Ⅳ. Reading Comprehension (60 points)

　　Directions: There are five reading passages in this part. Each passage is followed by four questions. For each question there are four suggested answers marked A, B, C and D. Choose the best answer and blacken the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet.

　　Passage One

　　There are many stereotypes about the character of people in various parts of the United States. In the Northeast and Midwest, people are said to be closed and private. In the South and West, however, they are often thought of as being more open and hospitable. Ask someone from St. Louis where the nearest sandwich shop is, and he or she will politely give you directions. A New Yorker might eye you at first and after deciding it is safe to talk to you, might give you a rather unexpected explanation. A person from Georgia might be very kind about directing you and even suggest some different places to eat. A Texan just might take you to the place and treat you to lunch.

　　American stereotypes are abundant. New Englanders are often thought of as being friendly and helpful. Southerners are known for their hospitality and warmth. People from the western part of the United States are often considered very outgoing. These differences in character can be traced to different factors such as climate, living conditions, and historical development.

　　When travelling from place to place, Americans themselves are often surprised at the differing degrees of friendliness in the United States.

　　36. The main idea of the passage is __.

　　A. even Americans are surprised at the big differences among themselves

　　B. there are many differences in character in different parts of the USA

　　C. there are many reason for the differences

　　D. stereotypes about people are not necessarily true

　　参考答案：B

　　37. Which of the following is true according to the passage?

　　A. New Yorkers are usually open with strangers.

　　B. People from the South are usually considered good hosts.

　　C. The friendliest Americans travel from place to place.

　　D. Different parts have different customs and habits.

　　参考答案：B

　　38. The differences lie in the following except __ of the parts.

　　A. the weather

　　B. the history

　　C. geography

　　D. the names

　　参考答案：D

　　39. New Englanders are often thought of as being __.

　　A. hospital and warm

　　B. out going

　　C. friendly and helpful

　　D. all of the above

　　参考答案：C

　　Passage Two

　　The world's oceans have warmed 50 percent faster over the last 40 years than previously thought due to climate change, Australian and US climate researchers reported Wednesday. Higher ocean temperatures expand the volume of water, contributing to a rise in sea levels that is covering small island nations and threatening to destroy the low-lying, densely-populated low regions around the globe.

　　The study, published in the British journal Nature, adds to a growing scientific chorus of warnings about the pace and consequences rising oceans. It also serves as a corrective to a massive report issued last year by the Nobel-winning UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), according to the authors.

　　Rising sea levels are driven by two things: the thermal expansion of sea water, and additional water from melting sources of ice. Both processes are caused by global warming. The ice sheet that sits atop Greenland, for example, contains enough water to raise world ocean levels by seven meters, which would bury sea-level cities from Dhaka to Shanghai.

　　Trying to figure out how much each of these factors contributes to rising sea levels is critically important to understanding climate change, and forecasting future temperature rises, scientists say. But up to now, there has been a puzzling gap between the projections of computer-based climate models, and the observations of scientists gathering data from the oceans.

　　The new study, led by Catia Domingues of the Centre for Australian Weather and Climate Research, is the first to reunite the models with observed data. Using new techniques to assess ocean temperatures to a depth of 700 meters from 1961 to 2003, it shows that thermal warming contributed to a 0.53 millimeter-per-year rise in sea levels rather than the 0.32 mm rise reported by the IPCC.

　　40. What happens when the ocean's temperature rises?

　　A. It causes sea levels to rise.

　　B. It causes sea levels to decrease.

　　C. It causes sea levels to remain unchanged.

　　D. It causes sea flood all over the globe.

　　参考答案：A

　　41. The rise in water levels is especially dangerous for small island nations and __.

　　A. low-lying urban areas

　　B. all coastal cities

　　C. people who live on the beach

　　D. Shanghai

　　参考答案：A

　　42. Ultimately, the new study should help scientists to __.

　　A. lower water levels

　　B. change their opinions

　　C. better predict climate change

　　D. bury sea-level cities like Dhaka and Shanghai

　　参考答案：C

　　43. What was the main finding of the study?

　　A. The warming of the world's oceans is not a threat.

　　B. That not enough is being done about global warming.

　　C. There is a puzzling gap between the model and observations.

　　D. Ocean waters have warmed faster than scientists had previously thought.

　　参考答案： C

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