Some houses are designed to be smart. Others have smart designs. An example of the second type of house won an Award of Excellence from the American Institutes of Architects.

       At first sight, the house on Sullvan’s Island looks anything but hurricane-proof. Its redwood shell makes it resemble “a large party lantern” at night, according to one observer. But looks can be cheating. The house’s wooden frame is reinforced with long steel bars to give it extra strength.

       To further protect the house from hurricane damage, Huff raised it 2.7 meters off the ground on timber pilings – long, slender columns of wood anchored deep in the sand. Pilings might appear insecure, but they are strong enough to support the weight of the house. They also elevate the house above storm attacks. The pilings allow the waves to run under the house instead of running into it. “These swells of water come on shore at tremendous speeds and cause most of the damage done to beach-front buildings,” said Huff.

       Huff designed the timber pilings to be partly masked by the house’s ground-to-roof shell. “The shell masks the pilings so that the house doesn’t look like it’s standing with its pant legs pulled up,” said Huff. In the event of a storm surge, the shell should break apart and let the waves rush under the house, the architect explained.

1.After the tragedy caused by Hurricane Hugo, new ho uses built along South Carolina’s shore line are required            .

       A．to be easily reinforced                          B．to look smarter in design

       C．to meet stricter building standards         D．to be designed in the shape of cubes

2.The award-winning beach house is quite strong because          .

       A．it is strengthened by steel bars               B．it is made of redwood

       C．it is in the shape of a shell                    D．it is built with stone and concrete

3.Huff raised the house 2.7 meters off the ground on timber pilings in order to            .

       A．withstand peak winds of about 200 km/hr

       B．strike stronger pilings keep into the sand

       C．break huge sea waves into smaller ones

       D．prevent water from rushing into the house

4.The main function of the shell is              .

       A．to strengthen the pilings of the house

       B．to give the house a better appearance

       C．to protect the wooden frame of the house

       D．to slow down the speed of the swelling water

第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）

阅读下列短文，从每题材所给的四个选项A、B、C、D、中，选出最佳选项

A few weeks after Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf coast, the Texas school where I teach collected furniture and other household items for a family from Louisiana that had lost everything. I thought of how sad it would be to lose all of the things that held so many priceless memories. Nothing could ever really replace a memory. I prayed I would be able to help the family in some ways , and at least give them practical things they could use.

I had a couple of old chairs in the house, and went into the spare bedroom to dig them out. Then I saw the wooden rocking chair(摇椅) in the corner. Deep brown , with a unique pattern of fruits and leaves edged in gold on the back. I’d never seen another like it. I used to rock my son to sleep in it when he was a baby. Talking about memories, I could never bear to part with that rocker.  http://wx.jtyjy.com/

But a feeling suddenly swept over me. Give it away. “Do you really want to do this?” my husband asked. I said firmly, “Yes!” He helped me load the rocking chair into my car. “Doesn’t it hold sentimental(情感的)value for you?” I couldn’t explain it. I took the rocker to the school the next day. The woman in charge of the donations(捐赠品)for the Louisiana family loaded it into the back of her truck.

The very next day at school, the woman in charge came rushing into my classroom. “Angie, I have to tell you a story about that rocking chair!” she said.

The family was grateful for every single item we’d donated, they told her. Then they saw the rocker. Everyone stopped and stared. Then the granddaughter cried out, “Grandma, look! It’s your rocking chair!”  http://wx.jtyjy.com/

My rocking chair was exactly like the one they had lost in the hurricane, the one that held their sweetest memories.

56. Why did the author feel sympathy for the family that had lost everything?

A. They met Hurricane Katrina.

B. They had no furniture and other items to use.

C. They lost the things holding memories.

D. They had to rebuild their house.

57. When thinking of having used the rocking chair the author     .

A. decided to give it away                          B. asked her husband for advice

C. liked it more than before                        D. hated to part with it

58. We can infer from the passage that the author’s husband      .

A. didn’t support the author’s social work    B. didn’t agree to donate the chair

C. thought the rocking chair valuable          D. could understand what she thought then

59. What’s the best title for this passage?

A. A good deed for a homeless family                B. Comfort a family with a gift of memories

C. A piece of furniture donated to a family          D. We all need the rocking chair

My goddaughter, Shari, owns The Berry Factory in Sacramento, California, and her mother, Joan, and I were helping with the Valentine’s Day rush. We’d dipped hundreds of berries, arranged gift baskets and packaged orders to be   36    around the country.
By the end of the day, the two middle-aged women, Joan and I, were exhausted. But Shari didn’t seem tired. That was   37  Shari.   38 she was very busy, I’d seen her give away berries to everyone—parking attendants, mail carriers and hairdressers. “For me?” they would say, bursting into    39  .
 40 a“thank you”, Shari took us out for dinner. But there was a 45-munite  41  at her favorite restaurant. “No big   42  . There’s another place just up the road,” she said, driving up there. This time we walked right   43  .
When the waitress came to   44   our drink orders, Shari    45   into her handbag, pulling something out. “ I want you to have these,” she said,   46  the waitress a box of chocolate-dipped strawberries. “ She will love those berries!” I thought.   47   the waitress seemed very surprised instead. She only let out a “thank you”  48  grabbing the box and rushing into the kitchen.
A few minutes later, the waitress returned    49  our iced tea. “ I apologize,” she said. “ My best friend and I had   50  to send each other something every Valentine’s Day. But she    51   last year. I didn’t know how I’d    52   this day without her. Then you handed me that box.”
“ I’m so sorry to hear that,” said Shari. “ It’s not much, but I hope you can   53  them.”
“ Oh, I will,” the waitress said. “ See, every year we   54  sent each other the same thing: a box of chocolate-dipped strawberries bought from our favorite store, The Berry    55   .”

My granddaughter, Shari, owns The Berry (莓果) Factory in Sacramento, California, and her mother, Joan, and I were helping with the Valentine’s Day rush. We’d dipped (浸泡) hundreds of berries, arranged gift baskets and packaged orders to be shipped around the country.
By the end of the day, the two middle-aged women, Joan and I, were exhausted. Shari didn’t seem tired. That was typical Shari. Though she was very busy, I’d seen her give away berries to everybody — parking attendants, mail carriers and hairdressers. “For me?” they would say, bursting into a smile.
As a “thank you”, Shari took us out for dinner. But there was a 45-minute wait at her favorite restaurant. “No big deal. There’s another place just up the road,” she said, driving us there. This time we walked right in.
When the waitress came to take our drink orders, Shari reached into her handbag, pulling something out. “I want you to have these,” she said, handing the waitress a box of chocolate-dipped strawberries. “She will love those berries!” I thought. But the waitress seemed startled. She only let out a “thank you” before grabbing the box and rushing into the kitchen.
A few minutes later, the waitress returned with our iced tea. “I apologize,” she said. “My best friend and I had promised to send each other something every Valentine’s Day. But she passed away last year. I didn’t know how I’d get through this day without her. Then you handed me that box.”“I’m so sorry to hear that,” said Shari. “It’s not much, but I hope you can enjoy them.”“Oh, I will,” the waitress said. “See, every year we always sent each other the same thing; a box of chocolate-dipped strawberries bought from our favourite store, The Berry Factory.”
【小题1】What can be inferred in the first paragraph?

My goddaughter, Shari, owns The Berry Factory in Sacramento, California, and her mother, Joan, and I were helping with the Valentine’s Day rush. We’d dipped hundreds of berries, arranged gift baskets and packaged orders to be   36    around the country.

By the end of the day, the two middle-aged women, Joan and I, were exhausted. But Shari didn’t seem tired. That was   37   Shari.   38  she was very busy, I’d seen her give away berries to everyone—parking attendants, mail carriers and hairdressers. “For me?” they would say, bursting into    39   .

  40  a “thank you”, Shari took us out for dinner. But there was a 45-munite   41   at her favorite restaurant. “No big   42   . There’s another place just up the road,” she said, driving up there. This time we walked right   43   .

When the waitress came to   44    our drink orders, Shari    45    into her handbag, pulling something out. “ I want you to have these,” she said,    46   the waitress a box of chocolate-dipped strawberries. “ She will love those berries!” I thought.    47    the waitress seemed very surprised instead. She only let out a “thank you”   48   grabbing the box and rushing into the kitchen.

A few minutes later, the waitress returned    49   our iced tea. “ I apologize,” she said. “ My best friend and I had   50   to send each other something every Valentine’s Day. But she    51    last year. I didn’t know how I’d    52    this day without her. Then you handed me that box.”

“ I’m so sorry to hear that,” said Shari. “ It’s not much, but I hope you can    53   them.”

“ Oh, I will,” the waitress said. “ See, every year we   54   sent each other the same thing: a box of chocolate-dipped strawberries bought from our favorite store, The Berry    55    .”