Mail was usually carried west on ships that sailed around the bottom of South America and then north to California．That could take several months.  
So, in eighteen fifty-seven, D.C．Lawmakers in Congress（國會(huì)） in Washington wanted to make it possible to send mail all the way across the United States by land．Congress offered to help any company that would try to deliver mail overland to the West Coast. A man named John Butterfield accepted this offer. He developed plans for a company that would carry the mail—and passengers, too.
Congress gave John Butterfield six hundred thousand dollars to start his company. In return, he had to promise that the mail would travel from Saint Louis, Missouri, to San Francisco, California, in twenty-five days or less.
It was not possible to travel straight through because of the Rocky Mountains and the deep snow that fell in winter. So the stagecoach（馬車） would travel south from Saint Louis to El Paso, Texas, then over to southern California, then north to San Francisco. The distance was about four thousand five hundred kilometers.
Two hundred of these stations were built, each about thirty-two kilometers apart. The workers were to quickly change the horses or mules whenever a stagecoach reached the station. There could be no delay. Each stagecoach was to travel nearly two hundred kilometers a day.
One hundred stagecoaches were built and painted red or dark green. They were the most modern coaches that money could buy. They were designed to hold as many as nine passengers and twelve thousand pieces of mail. The seats inside could be folded down to make beds. Passengers either slept on them or on the bags of mail.
The cost would be one hundred fifty dollars to travel from Saint Louis to San Francisco. If a passenger was not going all the way, the cost was about ten cents a kilometer. The passengers had to buy their own food at the stations. The stagecoach would stop for forty minutes, two times a day.
The company warned passengers about the possible dangers. A poster said: “You will be traveling through Indian country and the safety of your person cannot by granted by anyone but God.”
1．What is the passage mainly about?
A．Different ways of sending mail in the United States.
B．The difficulty in sending mails across the USA by land.
C．The first stagecoaches that carried both passengers and mail.
D．The history of the first stagecoaches carrying mail to the American West.
2．The reason why Lawmakers wanted to send mail by land was that ________.
A．mail was usually carried west on ships  
B．it was safer to travel to send mail by land
C．it would take less time to send mail by land
D．stagecoaches could carry passengers and mail
3．As is described in the passage, the stagecoach ________.
A．could only stop once a day           
B．was modern with seats ,beds and cooking equipment
C．was a closed wagon operated only by skillful drivers.
D．had different horses or mules pulled all the way
4．What can we learn from the passage?
A．John Buttterfield got thousands of dollars for delivering mail in stagecoaches.
B．John Buttterfield kept his promise to deliver mail straight to the West Coast.
C．Passengers might be robbed by Indians when traveling through the West.
D．Passengers needed to pay one hundred dollars for their journey. 

小題1:C
小題2:C
小題3:D
小題4:C
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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：完形填空


For an increasing number of students at American universities, Old is suddenly in．The reason is obvious: the graying of America means jobs．Coupled with the aging of the baby-boom(生育高峰)generation, a longer life span means that the nation's elderly population will expand greatly over the next 50 years．By 2050,25 percent of all Americans will be older than 65,up from 14 percent in 1995．The change sets questions for government and society, of course．But it also creates career opportunities in medicine and health professions, and in law and business as well．“In addition to the doctors, we're going to need more sociologists, biologists, urban planners and specialized lawyers,” says Professor Edward Schneider of the University of Southern California's (USC) School of Gerontology(老年學(xué))．
Lawyers can specialize in“elder law”, which covers everything from trusts and estates to nursing-home abuse(虐待) and age discrimination(歧視)．Businessmen see huge opportunities in the elder market because the baby boomers,74 million strong, are likely to be the wealthiest group of retirees in human history．“Any students who combines an expert knowledge in gerontology with, say, an MBA or law degree will have a license to print money, ”one professor says．
Margarite Santos is a 21-year-old senior at USC．She began college as a biology major but found she was “really bored with bacteria．” So she took a class in gerontology and discovered that she liked it．She says,“I did volunteer work in retirement homes and it was very satisfying．”
小題1:“．．．Old is suddenly in”(Line 1, Para．1) most probably means “_______”．
A．America has suddenly become a nation of old people
B．gerontology has suddenly become popular
C．more elderly professors are found on American campuses
D．American colleges have been full of old students
小題2:Why can businessmen make money in the growing elder market?
A．Retirees are more willing to spend money．
B．They can employ more gerontologists．
C．The elderly have a great purchasing power(購買力)．
D．There are more elderly people working than before．
小題3:Who can make big money m the new century according to the passage?
A．Retirees who are willing to spend money．
B．The volunteer workers in retirement homes．
C．College graduates with an MBA or law degree．
D．Professionals(專業(yè)人員)with a good knowledge of gerontology．
小題4:It can be seen from the passage that the increase of America's elderly population_______．
A．will provide good job opportunities in many areas
B．will be just an unbearable burden on society
C．may lead to nursing home abuse and age discrimination
D．will create more students in universities

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解


Eat, drink and be merry. That’s what Spring Festival is all about. But there are millions of people, too, who love to let happiness go up in smoke.
Offering cigarettes to guests is a traditional Chinese way of showing respect to them. A cup of tea and cigarettes are perhaps the most common way of welcoming a guest in China, especially during festive occasions.
No wonder, 40 percent of the people surveyed(調(diào)查) recently said they would smoke at least twice the usual number of cigarettes during the Spring Festival because of all those gatherings and parties. Only 20 percent of the respondents said they would refuse a cigarette when offered one. Why can’t the others do the same? Because they could be seen as being rude, said more than half in the respondents. 15 percent feared they could be taken as “someone who cannot get along well with others”.
The Think-tank Research Centre for Health Development and sohu. com survey shows 61 percent Chinese think offering a cigarette is useful for socialising, and 52 percent have offered cigarettes to others. The study surveyed 3,800 people, and 64 percent of them were men.
One-third of those surveyed were smokers, out of which 57 percent said they couldn’t give up smoking because of the offering-and-accepting culture. “People have accepted offering cigarettes as an effective way of making friends,” research centre director Wu Yiqun says.
China has more than 350 million smokers, catering to the tobacco market that is worth 500 billion yuan. “The survey shows we still have a lot of work to do,” Wu says. “It is time to let people know that offering a cigarette is a bad habit and it should be given up immediately.”
59. The passage is written with the purpose of ________.
A. telling us a custom about the Chinese Spring Festival
B. introducing a way to make friends with Chinese
C. stopping smoking during the Chinese Spring Festival
D. telling us that offering cigarettes is a bad habit
60. The third paragraph mainly tells us ________.
A. the fact that smokers are greatly increasing during the festival
B. the reason why refusing cigarettes is acceptable
C. the fact that many people have to smoke more cigarettes during the festival
D. it is rude to attend parties without smoking cigarettes
61. Which of the following may NOT be the reason that makes many people fail to refuse the offered cigarettes?
A. It’s impolite to refuse.                  B. Smoking is harmful for non-smokers.
C. They want to be friendly                 D. It’s a kind of social habit.
62. The writer mentions the 500 billion yuan tobacco market because ________.
A. the tobacco market is not developing smoothly
B. the writer thinks that smoking wastes a lot of money
C. smoking is helpful to the tobacco market
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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解


We know almost half the world is urban(都市的) now – but what will our world look like in the year 2100?
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By the end of 2008, slightly less than 50 percent of the global population lived in cities. If economic development proceeds at today’s pace, over the next century or so it is highly likely that 8 billion people will live in urban centers, up from today’s roughly 3.3 billion. Yes, the world will indeed be able to hold so many people. The major reason is urbanization(城市化). There will be many more new cities in the year 2100, and some of today’s large cities will become super cities, including Beijing, Delhi, Mumbai, Sao Paulo, Shanghai and so on. At the same time, recent advances in agriculture, energy, and water technologies suggest that human creations will keep up with population growth. Rural areas will return to an agrarian (農(nóng)業(yè)的)centre to feed the growing cities. Languages will drop from the current 7,000 across the globe to less than a few hundred. English will be the primary language of the world.
As we compress(壓縮) people into the urban center, and as we leave behind the rural areas to feed us – will we really live a happy life at that time? We will have to live together in large buildings in cities and save on energy and services delivery cost. There will be few chances for us to get close to nature. We really need to think about the effect of the things we have done and are doing now!
1. The underlined word “attain” in the second paragraph probably has the same meaning as “________”
A. increase      B. gain     C. reach     D. limit
2.  With the development of urbanization, people in 2100 will have to      .
A. stay in urban areas and have no chance to get close to nature
B. develop industry rather than agriculture to create job opportunities
C. live a poor and unhappy life because there will be less energy to use.
D. make more creations in agriculture, energy, and water technologies
3.  What is the author’s attitude towards urbanization?
A. supportive    B. disappointed   C. surprised    D. worried
4.  What is the best title for this passage?
A. Global urbanization in the year 2100
B. The primary language in the future
C. Reasons for the rapid increase of population
D. The development of agriculture in 2100

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解


Companies can increase the money with which they run their business in a number of ways. One way is borrowing money, and another way is buying things with the agreement that payment would be made later. There are also other processes for providing money for use by a company. Two of these processes are described here.
One process the company may use is to issue bonds(債券). Bonds are a special kind of promissory note. They are issued in different values, in the forms of money used in different countries, such as the pound in England or the euro in Europe. These bonds can easily be sold again to other people or to other companies. The company that issues the bonds promises to pay a particular amount of money as interest regularly for a certain period of time. This continues until when the company has to pay back the principal(本金) of the bond. Payments of principal and interest must be made on time whether the company has been earning money or not. If these payments are not made on time, it means that the company has not done what it agreed to do and can be sued(控告，起訴).
Another process companies may use is to issue other forms of promissory notes called stocks(股票). Bonds and stocks are opposite methods of providing money for a company. The people who buy stocks provide money that is earned and take part in deciding how the company will conduct its business. They must also take part in the losses. The people who own stocks receive dividends only after the company has paid all of its debts to the people who own bonds. On the other hand, the persons who own bonds have no right, according to the law, to help decide how the company will handle its business, unless it is bankrupt or in danger of becoming so.
1. Which of the following statement is not the way for companies to increase their capital?
A. Borrowing money.                                   B. Buying materials without paying.
C. Issuing bonds                                       D. Issuing stocks
2 As to bonds, we know from the passage that ________.
A. they are cheques like bank notes                   
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C. The government                                       D. The workers in the company
4. It can be inferred from this passage that ________.
A. to issue bonds is a better way than to issue stocks
B. stockholders can sue the company when it is bankrupt
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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解


Many of the most damaging types of weather begin quickly, strike suddenly, and disappear rapidly, destroying small areas while leaving neighboring areas untouched．Such event as a tornado struck the northeastern part of Edmonton, Alberta, in July 1987．Total damages from the tornado went beyond $250 million, the highest ever for any Canadian storm．
Traditional computer models of the atmosphere have limited value in predicting short-lived local storms like the Edmonton tornado, because the available weather data are generally not detailed enough to allow computers to study carefully the slight atmospheric changes that come before these storms．In most nations, for example, weather-balloon observations are taken just once every twelve hours at places separated by hundreds of miles．With such limited data, traditional forecasting models do a much better job predicting general weather conditions over large areas than they do forecasting specific local events．
Until recently, the observation intensive method needed for exact, very short-range forecasts, or “Nowcasts,” was not possible．The cost of equipping and operating many thousands of conventional weather stations was extremely high, and the difficulties concerned in rapidly collecting and processing the weather data from such a network were hard to overcome．
Fortunately, scientific and technological advances have overcome most of these problems．Radar systems and satellites are all able to make detailed, nearly continuous observation over large areas at a lower cost．Communications satellites can send out data around the world cheaply and immediately, and modern computers can quickly collect and analyze this large amount of weather information．
Meteorologists（氣象學(xué)者）and computer scientists now work together to design computer programs and video equipment able to change weather data into words and graphic displays that forecasters can understand easily and quickly．As meteorologists have begun using these new technologies in weather forecasting offices, Nowcasting is becoming a reality．
1．Why can’t traditional computer models predict short-lived local storms?
A．The weather data people collect are often wrong．
B．Detailed weather data in some small areas are not available．
C．The computers are not advanced enough to predict them．D．The computers are not used to forecast specific local events．
2．The word “Nowcast” in Paragraph 3 means ________．
A．a(chǎn) network to collect storm data?     
B．a(chǎn) way of collecting weather data
C．a(chǎn) more advanced system of weather observation
D．a(chǎn) forecast which can predict weather in the small area
3．What can make “Nowcasts” a reality according to the passage?
A．Scientific and technological advances． B．Advanced computer programs．
C．Computer scientists．?              D．Meteorologists．
4．What does the passage mainly talk about?
A．The advantages of “Nowcasts”．        B．A tornado in Edmonton, Alberta．
C．The difficulty in predicting tornado．  D．A great development in weather forecast．

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解


China supports international efforts to secure cyberspace but believes each nation’s “Internet sovereignty（主權(quán)）” must be respected, a top Chinese official said at a cyber security conference on Tuesday.
“China, like many other countries, is very concerned about cyber security,” said Liu Zhengrong, deputy director general of the Internet Affairs Bureau of the State Council Information Office.
“China faces severe cyber security threats,” Liu told participants here at the Worldwide Cyber Security Summit, a gathering of government and business leaders from 40 countries hosted by the EastWest Institute think tank.
“International cooperation is much needed to safeguard international cyberspace,” Liu said.
But “Internet sovereignty of each country needs to be respected,” the Chinese official added. “Different national and cultural conditions” should be taken into account.
Liu declined to answer repeated questions about cyber attacks last year on Google which the Internet giant said originated in China and led to the California company’s decision to reroute its searches through Hong Kong.
“The Chinese government firmly opposes cyber attacks in any form and Chinese law clearly states that any hackers will be held responsible for their actions,” he said.
Liu said China itself is a “a major victim of cyber attacks and network viruses” and has laws in place to deal with hackers.
“Internet-related crimes (in China) are showing a steady upward trend,” Liu said. “We suffer big economic losses from hacking networks and viruses - around $1 billion dollars (6.8 billion yuan) a year.”
In 2009, Chinese law enforcement authorities investigated about 48,000 cases, a 37 percent increase over 2008, he said.
While China has a dynamic Internet population of more than 400 million users and millions of bloggers, there is no “absolute freedom” on the Web, Liu said.
“I don’t think there is absolute freedom in this world,” he said. “When you are speaking via the Internet you must obey laws and respect others’ lawful rights.”
Last Thursday, Wang Chen, minister of the State Council Information Office, said China has been actively promoting a real-name registration system for Internet and cell phone users to better manage Internet information and services.
China needs laws that will step up monitoring for “harmful information” and block “overseas hostile forces from infiltrating（滲透）through the Internet,” Wang said.
Last week, China tightened its State Secrets law, holding Internet and mobile phone operators responsible for customers who try to leak State secrets.
Some 400 government officials, business leaders and cyber security experts are attending the summit, which features three days of discussions on ways to protect the world’s digital infrastructure from electronic threats.(427)
1. What was the top issue of Worldwide Cyber Security Summit?
A. To fight against Internet-related crimes.
B. To protect digital infrastructure in the world.
C. To respect Internet sovereignty of each country.
D. To make more laws to deal with hackers.
2. To respect a nation’s Internet sovereignty, _____________ must be considered.
A. different national and cultural conditions
B. attending Worldwide Cyber Security Summit
C. stopping the leaking of State secrets
D. safeguarding international cyberspace
3. According to paragraph 6, Internet giant refers to _____________.
A. Hong Kong             B. hackers             C. Google              D. Liu Zhengrong
4. Which of the following is NOT the measure that China has taken to guarantee better Internet information and service management?
A. Promoting real-name registration for Internet use.
B. Promoting real-name registration for cell phone use.
C. Tightening State Secrets law to stop leaking State secrets.
D. Monitoring for harmful information and blocking overseas hostile forces.

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解


Women might have a higher position at work, but at home their careers tend to give way to their husband’s job, with women most likely to quit when both are working long hours, according to a U．S．study．
Researcher Youngjoo Cha, from Cornell University, found that working women with a husband who worked 50 hours or more a week found themselves still doing most of the housework and the care giving and were more likely to end up quitting their jobs．
An analysis of 8,484 professional workers and 17,648 nonprofessionals from dual-earner （雙職工） families showed that if women had a husband who worked 60 hours or more per week it increased the woman’s possibility of quitting her paid job by 42 percent．Cha said the possibility of quitting increased to 51 percent for professional women whose husbands work 60 hours or more per week, and for professional mothers the possibility they would quit their jobs jumped 112 percent．
However, it did not significantly affect a man’s possibility of quitting his job if his wife worked 60 hours or more per week, according to the study published in the American Sociological Review in April．For professional men, both parents and non-parents, the effects of a wife working long hours were negligible, according to the study．
“As long work-hours introduce conflict between work and family into many dual-earner families, couples often solve conflict in ways that prioritize husbands’ careers,” Cha, who used data from the U．S．Census Bureau, said in a statement．“This effect is magnified （突出） among workers in professional and managing occupations, where the criterion of overwork and the culture of looking after children tend to be strongest．The findings suggest that the popularity of overwork may lead many dual-earner couples to return to a traditional family pattern — breadwinning men and homemaking women．”
66．According to the text, we know that ______．
A．men prefer work long hours   B．women prefer to work outside
C．men’s careers are unimportant    D．women are more likely to quit jobs
67．The underlined word “negligible” in Paragraph 4 most probably means ______．
A．unimportant  B．limited            C．different      D．obvious
68．Which statement is true according to the text?
A．When there’s conflict between work and family, a husband will give up his work．
B．Women may still do most of the housework and care for babies or children．
C．Professional women are more likely to quit the job than professional mothers．
D．A man’s chance of quitting jobs was influenced if his wife works long hours．
69．We can infer from the last sentence that ______．
A．a(chǎn)ll the workers pay more attention to looking after children
B．overwork may have no influence on dual-earner couples
C．traditionally, men usually worked to support the family
D．most dual-earner couples will return to a traditional family pattern
70．In which column of China Daily can you find this passage?
A．Health      B．Life       C．Sport    D．Entertainment

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解


第三部分閱讀理解（共20小題；每小題2分，滿分40分）
第一節(jié)：（共15小題；每小題2分，滿分30分）
閱讀下列短文，從每題所給的四個(gè)選項(xiàng)（A、B、C和D）中，選出最佳選項(xiàng)，并在答題卡上將該項(xiàng)涂黑。
A
As Christmas approaches, towns and cities around the UK are preparing for a very British celebration．
The switching on of a town' s Christmas lights has become an increasingly competitive event over the years, with some councils （會(huì)議） spending lots of money to attract A-list famous persons to do the honors．
The American singer Mariah Carey flew to London in November to switch on the lights at one of the city's biggest shopping centers, while Jim Carrey lighted Oxford Street and promoted his new film at the same time．
Traffic in the historic English city of Bath was brought to a halt as thousands of fans crowded to see the Hollywood actor Nicolas Cage conducted the switching-on ceremony．
Some celebrations do not go according to the plan, as was seen in Birmingham when dozens of people were injured as the famous British boy band JLS took the stage．
Not all towns can afford to bring in an internationally-known star, so many switchon ceremonies are handled by ex-TV talent show competitors．
Pantomime （圣誕童話�。� stars are also much in demand at this time of year, as they aim to promote their Christmas shows．
But if your council hasn't got the budget to bring in a famous face, what are the cheaper alternatives?
A town in the west of England chose to let the public decide by giving their suggestions online．The result: a 21-year-old DIY store worker was given the honor．
"I was amazed and delighted to be asked," said Scott Parker, "it's just a special gift and not something I'd, ever thought about before．"
56．According to the passage, what kind of special celebration can you see at Christmas in UK?
A．People meeting their favorite stars and getting special gifts．
B．Well-known persons invited to make a performance in public．
C．A-list persons lighting Oxford Street and promoting their films．
D．Switching-on ceremonies that are conducted by honored persons．
57．The underlined word "halt" in Paragraph 4 probably means "______" ．
A．start  B．stop              C．ban       D．run
58．Which of the followings can be learned from the passage?
A．Mariah Carey is invited to Bath to switch on the lights．
B．Pantomime stars rarely appear at events like this．
C．Not all those who switch on the Christmas lights can make lots of money．
D．Average persons can not get a chance to switch on the Christmas lights．
59．The following are famous persons EXCEPT _____．
A．Scott Parker      B．Mariah Carey         C．Nicolas Cage       D．Jim Carrey

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