C

Scientists have changed the color of a dark-striped zebra-fish to uniform gold by inserting a version of the pigment (色素) gene into a young fish. As with humans, zebra-fish skin color is determined by pigment cells, which contain melanin (黑色素). The number, size and darkness of melanin per pigment cell determine skin color.

It appears that, like the golden zebra-fish, light-skinned Europeans also have a mutation (变异) in the gene for melanin production. This results in less pigmented skin.

However, Keith Cheng, leader of the research team, points out that the mutation is different in human and zebra-fish genes.

Humans acquired dark skin in Africa about 1.5 million years ago to protect bodies from ultra-violet rays of the sun (太阳光紫外线), which can cause skin cancer.

But when modern humans leave Africa to live in northern latitudes, they need more sunlight on their skin to produce vitamin D. So the related gene changes, according to Cheng.

Asians have the same version of the gene as Africans, so they probably acquired their light skin through the action of some other gene that affects skin color, said Cheng.

The new discovery could lead to medical treatments for skin cancer. It also could lead to research into ways to change skin color without damaging it like chemical treatment did on Michael Jackson.

51. The passage mainly tells us that ________.

A. people can not change their skin color without any pain

B. the new discovery could lead to research into ways to change skin color safely

C. pop king Michael Jackson often changed his skin color as he liked

D. scientists have found out that people’s skin color is determined by the gene

52. It can be inferred from the passage that _____________.

A. nowadays people who want to change their skin color have to suffer a lot from the damage caused by the chemical treatment

B. Europeans and Africans have the same gene

C. the new discovery could help to find medical treatments for skin cancer

D. there are two kinds of genes

53. Scientists have done an experiment on a dark-striped zebra-fish in order to _____________.

A. find the different genes of humans’

B. prove the humans’ skin color is determined by the pigment gene

C. find out the reason why the Africans’ skin color is dark

D. find out the ways of changing people’s skin color

54. The reason why Europeans are light-skinned is probably that _____________.

A. they are born light-skinned people

B. light-skinned Europeans have mutation in the gene for melanin production

C. they have fewer activities outside

D. they pay much attention to protecting their skin

D

My parents lived through the Great Depression of the 1930s and I heard stories from both of them about how their lives changed because of it. The same was true of my in-laws whose lives were also affected negatively. For example, my husband’s grandfather owned a factory. Owing to the stock (证券) market crash, he lost the factory and went back to work in the very factory he’d once owned. He could no longer afford to send my father-in-law to college. My father-in-law worked full time as a pipe fitter and went to school part-time to earn his degree, which took seven years.

Somehow, my husband and I never dreamed that we would live through anything similar. However, as they say, history often repeats itself. In 1929, the stock market crashed in the month of October. The same thing happened in 2008. My husband, who had invested (投资) all our money in the market, was in a state of shock. Each day the news was more terrible.

“We’ve lost more than half of our wealth,” he told me.

I just stared at him. “How can that be?”

“I thought we had good, solid investments, but it seems I was wrong.”

“Well, we do have pensions (抚恤金),” I said. “Hopefully, they won’t be affected. Since we have never lived a high lifestyle to begin with, I don’t think we have to worry.”

“I did hope to leave our children and grandchildren a generous inheritance (遗产),” my husband said. He shook his head in disbelief.

“We’ll still be able to give gifts. Love is the most important gift anyway.” Our children are grown and we always try to be generous to them and our grandchildren.

“It just won’t be the same.”

“The world is always changing,” I said. “You never know what will happen. The main thing is not to get discouraged. As long as we have our health and can afford the necessities of life, there’s no reason to be upset. When you have your health, you can always earn more money.”

I hugged my husband and he kissed me in return.

“I guess you’re right,” he agreed. “We love each other. We have our health and enough money to live on comfortably. That’s all that matters.”

We had to move out of our house into an apartment. Since few people could afford a house in those hard days, we decided to offer it for considerably less than it would normally be worth. Even so, several buyers changed their mind days before closing. But finally, our home was sold.

As we shook hands with the new owners, I told them how fortunate they were.

“Not only are you getting a bargain in the price, but this house has good luck. We bought the house from a family who lived in it for nine years. They were a happy family, a husband, wife and five children. It was a cheerful house and we had a good feeling about it. We raised our children here as well.”

“That’s good to hear,” the young woman said with a smile. “We have two young children ourselves. And I believe in luck too.”

We nodded our heads in agreement, understanding each other.

“You’ll live only six houses from the best primary school in the town and your children won’t even have to cross a street,” I said. “Our children used to come home each day and have lunch with me.”

“We like the woods in the back,” the young man told us. “We’re going to plant a large garden in the backyard.”

They seemed so young and happy and full of plans. My husband and I had to smile. At least some good was coming out of the economic difficulty. We no longer needed a house. It was good to know that another young family would now be living in what had been a happy, loving home for us. Also, the house needed work that we no longer had the energy to perform.

These may be tough times economically, but as for me, I intend to look forward, not back. As Shakespeare said in Macbeth, “what’s done is done and cannot be undone.” It’s the present and future that matter. We can learn from our mistakes and make our lives better.

58. In the author’s opinion what matters in life is ______.

A. wealth and health     B. health and love

C. money and work    D. house and children

59. By telling the new owners “this house has good luck”, the author intended to tell them _______.

A. they had bought the house at a much lower price

B. their children could go to school conveniently and safely

C. they would live in the house happily

D. they could plant a large garden in the backyard

60. Which of the following can be the best title of the story?

A. Selling the House.      B. Stock Market Crash

C. What’s Done Can’t Be Undone.      D. A Change in Lifestyle.

第二节: 任务型阅读

下面文章中有5个段落需要添加小标题。请从以下选项(A、B、C、 D、E和F)中选出符合各段意思的小标题，并在答题纸上将相应选项的标号涂黑。选项中有一项是多余选项。

A.An apple a day keeps the doctor away.

B.Taking a swim after eating will threat your life,

C.Eating more carrots improves your health.

D.Going out in the cold with wet hair causes sickness.

E.Lightning never strikes the same place twice.

F.More crime occurs during a full moon.

Old Wives' Tales Proven Untrue

We all grew up with sayings that were intended to frighten us into being good or convince us to eat better.Looking back, some of these childhood proverbs don’t even make much sense.(Ever hear the claim that swallowed gum stays in your stomach for seven years? Uh-huh, sure.)However, there are quite a few out there that people still believe in.That's why we decided to investigate some common old wives' tales to see how they hold up under scientific scrutiny.From the moon's affect on crimes to the true causes of colds, this list is sure to surprise even the most enlightened among you.

61 _______

False: Countless kids were scared into thinking that if they went back in the water less than 60 minutes after eating, they would suddenly cramp up (the muscles get suddenly tightened) and drown.But according to Mayo Clinic.com, it's perfectly safe to swim after you eat a light meal or snack. The site does recommend taking a short break after eating a big meal, however, not because of cramping, but due to extreme lack of energy. As is known to us all, after eating, more of our blood goes to help the digestive system.

62 _______

Partially True: This saying has been around since before the discovery of an apple's vital nutrients: Vitamin C and polyphenols.Regardless, the core of the matter is that while this fruit will help keep you well, it's not always enough to keep you out of the medical danger zone; When you're ill, your body requires nutrients from all the different types of food in a well-balanced diet, including fruits, vegetables, yogurt, protein and, of course, chicken soup.Only one kind of specific fruit or food can not solve all the problems.

63 _______

False: According to the National Weather Service, lightning can strike the same place numerous times, especially if it's a tall, pointed and isolated object.For example, the Empire State Building, a skyscraper on Fifth Avenue, New York City, USA, which was for long the tallest building in the world, 'is hit an average of 25 times a year. That is the reason why it was once used as a lightning laboratory. Lightning often strikes more than three miles from the thunderstorm and laughs at two inches of rubber!

64 _______

False: Neither wet nor dry hair significantly increases your chances of getting sick.Web M D.com says colds are solely caused when viruses are passed from one person to another, so you should be more concerned with how often you wash your hands, not your hair. A proper way to keep healthy is to develop good personal habits of life.Prevention is always the best cure, better than any drug and treatment.

65 _______

False: Many interesting things are thought to increase during a full moon emergency room visits, accidents, ability to have babies, werewolves.Almost all these phenomena are attributed to the Lunar Effect, which tries to link unusual, unbelievable, or unacceptable behavior and the phases of the moon.However, according to myth-buster and syndicated columnist, Cecil Adams, there is no truth at all behind the theory.

第II卷   非选择题部分(共40分)

第三部分：写作(共两节，满分40分)

第一节：短文改错(共10小题;每小题1分，满分10分)

下面短文中共有10处错误，错误涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。

增加：在缺词处加一个漏词符号(∧)，并在此符号下面写出该加的词。

删除：把多余的词用斜线()划掉。

修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。

注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词;

2.只允许修改10处，多者(从第11处起)不计分。

例如：It was very nice to get your invitation to spend ∧ weekend with you. Luckily I

the

was completely free then, so I’ll to say “yes”. I’ll arrive in Bristol at around 8 pm in Friday.

am                                                               on

We are going to take an important exam in about ten days. Therefore, many students still don’t know how to balance their study, rest and physical exercises while prepared for the Exams. They usually devote too much time to go over their lessons, what results in poor health and low efficiency of learning.

As the proverb goes, early to bed and early to rise make a man healthy, wealthy and wise. We’d better leave us enough time to rest and sleep since it enables us learn our lessons more efficient. What’s more, a strong and healthy body is the base for our further study, future work and creative activities.

In brief, as we are preparing for the Exams, don’t forget that rest, exercise and study were equally important.

第二节：书面表达(满分30分)

记叙你和你的加入共同参与的一次有意义的集体活动，用英语写一篇100-120字的短文，要求如下：

1.记叙活动经过。2. 简要说明你从中得到的启示或感受。

__________________________________________________________________________________________

答案

单选：1-10  ADBAD   CDBCA  11-15 BCBDC  16-20 DACCD

完形：21-25 BDADC 26-30 ABDCB 31-35 BDCCB  36-40 DCCDD

阅读：41-45: ACC AB  46-50  BCBDB  51-54 DABB 55-60 ADBBCD

任务型阅读:  61. B 62. A 63. E 64. D 65. F

最后，希望精品小编整理的英语高考考前预测卷对您有所帮助，祝同学们学习进步。

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