My parents moved from Mexico to South Texas in the early 90s with the hope for a brighter future for their family of nine---my parents, four boys and three girls. My parents have always wanted the best for us and they have done everything possible to encourage us to get a university degree. Never did they think that by pushing us that direction, it also meant encouraging us to move away and be distant from each other.
Initially(起初), getting accustomed to the American culture and lifestyle was very difficult for my parents. They come from a culture where kids grow up together, go to school together and most of the time live in the same neighborhood. From our point, American family values were a bit different. Typically in the US, when you turn 18, you are expected to graduate from high school, move out, find a university, possibly find a partner, get married and start a life together. Most of these decisions take you away from home; usually you have to follow opportunity and wherever that will take you.
This is my family’s current situation. I graduated from Bethel College in Indiana in 2010, and in order to fulfill my financial responsibilities of paying off student loans, I moved to Washington State for my job with Experience Mission. Ideally my parents wanted me to come home to South Texas, but that wasn’t where my opportunity took me.
Currently, my sister Jennifer lives in Waco, Texas, about eight hours from my parents. My two younger brothers also decided to go to college at Bethel and are away from my parents. More than likely, when they graduate, they will probably not move back home to South Texas.
My parent never imagined that their dream for a better future would separate our family this way.
Facebook has played a crucial(决定性的) role in the way we communicate while living in different places. Since we all use Facebook, we have found a place to connect and feel as if we were there together with each other.We can infer from the first paragraph that ________.
| A．the writer’s family are immigrants to America |
| B．the writer’ family came to America for a better future |
| C．the writer’ parents’ didn’t want their children to get a university degree |
| D．the writer’ parents pushed their children away from each other |
The writer’s parents found it hard to be used to American life because ________.
| A．they were strangers in America |
| B．they suffered from a culture shock |
| C．the local people disliked their family |
| D．different countries have different lives |
The writer didn’t return to work in South Texas after graduation because ________.
| A．he owed a lot of money while studying at college |
| B．he didn’t graduate from university |
| C．he found his opportunity in Washiongton State |
| D．his father couldn’t find him a job in South Texas |
What will probably be talked about in the paragraph after the last?
| A．The writer’s parents’ life in Texas. |
| B．How the parents learn to use Facebook. |
| C．What the writer’s brothers’ and sisters’ lives are like. |
| D．How the writer’s family communicate through Facebook. |
Still want a laptop? That was so yesterday. Get ready for the next stage in the personal computer revolution: It's the ultrathin (超薄的), cheap netbook.
According to a New York Times report last week, personal computers are about to go through their biggest change since the rise of the laptop. By the end of the year, consumers are likely to see laptops the size of thin paperback books that can run all day on a single charge and are equipped with touch screens or slide-out keyboards. The netbook is a kind of portable computer with learner functions for online surfing and basic computing activities, for example, word processing. To cut the cost and weight, they usually have a low-powered processor, small screen, narrow keyboard, and no ODD.
Currently, some of the devices look more like a toy than a full-feature computer. That's because most of the netbooks sold today run on an Intel chip called Atom. This is a lower-power version of the company's standard laptop chip, so they have trouble running demanding software like games and photo-editing programs.
This year, a group of companies who make cheap, power-saving chips used in cell phones are applying that expert skill to PCs. That means they will break Atom's netbook dominance (统治地位) and reduce the size while letting it run complicated programs.
The big winner in the rise of netbooks will be the consumer. AT&T announced last week that customers in Atlanta, Georgia, US, could get a netbook for just $50 (342 yuan) if they signed up for an Internet service plan. This trend will soon spread to Asia, according to industry experts.
University campuses are a major target of Shanzhai netbooks—uncopyrighted (无版权的) domestic copies of foreign brands. These products are usually sold at less than 2,000 yuan. But industry insiders suggest students not use these nameless products because many of them don't provide good after-safes services.
64. The following are all advantages of netbooks EXCEPT that .
A. people can easily edit photographs with them B. they cost less than other personal computers
C. they are very thin and easy to carry D. they save power
65. Why are students advised not to use Shanzhai netbooks?
A. Because they are of poor quality. B. Because they are not easy to operate.
C. Because they will soon be out of date. D. Because they lack good after-sales services.
66. What can be inferred from the passage?
A. Laptops are becoming more and more popular.
B. University students seldom buy Shanzhai netbooks.
C. Shanzhai netbooks are sold better than those of famous foreign brands.
D. Atom's netbooks make up the largest part of the sales of portable computers at present.
67. What is the general idea of this passage?
A. Shanzhai netbooks are taking control of laptop market.
B. Netbooks have advantages over laptops in everything.
C. Netbooks are becoming the trend of personal computers.
D. Most of the netbooks sold today run on an Intel chip called Atom.
Across the United States, there are several places where two independent towns grew together to become one city — but kept both their names.
WinstonSalem is one of them. It’s a midsized city in what’s called the plateau（high land）, between the Atlantic Coast and the inland mountains in the state of North Carolina. The Winston part is a relatively new place, founded early this century. It’s home to the nation’s biggest openair tobacco market.
The giant R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company’s headquarters is in WinstonSalem, and Winston is the name of one of Reynolds’ bestknown cigarette brands. Fast-growing Winston soon surrounded the much older town of Salem, so in 1913, people in the area voted to combine them into a single place.
From a historical and tourist point of view, Salem, or Old Salem, as it’s called today, is the interesting and unusual part of town.
Salem was founded in the 1700s by the Moravians. They spoke German, and their community was religiously based, with single men and single women living apart in separate dormitories. The Moravians greatly valued women’s work and brainpower. In fact, one of the nation’s oldest boarding schools for young women— the Moravians’ Salem Academy founded in 1772 — is still in operation.
Over the years, Salem lost its Moravian character. That all changed, though, when a nonprofit group began to rehabilitate the historic area. These days Old Salem is what’s called a living history museum, with exhibits, music, and tours of 18th-century houses, taverns and Moravian dormitory buildings just seven blocks from the tallest skyscraper in Winston-Salem.
The historic community is booming again. Just as R. J. Reynolds is taking in millions of dollars making cigarettes across town, Old Salem is generating about $15 million a year in tourism revenue and donations.
60. From the passage we can know that____________.
A. Winston-Salem is the name of a city B. Salem is home to the tobacco market
C. the city Winston-alem has two names D. Old Salem is the name of a tobacco brand
61. The city Salem is special for its__________.
A. boarding school B. lifestyle and traditionC. respect for brainpower D. religious belief
62. The underlined word “rehabilitate” in Paragraph 6 is closest in meaning to “_________”.
A. reconstruct B. evaluate C. enlarge D. decorate
63. What will probably be talked about in the following part?
A. Some other attractions in Winston-Salem. B. How Winston makes profits from tourism.
C. Other examples of cities combined by two parts.D. Something about the boarding school for women.
第三部分：阅读理解
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。
In their book Time to Eat the Dog: The Real Guide to Sustainable Living, Robert and Brenda Vale say keeping a mediumsized dog has the same ecological impact as driving 10,000 km a year in a 4.6 liter Land Cruiser.
“We’re not actually saying it is time to eat the dog. We’ re just saying that we need to think about and know the ecological impact of some of the things we do and that we take for granted.”
Constructing and driving the jeep for a year requires 0.41 hectares of land, while growing and manufacturing a dog’s food takes about 0.84 hectares — or 1.1 hectares in the case of a large dog such as a German shepherd.
Convincing flesheating cats and dogs to go vegetarian for the sake of the planet is a nonstarter, the Vales say. Instead they recommend keeping “greener”, smaller, and more sustainable pets, such as goldfish, chickens or rabbits.
The book’s playful title, and serious suggestion that pet animals may be usefully “recycled”, by being eaten by their owners or turned into pet food when they die, may not appeal to animal fans.
Annoying as the idea may be, the question is valid given the planet’s growing population and limited resources, Robert Vale said.
“Issues about sustainability are increasingly becoming things that are going to require us to make choices which are as difficult as eating your dog. It’s not just about changing your light bulbs or taking a cloth bag to the supermarket,” he said.
“It’s about much more challenging and difficult issues,” he added. “Once you see where cats and dogs fit in your overall balance of things, you might decide to have the cat but not also to have the two cars and the three bathrooms and be a meat eater yourself.”
56. The authors gave their book the playful title to________.
A. make it amusing B. create a vivid imageC. show writing skills D. arouse people’ s concern
57. In Paragraph 3 the writer mainly wants to tell us________.
A. the amount of consumed land B. the neglected ecological impact
C. some familiar examples D. some actual figures
58. What does “sustainability” mean according to the passage?
A. Going vegetarian. B. Raising cats and dogs.C. Using a cloth bag. D. Keeping a greener life.
59. What do the authors think of living a sustainable life?
A. Challenging. B. Inspiring. C. Inviting. D. Touching.
Since the gene, called DAF-16 in worms, was found in many animals and in humans, the finding could open up new ways to affect aging, immunity(免疫)and resistance in humans, the scientists said.
“We wanted to find out how normal aging is being governed by genes and what effect these genes have on other traits, such as immunity,” said Robin May of the University of Birmingham, who led the study.
Populations across the world are aging at a surprising pace, bringing potentially big challenges for health and social care systems. A study by Danish scientists last year found that half of babies born in the rich world today will live to celebrate their 100th birthdays. Scientists are eager to find out how people age to try to develop drugs to help them stay healthier as their lives extend.
“What we have found is that things like resistance and aging tend to go hand in hand,” May said in an interview.
May’s team compared longevity, stress resistance and immunity in four related species of worm. They also looked for differences in the activity of DAF-16 in each of the four species, and found that they were all quite distinct.
May said DAF-16 was active in most cells in the body and was very similar to a group of human genes called FOXO genes, which scientists believe play a role in the aging process.
“The fact that subtle（微妙的）differences in DAF-16 between species seem to have such an impact on aging and health is very interesting and may explain how differences in lifespan and related traits have arisen during evolution,” May said.
67. In which section may the text appear in a newspaper?
A. Education. B. Science. C. Entertainment. D. Culture.
68. What can we know from the third paragraph?
A. New ways have been found to affect aging. B. Babies in the rich world will all live longer.
C. Present social care systems are poorly managed. D. Aging populations are causing more challenges.
69. From the text we know that DAF-16_____.
A. is a gene that is only found in worms B. can make people live longer
C. has an effect on aging and immunity D. has been quite familiar to scientists
70. What can be the best title of the passage?
A. Scientists Find Gene Linked to Aging B. Population Aging Faster than Expected
C. How to Make People Live Longer D. Gene Determines How Long We Live
Some people who find themselves facing a problem react by just giving up. But it is not good to escape from problems by giving up or by making excuses for failures. You may be sure that all young people go through the same difficult process that you are going through: meeting new situations, developing new skills, and testing their abilities.
If you are unhappy about something, face it. Try to state the problem in a few words, so that you will know exactly what you are up against. Then see if you can “put your finger” on the cause of your unhappiness.
In many cases, we only “think” there is no solution to a particular problem. But often we can overcome the problem and achieve the goal by making a direct attack.
For example, a boy wanted to be a debater(辩论家). When he tried out for the debating team as a freshman, the coach thought he was hopeless. He was shy; he had a high-pitched voice; and his posture(体态) was poor. Although he was given little hope of success, he took advantage of every opportunity to debate. He studied successful speakers and evaluated his own weaknesses and advantages. Then he spent many hours learning all the facts on the topics for debate, and worked at developing good posture and at speaking clearly. By his junior year, he made the school debating team, and in his senior year he was on the winning team in his state. He achieved his goal because he had made a direct attack upon his problem.
Although direct attack is often the best way to meet problems, we have to be realistic(现实的) in judging situations. Sometimes it is necessary to change either the method or the goal.
A boy who wants to be a great football player may not be too strong and not quite fast enough for football. In this situation, becoming a great football player may be an unreasonable goal for him. However, he may become outstanding in tennis or golf, and satisfy his desire to take part in sports.
A girl who is not good-looking may decide that she cannot win popularity with her face, and so she may try to develop an interesting personality, which eventually will get her much further. In this situation, she must change her method of achieving her goal.
So, although direct attack is often the best way to handle problems, it is important to study the situation and make a wise decision about what to do.
63. From the first paragraph, we can infer that .
A. not all people will meet the problems that they can’t solve
B. not all people can solve the problems that they meet
C. all people will not give up finding the solutions to problems
D. all people will make some excuses for failures
64. The underlined phrase “are up against” in the second paragraph could be best replaced by .
A. are dealing with B. are faced with C. meet with D. look after
65. Which of the following best shows the structure of the text?
(①-⑧ stand for “paragraph 1—paragraph 8”)
A. ① B. ①
② ② ③
③④ ⑤⑥⑦⑧ ④⑤ ⑥⑦⑧
C. ① D. ①
② ② ③
③④⑤ ⑥⑦⑧ ④⑤⑥ ⑦⑧
66. Which of the following is not right?
A. When we meet difficulties, it is the best to give a direct attack.
B. If a girl is not good looking, she’d better change her style of appearance.
C. Whenever we face difficulty, we can find a way out, whatever it is.
D. Both a direct attack and a good analysis of the reality are good for solving problems.
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