【改编】Mom’s birthday present? It may be a difficult thing for some people, but for me, it is an easy thing. Mom loved flowers, so every year I sent her flowers. Actually she had a bed of irises（鸢尾花）in the backyard of her small, Indiana farm. They were beautiful. “Take some,” she said, “Dig some up and plant them on the side of your own house.”
But in my yard they became lacking in energy. A year passed, then two, but not one flower appeared. I cut back all their green leaves. I was tired of seeing them so lonely. Finally, I dug the irises up and threw them away.
About that time Mom died unexpectedly. My sister and I sold the farm. I never went back to see the irises. I just couldn’t bear seeing another family living in our home—Mom’s home. Autumn came, then winter. The following spring, as Mom’s birthday approached, I struggled with the question of how to remember her. I stared out the window and saw a few stubborn irises in my side yard sprouting (发芽), —tall, thin but flowerless. Because of seeing them, I decided to order flowers as I always did on Mom’s birthday, and send them to my sister. I wished so badly I could still send flowers to Mom. But that was impossible.
In the morning of Mom’s birthday, I was in my car ready to work. Something in the yard caught my eye. The irises! One had bloomed with flowers, big, showy and purple, as lovely as they ever had been on Mom’s farm. I smiled and turned my eyes upward. I could no longer send flowers to Mom. But somehow, she’d been able to send them to me.From the first paragraph we know________.
| A．the writer doesn’t know what to buy for her mother on her birthday |
| B．some people have difficulty choosing birthday gift for their mother |
| C．Mother lived with the writer on the farm |
| D．Mother doesn’t like flowers including irises |
What happened to the irises that the author grew?
| A．They only grew green flowers. |
| B．They grew as well as those on her mother’s farm. |
| C．They were thrown away at last. |
| D．They ended up with beautiful flowers. |
Why didn’t the writer return to the farm after her mother died?
| A．Because she was too busy to go there. |
| B．Because her sister told her not to. |
| C．Because she lived far away from the farm. |
| D．Because she couldn’t stand the fact that her mother was no longer there. |
From the third paragraph we can know _____.
| A．not all the irises were dug out |
| B．the writer returned to her mother’s farm |
| C．the writer often sends flowers to his sister |
| D．the writer buys flowers in memory of his mother every year |
What is the writer’s purpose to write this passage?
| A．To introduce a kind of irises. |
| B．To memorize her mother. |
| C．To explain how to grow irises. |
| D．To praise the spirit of irises. |
Several times my daughter had telephoned to say, “Mother, you must come to see the daffodils(黄水仙)before they are over”. I wanted to go, but it was a two-hour drive from Laguna to Lake Arrowhead. “I will come next Tuesday,” I promised, a little reluctantly, on her third call.
Next Tuesday dawned cold and rainy. Still, I had promised, and so I drove there. When I finally walked into Carolyn’s house and hugged and greeted my grandchildren, I said, “ Forget the daffodils, Carolyn! The road is invisible in the clouds and fog, and there is nothing in the world except you and these children that I want to see!”
My daughter smiled calmly and said, “We drive in this all the time, Mother. You will never forgive yourself if you miss this experience.”
After about twenty minutes, we turned onto a small gravel road and I saw a small church. On the far side of the church, I saw a hand-lettered sign that read, “Daffodil Garden.”
We got out of the car and each took a child’s hand, and I followed Carolyn down the path. Then, we turned a corner of the path, and I looked up and gasped. Before me lay the most glorious sight. There were five acres of flowers. “But who has done this?” I asked Carolyn. “It’s just one woman,” Carolyn answered. “That’s her home.” Carolyn pointed to a well-kept A- frame house that looked small and modest in the midst of all that glory. We walked up to the house. On the patio(露台), we saw a poster. “Answers to the Questions I Know You Are Asking” was the headline.
The first answer was a simple one. “50,000 bulbs(球茎),” it read. The second answer was, “One at a time, by one woman.” The third answer was, “Began in 1958.”
I thought of this woman whom I had never met, who, more than forty years before, had begun—one bulb at a time—to bring the beauty and joy to the mountain top.
1. The author didn’t go to see the daffodils at first because__________.
A. she was not interested in them B. they were growing on a mountain top
C. the weather was not good enough D. it was a long drive to her daughter’s house
2. Which of the following best describes the author’s feeling seeing the daffodils?
A. Amazed. B. Disappointed. C. Confused. D. Moved.
3. What do we know about the woman living in the A-frame house?
A. She must be out of mind.
B. She acted as a gardener here.
C. It took her great determination to grow the daffodils.
D. She was poor and made her living by selling daffodils.
4. What would be the best title of the passage?
A. A Wonderful Daffodil Garden B. A Remarkable Woman
C. One Bulb at a Time D. I Love Daffodils
第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题，每小题2分，满分40分）
I made a promise to myself on the way down to the vacation beach cottage. For two weeks I would try to be a loving husband and father. Totally loving. No ifs, ands or buts.
The idea had come to me as I listened to a talk on my car radio. The speaker was quoting a Biblical passage about husbands and their wives. Then he went on to say, “Love is an act of will. A person can choose to love.” To myself, I had to admit that I had been a selfish husband. Well, for two weeks that would change.
And it did. On arriving at the beach cottage, I kissed Evelyn meeting me at the door and said, “That new yellow sweater looks great on you.” “Oh, Tom, you noticed”, sh e said, surprised and pleased. Maybe a little puzzled. After the long drive, I wanted to sit and read. Evelyn suggested a walk on the beach. I started to refuse, but then I thought, “Evelyn’s been alone here with the kids all week and now she wants to be alone with me.” We walked on the beach while the children flew their kites.
So it went. Two weeks of not calling the Wall Street firm where I am a director; a visit to the shell museum though I usually hate museums. Relaxed and happy, that’s how the whole vacation passed. I made a new promise to keep on remembering to choose love.
There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment, however. Evelyn and I still laugh about it today. On the last night at our cottage, preparing for bed, Evelyn stared at me with the saddest expression.
“What’s the matter?” I asked her.
“Tom,” she said in a voice filled with distress, “ I don’t?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well…that checkup I had several weeks ago…our doctor…did he tell you something about me? Tom, you’ve been so good to me…am I dying?”
It took a moment for it all to be understood. Then I burst out laughing.
“No, honey,” I said, wrapping her in my arms. “You’re not dying; I’m just starting to live.”
1. From the story we may infer that Tom drove to the beach cottage ______.
A. with his family B. with Evelyn C. alone D. with his children
2. During the two weeks on the beach, Tom showed more love to his wife because ______.
A. he was determined to be a good husband
B. he had made a lot of money in his Wall Street firm
C. she looked lovely in her new clothes
D. the doctor said his wife was seriously ill
3. The author says, “There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment.” What does “one thing” refer to?
A. He praised her sweater, which puzzled her.
B. She insisted on visiting a museum, which he hated.
C. He knew something about her illness but didn’t tell her.
D. He was so good to her that she thought she must be dying.
4. By saying “I’m just starting to live,” Tom means that ______.
A. he is just beginning to understand the real meaning of life
B. he is just beginning to enjoy life as a loving husband
C. he lived an unhappy life before and is now starting to change
D. he is beginning to feel regret for what he did to his wife before
Astronauts’ meals have come a long way from the free-dried powders and semi-liquid pastes of decades ago，now US scientists want to grow vegetables in mini-greenhouses on the moon．
Scientists say they are looking forward to a time when residents of future lunar or even Martian outsteps will be able to dine on fresh vegetables．Paragon Space Development Corporation has unveiled what it called the first step toward growing flowers——and eventually food—on the moon.
This is a sealed greenhouse that looks like a bell jar encased in a 46-cm triangular aluminium frame(三角铝框架)．It is designed to safely land a laboratory plant on the lunar surface，and protect it while it grows．
The miniature greenhouse is to be launched into space by Odyssey Moon Ltd, a participant in the Google Lunar X Prize. This competition offers $20 million to any entrant(参加者) who can launch，land and operate a rover（漫游）on the lunar surface.
Paragon officials say future testing of the“Lunar Oasis”will be driven by Odyssey’s flight schedule，which will not happen until 2012 at the earliest．
When it does lift off the greehouse will contain the seeds of Brassica, a hardy plant related to Brussels sprouts and cabbage．Because Brassica goes from seed to flower in just 14 days，it can complete its life cycle in a single lunar night
“Colonizing the Moon or Mars seems so far away，but it is important that we do this research now，” Paragon president Jane Poynter said．
“It takes a long time to get a lot of research，and to get integrated，reliable efficient systems before colonists move in．”she said．
1. The article is written mainly to _________.
A. predict the astronauts’meals in the future
B. introduce an experiment“Lunar Oasis’’
C. tell us the future development of astronomy
D. focus on the human’s great progress
2. The article implies that __________.
A. astronauts ean grow flowers in space at present
B. Paragon and NASA will carry out the test separately
C. Lunar Oasis is a series of experiments carried out in space
D. the earliest testing of the Lunar Oasis may be in 2012
3. The underlined word “colonists”in the last paragraph probably has the meaning of _______.
A. plants B. wild beasts C. human beings D. scientists
4. The seeds of Brassica will be contained in the greenhouse mainly because _______.
A. their life cycle is much shorter
B. they are more nutritious than other food
C. they are related to Brussels sporouts and cabbage
D. they are very delicious
The Harvard Student-led Walking Tour
Let a student show you Harvard···on a free walking tour．
We welcome our neighhours to stop by the Harvard University Events＆Information Centre, located in the Holyoke Centre Arcade at 1350 Massachusetts Avenue in the heart of Harvard Square in Cambridge．
Let a student take you and your family, school，or organization on an engaging，hour-long free historical tour of the Harvard Campus. The tours leave from the Events＆Infomlation Centre．Not only will you discover the location of fascinating exhibition and programmers on campus, you will also see Harvard’s rich sampling of American history and architecture from the Colonial period to the present.
Sehedule of Tours
Tours leave the Events＆Information Centre at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Monday through Friday, and at 2 p.m. on Saturday through the academic year (February 4 through May 2；September 23 through December 16). Summer tours (June 24 through August 15) are offered at 10 a.m., 11:15a.m.，2 p.m.，and 3:15 p.m. Monday through Saturday．Reservations for special tours of 20 or more people may be made by calling the Events＆Information Centre at (617) 495—1573 or emailing icenter@ camail. harvard，edu．Tours are suspended March 23 through April 2 for Spring Break, May 3 through June 23 for Spring intercession(祷告)，and August 16 through September 22 for Summer intercession．
NOTE：Prospective(未来的)students may take tours originating at the Harvard Admission office, located at Byerly Hall on 8 Garden Street in Cambridge．From April through August，the Admissions staff conducts an information session at l0 a. m.，followed by an 11 a. m. tour．Monday through Friday On Saturdays．there is no information session but the 11 a．m．tour is still scheduled．Another session is held year round at 2 p. m. with a 3 p. m. tour following．For more information on tours for prospective students，please call at(617)495—1551．
Harvard University Events＆Information Centre
Location：Holyoke Centre Arcade．1350 Massachusetts Avenue，Cambridge MA 02138
Phone：(617)495—1573
1. A person can join in a tour at ________ on Saturday through the academic year．
A. 10 a.m. B. 2 p.m. C. 11:15 a.m. D. 3:15 p.m.
2. If you want to go for an information session, you can go on _________.
A. May 2 B. June 23 C. August 20 D. September 1
3. A student who wants an information session may _______ for more information．
A. call(617)495—1573 B. call(617)495—1551
C. email icenter@ camail. harvard, edu D. go to the Events＆Information Centre
4. The above advertisement is mainly intended for ____________.
A. foreign visitors B. freshmen
C. high school students D. those living near Harvard University
Depression(抑郁症)is a serious problem today. Depression causes workers to be unproductive，causing companies and countries to lose billions of dollars. One expert says that depression is like cancer because it is “widespread, costly and deadly”. Depression hits one person in five around the world.
Although people have believed depression to be a problem among the rich and educated, studies show that depression is a problem among everyone．Over any six-month period, between five to seven percent of the world’s population will be suffering from a serious depression．
Suicide(自杀) rates among people suffering from the disease in its extreme, or clinical form were 80 percent higher than in the population at large．and suffers were four times more likely to have heart attacks．People who suffer from depression often have problems sleeping，getting up on time，and doing work productively.
Depression，which researchers agree has its origin in the genes(基因)，brings loss of confidence and ability to concentrate—making it impossible for employees and managers to work efficiently．
Depression is made more serious in China by Chinese’s inability to face it．Many people believe that depressed people are either weak or lazy．Besides，there is no good treatment，with few specialists available．
“Most patients in China just don’t get h
elp，”a Chinese doctor says．“In my hospital，I have to see 30 or 40 patients in a morning，and just have time to say ‘Hello，how do you feel? ’ ”
In Western countries，people are not afraid to admit that they have depression，but most do not tell it to their boss，because they fear that their boss would fire them．
“In my experience，aging bosses are the most willing to admit they have it, because they feel the most secure about themselves．”an American doctor says.
Hopefully，in the near future，people around the world will be able to admit that they have depression so that they can get the right treatment.
1. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A. It is widely believed that everyone may suffer from depression．
B. Depression brings great problems to its suffers in their life and work．
C. Depression is a commonly-existing problem only in rich countries．
D. The poorer and the less educated a person is，the less he will suffer from depression．
2. Compared to normal people，depressed people are likely to be_________. ‘
A. very unconfident and often absent-minded
B. easy to avoid being hit by heart attacks
C. working efficiently and productively
D. either weak or lazy
3. Depression becomes more serious in China because of _________.
A. the understanding of the problem
B. the lack of treatment and doctors
C. their unwillingness to tell it to their boss
D. the doctors’careless work
4. What can we infer from the passage?
A . People are suffering from depression because of the shortage of specialists．
B. The aging bosses around the world dare to say they are depressed．
C. More and more patients will turn to specialists for help
D. Western people are braver than Chinese people
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