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.

 

C

　　Several years ago I worked in an office, which I had a locust tree growing outside the window. It had grown into a tall tree and must have been there for a long time. The tree blocked the view and made the office seem dull, unfortunately this happened to be the room assigned to me and I was depressed by it for quite some time.

　　When the first spring came, everything was green except the locust tree. Secretly, I was very happy because I had thought it had died.

　　One morning when I opened the window for fresh air, I unexpectedly smelt a familiar sweet scent floating into my office but I couldn’t name it. Suddenly, I realized it was the locust tree! The tree that I thought dead was blossoming in full glory.

　　From then on, I usually came to the office very early to see dew forming on the locust tree blossoms and every year was eager to see spring again.

　　During summer, the green leaves provided shade protecting me from the harsh sunlight, but allowing enough light in to make it pleasant. In autumn, the leaves turned into many different colors. Its beauty touched my soul. Many times I thought to take photos but never did. Then I had to leave in a hurry. Later in life it became a great regret that I had not done so.

　　Actually, many times in our lives, we think we own something, therefore we don’t cherish it. We don’t feel regretful until we lose it one day! Moreover, sometimes, we have to accept the things we don’t want and need to discover the hidden beauty to find unexpected joy!

59．The author of the passage employed a writing way ________.

A．of holding and releasing            B．that released first, then held

C．that held first, then released         D．that was not holding or releasing

60．What the author wanted to tell us is that ________.

A．not being delighted for what you have got and not feeling pity on the lost

B．think twice before you leap

C．treat everything calmly

D．cherish what you’ve owned

61．The reason the author came to the office early is ________.

A．to enjoy the dew                 B．to finish her work early

C．to do some cleaning              D．to avoid the burning sun

62．The underlined word “so” in the fifth paragraph perhaps refers to ________.

A．that I couldn’t see the tree any longer    B．that I should have taken some photos

C．that I had to leave                   D．that the tree died

 

One day in l965, when I worked at View Ridge School in Seattle, a fourth-grade teacher approached me. She had a student who finished his work before all the others and needed a challenge. "Could he help in the library?" She asked. I said, "Send him along."

　　Soon a slight, sandy-haired boy in jeans and a T-shift appeared. "Do you have a job for me?" he asked.

　　I told him about the Dewey Decimal System for shelving books. He picked up the idea immediately. Then I showed him a stack of cards for long-overdue books that I was beginning to think had actually been returned but were misshelved with the wrong cards in them. He said, "Is it kind of a detective job?" I answered yes, and he became working.

　　He had found three books with wrong cards by the time his teacher opened the door and announced, "Time for break!" He argued for finishing the finding job; She made the case for fresh air. She won.

　　The next morning, he arrived early. "I want to finish these books," he said. At the end of the day, when he asked to be a librarian on a regular basis, it was easy to say yes. He worked untiringly.

　　After a few weeks I found a note on my desk, inviting me to dinner at the boy's home. At the end of a pleasant evening, his mother announced that the family would be moving to neighbouring school district. Her son's first concern, she said, was leaving the View Ridge library. "Who will find the lost books?" he asked.

　　When the time came, I said a reluctant good-bye. I missed him, but not for long. A few days later he came back and joyfully announced: "The librarian over there doesn't let boys work in the library. My mother got me transferred back to View Ridge. My dad will drop me off on his way to work. And if he can’t, I'll walk!"

I should have had an inkling(感觉) such focused determination would take that young man wherever he wanted to go. What I could not have guessed, however, was that he would become a wizard of the Information Age: Bill Gates, tycoon of Microsoft and America's richest man.

What was the author when the story happened?

       A. A teacher.                 B. A librarian.               C. A detective.              D. A professor.

What was the boy told to do on his first day in the library?

A. To rearrange the books according to the new system.

B. To put those overdue books back to the shelves.

C. To find out the books with wrong cards in them.

D. To put the cards back in the long-overdue books.

The boy got transferred back to View Ridge because _______.

A. he did not like his life in the new school                            

B. the transportation there was not convenient

C. he missed his old schoolmates and teachers

D. he was not allowed to work in the school library

What impressed the author most was that the boy _______.

A. had a thirst for learning                               B. had a strong will

C. was extremely quick at learning                            D. had a kind heart

In today's world, almost everyone knows that air pollution（污染）and water pollution are harmful to people's health. However, not all the persons know that noise is also a kind of pollution, and that is harmful to human health, too.

   People who work and live under noisy conditions usually become deaf（聋）. Today, however, scientists believe that 10 percent of workers in Britain are being deafened by the noise where they work. Many of the workers who print newspapers and books, and who weave（织）cloth become deaf. Quite a few people living near airports also become deaf. Recently it was discovered that many teenagers in America could hear no better than 65-year-old persons, for these young people like to listen to pop music and most of pop music is a kind of noise. Besides, noise produced by jet planes or machines will make people's life difficult and unpleasant, or even make people ill or even drive them mad.

   It is said that a continuous noise of over 85 decibels（分贝）can cause deafness. Now the governments in many countries have made laws to control noise and make it less than 85 decibels.

   In China, the government is trying to solve not only air and water pollution problems but also noise pollution problems.

The text is mainly about _________ .

　 A. air pollution                        B. noise pollution   

C. water pollution                       D. world pollution

According to the text, a continuous noise of _______ decibels can make people deaf.                                                                 

　     A. less than 85                         B. less than 65        

C. more than 85                          D. about 65

10 percent of the workers in Britain are being deafened because_______________ .

    A. they are too busy to listen to others' talk

  B. they often listen to pop music

    C. they live near airports         

D. they are working in noisy places  

The government of China is trying to solve ____________ .

　 A. air, water and noise pollution       

B. only air and water pollution

C. only water pollution              

D. only air pollution 

In today's world, almost everyone knows that air pollution（污染）and water pollution are harmful to people's health. However, not all the persons know that noise is also a kind of pollution, and that is harmful to human health, too.

   People who work and live under noisy conditions usually become deaf（聋）. Today, however, scientists believe that 10 percent of workers in Britain are being deafened by the noise where they work. Many of the workers who print newspapers and books, and who weave（织）cloth become deaf. Quite a few people living near airports also become deaf. Recently it was discovered that many teenagers in America could hear no better than 65-year-old persons, for these young people like to listen to pop music and most of pop music is a kind of noise. Besides, noise produced by jet planes or machines will make people's life difficult and unpleasant, or even make people ill or even drive them mad.

   It is said that a continuous noise of over 85 decibels（分贝）can cause deafness. Now the governments in many countries have made laws to control noise and make it less than 85 decibels.

   In China, the government is trying to solve not only air and water pollution problems but also noise pollution problems.

1. The text is mainly about _________ .

　 A. air pollution                        B. noise pollution   

C. water pollution                       D. world pollution

2.According to the text, a continuous noise of _______ decibels can make people deaf.                                                                

　     A. less than 85                         B. less than 65        

C. more than 85                          D. about 65

3.10 percent of the workers in Britain are being deafened because_______________ .

    A. they are too busy to listen to others' talk

  B. they often listen to pop music

    C. they live near airports         

D. they are working in noisy places  

4.The government of China is trying to solve ____________ .

　 A. air, water and noise pollution       

B. only air and water pollution

C. only water pollution               

D. only air pollution