Reading Comprehension
Directions: Read the following three passages. Each passage is followed by several questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C, and D. Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage.
A
INDIA
Flying a kite from the roof is part of everyday life in India. Each year, on Jan. 14, an international kite festival draws more than 1 million enthusiasts from 36 countries.
SPAIN
Surely, the paella is very delicious, but it’s unusual like foie-gras candy and ham “tapioca,” created by molecular gastronomists(分子美食家)like Ferran Adria, that make Spain the foodie’s mecca（胜地）.
SOUTH-AFRICA
The 850-mile drive from Johannesburg to Cape Town features big-game terrain（地形）, pristine beaches, and towering cliffs. Be sure to stop and check out the ancient Bushman paintings at Kamberg Center.
MALTA
It rarely rains between April and August in Malta, and the long, dry summers are matched by short, mild winters. Winds from northern African known as xlokk keep the place temperate in spring and fall.
JAPAN
Japan’s elders (who make up a fifth of the population) don’t just enjoy generous pensions, the respect of society, and the world’s longest life expectancy. They also get their own national holiday, Keiro No Hi.
FRANCE
Mama is sitting pretty, with as much as seven months’ paid leave, low-cost health care, and a baby nurse who makes house calls. If she’s sick, the government sends someone to do the family laundry.
56. Every year in January, you can .
A. enjoy Japan’s national holiday, Keiro No Hi
B. attend the international Kite festival in India
C. have the 850-mile drive in South Africa
D. have a lot of rain in Malta
57. Which is the best place for people to spend their elderly life?
A. Spain. B. India. C. Japan. D. Malta.
58. What does the underlined phrase “make house calls” mean?
A. Come to one’s house to help him.
B. Help somebody keep the house.
C. Make the phone call for sombody.
D. Receive the phone call for somebody.
59. When you have a road trip in South-Africa, you can .
A. see some ancient Bushman paintings
B. meet the winds known as xlokk
C. get seven months’ leave
D. eat the delicious paella
60. What can be the best title for the passage?
A. The World’s Best Place to Fly a Kite
B. The World’s Best Place for a Road Trip
C. The World’s Best Places to Dine and Be Old
D. The World’s Best places for Particular Pleasures
B
The “standard of living” of any country means the average person’s share of the goods and services which the country produces. A country’s standard of living, therefore, depends first and foremost on its capacity to produce wealth. “Wealth” in this sense is not money, for we do not live on money but on things that money can buy: “goods” such as food and clothing, and “services” such as transport and entertainment.
A country’s capacity to produce wealth depends upon many factors, most of which have an effect on one another. Wealth depends to a great extent upon a country’s natural resources, such as coal, gold, and other minerals, water supply and so on. Some regions of the world are well supplied with coal and minerals, and have a fertile soil and a favorable climate; other regions possess perhaps only one of these things, and some regions possess none of them. The USA is one of the wealthiest regions of the world because she has vast natural resources within her borders, her soil is fertile, and her climate is varied. The Sahara Desert, on the other hand, is one of the least wealthy.
Next to natural resources comes the ability to turn them to use. China is perhaps as well off as the USA in natural resources, but suffered for many years from civil and external wars, and for this and other reasons was unable to develop her resources. Sound and stable political conditions, and freedom from foreign invasion, enable a country to develop its natural resources peacefully and steadily, and to produce more wealth than another country equally well served by nature but less well ordered. Another important factor is the technical efficiency of a country’s people. Old countries that have, through many centuries, trained up numerous skilled craftsmen and technicians are better placed to produce wealth than countries whose workers are largely unskilled. Wealth also produces wealth. As a country becomes wealthier, its people have a large margin(富余)for saving, and can put their savings into factories and machines which will help workers to turn out more goods in their working day.
61. What is the “standard of living”?
A. Wealth and money.
B. A country capacity to produce wealth.
C. Good food, clothing, transport and entertainment.
D. The average share of the goods and services for people.
62. A country’s wealth depends upon ______.
A. its money
B. its standard of living C. its ability to provide goods and services
D. its ability to provide transport and entertainment
63. The main idea of the second paragraph is that______.
A. the Sahara Desert is a very poor region
B. a country’s wealth depends on many factors
C. the USA is one of the wealthiest countries in the world
D. natural resources are an important factor in the wealth or poverty of a country 64. What does the underlined word “her” in Paragraph 3 refer to?
A. The Sahara Desert. B. An old country. C. China. D. The USA.
65. According to the last paragraph, which of the following is Not True?
A. Wealth can produce wealth.
B. We should suffer from civil and external wars.
C. We should have more skilled people to use the natural resources.
D. We should have sound and stable politics and be free from foreign invasion.
C
Holding a cell phone against your ear or storing it in your pocket may be dangerous to your health. This explains a warning that cell phone manufacturers include in the small print that is often ignored when a new phone is purchased. Apple, for example, doesn’t want iPhones to come closer to you than 1.5 centimeters; Research In Motion, BlackBerry’s manufacturer, recommends 2.5 centimeters.
If health issues arise from cell phone use, the possible effects are huge. Voice calls - Americans chat on cell phones 2.26 trillion(万亿)minutes annually - earn $109 billion for the wireless carriers.
Devra Davis, an expert who has worked for the University of Pittsburgh, has published a book about cell phone radiation, “Disconnect.” The book surveys scientific research and concludes the question is not settled.
Brain cancer is a concern that Ms. Davis examines. Over all, there has not been an increase in its incidence since cell phones arrived. But the average masks an increase in brain cancer in the 20-to-29 age group and a drop for the older population.
“Most cancers have multiple causes,” she says, but she points to laboratory research that suggests low-energy radiation could damage cells that could possibly lead to cancer.
Children are more vulnerable（易受伤的）to radiation than adults, Ms. Davis and other scientists point out. Radiation that penetrates only five centimeters into the brain of an adult will reach much deeper into the brains of children because their skulls are thinner and their brains contain more absorptive fluid（易吸收的液体）. No studies have yet been completed on cell phone radiation and children, she says.
Henry Lai, a research professor in the bioengineering department at the University of Washington, began laboratory radiation studies in 1980 and found that rats exposed to radiation had damaged DNA in their brains.
Ms. Davis recommends using wired headsets or the phone’s speaker. Children should text rather than call, she said, and pregnant women should keep phones away from the abdomen（腹部）.
66. Why is the warning in the small print?
A. They don’t want the users to pay attention to it.
B. There is not enough space for the warning.
C. They think people will not care about it.
D. The warning is not important at all.
67. According to Ms Davis, brain cancer increase .
A. among children B. among old people
C. in the twenties D. among pregnant women
68. Why do children easily be affected by radiation?
A. Because they haven’t grown up.
B. Because they are too young to protect themselves.
C. Because they use cell phones more often than adults.
D. Because their skulls are thinner and their brains are easily hurt.
69. What can we conclude from the last paragraph?
A. Pregnant women should keep cell phones away.
B. People should use cell phones in the correct way.
C. If you are a child, you’d better text than make phone calls.
D. When you use a cell phone, use a wired headset or the phone’s speaker.
70. What does the passage mainly talk about?
A. Be careful when using cell phones.
B. Don’t hold your cell phone against your ear.
C. Rats exposed to radiation have damaged DNA in their brains.
D. Low-energy radiation could damage cells that could lead to cancer.
56-60 B C A A D 61-65 D C D C B 66-70 A C D B A
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