16．The Sahara Desert，（61）covering（cover） most of North Africa，is the largest desert in the  world．From north to south the Sahara is between 800miles （62）and1200miles and is at least 3000miles from east to west．Due to the large size of the Sahara，Africa is split into two regions：that （63）which lies above or forms part of the Sahara and the rest of Africa south  of the Sahara．On the west，the Sahara is（64）bordered （border） by the Atlantic Ocean and on the  east by the Red Sea，and to the north are the Atlas Mountains and Mediterranean Sea．Over （65）of percent of the Sahara's surface is covered by sand sheets and dunes．
The Sahara's climate consists 65basically two sub-climates，a dry subtropical  climate in the north and a dry tropical climate in the south．The dry tropical climate is （66）generally （general） characterized by mild，dry winters，a hot dry season just before the rainy  season，and an annual temperature cycle．The dry subtropical climate，（67）however，is  characterized by（68）annually （annual） high temperature ranges，cold winters，hot summers and two rainy seasons．There is a narrow strip in the western portion of the Sahara，（69）along the  coast，which generally has cool temperatures （70）compared （compare） to the rest of the Sahara  because of the influence of the cold Canary Current．

15．It does not have to be January 1^st to give yourself a chance to make the most out of your day．Every day is a new day and a fresh start to learn，grow，develop your strengths，free yourself from past regrets or hurts，and move forward older and wiser．Every day gives you a chance to reinvent （重新审视） yourself．It is never too late to change things that are not working in your life．
   Each day is a new beginning and a piece of blank paper．How would you like to create your day？What would you like to paint on it？If you wake up in a negative mind，you are more likely to paint a dark picture throughout the day，and your picture will not show hope，happiness and joy．
   If you take each day to think actively，and have a positive intention（意图） for how you would like to create your day，how would your life be different？What can daily positive intentions do for you？Every day you will give yourself the gift of an"attitude of gratitude（感恩）"．
   Each day is a chance to look at things in a different way．You can experience each day in the beauty of the world-and the beauty of you who are in it!You find yourself changing from"I can't"to"I can"．With a focus on positive intentions，you feel you are full of power and more like a"winner"than a"loser"．
  You pay more attention to the present，and will be more likely to live fully in the present each moment of each day．After all，the past is a great place to visit，but you don't want to live there!So how about starting each day taking a moment to think of a positive intention for the day？

68．The first paragraph mainly tells usA．
A．We should make every day a new start．
B．January 1^st is the most important day．
C．Learning is helpful in reinventing ourselves．
D．We needn't change ourselves at all．
69．If you have daily positive intentions，you willA．
A．get a positive result                B．have a busy life
C．get gifts from others                D．be a complete loser
70．From the passage we can learn thatD．
A．past regrets or hurts can make you older and wiser．
B．think actively and you will be a winner，not a loser．
C．the present is not where you should live for ever．
D．positive intentions for each day are of great help．

14．Zoology（动物学）is the part of science that deals with the study of the animals'growth，home and behavior．It has nothing to do with people，so many students are left wondering why they have to learn it．
   Our nature includes not just humans but plants and animals as well．Everything in our environment is connected in a complex cycle．If you have a better understanding of how animals would behave and work with us，then you would value nature better．
   Some animals are actually misunderstood by people like sharks and snakes．These creatures are thought of as human killers，and this is mainly because we don't understand why they behave that way．In zoology you would be able to learn natural behavior as well as their homes so you would completely understand why they would behave in a defensive（防御的） manner when they seem to be threatened．Studying zoology would help people achieve clearness over the common myths we have on different wild animals．
   Studying zoology would help people know the real facts about animals．One of the negative facts is the decreasing numbers of some species of animals．It makes people realize that there is a need for nature to be always balanced．We need animals to keep the balance in our environment and for humans to survive as well．It would help us learn the needs that animals lack and we can respond by thinking of solutions we can give to the endangered species of animals．
  Modern progress is needed for a country to grow in terms of its economy； however，it should not force us to destroy our rainforests and oceans．People should realize that our modern lives should include the lives of the animals that live with us．They should not be contained in zoos but in their natural homes as well．We will learn that every living creature on the earth has the right to own a home and we need to fight for them to have permanent（永久的） homes．

60．According to the text，nature should beB．
A．left alone                           B．treated seriously
C．taken for granted                    D．taken lightly
61．It is implied in Paragraph 4 that animals play a role ofD．
A．making our world beautiful           B．protecting species of plants
C．providing food for humans            D．keeping nature in balance
62．To animals，humans should act asA．
A．caretakers    B．killers      C．competitors          D．trainers
63．The best title for the passage may be"B"．
A．The Ways of Protecting Animals
B．The Importance of Studying Zoology
C．The Introduction to Zoology
D．The Advantages of Learning Zoology．

13．US scientists have performed an important reversal（逆转） of the ageing process in animal studies．They used a chemical to rejuvenate（使年轻） muscle in mice and said it was the equivalent（等同于） of transforming a 60-year-old's muscle to that of a 20-year-old-but muscle strength did not improve．Their study，in the journal Cell，identified an entirely new mechanism（原理） of ageing and then reversed it．Other researchers said it was an"exciting finding"．
Ageing is considered a one-way street，but now researchers at Harvard Medical School have shown that some aspects can be reversed．Their research focused on a chemical called NAD．Its levels naturally drop in all cells of the body with age．The team showed this damaged the function of the cell's in-built power-stations，leading to lower energy production and ageing．
Experiments showed that increasing NAD levels，by giving mice a chemical which they naturally change into NAD，could reverse the sands of time．One week of youth-medication in two-year-old mice meant their muscles became similar to those of a six-month-old．
Dr Ana Gomes，from the department of genetics at Harvard Medical School，said："We believe this is quite an important finding．"She argues muscle strength may return with a longer course of treatment．However，this could never be a cure-all for ageing．Other aspects such as shortening of telomeres or damage to DNA would not be reversed．
Dr Gomes told the BBC："Ageing is multi-factorial，it's not just one component（成分） we can fix，so it's hard to target the whole thing．I believe there is a lot of cross-talk in cells and energy is very important in a cell and likely to be a very big component of ageing that might cause some of the other things that happen with ageing．"
68．From paragraph 1 we learn thatD．
A．bones can be transformed
B．muscle strength can be transformed
C．color can be transformed
D．muscle can be transformed
69．From paragraph 2 and paragraph 3 we learn thatC
A．researchers think ageing is a one-way street．
B．NAD levels'dropping could make mice become younger．
C．increasing NAD levels could make mice become younger．
D．researchers think any aspect can be reversed．
70．Dr Gomes will agree thatB
A．we can target everything about ageing．
B．muscle strength may return over a longer course of treatment．
C．ageing could be cured．
D．energy is of little importance in a cell．

12．As summer comes near，many children are really happy to forget about school for a few months．However，they might be taking that goal too seriously．Studies have found that children often forget between one and three months'worth of school learning during the summer months．Spelling and math abilities drop off the most，while reading is not really influenced by the time off．The main reason for this is because most children sometimes read outside of the classroom，whether newspapers，magazines，books，or video game guides．However，their math and spelling skills only get exercised in the school setting．
The first purpose of summer holidays was to let farm children have time off to help work in the fields during the growing season，but this reason is no longer a good one since fewer kids actually work on farms today．Some cities in the United States，such as Los Angeles，have moved to a year-round school timetable，which may help reduce the loss of school skills that happens during the long summer holiday．To improve skills and to keep a good level of preparation，headmasters suggest trips to museums，summer camps，holidays with educational value，and visits to libraries to keep kids interested throughout the summer．
There are other educational systems that provide holidays while still keeping students'skills up to date．For example，in Japan，students attend class for seven weeks in a row，followed by two weeks of holiday．This continues the whole year．In Italy，students attend class six days per week，but finish at 1：30 pm each day，so that school does not run their life the way that it does in America，where students attend high school from 7：45 am until 3：00 pm each weekday．In areas where there are not enough classrooms-in Afghanistan or Somalia，for example-older students attend classes in the morning while the younger kids go to school in the afternoon．
Headmasters fear that the three-month summer holiday stops the flow of learning．Just as students become used to new math problems or new ideas in reading，writing，or thinking skills，they"shut down"during the summer holiday．When they go back to school after the long summer holiday，they take up to two months to return to their previous （先前的） level of skill．So the debate continues：whether to continue holidays or to make changes based on the Los Angeles or the Japanese models．
74．Which skills suffer the most over the summer holidays？B
A．Math and reading．
B．Math and spelling．
C．Reading and writing．
D．Reading and thinking．
75．What can we learn about the first purpose of summer holidays？C
A．It is still widely acceptable now．
B．It was popular in some cities．
C．It is not a good reason for city kids．
D．It was more for teachers than for students．
76．The underlined phrase"shut down"in the last paragraph probably meansA．
A．stop learning                        
B．get sick
C．go on reading                     
D．focus on studies
77．What can we infer from the passage？C
A．Parents always read to their kids to keep reading skills．
B．Summer holidays lead to the loss of all the school skills．
C．Students love holidays and get their mind off learning in holidays．
D．In Italy students attend classes in the late afternoon six days a week．

11．Our lifestyles today are very busy．We have family，school，sports，entertainment and social activities to fit into a time that seems never enough．We need to be healthy to meet the demands of daily life．But what does it mean to have a healthy lifestyle？
To have a healthy lifestyle，we need to：
◆eat different kinds of healthy food most of the time
◆do exercise often
◆have time to relax
◆get enough sleep to give our bodies time to grow healthy and strong
Read about a normal day in the lives of two children．

Abbey gets up at 7：00 am，feeds the dog，and has cereal and a glass of juice for breakfast．She walks to school with her friend，Julia．She has a bag of chips for a morning snack，drinks water，and has a chicken and lettuce sandwich with a banana for lunch．She likes to play soccer with her friends at lunch and morning break time．She walks home with Julia，has some crackers with cheese and juice for afternoon snack and plays with the dog for a while．She plays computer games for an hour or two before dinner，then has a shower and does her homework．She watches her favorite television show for an hour，then usually goes to bed at about 9：30 pm．

Carl gets up at 8：30 am and has two pieces of bread with jam and a glass of milk for breakfast．His mother drives him to school on her way to work．He eats cookies with juice for morning snack and a pot pie ordered from the school lunch room with juice for lunch．He likes to play card games with his friends at lunchtime and climb the fixed equipment at morning break time．He catches the bus home，has a cereal bar and a can of soda for afternoon snack，then watches some television．He has a shower before dinner，then plays the computer for an hour or two．He goes to bed at about 10：30 pm．

No matter which kind of lifestyle you agree on，just remember it's important to balance all aspects of life．
41．About a healthy lifestyle，the writer doesn't talk aboutD．
A．diet            B．exercise         C．relaxation        D．medicine
42．What can we learn from the article？A
A．Abbey plays soccer with her friends at school．
B．Abbey does her homework first after school．
C．Carl goes to school by bus every day．
D．Carl has juice for breakfast．
43．Where is the article probably from？A
A．A health magazine．
B．A clothing website．
C．A sports guidebook．
D．A travel advertisement．

10．Science flying in the face of gravity
    It looked just like another aircraft from the outside．The pilot told his young passengers that it was built in 1964，based on the 707．But appearances were deceptive，and the 13 students from Europe and the USA who boarded the aircraft were in for the flight of their lives．
    Inside，the area that normally had seats had become a long white tunnel．Heavily padded from floor to ceiling，there were almost no windows，but lights along the padded walls eerily illuminated（照明）it．Most of the seats had been taken out，apart from a few at the back，where the young scientists quickly took their places with a look of apprehension．
    For 12 months，science students from across the continents had competed to win a place on the flight at the invitation of the European Space Agency．The challenge had been to suggest imaginative experiments to be conducted in weightless conditions．
    For the next two hours the Boeing's flight resembled that of an enormous bird which had lost its reason，shooting upwards towards the heavens before hurtling towards Earth．The intention was to achieve weightlessness for a few second．
    The aircraft took off smoothly enough，but any feelings that I and the young scientists had that we were on anything like a scheduled passenger service were quickly dismissed when the pilot put the plane into a 45-degree climb which lasted around 20 seconds．Then the engines cut out and we became weightless．Everything became confused and left or right，up or down no longer had any meaning．After 10 seconds of free-fall descent the pilot pulled the aircraft out of its nosedive．The return of gravity was less immediate than its loss，but was still sudden enough to ensure that some students came down with a bump．
    Each time the pilot cut the engines and we became weightless，a new team conducted its experiment．First it was the Dutch who wanted to discover how it is that cats always land on their feet．Then the German team who conducted a successful experiment on a traditional building method to see if it could be used for building a future space station．
    After two hours of going up and down in the plane doing their experiments，most of the students thought it was an unforgettable experience and one they would be keen to repeat．
46．What does the underlined word"eerily"in Paragraph 2 mean？B
A．clearly         B．strangely           C．badly              D．brightly
47．Why was this text written？D
A．To report on a new scientific technique．
B．To show scientists what young people can do．
C．To encourage young people to take up science．
D．To describe the outcome of a scientific competition．
48．What did the pilot do with the plane？C
A．He climbed and then made the plane turn over．
B．He climbed and then made the plane fall slowly．
C．He quickly climbed and then stopped the engines．
D．He took off normally and then cut the engines for 20 seconds．
49．What was the point of being weightless？B
A．To see what conditions are like in space．
B．To allow the teams to try out their ideas．
C．To prepare the young scientists for future work in space．
D．To show unforgettable experiences for the young scientists．

9．Like human beings，dogs may catch cold because of cold weather，wet conditions or can also get it from other sick dogs．If a dog has a running nose and watery eyes，coughs or sneezes（打喷嚏），then it is quite probable that the dog has caught cold．
A dog's cold can get over after a few days without treatment but it totally depends upon the owner to treat it with medications or improve its immune power （免疫力） to get rid of the cold naturally．Following are some of the things you can do if your dog gets a cold．
You can improve its immune power by giving it proper nutrient diet．Healthy food can really do wonders．Try to give it food which is either suggested by the vet（兽医） or is healthy for your pet．Increase the intake of food which is rich in vitamins A，C and E．
Keep your dog warm．The best place for your dog in winter is inside your house．Do not keep your dog outside when it is cold and wet．At home you can also keep the dog warm with the help of carpets．This will make him comfortable and help him to recover fast．
Increase the fluid（流质）intake as it helps a lot．Water can be the best choice but you can also add broth （肉汤）in water which will give your dog strength．Warm water will make your dog more comfortable and will also keep the dog away from the respiratory infections（呼吸道感染）．
Steam treatment is considered to be effective in getting rid of cold．It makes the nasal（鼻的） passage wet，which helps proper breathing．Just fill your bathroom with steam and leave your dog inside the bathroom for 15 minutes．Do it nearly 2 to 3 times a day and you will see your dog recovering．
These are some of the things you can do to help your dog recover from cold．However，if you are not able to find any improvement in its health，then turn to the vet for help immediately．Take your dog for regular checkups so as to avoid complications（并发症）．
64．From the first paragraph we know aboutD．
A．the difficulty in keeping a dog as a pet   
B．characteristics of sick dogs
C．the similarities between dogs and human beings   
D．causes and symptoms（症状）of cold in dogs    
65．When your dog catches cold，you should feed it onB．
A．its favorite food                      
B．the suggested food by the vet
C．some meat and water                   
D．food rich in vitamin B
66．When a dog catches cold，it is wrong toC．
A．keep it inside during cold and wet weather  
B．leave it inside the bathroom full of steam
C．let it eat too much solid food             
D．keep it sleeping on rugs at home
67．It can be learnt from the text thatC．
A．a dog's cold can always disappear naturally
B．it's quite easy to make a sick dog recover from cold
C．treating a dog's cold sometimes needs a vet's help
D．cold in dogs won't spread between each other．

8．Sharing cars to work is not unusual．But what about sharing time to raise children together？In Ningbo city of Zhejiang province in East China，young mothers in the same neighborhood pool their children together，and share the responsibility of being parents．
    Spending every day together，but not families-in this coastal city of East China，three mothers are trying a new way of raising their kids，by pooling them together．
Among the mothers are both office workers and housewives．They say they do so not just because of the tight schedule．
     Jiujiu's mother said，"By kids pooling，we mean to create an opportunity for the kids to spend time together so that we can observe our kids，learn more about them．And then we can discuss how to better bring them up．"
     The three families have been doing so for two years，in school days and holidays．Their children have grown used to each other's company，
     Chichi's mother said，"My son was a bit shy．We've been talking him to be more active，but he hardly changed．After joining the kids pool，suddenly we found him willing to communicate with others now．When we are not there，he has to rely on himself to get along with his pals．"
     Generally，mothers speak highly about the pooling．The mothers describe the pooling as bringing the running water into a closed pond．It opens a window to a different world for both kids and parents．But there are moments when opinions differ．Xiaoxiao's mother said，"Sex education for example．Kids will be curious about it when they reach a certain age．Personally I want to talk with my child about it，frankly and sincerely．But the other two moms think it better not to bring it up．"Xiaoxiao's mother says her solution is to share some parenting guidebooks with other mothers and let them make the decision．
     The headmaster of the kindergarten believes such pooling activities test not only children，but also the parents．Jin Hongqing，kindergarten headmaster said，"Parents need to be tolerant and patient．They shouldn't play the blame game when kids fight with each other．It's better to let the kids solve the issue by themselves．What they can do as parents is to communicate．"
69．All the following aspects are the benefits of kids pooling EXCEPTC
A．It saves time and helps relieve mothers'burden
B．It allows parents to learn more about kids
C．It offers better education than the kindergartens．
D．It allows kids to learn to share and be independent．
70．Why is sex education mentioned in the passage？D
A．To suggest children are sometimes curious about it．
B．To explain sex education is not suitable for children．
C．To indicate mothers think highly of kids pooling．
D．To show sometimes mothers have different opinions．
71．What's the writer's attitude towards kids pooling？A
A．Unclear．B．Favorable．C．Negative．D．Doubtful．
72．Which of the following can best serve as the title of the passage？D
A．Chinese parenting．
B．Sharing cars．
C．Sharing children．
D．Kids pooling．

7．Asian parents are spending billions of dollars on private tutors （家庭教师） for their children and the practice is growing despite doubts about its effectiveness，according to an Asian Development Bank study published Wednesday，AFP reported．
"Shadow education"is an expanding business not only in wealthy countries，but also in some of the region's poorer nations as parents try to give their children the best start in life，the study said．Nearly nine out of 10 South Korean elementary pupils receive private tutoring，while the figure for primary school children in India's West Bengal state stands at six out of 10．
he study estimated that the costs of private tutoring in South Korea were equivalent （相等的） to 80 percent of government spending on public education．Japan spent 12 billion on extra teaching in 2011，while the figure for Singapore stood at US$ 680 million in 2009．
Extra academic work aims to help slow learners and support high achievers．Many Asian parents view it as a constructive way for adolescents to spend their spare time．However，it can also reduce the students'time for sports and other activities important for their overall development as well as cause social tensions as richer families are able to pay for better-quality tutoring，the study said．
The study calls for a review of educational systems to make such extra teaching less attractive．
56．Why is"Shadow education"an expanding business？D
A．Because parents want to spend their money．
B．Because children don't want to go to school．
C．Because parents want their children to stay with teachers．
D．Because parents want to give their children the best start in life．
57．According to the article，what is the purpose of extra academic work？A
A．To aid slow learners and support high achievers．
B．To prepare children for all kinds of academic contests．
C．To increase children's hobbies and interests in many fields．
D．To gain the most knowledge that students can't get in class．
58．Which disadvantage of extra academic work is NOT mentioned？C
A．Causing social tensions．
B．Spending more extra money．
C．Lacking the chance to communicate with others．
D．Reducing the students'time for sports and other activities．
59．What is the text mainly about？D
A．The government policy on educational systems．
B．How to provide the best education for children．
C．The importance for children's overall development．
D．The reasons for the popularity of private tutors for children．