18．Mo Yan was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2012，whichmade one of the Chinese people's long-held dreams come true．

17．In old times，man considered lightning to be one of the greatest mysteries of nature．In fact，a single flash of lightning 1.6 km long has enough electricity to light one million lamps．
The American scientist，Benjamin Franklin，was the first to suggest that lightning is in fact electricity formed between the Earth and clouds high above．It happened in 1752．In the same year，he also built the first lightning rod to protect buildings from being struck by lightnin g．
Modern science has discovered that lightning is very long and powerful．A lightning between a cloud and the Earth may be as long as 13 km，and travels at a speed of 30 million meters per second．Scientists have the opinion that there are about 2 billion flashes of lightning per year．In the United States alone，it kills almost one person per day．
The safest place to be in during an electrical storm is a closed car．Outside，one should go close to low ground for cover and not stop under a tree．Also one should stay out of water and away from metal fences．Inside a house，people should keep away from open doorways and windows and not touch wires or metal things．
29．In the USA，D．
A．every person can see lightning every day
B．at least one person is killed by lightning every day
C．there are about 6 million flashes of lightning per year
D．about one person per day dies from lightning
30．During a lightning storm，it would be best if youC．
A．stand under a tree                  
B．go outside
C．stay in a closed car                
D．stop near windows
31． A lightning rod canA．
A．prevent accidents caused by lightning      
B．stop lightning
C．protect building from being washed away   
D．delay the coming of lightning．

16．Life is difficult．
    It is great truth because once we truly understand and accept it，then life is no longer difficult．
 Most do not fully see this truth．Instead，they complain about their problems and difficulties as if life should be easy．It seems to them that difficulties represent a special kind of suffering especially forced upon them or upon their familie s，their class，or even their nation．
 What makes life difficult is that the process of facing and solving problems is a painful one．Problems，depending on their nature，cause us sadness，loneliness or regret or anger and fear．These are uncomfortable feelings，often as painful as any kind of physical pain．And since life causes an endless series of problems，life is always difficult and is full of pain as well as joy．
Yet，it is in this whole process of solving problems that life has its meaning．Problems are the serious tests that tell us success from failure． When we desire to encourage the growth of human spirit，we encourage the human ability to solve problems，just as in school we set problems for our children to solve．It is through the pain of meeting and working out problems that we learn．As Benjamin Franklin said，"Those things that hurt instruct．"It is for this reason that wise people learn not to fear but to welcome the pain of problems．
25．From the passage，it can be inferred thatB．
A．everybody has problems
B．we become stronger by meeting and solving the problems of life
C．life is difficult because our problems bring us pain
D．people like to complain about their problems
26． The writer probably used just one short sentence in the first paragraph toD．
A．save space              
B．persuade readers
C．makes readers laugh     
D．get readers'attention
27． The main idea of Paragraph 3 is thatD．                               
A．most people feel life is easy    
B．the writer feels life is easy
C．the writer likes to complain about his problems
D．most people complain about how hard their lives are
28． According to the passage，we give schoolchildren difficult problems to solve in order toA．
A．encourage them to learn
B．teach them to fear the pain of solving the problem
C．helps them learn to deal with pain
D．teach them how to solve problems．

15．Though I hadn't seen Susan since we graduated from university，I  ________her in the crowd at first sight．（　　）

A．

spotted

B．

gathered

C．

admired

D．

stared

14．-What do you think of our party room？
-Perfect!It couldn't be ________．（　　）

A．

best

B．

better

C．

worse

D．

worst

13．Great changes ________ in my hometown in the past 30years and m any villagers are living a happy life today．（　　）

	A．	took place		B．	were taken place
	C．	have been taken place		D．	have taken place

12．A CCTV journalist succeeded in arousing a heated discussion among citizens by asking people whether they were happy．The responses to the question were various，even some quite funny ones（61）included（include）．Although people played jokes on the answers，it did not take long （62）beforethey began to figure out the true meanings of happiness．
It is certain that people's views on happiness（63）are affected（affect） greatly by their own life experience．Unfortunately，too many people refer to being rich as happiness and there is no sign of a decrease in （64）thenumber of those who are voluntarily at the mercy of wealth．Some people whose（65）intention（intend） is to make big money appreciate being given any chance to multiply their income，believing that is（66）wheretheir happiness lies．Some are eager to inherit their parents'property，especially those who（67）are（be） known as silver-spoon kids．Even worse，some would rather break the law to satisfy their financial desire or seek their fortune（68）illegally（legal）．
In my opinion，happiness is not about pursuing wealth merely but about admiring the（69）beautiful （beauty） things in life．Therefore，live your life （70）tothe fullest and be happy．

11．Lost in the Post    How would you feel if the letter you penned carefully and posted to your favorite star ended up in the recycling bin？That's where unopened fan mail sent to singer Taylor Swift was found in Nashville．（36）GSwift's management said it was an accident，but dealing with piles of letters is a burden for most public figures．According to th e BBC reporter Jon Kelly，at the height of his fame，Johnny Depp was said to receive up to 10，000 letters a week．（37）CThe dawn of the digital age in which public figures with a Twitter account can be messaged directly has made the process easier．The White House says it deals with 20，000 messages addressed to President Barack Obama each day．
Some celebrities don't want letters．In 2008，Beatles drummer Ringo Starr said that he would throw them out because he was too busy．（38）ARobert Pattinson，star of the Twilight films，claims that he reads tonnes and tonnes of letters from fans，which takes up almost all his free time．
Many artists，however，outsource（外包） the task of opening，reading and replying．Sylvia"Spanky"Taylor，58，has run a service in California that does just that since 1987．（39）FMost letters are simply declarations of affection and admiration，she says．A few ask for money．A small number contain threats which require her to contact the celebrity's security team and law enforcement．
The biggest problem for Taylor is working out how to deal with the correspondence（通信）．Presents such as soft toys are sent to local hospitals，and most of the letters just get shredded and recycled．
（40）DFor some，this is enough，according to Lynn Zubernis，an expert at West Chester University．She says that the relationship between fan and celebrity may exist only in the mind of the former but it comes from a deeply-rooted human need for community．

A．Others do attempt to get through it themselves．
B．In fact，there is no alternative to deal with the problem．
C．How could he have enough time to skim through these letters one by one？
D．Typically，correspondence is acknowledged by a photo with a printed"signature"．
E．Accordingly，the correspondence problem has been difficult for the computer to automate．
F．She and her staff deal with up to 20，000 items of mail a month on behalf of 26 celebrities．
G．This incident has caused a wide public concern about how the public figures deal with the   letters or mails from the fans．

10．In 1991，high in the mountains of Europe，hikers made a discovery：a dead man partly frozen in the ice．However，the police investigation soon became a scientific one．Carbon dating indicated that the man died over 5，300 years ago．Today he is known as the Iceman and has been nicknamed"?tzi"for the ?tztal Alps where he was found．Kept in perfect condition by the ice，he is the oldest complete human body on the earth．
Scientists think he was an important person in his society．An examination of his teeth and skull tells us that he was not a young man．His arms were not the arms of a laborer．His dagger（匕首） was made of stone，but he carried a copper axe．This implies wealth，and he was probably from the upper classes．We know he could make fire，as a fire-starting kit was discovered with him．Even the food he had eaten enabled scientists to reason exactly where in Italy he lived．
But why did the Iceman die in such a high and icy place？There have been many theories．Some said he was a lost shepherd．Others thought he was killed in a religious ceremony．Over the years since he was found，tiny scientific discoveries have led to great changes in our understanding of the story of the Iceman．The newest scientific information indicates that he was cruelly murdered．"Even five years ago，the story was that he fled up there and walked around in the snow and probably died of exposure，"said Klaus Oeggl，a scientist at the University of Innsbruck in Austria．"Now it's all changed．It's more like a…crime scene．"
In June 2001，an X-ray examination of the body showed a small dark shape beneath the Iceman's left shoulder．It was the stone head of an arrow．It had caused a deadly injury that probably killed him very quickly．In 2003，an Australian scientist discovered the blood of four different people on the clothes of the Iceman．Did a bloody fight take place before his murder？Injuries on his hand and head indicate that this may be true．One theory，put forward by archeologist （考古学家） WalterLeitner，says that the Iceman's murder was the end of a fight for power among his people．However，this idea is certainly debatable．
28．What does"?tzi"refer toA．
A．the oldest perfectly preserved human body    
B．the most famous tourist attraction?tztal Alps
C．an important discovery by the police of Europe
D．the person living in ?tztal Alps for a long time
29．After the examination of the Iceman，scientists believe thatC．
A．he died at an early age                      
B．he made a fire-starting kit
C．he had a higher social status            
D．he was born at a village in Italy
30．According to Klaus Oeggl，the Iceman died fromD．
A．a serious disease                              
B．a snow disaster
C．a religious faith                                  
D．a terrible murder
31．What is the passage mainly talking about？C
A．The life of ancient people in the AlpsMountains．
B．The cruel religious life of the Europeans in the past．
C．The discovery and possible cause of death of the Iceman．
D．The application of carbon dating technology to the Iceman．

9．More People Are Leaving the Rat Race for the Simple LifeTime is more precious than money for an increasing number of people who are choosing to live more with less-and liking it．
Kay and Charles Giddens，two lawyers，sold their home to start a B&B hotel．Four years later，the couple dishes out banana pancake breakfast，cleans toilets and serves homemade chocolate chip cookies to guests in a B&B hotel surrounded by trees on a hill known for colorful sunsets．
"Do I miss the freeways？Do I miss the traffic？Do I miss the stress？No，"says Ms．Giddens，"This is a phenomenon that's fairly wide spread．A lot of people are reevaluating their lives and figuring out what they want to do．If their base is being damaged，what's the payoff？"
Simple living ranges from cutting down on weeknight activities to sharing housing，living closer to work，avoiding shopping malls，borrowing books from the library instead of buying them，and taking a cut in pay to work at a more pleasurable job．
Vicki Robin，a writer，lives on a budget equal to a fifth of what she used to make．"You become conscious about where your money is going and how valuable it is，"Ms．Robin says，"You tend not to use things up．You cook at home rather than eat out…"
Janet Luhrs，a lawyer，quit her job after giving birth and leaving her daughter with a nanny for two weeks．"It was not the way I wanted to raise my kids，"she says，"Simplicity is not just about saving money； it's about me sitting down every night with my kids to a candlelit dinner with classical music．"
Mrs．Luhrs now edits a magazine，Simple Living，which publishes tips on how to buy recycled furniture and shoes，organize potluck dinners instead of expensive receptions，and generally how to consume less．
"It's not about poverty，"Mrs．Luhrs explains，"It's about conscious living and creating the life you want．The less stuff you buy，the less money goes out of the door，and the less money you have to earn．"
21．Kay and Charles Giddens sold their home toB．
A．pay off the debt                         
B．start a private hotel  
C．cut down expenses                    
D．buy living necessities
22．Simple living includesD．
A．building a home library                  
B．living in the countryside
C．enjoying a colorful night life               
D．sharing housing with others
23．It can be learned from the passage that now Janet LuhrsA．
A．spends more time with her kids               
B．has an interest in classical music   
C．works as a reporter of a magazine        
D．helps people buy recycled clothes．