阅读短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。

　　The year is 2094．It has been announced that a comet(彗星)is heading towards the Earth．Most of it will miss our planet, but two pieces will probably hit the southern half of the Earth．

　　On 17 July, a piece four kilometers wide enters the Earth's atmosphere with a massive explosion．About half of the piece is destroyed, but the remaining part hits the South Atlantic at 200 times the speed of sound．The sea boils and a huge hole is made in the sea bed．Huge waves are created and spread outwards from the hole．The wall of water, a kilometer high, rushes towards southern Africa at 800 kilometers an hour．Cities on the African coast are totally destroyed and millions of people are drowned．

　　Before the waves reach South America, the second piece of the comet lands in Argentina．Earthquakes and volcanoes are set off in the Andes Mountains．The shock waves move north into California and all around the Pacific Ocean．The cities of Los Angeles, San Francisco and Tokyo are completely destroyed by earthquakes．Millions of people in the southern half of the earth are already dead, but the north won't escape for long．Because of the explosions, the sun is hidden by clouds of dust, and temperatures around the world fall to almost zero．Crops are ruined．The sun won't be seen again for many years．Wars break out as countries fight for food．A year later, no more than 10 million remain alive．

　　Could it really happen? In fact, it has already happened more than once in the history of the Earth．The dinosaurs 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 piece of object in space．The dinosaurs couldn't live through the cold climate that followed and they died out．Will we meet the same end?

阅读短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。

　　Xiangzi－Lucky, in English－is appropriately named．His owner Qiu Hong, a sports marketer, lets the dog enjoy two daily walks, a collection of imported American toys, ＄300 worth of monthly food and treats and his own sofa in her high－rise apartment．When Ms．Qiu feels bored, she takes Xiangzi out for a long run in her car．

　　In a sense, Xiangzi is not just a dog, but a social phenomenon－and, perhaps, a marker of how quickly the Chinese nation is booming through its transformation from poor farmer to first－world citizen．Twenty years ago, there were hardly any dogs in Beijing, but now there’re 900, 000 registered dogs with countless thousands of others unlicensed．How this came to be is, in some ways, the story of modern China as well．

　　“People used to be focused on improving their own lives, and they weren't really acquainted with raising dogs,” said Ms．Qiu．“But with the improvement in the economy, people's outlooks(观念)have changed．”

　　Having a dog can be a way to relieve the stress in people's lives, but mostly Beijing dogs have, as in the West, become objects of affection－even devotion－by their owners．It's easy to find dog－treat stores, dog Web sites, dog social networks, dog swimming pools－even, for a time recently, a bring－your－dog cinema and a bring－your－dog bar on Beijing's downtown nightclub row．

　　The doglike devotion of pet owners here seems to have softened the city government heart．In 1994, Beijing officials relaxed their no－dog policy to“severely restrict” dogs．In 2003, it was changed again to allow anyone to own a dog, but to limit city dogs to no more than 35 centimeters in height．And nowadays the restriction seems to be loosely carried out．

　　As for stir－fried Pekingese(京叭狗)－well, that dog, too, may have seen its day．A formal suggestion to ban the eating of dogs has been made by a law professor named Chang Jiwen, who considered himself“not so much a dog lover as a China lover”．“With China developing so quickly, more people should know how to treat animals properly,” he said in a telephone interview．

阅读短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。

　　After lots of hype, the new iPhone 3GS has arrived, boasting an improved camera, better battery life, and speedier performance．But is it a must?

　　The iPhone 3GS is available in two versions: 16GB and 32GB．The 16GB version costs ＄199, while the 32GB version costs ＄299．From the outside, the iPhone 3GS looks exactly like the iPhone 3G．Like the iPhone 3G, the new model comes in black and white versions, and sports a 3.5－inch touch screen．Most of the changes to the iPhone 3GS have been made on the inside．Apple says that battery life is better, but the biggest boost is in the iPhone's speed: The iPhone 3GS runs twice as fast as the iPhone 3G．Instead of a lot of software installed on it, the iPhone 3GS comes with the most recent version of the iPhone Software－version 3.0－installed, but it does come with easy access to Apple's App Store．The speedier performance of the iPhone 3GS extends to surfing the Web, too．You can see entire Web pages, and can zoom(急速移动)in and out with ease．

　　The notable new messaging feature on the iPhone 3GS is support for MMS．You can send pictures and videos by SMS, rather than having to send them via e－mail．Other new and very－handy e－mail features include the ability to search through your e－mail messages and contacts, as well as the option to use a landscape－oriented keyboard when composing messages．

　　The camera has been upgraded from 2 megapixels(兆像素)to 3 megapxiels, and adds auto－focus．If you already own an iPhone 3G, the iPhone 3GS may not be worth the additional cost, since you can get many of its cool features for free with the iPhone 3.0 software upgrade．But if you've been using an older iPhone or smart phone, or are new to the smart phone world, the iPhone 3GS will amaze you with its speed and plentiful features．

　　The oldest forms of medicine are enjoying a comeback．Modern holistic(整体的)medicine is an approach that treats the whole patient, not just the disease．It is a way to maintain good health rather than cure illness．The most important influences on today's holistic medicine are ancient Chinese medicine and Indian Ayurvedic medicine, both of which promoted whole body health．

　　Holistic medicine usually combines diet, physical exercise and meditation, together with other alternative techniques such as massage(按摩)and acupuncture(针灸)．Herbal treatment, a practice of treating illness by using plants, is influenced by the writings of Culpeper as well as Chinese and Ayurvedic medicine．Homeopathy(顺势疗法)is one of the forms of holistic medicine which is widely practiced in Europe and the USA．Homeopathy began in Germany in the early 1800s, when Samuel Hahnemann described how very tiny doses(剂量)of a drug had an effect on his patients．According to Hahnemann, the more the drug was diluted(稀释), the stronger its effects．The substance selected would produce similar effects to the disease itself if given in large doses．In the UK homeopathy is regarded as a non－traditional but just about acceptable treatment．

　　Meditation and contemplation have an important role in holistic medicine．They were brought to Europe by Indian teachers who combined Indian Ayurvedic medicine with Western beliefs．Transcendental meditation(超脱静坐)is one of the best known of these techniques．People repeat words inside their head to reach a state of deep relaxation．

　　The holistic movement has made many doctors look at the whole patient, not just the disease．Life－style, emotional problems and diet are just some of the factors that can affect a person's health．Holistic medicine emphasizes good diet，exercise and fresh air, all of which contribute to health．Some clinics now offer holistic medicine along with traditional treatments, so that their patients can choose a combination of treatments that suits them．One problem with holistic medicine is that it is difficult for people to be sure a doctor is reliable．To solve this, many countries want alternative doctors to form professional bodies．

　　An increase in students applying to study economics at university is being attributed to(归因于)the global economic crisis awakening a public thirst for knowledge about how the financial system works．

　　Applications for degree courses beginning this autumn were up by 15％ this January, according to UCAS, the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service．A spokesman for the Royal Economic Society said applications to do economics at A－level were also up．

　　Professor John Beath, the president of the society and a leading lecture at St Andrews University, said his first－year lectures－which are open to students from all departments－were drawing crowds of 400, rather than the usual 250．

　　“There are a large number of students who are not economics majors, who would like to learn something about it．One of the things I have done this year is to relate my teaching to contemporary events in a way that one hasn't traditionally done．” He added．

　　University applications rose 7％last year．But there were rises above average in several subjects．Nursing saw a 15％jump, with people's renewed interest in caters in the pubic sector(部门), which are seen as more secure in economic crisis．

　　A recent study showed almost two thirds of parents believed schools should do more to teach pupils about financial matters, and almost half said their children had asked them what was going on, although a minority of parents felt they did not understand it themselves well enough to explain．

　　Zack Hocking, the head of Child Trust Funds, said, “It's possible that one good thing to arise from the downturn will be a generation that's financially wiser and better equipped to manage their money through times of economic uncertainty．”

阅读理解

　　A 33-year-old financial analyst in California recently quit his job to devote himself to an unpaid job teaching math on the Internet, and his lessons are reaching almost 100,000 people a month．Salman Khan's voice is heard every day on the net by tens of thousands of students around the world who are hungry for help learning math．He has posted 1,200 lessons on YouTube－lessons that appear on an electronic blackboard, which range from basic addition to advanced mathematics for science and finance．And they are free．

　　Khan lives in Silicon Valley, with his wife, a doctor, and their new baby．He got the idea for his “Khan Academy” four years ago, when he taught a young cousin how to convert kilograms to grams．With Khan's help, the cousin got good at math, and Khan began a new career．

　　Now, Khan records his lessons himself, but he never goes on camera．“It feels like my voice in their head．You're looking at it and it feels like someone's over your shoulder talking in your ear, as opposed to someone at the blackboard, which is distant from you,” he said．

　　When Springfield High School in Palo Alto, California invited Khan to speak in person, he immediately connected to the students there．

　　The idea of short lessons that can be played over and over again attracted high school senior Bridget Meaney．She says she had trouble with math in the seventh grade．“I think the teachers are good, but they can't teach at a speed that's perfect for everyone,” she said．“I like the idea of learning something in class but then going back and pressing pause or rewind and actually getting a deeper understanding of it．”

　　Originally, Khan kept his lessons short because of YouTube restrictions．Now, he thinks short is better．“Education researchers now tell me that 10 minutes is how long someone can have a high level of concentration．And anything beyond that and your brain switches off,” he said．

　　For Khan, teaching math, science, and finance is just the beginning．He says he's ready to expand his YouTube site to include other subjects as well．

阅读理解

　　“There is an out-of-date idea that children grow up and leave home when they're 18, and the truth is far from that,” says Mr．Larry Bumpass of the University of Wisconsin, Today unexpected numbers of young adults are living with their parents．“There is a great change in the middle class,” declares Allan Schnaiberg of Northwestern University, whose son, 19, moved back in after an absence of eight months．

　　Scientists show a number of reasons for this return to the nest．The marriage age is rising, a condition that makes home and its pleasantness particularly attractive to young people．A high divorce(离婚)rate and a low remarriage rate make some differences．For some, the expense of an away-from-home college education has become so great that many students now attend local schools．Even after graduation, young people find their wings tied by terrible housing costs．

　　Living at home, says Knighton, a school teacher, continues to give security(安全保卫)and moral(道义的)support．Her mother agreed．“It's strange for the kids to pay all that money for rent．It makes sense for kids to stay at home．” But sharing the family home requires changes for all．There are the hassles over bathrooms, telephones and privacy, Some families, however, manage the careful balancing act．But for others, it proves too difficult．Michelle Del Turco, 24, has been home three times and left three times．“What I considered a social drink, my dad considered an alcohol(酒精)problem,” she explains．“He never liked anyone I dated, so I either had to hide away or meet them at friends' houses．”

　　Just how long should adult children live with their parents before moving on? Most scientists feel lengthy homecomings are a mistake．Children, can end up with a sense of defeat and failure．And aging parents, who should be enjoying some freedom, find themselves stuck with too many things．Many agree that brief visits, however, can work well．

阅读理解

　　We lived in a very quiet neighborhood．One evening I heard a loud crash in the street．Earlier that evening my wife had asked me to go to the store to get some soft drinks．It seemed like this would be a good time to let my teenage daughter Holly practice her driving, so I sent her to the store in my truck．

　　At dinner my son talked about how much he liked my truck．I enjoyed having it, but I said, “Guy, my heart is not set on that truck．I like it but it is just metal and won't last forever．Never set your heart on anything that won't last．”

　　After hearing the loud noise, the whole family ran outside．My son shouted, “Dad! Dad, Holloy crashed your truck．”

　　My heart sank and my mind was flooded with conflicting thoughts．Was anyone hurt? Who else was involved? As I ran to the door, I heard a voice in my heart say, “Here is a chance to show Holly what you really love．She'll never forget it．”

　　The accident had occurred in my own driveway．Holly had crashed my truck into our other vehicle, the family van(搬运车)．In her inexperience, she had confused the brakes and the gas pedal．Holly was unhurt physically, but when I reached her, she was crying and saying, “Oh, Dad, I'm sorry．I know how much you love this truck．” I held her in my arms as she cried．

　　Later that week a friend stopped by and asked what had happened to my truck．I told her the whole story．Her eyes moistened and she said, “That happened to me when I was a girl．I borrowed my dad's car and ran into a log that had fallen across the road．I ruined the car．When I got home my dad knocked me to the ground and began to kick me．”

　　Over 40 years later, she still felt the pain of the night．It was a deep wound on her soul．

　　I remember how sad Holly was the night she crashed our truck, and how I comforted her．One day, when Holly thinks back on her life, I want her to know that I love her a thousand times more than any piece of property．

　　I repaired the van, but the dent(凹痕)in my truck is still there today．Every day it reminds me of what really matters in my life．

阅读理解

　　The Golden Gate Bridge joins the beautiful city of San Francisco with the suburbs to the north．Each day, about 100,000 automobiles cross the bridge, taking people to and from the city．More than half of them cross the bridge during the morning and evening rush hours．When traffic is so heavy the trip is not pleasant．

　　Now, however, there is at least one group of happy commuters．These are the people who travel under the bridge instead of on it．They go to work by boat and enjoy it so much that most of them say they will never go by car again．The ferry(渡船)they take is spacious(宽敞的), quiet and comfortable．Commuters can enjoy the sun on the dock．In the morning they can have breakfast in the coffee shop．And in the evening they can order a drink in the bar while looking at the beautiful scenery．The trip takes only 30 minutes and is not very costly．Best of all, being on a boat seems to make people more friendly toward each other．There has already been a marriage of two commuters who met on the ferry．

　　Because the ferry has been so successful, there are plans to use other still larger boats．There is a proposal for a high speed boat that will make the trip in only 15 minutes．But not everyone is happy about that．A lot of people feel that half an hour is just enough time to relax．

阅读理解

　　Human remains of ancient settlements will be reburied and lost to science under a law that threatens research into the history of humans in Britain, a group of leading archaeologists says．In a letter addressed to the justice secretary．Ken Clarke, 40 archaeologists write of their "deep and widespread concern" about the issue．It centers on the law introduced by the Ministry of Justice in 2008 which requires all human remains unearthed in England and Wales to be reburied within two years, regardless of their age．The decision means scientists have too little time to study bones and other human remains of national and cultural significance．

　　"Your current requirement that all archaeologically unearthed human remains should be reburied, whether after a standard period of two years or further special extension, is contrary to basic principles of archaeological and scientific research and of museum practice," they write．

　　The law applies to any pieces of bone uncovered at around 400 dig sites, including the remains of 60 or so bodies found at Stonehenge in 2008 that date back to 3,000 BC．Archaeologists have been granted a temporary extension to give them more time, but eventually the bones will have to be returned to the ground．

　　The arrangements may result in the waste of future discoveries at sites such as Happisburgh in Norfolk, where digging is continuing after the discovery of stone tools made by early humans 950,000 years ago．If human remains were found at Happisburgh, they would be the oldest in northern Europe and the first indication of what this species was．Under the current practice of the law those remains would have to be reburied and effectively destroyed．

　　Before 2008, guidelines allowed for the proper preservation and study of bones of sufficient age and historical interest, while the Burial Act 1857 applied to more recent remains．The Ministry of Justice assured archaeologists two years ago that the law was temporary, but has so far failed to revise it．Mike Parker Pearson, an archaeologist at Sheffield University, said："Archaeologists have been extremely patient because we were led to believe the ministry was sorting out this problem, but we feel that we cannot wait any longer．"

　　The ministry has no guidelines on where or how remains should be reburied, or on what records should be kept．