Imagine a mass of floating waste is two times the size of the state of Texas. Texas has a land area of more than 678 000 square kilometers. So it might be difficult to imagine anything twice as big. All together, this mass of waste flowing in the North Pacific Ocean is known as the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch. It weighs about 3 500 000 tons. The waste includes bags，bottles and containers—plastic products of all kinds.www.zxxk.com

The eastern part of the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch is about l 600 kilometers west of California. The western part is west of the Hawaiian Islands and east of Japan. The area has been described as a kind of oceanic desert，with light winds and slow moving water currents. The water moves so slowly that garbage from all over the world collects there.

In recent years，there have been growing concerns about the floating garbage and its effect on sea creatures and human health. Scientists say thousands of animals get trapped in the floating waste，resulting in death or injury. Even more die from a lack of food or water after swallowing pieces of plastic. The trash can also make animals feel full，lessening their desire to eat or drink.

The floating garbage also can have harmful effects on people. There is an increased threat of infection of disease from polluted waste，and from eating fish that swallowed waste. Divers can also get trapped in the plastic.www.zxxk.com

Its existence first gained public attention in l997. That was when racing boat captain and oceanographer Charles Moore and his crew sailed into the garbage while returning from a racing event. Five years earlier，another oceanographer learned of the trash after a shipment of rubber duckies got lost at sea. Many of those toys are now part of the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch.

In August，2009，a team from the University of California，San Diego became the latest group to travel to it. They were shocked by the amount of waste they saw. They gathered hundreds of sea creatures and water samples to measure the garbage patch’s effect on ocean environment.

1.How did the writer introduce the topic of the passage?

A. By giving an example.       B. By listing the facts.

C. By telling a story.           D. By giving a comparison.

2.What do we know about the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch?

A. It is made up of various kinds of plastic products.

B. It is a solid mass of floating waste materials.

C. It lies l60 000 kilometers east of California.

D. It is described as a kind of oceanic land.

3.Why do people pay attention to the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch?

A. Because it may prevent the flow of ocean water.

B. Because the polluted plastic products will affect the food chain.

C. Because it maybe form an island in the pacific.

D. Because ships may be trapped in the floating waste.

PART THREE READING COMPREHENSION

Directions: Read the following three passages. Each passage is followed by several questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A.B.C and D. Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage.

NEW YORK(Reuters)----The Internet and advances in technology are transforming fashion, making it easier for designers to create collections and less expensive for them to show and sell their work, experts say.

Instead of spending tens of thousands of dollars on a runway(T形台)show at New York Fashion Week, some designers presented collections for spring and summer 2010 online, while others are expanding the reach of their brand by making it easier for shoppers to buy their clothes online.

Designer Norma Kamali and Polo Ralph Lauren Corp both have applications for Apple Inc’s iPhone that allows shoppers to buy clothes from their phone.

“This is the technology that’s changing our lives,” said Kamali, who displayed her spring and summer 2010 collection as well as exclusive lines (专卖品) for eBay Inc and Walmart.com at the Apple store in Manhattan’s Soho neighborhood.

Kamali’s iPhone application has a “Try Before You Buy” option, which allows clothes to be sent overnight to a customer, who provides her credit card information, so she can try them on at home before deciding to buy.

Menswear designer Miguel Antoinne and womenswear designer Marc Bouwer both put on virtual fashion shows, while models at fashion designer Vivienne Tam’s show carried a laptop computer adorned(装饰) with a Tam design.

Mazdack Rassi, co-founder and creative director of Milk Studios, a downtown space that showed about 70 collections during New York Fashion Week, and was considering projecting shows on the side of a building so people at nearby park could watch.

With cable TV and the Internet, designers know that their shows can be seen by many more people than just the editors and media who attend.

Designers are finding that technology can also help the actual design work by allowing artists to explore new ideas and processes.

But Simon Collins, the dean of fashion at Parsons----the new school for design, said even though technology is helpful, there is still no substitute for talent and hard work. “Absolutely, there’ll be people out there that have successful businesses that don’t know the first thing about draping(剪裁) and construction, just think it up, put it on the computer, fire it off the factory and it works,” Collins said. “But they’re the exception, not the rule.”

56. According to the passage, one advantage of the Internet is that it allows the designers to____________.

A. share their collections with other designers

B. display their work at a lower cost

C. receive information about the popular fashion trend

D. inform the editors and media of their collections

57. Which of the following is TRUE about Kamali?

A. She’s aware of the importance of the Internet.

B. She’s against buying clothes online.

C. She thinks New York Fashion Week will attract fewer and fewer people.

D. She’s considering holding a show on the side of a building.

58. We can infer from the passage that ____________.

A. it’s difficult to become a well-known designer

B. it’s dangerous to do online shopping

C. few people pay attention to virtual fashion shows

D. designers are finding various ways to make their shows known to the public

59. According to the last paragraph, we know that Collins ____________.

A. is a successful businessman

B. does not agree that technology is helpful in designing works

C. pays more attention to people’s natural gift and hard work

D. does not understand the fashion of actual design work

60. The purpose of the writing is to ____________.

A. celebrate the success of New York Fashion Week

B. stress the role of technology in fashion

C. introduce the activities in New York Fashion Week

D. advertise New York Fashion Week

Why does a large education nation like China have so few world renowned scientists as the US? Educationists from China and the US try to find out the answer to questions like this at a forum on the basic education strategy.

   The forum, held recently, was jointly organized by the Education Development Research Center of the Ministry of Education in China and the Postgraduate School of the University of Pennsylvania in the US. It aims to find out similarities and differences that exist between two countries in their educational system.

   While some educationists in China keep a doubtful eye to the country’s educational system in recent years. Their American counterparts give a positive answer to the basic education in China, saying that it is still one of the best in the world.

   An American educationist told reporters that the basic education in the US was criticized in recent years due to its political tendency. On the contrary, Chinese government’s stress on basic education and qualified teachers has set a good example.

   At primary and middle school, pupils in China did better in math and science lessons than the US pupils. However, few grow to be world “masters”. Why? Educationists attributed this to China’s stress on examination rather than students’ interest.

   Deputy Director of the postgraduate school of Pennsylvania University said American teachers encouraged students to focus on their strong points. In China, students are driven to study to pass the entrance examination test and they do not pay much attention to their own interest.

   At the forum, director of the Education Development Research Center Mr. Zhang said in the future, the research center would make its middle and long-term basic education strategy by taking some references from other countries including the US.

He also revealed that for a long time in the future, China would make a breakthrough in setting the policy for quality education.

1.This passage is mainly about _________.

   A. quality education development in the future

   B. why China’s education cultivates(培养) few world masters

   C. China’s good basic education

   D. genius education at the primary stage

2.The underlined word “renowned” in the first paragraph probably means ________

   A. famous         B. active           C. qualified        D. experienced

3.Few pupils in China who did better in math and science lessons than the US pupils grow to be

    world “masters”, because _________

   A. The US government spends more money on basic education

   B. American pupils are cleverer than Chinese pupils

   C. basic education in China is not as successful as that of the US

   D. Chinese people pay less attention to students’ interest

4. China’s educational system will _______ in the future.

   A. help students to study even harder to pass the examination

   B. apply more attention to quality education referring to systems of other countries

   C. allow students to pay more attention to their own interest without their test results

   D. copy the educational system in the US

D
Sometimes you may have a strong desire to do something strange or terrible. However, chances are that you don’t act on your impulse (冲动), but let it pass instead. You know that to take the action is wrong in some way and that other people will not accept your behavior.
Perhaps the most interesting thing about the phenomenon of taboo behavior is how it can change over the years, how certain behavior and attitudes once considered taboo can become perfectly acceptable and natural at another point in time. Topics such as death, for example, were once considered so upsetting that it was a taboo to even talk about them. Now with the publication of important books such as On Death and Dying and Learning to Say Goodbye, people have become more aware of the importance of expressing feelings about death and, as a result, are more willing to talk about this taboo subject.
One of the newest taboos is the topic of fat. Unlike many other taboos, fat is a topic that people talk about constantly. It’s not taboo to talk about fat; it’s taboo to be fat. The “in” look is thin, not fat. In the work world, most companies prefer youthful-looking, slim manager to sell their image as well as their products to the public. The thin look is associated with youth, vigor, and success. The fat person, on the other hand, is thought of as lazy and lacking in energy, self-discipline and self-respect. After all, how can people permit themselves to become fat? In an image-conscious society, thin is “in”, fat is “out”.
It’s not surprising that millions of people have become obsessed (着迷) with staying slim and “in shape”. The pursuit of a youthful physical appearance is not, however, the only reason for people’s obsession with diet and exercise. Recent research has shown the importance of diet and exercise for personal health. As in most technologically developed nations, the life-style of people has changed since last century. Modern machines do all the physical labor. Cars and buses transport us quickly from point to point. As a result of inactivity and disuse, people’s bodies can easily become weak. In an effort to avoid such a fate (命运), millions of people are spending more of their time exercising. Parks are filled with joggers and bicyclists, and many companies are providing special exercise equipment for their employees to use during the work day.
67. What does the word “taboo” refer to in the passage?
A. A crime committed on impulse.
B. An unfavorable impression left on other people.
C. A strong desire to do something strange or terrible.
D. Behavior considered unacceptable to the society.
68. What does the underlined phrase “in”look probably mean?
A. The fashionable look.                       B. The hidden look.
C. The usual look.                                D. The inside look. 
69. According to the passage, the common belief is that ______.
A. fat people are full of energy
B. thin people are more successful
C. fat people prefer to have fat bosses
D. thin people are less image-conscious
70. People pay more attention to diet and exercise because of ______.
A. their need to kill time                       B. their love for sports
C. their concern for health                   D. their belief in hard work

The Galapagos a far-away archipelago(群岛) and largely untouched by man, is now facing a problem. Its local people, who live on the island of Santa Cruz, want to develop the business and tourist potential（旅游资源）of the island. Recently, they are locked in a bitter struggle with the naturalists who work at the Charles Darwin Centre, also on Santa Cruz. The naturalists want to protect the island’s wildlife which is already suffering as a result of human activity.

The animals’ great threat used to be sailors who, hundreds of years ago, robbed the islands for food. They wiped out about 250,000 Giant Tortoises. For example, on Pinta, one of the smallest islands, there are no Giant Tortoises left at all. The last survivor, an 80-year-old Giant Tortoise called Lonesome George, lives under the protection of naturalists at the Darwin Centre.

Today, the island’s animals are no longer hunted for food. But other dangers have replaced the threat from sailors. Goats, for example, introduced over the years by man, have gone wild. With no natural enemies, their number has reached 10,000 on the largest of the Galapagos islands, Isabella. They are eating huge quantities of plants, and robbed the remaining Giant Tortoises of food. The problem is now so bad that the National Park Service has hired hunters to kill the goats in order to save the Giant Tortoise from dying out.

Today, you can find the Giant Tortoises on the island of _______.

A. Santa Cruz           B. Pinta             C. Isabella           D. Galapagos

Which of the following shows the right relationship between the Galapagos, Isabella, Pinta and Santa Cruz?

A. The Galapagos>Pinta>Isabella>Santa Cruz         

B. Isabella>Santa Cruz>the Galapagos>Pinta

C. The Galapagos>Isabella>Santa Cruz>Pinta         

D. Isabella>the Galapagos>Pinta>Santa Cruz

We can learn from the article the greatest danger to the Giant Tortoises is from________.

A. sailors         B. hunters            C. goats            D. the local people

From the first paragraph we can infer that _____.

A. the naturalists try to help the local people with their interest.

B. The local people pay more attention to the economic growth than the wildlife there,

C. The animals and plants are of great importance to the local.

D. The naturalists don’t care about the local people at all