第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题，每题2分，满分40分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
I was helping in my son’s classroom when I spotted a poster that reads, “Sticks and stones
may break my bones but words can break my heart”. I started thinking.
Teachers are such an important part of a child’s life. A teacher’s support determines how safe a child feels in school. His inspiration determines how much risk a child will take in the classroom, his understanding determines how important a child feels in school and his love determines a child’s motivating and attitude toward education. And the effect a teacher has on a child doesn’t end when the school bell rings at the end of the day. Rather, those feelings developed in the classroom go home with the child and, in a large part, determine what sort of evening the child and the family have. The importance of a teacher to a child is fantastic and cannot be over-emphasized.
All my children are fortunate to have remarkable teachers. Consequently, the three of them love going to school almost as much as they love using teacherisms. For example, one of Hannah’s favorite phrases in used when I mess up. She looks at me with understanding and says, “It’s okay to make mistakes, mama, because you’re only learning.” Rachael’s favorite phrase is used to start most of her jobs; with a glow in her eye, she says, “I’m just going to do my best, mama, because that’s all I can do!” But perhaps my favorite is Jacob’s response to his sisters when one of them says something he doesn’t like. With his hand on his heart he says, “Don’t say that because words can break my heart.”
Like most parents, I hear teacherisms daily. And every time I hear one, my heart floods with gratefulness for the wonderful teachers who make my children feel safe, important, and successful in the classroom, and who are helping my children achieve emotional good health. There is much talk today how to measure a teacher’s worth. I think we need only look at the students. Children mirror teachers’ words and actions, and the content of those reflections shows teacher’s greatness.
51．Teachers are important to students in that________.
A．they equip them with book knowledge
B．they help free the parents from worries
C．they guarantee each family a happy evening
D．they help keep them emotionally healthy
52．The three children’s examples are used to show that________.
A．they are lucky to have wonderful teachers
B．they can eventually develop into good teachers
C．they are sometimes mentally hurt by the teachers
D．they have a successful performance in school
53．To his mother, what the boy says possibly sounds________.
A．ridiculous B．convincing       C．humorous D．inspiring
54．The underlined word “teacherisms” probably refers to “________ ”.
A．how teachers normally deal with their students
B．what teachers usually say to their students
C．why teachers seem important to their students
D．where teachers agree with their students

As people slowly learn to cure diseases, control floods, prevent hunger, and stop wars, fewer people die every year. As a result, the population of the world is becoming larger. In 1925 there were about 2 billion people in the world; today there are over 6 billion.

When the number rises, extra mouths must be fed. New lands must be brought under development, or land already farmed must be made to produce more crops. In some areas the land is so over-developed that it will be difficult to make it provide more crops. In some areas the population is so large that the land is divided into too tiny units to make improvement possible with farming methods. If a large part of this farming population went into industrial work, the land might be farmed much more productively (多产地) with modern methods.

There is now a race for science, technology, and industry to keep the output of food rising faster than the number of people to be fed. New types of crops, which will grow well in bad weather, are being developed, so there are now farms beyond the Arctic Circle in Siberia and North America. Irrigation (灌溉) and dry-farming methods bring poor lands under the plough. Dams hold back the waters of great rivers, which can provide water for the fields in all seasons and provide electric power for new industries. Industrial chemistry provides fertilizer to suit different soils. Every year, some new methods are made to increase or to protect the food of the world.

1.The author says that the world population is increasing because _____.

A．there are many rich valleys and large fields

B．farmers are producing more crops than before

C．people are living longer due to better living conditions

D．new lands are being made into farmlands

2.The author says that in areas with large populations, land might be more productively farmed if _____.

A．the land was divided into smaller pieces

B．people moved into the countryside

C．industrial methods were used in farming

D．the units of land were much larger

3.We are told that there are now farms beyond the Arctic Circle. This has been made possible by _____.

A．growing new types of crops               B．irrigation and dry-farming means

C．providing fertilizers                      D．destroying pests and diseases

4. Why do some people use dams to hold back waters from great rivers?

A．To develop a new kind of dry-farming methods.

B．To prevent crops from floods.

C．To provide water and electricity in all seasons.

D．To water poor lands in bad weather.

I have finished translating a large part of the book, but the rest ___ more difficult.

People with disabilities make up a large part of the population. It is estimated（估计） that over 35 million Americans have physical, mental, or other disabilities. About half of these disabilities are “developmental", i.e., they occur before the individual's twenty-second birthday, often from genetic conditions, and are severe enough to affect three or more areas of development, such as mobility, communication, employment, etc. Most other disabilities are considered “adventitious", i.e., accidental or caused by outside forces.

Prior to the 20th century, only a small percentage of people with disabilities survived for long. Medical treatment for these disabilities was unavailable. Advancements in medicine and social services have created a climate in which people with disabilities can expect to have such basic needs as food, shelter, and medical treatment. Unfortunately, these basics are often not available. Civil liberties such as the right to vote, marry, get an education, and gain employment have historically been denied on the basis of disability.

In recent decades, the disability rights movement has been organized to fight against these infringements（违反, 侵犯）of civil rights. Congress responded by passing major legislation recognizing people with disabilities as a protected class under civil rights statutes.

Still today, people with disabilities must fight to live their lives independently. It is estimated that more than half of qualified Americans with disabilities are unemployed, and a majority of those who do work are underemployed. About two-thirds live at or below the official poverty level.

Significant barriers, especially in transportation and public awareness, prevent disabled people from taking part in society. For example, while no longer prohibited by law from marrying, a person with no access to transportation is effectively excluded from community and social activities which might lead to the development of long-term relationships.

Only when public attitudes advance as far as laws have will disabled people be fully able to take their rightful place in society.

1.A “developmental" disability ______.

2.Most disabled people used to die early because ______.

3.In the author's opinion, to enable the disabled people to take their rightful place in society, ____.

4.Which of the following cannot be inferred from the passage?

5.The best title for this passage might be ______.   

Is there a nationwide shortage of nurses? It’s hard to say．However, some characteristic symptoms often indicate that there is indeed a shortage．

One symptom is the vacancy rate, or the percentage of budgeted positions that are unfilled．New England’s hospitals currently report that an average of 7 to 12 percent of their registered nurse positions are vacant, the highest level since the last shortage in the late 1980s．Vermont has a relatively low vacancy rate, at 7．8 percent．But its vacancies were at 1．2 percent just five years ago．

Another symptom is the increased use of stopgap measures to fill empty positions．For instance, many nurses report an upswing in how frequently they are asked to stay past their shifts．According to Murphy, working in the St．Elizabeth’s Hospital, “The shortage has definitely created a lot of opportunities of overtime for our nurses, whether they want them or not．” Similarly, a national survey of registered nurses shows that in an average week, nurses in the U．S．work 2．4 more hours than they are scheduled to．Much of this extra time is voluntary, as nurses earn overtime pay when they stay to fill in blanks in the schedule．

When they can’t fill open positions by more traditional means, health care providers hire temporary staff to tide them over．Travelling workers are the largest part of the temporary health care workforce, hired for thirteen-week reduction at health care facilities facing short-term lack of workers．Temporary workers, mainly nurses, cost hospitals $ 7．2 billion in 2000．

“Any successful solution to the shortage depends on convincing more people to become nurses, and that is not an easy goal to reach．To achieve it,” says Buerhaus, “society needs to place more value on nursing．Legislation （法规） can’t do that – it should come from people．” And if this continues, we might have to learn to care for ourselves in the hospital．

1.The temporary staff hired by a hospital _______．

       A．cost a large part of the hospital’s budget

         B．meet the need for nurses in the hospital for a short time

       C．should work on a weekly basis and on a scheduled timetable  [来源:ZXXK]

         D．ought to work passively for thirty continuous weeks

2.According to Buerhaus, what is a successful solution to the nurse shortage?

       A．To convince people of the benefits of being a nurse．

       B．To ask the government for help to work out specific legislation．

       C．To publicize the past achievements of nurses．

       D．To make people aware of the importance of being a nurse．

3.What’s the probable meaning of the underlined word “upswing” in Paragraph 3?

       A．Symptom            B．Decrease                 C．Increase          D．Figure

4.What’s the author’s attitude towards nurse shortage?

         A．Worried              B．Indifferent     C．Doubtful                 D．Optimistic