第一部分：阅读理解 （共两节，满分60分）

第一节 （共15小题，每题3分，共45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

Sharing Beauty

It was in October. I was aimlessly wandering down the street, heading into a most gloriously beautiful sunset. I had an urge to speak to someone on the street to share that beauty, but it seemed everyone was in a hurry.

I took the next-best action. Quickly I ducked into a department store and asked the lady behind the counter if she could come outside for just a minute. She looked at me as though I were from some other planet. She hesitated, and then seemingly against her better judgment, she moved toward the door.

When she got outside I said to her, “Just look at that sunset! Nobody out here was looking at it and I just had to share it with someone.”

For a few seconds we just looked. Then I said, “God is in his heaven and all is right with the world.” I thanked her for coming out to see it; she went back inside and I left. It felt good to share the beauty.

Four years later my situation changed greatly. I came to the end of a twenty-year marriage. I was alone and on my own for the first time in my life. I lived in a trailer park which, at the time, I considered a real come-down, and I had to do my wash in the community laundry room.

One day, while my clothes were going around, I picked up a magazine and read an article about a woman who had been in similar circumstances. She had come to the end of a marriage, moved to a strange community, and the only job she could find was one she disliked: clothing sales in a department store.

Then something that happened to her changed everything. She said a woman came into her department store and asked her to step outside to look at a sunset. The stranger had said, “God is in his heaven and all is right with the world,” and she had realized the truth in that statement. From that moment on, she turned her life around.

1. The author asked the woman to go outside to ______.

A. offer some help B. cheer her up C. admire the sunset D. have a chat

2. Four years later, the author ______.

A. found her dream job B. worked in a laundry room

C. lived in the same community D. put an end to her marriage

3. After reading the article in the magazine, the author was probably______.

A. inspired B. disappointed C. puzzled D. overjoyed

B

Every year holidays Broughton teams up with Sopraviva Trekking to offer twelve days of unforgettable adventure in a tropical rain forest. Depending on where this year’s rain forest adventure is located, you may be going to Borneo, Malaysia, Indonesia, or even to the greatest rain forest of them all, the mighty Amazonian forest.

You will fly with your fellow adventurers to one of our special base camps at the edge of the forest, where you will be given five days of survival training, and talks on the local wildlife by trained and experienced experts. You will also go on walks which take you deeper and deeper under the forest canopy until on your final night you camp out in the rain forest itself.

Then you transfer by bus into the forest itself. If you go on one of the Asian holidays, you will have to walk the final miles to the camp site itself, to avoid disturbing the local ecology. All of the Sopraviva sites have been carefully built to conform with the latest regulations, and to cause the minimal amount of disturbance to the local wildlife.

From the camp, you will go on daily walking tours to experience for yourself the beauty and diversity of the forests, and plants and vegetation that can be found nowhere else on the planet. Remember that these adventure holidays take you deep into the wilderness, and they are not suitable for families with young children or for anyone who is not physically able to meet the demands of this kind of adventure. Also remember that in order to preserve the delicate ecological system that you will be walking through, no more than two dozen guests can stay at any camp at one time, so if you want to go on one of these very special holidays, you will need to book early!

C

There is a lot of talk these days about how kids should be interested in science. Here’s an area of science for everyone, and these cool new books might inspire you to discover your inner scientist.

Scaly Spotted Feathered Frilled by Catherine Thimmesh, 58 pages,?ages 9-12

Seeing a picture or a model of a dinosaur, do you wonder how anybody knows what they look like? After all, nobody has seen a living dinosaur. This book explains how scientists and artists work together to re-create dinosaurs. As scientific discoveries have been made, the models have changed. Scientific tests may one day expose what a dinosaur’s coloring was, but now artists have to use their imagination to determine how these huge creatures looked.

Beyond the Solar System?by Mary Kay Carson, 128 pages, ages 10-13

This book takes readers back to the beginnings of space exploration—thousands of years ago, when people began star observation—and forward to today’s search for planets in distant parts of the Milky Way. Along with history lessons, readers get 21 activities, such as making a black hole and creating a model of Albert Einstein’s universe using a T-shirt. The activities are perfect for cold winter days.

Ultimate Bugopedia?by Darlyne Murawski and Nancy Honovich, 272 pages, ages 7 and older

If you’re always on the lookout for butterflies, this book is for you. Hundreds of color photos of common and unusual insects fill this hardcover. There are fascinating stories related to the photos. For example, do you know an insect?feeds on the tears of Asian cattle? There’s a question-and-answer section with an insect scientist and advice on how to help preserve endangered insects.

Journey Into the Invisible?by Christine Schlitt, 80 pages,?ages 9-12

If you use a magnifying（放大的）glass, you know a leaf looks quite different. This book explains what microscopes do and then shows what happens to things around the house when watched with this amazing scientific tool. The bacteria in your mouth, when magnified 20,000 times, look a bit like swimming pool noodles. Fascinating photos are paired with suggestions about how to learn about the world around you, just by looking a little closer.

8. Beyond the Solar System is mainly about ______.

A. history lessons B. space exploration C. the Milky Way D. Albert Einstein’s universe

9. Kids interested in pre-historical animals might read ______.

A. Scaly Spotted Feathered Frilled B. Ultimate Bugopedia

C. Journey Into the Invisible D. Beyond the Solar System

D

Learning a second language can improve brain power, scientists believe. US researchers from Northwestern University say bilingualism(双语) is a form of brain training — a mental "work out" that adjusts the mind finely.

Speaking two languages well affects the brain and changes how the nervous system reacts to sound, lab tests showed. Experts say the experiment performed by the National Academy of Sciences provides "biological" evidence of this.

In an attempt to prove the guess that speaking two languages is good for one's mind, the team monitored how the brain of 48 healthy student volunteers reacted to different sounds. Twenty three of these volunteers were bilingual.

The scientists used special equipment to trace the pattern of brainwaves. Under quiet, laboratory conditions, the bilingual students responded in a similar way to the English-only-speaking students, who formed the control group. But the bilingual group were far superior at processing sounds even when there were a lot of people talking in the room. They were better able to focus on to the important information — the speaker's voice — and block out other distracting noises.

Prof Nina Kraus, who led the research, said: "The bilingual's better experience with sound results in a hearing system that is highly efficient, flexible and focused in its automatic sound processing, especially in challenging or novel listening conditions."

Co-author Viorica Marian said: "People do crossword puzzles and other activities to keep their minds sharp. But the advantages we've discovered in double language speakers come automatically simply from knowing and using two languages.''

Musicians appear to gain a similar benefit when rehearsing(彩排), say the researchers. According to some theories, being bilingual might help avoid dementia（痴呆）.

12. What does the underlined word “distracting” mean?

A. disturbing B. exciting C. interesting D. tiring

13. What’s the purpose for the lab test led by Prof Nina Kraus?

A. To find how better the bilingual students can react to sound than other students.

B. To show the students how good it is to learn a second language.

C. To find a way to prevent dementia.

D. Just to find scientific proof for a previous guess.

14. What does Viorica Marian seem to believe?

A. People should do crossword puzzles to keep their minds sharp.

B. Speaking two languages is an easier way for people to increase their brain power.

C. Bilingual students are better at solving crossword puzzles.

D. Bilingual students have more advantages in study than non-bilingual ones.

15. What conclusion could be drawn from the passage?

A. Speaking a second language can change your nervous system.

B. Being bilingual strengthens brain power.

C. Bilingual musicians perform better on stage.

D. The English-only-speaking students can concentrate easily.

第二节 （共5小题，每题3分，共15分）

根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处得最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。

People often say you never get a second chance to make a first impression , and that’s actually quite true. 16 After all, making a good first impression is all about making others feel good when spending time with them. The following tips will help you make a positive impression e