Loch Ness, the largest freshwater lake in the British Isles, is twenty four miles long and, at one point, one mile wide. It has an average depth of four hundred and fifty feet and at times drops close to a thousand. It is cold and murky (混沌的), with dangerous currents. In short, it is the perfect place to hide a monster from even the sharpest eyes of science.
The Loch Ness Monster, also called Nessie, is supposedly living in this area. The earliest recorded sighting of the Loch Ness Monster was in the biography of Life of St. Columba by Adamnan in the year AD 565. The monster apparently attacked a man who was swimming in the River Ness.
The monster didn’t make headlines again until August 27, 1930, when 3 fishermen reported seeing a creature with 20 feet long approaching their boat, throwing water in the air. In 1933, after a new road was built along the edge of the Loch, the number of reports rose suddenly. Early in 1934, Author Grant, a young student, was out on his motorcycle one evening when he almost ran into the monster as it crossed the road. Grant’s description of the thing – small head, long thin neck and tail with a big body, seemed to match the appearance of the plesiosaur (蛇颈龙), an aquatic (水生的) type of dinosaur that has been extinct (已灭绝的) for 65 million years.
The Loch Ness Investigation Bureau was formed in 1962 to act as a research organization for information about the creature. Even now, efforts have continued to find the monster. A great deal of information was discovered about the Loch, but there isn’t any yet to produce any specific evidence of a monster.
Skeptics (怀疑论者) argue that the water in the Loch is too cold for a plesiosaur to live in. They also argue that an air-breathing animal, like a whale or seal, would spend much more time on the surface than the creature seems to, and would be spotted more often.
Some scientists have wondered if the sightings might be caused by an underwater wave which is known to sometimes occur in deep, long, and cold lakes, like Loch Ness. Such a wave might push debris (废弃物) to the surface that might look like a strange animal.
However, none of these is identified.
【小题1】According to the skeptics, which of the following is TRUE?

阅读下面短文，按照句子结构的语法性和上下文连贯的要求，在空格处填入一个适当的词或使用括号中词语的正确形式填空。

【题文】The day started out bad. She overslept and was late for work. Then everything __16__ happened at the office made her unhappy, too. By the time she reached the bus stop for her bus to go home, she had a bad stomachache.

As usual, the bus was late, and full of people. There was no free seat for her and she had to stand in the bus. As the bus drove, it pulled her __17__ all directions, and she felt even __18__(bad).

Then she heard a voice from up front, "Beautiful day, isn’t it?" Because of the crowd, she could not see the man, __19__ she heard him as he continued to comment on the beautiful spring scenery, __20__ (call) attention to every building and thing that people could see as the bus passed by. Soon, all of the passengers __21__ (look) out of the windows. The man’s words were so powerful that she found __22__ smiling for the first time that day.

The bus reached her stop, and as she moved toward the door, she got a look at their "guide": an old gentleman __23__ a beard, wearing dark glasses and carrying a thin white cane(木杖). He was blind.

Sometimes it is not that there is no __24___(beautiful) in __25___ world, it is just that there is no eye that can see that . Open your eyes and say, "Beautiful day, isn’t it?"

The route from north to south is a general picture of Norwegian nature: thundering waterfalls, rushing mountain streams and roads that run along glaciers, after having gone through thick pine forests and coastal lakes and fiords(峡湾)．

The inner part of the country is very rugged and almost one third of it is covered with trees. Despite its northern latitude, the Norwegian weather is in fact maritime(海洋性的) and damp, because it is affected by the mitigating (调节)action of the warm Gulf Stream, coming from the Gulf of Mexico, which flows up the coast preventing the formation of sea ice.

Bergen, a port lying in the southeast of the country, is crowded with brightly colored houses, which belonged to German traders of the powerful Hanseatic League. Despite several fires, the area keeps the atmosphere of the “old port” and Commercial City from the Middle Ages. UNESCO (联合国教科文组织) recently declared it a World Heritage Site and included it in the list of monuments that are to be preserved.

There is a large park in the center of Bergen which is taken up almost completely by a large lake, around which, lie some of the main museums in the city.

The Hakonshallen, the most beautiful monument in the city, lies within the walls of Bergen's fortress. The great 13th century Gothic hall was built for the parties and the receptions in the days of the city's control over trade in the North Sea.

You get the best view over Bergen, the fiords and the surrounding pine－covered mountains from the belvedere(观景台). It's easy to admire Norwegians for their unique(独特的) way of respecting the nature!

From north to south, from Lapland to Oslo and Bergen, Norwegian people has proved, with time, that human beings, as the most advanced yet most vulnerable (脆弱的) in the great family of nature, can live in harmony (和谐) with all its other members.

6. The purpose of the passage is to ________.

A. introduce the whole natural scenery of Norway

B. show people the fact that human beings can live in harmony with nature through respecting nature

C. tell people Norway's natural environment is so beautiful and attracts more tourists

D. inform people that Bergen has been declared World Heritage Site by UNESCO

7. In Norwegian winter, there is no sea ice because ________.

A. Norway lies in Northern Europe with high latitude

B. one third of Norway is covered with thick pine trees

C. the Gulf Stream from the Gulf of Mexico keeps the Norwegian coast warm all year round

D. the weather depends upon the mountainous areas in Norway

8. The underlined word “it” in the second paragraph refers to ________.

A. the warm Gulf stream  B. the Norwegian weather

C. the northern latitude  D. the Gulf of Mexico

9. Which of the following statements about Bergen is NOT true?

A. Bergen is a port with a large park in its center.

B. The Hakonshallen, the most beautiful monument in Bergen was once controlled by German merchants in the 13th century.

C. The Hakonshallen was meant for the commercial needs at that time.

D. UNESCO has decided to preserve Bergen because of its real atmosphere of the “old port” and Commercial City from the Middle Ages.

10. It can be inferred from this passage that ________.

A. Norway is a neighbor of Mexico

B. Germans play an important part in the Norwegian economy

C. the south of Norway is covered with thick forest

D. the Hanseatic League is a commercial organization

Hidden in our subconsciousness (潜意识) is a perfect mental picture. We see ourselves on a long trip that goes across the continent. We are traveling by train. Out the windows, we think in the passing scene of cars on nearby highways, of children waving at a crossing, of cattle feeding on a distant hillside, of smoke pouring from a power plant, or row upon row of corn and wheat, of flat lands and valleys, of mountains and rolling hills, of city skylines and village halls.

But uppermost in our minds is the final destination. On a certain day at a certain hour, we will pull into the station. Bands will be playing and flags waving. Once we get there, so many wonderful dreams will come true and the pieces of our lives will fit together like a completed jigsaw（拼图玩具） puzzle. How restlessly we pace the aisles(通道), condemning the minutes for loitering --waiting, waiting, waiting for the station.

“When we reach the station, that will be it!” we cry. “When I’m 38.” “When I buy a new 450SL Mercdes Benz!” “When I put the last kid through college.” “When I have paid off the!” “When I get a promotion.” “When I reach the age of retirement, I shall live happily ever after! ”

Sooner or later, we must realize there is no station, no one place to arrive at once and for all. The true joy of life is the trip. The station is only a dream. It constantly outdistances us.

“Relish(appreciate) the moment” is a good motto, actually it isn’t the burdens of today that drive man mad. It is the regret over yesterday and the fear of tomorrow. Regret and fear are twin thieves who rob us of today.

So stop pacing the aisles and counting the miles. Instead, climb more mountains, eat more ice cream, swim more rivers, watch more sunsets, laugh more and cry less. Life must be lived as we go along. Then the station will come soon enough.

Why does the author describe the mental picture?

A．To lead us into a perfect world.      B．To let people enjoy the scenery.

C．To introduce an actual trip of his.   D．To compare it to our life’s journey.

How do people feel when they’re on their trip?

A．Puzzled.   B．Happy.     C．Relaxed.   D．Impatient. 

What does the author mean by “Regret and fear are twin thieves who rob us of today” in Line 2 Paragraph 5?

A．Regret and fear are responsible for the loss of today.

B．We must be careful of the two thieves: regret and fear.

C．regret and fear stop us from enjoying our present life.

D．We’re frequently challenged by the two : regret and fear.

Why does the author write the passage?

A．To teach us a good lesson.      B．To tell us the right attitude to life.

C．To advice us to forget our worries. D．To stop us wandering along the aisles.

The day started out bad. She overslept and was late for work. Then everything __16__ happened at the office made her unhappy, too. By the time she reached the bus stop for her bus to go home, she had a bad stomachache.
As usual, the bus was late, and full of people. There was no free seat for her and she had to stand in the bus. As the bus drove, it pulled her __17__ all directions, and she felt even __18__(bad).
Then she heard a voice from up front, "Beautiful day, isn’t it?" Because of the crowd, she could not see the man, __19__ she heard him as he continued to comment on the beautiful spring scenery, __20__ (call) attention to every building and thing that people could see as the bus passed by. Soon, all of the passengers __21__ (look) out of the windows. The man’s words were so powerful that she found __22__ smiling for the first time that day.
The bus reached her stop, and as she moved toward the door, she got a look at their "guide": an old gentleman __23__ a beard, wearing dark glasses and carrying a thin white cane(木杖). He was blind.
Sometimes it is not that there is no __24___(beautiful) in __25___ world, it is just that there is no eye that can see that . Open your eyes and say, "Beautiful day, isn’t it?"