第二部分：阅读理解（共20 小题。第一节共15 小题，每题2分；第二节共5 题，每题2分；共40 分）

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项  A．B．C．D中选出最佳选项。

A

Unnoticed and unappreciated for five decades，a large female turtle （龟）with a stained（彩色的），leathery（粗而硬的） shell is now a precious commodity（物品）in Changsha’s old zoo．She is fed on a special diet of raw meat．Her small pool has been covered with glass which can defend it from bullets．A special camera monitors her movements．A guard is posted at night．

The purpose is simple：the turtle must not die．

Earlier this year，scientists concluded that she was the planet’s last known female Yangtze giant soft shell turtle．She is about 80 years old and weighs almost 90 pounds．

As it happens，the planet also has only one known male．He lives at a zoo the city of Suzhou．He is 100 years old and weighs about 200 pounds．They are the last hope of saving a species believed to be the largest freshwater turtles in the world．

“It’s a very dangerous situation,” said Peter Pritchard, a famous turtle expert in the United States，who has helped try to save the species．、

For many Chinese people，the turtle is the symbol of health and long life，but the last two Yangtze giant soft-shell creatures show the threatened state of wildlife and biodiversity（生物多样性）in China．Pollution, hunting and over development are destroying natural habitats，and also endangering the plant and the animal population．

China contains some of the world’s richest treasures of biodiversity, yet the latest major survey of plants and animals shows a discouraging picture．Nearly 40 percent of all mammal species in China are now endangered, Scientists say．For plants，the situation is worse；70 percent of all nonflowering plant species and 86 percent of flowering species are considered threatened．

46．Why is the turtle in Changsha specially cared?

A．She has been unnoticed and unappreiated five decades．

B．She can be sold at a high price．

C．She is the planet’s last known female Yangtze giant soft-shell turtle．

D．She is old and heavy．

47．Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the text?

A．The turtle in Changsha is precious because it is the symbol of health and long life．

B．Peter Pritchard believes the female turtle is the largest freshwater turtle in the world．

C．The female turtle is in a dangerous situation where she may be killed．

D．The female turtle in Changsha and the male turtle in Suzhou are the last hope of saving the largest freshwater turtle species in the world．

48．According to the text ________in China．

A．there are the richest species of living things

B．wild plants and animals are becoming fewer

C．turtles are specially protected

D．the situation of plants is better than that of mammal species

49．The last paragraph proves the threatened state of wildlife and biodiversity in China by__________ ．

A．facts and numbers                      B．Peter Pritchard’S words

C．teaching theory                        D．telling a story

     Computer programmer David Jones makes 35,000 pounds a year designing new computer games, yet he cannot find a bank prepared to let him have a credit card (信用卡). Instead, he has been told to wait another two years, until he is 18.

The 16-year-old boy works for a small firm in Liverpool, where the problem of most young people of his age is finding a job. David’s firm puts two new games on the home market each month.

But David’s biggest headache is what to do with his money. In spite of his salary, made by inventing new programs within a quite short period of time, the bonus payments and profit-sharing (奖金和分红), he cannot drive a car, get some money from a bank to buy a house, or get credit cards.

He lives with his parents in their house in Liverpool, where his father is a bus driver. His firm has to pay ￡150 a month in taxi fares to get him the five miles to work and back every day because David cannot drive.

David got his job with the firm a year after leaving school with six 0-levels and working for a time in a computer shop. “I got the job because the people who run the firm knew I had already written some programs,” he said.

“I suppose 35,000 pounds sounds a lot but actually that’s not good enough. I hope it will come to more than that this year.” He spends some of his money on records and clothes, and gives his mother 20 pounds a week. But most of his spare time is spent working.

“Unfortunately, computing was not part of our studies at school,” he said. “But I had been studying it in books and magazines for four years in my spare time. I know what I wanted to do and never considered staying on at school. Most people in this business are fairly young, anyway.”

David added, “I would like to earn a million and I suppose early retirement (退休) is a possibility. You never know when the market might disappear.”

36. Why is David different from other young people of his age?

A. He earns a very high salary.

B. He has not a job.

C. He does not go out much.

D. He lives at home with his parents.

37. David’s greatest problem is ____________.

A. making the banks treat him as a grown-up

B. inventing computer games

C. spending his salary

D. learning to drive

38. He was hired by the firm because ____________.

A. he had worked in a computer shop

B. he had written some computer programs

C. he worked very hard

D. he had learned to use computers at school

39. He left school after taking six 0-levels because ____________.

A. he did not enjoy school

B. he wanted to work with computers and staying at school did not help him

C. he was afraid of getting too old to start computing

D. he wanted to earn a lot of money

40. Why does David think he might retire early?

A. One has to be young to write computer programs. www.7caiedu.cn

B. He wants to stop working when he is a millionaire.

C. He thinks computer games might not always sell so well.

D. He thinks his firm might go bad.

On Saturday nights, A.J.Coston doesn’t get a lot of sleep. Usually three or four times a night, a loud bell rings, a red light flashes, and he has to jump out of his bed. That’s because he’s a weekend volunteer firefighter（消防员）with Loudoun County Fire and Rescue Station 13 in Northern Virginia. During the week, he lives at home with his mom, dad and sister and does his main job which is going to high school.

“I have always wanted to get into firefighting since I was a little kid watching fire trucks go by,” he says. “One day on the Internet I noticed that Loudoun County offered a junior firefighter program.” He was only 16, but he got it.

Fighting fires is dangerous work. Firefighters never stop practicing the skills they need to stay safe. Once Coston learned those skills, he was allowed to work inside burning buildings.

“Teamwork is most important,” he says. “It’s the whole team that puts the fire out.”

Firefighters feel great about helping people. “My most unbelievable call was probably the time four kids were struck by lightning,” says Coston. He will be off to college next fall, building on his dream job. “I’ll get my degree in emergency（紧急情况） medical care. and then work in a fire and rescue company for a while. I want to be a flight doctor on a helicopter in the end, but I will never forget the days as a firefighter. These are my unforgettable experiences,” he says.

Coston can’t sleep well on Saturday nights because _____.

   A. he has to work part-time at weekends

   B. he has some sleeping problems

   C. he has to do his job as a volunteer firefighter

   D. he always worries that there may be a fire

What do we learn about Coston from the passage?

   A. He doesn’t like studying at school.          B. He will go to college next year.

   C. He dreams to be a great hero one day.        D. He is only sixteen years old.

In Coston’s opinion, what is the key thing in putting out a fire?

   A. Skills.         B. Teamwork.              C. Courage.           D. Equipment.

All of the following are true EXPECT that _____.

A. Coston wanted to be a firefighter when he was a kid

   B. Coston tried several times before he became a volunteer firefighter

   C. firefighters feel proud that they can help people

   D. firefighters have to practice skills all the time to stay safe

On Saturday nights, A.J.Coston doesn’t get a lot of sleep. Usually three or four times a night, a loud bell rings, a red light flashes, and he has to jump out of his bed. That’s because he’s a weekend volunteer firefighter（消防员）with Loudoun County Fire and Rescue Station 13 in Northern Virginia. During the week, he lives at home with his mom, dad and sister and does his main job which is going to high school.

“I have always wanted to get into firefighting since I was a little kid watching fire trucks go by,” he says. “One day on the Internet I noticed that Loudoun County offered a junior firefighter program.” He was only 16, but he got it.

Fighting fires is dangerous work. Firefighters never stop practicing the skills they need to stay safe. Once Coston learned those skills, he was allowed to work inside burning buildings.

“Teamwork is most important,” he says. “It’s the whole team that puts the fire out.”

Firefighters feel great about helping people. “My most unbelievable call was probably the time four kids were struck by lightning,” says Coston. He will be off to college next fall, building on his dream job. “I’ll get my degree in emergency（紧急情况） medical care. and then work in a fire and rescue company for a while. I want to be a flight doctor on a helicopter in the end, but I will never forget the days as a firefighter. These are my unforgettable experiences,” he says.

1. Coston can’t sleep well on Saturday nights because _____.

   A. he has to work part-time at weekends

   B. he has some sleeping problems

   C. he has to do his job as a volunteer firefighter

   D. he always worries that there may be a fire

2.What do we learn about Coston from the passage?

   A. He doesn’t like studying at school.          B. He will go to college next year.

   C. He dreams to be a great hero one day.        D. He is only sixteen years old.

3.In Coston’s opinion, what is the key thing in putting out a fire?

   A. Skills.               B. Teamwork.                   C. Courage.               D. Equipment.

4.All of the following are true EXPECT that _____.

A. Coston wanted to be a firefighter when he was a kid

   B. Coston tried several times before he became a volunteer firefighter

   C. firefighters feel proud that they can help people

   D. firefighters have to practice skills all the time to stay safe

Computer programmer David Jones makes 35,000 pounds a year designing new computer games, yet he cannot find a bank prepared to let him have a credit card (信用卡). Instead, he has been told to wait another two years, until he is 18.
The 16-year-old boy works for a small firm in Liverpool, where the problem of most young people of his age is finding a job. David’s firm puts two new games on the home market each month.
But David’s biggest headache is what to do with his money. In spite of his salary, made by inventing new programs within a quite short period of time, the bonus payments and profit-sharing (奖金和分红), he cannot drive a car, get some money from a bank to buy a house, or get credit cards.
He lives with his parents in their house in Liverpool, where his father is a bus driver. His firm has to pay ￡150 a month in taxi fares to get him the five miles to work and back every day because David cannot drive.
David got his job with the firm a year after leaving school with six 0-levels and working for a time in a computer shop. “I got the job because the people who run the firm knew I had already written some programs,” he said.
“I suppose 35,000 pounds sounds a lot but actually that’s not good enough. I hope it will come to more than that this year.” He spends some of his money on records and clothes, and gives his mother 20 pounds a week. But most of his spare time is spent working.
“Unfortunately, computing was not part of our studies at school,” he said. “But I had been studying it in books and magazines for four years in my spare time. I know what I wanted to do and never considered staying on at school. Most people in this business are fairly young, anyway.”
David added, “I would like to earn a million and I suppose early retirement (退休) is a possibility. You never know when the market might disappear.”
【小题1】Why is David different from other young people of his age?

A．He earns a very high salary.	B．He has not a job.
C．He does not go out much.	D．He lives at home with his parents.

A．he had worked in a computer shop	B．he had written some computer programs
C．he worked very hard	D． he had learned to use computers at school