I started to learn English at the age of seven. The experience of singing and chatting 24.________ English gave me the feeling that English is a beautiful language, 25.________ can bring people a lot of joy. At that time, English was indeed a very good friend to me. After I 26.________ (上學(xué)) middle school, I began to find English learning wasn't so 27.e________. In fact, I had to be as hard­working as 28.o________ fellow students, but I 29.________ (不能) to make any greater progress. I was about to give up my English study 30.________ I met Miss Wang, a kind teacher, who encouraged me to 31.p________ more. With her help, I took part in English competitions and won many 32.p________. Since then English has absolutely been one of my 33.________(最喜歡的)subjects.

All over the world, libraries have begun the Herculean task of making faithful digital copies of the books, images and recordings that preserve the intellectual effort of humankind. For armchair scholars, the work promises to bring such a wealth of information to the desktop that the present Internet may seem amateurish in retrospect. …

Librarians see three clear benefits to going digital. First, it helps them preserve rare and fragile objects without denying access to those who wish to study them. The British Library, for example, holds the only medieval manuscript of Beowulf in London. Only qualified scholars were allowed to see it until Kevin S. Kiernan of the University of Kentucky scanned the manuscript with three different light sources(revealing detail not normally apparent to the naked eye) and put the images up on the Internet for anyone to peruse(細(xì)讀). Tokyo's National Diet Library is similarly creating highly detailed digital photographs of 1，236 woodblock prints, scrolls and other materials it considers national treasures so that researchers can scrutinize them without handling the originals.

A second benefit is convenience. Once books are converted to digital form, patrons can retrieve them in seconds rather than minutes. Several people can simultaneously read the same book or view the same picture. Clerks are spared the chore of reshelving. And libraries could conceivably use the Internet to land their virtual collections to those who are unable to visit in person.

The third advantage of electronic copies is that they occupy millimeters of space on a magnetic disk rather than meters on a shelf. Expanding library buildings is increasingly costly. The University of California at Berkeley recently spent $46 million on an underground addition to house 1.5 million books—an average cost of $30 per volume. The price of disk storage, in contrast, has fallen to about $2 per 300­page publication and continues to drop.

20．The best title for this passage would be “________”．

A．Three Benefits of Libraries

B．Libraries Going Digital

C．Space­saving E­learning

D．Security of Electronic Reading

21．Which paragraph(s) in the text offer(s) further explanation of the central idea?

A．Paragraphs 2, 3 and 4  B．Paragraphs 3 and 4

C．Paragraphs 2 and 4  D．Paragraph 4

22．Which one of the following is mentioned as an advantage of e­libraries?

A．Old manuscripts can be moved more easily.

B．Materials can be examined without being touched.

C．Fewer staff will be required in libraries.

D．Libraries will be able to move underground.

23．What does the word “scrutinize” probably mean?

A．Keep for a while.  B．Reprint.

C．Restore.  D．Examine carefully.

On Sundays my father always wore that black apron—the one with the race cars all over it. After breakfast Dad always announced: “Go ahead everyone.I'll take care of the dishes！” With that my mother disappeared into the folds of the Sunday paper. Off_came_the_suit_coat_he_had_worn_to_church_that_morning._Up_went_the_shirtsleeves._On_went_that_apron. For the next hour Dad did the dishes, singing songs like“Who Put the Chow in Mrs. Murphy's Chowder”？

I suppose it was strange for a father to wear an apron—even one with race cars—but I never thought much of it until that Sunday when we walked home from church together.“Tommy”， he said，“There comes a time in every boy's life when he must take on responsibilities．” “Responsibilities？” I asked. “Yes. It's time you took a greater role in the household. Starting today, I want you to do the dishes on Sunday morning so your mother and I can relax.” “The dishes？” “Anything wrong with taking over the dishes？”I started to say something about a man's job, but I knew immediately that my protests would fall on deaf ears.

I didn't taste a bit of breakfast that morning. My father announced to my mother, “Let's go to read the paper, honey.Our oldest son has generously offered to fill the position.”So this was what my life had come to.

People often say there is a special chemistry between a father and a son. He came back into the kitchen just as I was about to storm out. In his right hand was the old apron.“I want you to have this, Tommy. It'll keep your clothes from getting wet.” And before I could do anything, he had put that apron on me. “Thanks, Son. Your mother and I appreciate this.”

With that he disappeared into the Sunday paper. I looked down at the apron.It had seen better days.I could see my dad reaching for the dishes. Soon I was singing about Mrs. Murphy's Chowder.

16．What is the main purpose of the underlined sentences in the first paragraph?

A．To show the unwillingness of his father when doing dishes.

B．To instruct the main steps of how his father does dishes.

C．To emphasize his father's clumsy way of doing dishes.

D．To stress the enjoyment and happiness of his father's doing dishes.

17．What does the underlined word “responsibilities” in the second paragraph refer to?

A．Taking care of the brothers.

B．Making progress academically.

C．Doing all the dishes.

D．Washing the apron with race cars.

18．What did the author mean by saying “People often say there is a special chemistry between a father and a son” in the fourth paragraph?

A．Mind acts upon mind.

B．Like father like son.

C．A child is better unborn than untaught.

D．Obedience is the first duty of a boy.

19．How did the author feel at the end of the passage?

A．Proud. B．Enjoyable.

C．Surprised. D．Regretful.

—Do you know if Linda is willing to take charge of the program?

—________，does it?

A．It takes no time  B．It counts for nothing

C．It doesn't hurt to ask  D．It doesn't make sense

Most of us do read a lot in English, but our speaking and writing skills leave much ________．

A．to improve  B．to be improved

C．improved  D．improve

Nowadays, a large number of women, especially those from the countryside, ________ in the clothes industry.

A．is working  B．works

C．work  D．worked

________treating the homeless man as a shame to society, Mrs.Wang provided him with food and water.

A．Instead of  B．As a result of

C．In the event of  D．Regardless of

The local government in Shenzhen has recently passed a new regulation forbidding supermarkets and stores to ________ free plastic bags to shoppers, in order to protect the environment.

A．give off  B．give in

C．give up  D．give out

Anyway, the crowd around me were obviously enjoying their day out at the races, ________ by their happy faces and the sense of excitement.

A．observing  B．judging

C．considering  D．inferring

It is said that the old pot ________under the earth for about 1，000 years by the time it was discovered.

A．had buried  B．had been buried

C．buried  D．were buried