第 41 至 45 题为题组

Many people say that e-mail is just a faster way to deliver letters. The fact is that letter writing and e-mail are completely different processes. Handwritten or typed, letters travel in envelopes through actual space and take time getting from one place to another. 　41　 . If I am writing on paper to my brother in Kenya, I will be less likely to complain about the breakfast I had this morning. I will probably write about my relationships and some things that I’ve been thinking about. 　42　 　People tend to regard letters as important. My brother might save my letter; he might read it back to me years from now.

　 43　 　It is instant, traveling from point to point. If you don’t print it out, the message doesn’t physically exist. With e-mail, geography is no obstacle and time is not important. 　44　 　The ease of this kind of writing and sending probably makes for a different kind of communication. I can complain about the breakfast I had this morning or rattle on about friends and movies. That is because I am not so focused on style and profundity. 　45　 　My brother might glance at my mail, have a laugh, and then delete it.

(A) E-mail is different.

(B) The downside is, I might be less likely to say something deeper.

(C) The time and distance, as a matter of fact, influence the letter-writer.

(D) I can zap a message to Kenya whenever I want to, and it gets there almost in a second.

(E) I will also take more care with my style, trying to write in a way that is interesting and worth reading.

第 31 至 40 题为题组

With one out of every two American marriages ending in divorce, custody of children has become an issue in the American society. Up until the late 1970s, it had been common practice in the United States to automatically 　31　 　custody to the mother when a divorce occurred.

However, since the 1970s, this practice has been 　32　 　. Most custody battles today are decided, in theory, on the basis of who is the more fit parent for the child. The reality, nevertheless, is that most women still win custody of their children in a 　33　 .

This legal change was the result of the social changes that 　34　 　in the United States during the 1960s and 1970s. These changes challenged many of the 　35　 　roles men and women were expected to play. As a 　36　 , it is not uncommon nowadays to find women working outside their homes and being very 　37　 　about their careers and personal lives. It is also not 　38　 　to see men accepting roles that were once considered the exclusive domain of women, such as shopping for groceries, driving their children to and from school, or cleaning their homes.

Because of the 　39　 　in the divorce rate, the change in the roles that men and women are expected to play, and the changing attitude of the judicial system toward child custody, more men have started to 　40　 　for and win custody of their children when divorce occurs.

(A) award　　　 　　 (B) challenged 　　　　　　 (C) concerned 　　　 (D) consequence

(E) divorce 　　　　　 (F) fight 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 (G) increase 　　　　 (H) took place 　　　

(I) traditional 　　　　　　　 (J) unusual

30. (A) unchanged 　　　　　　　 (B) undetermined 　　　　 (C) unfolded 　　　　 (D) unsolved

29. (A) someday 　　　　　 (B) somehow 　　　　　　　　　　 (C) sometime 　　　　　　　 (D) somewhere

28. (A) amazing 　　　　　 (B) hesitating 　　　　　　　　　　 (C) interacting 　　　 (D) satisfying

27. (A) far from 　　　　　 (B) such as　　　　　　　　　 (C) up to 　　　　　　 (D) as much as

26. (A) circle 　　　　　　　　　　 (B) contain 　　　　　　　　 (C) cover 　　　　　　 (D) wrap

25. (A) no better than 　 (B) no less than 　　　　　 (C) no more than 　 (D) no sooner than

第 26 至 30 题为题组

In the desert of southwest Peru, enormous shapes, complex patterns, and thousands of perfectly straight lines are cut into the desert’s surface. They are known as the Nazca lines and they 　26　 　500 square kilometers. There are about fifty animal figures 　27　 　275 meters long, including a monkey, a spider, and an “owl man.” The last of these lines were drawn about 1,000 years ago. More 　28　 　is the fact that they can be viewed only from the air. Some people believe the Nazca Indians were 　29　 　able to fly, perhaps in balloons. Others say the lines were landing areas for alien spaceships. Maybe the lines were to carry water for farming, or were used as a calendar. The only thing certain is that the Nazca lines remain one of the world’s most fascinating 　30　 　mysteries.

24. (A) affect 　　　　　　　　　　 (B) approach 　　　　　　　 (C) assure 　　　　　　 (D) avoid

23. (A) efficiently 　　　　　　　 (B) eventually 　　　　　　 (C) fortunately 　　 (D) permanently