Stepping into a pool of water is common enough, but who could ever imagine stepping into a pool of fish? In February of 1974, Bill Tapp, an Australian farmer, saw a rain of fish that covered his farm. How surprised he must have been when he heard many fish hitting against his roof!

　　 What caused this strange occurrence? This is a question that had long puzzled people who study fish. The answer turned out to be a combination of wind and storm.

　　When it is spring in the northern part of the world, it is fall in Australia. Throughout the autumn season, terrible storms arise and rains flood the land. The strong winds sweep over Australia like huge vacuum cleaners, collecting seaweed, pieces of wood, and even schools of fish. Strong winds may carry these bits of nature for many miles before dropping them on fields, houses, and astonished people.

　　Although they seem unusual, fish-falls occur quite frequently in Australia. When Bill Tapp was asked to describe the scene of fish, he remarked, “They look like millions of dead birds falling down.” His statement is not surprising. The wonders of the natural world are as common as rain. Nature, with its infinite wonders, can create waterfalls that flow upward and fish that fall out of the sky.

　　56. What is this passage about?

　　A. A sad story. 　　　　　　　　　　　　B. A rain of fish.

　　C. Australia’s northern part.　　　　　D. The damage done by floods.

　　57. Fish-falls occur in Australia_________ .

　　A. quite often 　　　　　　B. on large farms

　　C. only in winter　　　　　D. when the air is calm

　　58. It is a known fact that ________.

　　A. one should watch where one steps

　　B. Bill Tapp is a scientist who studies farming

　　C. the natural world can never create waterfalls that fall upward

　　D. the seasons in the southern part are different from those in the northern part

　　59. The word “infinite” is closest in meaning to _________.

　　A. easy 　　　B. difficult 　　　C. countless 　　　D. dangerous

So long as teachers fail to distinguish between teaching and learning , they will continue to undertake to do for children that which only children can do for themselves. Teaching children to read is not passing reading on to them. It is certainly not endless hours spent in activities about reading. Douglas insists that“ reading cannot be taught directly and schools should stop trying to do the impossible”.

　　Teaching and learning are two entirely different processes. They differ in kind and function. The function of teaching is to create the conditions and the climate that will make it possible for children to devise the most efficient system for teaching themselves to read. Teaching is also public activity. It can be seen and observed.

　　Learning to read involves all that each individual does to make sense of the world of printed language. Almost all of it is private ,for learning is an occupation of the mind ,and that process is not open to public scrutiny.

　　If teacher and learner roles are not interchangeable ,what then can be done through teaching that will aid the child in the quest（探索）for knowledge? Smith has one principal rule for all teaching instructions. “Make learning to read easy, which means making reading a meaningful, enjoyable and frequent experience for children. ”

　　When the roles of teacher and learner are seen for what they are, and when both teachers fulfill them appropriately, then much of the pressure and feeling of failure for both is eliminated. Learning to read is made easier when teachers create an environment where children are given the opportunity to solve the problem of leaning to read by reading.

　The problem with the reading course as mentioned in the first paragraph is that ________.

　　A. it is one of the most difficult school courses

　　B. students spend endless hours in reading

　　C. reading tasks are assigned with little guidance

　　D. too much time is spent in teaching about reading

　The teaching of reading will be successful if ________.

　　A. teachers can improve conditions at school for the students

　　B. teachers can enable students to develop their own way of reading

　　C. teachers can devise the most efficient system for reading

　　D. teachers can make their teaching activities observable

　The underlined word“ scrutiny” most probably means“________”.

　　A. inquiry　　　　　　　　　　　 B. observation

　　C. control　　　　　　　　　　　 D. suspicion

According to the passage, learning to read will no longer be a difficult task when ________.

　　A. children become highly motivated

　　B. teacher and learner roles are interchangeable

　　C. teaching helps children in the search for knowledge

　　D. reading enriches children’s experience

The main idea of the passage is that ________.

　　A. teachers should do as little as possible in helping students learn to read

　　B. teachers should encourage students to read as widely as possible

　　C. reading ability is something acquired rather than taught

　　D. reading is more complicated that generally believed

III 阅读（共两节，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，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

Advertising in America offers some great advantages to consumers. For example, in order to keep prices low through mass production, companies must have a mass market for their products. Mass advertising creates mass markets. Producers cannot afford to develop new products, put them on the market and wait for customers to discover them. This would take too long. Demand for some products must be created. This is done through advertising.

　　But advertising sometimes makes it difficult for consumers to make wise decisions. The fact is that when people are constantly flooded with messages through the mass media persuading them to buy particular products, many respond by buying them.

　　Advertising is designed to influence an individual to buy a product. Sellers often study human behavior to discover what will convince consumers to buy a certain item. This reason for buying is called a buying motive.

　　Buying motives are usually broken down into two categories: rational and emotional. Rational buying motives include the desire to save money, the desire for comfort, or the desire for good workmanship. Emotional buying motives include buying out of fear, wanting to be liked, and wanting to have something better than your friends have.

　　Emotional appeals are found in most consumer advertising today. Certain cars promise to make the driver feel "younger" and " freer". Shoes promise to make the buyer's whole life "springier". Life insurance policies promise to take the "care out of living".

　　Most consumers believe that they are not easily influenced by emotional appeals. However, corporations that sell consumer products obviously think differently. They spend many millions of dollars every day on radio, television, newspaper and magazine ads that use these appeals.　　

1. It can be inferred from the passage that one of the advantages of advertising for consumers is that ________.

A. it can create a big demand for consumer goods

B. the mass market created by it leads to low prices

　C. producers can introduce new products to consumers

　D. it helps consumers discover new products

2. Consumers sometimes find it difficult to make a sensible decision when buying a particular product     because __________ .

　A. many advertisements are too difficult for them to understand

　B. they are afraid to be taken in by dishonest advertisements

　C. mass advertising offers them a range of good and cheap products

　D. they are confused by the quantity of advertisements promoting it

3. According to the passage, a toothpaste ad promising that people who use the product will make a lot of friends is an example of an ad that appeals to __________ .

　A. rational buying motives                              B. the consumer's commonsense

　C. emotional buying motives                         　D. the desire for a good product

4. The reason why companies spend enormous amounts of money on advertising is that ________ .

　A. they believe people can be influenced to buy a certain produce

B. it takes a lot of advertising to convince people to buy a certain product

　C. most consumers are not easily influenced by emotional appeals

　D. advertising based on emotional appeals are very effective

5. The best title for this passage would be ________ .

　A. Advertising can create demand                  　B. The advantages of advertising

　C. What effective advertising can do              　D. The role of advertising in selling products

　　The World Trade Organization（WTO）, established on January 1, 1995, is an open, non-discriminatory trading system. As a successor to the GATT, established in the wake of the Second World War, it is to help world's trade flow freely, fairly and predictably.

　　While the WTO is still young, the multilateral（多边的）trading system that was originally set up under GATT is already 50 years old. The system celebrated its golden jubilee（50周年纪念）in Geneva on 19 May, 1998, with many heads of states and government leaders attending.

　　The past 50 years have seen an exceptional（罕见的）growth in the world trade. Merchandise exports grew on average by 6％ annually（每年地）. Total trade in the WTO has helped to create a strong and prosperous trading system contributing to unprecedented growth.

　　China was an original member of GATT, but for historical and political reasons it was withdrawn from GATT by the government in Taibei in 1950. But over the last several years, China hopes to be seeking to resume（恢复）its contracting party status. China has become a member of the WTO before the body starts a new round of negotiations（谈判）late this year. Premier Zhu Rongji paid a nineday US visit from April 6, 1999. He is the first Chinese Premier to visit US. President Clinton agreed to have talks on China's entry into the WTO with a new round of negotiations in Beijing.

　　Now China has joined the WTO. China's entry into the WTO is not only of economical but also of political importance. China has made attracting progress since its reform and opening up to the outside world. It is growing more and more powerful in economy. China cannot be without the world just as the world cannot be without China. The entry of China into WTO will further strengthen the comprehensive national power of China; it can also quicken the economic development of the world.

According to the context, the underlined word in the first paragraph can be replaced by ______.

　　　　A. ordinary　　　　B. fair　　　　　 C. special　　　　　D. safety

GATT was founded in ______.

　　　　A. 1948　　　　　B. 1950　　　　　C. 1995　　　　　 D. 1998

　According to the passage and picture when did Shi Guangsheng, Minister of Chinese foreign economy and trade, signed the papers in Doha on China's accession to the WTO?

　A. 10,10,2001.　　 B. 11,11,2001.　　 C. 12,11,2001.　　 D. 11,10,2001.

Which of the following is the best title for the passage?

　　　　A. A General Introduction of WTO

　　　　B. How WTO Came into Being

　　　　C. GATT and WTO

　　　　D. WTO and China

C
Sport not only is physically challenging, but it can also be mentally challenging. Criticism (批评) from coaches, parents, and other teammates, as well as pressure to win can create an excessive (过度的）amount of anxiety or stress for young athletes. Stress can be physical, emotional, or psychological, and research has indicated that it can lead to burnout. Burnout has been described as dropping or quitting of an activity that was at one time enjoyable.
　　The early years of development are critical years for learning about oneself. The sport setting is one where valuable experiences can take place. Young athletes can, for example, learn how to work together with others, make friends, and gain other social skills that will be used throughout their lives. Coaches and parents should be aware, at all times, that their feedback to youngsters can greatly affect their children. Youngsters may take their parent's and coaches’ criticisms to heart and find a flaw（缺陷）in themselves.
　　Coaches and parents, should also be careful that youth sport participation doesn't become the work for children. The outcome of the game should not be more important than the process of learning the sport and other life lessons. In today’s youth sport setting(环境), young athletes may be worrying more about who will win instead of enjoying themselves and the sport. Following a game, many parents and coaches direct their attention on the outcome（=result）and find fault with young people’s performances. Research indicates that positive reinforcement motivates (积极强化激励) and has a greater effect on learning than criticism. Again criticism can create high levels of stress, which can lead to burnout.
74. An effective way to prevent the burnout of young athletes is________.
　　A. to reduce their mental stress　                B. to increase their sense of stress
　　C. to make sports less competitive   　           D. to make sports more challenging
75. According to the passage, sport is positive for young people in that________.
　　A. it can create high levels of stress
　　B. it enables them to find flaws in themselves
　　C. it can provide them with valuable experiences
　　D. it teaches them how to set realistic goals for themselves
76. According to the passage parents and coaches should________.
　　A. pay more attention to letting children enjoy sports
　　B. help children to win every game
　　C. train children to deaf with stress
　　D. enable children to understand the positive aspect of sports
77.The author’s purpose in writing the passage is to________.
　　A. teach young athletes how to avoid burnout
　　B. persuade young children not to worry about criticism
　　C. stress the importance of positive reinforcement to children
　　D. discuss the skill of mixing criticism with encouragement