Little Robby, our neighbour’s nephew, carefully drew some water into a bowl and started for the door. How I hated this water rationing (定量供应). We were forced to bathe in the deep little pond we shared with Jessie, our cow. Wells were dry, and crops transformed to dust.

I watched Robby sitting down onto the steps to my house. Bees buzzed circling his hair, and he buzzed with them. I remembered his aunt’s words: I don’t know what I was thinking when I took him in. The crash killed my sister, and he wasn’t hurt, but he can’t talk. He’s in a world of all his own.

Why couldn’t she see the wonderful gifts this boy possessed? He was blessed with a loving nature and a deep admiration for all living things, and I knew he could talk to animals. My heart ached for Robby, who was to stay with us for the summer, and had already been the dearest part of our world, eagerly tending the garden with me and my husband, Tom.

On a string around Robby’s neck hung a whistle, in case he was ever lost or in danger. After all, he could not call out for help. But he knew perfectly well that the whistle was not a toy. Blowing on it would bring us both running. I had told him the story of the boy who cried wolf, and I knew he understood me.

I sighed as I cleared up the last supper dish. Every ounce of recycled water was saved for a tiny vegetable garden Robby had planted. Tom turned to me. “You know, honey, I’ve been thinking about...”

Before he could continue, a scream from the yard made us jump. My God! It’s Robby’s whistle! When we reached him, he was pointing excitedly to the sky. Looking up, we saw the most magnificent sight: Rain Clouds! “Robby! Quick! We need all the pots and pans!”

Robby raced with me to the house. A drop of water fell on my pot and then another. Soon the yard was enveloped in soaking, glorious rain. We all stood with faces held upward to feel the comfort of it. Tom picked up Robby and danced about the pots, shouting and whooping, “Rain for Robby!” Tom swung about to show me Robby’s face: he was laughing right out loud, “W-W-Wobby’s!” “Wobby’s … wain … Mom,” giggling（咯咯地笑）, and stretching out one tiny hand in the shape of a cup to catch the rain.

I hugged them both, tears of joy mixing with the rain.

1.The underlined phrase “the wonderful gifts” in the 3rd paragraph refers to Robby’s ______.

A．love for nature and all living things

B．kindness to help others around

C．independence since his childhood

D．readiness to accept what happened to him

2.It was because ______ that the author and her husband would run on hearing the whistle.

A．it was going to rain

B．Robby often surprised us with his whistle

C．something bad might happen to Robby.

D．Robby might find something special

3.What can we learn from the passage?

A．Robby was old enough, but still couldn’t speak.

B．Robby’s aunt regretted bringing Robby home.

C．Robby didn’t accept the author and Tom as his parents.

D．Robby happened to find the rain cloud and was terrified.

4.It can be concluded from the passage that ______.

A．we should show mercy for the disabled children

B．every child has his own talent however young he is

C．children from poor families take responsibilities earlier

D．children’s sensitive hearts are worthy to be taken care of

New York Times---( DINITIA SMITH )Tomorrow is the 433d anniversary of Shakespeare’s birth. A recent survey shows that more people are watching him, reading him and studying him than ever before.

Consider the recent yearly conference of the Shakespeare Association of America in Washington, where more than 600 people who study or admire Shakespeare from 18 countries took in topics like ‘‘Whither Attribution Studies,’’ ‘‘Unpopular Shakespeare’’ and ‘‘Sex Me Here,’’ a talk on breast-feeding and Lady Macbeth.

‘‘The national media is saying that fewer students’ taking Shakespeare,’’ Barbara Mowat, the editor of The Shakespeare Quarterly, observed in a speech at the conference. ‘‘But Shakespeare is thriving.’’ The association’s membership has increased by a third since 1990.

The Shakespeare business is so good these days that W. W. Norton is introducing a huge new collections of the plays into the already crowded field just in time for tomorrow’s birthday anniversary. Priced at $44.95, ‘‘The Norton Shakespeare: Based on the Oxford Edition’’ runs for 3,420 pages, offering introductions, illustrations and notes and three versions(版本) of ‘‘King Lear.’’

Today, movies and videos have made the plays even more accessible. Last year, ‘‘William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet’’ was No. 1 at the box office when it opened, and it grossed nearly $50 million. In New York in January, crowds lined up in the freezing cold to see Kenneth Branagh’s four-hour ‘‘Hamlet.’’ The students select a scene and then have a violent discussion about it.’’ Influenced by films, professors are increasingly teaching students by having them perform the plays.

1.Why people from 18 countries came to Washington this year?

A. To celebrate Shakespeare’s 433d birth day only.

B. To watch some plays by Shakespeare as planned.

C. To celebrate Shakespeare’s birthday and study his works.

D. To discuss how to teach students using Shakespeare’s plays.

2.What does the underlined word “ field” in the fourth paragraph refer to?

A. Washington D.C.                              B. Shakespeare Association.

C. The birthday anniversary.                  D. The Shakespeare business.

3.Which of the many plays by Shakespeare was most popular the year before?

A. King Lear.                                            B. Hamlet.

C. Macbeth.                                              D. Romeo and Juliet.

4.What does the author want to prove by using so many examples about Shakespeare?

A. More and more people are becoming interested in Shakespeare.

B. Shakespeare business is being run well in America nowadays.

C. Plays by Shakespeare can be used at school for more studies.

D. Shakespeare belongs not only to Britain but also to the USA.

C
We all know that certain oils are healthier than others. but your oil health goes beyond just the type．The health of your oil can be related to how you use it too．
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The higher an oil’s smoke point is，the higher the temperature of the oil can be．As a result, each type of oil should be used for the cooking method that is most appropriate to its individual smoke point and heat tolerance. Here is a quick guide for the next time you reach for your favorite oil．

第四部分：写作（共两节，满分35分）
第一节，阅读下面对话，掌握其大意，并根据所给首字母的提示，在标有题号的右边横线上写出一个英语单词的完整、正确形式，使对话通顺。（满分10分）
Jim: What’s wrong, Ann? You don’t look good.
Ann: I’m OK. I’m just (76) t_______. I didn’t sleep well last night            76.  t ________
Jim: That’s too bad. (77) W______ couldn’t you sleep well?                 77.  W_________
Ann: Well, I had a dream. I (78) w_______ up at three in the morning,         78.  w________
and I couldn’t get (79) b_____ to sleep.                               79.  b__________
Jim: Do you (80) r______ the dream?                                   80.  r________
Ann: Yes, I do. (81)F______, a big lion came into my room and               81. F________
jumped on my bed. I thought it was going to eat me. I was really frightened.
Jim: What happened next?
Ann: Well, then I started talking to the lion. I said, “ Please don’t eat me.
Get off  (82) m______ bed, and I will give you some food. Then maybe you   82.________
will be happy and go away.”
Jim: How did the dream end?
Ann: Well, I closed my eyes and counted to one hundred.
Then I (83) o_____ my eyes, and the lion was gone. But…                 83. o_______
Jim: But what?
Ann: My cat, Poco, was sitting (84) o______ my bed. He was watching me.      84 . o_______
Jim: Oh, now I understand. I think you should give Poco a lot of (10) f____ tonight. 85. f_____

                           Everybody hates rats. But in the earthquake capitals of the world – Japan, Los Angeles, Turkey – rats will soon be man’s new best friends.

What happens after an earthquake? We send in rescue dogs. Why? Because they can smell people. Dogs save lives. They help rescuers to find living people. But dogs are big and they can’t get into small spaces. So now a new research project is using a smaller animal to save lives: the rat.

How does it work? First , the rat is trained to smell people. When this happens, the rat’s brain gives a signal（信号）.This is sent to a small radio on its back, and then the rescuers follow the radio signals. When rat’s brain activity jumps, the rescuers know that someone is alive. The rat has smelled that person.

Although there are already robots which can do this job, rats are better. Christian Linster at Cornell University, New York, says, “Robots’ noses don’t work well when there are other smells around. Rats are good at that. ” Rats can also see in the dark. They are cheaper and quicker to train than dogs, and unlike robots, they don’t need electricity!

The “rat project” is not finished, but Julie Ryan of International Rescue Corps in Scotland says, “It would be fantastic. A rat could get into spaces we couldn’t get to, and a rat would get out if it wasn’t safe.” Perhaps for the first time in history, people will be happy to see a rat in a building（but only after an earthquake, of course.）

71．In the world earthquake capitals, rats will become man’s best friends because they can          .

         A．take the place of man’s rescue jobs

         B．find the position of people alive who are trapped in buildings

         C．serve as food for people alive who are trapped in buildings

D．get into small spaces

72．From the third paragraph we know the rescuers can judge a person is alive by          .

         A．the noise made by the rat

B．the rat’s unusual behaviour

         C．the signal sent by the radio on the rat’s back

D．the smell given off by the person

73．In doing rescue jobs,         .

        A．rats smell better than dogs

         B．dogs don’t need to be trained to smell people

         C．robots’ sense of smell can be affected by other smells around

         D．rats can see in the dark and smaller than robots

74．Rats have all the following advantages except that         . w

         A．they are more fantastic than other animals

         B．they are less expensive to train than dogs

         C．they don’t need electricity

         D．they are small and can get into small places

75．After reading the passage we can know         .

         A．at present rats have taken the place of dogs in searching for people

         B．the “rat project” has been finished

         C．people are now happy to see a rat in a building

         D．now people still use dogs and robots in saving people