Mom and Dad are two of the most important people in your life. Over your lifetime, they may influence you more than anyone else you will meet. So if your mom loves to read, you just might grow up carrying a book wherever you go, just as she does. But parents do a lot more than just pass on their hobbies. Moms and Dads need to care for their kids the minute their kids are born. Most parents will do this as long as they live.

Here are some ways you can stay close, get along well, and build a strong relationship (关系) with your parents.

Spend time together. Instead of playing computer games or watching TV, ask your mom and dad to play with you. Go outside together, or do some reading.

Be kind. Little things might mean a lot to your mom or dad. You can brighten a parent’s day with a hug（拥抱）, a card , or a joke. It’s also lovely when a kid cleans up his or her room without being asked. And if you try not to fight with your brothers or sisters, your parents will be so happy!

Do your best at whatever you do. You don’t have to be perfect, but when you do your best, you make your parents proud. It makes them happy to see how you’re turning into a great kid. Why? Because it lets them know they’re doing a good job.

49. Who may influence you more than anyone else you will meet according t o the passage?  

A. Teachers                                       B. Friends          

C. Parents                                         D. Grandparents

50. Which of the following can’t help you build a strong relationship with your parents?    

A. Spending time together                 

B. Being kind

C. Doing your best at whatever you do       

D. playing computer games or watching TV   

51. Your parents will be unhappy if you ____________.           

A. clean up his or her room without being asked

B. fight with your brothers or sisters

C. try your best to do something

D. give them a hug

52. What does the underlined part in the passage mean? It means ____________.          

A. they make you become a good kid

B. they work hard

C. they are perfect

D. they do well in their office work

Fading beauty

She is widely seen as proof that good looks can last for ever. But, at nearly 500 years of age, time is catching up with the Mona Lisa.  

The health of the famous picture, painted by Leonardo Da Vinci in 1505, is getting worse by the year, according to the Louvre Museum (卢浮宫博物馆) where it is housed.   

“The thin, wooden panel on which the Mona Lisa is painted in oil has changed shape since experts checked it two years ago,” the museum said. Visitors have noticed changes but repairing the world’s most famous painting is not easy. Experts are not sure about the materials the Italian artist used and their current chemical state (化学状态).  

Nearly 6 million people go to see the Mona Lisa every year, many attracted by the mystery of her smile. “It is very interesting that when you’re not looking at her, she seems to be smiling, and then you look at her and she stops,” said Professor Margaret Livingstone of Harvard University. “It’s because direct vision (视觉) is excellent at picking up detail, but less suited to looking at shadows. Da Vinci painted the smile in shadows.”

However, the actual history of the Mona Lisa is just as mysterious as the smile. Da Vinci himself loved it so much that he always carried it with him, until it was eventually sold to France’s King Francis I in 1519.  

In 1911, the painting was stolen from the Louvre by a former employee, who took it out of the museum hidden under his coat. He said he planned to return it to Italy. The painting was sent back to France two years later.  

During World War II, French hid the painting in small towns to keep it out of the hands of German forces.   

Like many old ladies, the Mona Lisa has some interesting stories to tell.

What does the writer mean by “time is catching up with the Mona Lisa”?

A. The painted woman is not so beautiful any more.

B. Ageing is something that affects us all.

C. The painting needs repairing.   

D. At such an old age, she is no longer popular.

What makes the repair work difficult?

A. The wooden panel is thin and old and has also changed shape.

B. The health of the painting is suffering

C. Experts can’t agree on how the painting might respond to treatment.

D. No one knows exactly what materials were used to create the painting.

What makes her smile so mysterious according to Professor Livingston?

A. The materials the Italian artist used.   B. The way Da Vinci painted the smile.

C. The way she smiles.      D. It plays a trick upon the human eye.

Which of the following is in the right order?

①The painting was stolen from the Louvre.

②The painting was sent back to France.

③It was sold to France’s King Francis I  

④Da Vinci carried the painting with him.

⑤French hid the painting to keep it out of the hands of German forces.

A. ④→③→①→②→⑤   B. ④→①→③→②→⑤

C. ①→④→③→②→⑤   D. ①→③→④→②→⑤

NPR has ended its contract with Juan Williams, one of its senior news analysts, after he made comments about Muslims on the Fox News Channel．

NPR said in a statement that it gave Mr． Williams notice of his ending in this organization on Wednesday night．

The move came after Mr． Williams, who is also a Fox News political analyst, appeared on the “The O’Reilly Factor” on Monday． On the show, the host, Bill O’Reilly, asked him to respond to the idea that the United States was facing a “Muslim dilemma（窘境）．”Mr． O’Reilly said, “The cold truth is that in the world today jihad（圣战）, helped and encouraged by some Muslim nations, is the biggest threat on the planet．”

Mr． Williams said he agreed with Mr． O'Reilly．

He continued: “You know the kind of books I've written about the civil rights movement in this country． But when I get on the plane． I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim clothing and I think, you know, they are identifying themselves first and known as Muslim． I get worried． I get nervous． ”

Mr． Williams also made reference to the Pakistani immigrant who was guilty this month trying to plant a car bomb in Times Square． “He said the war with Muslims, America's war is just beginning, first drop of blood． I don’t think there’s any way to get away from these facts,” Mr． Williams said．

NPR said in its statement that the remarks “were inconsistent with our editorial standards and practices, and weakened his reputation as a news analyst with NPR”

The public radio organization said it thanked him for many years of service． Mr． Williams did

not immediately respond on Wednesday night to an e-mail seeking comment．

Mr． Williams' contributions on Fox raised eyebrows at NPR in the past． In February 2009, NPR said it had asked that he stop being identified on “The O’Reilly Factor” as a “senior correspondent for NPR,” even though that title was accurate．

According to the passage, NPR is probably_       ．

   A． a TV station            B． a public radio organization      

    C． a newspaper         D． a website

NPR has ended its contract with Juan Williams because

   A． Juan Williams made comments on the Fox News Channel without NPR's permission

   B． NPR was disappointed about Juan Williams’ performance in its programs

   C． Juan Williams' remarks about Muslims ruined NPR's reputation

   D． Juan Williams' comments and performances didn't agree with NPR's traditions

What can we infer from the underlined sentence in Paragraph 5'?

   A． Juan Williams is afraid of taking a plane．

   B． It’s very easy to recognize Muslims because their clothes are special．

   C． Muslims are sometimes considered dangerous to the safety of the world．

   D． Juan Williams looks down upon Muslims．

The best title of the passage is        ．

    A． NPR ended its contract with Juan Williams

    B． Muslims are the biggest threat to the world

    C． Juan Williams, the senior news analyst of NPR

    D． Fired from NPR, Juan Williams keeps talking on Fox

Plants, like animals, are subject to diseases of various kinds．It has been estimated that some 30,000 different diseases attack our economic plants; forty are known to attack corn, and about as many attack wheat．The results of unchecked plant disease are all too obvious in countries which have marginal food supplies．The problem will soon be more widespread as the population of the world increases at its frightening rate．Even in countries which are now amply fed by their agricultural products there could soon be the major crops; the resulting famines(饥荒) could kill millions of people, and the resulting hardship on other millions could cause political upheavals(动乱) disastrous to the order of the world．

Some plants have relative immunity to a great many diseases, while others have a susceptibility to them．A blight (萎菌病) may be but a local infection easily controlled; on the other hand it can attack particular plants in a whole region or nation．An example is the blight which killed virtually every chestnut tree in North America．Another is the famous potato blight in Ireland in the last century．As a result of that, it was estimated that one million people died of starvation and related ailments．

Plant pathologists have made remarkable strides in identifying the pathogens of the various diseases．Bacteria may invade a plant through an infestation of insect parasites carrying the pathogen．A plant can also be inoculated by man．Other diseases might be caused by fungus which attacks the plant in the form of a model or smut or rust．Frequently such a primary infection will weaken the plant so that a secondary infection may result form its lack of tolerance．The symptoms(症状) shown may cause an error in diagnosis, so that treatment may be directed toward bacteria(细菌) which could be the result of a susceptibility caused by a primary virus infection．

How many diseases are known to attack wheat?

       A．Around 30000          B．Forty           

       C．Around 29960           D．Around 40

Unchecked plant disease won't result in_______．

A．food shortages in poor country      B．food shortages in rich country

    C．increase of world population   D．disaster in world politics

What is the main idea of the second paragraph?

A．Some plants have relative immunity to a great many diseases．

B．Some other plants have a susceptibility to a great many diseases．

C．The tolerance of a particular plant changes as the growing conditions change．

D．A blight can be a national infection．

According to the passage, some plant diseases can__________．

A．infect people          

B．be prevented by inoculation（接种疫苗）

C．be prevented by killing insects      

D．be prevented by improving the growing conditions

Which of the following won’t cause plant disease ?   

A．Fungus     B．Mold C．Smut D．Rust