第三部分阅读理解（共两节，满分40分）

第一节（共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分）

　　阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

A

　　Soon it may be harder to stop and smell the roses.

　　Growing levels of air pollution from power plants and automobiles have reduced flower fragrances (芬芳) by up to 90 percent in the US.That is compared with pre-industrial levels,a new study has found.

　　The trend is unpleasant for human noses,but may be life - threatening for bees and butterflies.

　　"Many insects find flowers by folowing the scent(香味) produced by those flowers," said the studies lead author Jose D.Fuentes,an environmental scientist at the University of Virginia.

　　"The increasing pollution makes it difficult for them to locate the flowers and feed on their nectar(花蜜)."

　　Scientists have alrady known that flowers produce scent molecules(分子) that bond with pollutants.The process breaks down the plants' sweet smell.

　　With more pollution in the air,the scent molecules don't remain effective as long and travel shorter distances on the wind.

　　The new study suggests that in the mid - 19th century,when pollution levels were first recorded,scent molecules would have been able to travel some 1,000 to 1,200 meters.

　　Today,in the polluted air found downwind of large cities,scentst may only make it some 200 to 300 meters.

　　The report was recently published in the journal,Atmospheric Environment.

　　Bee farmers have reported that bee populations are dropping dramatically in many parts of the world in recent years. Could these missing scents be a factor?

　　Scientists trying to hind the cause of bee population declines have blamed bacteria,pesticides,and even cellphone radiation.

　　Jay Evans,an entomologist(昆虫学者) at the US Department of Agriculture's bee research laboratory,was interested in the new study.But he says he hasn't seen bee behavior that suggests trouble with scents.

　　"Over the last couple of summers I don't think the bees in this area were bringing in much less food,"he said.

　　"It might be that they had to work harder,but it seems like as long as there were bees to collect food they were finding flowers somewhere."

　　But Fuentes fears that the fading smell of flowers may stress insects that are already faced with other threats.

　　"The effects shown in these studies will simply exacerbate whatever the bees are going through right now,"he said.

　　"It's something that is really worthwhile paying attention to."

　　56.What's the passage mainly about?

　　　A.How greatly air plooution affects our lives.

　　　B.Effects of air pollution on bee populations.

　　　C.Measures to fight air pollution.

　　　D.The rapid decline of bee populations in the world.

　　57.According to the passage,Jay Evans probably agrees that ______ .

　　　A.bees are the insect that suffers most from air pollution

　　　B.bees are at risk of dying out owing to air pollution

　　　C.the fading smell of flowers doesn't affect bees so greatly as was thought

　　　D.as is often the case,bees fail to locate the flowers because of the missing scents

　　58.The word"exacerbate" in the last paragraph but one probably means ______.

　　　A.worsen B.improve C.get rid of D.decrease

　　59.Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

　　　A.The more air pollution there is in a region,the greater the destruction of the flower scents.

　　　B.Bacteria,pesticides,and cellphone radiation are blamed for causing the decline of bees.

　　　C.The scent molecules produced by flowers in a less polluted environment oculd travel longer and farther.

　　　D.Air pollution does more harm to insects such as bees and butterflies than human beings.

 

阅读下面短文，根据所读内容在文后第76至第85小题的空格里填上适当的单词并将答案转写到答题卡上。

注意：每空仅填一个单词。

The ancient religions of the Greeks and Romans were based on myths. Originally the word meant “spoken words” or stories. Nowadays myths refer to tales without a kernel of truth, or fantasies.

 In nearly every civilization people tried to control their surroundings and the things happening around them to make them less threatening. In prehistoric cultures myths were used to explain natural phenomena. Ancient civilizations saw the earth as the goddess because of its fertility. Other phenomena like wind, lightning and thunder also were brought into connection with supernatural forces. The people felt themselves surrounded by gods and completely dependent.

The Greek myths also originated in that manner, but had more functions. They also explained the beginning of the world and the origin of man. Furthermore, the myths kept alive the memories of the foundation of important cities as well as the heroic deeds of civilizations and individuals. The tales of heroes, human beings with often supernatural capacities, gave men examples of perfection. During the whole Classical Period people believed the myths, but over time they came to be taken less and less seriously.

During the Greek Period myths were spread by word of mouth. The singing of mythical events was an important aspect of religious ritual. Many singers traveled around and sang the tales they heard on their way.

The first collection of myths was the work of Homer. He was blind, and to survive he collected traditional stories and let them been written down by others. The books of his that we know are the Iliad and the Odyssey. The first author to write about the beginning of the world and its deities was Hesiod in the 18the century.

Title: _____ of Myths
Meaning	________	They meant “spoken words” or traditional stories.
	Nowadays	They meant something that people believe but which doesn’t _____ or is false.
____ and Status	Prehistoric cultures	They were used to explain aspects of the natural world and supernatural phenomena.
		People felt completely dependent on _____.
	Classical period	Besides explaining natural phenomena, they also ①explained how the world began and how the man came into ______; ② ________ the foundation of important cities and good deeds; ③dealt with supernatural beings and heroes.
		People believed in them but were not___ about them gradually.
Forms	Oral myths	They were usually sung in religious rituals or by ___ singers.
	____ myths	The representative authors are Homer and Hesiod.

A new enemy is threatening Japanese traditions: leisure（闲暇）. As part of its attempt to increase imports, the government is trying to get people to work less and spend more. The workers are disgusted.

The figures support the western prejudice（偏见） that the Japanese are all work and no play. Trying to force workers away from their desks and machines, the government said last April that the country should cut down from its 2,100 hours average work year to 1,899 hours and a five-day week by 1992. Beginning in February, banks and stock markets will be closed on Saturdays, staff of civil service will be forced out of their offices two Saturdays a month. The government hopes that others will follow that practice.

But some persuasion will be needed. Small companies are very angry about it and they fear competitors may not cut hours. The unions are no happier: they have even advertised in newspapers arguing their case against the foreign pressure that is forcing leisure upon them. They say that shorter hours are a disguised（隐性的） pay cut. The industrialists, who have no objection to the government’s plans, admit that shorter hours will help them cut costs. Younger Japanese who are supposed to be acting against their hard-working parents, show no sign of wanting time off, either. But unlike older workers, they do spend money in their spare time. Not content with watching television, they dance, dress up, sit in cafes, go to pop concerts and generally drive the leisure-industry boom. Now that they know how to consume, maybe the West can teach them to relax and enjoy themselves, too.

1.The purpose of getting the Japanese to have more spare time is that           .

    A．the government wants to show more concern for the health of the people

    B．the government needs to get more goods from abroad

    C．the Japanese have been working too hard

    D．the Japanese hope to change the western prejudice

2.The group of people who welcome the shorter-hour system in Japan is           .

    A．the small companies          B．the industrialists

    C．the unions                   D．the younger generation

3.The unions think that           .

    A．the shorter hours they work, the higher pay the can get

    B．the more they work, the less leisure they can enjoy

    C．the shorter hours they work, the less pay they can have

    D．the greater pressure the government is forcing on them, the less happy they can be

4.The best title for this passage can be           .

    A．Oh no! Not Saturday Again!   B．Leisure: the Greatest Threat!

    C．Enjoy While You are Young!   D．Less Work and More Play!

 

 

Ed Viesturs grew up in Rockford, Illinois, where the tallest thing on the ground was the water tower. But on Thursday, Viesturs became the only American to climb to the top of the world’s 14 highest mountains.

His last hike was up Mount Annapurna, in Asia’s snowcapped Himalayas. At 26,545 feet, its top is the 10th highest in the world. It is the mountain that inspired him to start climbing.

“It seems to be the most difficult, the most dangerous,” said Viesturs. “There’s no simple way to climb it. There are threatening avalanches (雪崩) and ice falls that protect the mountain.”

In high school, Viesturs read French climber Maurice Herzog’s story of climbing the icy Annapurna. Herzog’s story was of frostbite (冻伤) and difficulty and near-death experiences. Viesturs was hooked right away.

Viesturs got his start on Washington’s Mount Rainier in 1977, guiding hikes in the summer. Fifteen years ago, he set out to walk up to the world’s highest tops. Finally, he’s done.

The pioneering climber talks about mountains as if they were living creatures that should be treated with respect. “You have to use all of your senses, all of your abilities to see if the mountain will let you climb it,” said Viesturs. “If we have the patience and the respect, and if we’re here at the right time, under the right conditions, they allow us to go up, and allow us to come down.”

What’s next for a man who can’t stop climbing? “I’m going to hold my wife and kids and enjoy the summer,” says Viesturs. But for a man who has climbed the world’s 14 tallest mountains, he will probably soon start another adventure.

1.The author used Viestures’ words in Paragraph 6 to support an opinion that       .

A．mountain climbing is a dangerous sport

B．mountains should be regarded as living creatures

C．mountain climbing needs more skills than physical energy

D．those who like mountain climbing won’t stop climbing

2.The underlined word “hooked” in Paragraph 4 can be replaced by ________.

A．frightened

B．discouraged

C．interested

D．upset

3. What’s the next probable plan of Viestures?

A．Stopping climbing and staying with his family.

B．Climbing to the top of the world’s 14 tallest mountains again.

C．Writing down the experiences about his adventure.

D．Climbing another one of the highest mountains.

 

The Donkey Mobile Library

It is a bright morning in the Ethiopian countryside. Yohannes walks beside a pair of donkeys that are pulling a two-wheeled cart. They arrive at the agricultural town of Awassa where Yohannes opens the sides of the cart to display, not the usual vegetables or tools, but children’s books. This is the Donkey Mobile Library, the first of its kind in Ethiopia and one of only a few in the world.
Yohannes was born in Ethiopia, North Africa, but trained to be a librarian in the USA and returned to Ethiopia years ago. The cart is full of picture books donated by American libraries, teachers and school children.
Yohannes arranges small painted benches in the shade of the trees, and suddenly Ethiopian children come shouting and racing down every road and path. It’s mobile library day! They circle the bookshelves with great excitement. Until the Donkey Mobile Library began its regular two-monthly visits, many of these children had never seen a book.
“Without books, education is very dull, like food without salt. You can survive but you can’t really come alive,” says Yohannes. “The ability to read is the basis for greater productivity, better health and longer life. Even though the children lack material goods, with books they can imagine a world of possibilities.”
Yohannes first worked in the children’s section of the main library in America. Surrounded by books he had never seen before, he realized how joyful and imaginative children’s literature is. He says, “I always thought of Ethiopia. But how could I bring children’s books to my home country when it had almost no libraries to keep the books in?”
He contacted Jane Kurtz, a writer born in America but brought up in Ethiopia, and together they created the Donkey Mobile Library. The children say that the Library has given them ideas about what they might do in the future. A child called Dareje wants to be a scientist and find a cure for life-threatening diseases. An eleven year-old girl, Fikerte, wants to do research about the moon and discover new facts about outer space. Tamrat, aged 10, comes every time.
“What brings you back here time and time again?” the librarian asks him.
“The stories,” Tamrat replies instantly. 
【小题1】How do the children feel when they see the Donkey Mobile Library?

A．Excited.

B．Surprised.

C．Interested.

D．Curious

【小题2】We can conclude from the passage that      .

A．Ethiopian children have no idea about their future

B．Yohannes and Kurtz share similar life experiences

C．most books in the Donkey Mobile Library were bought in America

D．donkey carts in Awassa usually carry vegetables and tools

【小题3】According to the passage, the Donkey Mobile Library      .

A．visits the countryside every day	B．was created by Yohannes himself
C．benefits Ethiopian children a lot	D．was the first of its kind in the world

【小题4】Where is the passage most likely to have been taken from?

A．A book review..

B．A news report

C．A historical story.

D．An advertisement.