An idea that started in Seattle's public library has spread throughout America and beyond. The concept is simple: help to build a sense of community in a city by getting everyone to read the same book at the same time.
In addition to encouraging reading as a pursuit(追求) to be enjoyed by all, the program allows strangers to communicate by discussing the book on the bus, as well as promoting reading as an experience to be shared in families and schools. The idea came from Seattle librarian Nancy Pearl who launched(发起) the "If All of Seattle Read the Same Book " project in 1998. Her original program used author visits, study guides and book discussion groups to bring people together with a book, but the idea has since expanded to many other American cities, and even to Hong Kong.
In Chicago, the mayor(市长) appeared on television to announce the choice of To Kill a Mocking
bird as the first book in the "One Book, One Chicago" program. As a result, reading clubs and neighborhood groups sprang up around the city. Across the US, stories emerged of parents and children reading to each other at night and strangers chatting away on the bus about plot and character.
The only problem arose in New York, where local readers could not decide on one book to represent the huge and diverse population. This may show that the idea works best in medium-sized cities or large towns, where a greater sense of unity can be achieved. Or it may show that New Yorkers rather missed the point, putting all their energy and passion into the choice of the book rather than discussion about a book itself.
Ultimately, as Nancy points out, the level of success is not measured by how many people read a book, but by how many people are enriched by the process, or have enjoyed speaking to someone with whom they would not otherwise have shared a word.What is the purpose of the project launched by Nancy?
| A．To invite authors to guide readers. |
| B．To encourage people to read and share. |
| C．To involve people in community service. |
| D．To promote the friendship between cities. |
Why was it difficult for New Yorkers to carry out the project?
| A．They had little interest in reading. |
| B．They were too busy to read a book. |
| C．They came from many different backgrounds. |
| D．They lacked support from the local government. |
According to the passage, where would the project be more easily carried out?
| A．In large communities with little sense of unity. |
| B．In large cities where libraries are far from home. |
| C．In medium-sized cities with a diverse population. |
| D．In large towns where agreement can be quickly reached. |
The underlined words “shared a word” in Paragraph 5 probably mean .
| A．exchanged ideas with each other |
| B．discussed the meaning of a word |
| C．gained life experience |
| D．used the same language |
According to Nancy, the degree of students of the project is judged by .
| A．the careful selection of a proper book |
| B．the growing popularity of the writers |
| C．the number of people who benefit from reading |
| D．the number of books that each person reads |
The meaning of the word “volunteer” may be a little different in different countries, but it usually means “one who offers his or her services” .There are many different ways in which people can volunteer, such as taking care of sick people, working in homes for homeless children, and picking up garbage(垃圾)from beaches and parks. Volunteers may work within their own countries or in other countries. They are often people with a strong wish to help those who are less fortunate than themselves. Volunteers don’t expect any kind of pay.
At the root of volunteering is the idea that one person may have the ability to offer services that can help other people. Tracy, a good friend of mine, however, recently came back from India with a new idea of what being a volunteer means. She worked for two and a half weeks in one of Mother Teresa’s homes in Calcutta. The following is her story.
“I first heard about
Mother Teresa in my high school, we watched a video(录像)about her work in India and all over the world. I was so moved by her spirit to help others and her endless love for every human being that after I graduated from high school, I too wanted to try her kind of work. So with two friends I flew to Calcutta for a few weeks.”
“I was asked to work
in a home for sick people. I helped w
ash clothes and sheets, and pass out lunch. I also fed the people who were too weak to feed themselves and tried to cheer them up. I felt it was better to share with them than to think that I have helped them. To be honest, I don’t think I was helping very much. It was then that I realized that I had not really come to help, but to learn about and experience another culture(文化)that helped improve my own understanding of life and the world.”
1. According to the text, a volunteer refers to a person who __________.
A. is willing to help those in need without pay
B. can afford to travel to different places
C. has a strong wish to be successful
D. has made a big fortune in life
2.Tracy started her work as a volunteer ____________ .
A. after she met Mother Teresa B. when she was touring Calcutta
C. after she finished high school D. when she was working in a hospital
3. Why did Tracy choose to be a volunteer?
A. She liked to work with Mother Teresa.
B. She was asked by Mother Teresa to do so.
C. She had already had some experience.
D. She wanted to follow Mother Teresa’s example.
4. What is Tracy’s “new idea”(Paragraph 2)of being a volunteer?
A. Going abroad to help the sick.
B. Improving oneself through helping others.
C. Working in Mother Teresa’s home.
D. Doing simple things to help the poor.
第三部分阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分 40分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑
For most Chinese university students, the US is a favorite destination for further education. But apart from obstacles such as the GRE and TOEFL exams, choosing a good graduate school is no easy task.
Admission is very competitive for international students, so it is important to apply for a number of institutions to have a reasonable chance of acceptance.
Since the application to most universities requires a certain fee, Chinese students usually choose seven to 17 universities according to their own financial circumstances.
Wang Yuwei, a Zhejiang University graduate, sent applications to 15 US universities.
When the 24-year-old girl began looking for a US graduate school in her senior year, she took time to compare the various schools and find the ones most suiting her needs. Now, studying at the University of Washington, she knows that her hard work paid off.
“To broaden your chances, at least one third of the applications should be to less selective schools,” said Wang. “Applicants shouldn’t limit their choices to the most famous institutions.”
Furthermore, one shouldn’t rely on too much on college rankings such as the Gorman Report or US News & World Report’s annual league tables.
The right school is the one that best meets your own personal needs and interests, rather than someone else’s assessment of an institution’s prestige（声望）.
“Usually choices are based on one’s personal interests and academic background, but it is important to make sure that your chosen subject is satisfying,” said Wang.
1. The author believes that the right school is the one that _____.
A. has the best location
B. offers good living conditions
C. best meets one’s assessment of an institution’s prestige
D. best meets one’s own personal needs and interests
2. According to this passage, what can we judge?
A. To go abroad for further education, you must pass the GRE or TOTEL.
B. Choosing a good graduate school is a piece of cake.
C. More and more students will go abroad for their further education.
D. To get a better chance to go abroad, you’d better apply for a less selective school.
3. In the passage the writer uses the example of Wang Yuwei to show ______.
A. you must spend a lot of time comparing the various schools
B. it is necessary to find the suitable university that meets your personal interests
C. it isn’t worthwhile to spend time looking for the right university
D. one’s own financial circumstances is worth considering
4. What will be continued after this passage?
A. How hard Chinese students studied in America.
B. Some advice on how to take care of yourself in America.
C. Some other things to consider to choose the right school.
D. The difficulties you will meet with while living in America
Just how far does the euro(欧元) have to fall before Europe actually becomes reasonable?
Anyone traveling to the old continent from the U.S. in recent years has learned the hard way how expensive it is. The situation has improved in the last co
uple of months, thanks to the Greek financial crisis. But it still has a way to go.
Alarm about Greece—and other financially unstable countries in Europe—has dragged down the euro sharply. In November, before the crisis struck, you needed about $1.49 to buy one euro. Today you need only about $1.36. That's a 9% cut.
What does that mean for you, the would-be traveler? It's a big sale.
As recently as November, when the euro was flying high, the OECD estimated that countries like France, Italy and Germany were about a third more expensive than the U.S. Not all European countries were quite as expensive for the American visitor: Greece only cost about 17% more than the US, while the Czech Republic (which is not part of the eurozone) was actually about 15% cheaper than back home.
Fast-forward two months, and the situation looks somewhat better.
At current exchange rates, places like France will still cost you about 23% more than the U.S., but cheaper countries such as Spain and Greece are now only about 6% more expensive. The Czech Republic's a fifth cheaper than the U.S.
European prices will only break even(持平) with the U.S. if the euro falls to about $1.10, says the OECD. But is it going to get there?
Greece's financial crisis may or may not be over. Members of a labor union just occupied part of the finance ministry to protest against the planned austerity(紧缩) measures. No, it doesn't inspire confidence!
Julian Jessop, chief international economist at the Capital Economics consultancy in London, sees the euro falling 
to $1.25 by year-end. “We still think the euro should be a lot lower,” he says. “We think the outlook for the European economy is a lot worse than for the U.S. And Greece is only a symptom of a wider problem: Does the eurozone make sense as a currency union?” If he's right, you may want to wait to change your money or book a trip.
1. In the passage the writer offers some suggestions to the travellers from _________.
A. USA B. Europe C. Greece D. China
2. The underlined word “it” in the passage refers to _________.
A. the planned austerity measures B. Greece’s financial crisis
C. the protest from a labor union D. the decline of the euro in value
3. Julian Jessop has a negative attitude toward the euro because he thinks _________.
A. Greece’s financial crisis may not be over
B. the euro will dr
op to $ 1.25 by the end of the year
C. the European economy is a lot worse than the US’
D. the other European countries have a similar problem like Greece
4. The purpose of the author writing the passage is to tell the readers that _________.
A. the euro shall be further reasonably lowered
B. travelers to Europe will save less in the future
C. the economic situation in Europe is worsening
D. the Greek financial crisis influences the whole Europe
The idea for a science experiment can come from an unusual place. After watching a YouTube video of a dancing bird named Snowball, a scientist in California decided to study the ability of animals to keep the beat.
Bird lovers have long claimed that their pets have rhythm, and there are many videos of dancing birds online. Until now, scientists have suspected that humans are the only animals that can accurately keep rhythm with music.
Thanks to Snowball, that scientific opinion is changing. Snowball is a cockatoo, a kind of parrot, and his favorite song is "Everybody" by the Backstreet Boys. When he hears the song, he moves his feet and rocks his body with the tempo, or pace of the music, as though he is the only bird member of the boy band.
Aniruddh Patel is a neuroscientist, or a scientist who studies how the brain and the nervous system contribute to learning, seeing and other mental abilities. He works at the Neurosciences Institute in San Diego. After seeing Snowball's dance online, Patel visited the cockatoo at the bird rescue facility he's called home for two years. The scientist played "Everybody" for Snowball and also played versions of the song that were sped up or slowed down. Sometimes, Snowball danced too fast or too slowly. Often, when there was a change in tempo, Snowball adjusted his dancing to match the rhythm. In other experiments, scientists have observed the same abilities in preschool children.
Patel isn't the only scientist who has studied Snowball's moves. Adena Schachner, who studies psychology at Harvard University, also wanted to know more abo
ut the dancing bird. Schachner's team played different musical pieces for Snowball and a parrot named Alex, as well as eight human volunteers. The scientists observed that the birds and the humans kept time to the music with about the same accuracy.
Schachner and her team watched thousands of YouTube videos of different animals moving to music. Not all the animals could dance, however. From watching the videos, the scientists observed that only animals that imitate sounds, including 14 parrot species and Asian elephants, accurately moved in time to music.
1. The underlined words “that scientific opinion” in the third paragraph refer to the theory that _____.
A. birds like Snowball have the ability to keep the beat
B. humans are the only animals that can accurately keep rhythm with music
C. the brain and the nervous system contribute to some mental abilities
D. bird pets can have their special rhythm under human’s instruction
2. From the fourth paragraph we may know that _________.
A. Patel is the only scientist who has studied Snowball’s moves.
B. Snowball is able to adjust his dancing to match the rhythm.
C. Snowball cannot dance to the versions of the song Everybody.
D. it is the brain and the nervous system that control the mental abilities.
3. The idea of studying animals’ ability to keep the beat comes from _________.
A. bird lovers’ discovery B. humans musical sense
C. the same abilities in children D. videos of dancing birds
4. According to the scientists, Snowball’s ability to dance to music is probably related to the fact that _________.
A. it is the only bird member of the Backstreet Boys band
B. it has the ability to imitate sounds
C. it is a kind of dancing parrot
D. it has the same abilities as preschool children
Disposing (处理) of waste has been a problem since humans started producing it. As more and more people choose to live close together in cities, the waste disposal problem becomes increasingly difficult.
During the eighteenth century, it was usual for several neighboring towns to get together to select a faraway spot as a dump site. Residents or trash haulers (垃圾拖运者) would transport household rubbish, rotted wood, and old possessions to the site. Periodically some of the trash was burned and the rest was buried. The unpleasant sights and smells caused no problem because nobody lived close by. Factories, mills, and other industrial sites also had waste to be disposed of. Those located on rivers often
just dumped the unwanted remains into the water. Others built huge burners with chimneys to deal with the problem.
Several facts make these choices unacceptable to modern society. The first problem is space. Dumps, which are now called landfills, are most needed in heavily populated areas. Such areas rarely have empty land suitable for this purpose. Property is either too expensive or too close to residential neighborhoods. Long distance trash hauling has been a common practice, but once farm areas are refusing to accept rubbish from elsewhere, cheap land within trucking distance of major city areas is nonexistent. Awareness of pollution dangers has resulted in more strict rules of waste disposal. Pollution of rivers, ground water, land and air is a price people cannot longer pay to get rid of waste. The amount of waste, however, continues to grow.
Recycling efforts have become commonplace, and many towns require their people to take part. Even the most efficient recyclin
g programs, however, can hope to deal with only about 50 percent of a city's reusable waste.
1. The most suitable title for this passage would be _________.
A. Places for Disposing Waste B. Waste Pollution Dangers
C. Ways of Getting Rid of Waste D. Waste Disposal Problem
2. During the 18th century, people disposed their waste in many ways except for ________.
A. burying it B. recycling it C. burning it D. throwing it into rivers
3. What can be inferred from the third paragraph?
A. Farm areas will continue accepting waste from the city in modern society.
B. There is cheap land to bury waste in modern society.
C. It is difficult to find space to bury waste in modern society.
D. Ways to deal with waste in modern society stay the same.
4. The main purpose of writing this article is to _________.
A. draw people's attention to waste management
B. warn people of the pollution dangers we are facing
C. call on people to take part in recycling programs
D. tell people a better way to get rid of the waste
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