Rome had the Forum (論壇). London has Speaker’s Corner. Now always-on-the-go New Yorkers have Liz and Bill.

   Liz and Bill, two college graduates in their early 20s, have spent a whole year trying to have thousands of people talk to them in subway stations and on busy street corners. And just talk.

   Using a 2-foot-tall sign that says, “ Talk to Me,” they attract conversationalists, who one evening included a mental patient, and men in business suits.

   They don’t collect money. They don’t push religion (宗教). So what’s the point?

   “ To see what happens,” said Liz. “ We simply enjoy life with open talk.”

   Shortly after the September 11, 2001 attacks, they decided to walk from New York City to Washington, a 270-mile trip. They found they loved talking to people along the way and wanted to continue talking with strangers after their return.

   “ It started as a crazy idea.” Liz said. “ We were so curious about all the strangers walking by with their life stories. People will talk to us about anything: their job, their clothes, their childhood experiences, anything.”

   Denise wanted to talk about an exam she was about to take. She had stopped by for the second time in two days, to let the two listeners know how it went.

   Marcia had led her husband to a serious disease. “That was very heavy on my mind.” Marcia said. “ To be able to talk about it to total strangers was very good,” she explained.

   To celebrate a year of talking, the two held a get-together in a city park for all the people they had met over the past year. A few hundred people appeared, as well as some television cameramen and reporters.

   They may plan more parties or try to attract more people to join their informal talks. Some publishers have expressed interest in a book, something the two say they’ll consider before making a decision.

56. What did Liz and Bill determined to do after the attack on September 11, 2001?

   A. Telling stories to strangers.              B. Setting up street signs.

   C. Talking with people                    D. Organizing a speaker’s party.

57. What they have been doing can be described as ____________.

   A. pointless (無(wú)意義的)                     B. normal

   C. crazy                                  D. successful

58. Why are Denise and Marcia mentioned in the text?

   A. They knew Liz and Bill very well.

   B. They happened to meet the writer of the text.

   C. They organized the get-together in the city park.

   D. They are examples of those who talked to Liz and Bill.

59. What will Liz and Bill do in the future?

   A. Go in for publishing                  B. Do more television programs.

   C. Continue what they are doing           D. Spend more time reading books.

60. How do they like the idea of writing a book?

   A. They have decided to wait a year or two.  B. They will think about it carefully

   C. They agreed immediately              D. They find it hard to do that.

   High school students have always spread gossip(傳言) in the halls, on the walls and on the phone. Now it’s on the Internet, too. On various message boards, kids write about whom they hate, whom they think have fallen in love with each other and record other often hurtful things that may or may not be true.

Sixteen- year-old Jessica remembers once when some kids at her school wrote cruel things about her on the web. “ They were just making fun of me,” she says. They said she’s really ugly, she’s this, she’s that, blah-blah-blah.

 Jessica’s 11-year-old sister, Emma, admits she’s used the web to write bad things about another girl, though she regrets it now. “After a while, you may feel like, how could I have been so mean? Or, why did I do that?” she says.

Experts say gossip on the Inernet can be more harmful than the old fashioned kind. It lasts longer and is taken more seriously. And, unlike ugly words on the bathroom wall, there’s no way to get rid of it.

If your kids are victims of online gossip, Dr. Commanday suggests putting the gossip into perspective(正確看待). “Point out to them how what’s being said on the screen differs from what everyone knows about you as a person,” Dr. Commanday says.

You can also try what worked for Emma: Keep your kids off the offensive website! “ When she was using it all the time, her name was there all the time. People were writing things about her,” explains Patti Thrift, Emma’s mother, “ Since she has no longer had access to that, she’ s no longer a topic of conversation.”

Experts say that any time your child is on the Internet , you should know what he or she is doing there. Online gossip is just another reason why.

52.  From the examples of Jessica and her sister, we can learn that ________.

A. ugly girls like to spread gossip online  

B. ugly girls easily become victims of online gossip

C. gossip-makers can regret what they do 

D. online gossip is mailny some jokes on others

53.  According to the passage, why is online gossip more hurtful?

A. It can not be removed.              B. It is written words. 

C. It is much uglier.                  D. It is easier to believe.

54.  If you are a victim of online gossip, you’d better_______

A. ask your parents to stop it                B. try to stay away from there 

C. make it known to the police              D. speak ill of the gossip-maker

55.  The purpose of the passage is to _____

A. introduce different kinds of hurt students might meet with

B. advise students to keep away from the Internet

C. list the bad influence gossip on the Internet brings

D. give some tips on how to prevent hurt of gossip on the Internet

56.  The passage is mainly written for____

A. experts               B teachers               C. parents               D. students

Shopping in Singapore is really a pleasure for tourists. The Great Singapore Sale is held every year, usually during the summer months. Singapore’s famous shopping stores welcome a great number of visitors from all over the world. Their shopping hours last till midnight. During this time, nice and cheap goods are on sale for tourists to choose from. Tourists can also try delicious foods there and experience the Singaporean nightlife.

Certain stores offer discounts (折扣) of up to 70 percent or even higher if people use their credit cards. For tourists that hold a special Tourist Card, they can enjoy a lot of benefits, such as discounts on watches, jewelry and cosmetics (化妝品). The card also gives discounts when you visit local attractions such as the Singapore Zoo.

It is well worth checking out in the different shopping districts of Singapore during this 8-week Shopping Marathon. Orchard Road is surely the best place for shopping in the city. A large number of restaurants, clubs and cafes can be found in this area. Marina Bay includes both big department stores as well as small shops, so everything you would want to buy can be found here.

Advice for tourists planning to enjoy this festival of shopping: travel light and take a comfortable pair of shoes with you for you are sure to do a lot of walking and return with your bags much heavier.

53. You probably see the Great Singapore Sale when you go to Singapore in ______.

A. January                  B. August                C. May                       D. November

54. We can learn from the passage that ______. 

A. the Great Singapore Sale is held twice each year

B. the Shopping Marathon lasts for more than two months

C. Orchard Road is Singapore’s best shopping street

D. Marina Bay is a narrow street with small shops 

55. Why are tourists advised to travel light if they intend to enjoy the shopping festival?

A. They will buy many goods and have to do lots of walking.

B. It is not safe for them to take heavy bags with them.

C. There is heavy traffic in the shopping districts of Singapore. 

D. Travelling with too many things is not allowed in Singapore.

56. The author wrote this passage mainly to ______.

A. tell readers his or her experience and impression of visiting Singapore

B. help readers find the best shopping centres in Singapore

C. explain what has made Singapore popular around the world

D. introduce shopping in Singapore and attract more readers to go shopping there

完型填空

完型填空一 ：

Have you ever had to decide whether to go shopping or stay home and watch TV on a weekend? Now you can do both at the same time. Home shopping television networks have become a __16__ for many people to shop without having to leave their homes.

Some shoppers are tired of department stores and supermarkets — __17__ the crowds, waiting in long lines, and sometimes having slight __18__ of finding anything they want to buy. They’d rather sit quietly at home in front of the TV set and watch a friendly announcer describe a product __19__ a model shows it. And they can shop __20__ the clock, buying something __21__ by making a phone call.

Department stores and even mail-order companies are __22__ to join in the success of home shopping. Large department stores are busy setting up their own TV channels to encourage TV shopping in the future. Customers can ask questions about products and place __23__ all through their TV sets.

Will shopping by television finally take the place of shopping in stores ? Some industry managers think so. __24__ many people find shopping at a __25__ store a great enjoyment. And for many shoppers, it is still important to __26__ or try on dresses they want to buy. That’s why specialists say that in the future, home shopping will __27__ together with store shopping but will never entirely replace it.

16. A. programme                   B. way                 C. reason               D. purpose

17. A. fighting                      B. striking              C. treating              D. stopping

18. A. sense                 B. doubt               C. hope                 D. feeling

19. A. until                  B. since                 C. if                   D. while

20. A. by                   B. around                      C. about                D. to

21. A. suitably                      B. cheaply               C. simply               D. hardly

22. A. nervous                      B. lucky                       C. equal                D. eager

23. A. orders                B. goods                 C. books              D. answers

24. A. Then                 B. Yet                   C. However             D. Therefore

25. A. general               B. popular                C. real                 D. true

26. A. design                B. make                 C. wear                 D. touch

27. A. exist                 B. practice               C. follow               D. appear

    Bali is a tiny island that is part of Indonesia(印度尼西亞) today. It is a pretty island that has many mountains and a pleasant climate. For a long time, Bali was cut off from much of the world.

The people of Bali were happy and had a peaceful life. They were not allowed to fight. At one time there had been terrible wars on Bali. Then the people decided it was wrong to fight or have wars. They made rules to keep apart those people who wanted to fight.

Bali was divided into seven small kingdoms. The land around each kingdom was kept empty, and no one lived there. Since the kingdoms did not share the same borders(邊界), the people could not fight about them.

On Bali, even children were not allowed to fight. If two children started a fight over a toy, someone separated them. When two boys argued, they would agree not to speak to each other. Sometimes they did not talk together for months; this gave the boys a chance to forget their anger.

Families who were angry with each other also promised not to speak. Their promise was written down, and the whole village knew about it. If they broke their promise, they had to offer gifts to their gods.

49. Bali is an island belonging to ________.

A. Europe        B. Africa          C. Asia          D. America

50. The people of Bali ______.

A. lived a happy and peaceful life

B. fought for a long time

C. is cut off from much of the world

D. quarreled about their borders

51. How did the people of Bali prevent fighting from breaking out?

A. They shared the same borders.            

B. The island was divided into seven kingdoms.

C. They made strict rules to punish those who wanted to fight. 

D. Land was kept empty around each kingdom and no one lived there.

52. Which of the following is not true according to the passage?

A. Bali is a beautiful island with many mountains and nice weather.

B. People had to offer gifts to the villagers if they broke their promise.

C. At one time there were terrible wars on the island.

D. You’ll hardly see children fighting on the island.

第三部分 閱讀技能 (共三節(jié)，滿分35分)

 閱讀理解 （共12小題；每小題2分，滿分24分）

閱讀下列短文，從每題所給的A、B、C、D四個(gè)選項(xiàng)中，選出最佳選項(xiàng)，并在答題卡上將該項(xiàng)涂黑。

For most people, the word “fashion” means “clothes”. But people may ask the question, “What clothes are in fashion?” And they use the adjective (形容詞) “fashionable” in the same way: “She was wearing a fashionable color.”

But of course there are fashions in many things, not only in clothes. There are fashions in holidays, in restaurants, in films and books. There are even fashions in school subjects, jobs…and in languages.

Fashions change as time goes. If you look at pictures of people or things from the past, you will see that fashions have always changed. An English house of 1750 was different from his grandson in 1860.

Today fashions change very quickly. Some of this is natural. We hear about things much more quickly than in the past. Newspapers, radios, telephones and television send information from one country to another in a few hours.

New fashions mean that people will buy new things, so you see there is money in fashion.

41  From this passage we know that “fashion” means _________.

    A  clothes   B  many things    C  most of the popular things    D  everything

42  Which of the following things is fashionable today?

　  A  Surfing on the Internet

    B  Having a family dinner on New Year’s Day

    C  Learning to sing songs on the radio

    D  Doing morning exercises at school.

43  Today fashions change very quickly because _______.

　  A  People read newspapers every day 　

    B  radios send information from one country to another

　  C  new things that people like are often shown on TV

　  D  people quickly learn what is happening in the world

44  “There is money in fashion.” means ________.

　  A  clothes are expensive    B  money comes from fashion

　  C  people like new things   D  there are no fashions without money

—______ you pass the examination on the first attempt?

—Of course. You know, I have been preparing for it for a long time.

       A. Can                         B. May                         C. Shall                        D. Could

 When a student asks__________it is worth staying up doing their lessons, a teacher may find it difficult to answer.

       A. that                B. what            C. whether              D. how

SECTION B

Directions: For each blank in the following passage there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with word or phrases that best fits the context.

Soon it would be the holidays. But before that, there were the end of year exams. All the students had been working  36  for some time. If they didn’t pass, they would have to  37  the exams in September. There were usually a few who failed, but Kate decided not to be one of them. She had worked hard all day, but just before the exams she was working so hard that her sister was   38  about her. She was staying up too late. The night before the first exam, Barbala  39  that she should have an early night and take a sleeping pill. She  40  to wake her up in the morning.

     As she was falling asleep, Kate was worried that she might oversleep. Her mind kept jumping from subject to subject. At last, with the help of the  41  , she fell asleep. In no time at all, she was sitting in the examination hall, looking at the paper. She couldn’t answer any of the questions. Everyone round her was writing pages and pages. However hard she thought, she couldn’t find  42  to write about. She kept looking at her watch.  43  was running out. There was only one hour left. She started one question, wrote two sentences,  44  and tried another one. With only half an hour left, she wrote another two sentences. By this time she was so  45  that she started  46 . Her whole body shook. It shook so much that it woke her up. She was still  47  and it had all been a(n) terrible dream. A minute later, Barbala called her name.

36. A. lazily            B. hard                 C. legally           D. smoothly

37. A. give up       B. pass           C. quit           D. retake

38. A. worried             B. satisfied        C. enjoyed        D. afraid

39. A. argued        B. insisted         C. claimed        D. thought

40. A. refused       B. opposed        C. promised         D. hoped

41. A. herself        B. her sister       C. tiredness         D. pill

42. A. anything        B. nothing         C. something        D. everything

43. A. Money        B. Food            C. Time           D. Water

44. A. looked up     B. gave up       C. put up          D. made up

45. A. happy         B. excited         C. surprised         D. upset

46. A. moving       B. laughing       C. crying          D. singing

47. A. in bed         B. in the hall        C. in school       D. in the classroom

We can make mistakes at any age. Some mistakes we make are about money. But most mistakes are about people. "Did Jerry really care when I broke up with Helen?" "When I got that great job, did Jim really feel good about it, as a friend? Or did he envy my luck? “And Paul, why didn't pick up that he was friendly just because I had a car?" When we look back, doubts like these can make us feel bad. But when we look back, it's too late.

Why do we go wrong about our friends—or our enemies? Sometimes what people say hides their real meaning. And if we don't really listen we miss the feeling behind the words. Suppose someone tells you, "You're a lucky dog, "and that's being friendly. But "lucky dog"? There's a bit of envy in those words. Maybe he doesn't see it himself. But bringing in the "dog" bit puts you down a little, what he may be saying is that he doesn't think you deserve your luck.

"Just think of all the things you have to be thankful for" is another noise that says one thing and means another. It could mean that the speaker is trying to get you to see your problem as part of your life as a whole. But is he? Wrapped up in this phrase is the thought that your problem isn't important. It's telling you to think of all the starving people in the world when you haven't got a date for Saturday night.

How can you tell the real meaning behind someone’s words? One way is to take a good look at the person talking. Do his words fit the way he looks? Does what he says agree with the tone of voice? His posture? The look in his eyes? Stop and think. The minute you spend thinking about the real meaning of what people say to you may save another mistake.

62. This passage is mainly about ______.

A. how to interpret what people say

B. what to do when you listen to others talking

C. why we go wrong with people and how to avoid these mistakes

D. why we go wrong with people sometimes

63. According to the author, the reason why we go wrong about our friends is that       .

A. we fail to listen carefully when they talk  

B. we tend to doubt what our friends say

C. people tend to be annoyed when we check what they say

D. people usually state one thing but mean another.

64. The underlined word "it" in the second paragraph refers to______.

A. being friendly   B. a bit of envy    C. lucky dog               D. your luck

65. When we listen to a person talking, the most important thing for us to do is     __.

A. notice the way the person is talking

B. take a good look at the person talking

C. mind his tone, his posture and the look in his eyes

D. examine the real meaning of what he says based on his manner, his tone and his posture

66. The author is most probably a ______.

A. teacher     B. psychologist    C. philosopher     D. doctor