D  
Every August on the island of Heimaey, young people often take a walk along the street throughout the night. Why their parents allow them to stay out ? The children of Heimaey are going to save young puffins ---- small black-and-white seabirds.
The cliffs（悬崖）above the town are home to a large group of puffins . The birds dig holes all around the cliffs . These holes are their homes. The young stay in the holes for about seven weeks. Then they begin to leave . Some move slowly on their undeveloped wings and feet down to the sea around Heimaey. There they swim, which they can do naturally , and learn to dive for fish . Others, however, may lose their way at night and find themselves in the town instead. On the ground, the young birds are in trouble. Because their wings are fully developed, they cannot take off quickly to sea and safety. The birds then become a good meal for cats and other animals .
For many years, islanders have help the young puffins. At night in late August, children carrying thick paper boxes and lights hurry out to catch puffins . They spend most of the night running after the birds. They put the birds they've caught into boxes and take good care of them .
The next morning the children take the puffins to the sea and set them free. The bird will live at sea until they are at least two years old. Then they will return to the cliffs to build homes of their own.
The children of Heimaey look forward to August !
16．Every August the children of Heimaey are allowed to stay out all night.    
A．to catch puffins and take them home  B．to save puffins from danger
C．to drive puffins away  D．to run after puffins for pleasure
17．The young puffins that lose their way are in the danger of ______.
A．being killed by hunters  B．knowing nothing about the sea
C．being eaten by animals  D．having no fish to eat
18．The children put the seabirds into boxes and ______.     
A．look after them carefully for several days, then set them free
B．set them free when they grow bigger and can take off to sea and safety
C．carry them to the sea right away to set them free
D．they don' t set them free until the next morning
19．The children look forward to August because ______.     
A．they enjoy playing the game of running after seabirds
B．it' s time for them to go out at night to save puffins
C．it' s time for them to catch seabirds
D．they like to stay out at night to catch puffins
20．According to the passage, which of the following is NOT TRUE?   
A．Once a year the children are allowed to stay out at night to have a good time .
B．The earlier home for the young puffins is in the cliffs, not in the sand of shores .
C．Young puffins make their way down to the sea when they are about seven weeks old.
D．The young birds that get to the sea will stay there for at least two years before they return to the cliffs .

D  

Every August on the island of Heimaey, young people often take a walk along the street throughout the night. Why their parents allow them to stay out ? The children of Heimaey are going to save young puffins ---- small black-and-white seabirds.

The cliffs（悬崖）above the town are home to a large group of puffins . The birds dig holes all around the cliffs . These holes are their homes. The young stay in the holes for about seven weeks. Then they begin to leave . Some move slowly on their undeveloped wings and feet down to the sea around Heimaey. There they swim, which they can do naturally , and learn to dive for fish . Others, however, may lose their way at night and find themselves in the town instead. On the ground, the young birds are in trouble. Because their wings are fully developed, they cannot take off quickly to sea and safety. The birds then become a good meal for cats and other animals .

For many years, islanders have help the young puffins. At night in late August, children carrying thick paper boxes and lights hurry out to catch puffins . They spend most of the night running after the birds. They put the birds they've caught into boxes and take good care of them .

The next morning the children take the puffins to the sea and set them free. The bird will live at sea until they are at least two years old. Then they will return to the cliffs to build homes of their own.

The children of Heimaey look forward to August !

16．Every August the children of Heimaey are allowed to stay out all night.    

A．to catch puffins and take them home  B．to save puffins from danger

C．to drive puffins away  D．to run after puffins for pleasure

17．The young puffins that lose their way are in the danger of ______.

A．being killed by hunters  B．knowing nothing about the sea

C．being eaten by animals  D．having no fish to eat

18．The children put the seabirds into boxes and ______.     

A．look after them carefully for several days, then set them free

B．set them free when they grow bigger and can take off to sea and safety

C．carry them to the sea right away to set them free

D．they don' t set them free until the next morning

19．The children look forward to August because ______.     

A．they enjoy playing the game of running after seabirds

B．it' s time for them to go out at night to save puffins

C．it' s time for them to catch seabirds

D．they like to stay out at night to catch puffins

20．According to the passage, which of the following is NOT TRUE?   

A．Once a year the children are allowed to stay out at night to have a good time .

B．The earlier home for the young puffins is in the cliffs, not in the sand of shores .

C．Young puffins make their way down to the sea when they are about seven weeks old.

D．The young birds that get to the sea will stay there for at least two years before they return to the cliffs .

 Some myths are stories told since ancient times to explain the causes for natural happenings.

       The Greek myth that explains why there are changes of (36) _______ is about Demeter, the goddess of the harvest．She had a daughter, Persephone, whom she loved very much．Hades, god of the underworld, fell in love with Persephone, and he asked Zeus, the ( 37) _______ of the gods, to give Persephone to him as his (38) _______．Zeus did not want either to disappoint Hades or to upset Demeter, so he said he would not agree to the marriage, but neither would he (39) _______ it．Hades, therefore, decided to take the girl without (40) _______．When Persephone was picking flowers in the garden, he seized her and took her to the underworld．When Demeter (41) _______ what happened to Persephone, she became so (42) _______ that she caused all plants to ( 43 ) _______．People were in (44) _________ of starving．But Demeter was determined not to let crops grow (45 ) _______ her daughter, Persephone, was returned to her．(46) __________, still not wanting to disappoint Hades, decided upon a condition for Persephone's (47) ______ ．She could go back to her mother if she had not (48) ________ anything while she was in the underworld．Demeter (49) ________ it because she did not know that Persephone had eaten several pomegranate (石榴) seeds in the underworld．When Zeus (50) ______ this, he agreed that Persephone could spend part of the year with her (51) _______, but he added that since she had eaten the seeds, she must spend part of the year in the underworld．And so it (52) ________ that when Persephone is in the underworld, Demeter is sad and therefore (53) _______ not let the crops grow．That is (54) ______ we have winter when plants do not grow．When Persephone returns, Demeter is (55)______ , it  is spring, and plants begin to grow again

Some myths are stories told since ancient times to explain the causes for natural happenings．The Greek myth that explains why there are changes of   1   is about Demeter, the goddess of the harvest．She had a daughter, Persephone, whom she loved very much．Hades, god of the underworld, fell in love with Persephone, and he asked Zeus, the   2   of the gods, to give Persephone to him as his 3  ．Zeus did not want either to disappoint Hades or to upset Demeter, so he said he would not agree to the marriage, but neither would he  4   it．Hades, therefore, decided to take the girl without 5 ．When Persephone was picking flowers in the garden, he seized her and took her to the underworld．When Demeter  6   what happened to Persephone, she became so  7   that she caused all plants to   8  ．People were in   9   of starving．But Demeter was determined not to let crops grow 10   her daughter, Persephone, was returned to her． 11  , still not wanting to disappoint Hades, decided upon a condition for Persephone's   12  ．She could go back to her mother if she had not   13 anything while she was in the underworld．Demeter   14   it because she did not know that Persephone had eaten several pomegranate （石榴） seeds in the underworld．When Zeus   15 this, he agreed that Persephone could spend part of the year with her   16  , but he added that since she had eaten the seeds, she must spend part of the year in the underworld．And so it   17 that when Persephone is in the underworld, Demeter is sad and therefore   18   not let the crops grow．That is   19   we have winter when plants do not grow．When Persephone returns, Demeter is   20  , it is spring, and plants begin to grow again.

1．A．periods                 B．time                    C．seasons               D．age

2．A．winner                  B．ruler                    C．advisor                D．fighter

3．A．wife                     B．lover                   C．partner                D．daughter

4．A．accept                  B．forgive            C．admit           D．forbid  

5．A．arrangement          B．warning           C．permission       D．reason 

6．A．let out                   B．worked out          C．thought out         D．found out

7．A．excited                  B．angry              C．tired                    D．serious

8．A．grow fast              B．start growing       C．stop growing       D grow slowly

9．A．danger                  B．hope                   C．turn                    D．case

10．A．since                   B．until                    C．after                   D．when

11．A．Persephone        B．Zeus                   C．Demeter              D．Hades

12．A．return                 B．change                C．marriage              D．journey

13．A．stolen                  B．found                  C．eaten                   D．heard

14．A．understood          B．refused                C．doubted               D．accepted

15．A．discovered           B．studied                C．forgot                 D．prepared

16．A．daughter              B．mother                C．god                     D．ruler

17．A．works                 B．remains               C．happens              D．starts

18．A．should                 B．can                     C．dare                    D．will

19．A．where                 B．because               C．why                    D．how

20．A．happy                 B．friendly               C．fresh                   D．nice

The Sahara Festival is a celebration of the very recent past. The three-day event is not fixed to the same dates each year, but generally takes place in November or December. It is well attended by tourists, but even better attended by the locals.  

During the opening ceremony, after the official greetings from the government leaders, people who attend the festival begin to march smartly before the viewing stands, and white camels transport their riders across the sands. Horsemen from different nations display their beautiful clothes and their fine horsemanship. One following another, groups of musicians and dancers from all over the Sahara take their turn to show off their wonderful traditional culture. Groups of men in blue and yellow play horns and beat drums as they dance. Kneeling in the sand, a group of women in long dark dresses dance with their hair. Their long, dark, shiny hair is thrown back and forth in the wind to the rhythm of their dance.  

The races begin. The local and visiting Italian dogs are anxious to run after hares. The crowd is on its feet for the camel races. Camels and riders run far into the distance, and then return to the finish line in front of the cheering people.  

Towards the evening, there comes the grand finale of the opening day, an extremely exciting horserace. All the riders run very fast on horseback. Some ride hanging off the side of the saddle. Some even ride upside down their legs and feet straight up in the air―all at full speed. Others rush down the course together, arm in arm, mounted （按在马上） on different horses. On and on they go. So fast and so wonderful!  

56. The Sahara Festival is a festival which _____.  

A. has a very long history in North Africa  

B. is held on the same day each year  

C. is attended mainly by the people in the Sahara  

D. is celebrated mostly by travelers from different countries  

57. Before the races begin, _____ take part in the activities during the opening ceremonies.  

A. musicians, dancers, horses and hares                 B. camel riders, musicians, dogs and hares  

C. horsemen, dancers, camels and dogs                  D. musicians, officials, camels and horses  

58. The underlined word “finale” in the fourth paragraph most probably means the _____ of the opening day.  

A. first part             B. middle part             C. last part             D. whole  

59. This passage mainly tells readers _____.  

A. what happens on the opening day of the Sahara Festival  

B. how people celebrate during the three-day Sahara Festival  

C. what takes place at the closing ceremonies of the Sahara Festival  

D. how animals race on the first and the last day of the Sahara Festival