1、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。 AInspiring young minds!TOKNOW Magazine is a big hit in the world of childrens publishing, bringing a unique combination of challenging ideas and good fun to young fans every month.What is so special about TOKNOW magazine?Well, it has no ads
2、 or promotions insideinstead it is jam-packed with serious ideas. TOKNOW makes complex ideas attractive and accessible to children, who can become involved in advanced concepts and even philosophy（哲学）and they will soon discover that TOKNOW feels more like a club than just a magazine.Whats inside?Eve
3、ry month the magazine introduces a fresh new topic with articles, experiments and creative things to makethe magazine also explores philosophy and wellbeing to make sure young readers have a balanced take on life.Sounds too good to be true?Take a look onlineevidence shows that thousands of teachers
4、and parents know a good thing when they see it and recommend TOKNOW to their friends.Happy Birthday All Year!What could be more fun than a gift that keeps coming through the letterbox every month? The first magazine with your gift message will arrive in time for the special day.SUBSCRIBE NOWAnnual S
5、ubscriptionEurope 55 Rest of World 65Annual Subscription with Gift PackIncludes a Mammoth Map, a passport Puzzle Booklet, and Subscription60 Rest of World 70Refund Policythe subscription can be cancelled within 28 days and you can get your money back. 21. Why is TOKNOW a special magazine?A. It enter
6、tains young parents. B. It provides serious advertisements.C. It publishes popular science fictions. D. It combines fun with complex concepts.22. What does TOKNOW offer its readers?A. Online courses. B. Articles on new topics.C. Lectures on a balanced life. D. Reports on scientific discoveries.23. H
7、ow much should you pay if you make a 12-month subscription to TOKNOW with gift pack from China?A. 55. B. 60. C. 65. D. 70.24. Subscribers of TOKNOW would get .A. free birthday presents B. full refund within 28 daysC. membership of the TOKNOW club D. chances to meet the experts in personBDisease, pov
8、erty, hate, loveCharles Dickens stories opened his readers eyes to the most important themes of his age. Two hundred years later, his stories still speak volumes across the world, proving that Dickens legacy （遗产） was far greater than just “great literature”.February 7 marks the 200th anniversary of
9、the writers birthday. To mark this date, BBC writer Alex Hudson listed six things Dickens gave the modern world. Lets take a look at two of them.A white ChristmasDickens is described as “the man who invented Christmas” not the religious festival, but the cultural aspects that we associate with the f
10、estive （喜庆的） season todayIn the early 19th century, Christmas was barely worth mentioning, according to critic and writer Leigh Hunt. The committee which ran the Conservative Party even held ordinary business meetings on Christmas Dayunthinkable in the West nowadays, when everyone, but the most nece
11、ssary workers takes at least three days off.Many people believe that Dickens popular descriptions of the festive period became a blueprint for generations to come. In his classic novel, A Christmas Carol, he not only put forward the idea of snow at Christmas, but also painted a picture of glowing wa
12、rmth“home enjoyments, affections and hopes”.In his biography of Dickens, Peter Ackroyd wrote, “Dickens can be said to have almost single-handedly created the modern idea of Christmas.”“Dickensian” povertyDickens was one of the first to take an honest look at the underclass and the poor of Victorian
13、（the period during British Queen Victorias reign from 1837 to 1901） London.He helped popularize the term “red tape” to describe situations where people in power use needless amounts of bureaucracy （官僚作风） in a way that particularly hurts the weaker and poorer members of society.“Dickensian” has now b
14、ecome a powerful word for describing an unacceptable level of poverty. In 2009, when the president of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers in the UK wanted to talk about poverty in some areas of Britain, she did not use words like “terrible” or “horrific”, but rather described it as “life mirro
15、ring the times of Dickens”.25. The article is mainly about _.A. Charles Dickens impact on the world.B. An introduction to Charles Dickens classic novelsC. Charles Dickens amazing charactersD. Why Charles Dickens is popular across the world26. Why is Dickens called “the man who invented Christmas”?A.
16、 Because he created the religious festival.B. Because one of his novels helped to shape Christmas celebrations.C. Because many of his novels have something to do with Christmas.D. Because he was the first man to have proposed celebrating Christmas.27. According to the passage, the underlined phrase
17、“red tape” refers to _.A. rules or procedures that are required to accomplish a taskB. a situation in which poor members of society are hurtC. conflict between people in power and weaker peopleD. pointlessly time-consuming official procedures28. We can learn from the passage that _.A. Charles Dicken
18、s novels reflect the true life at his ageB. everyone can take three days off for ChristmasC. Dickens invented ChristmasD. Dickens gave the modern world six thingsCWe live in a sweet world. The average American kids eat more than 20 teaspoons of sugar per day, and adults eat 50% more sugar today than
19、 they did in the 1970s. We all know that too much sugar isnt good for us. Researchers at the University of Utah used mice to do a study on the bad effects of sugar. They found it could have serious effects on peoples health seriously.During the 58-week-long study, mice were fed a diet containing 25%
20、 more sugar. This percentage equals a healthy human diet along with three cans of soda daily. The team found that these mice were twice as likely to die as mice fed a similar diet without the sugar. Though the mice did notshow signs of obesity or high blood pressure, male mice produced 25% fewer off
21、spring （后代） than the other mice.Scientists often use mice for research because they have a similar genetic （基因的） structure to humans. “Since most substances （物质） that are dangerous in mice are also dangerous in people; its likely that those physical problems that cause those mice to have increased d
22、eaths also work in people,” says the study author James Ruff of the University of Utah. Findings from this study show bad effects that are not as noticeable as weight gain or heart problems. Sugar can contribute to long-term changes in the body that can change development and even shorten lives.Diff
23、erent types of sugar have different effects on the human body. Some of the sugar we consume comes from foods we might expectcandy, soda and cookies. But much of the sugar that we eat is hidden. Food companies add large amounts of sugar to items we may not classify as sweets. To help cut down extra s
24、ugar consumption, nutrition experts suggest looking at the ingredients on food packages. Cutting sugar out of the American diet altogether may be difficult. But making the effort to control our nations desire for sugar will avoid a sweeter future.29.According to Paragragh 2, we can know _. A.mice ea
25、ting more sugar will live longerB.the study on mice lasted less than a yearC.the study showed the bad effects of more sugar on mice D.mice eating more sugar will become fatter and fatter30.Why did the scientists choose mice to do the study?A.Because a substance may have the same effects on mice and
26、humans.Because mice have a longer lifespan （寿命） than other animals.Because mice take in the harmful substances easily and quickly.Because mice are sensitive to the sweet taste.31.Which would be the best title for the passage?A. Living a sweet life B. Kids eat much more sugarC. Genetic structure of h
27、umans D. Danger of too much sugarDAlmost everybody in America will spend a part of his or her life behind a shopping cart. They will, in a lifetime, push the chrome-plated contraptions many miles. But few will knowor even think to askwho it was that invented them. Sylvan N. Goldman invented the shop
28、ping cart in 1937. At that time he was in the supermarket business. Every day he would see shoppers lugging groceries around in baskets they had to carry.One day Goldman suddenly had the idea of putting baskets on wheels. The wheeled baskets would make shopping much easier for his customers, and wou
29、ld help to attract more business.On June 4, 1937, Goldmans first carts were ready for use in his market. He was terribly excited on the morning of that day as customers began arriving. He couldnt wait to see them using his invention.But Goldman was disappointed. Most shoppers gave the carts a long l
30、ook, but hardly anybody would give them a try.After a while, Goldman decided to ask customers why they werent using his carts. “Dont you think this arm is strong enough to carry a shopping basket?”one shopper replied.But Goldman wasnt beaten yet. He knew his carts would be a great success if only he
31、 could persuade people to give them a try. To this end, Goldman hired a group of people to push carts around his market and pretend they were shopping! Seeing this, the real customers gradually began copying the phony（假冒的）customers.As Goldman had hoped, the carts were soon attracting larger and larger numbers of customers to his market. But not only did more people comethose who came bought more. With larger, easier-to-handle baskets, customers unconsciously bought
