12．It's a Christmas tradition that's more than half a century old．And it happened completely by accident．
It started in 1955，when a local Sears store in Colorado Springs，Colorado printed an ad，which included a spedial phone mumber kids could call to know where Santa's sleigh was at any given moment．Unfortunately，someone made a mistake in printing the phone mumber and kids were calling the wrong line．
A Colonel（上校） named Henry Shoup began answering his phong at what would become NORAD，the North American Aerospace Defence Command．At first，he thought it was a simple error of one caller．
But as the phone ketp ringing and tiny voices kept asking about Santa，Shoup realized he couldn't disappoint them．So he told the staff to issue updates to any one asking about the location of Santa．
The wrong turned into a custom of the holiday and kept growing in popularity，and NORAD finally decided to make it permanent．
It's become a holiday favourite ever since，adapting to whatever new technology has come along since．In the early days，it was a phone line．Then in the 60s，NORAD put out a special series of"reports"that was played on hundreds of radio stations across North America，broadcasting the Jolly Old Elf's exact position on Christmas Eve．
Think of it as kind of an early GPS without the computer gear．
Finally，came the Internet and NORAD has now transferred its annual watch onto the Web，with a site devoted to keeping tabs on the most famous journey in the world-what you might call the real amazing race，an around-the-world mission that has to be finished within 24hours．
This year's entry allows kids to track Santa in 3Dusing Google Earth and play games at the North Pole using the Kids Countdown Section，and it even offers Santa Cams which are only operational on the night before Christmas．
36．Why did children keep calling Henry Shoup？D
A．Because they wanted to play a joke on him．
B．Because they wanted to amuse him．
C．Because he knew where Santa exactly was．
D．Because they wanted to know where Santa's sleigh was．
37．What did Colonel Henry Shoup do when more and more children kept calling？C
A．He became annoyed and decided to tell them the truth．
B．He became excited and jioned them in searching Santa．
C．He thought quickly and took it seriously to satisfy their needs．
D．He laughed at them and took no notice of their calls．
38．What does"Jolly Old Elf"in Paragraph 6 most probably refer to？A
A．Santa Claus．
B．Colonel Henry Shoup．
C．NOARD．
D．The staff in Henry Shoup's charge．
39．According to the passage，how did people learn about the Jolly Old Elf's exact position in the 1960s？B
A．By calling a special phone mumber．
B．By listening to a special series of reports over the radio．
C．With the help of a kind of early GPS．
D．By scanning the spedial column in the newspaper．
40．The passage mainly tells usB．
A．an old favorite holiday that develops along with new technology
B.50-year-old tracking Santa tradition that started by accident
C．a real amazing race，an around-the-world mission within 24 hours
D．a Colonel and the North American Aerospace Defence Command．

11．Charter schools operate with public money but without many of the rues that Sovem tradi-tional public schools．In the Uruted States the rules for charter schools difFer from state to state． But in Seneral these schools havegreater freedom to decide what to teach and how to teach it．
    The"charter'is a perfarmance contract．It establishes thegoals of the school and other details like how student performance will be measured． Forty-seven million students attend traditional public schools．But more than a million students attend charter schools：
    And now a group of charter schools have formed the Green Charter Schools Network． The idea is to have environmentally friendly school buildings but toalso go further than that．The schools teach students to become involved in community issues that affect them and the environ-ment． For example，youg children grow crops in a school garden and leam about healthy eat-ing．Older students help recycle waste from the cafeteria．And local schoois share what they grow in community gardens with people in need．
    Jim McGrath is president．of the Green Charter Schools Network． He says there are about 200"green"charter schools across the United States． He says the plan is to also include tradi-tional public schools as well as private schools．
    Jim McGrath："The most important thing is that every one of us-every child，every adult-has a reaponsibility that their action，every action we make has an effect on the earth  that we live in． And that our natuntl resources are not unlimited． And that if we want a positive earth for future generations，we all need to make comnutments to be agents of change so that we don't destroy our natural resources．
    The Green Clarter Schools Network holds its first national conference this October in Min-nesota．It will include companies and orgaizations like Waste Management and the Uruted States Green Brulding Council． We sincerely hope that their goal is to expand the movement across the country．
61．Charter schools are quitedifent from public ones in thatC
A．they are operated by public money
B．they still use the traditional rules
C．they have more freedom in management
D． they attract more students than others
62．The Green Charter Schools Network is established toD
A．advise teenagers to attend charter schools
B．paint the school buildings in the color of green
C．measure the students with the same standards
D．get students involved in environment friendly activities
63．Which of the following statements about the Network are true EXCEPTA
A． It only concernsthe charter schools in the U．S．
B．It holds its first national conference in Minnesota．
C． It will benefit both the schools and the communities．
D．It promotes different schools to share their achievements．
64．According to Jim McGrath，C
A．people's action plays little part in nature
B．natural resources are abundant for people to use
C． students should be taught to be responsibk for the world
D．everyone should make efforts to change the positive nature
65．What's the writer's purpose of this passage？D
A．To criticize the traditional education system．
B．To encourage the students to adopt healthy eating．
C．To inspire people to recycle waste from the cafeteria．
D．To arouse the schools to take action to protect the earth．

10．Annual holidays have become a luxury and are no longer a staple of family life，according to government research．
A getaway of a week or more is no longer considered essential by many families and is often beyond their reach，said the analysis of what parents and children say they really need．Fashionable clothes for the children，expensive birthday parties and lots of toys are also on the list of luxuries families don't have to have．Instead，recession-hit parents are thinking of the future，and the things they want for their children centre around learning to behave properly，good education and good health．
Their picture of what a family ought to have includes a space to eat together away from the television，plenty of fruit and vegetables，and bicycles so children can get exercise．
The breakdown of necessities and luxuries was prepared by researchers from the Department for Work and Pensions（DWP） who were trying to establish an up-to-date picture of what parents say they really need．
Their findings show how families have scaled down their expectations in the face of economic difficulties-how parents are now concentrating their attention and money firmly on the long-term interests of their children．Many believe that while it is vital for a family to do things together，day trips or weekend breaks are enough．
Spending on furniture or decorating the house was also considered luxurious，unless the state of the home was so bad it became difficult to invite visitors in．
Instead，researchers said：A family home should have an area where the family can eat together，not on their laps in front of a television．Families should be able to go on outings，overnight trips and possibly short holiday：the fact of being able to share these experiences is more important than the precise activity and its cost．
71．It can be inferred thatD．
A．a week or more holiday is considered beyond many families'reach
B．children hardly ever need fashionable clothes and lots of toys
C．what a family should have is basic things that they must have
D．annual holidays were once considered necessary and vital
72．In the opinion of most parents，B．
A．families can watch TV together in order to keep up their relationship
B．day trips or weekend breaks are enough for families to share experiences
C．their expectations should be increased in the face of economic difficulties
D．a week's holiday is an essential minimum during the financial crisis
73．Which of the following is TRUE of the researchers from the DWP？C
A．They confirm many families still need at least a week away on holiday each year．
B．They learn it is insignificant for a family to do things with each other regularly．
C．They want to know what parents really need in the face of economic difficulties．
D．They found spending on furniture or decorating the house was thought valuable．
74．We can conclude from the last paragraphA．
A．being able to share experiences is important for families
B．a family needs at least a week away on holiday each year
C．a family home should have a comfortable area to watch TV
D．going on outings and overnight trips is wasting time for families
75．What does the author mainly discuss in the text？B
A．Cycling is very important for children's health．
B．Family holidays once a year have become a luxury．
C．It is vital for parents to eat together with children．
D．Parents are concerned with children's future．

9．Laws that would have ensured pupils from five to 16 received a full financial education got lost in the‘wash up'．An application is calling on the next government to bring it back．
At school the children are taught to add up and subtract（减法） but，extraordinarily，are not routinely shown how to open a bank account-let alone how to manage their finances in an increasingly complex and demanding world．
Today the parenting website Mumsnet and the consumer campaigner Martin Lewis have joined forces to launch an online application to make financial education a compulsory element of the school curriculum in England．Children from five to 16 should be taught about everything from pocket money to pensions，they say．And that was exactly the plan preserved in the Children，Schools and Families bill that was shelved by the government in the so-called"wash-up"earlier this month-the rush to legislation before parliament was dismissed．Consumer and parent groups believe financial education has always been one of the most frustrating omissions of the curriculum．
As the Personal Finance Education Group （Pfeg） points out，the good habits of young children do not last long．Over 75% of seven-to 11-year-olds are savers but by the time they get to 17，over half of them are in debt to family and friends．By this age，26% see a credit card or overdraft（透支） as a way of extending their spending power．Pfeg predicts that these young people will"find it much harder to avoid the serious unexpected dangers that have befallen many of their parents'generation unless they receive good quality financial education while at school．"
The UK has been in the worst financial recession（衰退）for generations．It does seem odd that-unless parents step in-young people are left in the dark until they are cruelly introduced to the world of debt when they turn up at university．In a recent poll of over 8，000 people，97% supported financial education in schools，while 3% said it was a job for parents．
61．The passage is mainly aboutC．
A．how to manage school lessons
B．how to deal with the financial crisis
C．teaching young people about money
D．teaching students how to study effectively
62．It can be inferred from the first two paragraphs thatA．
A．the author complains about the school education
B．pupils should not be taught to add up and subtract
C．students have been taught to manage their finances
D．laws on financial education have been effectively carried out
63．The website and the consumer campaigner joined toD．
A．instruct the pupils to donate their pocket money
B．promote the connection of schools and families
C．ask the government to dismiss the parliament
D．appeal for the curriculum of financial education
64．According to Pfeg，D．
A．it is easy to keep good habits long
B．teenagers spend their money as planned
C．parents are willing to pay the debt for their kids
D．it will be in trouble if the teenagers are left alone
65．A poll is mentioned toA．
A．stress the necessity of the curriculum reform
B．show the seriousness of the financial recession
C．make the readers aware of burden of the parents
D．illustrate some people are strongly against the proposal．

8．We've used the wind as an energy source for a long time．The Babylonians and Chinese were using wind power to pump water for irrigating crops 4，000 years ago，and sailing boats were around long before that．Wind power was used in the Middle Ages，in Europe，to grind（磨碎） corn，which is where the term"windmill"comes from．
We can use the energy in the wind by building a tall tower，with a large propellor on the top．The wind blows the propellor round，which turns a generator to produce electricity．We tend to build many of these towers together，to make a"wind farm"and produce more electricity．The more towers，the more wind，and the larger the propellors，the more electricity we can make．It's only worth building wind farms in places that have strong，steady winds，although boats and caravans（大篷车）increasingly have small wind generators to help keep their batteries charged．
The best places for wind farms are in coastal areas，at the tops of rounded hills，open plains and gaps in mountains-places where the wind is strong and reliable．Some are offshore．To be worthwhile，you need an average wind speed of around 25 km/h．Most wind farms in the UK are in Cornwall or Wales．Isolated places such as farms may have their own wind generators．In California，several"wind farms"supply electricity to homes around Los Angeles．
The propellors are large，to obtain energy from the largest possible volume of air．The blades can be angled to cope with varying wind speeds．Some designs use vertical turbines（垂直涡轮机），which don't need to be turned to face the wind．The towers are tall，to get the propellors as high as possible，up to where the wind is stronger．This means that the land beneath can still be used for farming．
66．The first paragraph aims to introduce to usD．
A．the function of wind power                
B．the source of wind power
C．the nations using wind power                        
D．the history of using wind power
67．How does a wind power work？D
A．The generator turns the propeller blades and produce electricity．
B．The tall tower helps turn the energy in the air into electricity．
C．Warm air rises and makes the propellor move round．
D．The propellor blown round by wind turns the generator to produce electricity．
68．The best places for building the wind farm are places whereD．
A．boats and caravans can often be seen         
B．isolated farms don't have enough electricity
C．there are less human activities                   
D．the wind is strong and reliable
69．We can infer from the passage thatB．
A．wind farms will not take up too much farming land
B．wind farms need no fuel because wind is free
C．the blades can be angled to turn to face the wind wherever it comes from
D．the higher and larger the towers are，the stronger the wind is
70．What can be a suitable title for the passage？B
A．Where to build a wind farm．
B．ABC of the using of wind energy．
C．How to make best use of wind．
D．Wind energy is the best energy．

7．Life on Mars could become a reality and it could happen in your lifetime．
A welcoming planet
Scientists say Earth's neighbor Mars，a bright red planet about half Earth's size，is the most likely to support human life．Mars even has frozen water on its surface．
Since the late 1990s，NASA has been exploring Mars using remote-controlled vehicles（装置）．Most recently Curiosity，a car-size vehicle，traveled through space on an unpiloted spacecraft（航天器） and landed on Mars in August 2012．Directed by NASA scientists，the vehicles move on the surface，taking pictures，collecting and analyzing soil，and looking for signs of life．
But what about human explorers？Plans are already in the works to send astronauts to Mars as soon as the mid-2030s．
_____________________________________
But before you start packing your bags，let's consider the challenges．For starters，Mars is far away．Just getting there could take up to 10months．
Scientists already know that time away from Earth's gravity harms the human body．Bones and muscles get weaker．The body produces less blood．What damage would months and months of living in space do？
And then there is the matter of water，oxygen，food and fuel．Scientists will have to find solutions to these problems，or the first humans on Mars won't survive very long in their new home．
Tiny Dangers
There's another tinier risk．It's so tiny that you can't even see it：germs．
Some scientists believe that our germs could pollute the whole planet of Mars．Potentially killing Martian life before we have the chance to discover it．Worse，there is a small but terrifying chance that any microscopic life already there might be harmful to us．
Worse still，if any of those Martian germs（火星细菌） were brought back to Earth，the result could be disastrous．Animals，plants，and people could be wiped out．
Worth the？Amorepracticalconcernisthecost．Thepricecouldapproach 1trillion（万亿）．How can we justify spending that much when so many problems-poverty，disease-could use the cash here on Earth？

41．Which of the following is TRUE according to the"A welcoming planet"part？C
A．Mars is a little bigger than Earth．
B．There are flowing rivers on Mars．
C．People haven't been to Mars so far．
D．Scientists have discovered signs of life on Mars．
42．Which of the following can best fill in the blank in the passage？C
A．Living in space．      B．Limited resources．
C．Extreme conditions．   D．Interesting challenges．
43．By"Tiny dangers"the author meansD．
A．there is no serious danger
B．people won't be in any danger
C．it's difficult for people to realize the danger
D．the danger may be caused by very small things
44．Which may cause the biggest danger？B
A．Martian germs may be different from those on Earth．
B．Martian germs may be brought back to Earth．
C．People may carry germs to Mars．
D．There may be germs on Mars．
45．Which section of a newspaper is the passage most probably taken from？C
A．People        B．History        C．Science         D．Business．

6．Wuhan，the capital city of Hubei province，has issued smog warnings for three days since Monday because of serious air pollution．
The lingering smog forced construction sites to stop work and primary and middle schools to suspend outdoor activities．From Monday through Wednesday，the city's air quality index reading remained high，with the highest reading at 323，with PM2.5，or particulate matter smaller than 2.5microns，as the main pollutant，according to the city's meteorological bureau．Any reading over 300is considered"seriously polluted"．
The city experienced at least eight heavily polluted days in the first two weeks of December，with the air quality index reading reaching a high of 440，China News Service reported．
Among those affected was a square dancing team in Jiang'an district，which had to stop daily practices after several members fell ill．Square dancing is a common open-air fitness practice across China，with most of the participants middle-aged or elderly women．
Media reported the leader of one dancing team had to go to a hospital after she had an asthma attack on Dec 11．
Identified only as Fang，65，the dance team leader said she decided to suspend the practices after she learned her illness was caused by smog，and after several other members also fell ill，the report said．
The city plans to invest 28billion yuan （﹩4.61billion） in air pollution control by 2017．The plan says the city will boost the development of clean energy vehicles for public transportation and remove all of the current 140，000heavy-polluting vehicles from Wuhan's roads by the end of 2016．

72．What's the main idea of the passage？B
A．Wuhan decided to remove most construction sites．
B．Wuhan issued smog warnings for three days because of smog．
C．The city is reportedly unfit for physical training．
D．Outdoor exercise can decrease the influence of smog．
73．The air quality index reading of the city once reached to an extreme ofC．
A.300   B.323      C.440     D.140，000
74．The city authorities will firstly developA in the future．
A．green transportation            B．environmentally friendly energy
C．heavy vehicles                  D．transport network
75．Where can we most probably read this text？A
A．China Daily             B．Travel Journal
C．Entertainment Weekly    D．National Geographic．

5．London will stage its biggest political funeral in almost half a century on Wednesday when Britain's governing elite join the Queen and global leaders to bid farewell to former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher，better known as the"Iron Lady"．
In an event comparable to that of Winston Churchill's funeral in 1965，Thatcher's coffin will be carried on a horse-drawn gun carriage through streets lined with admirers from parliament to the city's most famous cathedral．
The bells of London's symbolic Big Ben clock tower will fall silent for the first time since Churchill's funeral and more than 700 men and women from Britain's armed forces will honor a woman who led them to victory in the 1982 Falklands War as foreign politicians from around 170 nations look on．
Surveys have shown that many are unhappy that the estimated l0-million（$15 million） pound bill for the funeral is being picked up by the taxpayer，while some left-wing lawmakers say the luxurious funeral is too expensive．
But her admirers，of whom there are many in her party and in southern England，argue that her historical profile deserves such a funeral．She was the country's first and only woman premier，was Britain's longest-serving prime minister of the 20^th century，and won three general elections．
More than 2，300 mourners will attend including 11 serving prime ministers from around the world，the British government's entire cabinet，two heads of state and 17 foreign ministers．
But there will be notable absences．Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev is too ill to attend and Nancy Reagan，the widow of Thatcher's great U．S．ally Ronald Reagan，is also unable to come．
Thatcher struck up a close relationship with Reagan during the Cold War，backed the first President George Bush during the 1991 Gulf War，and was among the first to discover that Gorbachev was a man she could"do business with"．
Covered in the red，white and blue British flag，Thatcher's coffin lay overnight in a 13th-century church in Britain's parliament，a forum she dominated for years．
72．From the passage we know that Big Ben clock tower will fall silent toB．
A．get repaired for the first time
B．honour the passing away of the great woman
C．tell the specific time to the public
D．welcome the officials from all over the world
73．Who that are still alive will be absent from the funeral？A
A．Mikhail Gorbachev and Nancy Reagan．
B．Mikhail Gorbachev and Ronald Reagan．
C．Nancy Reagan and Ronald Reagan．
D．George Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev．
74．From the passage we can learn that Margaret Thatcher wasA．
A．strong and smart                                 
B．weak and disappointing
C．aggressive and warlike                        
D．stubborn and luxurious
75．Which of the following might serve as the best title of the passage？D
A．The legend of Thatcher，the"Iron Lady"．
B．Why Big Ben falls silent for the first time？
C．Who will pay for such a luxurious funeral？
D．London will witness its biggest political funeral．

4．Do you know Australia？Australia is the largest island in the world．It is a little smaller than China．It is in the south of the earth．Australia is big，but its population is not large．The population of Australia is nearly as large as that of Shanghai．
The government has made enough laws to fight pollution．The cities in Australia have got little air or water pollution．The sky is blue and the water is clean．You can clearly see fish swimming in the rivers．Plants grow very well．
Last month we visited Perth，the biggest city in Western Australia，and went to a wild flowers'exhibition．There we saw a large number of wild flowers we had never seen before．We had a wonderful time．Perth is famous for its beautiful wild flowers．In spring every year Perth has the wild flowers'exhibition．After visiting Perth，we spent the day in the countryside．We sat down and had a rest near a path at the foot of a hill．It was quiet and we enjoyed ourselves．Suddenly we heard bells ringing at the top of the hill．What we saw made us pick up all our things and run back to the car as quickly as we could．There were about three hundred sheep coming towards us down the path．
Australia is famous for its sheep and kangaroos（袋鼠）．After a short drive from any town，you will find yourself in the middle of white sheep．Sheep，sheep，everywhere are sheep．
56．Australia isC．
A．the largest country in the world  
B．as large as Shanghai
C．not as large as China           
D．the largest island in the north of the earth
57．The government had madeB．
A．too enough laws to fight pollution   
B．so many laws that it can fight pollution
C．enough laws that it can hardly fight pollution
D．enough laws because the pollution is very serious
58．Which of the following is NOT true？D
A．Perth is famous for its beautiful wild flowers．
B．Perth is bigger than any other city in Western Australia．
C．Perth lies in the west of Australia．
D．No other city is larger than Perth in Australia．
59．In Perth you may visit a wild flowers'show inBseason．
A．a cool      B．a warm      C．the coldest   D．the hottest
60．Which of the following is true？D
A．Australia is famous for its sheep，kangaroos and wild flowers．
B．We ran back to the car because we were in the middle of white sheep．
C．Three hundred sheep came towards us because they saw us．
D．If you go to the countryside in Australia，you will see a large number of white sheep．

3．The iPhone，the iPad，each of Apple's products sounds cool and has become a fashion．Apple has cleverly taken advantage of the power of the letter"i"-and many other brands are following suit．The BBC's iPlayer-which allows Web users to watch TV programs on the Internet-adopted the title in 2008．A lovely bear-popular in the US and UK-that plays music and video is called"iTeddy"．A slimmed-down version of London's Independent newspaper was launched last week under the name"i"．
In general，single-letter prefixes have been popular since the 1990s，when terms such as e-mail and e-commerce first came into use．
Most"i"products are targeted at young people and considering the major readers of Independent's"i"，it's no surprise that they've selected this fashionable name．
But it's hard to see what's so special about the letter"i"．Why not use"a"，"b"，or"c"instead？According to Tony Thorne，head of the Language Center at King's College，London，"i"works because its meaning has become ambiguous．When Apple uses"i"，no one knows whether it means Internet，information，individual or interactive，Thorne told BBC Magazines．"Even when Apple created the iPod，it seems it didn't have one clear definition，"he says．
"However，thanks to Apple，the term is now associated with portability （轻便）．"adds Thorne．
Clearly the letter"i"also agrees with the idea that the Western World is centered on the individual．Each person believes they have their own needs，and we love personalized products for this reason．
Along with"Google"and"blog"，readers of BBC Magazines voted"i"as one of the top 20 words that have come to define the last decade．
But as history shows，people grow tired of fads（一时的狂热）．From the 1900s to 1990s，products with"2000"in their names became fashionable as the year was associated with all things advanced and modern．However，as we entered the new century，the trend eventually disappeared．
72．People use iPlayer toC．
A．listen to music                           
B．make a call
C．watch TV programs online                  
D．play computer games
73．We can infer that the Independent's"i"is aimed atB．
A．fashionable women      B．young readers       C．old readers      D．engineers
74．Nowadays，the"i"term often reminds people of the products which areD．
A．environmentally friendly  B．advanced     C．recyclable   D．portable   
75．The writer suggests thatA．
A．the popularity of"i"products may not last long
B．"i"products are often of high quality
C．iTeddy is a live bear popular in the US and UK
D．the letter"b"replaces letter"i"to name the products．