单选题{{B}}Text 1{{/B}} Anything, if it concerns all nations in the world, we need standards to regulate it. Space flight and air travel would shock time travelers from the mid-19th century. People considered such thing impossible back again. But when it comes to that gem of late 20th-century technology, the Internet, the time travelers might well say: "Been there. Done that." They have the reasons to say so. Both systems grew out of the cutting-edge science of their time. The telegraph's land lines, underwater cables, and clicking things reflected the 19th century' s research in electromagnetism. The Internet' s computers and high-speed connections reflect 20th-century, and material technology. But, while small devices make a global network possible, it takes human cooperation to make it happen. To do so, nations negotiated these standards through ITU — the International Telegraph Union — a century and a half ago. Consider a couple of technical parallels. Telegrams were sent from one station to the next, where they were received and retransmitted until they reached their destination. Stations along the way were owned by different entities, including national governments. Internet data is sent from one server computer to another that receives and retransmits it until it reaches its destination. Again the computers have a variety of owners. Telegraph messages were encoded in dots and dashes. Internet data is encoded in ones and zeros. Then there' s the social impact. The Internet is changing the way we do business and communicate. It makes possible virtual communities for individuals scattered around the planet who share mutual interests. Yet important as this may turn out to be, it is affecting a world that was already well connected by radio, television, and other telecommunications. The Associated Press, Reuters, and other news services would have spread the bombing of Yugoslavia quickly without the Internet. In this respect, the global telegraph network was truly revolutionary. The unprecedented availability of global news in real time gave birth to the Associated Press and Reuters news services. It gave a global perspective to newspapers that had focused on local affairs. A provincialism that geographical isolation had forced on people for millennia was gone forever. As the experience of the past century and a half has shown, the standards set up by ITU are not only necessary, but also workable. Therefore, in today's world, while the Internet is playing an ever more important role in our life, we also need standards, and that is through the same ITU — now called the International Telecommunication Union.

单选题{{B}}Part A{{/B}}{{B}}Text 1{{/B}} To try to bring context back, Hueter and Burgess teamed with NOAA and Sea Grant to hold a press conference in the spring of 2002 at the National Press Club. "We wanted to try to get the press to adopt some rules of engagement," Hueter says. "We wanted them to calm hysteria, use perspective and write more articles not focusing on attack." Burgess and Hueter stress sharks' importance in the ecological balance and health of the oceans, which depend on complex food webs involving every sea creature. Just like apex land predators, sharks are important in that balance. "They're a top predator and few in number," Hunter says. "When they're eliminated, there's nothing to fill in that place." More than 100 million sharks are killed each year by fishermen, which can devastate certain species that grow slowly and can take as long as 15 to 20 years to reach reproductive age. The prehistoric creatures continue to fascinate scientists with their immune and reproductive systems and their advanced senses and they've been used as a classic vertebrate anatomy tool for years because they bear many similarities to humans. Scientists believe that unprovoked attacks are cases of mistaken identity, or the sharks just having a taste to see whether they want some more. Most of attacks are not fatal. According to the International Shark Attack File, globally, there were 55 unprovoked attacks in 2003, with four fatalities. In the US, one is 30 times more likely to be struck by lightning than to be attacked by a shark, and bees, wasps and snakes cause more deaths each year than sharks. The number of attacks seems to have risen dramatically in the 1990s, but this is partly attributed to more thorough record-keeping by the International Shark Attack File and more public awareness leading to more reports. Also, the number of shark-human contacts in a year is directly proportional to the number of humans in the sea. As the world population increases and more and more people, take to the waters, it is logical that shark attacks, along with other water-related injuries, will increase. Due to overfishing, shark populations are seriously declining in some cases and holding at reduced numbers in others. According to George Gerbner's Cultivation Theory, people can be affected by the amount and the content of the TV and movies they watch. The portrayals of things in these media can create a false sense of society. For example, one who watches a lot of crime shows could perceive the world to be a much more dangerous place than it actually is. So be it with TV shows and movies that feature shark attacks. Things can appear to be more common than they actually are. But this isn't the only reason people fear sharks--sharks do have teeth and can bite. Humans could see other predators coming and kill them with a single shot, but in shark territory, the predator is invisible.

单选题Whatisthereasongivenforusinglesssugar?A.Forthesakeofoureyes.B.Forthesakeofhair.C.Forthesakeofourlivers.D.Forthesakeofourweight.

单选题

单选题 Questions 14 to 17 are based on a conversation between Professor Lambert and a visitor, Dale Kohler. You now have 20 seconds to read Questions 14 to 17.

单选题{{B}}Text 3{{/B}} Text 3 The history of responses to the work of the artist Sandro Botticelli (1444-1510) suggests that widespread appreciation by critics is a relatively recent phenomenon. Writing in 1550, Vasari expressed an unease with Botticelli's work, admitting that the artist fitted awkwardly into his evolutionary scheme of the history of art. Over the next two centuries, academic art historians defamed Botticelli in favor of his fellows Florentine. Michelangelo. Even when anti-academic art historians of the early nineteenth century rejected many of the standards of evaluation adopted by their predecessors, Botticelli'work remained outside of accepted taste, pleasing neither amateur observers nor connoisseurs. (Many of his best paintings, however, remained hidden away in obscure churches and private homes. ) The primary reason for Botticelli's unpopularity is not difficult to understand：most observers, up until the mid-nineteenth century, did not consider him to be noteworthy, because his work, for the most part. did not seem to these observers to exhibit the traditional characteristics of the fifteenth-century Florentine art. For example. Botticelli rarely employed the technique of strict perspective and, unlike Michelangelo, never used chiaroscuro. Another reason for Botticelli's unpopularity may have been that his attitude toward the style of classical art was very different from that of his contemporaries. Although he was thoroughly exposed to classical art. he showed little interest in borrowing from the classical style. Indeed, it is paradoxical that a painter of large-scale classical subjects adopted a style that was only slightly similar to that of classical art. In any case, when viewers began to examine more closely the relationship of Botticelli's work to the tradition of the fifteenth century Florentine art, his reputation began to grow. Analyses and assessments of Botticelli made between 1850 and 1870 by the artists of the Pre-Raphaelite movement, as well as by the writer Pater(although he. unfortunately, based his assessment on an incorrect analysis of Botticelli's personality), inspired a new appreciation of Botticelli throughout the English-speaking world. Yet Botticelli's work, especially the Sistine frescoes. did not generate worldwide attention until it was finally subjected to 4 comprehensive and scrupulous analysis by Home in 1908. Home rightly demonstrated that the frescoes shared important features with paintings by other fifteenth-century Florentines—features such as skillful representation of anatomical proportions, and of the human figure in motion. However, Home argued that Botticelli did not treat these qualities as ends in themselves—rather. that he emphasized clear depletion of a story, a unique achievement and one that made the traditional Florentine qualities 1ess central. Because of Home's emphasis crucial to any study of art, the twentieth century has come to appreciate Botticelli's achievements.

单选题Miserabilists" fear of change; idealists" hope for a better world; an all-purpose adult nostalgia for lost youth: all these things ensure a ready hearing for claims that childhood is in crisis. Britons are especially worried. They fear that the young today are sadder than previous generations—stressed, and turned off learning by too much testing. Children may be nastier as well: bullying is an "epidemic" in schools, according to one recent survey. They seem in danger like never before. No wonder a report published on February 2nd by the Children"s Society, entitled "A Good Childhood", claiming that far too few British children have one, has received widespread notice. Children suffer because adults put their own needs first, the panel concluded, and only a wholesale shift away from competitiveness and individualism can save them. Right-wing commentators agreed with its criticism of single parents and working mothers, left-wing ones with its call for more redistribution of income and less-advertising to children. Both overlooked one striking finding: that most children are doing just fine. Amid the statistics on teenage pregnancy rates ( higher than elsewhere in Europe, lower than in America), mental illness (a tenth of 5-16-year-olds are sufferers) and drunkenness (a third of 13-15-year-olds have been drunk at least twice, a share three times higher than the European average), came some more heartening figures: 70% of 11-16-year-olds say they are very, or completely, happy, and only 4% say that they are at all unhappy. The report rolls the latter in with the 9% of children who describe themselves as neither happy nor unhappy to claim that 13% are "less than happy". But clearly, very few children agree with adults that they are in deep trouble. In "Reclaiming Childhood", Helene Guldberg, a child psychologist at the Open University, examines the same facts and draws different conclusions. Rising rates of mental illness among the young, she argues, reflect readier diagnosis, and bullying has increased because the word is now used to mean the infliction of even the slightest emotional bruise. She thinks many attempts to improve children"s lives, such as anti-bullying campaigns, and the parenting lessons proposed by the Children"s Society, are likely to be counterproductive. "Suggesting that all parents need to be taught how to do their job risks creating a self-fulfilling belief in parents" incompetence and children"s lack of resilience," she says. Britain is no Utopia, of course. As in other rich countries, children find it too easy to sit indoors, staring at screens and overeating. They lack the protection afforded by the Nordic belief in the sacredness of outdoor play, or the shared family meals of Mediterranean countries. A large minority ape their elders" drinking habits and a few, but still too many, become parents while still children themselves.

单选题{{I}}Questions 14～16 are based on the following talk. You now have 15 seconds to read Questions 14～16.{{/I}}

单选题 Text 2 A scientist once said, "I have concluded that the earth is being visited by intelligently controlled vehicles from outer space." If we take this as a reasonable explanation for UFOs (unidentified flying object), questions immediately come up. "Why don't they get in touch with us, then? Why don't they land right on the White House lawn and declare themselves, people asked. In reply, scientists say that, while this may be what we want, it may not necessarily be what they want. "The most likely explanation, it seems to me," said Dr. Mead, "is that the responsible society outside our solar system is keeping an eye on us to see that we don't set in motion a chain reaction that they might have unexpected effects far outside our solar system." Opinions from other scientists might go like this, "Why should they want to get in touch with us? They may want to observe us only and not interfere with the development of our civilization." Some scientists have also suggested that Earth is a kind of zoo or wildlife reserve. Just as we set aside wilderness areas and wildlife reserves to allow animals and growing things to develop naturally while we observe them, so perhaps Earth was set aside ages ago for the same purpose. Are we being observed by intelligent beings from other civilizations in the universe? Are they watching our progress in space travel? Do we live in a gigantic "zoo" observed by our "keepers", but having no communication with them? Now we have to recognize that, among the stars in the heavens, there may very well be worlds inhabited by beings who are to us as we are to ants.

单选题 {{B}}{{I}} Questions 14 to 16 are based on an interview about planning to picnic. You now have 15 seconds to read Questions 14 to 16.{{/B}}{{/I}}

单选题Maples remind one of______. A. Australia B. Canada C. New Zealand D. America

单选题A new study from the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) at Tufts University shows that today's youth vote in larger numbers than previous generations, and a 2008 study from the Center for American Progress adds that increasing numbers of young voters and activists support traditionally liberal causes. But there's no easy way to see what those figures mean in real life. During the presidential campaign, Barack Obama assembled a racially and ideologically diverse coalition with his message of hope and change; as the reality of life under a new administration settles in, some of those supporters might become disillusioned. As the nation moves further into the Obama presidency, will politically engaged young people continue to support the president and his agenda, or will they gradually drift away? The writers of Generation O (short for Obama), a new Newsweek blog that seeks to chronicle the lives of a group of young Obama supporters, want to answer that question. For the next three months, Michelle Kremer and 11 other Obama supporters, ages 19 to 34, will blog about life across mainstream America, with one twist: by tying all of their ideas and experiences to the new president and his administration, the bloggers will try to start a conversation about what it means to be young and politically active in America today. Malena Amusa, a 2t-year-old writer and dancer from St. Louis sees the project as a way to preserve history as it happens. Amusa, who is traveling to India this spring to finish a book, then to Senegal to teach English, has ongoing conversations with her friends about how the Obama presidency has changed their daily lives and hopes to put some of those ideas, along with her global perspective, into her posts. She's excited because, as she puts it, "I don't have to wait (until) 15 years from now" to make sense of the world. Henry Flores, a political-science professor at St. Mary's University, credits this younger generation's political strength to their embrace of technology. "(The Internet) exposes them to more thinking," he says, "and groups that are like-minded in different parts of the country start to come together. " That's exactly what the Generation O bloggers are hoping to do. The result could be a group of young people that, like their boomer parents, grows up with a strong sense of purpose and sheds the image of apathy they've inherited from Generation X (20世纪60年代后期和70年代出生的美国人). It's no small challenge for a blog run by a group of ordinary — if ambitious — young people, but the members of Generation O are up to the task.

单选题______is the key conception in Christianity in which the three aspects of the same God are united as one. A. Resurrection B. Ascension C. Trinity D. Holy Spirit

单选题{{B}}Text 2{{/B}} Throughout history there have been many unusual taxes levied on such things as hats，beds，baths，marriages，and funerals．At one time England levied a tax on sunlight by collection from every household with six or more windows．And according to legend，there was a Turkish ruler who collected a tax each time he dined with one of his subjects．Why?To pay for the wear and tear on his teeth! Different kinds of taxes help to spread the tax burden．Anyone who pays a tax is said to“bear the burden”of the tax．The burden of a tax may fall more heavily on some persons than on others．That is why the three levels of government in this country use several kinds of taxes．This spreads the burden of taxes among more people．From the standpoint of their use，the most important taxes are income taxes，property taxes，sales taxes，and estate，inheritance，and gift taxes．Some are used by only one level of government；others by two or even all three levels．Together these different taxes make up what is called our tax system． Income taxes are the main source of federal revenues．The federal government gets more than three-fourths of its revenue from income taxes．As its name indicated，an income tax is a tax on earnings．Both individuals and business corporations pay a federal income tax． The oldest tax in the United States today is the property tax．It provides most of the income for local governments．It provides at least a part of the income for all but a few states．It is not used by the federal government． A sales tax is a tax levied on purchases．Most people living in the United States know about sales taxes since they are used in all but four states．Actually there are several kinds of sales taxes，but only three of them are important．They are general sales taxes，excise taxes，and import taxes． Other three closely related taxes are estate，inheritance，and gift taxes．Everything a person owns，including both real and personal property，makes up his or her estate．When someone dies，ownership of his or her property or estate passes on to one or more individuals or organizations．Before the property is transferred，however，it is subject to an estate tax if its value exceeds a certain amount．

单选题 IQuestions 14～16 are based on the following conversation. You now have 15 seconds to read Questions 14～16./I

单选题On the heels of its recent decision to criminalize consumers who rip songs from albums they have purchased to their computers ( or iPods), the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has now gone one step further and declared that "remembering songs" using your brain is criminal copyright infringement. "The brain is a recording device," explained RIAA president Cary Sherman. "The act of listening is an unauthorized act of copying music to that recording device, and the act of recalling or remembering a song is unauthorized playback." The RIAA also said it would begin sending letters to tens of millions of consumers thought to be illegally remembering songs, threatening them with lawsuits if they do not settle with the RIAA by paying monetary damages. In order to avoid engaging in unauthorized copyright infringement, consumers will now be required to immediately forget everything they have just heard—a skill already mastered by the former US President George Bush. To aid in these memory wiping efforts, the RIAA is teaming up with Big Pharma to include free psychotropic prescription drugs with the purchase of new music albums. Consumers are advised to swallow the pills before listening to the music. The pills block normal cognitive function, allowing consumers to enjoy the music in a more detached state without the risk of accidentally remembering any songs (and thereby violating copyright law). Consumers caught humming their favorite songs will be charged with a more serious crime: The public performance of a copyrighted song, for which the fines can reach over $250,000 per incident. "Humming, singing and whistling songs will not be tolerated," said Sherman. Consumers attempting to circumvent the RIAA"s new memory-wiping technology by actually remembering songs will be charged with felony crimes under provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. The Act, passed in 1998, makes it a felony crime to circumvent copyright protection technologies. The RIAA"s position is that consumers who actually use their brains while listening to music are violating the DMCA. With this decision, the RIAA now considers approximately 72% of the adult U. S. population to be criminals. Putting them all in prison for copyright infringement would cost US taxpayers an estimated $683 billion per year—an amount that would have to be shouldered by the remaining 28% who are not imprisoned. The RIAA believes it could cover the $ 683 billion tab through royalties on music sales. The problem with that—the 28% remaining adults riot in prison do not buy music albums. That means album sales would plummet to nearly zero, and the US government (which is already deep in debt) would have to borrow money to pay for all the prisons. When asked whether he really wants 72 % of the US population to be imprisoned for ripping music CDs to their own brains, Sherman shot back, "You don"t support criminal behavior, do you? Every person who illegally remembers a song is a criminal. We can"t have criminals running free on the streets of America. It"s an issue of national security."

单选题 Questions 17—20 are based on the following talk.

单选题Questions 14～16 are based on the following conversation. You now have 15 seconds to read Questions 14～16.

单选题In the first paragraph, the author quotes Strauss Mann's words in order to make clear

单选题 Questions 17～20 are based on the following talk. You now have 20 seconds to read Questions 17～20.