A

A higher reading rate, with no loss of comprehension, will help you in other subjects as well as in English, and the general principles apply to any language. Naturally, you will not read every book at the same speed. You would expect to read a newspaper, for example, much more rapidly than a physics or economics textbook-but you can raise your average reading speed over the whole range of materials you wish to cover so that the percentage gained will be the same whatever kind of reading you are concerned with.

The reading passages which follow are all of an average level of difficulty for your stage of instruction. They are all about five hundred words long. They are about topics of general interest which do not require a great deal of specialized knowledge. Thus they fall between the kind of reading you might find in your textbooks and the much less demanding kind you will find in a newspaper or light novel. If you read this kind of English, with understanding at four hundred words per minute, you might skim (浏览) through a newspaper at perhaps 650-700, while with a difficult textbook you might drop to two hundred or two hundred and fifty.

Perhaps you would like to know what reading speeds are common among native English-speaking university students and how those speeds can be improved. Tests in Minnesota, USA, for example, have shown that students without special training can read English of average difficulty, for example, Tolstoy's War and Peace in translation, at speeds of between 240 and 250 words per minute with about seventy percent comprehension. Students in Minnesota claim that after twelve half-hour lessons, once a week, the reading speed can be increased, with no loss of comprehension, to around five hundred words per minute.

According to the passage, the purpose of effective reading with higher speed is most likely to help you ________.

A. only in your reading of a physics textbook

B. improve your understanding of an economics textbook

C. not only in your language study but also in other subjects

D. choose the suitable materials to read

Which of the following does not describe the types of reading materials mentioned in the second paragraph?

A. Those beyond one's reading comprehension.

B. Those concerned with common knowledge.

C. Those without much demand for specialized knowledge.

D. Those with the length of about five hundred words.

The average speed of untrained native speakers in the University of Minnesota is ________.

A. about 300 words per minute

B. about 245 words per minute

C. about 650-700 words per minute

D. about 500 words per minute

According to the passage, how fast can you expect to read after you have attended twelve half-hour lessons in the University of Minnesota?

A. You can increase your reading speed by three times.

B. No real increase in reading speed can be achieved.

C. Yon can increase your reading speed by four times.

D. You can double your reading speed.

A few days ago I asked my sons’ governess（女家庭教师）Julia to come into my study. “Be seated, Julia, ”I said, “Let’s settle our accounts. I guess you most likely need some money, but maybe you’re too polite to mention it. Now then, we agreed on thirty dollars a month...”

　　“Forty.”

　　“No, thirty. I made a note of it. I always pay our governess thirty. Well, um, you’ve been here two months, so...”

　　“Two months and five days.”

　　“Exactly two months. I made a special note of it. That means you have sixty dollars coming to you. Take off nine Sundays... you know you didn’t work with Tom on Sundays, you only took walks. And three holidays... ”Julia was biting her finger nail nervously, her face red, but - not a word.

　　“Three holidays, therefore take off twelve dollars. Four days Tom was sick and there were no lessons, as you were occupied only with Dick. Three days you had a toothache and my wife gave you permission not to work after lunch. Twelve and seven - nineteen. Take nineteen off ... that leaves. hmm.... forty one dollars. Correct？”

　　Julia’s left eye reddened with tears welling up. Her chin trembled; she coughed nervously and blew her nose, but - still not a word.

　　“Around New Year’s Day you broke a teacup and a saucer; take off two dollars. The cup cost more, it was a treasure of the family, but- forget it. When didn’t I take a loss! Then, due to your neglect （疏忽）, Tom climbed a tree and tore his jacket; take away ten. Also due to your carelessness the maid stole Dick’s shoes. You ought to watch everything! You get paid for it. So, that means five more dollars off. The tenth of January I gave ten dollars.”

　　“You didn’t. ”sobbed Julia.

　　“But I made a note of it.”

　　“Well... if you say so.”

　　“Take twenty seven from forty one -that leaves fourteen.”

　　Both her eyes were filled with tears. Beads of sweat stood on the thin pretty little nose. Poor girl!

　　“Only once was I given any money,” she whispered, her voice trembling, “and that was by your wife. Three dollars, nothing more.”

　　“Really? You see now, and I didn’t know that! Take three from fourteen.. leaves eleven. Here’s your money, my dear. Three, three, three, one and one. Here it is !”

　　I handed her eleven dollars. She took them and pocketed them.

　　“Merci （法语: 谢谢）,”she whispered.

　　I jumped to my feet and started pacing the room. I was overcome with anger. “For what, this - ‘merci’?” I asked.

　　“For the money. ”

　　“But you know I’ve cheated you - robbed you ! I have actually stolen from you ! Why this‘merci’？”

　　“In my other places they didn’t give me anything at all.”

　　“They didn’t give you anything? No wonder! I played a little joke on you, a cruel lesson, just to teach you... I m going to give you all the eighty dollars! Here they are in the envelope all ready for you... Is it really possible to be so spineless （懦弱）?Why didn’t you protest? Why were you silent? Is it possible in this world to be without teeth and claws（爪）—to be such a fool?”

　　Embarrassed, she smiled. And I could read her expression,“It is possible.”

　　I asked her pardon for the cruel lesson and, to her great surprise, gave her the eighty dollars. She murmured her little“merci”several times and went out. I looked after her and thought,“How easy it is to crush the weak in this world !”

While talking to Julia, the wrier expected from her ________.

　　A. a protest　　　　　　　　　　　B. gratitude

　　C. obedience　　　　　　　　　　 D. an explanation

What shocked the writer was Julia’s ________.

　　A. nervousness in front of her boss

　　B. acceptance of injustice

　　C. shyness when talking about money

　　D. reluctance to express herself

The writer said, “Is it possible in this world to be without teeth and claws?” He was actually telling the governess ________.

　　A. to be more aggressive

　　B. to be more careful in her work

　　C. to protect her right

　　D. to live independently

At the end of the story, the writer said,“ How easy it is to crush the weak in this world!”to show ________.

　　A. his understanding of Julia’s anxiety

　　B. his worry about Julia’s future

　　C. his concern on the living condition of working - class people

　　D. his sympathy for the mental state of those exploited

From the story, we can tell that Julia’s employer was ________.

　　A. greedy but honest

　　B. ill - tempered but warm - hearted

　　C. strict but forgiving

　　D. none of the above

A Leap（跳跃）to Honor
Leaping on a narrow balance beam（平衡木） is not easy. But Lola Walter, a 13-year-old gymnast, is an expert at it.
To perfect her skills, Lola   36   for four hours a day, five days a week. At the state championships in March, she finished seventh out of 16 girls.
That’s especially impressive,          37    she is legally blind, born with a rare condition that causes her eyes to shift constantly. She often sees double and can’t _38   how far away things are.
When she was little, her mom   39  that even though she couldn’t see         40   , she was fearless. So her mom signed her up for gymnastics when she was three. She loved the    41    right away and gymnastics became her favorite.
Though learning gymnastics has been more    42   for her than for some of her tournaments, she has never quit. She doesn’t let her _43  stop her from doing anything that she wants to.
She likes the determination it takes to do the sport. Her biggest          44_ is the balance beam. Because she has double vision, she often sees two beams. She must use her sense of touch to help her during her routine. Sometimes she even closes her eyes. “You have to          45_ your mind that it’ll take you where you want to go,” says Lola.
To be a top-level gymnast, one must be brave. The beam is probably the most   46  for anyone because it’s four inches wide. At the state competition, Lola didn’t fall      47  the beam. In fact, she got an 8.1 out of 10---- her highest score yet.
Lola doesn’t want to be          48    differently from the other girls on her team. At the competitions, the judges don’t know about her vision _49 _. She doesn’t tell them, because she doesn’t think they need to know. Her mom is amazed by her _50          attitude.
Lola never thinks about   51__. She is presently at level 7 while the highest is level 10 in gymnastics. Her   52         is to reach level 9. She says she wants to be a gymnastics coach to pass down what she’s learned to other kids    53  she grew up.
Lola is   54  of all her hard work and success. She says it’s helped her overcome problems in her life outside gymnastics, too. Her   55        for others is “just believe yourself”.

(D)
Malaria, the world's most widespread parasitic（寄生虫引起的）disease, kills as many as three million people every year—almost all of whom are under five, very poor, and African. In most years, more than five hundred million cases of illness result from the disease, although exact numbers are difficult to assess because many people don't （or can't） seek care. It is not unusual for a family earning less than two hundred dollars a year to spend a quarter of its income on malaria treatment, and what they often get no longer works. In countries like Tanzania, Mozambique, and the Gambia, no family, village, hospital, or workplace can remain unaffected for long.
Malaria starts suddenly, with violent chills, which are soon followed by an intense fever and, often, headaches. As the parasites multiply, they take over the entire body. Malaria parasites live by eating the red blood cells they infect （感染）. They can also attach themselves to blood vessels in the brain. If it doesn't kill you, malaria can happen again and again for years. The disease passed on to humans by female mosquitoes infected with one of four species of parasite. Together, the mosquito and the parasite are the most deadly couple in the history of the earth—and one of the most successful. Malaria has five thousand genes, and its ability to change rapidly to defend itself and resist new drugs has made it nearly impossible to control. Studies show that mosquitoes are passing on the virus more frequently, and there are more outbreaks in cities with large populations. Some of the disease's spread is due to global warming.
For decades, the first-choice treatment for malaria parasites in Africa has been chloroquine, a chemical which is very cheap and easy to make. Unfortunately, in most parts of the world, malaria parasites have become resistant to it. Successful alternatives that help prevent resistance are already available, but they have been in short supply and are very expensive. If these drugs should fail, nobody knows what would come next.
76. According to paragraph 1, many people don't seek care because _______.
A. they are too poor
B. it is unusual to seek care
C. they can remain unaffected for long
D. there are too many people suffering from the disease
77. People suffering from malaria _______.
A. have to kill female mosquitoes      B. have ability to defend parasites
C. have their red blood cells infected    D. have sudden fever, followed by chills
78. Which of the following may be the reason for the wide spread of the disease?
A. Its resistance to global warming.
B. Its ability to pass on the virus frequently.
C. Its outbreaks in cities with large populations.
D. Its ability to defend itself and resist new drugs.
79. It can be inferred from the passage that _______.            .
A. no drugs have been found to treat the disease
B. the alternative treatment is not easily available to most people
C. malaria has developed its ability to resist parasites
D. nobody knows what will be the drug to treat the disease
80. Which of the following questions has NOT been discussed in the passage?
A. How can we know one is suffering from malaria?
B. How many people are killed by malaria each year?
C. Why are there so many people suffering from malaria?
D. What has been done to keep people unaffected for long?

C
A new study in West Africa shows how farm irrigationsystems powered by the sun can pro-duce more food and money for villagers． The study-in Benin found that solar - powered pumpsare effective in 8upplying water, especially during the long dry season．
Sub - Saharan Africa is the part of the world with the least food security． The United Na-tions Food and Agriculture Organization estimates that more"than one biillion of the world' s peo-ple faced hunger last year．Around 265 million of them live'south of the Sahara Desert:  Lack of  rainfallis one oftheir main causes offood shortages．．
Jennifer Bumey from Stanford University in Califomia led the study．The research team helped build three solar - powered drip irrigation -（滴灌） ,systems in northem Benin． Between 30 and 35 women used each system to pump water from the ground or a stream．Each woman was responsible for farming her own 120 sqrurre meters of land． They also farmed other land  collectively．
The solar - powered irrigation systems produced an average of nearly two tons of vegetables per montb． During the first year, the women．kept a monthly average of almost rune kilograms of vegetables for home use．They sold the surplus produce at local markets． The eamings greatly increased their ability to buy food during the dry season which can last six to nine months． Peo- ple in the'two villages with the systems were able to eat three to five more servingsof yegetables per day．But making the surplus available at markets also had a wider effect．
The study compared the villages with two others where women farmed with traditional methods like carrying water in buckets． The amount of vegetables eaten in those villages also  increased, though not as much．The researchers note that only four percent of the croplamd in sub - Saharan Africa is irrigated． Using solar power to pump water has higher costs at first． But    the study says it can be more economical in the long term than using fuels like gasoline,  diesel  or kerosene． And solar power is environmentally friendly．
66．Food security in Sub - Saharan Africa is insufficient mainly because of
A．lack of rainfall         B．limitation of farmland
C． a small crop variety   D．little sunlight
67．From the third paragraph we know that _______．
A．water is wasted by using the system
B． the farmers imgate the land together
C． all farmers use irrigation systems in northem Benin
D． the solar - powered systems take up more manpower
68．The underlined word "surplus" in the 4th paragraph most probably means_______
A．special             B．unnecessary      C．extra      D．abandoned
69．Usinf．solar power to pump water has advantages EXCEPT that
A．solar energy has higher cost at first
B．solar power helps to protect environment
C．solar power helps farmers increase eanungs
D． solar energy can be more economical in the long run
70．What can be the best title for the text?
A．Manpower affects rainfallin Africa
B．Irrigation by carrying water in buckets
C．Solar - powered pumps aid African farmers
D．Vegetable supply increased in African villages