PartⅠClose test
Directions: There are 20 blanks in the following passage. For each numbered blank, there are 4 choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the best one and mark your answer on the ANSWER SHEET with a single line through the center. (10points)
In the late 1960’s, many people in North America turned their attention to environmental problems, and new steel-and-glass skyscrapers were widely criticized. Ecologists pointing 1 that a cluster of tall buildings in a city often overburdens public transportation and parking lot 2 。
Skyscrapers are also enormous 3 , and wasters, of electric power. In one recent year, the addition 4 17 million square feet of skyscraper office space in New York City raised the 5 daily demand for electricity by 120,000 kilowatts—enough to 6 the entire city of Albany for a day. Glass-walled skyscraper can be especially 7 . The heat loss (or gain) through a wall of half-inch plate glass is more than ten times 8 through a typical masonry wall filled with insulation board. To lessen the strain 9 heating and air-conditioning equipment, 10 of skyscrapers have begun to use double-glazed panels of glass, and reflective glasses 11 with silver or gold mirror films that reduce 12 as well as heat gain. However, 13 skyscrapers raise the temperature of the surrounding air and 14 neighboring buildings. Skyscrapers put severe pressure on a city’s sanitation 15 , too. If fully occupied, the two World Trade Center towers in New York City would alone generate 2. 25 million gallons of raw sewage each year—as 16 as a city the size of Stamford, Connecticut, which has a 17 of more than 109,000. Skyscrapers also 18 with television reception, block bird flyways, and obstruct air traffic。
Still, people 19 to build skyscrapers for all the reasons that they have always built them—personal ambition and the 20 of owners to have the largest possible amount of rentable space。
1. A. at B. to C. out D. towards
2. A. power B. capacities C. potentials D. capabilities
3. A. savers B. consumers C. losers D. spenders
4. A. of B. in C. to D. at
5. A. point B. top C. summit D. peak
6. A. distribute B. give C. supply D. donate
7. A. thrifty B. economic C. prosperous D. wasteful
8. A. that B. those C. which D. when
9. A. to B. between C. on D. both
10. A. founders B. consumers C. builders D. suppliers
11. A. coated B. filled C. powdered D. stained
12. A. brightness B. light C. glare D. gaze
13. A. glass-walled B. plastic-walled C. concrete-walled D. mirror-walled
14. A. affect B. assist C. protect D. benefit
15. A. decorations B. utensils C. facilities D. appliances
16. A. more B. much C. few D. little
17. A. population B. People C. Mankind D. race
18. A. intervene B. interfere C. interrupt D. obstacle
19. A. stop B. Pause C. Continue D. terminate
20. A. wish B. desire C. secret D. promise
Part Ⅱ Reading Comprehension
SectionA
Directions: There are 4 passages in this part .Each of the passages is followed by 5 questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are 4 choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the best one and mark your answer on the ANSWER SHEET。(40points)
Passage One
While popular in the U. S., the April Fool’s Day tradition is even more prevalent in European countries, such as France and Great Britain. Although the roots of the traditional tricking are unclear, the French and the British both have claims on the origin of the celebration。
One theory holds that the first April Fool’s Day was on April 1 of the year when King of France instituted the new calendar. This new system placed the day that had formerly been the first day of a new year on April 1. Many people were reluctant to adjust to the new calendar and continued to celebrate New Year’s Day on what had become the first day of April. Thus, they became the first April Fools。
An English story about the day, however, holds that it began sometime during the 1200s. At the time, King John of England was in the habit of making a road out of nearly every path he walked regularly. The citizens of one particular farm village were aware of this. To avoid having their green meadows and pastures disturbed with one of the king’s roads, they built a fence that prevented the king from walking through their countryside. The king sent a group of messengers to inform that they must remove the barrier. Upon hearing that the King was planning to do this, however, the villagers developed a plan of their own. When the messengers arrived, they found what appeared to be a community of lunatics, with people behaving in a bizarre manner, throwing things and running around wildly. The messengers, alarmed at what they had found, reported to King John that these people were so mad as to be beyond punishment. So, the villagers saved their farmland by tricking the King. In Great Britain, tradition only allows April Fool’s tricks from midnight to moon on April 1. Those who try to play tricks in the afternoon become the fools themselves。
21. The word “prevalent” in the first sentence is nearest in meaning to “”。
A. unusual B. traditional
C. prevailing D. prosperous
22. As indicated in the passage, the first French April Fools were 。
A. people who supported the new calendar
B. people who opposed the new calendar
C. King of France
D. all the people in France
23. In the French story, some people were regarded as the first April Fools because 。
A. they celebrated New Year’s Day on Jan. 1st of the old calendar
B. they celebrated New Year’s Day on April 1st of the old calendar
C. they celebrated April Fool’s Day on Jan. 1st of the old calendar
D. they celebrated April Fool’s Day on April 1st of the old calendar
24. The villagers in the English story can be best described as 。
A. crazy B. brave
C. intelligent D. hard-working
25. The readers can learn from the last paragraph that the villagers built a fence 。
A. to show the king the way to their farmland
B. because their farmland had been ruined by their king
C. because their king often walked on their farmland
D. to prevent their king from turning their farmland into roads
Passage Two
When families gather for Christmas dinner, some will stick to formal traditions dating back to Grandma’s generation. Their tables will be set with the good dishes and silver, and the dress code will be Sunday-best。
But in many other homes, this china-and-silver elegance has given way to a stoneware-and-stainless informality, with dresses assuming an equally casual-Friday look. For hosts and guests, the change means greater simplicity and comfort. For makers of fine china in Britain, it spells economic hard times。
Last week Royal Doulton, the largest employer in Stoke-on-Trent, announced that it is eliminating 1,000 jobs—one—fifth of its total workforce. That brings to more than 4,000 the number of positions lost in 18 months in the pottery (陶瓷) region. Wedgwood and other pottery factories made cuts earlier。
Although a strong pound and weak markets in Asia play a role in the downsizing, the layoffs in Stoke have their roots in earthshaking social shifts. A spokesman for Royal Doulton admitted that the company “has been somewhat slow in catching up with the trend” toward casual dining. Families eat together less often, he explained, and more people eat alone, either because they are single or they eat in front of television。
Even dinner parties, if they happen at all, have gone casual. In a time of long work hours and demanding family schedules, busy hosts insist, rightly, that it’s better to share a takeout pizza on paper plates in the family room than to wait for the perfect moment or a “real” dinner party. Too often, the perfect moment never comes. Iron a fine-patterned tablecloth? Forget it. Polish the silver? Who has time?
Yet the loss of formality has its down side. The fine points of etiquette (礼节) that children might once have learned at the table by observation or instruction from parents and grandparents (“Chew with your mouth closed” “Keep your elbows off the table”) must be picked up elsewhere. Some companies now offer etiquette seminars for employees who may be competent professionally but clueless socially。
26. The trend toward casual dining has resulted in
A. bankruptcy of fine china manufacturers。
B. shrinking of the pottery industry。
C. restructuring of large enterprises。
D. economic recession in Great Britain。
27. Which of the following may be the best reason for casual dining?
A. Family members need more time to relax。
B. Busy schedules leave people no time for formality。
C. People want to practice economy in times of scarcity。
D. Young people won’t follow the etiquette of the older generation。
28. It can be learned from the passage that Royal Doulton is
A. a retailer of stainless steel tableware。
B. a dealer in stoneware。
C. a pottery chain store。
D. a producer of fine china。
29. The main cause of the layoffs in the pottery industry is
A. the increased value of the pound。
B. the economic recession in Asia。
C. the change in people’s way of life。
D. the fierce competition at home and abroad。
30. Refined table manners, though less popular than before in current social life,
A. are still a must on certain occasions。
B. are bound to return sooner or later。
C. are still being taught by parents at home。
D. can help improve personal relationships。
Passage Three
On average, American kids aged 3 to 12 spent 29 hours a week in school, eight hours more than they did in 1981. They also did more household work and participated in more of such organized activities as soccer and ballet. Involvement in sports, in particular, rose almost 50% from 1981 to 1997: boys now spend an average of four hours a week playing sports; girls log half that time. All in all, however, children’s leisure time dropped from 40% of the day in 1981 to 25%。
“Children are affected by the same time crunch that affects their parents,” says Sandra Hofferth, who headed the recent study of children’s timetable. A chief reason, she says, is that more mothers are working outside the home. (Nevertheless, children in both double-income and “male breadwinner” households spent comparable amounts of time interacting with their parents, 19 hours and 22 hours respectively. In contrast, children spent only 9 hours with their single mothers。)
All work and no play could make for some very messed-up kids. “Play is the most powerful way a child explores the world and learns about himself,” says T. Berry Brazelton, professor at Harvard Medical School. Unstructured play encourages independent thinking and allows the young to negotiate their relationships with their peers, but kids aged 3 to 12 spent only 12 hours a week engaged in it。
The children sampled spent a quarter of their rapidly decreasing “free time” watching television. But that, believe it or not, was one of the findings parents might regard as good news. If they’re spending less time in front of the TV set, however, kids aren’t replacing it with reading. Despite efforts to get kids more interested in books, the children spent just over an hour a week reading. Let’s face it, who’s got the time?
31. By mentioning “the same time crunch” (Para. 2) Sandra Hofferth means
A. children have little time to play with their parents。
B. children are not taken good care of by their working parents。
C. both parents and children suffer from lack of leisure time。
D. both parents and children have trouble managing their time。
32. According to the author, the reason given by Sandra Hofferth for the time crunch is
A. quite convincing。
B. partially true。
C. totally groundless。
D. rather confusing。
33. According to the author a child develops better if
A. he has plenty of time reading and studying。
B. he is left to play with his peers in his own way。
C. he has more time participating in school activities。
D. he is free to interact with his working parents。
34. The author is concerned about the fact that American kids
A. are engaged in more and more structured activities。
B. are increasingly neglected by their working mothers。
C. are spending more and more time watching TV。
D. are involved less and less in household work。
35. We can infer from the passage that
A. extracurricular activities promote children’s intelligence。
B. most children will turn to reading with TV sets switched off。
C. efforts to get kids interested in reading have been fruitful。
D. most parents believe reading to be beneficial to children。
Passage Four
I needed to get some money, so, after Christmas, I took a job in the clothes department at Graham’s for the first fortnight of the January sale. I can’t say that I enjoyed it, but it was an experience I’ll never forget。
I could never understand why there were many things in the sales; where did they come from? Now I know the secret! Firstly, there is the special winter sack and the stock that people buy all the year round; some of these things are slightly reduced. Secondly, there are the summer clothes they couldn’t sell last year; these are heavily reduced to clear them. Thirdly, there are cheap clothes bought in specially for the sales; these are put at high prices ten days before the sale begins and then are reduced by 60% in the sale. Clever! Lastly, they buy in “seconds”( clothes not in perfect condition) for the sale and they are sold very cheaply。
When I arrived half an hour before opening on the first day of the sale, there were already queues around three sides of the building. This made me very nervous。
When the big moment arrived to open the doors, the security guards, looking less confident than usual, came up to them, keys in hand. The moment they had unlocked the doors, they hid behind the doors for protection as the noisy crowd crowded in. I couldn’t believe my eyes: this wasn’t shopping, it was a battlefield. One poor lady couldn’t keep her feet and was knocked over by people pushing from behind。
Clothes were flying in all directions as people searched for the sizes, colors and styles they wanted. Quarrels broke out. Mothers were using their small children to craw through people’s legs and get hold of things they couldn’t get near themselves。
Within minutes I had half a dozen people pushing under my nose, each wanting to be the first served. Where had the famous queue gone? The whole day continued like that, but I kept my temper ! I was taking money hand over fist and began to realize why, twice a year, Graham’s is happy to turn the expensive store into a battlefield like this。
In the sale fever, people were spending money like water without thinking whether they needed what they were buying. As long as it was bargain it was OK。
You won’t believe this, but as soon as I got home I crashed out for four hours. Then I had dinner and went back to bed, feeling the sound of the alarm which would tell me to get ready for the second day of the sale。
36. What kind of clothes is likely to be sold 5% cheaper?
A. Last summer’s clothes。
B. Clothes not in perfect condition。
C. Clothes bought in specially for the sales。
D. Clothes for winter。
37. Which of the following statements is true?
A. The customers gave up the manners, which the English are famous for。
B. The customers kept their temper while looking for clothes they wanted。
C. Small children enjoyed crawling through people’s legs。
D. The security guards were fearless of the crowd。
38. In the author’s opinion, why is Graham’s happy to make the expensive store into a “battlefield”?
A. There are too many clothes and they want to clear them in the sales。
B. They are eager to show that they are clever at doing business。
C. They can take the chance to raise the prices of all their clothes。
D. They want to make more money by having sales。
39. The expression “crashed out ” means 。
A. chatted with friends B. slept soundly
C. broke down D. dined out
40. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. The Best Bargain B. Hunting for a Job
C. Sale Fever D. A Pleasant Fortnight
