阅读理解

　　Compulsive(强迫的)shoppers may have a new psychological excuse to blame for their wild shopping. Psychologists at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand are studying the“shop-till-you-drop”habit as a behavioral disorder similar to compulsive eating. Compulsive shoppers frequently buy more than they can afford or more than they need, and it causes them distress.

　　“It becomes a problem when you are out of control.”psychology lecturer Neville Blampied said.“When you are feeling bad and blue，what do you do? Some people eat chocolate cake and ice cream. Some people take the credit card and go out to the shop.”Bank managers understand the problem because they have to deal with people who have to be persuaded to stop using their cards drawing money.

　　Compulsive shopping was first discovered in 1915, although it was then known as oniomania. Few studies have been done on the problem.

　　An advertisement in a Christchurch paper, calling for people to take part in an experimental treatment program designed by Mr Wilson, attracted 10 replies. But the problem, said Mr Wilson，is“clearly not rare”. He thinks that compulsive shopping should be treated with drugs.“As psychologists we are interested in non-drug treatments for behavioral difficulties,”Mr Wilson said.

　　Compulsive eaters or shoppers get a kick from their habit.“Both activities provide an immediate kind of kick and you feel a bit better,”he said.“You have long-term problems, but human beings are extremely good at not seeing long-term problems and are very sensitive to short-term benefits,”he said.

　　The aim of the treatment was to help people find better ways of managing their emotions. The program, consisting of 10 one-hour weekly lessons and two follow-up treatments, is loosely based on teaching stress management.

　　“You 0ften have to start to get people to correctly recognize their emotions. Not being able to know what you really feel weakens your ability to solve the problems connected with what's making you feel that way,”Mr Wilson said.

1．What is this article mostly about?

[　　]

A．Signs of compulsive shopping.

B．Studies of compulsive shopping.

C．comparison of compulsive shopping and compulsive eating.

D．An experimental treatment program designed by Mr Wilson.

2．The compulsive shoppers will go shopping when _____.

[　　]

A．they have lots of money

B．they are taking drugs

C．they are feeling sad

D．they win a prize

3．The underlined word“it”in the first paragraph most probably refers to _____.

[　　]

A．compulsive eating

B．a new psychological excuse

C．the study done by Blampied

D．the behavior of wild shopping

4．Which of the following is considered important in treating compulsive shoppers?

[　　]

A．Teaching them to manage their money better.

B．Teaching them to understand their emotions.

C．Persuading them not to draw money from the bank.

D．Treating them with right drugs.

5．When the writer says that compulsive shoppers get a kick from their habit, he means that they _____.

[　　]

A．feel distressed after their wild shopping

B．feel better after treatment from psychologists

C．are better able to deal with stress problems

D．have a feeling of excitement after shopping

阅读理解

　　Columbus made four voyages to the west between 1492 and 1504 in his vain(徒劳的)search for a sea route to Asia. The mystery of why he failed to find it haunted(萦绕心头的，耿耿于怀的)him and filled him with sadness.

　　Wherever he went to Cuba(古巴), Puerto Rico(波多黎各), Jamaica(牙买加), South America, Panama(巴拿马), down the coast of Central America--it was always the same story. Instead of golden palaces, there were grass huts and palm-leaf tents. Instead of silk-robed merchant princes, he found“Indians”who did not have so much as a shirt on their backs.

　　When Columbus explored the West Indies in 1493, he heard tales of a fierce Indian tribe(凶狠的印第安部落) who literally devoured(吞食) its defeated enemies after a battle. These people were called by many names in the area, including Calina, Canima, Carib, and Caniba. Columbus recorded the name of the American natives as Canibales in Spanish, a word which came to refer, within a few years, to any eater of human flesh(食人部落, 食人族). In the similar fashion, the word Caribbean, a title for the sea as well as for the region, came into English.

　　At times Columbus knew that this new land was not China, not Japan，not the Spice Islands. He seemed to accept it as a part of the earth that the geographers of Europe had never heard of before. It was another world--and he called it exactly that--but Columbus also insisted until he died that land he had reached was an unknown part of Asia.

1．What is the best title for this text?

[　　]

A．Sailing to Asia

B．Columbus' voyages

C．West Indies

D．Spice Islands

2．In the course of his four voyages, Columbus succeeded in _____.

[　　]

A．finding China and the Spice Islands

B．trading with many merchants

C．visiting several parts of Central and South America

D．sailing to Asia

3．According to this text, Columbus _____.

[　　]

A．sailed to find new lands for the king

B．sailed to find a water route round the world

C．sailed to establish trading ports

D．named the Caribbean which literally means any eater of human flesh

4．Columbus thought that _____.

[　　]

A．others had sailed to Asia before him

B．it was impossible to sail to Asia

C．the land he had found was not China or Japan

D．the geographers knew about the land he had found

5．The text implies that _____.

[　　]

A．Columbus never realized the full meaning of his discovery

B．Columbus was disappointed with his voyages

C．there was no way to reach Asia from Europe at that time

D．Columbus found exactly what he had intended to

阅读理解

　　CATV is a short way of saying“community antenna(社区天线)television”. But“cable television”is the term most people use. Cable television allows viewers to receive TV programs that they cannot pick up with their regular antennas.

　　Television signals do not follow the curve (曲线) of the earth. They travel in straight lines in all directions. Signals from a TV station move toward the horizon(地平线)and then go into space. If you live only a few miles from a station, you may not get any picture at all.

　　CATV began in 1948. People in places far from TV stations shared the cost of putting up high antennas. A community antenna was usually placed on a hill, a mountain，or on a high tower. The antenna picked up TV signals and fed them into a small local station. From the station, thick wires called cables ran out to nearby homes. Each person using the cable paid a monthly charge.

　　CATV worked well, and soon new uses were found for it. Local stations could feed programs into empty channels that were not in use. People along the cable could have local news, weather reports, and farm and school news at no extra charge.

　　Today, cable television has moved into cities. It brings in extra programs that city viewers with regular antennas cannot see. It is also used in many classrooms throughout the country.

1．From the first paragraph we know that _____.

[　　]

A．most people use cable television

B．“community antenna”is another name for“regular antenna”

C．a community antenna is used for cable television

D．regular antennas cannot pick up TV programs

2．Of the following, which is NOT the way TV signals travel?

[　　]

A．In a curve.

B．In a straight line.

C．In all directions.

D．Toward the horizon.

3．Cable TV is becoming more and more popular because _____.

[　　]

A．it is free of charge

B．it can provide more programs with better pictures

C．it provides all TV users good pictures

D．it can be used in classrooms，too

4．On the whole, this passage is about _____.

[　　]

A．how to put up high antennas

B．a better way of picking up TV programs

C．how to use the empty channels on your TV set

D．the way that TV signals are sent

阅读理解

　　LONDON Tuesday April 11--Dustin Hoffman fan Pamela Crack got the shock of her life when the movie star telephoned her as she was doing her housework. Crack, 58, said she was“flabbergasted”when she picked up the phone and heard the star at the other end.

　　“It's not every day you get a Hollywood superstar phoning you when you're doing the housework,”Crack told the Sun.“It was a moment I'll never forget.”

　　Hoffman was in the back of a London taxi driven by Crack's husband，Dave, when he made the call after being told Pamela was a fan. Dave Crack later became the star of Hoffman's speech at the Bafta award ceremony Sunday, where the 62-year-old American actor presented the Best Film award.

　　“He said to give him a mention,”Hoffman told the audience to a burst of laughter.“Cheers Dave.”Taxi driver Crack said the Hollywood star was a joy to drive from the moment he got into the taxi eating a cheese and tomato sandwich.

　　“I said‘You're that Dustin Hoffman, aren't you?’and he said,‘Yes I am--would you like a sandwich?’I was a bit surprised but I took a sandwich from him and ate it hungrily.”

1．What does the word“flabbergasted”in the first paragraph probably mean?

[　　]

A．Pleased.　　　　 B．Honored.

C．Frightened.　　　D．Surprised.

2．How did Dustin Hoffman learn that Pamela was a fan?

[　　]

A．He learned it at a dinner party.

B．He learned it from Dave Crack.

C．He learned it when he was at the Bafta ceremony.

D．He learned it when he was watching a Hollywood movie.

3．What was Hoffman doing when he talked about Dave Crack?

[　　]

A．He was riding in a taxi.

B．He was presenting the Best Film award.

C．He was talking to Pamela on the phone.

D．He was eating a cheese and tomato sandwich.

4．It is most likely that Dustin Hoffman came to London _____.

[　　]

A．to meet Pamela Crack

B．to spend a sight-seeing holiday

C．to attend the Bafta award ceremony

D．to meet a Hollywood superstar from America

5．Which of the following is the correct order of events mentioned in the article?

a．Hoffman mentioned Dave's name in his speech at the ceremony.

b．He got into Dave Crack's taxi in London.

c．He telephoned Pamela Crack.

d．He talked to Dave Crack.

[　　]

A．bdca　　　B．cdab

C．abdc　　　D．dbca

阅读理解

　　Some inventions are so useful, but seem so simple, that we wonder why no one thought of them long ago. Post-it Notes--the pieces of paper that you can fasten almost any where and then remove without leaving any sign that they were there--are an example of such an invention.

　　Post-it Notes were invented about twenty years ago by Art Fry, a scientist at 3M Corporation. The idea for the product came from a frustrating(令人沮丧的)experience he often had while singing in his church choir(唱诗班). Fry used pieces of paper as bookmarks to mark the places in his book of songs, but these bookmarks were always falling out. He knew he needed a bookmark that would stay where he put it, but that he could remove without damaging the pages.

　　Around that time, Fry heard about a new adhesive(粘合剂) that a colleague(同行), Dr. Spence Silver, had created. This adhesive was special because it was sticky，but not too sticky. It was strong enough to hold papers together, but weak enough to not tear the paper when it was removed. Fry saw that the new adhesive could help solve his bookmark problem. One morning, Fry put some of the adhesive on the edge of a piece of paper. Just as he hoped, it made a perfect bookmark.

　　A short time later, Fry realized that his new invention had even more uses than being a great bookmark. He came to this realization when he wrote a note on one of his new“bookmarks”and attached(附着)it to a report he was going to give to a colleague. Soon, co-workers were asking Fry for more samples(样品)of his invention so that they could use the new type of notes themselves.

　　Fry and some other people at 3 M believed so much in the new product that they persuaded the company to give away thousands of the“sticky pieces of paper”for trial use. When some salespeople at 3M went to offices and showed workers just how helpful the new type of notes could be, they immediately received many orders. As more and more people discovered how useful Post-it Notes could be, the product took off.

1．The invention of Post-it Notes showed that Art Fry _____.

[　　]

A．had a lot of knowledge

B．was very hard-working

C．was good at creative(创造性的)thinking

D．loved his job in the church

2．In what way did Dr. Spence help Art Fry?

[　　]

A．They worked together and often discussed science.

B．His invention of a special adhesive made Art's invention possible.

C．He persuaded 3M Corporation to give away lots of Post-it Notes for trial use.

D．He cooperated with Art by providing the new adhesive for Art.

3．Which of the following is a possible use of Post-it Notes?

[　　]

A．A note on a friend's door.

B．An e-mail to a friend.

C．A postcard from abroad.

D．An ad in a newspaper.

42The underlined phrase“took off”means _____.

[　　]

A．started to leave the ground

B．disappeared from the market

C．had even more uses

D．became popular very quickly

阅读理解

　　“It was all his own idea,”says Pat Peters, the 38-year-old wife of Palo Alto, California high school football coach Bob Peters, 39. Bob had just drawn up a“motherhood contract”--a document(文件)stating that for 70 days this summer he would take over the care and feeding of the couple's four children, plus all household chores(杂务). Although he didn't even know how to make coffee when he signed, he was quite confident. (He thought the experience would make a nice book.)

　　After 40 of the 70 days, he was ready to give up.“I was beaten down, completely humbled,”admits Peters. Three weeks later he spoke to the local press(also part of the bargain), stating,“Not only is motherhood a difficult task, not only is it never-ending, it is an impossible job for any normal human being.”

　　Bob and Pat were high school sweethearts. After they were married in 1960, she worked as a secretary to help put him through university. Since then Bob has been the football and wrestling coach at Palo Alto's Cubberley High while Pat raised the kids.

　　Then two years ago Pat went back to work as a secretary at Cubberley.“I had been around children so much,”she sighs(叹气).“I couldn't talk to a grown-up.”She continued to run the household，however--until Bob signed the contract, whereupon she decided to relax and enjoy it. Although Peters had consulted with his school's home economics teachers and the head of the cafeteria(食堂), his meals were sometimes a disaster.“I tried to slip the butter I'd forgotten under the eggs after they were frying,”he says. For the last three weeks, the family ate out a lot--sometimes having Macdonald's hamburgers for lunch and dinner.

　　As for housekeeping, a home economics teacher had told Bob that a room always looks clean if the bed is made.“I found an easier way--I shut the doors,”he says. Soon the kids were-wearing the same clothes for a week.“I made them wear their shirts inside out, and when we went to pick up Pat at work they turned them right side out so they would look clean.”

　　Now that Bob has publicly admitted he was wrong, he is routinely(日常地)sharing the child-raising and household tasks with Pat. The tentative(暂定的)title of his book about the summer is taken from something he shouted at the kids one day.

1．The couple signed the contract because _____.

[　　]

A．Pat complained a lot about her doing the housework all by herself

B．Bob 10ved taking care of children and wanted his wife to have a good rest

C．they agreed that husband and wife should share household tasks

D．Bob thought it easy to take care of the family and wanted the experience for a book

2．It was agreed that if Bob failed to keep to the contract, he would have to _____.

[　　]

A．pay a certain amount of money

B．do all the housework for years

C．say sorry to his wife

D．admit publicly he was wrong about motherhood

3．What can we learn about Pat Peters?

[　　]

A．She was hard working and selfless.

B．She was pretty and kind-hearted.

C．She was tired of the child-raising and household tasks.

D．She did not love Bob any longer.

4．Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

[　　]

A．Bob managed to keep the kids' clothes clean.

B．Bob tried to cook good meals for his children.

C．Bob frequently took the kids out to eat because he was too busy at work.

D．Bob taught the kids to make their beds every day.

5．Which of the following can best end the new story?

[　　]

A．“My experience of being a mother.”

B．“I'm proud of you all, my dear!”

C．“Wait till your mother gets home!”

D．“Motherhood: an impossible job for anyone.”

阅读理解

　　Dr Wiseman started“the laugh lab”project in September 2001. It is the largest study of humour. Participants(参加者) are invited to log on to the laugh lab website, give a few personal details, tell their favourite jokes and judge the jokes told by other people.

　　The project will last for a year，and the organizers hope to finally discover the world's funniest joke．But there is also a serious purpose. The researchers want to know what people from different nations and cultures find funny. And they want to find out the differences between the male and female sense of humour. The idea is that if we want to understand each other, we have to find out what makes us laugh.

　　This is a subject that has long interested psychologists(心理学家)and philosophers(哲学家). Most of the time，people are not completely honest. We do things that society expects of us and say things that help us get what we want. But laughing cannot be controlled. When we laugh，we tell the truth about ourselves.

　　By December 2001 over 10000 jokes had been submitted. This gave the scientists enough evidence(证据)to make early conclusions. It seems that men and women do have different senses of humour，for instance.

　　“Our findings show the major differences in the ways in which males and females use humour,”said Dr Wiseman.“Males use humour to appear superior(优越的)to others, while women are more skilled in languages and prefer word play.”

　　Researchers also found that there really is such a thing as a national sense of humour. The British enjoy what is usually called“toilet humour”. But the French like their jokes short and sharp:“You're a high priced lawyer. Will you answer two questions for $500?”“Yes. What's the second question?”

　　The Germans are famous for not having a sense of humour. But the survey found that German participants were more likely to find submitted jokes funny than any other nationality. Perhaps that proves the point. Is this joke funny? I don't know, but let's say yes, just to be safe.

　　Dr Wiseman and his workmates also submitted jokes created by computer．But none of those who took part in the survey found any of them amusing. Perhaps this is relief. Computers already seem like they can do everything. At least they should leave the funny stuff to us.

1．scientists started“the laugh lab”project _____.

[　　]

A．to find the funniest joke in European countries

B．to know what funny people are from different nations and cultures

C．to find OUt the differences between the male and female sense of humour

D．to get more personal details about participants

2．We can infer from the passage that _____.

[　　]

A．most of the people all over the world are completely honest

B．psychologists and philosophers take interest in“the laugh lab”project

C．ordinary people are not interested in“the laugh lab”project at all

D．people tell the truth about themselves only when they laugh

3．What is the main idea of the 4th and 5th paragraphs?

[　　]

A．Man and woman have different senses of humour.

B．Male and female have similar senses of humour.

C．About 10000 jokes have been submitted from September 2001 to December 2001.

D．Scientists have collected enough evidence to make conclusions.

4．The writer gave the examples of the British, the French and the Germans _____.

[　　]

A．to show that the French people have a better sense of humour

B．to prove the British people have a sense of“toilet humour”

C．to show people from different nations have different senses of humour

D．to prove that the Germans have no sense of humour

5．Which statement is TRUE according to the passage?

[　　]

A．The jokes by computer are less funny that those by humans.

B．The Germans cannot find the submitted jokes amusing.

C．Males are better at word play compared with women.

D．Females like to use humour to show that they are superior.

阅读理解

　　We have all experienced days when everything goes wrong. A day may begin well enough, but suddenly everything seems to get out of control. What invariably happens is that a great number of things choose to go wrong at precisely the same moment. It is as if a single unimportant event set up a chain of reactions. Let us suppose that you are preparing a meal and keeping an eye on the baby at the same time. The telephone rings and this marks the prelude(序幕)to an unforeseen(意料之外的)series of catastrophes(大祸). While you are on the phone，the baby pulls the table-cloth off the table, smashing half your best crockery(陶器)and cutting himself in the process. You hang up hurriedly and attended to baby, crockery, etc. Meanwhile, the meal gets burnt. As if this were not enough to reduce you to tears, your husband arrives, unexpectedly bringing three guests to dinner.

　　Things can go wrong on a big scale as a number of people recently discovered in Parramatta, a suburb of Sydney. During the rush hour one evening two cars collided and both drivers began to argue．The woman immediately behind the two cars happened to be a learner. She suddenly got into a panic and stopped her car. This made the driver following her brake hard. His wife was sitting beside him holding a large cake. As she was thrown forward, the cake went right through the windscreen and landed on the road. Seeing a cake flying through the air, a lorry-diver who was drawing up alongside the car, pulled up all of a sudden. The lorry was loaded with empty beer bottles and hundreds of them slid off the back of the vehicle and on to the road. This led to yet another angry argument. Meanwhile, the traffic piled up behind. It took the police nearly an hour to get the traffic on the move again. In the meantime, the lorry-driver had to sweep up hundreds of broken bottles. Only two stray dogs benefited from all this confusion, for they greedily devoured what was left of the cake. It was just one of those days!

1．What would have most upset the woman the day every thing went wrong for her?

[　　]

A．She had not expected her husband to arrive so early.

B．The meal she had cooked for the three guests had got burnt.

C．Her husband had not told her he was bringing anyone to dinner.

D．She had not got enough crockery left to serve the meal with.

2．There was a second angry argument because _____.

[　　]

A．the lorry driver blamed the owner of the cake for his accident

B．the traffic was extremely slow to get on the move again

C．the lorry-driver did not think he should be made to sweep up the glass

D．two dogs had devoured what was left of the cake

3．In the sentence“It is as if a single unimportant event set up a chain of reactions”,“set up”means“_____”.

[　　]

A．establish　　　 B．build

C．cause　　　　　D．fix

4．According to the passage，the lorry stopped suddenly _____.

[　　]

A．in order not to hit the car in front

B．in order to draw up alongside the car

C．because the driver didn't want to run over the dogs

D．because the driver has seen a cake in the air

阅读理解

　　Shopping carts are such a ubiquitous presence in stores today that it is hard to imagine a time without them. And yet it wasn't until the year 1937 when the first shopping cart was introduced.

　　The shopping cart was the brainchild of Sylvan Goldman，the owner of a grocery food chain in Oklahoma．Goldman noticed that his customers struggled to carry their food in heavy hand-held baskets. He decided there must be an easier way for his customers to carry the food around in his markets. Observing a folding chair, Goldman decided to use that as the prototype(原型) for his new shopping cart.

　　With the aid of a mechanic, Fred Young, Goldman designed the first shopping cart based on the folding chair. Wheels were placed where the bottoms of the chair legs were. In place of the chair seat, Young and Goldman, placed two metal baskets on top of each other. This cart could be stored by folding it up like a folding chair.

　　At first there was a bit of difficulty getting the public to accept shopping carts. Men thought using them was effeminate(女人气的) while younger women considered the use of the shopping carts to carry products around to be somewhat unstylish. Goldman solved this problem by hiring men and women models to use shopping carts in his stores. In addition, store greeters instructed customers in how to use the shopping carts. In short order, the shopping carts became incredibly popular because it made shopping much easier for customers. By 1940 the popularity of shopping carts had grown to such an extent that there was a 7-year waiting list in store orders for new shopping carts.

1．The underlined word“ubiquitous”is closest in meaning to“_____”.

[　　]

A．strange　　　　 B．pleasant

C．common　　　　D．possible

2．The idea of shopping carts came from _____.

[　　]

A．Goldman's imagination

B．customers' needs

C．Fred Young's suggestion

D．other shops' examples

3．How is the above shopping cart different from Goldman's first one?

[　　]

A．It has no legs.

B．It has no seats.

C．It has only two wheels.

D．It has only one basket.

4．Why was it difficult to get the public to accept shopping carts at first?

[　　]

A．Both men and women were afraid they would not look good if they used them.

B．People thought it unnecessary to use them because they never did much shopping.

C．The early shopping carts were too difficult to use.

D．Only men and women models were supposed to use such modern things.

5．How popular did Goldman's invention finally become?

[　　]

A．Men and women models used shopping carts in his

B．Store greeters instructed customers in how to use the shopping carts.

C．Some stores had to wait several years to get his shopping carts.

D．His shopping carts had improved so much that both men and women liked to use them.

阅读理解

　　One of the strongest arguments for the raising of the school leaving age(ROSLA)has been that it will bring us some way nearer to“equality of opportunity”.

　　Many people like to think of our present system of schooling as providing plenty of steps up the ladder of success for clever children. It would be good to think that no one who is really bright can be missed out when the state system is obviously so complete. It is obvious, for instance，that many children from less wealthy homes reach university or do well in other ways.

　　Unfortunately we now have plenty of proofs that many children of every level of ability do much less well than they could. For instance，during the years of national military service it was possible to test the intelligence(智力)of all male 18-to-20-year-olds. Half of those soldiers who were placed in the two highest ability groups had left school at 15.

　　It has also been shown that the percentage of working class children going to university is almost the same now as it was in 1939. One study of 5000 children from birth to 21 years old shows that up to half the bright pupils from working class homes left school when they reached 16 years old. Moreover, there is no difference in intelligence between the sexes, but far more boys than girls stay in education after 16.

　　It is clear from this and many other proofs that many children are still leaving school too early to benefit from the prizes--money，social respectability, and interesting jobs--which higher education gives. It is clear too that the reasons why such children leave have much to do with their social background. Their parents often need the extra money another money-earner would bring in；they don't value education for itself because their own was probably dull and unhappy. It is not so much that they force their sons and daughters to leave school, rather that they tend to say,“it's up to you”.

1．It is hoped that ROSLA will give all children _____.

[　　]

A．a more enjoyable time at school

B．the same chances in society

C．the right to a better school

D．higher scores in intelligence tests

2．People would like to think that _____.

[　　]

A．equal numbers of poor and wealthy children reach university

B．those with the least money get the best education

C．intelligent children are always selected by the system

D．only really clever children do well

3．Working class children are thought to be at a disadvantage because _____.

[　　]

A．many of the clever ones leave school early

B．fewer go to university than ever before

C．more than half leave school when they are 16

D．fewer boys than girls stay at school after 16

4．Many children leave school early because _____.

[　　]

A．their social background makes them unhappy

B．they have to give something to their family's income

C．their school is a dull and unhappy place

D．their parents don't allow them to make their own decisions

5．This article shows that equal opportunity in education _____.

[　　]

A．is a thing of the past

B．has not yet been achieved

C．is there for those who deserve(值得拥有)it

D．has greatly improved our society