听力(共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分)

第一节

听下面5段对话。每段对话后有一个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听完每段对话后，你都有10秒钟的时间来回答有关小题和阅读下一小题。每段对话仅读一遍。

M：Hi．Are you here on vacation or business?

W：I’m here on vacation．I think Taiwan is beautiful．

1．What is the woman here for?

A．For an interview．

B．On business．

C．On vacation．

M：I can come to your house and pick you up in half an hour．Is that all right?

W：Good．That means you will be here at 8∶30．

2．What time is it now?

A．Nine o’clock．

B．Eight o’clock．

C．Seven thirty．

W：Do you think that every language has a spoken form?

M：Certainly I do, but not every language has a written form．

3．Which form comes first, written or spoken?

A．Either the written form or the spoken one comes first．

B．The written form appears before the spoken one．

C．The spoken form comes before the written one．

M：I have seen the film Three Men and a Baby twice．I still really enjoy it．

W：That’s nothing．I’ve seen it four times．My brother has seen it five．

4．How many times has the woman seen the film Three Men and a Baby?

A．Two times．

B．Three times．

C．Four times．

M：I like these coats．How much are they?

W：40 dollars each, or two for 70 dollars．

5．How much will each one cost if you buy two coats?

A．30 dollars．

B．35 dollars．

C．40 dollars．

第二节

听下面5段对话或独白。每段对话或独白后有几个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听每段对话或独白前，你将有时间阅读各个小题，每小题5秒钟；听完后，各个小题将给出5秒钟的作答时间。每段对话或独白读两遍。

听第6段材料，回答第6～8题。

W：Hey, Karl! Why all this hurry?

M：Hi, Amber．How’s everything?

W：Really good．I’ve been really busy all day．How about you? I haven’t seen you for a while．

M：Yeah, today it has just been crazy for me too．I’ve been working like a mad man all day．

W：There just isn’t enough time．I haven’t even done a tenth of my paperwork．

M：It’s no joke, is it? I’ve still got a ton of paperwork to do, too．

W：I had a million things to do today, and only managed to finish a few．

6．What do both the man and the woman most probably do?

A．They are dustmen．

B．They are sportsmen．

C．They are office workers．

7．What do we know about today’s work?

A．Both of them have been busy with the work all day．

B．The man has been busier than the woman．

C．The man could spare a few minutes to relax．

8．What do we know from the conversation?

A．Both of them have finished their today’s work．

B．They have been so busy that they haven’t seen each other recently．

C．Both of them are joking．

听第7段材料，回答第9～10题。

M：What are you going to do tonight, Betty?

W：I’m going to eat at the new Chinese restaurant, just opposite your office．It’s not far from my house, about fifteen minutes’ walk．

M：Really? I was there last night, with some friends of mine．

W：Were there many people there?

M：Yes, a lot．

W：How was the food there?

M：It was great, really delicious．The vegetables were very fresh．But the service was not good enough, I’m afraid．

9．What are the speakers talking about?

A．What they’re going to do．

B．What they did．

C．A restaurant．

10．What is NOT mentioned about the Chinese restaurant in the talk?

A．Food．

B．Price．

C．Where it is．

听第8段材料，回答第11～13题。

M：Now some doctors are strongly encouraging arm exercises．

W：Arm exercises? Is that because arms are too fat or soft?

M：Actually that’s not the main reason．They say that arm exercises can make you physically healthy．

W：But I was told that arm exercises could raise your blood pressure．

M：Yes, but the article I read suggests some ways to make up for that．

W：Really? How?

M：By adding leg exercises, so that the arms don’t do all the work．

W：And in return I’m sure that there’s a good chance of losing weight．

M：Sounds right to me．

W：So what exercises do the experts suggest?

M：They mentioned quite a few exercises, but one of the most popular ones is riding a bike．

W：Good．I will try that．

11．Why are some doctors strongly encouraging arm exercises now?

A．Because our arms are often too fat．

B．Because our arms are often too soft．

C．Because arm exercises can build our health．

12．How will your blood pressure act when you have arm exercises?

A．Slow down．

B．Rise．

C．Keep normal．

13．What should arms exercises be done with?

A．Head exercises．

B．Neck exercises．

C．Leg exercises．

听第9段材料，回答第14～17题。

M：Miss Helen, can you tell me a little bit about where you have worked before?

W：Well, my last job was with Enron．

M：And when did you start with them?

W：Two years ago．

M：I see．So why did you decide to leave?

W：Well, perhaps you have heard that the company closed down earlier this year．

M：Yes, we’ve heard about it．And where did you work before Enron?

W：The ABC Motor Company．

M：How long did you work for them?

W：For five years, as a secretary．

M：And why did you leave that job as a secretary?

W：Well, I felt I needed a change．I think I learnt all I could do there．

M：OK, that’s enough on your working experience．Thank you．

14．What is the man asking about?

A．The woman’s last job．

B．The ABC Motor Company．

C．The woman’s working experience．

15．How many companies has the woman worked for?

A．2．

B．3．

C．4．

16．Why did the woman leave Enron?

A．She needed a change．

B．She had a quarrel with her boss．

C．The company closed down．

17．How many years did the woman work for the ABC Motor Company?

A．Two years．

B．Five years．

C．Seven years．

听第10段材料，回答第18～20题。

The 28th Olympic Games were held in its birthplace Athens this year again．But so you know how we got from the Ancient Olympics to the Modern Games? Now let me tell you something．?

Although the ancient Games were held in Olympia, Greece, through 776 BC to 393 AD, it took 1503 years for the Olympics to return．The first modern Olympics were held in Athens, Greece, in 1896．The man responsible for its rebirth was a Frenchman named Baron Pierre de Coubertin, who presented the idea in 1894．His original thought was to hold the first modern Games in 1900 in Paris, but delegates from 34 countries were so devoted to the idea of holding it in Athens that they made him give up his original thought and move the Games up to 1896 and have Athens serve as the first host．

18．When did the ancient Olympics stop?

A．776 BC．

B．393 AD．

C．After 1503．

19．Who first came up with the idea of the rebirth of the Olympics?

A．The Greeks．

B．A Frenchman．

C．The Olympic Committee．

20．Why did delegates from 34 countries insist on having Athens serve as the first host?

A．Because the Olympic Games were born in Greece．

B．Because Paris is farther to other countries than Athens．

C．Because the Olympic Games should return to its hometown．

听力测试(共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分)

第一节?

听下面5段对话。每段对话后有一个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听完每段对话后，你都有10秒钟的时间来回答有关小题和阅读下一小题。每段对话仅读一遍。

M：Hi．Are you here on vacation or business?

W：I’m here on vacation．I think Taiwan is beautiful．

1．What is the woman here for?

A．For an interview．

B．On business．

C．On vacation．

M：I can come to your house and pick you up in half an hour．Is that all right?

W：Good．That means you will be here at 8∶30．

2．What time is it now?

A．Nine o’clock．

B．Eight o’clock．

C．Seven thirty．

W：Do you think that every language has a spoken form?

M：Certainly I do, but not every language has a written form．

3．Which form comes first, written or spoken?

A．Either the written form or the spoken one comes first．

B．The written form appears before the spoken one．

C．The spoken form comes before the written one．

M：I have seen the film Three Men and a Baby twice．I still really enjoy it．

W：That’s nothing．I’ve seen it four times．My brother has seen it five．

4．How many times has the woman seen the film Three Men and a Baby?

A．Two times．

B．Three times．

C．Four times．

M：I like these coats．How much are they?

W：40 dollars each, or two for 70 dollars．

5．How much will each one cost if you buy two coats?

A．30 dollars．

B．35 dollars．

C．40 dollars．

第二节?

听下面5段对话或独白。每段对话或独白后有几个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听每段对话或独白前，你将有时间阅读各个小题，每小题5秒钟；听完后，各个小题将给出5秒钟的作答时间。每段对话或独白读两遍。

听第6段材料，回答第6～8题。

W：Hey, Karl!Why all this hurry?

M：Hi, Amber．How’s everything?

W：Really good．I’ve been really busy all day．How about you? I haven’t seen you for a while．

M：Yeah, today it has just been crazy for me too．I’ve been working like a mad man all day．

W：There just isn’t enough time．I haven’t even done a tenth of my paperwork．

M：It’s no joke, is it?I’ve still got a ton of paperwork to do, too．

W：I had a million things to do today, and only managed to finish a few．

6．What do both the man and the woman most probably do?

A．They are dustmen．

B．They are sportsmen．

C．They are office workers．

7．What do we know about today’s work?

A．Both of them have been busy with the work all day．

B．The man has been busier than the woman．

C．The man could spare a few minutes to relax．

8．What do we know from the conversation?

A．Both of them have finished their today’s work．

B．They have been so busy that they haven’t seen each other recently．

C．Both of them are joking．

听第7段材料，回答第9～10题。

M：What are you going to do tonight, Betty?

W：I’m going to eat at the new Chinese restaurant, just opposite your office．It’s not far from my house, about fifteen minutes’ walk．

M：Really? I was there last night, with some friends of mine．

W：Were there many people there?

M：Yes, a lot．

W：How was the food there?

M：It was great, really delicious．The vegetables were very fresh．But the service was not good enough, I’m afraid．

9．What are the speakers talking about?

A．What they’re going to do．

B．What they did．

C．A restaurant．

10．What is NOT mentioned about the Chinese restaurant in the talk?

A．Food．

B．Price．

C．Where it is．

听第8段材料，回答第11～13题。

M：Now some doctors are strongly encouraging arm exercises．

W：Arm exercises?Is that because arms are too fat or soft?

M：Actually that’s not the main reason．They say that arm exercises can make you physically healthy．

W：But I was told that arm exercises could raise your blood pressure．

M：Yes, but the article I read suggests some ways to make up for that．

W：Really?How?

M：By adding leg exercises, so that the arms don’t do all the work．

W：And in return I’m sure that there’s a good chance of losing weight．

M：Sounds right to me．

W：So what exercises do the experts suggest?

M：They mentioned quite a few exercises, but one of the most popular ones is riding a bike．

W：Good．I will try that．

11．Why are some doctors strongly encouraging arm exercises now?

A．Because our arms are often too fat．

B．Because our arms are often too soft．

C．Because arm exercises can build our health．

12．How will your blood pressure act when you have arm exercises?

A．Slow down．

B．Rise．

C．Keep normal．

13．What should arms exercises be done with?

A．Head exercises．

B．Neck exercises．

C．Leg exercises．

听第9段材料，回答第14～17题。

M：Miss Helen, can you tell me a little bit about where you have worked before?

W：Well, my last job was with Enron．

M：And when did you start with them?

W：Two years ago．

M：I see．So why did you decide to leave?

W：Well, perhaps you have heard that the company closed down earlier this year．

M：Yes, we’ve heard about it．And where did you work before Enron?

W：The ABC Motor Company．

M：How long did you work for them?

W：For five years, as a secretary．

M：And why did you leave that job as a secretary?

W：Well, I felt I needed a change．I think I learnt all I could do there．

M：OK, that’s enough on your working experience．Thank you．

14．What is the man asking about?

A．The woman’s last job．

B．The ABC Motor Company．

C．The woman’s working experience．

15．How many companies has the woman worked for?

A．2．

B．3．

C．4．

16．Why did the woman leave Enron?

A．She needed a change．

B．She had a quarrel with her boss．

C．The company closed down．

17．How many years did the woman work for the ABC Motor Company?

A．Two years．

B．Five years．

C．Seven years．

听第10段材料，回答第18～20题。

　　The 28th Olympic Games were held in its birthplace Athens this year again．But do you know how we got from the Ancient Olympics to the Modern Games?Now let me tell you something．

　　Although the ancient Games were held in Olympia, Greece, through 776 BC to 393 AD, it took 1503 years for the Olympics to return．The first modern Olympics were held in Athens, Greece, in 1896．The man responsible for its rebirth was a Frenchman named Baron Pierre de Coubertin, who presented the idea in 1894．His original thought was to hold the first modern Games in 1900 in Paris, but delegates from 34 countries were so devoted to the idea of holding it in Athens that they made him give up his original thought and move the Games up to 1896 and have Athens serve as the first host．

18．When did the ancient Olympics stop?

A．776 BC．

B．393 AD．

C．After 1503．

19．Who first came up with the idea of the rebirth of the Olympics?

A．The Greeks．

B．A Frenchman．

C．The Olympic Committee．

20．Why did delegates from 34 countries insist on having Athens serve as the first host?

A．Because the Olympic Games were born in Greece．

B．Because Paris is farther to other countries than Athens．

C．Because the Olympic Games should return to its hometown．

听力

第一节

听下面5段对话。每段对话后有一个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听完每段对话后，你都有10秒钟的时间回答有关小题和阅读下一小题。每段对话仅读一遍。

W：I expected you’d come to my birthday party yesterday．

M：I’m terribly sorry，Susan．I had to see off a friend of mine at the airport last night．

1．Why does the man apologize to the woman?

A．He had to say goodbye to his friend at the airport．

B．He didn’t go to the woman’s party last night．

C．He had to go to another city with his friend．

M：I must apologize for not meeting you at the airport this afternoon．You must have been unhappy．

W：Well，you should have let me know that you weren’t coming．

2．How does the woman feel?

A．Very glad．

B．Very painful．

C．A little angry．

W：I’m sorry to have kept both of you waiting．The car was held up in the traffic．

M：That’s all right．We just got here ourselves．

3．How many people are there in the dialogue?

A．Two．

B．Three．

C．Four．

W：You are going to New York today，aren’t you?

M：Yes．I had thought I would fly，but then I decided that taking a bus would be cheaper than driving or flying．

4．How will the man get to New York?

A．By air．

B．By bus．

C．By car．

W：Daddy，have you decided what to do tomorrow?

M：We’ll go boating if it is fine．

W：Wonderful! I’m sure it will be fine．I’ve listened to the weather report．

5．What are they going to do tomorrow?

A．They are going to listen to the weather report．

B．They will go swimming．

C．They will go boating．

第二节

听下面5段对话或独白。每段对话或独白后有几个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听每段对话或独白前，你将有时间阅读各个小题，每小题5秒钟；听完后各小题将给出5秒钟的作答时间。每段对话或独白读两遍。

听第6段材料，回答第6～8题。

M：Excuse me，I’m trying to do some work．I’m afraid your children are making a lot of noise．Don’t they ever go to sleep?

W：I’m sorry．They are noisy．But you know it’s difficult to keep boys quiet．

M：I couldn’t work and I couldn’t sleep last night．And I was wakened by the noise they made early this morning．

W：I’m terribly sorry．You know they never listen to me．They are only afraid of their father．He’s away on business，but he’ll be back tomorrow．

M：I hope he can do something about it．

6．What is the relationship between the two speakers?

A．They are parent and teacher．

B．They are close friends．

C．They are neighbors．

7．What can you learn from the dialogue?

A．The man is making complaint to the woman．

B．The man is making some suggestion to the woman．

C．The man is satisfied after talking to the woman．

8．What’s not the result of the children’s noise?

A．The man couldn’t work．

B．The man couldn’t sleep．

C．The man couldn’t eat．

听第7段材料，回答第9～11题。

M：Oh，come in．

W：I just dropped in to return these books．Are you getting dinner ready? Something smells good．

M：Oh，I’m just preparing some noodles．

W：I thought your wife did the cooking．

M：She did，but she said she would come home late today．

W：So you’re the cook．What are you having with the noodles?

M：Some cabbages and tomatoes．Why don’t you stay and have dinner with us?

W：Thanks，but not today．I have to hurry off．Maybe some other time．

9．Where does this dialogue take place?

A．At the man’s home．

B．In a restaurant．

C．In a company．

10．Why does the woman come to the man’s home?

A．She wants to have dinner with him．

B．She comes to return some books．

C．She wants to learn how to cook．

11．Who does the cooking now?

A．The man．

B．The woman．

C．The man’s wife．

听第8段材料，回答第12～14题。

M：Don’t you just love this store? Every time I go through all the things here，I always find something interesting．

W：I know what you mean．Look at this box of clothes over here．Each piece costs only one dollar．

M：Look at what I got here!

W：What? So now you’re interested in wool coats all of a sudden．The weather is too warm for it，I think．

M：No，not that．I’m talking about this jacket from the 1950s．Isn’t it nice?

W：Yes，it is．It only costs five dollars，too．

M：I think if I clean it up a little and get the button fixed，it’ll look like it’s worth a million dollars!

W：I think I’m going to buy this little skirt and then I’ll be ready to go．How about you?

M：I’m ready anytime you are．

12．What are the speakers doing?

A．Trying on clothes．

B．Buying new clothes．

C．Buying old clothes．

13．What is the man interested in?

A．A coat．

B．A shirt．

C．A jacket．

14．What can we learn about the piece of clothes the man is interested in?

A．Some buttons are missing．

B．It’s worth millions of dollars．

C．It was made in 1950．

听第9段材料，回答第15～17题。

M：Hi，Jane．It’s nice to see you again．I heard you went to the US during your vacation．

W：Yes．I went to New York to attend a summer course in English．

M：Wow．You were lucky．How long did you stay there?

W：About 50 days．I went there on July 5th and came back on August 25th．

M：How about the course?

W：The course was very good．The teachers were nice．They taught us to listen，speak，read and write in English，but it was mostly speaking．One interesting thing I found was that the American classes are different from our classes here because they are very free．You can sit anywhere you like in the classroom．You can ask the teacher questions at any time during the class，and you are welcome to share your ideas with the class．I really liked this kind of class．

M：How interesting! Maybe our teacher should try that．

15．What was the woman’s main purpose in going to New York during the vacation?

A．To learn English．

B．To visit an American family．

C．To do business．

16．When did the woman come back from America?

A．On July 5th．

B．On July 6th．

C．On August 25th．

17．What in particular did the woman like about the American classes?

A．The teachers were kind．

B．The students were quite free．

C．There were too many activities in class．

听第10段材料，回答第18～20题。

　　Mr．Grey was the manager of a small office in London．He lived in the country，and came to work by train．He liked walking from the train station to his office unless it was raining，because it gave him some exercise．

　　One morning he was walking along the street when a stranger stopped him and said to him，“You may not remember me，sir，but seven years ago I came to London without a penny in my pockets．I stopped you in the street and asked you to lend me some money，and you lent me five pounds，because you said that you were willing to take a chance so as to give a man a start on the road to success．”

　　Mr．Grey thought for a few minutes and then said，“Yes，I remember you．Go on with your story．”

　　“Well,” answered the stranger，“are you still willing to take a chance?”

18．Why did he walk from the station to his office?

A．To save money．

B．To buy something necessary．

C．To have more exercise．

19．Which of the following statements may be true?

A．The stranger once asked Mr．Grey for money．

B．The stranger and Mr．Grey knew each other very well．

C．The stranger was going to give Mr．Grey his money back．

20．What did the last sentence mean?

A．He wanted to give Mr．Grey a chance to help others．

B．He wanted to ask Mr．Grey for some more money．

C．He hoped Mr．Grey could help him to be successful in his work．

听力测试(共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分)

第一节

听下面5段对话。每段对话后有一个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项，并标在试卷相应的位置。听完每段对话后，你都有10秒钟的时间来回答有关小题和阅读下一小题。每段对话仅读一遍。

W：What about those in England?

M：The fifty-pence’s the biggest, and the half-penny is the smallest．

W：Really? In America, the biggest is the fifty-cents, and the smallest is the cent．

1．What are the speakers doing?

A．Comparing goods．

B．Doing shopping．

C．Talking about coins．

M：This meat is like old leather! It’s enough to break every tooth in your head．

W：Perhaps you’d like to change your order, sir．The fish is very tender．

2．How does the man feel?

A．Unsatisfied．

B．Impatient．

C．Pleased．

M：Tomorrow is the tenth of June．It’s my birthday and I’m going to the George and Dragon．Would you like to come?

W：To celebrate your birthday? Of course I would．What group’s playing?

M：The Red Rose, I think．

3．What is the woman interested in?

A．The man．

B．The party．

C．The band．

W：Why are you so late?

M：My alarm clock failed to work again．

4．Why is the man late?

A．He could not walk fast．

B．He slept late last night．

C．His clock was out of order．

M：Where’s the book about cars I was reading last night? I laid it down on the table, and now it’s gone．

W：I don’t know．I cleaned early this morning and I don’t remember where I put it．

5．What is the man looking for?

A．A book about cards．

B．A book about furniture．

C．A book about cars．

第二节

听下面5段对话或独白。每段对话或独白后有几个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听每段对话或独白前，你将有时间阅读各小题，每小题5秒钟；听完后，各小题将给出5秒钟的作答时间。每段对话或独白读两遍。

听第6段材料，回答第6～8题。

M：Why aren’t you doing your homework?

W：I’ll do it later, Dad．I must get these things right first．Our group’s playing in a concert on Saturday．

M：Oh, is it? You’ll be making records next, will you?

W：We hope so．The man from “Dream Discs” is coming to the concert．So I’d better play well．

M：You’d better get on with your homework! You can practise the guitar all day Saturday．

W：Oh, Dad, you don’t understand at all．This concert could change my life．

M：It certainly could! You’ve got exams next month．Important ones．If you don’t pass them, you won’t get a good job．

W：I don’t want a boring old job in a bank．

M：Oh, don’t you? Whose boring old job paid for this house? And for what?

W：Yours, I know．But I’d rather be happy than rich．

6．What is the girl doing now?

A．Repairing a guitar．

B．Practising the guitar．

C．Preparing for making records．

7．What does the girl expect?

A．To be chosen by a band．

B．To pass the coming exams．

C．To get a job in a bank．

8．What is the man?

A．A school teacher．

B．A guitar player．

C．A bank clerk．

听第7段材料，回答第9～11题。

W：Hello?1523852．

M：Hello, may I speak to Anna?

W：I’m afraid Anna isn’t in．

M：Is that Tracy speaking?

W：No, this is Jane．

M：Oh, I’m sorry…er…well, could you please leave Anna a message for me?

W：Sure, what is it?

M：Well, I’ll meet Anna for lunch at my home．Would you ask her to see if she has my French dictionary? And if she does, tell her to bring it along．

W：All right．And where are you calling from?

M：My home．I’m Anna’s friend, Pat．

W：Thank you for calling, Pat．

M：And thank you, Jane．

9．Where is Pat calling from?

A．His home．

B．His school．

C．His office．

10．Who does Pat want to call?

A．Tracy．

B．His friend Anna．

C．Tracy and Anna．

11．Why can’t Pat speak to Anna now?

A．Because Anna is at work．

B．Because Anna is out for lunch．

C．Because Anna is not at home．

听第8段材料，回答第12～14题。

W：Good evening, sir．I’m Assistant Manager．I’m afraid we’ve had a complaint about the noise from your neighbour who’s trying to get some sleep．

M：Oh, I see．

W：Could you please ask your friends to be a little quieter so that our guests can get a good night’s sleep?

M：Oh, I’m so sorry．I suppose we were talking rather loudly．We won an important prize．We were having a celebration．

W：I’m pleased to hear it．Shall I have some coffee brought to you?

M：No, that won’t be necessary．We were just about to pack up anyway．

12．Where does the conversation take place?

A．At a hotel．

B．In a flat building．

C．In the manager’s office．

13．What is the woman pleased to hear?

A．The man’s apology．

B．The man’s story．

C．The man’s explanation．

14．What were the man and his friends about to do?

A．End their activity．

B．Quarrel with the Assistant Manager．

C．Apologize to their neighbor．

听第9段材料，回答第15～17题。

W：So, what do you think? How do you like New York?

M：I’m having a good time．I love it．I’m glad we came．

W：Yeath I really like the stores and the shopping centers．

M：I love the museums, too．

W：But the traffic is pretty bad．

M：Yeah．I hate all the traffic．It’s really noisy．

W：Listen, it’s almost dinner time．There are lots of restaurants around here．What do you want to try? Italian? Greek? Japanese? Chinese?

M：I can’t stand making decisions．You choose．

W：OK, let’s go American．Where is the nearest McDonald’s?

15．What do you know about the speakers from the dialogue?

A．They are native American．

B．They are tourists to New York．

C．They are from Japan．

16．What do they dislike here?

A．The museum．

B．The restaurants．

C．The traffic．

17．Which restaurants are NOT mentioned in their dialogue?

A．Chinese restaurants．

B．Thai restaurants．

C．American restaurants．

听第10段材料，回答第18～20题。

　　Scientists are trying to make desert into good land again．They want to bring water to the deserts, so people can live and grow food．They are learning a lot about the deserts．But more and more of the earth is becoming desert all the time．Scientists may not be able to change the desert in time．

　　Why is more and more land becoming desert? Scientists think that people make deserts．People are doing bad things to the earth．

　　Some places on the earth don’t get much rain．But they still don’t become deserts．This is because some green plants are growing there．Green plants and grass are very important to dry places．Plants don’t let the wind blow away the dirt．When a bit of rain falls, the plants hold the water．Without plants, the land can become desert more easily．

18．Why is land becoming desert little by little according to the passage?

A．Because plants can’t grow there．

B．Because there is not enough rain．

C．Because people do bad things to the earth．

19．Why are green plants very important to dry places?

A．Because they don’t let the wind blow the earth away．

B．Because they hold water．

C．Both of the above．

20．From this passage, what can we learn?

A．Plants can keep dry land from becoming desert．

B．All places without a lot of rain will become deserts．

C．It is better to grow crops on dry land than on wet land．