单选题The use of chemicals in almost all areas of life has become a commonplace phenomenon. There is growing evidence, however, that chemicals in the environment, including pesticides, may contribute to some illnesses. While studies are still being conducted, preliminary conclusions point to the verdict that such chemicals are indeed negatively impacting those humans to whom they are exposed. Children are especially vulnerable to toxic substances. Pound for pound, they eat, drink and breathe more than adults, all of which exposes them more heavily to those chemicals to which most individuals encounter on a daily basis. Furthermore, their bodies are still in developing stages, exacerbating the negative effects of those chemicals, which negatively impact them. Of 50 types of pesticides commonly used in American schools, a study conducted by the National Coalition Against the Misuse of Pesticides found that many caused negative reactions in laboratory animals. Such negative effects included kidney and liver damage, cancer, and neurological and reproductive problems. These implications of these findings are far-reaching. Given the variety of harmful effects attributed to those pesticides tested, one must pause and consider whether it is wise to continue their use in the nation"s schools, where children will be constantly exposed to them. Activists have lobbied for the elimination of such use with a degree of success, and recent findings, if supported by further analysis and confirmation, may help further the cause. A long term solution or alternative, however, remains elusive. In the short run, however, there may be some measures that can be taken to mitigate the harmful effects of dangerous pesticides. The American Medical Association"s Council on Scientific Affairs concluded in a 1997 report that given the "particular uncertainty.., regarding the long-term health effects of low-dose pesticide exposures," it is "prudent" for adults and children to limit their exposure and to "consider the use of the least toxic chemical pesticides or non-chemical alternatives. "

单选题In the bitter cold, the explorers managed to ______ the shortage of food and fuel.

单选题Air pollution is obviously one of the major ______ of city life.

单选题Travelling on those bad mountain roads was a(n)______.

单选题Theyareshockedtofind______waterhasbeenpolluted.

单选题{{B}}Passage 3{{/B}} Before high school teacher Kimberly Rugh got down to business at the start of a recent school week, she joked with her students about how she'd had to clean cake out of the corners of her house after her 2-year-old son's birthday party. This friendly combination of chitchat took place not in front of a blackboard but in an E-mail message that Rugh sent to the 145 students she's teaching at the Florida Virtual School, one of the nation's leading online high schools. The school's motto is "any time, any place, any path, any pace". Florida's E-school attracts many students who need flexible scheduling, from young tennis stars and young musicians to brothers Tobias and Tyler Heeb, who take turns working on the computer while helping out with their family's clam-farming business on Pine Island, off Florida's southwest coast. Home-schoolers also are well represented. Most students live in Florida, but 55 hail from West Virginia, where a severe teacher shortage makes it hard for many students to take advanced classes. Seven kids from Texas and four from Shanghai round out the student body. The great majority of Florida Virtual Schooler-- 80 percent are enrolled in regular Florida public or private high schools. Some are busy overachievers. Others are retaking classes they barely passed the first time, The school's biggest challenge is making sure that students aren't left to sink or swim on their own. After the school experienced a disappointing course completion rate of just 50 percent in its early years, Executive Director Julie Young made a priority out of what she calls "relationship-building," asking teachers to stay in frequent E-mail and phone contact with their students. That personal touch has helped: The completion rate is now 80 percent. Critics of online classes say that while they may have a limited place, they are a poor substitute for the face-to-face contact and socialization that take place in brick-and-mortar classrooms. Despite opportunities for online chats, some virtual students say they'd prefer to have more interaction with their peers. Students and parents are quick to acknowledge that virtual schooling isn't for everyone. "If your child's not focused and motivated, I can only imagine it would be a nightmare," says Patricia Haygood of Orlando, whose two daughters are thriving at the Florida school. For those who have what it takes, however, virtual learning fills an important niche. "I can work at my own pace, on my own time," says Hackney. "It's the ultimate in Student responsibility."

单选题How have the business attitudes changed in Britain?

单选题You slip the key into the ignition and crank the engine to life. But before you put the car into gear, you tap a key on the keyboard mounted by the steering wheel, and your newest e-mail flashes up on the windscreen. This seductive satyr is what you get when you cross a car and a computer. Dubbed the "network vehicle", or net-mobile, it may soon come to a driveway near you (probably the one belonging to your rich neighbor). In a net-mobile, a motorist could tap into a regional road system but also to map out a route around rush-hour traffic snags. Drivers and passengers will be able to send and receive e-mail, track the latest sports scores or stock quotes, surf the Web, and even play video games. Or so, at least, say a number of computer-industry firms such as Microsoft, Sun, IBM and Netscape. The modern car is already an electronic showcase on wheels. On-board microcomputers improve fuel economy and reduce emissions. They operate anti-lock brake systems, and on some cars even regulate the firmness of the shock absorbers. But much of the technology needed to add extra is available now. A prototype network vehicle, produced by a consortium of Netscape, Sun, IBM and Delco (an automotive-electronics firm based in Michigan), was introduced at the recent annual computer-industry show in Las Vegas. It not only offered such desktop-computer-like services as e-mail, but allowed a driver to use them without looking away from the road. It was operated by voice commands and projected its data on to the windscreen, using the same sort of head-up display system found in modern fighter jets. Members of the consortium think a real-world network vehicle could be in production in as little as four years. Car makers have already begun rolling out some of the features found on these prototype net- mobiles. If the driver of a General Motors car equipped with its On-Star system locks his key in the car, for example, an emergency centre can transmit a digital signal to unlock the doors. On-Star also calls automatically for help if an accident triggers the airbags. Toyota and General Motors are among a growing list of firms offering in-car navigation systems. And in Europe, BMW and Mercedes-Benz recently introduced navigation hardware that can not only plot out a route, but alert a driver to traffic jams.

单选题It was not until the subprime loan crisis (次贷危机)______ great damage to the American financial system that Americans______the severity of the situation.

单选题Meeting new people widened the young man's ______. A. joys B. horizons C. range D. vicinities

单选题He"s mean and bad-tempered and snores, but she loves him ______.

单选题The expression "do the trick" in the last paragraph most probably means

单选题At first she accused me of being a political fanatic, but she soon came round to ______ that my ideas were not so ridiculous as she had supposed.

单选题The media can impact current events. As a graduate student at Berkeley in the 1960s, I remember experiencing the events related to the People"s Park that were occurring on campus. Some of these events were given national media coverage in the press and on TV. I found it interesting to compare my impressions of what was going on with perceptions obtained from the news media. I could begin to see events of that time feed on news coverage. This also provided me with some healthy insights into the distinctions between these realities. Electronic media are having a greater impact on the people"s lives every day. People gather more and more of their impressions from representations. Television and telephone communications are linking people to a global village, or what one writer calls the electronic city. Consider the information that television brings into your home every day. Consider also the contact you have with others simply by using telephone. These media extend your consciousness and your contact. For example, the video coverage of the 1989 San Francisco earthquake focused on "live action", such as the fires or the rescue efforts. This gave the viewer the impression of total disaster. Television coverage of the Iraqi War also developed an immediacy. CNN reported events as they happened. This coverage was distributed worldwide. Although most people were far away from these events, they developed some perception of these realities. In 1992, many people watched in horror as riots broke out on a sad Wednesday evening in Los Angeles, seemingly fed by video coverage from helicopters. This event was triggered by the verdict (裁定) in the Rodney King beating. We are now in an age where the public can have access to information that enables it to make its own judgements, and most people, who had seen the video of this beating, could not understand how the jury (陪审团) was able to acquit (宣布……无罪) the policemen involved. Media coverage of events as they occur also provides powerful feedback that influences events. This can have harmful results, as it seemed on that Wednesday night in Los Angeles. By Friday night the public got to see Rodney King on television pleading, "Can we all get along?" By Saturday, television seemed to provide positive feedback as the Los Angeles riot turned out into a rally for peace. The television showed thousands of people marching with banners and cleaning tools. Because of that, many more people turned out to join the peaceful event they saw unfolding on television. The real healing, of course, will take much longer, but electronic media will continue to be a part of that process.

单选题Dictionaries, especially those most frequently used ones should be put where they will be easily ______.

单选题{{B}}Directions:{{/B}} There are 15 questions in this part of the test. Read the passage through. Then, go back and choose one suitable word or phrase marked A, B, C or D for each blank in the passage. Mark the corresponding letter of the word or phrase you have chosen with a single bar across the square brackets on your Machine-scoring Answer Sheet. At least since the Industrial Revolution, gender roles have been in a state of transition. As a result, cultural scripts about marriage have undergone change. One of the more obvious{{U}} (21) {{/U}}has occurred in the roles that women{{U}} (22) {{/U}}. Women have moved into the world of work and have become adept at meeting expectations in that arena, {{U}}(23) {{/U}}maintaining their family roles of nurturing and creating a(n){{U}} (24) {{/U}}that is a haven for all family members. {{U}}(25) {{/U}}many women experience strain from trying to "do it all," they often enjoy the increased{{U}} (26) {{/U}}that can result from playing multiple roles. As women's roles have changed, changing expectations about men's roles have become more{{U}} (27) {{/U}}. Many men are relinquishing their major responsibility{{U}} (28) {{/U}}the family provider. Probably the most significant change in men's roles, however, is in the emotional{{U}} (29) {{/U}}of family life. Men are increasingly{{U}} (30) {{/U}}to meet the emotional needs of their families, {{U}}(31) {{/U}}their wives. In fact, expectations about the emotional domain of marriage have become more significant for marriage in general. Research on{{U}} (32) {{/U}}marriage has changed over recent decades points to the increasing importance of the emotional side of the relationship, and the importance of sharing in the "emotion work"{{U}} (33) {{/U}}to nourish marriages and other family relationships. Men and women want to experience marriages that are interdependent, {{U}}(34) {{/U}}both partners nurture each other, attend and respond to each other, and encourage and promote each other. We are thus seeing marriages in which men's and women's roles are becoming increasingly more{{U}} (35) {{/U}}.