四．閱讀理解（每題4分，共20分）

British newspapers are among the oldest and most famous in the world. But recently big changes have seen these traditional publications try to fit the modern world. After 221 years, The Times (《泰晤士報(bào)》) has changed its size to become much smaller. In fact, the paper has cut its size in half from a broadsheet to tabloid.

In Britain the newspaper market is divided between the larger broadsheets and the smaller tabloids. These terms refer to the size of the papers’ pages, but there is also a clear difference in content. Broadsheets such as the Times, the Guardian (《衛(wèi)報(bào)》) and Daily Telegraph (《每日電訊報(bào)》) are serious papers. They cover a broad range of political, economic and international issues. Their stories are also reasonably long and use quite formal language.

Tabloids have far more stories about less serious issues such as celebrities’（名人） love lives. Their stories are shorter and use more simple language. Tabloids often have bigger pictures. Britain’s best-selling newspaper, the Sun, is a tabloid and has a naked (裸體的) girl on page three every day.

By changing to the size of a tabloid, the Times is following in the footsteps of a less famous broadsheet paper the Independent (《獨(dú)立報(bào)》). It changed to tabloid last year and saw its sales increase greatly. Although both papers have switched to the smaller size, the content of the papers has remained the same. They are both still serious papers.

The two papers claim that people find the smaller size easier to handle when they travel to work on the bus or the train in the morning. Instead of calling the new style of their paper tabloid, the paper says its new size is “compact” (緊湊型).

1. In which year was The Times born?

A. 1782            B. 1785             C. 1788                   D. 1786

2. Which is the most correct statement?

A. Broadsheets are larger in size while tabloids are smaller.

B. Tabloids are less serious than broadsheets.

C. Broadsheets contain more news than tabloids.

D. They are different in size, content and the style of language.

3. In which of the following newspapers would you find more news about the personal life of the famous soccer star Beckham?

A. The Sun  B. The Times       C. The Independent       D. The Guardian

4. According to the passage, we can infer the main reason for The Times' changing into the tabloid is that_____.

A. it wants to become convenient for people to carry.

B. it wants to increase its circulation (發(fā)行量).

C. it intends to copy what The Independent has done.

D. it is unlikely to stay in business if it does not change.

5. Which of the following statements is true according to the given information?

A. There are more tabloids than broadsheets in Britain at present.

B. After the change, there will be no differences between The Sun and The Times.

C. Although The Times has cut its size, it remains a serious paper.

D. All the papers will tend to have the same style in the future.

Started in 1636, Harvard University is the oldest of all the many colleges and universities in the United States. Yale, Princeton, Columbia and Dartmouth were opened soon after Harvard.

　 In the early years, these schools were much alike(*similar).Only young men went to college. All the students studied the same subjects, and everyone learned Latin, Greek and Hebrew. Little was known about science then, and one kind of school could teach everything that was known about the world. When the students graduated(*畢業(yè)),most of them became ministers or teachers.

　In 1782, Harvard started a medical school for young men who wanted to become doctors. Later, lawyers could receive their training in Harvard’s law school. In 1825, besides Latin and Greek, Harvard began teaching modern languages, such as French and German. Soon it began teaching American history.

　As knowledge increased, Harvard and other colleges began to teach many new subjects. Students were allowed to choose the subjects that interested them.

　Today, there are many different kinds of colleges and universities. Most of them are made up of smaller schools that deal with special fields of learning. There’s so much to learn that one kind of school can’t offer it all.

1.The oldest university in the US is _________.

　A.Yale 　　   B.Harvard 　　  C.Princeton 　       　D.Columbia

2. From the second paragraph, we can see that in the early years,______.

　A.those colleges and universities were the same

　B.people, young or old, might study in the colleges

　C.students studied only some languages and science

　D.when the students finished their school, they became lawyers or teachers

3. Modern languages the Harvard taught in 1825 were ________.

　A.Latin and Greek              B.Latin, Green, French and German

　C.American history and German   D.French and German

4.As knowledge increased, colleges began to teach_______.

　A.everything that was known      B.law and something about medicine

　C.many new subjects             D.the subjects that interested students

5. On the whole, the passage is about___________.

　A.how to start a university    　B.the world-famous colleges in America

　C.how colleges have changed    D.what kind of lesson each college teaches

Most Americans have great respect for their flag and every school day begins with the Pledge of Allegiance to the Stars and Stripes. Written in 1892, this pledge is recited in schools before classes begin and it serves as a sign of unity and identity for the various groups of people who have come from so many different lands and cultures.

Students stand at attention with their right hand over their heart, face the flag which is displayed in the classroom before them and begin, “I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.” Even the immigrants who come from distant lands must recite this pledge to the flag when they become eligible for citizenship.

The American flag is also known as “Old Glory” and over the years has evolved to its present form of fifty stars and thirteen stripes. The stars represent the fifty states and the stripes stand for the original thirteen colonies.

The first version of the flag with its stars and stripes appeared in 1777, but only had thirteen stars. As each new state joined the union, a new star was added. The last star to be added was in 1960 after Hawaii became the fiftieth state. In the future if another state joins the Union, another star will be added to the field of blue. The number of stripes, however, remains consistent and never changes.

The design of the flag may have altered over the years, but the colors, red, white and blue, have remained constant. In 1782 the Congress of the United States proclaimed that red stood for hardiness and courage, white stood for purity and innocence, and blue for justice and perseverance.

It was the flag which inspired the creation of the national anthem: “The Star Spangled Banner” in 1812. President Wilson in 1916 and later President Coolidge in 1927 suggested in proclamations to fellow countrymen that a special day be set aside to honor the flag. In 1949 the American Congress gave official recognition of June 14 as Flag Day.

According to the passage which of the following statements is NOT true?

A. The Pledge of Allegiance was written in 1892.

B. Another name of the American flag is “Old Glory” or “The Stars and Stripes”.

C. The design of the flag has stayed the same over the years.

D. June 14 was set aside as Flag Day to honor the flag from 1949 on.

What is the purpose of the Pledge of Allegiance?

A. It opens the school day.              B. It is recited in all schools.

C. It is a sign of unity and nationalism.    D. It makes someone eligible for citizenship.

What do the fifty stars on the flag represent?

A. Purity and innocence.               B. Truth and honesty

C. Bravery and courage                D. The fifty states.

The colors of the American flag ________.

A. have changed from time to time.       B. have always been red, white and blue.

C. used to be only red and white.         D. used to be red and blue.

The best title of the passage would be ________.

A. “Old Glory”: the American Flag       B. The Pledge of Allegiance

C. American National Anthem           D. Flag Day

Although it was not named ________ 1782, this kind of metal was used as early as 5300 BC．

A．in                    B．for             C．until           D．since

Started in 1636,Harvard University is the oldest of all the many colleges and universities in the United States.Yale,Princeton,Columbia and Dartmouth were opened soon after Harvard.
In the early years,thers schools were much alike.Only young men went to college.All the students studied the same subjects,and everyone learned Latin,Greek and Hebrew.Little was known about science then,and one kind of school could teach everything that was known about the world.When the students graduated,most of them became ministers or teachers.
In 1782,Harvard started a medical school for young men who wanted to become doctors.Later,lawyers could receive their training in Harvard’s law school.In 1825,besides Latin and Greek ,Harvard began teaching modern languages,such as French and German.Soon it began teaching American history.
As knowledge increased.Harvard and other colleges began to teach many new subjects.Students were allowed to choose the subjects that interested them.
Today,there are many different kinds of colleges and universities.Most of them are made up of smaller schools that deal with special fields of learning.There’s so much to learn that one kind of school can’t offer it all.
56.The oldest university in the US is__________.
A.Yale           B.Harvard            C.Princeton          D. Columbia
57.From the second paragraph,we can see that in the early years, __________
A.those colleges and universities were the same
B.people,young or old,might study in the colleges
C.students studied only some languages and science
D.when the students finished their school,they became lawyers or teachers
58.Mondern languages the Harvard taught in 1825 were__________
A.Latin and Greek               B.Latin,Greek,French and German
C.American history and German    D.French and German
59.As knowledge increased,colleges began to teach__________
A.everything that was known      B.law and something about medicine
C.the subjects that was known     D.many new subjects
60.On the whole,the passage is about__________
A.how to start a university         B.the world-famous colleges in America
C.how colleges have changed       D.what kind of lesson each college teaches