阅读理解

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A，B，C和D)中，选出最佳选项。

　　The idea of giving people some kind of document affording them safe passage through another country may go back as far as the Egyptian pharaohs (法老), who are thought to have issued their subjects (臣民) with cartouches (图形) bearing the ruler's name.

　　One of the first references to an English passport was in the reign (统治) of King Henry V, who, in an act (法案) of 1414, issued “Safe Conducts” (安全通行证), warning foreigners to allow his subjects to move around unmolested (不受骚扰的) within certain parameters(界限) of destination, time and purpose. In return, no Englishman would injure or rob a foreigner who carried one of Henry's Safe Conducts.

　　The number 13 has been linked to untimely death since Jesus was betrayed (背叛) by Judas, who was the thirteenth person at the Last Supper. This helps explain why 13 is considered particularly dire (terrible) in the dining room. One superstition (迷信) states that the last to sit at a table for 13 will die within a year.

　　Another version is that the first to rise from the table will perish (die). So strong was the belief in England and Scotland that groups of 13 would sometimes try to cheat the devil by sitting or rising simultaneously, so that no one would be first or last.

　　Friday the thirteenth is considered doubly disastrous because Jesus was crucified on Friday.

　　Non-Christians, however, don't necessarily view 13 as unlucky. “In the Middle east, odd numbers tend to be regarded as good,” says University of Toronto anthropology professor Janice Bobby. In Chinese culture, instead of fearing 13, people avoid any number containing a four because it has the same pronunciation as the word for death.

1．The passport first issued in England was to ________.

[　　]

A．show King Henry V's power

B．protect the foreigners traveling in England

C．make people travel safely at any time, for any purpose

D．make the travel safe for both Englishmen and foreigners

2．What can we infer from the passage but not stated?

[　　]

A．The 13^th floor in a building is considered more terrible than the 13^th to be seated in a dining room.

B．Almost all the peoples in the world have their own superstitions.

C．The purpose of the passport issued by the Egyptian pharaohs was to afford people safe

D．The usage of passports in England is more popular than in Egypt.

3．What does the underlined word probably mean?

[　　]

4．If you are a Christian, which day would you choose as your wedding day?

[　　]

A. Gift giving proven to be valuable.

B. Memories from gift giving

C. Moments and events for gift giving

D. Various functions of gift giving

E. Gift giving as a wasteful practice

F. Gift giving as a two-way social activity

Gift Giving

61. __________

　　　 There are manyoccasions for giving gifts in modern industrialized societies: birthdays,naming ceremonies, weddings, anniversaries, New Year, It is common to givegifts on many of these celebrations in western cultures. In addition, specialevents, such as one’ s first day of school or graduation from university, oftenrequire gift fiving.

62. __________

　　　 What is happening whenwe give gifts? Most important, we are exchanging gifts. If someone gives me agift for my birthday, I know that I am usually expected to give one on his orher next birthday. A gift builds up or confirms a social obligation.

63. ___________

　　　 Gifts tighten personalrelationships and provide a means of communication between loved ones. Peoplesay that a gift lets the recipient know we are thinking of them, and that wewant to make the person “feel special.”We want people to feel wanted, to feelpart of our social or family group. We give presents to say “I’msorry.”Sometimes it is difficult for us to find a present that someone willlike. Sometimes we give things that we like or would feel comfortable with. Inall these cases, the gifts are sending out messages－oftenvery expressive ones.

64. ___________

　　　 People tend to talkabout presents in a fairly loving way. A woman whose mother had died years agodescribed the many gifts around her house. These were gifts that her mother hadgiven her over the years: “I appreciate these, and they mean something to me,”the woman said, “because I remember the occasions they were given on,and that they were from my mother, and the relationship we’ve had.” The giftsremain and keep the relationship alive in mind. This woman felt the same wayabout the gifts she gave to others. She hoped that the recipients would look athere gifts in years to come and remember her.

65. ___________

　　　 Emotions like thesesuggest that a positive spirit still lies behind gift giving. They prove thatthe anthropologist Claude Levi-Strauss was wrong to say that modern westerngift giving is highly wasteful. Studies in Canada and elsewhere have also shownthat this is not the case. Each gift is unique even if so many are given. Theemotional benefit for those who exchange gifts is the very reason for thetradition to continue.

阅读理解

　　The old Volkswagen Beetle -“The Bug”- is making a comeback. People who own them are planning to keep them forever. People who don't own them are paying high prices when they can find one for sale. It's more remarkable (值得一提的) when you realize that V W doesn't even make them anymore!

　　A spokesman for Volkswagen of America says there were about five million “Bugs” on American roads in 1997． That was the last year they were shipped to America. VW calculates that about four million of them are still running… and running… and running.

　　Used car businessmen say they can't keep “Bugs” on their lots these days. They feel it's because these cars enjoy a fame of reliable (可靠的), inexpensive transportation. The cars average about 30 miles per gallon of gas.

　　But all hasn't been smooth going for the “Bugs”. The heating system is poor. And since it travels very close to the ground, large cars tend to splash (飞溅) it with winter's snow and mud. Some in the safety field I consider the Beetle as defenseless against heavier cars. But the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has nothing that shows any problem with them at all.

1．The reason why people like to have a “Bug” is that ________.

[　　]

A．it is defensive and travels very close to the ground

B．it travels smoothly and safely

C．it is cheap and saves a lot of gas

D．it is reliable and inexpensive in transportation

2．What is the problem with a “Bug”?

[　　]

A．It is not as strong as the other cars.

B．It does not go smoothly.

C．It has a poor heating system.

D．It travels too fast.

3．In the last sentence, the word “them” refers to ________.

[　　]

A．“Bugs”

B．heavier cars

C．some people in the safety field

D．People from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

4．The Americans ________.

[　　]

A．used to have interest in “Bugs”

B．start to feel interested in “Bugs”

C．have never lost interest in “Bugs”

D．have become interested in “Bugs” again

完形填空：

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从1～25各题所给的四个选项中，选出一个最佳答案．

　A photographer is a person who takes photos as a business or an art． It is often thought that his work is not only full of 　1　but is very safe as well, and no one can imagine how 　2 　his work 　3　．

　Two photographers were 　4　through a thick forest in Alaska, 　5　at capturing (capture v． 抢拍) the wild-life on film． As there was nothing interesting to take pictures of, they were feeling 　6　when they 　7　sight of a brown bear that had caught a large fish by a quiet brook． The wild beast found them too, and stood on its 　8　legs to get 　9　sight of the two men． While doing this, the bear made a wonderful pose (n．姿势) for the two 　10　photo graphers．

　Suddenly the bear 　11　at them, while the two men kept right on taking photos of the 　12　beast． as the beast was 　13　very fast towards them, one of the men turned around right away and rushed to a tall tree nearby． He 　14　to the top of the tree as quickly as he could． The other man, who could not climb a tree, 　15　lay down on the ground, pretending 　16 　． When the bear 　17 　over him and shuffed (n．嗅)him all over, the man shut his eyes tightly, 　18　 his breath and 　19　make any movement． While all this was going on, the man in the tree was 　20　pictures of the 　21　scenes． after a while, the bear went away 　22　, because bears 　23　 dead men．

　When all was safe, the photographer in the tree came down and said to his friend,“The same story 　24　 was told in Aesep's Fables (伊索寓言) has just happened to us, and I 　25　no chances to take the photos of the wonderful scenes!”

If you want to improve your child’s results at school, you could do a lot worse than ensuring that they do plenty of exercise. Scientists have already shown that physical activity can make you brainier. But a team in America has used scans to show that an important part of the brain actually grows in children who are fit. These youngsters tend to be more intelligent and have better memories than those who are inactive.
　　Scientists also found that one of the most important parts of their brains was 12 percent larger than those of unfit children. They believe that encouraging children to take exercise from a very young age could help them do better at school later. Researchers from the University of Illinois, in the U.S., studied the brains of 49 children aged nine and ten using a magnetic resonance imaging scan (核磁共振摄影扫描), a technique which provides very detailed pictures of organs and tissues in the body.
　　They also tested the fitness levels of the children by making them run on a treadmill (跑步机). The scientists found that the hippocampus, a part of the brain responsible for memory and learning, was around 12 percent larger in the fitter children.
　　Professor Art Kramer, who led the study published in the journal Brain Research, said the findings had important implications for encouraging individuals to take part in sport from a young age. “We knew that experience and environmental factors and socioeconomic status all impact brain development,” he said. “If you get some terrible genes from your parents, you can’t really fix that, and it’s not easy to do something about your economic status. But here’s something that we can do something about.”
【小题1】 If you want to improve your children’s result in school, ____________.