第一部分 阅读理解(共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分)

第一节（共15小题，每小题2分，满分30分）

A

I was standing in the kitchen helping with dinner, asking my mom about my brother's doctor's appointment. They were testing him for autism(自闭症).My brother, Captain, four years old at the time, had always been my best friend. We would wrestle, play games and have the best of times together, even though we were far apart in age. My mom told me about the appointment, but when she got to the point about the test, she stopped. I turned around and she had tears in her eyes. I stared at her, wishing she would say something, when I realized what that silence meant. My eyes got blurry(模糊的) and my breathing got very ragged. “The test was positive, sweetheart,” she said. I broke down, crying.

My mom was trying to cool me down, saying that Captain couldn't see me like this and I had to be a big girl, when the front door opened, and Captain, our three-year-old sister Cali, and my father came in. I walked out of the kitchen. I couldn't look at him. Everything had just changed. He was no longer that little baby brother who was just a normal little boy.

We had to move a while later because Captain needed treatment. One day, I was standing in the bus line waiting when “short bus” came and picked some kids up. The children in the other line started making jokes about the “retards(智力迟钝着)” on that bus and I felt a strange feeling in my stomach, which I had never felt before.

During a band class, my teacher, Mrs. Young, stopped our playing to give us some feedback. “Guys, we're playing like the kids on the short bus! Come on!” I felt that same feeling I had in the bus line. The entire room was laughing when I raised my hand.

“Yes, Alexis?” Mrs. Young asked.

“I don't think we should make fun of the short bus, because there are a lot of people on that bus who have great personalities and have the same feelings as we do. And also, I know some people on those buses and they are some of the most caring, sweetest, and smartest people, so I would appreciate it if you didn't make fun of them.”

Everyone stared at me. Mrs. Young apologized for the comment and then started the song again.

1. What did Alexis think her mother's silence mean in Paragraph One?

A. There was no chance for Alexis to play game with Captain.

B. Captain was likely to miss the appointment.

C. Captain really suffered from autism.

D. Alexis had to prepare dinner quickly.

2. Why did Alexis go out of the kitchen?

A. Because she didn't want to help with dinner.

B. Because she would be much sadder looking at Captain.

C. Because she wanted to play with Captain outside.

D. Because she wasn't willing to meet a sick brother.

3. What Alexis said to her teacher can be seen as a kind of .

A. threat B. approval C. apology D. commending

4. Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?

A. Speaking up. B. Giving up. C. Looking up. D. Taking up.

B

The German city of Hamburg has announced plans to become car-free within the next two decades. It is an ambitious idea, but city officials obviously feel that the personal motorcar does not fulfill a function that walking, biking and taking public transport cannot. The goal of Hamburg's project is to replace roads with a green network, which will allow people to navigate through the city without the use of cars.

Banishing the car from urban areas is becoming a common trend in many European cities. London imposes a "congestion charge" on private vehicles entering the city centre during rush hours. Copenhagen is building bicycle superhighways radiating out from the city centre. These developments combined may make worrying reading for driving enthusiasts. Is the time of the personal car over?

In the century since the Ford Model T was introduced in 1908, global vehicle numbers have swollen to well over a billion. But according to recent research, the growth may have stopped.

According to Professor Michael Sivak, at the University of Michigan, "motorization" in the US might have reached a peak in 2008, and that the figures have been on the decline since.

"New York, Washington, Boston, Philadelphia, each have more than thirty percent of households without a light duty vehicle," says Sivak. In fact, the figures show that fifty-six percent of households in New York (which top the list) don't have a car. "I think that will be surprising to most people. It was surprising to me, and I am in the business. "

Sivak thinks a number of factors could be contributing to the trend, including workingfrom home and the movement of populations back to city centers. In China, Beijing and Shanghai are looking at plans to limit the number of new vehicles being registered to control prouth. It's a movement more cities are looking towards, particularly in the US.

5.Why does Hamburg launch the "car-free" program?

A. To build a greener environment.

B. To fix a worldwide road network.

C. To call on people to take exercise.

D. To replace the public transport.

6. The underlined word "banishing" in Paragraph 2 can best be replaced by "_____ "

A. putting out B. giving away

C. driving away D. setting out

7. What does Michael Sivak think of the result of his research?

A. Terrifying. B Amazing. C.Exciting D. Disappointing.

8. What can be learned from the last paragraph?

A. Most people like to work in the countryside.

B. It is only big cities that are taking action.

C. Many factors contribute to the trend.

D. Effective rules have come into effect.

C

One of the most famous basketball-players in the New Castle's history was paralyzed(瘫痪的) in a wheelchair one day…and was walking the next. Citizens of New Castle simply refer to it as “The Miracle”.

Joel Haler woke up in his dorm room at Hope College last October totally paralyzed from the waist down. Four hospitals later, the only way he could walk was through Robotic Walking Treatment.

“This past Tuesday, I was doing the Robotic walk and lasted ten minutes,” Joel said. After that, he gave up. Joel wanted to accept the inevitable(不可避免的) and cancelled his next Robotic Walking Treatment appointment.

Then, the night before his cancelled appointment, he woke up to a terrible pain. An hour and a half later, the serious pain left him with an unusual feeling in his legs.

“As it continued to move up my legs, it became more and more painful and it took an hour and a half to reach my hips(臀部),” Joel recalled.

“I stood up and walked into my parents' room. 'Mom and dad, look!',” he said proudly.

“He said something and I was like, 'Joel! Joel! You're walking! You're walking!' We jumped out of bed, cried and hugged,” Joel's mom Karen remembered.

“I burst into tears. It's hard seeing your son not be able to walk, but he was standing there, walking,” Joel's father Eric said, tearfully.

It was Thursday, January 23, when he could finally walk. That date made perfect sense to Joel. He had dreamt of a calendar that only said “J 23”. He didn't know what to make of it until “a little boy at church, four years old, came up to me and said, 'you will walk on a Thursday',” Joel recalled.

So the 20-year-old college student, who could only walk with the aid of robot on Tuesday, was walking on his own.

9. According to the passage, “The Miracle” is that .

A. Joel Haler became the most famous basketball player

B. Robotic Walking Treatment could cure paralysis

C. Joel Haler could walk again after three months' paralysis

D. a paralyzed boy could play basketball well

10. Which part of Joel Haler's body didn't work?

A. His whole body. B. His legs and feet.

C. His arms and hands. D. His arms and legs

11. Before Joel Haler's walking again, his attitude to the illness was .

A. positive B. indifferent C. optimistic D. hopeless

D

Experience the newly opened Grand Canyon (大峡谷) West Skywalk in Colorado. Departing from Grand Canyon's South Rim by Airplane to Grand Canyon's West Rim, you will land and take a ground tour to the Skywalk! Walk on air for 70 feet over the edge of Grand Canyon West.  This Skywalk has been open since March 28, 2007. Daily visitorship to the Skywalk has been over 4,000 people. Please be patient to enjoy your moment on the Skywalk.

After you have experienced the one and only Grand Canyon Skywalk Glass Bridge, you will return to the Grand Canyon West Airport and take your Airplane for a flight back to the South Rim of the Canyon. This is a tour never to be forgotten as you will have walked on air over the Grand Canyon.  Tour Itinerary (行程)

Tour Duration

5.7 Hours

The Grand Canyon Adventure Skywalk



 Flight from Grand Canyon  South Rim to Grand Canyon

West

1 Hour

Experience a bird's-eye view of the Grand

Canyon as you make your way to Grand

Canyon West.



 Light Lunch at Guano Point

at Grand Canyon West

2 Hours

You'll be taken by bus to Guano Point with?breathtaking views of the western?part of?the Grand Canyon where?the?Calorado River makes its way into Lake?Mood. Every table for lunch has a view.



 Walk on the World  Famous Skywalk

1.5 Hours

Finally you'll board your bus to Eagle?Point, home of the Grand Canyon?Skywalk. Now it is time for you to walk?on air for 70 feet over the Grand Canyon.



 Flight Back to Grand  Canyon South Rim

1.2 Hours

After time on the Skywalk, you'll return?to the Grand Canyon West Airport and

return to Grand Canyon South Rim in time

for dinner and sunset.



12. This advertisement is for ____.

A. Grand Canyon West B. the Skywalk  C. Grand Canyon D. Grand Canyon South

13. The package fee does NOT cover the cost of ____.

14. The Grand Canyon Skywalk Bridge is made of glass because ____.

A. it looks stranger B. it is cheaper to build  C. it gives you a better view D. it looks more beautiful

15. According to the Tour Itinerary, the route is ____.

A. S