Nineteenth-century writers in the United States, whether they wrote novels, short stories, poems or plays, were powerfully drawn to the railroad in its golden years. In fact, writers responded to the railroads as soon as the first were built in the 1830’s. By the 1850’s, the railroad was a major presence in the life of the nation. Writers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David saw the railroad both as a boon(要求) to democracy(民主国家) and as an object of suspicion. The railroad could be and was a despoiler(掠夺者) of nature, furthermore, in its manifestation of speed and noise. It might be a despoiler of human nature as well. By the 1850’s and 1860’s, there was a great distrust among writer and intellectuals of the rapid industrialization of which the railroad was a leading force. Deeply philosophical historians such as Henry Adams lamented the role that the new frenzy for business was playing in eroding traditional values. A distrust of industry and business continued among writers throughout the rest of the nineteenth century and into the twentieth.

　 For the most part, the literature in which the railroad plays and important role belong to popular culture rather than to the realm of serious art. One thinks of melodramas, boys’ books, thrillers, romances, and the like rather than novels of the first rank. In the railroads’ prime years, between 1890 and 1920, there were a few individuals in the United States, most of them with solid railroading experience behind them, who made a profession of writing about railroading—works offering the ambience of stations, yards, and locomotive cabs. These writers, who can genuinely be said to have created a genre, the “railroad novel”, are now mostly forgotten, their names having faded from memory. But anyone who takes the time to consult their fertile writings will still find a treasure trove of information about the place of the railroad in the life of the United States.

The underlined word “it” in the passage refers to______.

　　A. railroad 　　B. manifestation　　 C. speed 　　D. nature

In the first paragraph, the author implies that writers’ reactions to the development of railroads were______.

　　A. highly enthusiastic 　 B. both positive and negative　  C. unchanging　 　D. Disinterested

According to the passage, the railroad played a significant role in literature in all of the following kinds of books except_______.　

A. thrillers 　 B. boys’ books　　C. romances　　D. important novels

The phrase “first rank” in the second paragraph is closest in meaning to______.

A. largest category(类别) 　B. highest quality　  C. earliest writers 　D. most difficult language

Which of the following topics is the main idea of passage?

A. The role of the railroad in the economy of the USA　

B. Major nineteenth century writers

C. The conflict between expanding industry and preserving nature

D. The railroad as a subject for literature

—What happened over there?

—They argued________the waiter________the price of the meal.

A．to；for　　　B．against；over???? C．for；at　　　D．with；about

　　Nancy had just got a secretary's job in a big company to work in the sales department. Monday was the first day that she went to work, so she was very ?　36　?.She got up very early and arrived at the ?　37　? at twenty to eight. She ?　38　? the door open and found nobody there. “I am the ?　39　? to arrive.” She thought and came to her desk. She was ?surprised to ?　40　? a large bunch of flowers on it. They were fresh.She ?　41　? the flowers from the desk and smelled them. “Oh,how lovely!” Nancy ?　42　? joyfully. She then looked round for a ?　43　? to put them in. “Somebody has sent me flowers the ?　44　? first day!” She thought happily. “But who could it be?” She began to wonder.?

The day passed very ?　45　? and Nancy did everything with great interest and ?　46　?.For the following days of the week, the first thing Nancy did was to change water for the flowers. And then she ?　47　? herself in her work.?

Then came another Monday. When she came near her desk she was overjoyed to see a(an) ?　48　? bunch of flowers there. She quickly put them in the vase, replacing the old ones.?

The same thing happened again the next Monday, Nancy felt it ?　49　? and this time she began to think of ways to find out the ?　50　?.?

On Tuesday afternoon, she was sent to ?　51　? a plan to the general manager's office. She had to stay for a while at his secretary's desk waiting for his ?　52　?.She happened to see on the desk a big note book ?　53　?“Records of managers' meetings”, and glanced at the ?　54　? pages. Suddenly her eyes fell on these words:“In order to keep the secretaries ?　55　?,the company has decided that every Monday morning a bunch of fresh flowers should be sent to each secretary's desk.”?

Later, she was told that their general manager was a business management psychologist.?

36. A. depressed     B. encouraged C. excited       D. surprised?

37. A. office   B. workshop   C. Classroom  D. bookshop?

38. A. forced  B. pushed       C. Turned       D. knocked?

39. A. last      B. second              C. Third  D. first?

40. A. uncover              B. smell  C. Find   D. pick?

41. A. picked up    B. threw away        C. stared at     D. took up?

42. A. cried    B. Laughed     C. wept   D. replied?

43. A. jar       B. Box    C. bottle  D. vase?

44. A. happy   B. very    C. funny  D. quite?

45. A. slowly  B. normally    C. quickly      D. hardly?

46. A. wisdom       B. bravery      C. passion       D. enthusiasm?

47. A. buried  B. dressed       C. Devoted     D. seated?

48. A. old              B. Red    C. blue    D. new?

49. A. special  B. angry  C. strange       D. difficult?

50. A. sender  B. receiver      C. manager     D. waiter?

51. A. send for              B. hand out     C. try out       D. hand in?

52.A. orders   B. directives   C. gifts    D. receipts?

53. A. marked B. written       C. printed              D. signed?

54. A. closed  B. damaged    C. pinned              D. half-opened?

55. A. at home       B. on time      C. in high spirits    D. in low spirits??

Ban the Band（乐队）?

    Every year, our school has a dance for all the students. It’s a little funny seeing friends in clean shoes and trousers or colorful　　36　　, instead of the usual school uniform.

     Most of us think the dance is great　　37　　－even the teachers enjoy being there. 　　38　　, two weeks ago someone said that there would be no　　39　　band this year only CDs.

     “I don’t　　40　　it!” Amy cried out during the lunch break.

     “Someone said the school couldn’t　　41　　a band, and they think it’s too noisy anyway,” added Daniel.

     “Well, I don’t think it’s　　42　　enough without a band!” declared Angela, “and I’m going to see what can be done.”

      Angela was as good as her　　43　　. In the afternoon she went to see the school headmaster who agreed to give the　　44　　some more thought. And he suggested that one　　45　　for having a band was to increase the price of each ticket from $5 to $10. Angela had to　　46　　out whether the students would like to do that.

     “I need all of you to help me,” she　　47　　to our group before school the next day. “Mr. Berry gave me a list of all the names, and suggested we ask each one their 　　48　　about the band and the extra cost.”

      　　49　　the day we asked around as Angela suggested, and wrote down people’s feelings about the band and the cost. We were amazed how much　　50　　there was for the band and everyone agreed to pay the extra $5.

      “I’m surprised,” smiled Mr. Berry, when we gave him the　　51　　. “I really thought that only a few people　　52　　their band and that the cost would be too high. OK, Angela, your next　　53　　is to find a good band and line them up for the dance.”

Angela was all smiles and　　54　　the news to Amy and Daniel. “You’re　　55　　,” smiled Daniel to Angela as he thought how close they came to having a less than perfect dance.

36.A. shapes                B. dresses                    C. flowers                    D. pictures

37.A. fun                    B. work                       C. effort                      D. progress

38.A. Besides              B. Otherwise                C. However                 D. Therefore

39.A. new                    B. live                         C. foreign                    D. marching

40.A. mean                 B. need                        C. accept                     D. believe

41.A. lead                    B. serve                       C. afford                     D. form

42.A. good                  B. clear                       C. useful                      D. easy

43. A.look                   B. behavior                  C. mind                      D. word

44.A. schedule             B. situation                  C. view                       D. action

45.A. possibility           B. concern                   C. decision                  D. chance

46.A. call                    B. find                        C. carry                      D. point

47.A. admitted             B. replied                    C. apologized              D. announced

48.A. knowledge   B. instruction              C. opinion                   D. information

49.A. On                    B. For                         C. By                          D. During

50.A. trust                   B. money                     C. support                    D. care

51.A. results                B. notices              C. questions                 D. examples

52.A. welcomed          B. wanted                    C. defended                 D. invited

53.A. task                    B. business                   C. exercise                  D. duty

54.A. showed               B. wrote                      C. broke                      D. read

55.A. amusing       B. interesting          C. exciting                D. amazing