Becoming more popular in North America is Iceberg Water, which is harvested from icebergs off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada．

Arthur von Wiesenberger is one of the few water critics in North America．As a boy, he spent time in the larger cities of Italy, France and Switzerland, where bottled water is consumed daily．Even then, he kept a record of the brands he liked best．"My dog could tell the difference between bottled and tap water," He says．

But is plain tap water all that bad? Not at all．In fact．New York's drinking water for more than a century was called the champagne of tap water and until recently considered among the best in the world in terms of both taste and purity．Similarly, a magazine in England found that tap water from the Thames River tasted better than several leading brands of bottled water that were 400 times more expensive．

However, soft-drink companies view bottled water as the next battle-ground for market share, as bottlers and restaurateurs are longing for the profits from it．A restaurant's typical mark-up （加价） on wine is 100 to 150 percent, while on bottled water it's often 300 to 500 percent．As a result, some restaurants are trying to sell more bottled water．Some of the more shameless tactics（手段） include putting attractive bottles on the table for a visual sell, listing brands on the menu without prices, and pouring bottled water without even asking the diners whether they want it．

Regardless of how it's sold, the popularity of bottled water taps into our desire for better health, our wish to appear educated, and even a longing for lost purity．

68．By saying “My dog could tell the difference between bottled and tap water", Arthur von Wiesenberger suggests that ______．

       A．bottled water is superior to tap water

       B．plain tap water is certainly unfit for drinking

       C．bottled water often appeals more to dogs' taste

       D．dogs can usually distinguish a fine difference in taste

69．According to the passage, why is bottled water so popular?

       A．It is much cheaper than wine．

       B．It is more widely promoted in the market．

       C．It appeals to well educated people．

       D．It is considered healthier．

70．Why are some restaurants willing to sell bottled water?

       A．Bottled water brings in huge profits．

       B．Competition from the wine industry is fierce．

       C．Most diners find bottled water affordable．

       D．Bottled water satisfied diners' desire to be fashionable．

A year ago, at the annual pre-Grammy party, Whitney Houston, the great star, walked on stage and closed the evening with a brilliant performance．

Last Saturday, Houston was once again the focus before the Grammy, but her presence was a regrettable one．Earlier that day, the pop music's former queen was found dead in her hotel room．She was 48．This, no doubt, is sad news to the whole music industry and her fans all over the world．

At her peak, Houston was the golden girl of the music world．From the mid-1980s to the late 1990s, she was one of the world's best-selling artists．She impressed audiences with her effortless, powerful and peerless performance．

Besides multi-million record sales, Houston made countless hits such as The Greatest Love of All, I Ha-oe Nothing , and the mostly famous I Will Always Love You．She also influenced a generation of younger singers, from Christina Aguilera to Mariah Carey．

       But by the end of her career, there was a shocking fall for this superstar．Houston had been addicted to drugs．Her album sales declined and the hits stopped coming and her once beautiful voice became hoarse （嘶哑的）, unable to hit the high notes as she used to．

In 2009, Houston staged a successful comeback with the album I Look To You, which fell on top of the charts．But hoarse voice, canceled concerts, and continuous illness-Houston's comeback trail wasn't smooth at all．In an interview with Oprah Winfreyin2009, Houston admitted: "It （show business） is too much for me and I wanted out．"

       Now that Houston has finally taken a break from all the chaos, may she rest in peace．

64．Whitney Houston died ______．

       A．shortly before the Grammy this year     B．earlier last Sunday

       C．a year ago                        D．at the annual pre-Grammy party

65．The underlined word "peerless" in Paragraph 3 most probably means ______．

       A．having great power                   B．having no equal

       C．requiring no effort                   D．leaving no impression

66．The cause of the fall of Whitney Houston was that _____ ．

       A．her album sales declined

       B．show business was too much for her

       C．her once beautiful voice became hoarse

       D．she had been addicted to drugs

67．Whitney Houston's achievements include the following except that     .

       A．She made countless hits such as I Have Nothing

       B．She influenced a generation of younger singers

       C．She became the focus before the Grammy this year

       D．She staged a successful comeback in 2009

Articles in magazines and newspapers and special reports on radio and television reflect the concern of many Americans about the increasing dropout rate in our junior and senior high schools．Coupled with this fact is the warning that soon we will no longer have workforce to fill the many jobs that require properly-educated personnel．

The highest student dropout rate is not a recent development．Ten years ago, many urban schools were reporting dropout rates between 35 and 50 percent．Some administrators believe that dropout remains the single greatest problem in their schools．

Consequently, much effort has been spent on identifying students with problems in order to give them more attention before they become failures．Since the dropout problem doesn't only start in senior high school, special programs in junior high school focus on students who show promise but have a record of truancy, that is, staying away from school without permission．Under the guidance of counselors （顾问）, these students are placed in classes with teachers who have had success in working with similar young people．Ways to motivate students in high school include rewarding academic excellence by electing scholars of the month, or by giving out clothing, such as school letter jackets formally given only to athletes．No one working with these students claims to know how to keep all students in school．Counselors, teachers, and administrators are in the frontlines of what seems at times to be a losing battle．Actually, this problem should be everyone's concern, since uneducated, unemployed citizens affect us all．

60．In junior high schools, much attention is paid to students who     .

       A．do not show any interest in study

       B．always behave badly during school time

       C．seem not to be hardworking in study

       D．are absent from school although promising

61．Which of the following can NOT help solve the dropout problem in schools?

       A．Guidance of counselors．

       B．Keeping them in school all day．

       C．Rewarding academic excellence．

       D．Experienced teachers in dealing with such students．

62．What can we infer from the passage?

       A．Dropout problems only exist in senior high schools in America．

       B．Despite the high dropout rates, America will not lack educated personnel．

       C．Educators are not confident in keeping students from dropping out．

       D．Dropout rates in many urban schools reached 35 to 50 percent ten years ago．

63．What is the passage mainly about?

       A．Dropout problem in America．           B．National concern over high schools．

       C．Workforce shortage in America．         D．High school dropout problem．

Last year, around Labor Day, I read a "Happy Ad" in our local newspaper．There was a lady in a local nursing home, who was celebrating her 90th birthday and her family wanted everyone to know about it．It said that if you wanted to drop her a line, here was her address．So I did．I found a birthday card and dropped her a short note, wishing her a happy birthday．

A week or so later, someone knocked at my front door．I opened the door and found a middle-aged man standing on my doorstep．He introduced himself as the son of this woman to whom I had sent the card．He explained that he just wanted to drop by in person and thank me for sending such a nice card to his mom．Apparently, like many older folks, she did not receive much mail and was quite excited to receive mine．I just didn't know what to say．I told him it was my pleasure and that I hoped his mom had enjoyed her birthday．

That year, I did not send out any Christmas cards, except to this lovely old lady in the nursing home．I just told her that I was thinking about her and hoped that she had a nice holiday．I sent her a Valentine and also a couple of notes in between．I just thought she might like to have someone write to her, to get some mail．

She passed away a couple of months ago．I never met this lady, but I did keep her and her family in my thoughts．I dropped them a line of sympathy．I hope that my few little notes were enough to brighten a couple of her days here on earth．

56．The old lady's address was given because       .

       A．her family wanted to make her well-known

       B．the old lady wanted to receive a birthday card

       C．the son of the old lady wanted to meet the author

       D．her family wanted to give her a happy birthday

57．How many times did the author write to the lovely old lady?

       A．Only once．                               B．Twice．

       C．Three times．                              D．More than three times．

58．Which of the following best describes the author?

       A．Brave．               B．Polite．              C．Caring．         D．Faithful．

59．Which of the following is the best title for the passage?

       A．A Kind Act                                  B．An Old Lady

       C．A Happy Ad                          D．A Considerate Son

Patti discovered the meaning of running when she was 23．At that time she was smoking two packs of cigarettes a day and had　 36 over 50 pounds．"I decided to 37 ," she says．She took a clock and started　 38　 what she did every day, and then she 39 an hour a day as a "be nice to Patti "hour．"I started having bubble（泡沫） baths with　 40　 lit, because Cosmopolitan Magazine　 41　 that this would be good for me．But I got　 42　 of that soon, "Patti remembers．She wanted to do something really pleasant．She found that the 43　 times in her life were times when she was physically active．So she took up 44 ．

She decided to start 　45 the next day．She ran for an hour, 　46 a total of 7 miles on her first run．"I couldn't walk for two weeks 　47 I felt painful all over!" Patti recalls （回忆）．"But I felt so wonderful!" Patti wasn't crazy about running yet, but she was in　 48　 with the after effects of running．

Within seven months, Patti had run her first marathon, qualified for the Boston Marathon, and placed 25th in the world for　 49　 distance runners．Over the next years, she 　50　 records and set standards for women in the sport．She was the first American woman to run a 2：30 marathon, and then broke 　51　 two records　 52　 an 8—month period．

Patti 　53　 that, if we can set standards for ourselves, we can pull ourselves out of the most difficult 　54　 and come out on top．"Everybody has to be a champion（冠军） and 　55　 has that in them．"

36．A．lost　　　　　 B．earned　　　　　 　 C．gained　　　　　 D．reduced

37．A．cry　　　　　 B．move　　　　　 　 C．walk　　　　　 D．change

38．A．striking　　　 　 B．recording　　　　 　 C．sharing　　　　 　 D．collecting

39．A．set aside　　 　 B．set up C．set out D．set about

40．A．lamps　　　　 B．fires　　　　　　 C．candles　　　　 　 D．cigarettes

41．A．spoke　　　 　 B．said　　　　　　 　 C．wrote　　　　　 　　　　　　　　　　　 D．went

42．A．afraid　　　　 B．fond　　　　　　 　 C．tired　　　　　　 D．ashamed

43．A．saddest　　　 　 B．happiest　　　　 　 C．loneliest　　　　 D．luckiest

44．A．smoking　　 　 B．bathing　　　 　　　 C．dieting　　　　　 D．running

45．A．right　　　　 B．only　　　　　　 　 C．even　　　　 　　　 D．again

46．A．covering　　 　 B．spreading　　　　 　 C．passing　　　　 D．overcoming

47．A．but　 　　　　　　　 B．although　　　　 　　 C．while　　　　　 D．because

48．A．peace　　　　 B．line　　　　　　 　 C．love　　　　　 　 D．touch

49．A．men　　　　 B．women　　　　 　　 C．adults　　　　　 D．children

50．A．kept　　　　 B．held　　　　　　 　 C．broke　　　　　 　　　　　　　　　　　　 D．cleared

51．A．another　　　 　 B．other　　　　　 　　 C．else　　　　　 　 D．more

52．A．for　　　　　 B．on　　　　　　　 　 C．at　　　　　　 　 D．over

53．A．believes　　　 　 B．imagines　　　　 　　 C．requires　　　　 　　　　　　　　　　　　 D．hopes

54．A．pleasures　　 B．challenges　　　 　　 C．pities　　　　 　　 D．purposes

55．A．anybody　　 　 B．nobody　　　　 　　 C．somebody　　 　 D．everybody

—I forgot my mother's birthday!

— ? Better keep it in mind next year．

　　　 A．I'm afraid so．　　　　　　　　　 B．So what?

　　　 C．You did? D．No wonder．

The girl, with her head ______ slightly forward, sat silently near the piano．

       A．bent              B．being bent             C．bending           D．to be bent

—Children today find it hard to focus on study．

—Exactly, as they ______ so many fun things to do．

A．found　　　 　 B．have found　　 　　　 C．had found　　　 　 D．will find

—Have you found the person you want?

—Not yet．Experienced salesmen are ______ these days．

　　　 A．few　　　　 　 B．bare　　　　　　 　 C．usual　　　　　 D．rare

The dancers, ______ masks came off suddenly, gave us a great surprise．

       A．all of their         B．all of whose           C．all of which        D．all of whom