We are all interested in equality, but while some people try to protect the school and examination system
in the name of equality, other, still in the name of equality, want only to destroy it.
     Any society which is interested in equality of opportunity and standards of achievement must regularly
test its pupils. The standards may be changed-no examination is perfect-but to have to tests or examinations
would mean the end of equality and of standards. There are groups of people who oppose this view and who
do not believe either in examinations or in any controls in schools or on teachers. This would mean that
everything would depend on luck since every pupil would depend on the efficiency, the values and the purpose
of each teacher.
     Without examinations, employers will look for employees from the highly respected schools and from
families known to them-a form of favouritism will replace equality. At the moment, the bright child from an
ill-respected school can show certificates to prove he or she is suitable for a job, while the lack of certificate
indicates the unsuitability of a dull child attending a well-respected school. This defence of excellence and
opportunity would disappear if examinations were taken away, and the bright child from a poor family would
be a prisoner of his or her school's reputation, unable to compete for employment with the child from the
favoured school.
     The opponents of the examination system suggest that examinations are an evil force because they show
differences between pupils. According to these people, there must be no special, different, academic class.
They have even suggested that there should be no form of difference in sport or any other area: all jobs or
posts should be filled by unsystematic selection. The selection would be made by people who themselves are
probably selected by some computer.

1. The word "favouritism" in paragraph 3 is used to describe the phenomenon that _____.

A. bright children also need certificates go get satisfying jobs
B. children from well-respected schools tend to have good jobs
C. poor children with certificates are favoured in job markets
D. children attending ordinary schools achieve great success

2. What would happen if examinations were taken away according to the author?

A. Schools for bright children would lose their reputation.
B. There would be more opportunities and excellence.
C. Children from poor families would be able to change their schools.
D. Children's job opportunity would be affected by their school reputation.

3. The opponents of the examination system will agree that _____.

A. jobs should not be assigned by systematic selection
B. computers should be selected to take over many jobs
C. special classed are necessary to keep the school standards
D. schools with academic subjects should be done away with

4. The passage mainly focuses on _____.

A. schools and certificates
B. examination and equality
C. opportunity and employment
D. standards and reputation

     Betty and Harold have been married for years. But one thing still puzzles (困扰) old Harold. How is it
that he can leave Betty and her friend Joan sitting on the sofa, talking, go out to a ballgame,come back
three and a half hours later, and they're still sitting on the sofa? Talking?
     What in the world, Harold wonders, do they have to talk about?
     Betty shrugs.Talk? We're friends.
     Researching this matter called friendship, psychologist Lillian Rubin spent two years interviewing
more than two hundred women and men.No matter what their age, their job, their sex, the results were
completely clear:women have more friendships than men,and the difference in the content and the quality
of those friendships is "marked and unmistakable."
     More than two-thirds of the single men Rubin interviewed could not name a best friend. Those who
could were likely to name a woman.Yet three-quarters of the single women had no problem naming a best
friend,and almost always it was a woman.More married men than woean named their wife/husband as a
best friend,most trusted person, or the one they would turn to in time of emotional distress (感情危机).
"Most women,"says Rubin," identified (认定) at least one,usually more,trusted friends to whom they could
turn in a troubled moment,and they spoke openly about the importance of these relationships in their lives."
     "In general," writes Rubin in her new book, "women's friendships with each other rest on shared
emotions and support, but men's relationships are marked by shared activities." For the most part,Rubin
says, interactions (交往) between men are emotionally controlled-a good fit with the social requirements
of "manly behavior."
     "Even when a man is said to be a best friend," Rubin writes, "the two share little about their innermost
feelings. Whereas a woman's closest female friend might be the first to tell her to leave a failing marriage,
it wasn't unusual to hear a man say he didn't know his friend's marriage was in serious trouble until he
appeared one night asking if he could sleep on the sofa."

1. What old Harold cannot understand or explain is the fact that _____.

A. he is treated as an outsider rather than a husband
B. women have so much to share
C. women show little interest in ballgames
D. he finds his wife difficult to talk to

2. Rubin's study shows that for emotional support a married woman is more likely to turn to _____.

A. a male friend
B. a female friend
C. her parents
D. her husband

3. According to the text,which type of behavior is NOT expected of a man by society?

A. Ending his marriage without good reason.
B. Spending too much time with his friends.
C. Complaining about his marriage trouble.
D. Going out to ballgames too often.

4. Which of the following statements is best supported by the last paragraph?

A. Men keep their innermost feelings to themselves.
B. Women are more serious than men about marriage.
C. Men often take sudden action to end their marriage.
D. Women depend on others in making decisions.

5. The research done by psychologist Rubin centers around _____.

A. happy and successful marriages.
B. friendships of men and women
C. emotional problems in marriage.
D. interactions between men and women.

     Many experts complain that media too often take advantage of the science fiction aspects of nanotech (纳
米技术). Reports of nanotech often refer to K. Eric Drexler's book Engines of Creations, which predicts an
age full of dominant molecular (分子的) manufacturing and a world without material scarcity. Whatever
humans need will one day be built cheaply with microscopic self-replicating machines (微细自我复制机) that
put atoms together to create copies of anything alive in the world-from trees to human bodies.
     In fact, the scientific community is deeply divided over whether self-replication machines are possible. If
they are, major dangers could exist. Mr. Drexler himself thought that self-replicating machines could probably
go out of control. He writes in his book that man-made "plants" with "leaves no more efficient than today's solar
cells could win over real plants,crowding the earth with leaves that are not suitable to be eaten. Tough 'bacteria'
could be more competitive than the real bacteria: They could spread everywhere, replicate swiftly, and reduce
the earth to dust in a matter of days."
     Critics of nanotech have made use of such images, calling for a delay on commercial nanotech until
regulations are established. They also point to the possible military uses of nanotech. Bill Joy, the co-founder of
Sun Microsystems, wrote in a Wired magazine essay in 2000 that if nanotech falls into the wrong hands, it could
bring dangers to society.
     Opponents say Mr. Joy is overreacting. "In a way, calling for bans on research into molecular manufacturing
is like calling for a delay on faster-than-light travel because no one is doing it," says Glenn Reynolds, a University
of Tennessee law professor.
     Professor Reynolds says it is a good idea to regulate nanotech, but in ways the government would regulate
any products that could be dangerous. Export controls and certification systems for nanotech companies are
examples. US lawmakers have put forth four bills on nanotech research and development.

1. K. Eric Drexler in his book predicts a future world with sufficient material, because _____.

A. man-made plants could replace real plants and grow more quickly
B. plants produced by nanotech would be as efficient as today's solar cells
C. man-made bacteria would be widespread and capable of self-replicating
D. humans could create copies of anything alive with high technology

2. To call for a delay on commercial nanotech, critics of nanotech make use of _____.

A. current social problems
B. science fiction descriptions
C. disagreements in the scientific community
D. the fact that no one is doing molecular manufacturing

3. Opponents of Bill Joy would NOT agree to _____.

A. control nanotech export
B. ban nanotech research to avoid any possible dangers
C. put forth bills on nanotech research and development
D. establish a certification system for annotech companies

4. Which of the following statements best summarizes the main idea of the passage?

A. Nanotech should not be put into wrong use in the military field.
B. The government should regulate products that could be dangerous.
C. Nanotech regulations should be established in spite of the divided opinions.
D. The media should not take advantage of the science fiction aspects of nanotech.

     The tower of Big Ben, London's most famous building, has always leaned (倾斜) slightly, but
construction work on a new line for the London Underground seemed likely to give the tower a
real lean. Engineers have had to prop up (支撑) its base to prevent it from damaging the rest of the
Houses of Parliament.
     To control the tower's movement,engineers pumped grout (水泥浆) into the soil under the tower.
The tower not leans an extra few centimeters, but the lean can only be seen by the most sharp-eyed
observer.
     Between 1995 and 1997, to lengthen the Jubilee line of the Underground, builders dug a
40-metre-deep hole just 31 metres north of the clock tower. And the new tube (underground ) tunnels
were even nearer to the tower. John Burland, who recently helped stop the increasing lean in the
Leaning Tower of Pisa and was an adviser to the Jubilee line project, believed the work would affect
the tower. In his opinion,no further lean should go beyond a safety limit of 27.5 millimetres over the
existing lean of 220 millimetres.
     To keep the lean within this limit,Burland told the British Association about the new method of
pumping grout immediately unde the base of the tower.More than 300 tons of grout were pumped
in during construction.The tower's additional lean went between 10 and 25 millimetres,but never
passed 27.5 millimetres.
      After the construction work was completed in last 1997, a review of movements in nearby walls
showed that the building was in better shape than had been thought before and the safety limit was
raised to 35 millimetres before any action needs to be taken.
     Since 1997,the tower had continued to lean, Burland told Modern Constuction.The latest
measurements,taken this year,suggest that the tower's lean had just reached 35 millimetres.But
following regular re-examinations of the tower,experts are sure that the tower has stabilised(稳定).
A spokesman for London Underground says: "We understand the tower has stabilised and retuned to
its normal movement cycle."
                                                                                   From Modern Construction, 16 September 2000

1. Which of the following drawings correctly shows how the propping up construction was carried out?

2. What does the word " review"(in Paragraph 5) mean?

A. Observation
B. Description
C. Discussion
D. Re-examination

3. Why was the propping up construction necessary?

A. To stop the tower of Big Ben from leaning
B. To stop sharp-eyed people from seeing the lean
C. To stop the Tower Pisa from leaning too much
D. To stop the clock tower from leaning beyond its safety limit

4. What was the existing lean of the tower at the time when the article was written?

A. 220 millimetres
B. 255 millimetres
C. 35 millimetres
D. 27.5 millimetres

5. We can infer from the article that _____.

A. the tower of Big Ben will damage the Houses of Parliament
B. the Jubilee line should be stopped in Burland's opinion
C. the writer is blaming Burland for making a mistake
D. the propping up work has proved to be successful

     A newspaper in Helsinki, Finland, recently published a cartoon of a baby with a mobile phone, telling
his parents that his diaper (尿布) needed changing. But it's hardly a joke. Helsinki is home to Nokia, the
mobile-phone maker. It's one of the most "mobile" cities in the world: About 92 percent of its households
have at least one mobile phone. And the kids start young.
     "A relatively normal age to get a mobile phone is now 7," says Jan Virkki, marketing manager for a
mobile-phone company. Among the second graders at the Kulosaari Elementary School, the most popular
object of desire this year is not a Barbie or a Gameboy. It is a Nokia mobile phone with a picture of their
own choice on the screen.
      "One of the first things we discuss when school starts is the rules for mobile phones," says Tiia Korppi,
a teacher. Among the rules: You have to put it away out of sight. You cannot turn it on. You cannot send
text messages to your friends, or play amusing tunes (令人发笑的曲调) in class, or call your parents or
call for a pizza during history.

1. The author uses the newspaper cartoon to show that _____.

A. he is good at telling jokes
B. he cares much for children
C. mobile phones are toys for new-born babies
D. mobile phones are widely used in Finland

2. The passage is mainly about _____.

A. different uses of mobile phones
B. a successful mobile-phone maker
C. effects of mobile phones on children
D. school rules for the use of mobile phones

     Elephants don't forget-at least, female (雌性的) elephants don't. Elephant families are matriarchal. And
the social knowledge gained by the oldest females is the key to a family group's survival (生存), according
to a study published in April by Karen McComb, a biologist at Sussex University in England.
     Elephants announce their presence by making a deep, long sound, a practice referred to as contact calling
(联络呼叫). An unfamiliar call may mean that an elephant from outside the family group is nearby. A stranger
can cause trouble. Interrupting feeding or disturbing the young. So an elephant matriarch signals the family to
gather around her; then they all lift their trunks in the air to smell the unfamiliar caller. False alarms can disturb
the group and take time and energy away from feeding, so survival may depend in part on getting it right.
     Working with Cynthia Moss, who founded the Amboseli Elephant Research Project in Kenya 30 years ago,
McComb tested the social knowledge of 21 Amboseli elephant families with matriarchs 27 to 67 years old. She
played recordings of contact calls to each family and found that the oldest matriarchs were much better at
picking out unfamiliar calls. In fact, a group with a matriarch in her fifties was several thousand times more
likely to form into a group upon hearing an unfamiliar contact call than when hearing a familiar call. However,
families with younger matriarchs were less than twice as likely to gather together upon hearing an unfamiliar
contact call as compared with a familiar call. And they gathered together a lot. Moreover, the social knowledge
of older matriarchs translated into favourable results: Families with older matriarchs produced more baby
elephants in each female-reproductive year.
     This finding shows how difficult it is to protect the oldest members of elephant families. As elephants age,
they continue to grow larger,as do their much wanted tusks (象牙). So the older-and wiser-a matriarch is, the
greater the chance she will be killed. About 800,000 elephants have been killed by people in the past 20 years.

1. What does the underlined word "matriarch" mean?

A. An old member of an elephant family.
B. A female head of an elephant family
C. A wise elephant.
D. A large elephant.

2. When do elephants form into a group?

A. When they are feeding the young.
B. When they see a familiar elephant.
C. When they are giving birth to baby elephants.
D. When the leading elephant gives out a warning.

3. The research with recordings of contact calls shows _____.

A. how fast elephants form into groups
B. how important the age of a leading elephant is
C. how frightened elephants are when hearing a strange call
D. how frequently old elephants call other members of the family

4. The older a female elephant is, _____.

A. the stronger she will be
B. the poorer memory she will have
C. the more useless her tusks will be
D. the more likely she will be killed

5. We can infer from the passage that elephants may _____. 

A. run into other elephant families
B. give wrong warnings to their mothers
C. run away open hearing a strange sound
D. produce more babies by gathering together often

     In July 1994 Jupiter, the largest planet in our solar system, was struck by 21 pieces of a comet (彗星).
When the fragment (碎片)landed in the southern part of the giant planet, the explosions were watched by
scientists here on earth. But what if our own planet was hit by a comet?
     The year is 2094. It has been announced that a comet is heading towards the Earth. Most of it will miss
our plant, but two fragments will probably hit the southern part of the Earth. The news has caused panic.
     On 17 July, a fragment four kilometers wide enters the Earth's atmosphere with a huge explosion. About
half of the fragment is destroyed. But the major part survives and hits the South Atlantic at 200 times the
speed of sound. The sea boils and an enormous wave is created and spreads. The wall of water rushes
towards southern Africa at 800 kilometers an hour. Cities on the African coast are totally destroyed and
millions of people are drowned. The wave moves into the Indian Ocean and heads towards Asia.
     Millions of people are already dead in the southern part of the Earth, but the north won't escape for long.
Tons of broken pieces are thrown into the atmosphere by the explosions. As the sun is hidden by clouds of
dust, temperatures around the world fall to almost zero. Crops are ruined. Wars break out as countries fight
for food. A year later civilization has collapsed. No more than 10 million people have survived.
     Could it really happen? In fact, it has already happened more than once in the history of the Earth. The
dinosaurs (恐龙) were on the Earth for over 160 million years. Then 65 million years ago they suddenly
disappeared. Many scientists believe that the Earth was hit by a space fragment. The dinosaurs couldn't
survive in the cold climate that followed and they became extinct. Will we meet the same end?

1. Which of the following is NOT TRUE according to the author's description of the disaster in 2094?

A. The whole world becomes extremely cold.
B. All the coastal cities in African are destroyed.
C. The whole mankind becomes extinct.
D. The visit of the comet results in wars.

2. Why does the author mention dinosaurs at the end of the passage?

A. Because they could only live in the warm climate.
B. Because they once dominated the Earth.
C. Because their extinction indicates future disasters.
D. Because dinosaurs and humans never live in the same age.

3.  In writing the passage, the author intends to _______.

A. give an accurate description of the possible disaster in the future
B. prove that humans will sooner or later be destroyed
C. tell the historical development of the Earth
D. warn of a possible disaster in the future

4.  It can be concluded that the passage is most probably part of a(n) ______.

A. horror story
B. news report
C. research paper
D. article of popular science

     Professor Reason recently persuaded 35 people to keep a diary of all their absent-minded actions for
two weeks. When he came to analyse their embarrassing errors, he was surprised to find that nearly all
of them fell into a few groups.
     One of the women, for instance, on leaving her house for work one morning threw her pet dog her
ear-rings and tried to fix a dog biscuit on her ear."the explanation for this is that the brain is like a
computer," explains the professor. "People programme themselves to do certain activities regularly. It
was the woman's custom every morning to throw her dog two biscuits and then put on her ear-rings.
But somehow the action got reversed (颠倒) in the programme." About one in twenty of the incidents
the volunteers reported were these "programme assembly failures."
     Twenty per cent of all errors were "test failures"-primarily due to not verifying the progress of what
the body was doing. A man about to get his car out of the garage passed through the back yard where his
garden jacket and boots were kept, put them on --- much to his surprise. A woman victim reported:" I got
into the bath with my socks on."
     The commonest problem was information " storage failures". People forgot the names of people whose
faces they knew, went into a room and forgot why they were there, mislaid something, or smoked a
cigarette without realizing it.
     The research so far suggests that while the "central processor" of the brain is liberated from
second-to-second control of a well-practised routine, it must repeatedly switch back its attention at
important decision points to check that the action goes on as intended. Otherwise the activity may be
"captured" by another frequently and recently used programme, resulting in embarrassing errors.

1. The purpose of Professor Reason's research is ______.

A. to show the difference between men and women in their reasoning
B. to classify and explain some errors in human actions
C. to find the causes which lead to computer failures
D. to compare computer functions with brain workings

2. Which of the following might be grouped under" programme assembly failures"?

A. A woman went into a shop and forgot what to buy.
B. A man returning home after work left his key in the lock.
C. A lady fell as she was concentrating on each step her feet were taking.
D. An old man, with his shoes on, was trying to put on his socks.

3. The word verifying in paragraph 3 can be replaced by ______.

A. improving
B. changing
C. checking
D. stopping

4. According to the passage, the information "storage failures" refer to _______.

A. the destruction of information collecting system
B. the elimination of one's total memory
C. the temporary loss of part of one's memory
D. the separation of one's action from consciousness

     Reading to dogs is an unusual way to help children improve their literacy skills (读写能力). With their
shining brown eyes, wagging tails, and unconditional love, dogs can provide the non-judgmental listeners
needed for a beginning reader to gain confidence (自信心), according to Intermountain Therapy Animals
(ITA) in Salt Lake City. The group says it is the first program in the country to use dogs to help develop
literacy in children, with the introduction of Reading Education Assistance Dogs (READ).
     The Salt Lake City Public Library is sold on the idea. "Literacy specialists admit that children who read
below the level of their fellow pupils are often afraid of reading aloud in a group, often have lower self-
respect, and regard reading as a headache," said Lisa Myton, manager of the children's department.
     Last November the two groups started "Dog Day Afternoon in the children's department of the main
library. About 25 children attended each of the four Saturday-afternoon classes, reading for half an hour.
Those who attended three of the four classes received a "pawgraphed" book at the last class.
     The program was so successful that the library plans to repeat it in April. According to Dana Thumpowsky,
public relations manager.

1. What is mainly discussed in the text?

A. Children's reading difficulties.
B. Advantages of raising dogs.
C. Service in a public library.
D. A special reading program.

2. Specialists use dogs to listen to children reading because they think _____.

A. dogs are young children's best friends
B. children can play with dogs while reading
C. dogs can provide encouragement for shy children
D. children and dogs understand each other

3. By saying "The Salt Lake City Public Library is sold on the idea", the writer means the library _____.

A. uses dogs to attract children
B. accepts the idea put forward by ITA
C. has opened a children's department
D. has decided to train some dogs

4. A "pawgraphed" book is most probably _____.

A. a book used in Saturday classes
B. a book written by the children
C. a prize for the children
D. a gift from parents

      If you were to come up with a list of organizations whose failures had done the most damage to
the American economy in recent years, you would probably have to start with the Wall Street firms
that brought us the financial crisis. From there, you might move on to the automakers in Detroit.
     But I would suggest that the list should also include a less obvious nominee: public education.
     At its top level, the American system of higher education may be the best in the world. Yet in
terms of its core mission-turning teenagers into educated college graduates-much of the system is
failing.
     The United States does a good job enrolling (招生) teenagers in college, but only half of the
students who enroll end up with a bachelor's degree.
     So identifying the causes of the college dropout crisis in the world's largest economy matters
enormously, and a new book called "Crossing the Finish Line" tries to do precisely that. Its authors
are economists William Bowen and Michael McPherson, and a doctoral candidate Matthew Chingos.
The first problem they diagnose is something they call under-matching. It refers to students who
choose not to attend the best college they can get into. They instead go to a less selective one, perhaps
one that is closer to home or less expensive. About half of the low-income students with a grade-point
average of at least 3.5 in high school and an SAT score of at least 1,200 do not attend the best college
they could have. "I was really astonished by the degree to which well-qualified students from poor
families under-matched," said Mr. Bowen.
     In fact, well-off students attend the colleges that do the best job of producing graduates. Meanwhile,
lower-income students-even when they are better qualified-often go to colleges that excel (擅长) in
producing drop-outs. "It's really a waste," Mr. Bowen said, "and a big problem for the country." As the
authors point out, the only way to lift the college graduation rate significantly is to lift it among poor and
working-class students. Instead, it appears to have fallen.
     What can be done? Money is clearly part of the answer.

1. Which of the following would people first think of as a factor responsible for the American
    financial crisis according to this passage?

A. The government.
B. Public education.
C. The Detroit automakers.
D. The Wall Street firms.

2. What is a big problem with American higher education?

A. It is hard to enroll enough students into college.
B. Many colleges are experiencing low rate of graduation.
C. Many college students stay away from classes.
D. It is hard for many colleges to get financial aid from the government.

3. Why do some students under-match?

A. Because they have financial difficulty.
B. Because they face ambition crisis.
C. Because they lack confidence.
D. Because they can't get guidance.

4. The passage is mainly about _______.

A. problems with secondary American education and possible solutions
B. America's financial crisis, its cause and influence
C. low rate of American college graduation, its cause and its influence
D. relationship between American education and its economy