-When are you leaving??　

-My plane _____ at six.

A. took off 　 B. is about to take off  C. takes off 　 D. will take off

　　A German study suggests that people who were too optimistic about their future actually faced greater risk of disability or death within 10 years than those pessimists who expected their future to be worse.

　　The paper, published this March in Psychology and Aging, examined health and welfare surveys from roughly 40,000 Germans between ages 18 and 96. The surveys were conducted every year from 1993 to 2003.

　　Survey respondents (受访者) were asked to estimate their present and future life satisfaction on a scale of 0 to 10, among other questions.

　　The researchers found that young adults (age 18 to 39) routinely overestimated their future life satisfaction, while middle-aged adults (age 40 to 64) more accurately predicted how they would feel in the future. Adults of 65 and older, however, were far more likely to underestimate their future life satisfaction. Not only did they feel more satisfied than they thought they would, the older pessimists seemed to suffer a lower ratio (比率) of disability and death for the study period.

　　“We observed that being too optimistic in predicting a better future than actually observed was associated with a greater risk of disability and a greater risk of death within the following decade,” wrote Frieder R. Lang, a professor at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg.

　　Lang and his colleagues believed that people who were pessimistic about their future may be more careful about their actions than people who expected a rosy future.

　　“Seeing a dark future may encourage positive evaluations of the actual self and may contribute to taking improved precautions (预防措施),” the authors wrote.

　　Surprisingly, compared with those in poor health or who had low incomes, respondents who enjoyed good health or income were associated with expecting a greater decline. Also, the researchers said that higher income was related to a greater risk of disability.

　　T  Pessimism gurantees chances of survival.he authors of the study noted that there were limitations to their conclusions. Illness, medical treatment and personal loss could also have driven health outcomes.

　　However, the researchers said a pattern was clear. “We found that from early to late adulthood, individuals adapt their expectations of future life satisfaction from optimistic, to accurate, to pessimistic,” the authors concluded.

　　67. According to the study, who made the most accurate prediction of their future life satisfaction?

　　A. Optimistic adults.

　　B. Middle-aged adults.

　　C. Adults in poor health.

　　D. Adults of lower income.

　　68. Pessimism may be positive in some way because it causes people ______.

　　A. to fully enjoy their present life

　　B. to estimate their contribution accurately

　　C. to take measures against potential risks

　　D. to value health more highly than wealth

　　69. How do people of higher income see their future?

　　A. They will earn less money.

　　B. They will become pessimistic.

　　C. They will suffer mental illness.

　　D. They will have less time to enjoy life.

　　70. What is the clear conclusion of the study?

　　A. Pessimism guarantees chances of survival.

　　B. Good financial condition leads to good health.

　　C. Medical treatment determines health outcomes.

　　D. Expectations of future life satisfaction decline with age.

A desert is a beautiful land of silence and space. The sun shines, the wind blows, and time and space seem endless. Nothing is soft. The sand and rocks are hard, and many of the plants even have hard needles instead of leaves.

The size and location(分布) of the world’s deserts are always changing. Over millions of years, as climates change and mountains rise, new dry and wet areas develop. But within the last 100 yeas, deserts have been growing at a frightening speed. This is partly because of natural changes, but the greatest makers are humans.

Humans can make deserts, but humans can also prevent their growth. Algeria Mauritania is planting a similar wall around Nouakchott, the capital. Iran puts a thin covering of petroleum(石油) on sandy areas and plants trees. The oil keeps the water and small trees in the land, and men on motorcycles(摩托车) keep the sheep and goats away. The USSR and India are building long canals to bring water to desert areas.

In this passage, “needles” refers to _______.

A. small, thin pieces of steel.

B. long, thin pieces of branches.

C. small pointed growth on the stem(茎) of a plant.

D. small, thin pieces of sticks.

Which of the following is NOT true?

A. The greatest desert makers are humans.

B. There aren’t any living things in the deserts.

C. Deserts have been growing quickly.

D. The size of the deserts is always changing.

People in some countries are fighting a battle against _______.

A. the growth of deserts B. the disappearance of desert plants

C. natural changes  D. congenital climate

We can guess that Mauritania and Algeria belong to _______.

A. Asian countries 　　　　       B. American countries

C. European counties　　　 D. African countries

Choose the sentence which best gives the main idea of the passage.

A. The deserts of the world are always changing.

B. Man is to take measures to control the growth of the world’s deserts.

C. Deserts are lands of silence and space.

D. Deserts have grown at a fast pace in the past 10 years.

阅读理解

阅读下列短文，从每题所给四个选项(A，B，C和D)中，选出最佳选项．

　　Different countries and different people have different manners. We must find out their customs, so that they will not think us ill-mannered. Here are some examples of the things that a well-mannered person does or does not do.

　　If you visit a Chinese family you should knock at the door first. When the door opens, you'll not move before the host says“Come in, please.”After you enter the room, you wouldn't sit down until the host asks you to take a seat. When a cup of tea is put on a tea-table before you or sent to your hand, you'll say“Thank you”and receive it with your two hands, not one hand, or they'll think you are ill-mannered.

　　Before entering a house in Japan, it is good manners to take off your shoes. In European countries, even though shoes sometimes become very dirty, this is not done. In a Malay house a guest never finishes the food on the table. He leaves a little to show that he has had enough. In England, a guest always finishes a drink or the food to show that he has enjoyed it. This will make the host, especially the hostess pleased.

1．We must find out what the different manners are in different countries so that ________.

[　　]

A．we won't be thought in poor health

B．they won't think we are ill

C．we can know what to do and what not to do when we go there

D．we can give some examples

2．In China, when the host opens the door, ________ before he says “Come in, please!”

[　　]

3．In Japan, it is good manners to take off your shoes ________.

[　　]

A．before your visitor enters your house

B．before you visit a family

C．before you sit down and receive a cup of tea

D．before you sit down and finish a drink

4．In European countries, ________ when you get into a house.

[　　]

A．you needn't take off your shoes

B．you must take off your dirty shoes

C．you are not allowed to wear dirty shoes

D．you should put on clean shoes

B
　　More and more young people enjoy having pets,but they don't like to keep them.At present in Changchun,people prefer to rent pets and play with them during weekends,regarding this as a fashionablelifestyle.
　　Mr.Feng,from Jilin Province,likes pet dogs.Last weekend he rented a Scottish shepherd dog from a localpet shop.He bathed the dog,and went walking with it.He said he could not keep pets in his spare time because he was busy everday except weekends.To rent pets during weekends seemsto be the most practical and economical way to relax himself.
　　A manager from a pet shop says his customers(主顾) are all like Mr.Feng,usually too busy to keeppets,and some of them have never kept any pets before. But they hope torent pets and learn to keep pets so that they can know whether they can be good pet masters or not.
　　It's reported that all pets for rent need to beimmunized(免疫).Before they are rented out,pet shops will teach their customers the ABCs of pet keeping and preparing pet food based on each pet's taste.
　　Shop assistants will also provide(提供)different konds of services for pets like health checkup if their customers want to rent pets for a longer period.
　　Dogs for rent are often not ordinary ones,so their rent is high,usually 200 - 500 yuan(US＄ 25-63) per day.Sometimes,you have to leave thousands of yuan with the owner before you can take a dog away.
　　60.Mr.Feng rents pets instead of keeping them mainly because _______.
　　A.it's cheaper                  B.it is more fun
　　C.he has little spare time         D.he wants a new pet for each week
　　61.What do we know about those who rent pets?
　　A.None of them ever kept a pet before.
　　B.They'll become pet owners later.
　　C.They enjoy having pets.
　　D.They want to help protect animals.
　　62.The underlined phrase "the ABCs(of…)"in the 4th paragraph refers to "______(of…)".
　　A.the possible dangers           B.the basic knowledge
　　C.the communicative language    D.the rules set by the shops
　　63.The dogs' rent is high because___________.
　　A.the customers are rich           B.there are few dogs to rent
　　C.their owners hate to leave them    D.they are top - class dogs