B. Choose the words or expressions to complete the passage(选择最恰当的单词或词语,完成短文): (12分)

Venezuela(委内瑞拉)has produced many successful beauty queens, winning both Miss Universe(环球小姐)and Miss World five times. Many Venezuelan girls believe that they can gain confidence, poise(体

态), public speaking skills and better ways to prepare for the future in beauty pageants(选美比赛). From a very young age, girls in this country grow up dreaming of becoming Miss Venezuela. In Venezuela, the term(称谓) “Miss” as in “Miss Universe” is an honored ___80____.

These days, people in some countries consider beauty contests to be silly. They have tried to stop these contests, saying the contests treat women as objects(物品)and place too much importance ____81____ women's looks. Others even say that all the girls that go there are made in a lab and they are made to look less like themselves, and more like the “ideal”(完美形象). But in Latin America, beauty contests are a source of pride.

Are Venezuelan women really more beautiful than other women? “They are not really more beautiful here,” says Selena, who trains girls for the contest. “It's just that the girls here work harder and prepare more than anyone else.”

The preparation takes many hours a day. The contestants(竞赛选手) stretch(伸展)their bodies and practice their walks down the runway. They work on their speeches and practice answering questions such as, “Whom do you admire most in the world?” They starve(挨饿)to ___82__ slim. They take classes to learn how to style their ____83____ and apply make-up(化妆品).

It isn't easy. One Miss Universe winner immediately put on 20 pounds after the contest. She said the only thing she wanted to do after the contest was to eat. The cost is ___84____as well. Fortunately the television station that holds the contest pays the costs.

Yet most of the contestants say it's worth the effort. A former Miss Universe is now mayor(市长)of a large city. Although she had no political experience before ___85____, she has been asked to run for higher political office. Winners have an advantage they could not get anywhere else. “It's the only chance you have to make it.” says one contestant. “You can't get these opportunities by any other way.”

80. A) prize B) title C) fame D) name

81. A) of B) in C) to D) on

82. A) look B) seem C) stay D) make

83. A) hair B) clothes C) bodies D) steps

84. A) high B) expensive C) much D) large

85. A) this B) that C) it D) those

C. Read the passage and fill in the blanks with proper words (在短文的空格内填入适当的词,使内容通顺, 每空格限填一词，首字母已给): (14分)

It may be hard to believe that many people eat insects (昆虫)and bugs(虫子). Insects are now very common in all of their processed food(加工食品). Imagine sitting down at the dinner table and b___86____ served a bowl of worms(软体虫). It’s enough to make most Westerners stomachs t____87____. But in other countries the same meal makes people’s mouths water. Eating bugs has been around for thousands of years in some countries . Today it’s estimated(估计)that more than half of the people of the world eat different kinds of bugs. Not only do these insects taste g__88___, but also they are a cheap and nutritious food source. In the US, some people eat bugs for quite a different reason to show their courage. In television shows l____89_____ Survivor, contestants(参赛者)eat beetles(甲壳虫)and spiders(蜘蛛), and viewers watch the shows at home, feeling shocked and disgusted(恶心的). But many of the viewers don’t realize that they may have done the same thing but just don’t know it! Many American people don’t p____90_____ eat bugs, but in the future they may. There are fewer and fewer natural r___91____ and the population is getting larger and larger. Experts say that insects will be raised as an alternative(可供选择的)form of protein(蛋白质). If more people did their part to eat bugs and broaden their diets and did not just go out and eat chicken, beef and pork, the planet would be better off (境况改善) today. Western children are not as n___92____ about bugs as their parents, because they often visit science museums and zoos, and at school they are learning more about the environment and bugs.

D. Answer the questions (根据短文内容回答下列问题)：(12分)

George Washington Carver was a scientist who helped farmers learn how to grow new crops and take better care of the soil. He studied many different plants and crops, but some of his favourites were peanuts, sweet potatoes and pecans(美洲山核桃).

We don’t know exactly when George Washington Carver was born, but it was probably sometime in the 1860s. His mother was a slave(奴隶) owned by a farmer in Missouri(密苏里州)named Moses Carver. Young George Carver was fascinated by plants and flowers. He tended(照料)his own little garden. People began to see what a gift (天赋)he had for growing things. They called him the “the plant doctor” and asked him to help them grow their gardens better.

George longed to go to school. But in those days most schools only taught white children. So, George had to move to a town eight miles away to attend a school for black children. At that time, some people wrongly believed that a black child should not get any education.

His determination carried him all the way through college. In 1894, George Washington Carver graduated from Iowa State University. Soon he was invited to teach at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, a college created especially for African-American students. It was just what Carver wanted: a place where he could study plants and agriculture, and help educate other black men and women.

Carver wanted to help farmers in the South. They had been raising cotton for many years，and the crops weren't growing strong and healthy any more. Carver said they needed to improve the soil by growing other crops, like peanuts. People laughed and called peanuts monkey food. Nobody ate peanuts then. One evening a group of important people came to dinner at Tuskegee. George Washington Carver planned the menu. What do you think he served? Peanut soup, peanut bread, creamed peanuts, peanut cookies and peanut ice cream for dessert(甜点)!

In his laboratory Carver learned how peanuts could be used to make shoe polish(鞋油)，ink, oil, shampoo(洗发精), soap(肥皂)，and shaving cream (剃须膏). Altogether, Carver discovered over three hundred ways to use the peanut. People started calling him “the Wizard (奇才)of Tuskegee”.

What did George Washington Carver help farmers do?

___________________________________________________________.

People don’t know the exact birthday of George Washington Carver, do they?

____________________________________________________________.

Why did he study at a school far away?

____________________________________________________________.

How could the farmers in the South improve their soil?

____________________________________________________________.

How many things could peanuts be used to make in Carver’s laboratory?

____________________________________________________________.

Why did Carver serve some important guests with a lot of peanut food?

____________________________________________________________.

VII. Writing (作文): (共20分)

99. April 23 is World Reading Day. Write a short passage of at least 60 words to call on your classmates to get into good habits of reading and read more good books. (4月23日是“世界读书日”,请你写一篇短文，呼吁全班同学以实际行动迎接“世界读书日”的到来，为创建“书香校园”，多读书、读好书，养成课外读书的好习惯。字数不少于60个，标点符号不占格。要求内容切题，意思连贯.)

( 注意：短文中不得出现考生的姓名、校名及其它相关信息，否则不予评分. )

Use the following points as a guide. (短文须包含下列要点):

1. What do the students who are not interested in study usually do in their spare time?

2.What are the advantages of reading?

3.What are your suggestions?