第三部分：阅读理解(共两节, 40分)

第一节(共15小题;每小题2分, 共30分)

阅读下列短文, 从每题所给的A, B,C,D四个选项中, 选出最佳选项, 并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

A

One day, I received a call from a colleague. He was about to give a student a zero for his answer to a physical problem, while the student claimed a perfect score. I was elected as their arbiter(仲裁人). I read the examination problem："Show how it is possible to determine the height of a tall building with the aid of a barometer(气压计). ”The student had answered; "Take the barometer to the top of the building, attach a long rope to it, lower it to the street, and then bring it up, measuring the length of the rope. The length of it is the height of the building.”

The student had really answered the question completely, but the answer didn't confirm his competence in physics. I suggested the student try again. I gave him six minutes to answer the question, warning that the answer should show some knowledge of physics. Five minutes later, he said he had many answers and dashed off one, which read：“Take the barometer to the top of the building and lean over the edge of the roof. Drop the barometer, timing its fall with a stopwatch. Then, use the physical formula(公式)to calculate the height of the building.”

At this point, my colleague had to accept it, and then the student made almost full marks. I couldn't help asking the student what the other answers were. He listed many others, and then added, "Probably the best is to take the barometer to the administrator and said to him, ‘Sir, here is a fine barometer. If you tell me the height of the building, I will give it to you.”,

Then, I asked the student if he really did not know the conventional answer to this question. He admitted that he did, but said that he was fed up with high school and college instructors trying to teach him how to think.

The name of the student was Bohr who later was famous all over the world. He won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1922.

56. The student got a zero at the beginning because _____.

A. the teacher wasn't satisfied with him

B. his answer wasn't complete or correct

C. the teacher didn't fully understand his answer

D. his answer didn't show his knowledge of physics

57. We know from the passage that _____.

A. the student knew the expected answer

B. the administrator told Bohr the height

C. the author preferred Bohr's last answer

D. the teacher was a very stubborn person

58. We can learn from the passage that _____.

A. instructors can teach students how to think

B. arbiters can help students to get high scores

C. students should be given more freedom in thinking

D. teachers should make students use physical formulas

59. What was Bohr's attitude toward his schooling?

A. Optimistic. B. Critical. C. Approving. D. Ambiguous.

B

Your Car Is Ready for Take-off

The flying car has been talked about for many years, but now it appears that the idea is about to become a reality.

An international company has built a two-seater plane that, at the touch of a button, transforms into a car perfectly suitable for driving on public roads. It has been designed so that the wings fold up automatically, and it takes just 15 seconds to switch between flying and driving. With its wings fully open and the propeller(螺旋桨)spinning, it can take off from any airfield.

Flying cars are quicker than traditional ones for travelling from city to city, and they can run on ordinary fuel. Another big advantage is that they are cool, like something you would see in an action film. At the moment, however, the flying car's wheels are illegal to leave the ground. That is not because of technical reasons or problems with the design. It is because the various road and aircraft authorities simply cannot agree on whether it is a car or a plane.

"The government and the authorities have never thought seriously about a flying car,” says Alan Price, the president of the company that has developed it. “I wanted a car that could fly and drive, but it is difficult to find an organization prepared to insure the vehicle against accidents.”

Nevertheless, the company hopes to produce and deliver its first flying car soon. The company already has orders for 40 of them. The majority of the potential customers are older and some are retired. There have even been orders from some people who have no pilot's license.

The flying car will cost around$200,000.“For an airplane, that's a very reasonable price, but for a car, it's quite expensive, ”explains Alan.“But it just is not possible to make a$10,000 flying car yet.”

This latest means of transport will not become a mass-market item in the near future, but in the long term it has the potential to change the way you travel. It will become no more expensive than driving your car on the motorway. Travel time could be reduced by more than half.

So the next time you are told to fasten your seat belt, it may be to prepare for take-off.

60. We know from the passage that the flying car _____.

A. has to run on special fuel B. will replace traditional planes

C. is popular with the rich D. can shift between two forms

61 . The flying car is presently forbidden to take off because _____.

A. many people think driving it not very safe

B. it's hard to decide whether it's a car or a plane

C. the government and the authorities don't accept it

D. there are still some technical problems to be solved

62. We can learn from the passage that _____.

A. few people will be able to afford a flying car

B. flying cars may share the market in the future

C. traffic jams will disappear because of flying cars

D. driving a flying car doesn't require a pilot's license