III．阅读理解

The blue tits(山雀) have been inspecting the nest-box again this year. The male is the house-hunter but the female will make the final choice. He lands at the hole and turns his head to expose his white cheeks as a signal to attract the female from where she has been feeding.

Among many birds that nest in holes, the male has a light-coloured patch on its plumage(鸟羽) which acts as signal for drawing the female’s attention to a suitable nesting-place. Unlike the blue tit, the redstart(红尾鸲) may be only the male that strikingly coloured and the female is not beautiful.

A few years ago I was lucky enough to spot a pair of redstarts in action in a Walsh wood. The male was leading an interested female to holes that he had previously(先前) checked out. He sat at the entrance of each hole and put his head on to show off his white forehead, or his head in to reveal(显露) his tail.

If the female failed to react to his visual signals, the male sometimes sang for extra effect, while gliding towards her on spread wings and tail. Once the female accepts by following the male through the hole the displays stop, you must be at the right place at the right time to watch them.

36. How do the blue tits choose their nest?

A. They choose their nest together.     

B. The male chooses their nest.

C. The house-hunter chooses their nest.

D. The female chooses their nest.

37. The writer was lucky to see ________.

A. how the male made his tricks

B. how an interested female played with the male happily

C. what the male displayed and won the female

D. that the male tried his best but failed to attract the female

38. You can spot a pair of redstarts in a Walsh wood ________.

A. at any time        B. regularly    C. in April    D. occasionally

39. The writer is probably ________.

A. a bird expert     B. a bird-hunter   C. a bird raiser   D. a scientist

I spotted (发现;认出) him at the checkout counter, bagging at No.14. His arms shook violently as he placed a carton (纸板箱;纸盒) of eggs into a plastic bag. He wore a yellow plastic name tag on which he had written “Jerry” in kindergarten penmanship (书法). He looked middle-aged but his mental age must have been about 12.

Ever since I smiled at him the first time he bagged my groceries at my local supermarket, Jerry has followed me around like an adoring fan. His lack of boundaries makes me uncomfortable. I don’t know how to avoid being noticed by him. I don’t want to speak to the manager — my complaint could get him fired. So I start avoiding him.

There are other grocery stores, but I choose this one because it employs people with disabilities, from which my brothers have also suffered.

Last Wednesday after I finished choosing what I wanted, I turned around and drove my cart to Checkout No.3, hoping Jerry would not notice me and stay at No.14.

“Paper or plastic, ma’am?” Jerry’s soft voice surprised me from behind. “Paper, please.” I noticed that the checkout stand created plenty of space between Jerry and the clerk. In this situation, he knew where to stand. The clerk said to me: “＄27.30, please.” I handed my own cart, signed my receipt and stepped around the counter, where Jerry was holding my last packet of biscuits. He came towards me, stopping an inch from me. He was too close. I wanted to dash out of the store and leave behind the packet. Instead, I stood with my hand frozen on the cart. His eyes looked lonely — I knew they would follow me after I left the store. I wanted to apologize for my coldness. “I’m …I’m sorry.” A tiny voice inside me said. I tapped my head with my hand as if I had forgotten something. “Forgive me. I’m from New York City. I’m not used to people being so helpful.”

He laughed. I laughed. His eyes brightened. “It’s my job, ma’am. I like it.” he said. When he offered to push my cart, I didn’t care but nodded deeply. 

44. The author feels uncomfortable because _______________ .

A. Jerry is like an adoring fan to her

B. Jerry is mentally younger

C. Jerry’s handwriting is terrible

D. Jerry is too close to her without proper distance

45. At the checkout stand, _______________ .

A. Jerry offered to pay my biscuits

B. Jerry was left behind with a packet of biscuits.

C. Jerry knew the social importance of distance.

D. Jerry was not close to me.

46. From the passage we can infer that _______________ .

A. Jerry liked his job

B. the author was afraid of Jerry

C. the author’s brothers were disabled

D. Jerry saw the author as his close friend

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

A. Too Close for Comfortable

B. Don’t Look Down upon the Disabled

C. How to Keep a Good Relation    

D. Don’t Smile at Strangers

Who takes care of the elderly in the United States today? Many people wrongly believe that when people reach old age, their families place them in nursing homes. They are left there in the hands of strangers for the rest of their lives. Their grown-up children visit them only occasionally, but more often, they do not have any regular visitors. Actually this is not true. In fact, family members provide over 80 percent of the care that elderly people need.

Prof. Samuel Preston, a sociologist at the University of Pennsylvania, studied how the American family is changing. He reported that by the time the average American couple reaches 40 years of age, they have more parents than children. This statistic (统计) shows the change in life-styles and responsibilities of aging Americans. The average middle-aged couple can look forward to caring for elderly parents some time after their own children have grown up. Moreover, because people today live longer after an illness than people did years ago, family members must provide long-term care. These facts also mean that after care-givers provide for their elderly parents, who will eventually die, they will be old and may require care too. When they do, their spouses (配偶, 指夫或妻) will probably take care of them.

Because Americans are living longer than ever, more psychologists and social workers have begun to study care-giving to improve care of the elderly. They have found that all caregivers share a common characteristic: all caregivers believe that they are the best person for the job, for different reasons. One caregiver said that she had always been close to her mother. Another was the oldest child. In other words, they all felt that they could do the job better than anyone else. Social workers interviewed caregivers to find out why they took on the responsibility of caring for an elderly, dependent relative. They discovered three basic reasons. Many caregivers believed that they had the responsibility to help their relatives. Some stated that helping others made them feel more useful. Others hoped that by helping someone now, they would deserve care when they became old and dependent.

48. It can be inferred that a middle-aged couple in the US _______.

A. spend more time with their children than with their parents

B. depend on their children’s assistance in caring for the elderly

C. don’t pay more attention to their children than to their parents

D. spend more time taking care of their parents than before

49. The most common characteristic of caregivers is ______.

A. they all have professional qualifications in care-giving

B. they all believe themselves to be the best caregiver

C. they are the eldest child in the family

D. they are close to their parents

50. Which of the following is NOT a basic reason for care-giving?

A. Respect from other members of the family.

B. Prepayment for the care they will get in old age.

C. A feeling of being needed and helpful.

D. A strong sense of duty to the elderly.

51. What is the main idea of this passage?

A. Most old people in the US are living a happy life.

B. Most old people in the US live longer today after an illness than people did years ago.

C. Most elderly people in the US are taken care of by their families, who often find the experience satisfying.

D. Most elderly people in the US prefer living with their families to living nursing houses.

Signnatel Inc, _________ world's largest maker of controller chips for MP3 players, is said to establish ___________ new R & D centre in Hong Kong and open two sales offices on Chinas mainland.

The captain determined to be with the ship forever and never _____ to disappointment even when the ship sank.   

As the supermarket _______, all the goods are sold at half price.

— Ten dollars, please!   — How terrible! I ______ to bring my wallet with me.

It ______ quite correct that happiness comes from thinking about things in a positive way.

In the 19th century the government _____ land to settlers willing to take care of it.

This method must be effective ,for I’ve seen it ____ jobs by many different people.