E

Bells sound. Lighted messages appear. Men and women work at computers. They talk on the telephone. At times they shout and run around.

This noisy place is a stock exchange (证券交易所). Here expert salespeople called brokers buy and sell shares of companies. The shares are known as stocks. People who own stock in a company own part of that company.

People pay brokers to buy and sell stocks for them. If a company earns money, its stock increases in value. If the company does not earn money, the stock decreases in value. Brokers and investors carefully watch for any changes on the Big Board. That is the name given to a list of stocks sold on the New York Stock Exchange.

Investors(投资者) and brokers watch the Big Board to see if the stock market is a bull market or a bear market. In a bear market, prices go down. In a bull market, prices go up.

Investors in a bear market promise to sell a stock in the future at a set price. But the investor does not own the stock yet. He or she waits to buy it when the price drops.

The meaning of a bear market is thought to come from an old story about a man who sold the skin of a bear before he caught the bear. An English dictionary of the sixteen hundreds said, to sell a bear is to sell what one has not.

Word experts dispute the beginnings of the word bull in the stock market. But some say it came from the long connection of the two animals – bulls and bears – in sports that were popular years ago in England.

Investors always care about the possibility of a company failing. In the modern world, a company that does not earn enough profit is said to go belly up. A company that goes belly up dies like a fish. Fish turn over on their backs when they die. So they are stomach, or belly, up.

Stock market investors do not want that to happen to a company. They want a company whose stock they own to earn more profit than expected. This would sharply increase the value of the stock. Investors are hoping for a windfall(横财).

77. The first paragraph is written for the purpose of ________.

A. making readers interested in buying stocks

　 B. telling readers the place is so busy

　 C. telling readers people in the stock exchange are busy

　 D. attracting readers’ attention to the topic of the passage

78. A fresher of a stock market probably turns to a (n) _______ for advice.

　 A. company　　　　 B. investor

　 C. broker　　　　　　　 D. word expert

79. John bought his stock from a company which has gone belly up this year. We can infer _________ .

　 A. John would lose money this year

　 B. John would earn money this year

　 C. the stock market is a bear market

　 D. the stock market is a bull market

80. The reason why investors pay attention to the company whose stock they own is that _______ .

　A. the company belongs to them

　B. the company earns much money

　C. they work for the company

　D. they are financially connected with the company

　　　　　　　　　　　　　 　　　D

　 Few people hate homework more than Alfie Kohn, author of The Homework Myth. There is a hot discussion across the country: does homework really improve school results? A growing number of educators say no.

　 “We always think it is worth it,” says Kohn, “and homework will improve their school results and give them good study skills, but the research(研究) shows it is just not so. No study has ever found any academic benefit(学业上的成效) of assigning (布置) homework before kids are in high school. and even in high school the case is very weak.”

　 But how could hours of reading, writing and solving math problems not help kids to learn? We asked tenth graders at the Galloway School, in Atlanta.

　 “ I learn everything that I need to in class,” says 16-year-old Matt Ritchie. “And it is really unnecessary to do homework. It is just boring.”

　 “If I listen in class and take good notes, I usually do well on tests,” explains his classmate Paige Solomon, “So I don’t think it is helpful-if anything, it just makes me kind of fearful of going to that class.”

　 “I’m usually in a bad mood when I have a lot of homework,” says 16-year-old Carter Parder, “because I stay up later. And then I’m groggy the next day.”

According to Kohn, even if kids learn a little through homework, the cost is too high. Homework may kill a student’s interest in learning. If kids seem to be sinking(陷入) under a mountain of work, parents should intervene(干涉). Most adults wouldn’t want to work eight hours a day, and then come home to hours of extra work. Kids are no different.

73. According to the passage, we know that Alfie Kohn _______ .

A. is a high school teacher.

B. is an expert in language study.

C. does deep research into homework

D. is a great novel writer.

74. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A. Most people think homework is of great help to students.

　B. Kohn is the first person to prove homework is unimportant.

C. Kohn thinks homework is helpful for college students.

D. Parents should pay much attention to the homework of their children.

75. The underlined word “groggy” in Paragraph 6 means “_______”

A. uninterested　　　　　　　　 B. happy

C. sleepy　　　　　　　　　 D. clear-minded

76. The passage was written mainly to _________ .

A. introduce the book The Homework Myth

B. point out the importance of homework

C. show doing homework is a waste of time

D. show there is no need to assign homework

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 C

The 2008 National Year of Reading is a year-long celebration of reading, in all its

forms. It aims to help build a greater national passion for reading in England – for

children, families and adult learners alike. The following are some of the events.

　＊ The Big Picture Best New Illustrator (插图画家)

　 Date: 17 April, 2008-3May, 2008

　 Location: 22Bury Street

　 Details:

　　　　 Booktrust (the organizer) is pleased to announce that the famous Best New Illustrators will be featured at an exhibition at the Illustration Cupboard, London’s only gallery dedicated(把…用于) to the art of illustration.

　＊ The Independent Foreign Fiction Prize 2008

　 Date: 8 May, 2008

　 Location: 14 Great Peter Street

　 Details:

　　　　 　　The Independent Foreign Ficton Prize celebrates the exceptional (杰出的) works of fiction by living authors(作者) which have been translated into English from another language and published in the Uk in 2007.

　　　 Some of them are: Measuring the World by Daniel Kehlmann, translated by Carol Brown Janeway from the German; The Model by Lars Saabye Christensen, translated by Don Barlett from the Norwegian, and The Way of the Women by Marlene van Niekerk, translated by Michiel Heyns from the Afrikaans.

　　　 The award ceremony will be held at a central London location – 14 Great Peter Street.

＊ Reading of The Moon Has Written You a Poem

　 Date: 14 May, 2008

　 Location: 180 South Lambeth Road

　 Details:

　　　　 Two poets Jose Jorge Letria and Maurice Riordan will read The Moon Has Written You a Poem. This book of young people’s poetry was the first Portuguese picture book ever to be published in the UK. It really is a gem (精品) to be read out loud.

＊ Football Reading Family Fun Day

　 Date: 10 May, 2008

　 Location: Chelsea Library

　 Details:

　　　　 A day of football reading activities with TomPalmer, author of the new football novel, Foul Play. There will be Penalty shoot-outs(罚点球决定胜负), quizzes, detective hunts and prizes. The day is open to 8-12 years and their families.

69. Which event will last(持续) the longest?

　 A. The Big Picture Best New Illustrator

　 B. The Independent Foreign Fiction Prize 2008

　 C. Reading of The Moon Has Written You a Poem

D. Football Reading Family Fun Day

70. Which of the following is NOT true about Measuring the World?

　 A. It has been translated in English.

　 B. Its author Carol Brown Janeway comes from Germany.

　 C. It is originally written in German by Daniel Kehlmann.

　 D. Its English version(版本) was published in the same year as The Model.

71. To enjoy some beautiful young people’s poems, you should go to ______ .

　 A. Chelsea Library

　 B. 14 Great Peter Street

　 C. 180 South Lambeth Road

　 D. 22 Bury Street

72. We can learn from the passage that _______ .

　 A. the Illustration Cupboard is one of the many famous illustration art galleries in London.

　 B. 14 Great Peter Street is in central London

　 C. all children and their families can attend all the four events

　 D. Maurice Riordan and Tom Palmer are two famous Portuguese poets.

B

　 Change is a natural part of language development. The words you like to use are probably a little different from those that your grandparents used when they were young. A study carried out by a British company found that the use of e-mail has had a bad influence(影响) of written English.

　 According to the research, computer users today are too busy to hit the “shift” buttons on their keyboards - e-mails are often written in lower case, that is to say, with no capital letters (大写字母) for names or the beginning o sentences. Spelling mistakes are generally accepted even in formal e-mails. And nouns are often used as verb (e.g. Please bookmark this site) .

　 With the development of the Internet, e-mail and mobile phone messages, a new language has developed within just a few years - we call it Weblish. The latest Oxford English Dictionary has included many new words showing the changes in our communication culture.

　 While some language experts care about the future of English and want to do something, John Simpon, chief editor of the dictionary says, “The standards may be different now but it has certainly encouraged writing and communication, which means a faster development of language change. There are a large number of words that either come from the Internet or have been given new meanings by the Internet.”

65. According to the research, people often write e-mails in lower case to ________ .

　 A. save time　　　　　 B. show kindness

　 C. make fun　　　　　 D. be different

66. The second paragraph mainly tells us _________ .

　 A. the mistakes found in English e-mails

　 B. the side effects of the use of e-mail

　 C. the changes in English used in e-mails

　 D. the reason why people use e-mails

67. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

　 A. Spelling mistakes are not allowed in today’s e-mails.

　 B. The Internet develops new words as well as new meanings to some old words.

　 C. Weblish is only used in e-mails.

　 D. We cannot find Weblish in a dictionary at present.

68. According to the passage, John Simpson probably agrees that ________ .

　 A. the use of e-mail stops the development of language

　 B. mistakes in e-mails are very important to English

　 C. everyone should learn to write e-mails in Weblish

　 D. the Internet has brought great changes to English

A

Look at the light and beautiful snowflakes (雪花) falling. Ever wanted to hold them in

your hands? They are always lost when they meet your hands. Well, this is not just a

problem for you. It was a problem for Wilson Bebtley, too. In the 1870s, Wilson

Bebtley was just a teenager. His family lived in a small town in Bentley. His family

lived in a small town in northeast America. Winters there were long and hard.

Bentley’s mother was once a school teacher. She taught him at home. Bentley didn’t

go to school until he was 14. he was a quiet boy, and loved reading his mother’s

books.

　 But it was his mother’s microscope (显微镜) that interested him. When the other

boys were playing with balls, little Bentley was studying things like drops of water,

flowers and snowflakes. Bentley loved watching snowflakes .For the next two years,

young Bentley spent many winter days in a cold room watching these ice crystals

(晶体) under his microscope.

　 The boy thought they were so beautiful that he started to draw pictures of them. But

there were so many snowflakes that he couldn’t draw them all.

　 How could he keep their beauty forever? Bentley thought of buying a camera.

　 The boy and his mother asked his father to buy one. But, his father didn’t agree. He

thought the whole thing was a bad idea. He thought the only thing a farmer should do

was farming.

　 But finally Bentley did get a camera. For more than a year he tried to take picturs

of snowflakes. On January 15, 1885, during a snowstorm, Bentley took the first ever

photo of an ice crystal with his camera. “It was the greatest moment of my life,”

Bentley said later.

　 For 13 years, Bentley worked quietly and took thousands of photos of ice crystals.

Later he became known as “Snowflake” Bentley.

61. What would be the best title for this passage?

　 A. Snowflake photos　　　　　　 B. Snowflake boy

　 C. Long and hard winters　　　　 D. Teenage photographer

62. We can learn from the story that Bentley’ father was a(n) __________ .

　 A. farmer　　　 B. funny man　　　 C. honest man　　 D. school teacher

63. Which of the following statements about Bentley is TRUE?

1. He got no education as a child.
2. He was born into a rich family.
3. He took the first photo of an ice crystal with a camera.
4. He was the first person to draw pictures of ice crystals.

64. What kind o person do you think Bentley was?

　 A. He was outgoing.　　　　　　　　 B. He was too serious.

　 C. He was interested in learning.　　　 D. He was very warm-hearted.

第一节：多项填空(共10小题，每小题1分，共10分)

从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

21. She ________ him the winner of the competition.

　 A.preferred　　　　 B. produced　　　 C. pronounced D. provided

22. At first, he was not fond of maths. But with the help of teacher, he has _______ an interest in it.

　 A. found　　　　 B. developed　　　 C. improved　　　 D. enjoyed

23. He is a native speaker of English. I think he is ______ to the translating job.

　 A. fit　　　　　　 B. equal　　　　　　 C. able　　　　　 D. loyal

24. They sold out all the dictionaries, _________ lots of money.

　 A. bringing out　　　　　　　　　 B. bringing in

　 C. bringing up　　　　　　　　　　　 D. bringing down

25. We are always looking forward to the day when the motorcar has been replaced by some less dangerous ________ of transport.

　 A. means 　　　 B. methods　　　　 C. manners　　 D. ways

26. – Have you had your temperature taken?

　 – Yes. It is 38℃, a bit higher than my _______.

　A. common　　　 B. natural　　　　 C. ordinary　　　 D. normal

27. He didn’t take a rest until the work was ______ finished.

　 A. here and there　　　　　　　　　　 B. sooner or later

　 C. more or less　　　　　　　　　 D. now and then

28. It is high time we set off. The clock is _______ twelve.

　 A. hitting　　　　 B. singing　　　　 C. ringing　　 D. striking

29. This program is a _______ TV show, so you can phone the station directly to vote(选举,投票) your favorite singer.

　 A. live　　　　 B. lively　　　　　　 C. alive　　　　　 D. lovely

30. – Have you got any ____ to make on the film?

　 – But I haven’t seen it.

　 A. feelings　　 B. opinions　　　　　 C. ideas　　　　　 D. comments