LONDON（Reuters）—Organic fruit, delivered right to the doorstep．That is what Gabriel Gold prefers, and he is willing to pay for it．If this is not possible, the 26-year-old computer technician will spend the extra money at the supermarket to buy organic food．
“Organic produce is always better,” Gold said．“The food is free of pesticides（农药）, and you are generally supporting family farms instead of large farms．And more often than not it is locally grown and seasonal, so it is more tasty．” Gold is one of a growing number of shoppers buying into the organic trend, and supermarkets across Britain are counting on more like him as they grow their organic food business．But how many shoppers really know what they are getting, and why are they willing to pay a higher price for organic produce? Market research shows that Gold and others who buy organic food can generally give clear reasons for their preferences—but their knowledge of organic food is far from complete．For example, small amounts of pesticides can be used on organic products．And about three quarters of organic food in Britain is not local but imported to meet growing demand．“The demand for organic food is increasing by about one third every year, so it is a very fast-growing market,” said Sue Flock, a specialist in this line of business．More and more people in Britain are buying organic food because _____．
| A．they are getting richer |
| B．they can get the food anywhere |
| C．they like home-grown fruit |
| D．they consider the food free of pollution |
Which of the following statements is true to the facts about most organic produce sold in Britain?
| A．It grows indoors all year round． |
| B．It is grown on family farms |
| C．It is produced outside Britain． |
| D．It is produced on large farms． |
What is the meaning of “the organic trend” as the words are used in the text?
| A．better quality of organic food． |
| B．growing interest in organic food． |
| C．rising market for organic food． |
| D．higher prices of organic food． |
What is the best title for this news story?
| A．The making of organic food in Britain． |
| B．Organic food—to import or not? |
| C．Good qualities of organic food． |
| D．Organic food—healthy, or just for the wealthy? |
You’ve just come home, after living abroad for a few years. Since you’ve been away, has this country changed for the better or for the worse?
If you’ve just arrived back in the UK after a fortnight’s holiday, small changes have probably surprised you—anything from a local greengrocer suddenly being replaced by a mobile-phone shop to someone in your street moving house.
So how have things changed to people coming back to Britain after seven, ten or even 15 years living abroad? What changes in society can they see that the rest of us have hardly noticed—or now take for granted? To find out, we asked some people who recently returned.
Debi: When we left, Cheltenham, my home town, was a town of white, middle-class families—all very conservative (保守的).The town is now home to many eastern Europeans and lots of Australians, who come here mainly to work in hotels and tourism. There are even several shops only for foreigners.
Having been an immigrant (移民) myself, I admire people who go overseas to find a job. Maybe if I lived in an inner city where unemployment was high, I’d think differently, but I believe foreign settlers have improved this country because they’re more open-minded and often work harder than the natives.
Christine: As we flew home over Britain, both of us remarked how green everything looked. But the differences between the place we’d left behind and the one we returned to were brought sharply into focus as soon as we landed.
To see policemen with guns in the airport for the first time was frightening — in Cyprus, they’re very relaxed — and I got pulled over by customs officers just for taking a woolen sweater with some metal-made buttons out of my case in the arrivals hall. Everyone seemed to be on guard. Even the airport car-hire firm wanted a credit card rather than cash because they said their vehicles had been used by bank robbers. But anyway, this is still a green, beautiful country. I just wish more people would appreciate what they’ve got.After a short overseas holiday, people tend to ______ .
| A．expect small changes |
| B．notice small changes |
| C．welcome small changes |
| D．exaggerate (夸大) small changes |
How does Debi look at the foreign settlers?
| A．Cautiously. | B．Skeptically. |
| C．Positively. | D．Critically. |
When arriving at the airport in Britain, Christine was shocked by ______ .
| A．the tight security | B．the messy arrivals hall |
| C．the relaxed policemen | D．the bank robbers |
Which might be the best title for the passage?
| A．Life in Britain. | B．Britain in Memory. |
| C．Britain in Future. | D．Back in Britain. |
Most children, even the youngest of children, are delighted to be around cats and dogs. But these pets carry plenty of germs and allergens（过敏原）, prompting researchers to ask: Are cats and dogs really safe for children？
A study finds that, contrary to many parents’ fears, owning cats or dogs does not increase a child’s risk of developing allergies, and in fact, may actually protect them. The study’s lead author, Dr. Dennic Ownby of the Medical College of Georgia, says that even he was “very surprised” by the results. Ownby and colleagues followed more than 470 children from birth to age 6 or 7, comparing those exposed to cats and dogs during their first year of life to those who were not.
By using skin-prick tests for detecting common allergies, the researchers found that, contrary to what many doctors had been taught for years, children who had lived with a pet were not at greater risk.
Even more remarkable, children who had two or more dogs or cats had an even greater reduction, up to 77 percent, in risk of allergies. Researchers suggest this protective effect may be the result of early exposure to lots of bacteria that are carried by dogs and cats. Exposing young children to these bacteria helps "exercise" their immune systems early in life so that they're better able to resist allergic diseases later.
There's something very important in that first year of life when the immune(免疫) system is developing that we can retrain it away from an allergic response, said Dr. William Davis.
And while researchers are not encouraging parents to buy dogs or cats just to reduce a child’s allergy risk, they say if a family already has one or more animals, there's no need to get rid of them.Why do the researchers feel “very surprised” by the results of the study?
| A．Because the results are contrary to their expectation． |
| B．Because so many children are playing with cats and dogs． |
| C．Because parents are so much worried about their children． |
| D．Because children with animals may develop allergies easily． |
Compared with children who have pets，those who haven’t ______.
| A．will lose the chance to develop immune system |
| B．will reduce the harm from bacteria |
| C．may suffer allergic diseases more often |
| D．can keep doctors away |
The underlined word “it” in the fifth paragraph refers to________.
| A．the early life | B．an allergic disease |
| C．something important | D．immune system |
What is the passage mainly about?
| A．How to protect your kids from allergies |
| B．Bacteria do good to your kids |
| C．Your pets may be helping your kids |
| D．Advantages of owning pets |
I was very sympathetic with world leaders burdened with resolving conflicts between nations. When my three children were young, in most days it was hard to keep my house from becoming a war zone. It got worse as they grew older. Three years ago, Zack, then 16, couldn’t make it through a day without playing tricks on his sisters, Alex and Taryn, then 11 and 9.
My husband and I tried to understand his adolescent moodiness. We begged, reasoned, punished, and left heartfelt notes on his bed about how his behavior was hurting our family. His response was a shrug and “I say it because it’s true”.
I even tried telling the girls to fight back. But it was a bad idea. Now I had three kids at war. At wit’s end, I poured my heart out to my sister in an e-mail. She wrote back, “Don’t e-mail me. E-mail him.”
Our son was online every day, mailing and instantly messaging his friends. So what if I was within shouting distance? Maybe he would actually hear me this way. There’d be no yelling or door slamming（猛然关闭）. Zack wouldn’t feel under attack. And with a few simple keystrokes, he could respond. Or not. Zack didn’t reply for days. When he finally did, his entire message was four words. I expected the worst, but then smiled when I read them, ”You are right. I’m sorry.” The kids still fought, of course, but Zack scaled back the abuse (恶习). Best of all, I now have an effective way to communicate with not one but three easily annoyed teens. They don’t tune me out as much. They don’t like to listen to me nag (唠叨) .Or as Alex says, “You’re so much nicer online.”
All I know is that the house is quiet, and we’re talking. In fact, Taryn just instantly messaged me from upstairs. It’s time to take her to softball practice.The purpose of this passage is to tell us _________ .
| A．how to solve family problems |
| B．how a mother shows her love to her children |
| C．how to treat kids in a more sensible way |
| D．the value of understanding between parents and children |
By the first sentence of the passage, the author really means to be_______.
| A．humourous | B．sympathetic |
| C．serious | D．inspiring |
How did Zack react when the author first tried to stop his bad behavior？
| A．He was annoyed and got worse. |
| B．He talked back to the author. |
| C．He felt sorry and changed. |
| D．He was persuaded and acted politely. |
阅读理解
（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。
Marek was a farmer who lived in a village far away. One day he became very ill, and everyone thought he would die. They sent for a doctor, who arrived two days later and examined the sick man. The doctor asked for a pen and some paper to write down the name of the medicine. But there was no pen or paper in the village, because no one could read or write.
The doctor picked up a piece of burnt wood from the fire. Using the wood, he wrote the name of the medicine on the door of the house. "Get this medicine for him," he said,"and he will soon get better."
Marek's family and friends did not know what to do. They could not read the strange writing. Then the village baker had an idea. He took off the door of the house, put it on his cart and drove to the nearest town. He bought the medicine, and Marek was soon well again. He would not let anyone wash the magic words away from the door.
People in the village thought Marek would die since .
| A．he was seldom ill |
| B．he was seriously ill |
| C．he was badly wounded |
| D．doctor could do nothing for him |
It took the doctor two days to reach the village because .
| A．he didn't like to go to the village |
| B．he had to prepare some medicine |
| C．the village was far from the town |
| D．there was an accident on his way to the village |
When the doctor arrived, he .
| A．gave Marek a careful check up |
| B．gave the medicine to Marek |
| C．became very tired and took a rest |
| D．became very angry |
The doctor wanted after the careful examination.
| A．a cup of tea |
| B．a pen and some paper |
| C．to light a fire |
| D．the door of the house |
On what did the doctor write the name of the medicine?
| A．Floor. | B．A piece of burnt wood. |
| C．A piece of paper. | D．The door of the house. |
阅读下面短文并回答问题，然后将答案写到相应的位置上（请注意问题后的词数要求）。 （共5小题，每小题2分，共10分）
Today, millions of people want to learn or improve their English, but ‘it’ is difficult to find the best method. Is it better to study in Britain or America or to study in your own country?
The advantages of going to Britain seem obvious. Firstly, you will be able to listen to the language all the time you are in the country. You will be surrounded completely by the language wherever you go. Another advantage is that you have to speak the language if you are with other people.
On the other hand, of staying at home to study. You don’t have to make big changes to your life. As well as this,it is also a lot cheaper than going to Britain.
So I think that if you have enough time and enough money, the best choice is to spend some time in the UK. But this is not possible for most people, so the most important thing to do in this situation is to catch your opportunities: to speak only English in class and to try to use English whenever possible outside the class.
What is the text mainly about?（no more than 10 words）
Please complete the sentence according to the the passage. (no more than 3 words)
The English language will surround you completely ____________________.
Fill in the blank in Paragraph 3 with proper words. （no more than 8 words）
What suggestion does the author give to those who learn English in their own country?（no more than 15 words）
What does the underlined word ‘it’ in paragraph 1 refer to ?(no more than 5words).
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