Part II Reading Comprehension (40 marks, 40 minutes)
Passage 1
Questions 31 to 35 are based on the following passage:
You can tell a lot about people by looking at their hair-and not just whether they brush, spray, or blow-dry.
Scientists have found a way to use hair to figure out where a person is from and where that person has been. The finding could help solve cries, among other useful applications.
Water is central to be new technique. The liquid makes up more than half an adult human’s body weight. Our bodies break water down into its parts-hydrogen and oxygen.
But not all water is the same. Hydrogen and oxygen atoms can vary in how much they weigh Different forms of a single element are called isotopes（核素）. And depending on where you live, tap water contains unique proportions of the heavier and lighter isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen.
Might hair record all this information? That’s what scientists wondered. To find out, researchers collected hair from barbers in 65 cities in 18 states across the United states. The researchers assumed that hair they came from people who lived in the area.
Even though people drink a lot of bottled water days, the scientists found that hair did reflect the concentrations of hydrogen and oxygen isotopes in local tap water. That’s probably because people usually cook their food in the local water. What’s more, most of the other liquids we drink contain large amounts of water that also come from sources within their region.
Scientists already knew how the composition of water varies throughout the country. By Combining that information with the results, they predicted the composition of hair in people from different regions.
The new technique can’t point to exactly where a person is from, because similar types of water appear in different regions that span(跨越) a broad area. But authorities can now use the information to analyze hair samples from criminals or crime victims and narrow their search for clues.
Based on the finding, one research offers this advice:“If you ‘re a criminal shave.”
31. Water is different in that_____.
A) hydrogen and oxygen atoms are broken down differently by people
B) different samples contain different proportions of isotopes of hydrogen
C) the weight of hydrogen and oxygen atoms varies from sample to sample
D) its proportion in an adult human’s body weight is different is different across people
32. In order to find out if hair can tell where a person is from, scientists need hair samples______.
A) containing information on the composition of tap water
B) showing how much bottled water the person drinks daily
C) containing information on the kinds of food in the region
D) showing the variety of liquids the person regularly drinks
33. Why can’t the technique tell where exactly a person is from?
A) Because many regions have similar types of water.
B) because nowadays people drink too much bottled water.
C) Because scientists don’t know exactly how water varies.
D) Because there are too many different region in the nation.
34. This new technique might help with_____
A) tracking down lost animals
B) the prevention of water pollution
C) identifying criminals without hair
35. Which of the following is the most suitable title for the passage?
A) Hair Detectives
B) Hair Signals Danger
C) Drink to You Health
D) Water Tells Everything
Passage 2
Questions 36 to 40 are based on the following passage.
Talk is hot, whether it’s on TV, radio, or the Internet. Experts disagree about why Americans love to hear and participate in talk programming, but many believe talk media helps people feel connected with others. It’s also entertaining.
Talk programming across all media has grown rapidly. In 1983, only 53 radio stations had news/talk formats, compared with more than 1,000. The number of talk shows on television soared from just a handful in 1986, to 15 in the 1989-1990 season, to 19 during the 1996-1997 season, according to Nielsen media research.
What makes the talk media so popular? Is it bored viewers and listeners wanting the most shocking gossip(流言)available? Not entirely, says Michael Harrison, writer for talkers magazine, which covers the talk-media industry.
“It all serves the simple need for connections with other people,” he says, “ People don’t know their neighbors anymore, and they wouldn’t have time to talk even if they did. But there’s still a human need for community.”
Economics also help account for the rise in talk. Television talk shows are much cheaper than other shows to produce. And talk sells better than any other radio format.
What’s more, our commuter（常坐公共车辆往返者）culture may be siving talk-radio, for talk-radio. And in some large or fast-growing cities, time spent on the way to work is on the rise. In Los Angeles, the individual drive time will go up at least five minutes a year for the nest 20 years because of population growth and the lack of new infrastructure(基础设施)。
36. What can be inferred about radio stations in America today?
A) There has never been so many of them until recently.
B) Most Americans prefer radio to any other types of media.
C) One tenth of them offer talk shows to the American public.
D) More Americans tune in for talk shows than any other programs.
37. To many Americans, talk shows are ______.
A) a center of shocking gossips.
B) a place for human connection
C) the best way to escape boredom.
D) a means to know their neighbors.
38. It is implied in the passage music programs ______.
A) are more fast-paces than talk shows
B) are cheaper to make than talk shows
C) sell better than make than talk shows
D) can’t contain as many ads as talk shows
39. What can be inferred about Americans living in large cities?
A) May of them are worried about population growth.
B) Most of them are enthusiastic fans of radio talk shows.
C) Many of then spend quite some time on the way to work.
D) Most of them can expect to spend less time on the road in the future.
40. What is the passage mainly about?
A) The cultural influence of talk shows.
B) Reasons why talk shows are popular.
C) The connecting power of talk shows.
D) The magic power of radio talk shows.
Passage 3
Questions 41 to 45 are based on the following passage.
A report from the Pew Research Center released last week shows that marrage has undergone significant changes over the last several decades as women’s earning power and education developed more quickly than that of their husbands.
While men and women still may be getting used to the shift, the overall effect seems to be positive. Men are taking on more housework and women are earning more outside the home, and—surprise! —divorce rates are dropping.
“Women no longer need to marry up educationally, so they are more likely to pick men who support a more egalitarian relationship,” says Stephanie Coontz, author of Marriage, A history: How Love Conquered Marriage.
The divorce rate peaked in the late 1970s, at 23 divorces per 1,000 couples, according to the Times. But it has since dropped: There are fewer than 17 divorces per 1,000 marriages today. And, according to a recent report, typically, women with economic independence and education are more likely to stay married. And, get this: In states where fewer wives have paid jobs, divorce rates are higher.
While the earning gap has yet to close completely, women aged 30 to 44 now make up the majority of US college graduates, and their earning grew 44 Percent from 1970 to 2007, according to the Pew study. That’s compared to a six percent growth in earnings for men over the same time period.
However, don’t get too excited, ladies—research shows that you still bear most of the household responsibilities in spite of your earning power. The University of Wisconsin’s National Survey on Households and Families shows good news, though, is that men are now spending more time with their kids. The same survey reveals that the amount of time dads spend with their children has increased by three times.
41. The big changes in marriage are mainly caused by the fact that
A）women have more power than men at home.
B）men are not earning as much as they used to.
C）women are better paid and educated than before.
D）men are not as well educated as they were before.
42. The word “egalitarian”(para.3) most probably means
A）equal B）healthy
C）stable D）intimate
43. It is implied that compared with women with paid jobs, women without jobs
A）are less likely to stay married.
B）are less willing to get divorced.
C）are less likely to be well-educated.
D）are more content with their marriages.
44. Why shouldn’t women feel excited now?
A）Because they have to spend less time with their children.
B）Because they still do not earn as much as their husbands do.
C）Because they have to shoulder more responsibility at work.
D）Because they still have to do most of the housework at home.
45. Which of following can best describe the tone of the passage?
A）Critical B）Pessimistic
C）Sympathetic D）Matter-of-fact
