Your Car Is Ready for Take-off
The flying car has been talked about for many years，but now it appears that the idea is about to become a reality.
An international company has built a two-seater plane that, at the touch of a button ，transforms into a car perfectly suitable for driving on public roads. It has been designed so that the wings fold up automatically； and it takes just 15 seconds to switch between flying and driving. With its wings fully open and the propeller(螺旋桨）spinning, it can take off from any airfield.
Flying cars are quicker than traditional ones for travelling from city to city，and they can run on ordinary fuel. Another big advantage is that they are cool ，like something you would see in an action film. At the moment 9 however, the flying car’s wheels are illegal to leave the ground. That is not because of technical reasons or problems with the design. It is because the various road and aircraft authorities simply cannot agree on whether it is a car or a plane.
“The government and the authorities have never thought seriously about a flying car, says Alan Price ，the president of the company that has developed it. “I wanted a car that could fly and drive ，but it is difficult to find an organization prepared to insure the vehicle against accidents.
Nevertheless ? the company hopes to produce and deliver its first flying car soon. The company already has orders for 40 of them. The majority the potential customers are older and some are retired。There have even been orders from some people who have no pilot's license.
The flying car will cost around $ 200.000. “For an airplane ， that’s a very reasonable price， but for a car, It's quite expensive，” explains Alan. “But it just is not possible to make a $ 10，000 flying car yet. ”
This latest means of transport will not become a mass-market item in the near future，but in the long term it has the potential to change the way you travel. It will become no more expensive than driving your car on the motorway. Travel time could be reduced by more than half.
So the next time you are told to fasten your seat belt, it may be to prepare for take-off.We know from the passage that the flying car______
| A．has to run on special fuel | B．will replace traditional planes |
| C．is popular with the rich | D．can shift between two forms |
The flying car is presently forbidden to take off because______.
| A．many people think driving it not very safe |
| B．it’s hard to decide whether it's a car or a plane |
| C．the government and the authorities don’t accept it |
| D．there are still some technical problems to be solved |
We can learn from the passage that______.
| A．few people will be able to afford a flying car |
| B．flying cars may share the market in the future |
| C．traffic jams will disappear because of flying cars |
| D．driving a flying car doesn’t require a pilot’s license |
We know the kiss as a form of expressing love. But long before it became , it was customary in many countries to use it as an expression of respect. Some native Africans kiss the ground over which a chief has walked. Kissing the hand and foot has been a mark of respect from the earliest times.
The early Romans kissed the mouth or eyes as a form of noble greeting. One Roman emperor allowed his important nobles to kiss his lips, but the less important ones had to kiss his hands, and the least important ones were only allowed to kiss his feet!
Most likely 
the kiss as a form of affection can date back to ancient times when a mother would touch her child gently, just as a mother does today. It only remained for society to accept this as a custom for expressing affection between arms.
The first society where the kiss became accepted in marriage was in France. From France the kiss spread rapidly all over Europe. As marriage customs developed, the kiss became a part of the wedding ceremony. Today we regard it as an expression of love and tenderness. But there are still many places in the world where the kiss is part of formal ceremonies and is intended to show respect.
46. According to the passage, kiss was earlier used as _________.
A. a custom B. an expression of love
C. an expression of respect D. an expression of power
47. How did the early Romans show their greeting?
A. They would kiss the lips. B. They kissed other’s hands.
C. Feet would be kissed to show their greeting. D. They would kiss mouth or eyes.
48. What does the underlined word “affection” mean?
A. respect B. love
C. honor D. worry
49. According to the text, which of the following is not using a kiss?
A. courtship B. greeting
C. sorrow D. affection
50. This passage mainly tells us that _____.
A. Introduction on how to kiss.
B. The different meanings of kiss from the ancient times to present days.
C. How to kiss each other in different countries.
III 阅读(共两节。满分40分)
第一节 阅读理解(共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分)
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Bamboo is one of the nature’s most surprising plants. Many people call this plant a tree, but it is a kind of grass.
Like other kinds of grass, a bamboo plant may be cut very low to the ground, but it will grow back very quickly. A Japanese scientist recorded one bamboo plant that grew almost 1.5 meters in 24 hours! Bamboo grows almost everywhere in the world except Europe. There are more than 1,000 kinds of bamboo that grow around the world on both mountains and plains(平原).
Not all bamboo looks the same. Some bamboo plants are very thin. They may only grow to be a few centimeters wide while others may grow to more than 30 centimeters across. This plant also comes in different colors, from yellow to black to green.
Many Asian countries have been using bamboo for hundreds of years. They often use bamboo for building new buildings. As a matter of fact, the cables(绳索) that hold up the hanging bridge across the Min River in Sichuan are made of bamboo. The bridge has been in use for more than 1,000 years, and is still holding strong.
In Africa, engineers are teaching poor farmers how to find water using bamboo. These African countries need cheap ways to find water because they have no money, and their fields often die from no rain and no water. It seems that bamboo is one of the best things they can use. Bamboo pipes and drills(钻) can help to make the poor thirsty fields to be watered.
41. How is bamboo like grass?
A. It is thin and easy to cut. B. It grows everywhere.
C. It grows quickly after its cut short. D. It is short and green.
42. The sentence “while others may grow to more than 30 centimeters across.” means “Some other bamboo plants may grow to be very _______.”
A. short B. strong C. thick D. tall
43. From the text we know ______.
A. most people call bamboo plant trees B. a bamboo plant may grow 4.5 meters in three days
C. the bamboo plant changes its colors when it grows
D. a bridge held by bamboo cable was built thousands of years ago
44. Why did the engineers teach the poor farmers in Africa to make use of bamboo?
A. Because it is cheap. B. Because it is colorful.
C. Because it drills fast. D. Because it is used by Asians.
45. Which of the following is NOT true?
A. There are many different kinds of bamboo with different colors.
B. Cables made of bamboo can last for over a thousand years.
C. Bamboo can be used for buildings, bridges and watering projects(工程).
D. Bamboo plants are able to grow well in any part of the world.
A solar pump(太阳能水泵 ) was built in a desert small village. The pump used the deserts most common resource – sunlight, to increase its greatest need, water. Solar collectors were used to collect the sun’s r
ays. Flat collectors were used instead of concave (凹的) collectors. Flat collectors can be still and do not have moving parts, which can be broken in sandstorms. The system used the 20C temperature difference between the solar collectors and the ground water to work a steam engine which pumped water from under the ground.
Some of the social effects of the new pump were planed for. Children aged 6—15 used to meet the old men to receive the informal education there. In order to replace this, a school was also included in the project. But the project had not considered the traditional power structure of the village. As soon as the foreign experts left, the two richest men in the village took control of the pump and started selling water to everyone else. The result was that the majority of the people were poorer than before.
16. The basic function of the solar collectors is to ______
A. pump water B. gather the sun’s rays
C. start engine D. raise the temperature
17. According to the passage which of the following statements could be true?
A. Solar collectors were concave collectors
B. Flat collectors can be broken in sandstorms.
C. Concave collectors may be have moving parts.
D. A solar pump is a solar collectors.
18. The underground water is pumped by means of ______.
A. solar collectors B. the 20C temperature difference C. the system D. a steam engine
19. Another plan was also included that_____.
A. some new pumps were to built ,too
B. children from aged 6—15 were required to meet old men.
C. a new school would take the place of the informal education.
D. the richest men in the village would control the pump.
20. From this passage , it can be inferred that_____.
A. the project was good , but people there disliked it.
B. only few rich men supported the project.
C. the project was successful even though it only brought good social effects to fewer villagers.
D. the project was a complete failure, because the result was against its purpose.
Computer programmer David Jones earned $ 150,000 a year designing new computer games, yet he cannot find a bank prepared to let him have a check card (信用卡). Instead, he has been told to wait another two years until he is 18.
He works for a small firm in Liverpool, where most young people of his age are finding jobs. David”s biggest headache is what to do with his money. Though he has high payment, he cannot drive a car, or get credit cards.(信用卡)
David got his job four months ago, a year after leaving school with six O-Levels(普通成绩) and working for a time in a computer shop. “I got the job because the people who run the firm knew I had already written some programs,” he said.
“I suppose $150,000 sounds a lot but I hope it will come to more than that this year.” He spends some of his money on records and clothes, and gives his mother $20 a week as he lives with his parents. But most of his spare time is spent working.
“Unfortunately, computing was not part of our studies at school,” he said. “ But I had been studying it in books and magazines for four years in my spare time. I knew what I wanted to do and never considered staying on at school. Most people in this business are fairly young, anyway. I would like to earn a million and I suppose early retirement(退休) is a possibility. You never know when the market might disappear.
11. why is David so different from other young people of his age?
A .He has got a job. B. He lives at home with his parents
C .He does not get out much. D. He earns a high payment
12. David’s greatest problem is that _____.
A. he can’t be treated as an adult (grown-up) by the bank
B. he can’t make as many games as he wishes
C .he doesn’t know what to buy with the money
D. he is too young to drive a car
13. He was employed by the company because _____
A .he had worked in a computer shop
B. he had written some computer programs
C. he is clever and works hard at his lessons
D. he had learnt computer from books and magazines
14. He left school after taking six O-Levels because ____.
A. he was afraid of getting too old to start computing B. he didn’t enjoy school
C. he wanted to work with computers D. he wanted to earn a lot of money.
15. Why does David think he might retire early?
A. He thinks computer games might not always sell so well.
B. He wants to stop working when he is a millionaire.
C. One has to be young to write computer programs
D. He thinks his firm might close down.
Carlos Gardel was born on Dec. 11, 1890, just at the right time. The recording and film industries were jus starting to impact the world. Carlos had good looks and a pleasant voice. His death occurred at the peak of his career and popularity in a tragic accident.
Carlos Gardel was the first great singer of tango and to this day remains an icon (崇拜对象) in Argentina, Uruguay and much of the world. As a result of his important role in tango, there are three countries that claim him as their own: France, Uruguay and Argentina.
Carlos’s mother, Berthe, was an unmarried mother and his father did not recognize him. His mother took Carlos to Buenos Aires in 1893. They lived in a poor part of town and Carlos spent his time in the streets; he dropped out of school in 1906 at the age of 15 and started singing in bars.
For the next few years, Carlos toured the clubs and theaters of Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil. His most constant singing partner was Jose Razzano, a folk singer Carlos had met earlier during a singing match. In 1915, after playing in a club in Brazil, Carlos wa
s shot in the left lung, where the bullet stayed for the rest of his life. “Mi Noche Triste” was the hit song that sent Carlos skyrocketing in popularity. It became the first recorded vocal tango and the public was grabbed by the recording of the song. Carlos and Rozzano spent the next years touring through Latin America. In 1923, they left the continent and struck out for Europe. In 1935, Carlos decided to go on tour through the Caribbean and northern South America. On June 24, a plane he was a passenger in was hit by another plane on the runway. Everyone on board was killed.
Carlos may be gone, but he is far from forgotten.
6. The passage was mainly written to ______.
A. show us the history of tango B. introduce the first singer of tango
C. teach us how tango developed D. advertise a tango class
7. We can infer from the passage that _____.
A. Carlos lived a poor life with his mother in Buenos Aires
B. Carlos had only been to France, Uruguay and Argentina
C. Carlos died at the age of 54.
D. Carlos was born when the film industry began to fail
8. What’s the RIGHT time order of the following events?
a. Carlos toured through Latin America.
b. Carlos was shot after playing in a club in Brazil.
c. Carlos toured the clubs and theaters of Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil.
d. Carlos moved to Buenos Aires.
A. cbad B. dcba C. cabd D. dcab
9. The underlined word “grabbed” in Paragraph 4 can be replaced by _____.
A. lied B. frightened C. cheated D. attracted
10. Which of the following statements about Carlos in NOT true?
A. His singing partner Jose was his brother.
B. He is an important figure in the world of tango.
C. His father did not recognize him
D. He died in a plane accident.
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