第三部分 阅读理解(共20小题;每小题2分，满分40分)

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

A

I had an experience some years ago, which taught me something about the ways in which people make a bad situation worse by blaming themselves. One January, I had to hold two funerals on successive days for two elderly women in my community. Both had died “ full of years”, as the Bible would say. Their homes happened to be near each other, so I paid condolence(吊唁) calls on the two families on the same afternoon.

At the first home, the son of the deceased(已故的)woman said to me, “ If only I had sent my mother to Florida and gotten her out of this cold and snow, she would be alive today. It’s my fault that she died.” At the second home, the son of the other deceased woman said, “ If only I hadn’t insisted on my mother’s going to Florida, she would be alive today.. that long airplane ride, the sudden change of climate, was more than she could take. It’s my fault that she’s dead.”

You see that any time there is a death, the survivors will feel guilty. Because the course of action they took turned out bad, they believe that the opposite course—keeping Mother at home, putting off the operation—would have turned out better. After all, how could it have turned out any worse?

There are seem to be two elements involved in our willingness to feel guilty. The first is our pressing need to believe that the world makes sense, that there is a cause for every effect and a reason for everything that happens that leads us to find patterns and connections both where they really exist and where they exist only in our minds.

The second element is the view that we are the cause of what happens , especially the bad things that happen. It seems to be a short step from believing that every event has a cause to believe that every disaster is our fault. The roots of this feeling may lie in our childhood.

A baby comes to think that the world exists to meet his needs, and tha t he makes everything happen in it. He wakes up in the morning and summons the rest of the world to its tasks. He cries, and someone comes to attend to him. When he is hungry, people feed him , and when he is wet, people change him. Very often, we do not completely outgrow that childish view that our wishes cause things to happen.

46. What is said about the two diseased elderly women?

A. They lived out a natural life

B. They died of exhaustion after the long plane ride

C. They weren’t used to the change in weather.

D. They died due to lack of care by family members.

47. The author had to conduct the two women’s funerals probably because ______.

A. he wanted to comfort the two families

B. he was an official from the community

C. he had great pity for the deceased

D. he was minister of the local church

48. People feel guilty for the deaths of their loved ones because _____.

A. they couldn’t find a better way to express their sorrow

B. they believe that they were responsible

C. they had neglected the natural course of events

D. they didn’t know things often turn in the opposite direction

49. According to the passage, the underlined part in paragraph 4 probably means that_____.

A. everything in the world is predetermined

B. the world can be interpreted in different ways

C. there is an explanation for everything in the world

D . we have to be sensible in order to understand the world

50. What’s the idea of the passage?

A. Life and death is an unsolved mystery.

B. Every story should have a happy ending.

C. Never feel guilty all the time because not every disaster is our fault.

D. In general, the survivors will feel guilty about the people who passed away.

B

The internet has led to a huge increase in credit-card(信用卡) fraud. Your card information could even be for sale in an illegal Website(非法网站). Websites offering cheap goods and services should be regarded with care Online shoppers who enter their credit-card information may never receive the goods they thought they bought.

The thieves then go shopping with your card number—or sell the information over the Internet. Computer hackers(黑客)have broken down security(安全) system, raising questions about the safety of card holder information.

Several months ago, 25,000 customers of a CD universe, an online music retailer(批发商), were not lucky. Their names, addresses and credit-card numbers were posted on a Website after the retailer refused to pay US $ 157,828 to get back the information.

Credit-card firms are now fighting against online fraud. Master-card is working on plans for Web only credit-card, with a lower credit limit. The card could be used only for shopping online. However , there are a few simple steps you can take to keep from being cheated.

Ask about your credit-card firm’s online rules: under British law, cardholders are responsible for the first US $ 78 of any fraudulent spending. And shop only at secure sites: send your credit-card information only if the Website offers advanced secure system .

If the security is in place, a letter will appear in the bottom right-hand corner of your screen. The Website address may also start http://--the extra “s” stands for secure. If in doubt, give your credit-card information over the telephone.

Keep your password safe: most online sites require a user name and password before placing an order. Treat your password with care.

51. The underlined word “fraud” in the first paragraph probably means ______.

A. cheating    B. sale     C. payment    D. use

52. According to this passage most people worry about shopping on the Internet because ______.

A. a great number of stolen credit-cards are sold on the Internet every day

B. fraud on the Internet happens very often

C. many Websites break down every day

D. there are too many illegal Websites on the Internet

53. Thieves usually get the information of the credit-card ______.

A. because many customers lost their cards

B. by paying money for people working in the information companies

C. because of the carelessness of the customers

D. by stealing the information from Websites

54. If the passwords of your credit-cards are not probably kept, _____.

A. the bank and the shop will suffer great losses

B. you will not be able to get back your information

C. you might suffer great losses

D. the bank will answer for your loss

55. What’s the best title of the passage?

A. How to Beat Online Credit-card Thieves

B. How to Shop on the Internet

C. Never Use Credit-card Without an Advanced Computer

D. Why Thieves Steal Credit-card Information