1.根据以下资料，回答16-30题。Every woman dreams of receiving a huge priceless diamond．Now space scientists __1__ that they have discovered the largest diamond in the universe．But it’s well 2_ the reach of the most loves truck men because it's 50 light years away, to be __3__．Measuring 2,500 miles across and weighing five million trillion pounds，the rock Was found on Valentine’ s Day __4__ in the core of a white dwarf star, and it has excited the _5__ world. “It’s the mother of all diamonds，”said Travis Metcalfe， __6__ led the team of researchers at the Harvard-Smithsonian Centre，“and you would need a jeweler’S loupe(专用放大镜)，the size of the Sun，to __7__ this diamond．” The largest diamond __8__ on earth was the 3，106-carat(克拉)Cullinan．It Was cut __9__ nine major stones，including the 530-carat Star of Africa，now a part of the Crown Jewels．Diamonds were __10__ discovered in India more than 2,800 years ago．The Ancient Romans __11__ that the stones were broken pieces of stars that had __12__ to earth．In Ancient Egypt，diamonds were used in funerals. In the Middle Ages，men __13__ them to symbolize their courage and strength．The __14__ of giving them as presents dates from 1477，__15__ Maximilian，the prince of Austria, gave a diamond ring to Mary of Burgundy．12A.fallen,B.dived,C.left,D.burned

2.Their experiment __________, Tom and Mary set out to write the report on theresults.

3.There are two foreign friends in the park.One is from Japan.___ is fromAmerica.

4.The price of shoes is _____ during the Spring Festival.

5.IV． Reading Comprehension ( 60 points)Directions:There are five reading passages in this part． Each passage is followed by fourquestions． For each question there are four suggested answers marked A, B, C and D． Chooseone best answer and blacken the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet．材料题,根据下面材料回答36-39题：Passage oneI talk to strangers for a living and love the challenge of getting their stories published in newspapers．I've been married for years，but until six months ago，I could be a typical absent—minded husband．Often l was just nodding when l was supposed to．When my wife asked，“Did you even hear what I just said?”1 would defensively say，“of course I did!”In January，I began to lose my voice．Doctors told me I needed surgery，or my throat would be permanently damaged．Total silence would be required for the first few weeks of my recovery．Two hours after the surgery，my eyes filled with tears as my two-year-old son looked puzzled because l wouldn’t answer his questions．I wanted to talk but couldn’t．Luckily，I'd recorded myself reading some of his favorite books．That would come in handy the next couple of weeks．It had never left．I'd just stopped noticing．I found myself understanding her better on topics I'd previously dismissed as “things I just don’t get as a guy”．I also realized my son wasn’t just talking nonstop but that he often had thoughtful things to say．Even while walking my dog in the woods near our home，I began hearing pleasant patterns in birdsongs．Before my surgery，I'd have spent those walks on my phone．After several weeks，I was fully recovered. Conversation in our house is better now，not because I'm talking more．I’m just listening better and becoming less and less surprised that I like what I hear．According to the passage，the author is most likely a __________ ．

6.Only when I began to do it ____________ that I had made a mistake.

7.Couples are restricting the size of their families in the UK because of cash worries brought on bvthe financial crisis and the subsequent decline.We’re now up to nearly 3.7 million families whelthere is an only child，a rise from about 3.3 million in 2005.That means nearlv half of all parentshave only one child.Financial WOITies aren’t the only driver.The trend towards later motherhood has beenmentionedas a cause，as have soaring costs of raising a child，which have been calculated as￡222.500 frombirth t021 years of age.This is an increase of nearly 40%in lo years.The increasing availability of IVF(试管婴儿)is also a factor and an interesting one.Coupleswhomight have remained childless in the past now invest in IVF and get pregnant.And because ofthe cost they stop after one child.It may not be a bad thin9;there are outstanding examples of talented only children.Some arguethat being an only child promoted their success.These include actors Natalie Portman and Al Paci.n0，golfer Tiger Woods and even Queen Victoria.A study from the Institute for Social and EconomicResearch at the University of Essex also showed that the fewer brothers and sisters a child has.thehappier they are.It seems fighting for parental attention and affection--which sometimes descendsinto physical fights—is more stressful than any adult had previously thought.And it's not compensa—ted(弥补)by having a playmate.The findings of the institute at the University of Essex might mean that__________ .

8.They ____ the films and try to see patterns in the signs.填入____处的最佳答案是()。

9.Of the two new teachers, one is experienced and __.

10.Mrs.Taylor has___8-year-old daughter who has__gift for painting-shehas won two national prizes.

11. 根据以下材料，回答48-51题 The strange close understanding between twins is a familiar enough phenomenon．Often theyseem to understand each other and share each other’s emotions to such an extent that one suspectssome kind of thought communication． 　　What is not so widely known is that this special relationship often acts as brake on twins’intellectual development．As they are partly isolated in their own private world，twins communicate lesswith adults than do other children．The verbal ability of a four—year—old twin is typically six monthsbehind that of a non-twin．The problem can be particularly severe in an underprivileged family，aone-parent family for example，where there is little stimulation for children anyway． 　　Such children，while capable of mutual comprehension in a private language，often remainincomprehensible to outsiders and thus at a severe educational disadvantage．The only solution tothe problem，cruel though it may seem，is to separate the twins thus forcing them to acquire ordinaryspeech helped and guided by sympathetic parents and teachers．The writer mentions all of the items listed below EXCEPT．

12.i only have____bread for lunch today.

13.fathful

14.

Most parents,I suppose,have had the experience of reading a bedtime story1their children.And they must have realized how difficult it is to write a2children'sbook.Either the author has aimed(定目标）too3,so that children can't follow whatis in his(or more often,her)story,4the story seems to be talking to the readers.

The best children's books are 5very difficult nor very simple,and satisfy(令人满意的）the6 who hears the story and the adult(成年人）who 7it.Unfortunately（不幸的是），there are in fact few books like this,8 the problem of finding the rightbedtime story is not 9to solve.This may be why many of the books regarded as10of children's literature(文学）were in fact written for11 “Alice in Wonderland"is perhaps the most obvious(明显）of thisChildren,left for themselves,often12the worstpossible interest in literature just leave a child in a bookshop or a13and he will morewillingly choose the books written in an unimaginative(开非想象的）way.orhavelook at the most children’s comics(连环图书），full of the stories and jokes which ate the rejectionsof teachers and righting-thinking parents.Perhaps we parents should stop14 to brainwash(洗脑）children into accepting（接受）our taste in literature.After all,children and adults are so15 that we parentsshould not expect that they will enjoy the same books.So I suppose we'll just have to compromise(妥协）over the bedtime story.2（单选）

15.On television all over the world there are programmes about the work of the police．They are popular because they are usually very exciting．In London there is a television programme called"Police Five "--because it is on for five minutes once a week．A television reporter, Shaw Taylor, talks about crimes in the London area．He asks for public help．The police station needs the help of ordinary people because sometimes you or I have information that can be useful to the police. 　　Shaw Taylor shows pictures of paintings, jewellery (珠宝) and other things which thieves stole during the week．Sometimes he shows the car that the thieves escaped in．When people see men or things on the television programme which they may remember, they can tell the police where they saw them．With their help the police may catch more criminals. 　　Sometimes the police find a car or some money．Shaw Taylor shows them on television．The owners sometimes see them．Then they can telephone the police and say, "Thank you very much-- that's mine!" 48 The police station asks for public help because __.

16.

For several years,Americans have enjoyed teleshopping-watching TV and buyingthings by phone.Now teleshopping is starting in Europe.In some 1countries,peoplecan turn on their2and shop for clothes,jewelry,food,toys and3 things.

Teleshopping is becoming popular in Sweden.4,the biggest Swedish companysells different kinds of things on TV in fifteen European countries,and in one year.itmakes$10 million.In France,there are two teleshopping channels.and the French5about$ 20 million a year in buying things through those channels.

In Germany,6last year teleshopping was only possible on one channel for onehour every day.Then the government allowed more teleshopping.Other channels can7 for telebusiness,including the largest American teleshopping company and a 24-hourteleshopping company.German8 are hoping these will help them sell more things.Some people like teleshopping because it allows them to do their shopping without9.With all the trafficproblems in cities,going shopping is not an easy thing.Butat the same time,other Europeans10 like this new way of buying things.They call11"junk on the air".Many Europeans usually worry about the quality of the things12on TV.They think high quality is the most important thing,and they don't believe they can be sure about the quality of the things 13.

The need of high quality means that European teleshopping companies will have to be14 the American companies.They will have to be more careful about the15of thethings they sell.They will also have to work harder to sell things that the buyers cannottouch or see by themselves.6.单选题

17.About 79 million Americans have pre—diabetes(糖尿病前期).That means they have blood sugarthat's higher than normal but not hi 曲 enough to be diagnosed(诊断)with type 2 一 at least not yet.One lon9.term study reposed by the American Diabetes Association found that l l%of people withpre—diabetes develop the full—blown disease each year.Another study shows that pre—diabetes willprobably become type 2 in lo years or less. Yet，that process is not inevitable.Last year，scientists in Colorado found that people withpre—diabetes who lowered their blood sugar to normal levels--even briefly--were 56%less likely toreachtype 2 levels.Ⅱyou have pre—diabetes.here are four steps to help prevent or delay a diabetes diagnosis：Lose 7%of your body weight.That is about l5 pounds for the persons who weigh 200.Drop—ping that small percentage has been shown to lower the risk of developing type 2 by closet060%.Exercise 30 minutes five days a week.Whether you do the 30 minutes in one shot or in three10 一 minute sessions，the benefit is the same.Choose certain exercises，such as fast walkin9，playingtennis or lifting weights.Physical activity such as sweeping floors works，t00.Turn to your doctor.In some cases，pre—diabetes raises the risk of heart disease and stroke by50%.Your doctor may use some medicine to control your glucose(葡萄糖)levels and keep yourblood pressure in check.Know your numbers.To see if your pre-diabetes is improvin9 ， have your blood sugarcheckedregularly.A fasting blood sugar of l00 t0125 mr=/dl suggests pre—diabetes;126 m9/dl or above isdiabetes;and below l00 is normal.Other tests，including glucose tolerance and AIC，also are used tomonitor blood sugar.To prevent or delay a diabetes diagnosis，people with pre—diabetes should pay most atten。tion t0____________

18. Fiftyyearsagonotmanypeoplewouldhavesomethingrepairedintheirhomes.Inthosedayslaborwasfairlycheapandmost peoplewouldhavethoughtitworthwhiletohavesomebodyrepairtheirthingsunlesstheywereverypoor.Today,however,itisquiteadifferentstory.Menandwomeninallwalksoflifeturntheirhandstoallkindsofjobsroundthehouse.Somepeoplehaveevensuccessfullybuilttheirownhouses.Thesejobshavebeenmadeeasiertodaybyusingpreparedmaterials.,IneveryhighstreetthroughoutBritainnowadaysthereisatleastone“DIY”shop.And ”do it yourself"isaboomingbusinessAlot of people visitedtheseshopsevery day becauseofthehighcostofpresent-daylabor. Whatisthebesttitleforthispassage?（）

19.选出下列选项中划线部分读音不同的选项（ ）,。

20.选出下列选项中划线部分读音不同的选项（ ）,,,。