When nature is left alone, a balance is reached among the animals and plants living in one area. But when man starts his work in nature, the balance is likely to be destroyed. He grows a crop and takes it away to eat; then there are no dead leaves to fall on the ground, holding water while it sinks into the surface, or decaying (腐爛) and adding humus (腐殖質(zhì)) to the soil. Unless a farmer acts with knowledge and skill, he is therefore most likely to make the land poorer. To take the place of the useful matter in the crops that he removes, he uses some kind of fertilizer. Chemical fertilizers are of great help, but the waste products of animals and decaying remains of plants should also be put on the land. In some places, it is a habit to burn waste material lying about, but such burning destroys the useful matter in the dead plants. Although the ashes that are left are valuable when put on the land, a better practice is to bury the waste so that it decays and increases the humus in the soil.
In the past, when the world population was much lower than it is now, a man had little difficulty in ordinary times in growing the food that was needed. When a field had been used some years and had become tired, the farmer could move to another place. The tired land then slowly recovered. Gradually grasses and other plants would appear on it and its productive power would slowly return to normal through their decay. But nature, left alone, would take a long time to bring back the land to its former state; the length of time required would depend on local conditions, but it might well be ten years.
It is a bad practice to grow the same crop in a field year after year. If the crop is changed, the land will suffer less because it is treated and used in a different way. Different plants have different effects on the soil. Therefore, a change of crop will do less harm than the growing of the same crop year after year and a regular change to grass will do good to the soil. Much will therefore be gained if different crops are grown one after another, a method known as the rotation (輪作) of crops.
72. According to the passage, the land will become poorer________.
A. if all the dead leaves are cleared away         
B. if the humus is increased after the harvest
C. if dead leaves decay in the soil by themselves   
D. if waste plant material lying about is buried
73. We can learn from the passage that the tired land has gradually recovered_______.
A. when grasses and other plants appear again
B. when the treatment is given by nature alone
C. after new grasses and other plants have decayed again
D. after nature has been left alone for several months
74. A modern farmer can hardly move to another place as he did before because_______.
A. the productive power of a new field isn't higher than that of an old one
B. there are few free fields left for him to do farming
C. it takes a farmer more than ten years to start farming in a new field
D. there will be too many grasses in a new field to grow crops
75. It is most likely that the author will go on to ______ in the paragraph following the passage above.
A. introduce other methods of planting crops       
B. deal with how to prevent land getting tired
C. start another topic of how to make use of land
D. explain what the rotation of crops is      

第三部分閱讀理解    （共10小題；每小題2分，滿(mǎn)分20分）
閱讀下列短文,從每小題后所給的A、B、C、D四個(gè)選項(xiàng)中,選出最佳選項(xiàng)。
A friend of mine named Paul received an expensive car from his brother as a Christmas present．On Christmas Eve when Paul came out of his office, a street urchin （頑童） was walking around the shining car．“Is this your car, Paul?” he asked.
Paul answered, “Yes, my brother gave it to me for Christmas.” The boy was surprised．“You mean your brother gave it to you and it cost you nothing? Boy, I wish…” He hesitated.
Of course Paul knew what he was going to wish for．He wished he had a brother like that．But what the boy said surprised Paul greatly.
“I wish,” the boy went on, “that I could be a brother like that.” Paul looked at the boy in surprise, and then he said again, “Would you like to take a ride in my car?”
“Oh yes, I’d love that.”
After a short ride, the boy turned and with his eyes shining, said, “Paul, would you mind driving in front of my house?”
Paul smiled a little．He thought he knew what the boy wanted．He wanted to show his neighbors that he could ride home in a big car．But Paul was wrong again．“Will you stop where those two steps are?” the boy asked.
He ran up to the steps．Then in a short while Paul heard him coming back, but he was not coming fast．He was carrying his little crippled （殘疾） brother． He sat him down on the step and pointed to the car.
“There she is, Buddy, just like I told you upstairs．His brother gave it to him for Christmas and it didn’t cost him a cent．And some day I’m going to give you one just like it… Then you can see for yourself all the nice things in the Christmas window that I’ve been trying to tell you about.”
Paul got out and lifted the boy to the front seat of his car．The shining-eyed older brother climbed in and the three of them began an unforgettable holiday ride.
56．The street urchin was very surprised when __________．
A．he saw the shining car            B．Paul told him about the car
C．he was walking around the car     D．Paul received an expensive car
57．From the story we know that the urchin __________．
A．wished to give his brother a car
B．wished Paul’s brother to give him a car
C．wished Paul could be a brother like that 
D．wished he could have a brother like Paul’s 
58．The urchin asked Paul to stop his car in front of his house ______.
A．to show he had a rich friend        B．to show his neighbors the car
C．to let his brother ride in the car      D．to tell his brother about his wish
59．We can infer from the story that __________.
A．Paul couldn’t understand the urchin
B．the urchin’s wish came true in the end
C．the urchin wished to have a rich brother
D．the urchin had a deep love for his brother
60．The best title for the story probably is __________．
A．A Christmas Present    B．A Street Urchin  
C．A Brother Like That    D．An Unforgettable Ride

第三部分：閱讀理解（共20小題，每小題2分，滿(mǎn)分40分）
During my elementary school years，I used to compare my mom with my best friend  Tiffany’s mom．
Tiffany’s mom always gave her lots of money to buy the most fashionable clothes and favorite food．Her morn allowed her to do anything she liked．I really admired Tiffany．My mom didn’t give me much pocket money and she always told me that I should behave my self．1 was annoyed with her．
Whenever I didn’t get what 1 wanted，1 would complain to my mom，Tiffany’s mom would give her that!1 wish she were my mom．”Every time，my mom would calmly say “Poor Tiffany”．
I couldn’t understand her．“She shouldn’t be feeling sorry for Tiffany!”I thought．“She should be feeling sorry for me．”
One day，I couldn’t help saying to Morn，”P(pán)oor Tiffany？Lucky Tiffany! She gets everything she wants! Why do you feel sorry for her？”I burst into tears．
My mom sat down next to me and said softly , “Yes，I do feel sorry for her．I have been teaching you a lesson that she will never be taught．”
I looked up at her．“What are you talking about？”
Mom said with care，“One day she will really want something．Maybe she’11 find out that she can’t have it．Her mother won’t always be around to give her money，and what’s more，money can’t buy everything．”
She continued，“I have taught you valuable lessons by not giving you everything you want．You’11 know how to look for bargains and save money，but she won’t．You’11 under stand that you need to work hard to get the things that you want but she won’t．When Tiffany is a grown woman，she’11 wake up one day and she will be wishing that she had a mom like the one you’ve got．Life lessons are more important than modern clothes and delicious food．’’
It took some time，but I eventually understood my mom’s words．Now I am a happy and successful woman．
56．During the author’s elementary school years，she       ．
A．wished that her mom were as good as Tiffany’s
B．went to school with Tiffany every day
C．usually compared her lesson with Tiffany’s
D．sometimes gave lots of money to Tiffany
57．Why did the author’s mom always say “Poor Tiffany”？
A．She felt sorry for Tiffany because Tiffany was poor．
B．She wanted to tell a lie to comfort the author．
C．She thought that Tiffany was spoiled by her mother．
D．She told the author this and wanted her to help Tiffany．
58．What do we learn about the author’s mother？
A．She was strict and taught the author to be independent．
B．She cared for other people’s children more than her own．
C．She thought that life lessons were as important as money．
D．She was so poor that she couldn’t give the author much money．
59．What can we infer from the passage？
A．The author was quite annoyed with her mother in the past．
B．The author’s mother felt sorry for Tiffany．
C．Tiffany’s mother took the author’s mother’s advice．
D．The author is thankful to her mother now．

Do you like to eat out? Do you like to eat quickly? Do you like inexpensive food? Some people go to fast-food restaurants for these reasons. In the past, people usually went to diners（小餐館）for these reasons. In fact, many people in the States still go to diners today for the same reasons.
A man named Walter Scott had the first “diner” in 1872. It wasn’t a real diner. It was only a food cart. People on the street walked up to the cart to buy food. These carts served late-night workers who wanted a cup of coffee and a late-night meal. The meal was a sandwich or boiled eggs. In 1887, Samuel Jones built the first diner big enough to allow the customers to come inside. However, they did not sit down. Later, people built diners with counters and stools, and people sat down while they ate.
Before long, many diners stayed open around the clock. In other words, people were able to eat in diner at any time. Diners changed in other ways, too. The original menu of sandwiches and coffee became bigger. It included soup, favorite dishes, and a breakfast menu. In addition, diners soon became permanent buildings. They were no longer carts on wheels.
Diners today look similar to  the diners of the early 1900s. They are usually buildings with large windows. Inside, the diners have shining counters with stools, booths, and tables and chairs. People can eat all three meals in a modern diner.
Today, many people eat in fast-food restaurants such as McDonald’s and Burger King. However, the diner remains an American tradition, and thousands of people still enjoy eating there. It was popular a century ago, and it is still popular today.
1.A man named Walter Scott had the first “diner” in 1872. Why is the word “diner” in quotation marks(引號(hào))？
A.Because it is spelled differently from “ dinner”
B.Because the first diner was not what it is now
C.Because diner was a new word
D.Because it is a special kind of restaurant
2.What meals did the first diners serve?
A. only breakfast    B. Only lunch   C. Only night-meals  D. All of the above
3.According to paragraph 3, diners changed in __________
A. Two ways      B. three ways     C. four ways       D. five ways
4.Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A．Diners existed before a fast-food restaurant
B．The menu included more food than sandwiches and coffee
C．Burger King is a fast-food restaurant
D．Sandwiches became bigger
5.The main idea of the passage is that ______________.
A. The diner is a traditional , popular place to eat in the United States
B.Samuel Johns built the first diner big enough to allow the customers to come inside
C.American diners serve many types of food 24 hours a day to their customers
D.Diners are different from fast-food restaurants in many ways

完形填空 (共10小題，每小題2分，滿(mǎn)分20分)
Before the 29^th century the horse provided day to day transportation in the United States. Trains were used only for long-distance transportation.
Today the car is the most popular sort of transportation in all of the United States. It has completely    41   the horse as a means of everyday transportation. Americans use their cars for nearly 90 percent of all personal    42  .
Most Americans are able to buy cars. The average price of a    43   made car was $ 2,500 in 1950, $ 2,740 in 1960 and up to $ 4,750 in 1975. During this period American car manufacturers set about    44   their products. As a result, the yearly income of the average family increased from 1950 to 1975   45   than the price of cars. For this reason purchasing a new car takes a smaller    46   of a family’s total earnings today.
In 1951 proportionally it took 8.1 months of an average family’s    47   to buy a new car. By 1975 it only took 4.75    48    income. In addition, the 1975 cars were technically superior to models from previous years.
The    49   of the automobile extends throughout the economy as the car is so important to Americans. Americans spend more money    50   their cars running than on any other item.
41. A. denied        B. reproduced           C. replaced                  D. repeated
42. A. trip             B. works                 C. business                  D. travel
43. A. quickly        B. regularly                C. rapidly                      D. recently
44. A. raising        B. making                   C. reducing                  D. improving
45. A. slower        B. equal                     C. faster                     D. less
46. A. part             B. half                       C. number                  D. side
47. A. income        B. work                      C. plan                       D. debts
48. A. months’             B. dollar’s                  C. family                 D. year
49. A. running             B. notice                 C. influence                D. discussion
50. A. starting        B. leaving                   C. keeping                  D. repairing

Why should you learn Sign Language? Do you want to improve your communication with a family member or friend who is deaf? Do you want to be able to communicate with deaf people in general? Would you like to advance in your career by being able to communicate in ASL? Do you want to be a Sign Language interpreter?
Sign language is not just a random (隨意的) collection of gestures but a full-blown (完全成熟的) language in its own right, complete with its own grammatical rules. Each country or region has its own sign language, as different from each other as English is from Spanish. Each version of sign language is somewhat linked to the spoken language in its region. For example, American sign language does share similarities with English, even though it is its own language.
The advantages of knowing sign language in addition to a spoken language are many. Communication becomes possible on many levels with the deaf community, with other people either hearing or not in any of the above situations, as well as many more.
While other languages take years to learn, American Sign Language can be taught in a much shorter time period. It is one of the easiest languages to learn because most of the signs were developed to mimic the actual word or phrase it is representing. Even the alphabet signs look like the letters of the English alphabet.
American Sign Language, or ASL, is the third most used language in the United States. Used by the deaf community, interpreters, and friends and family of the deaf. There are a lot of sites on the internet that not only shows you the sign with video, but will help you practice reading signs as well.
Teaching even hearing babies sign language seems to be the fashion in recent years and for good reason. Communicating in sign language is fun and natural as babies naturally use body gestures in early communication. Teaching baby sign language actually appears to enhance the learning of verbal skills and brain development of the children involved.
小題1:Which two regions share similarities in their sign language?
A. Spain and Britain.
B. Mexico and USA.
C. Australia and Canada.
D. Japan and Korea.
小題2:Sign language ________.

A．is a collection of gestures

B．is easier to learn than English

C．is not very popular in USA

D．has no link to the spoken language

小題3:One of the reasons for learning sign language is that it ________.

A．increase self-confidence

B．provides more choices of career

C．trains brains

D．is interesting

小題4:Babies’ learning sign language cannot ________.

A．help them talk sooner

B．help them walk sooner

C．increase communication at a very early age

D．enrich relationship with parents and the people who take care of them

小題5:Which of the following topics is not discussed in the passage?

A．What is sign language?

B．The advantages of knowing sign language.

C．The relation of American sign language and English.

D．Ways of learning sign language.

第二節(jié)：完形填空（共20小題；每小題1.5分，滿(mǎn)分30分）
閱讀下面短文，掌握其大意。然后從36-55各題所給的選項(xiàng)中，選出最佳選項(xiàng)，并在 
The car, running along the well-lit road now sank in darkness. I broke the   36   on purpose,   37   that the driver was too tired to drive. “When do you go back home in the evening?”“9 o’clock after this    38  .”“Then when do you come out in the morning?”I    39   another question. “9 o’ clock, too—just as if I worked at an office.” His   40   surprised me, because every time I ride a taxi, what I   41   from the driver are only complaints that they have to work from morning till night, it’s hard to earn money, they’re often   42   by the police, or that their leaders are seated lazy,   43   the fruits. But this driver told me, “ I find it   44  to be a section chief as I was before. I like driving just for    45  . It’s fortunate that I hardly drive   46   a passenger. So I earn two or three thousand Yuan a month with ease. Yes, I never   47  an empty taxi. If it goes southward, I go northward. If it goes along a    48  , I turn into a narrow street…”
His words showed his    49   with his life and the pride he   50   in his job Such feelings are so rare among people nowadays as oxygen in high    51  。As an
ancient saying goes，“Neither joy in material   52   nor grieve（痛苦） over Personal setbacks．”How many people nowadays can show high ideals by  53   living and go far
with a calm mind? I couldn’t help feeling  54   when finding such a state of mind
in a stranger on a cold    55  .
36．A．window     B．stillness       C．silence      D. quietness
37．A．on condition  B．for fear       C．in belief     D. in order
38．A. night         B．trip          C．cycle       D. process
39．A．threw out    B．gave away     C．made up     D. led to
40．A．character    B．confidence     C．a(chǎn)ttitude      D. easiness
41．A．suffer       B．request       C．benefit       D．hear
42．A．detected    B．ordered       C．fined        D．seized
43．A．keeping     B．tasting        C. enjoying      D．choosing
44．A．exciting     B．disappointing  C．tiring        D. amazing
45．A．freedom     B．pleasure      C．hobby        D. company
46．A．without     B. with          C．behind       D．beside
47．A .follow       B. admire         C．envy         D. meet
48．A．route       B．path          C．railway       D．highway
49．A．intelligence  B．satisfaction    C．competition   D．honesty
50．A．made       B．held          C．caught      D．took
51．A．buildings    B．mountains     C．standard      D．heaven
52．A．gains       B．concerns      C．supports      D. loss
53．A．special      B．happy        C．simple        D. original
54．A．a(chǎn)ngry       B．content       C．dangerous     D. curious
55．A．morning     B．night         C．moment      D．season

One dark and stormy night, an elderly man and his wife entered the hall of a small hotel in Philadelphia, hoping to get shelter for the night.
The clerk, a friendly man with a beautiful smile, explained that there were three conferences in town. “All of our rooms are taken,” the clerk said, “but I can't send a nice couple like you into the rain at one o’clock in the morning. Would you perhaps be willing to sleep in my room? It’s not a suite, but it will be good enough to make you comfortable for the night.” The couple agreed.
As the elderly man paid the bill the next morning, he told the clerk, “You are the kind of person who should be the boss of the best hotel in the United States. Maybe someday I’Il build one for you.” The clerk looked at them and smiled. The three of them had a good laugh.
Two years passed. The clerk had almost forgotten the incident when he received a letter from the elderly man, asking the clerk to pay him a visit. The elderly man met him in New York, and led him to the corner of the Fifth Avenue and 34th Street. He then pointed to a great new building there, a reddish stone one with watchtowers thrusting up to the sky, and told the clerk that it was the hotel he had just built for him to manage.
That wonderful building was the original Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. And this young clerk whose names was George C. Boldt never foresaw the return of events that would lead him into the manager of one of the world's most attractive hotels.
56 .When the elderly couple left the hotel, they ________.          .
A .took what they said as a joke
B .wanted to build the same hotel in the future
C .hoped that the clerk would replace the boss of the hotel
D. thought the clerk was talented in managing hotels
57. Why did the elderly man build a hotel for the clerk?
A .He was grateful to the clerk.         B.They had a bet at first.
C.He wanted to please the clerk.        D. He wanted to sell the hotel.
58. According to the text, the clerk         
A. helped the couple because he thought they were poor
B. hoped that the old couple could give him a large amount of money
C. didn't expect to receive things in return from the old couple.
D. became rich, thanks to his own efforts
59. From the text, we can infer that        .
A. anybody can be a successful manager          B. old people are always very rich
C. good luck is always waiting for lucky people    D. kindness can bring a good return
60.What do you think of the clerk?
A. He was willing to help.                      B. He was very attractive.
C. He tried to make money for his hotel．         D. He liked making friends.

Three surfers rushed to save a man’s life after he was left drifting on a notorious stretch of water.
The men stayed with Greg Popple for 30 minutes and had to be rescued themselves by helicopter as the drama unfolded.
The 45-year-old had floated out on a body board near Hutchwns Point at 8:30 am. He found himself in trouble about half-a-mile from the shore and dangerously close to rocks. Surfers Graig Evans, 31, Robert Miles, 19, and Owain Daviees, 23, were risking their own safety to keep him floating for 30 minutes. Luckily a passer-by noticed what was going on and raised the alarm. Porthcawl Coastguard, Porthcaw Lifeboat and an RAF helicopter all took part in the rescue.
“The man who got into trouble was a body boarder-there was a big tide where he was,” said Joe Missen. “Three other surfers spotted he was in difficulty and he was going down. They kept him afloat because he was in a state of shock and out of energy. If Mr. Popple was closer to the rocks, it could have been a lot worse, but they managed to keep him from harm”.
Mr. Missen’s mum Alison, also part of the rescue team, said, “That part of the water is notorious for taking people out to nowhere”.
The three men had clocked off a night shift at Ford Motor Company shortly before the incident.
“I headed straight down to the beach for a surf, when I saw him flailing(揮動(dòng)). We just swam straight out to him and kept him calm while the help came”.
The four men were taken to the life boat house to recover, without injuries.
61. What would be the best title for the text?
A.Three Men to Be Praised                  B Notorious Place for Surfers
C.Surfers Rescue Man Caught in Tide           D.Greg Popple-a Lucky Dog
62. The helicopter came up at the request of ________.
A.Greg Popple         B. Craig Evans        C. Robert Miles          D. a passer-by
63. About the incident, we know that ______.
A.Mr. Popple moved difficulty for loss of energy
B.The three men were badly injured
C.Mr. Popple’mum was also in the rescue team
D.Mr. Davies was going to work that morning
64. According to the text, what was the most important thing to do for the three men?
A.Keeping him farther away from the rocks.       B.Keeping Mr Popple swimming in the sea.
C.Asking him to have a good rest.               D.Keeping him floating everywhere.
65. What may the style of this passage be?
A.A story.          B. A news report.          C. A poster.              D. An advertisement.

Marriages improve after children grow up and move out，according to an academic study，
which suggests an“empty nest”is not always a bad thing．
Popular wisdom has it that parents’relationships may suffer once their young fly the coop，
because they feel they have lost their purpose in life．However,a new study by researchers at the
University of California,Berkeley，has found that many couples actually feel happier when their
children leave home because they are able to enjoy spending time together．
In total，123 American mothers born in the 1930s were tracked for 18 years and asked to rate
their satisfaction levels shortly after marrying,when they were bringing up babies，once their
children reached their teenage years and finally at age 61，when almost all had“empty nests”．
Although not all said they were happier in general，most claimed their marriages had improved since their children had left home．Researchers believe this is not just because the spouses were spending more time together,but because they were able to enjoy each other’s company more．
One of the participants in the study,which is published in the jourmal Psychological Science，
said：“Once the kids grow up…there’s some of that stress removed…that responsibility removed，so things are a little more relaxed．’’
Psychologist Sara Gorchoff,who carried out the investigation，said：“The take-home message
for couples with young children is‘hang in there’．”Her co-author Oliver John added：“Don’t wait until your kids leave home to schedule quality time with your partner．”   
However,Dr Dorothy Rowe，from the British Psychological Society，said the effects of living
in an“empty nest'”will depend on the parents’relationship with their children．“If yod’re just
waiting for them to leave home so you Can get on with your life，then of course you’11 be pleased to see them go，”she said，‘‘But if you’ve built your life around your children you’11 be terribly lonely．”For some parents，their world falls apart when their Children leave．’’
72．It is commonly believed that            
A．marriages improve after children leave home
B．a(chǎn)n“empty nest'’is always a happy thing
C．parents’relationships may suffer once their young grow up and move out
D．parents will be pleased after their children leave home
73．When did many couples feel happier according to the study?
A．At age 61．when almost all had“empty nests”．
B．Shortly after marrying．
C．Once their children reached their teenage years．
D．When they were bringing up babies．
74．Marriages improve after children fly the coop not because         
A．many couples are able to spend time together
B．many couples arc able to enjoy each other’s company
C．things are a little more relaxed
D．many couples needn’t work at all
75．The author ofthe passage tends to agree that          ．    
A．parents should build their life around their kids
B．parents should schedule quality time with each other before kids leave home
C．parents’relationship with their kids has no effect on marriages at all
D．parents should be pleased to see their kids leave home