Mere is an astonishing and significant fact: Mental work alone can’t make us tired. It sounds absurd. But a few years ago, scientists tried to find out how long the human brain could labor without reaching a stage of fatigue (疲劳).To the amazement of these scientists, they discovered that blood passing through the brain, when it is active,shows no fatigue at all! If we took a drop of blood from a day laborer, we would find it full of fatigue toxins (毒素)and fatigue products. But if we took blood from the brain of an Albert Einstein, it would show no fatigue toxins at the end of the day.

So far as the brain is concerned, it can work as well and swiftly at the end of eight or even twelve hours of effort as at the beginning. The brain is totally tireless. So what makes us tired?

Some scientists declare that most of our fatigue comes from our mental and emotional (情感的)attitudes. One of England’s most outstanding scientists, J. A. Hadfield,says, “The greater part of the fatigue from which we suffer is of mental origin. In fact, fatigue of purely physical origin is rare.” Dr. Brill, a famous American scientist, goes even further. He declares, “One hundred percent of the fatigue of a sitting worker in good health is due to emotional problems.”

What kinds of emotions make sitting workers tired? Joy? Satisfaction? No! A feeling of being bored, anger, anxiety, tenseness, worry, a feeling of not being appreciated - those are the emotions that tire sitting workers. Hard work by itself seldom causes fatigue. We get tired because our emotions produce nervousness in the body.

64. What surprised the scientists a few years ago?

A.        Fatigue toxins could hardly be found in a laborer’s blood.

B.        Albert Einstein didn’t feel worn out after a day’s work.

C.       The brain could work for many hours without fatigue.

D.       A mental worker’s blood was filled with fatigue toxins.

65. According to the author, which of the following can make sitting workers tired?

A.        Challenging mental work.

B.        Unpleasant emotions.

C.       Endless tasks.

D.       Physical labor.

66. What's the author’s attitude towards the scientists’ ideas?

A.        He agrees with them.

B.        He doubts them.

C.       He argues against them.

D.       He hesitates to accept them.

67. We can infer from the passage that in order to stay energetic, sitting workers need to _____ .

A.        have some good food

B.        enjoy their work

C.       exercise regularly

D.       discover fatigue toxins

I'm from the South Bronx. At 7, my neighborhood was the beginning and end of my universe. It was a small town to me. Everyone knew each other, so if you got into trouble in school, chances are your mom knew about it before you got home. I felt watched over and safe.
But just before I turned 8, things began to change. I watched two buildings on my block burn down. I remember seeing my neighbor Pito go up and down the fire escape to get people out. Where were the firemen? Where was the truck? Somebody must have called them.
That same summer, after serving two tours in Vietnam, my brother was killed in the South Bronx. He was shot above the left eye and died instantly.  
People who could moved out of the neighborhood, and all I wanted to do was get out, too. I used education to get away from there and got good at avoiding the topic of where I was from. To be from the South Bronx meant that you were not a good person. It felt like a stain.
After college, I didn't want to come back to the South Bronx, but in order to afford graduate school, I had to. I was almost 30 and could only afford to live at my parents' home. It felt like a defeat, and I hated it.
At the same time, the city was planning a huge waste facility here, and no one seemed to care — including many of us who lived here. They were like, "Well, it's a poor community; what's the difference?"
I was very angry. It drove me to act. It moved my spirit in a way that I didn't know was possible. And it changed my beliefs — it changed the way I felt about myself and my community. I worked hard with others who felt the same way, and together, we defeated the plan.
After that, I realized it's just as important to fight for something as it is to fight against something. So we dreamed up a new park on the site of an illegal waste dump — and after many community clean-ups, along with $3 million from the city, we have one. And it's a glory. It was the seed from which many new plans for our community have grown.
Today, the South Bronx is no longer a stain; it's a badge(象征) of honor for me. I believe that where I'm from helps me to really see the world. Today, when I say I'm from the South Bronx, I stand up straight. This is home, and it always will be.
41. Paragraphs 2 and 3 make the readers believe ____________.

A. the author felt watched over and safe
B. he author’s brother was a bad man
C. the author’s neighbor Pito was braver than a fireman
D. the author felt his hometown was not a safe place to live in
42. The author went back to the South Bronx after college because ____________.
A. he couldn’t afford to live without his parents’ help
B. he loved his hometown very much
C. he was defeated in studies at college
D. he almost reached the age of 30
43. The underlined sentences(Paragraph 2) imply that ____________.
A. the author wondered where the firemen and the truck were
B. the author wanted someone to call the firemen
C. the firemen didn’t come to help although called
D. the firemen didn’t find a place to park the truck
44. What does the author want to convey in the passage?
A. Great changes have taken place in the South Bronx.
B. The South Bronx is a beautiful place.  
C. You can make a difference to your hometown if you act.
D. Everyone should love his hometown.

Being the head of a high school for many years, I grew tired of budget meeting, funding cuts, and many other administrative chores (杂务). I started to dream of retirement. Sitting in traffic on a weekday morning, I would find my mind wandering, I would imagine spending time with my grandchildren, quiet evenings with my wife, traveling, or rediscovering some great books. I told myself that I wouldn’t sign myself up for any committees, any classes, or anything requiring a schedule.
My first day of retirement came at last! I cooked a great break fast for my wife and me, leisurely read the paper, cleaned a bit of the house, and wrote a few letters to friends. On the
second day, I cooked breakfast, read the paper … On the third day, … This is retirement? I tried to tell myself that it was just the transition(过渡), that those golden moments were right round the corner, and that I would enjoy them soon enough, But something was missing.
A former colleague asked a favor. A group of students was going to Jamaica to work  with children in the poorest neighborhoods. Would I interrupt my newfound “happiness” and return to the students, just this once? One trip. That’s all, My bags were packed and by the door.
The trip was very inspiring. I was moved not only by the poverty I saw but also by the sense of responsibility of the young people on the trip. When I returned home, I offered to work one day a week with a local youth organization. The experience was so positive that I was soon volunteering nearly full-time, working with students across North America to assist them in their voluntary work.
Now, it seems, the tables have turned. Some days I am the teacher, other days I am the student. These young people have reawakened my commitment  (责任感)  to social justice issues by challenging me to learn more about the situation in the world today, where people are still poor and suffer because of greed, corruption and war, Most important, they have given me the opportunity to continue to participate in helping to find solutions. In return, I help them do their charitable projects overseas. I’ve gone from running one school to helping oversee the construction of schools in twenty-one countries!
60.What did the writer expect to do after he retired?
A. To stay away from busy schedules.          B. To write some great books.
C. To do some voluntary work                D. To plan for his future.
61.Why did the writer decide to go to Jamaica?
A. He missed his students in that country.      B. He couldn’t refuse his colleague’s favor.
C. He was not satisfied with his retired life.    D. He was concerned about the people there.
62.The underlined part “the tables have turned”(Paragraph 5) means that the writer        .
A. improved the situation in his school   B. felt happy to work with students again
C. became a learner rather than a teacher    D. changed his attitude toward his retired life
63.What does the writer think of his retired life now?
A. Disappointing     B. Meaningful      C. Promising            D. Troublesome

The most important use of drifting (漂流) bottles is to find ocean currents. When the position and direction of currents are known, ships can use the forward movement of a current or stay away from currents that would carry them off their course. Benjamin Franklin was one of the first to use bottles in the study of currents. He wondered why British mall ships needed a week or two longer than U.S. ships needed in order to cross the Atlantic Ocean. Franklin thought the Gulf Stream (墨西哥湾流) might explain this difference.
Franklin talked with captains of U.S. ships. He found that they knew each turn of the Gulf Stream. They used the current in every possible way. From his talks with the captains. Franklin made his first map of the Gulf Stream. Then he checked his map by using sealed (密封的) bottles. The map that he finally made is still used, with only a few changes, today. 
【小题1】 Why are drifting bottles used?

A.To determine the position of a ship
B.To carry message across the ocean
C.To predict the direction of a ship.
D.To find the direction of a current
【小题2】What led Franklin to talk with U.S. captains?
A.U.S. ships were longer than British ones.
B.British ships could sail the Atlantic faster than U.S. ones.
C.U.S captains knew more about maps.
D.U.S. ships could sail the Atlantic faster than U.S. ones.
【小题3】What did Franklin make after his talks with U.S. captains?
A.A map of the Atlantic Ocean.B.A map of the Gulf Stream..
C.A map of ocean currents.D.A map of his first voyage.
【小题4】What did Franklin do in order to make an exact map?
A. He compared his own map with other maps
B. He talked with many U.S. captains.
C. Both B and C.
D. He used drifting bottles to check his map.


第二节:阅读下列材料, 从所给的六个选项(A、B、C、D、E、和F) 中,选出符合各小题要求的最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。选项中有一项是多余选项。
It was coming up on Mother’s Day, and John usually tried to make it “back home”, but this year he was just too tired. He was in a small town just outside of Little Rock when he drove by a flower shop. He said to himself. “I know what I will do, I’ll send Mom some roses.”
He went into the small shop and saw a young boy talking to the clerk. “How many roses can I get for six dollars, ma’am?” The boy asked. The clerk was trying to explain that roses were expensive. Maybe the young man would be happy with carnations.
“No. I have to have roses,” he said. “My Mom was sick so much last year and I didn’t get to spend much time with her. I want to get something special. It has to be red roses, because that’s her favourite.”
The clerk looked up at John and was just shaking her head. Something inside of John was touched by the boy’s voice. He wanted to get those roses so bad. John had been blessed in his business, and he looked at the clerk and silently mouthed that he would pay for the boy’s roses.
The clerk looked at the young man and said, “Okay, I will give you a dozen red roses for your six dollars.” The young man almost jumped into the air. He took the flowers and ran from the store. It was worth the extra thirty-five dollars just to see that kind of excitement.
John ordered his own flowers and had the clerk to be sure that delivery would include a note telling his mother how much he loved her. As he drove away from the shop, he was feeling very good. He caught a light about two blocks from the shop. As he waited at the light, he saw the young boy walking down the sidewalk. He watched him cross the street and enter a park through two huge gates. Suddenly, he realized it wasn't a park. It was a cemetery(墓地). He saw the young man stop by a small monument and go to his knees. He carefully laid the roses on the grave and began to cry.
As he cried, John heard the young man speak, “Mommy, oh Mommy, why didn’t I tell you how much I love you. Why didn’t I tell you one more time? Jesus, please, find my Mommy. Tell my Mommy I love her."
John turned, tears in his eyes, and walked back to his car. He drove quickly to the flower shop and told her he would take the flowers personally. He wanted to be sure and tell his Mother one more time just how much he loved her.
1. How much money did the young man’s flowers altogether cost?
A. 41 dollars      B. 6 dollars      C. 35 dollars       D.29 dollars 
2. What’s the main reason that John helped the young man pay the roses?
A. Because he had a lot of money.
B. Because they are good friends.
C. Because he was moved by what the young man said.
D. Because he likes to help others.
3. According to the passage, which sentence is true?
A. The young man’s mother has passed away.
B. The young man often tells his mother that he loves her.
C. John often goes home to visit his mother.
D. John doesn’t love his mother.
4. What can we infer from the last paragraph?
A. He will have the flowers delivered to his mother.
B. He will send the flowers to his mother himself.
He decided to buy more flowers.
He will not buy the flowers.

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