C
With smart phones taking the world by Storm，a phone that Can only send and receive voice
calls and text messages may seem like a relic from a bygone age．Yet in East Africa，simple
phones like these are changing the face of the economy，thanks to the mobile money services that are spreading across the region．
Usilng the text-messaging function built into the GSM system(全球通)used by most cell
phone networks，these services allow people without a bank account or credit card to use their
phone as an electronic walletthat can be used to store．send or receive cash．
It works like this：you pay cash to your local agent who then tops up your mobile money
account using a secure form of text messaging．That money can be transferred(转账)to another
person by sending a message to their cell phone account．
For some the system is a lifeline．“If I didn,t have my mobile phone．1 would be very
poor，”says Neyasse Neemur，a mother of four children who lives in northern Kenya．“Now I
can sell fish．”
Neemur took up fishing in July last year，but making money from it was a little tricky，
especially as Turkana people do not usually eat fish．A truck from Ethiopia to Tanzania passes
through her village once a week，and she arranged to have the driver transport the fish several
hundred kilometres south to market in Kisumu．where relatives sell the fish．
“I get the money transfer immediately．”says Neemur．“Then I can pay for my children to go to school and for vegetables and beans，”she adds，“so I don’t need to eat fish．”
According to the Central Bank of Kenya，payments worth around l billion Kenyan shillings
($13 million)per day were transferred through Kenya,s mobile money systems in 2009，equalling
the country,s credit card transactions(业务)．The bank expects mobile money transfers to overtake credit cards in 2010．
49．In Paragraph l，the author uses“simple phones”to________.
A．make a comparison    B．introduce a topic
C．describe a scene     D．offer an argument
50．What can we learn about the simple phones in East Africa?
A．They might help the local people apply for a bank account．
B．They will replace the banks completely in the near future．
C．They provide a safe means for the locals to do business．
D．They can do nothing except send and receive calls or messages．
51．The word“it”in the third paragraph refers to_______.
A．the GSM system    B．the mobile money service
C．the credit card service D．the cell phone networks
52．The story of Neyasse Neemur suggests that_______.
A．the mobile money service plays a key rote in the locals, life
B．Neemur uses her mobile phone to contact her customers
C。her relatives tricks Turkana people to eat the fish they sell
D．the Bank of Kenya helps her improve her living condition

C
With alarming regularity, we read about oil tankers having accidents near land and the terrible consequences of the oil spills （泄露） on people, nature, and the environment．
Millions of dollars have been used in developing special chemicals to help dismiss the spills and to clean up the animals, beaches, and land spoiled by the oil．Unfortunately, when many of these chemicals are used, more damage is caused to the environment, especially to lives in the sea．
Of all of today's environmental disasters, an oil spill may actually be one of the least serious．Although oil is poisonous, it is a natural material．In the end, it breaks down naturally．There are, of course, long-term effects, but it is usually more serious in the short term．
Nature by itself works better than chemical materials, but when there is a spill we demand that governments act immediately with as much hi-tech knowledge as possible．In 1967 the tanker Torrey Canyon sank off the Scilly Isles near the coast of England and spilled 120,000 tones of oil into the ocean．If you go there today, you will find it hard to see any sign that it ever happened．
Governments seem to accept the risk of transporting millions of tons of oil by ship every day so that we can fill up our cars and drive around and cause even more environmental damage．Interestingly, the biggest companies in the world produce cars, and the next biggest supply the gasoline to make them run I
We should be thinking more about reducing our dependency on oil．Governments should be encouraging research into new technologies, such as cars run by solar power （太阳能） , electricity, hydrogen, and so on．Much of this research has, in the past, been held back by the oil, gas, and coal．
If the world's millions of cars were 10% more efficient （高效的）—and the industry could easily produce cars at least twice as efficient ?we would need many fewer tankers crossing the oceans each year．If this happened, the risks of oil spills would be reduced, and the air we breathe would be cleaner and fresher, too．
63．What is the passage mainly talking about?
A．Oil spills pollution．    B．What oil pollution is．
C．Oil tanker accidents.             D．How to reduce oil pollution.
64．How does the author support the idea that oil spills are not as serious as people believe?
A．By giving a description．   B．By making an argument．
C．By giving an example．          D．By drawing a diagram．
65．What does the underlined word "risk" in Paragraph 5 refer to?
A．Transportation depending more on oil．
B．Poisonous oil breaking down naturally．
C．Millions of tons of oil spilling into the sea．
D．More environmental damage being caused．
66．Which suggestion, is made for reducing oil tank accidents according to the passage?
A．We should build safer tankers in the near future．
B．We should develop new technologies to cut oil use．
C．Tankers should not be allowed to sail near the coastlines．
D．Countries should build more oil pipelines under the sea．

D

For John and Amy Cervantes, birthdays have always been a big deal — a welcome excuse to celebrate life. When their eldest son, Alex, turned three, in 2005, they invited 20 friends to a nearby park and hired a clown to paint faces and make balloon animals.

Not long after that, the couple were brainstorming ways to teach Alex about giving to others. “That’ s when a spark went off,” says Amy. “We wanted to do something that would have a strong effect on our community, that wasn’t already being  done, and that our young children could participate in. I started wondering what less fortunate kids do on their birthdays. The next day, we called a local shelter.” What they learned is that homeless children typically don’t do anything to celebrate. No cake. No gifts. No party.

Several weeks later, the family threw a party at the shelter for the children who had birthdays that month. They decorated, served cake, and led 50 kids in the uncertain situation. Alex helped fill and pass out goody bags and presents. Since that first party, the couple have turned their simple idea into Birthday Blessings, a nonprofit that hosts monthly parties at ten shelters in and around Charlotte, North Carolina. The group also delivers baby supplies to new moms in the shelters. And it considerately sends treats to elementary schools so homeless kids can celebrate their birthdays with friends.

To date, Birthday Blessings has thrown more than 500 parties and handed out over 22,000 favors to nearly 4,000 homeless children. The idea is spreading fast, with additional chapters set to start in Atlanta, Cincinnati, and northeast Indiana. Birthday Blessings is operated entirely by volunteers with Amy, a stay-at-home mom, in charge. John attempts his career as an investment adviser while setting up the group’s similar network and running its capital campaign. The charity will take almost anything — toys, baby items — as long as it’s not used. “These kids never get anything new,” John says. “It makes a big difference to them psychologically.”

Being part of this“labor of love,” as Amy puts it, is already making an impression on the boys. When Alex turned seven, his grandparents sent a birthday check. “The first thing he said when he opened it,” Amy recalls, “was that he wanted to give half to the birthday kids.”

63. “a spark went off,” in Para 2 is closest in meaning to_______ .

A. Something was burning        B. there was a little hope

C. they were excited.            D. some good idea flashed into their mind.

64. The couple held a party at the shelter because_____ .

A. The children had birthdays that month

B. They felt sympathy for the homeless children

C. They wanted to make good impression on the children

D. They wanted to show that they were generous and kind

65. From the passage we can learn_______ .

A. The homeless children typically receive gifts and eat cakes on their birthdays

B. The group carefully sends treats to all the children in elementary schools

C. Birthday Blessings has performed different activities to aid the homeless children.

D. The couple are responsible for their own community in North Carolina

66. Which would be the best title for the passage?

A. Labor of Love                B. Nonprofit Organization 

C. Warm-hearted Volunteers.      D. Fortunate Children

C

With smart phones taking the world by Storm，a phone that Can only send and receive voice

calls and text messages may seem like a relic from a bygone age．Yet in East Africa，simple

phones like these are changing the face of the economy，thanks to the mobile money services that are spreading across the region．

Usilng the text-messaging function built into the GSM system(全球通)used by most cell

phone networks，these services allow people without a bank account or credit card to use their

phone as an electronic walletthat can be used to store．send or receive cash．

It works like this：you pay cash to your local agent who then tops up your mobile money

account using a secure form of text messaging．That money can be transferred(转账)to another

person by sending a message to their cell phone account．

For some the system is a lifeline．“If I didn,t have my mobile phone．1 would be very

poor，”says Neyasse Neemur，a mother of four children who lives in northern Kenya．“Now I

can sell fish．”

Neemur took up fishing in July last year，but making money from it was a little tricky，

especially as Turkana people do not usually eat fish．A truck from Ethiopia to Tanzania passes

through her village once a week，and she arranged to have the driver transport the fish several

hundred kilometres south to market in Kisumu．where relatives sell the fish．

“I get the money transfer immediately．”says Neemur．“Then I can pay for my children to go to school and for vegetables and beans，”she adds，“so I don’t need to eat fish．”

According to the Central Bank of Kenya，payments worth around l billion Kenyan shillings

($13 million)per day were transferred through Kenya,s mobile money systems in 2009，equalling

the country,s credit card transactions(业务)．The bank expects mobile money transfers to overtake credit cards in 2010．

49．In Paragraph l，the author uses“simple phones”to________.

A．make a comparison    B．introduce a topic

C．describe a scene     D．offer an argument

50．What can we learn about the simple phones in East Africa?

A．They might help the local people apply for a bank account．

B．They will replace the banks completely in the near future．

C．They provide a safe means for the locals to do business．

D．They can do nothing except send and receive calls or messages．

51．The word“it”in the third paragraph refers to_______.

A．the GSM system    B．the mobile money service

C．the credit card service D．the cell phone networks

52．The story of Neyasse Neemur suggests that_______.

A．the mobile money service plays a key rote in the locals, life

B．Neemur uses her mobile phone to contact her customers

C。her relatives tricks Turkana people to eat the fish they sell

D．the Bank of Kenya helps her improve her living condition

C

With only about 1,000 pandas left in the world, China is desperately trying to clone the animal and save the endangered species. That’s a move similar to what a Texas A&M University researchers have been undertaking for the past five years in a project called “Noah’s Ark”.

  Noah’s Ark is aimed at collecting eggs, embryos(胚胎), semen and DNA of endangered animals and storing them in liquid nitrogen. If certain species should become extinct, Dr, Duane Kraemer, a professor in Texas A&M’s College of Veterinary Medicine, says there would be enough of the basic building blocks to reintroduce the species in the future.

  It is estimated that as many as 2,000 species of mammals, birds and reptiles will become extinct in over 100 years. The panda, native only to China, is in danger of becoming extinct in the next 25 years.

  This week, Chinese scientists said they grew an embryo by introducing cells from a dead female panda into the egg cells of a Japanese white rabbit. They are now trying to implant the embryo into a host animal.

  The entire procedure could take from three to five years to complete.

  “ The nuclear transfer(核子移植) of one species to another is not easy, and the lack of available ( capable of being used) panda eggs could be a major problem,” Kraemer believes, “ They will probably have to do several hundred transfers to result in one pregnancy ( having a baby). It takes a long time and it’s difficult, but this could be groundbreaking science if it works. They are certainly not putting any live pandas at risk, so it is worth the effort,” adds Kraemer, who is one of the leaders of the project at Texas A&M, the first-ever attempt at cloning a dog.

  “They are trying to do something that’s never been done, this is very similar to our work in Noah’s Ark. We’re both trying to save animals that face extinction. I certainly appreciate their effort and there’s a lot we can learn from what they are attempting to do. It’s a research that is very much needed.”

64. The aim of “Noah’s Ark” project is to ______.

make efforts to clone the endangered pandas

save endangered animals from dying out

collect DNA of endangered animals to study

transfer the nuclear of name animal to another

According to Professor Kraemer, the major problem in cloning pandas would be the lack of ______.

A. available panda eggs                B. host animals      

C. qualified researchers                D. enough money

66. The best title for the passage may be ______.

   A. China’s Success in Pandas Cloning         B. The First Cloned Panda in the World

   C. Exploring the Possibility to Clone Pandas   D. China-- the Native Place of Pandas Forever

67. From the passage we know that ______.

   A. Kraemer and his team have succeeded in cloning a dog

   B. scientists try to implant a panda’s egg into a rabbit

   C. Kraemer will work with Chinese scientists in clone researches

   D. about two thousand of species will probably die out in a century