The secret of carrier pigeons' unbelievable ability to find their way home has been discovered by scientists: the feathered navigators follow the roads just like we do.

Scientists now believe the phrase "as the crow (乌鸦) flies" no longer means the shortest most direct route between two points. They say it is likely that crows and other day birds also choose AA-suggested routes, even though it makes their journeys longer.

Scientists at Oxford University spent 10 years studying homing pigeons using global positioning satellite (GPS) and got a surprising result. The birds often don't use the sun to decide their directions.

Instead they fly along motorways, turn at crossing and even go around roundabouts (绕道) , adding miles to their journeys.

"It really has knocked our research team sideways to find that after a decade-long international study, pigeons appear to ignore their inbuilt directional instincts (本能) and follow the road system," said Prof Tim Guilford, reader in animal behavior at Oxford University's Department of Zoology.

Guilford said pigeons use their own navigational system (导航系统) when doing long distance trips or when a bird does a journey for the first time.

"But once homing pigeons have flown a journey more than once, they can fly home on a habitual route, much as we do when we are driving or walking home from work," said Guilford.

"In short, it looks like it is mentally easier for a bird to fly down a road. They are just making their journey as simple as possible."

1.What would be the best title of the passage?

A. How Pigeons Find Their Ways Home?   B. Why Pigeons Can Fly long Distance?

C. Birds Follow Roads as We Do.             D. Why Crows Fly the Shortest D stance?

2.What does the words "the feathered navigators" refer to?

A. The crows.       B. The pigeons.     C. Day birds.       D. Animals that can fly.

3.Scientists used to think that homing pigeons often find their directions ____.

A. by global positioning satellite              B. by the sun

C. by the road system                  D. by following other birds

4.Why do homing pigeons tend to follow the road system daring the r journey?

A. Because they don't have their inbuilt directional instincts now.

B. Because their own navigational system doesn't work.

C. Because it is too hard to use their own navigational system.

D. Because it is easier to make journey simple by following road system.

完形填空(共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分)

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从21~40各题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项，并在答题纸上将该选项标号涂黑。

The books in David’s schoolbag felt like bricks as he ran down the street.What he wanted to do was to play basketball with Eric.   21   his mother told him he would have to return his sister’s books to the library first.

He had   22   set foot in a library and he wasn’t about to do so today.He would just  23  

the books in the outside return box.But there was a   24  ;it was locked.

He went into the building,only a few minutes   25   closing time.He put the books into the return box.And after a brief   26   in the toilet,he would be on his way to the playground to   27   Eric.

David stepped out of the toilet and stopped in   28  —the library lights were off.The place was   29  .The doors had been shut.They   30   be opened from the inside.He was trapped(被困)—in a library!

He tried to   31   a telephone call,but was unable to   32  .What’s worse,the pay phones were on the outside of the building.  33    the sun began to set,he searched for a light and found it.

   34   he could see.David wrote on a piece of paper:“    35   !I’m TRAPPED inside!”and stuck it to the glass door.   36  ,someone passing by would see it.

He was surprised to discover that this place was not so unpleasant,   37  .Rows and rows of shelves held books,videos and music.He saw a book about Michael Jordan and took it off the shelf.He settled into a chair and started to   38  .

He knew he had to   39  ,but now,that didn’t seem to be such a   40   thing.

21.A.but                       B.because                     C.or                             D.since

22.A.ever                            B.nearly                       C.never                        D.often

23.A.pass                            B.drop                         C.carry                        D.take

24.A.problem               B.mistake                     C.case                          D.question

25.A.during                  B.after                         C.over                          D.before

26.A.rest                      B.break                        C.walk                         D.stop

27.A.visit                            B.meet                         C.catch                         D.greet

28.A.delight                 B.anger                        C.surprise                     D.eagerness

29.A.lonely                  B.empty                       C.noisy                        D.crowded

30.A.wouldn’t                     B.shouldn’t                   C.couldn’t                    D.needn’t

31.A.make                    B.fix                            C.use                           D.pick

32.A.get on                  B.get up                       C.get through                D.get in

33.A.If                         B.As                            C.Though                     D.Until

34.A.On time                                                   B.Now and then

C.By the way                                                  D.At last

35.A.Come                   B.Help                         C.Hello                        D.Sorry

36.A.Surely                  B.Thankfully                C.Truly                        D.Gradually

37.A.at most                 B.after all                            C.in short                            D.as usual

38.A.watch                   B.play                          C.read                          D.write

39.A.wait                            B.stand                         C.sleep                         D.work

40.A.bad                     B.cool                          C.strange                      D.nice

We are making progress every day in computer science and some of the techniques are ______ very soon.

   A. on the way out   B. in the way out   C. by the way to        D. on the way towards

阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项（A、Ｂ、Ｃ和Ｄ）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该选项涂黑。

From the time each of my children started school, I packed their lunches. And in each lunch, I  21  a note. Often written on a napkin (餐巾), it might be a thank-you for a  22  moment, a reminder of something we were happily expecting, or a bit of _23  for the coming test or sporting event.

In early grade school they_ 24  their notes. But as children grow older they becomes self-conscious(有自我意识的), and _25  he reached high school, my older son, Marc, informed me he no longer  26   my daily notes. Telling him that he no longer needed to  27  them but I still needed to write them, I   28  until the day he graduated.

Six years after high school graduation, Marc called and asked if he could move  29  for a couple of months. He had spent those years well, graduating from college,   30   two internship (实习) in Washington, D.C., and   31  , becoming a technical assistant in Sacramento.  32   short vacation visits, however, he had lived away from home. With his younger sister leaving for college, I was   33    happy to have Marc back. Since I was  34   making lunch for his younger brother, I    35  one for Marc, too. Imagine my   36   when I got a call from my 24-year-old son,   37   his lunch.

“Did I do something   38  ? Don’t you love me  39  ,Mom?” were just a few of the questions he threw at me as I  40   asked him what was wrong.

“My note, Mom,” he answered. “Where’s my note?”

21. A. carried          B. found             C. included       D. held

22. A. difficult        B. special           C. comfortable    D. separate

23. A. congratulation   B. improvement        C. explanation     D. encouragement

24. A. loved            B. answered          C. wrote          D. examined

25. A. lately           B. by the way       C. by the time     D. gradually

26. A. received         B. understood       C. enjoyed         D. collected

27. A. copy            B. read              C. take            D. send

28. A. held up         B. gave up          C. followed         D. continued

29. A. out             B. home              C. to college       D. to Sacramento

30. A. organizing      B. planning          C. comparing       D. completing

31. A. hopefully       B. finally          C. particularly      D. certainly

32. A. Because of      B. Instead of        C. Except for       D. As for

33. A. especially       B. immediately     C. equally         D. generally

34. A. once             B. again            C. still            D. even

35. A. packed          B. fetched           C. bought           D. filled

36. A. fear            B. surprise         C. anger          D. disappointment

37. A. waiting for     B. worrying about  C. caring for         D. asking about

38. A. wrong           B. funny             C. strange           D. smart

39. A. any more        B. enough            C. once more         D. better

40. A. interestingly    B. bitterly         C. politely        D. laughingly