A.Legs become weaker.
B.Modern means of transportation make the world a small place.
C.There is no need to use eyes.
D.The best way to travel is on foot.
40.What does“a bird'seye view”mean?_________
A.See a view with a bird's eyes.
B.A bird looks at a beautiful view.
C.It is a general view from a high position.
D.If is a scenic place.
B
When you think of the tremendous technological progress we have made,it's amazing how little we have developed in other respects.We may speak contemptuously of the poor old Romans because they relished the orgies of slaughter that went on in their arenas.We may despise them because they mistook these goingson for entertainment.We may forgive them condescendingly because they lived 2000 years ago and obviously knew no better.But are our feelings of superiority really justified? Are we any less bloodthirsty? Why do boxing matches,for instance,attract such universal interest? Don't the spectators who attend them hope they will see some violence? Human beings remain as bloodthirsty as ever they were.The only difference between ourselves and the Romans is that while they were honest enough to admit that they enjoyed watching hungry lions tearing people apart and eating them alive,we find all sorts of sophisticated arguments to defend sports which should have been banned long ago;sports which are quite as barbarous as,say,public hangings or bearbaiting.
It really is incredible that in this day and age we should still allow hunting or bullfighting,that we should be prepared to sit back and watch two men batter each other to pulp in a boxing ring,that we should be relatively unmoved by the sight of one or a number of racing cars crashing and bursting into flames.Let us not deceive ourselves.Any talk of “the sporting spirit” is sheer hypocrisy.People take part in violent sports because of the high rewards they bring.Spectators are willing to pay vast sums of money to see violence.A world heavyweight championship match,for instance,is frontpage news.Millions of people are disappointed if a big fight is over in two rounds instead of fifteen.They feel disappointment because they have been deprived of the exquisite pleasure of witnessing prolonged torture and violence.
Why should we ban violent sports if people enjoy them so much? You may well ask.The answer is simple: they are uncivilized.For centuries man has been trying to improve himself spiritually and emotionally—admittedly with little success.But at least we no longer tolerate the sight of madmen being cooped up in cages,or public floggings of any of the countless other barbaric practices which were common in the past.Prisons are no longer the grim forbidding places they used to be.Social welfare systems are in operation in many parts of the world.Big efforts are being made to distribute wealth fairly.These changes have come about not because human beings have suddenly and unaccountably improved,but because positive steps were taken to change the law.The law is the biggest instrument of social change that we have and it may exert great civilizing influence.If we banned dangerous and violent sports,we would be moving one step further to improving mankind.We would recognize that violence is degrading and unworthy of human beings.
41.It can be inferred from the passage that the author's opinion of nowadays' human beings is _________.
A.not very high B.high
C.contemptuous D.critical
42.The main idea of this passage is _________.
A.that vicious and dangerous sports should be banned by law
B.that people are willing to pay vast sums money to see violence
C.to compare two different attitudes towards dangerous sports
D.people are bloodthirsty in sports
43.The author mentions the old Romans _________.
A.to compare the old Romans with today's people
B.to give an example
C.to show human beings in the past knew nothing better
D.to indicate human beings used to be bloodthirsty
44.How many dangerous sports does the author mention in this passage?_________
A.Three
B.Five
C.Six
D.Seven
45.The purpose of the author in writing this passage is _________.
A.that,by banning the violent sports,we human beings can improve ourselves
B.that,by banning the dangerous sports,we can improve the law
C.that we must take positive steps to improve social welfare system
D.to show law is the main instrument of social change
C
When I was looking for a Christmas present for my daughter in a toy store,a nicely dressed little girl,with some money in her little hand,was looking at some beautiful dolls.When she saw a doll she liked,she would ask her father if she had enough money.He usually said yes.
At the same time,a boy,with old and small clothes,was looking at some video games.He,too,had money in his hand,but it looked no more than five dollars.Each time he picked up one of the video games and looked at his father,he shook his head.
The little girl had chosen her doll,a very beautiful one.However,she noticed the boy and his father.She saw the boy give up a video game with disappointment(失望) and walk to another corner of the store.
The little girl put her doll back to the shelf and ran over to the video game.After she talked to her father,she paid for the video game and whispered(耳语) to the shop assistant.
So the boy got the video game that he wanted for free—he was told it was a prize from the store.He smiled happily,although he felt it was so incredible.
The girl saw all this happen.She smiled,too.
When I walked out of the store to my car,I heard the father ask his daughter why she had done that.I would never forget their short talk.“Daddy,didn't Grandma want me to buy something that would make me happy?”
He said,“Of course,she did.”
“Well,I just did!” With that,the little girl started skipping(蹦跳) towards their car happily.
46.The story happened in a _________.
A.school
B.toy store
C.cinema
D.computer room
47.The boy _________.
A.wore new and nice clothes
B.had much money in his hand
C.was from a poor family
D.wanted to get a doll very much
48.The underlined word “incredible” most probably means “” in Chinese._________
A.难以置信的
B.令人兴奋的
C.感到绝望的
D.荒谬可笑的
49.Which of the following is TRUE according to the story?_________
A.The little girl was kind and helpful.
B.The video game was a prize from the store.
C.The writer paid for the video game for the boy.
D.The boy bought the video game himself from the store.
50.What does the sentence “Well,I just did!” mean?_________
A.I just did something for the boy and he would be happy.
B.I just bought a nice doll for myself and I would be happy.
C.I just bought a present for Grandma and she would be happy.
D.I just did something for the boy and it would make me happy.
D
Ranch.It was near Los Angeles in California.A few years later Hollywood was one of the famous places in the world.At the beginning of the 20th century there was a big farm called Hollywood.From the 1910's to the 1950's,Hollywood was the film center of the world.
Every family knew the names of its film stars—Charlie Chaplin,Greta Garbo,Bergman and hundreds more.
The reason why people went to Hollywood to make films was the sun.At first,people made films in New York on the east coast of the United States.
But then they heard about Los Angeles,where there are 350 days of the sun every year.As they made all the films by sunlight,the west coast was a much better place to work.Also near Hollywood you can find mountains and sea and desert.They did not have to travel far to make any kind of film.
When TV became popular,Hollywood started making films for television.Then in the 1970's they discovered people still went to the cinema to see big expensive films.Nowadays they are still making films in Hollywood and people see them all over the world.
51.Hollywood used to be a _________.
A.cinema
B.big farm
C.park
D.market
52.In the 1910's Hollywood became a _________.
A.famous theatre
B.good place to have holidays
C.film center
D.home for stars
53.Who was not mentioned(提到) as a film star in the passage _________.
A.Charlie Chaplin
B.Marily Monroe
C.Bergman
D.Greta Garbo
54.People went to Hollywood to make films because _________.
A.it was a beautiful place
B.they could find many film stars
C.there was a lot of sunlight there
D.it was a famous place
55.Which statement(说法) is true?_________
A.The west coast was a better place to make films.
B.There are no mountains near Hollywood.
C.People no longer went to the cinema after television became popular.
D.Hollywood began to make films for television after the First World War.
E
Advertisers tend to think big and perhaps this is why they're always coming in for criticism.Their critics seem to resent them because they have a flair for selfpromotion and because they have so much money to throw around.“It's iniquitous,” they say,“that this entirely unproductive industry (if we can call it that) should absorb millions of pounds each year.It only goes to show how much profit the big companies are making.Why don't they stop advertising and reduce the price of their goods? After all,it's the consumer who pays...”
The poor old consumer! He'd have to pay a great deal more if advertising didn't create mass markets for products.It is precisely because of the heavy advertising that consumer goods are so cheap.But we get the wrong idea if we think the only purpose of advertising is to sell goods.Another equally important function is to inform.A great deal of the knowledge we have about household goods derives largely from the advertisements we read.Advertisements introduce us to new products or remind us of the existence of the ones we already know about.Supposing you wanted to buy a washing machine,it is more than likely you would obtain details regarding performance,price,etc.,from an advertisement.
Lots of people pretend that they never read advertisements,but this claim may be seriously doubted.It is hardly possible not to read advertisements these days.And what fun they often are,too! Just think what a railway station or a newspaper would be like without advertisements.Would you enjoy gazing at a blank wall or reading railway bylaws while waiting for a train? Would you like to read only closely printed columns of news in your daily paper? A cheerful,witty advertisement makes such a difference to a drab wall or a newspaper full of the daily ration of calamities.
We must not forget,either,that advertising makes a positive contribution to our pockets.Newspapers,commercial radio and television companies could not subsist without this source of revenue.The fact that we pay so little for our daily paper,or can enjoy so many broadcast programs is due entirely to the money spent by advertisers.Just think what a newspaper would cost if we had to pay its full price!
Another thing we mustn't forget is the “small ads” which are in virtually every newspaper and magazine.What a tremendously useful service they perform for the community! Just about anything can be accomplished through these columns.For instance,you can find a job,buy or sell a house,announce a birth,marriage or death in what used to be called the “hatch,match and dispatch” column but by far the most fascinating section is the personal or “agony” column.No other item in a newspaper provides such entertaining reading or offers such a deep insight into human nature.It's the best advertisement for advertising there is!
56.What is the main idea of this passage?_________
A.Advertisement.
B.The benefits of advertisement.
C.Advertisers perform a useful service to communities _________.
D.The costs of advertisement.