D
It’s hardly surprising that weather is a favorite topic for so many people around the world---it affects where we choose to live, what we wear, our moods, and perhaps even our national characteristics．Studies have shown that changeable weather can make it difficult to concentrate, cloudy skies slow down reaction, and high humidity with hot, dry winds makes many people bad-tempered．
If you live in a place like Britain, where the weather seems to change daily if not hourly, you could be forgiven for thinking that the weather is random．In fact, the weather is controlled by systems which move around areas of the globe．In the UK the weather depends on depressions, often called lows, and anticyclones, also known as highs．These systems start in the Atlantic Ocean, and make their way across the British Isles from the west to the east．Highs bring sunny weather, while lows bring rain and wind．In modern times, human activities seem to be altering weather patterns．Gases produced by heavy industry change the temperature of the Earth’s surface, and affect cloud formation．Some researchers say that factories in Europe and North America may have been one of the causes of the droughts in Africa in the 1980s．
The human race has always tried to guess the weather, especially in areas of the world where there are frequent changes．Traditional rhymes point to early attempts to identify weather patterns, popular poems include:
Red sky at night, shepherds’ delight; red sky in the morning, shepherds’ warning．
Flies will swarm before a storm．
Rain before 7, clear by 11．
While folk wisdom can still provide a guide to help forecast weather, today’s methods of prediction increasingly rely on technology．Satellites, balloons, ships, aircrafts and weather centers with sensitive monitoring equipment, send data to computers．The data is then processed, and the weather is predicted．However, even this system cannot predict weather for longer than about a week．
66．When weather keeps changing, _____________．
A．people become bad-tempered
B．people’s reaction slows down
C．people find it hard to focus on their work
D．people become hungrier
67．What is mainly talked about in the second paragraph?
A．Changes in weather．     B．Weather in Britain．
C．African droughts．  D．Research on weather．
68．The weather in Britain is _______________．
A．random    B．moist C．depressing D．satisfying
69．According to a traditional rhyme, if there is a red sky at night, the next day will be _______．
A．windy      B．rainy C．fine   D．snowy
70．Which of the following statements is true?
A．Anticyclones often bring rain and wind．
B．Weather forecasting has been done for a long time．
C．Weather could never be predicted．
D．Modern methods of weather prediction are developed from folk wisdom．

D

It’s hardly surprising that weather is a favorite topic for so many people around the world---it affects where we choose to live, what we wear, our moods, and perhaps even our national characteristics．Studies have shown that changeable weather can make it difficult to concentrate, cloudy skies slow down reaction, and high humidity with hot, dry winds makes many people bad-tempered．

If you live in a place like Britain, where the weather seems to change daily if not hourly, you could be forgiven for thinking that the weather is random．In fact, the weather is controlled by systems which move around areas of the globe．In the UK the weather depends on depressions, often called lows, and anticyclones, also known as highs．These systems start in the Atlantic Ocean, and make their way across the British Isles from the west to the east．Highs bring sunny weather, while lows bring rain and wind．In modern times, human activities seem to be altering weather patterns．Gases produced by heavy industry change the temperature of the Earth’s surface, and affect cloud formation．Some researchers say that factories in Europe and North America may have been one of the causes of the droughts in Africa in the 1980s．

The human race has always tried to guess the weather, especially in areas of the world where there are frequent changes．Traditional rhymes point to early attempts to identify weather patterns, popular poems include:

Red sky at night, shepherds’ delight; red sky in the morning, shepherds’ warning．

Flies will swarm before a storm．

Rain before 7, clear by 11．

While folk wisdom can still provide a guide to help forecast weather, today’s methods of prediction increasingly rely on technology．Satellites, balloons, ships, aircrafts and weather centers with sensitive monitoring equipment, send data to computers．The data is then processed, and the weather is predicted．However, even this system cannot predict weather for longer than about a week．

66．When weather keeps changing, _____________．

A．people become bad-tempered

B．people’s reaction slows down

C．people find it hard to focus on their work

D．people become hungrier

67．What is mainly talked about in the second paragraph?

A．Changes in weather．     B．Weather in Britain．

C．African droughts．  D．Research on weather．

68．The weather in Britain is _______________．

A．random    B．moist C．depressing D．satisfying

69．According to a traditional rhyme, if there is a red sky at night, the next day will be _______．

A．windy      B．rainy C．fine   D．snowy

70．Which of the following statements is true?

A．Anticyclones often bring rain and wind．

B．Weather forecasting has been done for a long time．

C．Weather could never be predicted．

D．Modern methods of weather prediction are developed from folk wisdom．

D

       It’s hardly surprising that weather is a favorite topic for so many people around the world---it affects where we choose to live, what we wear, our moods, and perhaps even our national characteristics．Studies have shown that changeable weather can make it difficult to concentrate, cloudy skies slow down reaction, and high humidity with hot, dry winds makes many people bad-tempered．

       If you live in a place like Britain, where the weather seems to change daily if not hourly, you could be forgiven for thinking that the weather is random．In fact, the weather is controlled by systems which move around areas of the globe．In the UK the weather depends on depressions, often called lows, and anticyclones, also known as highs．These systems start in the Atlantic Ocean, and make their way across the British Isles from the west to the east．Highs bring sunny weather, while lows bring rain and wind．In modern times, human activities seem to be altering weather patterns．Gases produced by heavy industry change the temperature of the Earth’s surface, and affect cloud formation．Some researchers say that factories in Europe and North America may have been one of the causes of the droughts in Africa in the 1980s．

       The human race has always tried to guess the weather, especially in areas of the world where there are frequent changes．Traditional rhymes point to early attempts to identify weather patterns, popular poems include:

       Red sky at night, shepherds’ delight; red sky in the morning, shepherds’ warning．

       Flies will swarm before a storm．

       Rain before 7, clear by 11．

       While folk wisdom can still provide a guide to help forecast weather, today’s methods of prediction increasingly rely on technology．Satellites, balloons, ships, aircrafts and weather centers with sensitive monitoring equipment, send data to computers．The data is then processed, and the weather is predicted．However, even this system cannot predict weather for longer than about a week．

66．When weather keeps changing, _____________．

       A．people become bad-tempered

       B．people’s reaction slows down

       C．people find it hard to focus on their work

       D．people become hungrier

67．What is mainly talked about in the second paragraph?

       A．Changes in weather．     B．Weather in Britain．

       C．African droughts．  D．Research on weather．

68．The weather in Britain is _______________．

       A．random    B．moist C．depressing D．satisfying

69．According to a traditional rhyme, if there is a red sky at night, the next day will be _______．

       A．windy      B．rainy C．fine   D．snowy

70．Which of the following statements is true?

       A．Anticyclones often bring rain and wind．

       B．Weather forecasting has been done for a long time．

       C．Weather could never be predicted．

       D．Modern methods of weather prediction are developed from folk wisdom．

D

It was a winter morning, just a couple of weeks before Christmas 2005. While most people were warming up their cars, Trevor, my husband, had to get up early to ride his bike four kilometers away from home to work. On arrival, he parked his bike outside the back door as he usually does. After putting in 10 hours of labor, he returned to find his bike gone.

The bike, a black Kona 18 speed, was our only transport. Trevor used it to get to work, putting in 60-hour weeks to support his young family. And the bike was also used to get groceries(食品杂货)，saving us from having to walk long distances from where we live.

I was so sad that someone would steal our bike that I wrote to the newspaper and told them our story. Shortly after that, several people in our area offered to help. One wonderful stranger even bought a bike, then called my husband to pick it up. Once again my husband had a way to get to and from his job. It really is an honor that a complete stranger would go out of their way for someone they have never met before. People say that a smile can be passed from one person to another, but acts of kindness from strangers are even more so. This experience has had a spreading effect in our lives because it strengthened our faith in humanity(人性) as a whole. And it has influenced us to be more mindful. No matter how big or how small, an act of kindness shows that someone cares. And the results can be everlasting.

53. How did people get to know the couple’s problem?

A. From radio broadcasts.                  B. From a newspaper.

C. From TV news.                       D. From a stranger.

54. Which of the following is TRUE?

A. The author used to get to work by bike.

B. Several strangers offered bikes to them, but they only accepted one of them.

C. The author’s husband often parked the bike outside the back door.

D. Somebody had stolen their bike before, but soon returned it to the author.

55. What do we learn from the couple’s experience?  

A. An act of kindness can mean a lot.       B. One should take care of their bike.

C. News reports make people famous.      D. Strangers are usually of little help.

56. Why was the bike so important to the couple?

  A. The man’s job was bike racing.      B. It was their only possession.

  C. It was a nice Kona 18 speed.        D. They used it for work and daily life.

It was Saturday when the entire summer world was bright and fresh. Tom looked at the fence, which was long and high, feeling all enthusiasm leaving him. He dipped his brush into the whitewash before moving it along the top board of the fence. He knew other boys would arrive soon with all minds of interesting plans for this day. As walking past him, they would tease him for having to work on a beautiful Saturday—which burnt him like fire.
He, putting his hands into his pockets and taking out all he owned with the expectation of letting someone paint, found nothing that could buy half an hour of freedom. At this dark and hopeless moment, a wonderful idea occurred to him, pouring a great bright light into his mind. He took up his brush and continued to work pleasantly with calm and quietness.
Presently, Ben Rogers came in sight—munching an apple and making joyful noises like the sound of a riverboat as he walked along. Tom went on whitewashing, paying no attention to the steamboat. 
“Hello!” Ben said, “I’m going swimming, but you can’t go, can you?”
No answer. Tom moved his brush gently along the fence and surveyed the result. Ben came nearer. Tom’s mouth watered for Ben’s apple while he kept painting the fence.
Ben said, “That’s a lot of work, isn’t it?”
Tom turned suddenly saying “Here you are! Ben! I didn’t notice you.”
“I’m going swimming,” Ben said. “Don’t you wish you could go? Or would you rather work?”
Tom said, “Work? What do you mean ‘work’?”
“Isn’t that work?”
Tom continued painting and answered carelessly, “Maybe it is, and maybe it isn’t. All I know is it suits Tom Sawyer.”
“Do you mean that you enjoy it?”
“I don’t see why I oughtn’t to enjoy it.”
“Does a boy have a chance to paint a fence frequently” said Tom.
Ben stopped munching his apple.
Tom moved his brush back and forth—stepped back to note the effect—added a little paint here and there. Ben watched every move, getting more and more interested, more and more absorbed1. After a short time, he said, “Tom, let me whitewash a little.”
Tom seemed to be thinking for a moment before he said, “No, Aunt Polly wants this fence to be perfect. If it was the back fence, maybe you could do it. But this fence beside the street is where everybody can see it. It has to be done right.”
“Oh, come on, let me try. I’ll be careful. Listen, Tom. I’ll give you part of my apple if you let me paint.”
“No, Ben, I’m afraid—”
“I’ll give you all the apple!”
Tom handed the brush to Ben with unwillingness on his face but alacrity in his heart. While the riverboat worked and sweated in the hot sun, Tom, an artist sat in the shade close by, munching his apple, and planning how he could trick more of the boys.
Before long there were enough boys each of whom came along the street; stopped to laugh but soon begged to be allowed to paint. By the middle of the afternoon, Tom had got many treasures while the fence had had three layers of whitewash on it. If he hadn’t run out of whitewash, he would have owned everything belonging to the boys in the village.
Tom said to himself that the world was not so depressing after all. He had discovered a great law of human action: in order to make a man cover a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difficult to attain.

1. 1.

   By using “Tom continued painting and answered carelessly”, the author shows Tom ______ when he was talking to Ben.

   1. A.
      made mistakes
   2. B.
      damaged things
   3. C.
      was natural
   4. D.
      wasn’t concentrating
2. 2.

   The underlined word “alacrity” in the last but two paragraph most probable means “______”.

   1. A.
      kindness
   2. B.
      discouragement
   3. C.
      sympathy
   4. D.
      eagerness
3. 3.

   Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage? ________

   1. A.
      Tom did not want to go swimming at all
   2. B.
      Tom was asked to help Aunt Polly paint the fence
   3. C.
      Tom did not get along well with his friends
   4. D.
      Tom was very busy that Saturday afternoon.
4. 4.

   We can draw a conclusion from the last paragraph that _______.

   1. A.
      forbidden fruit is sweet.
   2. B.
      a friend in need is a friend indeed.
   3. C.
      all good things must come to an end.
   4. D.
      a bad excuse is better than none.