25. What does the author say people prefer for their children nowadays?

A. Personal freedom.

B. Things that are natural.

C. Urban surroundings.

D. Things that are purchased.

26. Children who have chances to explore natural areas ________.

A. tend to develop a strong love for science

B. are more likely to fantasise about wildlife

C. tend to be physically tougher in adulthood

D. are less likely to be involved in bullying

27. What does the author suggest we do to help children with ADHD?

A. Find more effective drugs for them.

B. Provide more green spaces for them.

C. Place them under more personal care.

D. Engage them in more meaningful activities.

28. Dr William Bird suggests in his study that ________.

A. humanity and nature are complementary to each other

B. wild places may induce impulsive behaviour in people

C. access to nature contributes to the reduction of violence

D. it takes a long time to restore nature once damaged

C

Caught in the Web

A few months ago, it wasn't unusual for 47-year-old Carla Toebe to spend 15 hours per day online. She'd wake up early, turn on her laptop and chat on Internet dating sites and instant-messaging programs – leaving her bed for only brief intervals. Her household bills piled up, along with the dishes and dirty laundry, but it took near-constant complaints from her four daughters before she realized she had a problem.

"I was starting to feel like my whole world was falling apart – kind of slipping into a depression," said Carla. "I knew that if I didn't get off the dating sites, I'd just keep going," detaching (使脱离) herself further from the outside world.

Toebe's conclusion: She felt like she was "addicted" to the Internet. She's not alone.

Concern about excessive Internet use isn't new. As far back as 1995, articles in medical journals and the establishment of a Pennsylvania treatment center for overusers generated interest in the subject. There's still no consensus on how much time online constitutes too much or whether addiction is possible.

But as reliance on the Web grows, there are signs that the question is getting more serious attention: Last month, a study published in CNS Spectrums claimed to be the first large-scale look at excessive Internet use. The American Psychiatric Association may consider listing Internet addiction in the next edition of its diagnostic manual. And scores of online discussion boards have popped up on which people discuss negative experiences tied to too much time on the Web.

"There's no question that there're people who're seriously in trouble because they're overdoing their Internet involvement," said psychiatrist (精神科医生) Ivan Goldberg. Goldberg calls the problem a disorder rather than a true addiction.

Jonathan Bishop, a researcher in Wales specializing in online communities, is more skeptical. "The Internet is an environment," he said. "You can't be addicted to the environment." Bishop describes the problem as simply a matter of priorities, which can be solved by encouraging people to prioritize other life goals and plans in place of time spent online.

The new CNS Spectrums study was based on results of a nationwide telephone survey of more than 2,500 adults. Like the 2005 survey, this one was conducted by Stanford University researchers.About 6% of respondents reported that "their relationships suffered because of excessive Internet use." About 9% attempted to conceal "nonessential Internet use," and nearly 4% reported feeling "preoccupied by the Internet when offline."

About 8% said they used the Internet as a way to escape problems, and almost 14% reported they "found it hard to stay away from the Internet for several days at a time."

"The Internet problem is still in its infancy," said Elias Aboujaoude, a Stanford professor. No single online activity is to blame for excessive use, he said. "They're online in chat rooms, checking e-mail, or writing blogs. [The problem is] not limited to porn (色情) or gambling" websites.

Excessive Internet use should be defined not by the number of hours spent online but "in terms of losses," said Maressa Orzack, a Harvard University professor. "If it's a loss [where] you're not getting to work, and family relationships are breaking down as a result, then it's too much."

Since the early 1990s, several clinics have been established in the U. S. to treat heavy Internet users. They include the Center for Internet Addiction Recovery and the Center for Internet Behavior.

The website for Orzack's center lists the following among the psychological symptoms of computer addiction:

● Having a sense of well-being (幸福) or excitement while at the computer.

● Longing for more and more time at the computer.

● Neglect of family and friends.

● Feeling empty, depressed or irritable when not at the computer.

● Lying to employers and family about activities.

● Inability to stop the activity.

● Problems with school or job.

Physical symptoms listed include dry eyes, backaches, skipping meals, poor personal hygiene (卫生) and sleep disturbances.

People who struggle with excessive Internet use maybe depressed or have other mood disorders, Orzack said. When she discusses Internet habits with her patients, they often report that being online offers a "sense of belonging, and escape, excitement [and] fun," she said. "Some people say relief…because they find themselves so relaxed."

Some parts of the Internet seem to draw people in more than others. Internet gamers spend countless hours competing in games against people from all over the world. One such game, called World of Warcraft, is cited on many sites by posters complaining of a "gaming addiction."

Andrew Heidrich, an education network administrator from Sacramento, plays World of Warcraft for about two to four hours every other night, but that's nothing compared with the 40 to 60 hours a week he spent playing online games when he was in college. He cut back only after a full-scale family intervention (干预), in which relatives told him he'd gained weight.

"There's this whole culture of competition that sucks people in" with online gaming, said Heidrich, now a father of two. "People do it at the expense of everything that was a constant in their lives." Heidrich now visits websites that discuss gaming addiction regularly "to remind myself to keep my love for online games in check."

Toebe also regularly visits a site where posters discuss Internet overuse. In August, when she first realized she had a problem, she posted a message on a Yahoo Internet addiction group with the subject line: "I have an Internet Addiction."

"I'm self-employed and need the Internet for my work, but I'm failing to accomplish my work,to take care of my home, to give attention to my children," she wrote in a message sent to the group."I have no money or insurance to get professional help; I can't even pay my mortgage (抵押贷款) and face losing everything."

Since then, Toebe said, she has kept her promise to herself to cut back on her Internet use. "I have a boyfriend now, and I'm not interested in online dating," she said by phone last week. "It's a lot better now."

29. What eventually made Carla Toebe realize she was spending too much time on the Internet?

A. Her daughter's repeated complaints.

B. Fatigue resulting from lack of sleep.

C. The poorly managed state of her house.

D. The high financial costs adding up.

30. What does the author say about excessive Internet use?

A. People should be warned of its harmful consequences.

B. It has become virtually inevitable.

C. It has been somewhat exaggerated.

D. People haven't yet reached agreement on its definition.

31. Jonathan Bishop believes that the Internet overuse problem can be solved if people ______.

A. try to improve the Internet environment

B. become aware of its serious consequences

C. can realize what is important in life

D. can reach a consensus on its definition

D

Colleges taking another look at value of merit-based aid

Good grades and high tests scores still matter—a lot—to many colleges as they award financial aid.

But with low-income students projected to make up an ever-larger share of the college-bound population in coming years, some schools are re-examining whether that aid, typically known as “merit aid”, is the most effective use of precious institutional dollars.

George Washington University in Washington, D.C., for example, said last week that it would cut the value of its average merit scholarships by about one-third and reduce the number of recipients(接受者), pouring the savings, about $2.5 million, into need-based aid. Allegheny College in Meadville, Pa., made a similar decision three years ago.

Now, Hamilton College in Clinton, N.Y., says it will phase out merit scholarships altogether. No current merit-aid recipients will lose their scholarships, but need-based aid alone will be awarded beginning with students entering in fall 2008.

Not all colleges offer merit aid; generally, the more selective a school, the less likely it is to do so. Harvard and Princeton, for example, offer generous need-based packages, but many families who don’t meet need eligibility(资格)have been willing to pay whatever they must for a big-name school.

For small regional colleges that struggle just to fill seats, merit aid can be an important revenue-builder because many recipients still pay enough tuition dollars over and above the scholarship amount to keep the institution running.

But for rankings-conscious schools in between, merit aid has served primarily as a tool to recruit top students and to improve their academic profits. “They’re trying to buy students,” says Skidmore College economist Sandy Baum.

Studies show merit aid also tends to benefit disproportionately students who could afford to enroll without it.

“As we look to the future, we see a more pressing need to invest in need-based aid,” says Monica Inzer, dean of admission and financial aid at Hamilton, which has offered merit scholarships for 10 years. During that time, it rose in US News & World Report’s ranking of the best liberal arts colleges, from 25 to 17.

Merit aid, which benefited about 75 students a year, or about 4% of its student body, at a cost of about $ 1 million a year, “served us well,” Inzer says, but “to be discounting the price for families that don’t need financial aid doesn’t feel right any more.”

Need-based aid remains by far the largest share of all student aid, which includes state, federal and institutional grants. But merit aid, offered primarily by schools and states, is growing faster, both overall and at the institutional level.

Between 1995-96 and 2003-04, institutional merit aid alone increased 212%, compared with 47% for need-based grants. At least 15 states also offer merit aid, typically in a bid to enroll top students in the state’s public institutions.

But in recent years, a growing chorus(异口同声)of critics has begun pressuring schools to drop the practice. Recent decisions by Hamilton and others may be “a sign that people are starting to realize that there’s this destructive competition going on,” says Baum, co-author of a recent College Report that raises concerns about the role of institutional aid not based on need.

David Laird, president of the Minnesota Private College Council, says many of his schools would like to reduce their merit aid but fear that in doing so, they would lose top students to their competitors.

“No one can take one-sided action,” says Laird, who is exploring whether to seek an exemption(豁免)from federal anti-trust laws so member colleges can discuss how they could jointly reduce merit aid, “This is a merry-go-round that’s going very fast, and none of the institutions believe they can sustain the risks of trying to break away by themselves.”

A complicating factor is that merit aid has become so popular with middle-income families, who don’t qualify for need-based aid, that many have come to depend on it. And, as tuitions continue to increase, the line between merit and need blurs.

That’s one reason Allegheny College doesn’t plan to drop merit aid entirely.

“We still believe in rewarding superior achievements and know that these top students truly value the scholarship,” says Scott Friedhoff, Allegheny’s vice president for enrollment.

Emory University in Atlanta, which boasts a $4.7 billion endowment(捐赠), meanwhile, is taking another approach. This year, it announced it would eliminate loans for needy students and cap them for middle-income families. At the same time, it would expand its 28-year-old merit program.

“Yeah, we’re playing the merit game,” acknowledges Tom Lancaster, associate dean for undergraduate education. But it has its strong point, too, he says. “The fact of the matter is, it’s not just about the lowest-income people. It’s the average American middle-class family who’s being priced out of the market.”

*A few words about merit-based aid:

Merit-based aid is aid offered to students who achieve excellence in a given area, and is generally known as academic, athletic and artistic merit scholarships.

Academic merit scholarships are based on students’ grades, GPA and overall academic performance during high school. They are typically meant for students going straight to college right after high school. However, there are scholarships for current college students with exceptional grades as well. These merit scholarships usually help students pay tuition bills, and they can be renewed each year as long as the recipients continue to qualify. In some cases, students may need to be recommended by their school or a teacher as part of the qualification process.

Athletic merit scholarships are meant for students that excel(突出)in sports of any kind, from football to track and field events. Recommendation for these scholarships is required, since exceptional athletic performance has to be recognized by a coach or a referee(裁判). Applicants need to send in a tape containing their best performance.

Artistic merit scholarships require that applicants excel in a given artistic area. This generally includes any creative field such as art, design, fashion, music, dance or writing. Applying for artistic merit scholarships usually requires that students submit a portfolio(选辑)of some sort, whether that includes a collection of artwork, a recording of a musical performance or a video of them dancing.

32. With more and more low-income students pursuing higher education, a number of colleges are ________.

A. offering students more merit-based aid

B. revising their financial aid policies

C. increasing the amount of financial aid

D. changing their admission processes

33. The chief purpose of rankings-conscious colleges in offering merit aid is to ______.

A. improve teaching quality

B. boost their enrollments

C. attract good students

D. increase their revenues

34. In recent years, merit-based aid has increased much faster than need-based aid due to ______.

A. more government funding to colleges

B. fierce competition among institutions

C. the increasing number of top students

D. schools’ improved financial situations

35. What is the attitude of many private colleges toward merit aid, according to David Laird?

A. They would like to see it reduced.

B. They regard it as a necessary evil.

C. They think it does more harm than good.

D. They consider it unfair to middle-class families.

第二节(共5小题;每小题2分，满分10分)

根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。

36   But still there is a danger that grows every year.Airliners get larger.Some airplanes can hold over 300 passengers.And the air itself becomes more and more crowded.If one giant airliner crashed into another in mid-air, 600 lives could be lost.

37   Air traffic controllers tell the pilot exactly when to turn, when to climb, and when to come down.The air traffic controllers around a busy airport like London-Heathrow may handle 2500 planes a day.Not al of them actually land at the airport.Any plane that flies near the airport comes under the orders of the controllers there.__73__.

Recently such a disaster almost happened.__74__.One, with 69 passengers, had come from Toronto, and the other, with 176 passengers, from Chicago, An air traffic controller noticed on his radar screen that the two planes were too close to each other.He ordered one to turn to the right and to climb.But he made a mistake.He ordered the wrong plane to do this.Fifteen seconds later it flew directly in front of the second plane.They avoided each other by the smallest part of a second.The distance between them was less than that of a large swimming pool.__75__.

A. Even a small mistake on their part could cause a disaster.

B. Two large jets were flying towards the airport.

C. Nowadays people like traveling more by air than by car.

D. Today, air travel is far safer than driving a car on a bus motor-way.

E. This is an example of the danger that grows every year.

F.  In a word, air travel is more dangerous, we should choose others.

G. From the moment an airliner takes off to the moment it lands, every movement is watched on radar screen.

第三部分 英语知识运用(共两小节，满分45分)

第一节 完形填空(共20题;每小题1.5分，满分30分)

阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。

To be a good teacher, you need some of the gifts of a good actor: you must be able to 41 the attention and interest of your students: you must be a 42 speaker, with a good, strong, 43 voice which is fully under your control: and you must be able to 44 what you are teaching in order to make its meaning clear. 45  a good teacher and you will see that he does not sit still 46 his class: he stands the whole time when he is teaching; he walks about, using his 47 , hands and fingers to help him in his explanations, and his face to express feelings. Listen to him, and you will 48 the loudness, the quality and the musical note of his voice always 49 according to what he is 50 about. The fact that a good teacher has some of the gifts of a good actor doesn't 51 that he will indeed be able to act 52 on the stage, for there are very important 53 between the teacher's work and the actor's. The actor has to speak words which he has learnt by heart' he has to repeat exactly the 54 words each time he plays a certain part; 55 his movements and the ways in which he uses his voice are usually 56 beforehand. What he has to do is to make all these carefully learnt words and actions seem 57  on the stage.

A good teacher 58 in quite a different way. His students take an active part in his 59 : they ask and answer questions; they obey orders; and if they don't understand something, they will say so. The teacher therefore has to suit his act to the needs of his students. He cannot learn his part by heart, but must 60 it as he goes along.

41. A. payB. hold C. give D. know

42. A. clear B. slow C. quick     D. loud

43. A. frightening  B. exciting C. fearing D. pleasing

44. A. act B. talk C. say D. repeat

45. A. Listen     B. Watch C. Look     D. Observe

46. A. for B. behind C. before D. with

47. A. tongue     B. words C. sound D. arms

48. A. hearB. see C. think     D. guess

49. A. making B. changing C. expressing   D. giving

50. A. talking     B. thinking C. hearing D. saying

51. A. tell B. expressC. show     D. mean

52. A. good B. badly     C. well   D. actively

53. A. things     B. differences C. points D. jobs

54. A. different B. same     C. above D. following

55. A. just B. never     C. everD. even

56. A. read B. known C. fixed     D. written

57. A. natural     B. real C. false D. clear

58. A. is     B. has C. works  D. teaches

59. A. group B. party     C. class     D. play

60. A. invent     B. discover C. teach     D. continue

第II卷

第二节(共10小题;每小题1.5分，满分15分)

阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容(1个单词)或括号内单词的正确形式。

Rudolph Valentino was a famous film star in the 1920s.

He once wanted to buy a particular silver ring that had a semi-precious stone in   61

The jeweler warned him against the ring,   62      (tell) him that it had a curse on it.   63     owned the ring would have bad luck.

Valentino did not believe him 64         he bought the ring.

He wore it during the making of his 65         film, The Young Rajah. The film was a complete failure.

Valentino put the ring 66   _   and went on to make many 67        (success) films. By 1926, he had forgotten all about the curse on the ring.

He wore it 68        .  Soon afterwards, he fell ill and died.    69         of Valentino’s friends inherited the ring.She, too, became ill, 70        quickly gave the ring away to a young artist. She recovered from her illness almost immediately.

第四部分 写作(共两节，满分35分)

第一节 短文改错(共10小题;每小题1分，满分10分)

假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。

增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号(∧)，并在下面写出修改后的词。

删除：把多余的词用斜线()划掉。

修改：在错的词下画一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。

注意：1. 每处错误及修改均仅限一词。

2. 只允许修改10处，多者(从第11处起)不计分。

Dear Sally,

Now I’d like to tell you something about my part-time job this summer vacation, of which I worked like a guide in a travel

agency.The work was interesting but tired. I think it was helpful to work this holiday. It was the first time that I have earned

money on my own.I’ve come to understand how hard my parents work to support for the family. I used to keep on ask them for

money, but now I’ll never waste money and learn to share worry with my parent. I've learnt how to get along well with others.

What's worse, I've gained some working and social experience and I have learnt something can' t be learnt from textbooks. All

these will be good for my future. In a word, I had the wonderful and valuable summer vacation.

Yours,

Li Bing

第二节 书面表达(满分25分)

假如你是李华，下一届亚洲冬季运动会将在你居住的城市举办，现在正招募志愿者，你希望成为其中一员。请按要求用英语给组委会写一封申请信。

[写作内容]

1. 个人情况：年龄、性别、学历

2. 个人条件：英语好、爱好体育、善于交往、乐于助人、熟悉本地情况

3. 承诺：提供最佳服务，展现青年志愿者的风采。

[写作要求]

只能使用5个句子表达全部的内容，信的开头和结尾已给出，不计入考查范围内。

[评分标准]

句子结构的准确性，信息内容的完整性和连贯性。

Dear Sir/Madam,

My name is Li Hua.

______________________________________________________________

Please consider my request, and I’m looking forward to your early reply.

Yours faithfully,

Li Hua