E
Imagine growing a home from living trees instead of building a home from wood. Mitchell Joachim, at the MIT Media Lab's Smart Cities Group, along with ecological engineer Lara Greden and architect Javier Arbona, have proposed a system of homes that are actually a living ecosystem.
Joachim's vision is based on a gardening method known as pleaching, which involves weaving branches together to form living lattice(格子) walls. Since the growth patterns of trees are affected by wind and sunlight, it may be possible to manipulate the way a tree develops.
This idea is an extreme, yet simple and beautiful, form of green building. Not only does it not cause direct harm to the environment, but it is actually part of the environment. The house, which is a network of trees, would clean the air and also provide a home for animals and birds. "Not only does it do zero damage, but it will hopefully clean the air," says Joachim.
"A 100 percent treehouse would take years to create," Joachim said. Depending on the climate, a house could take anywhere from 5 to 30 years to grow. Fortunately, there's a way to speed up the process.
Ecological materials, Joachim suggests, should be included in the housing designs. For example, windows can be made from soy－based plastics that would flex (折曲) with the home as it grows.
So what happens when a home and the great outdoors are one and the same? A home would become an actual ecosystem, a community of plants, animals, and bacteria working together. The trees would also give off water vapor that would assist in cooling the homes. Solar panels and wind would help provide energy. Straw and clay could be used to insulate(使绝缘) the structures. The tree homes might even have soil pockets, where plants could grow from the structure itself.
Joachim's project is called MatScape, designing a house in California that will be constructed from 50% recycled and 50% living elements. He sees it as an experimental step toward the final living house.
57．The best title for this passage would be______.
A．Trees Find Its New Use                               B．Scientists Create New Houses
C．Grow Your Home Out of Trees                       D．People Begin Living in Trees
58．The underlined word "manipulate" in Paragraph Two can be best replaced by     .
A．build                      B．influence                C．weave                     D．provide
59．It can be inferred from this passage that__________.
A．treehouses will replace traditional buildings
B．pollution problem will be solved once for all
C．many Californians may be building their own treehouses
D．some ecological materials may move as the house grows
60．If this passage is continued, what would probably be discussed?
A．A final living house.                                          B．Joachim's MatScape project.
C．More information about pleaehing.               D．Some more ecological materials.

From Monday until Friday most people are busy working or studying, but in the evenings and on weekends they are free to relax (放松) and enjoy themselves. Some watch TV or go to the movies; others take part in sports. It depends on individual interests. There are many different ways to spend our spare time.
Almost everyone has some kinds of hobbies. It may be anything from collecting stamps to making model airplanes. Some hobbies are very expensive, but others don’t cost anything at all. Some collections are worth a lot of money; others are valuable only to their owners.
I know a man who has a coin collection worth several thousand dollars. A short time ago he bought a rare (稀有的) fifty-cent piece worth $250! He was very happy about his buying and thought the price was reasonable (合理的). On the other hand, my youngest brother collects matchboxes. He has almost 600 of them but I doubt (怀疑) if they are worth any money. However, to my brother they are very valuable. Nothing makes him happier than to find a new matchbox for his collection.
That’s what a hobby means, I guess. It is something we like to do in our spare time simply for the fun of it. The value in dollars is not important, but the pleasure it gives us is.
【小题1】The underlined word “individual” in the first paragraph most probably means____ .

Ⅳ. 阅读理解（共20题；每小题2分，满分40分）
第一节阅读理解（共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给A, B, C和 D项中，选出最佳选项。
In an age when technology moves faster than most can keep up with, a small group of people still remain in the time of old-fashioned letters. Frankly speaking, I was once certain that traditional letters could never be replaced by other means of communication.
But a story about online communication changed my mind.
An old man, who suffered a lot from Parkinson's disease, was not able to talk clearly and could hardly write his name. Living totally alone, he managed to keep in touch with nearly all the members of his family. How did he achieve this? He clicked out words on his computer keyboard.
I, therefore, managed to get an e-mail box as soon as the opportunity came. My life changed. E-mail, and all online communication, is something truly different. It has capabilities that few other products can match.
E-mail is convenient. It takes less time with its fast speed and 24-hour connection. The slow postal service is no match. If you wouldn't want to have a face-to-face talk with your manager, you might talk with him through e-mail even if you are in the same office.
Naming all the good things about online communication is not easy. But wait. E-mail can be inconvenient. It can waste time and energy. Just think what may happen when you take a short vacation and return to find your e-mail box filled with 200 unread messages. You could clearly spend half a day clearing junk ads.
Then, online communication will keep us staying at our computer while it connects us to distant strangers. Once we throw ourselves into the machine, we may forget the human touches we once held so dear. I'm sure there's and always will be a place for the old-fashioned letter, phone call, and face-to-face meeting even in the world of modem communication.
As I listen to the sound of the modem, I was excited at stepping out to the outside world but, at the same time, I sensed a loss of control over something valuable in my personal life.
41. What caused the writer to become interested in e-mail and online communication?
A. The sound of the modem.        B. His own illness.
C. The changing of his life.         D. A sick old man's experience.
42. What is the most probable meaning of the underlined word "junk" in Paragraph 7?
A. Old and useless.                 B. New and useful.
C. Short but valuable.               D. Long but clear.
43. What does the writer think of online communication?
A. It should replace old-fashioned letters completely.
B. It is perfectly and always does good to you.
C. It is extremely useful and convenient, but it may be inconvenient or even harmful.
D. It does more harm than good.
44. How did the sick old man keep in touch with his family members?
A. With the help of his computer.
B. By writing letters with his pen.
C. By making telephones calls.
D. By visiting them regularly.
45. According to the writer, traditional means of communication will never disappear because    .
A. they are convenient and popular though they are slow
B. they help to keep the friendly relationship between people
C. most people cannot keep up with the development of technology
D. modem means of communication does too much harm

阅读（共两节，15小题；每小题2分，满分30分）
第一节：阅读理解。阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项中，选出最佳选项。
A
This is a true story from Guyana. One day, a boy took a piece of paper from a box. He made a paper ball and pushed it into his nose. He couldn’t get it out. He ran crying to his mother. His mother couldn’t get the paper out, either. A week later, the paper was still in the boy’s nose. His nose began to have a bad smell.
So his mother took the boy to a hospital. The doctor looked up at the child’s nose, but she couldn’t get the paper out. She said she had to cut the boy’s nose to get the paper out.
The boy’s mother came home looking sad. She didn’t want her child to have his nose cut. The next day she took the boy to her friend Sidney who lived in a house with an old lady called May. May wanted to see the child, so the child let her look up his nose.
“Yes, I can see it,” May said. “It will be out soon.”
As she spoke, she shook some black pepper on the child’s nose. The child gave a mighty sneeze and the paper flew out. His mother was surprised. May told his mother to take the boy to the seaside for a swim, for the salt water would go up his nose and stop the bad smell.
So the lucky boy didn’t have to go to the hospital to have his nose cut.
41. After the boy pushed a paper ball into his nose, ____.
A. he took it out                B. his mother took it out
C. he did nothing but cry         D. he tried to take it out but failed
42. The paper ball stayed in the boy’s nose for ____.
A. at most seven days             B. less than seven days
C. more than seven days           D. exactly seven days
43. According to the story, _____ was most worried about the boy’s accident.
A. the boy’s mother     B. Sidney       C. May       D. the doctor
44. Which of the following is TRUE?
A. The doctor helped to take the paper ball out of the boy’s nose.
B. May succeeded in taking the paper out.
C. The boy’s mother found some black pepper to solve the problem.
D. The boy had to have his nose cut at last.
45. The boy should be taken to the seaside for a swim because ____.
A. he needed to learn to swim
B. the sea water would stop the bad smell of his nose.
C. the sea water would wash out the paper ball.
D. he needed a rest

Whether in the workplace or on the football field, effective teamwork can produce amazing results．However, working successfully as a team is not as easy as it may seem．Effective teamwork certainly does not just happen automatically; it take s a great deal of hard work and compromise．There are a number of factors that must be in place to make a good team．
Effective leadership is one of the most important components of good teamwork．The team’s leader should possess the skills to create and preserve a positive working environment and motivate and inspire the team members to take a positive approach to work and be highly committed．An effective team leader will promote a high level of spirit and make them feel supported and valued．
Communication is a vital factor of all interpersonal relationship and especially that of a team．Team member s must be able to articulate their feelings, express plans and goals, share ideas and see each other’s opinions．
Conflicts will arise no matter how well a team functions together．The best way to deal with conflicts is to have some organized methods of handling conflicts．Team members should be able to voice their concerns without fear of offending others．Instead of avoiding conflict issues, a hands-on approach that settles them quickly is much better．It is often advised that the team leader sit with the conflicting parties and help work out their differences without taking sides and trying to remain objective if possible．
The team leader must set a good example to create good teamwork．In order to keep team members positive and committed and motivated, the team leader herself / himself needs to show these qualities．The team turns to the leader for support and guidance．So any negative words or behaviors on the leader’s part can be disastrous．
Regardless of what type of work you are in, knowing how to effectively work on and with a team is going to be extremely important to your success and that of your team．
【小题1】Effective leadership is important partly because ___________________．

A．it creates a positive working environment

B．it helps a leader to develop lots of skills

C．it makes a leader feel supported and valued

D．it depends on interpersonal relationship of a team