Directions：Read the following passage．Fill in the numbered blanks by using the information from the passage．Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer．

New Year traditions all around the world

    “Happy New Year!” Everyone will greet each other with these words as they meet each other over the next couple of weeks. But it wasn’t always January 1 that marked the New Year.

    At least 4,000 years ago, the ancient Egyptians and Babylonians marked the changing of the year. In Egypt, the year started when the Nile River flooded, enriching farmers’ fields. This happened at the end of September.

    The Babylonians held a festival in the spring, on March 23, to kick off the next farming cycle. The Babylonian celebration lasted for 11 days.

    The date January 1 was picked by the Roman Emperor Julius Caesar as the change of the year when he established his own calendar in 46 BC. The month of January originates from the Roman god, Janus. He is pictured with two heads. One head looks forward and the other back. They represent a break between the old and new. The new calendar was in time with the sun and it has been used until the present day.

    In Vietnam, the New Year holiday happens in February. They buy fresh flowers and a peach blossom to put in their house, following the Vietnamese custom.

    Thailand has its specific New Year’s date; it’s different from the normal calendar. The Thai New Year is celebrated on April 13. On this day, Thai people play with water, throwing it on each other. It is intended to bring good luck during the New Year ahead.

    In China, the more favorable New Year is usually celebrated in February according to lunar calendar (阴历). On New Year’s Eve, all family members sit together at table, enjoying lots of auspicious foods such as dumplings, chicken to bring good luck.

New Year traditions all around the world

根据对话内容，从对话后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。选项中有两项多余选项。（共5小题：每小题2分，满分10分）

—Mary, we are going to have a party on New Year‘s Eve. I’m sure we’ll have a good time. _____1.___

—I’d like to. __2.__

—In our classroom. We are going to decorate it and turn it into a splendid ballroom.

—____3.___ I shall be very glad to spend my first New Year in China with you.

—But we are going to ask everyone at the party to give a performance. ___4._

—I will. My voice is not very pleasant to the ear, though.

—I heard you sing once. ___5.____ I’m sure you’ll be the star of our New Year party.

—Oh，thank you.

语言知识及应用（共两节，满分45分)

第一节完形填空(共15小题；每小题2分．满分30分)

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意．然后从1—15各题所给的A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

Carmen’s mother Maria had just survived a serious heart attack. But without a heart transplant(移植)her life was in constant   1     . 

Both the mother and daughter knew that the chances were very small: finding a donor heart that   2      Maria’s blood type could take years. However, Carmen was determined to save her mother. She kept   3    hospitals all over the country.

Days stretched out. By Christmas, Maria had trouble   4  from one end of the room to the other. Carmen lost all hope. She fell into a   5     of the hospital, crying.

“Are you okay?” a man asked.

Carmen sobbed as she told the stranger her story. This middle-aged man was named Frank, whose wife, Cheryl, a tender and devoted mother of four lovely children, had been in hospital with a brain disease and wouldn’t   6    it through the night. Suddenly, an idea came to Frank’s mind. He knew Cheryl had always wanted to   7     something from herself. Could her   8  go to Carmen’s mother?

After reviewing the data, doctors   9     Frank that his wife’s heart was by some miracle a perfect fit for Carmen’s mother. They were able to   10     the transplant.

That cold night, when Cheryl was   11    dead, Frank came to knock at Maria’s door. She was   12   for Frank’s family as she had been doing every day recently. Though Maria had never met Frank before, they both felt a strange bond as they hugged and cried.

On New Year’s Eve, Carmen attended Cheryl’s   13  with Frank’s family, who were singing their favorite song “My heart will go on.”

One day later, on New Year’s Day, Maria   14  with Cheryl’s heart. Yes, Cheryl’s loving heart would go on, for it was   15  in another loving mother’s chest.

1. A. change            B. danger              C. disorder                   D. pain

2. A. matched         B. replaced              C. controlled           D. cooperated

3. A. finding               B. phoning                   C. touring                     D. interrupting

4. A. rolling             B. running                    C. walking                   D. jumping

5. A. corner                B. bed                         C. man                        D. nurse

6. A. put                            B. support                    C. pass                         D. make 

7. A. save                   B. recycle                     C. donate                      D. separate

8. A. heart                  B. brain                        C. husband                   D. spirit

9. A. informed            B. warned                    C. congratulated           D. reminded

10. A. give up              B. carry out                 C. search after              D. put off

11. A. noticed               B. predicted                  C. found                      D. declared

12. A. praying        B. begging           C. decorating          D. singing

13. A. funeral          B. operation                  C. performance             D. anniversary

14. A. passed away        B. woke up                  C. left behind                D. dressed up

15. A. active          B. alive              C. necessary               D. changeable

We are going to ________ a dinner party on New Year’s Eve.

  A. do                B. have               C. play                        D. join

Fireworks explosions killed many people and injured hundreds more in China as the 2006 traditional Lunar New Year celebrations led to much disorder as well as joy across the nation.
At a temple fair in Henan, 36 people were killed on New Year's Day when a nearby storeroom full of fireworks exploded. The accident, caused by 3 children who threw burning fireworks into the storeroom, injured up to 48 people.
In the capital, Beijing, where a 12-year ban on Lunar New Year fireworks had just been lifted, the government reported 112 people were treated at hospital emergency rooms over the weekend for fireworks-related injuries.
"On New Year's Eve alone, we had more than 40 injuries and among them there were around a dozen people with serious injuries," hospital assistant director，Tian Jian said. In China's south-western city, Chongqing, where the fireworks ban was also lifted after 12 years, firefighters rushed to put out nearly 200 fires caused by fireworks on New Year's Eve.
A ban on fireworks, which are traditionally believed to ward off evil spirits and ghosts trying to enter New Year, was put in place across 200 cities in China due to safety and environmental pollution concerns. The ban was lifted in Beijing and many other cities in 2006.
However, despite the fireworks disorder, China's 1.3 billion people were largely enjoying the festival, with celebrations to continue throughout all of this week-long public holiday.
46. In which year were fireworks forbidden in Beijing and Chongqing?
A. In 1990                     B. In 1992                    C. In 1994                    D. In 1995
47. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?
A. The origin of fireworks during the Spring Festival
B. The cause of lifting the ban on fireworks.
C. The direct cause of the fireworks explosion in Henan.
D. The number of injuries caused by fireworks in Chongqing.
48. The underlined phrase" ward off" in the fifth paragraph means ________.
A. prevent              B. set off                     C. allow                D. burn down
49. Which of the following is the very reason why fireworks were banned in China?
A. Noise pollution                                       B. Waste of money       
C. Air pollution                                                 D. Possible injury and death
50. The purpose of writing the passage is to ________.
A. warn people of the great danger of fireworks
B. report the number of fireworks deaths and injuries during the festival
C. report that fireworks cause more fires and injuries than deaths
D. Advise people to keep away from fireworks