Today, roller skating is easy and fun. But a long time ago, it wasn’t easy at all. Before 1750, the idea of skating didn’t exist. That changed because of a man named Joseph Merlin. Merlin’s work was making musical instruments. In his spare time he liked to play the violin. Joseph Merlin was a man of ideas and dreams. People called him a dreamer.
One day Merlin received an invitation to attend a fancy dress ball(化装舞会). He was very pleased and a little excited. As the day of party came near, Merlin began to think how to make a grand entrance at the party. He had an idea. He thought he would get a lot of attention if he could skate into the room.
Merlin tried different ways to make himself roll. Finally, he decided to put two wheels under each shoe. These were the first roller skates. Merlin was very proud of his invention and dreamed of arriving at the party on wheels while playing the violin.
On the night of the party Merlin rolled into the room playing his violin. Everyone was astonished to see him. There was just one problem. Merlin had no way to stop his roller skates. He rolled on and on. Suddenly, he ran into a huge mirror that was hanging on the wall. Down fell the mirror, breaking to pieces. Nobody forgot Merlin’s grand entrance for a long time!
49. The text is mainly about _________.
A. a strange man
B. an unusual party
C. how roller skating began
D. how people enjoyed themselves in the 18th century
50. People thought Merlin was a dreamer because he _________.
A. often gave others surprise B. was a gifted musician
C. invented the roller skates D. was full of imagination
51. Merlin put wheels under his shoes in order to _________.
A. impress the party guests B. arrive at the party sooner
C. test his invention D. show his skill in walking on wheels
52. What is the main point the writer is trying to make in the last paragraph?
A. The roller skates needed further improvement
B. The party guests took Merlin for a fool
C. Merlin succeeded in beyond expectation.
D. Roller skating is easy and fun.
Education is not an end, but a means to an end. In other words, we do not educate children only for the purpose of educating them. Our purpose is to fit them for life.
In some modern countries it has for some time been fashioned to think that by free education for all --- one can solve all the problems of society and build a perfect nation. But we can already see that free education for all is not enough; we find in such countries a far larger number of people with university degree; they refuse to do what they think “low” work; and, in fact, work with hands is thought to be dirty and shameful in such countries. But we have only to think a moment to understand that the work of a completely uneducated farmer is far more important than that of a professor; we can live without education, but we die if we have no food. If no one cleaned our streets and took the rubbish away from our houses, we should get terrible diseases in our towns…
In fact, when we say that all of us must be educated to fit us for life, it means that we must be educated in such a way that, firstly, each of us can do whatever work suited to his brains and ability and, secondly, that we can realize that all jobs are necessary to society, and that is very bad to be ashamed of one’s work. Only such a type of education can be considered valuable to society.
45. The writer of the passage thinks that __________.
A. education can settle most of the world’s problems
B. free education for all probably leads to a perfect world.
C. free education won’t help to solve problems
D. all the social problems can’t be solved by education.
46. The writer wants to prove that __________.
A. our society needs all kinds of jobs
B. our society needs free education for all
C. a farmer is more important than a professor
D. work with hands is the most important
47. The purpose of education is __________.
A. to choose officials for the country
B. to prepare children mainly for their future work
C. to let everyone receive education fit for him
D. to build a perfect world
48. The passage tells us about ________ of the education.
A. the means B. the system C. the value D. the type
PART THREE READING COMPREHENSION (24分)
Directions: Read the following three passages. Each passage is followed by several questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are 4 choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage.
He was a real big spender. He stayed at the best hotel and ate in the most expensive restaurants.
To the management of Disneyland Pairs, he was a very welcome guest, even though he was only 12 years old. In the end, the police discovered that the schoolboy was living the high life on the ￡10,000 stolen from his father’s safe.
The boy, named Lamine, had disappeared from the family hotel in Paris 10 days earlier. While police all over France searched for him, he was living it up at a 250-a-night Disneyland hotel. He went on all the rides and went on every other attraction in the place.
And when he’d had enough of Disneyland for a while, he paid ￡650 to hire a large and very comfortable car which is usually used by very rich or important people to take him to a park for a day. Then he was driven back to Disneyland, where he treated new-found friends to expensive rides and dinner. By the time the truth about him was discovered, Lamine had spent ￡7,000 of his father’s money.
41. What does the underlined phrase “ high life”(paragraph 2) probably mean?
A. A way of living that involves spending a lot of money.
B. A way of living that is as good as that of other people.
C. A way of living that draws attention from the police.
D. A way of living that is envied by young and rich people.
42. What was the possible reason that the police all over France searched for Lamine?
A. The police found that Lamine stole his father’s money and ran away.
B. His family found that the boy was lost and called the police for help.
C. The police thought that it was dangerous to live an expensive life.
D. The family wanted Lamine to go back to school.
43. Why was Lamine a very welcome guest of Disneyland Paris?
A. Because he was only 12 years old.
B. Because he liked the riders in the Disneyland.
C. Because he made the Disneyland famous.
D. Because he spent a lot of money in Disneyland.
44. Which of the following statements is true?
A. Lamine moved from one expensive hotel to another with his father’s money.
B. The police began to search Lamine when they discovered that he stole his father’s money.
C. Lamine was found ten days after he left his parents.
D. Lamine had made some new friends and went to a park with them.
SECTION B
Directions: For each blank in the following passage there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with word or phrase that best fits the context. （10分）
It was a Sunday afternoon. I was waiting outside the classroom where my son was about to take a(n) 31 . The boys and girls were busy discussing the exam, while their anxious parents were watching them outside. There was a lot of 32 .
I noticed one boy who was standing alone in silence, with fear written all over his face. He did not join other children 33 the discussion and he looked puzzled. He wanted to mix with the others; 34 , he didn’t seem to be confident enough. He 35 me deeply. I moved towards him and smiled at him. He smiled back warmly. Then I started to encourage him and told him that he would do well in the exam. This helped him 36 his fear and he told me something about himself: his parents never cared about him and did not 37 him even if he was always a top student. I told him that his education was preparation for later life that should never be 38 . He became encouraged and said he would try to fight against all the difficulties in his life and be successful. He then went into the 39 and we lost touch.
A few days later, I happened to be in the school and I saw him again. He looked different. He gave me a broad smile and came to me with 40 steps. He said happily that he had got first place in the test and that those few minutes with me was really important to him. He thanked me for the words I had said. It was a great moment for me.
31. A. class B. exam C. lecture D. meeting
32. A. voice B. noise C. sound D. fun
33. A. to B. into C. together D. in
34. A. though B. besides C. therefore D. however
35. A. excited B. delighted C. impressed D. appealed
36. A. restart B. promote C. remove D. keep
37. A. support B. control C. share D. rescue
38. A. given out B. given up C. given away D. given in
39. A. restroom B. classroom C. waiting room D. dining room
40. A. certain B. ready C. hopeful D. confident
As a result of the serious flood, two-thirds of the buildings in the area ________.
A. needs repairing B. needs to be repaired
C. need repairing D. need to repair[��Դ:Zxxk.Com]
--______ either he or I to host this year’s Talent Show in our school?
--- Sorry, I have no idea, either.
A. Is B. Am C. Are D. Were
