III. 阅读(共两节，满分30分)

第一节 阅读理解(共10小题;每小题2分，满分20分)

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

A

The park bench was deserted as I sat down to read beneath the long branches of an old willow tree. I was frustrated by life with good reason to frown, for the world was intended to drag me down.

If that weren't enough to ruin my day, a young boy out of breath approached me, all tired from play. He stood right before me with his head hanging down and said with great excitement, "Look at what I found!" In his hand was a flower, and what a pitiful sight, with its petals all worn for lack of rain or sunlight. Wanting him to take away his dead flower and go off to play, I faked a small smile and then shifted away. But instead of retreating he sat next to my side and placed the flower to his nose and declared with surprise, "It surely smells pretty and it's beautiful, too. That's why I picked it; here, it's for you."

The weed before me was dying or dead, not vibrant of colors, orange, yellow or red. But I knew I must take it, or he might never leave. So I reached for the flower, and replied, "Just what I need." But instead of placing the flower in my hand, he held it mid-air without reason or plan. It was then that I noticed for the very first time that the boy could not see---he was blind!

I heard my voice quiver. As I thanked him for picking the very best one, "You're welcome," he smiled, and then ran off to play, unaware of the impact he'd had on my day.

I sat there and wondered how he managed to see a self-pitying woman beneath an old willow tree. How did he know of my self-indulged trouble? Perhaps from his heart, he'd been blessed with true sight. Through the eyes of a blind child, at last I could see, the problem didn’t lie in the world and that it was up to me to be positive or negative towards life. For all those times I myself had been blind, but now I decided to see beauty, and appreciate every second that's mine.

46. The purpose of the author writing this story is to ____.

A. express her gratitude to the little boy.

B. recall one of her dark blue days.

C. promote a positive attitude towards life.

D. show respect to the blind boy.

47. Which of the statements about the story is true?

A. Though in low spirits, the author was delighted to enjoy others’ company.

B. Frustrated, the author wanted to keep her own company.

C. The flower was beautiful but was not attractive to the author.

D. Knowing she’s unhappy, the boy wanted to please the author.

48. The underlined word “vibrant” in Para. 3 can be replaced by ___________.

A. dead    B. dry        C. dark          D. bright

49. In Paragraph 4, the author thanked the boy because _____.

A. The boy gave the flower to her.

B. The boy was blind but kind.

C. The author showed pity for the boy.

D. The flower was a window to beauty for the author.

50. We can infer from the passage that the author_______.

A. will go out of her trouble and be optimistic about later life.

B. used to be blind and pessimistic.

C. is a quiet person who enjoys being alone.

D. is an old and lonely woman.

B

GENEVA (Reuters) - Pregnant women and other people at high risk should be vaccinated (注射疫苗)against the H1N1 swine flu virus as the cold weather begins to bite in the northern hemisphere (地球的半球), the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.

It voiced concern that some vulnerable (脆弱的) people don’t have access to the pandemic(大范围流行病的)vaccine, which the WHO stressed had not caused any unusual side effects in hundreds of thousands of people to have received it worldwide so far.

"Certainly the fact that the vaccine isn't being used by those who would have access to it and who would be in high risk groups is of concern, yes," WHO spokesman Gregory Hart told a news briefing.

At least 5,712 people have died from the swine flu virus, according to the United Nations agency. Health workers, pregnant women and people with conditions such as asthma (哮喘)  are considered at greatest risk and should be of top priority (优先权) for getting the shot.

"We have seen many, many examples of people in high risk groups such as pregnant women who have very severe disease or outcomes. These outcomes could be very probably avoided if one were to get vaccinated," Hart said.

Unlike seasonal flu, which is most dangerous to the elderly, H1N1 is hitting younger adults and children especially hard.

The WHO recommends a single vaccine dose for protecting adults against H1N1. It has also urged governments to consider giving a single dose (剂量) to as many children under age 10 as possible, but says more research is needed into child dosages.

In the United States, studies show that children under the age of 9 will need two doses of the vaccine to be fully protected, officials there said on Monday.

Parts of North America and Europe have already crossed the epidemic threshold, ahead of the normal influenza season which peaks in January and February for the northern hemisphere, WHO says.

51.  What is WHO probably most concerned about now?

A. Whether the vaccine has side effects or not.

B. How many people are infected by the H1N1 swine flu virus.

C. Whether pregnant women and those at high risk can get the vaccination.

D. What is the difference between H1N1 and seasonal flu.

52. According to the passage, what group of people are more vulnerable to H1N1 swine flu virus?

A. The elderly.              B. An adult with heart stroke.

C. A newly-born baby.    D. A teenage with asthma.

53. In Paragraph 4, “getting the shot” means__________?

A. being shot  B. being vaccinated  C. being cured      D. getting killed

54. What can we learn from this passage?

A. Pregnant women will surely get severe disease if infected with H1N1.

B. Seasonal flu is more likely to hit younger adults and children.

C. One more dose of vaccine should be given to children under 9.

D. About 6000 people have died from seasonal flu.

55. What is the main idea of the passage?

A. Pregnant women and other people at high risk ought to be vaccinated against the H1N1 swine flu virus.

B. Differences between H1N1flu and seasonal flu.

C. The harm caused by H1N1 swine flu virus.

D. A breakthrough in H1N1 cure: vaccination.