Ⅳ. Reading Comprehension (60 points)

　　Directions:

　　There are four reading passages in this part. Each passage is followed by five questions. For each question there are four suggested answers marked A, B, C and D. Choose one best answer and blacken the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet.

　　Passage One

　　What’s the best way to protect a tender, green seedling from the hungry stomach of deer? Give the seedling bad breath!

　　The same chemical that gives people bad breath after they have eaten garlic can save small trees from being eaten by animals.

　　A kind of chemical selenium(硒), which is also found in garlic, is planted in the soil near a young tree. The tree’s roots absorb the selenium which is then carried to the leaves.

　　From there the selenium is used to form a chemical called dimethyl selenide (乙烷硒化物)—the same chemical made in the human mouth after eating garlic. As deer wander around looking for food, they smell the seedlings’leaves and leave the plants alone.

　　The selenium is important. Why? Because each year deer eat millions of dollars’ worth of trees farm seedlings.

　　So far, selenium has been tested only on Douglas fir (樅樹) seedlings, but researchers think they could protect fruit trees and garden plants, too.

　　61. When people eat garlic, ________.

　　A. they send out a horrible smell B. they are out of breath

　　C. they will feel sick D. it is hard for them to breathe

　　62. According to this passage the bad smell given off from those leaves is that of ______.

　　the young trees absorb garlic

　　the roots of the young trees smell like garlic

　　the young trees aren’t fit for the deer to eat

　　the leaves of the young trees smell like garlic

　　64. Up till the time the news was announced, this kind of chemical was used _______.

　　A. all over the world B. all over the United States

　　C. on fruit trees and garden trees D. on Douglas fir young trees

　　65. The best title of this passage is ________.

　　A. Hungry Deer and Young Trees B. Why Don’t Deer Eat Young Fruit Trees

　　C. Plants Saved by “Bad Breath” D. How to Protect Young Trees

　　Passage Two

　　Hair loss is one of those things we still do not understand. Science has, of course, shown that men are more likely than women to suffer major hair loss. Some kinds of hair loss are temporary (暫時的), an effect of illness. In those cases we can expect the hair to grow back.

　　It all depends on whether the hair root is alive. If it is not, hair loss is permanent and nothing will help.

　　Some daily loss of hair is a normal, healthy sign. Most people lose between 40 to 50 scalp hairs each day.

　　Each of these scalp hairs grows for from two to six years and then rests. About three months later it is pushed out by a new hair growing from the same root.

　　This is not something that should cause great concern.

　　Something else we know is that normal hair loss is seasonal, with the most hair loss occurring in the fall. Everyone experiences a normal cycle of loss and growth.

　　The problem of hair loss results when loss is greater than growth.

　　The main cause of hair loss in men seems to be accumulation (積累) of a hormone (荷爾蒙) in the body. When that hormone reaches a certain level, the hair growing period is shortened and hair loss is the result. This is no cure for most cases of hair loss. This, however, is not the end of the world.

　　66. According to science, _________.

　　hair loss is a normal, healthy sign

　　man should pay special attention to hair loss

　　it’s likely that men have more problems of hair loss

　　men lose more hair than women do

　　67. The writer thinks _______.

　　illness causes hair loss

　　human beings have no way to cure hair loss

　　hair loss happening in the fall is an effect of illness

　　hair loss is permanent

　　68. We now know that the most hair loss happening in the autumn is ________.

　　A. permanent B. healthy sign C. seasonal D. nothing serious

　　69. The sentence “This, however, is not the end of the world” means _______.

　　man is sure to find the best way of curing his hair loss in the future

　　the writer believes the earth exists for ever

　　we can’t destroy the world by any means

　　the last day will never come to our people

　　70. The best title for the passage may be ________.

　　A. Loss or Growth B. Hair Loss C. Healthy Sign D. Change with Seasons

　　Passage Three

　　On the morning of November 18,1755, an earthquake shook Boston, Massachusetts. John Winthrop, a professor at Harvard College, felt the quake and awoke. “I rose,” Winthrop wrote, “and lighting a candle, looked on my watch, and found it was 15 minutes after four.”John Winthrop went downstairs to the grandfather clock. It had stopped four minutes before, at 4:11. Except for stopping the clock, the quake had only thrown a key from the mantel (壁爐臺) to the floor.

　　The clock had stopped because Winthrop had put some long glass tubes he was using for an experiment into the case for care. The quake had knocked the tubes over and blocked the pendulum (鐘擺). Winthrop, therefore, had the exact time that the earthquake had hit Boston. He looked at the key on the floor. The quake had thrown it forward in the direction of the quake’s motion (運動) by a shock coming from the northwest, perhaps in Canada.

　　71. The text proves that _______.

　　the power of nature is terrible

　　earthquakes happen most often during nighttime hours

　　the direction of an earthquake can be discovered

　　universities study the cause of earthquakes

　　72. The text suggests that _________.

　　A. Boston was badly destroyed B. earthquakes are common in Boston

　　C. John Winthrop had difficulty sleeping D. John Winthrop was a scientist

　　73. Which of the following is true?________.

　　Some tubes were broken into pieces and stopped the old clock

　　The professor lit a candle because of power failure

　　Boston is in the southeast of Canada

　　The shocks were slight in one way

　　74. The earthquake happened ________.

　　A. several minutes before the professor awoke B. and the professor awoke at 4:15

　　C. in the centre of Boston D. when John Winthrop felt it

　　75. Choose the right order according to the text.

　　a. The bed was shaking and John Winthrop awoke.

　　b. John Winthrop looked attentively at this watch.

　　c. John Winthrop got up to light a candle.

　　d. The earthquake happened in Boston in 1755.

　　e. John Winthrop knew the quake’s direction.

　　f. John Winthrop knew the exact quake’s time.

　　g. John Winthrop looked at the key on the floor.

　　A. g, d, e, a, c, b, f B. d, a, c, b, f, g, e C. a, e, d, c, b, f, g D. e, d, g, b, c, a, f

　　Passage Four

　　Oceanography has been defined as “The application of all sciences to the study of the sea”.

　　Before the nineteenth century scientists with an interest in the sea were few and far between. Certainly Newton considered some theoretical aspects of it in his writings, but he was reluctant to go to sea to further his work.

　　For most people the sea was remote, and with the exception of early intercontinental travelers or others who earned a living from the sea, there was little reason to ask many questions about it, let alone to ask what lay beneath the surface. The first time that the question “What is at the bottom of the oceans?”had to be answered with any commercial consequence was when the laying of a telegraph cable from Europe to America was proposed. The engineer had to know the depth profile (起伏形狀) of the route to estimate the length of cable that had to be manufactured.

　　It was to Maury of the US Navy that the Atlantic Telegraph Company turned, in 1853, for information on this matter. In the 1840s, Maury had been responsible for encouraging voyages during which soundings (測水深) were taken to investigate the depths of the North Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Later, some of his findings aroused much popular interest in his book The Physical Geography of the Sea.

　　The cable was laid, but not until 1866 was the connection made permanent and reliable. At the early attempts, the cable failed and when it was taken out for repairs it was found to be covered in living growths, a fact which defied contemporary scientific opinion that there was no life in deeper parts of the sea.

　　Within a few years oceanography was under way. In 1872 Thomson led a scientific expedition (考察), which lasted for four years and brought home thousands of samples from the sea. Their classification and analysis occupied scientists for years and led to five-volume report, the last volume being published in 1895.

　　76. The proposal to lay a telegraph cable from Europe to America made oceanographic studies take on ________.

　　A. an academic aspect B. a military aspect

　　C. a business aspect D. an international aspect

　　77. It was ________ that asked Maury for help in oceanographic studies.

　　A. the American Navy B. some early intercontinental travelers

　　C. those who earned a living from the sea

　　D. the company which proposed to lay an undersea cable

　　78. The aim of the voyages Maury was responsible for in the 1840s was _______.

　　to make some sounding experiments in the oceans

　　to collect samples of sea plants and animals

　　to estimate the length of cable that was needed

　　to measure the depths of the two oceans

　　79. “Defied” in the 5th paragraph probably means “________”.

　　A. doubted B. gave proof to C. challenged D. agreed to

　　80. This passage is mainly about _______.

　　A. the beginnings of oceanography B. the laying of the first undersea cable

　　C. the investigation of ocean depths D. the early intercontinental communications

　　Ⅴ. Writing (20 points)

　　Directions:

　　For this part, you are allowed 20 minutes to write a letter of about 80 words according to the following situation.

　　你是Helen，要寫一封信給Julie，對她和她的丈夫昨日請你和你丈夫吃飯表示感謝，表示要回請他們，以答謝他們的盛情款待。

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