result is that large numbers of men will likely never get married. In fact, one study has predicted that by 2030, 1 in 5 Chinese men in their 30s will never have married, while another states that 94% of unmarried people in China are men.
Traditionally, China has seen high levels of marriage, usually among the young. Besides, the increased education and career opportunities for women have meant that marriages are happening later. It is also traditional that women often marry men of a higher socioeconomic status than themselves. So women at the top and men at the bottom find themselves alone. One study has even suggested a link between an imbalanced gender ratio and growth in violent crime in the country.
Singles ' Day can’t solve all the problems China’s singles face. Indeed, it is possible that it is causing even more problems, as men resort to increasingly risky lines of work to increase their chances of gaining money and thus a wife. I am worried that as money starts to overcome romance, there is evidence that China ' s marriage market is increasingly materialistic.
In 2012, if 50 girls were born, how many boys were probably born?
| A．50. | B．52. | C．58. | D．60. |
What made women in China get married late?
| A．Their support of the government’s late marriage policy. |
| B．Their higher education level and more work chances. |
| C．That they expect to enjoy their single time when young. |
| D．That there are too many excellent young men to choose from. |
What’s the writer’s attitude to the imbalance gender ratio in China?
| A．Optimistic | B．Concerned |
| C．Indifferent | D．Unknown |
We can learn from the passage that .
| A．Singles' Day is celebrated all over the world. |
| B．by 2030, 1 in 5 Chinese women in their 30s will be out of marriage. |
| C．an imbalanced gender ratio is related to the growth in violent crime. |
| D．Singles' Day will solve all the problems China’s singles face. |
LANGUAGES Canada，a new Canadian national organization of public and private language training programs，was started recently to ensure that language training in Canada is of high quality，Canada News Wire has reported．
Canada has developed its language-training programs for over forty years without a comparatively uniform（adj. 一致的；相同的） quality standard before Languages Canada adopted（采用） a complete system of rigorous standards that apply equally to all public and private schools in Canada To qualify（取得资格；具备合格条件），a school is evaluated in a number of categories including curriculum，teacher qualifications，student services，student admissions，marketing，promotion，facilities and administration． The quality standards guarantee that international students who come to Canada to learn English or French can expect to receive a uniform level of excellent instruction．．
So far，a total of 144 language–training programs，public and private，English and French，have met the standards． They will have to re-qualify in three years． About two dozen other schools failed to meet all standards and may be re-evaluated in the future．
Canada’s language training sector accounts for（数量占…） about 15 percent of the market share of global language training business Canada ranks third among destinations for English language training after UK and US． Calum Mackechnie，President of Languages Canada and President of York University’s English Language Institute，says if Canada wants to fully take advantage（利用） of the economic potential（潜力） of its language-training sector，it needs to make sure the world knows what the country has to offer．
46．What do we know about Languages Canada?
A．It is a language training school．
B．It has a history of over 40 years．
Ｃ．It has many branches all over the world．
Ｄ．It is a new Canadian national organization．
47．______________ is not taken into consideration when evaluating a school．
A．Curriculum B．Teacher qualifications
C．School sizeＤ．Administration
48．The underlined word “rigorous” in Paragraph 2 probably means “___________”．
A．strict B．similar C．differentＤ．The same
49．Which of the following statements is WRONG?
A．So far, 144 language-teaching programs have met the standards．
B．UK ranks second among destinations for English language training．
C．About 24 other schools didn’t meet all standards．
D．Languages Canada was launched to ensure high-quality language training in Canada．
50．What’s the main idea of this passage?
A．Canada sets English training standards across the country．
B．Canada is a big language-training country．
C．Canada hopes to make more money from language training．
D．Canada has a long history in developing its language-training capacity．
第三部分阅读理解（共两节，满分40分）
第一节：阅读理解（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和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
In a society such as the United States or Canada，which has many national，religious，and cultural differences, people highly value individualism(个人主义）— the differences among people, Teachers place a lot of importance on the qualities that make each student special．The educational systems in these countries show these values．Students do not memorize information．Instead, they work individually and find answers themselves．There is often discussion in the classroom． At an early age, students learn to form their own ideas and opinions．
In most Asian societies, on the contrary, people have the same language, history, and culture． Perhaps for this reason, the educational system in much of the Orient (东方的) reflects society’ s belief in group goals and purposes rather than individualism．Children in China, Japan, and Korea often work together and help one another on assignments． In the classroom, the teaching methods are often very formal． The teacher lectures, and the students listen． There is not much discussion． Instead, the students repeat rules or information that they have memorized．
There are advantages and disadvantages to both of these systems of education． For example, one advantage to the system in Japan is that students there learn much more math and science than American students learn by the end of high school． They also study more hours each day and more days each year than North Americans do． The system is difficult, but it prepares students for a society that values discipline and self-control．There is, however, a disadvantage． Memorization is an important learning method in Japanese schools, yet many students say that after an exam, they forget much of the information they have memorized．
The advantage of the educational system in North America, on the other hand, is that students learn to think for themselves． The system prepares them for a society that values creative ideas． There is, however, a disadvantage． When students graduate from high school，they haven’ t memorized as many basic rules and facts as students in other countries have．
1、The reason why American teachers attach much importance to individualism is that．
A．they are required to do so
B．their students do not memorize information
C．the United States is a country of many cultures
D．their students work individually
2、which of the following statements applies to Asian methods of education?
A．Each child in a classroom draws a different picture
B．students have to find information themselves．
C．Students are prepared for a society that values discipline
D．Teachers serve as a guide in discussion
3、A good educational system would be the one that．
A．has more advantages
B．is the combination of Western and Oriental methods
C．is based on the Western system
D．rests on the Asian system
4、the author believes that．
A．different educational systems reflect different culture of the societies
B．students from Western countries are creative but selfish
C．Asian students are merely interested in math and science
D．there are more advantages to Western system of education than to Oriental one
5．The author focuses on．
A．the differences in methods of education orient and west
B．the advantages and disadvantages to both of the Western and Asian educational system
C．how Asian school systems reflect group goals
D．how Western school systems reflect the value of individualism
Last week, while visiting my dad with my daughter, we went to a restaurant for dinner. When we were seated, my dad asked the waitress if there were any soldiers eating at the restaurant. Then waitress said there was a soldier having dinner with his friend. My dad told the waitress to tell the soldier and his friend that their dinner was paid for! He also said that he did not want to be known as the benefactor(施主).
Then waitress later commented on my dad’s thoughtful behavior saying that she had never seen anything like this before. At a local college, she had studied opera and so she used this to thank my dad by performing a piece from The Pearl Fisherman. Her voice brought me to tears because it sounded perfect!
After a while, the soldier appeared at our table (I don’t know how he knew my dad paid the bill for him.) and said that he would be sent to the front the next morning and that he could not leave this country without saying “thanks” to my dad. My dad replied that it was he who wanted to say “thanks”. They shook hands as the soldier left.
Before we left, the waitress came by again. She did a magic show as another way to show her
“thanks” to my dad. Her show was really great. My dad left her a note with email address asking for her next performance time in addition to a $ 50 tip.
Everyone witnessed something exemplary(可作榜样的) in the human spirit that night. I can only hope to see more of this in the future.
68．What did the soldier do in response to the author’s father’s kindness?
A．He gave something to author’s dad.
B．He gave a big tip to the waitress.
C．He said thanks to the author’s dad in person.
D．He did a magic show for the author and her father.
69．The author considered her father’s action to be ____.
A．funny B．understandable C．worthless D．honorable
70．Their passage mainly tells us that we should ____.
A．learn to be grateful to others B．find ways to thank others
C．try to learn from each other D．respect soldiers and waitresses
A small piece of fish each day may keep the heart doctor away．That's the finding of a scientific study of Dutch men in which deaths from heart disease were more than 50 percent lower among those who consumed at least an ounce（盎司）of salt water fish per day than those who never ate fish.
The Dutch research is one of three human studies that hold the belief that eating fish can provide health benefits, particularly to the heart. Heart disease is the number-one killer in the United States, with more than 550,000 deaths occurring from heart attacks each year．But researchers previously have noticed that the incidence （发生率） of heart disease is lower in cultures that consume more fish than Americans do．There are fewer heart disease deaths, for example, among the Eskimos of Greenland, who consume about 14 ounces of fish a day, and among the Japanese, whose daily fish consumption averages more than 3 ounces.
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For 20 years, the Dutch study followed 852 middle-aged men, 20 percent of whom ate no fish.
At the start of the study, the average fish consumption was about two-thirds of an ounce each day with more men eating thin fish than fatty fish.Although hurricane season doesn't begin until June 1, a Pacific storm has already struck. El Salvador, which was ruined by a Caribbean storm in 1995, was hit by Hurricane Adrian on Friday. This is the first Pacific-born hurricane to ever reach land in this Central American country.
Some 14,000 people left from the western coast of El Salvador. The storm weakened as it crossed land, heading east. Heavy rains created deadly flooding problems in the hurricane's wake.
Adrian is the first Pacific storm of the season. It reported maximum continuous winds of 75 miles per hour, the minimum strength of a hurricane. A Category 3 hurricane, Adrian also caused damage and flooding in Honduras. It is expected to break up before reaching the Caribbean Sea on the eastern coast of Central America.
Hurricane season typically begins June 1 and lasts through November 30．The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has predicted seven to nine hurricanes for the 2005 season.
"It is difficult to make any kind of an exact prediction of how many of these will strike land," NOAA administrator Conrad Lautenbacher said. He predicts two to three hurricanes will strike the U.S. this season.
Last year, six of nine hurricanes reached Category 3 strength or higher. Four of those hit Florida within a six-week period. Altogether, Hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne caused more than $40 billion in damage in the Sunshine State.
This year's forecast is based on ocean temperatures. Warmer temperatures produce more tropical storms, which can then turn into hurricanes.
"The issue, really, this year is the unusually warm sea surface temperatures in the Atlantic," said Frank Lepore of the National Hurricane Center.
60．Which of the following is the 2005 first hurricane?
A．Charley. B．Adrian. C．Jeanne. D．Frances.
61．How many countries struck by the hurricane are mentioned in the text?
A．Six. B．Nine. C．Five. D．Three.
62．We can infer that warmer ocean temperatures ______.
A．have nothing to do with the hurricane
B．cause less hurricane
C．are more likely to cause the hurricanes
D．do a lot of damage to the areas along the coast
63．The passage implies that _______.
A．hurricane season comes early this year
B．every hurricane formed in oceans could cause great damage to the land
C．hurricane often comes in winter and spring
D．tropical storm is more severe than hurricane