The Great Wall of China is one of
Beijing’s biggest draws for tourists; despite its fame and ubiquity in
postcards across the world, it rarely fails to attract tourists at the first
proper sight.Yet the authorities open only certain sections of the wall as fit
for viewing, and few get to visit the unauthorized sections. Fewer still are
aware of the existence of at least one part of the Wall that remains in almost
original condition, nearly 1,500 years after construction of legendary
fortification began. But there’s a good reason for this – it’s underwater.
American journalist Steven Schwankert has been diving since age 10. It was though his setting – up of a diving school that Schwankert came to explore some of lesser – known areas of China’s lakes – and discovered the underwater Wall under a reservoir. “The most fascinating piece of diving I ever did in China must be the Great Wall. I managed to find out about it via the Internet. It wasn’t difficult to get to Pan Jiakou in Hebei Province, near the East Qing Tomb about 4 hour’s drive from Beijing. Why do I want to dive the Great Wall? Why do people want to walk on the Great Wall? It’s the same answer.”
There are, however, advantages of visiting the Great Wall in a diving suit over being on foot. The water acts as a preservative by preventing the kind of mass tourism that has brought trouble on other parts of the Wall. “Unlike the people who walk in the Wall, we as divers never need to actually touch it. I’ve dived twice there, the last time in July. I found that the water then was much deeper than it was before – 13 meters deep.” When he first dived, parts of the Wall were visible above the surface. Now even the guard tower is completely submerged. “It’s better that the Wall is deep under water, as there are lots of boats coming in and out around that area. Their wave action could potentially damage the brickwork. So, the deeper, the better.”
1．Steven Schwankert is most interested in .
A．collecting photos of the Wall B．walking along on the Wall
C．diving the underwater Wall D．visiting some famous lakes
2．What does the underlined word “submerged” in Paragraph 5 most probably mean?
A．Damaged by water. B．Washed by water.
C．Preserved by water. D．Covered by water.
3．What is the topic discussed in the last paragraph?
A．Advantages of walking on the Great Wall.
B．Advantages of visiting the underwater Wall.
C．The reasons why the Wall is deep under water.
D．The reasons why the underwater Wall is protected.
4．What can we infer from the text?
A．The underwater Wall will sink deeper year by year.
B．Diving the Wall is popular with divers all over the world.
C．Diving is a good way to visit the Wall without causing much damage.
D．More and more tourists will come to visit the underwater Wall in China.
第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题，每题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。
The Pillow
At the age of sixteen, I joined a volunteer group with my dad. I went on my first volunteer project in West Virginia. On the night we arrived, we discovered that “our family” was living in a trailer(拖车) that was in poor condition. A crew had been working on it for two weeks, but every time they finished one problem, another surfaced.
We decided the only reasonable solution was to build a new house – something unusual but necessary under these circumstances. The family was overjoyed with their new house that was twenty by thirty feet with three bedrooms, a bath and a kitchen.
On Tuesday of that week, while we ate lunch together, I asked the family’s three boys, Josh, Eric and Ryan, "What do you want for your new room?" Expecting toys and other gadgets that children usually ask for, we were surprised when Josh responded, "I just want a bed."
The boys had never slept in a bed! They were accustomed to plastic mats. That night we had a meeting and decided that beds would be the perfect gift. On Thursday night, a few adults in our group drove to the nearest city and bought beds and new bedding.
When we saw the delivery truck coming, we told the family about the surprise. We could hardly contain ourselves. It was like watching excited children on Christmas morning.
That afternoon, as we fitted the frames of the beds tog tether, Eric ran into the house to watch us. Too dirty to enter his room, he observed with wide-eyed enthusiasm from the doorway.
As my father slipped a pillowcase onto one of the pillows, Eric asked, "What is that?"
"A pillow," she replied.
"What do you do with it?" Eric continued to ask.
"When you go to sleep, you put your head on it,” I answered softly. Tears came to our eyes as she handed Eric the pillow.
"Oh . . . that's soft," he said, hugging it tightly.
Now, when my sister or I start to ask for something that seems urgent, my Dad gently asks, "Do you have a pillow?"
We know exactly what he means.
1．The writer’s first volunteer project was .
A．working on a poor trailer B．helping a poor family
C．donating beds and bedding D．dealing with a housing problem
2．On bearing Josh’s answer, the writer was shocked because .
A．the family lived in a trailer B．he expected to get some toys
C．he didn’t know what a bed was D．the boys had no bed to sleep in
3．From the passage, we can learn that Eric had never seen before.
A．a trailer B．a truck C．a pillow D．a house
4．By saying “Do you have a pillow?”, the writer’s father means that .
A．what they want to get may be unnecessary
B．they should not waste money on small things
C．they should do more volunteer work for the poor
D．what he will buy is not what they want but a pillow
第二节 完型填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）
阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从36—55各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项
Wings of Angel
I used to hate myself because I wasn’t “normal”. Everyone else could play on the monkey bars and ride on a bicycle, but not 31 . I had a severe spinal cord disorder(脊髓病) and I knew I would always be much 32 than others.
I hated going to school and I hated 33 at me. I hated seeing others smiling broadly and standing 34 and tall. And most of all, I hated looking in the 35 and seeing an ugly and hunchback(驼背).
My friends found me 36 because I didn’t let other get close to me. I thought I was going to go on like this for the rest of my life 37 Angela appeared.
That afternoon, I was sitting by myself in a corner of the school—a spot where no one would
38 me. That’s when I first heard your voice.
“Hi. Can I sit down?”
I raised my head and there she was, with an irresistible smile on her round face.
“What are you looking at?” you asked.
“Ants.”
“What are they doing?”
“No 39 .”
“I bet they’re playing games and make friends. Don’t you think so?”
That was how our 40 started and it didn’t stop. We talked about everything under the sun—the ants, the clouds, my little niche(处境)—until it was sunset.
Then suddenly, you saw my 41 . She just stared.
My heart 42 . What I feared most had happened and I knew for sure she would 43 me now.
She stood up, pointed at my back and said, “I know 44__ your back is hunched.”
I closed my eyes like a criminal waiting to be 45 . I begged in my heart for her to 46 , but you just kept on going. “I know what you’ve got in there. Do you?”
“No,” I answered 47 .
She bent and whispered in my ears.
“Your back is bunched because you’ve got a pair of wings from the angels.”
I was 48 . I looked into your eyes and her 49 touched my heart. From that day on, I started to learn to 50 myself because I have the wings of an angel and a kind – hearted friend.
31．A．them B．it C．mo D．her
32．A．sadder B．shorter C．weaker D．slower
33．A．looking B．smiling C．aiming D．glaring
34．A．still B．alone C．straight D．together
35．A．street B．sun C．corner D．mirror
36．A．distant B．stubborn C．hopeless D．unfortunate
37．A．after B．before C．since D．until
38．A．disturb B．seek C．interrupt D．ignore
39．A．wonder B．idea C．sign D．action
40．A．connection B．competition C．conversation D．comprehension
41．A．face B．back C．eyes D．shoulders
42．A．sank B．beat C．broke D．ached
43．A．care for B．rely on C．look down upon D．put up with
44．A．that B．how C．whether D．why
45．A．accused B．arrested C．punished D．sentenced
46．A．relax B．leave C．stop D．pause
47．A．shyly B．weakly C．proudly D．firmly
48．A．astonished B．ashamed C．annoyed D．amused
49．A．wisdom B．generosity C．honesty D．kindness
50．A．control B．like C．comfort D．enjoy
．Sheep on a remote Scottish island are gradually shrinking _______ global warming, according to a study published in the journal Science.
A. on account of B. by means of C. in case of D. in spite of
．As is _______ known, a good knowledge of basic physics helps us better understand natural phynomenons.
A. universally B. specifically C. adequately D. completely
Over 800 pages of the earliest surviving Christian Bible have been recovered and made _______ on the Internet.
A. flexible B. brilliant C. conventional D. available
