Part I Reading Comprehension （30%）


Passage 1

Many a young person tells me he wants to be a writer.（76）I always encourage such people, but I also explain that there's a big difference between "being a writer' and writing. In most cases these individuals are dreaming of wealth and fame, not the long hour alone at a typewriter. "You've got to want to write," I say to them, "not want to be a writer".

The reality is that writing is a lonely, private and poor-paying affair. For every writer kissed by fortune there are thousands more whose longing is never rewarded. When I left a 20-year career in the U.S. Coast Guard to become a freelance（自由栏目）writer, I had no prospects at all. What I did have was a friend who found me my room in a New York apartment building. It didn't even matter that it was cold and had no bathroom. I immediately bought a used manual typewriter and felt like a genuine writer.

After a year or so, however, I still hadn't gotten a break and began to doubt myself. It was so hard to sell a story that I barely made enough to eat. But I knew I wanted to write, I had dreamed about it for years. I wasn't going to be one of those people who die wondering: What if ? （77 ）I would keep putting my dream to the test even though it meant living with uncertainty and fear of failure. This is the shadowland of hope, and anyone with a dream must learn to live there.

1. The passage is meant to ______.

A. warn young people of the hardships that a successful writer has to experience

B. advise young people to give up their idea of becoming a professional writer

C. show young people it's unrealistic for a writer to pursue wealth and fame

D. encourage young people to pursue a writing career

2. What can be concluded from the passage?

A. Genuine writers often find their work interesting and rewarding.

B. A writer's success depends on luck rather than on efforts.

C. Famous writers usually live in poverty and isolation.

D. The chances for writer to become successful are small

3. Why did the author begin to doubt himself after the first year of his writing career?

A. He wasn't able to produce a single book.

B. He hadn't seen aching for the better.

C. He wasn't able to have a rest for a whole year.

D. He though that he lacked imagination.

4. "…people who die wondering: What if ?"（Lin4-5, Para-3） refers to "those _____".

A. who think too much of the dark side of life

B. who regret giving up their career halfway

C. who think a lot without making a decision

D. who are full of imagination even upon death

5. "Shadowland" in the last sentence refers to _____.

A. the wonderland on often dreams about

B. the bright future that one is looking forward to

C. the state of uncertainty before one's final goal is reached

D. a world that exists only in one's imagination

Passage 2

Questions 6 to 10 are based on the following passage:

Man is a land animal, but he is also closely tied to the sea. Throughout history the sea has served the needs of man. The sea has provided man with food and a convenient way to travel to many parts of the world. Toady, experts believe that nearly two-thirds of the world's population live within eighty kilometers of the seacoast.

（78）In the modern technological world the sea offers many resources to help mankind survive. Resources on land are beginning to grow less. The sea, however, still offers hope to supply many of man's needs in the future.

The riches of the sea yet to be developed by man's technology are impressive. Oil and gas explorations have existed for nearly thirty years. Valuable amounts of minerals such as iron, copper and so on exist on the ocean floor.

Besides oil and gas, the sea may offer new sources of energy. For example, warm temperature of the ocean can be used as the steam in a steamship. Sea may also offer a source of energy as electricity for mankind.

Technology is enabling man to explore even deeper under the sea. It is obvious that the technology to harvest the sea continues to improve. （79）By the 2050, experts believe that the problems to explore the food, minerals and energy resources of the sea will have been largel7y solved.

6. What is the beat title for the passage?

A. Needs of Man. 

B. Sea Harvest and Food

C. Sea and Sources of Energy  

D. Sea Exploring Technology.

7. It can be inferred from the passage that ______.

A. man hasn't completely made use of the riches of the sea

B. technology for exploring the sea has been solved

C. harvesting rice in the sea will be made possible


8. Why does the author mention a steamship?

A. To illustrate that man can make use of sources of energy from the sea.

B. To show that a steamship is better than other kinds of ships.

C. To argue that man should use steamships.

D. To indicate that it is warmer in the ocean than on land.

9. According to the author, technology is important because ______.

A. resources on land are running short in ten years

B. man can use it to explore the deeper sea

C. it is a lot of fun diving into the sea

D. ancient people used it to explore the sea

10. According to the author, when will the problems to explore the deeper sea largely be solved?

A. In the next generation.

B. By the end of the 20th century.

C. In the near future.

D. By the middle of the 21st century.

Passage 3

Questions 11 to 15 are based on the following passage:

Today, cigarette smoking is a common habit. About forty-three percent of the adult men and thirty-one percent of the adult women in the United States smoke cigarettes regularly. It is encouraging to see that millions of people have given up smoking.

It is a fact that men as a group smoke more than women. Among both men and women the age group with the highest proportion of smokers is 24-44.

Income, education, and occupation all play a part in determining a person's smoking habit. City people smoke more than people living on farms. Well-educated men with high incomes are less likely to smoke cigarettes than men with fewer years of schooling and lower incomes. On the other hand, if a well-educated man with a higher income smoked at all, he is likely to smoke more packs of cigarettes per day.

The situation is somewhat different for women.（80）There are slightly more smokers among women with higher family income and higher education than among the lower income and lower educational groups. These more highly educated women tend to smoke more heavily.

Among teenagers the picture is similar. There are fewer teenaged smokers from upper-income, well-educated families, and fewer from families living in farm areas. Children are most likely to start smoking if one or both of their parents smoke.

11. What do we know from the first paragraph ?

A. More and more people take up the habit of smoking.

B. There are more smoking women than smoking men in USA.

C. It is good news that more people have given up smoking.

D. The U.S. has more smoking people than any other country.

12.What factors determine a person's smoking habits ?

A. Age, income and education.

B. Age, sex and income.

C. Occupation, income and sex.

D. Occupation, income and education.


A. City people are less likely to smoke.

B. People in rural areas are more likely to smoke.

C. Men with higher income tend to smoke.

D. Well-educated men with high incomes are generally less likely to smoke.

14.What is the smoking situation for women ?

A. The situation is quite the same for women as for men .

B. Better-educated women are likely to smoke heavily.

C. There are more women smokers with low incomes.

D. Women with higher incomes and higher education do not tend to smoke.

15.What can we say about teenaged smokers ?

A. The picture about the teenage smokers is similar to that of women smokers.

B. The situation among teenagers is quite the same with men.

C. High school students are more likely to smoke than college students.

D. Farmers' children tend to smoke more.