“Everybody loves a bargain.” Is a well-known saying. One person’s useless, ugly, or broken object can be another person’s bargain. That is why so many Americans do not throw things away. They put them outside their house. They put on a "For Sale" sign. And, as simple as that, they have a yard sale.
The sellers put a paid announcement in a local newspaper. It tells when and where the yard sale will take place. These sales are very popular during weekends in spring, summer, and autumn.
Early in the morning, all the things to be sold are carried out of the house. Then they sit all day in the sunlight -- like tired guests at a party -- waiting for someone to take them home.
Just about anything can be sold at a yard sale. Sometimes, there are more clothes than anything else. Cooking equipment is also popular. So are old toys, tools, books, tables, and chairs. Then there are objects called "white elephants." A white elephant is something you think is extremely ugly or useless. It may be an electric light shaped like a fish. You feel a sharp pain whenever you look at it. To someone else, however, it might be a thing of beauty and joy.
Some people go to yard sales to find a special thing that they collect. It may be old toy trains, for example, or paintings of dogs. Experts say more Americans are collecting old things now than ever before. Most people who go to yard sales, however, are not looking for anything special. They might buy an object simply because it costs so little. They enjoy negotiating over prices, even if they really do not need the object. Later, they may hold their own yard sale to sell all the things they have bought.What kind of things will go to a yard sale?
| A．Cheap and ugly things． | B．Things people no longer use． |
| C．Things out of season． | D．Things of great value． |
A white elephant refers to ______ ．
| A．something that can cause n feeling of pain |
| B．something disliked by the owners while appreciated by others |
| C．something sold at the lowest price |
| D．a toy shaped like a fish |
Most people go to yard sales to ______ ．
| A．find Valuable paintings | B．look for something special |
| C．find a bargain | D．kill their time |
Which of the following is NOT true about a yard sale?
| A．It may not be held when the weather is very cold． |
| B．It can last for a whole day． |
| C．It is usually held with a party． |
| D．It is held outdoors． |
We can infer from the last paragraph that ______ ．
| A．people may find something of great value on a yard sale |
| B．yard sales only attract those who have a low income |
| C．things on a yard sale can cost people a lot |
| D．most people who go to yard sales want to make money |
第三部分：阅读理解(共两节，40分)
第一节：(共15小题；每小题2分，共30分)
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
A
The sun shone in through the dining room window，lighting up the hardwood floor We had been talking there for nearly two hours．The phone of the“Nightline”rang yet again and Morrie asked his helper．Connie，to get it She had been taking down the callers’names in Morrie’s small black appointment book It was clear 1 was not the only one interested in visiting my old professor—the“Nightline”appearance had made him something of a big figure—but I was impressed with．perhaps even a bit envious of，all the friends that Morrie seemed to have
“You know．Mitch，now that I'm dying，I've become much more interesting to people．I’m
on the last great journey here——and people want me to tell them what to pack．”
The phone rang again．
“Morrie，can you talk?”Connie asked
“I’m visiting with my old friend now，”he announced．“Let them call back．”
I cannot tell you why he received me so warmly．I was hardly the promising student who had left him sixteen years earlier．Had it not been for“Nightline，”Morrie might have died without ever seeing me again．
What happened to me?
The eighties happened The nineties happened．Death and sickness and getting fat and going bald happened．I traded lots of dreams for a bigger paycheck，and I never even realized I was doing it Yet here was Morrie talking with the wonder of our college years，as if I'd Simply been on a long vacation
“Have you found someone to share your heart with?” he asked
“Are you at peace with yourself?”
“Are you trying to be as human as you can be?”
I felt ashamed，wanting to show I had been trying hard to
work out such questions．What
happened to me? I once promised myself I would never work for money，that I would join the
Peace Corps，and that 1 would live in beautiful，inspirational places．
Instead, I had been in Detroit for ten years，at the same workplace，using the same bank，visiting the same barber I was thirty-seven，more mature than in college，tied to computers and modems and cell phones．I was no longer young，nor did I walk around in gray sweatshirts with
unlit cigarettes in my mouth．I did not have long discussions over egg salad sandwiches about the meaning of life．
My days were full，yet I remained，much of the time，unsatisfied
What happened to me?
56．When did the author graduate from Morrie’s college?
A．In the eighties． B．In the nineties．
C．When he was sixteen D．When he was twenty-one．
57．What do we know about the“Nightline”?
A．Morrie started it by himself B．It helped Morrie earn a fame．
C．The author helped Morrie start it． D．It was only operated at night．
58．What can we infer from the passage?
A．Both the author and Morrie liked travelling.
B．Morrie liked helping people pack things for their journeys.
C．The author envied Morrie’s friends the help they got from him.
D．The author earned a lot of money at the cost of his dreams.
59．What’s the author’s feeling when he writes this passage?
A．Regretful. B．Enthusiastic. C．Sympathetic. D．Humorous.
D
Every profession，every art，and every science has its technical vocabulary. Its function is partly to name things or processes which can not be described in ordinary English．Such special terms are necessary in technical discussion of any kind．Being universally understood by the specialists of the particular science or art，these terms have the exactness of a mathematical formula（公式）．Besides，they save time, for it is much more convenient to name a process than to describe it．
Different occupations，however，differ widely in the character of their special vocabularies．In trades and handicrafts，and other professions，like farming and fishery，that have occupied great numbers of men in the past，the technical vocabulary is very old．It consists largely of native words, or borrowed words that have worked themselves into the very fibre of our language．As a consequence, though highly technical in many particulars，these vocabularies are more familiar in sound；and more generally understood，than most other technicalities．
Yet every profession still possesses a large body of technical terms that remain extremely unfamiliar, even to educated speech．And the amount has been much increased in the last fifty years．New terms are invented with the greatest freedom，and abandoned unconcernedly when they have served their turn．Most of the new inventions of words and expressions are restricted to special discussions, and seldom get into general conversation．
Yet no profession is，nowadays，as all professions once were，a closed association．Specialists in different fields share ideas and associate freely with each other. Furthermore, what is called “popular science” familiarizes everybody with modern views and recent discoveries. Any important experiment, though made in a remote lab, is at once reported in the newspaper, and everybody is soon talking about it—as in the case of the Roentgen rays and wordless telegraph. Thus our common speech is always taking up new technical terms and making them commonplace.
67．Technical terms are created so .
A．specialists may communicate more easily
B．people may enjoy varieties of occupations
C．people may save time in everyday discussions
D．specialists may well accept mathematical formulas
68．The writer lists wireless telegraph as an example to show special words .
A．should represent popular science
B．may become part of common speech
C．should be restricted to scientific fields
D．may be considered great inventions of man
69．What can we infer from the passage?
A．Nonteehnical words may be replaced.
B．Media helps to popularize special terms.
C．Various professionals exchange their terms.
D．Educated people know most technical terms.
C
A gadget which makes water out of air could become the greatest househo1d invention since the microwave.
Using the same technology as a dehumidifier（除湿器），the Water Mill is able to create a ready supply of drinking water because it can always get it from an unlimited source—the air．
The company behind the machine says not only does it offer an alternative to bottled water in
developed countries, but it is a solution for the millions who face a daily water shortage．
The machine works by drawing in wet air through a filter（过滤器）and over a cooling instrument which changes it into water droplets．It can produce up to 1 2 liters a day．The Water Mill will also produce more water when storms pass over, as the amount of water which is contained in the air increases. 
In keeping with its eco-development, the machine uses the same amount of electricity as three lights.
Inventor Jonathan Ritchey said: “The demand for water is off the chart. So people are looking for freedom from water distribution systems that are shaky and unreliable.”
The machine, which is about 3 feet wide, is likely to cost ￡800 when it goes on sale here in the spring. Its make
r, Canadian Firm Element Four, roughly calculates that a litre of water cost around 20p to produce.
Environmentalists state that half the world’s population will face water shortage because of climate change by 2080. One in five is said to lack access to safe drinking.
The Water Mill is not effective in areas where the amount of water contained in the air is below about 30 percent, but in Britain that won’t be much of a problem.
63．What does the underlined word “it” refer do?
A．Drinking water. B．Invention. C．Microwave. D．Water Mill.
64．What do we learn about the machine?
A．It works in the same way as microwaves.
B．It is very expensive for families to afford.
C．It absorbs steam and turns it into water.
D．It helps to make the water clean to drink.
65．What does the passage lead us to believe?
A．The cost of water will go up. B．Bottled water will disappear sooner.
C．The machine is energy saving. D．The machine will be popular worldwide.
66．What’s the best title for the passage?
A．A New Way to Solve Water Problem. B．A Machine to Make Water out of Air.
C．A Dehumidifier to Produce Water. D．An Absolutely New Invention
B
The man traveling in the back of the ambulance which was running at a high speed along the streets of Baltimore that morning in 2008 had no business to be alive．By everything that was reasonable，and there were plenty of such things before，he should have been very dead indeed．But he wasn’t．As the people in the hospital pointed out after they had examined him，he was only slightly hurt．Yet he had just fallen 150 feet down a hotel lift shaft（电梯通道）!
Unknown to the man，two things had occurred which were to affect his life that day．On the thirteenth f1oor of the hotel, somebody had carelessly left the lift gate open．Down in the basement, a pipe had burst and，it had flooded the bottom of the lift shaft to a depth of two feet．
Modern lifts have all sorts of fail-safe system to prevent accidents，but this was ancient equipment unreliable，slow，dangerous，and suitable material to recycle．
The man had plenty of things to occupy his mind that morning. He had overslept. The hotel had forgotten to call him and now he was late for an important business appointment. He dressed quickly, shaved hurriedly, took hold of his briefcase and hurried off down the hotel corridor.
Good! The life gate was open. The life must be there. He need not press the button and wait while the large, clumsy life made its way upwards. Without looking or thinking, he stepped out into space. The lift cag
e was, in fact, one floor above him on the fourteenth. The would which he had walked was a narrow space of not very fresh sir, ending 150 feet below in two feet of dirty water.
The man fell, making his journey to the ground at a speed he had never dreamed of. Confused patterns, a rush of air, time enough to be afraid, split-second thoughts of death, then-crash!
Perhaps this gave him the record for some sort of high-diving act. No doubt in future he always looked before he jumped. Certainly be learnt that this was no way to save time. The experts said that those two feet of water had saved his life.
59．What do we learn about the man?
A．He fell from the 13th floor. B．He was hit by an ambulance．
C．He got caught in a serious flood． D．He made a record for high-diving.
60．By “……had no business to be alive”，the writer means that the man_______.
A．had missed his business appointment B．was alive with excitement
C．was alive and this was surprising D．didn’t do any business
61．Tile lift did not have a fail-safe system because it was____________.
A．narrow B．slow C．1arge D．old
62．Which of the following was NOT the cause of the accident?
A．A pipe burst． B．The man overslept
C．The hotel forgot to call him D．Someone left the lift door open
第三部分：阅读理解（共阴节，40分）
第一节（共15小题；每小题2分，共30分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
A
|
|
|
56．Which restaurant serves good meal dishes?
A．Richard’s Steak House B．California Pizza Plus
C．Garden Delight D．On the Run
57．At Garden Delight, you can .
A．design your own pie B．get tasty French fries
C．enjoy good D．get healthy food
58．Why is On the Run considered the poorest restaurant ?
A．Because of its old microwaves． B．Because of its poor decoration．
C．Because of its food and service． D．Because of its price of the food．
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