大连市第八中学2015届高三10月月考

英语试题

第I卷（选择题 共115分）

第一部分：阅读理解（共两节，满分40分 ）

（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（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

A

When we’re young and we dream of love and fulfillment（满足感）, we think perhaps of moon-covered Parisian nights or walks along the beach at sunset.

No one tells us that the greatest moments of a lifetime are short, unplanned and nearly always catch us off guard.

Not long ago，as I was reading a bedtime story to my seven-year-old daughter, Annie， I became aware of her focused look. She was staring at me with a faraway, blank expression. Apparently, completing The Tale of Samuel Whiskers was not as important as we first thought.

I asked what she was thinking about.

"Mommy," she whispered, "I just can't stop looking at your pretty face."I almost dissolved（溶解） on the spot.

Little did she know how many trying moments the glow of her sincerely loving statement would carry me through over the following years.

Not long after, I took my four-year-old son to an elegant department store, where the sweet notes of a classic love song drew us toward a tuxedoed ( 穿晚礼服的 ) musician playing a grand piano. Sam and I sat down on a marble bench nearby, and he seemed as astonished by the pleasant theme as I was.

I didn't realize that Sam had stood up next to me until he turned, took my face in his little hands and said, "Dance with me."

If only those women walking under the Paris moon knew the joy of such an invitation made by a round-cheeked boy with baby teeth. Although shoppers openly chuckled(咯咯笑) and pointed at us as we glided（滑行） and whirled（旋转） around the open space, I would not have traded a dance with such a charming young gentleman if I'd been offered the universe.

1. From the passage we know_______.

A. Annie knew how important she was to her mother.

B. shoppers didn’t notice the author dancing with her son.

C. there are bedtime stories in the Tale of Samuel Whiskers.

D. Sam was not surprised at the music which was played in the store.

2. When the author knew her daughter could not stop looking at her pretty face, she felt_______.

A. sad B. deeply moved C. annoyed D. ashamed

3. Why wouldn’t the author trade a dance with her son even if she was given the world?

A. Because she knew she wouldn’t be given the universe .

B. Because her son was the most important person to her .

C. Because she thought she was the happiest one at the moment.

D. Because it was very important for the author to dance with her son.

4. What does the author want to prove by showing two examples of her kids?

A. Her kids love her very much.

B. She enjoys staying with her kids.

C. The greatest moments of a lifetime always come unexpectedly.

D. Those women walking under the moon should enjoy the happiness with kids.

B

Time and how we experience it have always puzzled us. Physicists have created fascinating theories, but their time is measured by a pendulum（钟摆）and is not psychological time, which leaps with little regard to the clock or calendar. As someone who understood the difference remarked, “When you sit with a nice girl for two hours it seems like a minute, but when you sit on a hot stove, a minute seems like two hours.”

Psychologists have long noticed that larger units of time, such as months and years, fly on swifter wings as we age. They also note that the more time is structured with schedules and appointments, the more rapidly it seems to pass．For example, a day at the office flies compared with a day at the beach. Since most of us spend fewer days at the beach and more at the office as we age, an increase in structured tune could well be to blame for why time seems to speed up as we grow older．

Expectation and familiarity also make time seem to flow more rapidly. Almost all of us have had the experience of driving somewhere we’ve never been before. Surrounded by unfamiliar scenery, with no real idea of when we’ll arrive, we experience the trip as lasting a long time. But the return trip, although exactly as long, seems to take far less time. The unfamiliarity of the journey has become routine. Thus taking a different route on occasion can often help slow the clock.

When days become as identical as beads（小珠子）on a string, they mix together, and even months become a single day. To fight this, try to find ways to interrupt the structure of your day—to stop time. Learning something new is one of the ways to slow the passage of time. One of the reasons the days of our youth seems so full and long is that these are the days of learning and discovery. For many of us, learning ends when we leave school, but this doesn’t have to be.

5. The quotation（引用语） in the first paragraph is used to indicate ______.

A. psychological time is quite puzzling

B. time should not be measured by a pendulum

C. physical time is different from psychological time

D. physical theory has nothing to do with the true sense of time

6. Why do units of time fly faster as we grow older?

A. Our sense of time changes.

B. We spend less time at the beach.

C. More time is structured and scheduled.

D. Time is structured with too many appointments.

7. What is the main idea of the passage?

A. It gives various explanations about time.

B. It describes how we experience time psychologically.

C. It shows the different ideas of physicists and psychologists on time.

D. It explains why time flies fast and how to slow it down psychologically.

C

While reading a story on 20-somethings complaining about how the economy is ruining their life plans, I couldn't help but think the 20-somethings sound like a bunch of spoiled children who grow up expecting everything to be easy for them. As a 20-something myself, I certainly share their disappointment –my husband and I probably won't be able to buy a house until we're in our forties, and we two are burdened by student loans. But why should it be different? Being young people in America, shouldn't they take up all of the challenges and opportunities that this country offers?

Consider some of these views shared in the story: Jennifer, 29, owner of a two-bedroom apartment with her husband, worries that she won't be able to have children for at least a decade because they can't afford to buy a house yet.

I read that, and I thought what planet she is living on where you need to own a house in order to have kids? Has she ever visited a developing country, or even downtown areas in this one? Home ownership is a luxury（奢华）, not a fertility requirement.

A 26-year-old man in the story is disappointed that he can't afford to get a Ph. D. in literature. Well, that sounds a bit like expressing disappointment that no one will pay you to write poetry on the beach in Thailand for five years.

Yes, it's sad that these young people feel so lost. But I think the problem is their extremely high expectations, not economic reality. Beth Kobliner, author of Get a Financial Life: Personal Finance in Your Twenties and Thirties, says that she thinks people's expectations grow up when their wealth appears to be increasing. Their parents probably see their home values rise along with their investments. "So we have people who have grown up in an environment where people have great expectations of what living well means," says Kobliner.

This recession（经济衰退） will certainly play a role in forcing those expectations into more realistic group. In the meantime, it seems much better for our mental health to focus on being grateful—for our one-bedroom apartments, for living in modern cities, or perhaps just for being able to eat three meals a day—than on longing for some kind of luxurious life.

8. What makes the author think the 20-somethings sound like a bunch of spoiled children?

A. They expect everything to be easy for them.

B. They complain that the economy is ruining their life plans.

C. They are unwilling to face all of the challenges.

D. They are burdened by student loans.

9. Which of the following is NOT one of the complaints of the 20-somethings?

A. They can't have children for at least a decade for they can't afford to buy a house.

B. They have only a one-bedroom apartment to live in.

C. They can't buy a house until 40 and are burdened by student loans.

D. They despair of not being able to afford to get a Ph. D. in literature.

10. What's Kobliner's attitude towards the 20-somethings with high expectations ?

A. Unbearable. B. Opposing. C. Doubtful. D. Understanding.

11. What is the best title for this passage?

A. Young people afford to continue their education

B. Young people can't afford to buy a house

C. Young people's high expectations lead to despair

D. The 20-somethings' high expectations

D

In December, 2010, many American newspapers publish a list of the best books of the year. Freedom by Jonathan Franzen is one of the most repeatedly praised books on this year's list of favorites. It tells about the ups and downs of the Berglund family over many years. Mr. Franzen fills the book with sharp observations about American politics, culture and society.

Jennifer Egan's book A Visit from the Goon Squad takes place in 13 chapters over 40 years. The story moves back and forth in time, from different viewpoints. One main character is former rock musician Bennie Salazar who works for a record company. The other main character is a troubled young woman named Sasha who works for Bennie. The reader learns about their pasts and those of their friends.

The main character in The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman is a failing English Language newspaper published in Rome, Italy. Each chapter of the book tells about a reporter or editor working for this paper. Their stories are filled with intelligence and great personality.

Two of the most popular non-fiction books of 2010 were about rock and roll stars. Just Kids is by rock singer Patti Smith. It tells about her friendship with the artist R