Perhaps the most wonderful building put up in the 19th century was the Crystal Palace（水晶宫）which was built in Hyde Park for the Great Exhibition of 1851. The Crystal Palace was different from all the other buildings in the world, for it was made of iron and glass. It was one of the biggest buildings of all the time and a lot of people from many countries came to see it. Plenty of goods were sent to the exhibition from all parts of the world. There was also a great deal of machinery on show. Though in those days, traveling was not as easy as it is today, steamboats carried thousands of visitors across the Channel from Europe. On arriving in England, they were taken to the Crystal Palace by train. There were six million visitors in all, and the money from the exhibition was used to build museums and colleges. Later, the Crystal Palace was moved to the South London. It remained one of the most famous buildings in the world until it was burnt down in 1936.
1.The Crystal Palace was built up_________.
A. in the 1950s B. in the 1990s C. shortly before 1851 D. after 1851
2. People from many countries came to the Crystal Palace mainly to______.
A. buy goods B. visit an exhibition
C. travel D. enjoy the Crystal Palace itself
3. What happened to the Crystal Palace in 1936?
A. It caught a terrible fire.
B. It disappeared suddenly.
C. It was moved away to the south of London
D. It was rebuilt.
4.The writer__________.
A. thought the Crystal Palace very useful
B. thought highly of the Crystal Palace.
C. wanted the Crystal Palace to be rebuilt
D. was one of the visitors who had visited the Crystal Palace.
5. The Crystal Palace was famous to all because__________.
A. it was the biggest building in the world then.
B. it was made of iron and glass.
C. so many visitors had been there.
D. it was burnt down at last.
Winter-swimming has become popular in Beijing. Three years ago, few people would go swimming in the icy waters. But now there is a Winter-swimming Enthusiasts’ Club（冬泳爱好者协会）and it has more than 2,000 members. The oldest is 84 years old and the youngest is only 7. The members are from all walks of life. They may be workers, peasants, soldiers, teachers, students…
Though it is now the coldest part of the season and the water temperature in the city’s lakes is around 0℃, many winter-swimmers still swim in the icy waters, even when it is snowing. They enjoy themselves in the lake, while the people by the side of the lake are wearing heavy clothes.
Why are so many people interested in winter-swimming? Because winter-swimming can be good for one’s health.
Bei Sha is a good example. He is 69, and he once suffered from（患……病）heart trouble for 26 years. After ten years of winter-swimming he is now in good health. Scientists are now studying the effects of winter-swimming on health.
1. Among the winter-swimmers the oldest man is_______ years older than the youngest one.
A. 91 B. 84 C. 77 D. 7
2. Guess what “The members are from all walks of life” means?
A. The members do different jobs at different places.
B. They come from all parts of Beijing.
C. They are persons of different ages.
D. They are men and women, old and young.
3. The winter-swimmers are able to swim in the icy waters, even on snowy days because .
A. they are not afraid of coldness
B. they often swim in the icy waters
C. they know that they can benefit（得益）from it
D. winter-swimming can make people healthy
4. Winter-swimming has become popular in Beijing because .
A. more and more people like to swim in Beijing
B. it is more interesting than swimming in summer
C. winter-swimmers are brave men
D. winter-swimming does a lot of good to one’s health
5. What’s the best title for this passage?
A. People in Beijing Like Swimming in Winter
B. Winter-swimming—A Craze（狂热）in Beijing
C. People Benefit from Winter-swimming
D. Winter-swimmers Are Brave Men
Today, roller skating (滑旱冰) is easy and fun. But many years ago, it wasn’t easy at all. Before 1750, people never tried skating on wheels. That changed because of a man named Joseph Merlin. Merlin’s work was making instruments. In his free time he liked to play the violin. Merlin was a man with many ideas and many dreams. People called him a dreamer.
One day Merlin received an invitation to go to an important party. He was very pleased and a little excited. As the day of the party came near, Merlin began to think. He wanted to find a way to make a wonderful entrance at the party. Merlin had an idea. He thought that he would attract a lot of attention if he could skate into the room.
Merlin tried different ways to make he roll. Finally, he decided to put two wheels under each shoe. These were the first roller skate shoes. Merlin was very proud of them. He dreamed of arriving at the party and skating into the room while playing the violin. He was sure that everyone would be very surprised.
On the night of the party Merlin rolled into the room, playing his violin. Everyone was really surprised to see him. There was just one problem. Merlin had no way to stop his roller skating. He rolled on, playing the violin. Then, with all eyes on him, Merlin hit into a huge mirror on the wall. The mirror broke into many pieces with a very loud noise. But nobody forgot Merlin’s wonderful entrance after that.
1. The story tells us that people began to enjoy roller-skating ______.
A. before the year 1750 B. before the invitation
C. because of Joseph Merlin D. because it was dangerous
2.People called Merlin a dreamer because ___________.
A. he slept and dreamed a lot B. he was full of different ideas
C. he was a talented violinist D. he always made people’s dreams come true
3. ___________ made Merlin think of skating on wheels.
A. Merlin’s work B. Merlin’s violin
C. A huge mirror D. An important party
4. What was Merlin’s problem after he rolled into the room?
A. He couldn’t stop his roller-skating.
B. He couldn’t attract a lot of attention.
C. Everyone was surprised at him.
D. He couldn’t play the violin while rolling.
5. 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
When I was six, Dad brought home a dog one day, who was called “Brownie”, my brothers and I all loved Brownie and did different things with her. One of us would walk her, another would feed her, and then there were baths, playing catch and many other games. Brownie, in return, loved each and every one of us. One thing that most touched my heart was that she would go to whoever was sick and just be with them. We always felt better when she was around.
One day, as I was getting her food, she chewed up(咬破) one of Dad’s shoes, which had to be thrown away in the end. I knew Dad would be mad and I had to let her know what she did was wrong. When I looked at her and said, “Bad girl.” She looked down at the ground and then went and hid. I saw a tear in her eyes.
Brownie turned out to be more than just our family pet. She went everywhere with us. People would stop and ask if they could pet her. Of course she’d let anyone pet her. She was just the most lovable dog. There were many times when we’d be out walking and a small child would come over and pull on her hair. She never barked (吠) or tried to get away. Funny thing is that she would smile. This frightened people because they thought she was showing her teeth. Far from the truth, she loved everyone.
Now many years have passed since Brownie died of old age. I still miss the days when she was with us.
1. What would Brownie do when someone was ill in the family?
A. Look at them sadly. B. Keep them company.
C. Play games with them. D. Touch them gently.
2. We can infer from Paragraph 2 that Brownie ____.
A. would eat anything when hungry B. felt sorry for her mistake
C. loved playing hide-and-seek D. disliked the author’s dad
3.Why does the author say that Brownie was more than just a family pet?
A. She was treated as a member of the family.
B. She played games with anyone she liked.
C. She was loved by everybody she met.
D. She went everywhere with the family.
4. Some people got frightened by Brownie when she ____.
A. smiled B. barked
C. rushed to them D. tried to be funny
5. Which of the following best describes Brownie?
A. Shy. B. Polite. C. Brave. D. Caring.
语法填空（共10小题；每小题1.5分，满分15分）
阅读下面短文，按照句子结构的语法性和上下文连贯的要求，在空格处填入一个适当的词或使用括号中词语的正确形式填空。
Bosses of ___31___ publishing firm are trying to work out why no one noticed that one of their ___32___ (employ) had been sitting dead at his desk for five days before anyone asked if he was feeling okay. George Turklebaum ___33___ had been employed as a proofreader at a New York firm for 30 years, had a heart attack in the open-plan office, ___34___ he shared with 23 other workers.
He ___35___ (quiet) passed away on Monday, but nobody noticed ___36___ Saturday morning when an office cleaner asked why he was working during the weekend. His boss, Elliot Wachiaski, said, “George was always the first guy in each morning and the last ___37____ (leave) at night, so no one found ___38____ unusual that he was in the same position all that time and ___39____ (keep) much to himself.”
A postmortem examination (尸检) revealed that he had been dead ___40____ five days after suffering from coronary disease (冠状动脉疾病). George was proofreading manuscripts (手稿) of medical textbooks when he died.
完形填空 (共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分)
阅读下面短文，从短文后所给各题的A、B、C、D四个选项中选出能填入相应空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将对应题号的相应选项字母涂黑。
Computers have done us a lot since they turned up. In the future they will play a more important part in many _____16_____, such as education, transport, personal lives, scientific research and so on. Nowadays computers are being _____17_____ in agriculture and industry and can help the farmers to _____18_____ the conditions of the plants.
More and more computers will come into our daily life with the _____19_____ of science and technology. If you want to change money or pay your electricity bills, you won’t have to go to the _____20_____. A computer and a telephone will help you. It can also help you to do the housework and it can even _____21_____ human voices and carry out the instructions. It is _____22_____ that the majority of the labour force will work at home. People will be able to use the videophone for conferences. This can help us to save a lot of energy and _____23_____. It is said that trains in Japan will have no _____24_____, because they’ll be well _____25_____ by computers, which can also tell the best _____26_____ between trains.
Computer programmes for _____27_____ whole texts are already well developed. You can _____28_____ the name of a certain subject and a _____29_____ list of book titles will _____30_____ on your screen. You may choose whichever you want.
1.
A. families B. fields C. factories D. places
2.
A. used B. put C. shown D. given
3.
A. form B. grow C. control D. manage
4.
A. increase B. progress C. production D. development
5.
A. office B. bank C. shop D. post office
6.
A. understand B. carry C. hear D. recognize
7.
A. important B. necessary C. possible D. complete
8.
A. material B. time C. place D. money
9.
A. conductors B. drivers C. instructors D. indicators
10.
A. operated B. done C. made D. run
11.
A. position B. direction C. distance D. way
12.
A. storing B. writing C. remaining D. recording
13.
A. give B. put C. type D. write
14.
A. first-rate B. world-famous C. nationwide D. worldwide
15.
A. show B. appear C. offer D. come
