We don’t plan to cry, but it just happens. In fact when we feel sad or angry, a good cry is almost impossible to resist. But if you didn’t know what crying was, you’d have to wonder why some strong feelings started water streaming from people’s eyes and why they seemed to feel better afterwards.
Now a US researcher had found there may be more in crying than we think. William H. Frey II, author of “Crying: The Mystery of Tears,” believes it may really be one of the body’s clever self-repair mechanisms. Crying may be a way of getting rid of the by-products of stress, he says.
He has found that tears contain some chemicals which can cause stress. One of these is the hormone prolactin (激素), which is set free when one is feeling stressed. Since women have more of this than men, that might explain why they usually cry more, he suggests.
Unsurprisingly, Dr Frey’s study seemed to prove that most people feel better after a good cry. And sex has nothing to do with it ––– the result was true for women and men. So, next time you feel like bursting into tears, go ahead. If Dr Frey is right, you’ll be doing yourself a favour.
【小题1】The best title of this passage would be ________.

第二节  完形填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）

阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项（A、Ｂ、Ｃ和Ｄ）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该选项涂黑。

In the United States more than 80 colleges now accept just only women. Most of them were founded in the 19th century. They were set up to   21   women the education they could not get anywhere else. At that time   22   of the universities and colleges   23   only men. In the past 20 years many young women have   24   to study at colleges that accept both men and women. As a   25  , some women’s colleges decided to accept men students, too. Others still refused to change. Now the women’s colleges are   26   again.

   The president of Trinity College in Washington D. C said by the end of the 1980s women had come to   27   that studying at the same colleges with men and women did not mean   28   had the same chance to   29  . The president of Smith College in Massachusetts said “A women’s college  30   women to choose classes and activities  31  . For example, if a woman student wants to learn math, she will be given the chance. So the percentage of students who like to study math in a women’s college is   32   than that in a college with men and women.”

   Experts say men students in the United States  33   have enough courage to speak in class.  34  , women students can’t. In a women’s college, women feel free to say   35   they want to. According to a report, women colleges also   36   leadership ability in many fields. At a women’s college, every   37   office is held by women. Recent studies   38   that this leadership continues after   39  . The studies also prove that it is easier for the American women who went to women’s college to   40   successful jobs later in life. Maybe that is why this kind of college is liked by people now.

21. A. make                  B. elect                        C. offer                    D. call

22. A. some                  B. most                        C. few                      D. none

23. A. liked                  B. accepted                   C. attracted               D. helped

24. A. chosen                B. failed                       C. regretted              D. hated

25. A. goal                   B. model                      C. result                   D. level

26. A. separate                     B. troublesome              C. special                        D. popular

27. A. forget            B. realize                      C. expect                  D. remember

28. A. students                     B. presidents                 C. men                     D. women

29. A. work                  B. visit                         C. choose                        D. survive

30. A. permits               B. forbids                     C. forces                  D. reminds

31. A. obviously            B. freely                       C. exactly                 D. immediately

32. A. smaller               B. more                        C. higher                  D. lower

33. A. usually               B. never                       C. sometimes            D. seldom

34. A. Finally               B. Therefore                 C. However              D. Besides

35. A. how                   B. what                        C. when                   D. where

36.A. bring down          B. bring over                C. bring round        D. bring about

37. A. governing           B. cleaning                   C. serving                 D. booking

38. A. mean                  B. show                        C. warn                    D. conclude

39. A. school                B. work                        C. graduation            D. death

40. A. hold                   B. gather                      C. lose                     D. require

Can feeling of nostalgia (怀旧) be good for you? or is it unhealthy to have a strong love for the past?

For years, medical experts have studied nostalgia and the reasons for it. Many experts warn that too much nostalgia is harmful. They say linger (徘徊) in the past shows that a person is unhappy with his present life. These feelings keep the person from living his life to its fullest.

Dr. Louise Kaplan has written several books about nostalgia. She says these feelings often begin when a young person is between 13 and 19 years old.

"This is the time when you must face the loss of your childhood, " Kaplan says. "You see your new life is easily destroyed. But you think romantically about a golden

past. You remember your childhood as a time when life was perfect."

These feelings continue as a person gets older, Kaplan adds. She says many grown persons have a hard time keeping up with changes in the modem world, so they think back to their younger years. At that time the world seemed simple and more harmless.

Kaplan says these feelings are not always actually existing. The good old days weren't always good. However, she says nostalgia can be helpful, if used properly.

"Feelings of nostalgia can cause you to remember a time when you had high hopes and dreams, " Kaplan says. "It might give you the strong wish to catch those dreams today, in your present life." She adds that nostalgia can prevent you from "cutting yourself off from your aim."

"At its best, " Kaplan says, "nostalgia has the ideas for the future."

1.According to the passage, feelings of nostalgia _____.

2.The reason for grown persons to think back to their past is that _____.

3.Which of the following is not talked about in the passage?

4.According to Kaplan's idea, _____.

5.We may also use _____ as the topic of the article.

We don’t plan to cry, but it just happens. In fact when we feel sad or angry, a good cry is almost impossible to resist. But if you didn’t know what crying was, you’d have to wonder why some strong feelings started water streaming from people’s eyes and why they seemed to feel better afterwards.

Now a US researcher had found there may be more in crying than we think. William H. Frey II, author of “Crying: The Mystery of Tears,” believes it may really be one of the body’s clever self-repair mechanisms. Crying may be a way of getting rid of the by-products of stress, he says.

He has found that tears contain some chemicals which can cause stress. One of these is the hormone prolactin (激素), which is set free when one is feeling stressed. Since women have more of this than men, that might explain why they usually cry more, he suggests.

Unsurprisingly, Dr Frey’s study seemed to prove that most people feel better after a good cry. And sex has nothing to do with it ––– the result was true for women and men. So, next time you feel like bursting into tears, go ahead. If Dr Frey is right, you’ll be doing yourself a favour.

1.The best title of this passage would be ________.

A．Why Do We Cry                        B．Crying and Tears.

C．Dr Frey and Crying.                      D．Tears and Chemicals

2.According to the author, we feel like crying because________.

A．crying is one of our habits

B．we can’t control it

C．crying is one of the body’s self-repair mechanisms

D．we can get the by-products of stress by crying

3.According to the passage, men seem less likely to cry than women because_______.

A．their bodies contain less hormone prolactin

B．their tears contain more chemicals

C．they are not so full of feelings as women

D．the chemicals in their tears can’t cause stress

4.The author advised us________.

A．to plan to cry very often

B．not to cry any more

C．to go outdoors without hesitation

D．to cry as we want to

5.Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

A．Good cries can make most people feel better

B．Only women can feel better after crying.

C．It is easy to understand that people feel better after a good cry.

D．Crying is sometimes impossible to resist.

Most people know that a wedding ring is symbolic of the bond of love and commitment between two people. But not everyone knows about the history behind this small yet powerful symbol. The history of the wedding ring goes back not just hundreds but thousands of years. No other currently practiced wedding tradition has been around as long.

The Egyptians were the first recorded civilization to use the wedding ring. In Egyptian hieroglyphics（象形文字）a circle represented eternity. Once a woman accepted the ring she became the “property” of the person who gave it to her and she was in a sense “his”. The first wedding ring could have been made of braided grass or hay (which would have been changed often), ivory, bone, or leather. Finally, metal was used, but the first wedding bands were crude(未加工的)and rough. However, the sentiment remained the same-eternal commitment and love.

The Egyptians wore the wedding ring on the left hand because it was believed that a vein in the left hand went straight to the heart. This tradition is still commonly practiced today in most parts of the world largely for practical purposes（most people are right handed）. It is worn on the fourth finger of the left hand. But there are some countries and groups which do not follow this tradition. In the Jewish faith, the wedding ring is put on the index finger. Roman Catholics traditionally wore their wedding band on the right hand, and in many countries and regions in Europe some people still follow this tradition.

It is interesting to note that in the long history of the wedding ring that it is only in the last century that men have begun to wear them．However, now both men and women show their love and commitment by exchanging rings on their wedding day．

Once you begin shopping for rings you may be amazed by the choices. There are several different types of metals: traditional gold, white gold, platinum, and titanium. You can have an inscription put on the inside of the band if you like. Some people are even choosing a tattoo band. The styles vary from a simple, yet elegant band to an elaborate ring covered with jewels. If you do not buy the wedding and engagement rings as a set, you will want to be sure the styles are compatible(配套). Choose carefully because this choice will need to stand the test of eternity.

What’s the best title for this passage?

    A．History of Rings                B．Interesting Facts about Rings 

    C．Different Rings     D．The Meaning of the Rings

What may the word “eternity” in paragraph 2 probably mean?

    A．round        B．marriage    C．couple       D. forever

What can we infer from the passage?

    A．Men were looked upon by women for thousands years．

    B．Only women have the right to make themselves beautiful．

    C．Women wore rings thousands of years earlier than men．

    D．You could have an inscription put on the inside the band．