61. Michael – I am interested in science and I hope very much to know what our life will be like in the days to come.

59. The most important reason for people to keep dogs now is ________.

A. they need companion　　　　　　 　　　　　　　　　　 B. they like dog

C. they like children　　　　　　　 　　　　 　　　 D. they want to protect themselves

58. The dogs were used for hunting because _____.

A. they were good hunters　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. they listened to their owners

C. they were useful for protection　　　　　　　　　　　 D. they never ate other animals

57. The word “companionship” may mean_______.

A. a business　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. treasure

C. friendly relationship(关系)　　　　　　　 D. partnership

56.　　 Based on this passage, in the old days people trained dogs ______.

A. for protection against robbery　　　　　　　 B. just for fun

C. for companionship　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. for protection against other animals

55. The best title(标题)for this passage is ______.

A. Bad Seasons　　　　　　　　 　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. Summer or Winter

C. The Weather in England　　　　 　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. Strange English People

B

When you take a walk in any of the cities in the West, you often see a lot of people walking dogs. It is still true that a dog is the most useful and faithful animal in the world, but the reason why people keep a dog has changed. In the old days people used to train dogs to protect themselves against attacks by other beasts. And later they came to realize that a dog was not only useful for protection but willing to obey his master. For example, when people used dogs for hunting, the dogs would not eat what was caught without permission.

But now people in the city don’t need to protect themselves against attacks of animals. Why do they keep dogs, then? Some people keep dogs to protect themselves from robbery. But the most important reason is for companionship. For a child, a dog is his best friend when he has no friends to play with. For young couples, a dog is their child when they have no children. For old couples, a dog is also their child when their real children have grown up. So the main reason why people keep dogs has changed from protection to friendship.

54. In the sunny morning some English people usually take a raincoat or an umbrella with them because______.

A. their friends ask them to do so　　　　　　　　　　　 B. it often rains in England

C. they are going to sell them　　　 　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. they are their favourite things

53. “ People can also have summer in winter. ” means　 “ It is sometimes too _____ in winter. ”

A. warm　　　　　　 B. cool　　　　　 　　　　　　　 C. cold　　　　　　 　　 D. rainy

52. From the story we know that when _____ come, there is a heavy rain.

A. sunshine and snow　　　　　 　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. black clouds

C. summer and winter　　　　　 　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. spring and autumn