第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）

Before the mid 1860’s, the impact of the railroads in the United States was limited, in the sense that the tracks ended at this Missouri River, approximately the center of the country. At the point the trains turned their freight, mail, and passengers over to steamboats, wagons, and stagecoaches. This meant that wagon freighting, stagecoaching, and steamboating did not come to an end when the first train appeared; rather they became supplements or feeders. Each new “end of track” became a center for animal drawn or waterborne transportation. The major effect of the railroad was to shorten the distance that had to be covered by the older, slower, and more costly means. Wagon freighters continued operating throughout the 1870’s and 1880’s and into the 1890’s. Although over constantly shrinking routes, and coaches and wagons continued to crisscross the West wherever the rails had not yet been laid. The beginning of a major change was foreshadowed in the later 1860’s, when the Union Pacific Railroad at last began to build westward from the Central Plains city of Omaha to meet the Central Pacific Railroad advancing eastward from California through the formidable barrier of the Sierra Nevada. Although President Abraham Lincoln signed the original Pacific Railroad bill in 1862 and a revised, financially much more generous version in 1864, little construction was completed until 1865 on the Central Pacific and 1866 on the Union Pacific. The primary reason was skepticism that a Railroad built through so challenging and thinly settled a stretch of desert, mountain, and semiarid plain could pay a profit. In the words of an economist, this was a case of “premature enterprise”, where not only the cost of construction but also the very high risk deterred private investment. In discussing the Pacific Railroad bill, the chair of the congressional committee bluntly stated that without government subsidy no one would undertake so unpromising a venture; yet it was a national necessity to link East and West together. ?

61. The author refers to the impact of railroads before the late 1860’s as “limited” because

A. the track did not take the direct route from one city to the next?

B. passengers and freight had to transfer to other modes of transportation to reach western destinations              C. passengers preferred stagecoaches

D. railroad travel was quite expensive

62. What can be inferred about coaches and wagon freighters as the railroad expanded?

A. They developed competing routes.

B. Their drivers refused to work for the railroads.?

C. They began to specialize in private investment.?

D. There were insufficient numbers of trained people to operate them.

63.  Why does the author mention the Sierra Nevada in line 17? ?

A. To argue that a more direct route to the West could have been taken.??

B. To identify a historically significant mountain range in the West.?

C. To point out the location of a serious train accident.?

D. To give an example of an obstacle faced by the central pacific.   

64.  The word “subsidy” in line 27 is closest in meaning to_____.?

A. persuasion              B. financing               C. explanation            D. penalty ?

第二节 完形填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从36～55各题  所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。

   Learning experience happens to us throughout our lives. Not long ago I had one that I would like to   36  .

I was going to Marblehead with my sailboat team. The team was racing down the highway at 85 mph   37  we realized we were   38  . Luckily, we saw a rest area ahead. I had a brand-new (崭新) $ 20 bill. I was so   39  because I had never had that kind of cash before. But spending it on  40  seemed like throwing it away. We all rushed into the pizza line.  41  I got a pizza and a drink, and walked to my table. About halfway through the meal, I   42  I had not actually handed any money     to the cashier (收银员). I had just  43  out, and nobody had noticed. I felt terrible.

My conscience(良心) opened its mouth and swallowed(吞噬) me in one big bite. I couldn't   44  over it. I just couldn't go back to the cashier and  45  for my stolen pizza. I was so upset (不安) that I  46  to give myself the pleasure of an ice cream in   47  that someone would say “Hey, Jeff, why don't you use the  48  from the pizza instead of that nice, new $ 20 bill?” I was not so  49  of my cash now.

       For the next two years, whenever I was  50  of the “Pizza incident”, I would say to myself “Don't think bout it ”.

       I have learned two things from this   51  . Maybe I was a fool for   52  in to my conscience, and being too stupid to appreciate a  53  pizza. But the real lesson is that even if you get away from what you have done, your conscience will   54  up with you.

This reflects the saying “A coward (儒夫) dies a thousand deaths, a hero dies one.” I was a coward and have felt terrible about that incident at least a thousand times. If I had been a  “55” and gone back to pay for the pizza, I would have felt a little uncomfortable about it only once, or maybe twice.

36. A. say                      B. talk                  C. share                   D. explain

37. A. as                       B. then              C. while                   D. when

38. A. lost                   B. tired                  C. hungry              D. anxious

39. A. excited               B. eager             C. satisfied             D. encouraged

40. A. rest                   B. food                    C. travel               D. drink

41. A. Luckily               B. Finally            C. Immediately     D. Actually

42. A. thought              B. recognized          C. noticed              D. realized

43. A. walked             B. left                     C. worked            D. found

44. A. look                  B. get                  C. turn                 D. think

45. A. ask                    B. pay                    C. apologize          D. send

46. A. refused              B. wanted              C. hoped                D. meant

47. A. hope                 B. surprise            C. anger                 D. fear

48. A. food                  B. lesson                  C. conscience         D. change

49. A. sure                    B. upset             C. proud                 D. pleased

 50. A. warned             B. reminded         C. thought            D. told

51. A. experience          B. experiment            C. story               D. mistake

 52. A. turning             B. talking               C. handing           D. giving

 53. A. free                  B. cheap                  C. plain                D. delicious

 54. A. make                 B. wake                 C. catch               D. put

55. A. coward                B. fool                 C. loser                D. hero

Why I Don’t Spare “Spare Change”

       “Poor but honest. ” “The deserving poor.” These words always come to my mind when I think of “the poor”. But I also think of people who, perhaps through alcohol or drugs, have ruined not only their own lives but also the lives of others in order to give way to their own pleasure. Perhaps alcoholism and drug addiction really are “diseases”, as many people say, but my own feeling－ based, of course, not on any serious study－is that most alcoholics and drug addicts belong to the “undeserving poor”. And that is largely why I don’t give spare change to beggars.

       But surely among the street people there are also some who can rightly be called “deserving”. Deserving what? My spare change? Or simply the government’s assistance? It happens that I have been brought up to believe that it is proper to make contributions to charity（慈善机构）, but if I give some change to a beggar, am I making a contribution to charity and thereby helping someone, or, am I perhaps simply encouraging someone not to get help? Or, maybe even worse, am I supporting a cheat?

       If one believes in the value of private charity, one can either give to needy people or to charitable organizations. In giving to a beggar one may indeed be helping a person who badly needs help, but one cannot be certain that one is giving to a needy person. In giving to an organization, on the other hand, one can feel that one’s money is likely to be used wisely. True, facing a beggar one may feel that this particular unfortunate person needs help at this moment－a cup of coffee or a sandwich－and the need will not be met unless I put my hand in my pocket right now. But I have come to think that the beggars whom I meet can get along without my spare change, and indeed perhaps they are actually better off for not having money to buy alcohol or drugs.

       I know nothing about these beggars, but it’s my impression that they simply prefer begging to working. I am not generalizing about street people. I am talking about the people whom I actually meet. That’s why I do not give “spare change”, and I don’t think I will in the future.

53. What does the author think of beggars who take drugs?

   A. They should be given a check-up.            B. They really need money to live.

C. They have no pleasure in life.                D. They are not worth helping.

54. Why doesn’t the author give money to street people?

A. He doesn’t think they need help.            

B. He doesn’t have enough money to give.

C. He is not convinced they will use it rightly.    

D. He believes they can get help from the government.

55. In the second paragraph, the author presents his idea by_____.

   A. asking questions for people to think about     B. giving examples to support his argument

C. raising questions and answering them                    D. expressing his opinions directly

56. Which of the following opinions does the author accept?

A. Drug addiction is a disease.                   

B. Some street people are poor and needy.

C. Most beggars have received enough help.

D. Charitable organizations handle money properly.

一、语音知识

1. gentle　   A. organize　     B. bargain 　   C. regular 　    D. charge

2. official    A．concert         B．century        C．coast         D．ocean

3. spare　　 A. fear　　　     B. earn　　　　 C. pear　　　    D. beard

4. journey　 A. merchant　     B. courtyard 　  C. energy　　   D. serious

5.breathe    A. health         B. deaf          C. increase      D. pleasure

When it comes to friends ,I desire ____ who share my happiness and interest.

       A．anyone    B．those       C．one   D．any

After the Arab states won independence, great emphasis was laid on expanding education, with girls as well as boys________ ________to go to school.

　　A. to be encouraged　　B. been encouraged  C. being encouraged　D. be encouraged

Sheep on a remote Scottish island are gradually shrinking _______ global warming, according to a study published in the journal Science.

A. on account of        B. by means of           C. in case of              D. in spite of

As is often pointed out, knowledge is a two-edged weapon which can be used ________ for good or evil.

A．similarly                 B．widely                    C．equally                   D．properly

 Children are _________ to meet with setbacks(挫折) as they grow up, so their parents don’t have to worry about it.

   A. possible                B. due                C. necessary             D. bound

―What do you think of this dress, darling?

―Er...sorry, dear. I       _______. What did you say?

A. didn't listen          B. hadn't listened       C. haven't listened      D. wasn't listening