?III. Reading Comprehension

Section A?

Directions: For each blank in the following passage there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with the word or phrase that best fits the context.

International Women's Day is celebrated to recognize that peace and social progress require the active participation and equality of women, and to acknowledge the contribution of women to international peace and security.

For the women of the world, the Day is a(n) __50__ to review how far they have come in their __51__ for equality, peace and development. You might think that women's equality benefits mostly women, __52__ every one percent growth in female secondary schooling results in a 0.3 percent __53__ in the economy. Yet girls are often __54__ from receiving education in the poorest countries that would best benefit from the economic growth. __55__ the men and women work together to secure the rights and full potential of women, lasting __56__ to the world's most serious social, economic and political problems are unlikely to be found.

In recent decades, much __57__ has been made. On a worldwide level, women's __58__ to education and proper health care has increased; their participation in paid work has __59__; and legislation(立法) that promises __60__ opportunities for women and respect for their human rights has been __61__ in many countries. The world now has an ever-growing number of women participating in society as policy-makers. However, __62__ in the world can women claim to have all the same rights and opportunities as men. The majority of the world's 1.3 billion absolute poor are __63__. On average, women receive between 30 and 40 percent less pay than men earn for the same work. And everywhere, women continue to be __64__ of violence, with insult and domestic violence listed as significant causes of disability and death among women of reproductive age worldwide.

50. A. example B. occasion C. situation D. case

51. A. struggle B. mistake C. treatment D. respect

52. A. so B. although C. but D. and

53. A. permission B. understanding C. decrease D. growth

54. A. kept B. escaped C. protected D. resulted

55. A. Until B. Once C. If D. When

56. A. entrances B. problems C. solutions D. devotions

57. A. advance B. mistake C. estimate D. progress

58. A. access B. devotion C. refusal D. adoption

59. A. declined B. grown C. become less D. deepened

60. A. better B. equal C. different D. many

61. A. adopted B. shown C. refused D. taught

62. A. somewhere B. everywhere C. anywhere D. nowhere

63. A. women B. men C. children D. old people

64. A. fighters B. survivors C. victims D. makers?

Section B

Directions: Read the following three passages. Each passage is followed by several questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage you have just read.?

(A)

A 63-year-old man who hasn't slept for more than two decades has been told there is nothing wrong with him by doctors.

Ukrainian Fyodor Nesterchuk from the town of Kamen-Kashirsky said the last time he managed to sleep was more than two decades ago.

"I can't remember the exact date and I don't know why it started, but all of a sudden I found it more and more difficult to nod off until eventually I was awake the entire night. I used to read boring scientific magazines in the hope that they would send me to sleep. But as soon as I felt my eyes getting closed and put the magazine down, I would find myself wide awake again. I thought it would just be a period of time but it has gone on for over two decades now and I've simply had to get used to it. Now when everyone else sleeps I get stuck into a good book," said Nesterchuk.

All attempts by doctors to put him to sleep have failed. Local doctor Fyodor Koshel who has examined Nesterchuk extensively and has been unable to make him fall asleep, said he has no idea of the cause of the insomnia and added medically there is nothing wrong with him. "We have no idea why he can't sleep, maybe it's the result of a past illness. But in terms of medical science, he's not in any pain and so there isn't anything actually wrong with him," said Dr Koshel. ?

65. What is special about Nesterchuk?

A. He hasn’t slept for more than two decades and is quite weak now.

B. Only doctors can make him sleep with the help of medicines.

C. He hasn’t slept for over 20 years but he is still healthy.

D. He hasn’t slept for over 2 years and he is worried about himself.

66. The underlined word “insomnia” in the last paragraph probably means _________.

A. tiredness B. sleeplessness C. worry D. disappointment

67. Which of the following is TRUE about Nesterchuk’s failing to sleep?

A. Only Nesterchuk himself knows why it started.

B. No one is sure about why it started.

C. It must have been a past illness that caused it.

D. With medical analysis, his doctor knows how it started.

68. In which section of a newspaper are you most likely to find this passage?

A. Front Page B. Entertainment C. Education D. Life

(B)

?69. If Alice wants her twelve-year-old daughter to learn some German in the summer vacation, it is possible for her to send her daughter to __________.

A. Dallas International School B. Summer Language Courses

C. English Courses D. Gulf ESL

70. Jim is going to study in Beijing next year, so you advise him to attend ___________.

A. Online School B. English Courses

C. Chinese Mandarin Class D. Gulf ESL

71. If Kitty, who is a Chinese student studying in a college in the U.K., wants to stay in a local family while studying English in the summer vacation, she can apply to ______.

A. Dallas International School B. Summer Language Courses

C. English Courses D. Gulf ESL?