Upon waking up, Jim found himself lying on a stretch of sandy shore with his face half-buried in the sand. He found, that his clothes had been almost torn apart. His arms ached and his body was heavy like stone. Before he could stand up, he was brought to his knees due to exhaustion. As he lay on the sand, he began to study the environment for signs of human activities. But there was nothing except for a few trees and some stones within eyesight.
He remembered how, a few hours before, he had still been struggling for survival in the vast South China Sea. The boat that had carried his friends and him out to sea for a fun fishing trip had run into a terrible storm. James, who was the captain of the boat, and had been at the wheel, lost control of the boat. The boat moved from side to side in the storm. Suddenly, it hit a sharp object, most probably a rock from the sea and was wrecked.
Jim could not remember how he had managed to drift onto land. His friends were not in sight. He was saddened by the fact that they might have all drowned. Then he suddenly saw a thin column of smoke on the far side of a hill. “Could it be a house?” Jim asked himself. Even if it wasn’t, it gave him some fresh hope of surviving the ordeal that he was going through. He struggled on towards the place from where the smoke was rising.
Finally, he found himself at the top of the hill. He saw a little green valley dotted with a few huts and trees in the sun. His eyes were not playing tricks on him. There was a village located at the bottom of the valley. The sight gave him renewed hope. He began to run toward the village with his last ounce of energy.
68. According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?
A. Jim found himself in a desert when he woke up.
B. Jim and his friends were fishing at South China Sea.
C. Jim lost control of the boat he and his friends were in.
D. The boat hit a rock but kept steady.
69. Jim struggled toward the place of the smoke probably because ______.
A. he was afraid of being too near the sea
B. he thought his friends might be in the place of the smoke
C. the smoke implied human activities
D. All of the above.
70. What does the underlined word “ordeal” in the third paragraph probably mean?
A. bad weather B. order C. suffering D. ideal state
71. According to the passage, what is NOT TRUE about Jim?
A. He survived a terrible sea storm.
B. He had the feeling that his friends survived the wreckage.
C. At first he didn’t find signs of humans but then he saw a smoke rising.
D. He finally found a village at the bottom of a valley.
Section B
Directions: Read the following four passages. Each passage is followed by several questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage you have just read.
(A)
E-BAE STORES
A one-stop shopping place for ALL
We sell used clothes, games, books, CDs and DVDs. This is also a place for buyers to buy your second-hand goods. E-BAE is the best platform to market or purchase your dream items. It is noise-free, complaint-free and no shopping crowd. Goods are going at the lowest prices you can find in the town.
I am selling a computer. It is a well-maintained second hand computer with a LCD monitor and a rechargeable battery. It is at an affordable price. E-mail Fred at frogprince@hotmail.com
Selling: Hiking shoes. Worn only once. In tip-top condition. Dark brown leather material with black laces. Branded.
Original Price: $198
Sale Price: $120
Please drop an e-mail to Daniel at damiao@gmail.com
For sale: branded PEAR iPod with a thin black and silver body. 1 year old.
Storage size: 2GB
Original Price: $159
Sale Price: $100
Interested? Please contact Jace at moveit@pacific.net.sg
Looking for the right bag for the right occasion? We have a collection of big-name bags to suit your needs. All on rent or going at amazingly low prices. Drop an e-mail message to Chanel at quirkyfinds@yahoo.com or visit chanel.blogspot.com to answer your needs.
65. According to the advertisement, which of the following is the benefit of E-BAE Shop?
A. Crowding with customers. B. Paying original prices.
C. Shopping with ease and comfort. D. Shopping with free shipping.
66. Which of the following items is not sold on the webpage?
A. Second-hand shoes. B. Designer bags.
C. Electronic goods. D. Computer batteries.
67. If Anne needs a bag for a dinner party, which email address can she use to contact the person in charge?
A. frogprince@hotmail.com B. damiao@gmail.com
C. moveit@pacific.net.sg D. quirkyfinds@yahoo.com
III, Reading Comprehension
Section A
Directions: For each blank in the following passages there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with the word or phrase that best fits the context.
The world was sharply separated into men and women, because that was the way we believed it should be. We hold this firm belief and made efforts to keep this ___50___. When a baby came to the world, he or she was expected to play different roles—boys were portrayed as noisy and naughty ones who people were more likely to ___51___ while girls were bound by strict social requirements to be lovely and ___52___. People became the product of their sex. Their social roles were determined when they were ___53___. Males were the producers of cool reasoning and were capable of ___54___. And being emotional was considered as the feature of females and their main activity location was ___55___.
___56___, with the development of civilization and women’s self-consciousness, more and more women have realized that such natural and physical differences between man and woman have no ___57___ with the differences between male and female excellence. Women are now confident to ___58___ the concepts as “male leadership” and “male power”, which are only terms invented by men and serve in men’s ___59___.
Such remarkable change in people’s viewpoint may well explain the gradual ___60___ of single-sex schools. The aim of education is to stimulate imagination, encourage free thinking and keep alive various interests. But the single-sex school follows the same regulations and ___61___ a set of separate subjects for males or females. In single-sex schools, instead of being offered a rich expansion of experience, students have access to ___62___ knowledge. Such education harms individual freedom and kills the possibility for a young person to develop into a(n) ___63___ human. Furthermore, such sexual distinction is also dangerous as it breaks up the sense of community by ___64___ people into two sex groups, which eventually damages the development of human civilization.
50. A. regret B. division C. union D. step
51. A. spoil B. control C. teach D. face
52. A. active B. humorous C. famous D. gentle
53. A. born B. grown C. praised D. retired
54. A. friendship B. failure C. leadership D. relationship
55. A. at home B. at work place C. in politics D. in education
56. A. In particular B. Furthermore C. In addition D. However
57. A. contact B. attempt C. connection D. excuse
58. A. reject B. reflect C. pardon D. measure
59. A. truth B. sex C. interest D. belief
60. A. extinction B. prospect C. foundation D. definition
61. A. sets up B. brings down C. sticks to D. gives up
62. A. objective B. wrong C. vivid D. limited
63. A. complete B. simple C. domestic D. ordinary
64. A. guiding B. uniting C. isolating D. transporting
Section B
Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can be used only once. Note that there is one word more than you need.
A.freedom |
B.conveyed |
C.fully |
D.claimedE. spirit |
F. publicly G. combined H. produced I. rebel J. especially
Ludwig Van Beethoven was one of the greatest musicians in the 19th century. Living in a period of change, he expressed the ___41___ of his time in his music.
At that time, people were trying to break out of the feudalism(封建主义), and they were trying to pursue ___42___, equality and universal love. Such social change, ___43___ the French revolution, greatly inspired Beethoven. He, together with many contemporary artists, ___44___ many vigorous works, which praised heroism and ___45___ the love for nature. To some extent, Beethoven was a social ___46___. He refused to bow to social traditions and power. When Napoleon was in power, who ___47___ to be a believer of the republic, Beethoven admired him so much that he devoted his Symphony No.5(第五交响曲) to him. But then Napoleon put crown on his own head and became an emperor. Beethoven got very angry and he ___48___ criticized Napoleon, regardless of possible life threat.
Except for all his social and political wishes, he also led to great progress in the history of music. It was he who clearly defined the form of symphony and ___49___ developed it. And his achievements, according to some, marked the end of the classical period and the beginning of the romantic period in the music history.
______ as the main reason for the recent world-wide economic problems is the fact that the US government would hardly accept.
A.Regarding |
B.To regard |
C.Regarded |
D.Being regarded |
The Apple Company had scarcely released i-Phone ______ it became one of the best-selling electronic products.
A.than |
B.before |
C.while |
D.when |