Reading ComprehensionPassage 1The United States is full of automobiles. There are still many families without cars, but some families have two or even more. However, cars are used for more than pleasure. They are necessary part of life.Cars are used for business. They are driven to offices and factories by workers who have no other way to get to their jobs. When salesmen are sent to different parts of the city, they have to drive in order to carry their products. Farmers have to drive into the city in order to get supplies.Sometimes small children must be driven to school. In some cities school buses are used only when children live more than a mile from the school. When the children are too young to walk that far, their mothers take turns driving them to school. One mother drives on Mondays, taking her own children and neighbors' children as well. Another drives on Tuesdays, another on Wednesdays, and so on. This is called forming a car pool. Men also form car pools, with three or four men taking turns driving to the place where they all work.More car pools should be formed in order to put fewer automobiles on the road and to use less gasoline. Parking is a great problem, and so is the traffic in and around cities. Too many cars are being driven. Something will have to be done about the use of cars.1. Many families in the U.S. own cars because ________.A) cars are a source of pleasure for them B) they need a car to form a car poolC) they live more than a mile away from the school D) cars form necessary part in their life2. Which of the following groups is NOT mentioned though they certainly drive cars?A) Office workers. B) Police and mail carriers. C) Salesmen and farmers. D) Factory workers.3. Paragraph 3 suggests that in the United States ________.A) children have to walk to school B) school buses take all the children to schoolC) mothers drive children to school D) families usually live within a mile from the school4. "A car pool" most probably means ________.A) a number of people sharing the use of a car B) a place for parking carsC) a group of tourists driving alternatively D) a place for learning to drive5. What is the author's advice about the use of cars?A) To provide larger parking spaces. B) To build better roads.C) To produce fewer automobiles. D) To form more car pools.Passage 2Recent fires have destroyed much of Indonesian forests and pose the latest threat to the survival of the endangered orangutans（红毛猿）. Thirty orangutans fleeing their burning forest home have been killed by villagers, who see the animals as crop raiders. Orangutan mothers have been killed so that their young can be captured and sold into the illegal wildlife pet trade. Orangutan experts continue to receive orangutan infants whose mothers have been killed while searching for food in plantations and fields.The fires, caused by drought and coupled with fire-setting methods to clear forests, have destroyed more than two million acres. When fire gets into the rainforests' layer of dry peat (partly decayed plant material which covers the soil), it can burn slowly off and on for months or years after the original fire. These fires continue until heavy rainfall soaks the peat through andthrough.Orangutans once numbered in the hundreds of thousands, but their population has dropped to roughly 25 000 due to fire, the destruction of forests from felling trees for timber and agriculture, and losses linked to the live-animal trade. Before the fires, only 40 percent of the orangutans' original habitat remained, and now, their habitat has become even smaller.1. What can be the best title for this passage?A) Fires Drive Orangutans to Danger. B) Orangutans Are Precious Animals.C) Fires in Indonesia Keep on Flaming. D) Orangutans Endanger the Crops of Indonesia.2. Which of the following is true about villagers?A) They set fire in order to kill orangutans for food.B) They are ignorant of wild life pets trade.C) They dislike orangutans because they destroy crops.D) They continue to receive orangutans infants.3. According to this passage, fires in Indonesia ________.A) will not end until it starts to rain B) will be eventually put out by human effortC) will die out when the winds stop blowing D) will only stop when the peat is totally wet4. Some people buy orangutans because ________.A) they want to save orangutans B) they want to keep orangutans as petsC) they want to build new homes for orangutans D) they want to take care of orangutan infants5. Which of the following is NOT a reason for the decreasing of orangutans in Indonesia?A) The forests have been burned to make land for agriculture.B) Most of orangutans' forests have been destroyed.C) Mother orangutans have been caught and sold in pet-animal market.D) Trees have been cut down for human profits.Passage 3Don't try kicking the tires on a very modern and strange car developed by students at Coventry University. Not only does the car have no tires, it has no steering wheel, either.The Coventry Concept Car, as it is called is a completely new design that looks more like a snail（蜗牛）than an automobile. No working model, or functional form of the vehicle exists yet, but its designers recently introduced a life-sized model and explained how a real one would work. Electric motors would move rapidly undulating pad（形成波浪状气垫）underneath the car; moving the vehicle in any direction at speeds up to 480 km per hour. The motion would be a much faster way of crawling? The way snails move. (Muscles in the bottom of a snail's flat foot contract （收缩）in waves that push the snail along the ground.)Steering of the snail car would be handled automatically by an onboard computer, which would receive signals from orbiting satellites. Those signals would help guide the snail car along a preprogrammed route.Even the car's color could be computer-controlled, the student designer suggested. Instead of a painted out appearance, the snail car would sport an electronically sensitive film that changes color according to its surroundings.1. The Coventry Concept Car is designed mainly based on ________.A) the appearance of a snail B) the movement of a snailC) the life-size of a snail D) the behavior of a snail2. Which of the following is true about the Coventry Concept Car?A) Its first working model can run at 480 km per hour.B) Its direction is controlled by a steering wheel.C) It moves in all directions on a pair of flat feet.D) It travels automatically along preprogrammed routes.3. The color of the car can be changed ______.A) by applying different films onto its exteriorB) automatically in accordance with its surroundingsC) by signals received by the car computerD) according to the customer's requirement4. The word "sport" in the last but one line most probably means _______.A) apply B) wear C) run D) notice5. Which of the following might be the best title for the passage?A) A Car at a Speed of a Snail B) A Computer-Controlled Electronic VehicleC) A Car Without Tires and Steering Wheel D) A Car with No Functional FormPassage 4Have you ever been afraid to talk back when you were treated unfairly? Have you ever bought something just because the salesman talked you into it? Are you afraid to ask someone for a date?Many people are afraid to assert themselves（坚持自己的权利）. Dr. Alberti, author of Stand Up, Speak Out, and Talk Back, thinks it's because their self-respect is low. "Our whole set-up is designed to make people distrust themselves," says Alberti. "There's always a 'superior' around: a parent, a teacher, a boss who 'knows better'."But Alberti and other scientists are doing something to help those people assert themselves. They offer "Assertiveness Training" courses? AT for short. In the AT course people learn that they have a right to be themselves. They learn to speak out and feel good about doing so. They learn to be aggressive without hurting other people.In one way, learning to speak out is to overcome fear. A group taking an A T course will help the timid person to lose his fear. But AT uses an even stronger motive ? the need to share. The timid person speaks out in the group because he wants to tell how he feels.Whether or not you speak up for yourself depends on your self-image. If someone you face is more "important" than you, you may feel less of a person. You start to doubt your own good sense.You go by the other person's label. But, why should you? AT says you can get to feel good about yourself. And once you do, you can learn to speak out.1. The problem the writer talks about is that _______.A) some people buy things they don't wantB) some people are afraid of arguing for themselvesC) there are too many "superiors" around usD) there is too much pressure from our society2. The cause of the problem discussed in this passage is that _______.A) some people have a low self-imageB) there is always someone around who "knows better"C) salesmen talk people into buying things they don't wantD) people don't share opinions in a group3. The set-up of our society often _______.A) makes people distrust themselvesB) makes things more favorable for "superiors"C) keeps people from knowing as much as their "superiors"D) helps people to learn to speak up for their rights4. AT is one solution to the problem in this passage, but one thing AT doesn't promote is to help people ________.A) to share their feelings B) to have a right to be oneselfC) to overcome their fear before others D) to be more aggressive5. The title for this passage could be ________.A) Assertiveness Training B) Loss of Self-respectC) The Importance of Human Rights D) Share Your Feelings with OthersPassage 5An unusual cooperation between the local university and other education providers in East Anglia has seen the establishment of Norwich's new Learning Shop. At the city center shop, local people can look through booklets and leaflets to find out about learning opportunities ranging from evening classes to postgraduates（研究生）degrees. Skilled staff are on hand to give accurate information about courses and training in the region.More than 11,000 people have visited the shop since it opened in 1997. The majority of inquiries have been about courses in further education, but 17 percent have related to higher education in general.Customer feedback（反馈）confirms how valuable the resource is. A woman's comment is typical: "It's a brilliant idea ― less daunting than going to the different institutions." A seller told us: "This really gives you hope you can get back into something."Fellow institutions are welcome to set up exhibitions and events at the shop: to date, these have included poetry readings, a recorder concert and numerous exhibitions and displays. The shop is staffed by two advisers and other colleagues from the fellow institutions in the region.Speaking at the "Norwich as a Learning City" conference, Prof. Mike Campell at the local university, said the first barrier（障碍）to learning was lack of information. The Learning Shop aims to break down that barrier.1. For what purpose is the Learning Shop set up?A) To help people know more about higher education.B) To sell booklets and leaflets of the institutions.C) To provide educational opportunities to old people.D) To promote courses and training in the region.2. The word "daunting" (Line 2, Para. 3) is close to________ in meaning.A) disappointing B) boring C) worrying D) discouraging3. What are the visitors to the Learning Shop mainly interested in?A) Further education courses. B) University degree courses.C) Evening classes. D) Part-time courses.4. The events we can find in the Learning Shop include the following EXCEPT ________.A) recorder concerts B) local conferencesC) poetry readings D) displays and exhibitions5. Which of the following is TRUE according to Prof. Mike Campell?A) The city authorities should run more learning shops.B) People have difficulties in finding out about learning opportunities.C) The staff should provide customers with accurate information.D) Most people want to go back to college.Passage 6Not all language is verbal. Some of our communication occurs without words. We often use our entire bodies for communication. We may raise our eyebrows（眉毛）to indicate surprise. Perhaps we nod our heads to show that we agree with something. There are hundreds of nonverbal signals that can be used to communicate. These signals are part of language, and they are governed by rules in the same way that our spoken language is. For this reason, people who speak different languages often use different nonverbal signals as well.In addition to verbal communication and the type of nonverbal communication discussed above, there are other message systems that we use to communicate. When we speak to some people, we may stand very close to them, while we may stand far away from other people. Use of space, then, is a way we can communicate the relationship we feel with another person. The way we dress can also communicate for us. The person who wears dirty jeans and a T-shirt communicates a different attitude from a person who wears neat trousers and an attractive shirt. We can even use time to communicate. The person who is on time for an appointment shows a different attitude from the person who is an hour late does. Can you think of other message systems we use in communication?1. Language, according to the passage, is actually ________.A) verbal only B) verbal and nonverbal as wellC) the use of our bodies D) nonverbal signals2. Nonverbal signals ________.A) have few rules B) are more useful than speechC) are often used in communication D) are entirely separate from language3. If a person wears a suit and a tie, it is a matter of ________.A) attitude B) relationship C) formality D) habit4. People who do not speak the same language ________.A) have no nonverbal signals in commonB) cannot communicate with nonverbal signalsC) often have different nonverbal signalsD) use the same nonverbal signals5. Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a form of nonverbal communication?A) Pace. B) Time. C) Dressing. D) Space.Passage 7The market is a concept. If you are growing tomatoes in your backyard for sale, you areproducing for the market. You might sell some to your neighbors and some to the manager of a local store. But in either case, you are producing for the market. Your efforts are directed by themarket. If people stop buying tomatoes, you may stop producing.If you take care of a sick person to earn money, you are producing service for the market. If your father is a steelworker or a truck driver or a doctor or a grocer, he is producing goods or services for the market.When you spend your income, you are buying things from the market. If you spend money in stores, supermarkets, gas stations, and restaurants, you are buying from the market. When the local grocer hires you to drive the delivery truck（送货车）, he is buying your labor in the labor market.The market is everywhere, and it's very real. If nobody buys your tomatoes, it won't be long before you get the message. The market is telling you something. It's telling you that you are using energies and resources in doing something the market doesn't want you to do.1. When we are producing for the market, ______.A) our life will become much easier B) we can help others in a better wayC) our efforts are directed by the market D) we can avoid much waste of money2. You are buying from the market when you ______.A) fix your bike by yourself B) look after your childrenC) take care of a sick person D) eat out in a restaurant3. The word "real" (line 1, Para. 4) probably means ______.A) urgent B) important C) serious D) concrete4. According to the passage the market can tell people ______.A) how to drive a bargain B) what should be producedC) when to stop selling D) how to increase profits5. What is the author's purpose in writing the passage?A) To show what the market can do. B) To explain what the market consists of.C) To indicate how to succeed in the market. D) To argue for the necessity of the market.Passage 8It is important to point out that the electronic universe is not without problems. Sometimes data bank producers do not make their products up-to-date as frequently as they should; other on-line systems seem to be forever responding to a single command. In addition, despite the simplicity of concept, no one would argue that the search for information is easy. It can be difficult, for example, to locate the data bank that most likely contains the information you seek.On the other hand, the electronic universe is still young. For all its practical purpose, it is only a decade old, and like our own physical universe, it is constantly expanding. According to Cuadra Associates, publisher of an authoritative directory（指南）of data banks, many new data banks become available on-line each business day.There is every reason to believe that this trend will continue. Indeed, I have long been convinced that in the future, communications and on-line information retrieval（检索）may well be seen as the single most important result of the revolution in personal computers. Indeed, the electronic universe holds as yet unimagined possibilities.1. Which of the following is mentioned as a problem concerning the electronic universe?A) There is no authoritative directory for the use of data banks.B) Data bank producers do not modernize their products as needed.C) The electronic universe is expanding too fast.D) On-line data banks can not meet the needs of a single command.2. What do we know about the development of the electronic universe?A) It is popular everywhere now. B) It is constantly expanding.C) It appeared long time ago. D) It has caused a lot of problems.3. Cuadra Associates' directory can help people ________.A) to learn about the available online data banks B) to become an authoritative directorC) to build a successful data system D) to update business data banks online4. What will be expected to be the most significant achievement in the revolution in personal computers?A) Locating the data bank containing your information.B) Up-to-date information and rapid communications.C) Communications and on-line information retrieval.D) Frequent responses to computers' command.5. The passage mainly discusses ________.A) the increase of on-line information B) the improvement of personal computersC) the expansion of electronic universe D) the new ways of communicationsPassage 9Just like children, deer often cross British roads to get to the other side. But the cost is the deer's life. At night, speeding cars hit and kill the animals. Now foresters are using natural animal instincts（本能）to prevent dangerous crossings.In England, the British Forestry Commission has installed thousands of glowing red "wolf eyes" along woodland roads. The eyes are actually reflectors, plastic bars like the red reflectors on your bike. The ten-centimeter long bars are fixed on top of posts, with only these signs directed towards the woods rather than the roads.When cars speed by, light rays from car headlights reflect off the reflectors' shining surface and flash into the woods. Deer are instantly scared by the wolf eyes ― even though wolves haven't hunted deer in Britain or even lived there for a hundred years!Scientists think the glowing light imitates the "eye shine" of nightly beasts. (You've probably seen eye shine on cats. Mirror-like cells in the eyes reflect some light that hits them.) The deer must not have "forgotten" that a wolf can run up to 72 km per hour in hot pursuit, or can sniff（嗅）deer out from 2.4 km away. In some areas where "wolf eyes" keep watch, 90 percent fewer deer have been killed at night.1. In Britain, deer's life is threatened _____ .A) by worsening environment B) by nightly beastsC) by automobiles D) by illegal hunting2. The word "foresters" (Line 2, Para. 1) refers to _____.A) workers in charge of forests B) traffic policemenC) raisers of wild animals D) road-building engineers3. The nightly beasts' eyes _____.A) are as bright as mirrors B) are as shiny as car headlightsC) can work as plastic bars D) can reflect incoming light4. The success of "wolf eyes" proves that _____.A) the deer is a kind of very timid animal B) animals can always be easily cheatedC) all things in nature are related to each other D) the deer's fear of wolves is genetically built5. It is implied in the passage that _____.A) a wolf can run very fast in hot pursuitB) Great Britain pays great attention to animal protectionC) a wolf's smell is ten times more sensitive than man'sD) Britain has built many highways through woodlandsPassage 10"Mind over matter" is an English saying meaning that we can control our bodies with our minds. Now scientists are finding increasing evidence that our mind can have a great effect on our physical health. Since our mind influences how we feel, it's not impossible to say that someone is ill just because he feels ill.The influence of the mind on how well we feel is the basis of what is known as the placebo (which is Latin for "I shall please") effect. A placebo is a harmless, inactive substance. Patients are sometimes given placebo pills and begin to feel better because they believe that they have been given real drugs and expect to respond to them. The placebo effect is very strong: research on pain suggests that up to 30% of the effect of most painkillers is a placebo effect.So if it's so powerful, why don't doctors use it today?According to Dr. Persaud, they do. "Things like wearing a white coat, going to a hospital, being scanned（扫描）all have a very strong placebo effect," he says.1. The English saying "mind over matter" means that _____.A) sound mind is more important than good healthB) our mind has strong effect on our bodyC) our physical health has nothing to do with our mindD) mental health mainly depends on physical health2. According to the first paragraph, if you feel ill, _____.A) you don't need to see a doctor B) you are still in good conditionC) it doesn't necessarily mean that you're physically ill D) it means that you're physically ill3. According to the passage, placebos _____.A) are real effective pills B) are not real drugsC) can relieve all kinds of pain D) may make patients feel worse4. The placebo effect is based on _____.A) a response of the body to drugs B) a harmless, inactive substanceC) the constant use of some special drugs D) the influence of our minds on our bodies5. Which of the following may least have a placebo effect?A) Concentrating one's mind over a matter. B) Taking sleeping pills before going to bed.C) Taking a physical examination. D) Talking with a doctor.Passage 11It is often thought that science fiction is a fairly new development in literature, but its ancestors （先驱）can be found in books written hundreds of years ago. These books were often concerned with the presentation of some form of ideal society, a theme which is still often found in modern stories.Most of the classics of science fiction, however, have been written within the last one hundredyears. Books by writers such as Jules Verne and H. G. Wells, to mention just two well-known authors, have been translated into many languages.Modern science fiction writers don't often write about men from Mars or space adventure stories. They are more interested in predicting the effects of technical developments on society and the human mind; or in imagining future worlds which are a reflection of the world which we live in now. Because of this their writing has obvious political undertones.In an age where science fact frequently overtakes science fiction, the writers may find it difficult to keep ahead of scientific advances. Those who are sufficiently clear-sighted to see the way we are going, however, may provide a valuable lesson on how to deal with the problems which society will inevitably face as it tries to master its new technology and come to terms with a continually changing view of the world.1. Science fiction appeared _____.A) a few decades ago B) within the last one hundred yearsC) hundreds of years ago D) thousands of years ago2. Which of the following is less likely to be written in modern science fiction?A) Imagined space adventure and conquering new stars.B) Prediction of effects of technical developments on society.C) Prediction of effects of technical developments on human mind.D) Imagination of the future world in reflection of today's world.3. It can be concluded that modern science fiction writers _____.A) tend to show their political views in their worksB) follow the model set by Jules Verne and H.G. WellsC) are more creative than those in the pastD) are more interested in classic works4. The presentation of an ideal society is found _____.A) neither in classic and modern science fiction B) both in classic and modern science fictionC) only in classic science fiction D) as a fairly new trend in science fiction5. Which of the following statements is TRUE?A) Science fiction often overtakes science fact.B) Writers may find it easy to keep ahead of scientific advances.C) Science fiction is based on successful adventurous events.D) Science fiction helps us to face challenges of the future.Passage 12My mother never let herself get down; no matter how bad things were, she stayed cheerful. Even though we had a hard life, she still maintained the attitude that everything was fine. I remember her coming home tired from her job at the restaurant and saying that we were lucky. We didn't have a lot of clothes or toys, but my mother always made sure we had enough to eat.Her love and devotion for my brother and me made our lack of material possessions seem insignificant. Even today, if I were given a choice between having love at home with no wealth and having wealth with no love, I would want it just the way I had it. I grew up poor in material things but rich in love.Since my father was never around long enough to teach me physical things or to play games with me, I didn't succeed in any competitive sport. My mother did her best as a substitute,throwing a ball with me in the lot behind our house, but it wasn't the same. She was too protective of me, and I didn't have enough confidence in my own abilities to really try anything physically demanding.1. We can see from the story that the author is _____ his mother.A) proud of B) worried aboutC) pitiful for D) concerned about2. "My mother never let herself get down" means _____.A) she never got tired B) she never felt sadC) she never fell ill D) she was never impatient3. The author's mother often played games with him because _____.A) his mother tended to protect him too muchB) his father was not good enough at sportsC) his father didn't have enough time to be with himD) his mother was excellent at physical things4. The story implies that the author's mother was least likely _____.A) to be pleased with her role in the familyB) to make friends wherever she wentC) to do things which were to be done by her husbandD) to cry over difficulties in life5. According to the author, a child won't be happy unless he _____.A) enjoys love at home B) gets enough to eatC) lives with his parents D) has a lot of clothes and toysPassage 13Eye contact is a nonverbal technique that helps the speaker “sell” his or her ideas to an audience. Besides its persuasive powers, eye contact helps hold listener interest. A successful speaker must maintain eye contact with an audience. To have good relationship with listeners, a speaker should maintain direct eye contact for at least 75 percent of the time. Some speakers focus exclusively on their notes. Others gaze over the heads of their listeners. Both are likely to lose audience interest and esteem. People maintain eye contact while speaking, whether from a podium or from across the table, are “regarded not only as exceptionally well-disposed by their target but also as more believable and earnest.”To show the potency of eye contact in daily life, we have only to consider how passers-by behave when their glances happen to meet on the street. At one extreme are those people who feel obliged to smile when they make eye contact. At the other extreme are those who feel awkward and immediately look away. To make eye contact, it seems, is to make a certain link with someone. Eye contact with an audience also lets a speaker know and control the listeners. It is, in fact, essential for analyzing an audience during a speech. Visual cues (暗示. from audience members can indicate that a speech is dragging, that the speaker is dwelling on a particular point for too long, or that a particular point requires further explanation. As we have pointed out, visual feedback from listeners should play important role in shaping a speech as it is delivered.1. This passage is mainly about _______________.A. the importance of eye contactB. the potency of nonverbal techniquesC. successful speech deliveryD. an effective way to gain visual feedback。