When I was a child, I often dreamed of the time when I could leave home and escape to the city. We lived on a farm, in the winter especially, we were quite cut off from the outside world. As soon as I left school, I packed my bags and moved to the capital. However, I soon discovered that my life has its _______ too.

　 One big disadvantage is money. It costs so much to go out, not to mention basics like food and housing. Another disadvantage is pollution. I suffer from asthma(哮喘), and the air is so that I am afraid to go outside. Then there is the problem of traveling round. Although I have a car, I seldom use it because of the traffic jams. One choice is to go by bicycle, but that can be quite dangerous.

　 Of course there are advantages. First, there is so much to do in the city, whatever your tastes in culture or entertainment(娱乐活动). Besides, there are wonderful jobs and greater chances of moving to a more important job or position. Finally, if you like shopping, the variety of goods is very surprising --- and , what is more, shops are often only a short walk away.

Is life better then, in the city? Perhaps it is , when you are in your teens(十几岁)or twenties. However, as you get older, and especially if you have small children, the peace of the countryside may seem preferable. I certainly hope to move back there soon.

56. Which of the following words can be put into the blank in the first paragraph?

　 A. dangers　　 B. adventures　　 C. problems　　 D. fun

57. What was the writer always thinking about when he was a child?

　 A. Staying on the farm.　　　　　　　 B. Moving to the countryside.

　 C. Leaving home for the city.　　　　　 D. Running away from the school.

58. Which of the following is true about the writer?

　 A. He is very old now.　　　　　 B. He is in good health.

　 C. He prefers driving a car.　　　 D. He lives in the city now.

59. In the passage, the writer tries to __________.

　 A. express his opinions about way of life　

B. describe his life in the countryside

　 C. an interest in the outside world　　　　

D. persuade the reader to live in the city

完形填空

阅读下面短文，从短文后所给各题的四个选项（A、B、C、D）中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。

The western world has always been divided into two types of people—the cool and the uncool. It is a division that  1   in school. The cool kids are good at   2  .They are   3   with the opposite sexお and are good-looking and people want to   4   their style. They can do their homework but they don’t make a big effort. That would   5   be cool.

The uncool kids are in the other corner of the playground. They are very bright, but they don’t have great  6  skills and they are   7  at sports. When they are not programming computers or doing calculus（微积分）in their heads, they are reading comic books and watching shows like the “X Files”. They are   8   as the geeks (做低级滑稽表演的人).

Here’s the news. The geeks are   9   . Make friends with them now or they will put virus in your computer and  10   your math homework to ruin. Geeks might not be popular at school, yet they do pass their examinations, and they might not be too popular at university, but   11   good degrees.

The most important  12   of the 21st century, computers and IT, has been at least partly created by geeks. Geek heroes like Bill Gates  13   others to follow their example. Being a geek is a way of earning good money. And the creation of the Internet gave them a  14   of their own to work and play in, making them a global   15  .Besides, the effect of the geeks   16   popular culture has started a new trend（趋势）. It is now cool to be   17  .Geek culture is becoming an important part of general popular culture, in which what you know is more important than  18   you look like.

But there are also  19  .Geeks were often bullied or laughed at in school. Now a geek may be your boss. Perhaps it is time for   20  .

1.A.continues　　　　　　    B.makes　　　　　　    C.remains　　　　　　　　　　 D.starts

2.A.computers　　　　　　　　　　 B.studies　　　　　　   C.sports　　　　　　　　　　   D.maths

3.A.pleasant 　　　　　　    B.popular　　　　　　   C.crazy　　　　　　　　　　    D.average

4.A.copy　　　　　　　　　　  B.advance　　　　　　  C.take　　　　　　　　　　　　  D.act

5.A.not　　　　　　　　　　　　 B.indeed　　　　　　    C.perhaps　　　　　　　　　　 D.actually

6.A.speaking　　　　　　　　 B.operating　　　　    C.social　　　　　　　　　　    D.experimental

7.A.speechless　　　　　　　　　　 B.sharp　　　　　　　　 C.active　　　　　　　　　　    D.hopeless

8.A.known　　　　　　　　   B.referred　　　　　　  C.thought　　　　　　　　　　　　    D.admired

9.A.taking on 　　　　　　　　　　 B.taking up　　　　    C.taking over　　　　　　    D.taking in

10.A.put　　　　　　　　　　   B.cause　　　　　　　　 C.bring　　　　　　　　　　　　 D.serve

11.A.win　　　　　　　　　　  B.take　　　　　　　　   C.wish　　　　　　　　　　　　 D.finish

12.A.industry　　　　　　    B.discovery　　　　   C.progress　　　　　　　　    D.development

13.A.promise　　　　　　    B.discourage　　　　  C.demand　　　　　　　　　　 D.excite

14.A.chance　　　　　　　　 B.space　　　　　　　　 C.world　　　　　　　　　　    D.career

15.A.force　　　　　　　　    B.company　　　　    C.organization　　　　　　   D.department

16.A.of　　　　　　　　　　    B.on　　　　　　　　　　  C.in　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D.for

17.A.rich　　　　　　　　　　  B.attractive　　　　    C.handsome　　　　　　　　  D.uncool

18.A.how　　　　　　　　　　　　    B.that　　　　　　　　    C.what　　　　　　　　　　　　 D.how much

19.A.opportunities  　　   B.dangers　　　　　　  C.possibility　　　　　　　　  D.question

20.A.punishment　　　　   B.argument　　　　    C.competition　　　　　　   D.employment

　 Qiao is a sixth grader at Yuhui Primary School.He is only 12 years old but has been smoking for three years.Liu,15，is a Junior 2 student at Chicheng No.2 Middle School.He began smoking four years ago.“Smoking is part of my life，” Liu said.Qiao and Liu are not those boys’ real names.But their problem，smoking，is a very real problem.In many countries，smoking is becoming a bigger problem for young people.Most smokers start in their teens (years of a person’s age from 13 to 19) or earlier.

　 A study of 8,000 Beijing students last May told us that smoking is a problem for many Chinese kids.More than 21% of middle school students and 6% of primary school pupils said they smoked.

　 “If young people start smoking early，they will probably get addicted to nicotine.And it will be very hard to give up later on，” said a professor.

　 Every year，about four million people die because of smoking.And if people keep smoking，that number will go up to about 10 million a year by 2030，the World Health Organization (WHO) says.So we have to learn and tell others about the dangers of smoking.

1.The sentence “Smoking is part of my life.” probably means “　　　 ”.

　 A.I don’t smoke very often.

　 B.Smoking is very important to me.

　 C.I don’t smoke at all.

　 D.I’m going to give up smoking.

2.What will probably happen if a person starts smoking early?

　 A.He will surely die early.

　 B.He cannot stop smoking.

　 C.It will be difficult for him to give up smoking.　

　 D.He will become lazy soon.

3.The study in the passage shows that　　　　 .

　 A.smoking is a serious problem among Chinese students

　 B.there are more and more smokers in China

　 C.some student smokers have already been seriously addicted

　 D.most of smokers are young students

4.The main idea of this passage is that　　　　 .

　 A.smoking is becoming a bigger problem for young people

　 B.many people die because of smoking every year

　 C.WHO asks young people to give up smoking

　 D.nicotine makes people addicted

5.As middle school students，what should we do from now on?

　 A.We should start smoking after middle school.

　 B.We should ask others to smoke outside.

　 C.We should laugh at smokers.

　 D.We should say no to smoking.

We often hear the phrase: "You've a greater chance of being struck by lightning." It is used to describe something that hasn't got much chance of happening. However, the common saying undermines(掩盖) the very real dangers of lightning.

Last Friday, at least 5 people were killed by lightning in Nepal(尼泊尔).

Lightning strikes are the second most common cause of deaths during natural disasters in the US. The first is floods. Around 400 people nationwide are struck by lightning each year, and of those, 73 people die. There are more people killed by lightning than by tornadoes and hurricanes.

Because lightning kills only one or two people at a time, its danger does not receive as much attention as other disasters.

So to raise awareness, the US has made June 22-28 National Lightning Safety Week. It aims to warn the public of the dangers of lightning and provide safety tips during thunderstorms.

"If you hear thunder, you are in danger of lightning," said Rocky Lopes, a disaster educator at the American Red Cross.

"Thunder means that lightning is close enough to hit you at any minute, so you should move indoors immediately and stay there until after the storm has ended. The single most important thing to remember is to seek a hiding place," Lopes said.

Summer is the high time for lightning storms, so when lightning strikes across the sky, remember these safety tips:

Stop working, fishing, swimming or playing in open fields.

If you can count less than ten seconds between a thunder and a lightning flash, take cover inside the nearest building.

Do not stand under a tree.

Get off bicycles or motorcycles.

Crouch down(蹲下)if there is no hiding place.

Avoid open spaces, wire fences, metal objects and electrical objects such as hair driers.

1.  The popular opinion about being struck by lightening is that ______.

A. there’s a greater chance for being killed by lightening than any other natural disaster

B. it is the most dangerous among all the natural disasters

  C. the chance for a person to be struck by lightening is very small

  D. it is impossible for people to be killed by lightening

2.The average death rate of being struck by lightening in US is about _______.

  A.18%　　　　　B.50%　　　　　  C. 30%　　　　  D. 73%

3.thunder in             the open air______.

A. just stand by your bicycles and motorcycles

  B. quickly find a place to go inside

  C. count ten seconds between a thunder and a lightening

  D. don’t have a hair drier in your hand

4.According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?

A. There are more people killed by tornadoes and hurricanes than by lightening in US each year.

B. There are on average 5 persons killed by lightening in Nepal each day.

C. The death rate of being stuck by lightening is much higher than by other natural disasters.

D. The National Lightening Safety Week is made to warn the public against the lightening.

A recent study, while showing a generally positive attitude toward science, also suggests a widespread worry that it may be “running out of control”. This idea is dangerous.  

Science can be a force for evil as well as for good. Its applications can be channeled either way, depending on our decisions. The decisions we make, personally or collectively, will determine the outcomes of science. But here is a real danger. Science is advancing so fast is so strongly influenced by businesses that we are likely to believe whatever decisions we come to will make little difference. And, rather than fighting for the best possible policies, we may step back and do nothing.  

Some people go even further. They say that despite the moral and legal objections （反对）, whatever is scientifically possible will be done ――somewhere, sometime. They believe that science will get out of control in the end. This belief is dangerous too, because it a fuels sense of  hopelessness and discourages them from making efforts to build a safer world.  

In our interconnected world, the lack of agreement in and of the world of science can lead to the failure to control the use of science. Without a common understanding, the challenges of “controlling” science in this century will be really tough. Take human cloning for example. Despite the general agreement among scientists on its possible huge impact （影响） on traditional moral values, some countries still go ahead with the research and development of its related techniques. The outcomes are hard to predict.  

Therefore, discussions on how science is applied should be extended far beyond scientific societies. Only through the united efforts of people with hope, can we be fully safe against the misuse of science and can science best serve mankind in the future.  

　　72. What can we conclude from the recent study?

　　A. People think highly of science.

　　B. People hold mixed opinions about science.

　　C. Science is getting dangerously out of control.

　　D. Science is used for both good and bad purposes.

　　73. According to the passage , what will happen if we hold that science is getting beyond control?

　　A. The development of science will hopelessly slow down.

　　B. Businesses will have even greater influence on science.

　　C. The public will lose faith in bringing about a bright future.

　　D. People will work more actively to put science under control.

　　74. The discussion should reach beyond scientific societies because_______

　　A. scientists have failed to predict the outcomes

　　B. the ties between different areas need strengthening

　　C. united efforts are necessary for the development of science

　　D. people need to work together to prevent the bad use of science

　　75. What is the main idea of the passage?

　　A. Science and its applications bring us many dangers.

　　B. The development of science mostly lies in people's attitudes.

　　C. Mankind can largely take control of science with their efforts.

D. The future of science will be influenced by the dangerous ideas.