“It was all his own idea,” says Pat, the wife of California high school football coach Bob Peters. Bob had ___36___ made a “motherhood contract(合同)”—declaring that for 70 days this summer he would ___37___  the care of their four children and all the housework. ___38___ he didn’t even know how to make coffee when he sighed, he was very confident.

After40 of the 70 days, he was ready to ___39___. “ I was beaten down, “ admits Bob. “Not only is motherhood a ___40___ task, it is an impossible job for any normal human being. ”

Bob and Pat were married in 1991. After the married, Pat ___41___ a secretary to help put him through university. ___42___ Bob has been the football coach while Pat raised the kids. ___43___ two years ago Pat went back to work. “ I had been ___44___ children so much,” she ___45___, “I couldn’t talk to a grown-up. ” She continued to run the household, ___46___ -- until Bob sighed the contract.

Bob tried hard to learn cooking, but the meals he prepared were ___47___. For the last three weeks, the family ___48___ a lot--- sometimes having MacDonald’s hamburgers for lunch and dinner.

___49___ housekeeping, a home economics teacher had told Bob that a room always looks clean ___50___ the bed is made. “ I found ___51___ –I shut the doors,” he says. Soon the kids were wearing their shirts inside out. “When we went to ___52___ Pat at work, I made them wear their shirts 53 side out so they would look clean. ”

Now that Bob has publicly ___54___  he was wrong, he is ___55___ the child-raising and household tasks with Pat.

36. A. only     B. just     C. nearly D. ever

37. A. stick to B. set about    C. think about D. takeover

38. A. If  B. As      C. Since  D. Although

39. A. carry on       B. give up      C. break down       D. find out

40. A. strange B. pleasant      C. difficult     D. serious

41. A. sent      B. employed   C. learned from      D. worked as

42. A. In time B. Before long       C. Since then  D. Later on

43. A. Then    B. Thus   C. So      D. Still

44. A. near     B. after   C. about  D. around

45. A. insists   B. sighs   C. jokes   D. apologizes

46. A. besides B. therefore    C. however     D. otherwise

47. A. terrible B. tasty   C. expensive   D. special

48. A. starved B. traveled      C. worked out D. ate out

49. A. Due to  B. As for C. Along with D. Except for

50. A. until     B. before C. if D. unless

51. A. an easier way      B. a cheaper way    C. a cleaner way     D. a harder way

52. A. receive B. welcome    C. greet   D. fetch

53. A. good    B. wrong C. right   D. opposite

54. A. admitted      B. suggested   C. agreed D. explained

55. A. operating     B. realizing     C. sharing       D. performing

C
If you are a male and you are reading this, congratulations: you are a survivor. According to statistics, you are more than twice as likely to die of skin cancer than a woman, and nine times more likely to die of AIDS. Assuming you make it to the end of your natural term, about 78 years for men in Australia, you will die on average five years before a woman.
There are many reasons for this, typically, men take more risks than women and are more likely to drink and smoke but perhaps more importantly, men don’t go to the doctor.
“Men aren’t seeing doctors as often as they should,” says Dr. Gullotta, “This is particularly so for the over-40s, when diseases tend to strike.”
Gullotta says a healthy man should visit the doctor every year or two. For those over 45, it should be at least once a year.
Two months ago, Gullotta saw a 50-year-old man who had delayed doing anything about his smoker’s cough for a year.
“When I finally saw him it had already spread and he has since died from lung cancer,” he says, “Earlier detection and treatment may not have cured him, but it would have prolonged his life.”
According to a recent survey, 95% of women aged between 15 and early 40s see a doctor once a year, compared to 70% of men in the same age group.
“A lot of men think they are invincible(不可战胜的),” Gullotta says. “They only come in when a friend drops dead on the golf course and they think, “Geez, if it could happen to him, __________.”
Then there is the ostrich approach, “some men are scared of what might be there and would rather not know,” says Dr. Ross Cartmill.
“Most men get their cars serviced more regularly than they service their bodies,” Cartmill says. He believes most diseases that commonly affect men could be addressed by preventive check-ups.
“Regular check-ups for men would inevitably place strain(紧张) on the public purse,” Cartmill says. “But prevention is cheaper in the long run than having to treat the diseases. Besides, the ultimate cost is far greater: it is called premature death.”
65..Why does the author congratulate his male readers at the beginning of the passage?
A. They are more likely to survive serious diseases today.
B. Their average life span has been considerably extended.
C. They have lived long enough to read this article.
D. They are sure to enjoy a longer and happier life.
66. What is the most important reason why men die five years earlier on average than women according to the author?
A. men drink and smoke much more than women
B. men don’t seek medical care as often as women
C. men aren’t as cautious as women in face of danger
D. men are more likely to suffer from fatal diseases
67. Which of the following best completes the sentence “Geez, if it could happen to him, _______”?
A. it could happen to me, too         B. I should avoid playing golf
C. I should consider myself lucky     D. it would be a big misfortune
68. What does Dr. Ross Cartmill mean by “the ostrich approach”?
A. a casual attitude towards one’s health conditions
B. a new therapy for certain psychological problems
C. refusal to get medical treatment for fear of the pain involved
D. unwillingness to find out about one’s disease because of fear

B
“It was all his own idea, ” says Pat Peters, the 38-year-old wife of Palo Alto, California high school football coach Bob Peters, 39. Bob had just drawn up a “motherhood contract” --a document stating that for 70 days this summer he would take over the care and feeding of the couple’s four children, plus all household chores. Although he didn’t even know how to make coffee when he signed, he was quite confident.(He thought the experience would make a nice book.)
After 40 of the 70 days, he was ready to give up. “I was beaten down, completely humbled（挫败的）,”  admits Peters. Three weeks later he spoke to the local press, stating, “Not only is motherhood a difficult task, not only is it never-ending, it is an impossible job for any normal human being.”
Bob and Pat were high school sweethearts. After they were married in 1960, she worked as a secretary to help put him through university. Since then Bob has been the football and wrestling coach at Palo Alto’s Cubberley High while Pat raised the kids. Then two years ago Pat went back to work as a secretary at Cubberley. “I had been around children so much,” she sighs, “I couldn’t talk to a grown-up.” She continued to run the household, however----until Bob signed the contract, therefore, she decided to relax and enjoy it. 
Although Peters had consulted(咨询) with his school’s home economics teachers and the head of the cafeteria, his meals were sometimes a disaster. “I tried to slip the butter I’d forgotten under the eggs after they were frying, ” he says. For the last three weeks, the family ate out a lot—sometimes having Macdonald’s hamburgers for lunch and dinner.
As for housekeeping, a home economics teacher had told Bob that a room always looks clean if the bed is made. “I found an easier way-I shut the doors, ” he says. Soon the kids were wearing the same clothes for a week. “I made them wear their shirts inside out, and when we went to pick up Pat at work they turned them right side out so they would look clean.”
Now that Bob has publicly admitted he was wrong, he is routinely sharing the child-raising and household tasks with Pat. The tentative（暂时的） title of his book about the summer is taken from something he shouted at the kids one day.
45. The couple signed the contract because _______.
A. Pat complained a lot about her doing the housework all by herself
B. Bob loved taking care of children and wanted his wife to have a good rest
C. they agreed that husband and wife should share household tasks
D. Bob thought it easy to take care of the family and wanted the experience for a book
46. It was agreed that if Bob failed to keep to the contract, he would have to _______.
A. pay a certain amount of money
B.  admit publicly he was wrong about motherhood 
C. say sorry to his wife         D. do all the housework for years
47. What can we learn about Pat Peters?
A. She was hard-working and selfless.   B. She was pretty and kind-hearted.
C. She was tired of the child-raising and household tasks.
D. She did not love Bob any longer.
48. Which of the following can best end the news story?
A. “Wait till your mother gets home!”    B. “My experience of being a mother.”
C. “I’m proud of you all, my dear!”     D. “Motherhood: an impossible job for anyone.”

    Homebuyers nationwide are watching housing prices going up, up, and up. “How high can they go?” is the question on everyone’s lips? “As long as interest rates stay around 5 percent, there’s no telling,” remarked one realtor in Santa Monica, California.

“It’s crazy,” said Tim, who is looking for a house near the beach. “In 1993, I bought my first place, a two-bedroom condominium in Venice, for $70,000. My friends thought then that I was overpaying. Five years later, I had to move. I sold it for $230,000, which was a nice profit. Last year, while visiting friends here, I saw in the local paper that the exact same condo was for sale for $510,000!”

It is a seller’s market. Homebuyers feel like they have to offer at least 10 percent more than the asking price. Donna, a new owner of a one-bedroom condo in Venice Beach, said, “That’s what I did. I told the owner that whatever anyone offers you, I’ll give you $20,000 more, under the table, so you don’t have to pay your realtor any of it. I was tired of looking.”

Tim says he hopes he doesn’t get that desperate. “Whether you decide to buy or decide not to buy, you still feel like you made the wrong decision. If you buy, you feel like you overpaid. If you don’t buy, you want to kick yourself for passing up a great opportunity.”

Everyone says the bubble(泡沫) has to burst sometime, but everyone hopes it will burst the day after they sell their house. Even government officials have no idea what the future will bring. “All we can say is that, inevitably, these things go in cycles,” said the state director of housing. “What goes up must come down. But, as we all know, housing prices always stay up a little higher than they go down. So you can’t lose over the long run. Twenty years down the road, your house is always worth more than you paid for it.”

60．If Tim had sold his flat last year, he could have earned          .

A．$ 510,000                B．$ 440,000                C．$ 280,000                D．$ 160,000

61．Donna paid another $ 20,000 to the owner secretly because          .

A．she felt like offering 10% more                    B．secret money made low price

C．the owner asked for the money                  D．she was bored with bargaining

62．We can infer from Tim’s words in paragraph 4 that           .

A．homebuyers feel hesitate facing rising house prices

B．buying a house is always a great opportunity

C．homebuyers never make the right decision

D．both sellers and buyers become desperate

63．What is the author’s opinion about the housing bubble?          

A．It is something everyone hates to see

B．Only experts know when it will burst

C．It is unavoidable in the regular circles

D．It usually stays for about twenty years

         If you’re a male and you’re reading this, congratulations! You’re a survivor. According to statistics，you’re more than twice as likely to die of skin cancer than a woman，and nine times more likely to die of AIDS. Assuming you make it to the end of your natural term，about 78 years for men in Australia，you’ll die on average five years before a woman.

         There're many reasons for this--typically，men take more risks than women and are more likely to drink and smoke but perhaps more importantly, men don’t go to the doctor.

         “Men aren't seeing doctors as often as they should，” says Dr. Gullotta.“This is particularly so

for the over-40s, when diseases tend to strike. According to a recent survey, 95％of women aged between 15 and early 49s see a doctor once a year, compared to 70％of men in the same age group.

         “A lot of men think they’re unbeatable，”Gullotta says．“They only come in when a friend drops dead on the golf course and they think, Geez, if it could happen to him …”

         Then there’s the ostrich（鸵鸟）approach．“Some men are scared of what might be there and would rather not know,” says Dr. Ross Cartmill.

         “Most men get their cars serviced more regularly than they service their bodies,” Cartmill says. He believes most diseases that commonly affect men could be addressed by preventive check-ups.

“Prevention is cheaper in the long run than having to treat the diseases．Besides, the final cost is far greater，it’s called premature death.”

1.Why does the author congratulate male readers at the beginning of the passage?

         A．They can live longer than they expected．

         B．They are sure to enjoy a longer and happier life.

         C．They have lived long enough to read this article.

         D．They are more likely to survive serious diseases now．

2.Which of the author’s statements is the most important reason that men die five years earlier on average than women according to the passage?

         A．Men drink and smoke much more than women.

         B．Men don’t seek medical care as often as women.

         C．Men are more likely to suffer from deadly diseases.

         D．Men aren’t as cautious as women in face of danger.

3.Which of the following best completes the underlined sentence “Geez, if it could happen to him…” （in Para 4） ?

         A．it could happen to me，too.

         B．it would be a big misfortune.

         C．I should avoid playing golf.

         D．I should consider myself lucky.

4.What does Dr．Ross Cartmill mean by“the ostrich approach”（in Para 5）?

         A．A casual attitude towards one’s health conditions.

         B．A new treatment for certain psychological problems．

         C．Refusal to get medical treatment for fear of the pain involved.

         D．Unwillingness to find out about one’s disease because of fear.