綜合閱讀

（一）

A

There is a story about British poet Samuel Coleridge. He was writing a poem when he was interrupted by a knock at the door. That was an age before telephones. Someone was delivering a message. When Coleridge got back to his poem, he had lost his inspiration. His poetic mood had been broken by the knock on his door. His unfinished poem, which could otherwise have been a masterpiece, would now never be more than a fragment (片段). This story tells us how unexpected communication can destroy an important thought, which brings us to the cell phone.

We have already entered a golden age of little white lies about our cell phones, and this is actually a healthy, protective development. “I didnt hear it ring” or “I didnt realize my phone had shut off” are among the lies that we tell to give ourselves space where were beyond reach. In fact, we have “Do Not Disturb” signs on the doors of hotel rooms, so why must we feel guilty when it comes to cell phones? Why must we apologize if we decide to shut off the phone for a while?

Cell phones make long-distance communication common, but also endanger our time. Now, time alone or a conversation with someone next to us without being interrupted by a phone is something to be cherished. Sometimes, even cell phone devotees, myself usually included, cant help wanting to throw their phone away.

But we dont and wont, and there is really no need. We have to develop a healthy contempt (輕視) for the rings of our own phones. Ease yourself of making and receiving cell phone calls. If we dont talk to the caller right now, we surely will shortly later. A cell phone call deserves no greater priority than a random word from the person next to us. The call on my cell phone may be the one–in–a–million from Steven Spielberg—who has finally read my novel and wants to make it his next movie, but most likely it is not, so Id better think about the idea that I just had for a new story, or the slice of pizza Ill eat for lunch.

1. The writer tells us the story in Paragraph 1 to ＿＿＿ .

A. direct readers attention to the main topic B. show how important inspiration is to a poet

C. emphasize the disadvantage of not having a cell phone D. encourage readers to read the works of the poet

2. The writer thinks telling “white lies” on the cell phones is ＿＿＿ .

A. a way of showing that you dont like the caller B. natural for us to keep our secret

C. basically a good way to protect ones privacy D. something we should feel guilty about

3. According to the text, whats the most annoying problem caused by cell phones?

A. People fail to notice anything else.

B. People feel guilty when they cant answer the cell phones.

C. Cell phones interrupt peoples private time.

D. With cell phones, its impossible to be unreachable.

4. What does the last paragraph suggest?

A. You should have lunch before you answer a call.

B. A person who calls us from afar deserves more attention.

C. Coleridge once called to talk about the authors novel.

D. Never let cell phones interfere too much with your life.

B

Americans are worse at spelling than Britons (英國人), with more than half unable to spell “embarrassed”, “l(fā)iaison” and “millennium”.

Despite the popularity of school spelling competitions, adults in the US performed poorly in a survey comparing how English speakers on both sides of the Atlantic deal with commonly misspelled words. 62% of Americans got “embarrassed” wrong, against 54% of Britons who struggled with the word in a survey last year. Adults in the US performed less well on most of the ten words tested, including “millennium” (52% wrong, against 43% in the UK), “l(fā)iaison” (61% to 54%) and “accommodation” (42% to 36%). Only “definitely” and “friend” were spelt correctly by more Americans.

Professor Edward Baranowski of California State University said that the results showed the terrible drop-out rates (輟學(xué)率) of the US high schools. “This certainly puts a final pressure upon the universities, which must devote lots of resources to remedial (補救的) education,” he said. Jack Bovill of the Spelling Society, which studied the research, said the high misspelling rates in both countries showed the need for the English spelling system to be modernized to improve spelling ability. “When asked, only a quarter of adults thought they had a problem with spelling. The answers in the test prove that this is far from the case,” he said. “What is holding the UK and the USA back is the irregular spelling system.” The US survey involving a sample of 1,000 adults was carried out online last month, with the method based on a survey of 1,000 Britons in April last year.

5. Whats the best title of the passage?

A. Britons are Worse at Spelling than Americans. B. The Serious Effect of the High Drop-out Rates.

C. Americans are Worse at Spelling than Britons. D. Poor Education of America and Britain.

6. Which of the following words is the least likely to be misspelled by Americans ?

A. Embarrassed. B. Millennium. C. Liaison. D. Definitely.

7. What does the underlined sentence in the last paragraph mean?

A. The case needs to be looked into. B. Americans are bad at spelling.

C. The situation is not too serious. D. The practical case is much worse.

8. How to improve the spelling ability according to the passage?

A. Control the drop-out rates of high schools.

B. Make the English spelling system modernized.

C. Put much more pressure on the universities.

D. Devote more resources to improve the quality of education.

C

I was at a basement in my college dormitory, when this girl came up to me and said, “Do you have a quarter? Im one short of putting my laundry in the dryer.”

I stopped to think about it for a few seconds and took a few moments to consider whether Id be willing to give a quarter away. I found myself judging her, thinking about why she didnt bring 4 quarters down from her room with her, as if shed have planned to be one short so she could ask someone else for it. Obviously that was not the case, but there I went again, judging the intention of others the way I judge myself when I do wrong things like stealing money, or lying.

I responded, “Yeah, I think I have one.” After fully awared that I had 3 since I just used two dollars to buy a drink worth 1.25 from the vending machine (自動售貨機). “Here you go,” I said with a smile. “Thanks!” she responded, mentioning that shed have cleaned clothes to wear the next morning. “Its fine. This happens to me all the time!” I said, wanting to feel like the good person she obviously thought I was.

A few moments later she returned and put a dollar bill next to where I was sitting. “I found this in the laundry room,” she said. “Why are you giving this to me?” I asked. “Oh, because you were a good person to me, so Im just returning the favor.”

Its just a dollar, but I felt moved. Because I hadnt given that quarter with such nice thoughts, the way she gave that one dollar to me. I felt like it was the first time I ever received something greater in return for something so small that I had given. I saw the power of kindness and generosity in a new way.

9. What was the girls problem?

A. She didnt know the time. B. She didnt have enough money.

C. She couldnt operate the dryer. D. She didnt know where the dryer was.

10. What does the underlined word “l(fā)aundry” most probably mean in this passage?

A. Place where clothes are washed. B. Machine with which to wash clothes.

C. Clothes that are washed. D. Place where clothes are sold.

11. How much did the girl have on her?

A. One quarter. B. Two quarters. C. Three quarters. D. One dollar.

12. How did the author feel when the girl gave him the money?

A. Pleased. B. Worried. C. Excited. D. Surprised.

D

Imagine living in a place where you and your brother are the only kids, where everyone lives in tents, and where wild animals walk or run past day and night. And theres a fire burning all the time for warmth and cooking.

Madison McNutt, 12, and his brother Wilder, 8, live in the southern African country of Botswana at Wild Dog Research Camp, where their father studies wild dogs and other big predators (捕食者). Their mother works with local children, teaching them about conservation of the natural world.

Boys Tent

The boys live in their own tent attached to their parents, several feet off the ground like a tree house. The camp toilet is a hole in the ground, and everyone showers and bathes outside under the stars. Sometimes at night the boys spot animals like hyenas (土狼) that come to the camp for a drink. Sometimes there is a lot of excitement.

Wildlife

“The wildlife at night is very dangerous,” says Wilder, “so you have to be extremely careful.” “Last night some hyena killed an impala in camp. They made a huge ruckus (騷動) and I was up for about two hours listening to the noise.”

School

The boys attend class in camp about four months out of the year. Madisons favorite part of the day is when school gets out. “Then I can do other things, like going out with some of the students to research cheetahs or wild dogs or lions or hyenas.”

Favorite Animals

Madison, who wants to train dogs for the movies when he grows up, likes the wild dogs most. “They are very social animals and are always nice to each other.” Both boys have learned a lot about the animals their father works to understand and protect.

13. The purpose of this passage is to ＿＿＿ .

A. encourage people to go camping in Africa B. call on more people to protect wild animals

C. introduce people a good way of spending holidays D. introduce people the life at Wild Dog Research Camp

14. Madison McNutt and Wilder ＿＿＿ .

A. stay with local children in the camp B. live in a tree house off the ground

C. have known much about wild dogs D. have the same favorite animals

15. What can be inferred from the passage?

A. They can take a bath in a special tent.

B. The two boys mother is a teacher in the local school.

C. The two boys school time of a year in camp isnt too long.

D. The two boys father wants them to be scientists.

16. Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A. Campers should take care at night because of dangerous wildlife.

B. Wilder likes the leopard because they are social animals.

C. Campers seldom see animals in the day in the camp.

D. The two boys father is a wild lion researcher.

E

“Soon, youre going to have to move it out!” cried my neighbor on seeing the largest tomato plant known to mankind or at least known in my neighborhood.

One tiny 9-inch plant, bought for $1.25 in spring, has already taken over much of my rose bed, covering much of other plants, and is well on its way to the front door.

Roses require a good deal of care, and if it werent for the pleasure they give, it wouldnt be worth the work. As it is, I have a garden full of sweet-smelling roses for most of the year. Bushes must be pruned (剪枝) in early spring, leaving ugly woody branches until the new growth appears a few weeks later. It was the space available in the garden that led me into planting just one little tomato plant. A big mistake!

Soil conditions made just perfect for roses turn out to be even more perfect for tomatoes. The daily watering coupled with full sun and regular fertilizing (施肥) have turned the little plant into a tall bush. The cage I placed around it has disappeared under the thick leaves.

Now when harvesting the fruit, I have to find the red ones among the leaves, which means I almost have to stand on my head, and once found, I have to reach down and under to pick the tomatoes. I found two full-blown white roses completely hidden as I picked tomatoes in June. But they were weak and the leaves already yellow for lack of light.

Here I am faced with a painful small decision: To tear up a wonderful and productive tomato plant that offers ten to twenty ripe sweet tomatoes each day or say goodbye to several expensive and treasured roses. Like Scarlett in Gone With Wind, Ill think about that tomorrow.

17. What are the requirements for the healthy growth of roses?

A. A lot of care and the right soil. B. Frequent pruning and fertilizing.

C. Tomato plants grown alongside. D. Cages placed around the roots.

18. The writer planted the tomato because ＿＿＿ .

A. it cost only $1.25 B. the soil was just right for it

C. there was room for it in the garden D. the roses branches needed covering

19. This year the writers roses were ＿＿＿ .

A. removed from the rose bed B. picked along with the tomatoes

C. mostly damaged by too much sunlight D. largely hidden under the tomato plant

20. In the situation described in the text, one good thing is that ＿＿＿ .

A. the roses cost the writer little money

B. the writer has a daily harvest of tomatoes

C. someone will help the writer make the decision

D. the writer can now enjoy both the roses and tomatoes

（二）

A

（2012江西卷）閱讀下面短文并回答問題，然后將答案寫到題后的橫線上（請注意題后的詞數(shù)要求）。

[1] Stamp collectors usually collect stamps only from certain countries or regions. The traditional method of stamp collecting is to organize stamp collection according to the issue dates.

[2] Of course, there are many . You can collect stamps relating to a particular theme. For example, sport lovers may choose the Olympic theme. They try their best to find Olympic stamps issued by various parts of the world every four years. Some of them may want to concentrate on even more specific sport activities like ball games, gymnasium, swimming, etc.

[3] If you like astronomy, you may be keen on collecting stamps describing the stars, planets, spacecraft, spacemen, etc. Once you have fixed the topic, you no longer need to bother about stamps other than the theme you selected. Then, you can put all your effort to collect the stamps around it.

[4] China issues zodiac animal stamps (十二生肖郵票) every year to celebrate the Lunar New Year. They are extremely popular and a lot of collectors wait patiently for 12 years to collect a full set of them. Hong Kongs Lunar New Year special stamp series began in 2000 with the Year of Dragon and the twelfth and final set was issued in 2011, the Year of Rabbit. Recently some Western countries have issued zodiac animal stamps, which attract a lot of attention as well.

[5] You may choose any theme you like. However, you should bear in mind an essential point. The topic you choose should not be too narrow. Otherwise, it is very difficult to accumulate stamps around the topic. You will be depressed and even lose your interest in collecting stamps.

[6] Collecting stamps with themes is especially popular among teenagers because there is a wide range of choices for them. The main challenge is how you organize and expand your collection around your theme.

1. What is the main idea of the passage? (no more than 5 words)

2. Fill in the blank in Paragraph 2 with proper words. (no more than 5 words)

Of course, there are many

3. What should you do if you want to collect a full set of zodiac animal stamps? (no more than 7 words)

4. List the three general themes in collecting stamps mentioned in the passage. (3 words)

5. What does the word “them” (Line2, Paragraph 6) probably refer to? (1 word)

B

（2011湖南卷）Direction: Read the following passage. Answer the questions according to the information given in the passage.

My First Long Run

Two weeks ago, I had a quarrel with my husband. After he had driven off in anger, I realized that I wasnt going to feel any better just sitting there. Feeling abandoned and guilty, I put on my gym shoes to get some fresh air.

Our driveway has a slope (斜坡) that is easier just to jog down if you are lazy, taking advantage of gravity. Instead of stopping at the end of the slope, I decided to see if I could just jog to the end of the street. I had tried a few months ago and failed miserably. Since that first attempt I had been jogging regularly and was significantly fitter, but still very lazy. However this time around I managed to reach the stop sign with ease and I figured I would go a little further.

After about one kilometer, however, I noticed that my upper body was tense. To make the movement easier I had to relax my body, and tried to take deep breaths of fresh air.

I kept giving myself the excuse to stop. No one would be disappointed. No one would even know. But I didnt stop. I wanted to keep going harder, better, faster, stronger. To my great surprise, I ran 4.9 km in 31 minutes. When I got back, I had tears in my eyes. I did something I thought I could never do.

It was the first long run of my life. Since then, I have improved my stride (步幅) and time. After every run I feel fitter, happier and motivated to keep progressing. I love the runners high. I normally jog because I want to look good. I want to run because it makes me feel good.

6. Why did the author feel guilty? (NO more than 9 words)

7. What did the author fail to do miserably a few months ago? (NO more than 11 words)

8. What excuses did the author keep giving herself to stop? (NO more than 9 words)

9. How is running different from jogging to the author? (NO more than 14 words)

C

（2011江西卷）閱讀下面短文并回答問題，然后將答案寫到答題卡相應(yīng)的位置上（請注意題后的詞數(shù)要求）。

[1] It is now possible to watch live sport on television on any day of the week, and the current amount of reporting will undoubtedly increase further in years to come. This is certainly having an influence on the live sports events themselves, and there are both benefits and shortcomings to this.

[2] Why has there been such growth in televised sport? For one thing, with digital broadcasting, there are now many more TV channels than there were even ten years ago. Moreover, sport has become an important form of entertainment, appealing to both men and women.

[3] When are the benefits of this state of affairs? One obvious advantage to the profession is the addition of money provided by television companies. Large football clubs benefit financially from TV income and the top players can command very large salaries. Less popular sports also receive money that can be used in training and awareness-raising. Whats more, there is a health benefit to some of the population, because through televised sport, more people have become interested in actually playing sport.

[4] However, if so much sport is on television. Considering football again, many small clubs have suffered financial losses recently, as they cannot compete with the large ones. There has been a general falling in ticket sales, especially among smaller clubs. Fewer people attend live matches nowadays, preferring to watch from the comfort of their living room. And ticket prices have risen greatly.

[5] To sum up, while televised sport has created many opportunities and benefited certain people and clubs very much, it has also been responsible for changing the nature of live sports events for ever.

10. What is the main idea of the text? (no more than 8 words)

11. Complete the following statement with words from Paragraph 2. (no more than 3 words)

There has been a great increase in TV channels in the past few years with the help of

12. Point out the advantage of televised sport which does not concern money in Paragraph3. (no more than 3 words)

13. Fill in the blank in Paragraph 4 with proper words. (no more than 6 words)

14. What does the word “it” (Line2, Paragraph5) probably refer to? (no more than 3 words)

D

閱讀下面短文并回答問題，然后將答案寫到答題卡相應(yīng)的位置上（請注意題后的詞數(shù)要求）。

[1] Why cant I get it done?

[2] This is one question millions of people over the globe ask themselves every now and then. It is not as if you are not working hard, but you simply may not know that there is a difference between work and productivity. Your plan is what gives you a clear picture of what you are aiming at, but the method of achieving may vary from time to time. That you did not meet up with a deadline does not mean you were not working on it. The problem is whether you will be able to manage time.

[3] Before you start on the next activity, task or project, first ask yourself why you want to do what you are about to do now. You will by this be able to know if the task should be done, and if the timing is right.

[4] Doing the right thing at the wrong time makes it absolutely wrong. So it is not just enough to do what is right, also consider . Your time has value when you spend it on what is right at that instance. On the other hand, the value of your task is when it is done at the right time.

[5] You will feel sorry about the time spent on what was not profitable to you. Time can not be wasted, because it can not be preserved and replaced. You are always doing something with your time. What matters is the value of what you are doing at the moment with your time.

[6] The desire to make a difference begins with the ability to take the right decision on what to do. It will become simple if you learn to manage time effectively.

15. What is the main idea of the text? (No more than 10 words)

16. Fill in the blank in Paragraph 4 with proper words. (No more than 10 words)

17. Complete the following statement with proper words. (No more than 5 words)

You will regret doing things which were of no value to you.

18. What should be the first step to get some work done? (No more than 12 words)

19. What does the underlined word “it” (Line 3, Paragraph 4) probably refer to? (No more than 3 words)

E

閱讀下面短文并回答問題，然后將答案寫到答題卡相應(yīng)的位置上（請注意題后的詞數(shù)要求）。

[1] Scientists believe that conditions on Mars around 3.8 billion years ago were very similar to those of the early earth, when primitive organisms were spreading through our oceans. At that time, Mars would have been much warmer and wetter than it is today, with an atmosphere composed mainly of carbon dioxide, just like that of the earth at the time. Under these conditions, it is highly probable that life may have arisen on Mars as well.

[2] But, even if life did not arise naturally on Mars, it does not mean that it could not have existed there. According to professor paul davies of the university of adelaide, australia, life forms could have been transferred between the earth and Mars in wreckage (broke pieces) created by the impact of comet (彗星) and small planets on the surface of the two planets.

[3] Even today, about 500 tons of material from Mars lands on earth every year. It is mainly in the form of the dust but occasionally a larger chunk (厚片, 大塊) strikes the earth. In 1911, a piece of martian rock crashed in egypt, killing a dog. According to professor Davies, it is in these chunks of rock, which were much larger and more frequent in the past that life forms could have been transported from planet to planet.

[4] “But how could these life forms have survived their journey through space?” says Paul Davies, “The difficulty in believing this theory is that a bacterium on its own in space has to struggle itself not only against cold but also against deadly cosmic (宇宙的) radiation. But wrapped in a rock the situation is different. A rock ten meters across would shield life inside it from a lot of radiation and the temperature might only be minus 10 or 20 degrees, the sort of thing we have on earth.”

20. What does professor Paul Davies believe? (No more than 6 words)

21. What dose the word “It” (Line 1, Paragraph 3) probably refer to? (No more than 3 words)

22. List at least two differences about Mars between the past and now. (No more than 16 words)

23. Why could life survive when transferred from one planet to another? (No more than 12 words)

24. Where do some scientists suppose life probably come from? (No more than 8 words)