They baby is just one day old and has not yet left hospital. She is quiet but alert (警覺). Twenty centimeters from her face researchers have placed a white card with two black spots on it. She stares at it carefully. A researcher removes the card and replaces it by another, this time with the spots differently spaced. As the cards change from one to the other, her gaze(凝視) starts to lose its focus - until a third, with three black spots, is presented. Her gaze returns; she looks at it for twice as long as she did at the previous card. Can she tell that the number two is different from three, just 24 hours after coming into the world?

Or do newborns simply prefer more to fewer? The same experiment, but with three spots shown before two, shows the same return of interest when the number of spots changes. Perhaps it is just the newness? When slightly older babies were shown cards with pictures of objects(a comb, a key, an orange and so on), changing the number of objects had an effect separate from changing the objects themselves. Could it be the pattern that two things make, as opposed to three? No again. Babies paid more attention to squares moving randomly on a screen when their number changed from two to three, or three to two. The effect even crosses between senses. Babies who were repeatedly shown two spots became more excited when they then heard three drumbeats than when they heard just two; likewise(同樣地) when the researchers started with drumbeats and moved to spots.

60. The experiment described in Paragraph 1 is related to the baby’s ______.

A. sense of hearing.

B. sense of sight.

C. sense of touch.

D. sense of smell.

61. Babies are sensitive to the change in ______.

A. the size of cards.

B. the colour of pictures.

C. the shape of patterns.

D. the number of objects.

62. Why did the researchers test the babies with drumbeats?

A. To reduce the difficulty of the experiment.

B. To see how babies recognize sounds.

C. To carry their experiment further.

D. To keep the babies’ interest.

63. Where does this text probably come from?

A. Science fiction.

B. Children’s literature.

C. An advertisement.

D. A science report.

Some people will do just about anything to save money. And I am one of them. Take my family’s last vacation. It was my six-year-old son’s winter break form school, and we were heading home from Fort Lauderdale after a weeklong trip. The flight was overbooked, and Delta, the airline, offered us $400 per person in credits to give up our seats and leave the next day. I had meeting in New York，So I had to get back . But that didn't mean my husband and my son couldn't stay. I took my nine-month-old and took off for home.

The next day my husband and son were offered more credits to take an even later flight. Yes, I encouraged一okay, ordered-them to wait it out at the airport, to "earn" more Delta Dollars. Our total take: $1,600. Not bad, huh?

Now some people may think I'm a bad mother and not such a great wife either. But as a big-time bargain hunter, I know the value of a dollar. And these days, a good deal is somthing few of us can afford to pass up.

I've made living looking for the best deals and exposing (揭露) the worst tricks . I have been the consumer reporter of NBC's Today show for over a decade. I have written a couple of books including one titled Tricks of the Trade: A Consumer Survival Guide. And I really do what I believe in. I tell you this because there is no shame in getting your money’s worth. I’m also tightfisted when it comes to shoes, clothes for my children, and expensive restaurants. But I wouldn't hesitate to spend on a good haircut. It keeps its longer, and it's the first thing people notice. And I will also spend on a classic piece of furniture. Quality lasts.

56. Why did Delta give the author's family credits?

A. They took a later flight.

B. They had early bookings.

C. Their flight had been delayed.

D. Their flight had been cancelled.

57. What can we learn about the author?

A. She rarely misses a good deal.

B. She seldom makes a compromise.

C. She is very strict with her children

D. She is interested in cheap products.

58. What does the author do?

A. She's a teacher.

B. She's a housewife.

C. She's a media person.

D. She's a businesswoman.

59. What does the author want to tell us?

A. How to expose bad tricks.

B. How to reserve airline seats.

C. How to spend money wisely,

D. How to make a business deal.

I went to a group activity, “Sensitivity Sunday” which was to make us more   36   the problem faced by disabled people. We were asked to “   37   a disability” for several hours one Sunday. Some member   38   chose the wheel chair. Other wore sound-blocking earplugs (耳塞) or blindfolds (眼罩).

Just sitting in the wheelchair was a   39   experience, I had never considered before how   40   it would be to use one. As soon as I sat down my   41   made the chair begin to roll. Its wheel were not   42   . Then I wondered where to put my   43   , It took me quite a while to get the metal footrest into   44   , I took my first uneasy look at what was to be my only means of   45   for several hours. For disabled people, “adopting a wheelchair” is not a temporary(臨時的)   46   .

I tried to find a   47   position and thought it might be restful,   48   kind of nice to be   49    around for a while. Looking around, I   50   would have to handle the thing myself! My hands started to ache as I   51   the heavy wheels, I came to know that controlling the   52   of the wheelchair as not going to be   53   task,

My wheelchair experiment was soon   54   . It made a deep impression on me. A few hours of “disability” gave me only a taste of the   55   , both physical and mental, that disabled people must overcome.

36. A. curious about    B. aware of           C. interested in     D. careful with

37. A. cure                  B. adopt               C. prevent            D. analyze

38. A. inserted             B. strangely          C. as usual           D. like me

39. A. learning             B. working            C. satisfying         D. relaxing

40. A. convening         B. awkward           C. boring              D. exciting

41. A. height                B. force                C. skill                  D. weight

42. A. locked               B. repaired           C. powered          D. grasped

43. A. hands                B. feet                  C. keys                 D. handles

44. A. place                 B. action               C. play                  D. effect

45. A. operation          B. communication C. transportation  D. production

46. A. exploration        B. education         C. experiment       D. entertainment

47. A. flexible               B. safe                 C. starting            D. comfortable

48. A. yet                     B. just                   C. still                   D. even

49. A. shown               B. pushed            C. driven              D. guided

50. A. realized             B. suggested        C. agreed             D. admitted

51. A. lifted                  B. turned              C. pressed           D. seized

52. A. path                  B. position            C. direction           D. way

53. A. easy                  B. heavy               C. major               D. extra

54. A. forgotten           B. repeated          C. conducted        D. finished

55. A. weaknesses      B. anxieties          C. challenges       D. illnesses

 The sunlight is white and blinding, _______ hard-edged shadows on the ground.

   A. throwing     B. being thrown      C. to throw     D. to be thrown

 It was a real race _______ time to get the project done. Luckily, we made it.

   A. over      B. by      C. for      D. against

 “You can’t judge a book by its cover,” ________ .

   A. as the saying goes old      B. goes as the old saying 

   C. as the old saying goes      D. goes as old the saying

 There’s no way of knowing why one man makes an important discovery ________ another man, also intelligent, fails.

A. since      B. if      C. as      D. while

 India attained ________ independence in 1947, after _______ long struggle.

   A. 不填; a       B. the; a      C. an; 不填     D. an; the

 At the last moment, Tom decided to ________ a new character to make the story seem more likely.

A. put up      B. put in      C. put on    D. put off

 The door ________ open, no matter how hard she pushed.

   A. shouldn’t      B. couldn’t     C. wouldn’t    D. mightn’t