Part 3    Reading and Writing (第三部分  读与写)

IX. Reading Comprehension (阅读理解)：(共50分)

A) Choose the best answer (根据文章内容，选择最恰当的答案)：(12分)

● Yesterday’s heavy snow and high winds broke records and tied up traffic all over the northeastern United States. All main highways were closed, creating traffic headaches for many people. By 9:30 last night, four feet of snow covered the area between Boston and Philadelphia. Workers hope to get the main roads open.

● Police blamed(谴责) a hard thunderstorm (雷暴雨) for the fire that killed an elderly woman yesterday. Mary Ann Kate of Elkins Park was 81 years old when she died. Lightning hit her house causing it to burn, police said, loud thunder woke up Jerry Dickey, one of Kate’s neighbours. He saw smoke coming from Kale’s house. “I tried to help her, but it was too late.”  Dickey said.

● California is entering its sixth strange month without rain, the National Weather Service has told Californians that it does not think the drought will end soon. People are encouraged to store water.

● More than 50 clothes designers from the United States are showing their spring collections this week in New York. Reporters from around the world have gathered to see the new ideas for spring clothing. It is obvious that skirts will be longer and tighter and that clothes will be much more casual (休闲的). And green is definitely out. Bright yellow and red are the popular colours now.

● Bill Gates is one of the richest men in the world. He has just spent $81 million on a 20-room house for himself and his family in Seattle, Washington. Among other things, the house has a swimming pool with music that comes in from under the water, an indoor an d an outdoor gym, a movie theatre that seats 20 people, and video walls with different monitors.

● According to the recent statistics(统计), cruises(游艇旅行) to the Caribbean, Mediterranean, the Europe are up 35 percent this year. There are many reasons for the increased popularity of cruises. They are affordable and offer something. They are known for their wonderful food and exciting ports of entry. The service can be expensive or cheap, depending on your plan.

69.          creates traffic problems in northeastern United States yesterday.

A) Heavy rain                         B) Earthquakes

C) Snowstorm                         D) Flood

70. Skirts will be          and          this spring.

A) shorter…more casual                 B)longer… tighter

C) tighter… cheaper                    D) more casual… brighter

71. The underlined sentence “And green is definitely out.” in Paragraph Four most probably means “       ” .

A) Green is sure to be out of date.           B) It’s a good choice to buy green clothes.

C) Green is the most welcomed colour.       D) It looks smart to wear green clothes.

72.        isn’t mentioned in Passage Five.

A) A swimming pool with music             B) A movie theatre

C) An indoor and an outdoor gym            D) A beautiful fountain

73. Which of the following is WRONG according to the passage?

A) Terrible lightening causes a woman’s death.

B) The drought that lasted for six months in California will end soon.

C) Many clothes designers will show their spring collections in New York.

D) Cruise trip is becoming popular for many reasons.

74. The article is most probably         from a certain TV programme.

A) a talk show                          B) a news report

C) an advertisement                      D) a speech contest

B. Choose the words or expressions to complete the passage. (选择最恰当的单词或词语，完成短文)：(12分)

Camping in your backyard is full of fun, whatever your age. It's great

for keeping us relaxed. It offers chances to check the night sky and to be

noisier than usual. It lets us have friends over to stay who might not fit

inside the house! Follow these instructions and you'll have a night you’ll  75  forget!

Put up your tent.

Depending on the number of family members and guests, you may need more than one tent. Tell your friends to bring their tents if needed. Follow the instructions or check out the articles  on   76  to put up a tent on the Internet.

Prepare your bedding.

You want your guests to be able to relax comforta bly, so put something  77  to lie on the floor: A blow-up air mattress or thick quilts may work we ll. Fill the tent with cloth toys and  blankets. Have lightweight sleeping bags or cotton blankets. They are especially important if you live where the night temperatures drop greatly.

Prepare a seating area.

If you have a picnic table, that would work best. If not, set up a few chairs and a small table to set out drinks and food. A simple choice is to  78  a blanket in the sun so that your friends can eat  and talk. Be sure the grass isn’t wet!

Plan activities and make   79  .