基础英语(湖北大学)：Grade 4

Grammar Directions: There are 80 sentences in this section. Beneath each sentence there are four choices. Choose one word or phrase that you think best completes the sentence. It is necessary that an efficient worker______his work on time. accomplishes B. can accomplish C. accomplish D. will accomplish I know this is the right train. The ticket agent said it would be on______. Platform Three B. the Platform Three C. Third Platform D. the Three Platform William is very hardworking, but his pay is not______ for his work. enough good B. good enough C. as good enough D. good as enough I won’t take Susan’s pen because I don’t like______. that pen of hers B. that her pen C. her that pen D. that pen of her I didn’t call the hotel to make a room reservation, but I _____. may have B. must have C. should have D. shall have My sister will be here tomorrow, but at first I thought that she ______today. was coming B. is coming C. must come D. may come Land belongs to the city; there is ______ thing as private ownership of land. no such a B. not such C. not such any D. no such The flats I have looked at so far were too expensive. So I’m better off ____ where I am. stay B. staying C. to stay D. stayed Since the family are moving to a new house, they have to buy ____ new furniture. a lot of B. many C. a few D. quite a few My son walked ten miles today. We never guessed that he could walk ____ far. / B. such C. that D. as If talks for the new trade agreements take ____, food industries in both countries will be seriously affected. much too long B. too much longer C. too much long D. much long You and I could hardly understand each other, ____? could I B. couldn’t you C. could we D. couldn’t we We ____ the visitor with an apartment, but he specifically asked for a single room. could provide B. could have provided C. couldn’t provide D. couldn’t have provided The missile is designed in such a way that once ____ nothing can be done to retrieve it. fired B. being fired C. they fired D. having fired ________, he would not have recovered so quickly. Hadn’t he been taken good care of B. Had he not been taken good care of C. Had not he been taken good care of D. Had he been not taken good care of You ______ a new bicycle, since the one you lost the other day has already been found. should not buy B. need not buy C. need not have bought D. should not have bought It was not until midnight ______ the camping site. that they reached B. that they did not reach C. did they reach D. did they not reach It is predicted that existing reserves of fossil fuel ______ by 2045. have been run out B. are going to be run out C. will have run out D. have run out Only by increasing its exports drastically ______ from the present trade imbalance. A. the country can emerge B. the country might emerge C. can the country emerge D. the country has emerged 20. Since the mid-1960’s considerably research ______ in embryo transplant in many countries. A. has carried out B. was carried out C. carried out D. has been carried out 21. If the temperature of the reactor ______ 500 degrees higher, meltdown would have occurred. A. was B. had been C. was being D. had 22. The more acid you add to the solution, ______ it becomes. A. cloudier B. the cloudier C. more cloudy D. the cloudier 23. The lecturer said “It’s time you ______ the literature review.” A. began B. should begin C. begin D. are beginning 24. After ______ your results, you should make an appointment with your tutor. A. you receiving B. you have received C. you would have received D. you received 25. You ______ the experiment twice, not once. A. haven’t carried out B. shouldn’t have carried out C. should have carried out D. might have carried out 26. It looks ______ you’ve made a serious mistake. A. as B. if C. though D. as though 27. _______ the right answer I would have got full marks in the exam. A. If I would have known B. If I’ll know C. Had I known D. If I was knowing 28. ______ way you do it, the answer is always the same. A. However B. Whichever C. Whoever D. Why ever 29. ______ producing methane, the process also produces carbon monoxide. A. Apart B. As well C. Besides D. In addition 30. He appears ______ some minor problems. A. to have had B. having C. was having D. had 31. Einstein, _______ changed our ways of seeing the universe, did not learn to read until he was ten. A. which theories B. that his theories C. whose theories D. who theories 32. It is not so much the language______ the legal jargons that makes the book difficult to understand. A. but B. nor C. as D. like 33. The shop has sold many refrigerators of this kind and the rest ______ on sale today. A. is B. has C. have D. are 34. The owner and captain refused to leave ______ ship which was sinking. A. his B. a C. their D. / 35. The petrol station lies within _____ of Victoria’s farm. A. fifteen-minute-drive B. fifteen minutes’ drive C. fifteen minute’s drive D. fifteen minutes drive 36. Some of his answers were correct, but I don’t remember ______. A. what one B. which one C. what ones D. which ones 37. This leather purse is too expensive; that one is too cheap. _______ the leather purses is satisfactory. A. Neither of B. Both of C. Either of D. None of 38. There is ______ man downstairs waiting for you. A. any B. some C. few D. not 39. Bill ______ as Mark. A. doesn’t run so fast B. runs not so fast C. doesn’t run faster D. runs less fast 40. This CD costs me ______ the one I bought the other day. A. as much as three times B. as much money as three times C. three times as much as D. three times as expensive as 41. Ian studies harder than ______ in our class. A. all B. everyone C. anyone else D. any other 42. ______ our dear sister rest in peace. A. Can B. May C. Must D. Will 43. Nobody saw the CEO at the conference; he _______ at it. A. couldn’t have spoken B. couldn’t speak C. mustn’t have spoken D. shouldn’t have spoken 44. Who _____ it be at the door? A. may B. can C. must D. need 45. The line is busy; someone ______ the telephone. A. must use B. must be using C. must have been using D. has been using 46. If there were no subjunctive mood, English ______ much easier. A. would be B. could have been C. will be D. would have been 47._______ for his timely help, I could not have completed my project in time. A. If it was not B. If it were not C. Had it not been D. Were it not 48. I wish I ________you yesterday. A. did telephone B. telephoned C. had telephoned D. were to telephone 49. How about us ________ a concert at the weekend? A. to go to B. going to C. go to D. to be going to 50. I would appreciate ________ to see me in my office. A. your coming B. you to come C. you come D. you to be coming 51. __________, the glass would break into pieces. A. If having handled carelessly B. To handle carelessly C. Handling carelessly D. If handled carelessly 52. The drunkard was found ________ under the bench in the park. A. to lie dead B. lying dead C. lie dead D. lying die 53. Now Tim regrets _________ hard enough while at the university. A. not to work B. having not worked C. not having worked D. not have worked 54. Please show me the table ________. A. for placing the vase B. to place the vase on C. to place the vase D. placing the vase on 55. The bed sheets and pillow will want _________, I suppose. A. washing B. to wash C. being washed D. to have washed 56. The couple feel more comfortable on a plane than they would be if they ______ any other way. A. are traveling B. have traveled C. travel D. traveled 57. A hundred dollars ________ not buy as much as _______ used to. A. do…they B. dose…it C. dose…that D. do…it 58.Child _________ she is, the girl is quite independent. A. like B. when C. for D. as 59. ________ goes to the seminar will find it really interesting and informative. A. No matter who B. Whoever C. Whomever D. No matter which 60. If we work hard, we can overcome any difficulty, ________great it is. A. however B. what C. how D. no matter 61. These photos will show you ________. A. what dose our university look like B. what our university looks like C. how dose our university look like D. how our university looks like 62. Go and get your suitcase. It is ________ you left it. A. when B. whether C. how D. where 63. ________ John won the first prize at the speech contest made the whole class very excited. A. How B. What C. That D. Whether 64. I guess Patricia will invite ______ you want. A. whomever B. whatever C. whoever D. whichever 65. Mr. Johnson said that Beijing was the first city ______ he had visited in China. A. where B. which C. that D. what 66. Tomorrow will be Monday. ________. A. So will it. B. So it will. C. Neither it will. D. Neither will it. 67. Neither Tim nor I had ever heard of, let alone _______ such a fascinating book. A. see B. to see C. seeing D. seen 68. One of her longest _____ dreams was to visit her birthplace again. A. held B. holding C. hold D. being held 69. You must have waited for me for a long time, _______? A. mustn’t you B. needn’t you C. didn’t you D. haven’t you 70. –Many of us thought that last night’s play was generally poor. --I didn’t find _____. A. it so B. it C. it be D. it is 71. Mr. Clark seldom spends the weekend with his family, _______? A. hasn’t he B. has he C. does he D. doesn’t he 72. The shirt made of a new material is quite easy ______. A. to wash B. on washing C. being washed D. to be washed 73. _______ about the food in the restaurant, but she also refused to pay for her meal. A. She did not only complain B. Not only she did complain C. Not only did she complain D. She not only did complain 74. The boy kicked the ball ______ hard, and it broke the window. A. very little B. a little too C. quite a little D. too little 75. I hadn’t expected George to apologize but I had hoped _______. A. him to phone me B. that he would phone me C. him phoning me D. him phone me 76. Do you remember _______ to Professor Day during his last visit to our department? A. to be introduced B. to introduce C. being introduced D. introducing 77. –What does your new car look like? --It is similar in shape ______ yours. A. with B. like C. as D. to 78. The visitors expressed the hope ________ they would come to the fair again next year. A. which B. that C. what D. when 79. Not until late in the evening ________. A. did the campers put up their tents B. the campers put up their tents C. the campers did put up their tents D. the campers had put up their tents 80. _________, his idea was accepted by the participants at the meeting. A. Weird as might it sound B. As it might sound weird C. As weird it might sound D. Weird as it might sound Vocabulary Section A Directions: There are 80 sentences in this section. Beneath each sentence there are four choices. Choose the word that you think best completes the sentence. 1. She did her best to stay awake, but the performance was so boring that she just ________ to sleep. A. dropped in B. dropped out C. dropped off D. dropped down 2. Paul was a very lively child, always in ________. A. excellent spirits B. good spirits C. high spirits D. bright spirits 3. Lilly made no attempt to _________ the problem. A. tackle B. try C. undertake D. achieve 4. The boy began to cry and tears slowly _______ down his face. A. oozed B. trickled C. dribbled D. leaked 5. On January 1st, many people make a New Year ________. A. intention B. determination C. dedication D. resolution 6. In this country it is against the ________ not to wear seat belt in a car. A. rule B. regulation C. law D. order 7. Johnny’s parents always let him have his own _________. A. will B. way C. wish D. demand 8. Our telephone has been _________ for a month. A. out of order B. out of life C. out of touch D. out of place 9. She was extremely ________, always ready to agree with other people’s wish. A. mellow B. moderate C. adaptable D. supple 10. The woman tripped over the uneven pavement and _______ her elbow. A. distorted B. dislodged C. disabled D. dislocated 11. He knew that he couldn’t change anything so he just _______ himself to the situation. A. assigned B. resigned C. retired D. kept 12. Game pie was a(n) ________ of this famous restaurant. A. singularity B. particularity C. speciality D. originality 13. Mr. Williamson was acting peculiarly and seemed in a funny _________. A. state of affairs B. state of mind C. state of grace D. state of nature 14. The scientists became very excited as they felt they were _________ of a discovery. A. on the crest B. on the surface C. on the borderline D. on the brink 15. An ________ degree was conferred on the distinguished economist. A. honor B. honored C. honorary D. honorable 16. Mary is very set in her ways, but her brother has a more ______ attitude to life. A. changeable B. changing C. variable D. flexible 17. My passport _______ last month, so I will have to get a new one. A. expired B. ended C. finished D. terminated 18. Your room must be _______ by 12 o’clock, but your luggage may be left with the porter. A. evacuated B. vacated C. deserted D. abandoned 19. My grandma’s condition looks very serious and it is doubtful if she will _______. A. pull up B. pull in C. pull out D. pull through 20. The purpose of the survey was to ______ the school inspectors with local school conditions. A. inform B. acquaint C. instruct D. notify 21. Sam is being _______ for his stomachache at the hospital now. A. cured B. healed C. treated D operated 22. Because of his poor health, it took him a long time to _______ his bad cough. A. throw off B. throw away C. throw down D. throw over 23. People under 21 are not _______ to join the sports club. A. desirable B. eligible C. advisable D. admissible 24. Though seriously damaged by a fire, the ancient mansion was eventually ______ to its original splendor. A. repaired B. renewed C. restored D. renovated 25. I cannot bear the noise coming from my neighbour’s house; it _____ me from my work. A. distracts B. annoys C. interrupts D. disturbs 26. Vincent cannot ______ without at least one pack of cigarettes. A. get on B. get through C. get over D. get by 27. In Scotland, minor cases were _____ with a jury in the Sheriff courts. A. tested B. examined C. tried D. considered 28. Lisa Black is ______ as a Labour candidate in the forthcoming election. A. standing B. sitting C. contending D. entering 29. Eighteen is the _______ voting age in our country. A. competent B. minimal C. minimum D. maximum 30. Cases involving young people under 18 are heard in specially constituted _______ courts. A. junior B. youth C. infantile D. juvenile 31. According to the latest _______ poll, the Opposition is likely to win the next General Election. A. inquiry B. opinion C. question D. impression 32. After three hours, the jury were still unable to reach a unanimous ________. A. verdict B. decision C. judgment D. conclusion 33. A _______ survey was conducted among local families to find out the average amount of expense on their children’s education. A. representation B. questionnaire C. referendum D. question 34. A popular way of keeping fit is to go ________ which is a kind of slow- to medium- paced running. A. trotting B. sauntering C. strolling D. jogging 35. Piles of old books and newspapers _______her desk. A. spread B. littered C. heaped D. puffing 36. Exercising generally begins with standing up straight, _________slowly and then letting your breath out evenly. A. exhaling B. drawing C. inhaling D. puffing 37. The woman remained depressingly fat _________ all her efforts to slim. A. against B. despite C. although D. contrary 38. Many Asian people are of ______ build while Europeans often have a heavier frame. A. slim B. slight C. lean D. thin 39.The pupil ________ a story to explain why he was absent from school. A. developed B. described C. invented D. outlined 40. There are ________ that the weather is changing in the region. A. associations B. indications C. comments D. concerns 41. It is an encouraging sign that people’s purchasing power is _______ the rise recently. A. on B. in C. at D. with 42. The speaker had no ________ in himself when facing a large audience. A. experience B. progress C. objection D. confidence 43. The man drew the curtain and ________ the painting behind it. A. projected B. revealed C. exposed D. brought 44. The football club tried to __________ the famous player with a generous offer of money. A. promote B. defend C. tempt D. force 45. Cindy ________ some sweets from her bag and insisted they be shared among her friends. A. distributed B. pulled C. produced D. drew 46. Not a _________ has been found so far that can help the police find the robber. A. fact B. clue C. mark D. sign 47. She is a teacher ________ of our great respect. A. aware B. confident C. capable D. worthy 48. They had ________ it for granted that they would succeed in their research. A. taken B. made C. had D. thought 49. The final cost was considerably higher than the builder’s original _________. A. amount B. sum C. account D. estimate 50. He couldn’t tell _________ from a distance whether it was Sam or his brother. A. at large B. in name C. for sure D. in short 51. No matter how much progress we’ve made in our work, we shouldn’t get _______. A. complacent B. prefect C. satisfactory D. fortunate 52. The ________ instrument requires a skilled operator. A. artificial B. fashionable C. difficult D. intricate 53. We should _______ all possible ways to create jobs for the unemployed. A. provide B. review C. explore D. make 54. The coupon ______ you to a free meal in our new restaurant. A. confers B. entitles C. grants D. offers 55. The old woman opened the box and emptied the ______ into a jar. A. insides B. interior C. refills D. contents 56. At the weekend, all the local TV channels provide extensive _______ of sporting events. A. view B. coverage C. broadcast D. network 57. In order not to be heard, the woman ______ that someone was moving about in the bush. A. screamed B. shouted C. spoke D. whispered 58. The appeal to the senses known as _______ is a common technique in poetry. A. imaginative B. imaginable C. ingenious D. imagery 59. The possibility that the explosion was caused by sabotage cannot be ______. A. broken out B. ruled out C. cancelled out D. wiped out 60. The headquarters of this oil company is in London while its _______ companies are located in different parts of the world. A. parent B. inferior C. subsidiary D. ultimate 61. Sitting on the table, two small cats were ______ round the inside of the empty ham tin. A. swallowing B. licking C. chewing D. munching 62. The Renaissance was a(n) ______ of unparalleled cultural achievement and had a great impact on almost all European countries. A. moment B. dynasty C. epoch D. instant 63. Absorbed in her work, she was totally ________ her surroundings. A. liable for B. oblivious of C. separated by D. concerned about 64. The young man has ______ some brilliant scheme to double his income. A. come out B. come to C. come about D. come up with 65. Social _______ vary greatly from country to country. A. customs B. rules C. habits D. regulations 66. He is our best player, and is _______ to our team. A. internal B. integral C. intelligent D. insistent 67. The Olympic Games ______ in 776 B.C. in Olympia, a small town in Greece. A. descend B. stemmed C. derived D. originated 68. As a developing country, we must keep ______ with the rapid development of the world economy. A. motion B. pace C. speed D. step 69. I gave the car a thorough _____ before buying it. A. inspection B. review C. survey D. check-up 70. Sue joined the drama society but didn’t seem to ______ , so she left. A. fit out B. fit up C. fit in D. fit in with 71. The company _________ the crisis by obtaining a low-interest loan from the bank. A. got around B. got through C. got off to D. got into 72. The lecture was boring and the students could hardly _______ their yawns. A. depress B. suppress C. oppress D. press 73. Please dispose ________ those old books while you’re cleaning up the room. A. out B. away C. in D. of 74. As we’ve run out of beef, we’ll have to ________ with pork for dinner. A. make do B. do it up C. make up D. compensate for 75. An important property of scientific theory is its ability to _________ further research. A. renew B. arouse C. advocate D. stimulate 76. In education, there should be a good ________ among the branches of knowledge that contribute to effective thinking and wise judgment. A. balance B. distribution C. combination D. spread 77. The judge ruled that the evidence was inadmissible on the grounds that it was ______. A. irrational B. unreasonable C. irrelevant D. invalid 78. The mayor is a woman with great ______ and therefore deserves our political and financial support. A. intention B. integrity C. instinct D. intensity 79. When the working committee ________ to details, the proposed plan seemed unworkable. A. got down B. set about C. went off D. came up 80. He spoke so ________ that even his opponents were won over by his arguments. A. frankly B. emphatically C. determinedly D. convincingly Section B Directions : There are 40 sentences in this section. Complete each sentence with the appropriate form of the word provided in the parenthesis. She seemed ________ to confirm the bad news in the letter. (hesitate) The local people admired the soldiers for their courage and _______. (endure) The hotel is well known in the local area fro its _______ staff and high standards. (approach) It began to rain, so he took out his umbrella and ________ it. (fold) Nowadays some parents have unnecessarily high ________ for their children. (expect) The football player has been ________ from the forthcoming match because of his bad conduct in last week’s match. (qualify) My father said that it would be ________ for John to change his name. (respect) People now fear that the ozone layer may be _________ damaged. (reverse) 9.The wife _____ her husband by twenty years. (live) 10. It is difficult to prove _____ that such treatment is beneficial. (conclude) 11. Some people become very _____ about little things. (possess) 12. ______ he fell ill last night, so he didn’t go to the theatre. (fortunate) 13. Before the guests left, they thanked the host for his _______. (generous) 14. At the school sports meet, the boys in Class One finished the race with ______. (easy) 15. The local _____ have all left the area to work elsewhere. (inhabit) 16. His Chinese _____ has enabled him to receive free school education. (citizen) 17. In summer, the people here have no ______ at all. (private) 18. No one can think of a good _____ to the problem. (solve) 19. This instrument is used to measure the _____ of the fog. (dense) 20. Though certain accidents are ______, we can still try our best to prevent them from happening. (avoid) 21. We feel a little _____ of their success. (envy) 22. We all have social _____ to take on. (oblige) 23. Though the temptation was _____, John tried hard not to reach for the cake. (resist) 24. ______, he was one of the best students in the class. (doubt) 25. The car is easily _____ because of its bright color. (recognize) 26. There was a pile of _____ books in the corner. (assort) 27. A lot of the arable land in the area was _____ and poorly tended. (use) 28. The man’s _____ is well known in the neighborhood. (eccentric) 29.The visit to the ancient temple was _____ the highlight of the trip. (question) 30. In the early 1950’s, computers were expensive and _____. (rely) 31. Uncle William is ______ of traveling to the holiday island next summer. (desire) 32. Mary has been given no _____ as to what to write for the second assignment. (direct) 33. The hilltop monastery attracted large numbers of tourists in spite of its _______. (access) 34. Parents are complaining about the _____ of education facilities in their community. (adequate) 35. My mother used to give my older brother larger ______ of pudding. (help) 36. It is ____ to plant trees too early. (advise) 37. He thought it was impossible, and stared at us in _____. (believe) 38. She ran up the stairs with her light ____ step. (grace) 39. The father ______ took the children to the park at the weekends. (occasion) 40. People were surprised to find out that the newly-opened shop was devoted to such _____ as rubber fruits, explosive cigars, etc. (odd) V READING COMPREHENSION Section A Close Reading Directions: There are 30 passages in this section. Read each passage carefully and then choose the best answer or write a short answer to the question. Text 1 Vagrancy has long been a problem in both Europe and America. Indeed the first mention of the problem in Britain was made in 368 A.D. Vagrants----people not living in one fixed place but moving from town to town -----have always been severely punished by the law; more severely in many countries than drunks or beggars. “Everyone”, the law says, “must have a bedroom.” In Europe, there have never been places where vagrants can collect together in a community. In fact, governments have often tried to solve the problem by returning vagrants to the place where they were born. In this way, they have prevented large communities of vagrants from forming. But in America, such communities have been allowed to collect in almost every city. These communities are known as “skid row”. Skid row is something found only in the United States. It is the area of an American city in which the homeless live. The expression was originally “skid road”. It was the name given to the road in Seattle, down which trees were pushed (or “skidded”) after they had been cut down. The lumberjacks lived along this road. The word “road” changed to “row”, and now the expression “skid row ”is used for any vagrant community in America. The vagrants’ main problem is to find a place to sleep. There are different types of accommodation on skid row. The best is in “tourist hotel”. These are quite clean and try to give some protection against fire and theft. Much worse are the “flophouses”, public or private houses, which give the vagrant a floor to sleep on. But the worst accommodation of all is found in the “hobo jungle”. This is an area of skid row consisting of a few shacks-----small houses made of pieces of metal, wood and even cardboard. (310 words) 1. Which of the following statements is INCORRECT? Both Europe and America have long faced the problem of vagrants. Vagrants are most severely punished everywhere in Europe. Accommodation for vagrants varies greatly in the U.S. Skid row is something unique in the U.S. The word “lumberjack” in the second paragraph means ________. A beggar A drunkard A resident A worker According to the passage, what is the difference between European and U.S. governments in solving the problem of vagrants? TEXT 2 In Britain, new laws can originate in either the House of Lords or the House of Commons. A law, which is being proposed is called a “bill” until it is passed; then it becomes an “act” of parliament. To begin with, the bill goes through the first reading. This just means that the title of the bill is announced and a time is set for it to be discussed. After this, the second reading is really a debate. The bill may be rejected at this stage. If it is an important bill, its rejection may cause the government to resign. On the other hand, it may be passed, or there may be no vote. When this happens, it goes to the committee stage, where a small group of members (perhaps between 30 and 50), meet and discuss it in detail. When the committee has finished its work, it reports the bill with all the changes that have been made, to the House. This is called the report stage. The bill is discussed again, and more changes can be made. Then the bill is taken for its third reading, and a vote is taken. When it is passed, it goes to the other House, i.e. not the one it originated in. So if a bill started in the House of Commons, it would at this point go to the House of Lords. When the bill has been passed by both Houses, it goes to the Queen for the Royal Assent. A bill may not become law until the Royal Assent has been given, but this does not mean that the Queen decides on what will become law and what will not. It is understood that the Queen will always accept bills which have been passed by both Houses. When the Queen’s consent has been given, the bill becomes an act, and everyone that it affects must obey the new law. (310 words) When will the committee meet and discuss the bill? When a time is decided on for a debate. When it passes the debate stage. When it is passed at the report stage. When a vote is taken after the third reading. A bill may not become law unless ______ gives final consent. the government the two Houses the cabinet the Queen Explain the difference between a “bill” and an “act”. TEXT 3 After breakfast, the boys wandered out into the playground. Here the day-boys were gradually assembling. They were sons of the local clergy, of the officers at the depot, and of such manufacturers or men of business as the old town possessed. Presently, a bell rang, and they all trooped into school. This consisted of a large, long room, at opposite ends of which two under- masters conducted the second and third forms, and of a smaller one, leading out of it, used by Mr. Watson, who taught the first form. To attach the preparatory to the senior school, these three classes were known officially, on speech days and in reports, as upper, middle, and lower second. Philip was put in the last. The master, a red-faced man with a pleasant voice, was called Rice; he had a jolly manner with boys, and the time passed quickly. Philip was surprised when it was a quarter to eleven and they were let out for tem minutes’ rest. The whole school rushed noisily into the playground. The new boys were told to go into the middle, while the others stationed themselves along opposite walls. They began to play Pig in the Middle. The old boys ran from wall to wall while the new boys tried to catch them: when one was seized and the mystic words said ----- one, two, three, and a pig for me ------ he became a prisoner and, turning sides, helped to catch those who were still free. Philip saw a boy running past and tried to catch him, but his limp gave him no chance; and the runners taking their opportunity, made straight for the ground he covered. Then one of them had the brilliant idea of imitating Philip’s clumsy run. Other boys saw it and began to laugh; then they all copied the first; and they ran round Philip, limping grotesquely, screaming in their treble voices with shrill laughter. They lost their heads with the delight of their new amusement, and choked with helpless merriment. One of them tripped Philip up and he fell, heavily as he always fell, and cut his knee. They laughed all the louder when he got up. A boy pushed him from behind, and he would have fallen again if another had not caught him. The game was forgotten in the entertainment of Philip’s deformity. One of them invented an odd, rolling limp that struck the rest as supremely ridiculous, and several of the boys lay down on the ground and rolled about in laughter: Philip was completely scared. He could not make out why they were laughing at him. His heart beat so that he could hardly breathe, and he was more frightened than he had ever been in his life. He stood stupidly while the boys ran round him, mimicking and laughing; they shouted to him to try and catch them; but he did not move. He did not want them to see him run any more. He was using all his strength to prevent himself from crying. (500 words) The fact that Philip was surprised when it was a quarter to eleven seems to indicate that he ____. liked the game very much liked other boys in the class enjoyed Mr. Rice’s class enjoyed his stay in the school Which of the following statements is INCORRECT? Philip didn’t join in the game. Philip was a cripple. They didn’t continue the game. They all made fun of Philip. How did Philip feel when other school boys laughed at and imitated his deformity? TEXT 4 Are some people born clever, and others born stupid? Or is intelligence developed by our environment and our experiences? Strangely enough, the answer to both these questions is yes. To some extent, our intelligence is given us at birth, and no amount of special education can make a genius out of a child born with low intelligence. On the other hand, a child who lives in a boring environment will develop his intelligence less than one who lives in rich and varied surroundings. Thus the limits of a person’s intelligence are fixed at birth, but whether or not he reaches those limits will depend on his environment. This view, now held by most experts, can be supported in a number of ways. It is easy to show that intelligence is, to some extent, something we are born with. The closer the blood relationship between two people, the closer they are likely to be in intelligence. Thus if we take two unrelated people at random from the population, it is likely that their degrees of intelligence will be completely different. If on the other hand, we take two identical twins, they will very likely be as intelligent as each other. Relations like brothers and sisters, parents and children, usually have similar intelligence, and this clearly suggests that intelligence depends on birth. Imagine now that we take two identical twins and put them in different environments. We might send one, for example, to a university and the other to a factory where the work is boring. We would soon find differences in intelligence developing, and this indicates that environment as well as birth plays a part. This conclusion is also suggested by the fact that people who live in close contact with each other, but who are not related at all, are likely to have similar degrees of intelligence. (307 words) In the development of one’s intelligence, environment plays _____. a less important role an equally important role an insignificant role the least significant role The passage uses _____ to further the argument. narration comparison definition illustration Cite a relevant example to demonstrate that intelligence is something we are born with. Text 5 So thoroughly has the age of poisons become established that anyone may walk into a store and, without questions being asked, buy substances of far greater death-dealing power than the medicinal drug for which he may be required to sign a “poison book” in the pharmacy next door. A few minutes’ research in any supermarket is enough to alarm the most stouthearted customer ----provided, that is, he has even a rudimentary knowledge of the chemicals presented for his choice. If a huge skull and crossbones were suspended above the insecticide department, the customer might at least enter it with the respect normally accorded death-dealing materials. But instead, the display is homey and cheerful, and with the pickles and olives across the aisle and the bath and laundry soaps adjoining, the rows upon rows of insecticides are displayed. Within easy reach of a child’s exploring hand are chemicals in glass containers. If dropped to the floor by a child or careless adult, everyone nearby could be splashed with the same chemical that has sent spraymen using it to convulsions. These hazards, of course, follow the purchaser right into his home. A can of a moth-proofing material containing DDD, for example, carries in very fine print the warning that its contents are under pressure and that it may burst if exposed to heat or open flame. A common insecticide for household use, including assorted uses in the kitchen, is chlordane. Yet the Food and Drug Administration’s chief pharmacologist has declared the hazard of living in a house sprayed with chlordane to be “very great”. Other household preparations contain the even more toxic dieldrin. Use of poisons in the kitchen is made both attractive and easy. Kitchen shelf paper, white or tinted to match one’s color scheme, may be impregnated with insecticide, not merely on one but on both sides. Manufacturers offer us do-it-yourself booklets on how to kill bugs. With push-button ease, one may send a fog of dieldrin into the most inaccessible nooks and crannies of cabinets, corners and baseboards. (340 words) The writer’s main criticism about the sale of insecticides in supermarkets is that _____. they are not kept out of the reach of children they are too attractively displayed customers are careless when handling them no warning signs are displayed The careless use of insecticides in the kitchen is largely due to _____. our belief that they are harmless their effects in exterminating pests our ignorance of the risks involved the ease with which they can be operated What is the principal warning contained in the passage? Text 6 The pilot is at times like a doctor who cannot confirm his diagnosis with certitude until he has subjected his patient to a whole series of laboratory tests. In order to fully understand the behavior of this or that component of the aircraft and discover the reason for it, it is necessary to have the analysis of the information conveyed by recording devices. Formerly, to be sure, aircraft were tested without such recordings. But they do incontestably permit speedier and especially very accurate diagnosis. However, the presence of these recording devices does not affect the pilot’s prime role. It is he who, in the air, must decide whether to continue with the test, and whether he should press on because the machine itself is behaving well and he thinks it can be taken further. It is the pilot who will bring the aircraft down, if something abnormal happens, while all the recording device can do is to record the disaster. The human brain is still irreplaceable. From the door of the Flying Personnel Corridor to my plane that I can see parked in front of the prototype hangar, I have a good hundred yards to cover dragging my heavy parachutes. I do not complain. I already derive intense pleasure merely from approaching a plane. And then, as I can see even from here, my test mechanic is bustling around “his” plane. For it is “his” plane for more than it is mine. Such is his instinctive conviction, and it is perfectly justified. Whereas several test pilots might fly the same prototype, each prototype is entrusted to only one mechanic. For him I am the pilot who is going to fly “his” plane and furnish him with the proof that the work he has lovingly and conscientiously put in on it all day, and sometimes all night, has not been in vain. The relationships between the pilot, the plane and the mechanic are at once very simple, basic obviously------ and very complex when it comes to putting them into words. For the mechanic, the plane is a kind of Sleeping Beauty, and he takes care of her and coddles her while she is asleep. As soon as she wakes up, she passes into the hands of the pilot----- but he only knows the plane when it is “alive”, when it is flying and functioning. The moment the plane takes off for a test, the mechanic loses sight of it, but he follows it, he feels it, he is bound to it by a kind of sixth sense, or, to put it better, by an invisible umbilical cord. (430 words) The function of the recording device is to _____. help the pilot navigate the plane take over when something abnormal occurs obtain a better understanding of an aircraft help people analyze all the problems that occur We can infer from the passage that the writer is a ______. mechanic researcher test pilot doctor Why does the writer say that the relationships between the pilot, the plane and the mechanic are very complex? TEXT 7 Meg pulled the curtains round the bed while she dressed and put her last few things into her suitcase. She’s been fiddling around with her packing since seven o’clock that morning. She poked her head out of the curtains and handed her two vases of flowers to the deaf lady. Her chocolates and grapes she gave to her other neighbor. She finally shut her case and pulled back the curtains. There she was, transformed from the woman they all knew, in her familiar dressing-gown, to a strange person from the outside, in clothes they didn’t know, her hair smart, her face made up. It often surprises people to see patients in their street clothes, as they suddenly seem like a different sort of person. Meg managed her good-byes and her exit with great tact. She looked a little embarrassed, a little regal and very friendly, as she went round each person wishing them luck. Most of her warmth was reserved for her two neighbors. The deaf lady smiled and held her hand firmly. “I’m so glad fro you, dear, that it all turned out so well. Don’t you worry about me. I like it here. Such a nice place.” The woman with the mastectomy held her hand too and smiled affectionately. Meg was a little lost for words. What comfort could she offer? “You’ve been so good to me. If it had been me, I couldn’t have been brave like you,” she said. “Oh nonsense,” said her friend. “It really isn’t so bad when it actually happens. You had the worst of it, the waiting, and the going into the operation.” Meg said a last good-bye to the whole room, and in a moment was gone. (280words) We can infer from the passage that Meg was in hospital for a(n)______. operation routine check visit test From what Meg did and said to her two neighbors, we can conclude that _____. they had stayed in the same hospital before they had enjoyed each other’s company Meg had suffered from a more serious illness Meg was delighted to leave her neighbors Why did Meg manage her good-bye and her exit with great tact? TEXT 8 Cooper seemed to be about thirty. He was a tall, thin fellow, with a sallow face in which there was not a spot of color. It was a face all in one tone. He had a large, hooked nose and blue eyes. When, entering the bungalow, he had taken off his hat and flung it to a waiting boy. Mr. Warburton noticed that his large skull, covered with short, brown hair, contrasted somewhat oddly with a weak, small chin. He was dressed in khaki shorts and a khaki shirt, but they were shabby and soiled; and his battered hat had not been cleaned for days. Mr. Warburton reflected that the young man had spent a week on a coasting steamer and had passed the past forty-eight hours lying in the bottom of a very small boat. “We’ll see what he looks like when he comes in to dinner.” He went into his room where his things were as neatly laid out as if he had an English valet, undressed, and, walking down the stairs to the bathhouse, washed himself with cool water. The only concession he made to the climate was to wear a white dinner-jacket; but otherwise, in a boiled shirt and a high collar, silk socks and patent-leather shoes, he dressed as formally as though he were dining at his club in a fashionable London street. A careful host, he went into the dining room to see that the table was properly laid. It was gay with orchids, and the silver shone brightly. The napkins were folded into elaborate shapes. Shaded candles in silver candlesticks shed a soft light. Mr. Warburton smiled his approval and returned to the sitting room to await his guest. Presently, he appeared. Cooper was wearing the khaki shorts, the khaki shirt, and the ragged jacket in which he had landed. Mr. Warburton’s smile of greeting froze on his face. “Hulloa, you’re all dressed up,” said Cooper. “I didn’t know you were going to do that. I very nearly put on a sarong.” “It doesn’t matter at all. I daresay your boys were busy.” “You needn’t have bothered to dress on my account, you know.” “I didn’t. I always dress for dinner.” “Even when you’re alone?” “Especially when I’m alone,” replied Mr. Warburton, with a frigid stare. He saw a twinkle of amusement in Cooper’s eyes, and he flushed an angry red. (400words) What is the relationship between Cooper and Mr. Warburton? Guest and host Guest and hotel manager. Guest and valet. Guest and waiter. We can conclude from the passage that Mr. Warburton____ prefers to wear casual clothes has a hot temper is a careless person cares about formalities What is the main difference between Cooper and Mr. Warburton? TEXT 9 Evidence that pesticides have long-term lethal effects on human beings has started to accumulate, and recently Robert Finch, Secretary of the U.S. department of Health, Education and Welfare, expressed his extreme apprehension about the pesticide situation. Simultaneously, the petrochemical industry continues its poison-peddling. For instance, Shell Chemical has been carrying on a high-pressure campaign to sell the insecticide Azodrin to farmers as a killer of cotton pests, they continue their programme even though they know that Azodrin is not only ineffective, but often increases the pest density. They’ve covered themselves nicely in an advertisement which states, “Even if an overpowering migration develops, the flexibility of Azodrin lets you regain control fast. Just increase the dosage according to label recommendations.” It’s a great game-----get people to apply the poison and kill the natural enemies of the pests, them blame the increased pests on “migration” and sell even more pesticide! Right now fisheries are being wiped out by over-exploitation, made easy by modern electronic equipment. The companies producing the equipment know this. They even boast in advertising that only their equipment will keep fishermen in business until the final kill. Profits must obviously be maximized in the short run. Indeed, Western society is in the process of completing the rape and murder of the planet for economic gain and, sadly, most of the rest of the world is eager for the opportunity to emulate our behavior. But the underdeveloped peoples will be denied that opportunity--- the days of plunder are unavoidably drawing to a close. (254 words) What is the writer’s attitude towards Shell Chemical’s advertising campaign to sell its insecticide? He is highly favorable. He is ambiguous. He has reservations. He is very critical. What is the best title for the passage? Insecticides. Electronic Fishing Equipment. Save Our Planet. The Fishing Industry. What does “our behaviour” refer to in the second paragraph? TEXT 10 Not so long ago it was assumed that the dangers man would meet in space would be terrible, the main ones being radiation and the danger of being hit by meteors. IT is perhaps worth remembering that less than two centuries ago, the dangers of train travel seemed similarly terrible, a man would certainly die, it was thought, if carried along at a speed of 30 mph. There are two sorts of radiation man must fear in space. The first is radiation from the sun, and this is particularly dangerous when the sun is very active and explosions are occurring on its surface. The second, less harmful form comes from the so-called Van Allen Belts. These are two areas of radiation about 1500miles away from the earth. Neither of these forms of radiation is a danger to us on the earth, since we are protected by our atmosphere. Specifically, it is that part of our atmosphere known as the ozonosphere which protects us. This is a belt of the chemical ozone between 12 and 21 miles from the ground which absorbs all the radiation. Once outside the atmosphere, however, man is no longer protected, and eradiation can be harmful in a number of ways. A distinction must be drawn between the short- and long-term effects of radiation. The former are merely unpleasant, but just because an astronaut returning from a journey in space does not seem to have been greatly harmed, we cannot assume that he is safe. The long-term effects can be extremely serious, even leading to death. One solution to the dangers of radiation is to protect the spaceship by putting some kind of shield around it. This was in fact done on the Apollo spaceships which landed on the moon. But this solution is not possible for longer journeys---to Mars for example---because the shield would need to be very large, and could not be carried. Another solution, not in fact possible at present, would be to surround the spaceship with a magnetic field to deflect the radiation. In all, we have to conclude that there is at present no complete solution to the problem of radiation. (360 words) 28. The chemical zone that absorbs all the radiation is called________. Van Allan Belts the atmosphere the ozonosphere solar radiation 29. At he end of the passage the writer implies that_______. solutions to the problem of radiation have been found most proposed solutions are impractical it is impossible to solve the problem of radiation current solutions are effective to some extent 30. According to the passage, what is the main difference between the short-term and long-term effects of radiation? Text 11 The pain in his heart had now ceased to have direction or motion, and lay there only like a dull embedded bullet. He felt that he wanted to press it away and so held both hands locked across his chest, staggering a little as he walked. He felt very weak as he walked downstairs, slowly, not troubling to put on the lights, feeling his way by the cold walls of the staircase, and he was troubled by a remote but fierce idea that he did not want to die. By the time he reached the passage, which led from the stairs to the glass door of the shop, this thought had replaced all others: had become not merely a wish but a determination. He at last put on the lights of the shop, where the telephone was, and then stood still: a small, grey perplexed little figure, his pain-washed eyes blinking in the white reflected light that sprang at him from the cabinets and shelves of glass and silver with which the shop was full. For one moment he looked at the telephone, thought better of it, and then went into the room behind the shop, switching on the light. By the fireplace, in which the fire was quite dead, there was a cupboard. He stood with his hand on the brass knob of it, intending to get himself a glass of brandy. But for a long time he could not move. The upward motion of his arm had brought on the pain in his heart again. Suddenly he shut his eyes and felt that he was falling. It was some moments later that he came to himself knowing that he must have fainted. He pulled himself up to the cupboard and found the bottle of brandy and a glass. He poured out a little brandy and drank it. It smoothed away the harsh edges of his weakness and pain and for a second or two he looked vaguely about him, slowly coming back to his senses before going back upstairs, still carrying the bottle and the glass, still half stupefied, so that he forgot to switch off the lights. From that moment until eight o’clock he lay in bed, thinking. The pain in his heart had ceased; there remained in its place a huge, accumulative fear. He felt that he had been down to the edge of life, had looked over into a vast space of unknown darkness, and had only just managed to come back. This fear was sometimes so strong that he held himself immobile, not daring to move. He lay looking at the gray winter morning light distribute itself reluctantly on the tiny pieces of rose and emerald glass of the chandelier, which still shook and tinkled in the morning air. After sixty-eight years, something almost catastrophic had happened to him, and now fear of its recurrence drove his thoughts back into the past. (480 words) 31. By the time he reached the passage____. the thought of his pain had replaced everything his wish to survive changed to determination he had become determined to reach the glass door he had become determiner not to put on the lights 32. After he frank a little brandy, he ____. regained his strength became calm and sober still remained fearful went to sleep for a while 33. What occupied the man’s mind all the time? Text 12 Many people believe that society’s idea of crime is based on the way it is reported in newspaper. To example whether there are differences in the amount of space that newspaper use to report crime stories, the New York Times and the New York Daily News were chosen for study. These newspapers were chosen because they had been cited as not agreeing in their styles of reporting crime. Thirty-seven stories which reported crime were selected by chance and the content examined closely. In all, 74 stories (that is, one report from each newspaper for each crime story reported on the same day) were examined closely by counting each piece of information that dealt with three factors: the crime, the offender, and any actions taken by government officials in the processing of the case. An examination of the information from the comparison on these three factors showed that there were few differences between the two newspapers. Each newspaper gave nearly half of the total amount of information per story to reporting the details of the crime itself. The News gave slightly more (51%) than the Times (49%), but this difference dose not approach practical or numerical significance. In reporting information about the offender, the News gave 17% of its pace, compared to the Times’ 15%, a difference that again is not large enough to be significant. However, the examination of the results of the study showed that the Times gave a larger part of its stories (22%) to the official actions of the representatives of the criminal justice system than did the News (16%). This difference is not large, but it is greater than those found for the other two factors. It would appear then, that the New York Times reports more of the actions of the criminal justice offices and representatives than does the New York Daily News. While we are not entirely certain of these result, we could perhaps conclude that newspapers that are considered “conservative “,such as the New York Times ,may tend to report more of what happens after the committing of a crime, when that crime is worth reporting in the newspaper .Although other studies like this one ought to be conducted in the same way to determine if these results are correct ,it may be productive for now to consider that the public’s idea of the criminal justice process may be influenced by newspapers. (400 words) 34. The two newspapers were chosen for study because they _______. A. are similar in their reporting of crime B. differ in their styles of reporting crime C. both are published in New York D. both are daily newspapers 35. In which aspect do the two newspapers differ most? A. In reporting the crime. B. In reporting the offender. C. In reporting government actions. D. Not mentioned. 36. What is the writer’s response to these results? Text 13 Today, almost everyone is a consumer of caffeine. The drug is contained in many nonalcoholic drinks, including tea. A cup of tea or coffee contains between 100 and 150 mg of caffeine. Even a cup of cocoa, favored by some as a non-stimulating bedtime drink, can contain up to 50 mg and chocolate too can contain a little caffeine. It is also to be found in the popular cola drinks. Perhaps it is because we like caffeine so much that many still believe it might be in some way harmful. Is there any justification for this feeling? Caffeine may be regarded as a mildly addictive drug and if it were introduced nowadays as a new product of the pharmaceutical industry, it might well be available only on a doctor’s prescription. Reaction to caffeine certainly has some of the characteristics of a drug of addiction. For instance, withdrawal symptoms in the form of severe headaches can occur. The ability to become addicted to the drug is, however, not confined to man. If rats are given taste for caffeine by making them take it in their drinking water, they come to prefer caffeinated water when they are later given a choice between that and plain water. Many people believe that caffeine counteracts the effects of alcohol. Because of this folklore, the drug has been used in the treatment of alcoholism and drunkeness. Experiments with rabbits and rats, however, show clearly that a dose of caffeine significantly increases the impairment of performance caused by alcohol. If the traditional sobering effect of coffee is real, therefore, it would seem to work despite the caffeine present. Also, though tradition has coffee as the sobering drink, tea contains almost the same amount of caffeine per cup. Caffeine can certainly cause a feeling of wakefulness in man and it is used in a few preparations for the treatment of hay-fever and asthma, perhaps to reduce the drowsiness caused by other ingredients. (330 words) 37. Everyone is a consumer of caffeine because ________. A. people of all ages like caffeine very much B. nobody thinks it is harmful to health C. caffeine is contained in popular drinks D. is cheap and available everywhere 38. According to this passage, which of the following doesn’t have sobering effect? A. Alcohol. B. Coffee. C. Tea. D. Caffeine 39. What is the general message of the passage? Text 14 Why do words change their meanings? Sometimes this happens because of a linguistic association. The word “constitutional”, for example, is an adjective, meaning, roughly, “for health”. It was long used in phrase “a constitutional walk”, which was a walk taken for reasons of health. The phrase became so common that the word “walk” was forgotten, and today a walk taken for health reasons is thus known simply as “a constitutional”. Changes in meaning also happen when the thing a word describes changes form. The word “car”, from Latin “carrus”, is an example. It originally meant a “four-wheeled coach”. The modern car is not at all like the old four-wheeled coach. The thing has changed, so the word has changed meaning with it. Meaning change can also take place through a desire to avoid talking about an unpleasant subject. The word “undertaker” is an example of this. It originally meant “someone who undertakes to make special arrangements”. Our modern travel agent might once have been called a “travel undertaker”. One expression using the word was “funeral undertaker”. One expression using the word was “funeral undertaker”. The word “funeral” was dropped, however, because it reminded people of the unpleasant subject of death. The result is that today “undertaker” has lost its general sense, and now means “the man who arranges funerals”. The words “limbs” and “waist” were used in strange ways by 19 th-century American ladies. This was caused by their desire to avoid talking about impolite subjects. The words “legs” and “body” were, they felt, rude. Consequently they talked about “piano limbs” instead of “piano legs” and spoke of their own “waists”, to avoid using the word “body”. A change in meaning is often made necessary by a scientific discovery. When the scientist Kepler needed a word to describe a small planet going round a larger one, he took the word “satellite” which really means an “attendant” or “life guard”. Today the word has many meanings and is used, for example, in the field of politics. (320 words) 40. Which of the following is NOT a reason for meaning changing? A. Linguistic association B. Technological advance C. Euphemistic use D. Changes in customs. 41. According to the passage, sometimes the meaning of a word changes because ______. A. the it refers to has changed B. the thing it refers to has disappeared C. it has acquired an unpleasant meaning D. its original meaning is inappropriate 42. Cite an example in the message to show how people avoid talking about unpleasant or impolite subjects. Text 15 Every year, 100 million holiday-makers are drawn to the Mediterranean. With one-third of the world’s tourist trade, it is the most popular of all the holiday destinations: it is also the most polluted. It has only 1 percent of the world’s sea surface, but carries more than half the oil and tar floating on the waters. Thousands of factories pour their poison into the Mediterranean, and almost every city, town and village on the coast discharge its sewage, untreated, into the sea. The result is that the Mediterranean, which nurtured so many civilizations, is gravely ill---the first of the seas to fall victim to the abilities and attitudes that evolved around it. And the pollution does not merely stifle the life of the sea, it threatens people who inhabit and visit its shores. Typhoid, dysentery, polio and food poisoning are endemic in the area, and there are periodic outbreaks of cholera. An even greater danger lurks in the seductive seafood dishes that add so much interest to holiday menus. Shellfish are prime carriers of many of the most vicious diseases of the area. They often grow amid pollution. And even if they don’t, they are frequently infected by the popular practice of “freshening them up”----throwing filthy water over them in markets. Industry also adds its own poisons. Factories cluster round the coastline, and even the most modern rarely has proper waste-treatment plant. They do as much damage to the sea as sewage. Then there is the oil ---350,000 tons pouring each year from ships, 115,000 tons more from industries round the shore. Recent studies show that the Mediterranean is four times as polluted by oil as the north Atlantic, 40 times as bad as the north-east Pacific. (290 words) 43. Which of the following is NOT a consequence of pollution? A. The life of the sea became extinct. B. Local inhabitants’ health was affected. C. Civilizations were destroyed. D. Tourists might catch some diseases. 44. The writer seems to suggest that tourists should be cautious about the attractive seafood because______. A. some of the them were locally produced B. some of them might carry diseases C. most tourists didn’t eat seafood D. local people didn’t eat seafood 45. Explain the meaning of the underlined part in “the first of the seas to fall victim to the abilities and attitudes that evolved around it.” Text 16 Sunday, 2 nd November, will remain in my memory because I did a very stupid thing. For some days my health had not been so good. The change of food and the constant humidity had caused a number of painful spots to form on my skin. I hoped to prevent them forming scabs by resting my weight on a little air cushion, the only one I had. Some clumsy movement must have knocked it overboard, a fact I only realized when I saw it floating a couple hundred meters or so astern. I lowered the sail, put out the sea anchor and dived in to fetch it. I am a strong swimmer and reached the cushion in a few minutes. Imagine my horror, when I turned round, to see the boat sailing off without me, too fast for me to be able to catch it. The sea anchor, normally shaped like a parachute, had become entangled and was no longer stopping the drift. It was quite clear that I would become exhausted long before I could overhaul it. At that moment the boat very nearly continued the voyage without me. When I was training to swim the English Channel in 1951, in top physical condition, I once swam for twenty-one hours. Weakened as I was, I could not possibly have equalled the feat. I abandoned the cushion to its fate and concentrated on the fastest swim of my life. I managed to cut down the distance a little, but then had difficulty in even maintaining it. Suddenly I saw the boat slow down. I caught it up and just managed to hoist myself on board. By a miracle the cords of the sea anchor had disentangled themselves just in time. I was exhausted and swore it was last dip I would take on the journey. (306 words) 46. The “very stupid thing” the writer did was to _______. A. knock the air cushion overboard B. put out the sea anchor C. dive into the sea to try to fetch the air cushion D. put out the sea anchor clumsily so that it became entangled 47. The writer finally caught up with the boat because_______. A. he swan faster than he had ever swum before B. the sea anchor disentangled itself C. he abandoned the air cushion D. the sail came down 48. Why did the writer swear it was the last dip he would take on the journey? Text 17 People have always been fascinated by the idea of robots-----machines that look and behave like human beings, and of course, do our work for us. The term “robot” comes from the Czechoslovakian word for “forced labor”. It was invented by Karel Capek for his story R. U. R. which stood for Rossum’s Universal Robots, which was written in 1921. His robots looked and behaved like people but worked much harder. They fought wars for the people who made them, but then they became dissatisfied and attacked their makers. Writers of science-fiction books have often been concerned with the possibility of robot slaves turning against and injuring their weaker masters. The idea is frightening because robots, though created by humans to work for them, in some ways have superhuman mental and physical powers. In 2001 by Arthur C. Clarke, the computer HAL, whose job it is to operate a spaceship, states “I am incapable of making an error” and kills the astronauts that interfere with its plans. Perhaps the most lovable fictional robots so far have been the stars of Star Wars, Artoo Detoo (R2D2) and See Threepio (C3PO), who help the hero, Luke Skywalker, rescue the captured Princess. These robots joke together, get kidnapped, get lost in a desert, fly spaceships and generally help bring about the happy ending of the film. In real life, however, robots do not look like real people. Most robots are nothing more than a lot of electronic circuitry and arms or hands for doing the job for which they are programmed, but the important point is that they can be programmed to do a number of different jobs. Many cars today are primarily robot-built. Sheet-metal parts for F16 fighter-planes are made by robots which have proved to be far more accurate than man and more reliable. Robots work instead of men where conditions are very hot, such as near furnaces, or where it is very noisy or where the work is so repetitive that men become bored and therefore unreliable. Robots are used in space exploration and to repair damaged vessels under the sea. Robots fill bottles with pills or soft drinks, make chewing-gum and package it, produce tinned food and make bread and pastry. They also operate petrol pumps and drive trains, planes and ships. Almost anything that man does robots can also do, and often robots do it better. (398 words) 49. In R.U.R., we are told, the robots________. A. looked after people B. started wars C. rebelled D. refused to work 50. According to the passage, robots are used in all the following places EXCEPT_______. A. furnaces B. space C. sea D. factories 51. What is the main difference between robots in science fiction and those in real life? Text 18 One day you may be able to travel from Earth into space and back easily. The most ambitious and versatile spacecraft ever built, Columbia will orbit at speeds up to 28,000 km/h fuelled by liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen. The space shuttle has a huge cargo hold, twenty metres long, which would enable it to carry a laboratory into space together with the scientists and technicians needed to work in it, or it could be used to carry satellites into space. Its creators think it will have many uses such as making surveys of the Earth and oceans, looking for mineral deposits, studying the weather etc. One of the early projects that the shuttle will be involved in is the placing in orbit of a giant telescope that will be able to see seven times further than the world’s most powerful instruments. This is because it will be outside the dusty atmosphere that surrounds the Earth. The first test-firing of its engines was a tense moment. The crew remember how they gasped when they first saw the giant shuttle rolling to its lift-off site on a gigantic crawler-tractor. It took 7.5 hours to creep the 5.5 kilometres from the Kennedy Space Centre! Then came to the count-down and millions of Americans watching on television joined all the technicians and scientists in the Cape Canaveral control tower in a sigh of relief when someone announced “all engines are up and running”. This meant that all had gone well and the red and the orange flames flaring out from beneath Columbia and the immense cloud of steam created by burning liquid oxygen and hydrogen were emblems of America’s success. Unlike ordinary rockets that can be sent into space for testing without astronauts on board, the space shuttle had to have a crew on its very first flight or it could not have been used again. So everything had to be checked and double-checked on the ground and those in charge had to be absolutely certain that nothing would go wrong. It was a very worrying time for everyone, and everyone involved breathed a huge sigh of relief when the first lift-off in April 1981, was followed two days later by a perfect landing. A new chapter in the space age had begun. For man could now rocket into space -------and then fly back to Earth. (391 words) 52. Columbia will have all the following uses in the space EXCEPT________. A. making surveys of the space B. looking for mineral deposits C. studying the weather D. helping to orbit a giant telescope 53. What was the function of the “gigantic crawler-tractor”? A. To help the space shuttle to lift off B. To take the space shuttle to the launching-pad C. To take the space shuttle to Kennedy Space Centre D. To launch the space shuttle into the space 54. How important is Columbia to space exploration? Text 19 Situated at Hong Kong’s eastern sea-front, Taikoo Shing is a modern housing development spanning a 53 acre site. The accommodation appears to be well-planned with all the necessary facilities, and there are landscaped gardens with flowers, trees, fountains and recreation areas. Of the total site area of 53 acres, 38 are open space – an unusually high proportion in Hong Kong. And everything one could reasonably want seems to be here. In Cityplaza, which is an integral part of the estate, there are cinemas, restaurants, tenpin bowling, ice and roller skating rinks, shops and a supermarket. Nearby, and actually on the estate as well, there are schools and kindergartens. The flat themselves are, again by Hong Kong standards, really quite luxurious. The kitchens all have built-in cupboards, a gas cooker and washing machine drainage. Most important, they are fully tiled for easy cleaning and good hygiene. The bathrooms, too, are fully tiled, and are well fitted out with showers, cabinets and water heaters. The flats themselves are not air-conditioned although apertures are provided in the specially designed windows for the installation of air-conditioning units. Each flat has its own TV and telephone sockets, the wiring for which is all concealed, and there are refuse shutes for neat and quick refuse disposal. For many people, however, one of the main attractions of Taikoo Shing will be its attention to security. There is closed-circuit TV network connecting the TV camera at the ground floor lobby to the communal TV aerial system serving each apartment. Closed-circuit cameras are installed in all lifts, at the ground floor fire exit and at the lobby, connected to the TV monitors at the security counter. The whole estate is continually patrolled by security guards and by the Royal Hong Kong Police. Form the point of view of people who must go to work every day, Taikoo shing is extremely well served by public transport. There are about 15 bus routes. The MTR station opposite Taikoo Shing has just been completed. A particularly useful feature is that the Estate has its own connection to the new Island Eastern Corridor. There is no doubt that the developers of Taikoo Shing have given a great deal of thought to making it one of Hong Kong’ most attractive and convenient residential areas. (381 words) 55. Taikoo Shing estate has an accommodation site of _______ acres. A．53 B.38 C.15 D. 91 56. The flats in Taikoo Shing estate provide all the following facilities EXCEPT_______ A. tiled kitchens and bathrooms B. central air –conditioning C. closed-circuit TV network D. TV and telephone sockets 57. What are the main characteristics of Taikoo Shing estate? Text 20 The most common type of child abuse is beating with the hands or with an instrument. These beatings usually cause lesions, bruising, and burns as well. It is not unusual for children to be tied up when being beaten, so rope marks are often found, too. There is also, of course, physical neglect, though fewer cases are reported because they are harder to define. It is comparatively easy to define physical abuse when there are clear physical signs such as fractures and multiple bruising, compatible with beating. But neglect and psychological abuse are much harder to define. Nearly a third of the abused children we see fall within the 6-10 age group and about 65 percent of them are boys. This is the age group when children are first expected to study hard and parents have great expectations of their progress. Boys, of course, attract more abuse because, once again, parental expectations are high, and boys tend to be more energetic and difficult to control than girls. Most experts on child abuse seem to agree that it is caused by a combination of social and psychological factors. We don’t see families who abuse their children as being particularly different from other people except in their lack of skills in establishing rewarding relationships with their children. They also, generally speaking, have other problems such as marital or financial stresses. Some parents are hurting their children misguidedly, being over-rigorous in their use of traditional disciplinary methods; but many of them are emotionally deprived people. They are often the victims of violence themselves. Sometimes they even bear an irrational hatred for a child, believing, perhaps, that it has brought the family bad luck. Our sympathies lie with the children, but it is not only the children who cry. The parents often cry, too, for the pain they cause the child, and for the pain they cause themselves. Most parents do not want to hurt their children and most want to or can be motivated to stop abusing them. In order to help the children, therefore, we have to help the parents. Through our Counseling Service, we try to reduce the stress factors in people’s lives and to teach parents to cope better with stress and to control their aggressive impulses. (377 words) 58. Compared with cases of physical abuse, reported cases of psychological abuse are fewer because_____. A. there are fewer cases of psychological abuse B. psychological abuse is more difficult to define C. the public usually neglect cases of psychological abuse D. parents prefer physical abuse to psychological abuse 59. Which group of children is most likely to be abused by their parents? A. Boys under 6. B. Girls under 6 C. Boys between 6 and 10. D. Girls between 6 and 10. 60. According to the passage, what is the best way to tackle the problem of child abuse? Text 21 The brain blood flow studies show that reciting the days of the week and months of the year increases blood flow in appropriate areas, whereas problem solving which demands intense concentration of a reasoning type produces much larger changes in the distribution of blood in the brain. What we do not know is what happens if problem solving exercises are repeated over and over again, perhaps for days on end. Between these basic studies of brain function and real life situations there is still a considerable gap but reasonable extrapolation seems possible to try and understand what happens to the brain. Life consists of a series of events which may be related to work or to our so-called leisure time. Work may be relatively automatic --- as with typing, for instance. It requires intense concentration and repetition during the learning phase to establish a pattern in the brain. Then the typist’s fingers automatically move to hit the appropriate keys as she reads the words on the copy. Indeed many typists can maintain a conversation while continuing to type. However, when she gets tired she makes mistakes, especially transposing letters, much more frequently. To overcome this she has to raise her lever of arousal and concentration but beyond a certain point the automaticity is lost and thinking about hitting the keys leads to more mistakes. Other jobs involve intense concentration such as holding bottles of whisky up to a strong light and turning them upside down to look for particles of dirt falling down. This sounds quite easy but experience teaches that workers can do this for only about thirty minutes before they start making a mistake. This is partly because the number of occasions with dirt in the bottle is low and the arousal lever, therefore, falls. Donald Broadbent and his colleagues at the MRC Applied Psychology Unit, Cambridge, have shown that devices to raise arousal level will increase the accuracy of looking for relatively rare events. A recent study of the effect of loss of sleep in young doctors showed that in texts involving a challenge to their medical judgment when short of sleep, they raised their arousal lever and became better at tests of grammatical reasoning as well. (381 words) 61. Why can a typist type very well while reading the words on the copy? Because she concentrates her attention on typing. Because her fingers can automatically move to hit the appropriate keys. Because her training helps to establish a pattern in the brain. Because typing is an automatic job. 62. What happens when a typist gets tired? She can type only automatically. She often can no longer type automatically. She can not think about what she is doing. She has to concentrate on her work and therefore makes no mistakes. 63. According to the passage, what is a key factor in the ability to reason. Text 22 There was a time when no medical school would accept a woman. They all said that only a man could be a doctor. An American, Elizabeth Blackwell, was determined to become the first woman doctor in the world. After a great deal of delay and opposition, she received, to her great surprise, a letter from the Dean of Geneva College informing her that she had been accepted. Much later, Elizabeth discovered what had actually happened when her application had been received by the College authorities. None of them wanted to have a woman student, but they did not wish to offend the influential Philadelphia doctor who had recommended her, so they hit on the expedient of turning the decision over to the students’ general meeting. They were quite certain that this would result in this alarming idea being turned down. But when the student body met, many of them thought it would be amusing to be the only medical college in the country which could boast that it was training some sort of Amazon as a woman doctor. Some genuinely believed that women should be treated equally, while others thought of the whole thing as a joke. So the vote in favor was carried unanimously, and the College authorities found, with dismay, that they would now have to admit Elizabeth. Elizabeth’s entry into the medical school there could hardly been more nerve-racking. The Dean asked her to follow him onto the platform and formally introduced her to the assembled students. Fifty years later an elderly doctor, who was a student at the College at the time, recalled the scene. “One morning, all unexpectedly, a lady entered the lecture room with the professor; she was quite small of stature, plainly dressed, appeared diffident and retiring but had a firm and determined expression on her face. Her entry into the bedlam of confusion acted like magic on every student. Each hurriedly sought his seat, and the utmost silence prevailed. For the first time a lecture was given without the slightest interruption, and every word could be heard as distinctly as it would be if there had been but a single person in the room. The sudden transformation of this class from a band of lawless desperadoes to gentlemen by the mere presence of a lady, proved to be permanent in its effects.” (391 words) 64. Elizabeth Blackwell’s acceptance by the Geneva College was _________ . A. surprising B. speedy C. pleading D. at once explained to her 65. The students were asked to decide on Elizabeth’s application because the College authorities __________. couldn’t make up their minds thought that the students would accept her wanted to reject the application without offending the Philadelphia doctor had a large amount of disagreement among themselves 66. What was the effect of Elizabeth’s presence at the lecture room? Text 23 For years scientists have been trying to learn more about how typhoons are created and what influenced their unpredictable paths across the seas. But, more than that, men now intend to do something about combating their fierce winds and torrential rains. Plans are under way to experiment with these storm-monsters and, hopefully, to dissipate their strength. Interest in studying typhoons was prompted by the batterings suffered by U.S. Navy armadas during World War Ⅱ, when regular typhoon reconnaissance flights began to be undertaken. Air surveillance has now been supplemented with weather-recording satellites which regularly photograph the earth’s surface. Cloud masses covering potential typhoons are quickly spotted on satellite photos and aircraft are dispatched to closely monitor their development. As these storms begin to roll towards the Asian mainland, a network of radar stations, reaching 200 to 600 kilometres out to sea, pick up the storms and track them. Typhoons are not like smoothly rolled bowling balls heading along predictable paths toward skittles. They more closely resemble the erratic nature of dancing spiders, often hesitating, swerving, slowing or speeding up, making weirdly unexplainable changes of direction and intensity. Even the best forecasters cross their fingers when predicting the course of a typhoon. Many scientists --- and millions of Asian citizens --- would prefer more dramatic answers to typhoons; not mere warnings and emergency aid, but actually “doing something about the weather”. An American project known as Operation Storm Fury is already programmed. Storm Fury will attempt to seed typhoonal rain cloud bands with chemicals in an effort to dissipate the storm’s fury. Although man’s attempts to modify typhoons could substantially reduce the destructive force of the storms, some experts oppose such efforts. Those experts maintain that typhoons are an integral part of a sensitively balanced tropical weather pattern affecting Asia. If the pattern is substantially altered, they ask, what will happen to other segments? Will the pattern of monsoonal rains --- which are vital to the region’s agriculture --- be so changed as to create droughts or excessive flooding? (334 words) 67. How many different methods for locating and tracking typhoons are mentioned in this passage? A. Tow. B. Three. C. Four. D. Five. 68. The most recent aim of those studies concerned with typhoons is __________ . A. learn more about them B. predict their direction C. change their direction D. reduce their strength 69. Why do some experts oppose efforts of dissipating typhoon’s strength? Text 24 There is a lot of misunderstanding about studying. Most students have not been taught the principles behind really effective working. Imagine a graph showing the amount a person learns against the number of hours he works in a day. If he doesn’t do any work, he learns nothing (point 0). If he does an hour’s work he learns a certain amount (point 1). If he does two hours’ work he learns about twice as much (point 2). If he does more work he’ll learn still more (point 3). Now, if he tried to do 23.5 hours’ work in 24, he’ll be so exhausted that he’ll hardly remember anything: what he learns will be very little (point 4). If he did less work he’d learn more (point 5). Now whatever the exact shape of the graph’s curve, made by joining these points, it must have a crest. Point X is the very maximum anyone can learn in the day. It is the best possible compromise between adequate time at the books and fatigue. Fatigue is an absolutely real thing; one can’t escape it or try to ignore it. If you press yourself to work past the optimum, you can only get on this downward slope and achieve less than the best --- and then get exhausted and lose your power of concentration. The skill in being a student consists in getting one’s daily study as near the optimum point as possible. When you find yourself repeatedly reading over the same paragraph and not taking it in, that’s a pretty good sign you’ve reached the crest for the day and should stop. Most ordinary students find their optimum at about five hours a day. If you get in five hours’ good work a day, you will be doing well. Now, what are you doing with yourself when you aren’t working? Before examinations some students do nothing at all except sit in a chair and worry. Here is another misunderstanding. People too easily think of the mind as if it worked like the body; it does not. If one wanted to conserve physical energy to cut the maximum amount of firewood, one would lie flat on a bed and rest when one wasn’t chopping. But the mind cannot rest. Even in sleep you dream, even if you forget your dreams. The mind is always turning. It gets its relaxation only by variety. (397 words) 70. The main idea of the first paragraph is that _________ . the longer we work the more we learn the less time spent working the better too much time spent studying may result in too little learning most students do too much work 71. Which of the following does point X on the graph NOT represent? The greatest amount of work advisable. The longest advisable period of working time. The best advisable period of working time. The largest amount of work that can be done with no fatigue? 72. According to the passage, what is an effective way to get rid of fatigue? Text 25 Occasional self-medication has always been part of normal living. The making and selling of drugs has a long history and is closely linked, like medical practice itself, with belief in magic. Only during the last hundred years or so has the development of scientific techniques made it possible for some of the causes of symptoms to be understood, so that more accurate diagnosis has become possible. The doctor is now able to follow up the correct diagnosis of many illnesses with specific treatment of their causes. In many other illnesses, of which the causes remain unknown, he is still limited to the treatment of symptoms. The doctor is trained to decide when to treat symptoms only and when to attack the cause: this is the essential difference between medical prescribing and self-medication. The advance of technology has brought about much progress in some fields of medicine, including the development of scientific drug therapy. In many countries public health organization is improving, and people’s nutritional standards have risen. Parallel with such beneficial trends are two which have an adverse effect. One is the use of high pressure advertising by the pharmaceutical industry, which has tended to influence both patients and doctors and has led to the over-use of drugs generally. The other is the emergence of the sedentary society with its faulty ways of life: lack of exercise, over-eating, unsuitable eating, insufficient sleep, excessive smoking and drinking. People with disorders arising from faulty habits such as these, as well as from unhappy human relationships, often resort to self-medication and add the taking of pharmaceuticals to the list. These are the main reasons why laxatives, indigestion remedies, pain-killers, cough Mixtures, tonics, vitamin and iron tablets, nose drops, ointments and many other preparations are found in quantity in many households. It is doubtful whether taking these things ever improves a person’s health; it may even make it worse. Worse, because the preparation may contain unsuitable ingredients; worse because the taker may become dependent on them; worse because they might be taken in excess; worse because they may cause poisoning, and worst of all because symptoms of some serious underlying cause may be masked and therefore medical help may not be sought. Self-diagnosis is a greater danger than self-medication. (376 words) 73. By “people’s nutritional standards have risen” (paragraph 2) the writer means that people ______________ . A. are eating better food B. are eating less food C. are eating more food D. are healthier 74. How many bad effects caused by self-medication are mentioned? A. Tow. B. Three. C. Four. D. Five. 75. What is the writer’s attitude towards self-medication? Text 26 Let us suppose that your letter of application for a job has been received by your prospective employer and you have been asked to go to the office for an interview. How do you prepare yourself and behave during this interview? First of all, do everything you can to prepare for it. Make a list of all the points you want to ask about if you have the chance. Equip yourself with all your certificates and other relevant documents. Secondly, find out all you can about your prospective employer, such as the firm’s exact location. Thirdly, make a little extra effort with your appearance. So, your preparations complete, you have arrived at the office on time and are waiting to be called for the interview. If you are feeling a little nervous, take a few deep breaths and let them out slowly. Read through your curriculum vitae again so that it is fresh in your mind. When the interviewer or a secretary invites you in, try to show courtesy in your appearance and manner. Stand until you are invited to sit and then sit straight in the chair, do not lounge. Relax and smile. The interviewer will begin by asking you questions about yourself, your curriculum vitae and even perhaps what you hope the future holds. Answer the questions simply, directly and honestly. Do not show impatience if you feel the interviewer is repeating things or asking irrelevant questions. He or she probably just wants to know if you have opinions of your own, and whether you can speak sensibly and coherently. If you are asked what salary you expect, state the figure mentioned in the advertisement you replied to. If you sense that the interview is coming to an end, be ready with your queries. The interviewer may ask you if you have any questions but if you are mot asked, wait for an opportune moment. You have as much right to be concerned about your future work as the interviewer has about your ability to do the job. Do not lay undue emphasis on questions about holidays, days off, lunch breaks, sports facilities, etc. Ask first of all about promotion prospects, other examinations you can take to get ahead and so on. When the interview is at an end, stand up, wish the interviewer “Good morning” or “Good afternoon”, and walk out. (394 words) 76. According to the passage, what should an interviewee do when he feels nervous before the interview? A. He should take a nap. B. He should talk with others. C. He should take deep breaths. D. He should wander about for a while. 77. Which of these words is nearest in meaning to “opportune” in Paragraph 6? A. early. B. brief. C. timely. D. future. 78. According to the passage, what question(s) should you first ask about your future work? Text 27 The healthy adolescent boy likes to do the real things in life, to do the things that matter. He would rather be a plumber’s mate and do a real job that requires doing than learning about hydrostatics sitting at a desk, without understanding what practical use they are going to be. Logically we should learn about things before doing them and that is presumably why the pundits enforce this in our educational system. But it is not the natural way --- nor the best way. The adolescent wants to do things first for only then does he appreciate the problems involved and want to learn more about them. They do these things better in primitive life, for there at puberty the boy joins his father in making canoes, patching huts, going out fishing or hunting, and preparing weapons of war. He is serving his apprenticeship in the actual accomplishments of life. It is not surprising that anthropologists find that the adolescents of primitive communities do not suffer from the same neurotic “difficulties” as those of civilized life. This is not because they are permitted more freedom, but because they are given more natural outlets for their native interests and powers an allowed to grow up freely into a full life of responsibility In the last century this was recognized in the apprenticeship system, which allowed the boy to go out with the master carpenter, thatcher or ploughman, to engage in the actual work of carpentry, roof-mending or ploughing , and so to learn his trade. It was the same in medicine, in which a budding young doctor of sixteen learnt his job by going round with the general practitioner and helping with the blood-letting and physic. The great advantage of this system is that it lets the apprentice see the practical problems before he sets to work learning how to solve them, and he can therefore take a more intelligent interest in his theoretical work. Since more knowledge of more thongs is now required in order to cope with the adult world, the period of growing-up to independence takes much longer than it did in a more primitive community, and the responsibility for such education, which formerly was in the hands of the parents, is now necessarily undertaken by experts at school. They have to bear the basic principle in mind, i.e., to engage responsibility and to learn through responsibility. (399 words) 79. Which of the following statements best sums up the first paragraph? Young people prefer working with their hands. Young people do not like going to school. Young people find it sensible to learn how to do things before doing them. Young people like to experience problems before learning how to solve them. 80. In an apprenticeship system, young people ________ . A. teach themselves  B. are not taught at all C. are taught the theory first and afterwards are allowed to put it into practice D. are taught by experienced people while actually doing the work. 81. What is the writer’s point of view towards modern education? Text 28 Mind and body are two parts of a complex organism controlled by the nervous system, which acts on information received from the senses. The way a person perceives and reacts depends on his mood, his state of health, his diet, his body temperature and his level of consciousness. There is considerable evidence that every thought or emotion has some related physical effect, and that every change within the nervous system should have some psychological effect. Although the precise nature of these correlations is not always known, the view that body and mind are constantly interacting in some way is now accepted by most psychologists. The relationship between mind and body is particularly apparent in emotional states, especially those of fear and anger. When a person is in the grip of a powerful emotion his body undergoes changes, just as it does when he is asleep, ill or under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Most people are familiar with such sensations as a dry mouth when they are nervous, or a racing heart when they are afraid or excited. Such physical changes can be measured --- for instance, by recording pulse rate and breathing, or by measuring the dilation of the pupils of the eyes. A particularly sensitive measure of bodily change during periods of emotion is the galvanic skin response (GSR). This is used in the instrument known as the lie detector. The GSR depends on the fact that some mental activity produces bodily changes, such as sweating, which affect the skin’s resistance to electricity. To measure GSR, electrodes are placed on the palm and on the back of the hand, and a weak current is passed between the electrodes. Changes in the current are recorded in an amplified form, often by means of an automatically controlled pen on moving paper. Other recordings, for instance of pulse, blood pressure and breathing, can be made simultaneously, by an instrument called a polygraph. The galvanic skin response method has proved a very efficient indicator of general psychological arousal. Even slight embarrassment will cause a deflection of the recording pen. (347 words) 82. The main idea of the second paragraph is __________. we do not know enough about the relationship between the mind and the body it is generally accepted that the mind and the body affect each other at the same time we have a good deal of evidence to show how the mind works our body is affected by our thoughts and our feelings 83. In the fourth paragraph, we are told that the GSR ________. is another name for a lie detector is a measurement of strong emotions only measures the amount of electricity in the body measures the amount of electricity passing through the skin 84. What is the main message conveyed by this passage? Text 29 Scientists at Sussex University appear to be on the way to discovering how the mosquito, carrier of diseases such as malaria and yellow fever, homes in on its target. The problem is that they have found that the best way to avoid being bitten is: stop breathing, stop sweating, and keep down the temperature of your immediate surroundings. Unfortunately the first suggestion is impossible and the others very difficult. Scientists have found that there are three distinct stages in a mosquito’s assault. Stage one is at fifteen metres away, when the insect first smells a man or animal to bite. Stage two is thought to come into operation about seven metres from the target, when the insect becomes guided by the carbon dioxide breathed out by the intended victim. Stage three is when the mosquito is only about 70 millimetres from its prey: the warmth and moisture given off by the victim is the final clue. The researchers then examined how repellents interfere with its three-stage attack. They found repellents act more subtly than by just giving off a nasty smell. A Canadian researcher says that repellents appear to confuse mosquitoes first when it is following the carbon dioxide and second during the final approach, where the warmth and moisture are the insect’s guide. Air pervaded by one of the many chemical repellents stops the mosquito reacting to the victim’s carbon dioxide, and the repellent seems to affect the tiny hairs with which the insect senses moisture in the air. The sensors are blocked so that the insect does not know when it is flying through a moist current, or the sensors are made to send the wrong signals. One positive suggestion from the researchers followed the discovery that mosquitoes on the hunt tend to fly very close to the ground. A dense screen of trees around a village may keep mosquitoes at bay. Unless they are already following a scent, the insects are likely to be deflected by such a screen. This solution could offer great relief to heavily attacked villages. The experts also agree that mosquitoes seem to prefer some people to others, but they do not know why. The Canadian work suggests that it might be simply a matter of skin temperature and moisture. (377 words) 85. Which of the following is nearest in meaning to “homes in on” (line 2)? A. Takes aim at. B. Finds its way to. C. Attacks. D. Fastens on to. 86. In the fourth paragraph we are told that _________. repellents remove carbon dioxide from the air repellents remove moisture from the air the tiny hairs of the mosquito detect the carbon dioxide repellents prevent the mosquito from detecting moist air 87. How can the whole passage be summarized? Text 30 I.Q stands for “Intelligence Quotient” which is a measure of a person’s intelligence found by means of an intelligence test. Before marks gained in such a test can be useful as information about a person, they must be compared with some standard, or norm. To know whether a boy of thirteen is clever, average or dull, his marks must be compared with the average achieved by boys of thirteen in that test. In 1906 the psychologist, Alfred Binet (1857-1911), devised the standard in relation to which intelligence has since been assessed. Binet was asked to find a method of selecting all children in the schools of Paris who should be taken out of ordinary classes and put it special classes for defectives. The problem brought home to him the need for a standard of intelligence, and he hit upon the very simple concept of “mental age” First of all, he invented a variety of tests and put large numbers of children of different ages through them. He then found at what age each test was passed by the average child. Binet arranged the various tests in order of difficulty, and used them as a scale against which he could measure every individual. If, for example, a boy aged twelve could only do tests that were passed by the average boy of nine, Binet held that he was three years below average, and that he had a mental age of nine. The concept of mental age provided Binet, and through him, other psychologists, with the required standard. It enabled him to state scores in intelligence tests in terms of a norm. At first, it was usual to express the result of a test by the difference between the “mental” and the “chronological” age. Then the boy in the example given would be “three years retarded”. Soon, however, the “mental ratio” was introduced; that is to say, the ratio of the mental age to the chronological age. Thus a boy of twelve with a mental age of nine has a mental ratio of 0.75. The mental age was replaced by the “intelligence quotient” or “I.Q”. The “I.Q” is the mental ratio multiplied by 100. For example, a boy of twelve with a mental age of nine has an “I.Q” of 75. Clearly, since the mental age of the average child is equal to the chronological age, the average I.Q. is 100. (400 words) 88. To judge a child’s standard, his marks in a test must be compared with marks gained by ________ . others of the same age older and younger children a number of children in the same school the same child when at different ages 89. A boy of nine who is “three years retarded” has a mental age of ________ A. three B. six C. nine D. twelve 90. How is “I.Q.” calculated? Section B Fast Reading Directions. In this section there are about 42 short texts for fast reading organized into 6 groups with 10 questions in each group. Read the question(s) related to a text before you skim or scan the text itself to find the answer to a question. You should finish reading a group of texts in 5 minutes. (Omitted) VI CLOZE Directions: In each of the 10 passages in this section, there are some words or phrases that have been left out. Decide which of the choices given below would correctly complete the passage if inserted in the corresponding blanks. Passage 1 The man traveling in the back of the ambulance, which thrust its way (1) ________ the streets of Baltimore that morning had no business to be (2) _______. By everything that was reasonable, and there were plenty of precedents, he certainly (3) ________ have been dead. But he wasn’t. As the people in the hospital pointed out after they had examined him, he was only slightly bruised. (4)________ he had just fallen about fifty metres down a hotel lift shaft! Unknown to the man, two things had (5) _______ which were to affect his life that bright June morning. On the thirteenth floor of the hotel, somebody had carelessly left the lift gate open (6) _______ in the basement, a pipe had burst and, (7) ________ anyone could check the rush of water, it had flooded the bottom of the lift shaft to a (8) _______ of about a metre. The man had plenty of things to occupy his mind that morning. He had (9) _______ and was already half an hour late for an important nine o’clock business appointment. He dressed quickly, shaved hurriedly, grabbed his briefcase and hurried (10) _______ down the hotel corridor. Good! The lift gate was open. The lift must be there. (11)________ looking or thinking, he set (12) ________ space. The lift cage was, (13) _________, one floor above him on the fourteenth. The world into which he had walked was a narrow space of not very fresh air, ending fifty metres (14) ________ in one metre of dirty water. It was this (15) ________ had saved his life. 1. A. along B. about C. through D. as 2. A. living B. alive C. live D. life 3. A. would B. should C. could D. must 4. A. Yet B. And C. Moreover D. Although 5. A. made B. appeared C. occurred D. emerged 6. A. Down B. Bottom C. But D. With 7. A. when B. after C. before D. since 8. A. place B. width. C. height D. depth 9. A. slept B. woken up C. overslept D. drunk 10. A. away B. from C. along D. off 11. A. With B. Without C. Before D. After 12. A. in B. into C. onto D. to 13. A. in fact B. in case C. but D. in effect 14. A. down B. bottom C. far D. below 15. A. which B. where C. what D. that Passage 2 Scientists are already looking (1) ________ the possibility of using some of the (2) _______ ice in the Arctic and Antarctic to solve the problem of drought. In these (3) ________ there are vast ice-caps formed by snow that has fallen over the past 50,000 years. Layer (4) _______ layer of deep snow means that, (5) _______ melted, the snow water would be pure, not salty as sea-ice would be. There is so much (6) ________ pure water here that it would need only a (7) _________ to turn much of the desert or poorly irrigated parts of the world (8) _________ rich farmland. And what useful packages it would come in! It should be possible to hack off a bit of ice and (9) ________ it! Alternatively perhaps a (10) ________ iceberg could be captured. They are always breaking away from the main caps and floating (11) ________, pushed by currents, (12) ________ they eventually melt and are wasted. Many icebergs are, of course, much too small to be towed any distance, and would melt before they reached a country that needed them (13) ________. It would be necessary to harness one that was manageable and that was big enough to provide a good (14) _______ of ice when it reached us. Engineers think that an iceberg up to 11 kilometers long and 2 kilometers wide could be transported if the tug pulling it was as big as a supertanker! Even then they would cover only 32 kilometers every day. However, once the iceberg was at its (15) ______, more than 7,000 million cubic meters of water could be taken from it! 1. A. for B. to C. in D. into 2. A. got B. nice C. available D. possible 3. A. parts B. regions C. countries D. oceans 4. A. of B. on C. upon D. and 5. A. when B. if C. after D. before 6. A. good B. possible C. perpetual D. potential 7. A. factor B. fraction C. framework D. foundation 8. A. to B. in C. into D. at 9. A. transport B. transmit C. transplant D.transcribe 10. A. pass B. passing C. past D. passed 11. A. around B. round C. everywhere D. again 12. A. when B. after C. before D. until 13. A. where B. somewhere C. anywhere D. nowhere 14. A. supply B. usage C. potential D. storage Passage 3 The first experiments (1) ______ teaching chimps to communicate successfully with human beings began in 1996, (2) ______ two American scientists, R. Allen Gardner and his wife Beatrice, started rearing a chimp called Washoe. Together with their assistants, the Gardens always “spoke” to Washoe (and to each other when they were in her (3) ______) in Aslan - American Sign language, used by the (4) ______ in the United States. Aslan uses (5) ______ to represent words or phrases, (6) ______ some other sign languages in which movements of the hand or figures represent (7) ______ letters of the alphabet which slowly build up into words. (8) ______, Aslan can be a rapid means of communication. The Gardeners found that Washoe not only understood Aslan, (9) ______ soon became adept at using it. More important, she was able to use it in a (10) ______ way; for example, having learned the (11) ______ for “open”, she could apply it in different situations. This was one of the first glimpses of the intellectual ability of chimpanzees: that they can (12) _______ certain concepts in a general manner and then use them in particular instances. Other researchers have taught chimpanzees to use complicated “languages” (13) ______ on colored shapes or computer keys. They (14) ______ have discovered that there is nothing wrong with the chimpanzee’s (15) ______ apparatus. Just before Christmas 1974, it was reported from the Yerkes Regional Primate Research Centre, in Atlanta, Georgia, that Lana, a chimpanzee adept at using a computer-keyboard language called “Yerkish”, had started to ask for the names of objects. 1. A. of B. about C. in D. on 2. A. that B. when C. which D. what 3. A. place B. eyesight C. mind D. presence 4. A. deaf B. blind C. handicapped D. limped 5. A. movements B. language C. gestures D. knowledge 6. A. like B. unlike C. as D. following 7. A. all B. separate C. individual D. alone 8. A. Consequently B. Furthermore C. Moreover D. Eventually 9. A. and B. as C. again D. but 10. A. formal B. informal C. imaginable D. creative 11. A. signal B. symbol C. signature D. meaning 12. A. guess B. solve C. possess D. handle 13. A. based B. located C. set D. obtained 14. A. all B. but C. too D. again 15. A. mental B. physical C. logical D. conceptual Passage 4 It was not until the beginning of the twentieth century (1) ______ it was recognized that certain substances were essential in the diet to prevent, or (2) ______ some diseases. These substances are now known (3) ______ vitamins, and they are vital (4) ______ growth, good health, and maintenance of the normal functions of the body. The Hungarian biochemist, Szent-Gyorgyi, who first (5) ______ vitamin C (ascorbic acid), defined the vitamin as “a substance which makes you ill (6) ______ you don’t eat it.” A well-balanced diet should provide all the vitamins we normally require. Those of us who are fortunate enough to be able to buy sufficient food should not suffer (7) ______ vitamin deficiency. (8) ______, for (9) ______ reasons, some people do not maintain a balanced diet. People often lose their appetite because of illness. People living (10) _______ may not bother to eat proper meals, and people on a diet may not eat sufficient (11) ______ of necessary foods. Elderly people are at sick because they may be unable to shop and cook. (12) ______, modern methods of preserving, freezing, and long-term storage (13) ______ food, together with overcooking, can destroy many of the vitamins. Food served in restaurants and canteens has often lost much of its vitamin (14) ______ because it has been kept hot, or even prepared the day before, so you may have problems if you eat out (15) ______. Are you getting enough vitamins? 1. A. when B. as C. that D. since 2. A. diagnose B. treat C. operate D. cute 3. A. like B. as C. for D. to 4. A. to B. for C. as D. with 5. A. invented B. created C. isolated D. got 6. A. if B. when C. since D. although 7. A. by B. from C. to D. for 8. A. However B. Although C. By comparison D. Moreover 9. A. varying B. varied C. variant D. various 10. A. only B. alone C. lonely D. solitude 11. A. quantities B. qualities C. amounts D. values 12. A. However B. Furthermore C. Moreover D. Instead 13. A. for B. with C. of D. in 14. A. value B. amount C. quantity D. content 15. A. alone B. happily C. regularly D. reluctantly Passage 5 Traditional superstitions and beliefs (1) ______ disappear altogether; they assume new forms and (2) ______ to contemporary conditions. (3) ______ in the 21st century, people may dismiss their forefather’s customs and practices as superstition, many are still current. A Friday which falls on the 13th of a month is wildly feared as (4) ______, and so are spilling salt and walking under a ladder. Belief (5) ______ the power of mascots is far from (6) ______; the lucky rabbit’s foot, like the horseshoe, is a popular charm. Certain foods, too, (7) ______ their ancient lore. Many people, for example, accept the old adage “an apple a day keeps the doctor away”. One aspect of traditional (8) ______ which is still very much (9) ______ today is folk medicine. When the causes of illness were totally (10) ______, and disease seemed to strike without any reason, it was often (11) ______ to evil spirits taking over the body. To (12) _______ the patient, the demons of disease must be driven out, and many “cures” were spells and charms intended to exorcise these usurpers. Until (13) _______ modern times, even “official” medicine was very unpleasant, with no anesthetics or pain-killers, and a low success rate. Few people, (14) ______, could afford it, and most relied on folk healers and magic. There was an enormous range of herbal cures, some of which have since been found to have actual healing properties. Charms were worn to ward off disease; and a wild (15) _______ of seemingly strange objects, such as churn furnishings, were credited with powers of healing. 1. A. often B. already C. seldom D. always 2. A. adopt B. adapt C. continue D. go 3. A. But B. Since C. Then D. Although 4. A. lucky B. unlucky C. superstitious D. magic 5. A. in B. of C. about D. for 6. A. alive B. live C. dead D. vanish 7. A. get B. regain C. rewind D. retain 8. A. behavior B. factor C. wonder D. means 9. A. live B. living C. alive D. life 10. A. suspicious B. suspected C. wondered D. unknown 11. A. contributed B. attributed C. achieved D. deteriorated 12. A. diagnose B. treat C. cure D. watch 13. A. comparatively B. very C. recently D. constantly 14. A. in case B. in every case C. in no case D. in any case 15. A. variety B. group C. form D. amount Passage 6 There are many arguments for and against the interview as a selection (1) ______. The main argument against it is that it results (2) _______ a wholly subjective decision. As often as not, employers do not choose the best (3) ______, they choose the person who makes a good first (4) ______ on them. Some employers, of course, reply to this argument by saying that they have become so (5) ______ in interviewing staff that they are able to make a (6) _______ assessment of each candidate’s (7) ______ performance. (8) ______ there is no scientific evidence to support either argument, the value of the interview must remain a matter of personal opinion. The main argument (9) _______ the interview---and it is, perhaps, a good argument---is that an employer is concerned not only (10) ______ a candidate’s ability, but with the suitability of his or her (11) _______ for the particular work situation. Many employers, for example, will overlook occasional inefficiencies from their secretary (12) _______ she has a happy, cheerful, unflappable disposition. And a foreman or supervisor who, through the strength and quality of his personality, is able to get the best out of his (13) _______ will achieve far more for his employer than the most highly-skilled technician who is intensely disliked by the people who have to work for him. It is perhaps true to say, (14) _______, that the real purpose of an interview is not to assess the assessable aspects of each candidate but to make a guess at the more (15) _______ things, such as personality, character, disposition and social ability. 1. A. session B. result C. manner D. procedure 2. A. at B. on C. in D. about 3. A. person B. employee C. candidate D. employer 4. A. impression B. mark C. work D. feeling 5. A. good B. experienced C. top D. organized 6. A. good B. sound C. established D. favored 7. A. likely B. future C. present D. daily 8. A. If B. When C. As D. Although 9. A. in favor B. in favor of C. relying on D. supported 10. A. with B. about C. of D. with 11. A. possibility B. characteristics C. moods D. personality 12. A. but B. since C. provided D. although 13. A. subordinates B. coordinates C. followers D. clients 14. A. since B. but C. therefore D. on the other hand 15. A. inseparable B. intangible C. intelligible D. interchangeable Passage 7 According to current (1) ______, the world’s population, which is doubling every 35 years, will be at or near 14 billion by the year 2030. It is very much doubtful whether the world (2) ______ how to feed this population by then. This population will be very much more (3) ______ than today. Advanced countries are (4) ______ to increase output by a factor of at least five times. (5) ______ countries, backed by roads, airports and power-stations, and (6) ______ to export in order to be able to pay for imported food and skills. Technology itself will have become more sophisticated and various. (7) ______ new materials, even harder to dispose of than glass and plastic, will have been invented. New drugs and pesticides with (8) ______ side-effects will have been invented. New (9) ______ of transport will abound: hovercraft will skim over lakes and commons to (10) ______ the silence of winter. A flurry of rocket-belted enthusiasts will leap about like grass-hoppers, while overhead the skip liners circumnavigating the globe in five or six hours, will emit their (11) ______ booms. More people with more technology (12) _______ more pollution, more environmental distortion and (13) ______ privacy. Much of the damage will come from the (14) ______ which will necessarily be made to feed the ever-increasing number of mouths, and to house their owners. The crash of (15) _______timber, as forests felled, will be echoed by the thunder of explosives, as canals and harbors are blasted into existence. 1. A. figures B. charts C forecasts D. knowledge 2. A. will find out B. has found out C. will be finding out D. will have found out 3. A. industrial B. industrious C. industrialized D. assiduous 4. A. forced B. expected C. known D. foretold 5. A. Developing B. Developed C. Undeveloping D. Undeveloped 6. A. will try B. will be trying C. will have tried D. will have been tried 7. A. Doubtful B. Doubtless C. Doubted D. Undoubted 8. A. suspected B. suspecting C. unsuspected D. unsuspecting 9. A. means B. ways C. methods D. information 10. A. exclude B. include C. affect D. invade 11. A. sonic B. solar C. sunny D. shining 12. A. causes B. lays out C. produces D. spells 13. A. much B. little C. more D. less 14. A. possibilities B. attempts C. awareness D. suggestion 15. A. falling B. fallen C. felling D. felled Passage 8 Education in Britain is primarily the responsibility of local educational authorities (1) ______ the central government lays down guidelines and provides or withholds money. From the end of the Second World War until the 1960s education under state control depended on the “11-plus” examination, (2) _______ by all pupils between the ages of eleven and twelve. The most successful went to grammar schools or direct-grant schools, while (3) ______ went to secondary modern schools. Since the 1960s almost all local (4) ______ have introduced comprehensive schools, where all pupils attend the same school, (5) ______ there is usually an attempt to separate them (6) ______ ability once they are there. Local authorities where the Labor Party is usually in control tend by now to be almost (7) ______ “comprehensive”; those where the Conservatives hold power have been more (8) ______ to the change. Throughout this period the public schools, which are private in all (9) ______ name, have continued to exist, (10) ______ of the state system. Some became direct-grant schools, accepting students who had passed the 11-plus examination and were paid for by local authorities, but this system came to an end in many cases when a Labor-controlled local authority refused to go on paying the grants because of its (11) ______ to comprehensive education. (12) ______ political conviction, there remains a public debate between the supporters of comprehensive schools and those who want to retain or revive grammar schools. For one group the overriding consideration is equality and the need to (13) ______ privilege, (14) ______ it means ruling out any form of parental choice; for the other, the belief that its own children have the best chance of belonging to the educational elite is sufficient reason for (15) ______ it. 1. A. since B. as C. although D. even if 2. A. provided B. taken C. welcomed D. joined 3. A. the other B. the rest C. the remaining D. the latter 4. A. government B. authority C. governors D. authorities 5. A. even though B. since C. whereas D. consequently 6. A. owing to B. thanks to C. by means of D. according to 7. A. well B. far C. completely D. always 8. A. resistible B. irresistible C. resistant D. irresistant 9. A. with B. and C. like D. but 10. A. dependent B. independent C. dependable D. undependable 11. A. commitment B. commission C. communication D. complement 12. A. Thanks to B. Because of C. Owing to D. Since 13. A. illuminate B. eliminate C. enthrall D. engage 14. A. since B. even if C. however D. no wonder 15. A. perplexing B. persisting C. perpetuating D. maintaining Passage 9 A total woman is not a slave. She graciously chooses to (1) ______ to her husband’s way, even though at times she (2) ______ may not want to. He (3) ______ will gratefully respond by trying to make it up to her and (4) _______ her desires. He may even want to spoil her with goodies. Marriage has also been likened to a (5) ______, where the husband is king, and his wife is queen. In a royal marriage, the king’s decision is the final word, for his country and his queen (6) ______. The queen is certainly not his slave, for she knows where her powers lie. She is queen. She, too, sits on a (7) ______. She has the right, and (8) ______ the responsibility, to express her feelings, but of course, she does so in a regal way. (9) ______ the king relies heavily on her judgment, if there is a difference of opinion, it is the king who makes the final decision. What if the king makes the wrong (10) ______? Oh, that’s a hard one, (11) ______ when the queen knows she is right, and there are times when that is the case. The queen is to (12) ______ him forthwith. A queen shall not nag or buck her king’s decision after it is decreed. In so many marriages today, the woman rules the roost. In others, there are two (13) _______ rulers, only the fittest survive. (14) ______ of these cases enhances romance. Emotions are sent plummeting to zero, and the husband is left wondering, “how did I get (15) ______ this mess?” 1. A. adapt B. adopt C. adept D. adjust 2. A. willingly B. cheerfully C. reluctantly D. desperately 3. A. again B. also C. in turn D. then 4. A. ensure B. grant C. provide D. lay 5. A. country B. fashion C. monarchy D. corporation 6. A. too B. also C. just D. alike 7. A. throne B. palace C. place D. country 8. A. also B. in fact C. as well as D. consequently 9. A. Since B. However C. Through D. Contrarily 10. A. idea B. decision C. judgment D. foretelling 11. A. especially B. particularly C. in case D. even 12. A. admit B. follow C. argue with D. deny 13. A. equal B. co-equal C. identical D. same 14. A. Every B. One C. Either D. None 15. A. under B. into C. round D. through Passage 10 There is probably no sphere of human activity (1) ______ which our values and lifestyles are reflected more vividly than they are in the clothes that we choose to wear. The dress of an individual is a kind of “sign language” that communicates a complex set of information and is usually the basis on which immediate impressions are formed. (2) ______, a concern for clothes was considered to be a feminine preoccupation, (3) ______ men took pride in the fact that they were completely lacking in clothes (4) ______. This type of culture is gradually changing as (5) ______ dress takes on greater (6) _____ and color. Even as early as 1955, a research in Michigan, America revealed that men (7) ______ rather high importance to the value of clothing in daily life. White collar workers (8) _____ viewed dress as a symbol capable of (9) ______, that could be used to impress or influence others, especially in the work situation. The white collar worker was described as extremely concerned (10) ______ the impression his clothing made on his superiors. (11) ______ blue-collar workers were less aware that they might be judged on the basis of their clothing, they recognized that any difference from the accepted pattern of dress would draw ridicule from fellow workers. (12) ______ that time, of course, the patterns have changed: the typical office worker may now be wearing the blue shirt, and the laborer a white shirt; but the importance of dress has not (13) ______, and it has in recent years helped to (14) _____ its significance in the lives of individuals at various age levels and in different social and economic (15) ______ groups. 1. A. for B. on C. in D. with 2. A. Usually B. Probably C. Generally D. Traditionally 3. A. and B. white C. for D. therefore 4. A. conscience B. care C. consciousness D. caution 5. A. female B. male C. feminine D. masculine 6. A. variety B. variation C. transmutation D. permutation 7. A. connected B. integrated C. attached D. combined 8. A. in addition B. in case C. in particular D. in effect 9. A. anticipation B. manipulation C. appreciation D. verification 10. about B. with C. to D. for 11. A. Moreover B. Since C. While D. Although 12. A. At B. In C. For D. Since 13. A. diminished B. dwindled C. declined D. deflated 14. A. set B. establish C. build D .base 15. A. stature B. statue C. state D. status VI. WRITING Section A Composition Writing Directions: Write a composition of 150-200 words in about 30 minutes on each of the following 10 topics. Follow the instructions closely. Topic 1 Means of transportation have developed greatly these years. Passengers now have a wide variety of choices of traveling, such as by land, by sea or by air. Write a composition on the following topic: My Favorite Means of Transportation You are to write in three parts. In the first part, state you favorite means of transportation. In the second part, give one or two reasons to illustrate your point. In the last part, bring what you have written to a natural conclusion or a summary. Topic 2 Everyone has a colorful childhood, comprising happiness, sorrow, interest as well as wonder. Please describe an unforgettable event that has happened in your childhood. Write a composition on the following topic: An Unforgettable Event in My Childhood You are to write in three parts. In the first part, state what this event was. In the second part, give a vivid description of it. In the last part, bring what you have written to a natural conclusion or a summary. Topic 3 The Chinese New Year is the most important holiday in china. Traditionally, the whole family will have a get-together, chatting and eating. However, some Chinese people are trying to celebrate this holiday in a new way, such as traveling. Write a composition on the following topic: A Good Way to Celebrate the Chinese New Year You are to write in three parts. In the first part, suggest a good way to celebrate Chinese New Year. In the second part, give one or two reasons to support your idea. In the last part, bring what you have written to a natural conclusion or a summary. Topic 4 Many places in china have changed greatly these years. Please compare the past and the present of your hometown. Write a composition on the following topic: My Hometown, in the Past and at Present You are to write in three parts. In the first part, give a brief introduction of your hometown. In the second part, make a comparison and contrast of what it looked like in the past and that at present. In the last part, bring what you have written to a natural conclusion or a summary. Topic 5 So far, you must have met a lot of people. Some of them are friendly, some are strict, some are kind, and some are hostile. Among them, there must be certain people who have left a deep impression on you. Write a composition on the following topic: The Person That Impresses Me Most You are to write in three parts. In the first part, state briefly who the person is. In the second part, give one or two examples to describe him/her in detail. In the last part, bring what you have written to a natural conclusion or a summary. Topic 6 Chinese people are more and more aware of the importance of learning English. Thus, a variety of English training programs have developed and a great number of people attend them. Write a composition on the following topic: My View on the English-learning Craze in China You are to write in three parts. In the first part, state clearly your viewpoint on English-learning craze in China. In the second part, give one or two reasons to support your idea. In the last part, bring what you have written to a natural conclusion or a summary. Topic 7 Computer has been widely used in our daily life. People use it for education, for work, for entertainment, etc. Why do you usually use computer? Write a composition on the following topic: One Major Use of Computer in My Life You are to write in three parts. In the first part, describe briefly one major use of computer in your life. In the second part, illustrate the reason why you use it this way and how you use it. In the last part, bring what you have written to a natural conclusion or a summary. Topic 8 You must have got an idea as to what to do after graduation. But have you ever considered how to make good preparations so that you will be fulfilled? Write a composition on the following topic: How to Prepare for My Future Career You are to write in three parts. In the first part, state what career you would like to pursue after graduation. In the second part, illustrate in detail how you should prepare for it. In the last part, bring what you have written to a natural conclusion or a summary. Topic 9 We Chinese people are getting more and more wealthy. Is it still necessary for us to practice thrift, our traditional value? Write a composition on the following topic: My View on the Practicing Thrift You are to write in three parts. In the first part, state clearly your viewpoint on this issue. In the second part, support your viewpoints with details. In the last part, bring what you have written to a natural conclusion or a summary. Topic 10 China has already entered an old-age society. However, many senior citizens feel at a loss after retirement. They may feel quite lonely or even lose heart. Therefore, they should be encouraged to have a colorful life. Write a composition on the following topic: Senior Citizens Should Pursue a Colorful Life You are to write in three parts. In the first part, state what the topic usually means to you. In the second part, support your viewpoint with details or examples. In the last part, bring what you have written to a natural conclusion or a summary. Section B Note-writing Directions: Write a note of about 50-60words based on each of the following 10 situations. Situation 1 Your friend Jimmy has invited you to attend his house-warming party to be held this weekend. But you will have something urgent to do then. Write him a note to decline his invitation and also show your regrets. Situation 2 You go to visit your former teacher Mr. li, but he is out. Write him a note of regret and request another meeting. You should also suggest the exact time for the meeting. Situation 3 Your classmate Amy is down with flu these days and is staying home. Write her a note of to ask after her health and give her some suggestions on how to recover soon. Situation 4 Your nephew John has succeeded in getting his MA degree. Write him a note of congratulation and also give him some suggestions on what to do in the future. Situation 5 Your uncle Ron died in a car crash at the age of 35, leaving his wife Maggie and a little son Jimmy. Write them a note of condolence and also offer your help. Situation 6 You are going to hold a party in a famous restaurant to celebrate your 20th birthday this coming Sunday. Invite your best friend Lynn and also tell her how to get to the restaurant. Situation 7 Your supervisor Processor Whitley has arranged to discuss with you your thesis this Friday afternoon. But you will have something important to do that day. Write him a note to cancel the appointment and suggest another meeting. Situation 8 You borrowed a bike from your classmate Alan, but it was broken the first time you rode it. Write him a note of apology and tell him what you are going to do with the bike. Situation 9 Your desk-mate William will go to the USA for further study. You are going to hold a farewell party for him. Write him a note, telling him about the arrangement of the party and expressing your wish to keep in touch with him in the future. Situation 10 Your former teacher Mr. Wang has helped you get a part-time job. Write him a note of thanks and also offer your help since he has just moved into a new house and has got a lot of things to do.