Honey from the African forest is not only a kind of natural sugar, it is also delicious.
Most people, and many animals, like eating it. However, the only way for them to get that honey is to find a wild bees' nest and take the honey from it. Often, these nests are high up in trees, and it is difficult to find them. In parts of Africa, though, people and animals looking for honey have a strange and unexpected helper - a little bird called a honey guide.
The honey guide does not actually like honey, but it does like the wax in the beehives (蜂房). The little bird cannot reach this wax, which is deep inside the bees' nest. So, when it finds a suitable nest, it looks for someone to help it. The honey guide gives a loud cry that attracts the attention of both passing animals and people. Once it has their attention, it flies through the forest, waiting from time to time for the curious animal or person as it leads them to the nest. When they finally arrive at the nest, the follower reaches in to get at the delicious honey as the bird patiently waits and watches. Some of the honey, and the wax, always falls to the ground, and this is when the honey guide takes its share.
Scientists do not know why the honey guide likes eating the wax, but it is very determined in its efforts to get it. The birds seem to be able to smell wax from a long distance away. They will quickly arrive whenever a beekeeper is taking honey from his beehives, and will even enter churches when beeswax candles are being lit.
【小題1】Why is it difficult to find a wild bees' nest?

Have you thought about what determines the way we are as we grow up? Remember the TV program Seven Up ? It started following the lives of a group of children in 1963. We first meet them as wide-eyed seven-year-olds and then catch up with them at seven-year intervals (間隔 )  : nervous  14-year-olds , serious  21-year-olds , then  grown-ups.
Some of the stories are inspiring ,others sad ,but what is interesting in almost all the cases is the  way  in which  the  children's early hopes and dreams are  shown  in their future lives, for example ,at seven ,Tony is a lively child who says he wants to become a sportsman or a taxi driver. When he grows up, he goes on to do both.  How about Nicki ,who says, "I'd like to find out about the moon. " and goes on to become a space scientist.  As a child, soft - spoken Bruce says he wants to help "poor children" and ends up teaching in India.
But if the lives of all the children had followed this pattern, the program would be far less interesting than it actually was. It was the children whose childhood did not prepare them for what was to come that made the program so inspiring. Where did their ideas come from about what they wanted to do when they grew up? Are children influenced by what their parents do ,by what they see on television ,or by what their teachers say? How great is the effect of a single important event? Many film directors ,including Stephen Spielberg ,say that an early visit to the cinema was the turning point in their lives.  Dr. Magaret  Mc Allister ,who has done a lot of research in this area ,thinks that the major influences are parents , friends and the wider society.
【小題1】What does the text mainly discuss?

完形填空（共20小題；每小題1．5分，滿分30分）
閱讀下面短文，掌握其大意，然后從各題所給的四個選項(xiàng)（A、B、C和D）中，選出最佳選項(xiàng)。
Wranglers（爭吵者） and Stranglers（扼殺者）
Years ago there was a group of brilliant young men at the University of Wisconsin, who seemed to have amazing creative  36  talent. They were would-be poets, novelists, and essayists. They were extraordinary in their  37   to put the English language to its best use. These promising young men  38  regularly to read and critique (評論) each other's work. And critique it they did!
These men were merciless with one another. They  39  the minutest literary expression into a hundred pieces. They were heartless, tough, even mean in their  40  .The sessions became such areas of literary criticism that the  41  of this special club called themselves the “Stranglers (扼殺者)”.
In order to  42  , the women of literary talent in the university  43  to start a club of their own, one comparable to the Stranglers. They  44  themselves the “Wranglers (爭論者)”.They, too, read their  45  one another. But there was one great difference. The criticism was much softer, more  46  , more encouraging. Sometimes, there was almost no criticism at all. Every effort, even the weakest one, was  47  .
Twenty years later an alumnus (男校友；男畢業(yè)生) of the university was making an exhaustive (詳盡的；徹底的)  48   of his classmates' careers when he  49   a vast difference in the literary accomplishments of the Stranglers as opposed to the Wranglers. Of all the  50  young men in the Stranglers, no one had made a significant literary  51   of any kind. From the Wranglers had come six or more successful  52  , some of national renown (名望；聲譽(yù)) such as Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, who wrote The Yearling.
Talent between the two？Probably the same. Level of  53  ？Not much difference. But the Stranglers were strangled, while the Wranglers were determined to give each other a(an)  54  .The Stranglers  55   an atmosphere of argument and self-doubt. The Wranglers highlighted the best, not the worst.

Parties and social gatherings no longer excite us the same way they once did. This is not due to a lack of desire to socialize, but the smartphone.
At parties, more people are on their smartphones than on their drinks. According to a recent International Data Corporation study, well over half of all Americans have a smartphone and reach for it the moment they wake up, keeping it in hand all day. In addition, too much of society is using smartphones while driving and as a result getting into car crashes. 34 percent of teens admit to text while driving, and they confirm that text messaging is their number one driving interruption. People's attachment to their smartphones is unbelievably becoming more important than the lives of themselves and others.
Just as drivers dismiss the importance of focusing while on the road, many people also fail to recognize the significance of human interaction. When with their friends, some people pointlessly check or send text messages in the presence of a friend, which sends a message to that friend: the person I am texting is more important than you. In addition, relying on our smartphone to make friends does not give us the same advantage as being able to make new friendships in the real world. Face-to-face conversations will give us much stronger communication skills in the long run.
As many people risk their lives and the lives of people around them just to send a text or mindlessly check their massages, smartphones are in many ways more dangerous to people. The quality of this technology is de-advancing societal achievements and weakening the value of communication. Not only is the smartphone affecting our desire to interact (交流) face-to-face but it is also lowering society's ability to communicate.
【小題1】The purpose of this text is to ______.

People used to say, “The hand that rocks (搖) the cradle (搖籃) rules the world.” and “Behind every successful man there is a woman.”
Both these sayings mean the same thing. Men rule the world, but their mothers and wives rule them.
Most American women wish to make their husbands and sons successful, but some of them want more for themselves. They want good jobs. When they work they want to be better paid. They want to be as successful as men.
The American women’s liberation movement was started by women who didn’t want to stand behind successful men. They wanted to stand beside men, with the same chance for success. They refused to work side by side with men who do the same work for a higher pay.
A liberated woman must be proud of being a woman and have confidence in herself. If somebody says to her, “You have come a long way, baby.” she will smile and answer, “Not nearly as far as I’m going to go, baby!”
This movement is quite new, and many American women don’t agree yet. But it has already made some important changes in women’s lives--- in men’s lives, too.
【小題1】“Behind every successful man there is a woman:” means______.

Shopping for clothes is not the same experience for a man as it is for a woman. A man goes shopping because he needs something. His purpose is settled and decided in advance. He knows what he wants, and his objective is to find it and buy it; the price is a secondary consideration. All men simply walk into a shop and ask the assistant for what they want. If the shop has it in stock(有現(xiàn)貨的), the salesman promptly produces it, and the business of trying it on follows at once. All being well, the deal can be and often is completed in less than five minutes, with hardly any chat and to everyone's satisfaction.
For a man, slight problems may begin when the shop does not have what he wants, or does not have exactly what he wants. In that case the salesman, as the name implies, tries to sell the customer something else, he offers the nearest to the article required. No good salesman brings out such a substitute impolitely; he does so with skill: “I know this jacket is not the style you want, sir, but would you like to try it for size? It happens to be the color you mentioned.” Few men have patience with this treatment, and the usual response is: “This is the right color and may be the right size, but I should be wasting my time and yours by trying it on.”
Now how does a woman go about buying clothes? In almost every respect she does so in the opposite way. Her shopping is not often based on need. She has never fully made up her mind what she wants, and she is only “having a look round”. She is always open to persuasion; indeed she sets great store by what the saleswoman tells her, even by what companions tell her. She will try on any number of things. Uppermost in her mind is the thought of finding something that everyone thinks suits her. Contrary to a lot of jokes, most women have an excellent sense of value when they buy clothes. They are always on the lookout for the unexpected bargain. Faced with a roomful of dresses, a woman may easily spend an hour going from one rail to another, to and fro, often retracing her steps, before selecting the dresses she wants to try on. It is a laborious process, but apparently an enjoyable one. Most dress shops provide chairs for the waiting husbands.
【小題1】The underlined sentence “the price is a secondary consideration” in the first paragraph means when a man is shopping ______.

One of our biggest fears nowadays is that our kids might some day get lost in a “sea of technology” rather than experiencing the natural world. Fear-producing TV and computer games are leading to a serious disconnection between kids and the great outdoors, which will change the wild places of the world, its creatures and human health for the worse, unless adults get working on child’s play.
Each of us has a place in nature we go sometimes, even if it was torn down. We cannot be the last generation to have that place. At this rate, kids who miss the sense of wonder outdoors will not grow up to be protectors of natural landscapes. “If the decline in parks use continues across North America, who will defend parks against encroachment（蠶食）?” asks Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods.
Without having a nature experience, kids, can turn out just fine, but they are missing out a huge enrichment of their lives. That applies to everything from their physical health and mental health, to stress levels, creativity and cognitive（認(rèn)知的）skills. Experts predict modern kids will have poorer health than their parents — and they say a lack of outside play is surely part of it; research suggests that kids do better academically in schools with a nature component and that play in nature fosters（培養(yǎng)）leadership by the smartest, not by the toughest. Even a tiny outdoor experience can create wonder in a child. The three-year-old turning over his first rock realizes he is not alone in the world. A clump of trees on the roadside can be the whole universe in his eyes. We really need to value that more.
Kids are not to blame. They are over-protected and frightened. It is dangerous out there from time to time, but repetitive stress from computers is replacing breaking an arm as a childhood rite of passage（通過儀式）.
Everyone, from developers, to schools and outdoorsy citizens, should help regain for our kids some of the freedom and joy of exploring, taking friendship in fields and woods that strengthen love, respect and need for landscape. As parents, we should devote some of our energies to taking our kids into nature. This could yet be our greatest cause.
【小題1】According to the passage, children without experiencing nature will _________.

Children pushed in buggies which face away from their parents may suffer long­term emotional（情感的）and language problems，according to a study published on Friday.
The research，believed to be the first of its kind，found that children who were not facing the person pushing them were less likely to talk，laugh and communicate with their parents.
The findings were based on a study of 2,722 parents and babies and an experiment where 20 babies were wheeled in buggies for a mile，facing their parents for half the journey and facing away for the other half. Parents using face­to­face buggies were twice as likely to talk to their children while the babies’ heart rates fell and they were twice as likely to fall asleep，showing that they were feeling relaxed and safe.
In addition，only one baby out of the 20 studied laughed while sitting in an away­facing buggy.
“Our data(數(shù)據(jù)) suggests that for many babies today，life in a buggy is emotionally impoverished and possibly stressful. Stressed babies grow into anxious adults，” said Dr Suzanne Zeedyk，Developmental Psychologist at Scotland’s Dundee University who carried out the research.
The study，which was published by National Literacy Trust as part of its “Talk To Your Baby” campaign，found that 62 percent of all children observed travelled in away­facing buggies.
Zeedyk said it would have a negative effect on babies’ development if they spent a long time in away­facing buggies，which would be bad to their ability to communicate with their parent at a time when their brain was developing rapidly.
Laura Barbour of the Sutton Trust，a social mobility charity which funded the research，said buggy manufacturers(制造商) should look closely at the findings.
【小題1】Using away­facing buggies may________.

A. Health
Health magazine features lots of articles on how to stay fit and feel fantastic. You’ll find healthy yet tasteful recipes (菜譜) that will keep you on track with your diet. The living section will give you ideas for things to do on the weekend or how to add some excitement to your lifestyle.
B. US Weekly
It features the latest news on the hottest celebrities(名人). Filled with photographs and stories, it’s a great magazine for their diets, weddings, divorces and all the events of the week. It keeps you up-to-date with everything that’s happening in Hollywood——the good, the bad and the embarrassing.
C. Rolling Stone
It’s a bi-weekly magazine for music and pop culture trends. In addition, readers can find culture and social comments on present news and events in each issue. Yearly special issues include the music festival preview, the best of rock, fall fashion, and 10 bands to watch.
D. Details
It is an award-winning monthly fashion magazine. It’s for men who are enthusiastic about adventure, style, music, fashion, sports, politics, humor and pop culture. Reviews of the latest books and movies are also included. Every issue has an interview with a celebrity in the news, with insightful questions and interesting answers.
E. Reader’s Digest
It is the world’s most widely-read monthly magazine. Each issue is packed with easy-to-read articles that help people lead better and healthier lives. It contains useful advice, entertainment and inspiration, the latest medical discoveries, how to manage your time and money, plus much more.
F. Life & Style Weekly
This magazine is the first weekly style magazine. It covers the latest happenings in Hollywood. You can find fashion, beauty, lifestyle trends and shopping guides in each issue of the magazine.
請閱讀以下讀者的相關(guān)信息，然后把這些讀者與其感興趣的雜志匹配起來。
【小題1】Abraham is a handsome student at Beijing Sport University. Besides sports news, he is concerned about social and political problems in his spare time.
【小題2】Rebecca is a beautiful housewife, but she doesn’t care much about her clothing. Her husband suggests that she learn some shopping skills and the best style tips.
【小題3】Patrick is a fan of stars who is crazy about them. He wants to know all the information about his favorite stars in real life situations like shopping for groceries, walking the dog and so on.
【小題4】Melissa and her boyfriend have just left university for work. They don’t have much money to eat outside every day. They must learn to cook for themselves.
【小題5】Douglas was a teacher at Peking University Heath Science Center. He retired last month and now lives happily with his wife in the countryside. He pays close attention to advances in medical science.

“Some day, there’ll be no Americans left in the NBA,” said 12-year-old Xing Tao, who joined his school team two weeks ago after watching Yao Ming in a televised NBA game, “The players will all be Chinese, like Yao.”
To China, Yao is a home-grown superstar who helped make the world’s first basketball league closer to Chinese players. To the NBA, the 2.23-meter center offers an opening of a different sort into the world’s largest new market. Yao’s NBA first appearance against the Indiana Pacers in October reached 287 million families in the US. That game might have been a bit of a letdown to Yao’s fans: He played just 11 of the 48 minutes, had two rebounds(籃板) and got no points. Comparing that with his performance on December 19, also against Indiana, Yao won 29 points and 10 rebounds. “This was one of the most exciting games I’ve had,” Yao said after Houston’s 95-83 victory. The NBA has to be excited about his on-count success. In all his games, he’s averaging 12.7 points and 7.7 rebounds, quite good for a new star. “Yao Ming has brought the NBA closer to the Chinese,” said NBA spokeswoman Cheong Sau Ching, “That makes the dream seem practical for other people in China and proud to be Chinese.”
The 22-year-old Yao is not the country’s first player in the NBA: Wang Zhizhi broke down the Dallas Mavericks in November 2003. But Yao’s combination of modesty and skills make him a favorite back home.
【小題1】What’s the direct reason for Xing Tao to join the school basketball team?
A. He watched an NBA game
B. He liked basketball.
C. He hoped to play for the NBA.
D. He had dream that he would become a basketball star.
【小題2】How many points did Yao Ming win in his first game in the NBA?