Tuesday was the eighth day of the 12 th month on the Chinese lunar calendar. I first became aware of the day as a traditional festival called laba, or the eighth day of the winter month – when I was working in a factory 30 years ago.

At lunch time，some elder co-workers opened their lunch boxes, and out came the sweet smell of well-cooked rice porridge mixed with beans，nuts and dates（枣）and they talked excitedly. Then, I wondered why there should be such an unnecessary excitement over the  laba festival. Growing up during the “cultural revolution” (1966－1976), when almost all traditional things were considered out-of-date，I had scarcely become aware of most of the traditional festivals.

I really started to value and celebrate these traditional festivals when I began to write about  Chinese culture. It is really encouraging that, despite the dramatic changes and modernization that our country has experienced over the past three decades, people have come to treasure many of our traditions more. Some people may have a complaint against the extreme commercialization（商业化）of these traditional festivals, but I believe the business promotions have at least worked to increase people’s awareness.

Most of the traditional Chinese festivals are celebrated with feasts. No wonder that on Tuesday a lot of people were buying rice，nuts，dry fruit, and beans from supermarkets and stores. A few thousand went to the Yonghegong Lama Temple to make prays for peace and happiness.  

Now that we have celebrated laba festival，we are now looking forward to the Lunar New Year, when we are supposed to have a lot more feasts. In fact, it is reported that almost all popular restaurants have been booked out for the Lunar New Year Eve dinner in major cities across the country.

1．As a whole，the passage is mainly organized by_________.

    A．space               B．examples          C．time                 D．comparison

2．What is the writer’s attitude toward Chinese Festivals?

    A．He takes them seriously all the time.

    B．He values them more than before.

    C．He expects only the Lunar New Year.

      D．He thinks Chinese Festival are too commercialized.

3．The common ways to celebrate traditional Chinese festivals in the passage are to________.

       ① stop working in the factory               ② enjoy some special delicious food

       ③ have feasts with the family or friends     ④ pray for peace in temples

       ⑤ buy rice，nuts，fruits and beans         ⑥ write about Chinese culture

       A．①③⑤            B．②⑤⑥             C．①④⑥               D．②③④

4．From the last paragraph it can be inferred that now_________.   

       A．people are eager to show their richer life

    B．people have become tired of laba festival

    C．people are living a better life than before

       D．people are always active in celebrating festivals

阅读理解

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中选出最佳选项。

　　It is hard to predict how science is going to turn out, and if it is really good science it is impossible to predict. If the things to be found are actually new, they are by difinition unknown in advance. You cannot make choices in this matter. You either have science or you don’t and if you have it you are obliged to accept the surprising and disturbing pieces of information, along with the neat and promptly useful bits.

　　The only solid piece of scientific truth about which I feel totally confident is that we are profoundly ignorant about nature. Indeed, I regard this as the major discovery of the past hundred years of biology. It is, in its way, an illuminating piece of news. It would have amazed the brightest minds of the 18th century Enlightenment to be told by any of us how little we know and how bewildering seems the way ahead. It is this sudden confrontation with the depth and scope of ignorance that represents the most significant contribution of the 20th century science to the human intellect. In earlier times, we either pretended to understand how things Worked or ignored the problem, or simply made up stories to fill the gaps. Now that we have begun exploring in earnest, we are getting glimpses of how huge the questions are, and how far from being answered. Because of this, we are depressed. It is not so bad being ignorant if you are totally ignorant, the hard thing is knowing in some detail the reality of ignorance, the worst spots and here and there the not-so-had spots, but no true light at the end of the tunnel nor even any tunnels than can yet be trusted.

　　But we are making a beginning, and there ought to be some satisfaction. There are probably no questions we can think up that can’ t be answered, sooner or later, including even the matter of consciousness. To be sure, there may well be questions we can’t think up, ever, and therefore limits to the reach of human intellect, but that is another matter. Within our limits, we should be able to work our way through to all our answers, if we keep at it long enough, and pay attention.

1．According to the author, really good science ________.

[　　]

A．would surprise the brightest minds of the 18th century Enlightenment

B．will produce results which cannot be foreseen

C．will help people to make the right choice in advance

D．will bring about disturbing results

2．It can be inferred from the passage that scientists of the 18 th century ________.

[　　]

A．thoutht that they knew a great deal and could solve most problems of science

B．were afraid of facing up to the realities of scientific research

C．knew that they were ignorant and wanted to know more about nature

D．did more harm than good in promoting man’ s understanding of nature

3．What is the author’s attitude towards science?

[　　]

A．He is depressed because of the ignorance of scientists.

B．He is doubtful because of the enormous difficulties in scientific research.

C．He is confident though he is aware of the enormous difficulties in scientific research.

D．He is delighted because of the illuminating scientific findings.

4．The author believes that ________.

[　　]

A．man can find solutions sooner or later to whatever questions concerning nature he can think up

B．man can not solve all the problems he can think up because of the limits of human intellect

C．sooner or later man can think up all the questions concerning nature and answer them

D．questions concerning consciousness are outside the scope of scientific research

根据短文内容，从下框的A---F选项中选出能概括每一段主题的最佳选项。选项中有一项为多余项。

Bill，Emy，Ben，Brigitte和Susan五个人想购买杂志。阅读下面六本杂志(A、B、C、D、E和F ) 的介绍，选出符合各人需要的最佳选项。选项中有一项是多余选项。

注意： 该题要求做在答题卡上。选择E，则涂黑A+B, 选择F，则涂黑A+C

1.Bill travels a lot when he was younger．Now that he has stopped his work，he enjoys reading about foreign people，places and customs even if he has already visited that part of the world．

2. 

Emy is a university student studying Italian and Politics．She doesn’t have much time to read anything very detailed but she is looking for something with plenty of news and information．

3.Ben serves as an assistant to the general manager of an American company in Los Angeles．He is very interested in management and the use of high technology．

4.

Up till now Brigitte has never traveled far so this year she has decided to go abroad for the first time．The travel agent suggests that she should read about various countries first before choosing her holiday．

5.Susan likes shopping．She is interested in buying clothes and she needs to be offered advice on clothes．

 

A．Discover

   News magazine of science devoted to the wonders and stories of modem science，written for the educated general reader．Published by Disney Magazine Publishing CO．，Discover tells many of the same stories professionals read in Scientific American．A truly delightful family science magazine，each issue brings to light new and newsworthy topics to make dinnertime and water-cooler conversations interesting．

B．World Travel

   This weekly magazine can bring the world to your home．Have you ever wondered what the Chinese eat for breakfast? Did you know that the Sahara Desert is getting bigger every year? This fascinating magazine，full of color photographs，is your window to the world．

C．Self

   Published by Conde Nast Publications Inc．，Self is a handbook devoted to women’s overall physical and mental health．Every issue contains usable articles such as “Style Lab”．in which wearable clothes are mixed and matched on non—models and the “Eat—Right Road Map”．with tips on how to eat properly．

D．Foreign Parts   

   The weekly magazine tells what you need to know if you’re thinking of traveling．Helpful advice on what to pack and what to buy once you’re there．Lots of color photos to help you choose the best hotel, the cheapest flights and a special guide to different climates each week．

E．Wired

    This magazine is designed for leaders in the field of information engineering including top managers and professionals in the computer，business，design and education industries．Published by Conde Nast Publications Inc，Wired often carries articles on how technology changes people’s lives．

F．Europe News

   The weekly magazine keeps you in touch with what’s happening．Filled with facts and figures about almost everything you can think of, plus articles by our regular writers on the week’s most interesting news stories．Special back page sums up the news for the busy readers．

 

The taller children should stand at the back _____ everyone can see.

A．so that

B．in order to

C．so as to

D．now that

 

A few weeks ago, I followed a friend into an art supply store．I found him picking out tubes of water-color paint, which __36__ me because he's not an artist.

"I   37   up for a water-color class, and it starts next week," he said．"I really don't have  38_ for it, but it was on my list of 50 things to do before I die, so I _39__ it．Every few months I look at the list and decide what to focus on next． 40   I had the list, I complained a lot about what I was  41  _ in my life．Now I just bury myself in doing these things．Write your own list．and you'll   42   what I mean．"

So that night．I did just that, and he was right．The list revealed （显露出） a whole lot about what was __43__ to me．It also revealed how _44___ behind I am at getting to the things I really want．

    I filled up the first twenty __45__ quickly, but then began to think carefully．

Eventually I __46_ items I've thought about for years, and __47__ I've carried with me since I was young．When I  48  the list later, some entries surprised me．

First, I want to _ 49_ much more, particularly now that my children are   50_ and can go with me to see the world．I would like to take them to bike through Denmark and camp in the Canadian Rockies．

I'm also surprised to _51_ some things on the list that need to be done soon．If I'm going to learn to roller-blade （轮滑）, __52_, I'd better start before I turn 50．

Like my friend, I now have an alternative to __53__．When I'm bored with life, I take out my list．

My friend told me the _54_ was preparing the ground so that life could work in mysterious ways．"If you want your ship to come in, you must build a dock （码头）," he said．

Thanks to my _55__, I'm working on some big docks．

1.A．surprised  B．moved    C．pleased D．excited

2.A．made       B．took      C．signed  D．gave

3.A．interest   B．concern  C．time        D．emotion

4.A．went for   B．called for   C．accounted for D．cared for

5.A．Because    B．After         C．Before  D．Although

6.A．doing  B．missing  C．pushed  D．engaged

7.A．admire B．abolish  C．spot        D．see

8.A．important  B．strange  C．beneficial D．special

9.A．slightly   B．slowly   C．possibly    D．hopelessly

10.A．thoughts  B．lists         C．ideas   D．blanks

11.A．studied   B．added    C．dropped D．obtained

12.A．burdens   B．challenges   C．dreams  D．responsibilities

13.A．reviewed  B．discovered   C．wrote   D．appreciated

14.A．play      B．relax         C．travel   D．hike．

15.A．wealthier B．cleverer C．healthier   D．older

16.A．write     B．put       C．find        D．leave

17.A．such as   B．for instanceC．in fact   D．in particular

18.A．complaining   B．relaxing     C．objecting    D．adjusting

19.A．problem       B．key          C．answer   D．question

20.A．hobbies       B．optimism     C．list     D．wishes