D

To us it seems so natural to put up an umbrella to keep the water off when it rains．But actually the umbrella was not invented as protection against rain．Its first use was as a shade against the sun．

Nobody knows who first invented it, but the umbrella was used in very ancient times．Probably the Chinese were the earliest to use it in the eleventh century BC．We know that the umbrella was used in ancient Egypt and Babylon as a sunshade．And there was a strange thing connected with its use: it became a symbol of honor and authority．In the Far East in ancient times, the umbrella was allowed to be used only by royalty or by those in high offices．

In Europe, the Greeks were the earliest to use the umbrella as a sunshade．And the umbrella was allowed in common use in ancient Greece．But it is believed that the earliest persons in Europe to use the umbrella as protection against rain were the ancient Romans．

During the Middle Ages, the use of the umbrella practically disappeared．Then it appeared again in Italy in the late sixteenth century．And again, it was considered a symbol of power and authority．In around 1680, the umbrella appeared in France and later on in England．

By the eighteenth century, the umbrella was used against rain throughout most of Europe．Umbrellas have not changed much in style during all this time, though they have become  much lighter in weight．It wasn’t until the twentieth century that women’s umbrellas began to be made in a whole variety of colors．

1.The first use of umbrella was as ______________．

A．protection against rain                   B．shade against the sun

C．a symbol of power and authority            D．a symbol of honor and authority

2.In Europe, the umbrella was first used against rain ___________．

A．in Greece         B．in Rome           C．in England         D．in France

3.From the text, we can infer that _________．

A．the umbrella changed much in style in the eighteenth century．

B．no one knows why the umbrella was used in very ancient times．

C．once ordinary people had no right to use umbrellas．

D．during the Middle Ages the umbrella was common in Europe．

4.This passage talks mainly about ____________．

A．when and how the umbrella was invented．

B．why the umbrella was so popular in Europe．

C．the development of the umbrella．

D．the history and use of the umbrella．

D

To a large degree, the measure of our peace of mind is determined by how much we are able to live in the present moment. Regardless of what happened yesterday or last year, and what may or may not happen tomorrow, the present moment is where you are — always!

We allow past problems and future concerns to control our present moments, so much that we end up anxious, frustrated, depressed, and hopeless.We often convince ourselves future will be better than today.John Lennon once said, "Life is what's happening while we're busy making other plans."When we're busy making other plans",our children are busy growing up, the people we love are moving away and dying,our bodies are getting out of shape,and our dreams are slipping away.In short,we miss out on life.

Many people live as if life were a dress rehearsal for some later date. It isn't. In fact, no one has a guarantee that he or she will be here tomorrow. Now is the only time we have, and the only time that we have any control over. When our attention is in the present moment, we push fear from our minds. Fear is the concern over events that might happen in the future—we won't have enough money, our children will get into trouble, we will get old and die, whatever.

To struggle against fear, the best strategy is to learn to bring your attention back to the present. Mark Twain said, "I have been through some terrible things in my life, some of which actually happened." I don't think I can say it any better. Practice keeping your attention on the here and now and your efforts will pay off.

73. The purpose of this passage is to tell readers ______.

       A. people who are busy making plans are living actively

       B. how to help others overcome fear

       C. we ought to learn to live in the present moment

       D. someone who only enjoys the present time usually wastes his time blindly

74. It implies from the passage that ______.

       A. many people know how to fight against fear

       B. it isn't necessary to fear for future

       C. you can gain more happiness by putting off your pleasure

       D. some people make plans for their children to improve their lives

75. "Many people live as if life were a dress rehearsal" suggests that ______.

       A. they always wish to be an actor or an actress

       B. they believe that their present life is well prepared for their future

       C. they are always busy making plans for future

       D. They all have a guarantee that they will be alive tomorrow

76. Why are some people depressed and anxious day and night?

       A. Because they fear they cannot pass their tests.

       B. Because past problems and future concerns control their present moment.

       C. Because the people they love want to leave them alone.

       D. Because they make some mistakes in the past.

A new weapon is on the way in the fight against smoking in Europe.

Soon when smokers buy cigarettes, they might see a shocking photo of

a blackened lung or a cancer patient staring back at them from the packet.

       Some boys may think of smoking as cool and sexy. Their friends won’t

agree when they see their packets of cigarettes lying on the table.

The European Union announced on October 22, that it had chosen 42 photos that showed the damage cigarettes could do to the body. It called on member nations to put these pictures on packets to discourage young smokers.

To catch the attention of teenagers, the special packets warn of long-term medical dangers, like cancer. Short-term effects, like bad skin, are also on the list.

“The true fact of smoking is disease, death and horror. That is the message we should send to the young,” said David Byrne, an EU health official. “Hopefully these pictures will shock students out of their love for cigarettes.”

The EU head office hoped the pictures would work better than current written warnings on packs of cigarettes. The warning included “smoking kills” and “smoking can lead to a slow and painful death.”

So far, Ireland and Belgium have shown interest in the photos. Canada has used similar pictures and warnings on cigarette packs since 2000．The country has recently seen a fall in the number of smokers.

According to studies, smoking is the single biggest cause of avoidable death in EU. Every year more than 650,000 smokers die, more than one person a minute.

68．What would be the best title for the text?    

       A．New Ways to Stop Smoking.  B．Pictures to Shock Smokers.

       C．New Packers of Cigarettes.     D．Dangers of Smoking.

69．We can learn from the test that _______.

       A．The EU countries have put the new warning method into practice

       B．only a small number of the EU countries have used the new warning method

       C．the new warning method has worked in some EU countries

       D．countries in the EU still use the old warning method

70．Which country is most successful in stopping smoking?

       A．Ireland.    B．Belgium.  C．Canada.   D．EU

71．The underlined sentence in the last paragraph suggests that ________.

       A．It’s hard to stop smoking in EU

       B．deaths caused by smoking could have been avoided

       C．smoking is the biggest cause of deaths in EU

       D．EU has the largest number of deaths caused by smoking

A study of art history might be a good way to learn more about a culture than is possible to learn in general history classes. Most typical history courses concentrate on politics, economics and war. But art history focuses on much more than this because art reflects not only the political values of a people, but also religious beliefs, emotions and psychology. In addition, information about the daily activities of our ancestors can be provided by art. In short, art expresses the essential qualities of a time and a place, and a study of it clearly offers us a deeper understanding than can be found in most history books.

In history books, objective (客观的) information about the political life of a country is presented; that is, facts about politics are given, but opinions are not expressed. Art, on the other hand, is subjective: it reflects emotions and opinions. The great Spanish painter Francisco Goya was perhaps the first truly “political” artist. In his well-known painting The Third of May, 1808, he criticized the Spanish government for its abuse of power over people.

In the same way, art can reflect a culture’s religious beliefs. For hundreds of years in Europe, religious art had been almost the only type of art that existed. Churches and other religious buildings were filled with paintings that described people and stories from the Bible. Although most people couldn’t read, they could still understand the Bible stories in the pictures on church walls. By contrast (对比), one of the main characteristics of art in the Middle East was (and still is) its absence of human and animal images. This reflects the Islamic belief that statues are not holy.

Which of the following statements has the closest meaning to the underlined sentence?

A. General history only focuses on politics.

B. Art history shows us nothing but the political values.

C. General history concerns only religious beliefs, emotions and psychology.

D. Art history gives us an insight (洞察力) into the essential qualities of a time and a place.

Art is subjective in that __________. 

A. it can easily arouse people’s anger about their government

B. it only reflects people’s anger or sadness about social problems.

C. a personal and emotional view of history is presented through it.

D. artists were or are religious, who reflect only the religious aspect of the society.

Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage? 

A. Francisco Goya expressed his religious belief in his painting.

B. In history books political views of people are entirely presented.

C. For centuries in Europe, painters had only painted on walls of churches.

D. In the Middle East, you can hardly find animal or human figures on church walls.

What’s the main topic of the passage?   

A. The development of art history.   

B. What we can learn from art.

C. The influence of artists on art history.

D. The difference between general history and art history.

C

The United States is one of the few countries in the world that has an official day on which fathers are honored by their children．On the third Sunday in June, fathers all across the United States are given presents, treated to dinner or otherwise made to feel special．

However, the idea for creating a day for children to honor their fathers began in Spokane, Washington．A woman by the name of Sonora Smart Dodd thought of the idea for Father’s Day while listening to a Mother’s Day sermon（布道）in 1909．Having been raised by her father, Henry Jackson Smart, after her mother died, Sonora wanted her father to know how special he was to her．It was her father that made all the parental sacrifices and was, in the eyes of his daughter, a selfless and loving man．Sonora’s father was born in June, so she chose to hold the first Father’s Day celebration in Spokane, Washington on the 19th of June, 1910．

In 1924 President Calvin Coolidge declared the third Sunday in June as Father’s Day．Roses are the Father’s Day flowers: red to be worn for a living father and white if the father has died．

When children can’t visit their fathers or take them out to dinner, they send a greeting card．Traditionally, fathers prefer greeting cards that are not too sentimental（感伤的）．Most greeting cards are too special so fathers laugh when they open them．Some give heartfelt thanks for being there whenever the child needed Dad．

64．The United States is special in Father’s Day because ______．

      A．many people celebrate the day           B．only America celebrates the day

      C．America makes it an official day  D．all men are honored in America

65．At first, Father’s Day was fixed on June 19th because ______．

      A．Sonora honored her father on her father’s birthday

      B．Sonora’s birthday was June 19

      C．it was decided by the president at that time

      D．her mother died on June 19

66．How many years had passed before Father’s Day became an official day since the father’s day was celebrated?

      A．4          B．10      C．14        D．24

67．According to the passage, on Father’s Day,  ______．

      A．people will wear the same flowers to honor their fathers

      B．only daughters wear red flowers to honor their fathers

      C．children must go home to honor their fathers

      D．fathers are often honored in different ways

68．According to the passage, we can infer that Henry Jackson Smart ______．

      A．was very kind to anyone       B．did a lot for his daughter

      C．was the first father honored in 1924     D．always help others by giving money