完形填空（共20小题；每小题1，满分20分）

阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）出可以填入空白的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

More than I realized, Dad has helped me keep my balance.

When I was growing up, I was embarrassed to be seen with my father. He was severely disabled and very   31  , and when we would walk together, his hand on my arm for    32  , people would stare. I would inwardly feel uncomfortable at the unwanted   33  . If he ever noticed or was    34  , he never showed that he knew.

    It was difficult to coordinate our steps — his hesitant, mine   35   － and because of that, we didn’t say much   36   we went along. But as we started out, he always said, “You set the pace. I will try to follow you.”

    Our   37   walk was to or from the subway, which was   38   he got to work. He went to work despite illness and nasty weather. He almost never missed a day, and would   39   it to the office even if others could not. A matter of   40  .

He never talked about himself as an object of pity, nor did he show any envy of the more fortunate or   41  . What he looked for   42   others was a “good heart,” and if he found one, the   43   was good enough for him.

Now that I am older, I believe that his idea is a proper   44   by which to judge people, even though I   45   don’t know exactly what a “good heart” is.   46   I know the times I don’t have one myself.

    He has been gone many years now, but I think of him often. I wonder if he   47   I was unwilling to be seen with him during our   48  . Now that I am older, I’m sorry that I never told him how sorry I was for my feeling   49   to be with him in public and how unworthy I felt to be his daughter. I think of him when I complain about trifles (something unimportant), when I am envious of another’s good fortune, and when I don’t possess a “good heart”.

    At such times I put my hand on his arm to   50   my balance, and say, “You set the pace. I will try to follow you.”

31．A. weak    B. depressed   C. short             D. cautious

32．A. balance        B. strength       C. comfort        D. courage

33．A. care     B. attention     C. situation      D. friendship

34．A. puzzled         B. confused      C. amazed        D. bothered

35．A. delighted     B. impatient     C. sympathetic         D. determined

36．A. before B. since    C. as         D. once

37．A. common       B. ordinary       C. average        D. usual

38．A. how      B. why      C. when   D. where

39．A. get       B. make   C. take     D. walk

40．A. joy        B. faith     C. belief   D. pride

41．A. rich       B. successful    C. able      D. hardworking

42．A. on         B. in C. at          D. with

43．A. owner  B. keeper C. winner D. other

44．A. method        B. value    C. standard               D. level

45．A. yet        B. also      C. ever     D. still

46．A. And      B. But       C. Now     D. Then

47．A. sensed          B. smelled        C. agreed          D. recognized

48．A. walks   B. talks     C. stays    D. visits

49．A. afraid   B. proud   C. ashamed      D. disappointed

50．A. find       B. keep     C. refill     D. regain

________ a little money , Jane was able to buy her mother a lovely new watch .

A. To save   B. Saving   C. Saved   D. Having saved 

When coal is burned in a boiler, two kinds of ash by-products are produced: a heavy bottom ash and a fine-as-powder fly ash. About 10 to 15 percent of the coal by-product is bottom ash which is used like sand on streets and highways covered with ice, and also on highways as paving material.

It is the fly ash, however, that is receiving much attention. Once considered a waste, fly ash is now regarded as a natural resource in the United States. It can be placed in some lower places, where it is compacted and covered with soil, for the seeds of various grasses and plants to be placed in the soil to make the land productive.

Fly ash may be added to concrete to build roads and other kinds of buildings, taking the place of the cement up to 20 percent. As a by-product of burned coal, fly ash requires no extra energy to be produced, while cement production requires great amounts of energy.

Besides, the technology is able to take out some useful minerals from the fly ash, which is still a very expensive process today. But the time may come when it is cheaper to take out these products from ash than to mine new supplies.

The bottom ash can be put on icy streets________.

       A. in order to rebuild them          B.  in order to make them colourful

       C. so that people can walk on them   D. so that cars can run faster

The fly ash_______ bottom ash.

       A. has the same use as             B.  is more expensive than

       C. has more uses than    D. is much cheaper than

The fly ash can be used to________.

       A. grow various plants   B.  take the place of soil

       C. cover productive land       D. make more productive land

Which of the following is right?

       A. To produce fly ash, some extra coal is to be burned.

       B.  Fly ash is made while producing cement.

       C. It takes less energy to produce fly ash than cement.

       D. Fly ash is a costless by-product.

The word “mine” in the last sentence of the passage means_______.

       A. to buy things from other countries

       B.  to search for useful materials in the mountains

       C. to dig deeply into the ground to get useful materials

       D. to take out certain materials from other things

Eight – year – old Jesse Abrogate was playing in the sea late one evening in July 2001 when a 7 – foot bull shark attacked him and tore off his arm. Jesse’s uncle jumped into the sea and dragged the boy to shore. The boy was not breathing. His aunt gave him mouth – to – mouth resuscitation (人工呼吸) while his uncle rang the emergency services. Pretty soon, a helicopter arrived and flew the boy to hospital. It was a much quicker journey than the journey by road.

Jesse’s uncle, Vance Folsenzier, ran back into to the sea and found the shark that had attacked his nephew. He picked the shark up and threw it onto the beach. A coastguard shot the fish four times and although this did not kill it, the shark’s jaws relaxed so that they could open them, and reach down into its stomach, and pull out the boy’s arm.

At the Baptist Hospital in Pensacola, Dr Ian Rogers spent eleven hours reattaching Jesse’s arm. “It was a complicated operation,” he said, “but we were lucky. If the arm hadn’t been recovered in time, we wouldn’t have been able to do the operation at all. What I mean is that if they hadn’t found the shark, well then we wouldn’t have had a chance.’

According to local park ranger Jack Tomosvic, shark attacks are not that common. “Jesse was just unlucky,” he says, “evening is the shark’s feeding time. And Jesse was in area without lifeguards. This would never have happened if he had been in area where swimming is allowed.’

When reporters asked Jesse’s uncle how he had had the courage to fight a shark, he replied, “I was mad and you do some strange things when you’re mad.”

What was the boy doing when the accident happened?

      A．Feeding a hungry shark.  B．Jumping into the rough sea.

       C．Dragging a boy to the shore.   D．Swimming in a dangerous area.

In which way did the boy’s uncle help with the operation?

       A．By finding his lost arm.  B．By shooting the fish.

       C．By flying him to hospital.       D．By blowing into his mouth.

How was his uncle in time of danger?

       A．Careful.    B．Brave.      C．Optimistic.       D．Patient.

There was great excitement on the planet of Venus(金星) this week. For the first time Venusian scientists managed to land a satellite on the planet Earth, and it has been sending back signals as well as photographs ever since.

The satellite was directed into an area known as Manhattan (named after the great Venusian astronomer Prof. Manhattan, who first discovered it with his telescope 20000 light years ago).

Because of excellent weather conditions and extremely strong signals, Venusian scientists were able to get valuable information as to feasibility (可行性) of a manned flying saucer (碟) landing on Earth. A press conference was held at the Venus Institute of Technology.

“We have come to the conclusion, based on last week’s satellite landing,” Prof. Zog said, “that there is no life on Earth.”

“How do you know this?” the science reporter of the Venus Evening Star asked.

“For one thing, Earth’s surface in the area of Manhattan is made up of solid concrete and nothing can grow there. For another, the atmosphere is filled with carbon monoxide (一氧化碳) and other deadly gases and nobody could possibly breathe this air and survive.”

“What does this mean as far as our flying saucer program is concerned?”

“We shall have to take our own oxygen with us, which means a much heavier flying saucer than originally planned.”

“Are there any other dangers that you discovered in your studies?”

“Take a look at this photo. You see this dark black cloud hovering(盘旋) over the surface of Earth? We don’t know what it is made of, but it could give us a lot of trouble and we shall have further tests before we send a Venus Being there.”

“Over here you will notice what seems to be a river, but the satellite findings indicates it is polluted and the water is unfit to drink. This means we shall have to carry our own water, which will add even greater weight to the saucer.”

“If all you say is true, won’t this set back the flying saucer program several years?”

“Yes, but we shall continue as soon as the Grubstart gives us the added funds.” Prof. Zog replied.

During the week of great excitement the Venusian scientists succeeded in getting important information as to ____.

A. the feasibility of landing a satellite on Earth

B. the possibility of making a first-rate flying saucer

C. the feasibility of sending a Venus Being to Earth

D. the possibility of directing a flying saucer into Manhattan

According to Prof. Zog, the Venusians will have to take their own oxygen with them when they carry out their flying saucer program because ____.

A. they need it in their way to the planet of Earth

B. the Earth’s atmosphere is filled with deadly gases

C. there is a low level of oxygen for Venusians

D. there is no air on the planet of Earth

The “dark black cloud” on the photo refers to ____.

A. the polluted air hovering over the surface of Earth

B. the mass of tiny drops of water floating above Earth

C. the mass of small things moving through the air

D. the dark clouds gathering before a storm breaks

The author wishes to call our attention to the fact that ____.

A. that modern man has polluted his environment to such an extend that he might destroy himself if he went on like this

B. that there is a point in spending billions to land a flying saucer on Earth

C. that pollution has become so serous a problem on Earth that even Venusians find life there unbearable.

D. that it is difficult if not altogether impossible, to land a manned flying saucer on Earth.