阅读理解

　　Farmer Ed Rawlings smiles as he looks at his orange trees. The young oranges are growing well in Florida's weather. Warm sunshine and gentle rains, along with Ed Rawlings' expert care, will produce a good crop of oranges this year.

　　But Ed has to fight against Florida's changeable winter weather. In January and February, temperatures can destroy Ed' s entire orange crops. Having farmed in Florida for the past 35 years, Ed Rawlings is prepared for the frosts(霜). When temperatures drop below freezing, Ed tries to save his crop by watering his orange trees. The water freezes and forms a thin layer of ice round the trees. Strange as it may sound, this thin layer of ice actually keeps the fruit warm.

　　What happens is simple. When the trees are watered, the water loses heat and becomes ice. The warmth of the heat it loses is sucked(吸) in by the fruit and keeps its temperature at a safe level. Ed Rawlings has effectively used this method to save many orange crops, but Ed still faces some difficulties. The trees should be watered at the exact moment the temperature drops to the freezing point. Also, just the right quantity of water must be used. Too much water can form a thicker layer of ice that will break the trees' branches. Another difficulty is that wind blows away the heat. So Ed has to worry about not only when but also how often his trees should be watered, and how much water should be used.

　　Computer technology may help Ed Rawlings with some of these worries. With equipments, air and soil temperatures and wind speed can be measured. The information is fed into a computer which can tell when temperatures drop to freezing.

　　The computer can correctly decide the quantity of water to be used and how frequently the trees should be watered. Ed Rawlings will find looking after his orange trees a lot easier with the help of a computer, and we'll all have the benefits of computer－age oranges.

1．The passage is mainly about ________.

[　　]

A．a farmer's expert care for his orange trees

B．the different uses of computers

C．growing oranges in Florida's changeable weather

D．different ways of frost protection

2．Ed tries to protect his orange crops by ________.

[　　]

A．using a wind machine to drive away the cold air

B．equipping his orange trees with a computer

C．watering the trees at the proper time

D．picking his fruit at the first sign of frost

3．In the writer's eyes, computers ________.

[　　]

A．are too expensive for small farmers

B．can be a valuable tool for farmers

C．can be used to help oranges grow bigger

D．cannot take the place of farmers' experience and judgment

4．When the temperature drops, in order to protect his crops, Ed has to worry about many things except ________.

[　　]

A．when to water the orange trees

B．how many trees he should water

C．how often he should water them

D．how much water he should use

5．According to the passage, the computer technology can ________.

[　　]

A．get rid of the need for frost protection

B．help the farmers get a better harvest

C．tell farmers why outdoor temperature changes

D．prevent temperature from dropping to the freezing point

阅读理解

　　I'm Robert Lee, a senior at a Chinese university. I am planning to study Electronic Engineering in the United States this coming summer if I am lucky enough to be admitted to Miami University. However, I am a bit nervous about my English, so I am spending a lot of time studying it hard. I think my pronunciation isn't accurate enough to make myself understood, and I might easily get confused. Also, I find the grammar very difficult. Sometimes, I know every word in an expression, but I don't know what it implies. Honestly, I understand very little.

　　It is funny because I used to study English just for entertainment, to kill time, but now I have a particular purpose for it, so I have found a tutor for myself. My tutor holds her master's degree in education and is very helpful. She assigns me quite a lot of homework, and wants me to memorize all the phrases and expressions. She says it is necessary to practice as much as possible until they are fixed in my mind. And the more I apply them in real situations, the more natural they will become. However, I find it so boring to practice so much and I'm getting discouraged. My tutor also says language is a tool, and the people use it to express their ideas, thoughts and feelings, and all these are determined by culture. As a result, when I understand the cultural background, I can use the language better. She also asks me to read a lot. My tutor sounds like a professor, and I feel lucky to have her as my tutor.

　　My American friend Burt helps me a lot, too. He knows my problem because I have exchanged my ideas with him. He told me to relax. He said actually the most efficient way to reach my goal would be to have a tape recorder or a CD player. Either the CDs or tapes have native voices, and I can learn them by listening again and again and imitating the sounds as many times as I wish. I think this is a good idea. That way I' m not only training my listening comprehension but also my speaking abilities.

1．Robert Lee is ________.

[　　]

A．an American student studying in a Chinese university

B．an American student planning to study in a Chinese university

C．a Chinese student admitted to Miami University

D．a Chinese student planning to study at Miami University

2．The phrase “to kill time” ( Line 1, para. 2 ) means ________.

[　　]

A．to spend a lot of time

B．to save time by every means

C．to pass time by doing useless things

D．to study for fun

3．Robert Lee thinks his tutor sounds like a professor because ________.

[　　]

A．she holds a master's degree in education

B．she assigns a lot of homework

C．her view on language and culture is quite academic

D．she uses English to express her thoughts and feelings

4．Which of the following statement is true according to the passage?

[　　]

A．Language is a tool for people to communicate with each other.

B．Too much language practicing is useless.

C．Cultural background can be ignored in learning a foreign language.

D．Extensive reading should be discouraged in learning a language.

5．According to Lee's friend, listening to CDs and tapes ________.

[　　]

A．is a relaxing way to learn a language

B．only helps to improve her listening comprehension

C．is good only for training one's speaking ability

D．is the only way to imitate the native voices

阅读理解

　　There are a great many professions on specialization(专门化). You find these professions in engineering, in production and in teaching. But there is an increasing demand for people who are able to take in a great area, people who perhaps do not know too much about any one field. There is, in other words, a demand for people who are able to see the forest rather than the trees, and be able to make a general judgment. We can call these people “generalists”(通才). And these “generalists” are particularly needed for positions in government, where it is their job to see that other people do the work, where they have to plan for other people, to organize other people's work, to begin it and judge it.

　　The specialist understands one field：his concern is with technique and tools. He is a “trained” man. The generalist and especially the administrator(管理者)－deals with people：his concern is with leadership, with planning, and with direction giving. He is an “educated” man. Very rarely is a specialist able to be an administrator. It is your work to find out, during your training period, into which of the two kinds of jobs you fit.

　　Your first job may turn out to be the right job for you. Certainly you should not change jobs constantly. At the same time you must not look upon the first job as the final job：it is a training job, an opportunity to understand yourself and your fitness for being a worker.

1．There is an increasing demand for ________.

[　　]

2．The specialist is ________.

[　　]

A．a man who can see the forest rather than the trees

B．a man who has been trained in more than one field

C．a man who is an expert in his field

D．a man whose job is to train other people

3．The generalist is ________.

[　　]

A．a man who is good at organizing other people' s work

B．a man who is an “educated” specialist

C．a man who is very strong in society

D．a “trained” man who is more than an administrator

4．During your training period, it is important ________.

[　　]

A．to choose a job that is very easy to be done

B．to decide whether you are fit to be a specialist or a generalist

C．to find an organization which fits you

D．to try to be a generalist

5．A man's first job ________.

[　　]

A．is an opportunity to fit himself for his first job

B．is never the right job for you

C．should not be changed

D．should not be regarded as his final job

阅读理解

　　Many people take it for granted that black is a color of bad thing while white should always mean something good. This may be because, in their opinion, black is related to darkness and white to purity. However, that is not always the case. Did you know that the same one color may mean differently in different places of the world?

　　In the English－speaking world, black is the color of mourning－people wear black at the funeral. Red is concerned with danger or bloodshed. Yellow is the word for fear. If you axe afraid, you are yellow. Yet, none of these sayings is true outside the English－speaking world. In China and Korea white is the color of mourning. In Russia, China, and some other countries, red stands for beauty, life and excellence. In Italy and Germany, you are yellow with anger, not with fear.

　　Even within the English－speaking area, it is not difficult to find color contradictions (矛盾). A redcap in the United States is a porter in a railway station, in Britain, however, a redcap is a military policeman. Both names are logical. Because both men wear red caps. Similarly, the British term for an American white－collar worker is sometimes called a blackcoated worker.

　　One does not have to cross an area to find color differences. Would you rather be a redblooded or a blue－blooded? If we go back to the origin, we find that both terms are logical as both names suggest. The expression “blue blood” comes from Spain, where some noble families proudly told the world that they had “blue blood”. Actually they meant that they had no Moorish(摩尔人的) or Jewish blood. But then why “blue” blood? Because they were fair－skinned(皮肤白皙的), and it is only natural that their blood vessels stood out appearing blue.

1．Yellow is concerned with anger in ________.

[　　]

2．The two meanings of the term “redcap” result from a difference in ________.

[　　]

3．Both Britain and America would probably agree that ________.

[　　]

A．black is the color of mourning

B．a black－coated worker is employed in an office

C．red stands for beauty and excellence

D．a redcap is a porter in a station

4．It is not stated but implied(暗示) that some noble families in Spain had ________ color.

[　　]

5．The best title for this reading selection is ________.

[　　]

A．The Origin of Blue Blood

B．The Development of the Symbolic(象征性的) Use of Colors

C．Colors that carry Bad Meanings

D．The Meaning Concerned with Certain Colors

阅读理解

Who are these people rushing by you in the street? More than 215 million people now call America “home”, but most of them can trace their families back to other parts of the world. If you look at the names on the shop windows, you will see that Americans come from many different lands. The idea that these people, who once were strangers to the United States, have lost the customs and cultures of their original countries and have become “Americans” is really not true. In fact, what exist in America is more often a kind of “side by side” living in which groups of people from other countries often have kept many of their own customs and habits. They join the general American society only in certain areas of their lives－such as schools, business, and sports－but they kept many of their native customs and manners socially and at home. This living “side by side” has both advantages and disadvantages. Sometimes it may cause disagreements to develop between groups whose ways of life are very different from one another. However, there are also great advantages that come from the variety of cultures brought by settlers from other lands. There is great freedom of choice among ideas, dress, food, and social customs in America. Everyone can find some parts of his or her own familiar world in the United States, in churches, music, food, national groups or newspapers.

1．“Side by side” living system means ________.

[　　]

A．to keep their own customs while sharing American ones in certain areas

B．to make friends with native people

C．that the groups of people live nearby

D．that they are closer to American －society

2．According to the passage, people in the USA ________.

[　　]

A．share American customs and cultures

B．live in a kind of “side by side” society

C．keep their own customs and habits firmly

D．make no choice to accept American customs

3．Which of the following statement is true?

[　　]

A．They always stick to their own customs and habits.

B．Side by side living style is not suitable.

C．They face the society that they are not familiar with.

D．The advantages coming from the variety of cultures make life in America colorful.

4．The author believes that ________.

[　　]

A．America cannot be the home of 215 million people

B．some people's original countries could be known from the names on their shop windows

C．people from other countries have lost their own customs and cultures

D．in general, people from other parts of the world have already joined the American society in every field of life

5．Which of the following is the best title for the passage?

[　　]

A．Advantages and Disadvantages

B．Different Customs and Habits

C．Home for the People

D．Side by Side Living Style in America

阅读理解

　　In the 19th century Americans from the eastern states moved out west to settle in the rich new lands along the Pacific Coast. The most difficult part of their trip was crossing the “Great American Desert” in the western part of the United States by horse and wagon.

　　The western desert can be very dangerous. There is little water and there are few trees. But the desert also has scenery of great beauty. Tall towers of red and yellow stone rise sharply from the flat, sandy valley floor. The scene has been photographed many times and often appears in movies and on TV.

　　In Arizona, man－made dams across the Colorado River had made two large lakes in the middle of the dry desert country. At Lake Powell, the red stone Arch(拱形) of Rainbow Bridge rises high above the blue lake.

　　There are few roads. Many areas of Lake Powell's shore can only be reached by boat or on foot. But hikers(徒步旅行者) in this empty desert land sometimes find very old native American pictures, painted in the rocks.

　　In Death Valley California, the summer temperature rises to 130 ~ 1C5 degrees Fahrenheit(华氏). There is less than two inches of rain each year. Death Valley is the lowest place in America－925 metres below sea level. In the 1800s, many travelers died when they tried to cross this waterless valley in the terrible heat.

　　Although the desert is dry and seems empty, there is plenty of life if you look closely. Small insects, snakes and rats have learned how to live in the desert heat. They live underground and come out at night, when it is cool. Plants such as cacti(仙人掌) need very little water. When it does rain in the desert ( sometimes only once or twice in a year), plants grow quickly, and flowers appear in a single day. For a short time, the desert is covered with brilliant colors.

1．In the 19th century, Americans moved from the east to the west because they ________.

[　　]

A．enjoyed the trip

B．wanted to make their home there

C．wanted to find grassland there

D．had no water to drink

2．From the passage we can conclude that ________.

[　　]

A．the western desert is a good place for people to live in

B．there is little water but there are many trees in the desert

C．the desert is dangerous but it is full of beauty

D．till now, people know very little about the desert

3．If you want to find some old native American pictures painted in the rocks you must travel ________.

[　　]

4．In the 1800s, many travelers died in the Death Valley because of ________.

[　　]

5．In the desert animals will die ________.

[　　]

A．if they move about

B．if they drink much water

C．if they come out at night

D．if they can't make holes underground

阅读理解

　　One of New York's most beautiful and valuable buildings is in danger. The New York Public Library, in the heart of the city at 42nd Street and 5th Avenue, may have to close its doors.

　　The library is a very special place. Even though it is in the busiest part of the city, it has grass and trees around it, and benches for people to sit on. Even more unusual in the crowded New York, its rooms are very large. The roof of the main reading room is fifty－one feet high. Here, a reader can sit and think and work in comfort.

　　And what books there are to work with. The library has over thirty million books and paintings. It owns one of the first copies of a Shakespeare play, a Bible printed by Gutenberg in the 15th century, and a letter written by Columbus in which he tells the finding of the new world.

　　Every New Yorker can see and use the library's riches free.

　　But the cost of running the library has risen rapidly in recent years, and the library does not have enough money to continue its work. In the past, it was open every evening and also on Saturdays and Sundays. Now it is closed at those times, to save money.

　　The library is trying in every possible way to raise money to meet its increasing costs. Well－known New York writers and artists are trying to help. So are the universities, whose students use the library, and the governments of the New York City and the New York State. But the problem remains serious.

　　Yet a way must be found to save the library because, as one writer said, “The Public Library is the most important building in New York City－it contains all our knowledge.”

1．Which of the following is true?

[　　]

A．The library's costs are cut down.

B．The library owns a letter for Columbus.

C．It is impossible to grow grass and trees around the library:

D．There are so many books to work with.

2．Which of the following is Not true?

[　　]

A．At present the library is closed even later than before.

B．It is open from morning to afternoon every day except weekend.

C．The readers can sit and think and work comfortably in the main reading room of the library.

D．In the past, the library was open every day.

3．How much does a New Yorker have to pay for the use of the library?

[　　]

A．A New Yorker used to pay nothing, but now has to pay a little money.

B．He has to pay the library increasing costs.

C．Every New Yorker can visit the library freely, and use it with payment.

D．A New Yorker doesn't have to pay anything for the use of the library.

4．Why does the author say that the New York's Library is in danger?

[　　]

A．Because the building is too old to be used any more.　　

B．Because it's too crowded.

C．Because the roof of the main reading room needs repairing.

D．Because they haven't got enough money to run the library.

5．Why is it important to save the library? Because ________.

[　　]

A．famous writers and artists are trying to help

B．there is a fifty－one－foot－high main reading room in it

C．it contains all our knowledge

D．it is one of the New York's most valuable buildings

阅读理解

　　“We don't have rush hours any more,” said Charles M. McLean, who runs the nation's busiest road. “We have rush periods, and they keep getting longer and longer.”

　　McLean was describing Chicago's 235 miles of expressway. But the same might be said about almost any of the expressways that have become an important part of American city life－and about the heavy traffic that often blocks them.

　　In Chicago, a computerized system has been developed that controls traffic on the city's seven expressways. Now one man－a controller－can follow the movement of Chicago' s traffic by looking at a set of lights.

　　The system uses electronic sensors that are built into each expressway, half a mile apart, Several times a second, the computer receives information from each sensor and translates it into green, yellow, or red lights on a map in the control room.

　　A green light means traffic is moving forty－five miles an hour, yellow means thirty to forty－five miles an hour, and red means heavy traffic－cars standing still or moving less than thirty miles an hour.

　　“See that red light near Austin Avenue?” the controller asked a visitor. “That's a repair truck fixing the road, and the traffic has to go around it.”

　　At the Roosevelt Road entrance to the expressway, the light kept changing from green to red and back to green again. “A lot of trucks get on the expressway there,” the controller explained. “They cannot speed up as fast as cars.”

　　The sensors show immediately where an accident or a stopped car is blocking traffic, and a truck is sent by radio to clear the road. The system has lowered the number of accidents by 18 percent. There are now 1.4 deaths on Chicago's expressway for each one hundred million miles traveled, while in other parts of the country there are 2.6.

　　Traffic experts say that the Chicago system is the “coming thing”. Systems like Chicago's are already in use on some expressways in Los Angeles and Huston. “Chicago has taken the lead,” says New York City's traffic director; and he adds, “We are far behind…”

1．What would be the best title for this passage?

[　　]

A．Computerized Traffic Control System

B．Rush Periods Getting Longer

C．The Nation's Busiest Road

D．Sensors on Expressways

2．How does the controller follow the Chicago's traffic?

[　　]

A．By learning how to use a computer.

B．By waiting for the red light to turn to green.

C．By watching the sensors built into the expressways.

D．By looking at a set of lights on the map in the control room.

3．What color shows that the traffic moves the fastest?

[　　]

4．The underlined word “it” in the passage refers to ________.

[　　]

A．a truck which needs repairing

B．a truck doing repairs on the road

C．Austin Avenue

D．a red light

阅读理解

　　For years, children in the industrial areas of Europe and America seldom left their smoky cities to see the beauty of the countryside. This was not because the woods and fields were always far away, but because they were too far from the city to permit people to make a day trip between morning and nightfall.

　　In 1970, a young German school master had an idea which changed this state of affairs. He decided to turn his little school house into a dormitory or hostel(青年招待所) for the summer holidays. Anyone who brought his sleeping bag and cooking equipment along could stay there for a very small quantity of money. The idea was a success. A few years later, the school house was much too small to hold the many young people who wanted to stay there. As a result, a dormitory was set up in an old castle nearby. This is the first hostel.

　　Today young students and workers of every country can meet in the hostel and get to know each other. When young people arrive at the hostel, they have only to show their cards of membership in the hostel organization in their own country. This card will permit them to use the facilities of the hostel all over the world for very low prices.

　　Often, at the evening meal, a group of boys and girls from various parts of the country or world will happen to meet at the same hostel. They may put their food together and prepare a dinner with many kinds of dishes. Sometimes a program will be organized after the meal with dances, songs or short talks followed by a question period. One can learn a lot of things about other places. For this reason, a few weeks spent “hostelling” can be just as useful a part of one's education classes in school.

1．The author says children in the city seldom went to the woods and the fields because ________.

[　　]

A．all these places were too far away for them to go

B．it was impossible for them to go and get back in one day

C．they were not old enough to take such a trip

D．they were not permitted to go to these places

2．In the second paragraph the author says “The idea was a success”. This means ________.

[　　]

A．the school master made a lot of money and got very rich

B．the school master became very famous among young children

C．more and more young students went to the school house in the following years for summer holidays

D．many young children became students of his school each year and began to study there during summer holidays

3．According to the passage, young people can pay less for their stay in the hostel if ________.

[　　]

A．they get to know each other in the hostel

B．they can prove that they have joined the hostel organization

C．they have brought enough equipment with them

D．they can prove that they are from a foreign country

4．In the author's opinion, young people can learn a lot during the days they spend “hostelling” because ________.

[　　]

A．they meet a lot of people from different places

B．they have classes in the hostel as useful as in schools

C．they have more interesting activities than at schools

D．they are very much interested in the life in the hostel

5．Which do you think is the best title for this passage?

[　　]

A．Youth Organizations

B．Education out of School

C．International Travel

D．Summer Holidays

阅读理解

　　Alaska is known for its cold and snowy weather. For many years dog sleds(雪橇) were the only means of transportation during the long winter. Today some Alaskans combine fun and hard work in a yearly dog sled race. The Iditarod Trail Race is the longest dog sled race in the world. It lasts from two to three weeks and covers almost seventeen hundred kilometers.

　　The race goes across Alaska from Anchorage to Nome. It follows trails that were once used by people who looked for gold in Alaska's wildness. The race also follows the route of several brave Alaskans who brought medicine from Anchorage to Nome in the winter of 1925. They carried the badly needed medicine through bad storms and helped save many lives.

　　The race, which is held in March, is very hard for the dog sled drivers. Each day, the dogs run for about four hours and then rest for four hours. Often, they have to travel as much as 110 kilometers a day. The drivers must feed and take care of the dogs during the rest periods. Sometimes they only sleep for about two hours each day. Because the race is so hard, many drivers don't expect to win. For most of them, just being able to finish is a victory.

1．During the winter of 1925, ________.

[　　]

A．people looked for gold in Alaska's wildness

B．several brave Alaskans brought medicine from Anchorage to Nome

C．the worst storm in Alaskan history took place

D．the first Iditarod Trail Race took place

2．The main topic of the passage is ________.

[　　]

A．The Alaska Winter

B．Transportation in Alaska

C．The longest Dog Sled Race in the World

D．The Importance of Winning

3．What is true according to the passage?

[　　]

A．The Iditarod Trail Race is the hardest race in the world.

B．The race usually covers 17,000 kilometers and lasts a couple of weeks.

C．Anchorage may be the starting point of the race.

D．Anchorage is seven hundred kilometers away from Alaska.