閱讀理解

閱讀下列短文，從每題所給的四個選項（A、B、C和D）中，選出最佳選項。

（一）

When I was a boy， I belonged to the Boy Scouts so I used to go camping every summer， and once something happened which I have never been able to explain.

We were camping in a place above a river. After arriving， we all rushed down to the river and had a swim. Standing by the river， we noticed that it was surrounded[環(huán)繞] by cliffs[懸崖]. If someone wanted to reach the river at this point， he had to walk past our camp.

Several days later， the scoutmaster had to be away for a day. That afternoon， we had supper early. We were sitting round the fire， eating and talking， when a man walked past and went down towards the river. We all felt that this man looked very strange， but， because each of us was afraid of looking very stupid， no one said anything.

We ate rather slowly， taking as long as possible. After finishing， we collected our plates together so that we could take them to the river where we always washed them. But no one moved towards the river—we stood looking at each other ashamed. Then all shouting at once， we began talking about the man who had walked past us. We agreed how strange he looked and we wondered what he could be doing by the river. We knew that he could only return by passing through our camp.

An hour passed. Then one of the boys suggested we should creep[悄悄移動] down by the river so that we could see what the man was doing. Moving very slowly and keeping in the shadow， we crept down towards the bank. One boy climbed a tree so that he could see everything clearly. He called to us that there was no one there， so we ran down to the bank， looking everywhere carefully. We could not understand where the man had gone.

When it got dark， we went back to our camp feeling bewildered. We told the scoutmaster what had happened in the evening. Smiling， he doubted that we had seen the man， but finally suggested we go and look again. We did， but there was no one there.

Many years have passed， but I still remember it as if it were yesterday. What did we see？ I do not know.

1. The writer in the text mainly tells us _________.

A. the story of his childhood ? ? ? B. a strange camping experience

C. about a stranger by the river D. about a good place for camping

2. Why did the boys eat their supper slowly？

A. They wanted to delay going to the river bank.

B. They were sitting for their scoutmaster.

C. They had a supper earlier than usual.

D. They were taking while eating.

3. The word “Bewildered” in the text probably means _________.

A. ashamed ? ? ? ? ? ? ? B. nervous

C. unable to understand ? ? D. eager to know something

4. When he heard what had happened， the scoutmaster _________.

A. realized who the man was B. started to worry about the man

C. went back to look for the man ? D. felt it hard to believe the boys

5. The writer still remembers the event because ________.

A. the boys acted foolishly

B. the camping place is beautiful

C. there has been no explanation for the event

D. he particularly enjoyed his camping that summer.

（二）

Every year thousands of tourists visit Pompeii， Italy. They see the sights that Pompeii is famous for—its stadium and theatres， its shops and restaurants. The tourists do not， however， see Pompeiis people. They do not see them because Pompeii has no people. No one has lived in Pompeii for almost 2000 years.

Once， Pompeii was a busy city of 22000 people. It lay at the foot of Mount Vesuvius， a grass-covered volcano[火山]. Mount Vesuvius had not erupted[噴發(fā)]for centuries， so the people of Pompeii felt safe. But they were not.

In August of AD 79， Mount Vesuvius erupted. The entire top of the mountain exploded， and a huge black cloud rose into the air. Soon stones and hot ash began to fall on Pompeii. When the eruption ended two days later， Pompeii was buried under 20 feet of stones and ashes. Almost all of its people were dead.

For centuries， Pompeii lay buried under stone and ash. Then， in the year 1861， an Italian scientist named Ginseppe began to uncover Pompeii. Slowly， carefully， Ginseppe and his men dug. The city looked almost the same as it had looked in AD 79. There were streets and fountains， houses and shops. There was a stadium with 20000 seats. Perhaps the most important of all， there were everyday objects， which tell us a great deal about the people who lived in Pompeii. Many glasses and jars had some dark blue colour in the bottom， so we know that the people of Pompeii liked wine. They liked bread， too; metal bread pans were in every bakery. In one bakery there were 81 round， flat loaves of bread—a type of bread that is still sold in Italy today. Tiny boxes filled with a dark， shiny powder tell us that women liked to wear eye-makeup.

Ginseppe has died， but his work continues. One-fourth has not been uncovered yet. Scientists are still digging， still making discoveries that draw the tourists to Pompeii.

1. Why do large numbers of people come to Pompeii each year？

A. To visit the volcano. ? ? ? ? ? ? ? B. To shop and eat there.

C. To watch sports and plays. ? D. To see how Pompeiians lived.

2. Why had so many Pompeiians remained by volcanic Mount Vesuvius？

A. The city nearby offered all kinds of fun.

B. The area produced the finest wine in Italy.

C. Few people expected the volcano to erupt again.

D. The mountain was beautiful and covered with grass.

3. Why did the city uncovered look almost the same as it had looked in AD 79？

A. Because Ginseppe and his men dug it slowly and carefully.

B. Because the city was buried alive and remained untouched.

C. Because scientists successfully rebuilt the city with everyday objects.

D. Because nobody had lived in the city ever since the volcano erupted.

4. What do we know about the Pompeiians who lived 2000 years ago？

A. They lived more or less the same as Italians now do.

B. They liked women wearing all kinds of makeup.

C. They enjoyed a lazy life with drinking and eating.

D. They went back to Pompeii after the eruption in AD 79.

（三）

Excused from recycling because you live in a high rise with a rubbish chute？ You wont be for long. Miamis Mark Shantzis has made it simple for those living in tall buildings to use the chute and recycle too.

In Shantzis Hi-Rise Recycling System， a chute leads to a pie-shaped container with six boxes that can turn around when operated. The system， which fits in the same space as the chute and container now in use， enables glass， plastic， paper， metal， and other rubbish to go into separate boxes.

The system is controlled from a board fixed next to the chute door. The board has a button for each class of recycling materials （as well as for unrecyclables）. At the press of a button， a microcomputer locks all other floors chute door and sets the recycling container turning until the right box comes under the chute. The computer also counts the loads and gives a signal by phone when the box is full. And a particular piece of equipment breaks up the nonrecyclables.

Sorting[分類] recyclables before they are collected saves the use of expensive materials recovery equipment which otherwise has to do the sorting. Such equipment often makes recycled materials very expensive， so expensive that tons of recyclables remain wasted. Shantzis believes his system could help recycled materials become more cost-effective.

1. The purpose in writing this text is ________.

A. to encourage people to recycle their rubbish

B. to introduce a recycling system for high rises

C. to describe the use of computer technology in recycling

D. to explain the need for rubbish collection in high rises

2. When he says “You wont be for long” the writer means that ________.

A. youll soon be living in a cleaner building

B. rubbish chutes will become out of date before long

C. you wont wait long for your turn to recycle rubbish

D. it wont be long before youll have to recycle your rubbish

3. Before dropping rubbish into the chute you have to ________.

A. lock the other floors chute doors

B. check if the container is full

C. press the correct button

D. break up the rubbish

4. The biggest advantage of this new system is that _________.

A. it reduces the cost of recycling

B. it saves time and space

C. it saves money for people living in high rises

D. it makes better use of the existing recovery equipment

（四）

Olaf Stapledon wrote a book called First and Last Men， in which he looked millions of years ahead. He told of different men and of strange civilizations[文明]， broken up by long “dark ages” in between. In his view， what is called the present time is no more than a moment in human history and we are just the First Men. In 2，000 million years from now there will be the Eighteenth or Last Men.

However， most of our ideas about the future are really very short-sighted. Perhaps we can see some possibilities for the next fifty years. But the next hundred？ The next thousand？ The next million？ Thats much more difficult.

When men and women lived by hunting 50，000 years ago， how could they even begin to picture modern life？ Yet to men of 50，000 years from now， we may seem as primitive[原始的] in our ideas as the Stone-Age hunters do to us. Perhaps they will spend their days gollocking to make new spundels， or struggling with their ballalators through the cribe. These words， which I have just made up， have to stand for things and ideas that we simply cant think of.

So why bother even to try imagining life far in the future？ Here are two reasons. First， unless we remember how short our own lives are compared with the whole human history， we are likely to think our own interests are much more important than they really are. If we make the earth a poor place to live because we are careless or greedy[貪婪] or quarrelsome， our grandchildren will not bother to think of excuses for us.

Second， by trying to escape from present interests and imagine life far in the future， we may arrive at quite fresh ideas that we can use ourselves. For example， if we imagine that in the future men may give up farming， we can think of trying it now. So set you imagination free when you think about the future.

1. A particular mention made of Stapledons book in the opening paragraph ________.

A. serves as a description of human history

B. serves an introduction to the discussion

C. shows a disagreement of views

D. shows the popularity of the book

2. The text discusses men and women 50，000 years ago and 50，000 years from now in order to show that ________.

A. human history is extremely long

B. life has changed a great deal

C. it is useless to plan for the next 50 years

D. it is difficult to tell what will happen in the future

3. Spundels and ballalators are used in the text to refer to ________.

A. tools used in farming

B. ideas about modern life

C. unknown things in the future

D. hunting skills in the Stone Age

4. according to the writer of the text， imagining the future will ________.

A. serve the interests of the present and future generations

B. enable us to better understand human history

C. help us to improve farming

D. make life worth living

（五）

The easy way out isnt always easiest. I learned that lesson when I decided to treat Doug， my husband of one month， to a special meal. I glanced through my cook book and chose a menu which included homemade bread. Knowing the bread would take time. I started on it as soon as Doug left for work. As I was not experienced in cooking， I thought if a dozen was good， two dozen would be better， so I doubled everything. As Doug loved oranges， I also opened a can of orange and poured it all into the bowl. Soon there was a sticky dough covered with ugly yellowish marks. Realizing I had been defeated， I put the dough in the rubbish bin outside so I wouldnt have to face Doug laughing at my work. I went on preparing the rest of the meal， and， when Doug got home， we sat down to Cornish chicken with rice. He tried to enjoy the meal but seemed disturbed. Twice he got up and went outside， saying he thought he heard a noise. The third time he left， I went to the windows to see what he was doing. Looking out， I saw Doug standing about three feet from the rubbish bin， holding the lid up with a stick and looking into the container. When I came out of the house， he dropped the stick and explained that there was something alive in out rubbish bin. Picking up the stick again， he held the lid up enough for me to see. I felt cold. But I stepped closer and looked harder. Without doubt it was my work. The hot sun had caused the dough to double in size and the fermenting yeast[酵母] made the surface shake and sigh as though it were breathing. I had to admit what the living thing？ was and why it was there. I dont know who was more embarrassed[尷尬] by the whole thing—Doug or me.

1. The writers purpose in writing this story is ________.

A. to tell an interesting experience

B. to show the easiest way out of a difficulty

C. to describe the trouble facing a newly married woman

D. to explain the difficulty of learning to cook from books

2. Why did the womans attempt at making the bread turn out to be unsuccessful？

A. The canned orange had gone bad.

B. She didnt use the right kind of flour.

C. The cookbook was hard to understand.

D. She did not follow the directions closely.

3. Why did the woman put the dough in the rubbish bin？

A. She didnt see the use of keeping it.

B. She meant to joke with her husband.

C. She didnt want her husband to see it.

D. She hoped it would soon dry in the sun.

4. What made the dough in the bin looks frighting？

A. The rising and falling movement.

B. The strange-looking marks.

C. Its shape.

D. Its size.

5. When Doug went out the third time， the woman looked out of the window because she was ________.

A. surprised at his being interested in the bin

B. afraid that he would discover her secret

C. unhappy that he didnt enjoy the meal

D. curious to know what disturbed him

（六）

New York， 10 November 5：27 pm， yesterday. Biggest power failure in the citys history.

Thousands of people got stuck in lifts. Martin Saltzman spent three hours between the 21st and 22nd floors of the Empire State Building. “There were twelve of us. But no one panicked. We passed the time telling stories and playing word games. One man wanted to smoke but we didnt let him. Firemen finally got us out.”

“It was the best night weve ever had，” said Angela Carraro， who runs an Italian restaurant on 42nd Street. “We had lots of candles on the tables and the waiters were carrying candles on their trays. The place was full and all night， in fact， for after we had closed， we let the people stay on and spend the night here.”

The zoos had their problems like everyone else. Keepers worked through the night. They used blankets to keep flying squirrels and small monkeys warm. While zoos had problems keeping warm， supermarkets had problems keeping cool. “All of our ice cream and frozen foods melted，” said the manger of a store in downtown Manhattan. “They were worth $50，000.”

The big electric clock in the lobby[大廳] of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in downtown Manhattan started ticking [滴答] again at 5：25 this morning. It was almost on time.

1. Throughout the period of darkness， Martin Saltzman and the eleven others were ________.

A. nervous ? ? ? B. excited

C. calm ? D. frightened

2. In what way was the night of November 9 the best night for Angela Carraro？

A. She had a taste of adventure.

B. Burning candles brightened the place.

C. Business was better than usual.

D. Many people stayed the night in her restaurant.

3. How long did the power failure last？

A. Nearly 12 hours. ? ? ? ? ? ? ? B. More than 12 hours.

C. Nearly 24 hours. ? ? ? ? ? ? ? D. More than 24 hours.

（七）

Computer people talk a lot about the need for other people to become “computer-literate.” But not all experts[專家] agree that this is a good idea.

One pioneer， in particular， who disagrees is David Tebbutt， the founder of Computertown UK. Although many people see this as a successful attempt to bring people closer to the computer， David does not see it that way. He says that Computer town UK was formed for just the opposite reason， to bring computers to people and make them “people-literate？

David Tebbutt thinks Computertowns are most successful when tied to a computer club but he insists there is an important difference between the two. The clubs are for people who have some computer knowledge already. This frightens away non-experts， who are happier going to Computertowns where there are computers for them to experiment on， with experts to encourage them and answer any questions they have. They are not told what to do. They find out. The computer experts have to learn not to tell people about computers， but have to be able to answer all questions people ask. People dont have to learn computer terms[術(shù)語]， but the experts have to explain in plain language. The computers are becoming “people-literate？

1. Which of the following is David Tebbutts idea on the relationship between people and computers？

A. Computer learning should be made easier.

B. There should be more computer clubs for experts.

C. People should work harder to master computer use.

D. Computers should be made cheaper so that people can afford them.

2. We can infer from the text that “computer-liberate” means ________.

A. being able to afford a computer

B. being able to write computer programs

C. working with the computer and finding out its value

D. understanding the computer and knowing how to use it

3. The underlined word “it” in the second paragraph refers to the idea that Computertowns ________.

A. help to set up more computer clubs

B. bring people to learn to use computers

C. bring more experts to work together

D. help to sell computers to the public

4. David Tebbutt started Computertown UK with the purpose of _______.

A. making better use of computer experts

B. improving computer programs

C. increasing computer sales

D. popularizing computers

參考答案與解析

（一）

【答案與解析】這篇文章記敘了作者孩提時代一次難忘的野營經(jīng)歷。在這次野營活動中，作者和其他小伙伴們一道，目睹了一位男士走到他們野營地河邊，然后悄然消失，致使作者至今仍百思不得其解。

1. B。這是一道對全文主旨進行判斷的題目。A項內(nèi)容涉及面太廣應(yīng)排除，D項內(nèi)容文中未涉及，C項內(nèi)容應(yīng)包含在 B 項之中。

2. A。文中第3段提及：We ate rather slowly， taking as long as possible—no one moved towards the river—we stood looking at each other ashamed. 可知孩子們細(xì)嚼慢咽，不敢去河邊洗碗，是因為對這個陌生人的怪誕先是感到害怕，后又因膽小而感到難為情，故應(yīng)選A。

3. C。明明看到一個人去了河邊，卻到處找不到，故選 C，即“不可理解”（unable to understand）。

4. D。文中提及孩子們將這一奇遇告知童子軍首長后，他笑了，對孩子們是否見到這一奇人頗感懷疑（doubt），故應(yīng)選 D。

5. C。由文中第1段后半句 and once something happened which I have been able to explain 可知選答案C。同時從常識角度可知，這一奇遇事件會給作者幼小的心靈烙上永遠(yuǎn)不可磨滅的、難忘的印跡。

（二）

【答案與解析】本文記敘了意大利西南部 Vesuvius 火山之南麓古鎮(zhèn)龐貝在公元79年被火山吞沒以及1861年被發(fā)掘后，古鎮(zhèn)人文景觀重現(xiàn)于世的故事。

1. D?？膳懦鼳、B、C三項內(nèi)容，因為文中未涉及此三項內(nèi)容。人們來龐貝觀光游覽，當(dāng)然是領(lǐng)略古鎮(zhèn)公元79年的人文景觀，故應(yīng)選 D。

2. C。文中提及 Mount Vesuvius had not erupted for centuries， so the people of Pompeii felt safe. 故選C。

3. B。由于Pompeii 突然被火山噴發(fā)后的石頭和灰塵覆蓋了20英尺，幾乎無人存活下來?？梢哉f Pompeii 是被活埋的，近1，800年無人跡可至，故選B。

4. A。根據(jù) In one bakery… a type of bread that is still sold in Italy today 可推知答案為 A。

（三）

【答案與解析】這是一篇介紹美國邁阿密 Mark Shantzis 的 Hi-rise Recycling System的文章。

1. B?？疾閷懽髂康?。文章第1段說：由于你住在帶有垃圾通道的高層建筑里，對垃圾的回收不便是情有可原的;但是在不久的將來這種不回收的借口是不存在的了。美國邁阿密州 Mark Shantzis 已經(jīng)使住在高層建筑里的人們利用垃圾通道回收利用垃圾變得簡單了，應(yīng)選 B。

2. D。Mark Shantzis 已經(jīng)使得住在高層建筑里的人們利用垃圾通道回收利用垃圾變成了一件簡單的事，應(yīng)選D。

3. C。文章第2段言及這套垃圾處理系統(tǒng)含有六個可旋轉(zhuǎn)的容器;文章第3段言及只要你按一種按鈕，這個電腦系統(tǒng)就將其余各層其余的通道鎖住，只讓你按的那個按鈕的通道暢通。因此按何種按鈕是垃圾分類的關(guān)鍵。

4. C。文章最后一段提及，在收集垃圾之前將它們分類節(jié)省了使用分類設(shè)備的費用，而使用這些設(shè)備又得被回收物質(zhì)白白地浪費了。Shantzis 相信這套回收系統(tǒng)有助于可回收物質(zhì)變得更有（經(jīng)濟）效益。

（四）

【答案與解析】這是一篇由 Olaf Stapledon 所著的《最初的和最后的人類》而引出的關(guān)于幻想未來的文章。

1. B。用排除法解答：先排除 A，因為這篇短文并非是對人類歷史進行描述;再排除C，因為作者在此文章中并非表明對不同觀點的否定;最后排除 D，因為作者并非要說明這本書的普遍意義。至于 B 項內(nèi)容，正好符合這本書引導(dǎo)人們討論的意圖，故應(yīng)選 B。

2. D。文中提及五萬年前，處于狩獵時代的人們不可能勾勒出現(xiàn)代生活的畫卷;也許我們將來會被認(rèn)為是我們所認(rèn)為的原始人，正如石器時代的狩獵者和我們相比一樣，可知要預(yù)測較為遙遠(yuǎn)的未來是一件困難的事情。

3. C。從上下文可知，這四個詞匯是作者杜撰的，用以形象地表示五萬年后未知的事物和行為。

4. A。文中提及現(xiàn)在即開始對未來展開想象，是基于兩點理由：人生是有限的;我們可能得到一些對我們自己切實可行的新見解。文中還提及如果我們因粗心大意和貪得無厭而把地球弄得一塌糊涂而不能居住，我們的子孫們就不難找到遷怒于我們的理由，故應(yīng)選A。

（五）

【答案與解析】這是一篇關(guān)于一位新婚的家庭主婦，為了給丈夫做面包而引發(fā)的有趣故事。

1. A。通讀文章后，可知作者寫這篇文章的目的，是想讓人知道她這段有趣的經(jīng)歷，故應(yīng)選A。

2. D。文中提及：As I was not experienced in cooking I thought if a dozen was good， two dozen would be better 和 As Doug loved orange， I also opened a can of orange and poured it all into the bowl，可知這位家庭主婦（即作者）并未按烹調(diào)指南行事，故應(yīng)選 D。

3. C。作者在意識到自己制做面包失敗時，put the dough in the rubbish bin outside so I wouldnt have to face Doug laughing at my work， 故應(yīng)選C。

4. A。這是對句意和細(xì)節(jié)理解的題目。文中提及：The hot sun had caused the dough to double in size and the fermenting yeast made the surface shake and sigh as though it were breathing， 故應(yīng)選A。

5. D。文中提及：…the third time he left， I went to the windows to see what he was doing. 可知作者在吃飯時就看出丈夫心煩意亂，頻繁出去。當(dāng)丈夫第三次出去時，作者不知道丈夫出去干什么，出于好奇，就到窗邊去看。

（六）

【答案與解析】這是一篇關(guān)于紐約市11月9日下午5點27分至次日早晨5點25分這段時間大面積停電引發(fā)事故的短文。

1. C。文中提及 Martin Saltzman 以及其他11人被困在帝國大廈21層至22層之間的電梯里，他們無一人感到驚慌，通過講故事、做文字游戲來打發(fā)時光，故應(yīng)選C。

2. C。文中提及Angela Carraro 在42層開了一家餐館，停電時餐桌上點燃了許多蠟燭，侍者們用托盤支起蠟燭，餐廳滿員（the place was full），故應(yīng)選C。

3. A。文章引語中提及下午5點27分停電，至次日早晨5點25分曼哈頓鬧市中心的一家旅館大廳的電子鐘開始發(fā)出滴答聲，并調(diào)侃說大鐘幾乎準(zhǔn)時，故應(yīng)選A。

（七）

【答案與解析】本文提出普通人應(yīng)該了解有關(guān)計算機本身的知識還是應(yīng)學(xué)會運用計算機來解決實際問題，作者傾向于后一觀點。

1. A。文中第1段和第2段開頭已經(jīng)告訴讀者，David Tebbutt 不同意普通人要學(xué)會電腦本身的有關(guān)知識。后文中還提及他的觀點是 .…bring computer to people and make them people-literate 以及讓 experts ?have to explain in plain language 等，可知 A 為正確答案。

2. D。文章最后一段是解釋 people-literate 的含義。

3. B。文章第2段說 David Tebbutt 不主張人向電腦靠攏，而主張電腦向人靠攏，這種人文觀念正好說明正確答案為 B。

4. D。文章第3段主要敘述：進電腦俱樂部的人一般都有一些電腦知識，這會把那些想在電腦上試試身手，且有專家鼓勵他們提問的非專業(yè)人士嚇跑;而在電腦城里，電腦專家只需回答人們的提問，不必講授一些電腦術(shù)語，而只用淺顯的語言講解電腦的使用知識，由此可見，電腦城是為普及電腦知識而開設(shè)的。