e to three hundred million now. It is expected to reach four
hundred twenty million. The report says this will be because of
immigration（移民）and low death rates among babies.
Between now and two thousand fifty, Niger is expected to be the
fastest growing country. The biggest decrease(下降) is expected in
Bulgaria.
The study is based on information from governments and the United
Nations. Researcher Carl Haub wrote the report. He examined
infant(婴儿) death rates, life expectancy, birth rates and the age
structure of nations. The study also considered family planning use
and, for the first time, rates of AIDS.
Mister Haub says most growth will take place in countries with
young populations and traditionally large families. He points to
Nigeria and Japan as two nations that are moving in opposite
directions in terms of population.
1. The best title for the text is likely to be _____.
A. World Population and the Development of Industry
B. Developed Country and its Population
C. Developing Country and its Population
D. World Population by 2050
2. In which of the following countries is the biggest decrease
expected in the growth of the population?
A. India.
B. Egypt.
C. China
D. Japan
3. Most developed nations will see a fall in their populations
except the US because _____.
A. the country doesn’t try to control the population
growth
B. infant death rates are low
C. people all over the world move there and settle
down
D. both B and C
4. How many more people is India likely to have than China by 2050
according to the report?
A. 750 million.
B. 75 million
C. 70 million
D. 200 million
B
Half-Truths
Be care of those who use the truth to deceive（欺骗）.
When someone tells you something that is true, but leaves out
important information that should be included, he can create a
false impression.
For example, someone might say, “I just won a
hundred dollars on the lottery(彩票). It was great. I took that
dollar ticket back to the store and turned it in for one hundred
dollars!”
This guy’s a winner, right? Maybe, maybe not. We
then discover that he bought two hundred tickets, and only one was
a winner. He’s really a big loser!
He didn’t say anything that was false, but he
purposely(故意) omitted important information. That’s called a
half-truth. Half-truths are not technically lies, but they are just
as dishonest.
Dishonest candidates(候选人) in political campaigns
often use this tactic(策略). Let’s say that during Governor Smith’s
last term(任期), her state lost one million jobs and gained three
million jobs. Then she seeks another term. One of her opponents
runs an ad saying, “During Governor Smith’s term, the state lost
one million jobs!” That’s true. However an honest statement would
have been, “During Governor Smith’s term, the state had a net gain
of two million jobs.”
Advertisers will sometimes use half-truths. It’s
against the law to make false claims so they try to mislead you
with the truth. An ad might show off, “Nine out of ten doctors
recommend Yucky Pills to cure nose pimples.” It fails to mention
that they only asked ten doctors and nine of them work for the
Yucky Corporation.
This kind of dishonesty happens too often. It’s a
sad fact of life: Lies are lies, and sometimes the truth can lie as
well.
1. Which statement is true according to the article?
A. Whenever telling the truth, people are really
lying.
B. One can get rich in a flash by getting lottery tickets
.
C. All governors help their states.
D. The truth can be used in dishonest ways.
2. The underlined word “omitted” in the fourth paragraph probably
means _____.
A. spent money
B. left out
C. told about
D. exposed
3. The author clearly wants people to _____.
A. think carefully about what they read and hear
B. learn to tell half-truths
C. trust no one but the best friends
D. vote for female candidates
4. Another suitable title for this selection would be _____.
A. Telling the Truth
B.
Everyone Lies
C. Lying With the Truth
D. Trust Nobody
C
Several interesting American museums tell about health subjects.
One is the Doctor Samuel D. Harris National Museum of Dentistry. It
is at the University of Maryland in Baltimore. That is where the
first college in the world to train dentists began. The museum
tells about the history of the medical treatment of teeth. Visitors
can see some frightening
devices that once were used
to remove infected(受感染的) teeth. They also can see sets of teeth
made of animal bone. They were made for a famous American -- the
first President, George Washington.
Most people do not consider a visit to the dentist their idea of a
good time. However, the director of the museum says he wanted to
make the museum a fun place to visit. He says he also wants to
teach visitors about the importance of taking care of their
teeth.
Another museum collects
devices that help people
hear. The Kenneth W. Berger Hearing Aid Museum is at Kent State
University in Kent, Ohio. The museum has more than three-thousand
hearing aids from around the world. They include old and strange
devices. Some hearing aids were made to look like other objects.
That is because in the past many people did not want anyone to know
they were wearing a hearing aid.
1. It is common for people to think it uneasy to pay a visit to
____.
A. the University of Maryland
B. the Museum
of Dentistry
C. the Hearing Aid Museum
D. the
dentist
2. The text mainly tells about _____.
A. museums in the US
B. interesting
American museums
C. American museums with health subjects
D. the
history of the medical treatment of teeth
3. What do we learn about George Washington from the text?
A. He once visited the National Museum of Dentistry.
B. He considered the Museum of Dentistry a fun place to
visit
C. His artificial teeth were collected in the National
Museum of Dentistry.
D. His teeth seemed to be made of animal bone.
4. The underlined word “devices” in the first and last paragraph
probably means _____.
A. means
B. strategies
C. tools
D. desires
D
Edgar Rice Burroughs wrote a very famous story called Tarzan of the
Apes.
This story tells about a shipwreck(船只失事) on the West coast of
Africa. The passengers on the ship include a certain Lord and Lady
Greystoke from England. Lord and Lady Greystoke are the only
survivors of the shipwreck.
Lord Greystoke builds a kind of shelter high up in the trees - a
treehouse - for his pregnant(有孕的) wife and does his best to make
them comfortable in their new jungle home. Lady Greystoke gives
birth to a boy. They call the boy John. Unfortunately, she dies and
leaves Lord Greystoke to take care of the baby on his own. Lord
Greystoke is killed by a huge ape(猿人) that comes to see the strange
house in the trees. The baby is left all alone. Fortunately, a
female ape, whose baby has recently died, finds the human baby
alone in the treehouse. Even though the baby is white and hairless,
she feels a mother's love for it and begins to feed and take care
of it. She becomes John's mother. John - who later takes the name
Tarzan, never having known his real identity(身份) — grows strong and
powerful living among the apes. He has the advantage of human
intelligence and finally grows up to be leader of the apes and, in
the end, lord of the jungle.
The book tells many stories of Tarzan's adventures in the jungles,
his fights with savage animals, his encounters with other human
beings (many of whom are as dangerous as the animals) and his
re-discovery of his true identity.
1. How many people have escaped from the shipwreck on the African
coast?
A. One.
B. Two.
C. Three.
D. Four.
79. What is the meaning of the underlined word “survivors” in the
second paragraph?
A. People who are lucky enough to exist in spite of an
accident.
B. People who are unlucky not to exist because of an
accident.
C. People who enjoy taking adventures so much as to lose
their lives.
D. People who die from a shipwreck because of bad
weather.
2. Which of the following statements is true about John?
A. He is Lord Greystoke.
B. He is a large ape.
C. He is Tarzan.
D. He is brought up by a male
ape.
3. The text doesn’t tell us, but we can infer that ____.
A. Tarzan is able to live on only because of the death of
the baby ape
B. John’s father is killed by an ape that come across him
in his house
C. John has been trying to know his real identity while
living with apes
D. animals have their nature of kindness while humans have
some ways of cruelty
E
Prince Lucian of Tolland was angry. He was eager to correct this
injustice(非正义). His enemy, the ruler of Capanavia, was holding
Tolland citizens hostages(人质) on the borders of their country.
Prince Lucian would have to offer all his resources to saving them.
The challenge was fierce. There was a huge mountain to climb and a
thick jungle to pass before reaching the place where the hostages
were held.
'The news is not good!' the Prince told his
advisors. 'However, we can succeed. Call together the military
department and let's plan a surprise attack!'
'Yes, sir!' his subjects responded with
eagerness.
At the meeting, the Prince selected ten of
his most trusted leaders to develop a plan. They worked for hours
until they agreed to the steps they should take. They planned to
gather supplies and employ soldiers within one week. Then, they
would set out on their formal effort to rescue the hostages.
The men went back to their towns and
announced the need for military. They received a greater response
than they ever expected. Thousands gathered to help rescue their
fellow citizens. By the time they all returned to the capital city,
there were 750,000 people ready to go.
Word came to the enemy about the large army
congregating（集合）. It struck fear in their minds. 'We can never
survive against so many warriors!' they feared. They worried and
planned, but knew they were outnumbered. In the end, they decided
to set the
captives free.
1. The best title for the text is _____.
A. Courage and Victory
B. Justice and Injustice
C. Prince and his Soldiers
D.
Bad News for Prince
2. The underlined word “captives” in the last paragraph means
_____.
A. citizens
B. leaders
C. soldiers
D. hostages
3. According to the text, which of the following is the best
description about Prince Lucian?
A. just, confident and inspiring
B. helpful,
powerful and warlike
C. patient, fearless and helpless
D. humorous,
courageous and challenging
4. Tolland succeeded in the end because _____.
A. Prince Lucian had made up his mind to fight with
enemy
B. many citizens eagerly responded to Prince’s call
C. the enemy was frightened at the mention of Prince
Lucian
D. the enemy was friendly treated by Prince Lucian
A
A brother and a sister have been reunited (团圆) after 60 years,
thanks to a letter in the
Welwyn and Hatfield Times
(WHT)
.
For years John Hannant kept a photo of his sister, hoping they
would meet again. Margery, the eldest of three children, had signed
up for the Royal Air Force as part of the war effort, when John was
still a baby.
The family lost touch and as years passed only a single letter gave
any information about her. The information was enough for a WHT
reader to recognize Margery and put the family back in touch.
John, 67, said he had been searching for a long time and a friend
suggested writing to the paper.
“That’s the one that made it, the letter to your paper a few months
back,” he said. “It’s like a dream come true. The last time we ever
heard from Margery was in 1953 after the floods. She wrote home to
know if we were all right. My sister Dorothy wrote back, but
Margery had moved again and never got the letter.
Having retired (退休) from his job as gardener at Park House, Mr
Hannant decided to take action once and for all.
He and his wife Doreen traveled to Margery’s home in Chelwood
Avenue, Hatfield, which she shares with her husband Jack
Cooke.
Now 88, she is recovering after several months in hospital, but
immediately recognized her brother. John said, “At first it was
exciting. It’s something I never thought was going to happen.” As
well as finding his sister, John has also discovered he now has a
nephew and a niece.
1. What is the best title of the passage?
A. Mr Hannant’s moving experience.
B. Help from the Welwyn and Hatfield Times.
C. Brother and sister reunited after 60 years.
D. The Hannant family that lost touch with each other.
2. Margery left her family because ____________.
A. she attended the air school
B. she joined the
air force
C. she had to feed her family
D.
a big flood hit her hometown
3. Margery was out of touch with her family for _______
years.
A. 55
B. 60
C. 67
D. 88
B
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GONE WITH THE WIND
Author: Margaret Mitchell
￥25 (in bookstores) ￥18 (online)
Gone With the Wind is a best-seller, which tells a story that
happened in the American Civil War. Scarlett O’Hara is a woman in
the story who is full of energy. She is strong and saves her family
but is very selfish at the same time.
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A LITTLE PRINCESS
Author: Frances Hodgson Burnett
￥18.3 (online)
Motherless Sara Crewe was sent home from India to school at Miss
Minchin’s .Her father was very rich and she lived a rich and
comfortable life. Then her father died and Sara lost everything.
She had to learn to do with her changed life. Her strong character
made her able to fight successfully against her poverty (贫穷) and
the scorn (嘲笑) of her fellows. It’s an excellent book with 4 tapes
for children.
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PETER PAN
Author: J.M Barrie
￥15 (in bookstores) ￥12 (online)
It is a children’s story full of imagination and
adventures, which is about Wendy, John, and Michael Darling’s
adventures in Never—Never Land with Peter Pan, the boy who would
not grow up. The children are happy and lovely. (with 2
tapes)
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UNCLE TOM’S CABIN
Author: Harriet Beecher Stowe
￥20 (in bookstores)
The most famous novel in American history, Uncle
Tom’s Cabin talked about the struggle (斗争) between free states and
slave states during the American Civil War and is as powerful today
as when it first came out 150 years ago.
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THE SECRET GARDEN
Author: Frances Hodgson Burnett
￥35 (in bookstores) ￥30 (online)
Mary Lennox, a sickly orphan (孤儿), finds herself in her uncle’s
dark house. Why are so many rooms locked? Why is one of the gardens
locked? And what is that crying she hears at night? Through the
power of hope, friendship, and the magic (魔法) of nature, the brave
girl brings the house and a long-lost garden back to
life.
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1. All of the following books have children as their main
characters (主角) except _________.
A. PETER PAN
B. GONE
WITH THE WIND
C. A LITTLE PRINCESS
D.
THE SECRET GARDEN
2. We can know from the passage that _________.
A. there are only three books with tapes
B. we can buy 5 kinds of the above books in bookstores
C. two of the above books are written by Frances Hodgson
Burnett
D. THE SECRET GARDEN is ￥5 cheaper in bookstores than online
3. Mary brings the house and a long-lost garden back to life with
the help of _________.
a. the power of hope
b. friendship
c. her uncle
d. nature’s
magic
A. abc
B. acd
C. bcd
D. abd
4. Which of the following about the books is mentioned in this
passage?
A. What Sara did to help her fellows.
B. Why Peter Pan wouldn’t grow up.
C. What kind of woman Scarlett is.
D. How Marry Lennox came into her uncle’s house.
C
What do you usually do when a flying insect lands on your arm? You
may blow it away. But what if that insect is a ladybug (瓢虫)? It is
possible that you would let it stay. What is it about ladybugs that
we like?
Farmers once thought ladybugs were a good lucky sign. A ladybug in
the field meant the crops would be successful and that the weather
would be good. The farmers may have thought too highly of such a
small bug, but in fact ladybugs do help out with the crops. They
eat harmful insects.
Actually, it is not the adult ladybug that eats other insects. It’s
the baby ladybug. When the baby ladybugs hatch (孵化), they are very
hungry and will eat mites, aphids, mealy bugs, green flies, and
other crop-destroyers. In the 1800s, ladybugs were brought all the
way from Australia to California and set free among orange trees
that were dying from being eaten by insects. They completely saved
all the trees.
Ladybugs go about their daily business without worrying much about
anything. Very few birds or insects will eat a ladybug because it
gives off a dangerous fluid (液体). Ladybugs also protect themselves
by playing dead. They fall off leaves and stay still until their
attacker goes away.
So the next time you see a ladybug, think about what it may be
doing. Maybe it is off to save an orange tree. Maybe its next move
will be to roll off a leaf and play dead or
stand up to a
bird about 100 times its size. Maybe it’s letting you know that the
weather will be good tomorrow. Who knows? Ladybugs are special that
way.
1. Ladybugs were brought from Australia to California in the 1800s
to _______.
A. add more ladybugs to area
B. report the weather for farmers
C. act as a lucky sign of good crops
D. save orange trees by eating
insects
2. From the passage we know that _______.
A. it’s the adult ladybug that eats most of the harmful
insects
B. ladybugs often roll off a leaf and play dead to attack the
birds
C. ladybugs can give off a dangerous fluid to protect
themselves
D. the baby ladybug mainly eats mites, aphids, mealybugs, and
oranges
3. The underlined phrase “stand up to” most probably means
________.
A. watch
B. support
C. admire
D. fight
4. Which of the following may the author agree with?
A. Ladybugs do harm to nature.
B. Ladybugs are
unusual insects.
C. Ladybugs are dangerous insects.
D. Ladybugs eat more than they
should.
D
If parents bring up a child with the aim of turning the child into
a genius (天才), they will cause great damage to him. According to
several leading educational psychologists (心理学家), this is one of
the biggest mistakes that some parents make. Generally, the child
will understand very well what the parents expect, and will fail.
Unrealistic parents’ expectations (期望) can cause great damage to
children.
However, if parents are not unrealistic about what they expect
their children to do, but are hopeful in a reasonable way, the
children may succeed in doing very well – especially if the parents
are very supportive to their children.
Michael Li is very lucky. He is very fond of music and his
parents help him a lot by taking him to concerts and private piano
and violin lessons. They even drive him 50 kilometers twice a week
for violin lessons. Although Michael’s mother knows very little
about music, Michael’s father plays the trumpet (小号). However, he
never makes Michael enter music competitions if he doesn’t like
to.
Michael’s friend, Wiston Chen, however, is not so lucky. Although
both his parents are successful musicians, they set too high a
standard (标准) for Wiston. They want their son to be as successful
as they are and so they enter him in every piano competition ever
held. They are very unhappy when he doesn’t win. “When I was at
your age, I used to win every competition I entered.” Wiston’s
father tells him. Wiston is always afraid that he will disappoint
his parents and now he always seems quiet and unhappy.
1. The main idea of this passage is __________.
A. how parents should bring up a child
B. how parents should make a child a musician
C. what aim of a child can be much easier to reach
D. what differences there are between two kinds of parents
2. Michael is lucky because __________.
A. his father is a musician himself
B. his parents are rich enough to have a car
C. his parents help him in a reasonable way
D. he doesn’t do anything that his parents allow him to
3. Wiston’s parents set so high a standard for him that
_________.
A. he is afraid he may disappoint them
B. he has to do his best in everything
C. he has made greater progress in music
D. he often wants to kill himself some day
4. According to the author’s opinion, _________.
A. parents should be supportive to their
children
B. unrealistic parents should take their children to private
lessons
C. it is unimportant to let the children develop in the way they
want
D. all successful parents can train their children
to succeed in everything
