四、阅读理解（共20小题，每小题2分，满分40分）

阅读下列短文，从每小题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在机读卡上将该项涂黑。

Watson entered Mr Smith’s office. The Boss was a hard man. He fired people who didn’t do well without giving them a second chance.

“Watson,” said Mr Smith, “this past year your department hasn’t earned money. We’re going to drop that department. It’s finished. I’ m sorry, —but you’ll have to go.” “But, sir—if I just had a little more time. For the moment I need the job to keep my son at Riverside School.”

“What’s that!” said the Boss. “Riverside! I didn’t know you had a boy there. That’s an expensive school for a man with your salary.”

“1 know, sir. But he likes it there so much! He’s a star trackman（田径运动员） and the best boxer in the school. The boys call him Champ（冠军） there.”

The Boss sat perfectly still for a long time—a faraway （恍惚的） look in his eyes. Then, suddenly, he said, “We’ve got to close your department, Watson. But you’ll take over a new job in another department. It means longer hours—maybe more pay. Now get out. You’re here for life.”

Watson got out, with surprise in his face. Then the Boss took a letter from the top drawer of his desk. It was Herbie’s last letter from Riverside School —written a few days before he died. He had read it over and over again with sick pain. The letter read:

I can’t say the boys here are any nicer to me than the others were. I guess it’s the same everywhere when you’re a cripple (跛脚的人). But don’t worry about me, Dad. They’ve got a good chemistry department here. And there’s one boy here who is really great. He’s a track star and boxing champ and just tops in chemistry. The boys call him Champ. He made them stop throwing my books around. And he knocked a boy down who hit me. He is the best friend I ever had. Dad, when I grow up, I want to do something for Champ. Something big—that he won’t even know about.

Your son,

Herbie

56. The underlined word “drop” in paragraph 2 could best be replaced by ________.

A. fall                   B. close                        C. punish                      D. sell

57. It can be inferred from the text that Champ is_______.

A. Watson’ s son                                       B. Mr Smith’ s son

C. a teacher of Mr Smith’s son                           D. the son of Mr Smith’s friend

58. From the text we know that Herbie_______.

A. was a college student                     B. didn’t live to grow up

C. made friends with many boys                 D. died from a car accident

59. Watson was given a second chance because_______.

A. Mr Smith wanted to help Watson’s son

B. a man was needed in another department

C. Herbie told Mr Smith to do so in his letter

D. Mr Smith wanted to realize his son’s dream

Many people think the search for cleaner energy leads only to renewable resources like sun, wind and water. But it also leads to a fossil fuel. Natural gas is considered the cleanest of the fossil fuels, the fuel created by plant and animal remains over millions of years. Burning it releases fewer pollutants than oil or coal. The gas is mainly methane (甲烷). It produces half the carbon dioxide of other fossil fuels. So it may help cut the production of carbon gases linked to climate change.

Russia is first in what are called "proved reserves" of natural gas. The United States is sixth. Over the years, big oil and gas companies recovered much of the easily reached supplies of gas in America. They drilled straight down into formations where gas collects. As these supplies were used up, big drillers looked for similar formations in other countries.

But now the industry is taking a new look. Companies are developing gas supplies trapped in shale (页岩) rock two to three thousand meters underground. They drill down to the shale, then go sideways and inject high-pressure water, sand or other material into the rock. This causes the rock to fracture, releasing the gas. Huge fields of gas shale are believed to lie under the Appalachian Mountains, Michigan and the south-central states. Gas shale exploration is being done mainly by small to medium sized companies. Eric Potter, a program director, says more than half the gas in the United States is now coming from these new reserves.

But hydraulic (液压的) fracturing can also produce debate and anger over the risk of groundwater pollution. This method of drilling is not federally supervised under the Safe Drinking Water Act. Some in Congress want to end that exemption (豁免) from the law.

Natural gas provides Americans with about one fourth of their energy. And, unlike oil, most of it is produced in America. Gas producers invested heavily in reaching new supplies when prices were high. But prices are down sharply now because the depression cut demand for energy. So energy expert Eric Potter says it is too early to know how the changing market prices will affect the market for gas shale exploration.

68. We can learn from the first paragraph that ________.

   A. natural gas releases methane and carbon dioxide

   B. natural gas is considered as the cleanest energy

   C. natural gas is more environmentally friendly than other fossil fuels

D. natural gas is a renewable source of energy

69. The word “fracture” in Paragraph 4 probably means _______.

   A. create       B. break              C. change             D. decrease

70. Gas shale exploration may cause disagreement because ______.

   A. it may cause water pollution   B. it brings too high profits

   C. it breaks the law              D. it is out of states’ control

71. According to Eric Potter, the new gas shale exploration ______.

   A. will provide America with about one fourth of their energy

   B. will increase demand for energy

   C. will make gas producers invest a big sum of money

   D. may be influenced by the changing market prices

完成句子（共10小题，每小题1.5分，共15分）

71. He is fifteen, and is admitted to Peking University, 　　　　　　(也一样) his cousin sister. (so)

72. I have never dreamed of　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　(会有这样的机会) to study abroad free. (there)      

73. Today, we’ll discuss a number of cases                              (有些学生不能) to use the language properly. (fail)

74. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　(随着时间的流逝), many occasions－birthdays, awards, graduations－were marked with Dad’s flowers. (as)

75. 　　　　　　　　　　　(无论你说什么)makes no difference to me. I won’t change my mind to go to Shanghai Expo although it’s crowded there. (say)

76. So difficult　　　　　　　　　　　　(我发现解决) the problem that I decided to ask Tom for advice. (work)

77. I supported him in time, otherwise he　　　　　　　　　　(会摔下来) the bike. (fall)

78. By the time you come here, I　　　　　　　　　　　　　(已经去) Beijing. (go)

79. Tim, you’re looking for Mary? She             (肯定去了) to the library. (must)

80. It was not until she had arrived home　　　　　　　　　　　(她记起) the appointment with the doctor. (remember)

Personal computers and the Internet give people new choices about how to spend their time.

Some may use this freedom to share less time with certain friends or family members, but new technology will also let them stay in closer touch with those they care most about. I know this from personal experience.

E-mail makes it easy to work at home, which is where I now spend most weekends and evenings. My working hours aren’t necessarily much shorter than they once were but I spend fewer of them at the office. This lets me share more time with my young daughter than I might have if she’d been born before electronic mail became such a practical tool.

The Internet also makes it easy to share thoughts with a group of friends. Say you do something fun -see a great movie perhaps-and there are four or five friends who might want to hear about it. If you call each one, you may tire of telling the story.

With E-mail, you just write one note about your experience, at your convenience, and address it to all the friends you think might be interested. They can read your message when they have time, and read only as much as they want to. They can reply at their convenience, and you can read what they have to say at your convenience.

E-mail is also an inexpensive way stay in close touch with people who live far away. More than a few parents use E-mail to keep in touch, even daily touch, with their children off at college.

We just have to keep in mind that computers and the Internet offer another way of staying in touch. They don’t take the place of any of the old ways.

64. The purpose of this passage is to ________.

A. explain how to use the Internet

B. describe the writer’s joy of keeping up with the latest technology

C. tell the merits(价值) and usefulness of the Internet

D. introduce the reader to basic knowledge about personal computers and the Internet

65. According to the writer, E-mail has an obvious advantage over the telephone because the former（前者） helps one _________.

A. reach a group of people at a time conveniently

B. keep one’s communication as personal as possible

C. pass on much more information than the later

D. get in touch with one’s friends faster than the later

66. The best title for this passage is ________.

A. Computer: New Technological Advances

B. Internet: New Tool to Maintain Good Friendship

C. Computers Have Made Life Easier

D. Internet: a Convenient Tool for Communication

Error Correction（10 questions；1 for each，full marks 10）

     本题要求改正所给短文中的错误。对标有题号的每一行作出判断：

如此行无错误，在该行右边横线上画一个勾（√）

如有错误（每行只有一个错误），则按下列要求改正：

此行多一词，则把多余的词用斜线（﹨）划掉，在该行右边横线上写出该词，且也用斜线划掉。

此行缺一词，则在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧），在该行右边横线上写出该词。

此行错一词，则在错词下划一横线，在该行右边横线上写出改正的词。

注意：原行没有错的不要改。

第一节：短文改错

  We’ll never forget a day when                 76_______

my classmates and I paid a visit a                 77_______

chemistry factory. It was a large                 78_______

one with nearly 20 000 workers. It  

looks like a garden and we saw col-                79_______

orful flowers grass and trees there.

We also visited some workshop and       80_______

found workers working hard. We

talked to them and learned a lot of                       81_______

We understood them further. On

the way home we felt very tiring,          82_______

but we both thought we had a very                83________

good day. We really hoped what we              84________

could get more chances of leaving   

the school and learn about society.         85________

According to a new study by a British’s university , learning ______ second language can lead to ________ increase in your brain power.  

    A) a ; the         B) 不填；the     C）a ；an       D）the ；an            

The answer ________ the teacher,she asked the little boy to try a second time．

  A.disappointed                      B.disappointing

  C.being disappointed                 D.having been disappointed

.In front of me_______, where many athletes from all over the world will compete for Olympic gold medals.

A. stands the Water Cube              B. stand the Water Cube

C. the Water Cube stands              D. does the Water Cube stand

Everyday we go to school and listen to the teacher, and the teacher will ask us some questions. Sometimes, the classmates will ask your opinions of the work of the class. When you are telling others in the class what you have found out about these topics, remember that they must be able to hear what you are saying. You are not taking part in a family conversation or having a chat（闲谈）with friends—you are in a slightly unnatural situation where a large group of people will remain silent, waiting to hear what you have to say. You must speak so that they can hear you—loudly enough and clearly enough but without trying to shout of appearing to force yourself.

Remember, too, that it is the same if you are called to an interview whether it is with a professor of your school or a government official who might meet you. The person you are seeing will try to put you at your ease（轻松）but the situation is somewhat（一点儿）different from that of an ordinary conversation. You must take special care that you can be heard.

48. When you speak to the class, you should speak ________.

A．as loudly as possible          B．in a low voice

C．loudly                      D．forcefully

49. Usually, when you speak to the class, the class is __________.

A.noisy    B．quiet     C．having a rest    D．serious

50.The situation in the class is ________ that in your house.

A．not very different from           B．sometimes the same as

C.．sometimes not the same as        D．not the same as

书面表达(满分30 分)

2009 年2 月9 日晚，北京市的央视新大楼发生严重火灾，导致一名消防队员死亡并造成很大的经济损失。据初步认定，此次火灾由于烟花炮竹而引起。请用英语写一篇短文，就此事谈一下在城市里燃放烟花炮竹的利弊，并发表自己的看法。

参考词汇：消防队员 firefighters 烟花 fireworks 央视新大楼 a new CCTV building 禁止 ban        词数要求：120 字左右