Fear can be fun. Many young people queue up to ride very fast and scary roller coasters, screaming but enjoying themselves. Other people like to read “goose bumps (鸡皮疙瘩)” books or watch horror movies at night, scared to death but feeling excited. Why do people like being scared?

　　Fear is an ancient way of surviving. Being scared makes animals, including humans escape from danger and save themselves. It is because of fear that we have lived through millions of years of evolution. Those who lacked a strong fear response were more likely to be killed, leaving the more fearful and careful to pass their genes onto the next generation.

　　How do scientists explain why shaking over such scary things is fun? “Some kids will go to a scary movie and love it and laugh over it, others will feel anxious and hide their faces and some won’t even set foot in the cinema,” said Ned Kalin, a US scientist. “Which kind of person you are depends partly on experiences you’ve had and partly on your genes.”

　　What happens in the brain when something frightens you? Nerves that begin at the eyes and ears lead to a part of the brain called the amygdale. When you suddenly see a snake, for example, the amygdale makes you freeze, sweat, have a quickened heartbeat, or run very fast. However, seeing the snake also uses another part of the brain, the cortex. It analyzes the situation, and if it finds that the snake is only made of rubber it tells your heart and the rest of your body to calm down. Think of the amygdale as the engine and the cortex as the brake.

　　Back to the first question: Why do some people like to make themselves scared? “One reason is that we can play games with fear, find ways to reduce the scariness by looking away or thinking of something else,” Kalin said. “To believe we have control over a situation gives us a feeling of power.” “Scary movies or novels are good practice to prepare young people for the real thing. Thrills such as roller coaster rides also go to the brain’s pleasure centre.”

　　And there might be some evolutionary advantage to being able to adjust this system that is there to protect people.

　　72. How many questions are answered in the passage?

　　A. 2. 　　　B. 3. 　　　C. 4.　　　 D. 5.

　　73. Some people like to be scared because______.

　　A. they are afraid that the fear genes will be passed onto their children

　　B. it’s a good practice to get prepared for the real frightening situation

　　C. it can help them show their own personalities

　　D. they will feel powerful after getting rid of fear

　　74. Which of the following is true about the people who are not easily scared?

　　A. Their cortex is better at analyzing the situations.

　　B. They are more likely to suffer from potential danger.

　　C. They are born unaffected by anything horrible.

　　D. They lack a strong response towards threat.

　　75. What is the best title of the passage?

　　A. Ready to scream? 　　　　B. How to be scared?

　　C. Willing to shake?　　　　D. Why to be scared?

第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

Miss Gorgers taught physics in a New York school. Last month she explained to one of her classes about sound, and she decided to test them to see how successful she had been in her explanation. She said to them, “Now I have a brother in Los Angeles. If I was calling him on the phone and at the same time you were 75 feet away, listening to me from the street, which of you would hear what I said earlier, my brother or you and for what reason?”

Tom at once answered, “Your brother. Because electricity travels faster than sound waves.” “That’s very good,” Miss Gorgers answered; but then one of the girls raised her hand, and Miss Gorgers said, “Yes? Kate.”

“I disagree. Your brother would hear you earlier because when it’s 11 o’clock here and it’s only 8 o’clock in Los Angeles.” Kate said.

1. Miss Gorgers was teaching her class ______.

A. how to telephone         B. about electricity

C. about time zone           D. about sound　

2. Miss Gorgers raised this question because she wanted to know whether ______.

A. it was easy to phone to Los Angeles

B. her student could hear her from 75 feet away

C. her students had understood her lesson

D. sound waves were slower than electricity

3. Kate thought Tom was wrong because ______.

A. clocks in Los Angeles showed a different time from those in New York

B. electricity was slower than sound waves

C. Tom was not good at physics at all

D. Tom’s answer had nothing to do with sound waves

4. Whose answer do you think is correct according to the law of physics?

A. Tom’s. 　　                  B. Kate’s.          C. Both A and B. 　　          D. Neither A nor B.

（共5小题，每小题1分，满分5分）

根据对话情景和内容，从对话后方框所给的选项中选出能填入每一空白处的最佳选项

—Oh，madam.　1　

—I'm sorry to say the bill you sent me was incorrect.

—Incorrect，madam？　2　

—Yes，I know.　3　

—Really，madam？I find it very hard to believe.

—　4　

—Ah.Well，I must apologize，madam.It's the new computer.

—Well，don't you think it's about time you got it working properly？It's most inconvenient.

—I agree entirely.I'm very sorry about it.　5　

A. Could you help me？

B. That's very strange.

C. What can I do for you？

D. And what's more，this isn't the first time.

E. But I think this is the first time.

F. I promise you it won't happen again.

G. Look，it's happened five or six times in the past three months.

BRITAIN is a popular tourist place, but tours of the country have pros and cons.

GOOD NEWS

Free museums. No charge for outstanding collections of art and antiquities.

Pop music. Britain is the only country to compete with the US on this score.

Black cabs. London taxi drivers know where they are going even if there are never enough of them at weekends or night.

Choice of food. Visitors can find everything from Japanese to Swedish restaurants.

Fashion. Not only do fashion junkies love deeply and respect highly brand names such as Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen; street styles are justly loved, too.

　　BAD NEWS

　　Poor service. “It’s part of the image of the place. People can dine out on the rudeness they have experienced,” says Professor Tony Seaton, of Luton University’s International Tourism Research Center.

　　Poor public transport. Trains and buses are promised to disappoint the keenest tourists, although the over crowded London tube is unbelievably popular.

　　Rain. Still in the number one complaint.

　　No air-conditioning. So that even splendidly hot summers become as unbearable as the downpours.

　　Overpriced hotels. The only European country with a higher rate of tax on hotel rooms is Denmark.

Licensing hours. Alcohol(酒) is in short supply after 11 pm even in “24-hour cities”.

What do tourists complain most?

A. Poor service.        　　                B. Poor public transport.

C. Rain.            　　                    D. Overpriced hotels.

What do we learn about pop music in Britain and the US through this passage?

A. Pop music in Britain is better than that in the US.

B. Pop music in Britain is as good as that in the US.

C. Pop music in Britain is worse than that in the US.

D. Pop music in Britain is quite different from that in the US.

When is alcohol unlikely to be available in quantities?

　 A. At 8: 30 pm.     B. At 9: 30 pm.         C. At 10: 30 pm.        D. At 11: 30 pm.

Which of the following is true according to the passage?

　 A. The public transport is poor there.

　 B. It’s very cheap to travel by taxi there.

　 C. You cannot find Chinese food there.

D. You have to pay to visit the museums.

Miss Gogers taught physics in a New York school. Last month she explained to one of her classes about sound, and she decided to test them to see how successful she had been in her explanation. She said to them,“Now I have a brother in Los Angeles. If I was calling him on the phone and at the same time you were 75 feet away, listening to me from across the street, which of you would hear what I said earlier, my brother or you and for what reason?”

　Tom at once answered,“Your brother. Because electricity travaels faster than sound waves.”“That’s every good,”Miss Gogers answered; but then one of the girls raised her hand, and Miss Gogers said.“Yes, Kate.”

　“I disagree,”Kate said.“Your brother would hear you earlier because when it’s 11 o’clock here it’s only 8 o’clock in Los Angeles.”

1.Miss Gogers was teaching her class_________.

A.how to telephone 　    B.about electricity 　 C.about time zone 　  D.about sound

2.Miss Gogers raised this question because she wanted to know whether______.

　A.it was easy to phone to Los Angeles

　B.her student could hear her from 75 feet away

　C.her students had a good command of her lesson about sound

　D.sound waves were slower than electricity

3.Tom thought that electricity was _________.

　A.slower than sound waves   　B.faster than sound waves

　C.not so fast as sound waves  　D.as fast as sound waves

4.Kate thought Tom was wrong because _______.

　A.clocks in Los Angeles showed a different time from those in New York

　B.electricity was slower than sound waves

　C.Tom was not good at physics at all

　D.Tom’s answer had nothing to do with sound waves

5.Whose answer do you think is correct according to the law of physics?

　A. Tom’s 　     　B. Kate’s 　　C. Bath A and B 　　D. Neither A nor B