With the average temperature for January standing at －50 ℃，it is no wonder the Russian village of Oymyakon is the coldest permanently inhabited settlement in the world.Known as the“Pole of Cold”，the coldest ever temperature recorded in Oymyakon is －71.2 ℃.This is the lowest recorded temperature for any permanently inhabited location on Earth and the lowest temperature recorded in the northern hemisphere(北半球)．

Ironically，Oymyakon actually means“non?freezing water”due to a nearby hot spring.Most homes in Oymyakon still burn coal and wood for heat and enjoy few modern conveniences.

Nothing grows there so people eat reindeer(驯鹿)meat and horsemeat.A single shop provides the town's bare necessities and the locals work as reindeer?breeders，hunters and ice?fishermen.

There are few modern conveniences in the village—with many buildings still having outdoor toilets—and most people still burn coal and wood for heat.When coal deliveries are irregular，the power station starts burning wood.If the power ceases，the town shuts down in about five hours，and the pipes freeze and crack.

Daily problems that come with living in Oymyakon include pen ink freezing，glasses freezing to people's faces and batteries losing power.Locals are said to leave their cars running all day for fear of not being able to restart them.Even if there was coverage for mobile phone reception，the phones themselves would not work in such conditions.

Another problem caused by the frozen temperatures is burying dead bodies，which can take anything up to three days.The earth must first have thawed(融解)sufficiently in order to dig it，so a bonfire is lit for a couple of hours.Hot coals are then pushed to the side and a hole couple of inches deep is dug.The process is repeated for several days until the hole is deep enough to bury the coffin.

Travel companies offer tourists the opportunity to visit the village and sample life in the freezing conditions.

1.From the passage we can infer that people in Oymyakon ________.

A．prefer meat to any other kind of food

B．seldom have fresh vegetables and fruits

C．can buy anything in the shop

D．might row a boat to catch fish

2.Which of the following is the first step when burying a dead body?

A．The coffin must be put in place.

B．A bonfire has to be lit first.

C．Hot coals have to be pushed to the side.

D．A hole couple of inches deep is dug.

3.Mobile phones would not work in Oymyakon because ________.

A．the batteries are of poor quality

B．there was no coverage for phone reception

C．batteries can't be charged in such conditions

D．the extreme coldness makes the batteries lose power

4.Why do the locals have their cars running all day?

A．They are afraid they can't get the car started.

B．They want to keep warm in the car.

C．They have abundant oil resources.

D．They have little awareness of saving.

       With both hands resting on top of the steering wheel, Oshima looks over at me: “That’s where you will be living now, Kafka. In the room where Miss Saeki used to spend time with her boyfriend. As I said, there is some change to the library, but it’s the very same room. ”

       Silence on my part.

    “Miss Saeki’s life stopped at age 20,when her lover died. No, maybe not age 20, maybe much earlier... I don’t know the details, but you need to know of this. The hands of the clock inside her soul stopped then. Time outside, of course, flows on as always, but she isn't affected by it. For her, what we consider normal time is meaningless.”

       “Meaningless?”

    Oshima nods. “Like it doesn’t exist. ”

    “What you're saying is Miss Saeki still lives in that frozen time?”

    “Exactly. When you get to know her better you'll understand.”

    Oshima reaches out and lays a hand on my knee on a totally natural gesture. “Kafka,in everybody’s life there’s a point of no return. And in a very few cases, a point where you can’t go forward any more. And when you reach that point, all we can do is quietly accept the fact. That's how we survive.”

    We’re about to get onto the main highway. “There’s one other thing I’d like you to know of,” he goes on. “Miss Saeki has a wounded heart. To some degree that's true of all of us. But Miss Saeki has a special wound that goes beyond the usual meaning of the term. Her soul moves in mysterious ways. I’m not saying she's dangerous-don't get me wrong. On a day-to-day level she's certainly got her act together, probably more than anyone else I know. She’s attractive, deep, smart. But just don’t let it worry you if you notice something strange about her sometimes.”

       “Strange?” I can’t help asking.

       Oshima shakes his head. “I really like Miss Saeki, and respect her. I'm sure you'll come to feel the same way.”

       This doesn’t really answer my question, but Oshima doesn’t say anything.

64．The conversation takes place           .

       A．in a library

       B．in a moving car

       C．where Miss Saeki used to spend time with her boyfriend

       D．where Kafka lives

65．Which of the following statements is right?

       A．Oshima knows every detail about Saeki.

       B．Oshima knows Saeki well enough to understand her.

       C．Oshima knows Saeki better than anyone else.

       D．Oshima knows very little about Saeki,but respects her.

66．We can infer from the passage that          .

       A．there is something wrong with Saeki’s clock

       B．nobody likes Saeki because she refuses to accept the fact

       C．Saeki is attractive, smart but dangerous

       D．Saeki carries only the memory of a childhood lover that death took away from her

67．The writer wants to give us a feeling of          by giving readers the description of Saeki.

       A．mystery              B．horror                 C．amazement          D．danger

With both hands resting on top of the steering wheel, Oshima looks over at me: “That’s where you will be living now, Kafka. In the room where Miss Saeki used to spend time with her boyfriend. As I said, there is some change to the library, but it’s the very same room. ”

       Silence on my part.

    “Miss Saeki’s life stopped at age 20,when her lover died. No, maybe not age 20, maybe much earlier... I don’t know the details, but you need to know of this. The hands of the clock inside her soul stopped then. Time outside, of course, flows on as always, but she isn't affected by it. For her, what we consider normal time is meaningless.”

       “Meaningless?”

    Oshima nods. “Like it doesn’t exist. ”

    “What you're saying is Miss Saeki still lives in that frozen time?”

    “Exactly. When you get to know her better you'll understand.”

    Oshima reaches out and lays a hand on my knee on a totally natural gesture. “Kafka,in everybody’s life there’s a point of no return. And in a very few cases, a point where you can’t go forward any more. And when you reach that point, all we can do is quietly accept the fact. That's how we survive.”

    We’re about to get onto the main highway. “There’s one other thing I’d like you to know of,” he goes on. “Miss Saeki has a wounded heart. To some degree that's true of all of us. But Miss Saeki has a special wound that goes beyond the usual meaning of the term. Her soul moves in mysterious ways. I’m not saying she's dangerous-don't get me wrong. On a day-to-day level she's certainly got her act together, probably more than anyone else I know. She’s attractive, deep, smart. But just don’t let it worry you if you notice something strange about her sometimes.”

       “Strange?” I can’t help asking.

       Oshima shakes his head. “I really like Miss Saeki, and respect her. I'm sure you'll come to feel the same way.”

       This doesn’t really answer my question, but Oshima doesn’t say anything.

1．The conversation takes place           .

       A．in a library

       B．in a moving car

       C．where Miss Saeki used to spend time with her boyfriend

       D．where Kafka lives

2．Which of the following statements is right?

       A．Oshima knows every detail about Saeki.

       B．Oshima knows Saeki well enough to understand her.

       C．Oshima knows Saeki better than anyone else.

       D．Oshima knows very little about Saeki, but respects her.

3．We can infer from the passage that          .

       A．there is something wrong with Saeki’s clock

       B．nobody likes Saeki because she refuses to accept the fact

       C．Saeki is attractive, smart but dangerous

       D．Saeki carries only the memory of a childhood lover that death took away from her

4．The writer wants to give us a feeling of          by giving readers the description of Saeki.

       A．mystery    B．horror       C．amazement       D．danger

With both hands resting on top of the steering wheel, Oshima looks over at me: “That’s where you will be living now, Kafka. In the room where Miss Saeki used to spend time with her boyfriend. As I said, there is some change to the library, but it’s the very same room.”  Silence on my part.

“Miss Saeki’s life stopped at age 20, when her lover died. No, maybe not age 20, maybe much earlier…I don’t know the details, but you need to know of this. The hands of the clock inside her soul stopped then. Time outside, of course, flows on as always, but she isn’t affected by it. For her, what we consider normal time is meaningless.”

“Meaningless?” Oshima nods. “Like it doesn’t  exist.”

“What you’re saying is Miss Saeki still lives in that frozen time?”

“Exactly. When you get to know her better you’ll understand.”

Oshima reaches out and lays a hand on my knee on a totally natural gesture. “Kafka, in everybody’s life there’s a point of no return. And in a very few cases, a point where you can’t go forward anymore. And when you reach that point, all we can do is quietly accept the fact. That’s how we survive. ”

We’re about to get onto the main highway. “There’s one other thing I’d like you to know of,” he goes on. “Miss Saeki has a wounded heart. To some degree that’s true of all of us. But Miss Saeki has a special wound that goes beyond the usual meaning of the term. Her soul moves in mysterious ways. I’m not saying she’s dangerous—don’t get me wrong. On a day-to-day level she’s certainly got her act together, probably more than anyone else I know. She’s attractive, deep, smart. But just don’t let it worry you if you notice something strange about her sometimes.”

“Strange?” I can’t help asking.

Oshima shakes his head. “I really like Miss Saeki, and respect her. I’m sure you’ll come to feel the same way.”

This doesn’t really answer my question, but Oshima doesn’t say anything.

1．The underlined part “Miss Saeki is still living in that frozen time” means that      .

A．although Miss Saeki is dead, she’s still alive in people’s memory

       B．the time Miss Saeki spent with her boyfriend was very cold

       C．the time Miss Saeki spent with her boyfriend was very unhappy

       D．Miss Saeki cannot get out of the sadness brought about by her boyfriend’s death

2．The conversation takes place               .

       A．in a library                                         

B．in a moving car

       C．where Miss Saeki used to spend time with her boyfriend

D．where Kafka lives

3．Which of the following statements is right?

       A．Oshima knows every detail about Saeki.

       B．Oshima knows Saeki well enough to understand her.

       C．Oshima knows Saeki better than anyone else.

       D．Oshima knows very little about Saeki, but respects her.

4．We can infer from the passage that           .

       A．there is something wrong with Saeki’s clock.

       B．Saeki refuses to accept the fact

       C．Saeki is attractive, smart but dangerous

       D．Saeki can’t remember what happened to her

5．The writer wants to give us a feeling of           by giving readers the description of Saeki.

A．mystery    B．horror     C．amazement    D．danger

With the average temperature for January standing at -50℃, it is no wonder the village is the coldest permanently inhabited settlement in the world. Known as the 'Pole of Cold', the coldest ever temperature recorded in Oymyakon was -71.2℃.

This is the lowest recorded temperature for any permanently inhabited location on Earth and the lowest temperature recorded in the Northern Hemisphere.

Ironically, Oymyakon actually means 'non-freezing water' due to a nearby hot spring. Most homes in Oymyakon still burn coal and wood for heat and enjoy few modern conveniences.

Nothing grows there so people eat reindeer meat and horse meat. A single shop provides the town's bare necessities and the locals work as reindeer-breeders, hunters and ice-fisherman.

Doctors say the reason the locals don't suffer from malnutrition is that their animals' milk contains a lot of micronutrients.

Unsurprisingly, locals are hardened to the weather and unlike in other countries— where a flurry of snow brings things grinding to a halt, Oymyakon's solitary school only shuts if temperatures fall below -52℃.

There are few modern conveniences in the village— with many buildings still having outdoor toilets - and most people still burn coal and wood for heat. When coal deliveries are irregular the power station starts burning wood. If the power ceases, the town shuts down in about five hours, and the pipes freeze and crack.

Daily problems that come with living in Oymyakon include pen ink freezing, glasses freezing to people's faces and batteries losing power. Locals are said to leave their cars running all day for fear of not being able to restart them.

Even if there was coverage for mobile phone reception the phones themselves would not work in such cold conditions.

Another problem caused by the frozen temperatures is burying dead bodies, which can take anything up to three days. The earth must first have melted sufficiently in order to dig it, so a bonfire is lit for a couple of hours. Hot coals are then pushed to the side and a hole couple of inches deep is dug. The process is repeated for several days until the hole is deep enough to bury the coffin.

Travel companies offer tourists the opportunity to visit the village and sample life in the freezing conditions.

59. Which of the following statements about this village is true?

A. Local children don’t go to school because of the extreme cold.

B. People there live a hard and simple life with few modern conveniences.

C. People there have a healthy and balanced diets by eating vegetables and meat.

D. The name of this village— Oymyakon suggests that it’s extremely cold here.

60. The sentence “If you thought it was cold where you are at the moment then a visit to the Russian village of Oymyakon might just change your mind.” can be put 　　　　.

A. before the first paragraph　　　　　　　　　　　 B. after the first paragraph

C. after the sixth paragraph　　　　　　　　　　　 D. before the last paragraph

61. What does the underlined phrase “grinding to a halt” probably mean in this passage?

A. stopping　　　　　　 B. growing　　　　　　　　　 C. continuing　　　　　　　 D. failing

62. What is the purpose of writing this passage?

A. To attract more people to visit this village.

B. To inform readers of this special village.

C. To help solve problems facing the village.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

D. To draw readers’ attention to poor people.