We keep reading that TV is bad for you. If this is true, how come the current generation of TV-addicted kids is much smarter than we are? In my home, the only people who can work the remote control are the children.

Perhaps TV does educate you. For example, you learn a useful medical fact: A person who has been shot always has time to speak an incomplete sentence before he dies. “The killer was…” (dies)

But I guess the biggest things we learn from TV can be regarded as “Life Skills”. Bad things only happen on dark and stormy nights. Emotional breakdowns cause people to wander in the heavy rain without umbrellas. And contrary to what scientists say, the crack(霹靂) of lightning and the accompanying flash happen at exactly the same time, wherever you are.

I’ve even acquired useful geographical facts from science-fiction shows: Aliens speak English no matter which planet they come from.

Making use of what we learn from TV can improve our security. Consider these truths. If you are ever attacked by 20 bad guys, don’t worry about being outnumbered. The criminals will hang back and take turns to approach you in ones and twos just so you can conveniently defeat them all. Bad guys who are completely covered in black clothes always remove their black masks to reveal that they are in fact, aha, women.

TV also teaches us important information about escaping from danger. Watch and learn. (1) If anyone is running after you down a passage, you will find that boxes have been conveniently placed near all the walls you need to jump over. (2) If you are tall and handsome, you can run from any number of armed criminals, and every shot will miss you.

Be warned, however. If your name card says “henchman” (幫兇) and you are part of a group of plain-looking people trying to catch a handsome individual, a single shot will kill you. But don’t be anxious: TV also delivers useful information for bad guys. All cars are inflammable (易燃的) and have amazing shock absorbers that enable them to fly into the air and land without damage — except police cars.

TV even teaches us about TV. Whenever anyone turns on a TV, it shows a news flash about someone they know. They then turn the box off immediately after that news item.

53. By saying “A person who has been shot always has time to speak an incomplete sentence

 before he dies” (Paragraph 2), the writer shows his________.

A. humor                                                   B. sympathy

C. deep concern                                              D. medical knowledge

54. We can infer from Paragraph 3 that in the real world_______.

A. bad things cause people to break down in the rain

B. bad things never happen on dark and stormy nights

C. people with emotional problems like to walk in the rain without umbrellas

D. the crack of lightning and the accompanying flash don’t happen at the same time

55. On TV what usually happens when a person turns it on?

A. The news shown is always about someone the person knows.

B. The person always turns off the TV when it’s time for news.

C. The program shown is always about the importance of TV.

D. TV always shows news about famous people.

56. What’s the main idea of this passage?

A. Life skills can be learned from TV.

B. TV plays an important role in society.

C. Watching TV makes people more creative.

D. What happens in TV is very different from reality.

One of the most widely accepted, commonly repeated assumptions (假設(shè)) in our culture is that if you exercise, you will lose weight. I exercise all the time, but I still have gut fat that hangs over my belt when I sit. Why isn’t all the exercise getting rid of it?

It’s a question many of us could ask. More than 45 million Americans now belong to a health club, up from 23 million in 1993. We spend some $19 billion a year on gym memberships. Of course, some people join and never go. Still, as one major study — the Minnesota Heart Survey — found, more of us at least say we exercise regularly.

And yet obesity (肥胖) figures have risen sharply in the same period: a third of Americans are obese, and another third count as overweight by the Federal Government’s definition. Yes, it’s entirely possible that those of us who regularly go to the gym would weigh even more if we exercised less. But like many other people, I get hungry after I exercise, so I often eat more on the days I work out than on the days I don’t. Could exercise actually be keeping me from losing weight?

The popular belief that exercise is essential for weight control is actually fairly new. As recently as the 1960s, doctors routinely advised against too much exercise, particularly for older adults who could injure themselves. Today doctors encourage even their oldest patients to exercise, which is sound advice for many reasons: People who regularly exercise are at significantly lower risk for all manner of diseases — those of the heart in particular. They less often develop cancer and many other illnesses. But the past few years of obesity research show that the role of exercise in weight loss has been wildly over-evaluated.

“In general, for weight loss, exercise is pretty useless,” says Eric Ravussin, exercise researcher at Louisiana State University. Many recent studies have found that exercise isn’t as important in helping people lose weight as you hear so regularly in gym advertisements or on shows like The Biggest Loser — or, for that matter, from magazines like this one.

The basic problem is that while it’s true that exercise burns calories and that you must burn calories to lose weight, exercise has another effect: it can make one hungry. That causes us to eat more, which in turn can negate (使無效) the weight-loss benefits we just gained. Exercise, in other words, isn’t necessarily helping us lose weight. It may even be making it harder.

49. From the passage we learn that ____.

A. some Americans join a health club but never go there  

B. the number of overweight people has doubled since 1993

C. more than 45 million Americans now go to the gym regularly

D. Americans waste too much money each year on sports

50. According to the passage, exercise ____.

A. has long been believed to be good for older adults

B. is not properly advertised as an effective way to lose weight

C. was first recognized as an effective way to lose weight in the 1960s

D. is less effective in preventing heart disease than what doctors believe

51. According to the writer, people might gain weight because ____.

A. they have the habit of going to the gym regularly

B. they eat the same food when they do not exercise

C. they exercise less than required by doctors

D. they eat more after they exercise

52. What may be the best title for this passage?

A. Overweight Is Not Good for Your Health

B. Exercise Won’t Make You Thin 

C. Gym Is Part of American Lifestyle          

D. Obesity Is a Social Problem in America            

Below is some advice on how to prevent colds and flu.

45. To prevent yourself from getting colds, you should wash your hands____.

A. twice every hour　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. twice every time

C. five times every hour　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. five times every time

46. When you cough or sneeze, you should ____.

A. put your hands over your mouth

B. avoid shaking hands with other people

C. cover your mouth with your arm or a tissue

D. keep away from other people

47. Your immune system will be weakened if ____.

A. your stress level is high

B. your room is not bright

C. you have control over your work

D. you do not exercise for 45 minutes every day

48. If you live in a new house, it is particularly important to ____.

A. leave all the windows open a crack

B. leave only one or two windows open to save energy

C. keep one or two windows open in the rooms where you spend the most time

D. keep all the doors and windows open to let in more fresh air when you are at home

Some people would go through anything just to achieve their dream. Kasia Siwosz is proof. For the final year student on the university women’s tennis team, the road to Berkeley, University of California was met with poor advice and misinformation from her home country and two unsuccessful stops along the way that fell short of expectations.

    Born in Poland, Siwosz began playing tennis at seven years old and developed the skills that helped her earn a top-50 ranking among the ITF Junior division (國際網(wǎng)球聯(lián)會青少年賽).. Siwosz wanted to do more with her life than just play tennis, which led her to seek chances that would also allow her to obtain a top education. While most who grow up in the U.S. are naturally accustomed to the American tradition of collegiate (大學(xué)的) sports, such a custom is not as familiar in a country like Poland. “There’s no collegiate sports in Poland and no culture of sports and academic (學(xué)術(shù)的) study there. You can only do one, not both,” Siwosz said.

    Her desire to have a quality education led her to America to follow her dream. While Siwosz was talented enough to begin her collegiate tennis career, she could only attend community college because she missed the deadline to apply to four-year schools, mainly due to misinformation provided in her home country of Poland.

    When she had earned all her credits and was able to transfer (轉(zhuǎn)學(xué)), Siwosz made the decision to attend Baylor in Texas. Her friends from Poland put in a good word for the university, saying that it was a good fit because there were many international players at Baylor. “I thought it would be a good idea, but it really wasn’t what I thought it would be,” Siwosz said. “I wasn’t happy at Baylor. The level of tennis was high, but the academic standards were no match and I just wanted more.”

    After one year at Baylor, Siwosz’s luck finally began to change when she made the decision to transfer to Berkeley, which was due in large part to Lee, a former Berkeley student. Lee, who is a keen tennis player himself, met Siwosz four years ago in Texas. “I knew she was unhappy there,” he said. “I saw the opportunity for her to come here.” Siwosz visited Lee in Berkeley. “I ended up loving this place and this school,” Siwosz said. “I came here a lot over the summer, I gave it a shot and I ended up with a Berkeley education and a spot on one of the best college tennis teams in the country.”

41. What does “two unsuccessful stops” (Paragraph 1) refer to?

A. Poland and the U.S.

B. Baylor and Berkeley.

C. The community college and Baylor.

D. The ITF Junior division and the Berkeley tennis team.

42. Why did Siwosz want to leave her homeland for America?

A. Poland had no culture of sports.

B. Berkeley had always been her dream university.

C. She wanted to play tennis and have a good education.

D. She wanted to improve her tennis skills and get a higher ranking.

43. Why did she leave Baylor?

A. The level of tennis there was not high.

B. It was not suitable for international students.

C. She couldn’t get along with her friends there.

D. She was not satisfied with the education level there.

44. What is the main idea of the passage?

A. How Siwosz left Poland.

B. How Siwosz realized her dream.

C. How Siwosz became a top tennis player.

D. How Siwosz transferred from Baylor to Berkeley.

A man came home form work late,   21   and found his 5 years old son waiting for him at the door. “Daddy, may I ask you a question?” “Yeah, sure, what is it?” replied the man. “Daddy,   22   do you make an hour?” “If you   23   know, I make   24   an hour.” “Oh,” the little boy replied, with his head down, looking up, he said, “Daddy, may I please   25   $10?”

The father was   26  . “If the only reason you asked is   27   you can borrow some money to buy a   28   toy, then you go to bed.” The little boy   29   went to his room and shut the door.

After about an hour or so, the man had   30   and started to think. Maybe there was something he really needed to buy with that $10 and he really   31   ask for money very often. The man   32   to the door of the little boy’s room and opened the door. “Are you asleep, son?”, he asked. “No daddy,” replied the boy. “I’ve been thinking, maybe I was too   33   on you earlier.” said the man, “Heres the $10 you asked for.” The little boy sat   34  , smiling. “Oh, thank you daddy!” He yelled.   35  , reaching under his pillow he   36   some crumpled up bills. The man, seeing that the boy already had money, started to get angry again. The little boy slowly   37   out his money, and then looked   38   at his father. “Why do you want more money? Have you already had some?”, the father asked. “Because I didn’t have enough, but now I do”, the little boy replied, “Daddy, I have $20 now. Can I   39   an hour of your time? Please come home early tomorrow. I would like to have a   40   with you.”

 With just four years _______, the London Olympic organizers have promised to deliver an equally inspirational ceremony.

       A. going                B. go                            C. gone                        D. to go

 Tony, mind your manners. Don’t _______ while others are talking.

       A. cut in                B. cut off                            C. cut down                 D. cut up

 ________ seems to be no possibility _______ the shy girl can win the first prize in the contest.

       A. There; that        B. It; that                      C. There; whether         D. It; whether

________ in a new country, I was scared and feeling pretty anxious.

　　　 A. For the first time　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. I was the first time　

C. Being the first time　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. This being my first time

---What do you expect your son to succeed in?

--- _________ the entrance exam.

　　　 A. To pass　　　　　　 B. Passing　　　　　　　　　 C. Get past　　　　　　　　　 D. Past