第二部分 阅读理解 (共两节，满分40分)

第一节 (共15小题;每小题2分，满分30分)

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项中选出最佳答案。 ??

A

As children grow up, they become curious about different kinds of things. When they are babies, they are interested in the parts of their bodies and in the smiles of their mothers. Then they become interested in the physical world around them: the plants, the animals, the sky. Later, they become interested in the things that people have made: wheels, bicycles, cars. And when they are adults, their curiosity continues. Sometimes this curiosity leads to a career(生涯、职业) in science.

Scientists spend their lives trying to find out about the world. Those who work with the earth sciences study the earth, the oceans, and the skies. Other scientists who study living things work with the biological sciences. A third group of scientists study the physical sciences, e.g. physics, chemistry.

These scientists have already discovered a lot about our world. For example, they tell us why your heart beats fast when you run. They say that when you are quiet, your heart normally beats sixty five or seventy five times a minute. Your heart is a pump(泵) that pumps blood to all parts of the body. The blood carries oxygen and nutrition. When you run, your muscles work very hard and use the nutrition that the blood carries to them. The muscles need oxygen, too. So your brain sends a signal to the heart. The signal means that the muscles need more nutrition and oxygen. Then the heart beats fast and sends blood quickly to the muscles. It may beat 90 to 140 times a minute.

Of course, scientists cannot answer all of our questions. If we ask, “Why does the ocean water taste salty?” scientists will say that the salt comes from rocks. When a rock gets very hot or very cold, it cracks. Rain falls into cracks. The rain then carries the salt into the earth and into the rivers. The rivers carry the salt into the ocean. But then we ask, “What happens to the salt in the ocean? The ocean does not get saltier every year.” Scientists are not sure about the answer to this question.

We know a lot about our world, but there are still many answers that we do not have, and we are curious.

36. According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?

A. People are curious in the same way.

B. People in different countries are interested in different things.

C. Men and women are curious about different things.

D. People of different ages are interested in different things.

37. Scientists who work with the biological sciences study________ .

A. the earth, the oceans and the sky B. man-made things

C. plants and animals D. ocean water

38. When you run, your muscles need________ .

A. more nutrition and oxygen B. more signals

C. mo re salt D. water

39. A rock cracks ________.

A. in wet regions B. in dry regions

C. at very high or very low temperatures D. when salty water falls in

40. People are always curious because_________ .

A. they cannot explain many things B. they know nothing about the world

C. they know little about the world D. they want to be scientists